Something worth noting is Roxas's relationship with Saïx in 358/2 Days. Saïx is constantly trying to keep Roxas on the path best suited to the Organization's needs and relentlessly dehumanizes Xion at every available opportunity, disregarding their personhood and right to be themselves. In addition, when Roxas confronts Saïx as he flees from the castle, he is still able to defeat Saïx with what I assume is little difficulty, even when nearly drained of all his power because of Xion. I think that fight represents how even with the weight of everything going on in Roxas's life, he still has the strength to stand up to those who seek to oppress those they deem as inferior.
If you look at the sequence of Ven’s story in Birth by Sleep at the end of his trip to Radiant Garden Isa wasn’t as warm to Ventus as Lea was. There’s also that Saix saw Roxas as taking his spot as Axel’s friend, even though we don’t see much effort from Axel to maintain the friendship like they has as younger Somebodies.
@@AlexxxMYLSince2013 Indeed, that is interesting. I believe the metaphor behind that is Roxas making a promise that he vows to himself to keep, but won't be able too for a while until Kingdom Hearts III.
Roxas' story helped me get through the worst part of my life. He and Xion's lives have helped me to stay strong as I tackle my own depression and fights of identity
@@nobodybroda3826it’s crazy that they said he’s not strong to take on Xemnas but he at 10% was able to defeat powerful heartless and beat Saix I hate the remake movie didn’t include that
The fact that KH3 ends with Roxas getting everything he's ever wanted while Sora loses everything is something that I never would have expected. From closure I never thought I would have to an even tougher gut punch. I wonder if even Nomura understood at the time just how prophetic Data Roxas' words to Sora were: "The hurt owns you now, Sora. Don't you see that? It's a wound that will never end." Those two eternally live rent free in my head.
Off topic, but I GOTTA get this revelation off my chest. What I found unique in 358/2 Days is Xion had a new face when she interacted with Roxas. But when we cut to Axel doing all the talking, we kinda see through HIS perspective that Xion's hood is still covered. But little by little as he warmed up to Xion through Roxas, he could see that face Xion now had. The cutscenes made it pretty clear in both the DS and the HD movie on that, and it's an incredibly amazing detail.
Roxas is one of the most tragic characters in the whole series. Sora WANTED the call to adventure. He wanted to leave his island. All Roxas has ever wanted is just to be a normal kid with his friends. He's very much like Pinocchio who equally wanted to be a real boy and grappled with being manipulated by others for their own agenda. I think he grows to hate Sora because so much of the misery in his life is because of his connection to him. It's what makes his decision of "giving up" and returning to Sora one of the bravest decisions in his life because, in a way, he gives up his autonomy as much as he wants to hold it. But in the post KH2 games, talking and fighting with Sora, Sora validates everything -- the pain in his life and that he deserves to be his own person. It REALLY helps him to understand that Sora is not his enemy. Ironically by "giving up" his autonomy and fully embracing Sora, he gains the freedom and autonomy he always wanted. He's now in his own person and so are his friends. He doesn't have to fight for anybody that he doesn't want too and he can just spend time with his friends. One of the BEST character stories in the whole series!! 🤍🖤
Imo Roxas will forever be the best written character in this series as well as arguably the strongest. Keep in mind he beats siax with little to no issue, forced Riku to make a Faustian deal to win, and on top of that when they were sapping his strength as well as the memories trapped in him to awaken Sora he still managed to beat Axel. now an argument could be made that yes Axel was holding back, but keep in mind that this was the organization's assassin whose major role was to kill defectors, who not only manage to take out xion once by surprise, he managed to do it again in a straight up fight when she had absorbed so much from Roxas.
I very much believe Roxas could have killed Riku, killed Xemnas, and completed Kingdom Hearts himself, at which point he would essentially become God. I wonder what it would look like if Roxas remade the multiverse in his image the way Xehanort wanted to… Would he even change all that much besides bringing Xion back? Definitely a lot of fanfic potential there.
@@DreigonixWell, keep in mind Xemnas also has that whole 'can you spare a Heart' attack, even with a 'weakened' Kingdom Hearts, able to warp reality (created a flying dragon thing or whatever) and could make a second clone. Even without Kingdom Hearts, he still managed to pull Sora into a 'fake' World That Never Was, and possibly stop time? (KH1.) We never see Roxas use Time Magic. We can assume he can as Sora learned it quite quickly, same as how Xion uses gravity, but, yeah. It'd be a hard fight, but I unfortunately think Roxas would lose, he'd have his Heart stolen by Xemnas like Sora would have had if Riku wasn't there. Now, Sea Salt Trio together, or with Riku and possibly Mickey? Yeah, I could see it.
@@voiceofthelegion578 I _am_ writing a fic kinda like that, but it is _also_ a very very explicit and indulgent Roxas/Xion And Also A Bunch Of Other People fic, so… some things never change, I guess. XD
@@Dreigonix Hey man, power to whatever you want to write, but as a non shipping avid fanfic reader, I'm just in constant pain with multiple fandoms, and never miss the opportunity to complain about it. I'm sure your fic is great though.
It’s very telling that a scene in KHIII where Sora thinks strongly about Roxas is in San Fransokyo on the Golden Gate Bridge when he, Donald, Goofy and Big Hero 6 are eating ice cream, likening Roxas to a brother just as Tadashi is one to Hiro. He sees himself as Roxas with Hayner, Pence and Olette eating sea salt ice cream in the same scene. The fact Hayner, Pence and Olette are as determined as Sora to give Roxas his own existence even though their interaction with him was one day a while ago shows how strong a bond he formed with them in conjunction with knowing about their digital counterparts.
One thing I love about Roxas's theme, The Other Promise, is that it always has a part that is moving and changing. Even when the main melody is holding a longer note, the background continues to move and change. They chose a flute to represent the melody of his main theme, which is usually a very bright and happy instrument. They use the key and that flute to help give his theme a sense of forlorn heroism. And this "Forlorn Hero" theme shows itself more and more after Roxas starts to lose the connections he makes. The newer remastered version includes an organ, a choir, and more low strings, connecting his theme to that of the Organization. Those change to a piano and a set of the high strings during the chorus of the song, which detaches his theme from the Organization's for a few fleeting moments before the organ, choir, and low strings return.
As pointed by another commenter in the uploads of the OST, they made very beautiful comparisons about the instruments, but let me bring attention to the piano, to contrast the flute you mentioned. The Flute _is_ Roxas, greiving over *everything.* Losing Xion, losing Axel, discovering he's being maniuplated not once but twice, that *he is not his own self.* And yet, after all that he cries out for, a piano drowns him out. That sounds way more uplifted than he is. _Much like Sora, who is usually upbeat and cheery, to which he, the Flute, had lost everything to and is the _*_ROOT and REASON_*_ why he lost everything - portryed by how the said instrument defiantly plays back taking the lead from the piano before mellowing back to his sorrow._
@@NinjaWarotMCph I absolutely love that! Thanks for pointing out those observations. Makes me appreciate that theme even more. To add on even more, the song that plays in KH3 during the fight after Roxas returns, Hearts as One, brings out the heroic side of both Roxas's and Xion's themes. In that one, I like to think Roxas takes the piano for himself with Sora as the supporting brass fanfares. Xion's theme takes the limelight for a bit in the form of the flute, getting more cheery as the phrase goes along, all while the piano stays by the side never overpowering the flute. I honestly just adore this game's soundtrack.
This might be an unpopular opinion but I feel Roxas and Xion bond is closer then romantic, they are best friends who need each other. The series is about friendship (I don’t want to start the ship wars on the destiny island trio) so their bond is special enough without going into the romantic sense.
@JabamiLain clue me in on what I missed? What's this about Namine being immoral and unethical? Not defending the character just confused by what ya said. It's been a hot minute since I played all the kh games 2019
I dont care how much i know this story, this video still made me cry like a baby. Roxas is one of the deepest characters in this series. Thanks for making this bro! Great job!!
I’ve always resonated strongly with Roxas, and the idea of Nobodies in general, and seen a lot of myself in them. Not to get too deep into things, but I first played Days as a young teen (my first KH, too,) and even then I was no stranger to depression. However, I didn’t quite understand it as depression at the time. What I did know was that at a certain point, I couldn’t tell if I was feeling too much emotion, or nothing at all… It all seemed to blend into a numb haze. And as many so often do, I masked that numbness in a facade of normality and practiced smiles. Got so used to it I had a hard time telling when I was acting, and when I was actually feeling. (Still do sometimes, to be honest.) So to have these characters who were supposed to feel nothing, yet seemed to anyway, and even they couldn’t tell how much of it was an act… It hit hard for me. Felt like someone else “got it,” even when I didn’t. As a result Roxas, and Days as a whole, became something very dear to my heart. Special in that way that only the right art at the right time can be. Always happy to see these things getting the love I feel they deserve, and it definitely gets me a bit sentimental. Heh, maybe a little too much so, sorry.
Roxas has always struck me as the negative emotions that Sora tries to suppress until he ultimately has to accept them (symbolized in KH3 when Roxas returns).
I think that's a tad reductive... Roxas strikes me as fundamentally different from Sora on almost every level. Coded was a less than stellar game, but it established one thing: Sora knew pain. He knew loss and abandonment. Roxas's emotions weren't born from any suppressed negativity on Sora's part, but rather his own trials and tribulations.
Roxas tried to be the glue of the trio, but someone threw water before it settled in 19:03 btw I just love the fact that this scene happens just after he beats the shit out of his supervisor. He is still a kid, after all, when everything is hopeless and lost, one can only go to their happy place and assume the fetal position
This video, broke me a bit, at the end. While I see myself a lot in Aqua, I see my _journey_ through Roxas'. That last scene of Roxas with all of his friends, it got me. I've, lost so much due to things outside of my control. My whole life, torn from me, and then I was placed in a situation outside of my control. Where suddenly, my life wasn't my own, and was told not only that this is the way things were supposed to be, but on some level made to believe that my resentment at not having control over my life is something to be ashamed of. That, and your discussion at the end on grief, has given me the drive I needed to push forward. I, I _won't_ give up, and I won't stop fighting. I'll return to my own sky, one day. I know it. Thank you, for giving this Princess, enough drive to keep fighting to break her chains, and to one day return to the blue sky that _she_ remembers is hers.
Hey Bio? Could you do a psychology of Namine video one day? She is really underused by the fandom and honestly unlike the sea salt trio she doesn’t even have true friends until the end of KH3 (she even suggests to Sora they only care about Roxas and not her in the final world).
I, too, would very much like to see a breakdown of her character because growing up, I used to really dislike her. Somehow, I had it in my head that she was far more responsible for the suffering Roxas went through. (Rather than the people who used her for their own reasons.) Nowadays I'm just sorta lost what to think about her.
@@BioRoxas thank you! I know people tend to sympathize with Xion or Roxas more due to 358/2 days but I kinda give more sympathy to Namine. She had no one in her entire existence she could actually call a friend. I think she feels Sora only considered her a friend because she messed with his memories (although I think honestly knowing Sora personality if they met officially he could befriend her regardless), data Riku she probably feels guilt for messing his memories Real Riku was only focused on waking up Sora (their interactions seems rather short and formal in 358/2 days and KH2) Diz openly referred to her as a witch (which the organization members like Larxene called her too) due his prejudice against all nobodies (due to what his apprentices did) but in KH3 his treatment of Roxas and Namine is one of his biggest regrets. Axel threatened to use her as a shield and they kinda had a moment in KH2FM escaping but Axel was focused on getting back Roxas still But luckily for Namine by KH3 Sora assured her she is NOT alone. And it seems that data Riku did have a genuine want to save her as he gave up his chance to be reborn in a replica to give to Namine.
@@BioRoxas nice! And maybe show how the interactions she has with the few people she knows kinda could play into her lack of self worth (at least the sea salt trio constantly had each other even to the end) Namine doenst have these sort of positive relationships with people.
Ice cream crew is prolly my favorite . I love them and i cry everytime that reunion scene plays. Like i cant even stop from tearing up for seeing the whole crew on the clocktower I dont have to be immersed or anything the scene hits by itself
I've seen some say Roxas is pretty much Cloud's story again with tweaks right down to his design. Living a life that wasn't really his, to finding out he was an imposter.Taking their involvement with Shinra/Org13, their manipulation at the hands of Sephiroth and Xemnas,, the death of both Zack and Xion prompting them..
Considering a big part of Roxas's character is how he's his own person and how he's constantly compared to Sora. Imagine if a plot point in the future is everyone keeps mistaking him for Ventus and some people attack him for it And then anytime someone sees Ventus they think he's Roxas and leave him alone
The scene where Xion starts crying at the end just makes me immediately 🥺 Like, no small bean dont cry and Roxas' little hops to get to her while Lea watches. I love this trio so much and i cant wait to see where they go in the next saga 😭
The "who will I have icecream with" line is so incredibly misunderstood. Most people just think it's hilarious, but it's sad on a deep level. It's literally the only way he knows to communicate loss. He is so depraved of personhood that he doesn't even believe that he's feeling real emotions...
*358 Trio FINALLY Reunites* me: *happy tears* Axel: Guess I should’ve brought some ice cream me: *launches into orbit as the first rocket powered by tears*
Roxas' helped me through the loss of my forever sleeping daughter. She would be 13 but I remember just playing the games on autopilot trying to feel anything. I had a lot of dark days, dark thoughts, and i had a hard time getting out of it. I'm grateful to my therapist she was amazing. I remember one time all I wanted to talk about of kingdom hearts in a season and she asked me why I kept playing these games and liked Roxas so much and for some reason those made it all connected. I was finally able to start to process...it's still hard...the what could have been can sometimes be the worst. My rainbow children are an amazing blessing. Sorry that was heavy I tend to over share I'm working on that too
Roxas, Xion, and Axel will always be my favorite crew in kh. I had always felt like I resonated with both Roxas and Xion. Days was even my first kh game. I had never really thought about it till now about Roxas going through grief through the series and now I’m even more glad I played kh3 to see them finally get their happy ending.
Poor Roxas. He's really struggled so much. He feels like he was not ment to exist but Sora knows he deserves to have his own life and a heart. Thats why he got so emotionally when seeing him in Dream Drop Distanc.e
Congrats, you made me cry. I wrote a whole paper on Roxas in High School, y'know. It was a character study; an example of tragedy in storytelling. At the time, I was dealing with my own major loss, so a part of me empathized with the portrayal of Roxas. I had just lost my mother, and I was put into an abusive setting. In Roxas, I found a mirror to my grief, to my pain. Whenever somebody asks me what my favorite Kingdom Hearts game is, I'll tell them Days, because of all these heartfelt, amazing games, none have ever touched my heart the way it did. Roxas knew loss. He knew grief and sadness. He often felt alone in a world that made no sense to him. And in the end, despite all of his fighting, he had to accept the inevitability of his own death. He had to accept that despite how he might fight, he cannot change the world around him. He can only move forward.
I said it before and I'll say it again: getting gaslit, gatekept and girlbossed around for almost a year straight changes a guy specially if said guy was born that same year. Also, loved the video.
Regardless of the memeing, that line, "Who will I have ice cream with," just makes me want to break down crying. At base, we're all just grown-up kids, and that line sounds like a real kid losing their best friend. I can just feel the raw devastation of somebody stripped down to their core in that line. Thank you for another one of these beautiful psychology videos. I'm looking forward to listening to the others. God be with you out there, everybody. ✝️ :)
Roxas was always a character that i related to, hell i've got his cross as a necklace that i had for years, his story help me through a lot, it definitely why he's my favourite character. Edit: about grief, it something that I've been dealing with, and hearing you talk about it was beautiful.
Roxas absolutely broke my heart growing up. I had/have those same anxieties and a hole very profound in my heart. I don’t have family and so my friends meant everything to me. I always feel as if my struggles in wanting my friends to stay in my life is the thing damaging my heart even more. It’s hard. You grow up and see people finding forever homes with new loved ones or start building a new life and all you have left is this…emptiness. It’s hard.
I’m sorry to hear that :( it does hurt to lose people.. finding that inner peace is important though. Sometimes we wrap up a lot of our identity in others and so when we lose them, it feels like we lose ourselves
Oh I didn’t even think of the similarities between the Twilight gang and sea salt trio convos. Great video as always, Bio ^^ Would love to see you do a video on Terra or Ven ^^!
Beautiful video. Roxas was already my favorite character in the series, but this video definitely pushed my love for him to next level. I was holding back tears at the half way point, until you just had to show the reunion with the tragic three.
The concept of non-existence is fascinating and can be stretched for everything, because everything will eventually end, and eventually all memories will fade away as intended. It is genius to explore it through characters that actually know it beforehand and try to find their meaning and indentities regardless of that fact. The story of Roxas or Xion always brings me to tears, and this video also did! Great work!
358/2 is what got me into KH, and honestly, nothing has quite captured that same spark since. Something about roxas' story is just impossible to replicate within sora's, and i tend to find sora's unrestrained optimism as a bit of a downside in comparison, brushing away anything that could even get close to roxas' emotional depth in story. Sora shines when he is carrying the pain of others, but then there is the gameplay of KH3 that burned me: pointless filler that goes practically nowhere until they force all the good of KH into the last 30ish minutes of the game. Ive heard good things about the DLC, but 3 burned me so much i struggle to bring myself to even try it. The days trio makes me cry, sora feels like a saturday morning cartoon where threats never pose any risk to his character development.
@@BioRoxas it is less the nature of sora and more the result that it often underplays the emotional stakes of a scenario unless he is directly addressing the pain he is carrying for his friends. "power of friendship" is an extremely overdone trope, to the point any media attempting it has to go above and beyond to make it land as anything more than a shallow "saturday morning cartoon with no stakes" vibe. KH can get there, but more time than not, it is a counterpoint to the antagonist's villainy without backing it up. We as the audience might understand it, but used as a counterpoint, the legwork isnt put in to even attempt to convince the villains how it could "save" them. If anything, it is only explored on the hero's side and sora making friends with the corssovers who were already good. Sora's friendship hasnt done much "redemption" outside of the days trio he never directly meets. Roxas is a journey of autonomy by your own admittance, so you cant say much if any of roxas' journey redeeming axel can be attributed to sora himself. I already made my complaints about KH3, but it does sour my taste on sora in a general sense, as the "saturday morning cartoon" vibes are strongest there with the lack of more serious FF characters to balance it out and the clear disney marketing arm that leaves little room for the devs to explore the disney side any farther that what was cannoically shown in their own movies. There is no twists in KH3's disney worlds where organization xiii changes the sequence of events, sora is just secondary trying to keep the disney untouched in the background. Did we really need a complete remake of "let it go" for example?! I have mad respect for such an optimist as sora and the fact he can carry it without any irony, it just doesnt emotionally resonate unless the emotions between sora and someone else are being directly compared by the story's narrative. Then on the gameplay front, it is really hard to go back to KH1 WITHOUT the nostalgia goggles that come from following the adventure from the start. 358/2 days is far from perfect, but it sets up gameplay expectations that dont quite match up with the entries beforehand yet fit in perfectly with how the series slowly evolves after it. As a nintendo kid, of course my experiences with the series started from the "spinoffs" that made it to the nintendo systems, and i'd find it more accurate to say ive gotten the story of 1 through re:coded's retelling. If anything, the problem is finding the motivation to get through KH1 before moving onto KH2, just so the context isnt completely lost. XD
This lovely insight into Roxas reminds me of how much he and Ven both deal with similar situations of struggling to keep their respective families from splitting due to the plans and tinkering of outside forces. They have such different backgrounds yet fight with everything their hearts are capable of to keep the bonds they’ve formed from tearing asunder. Thanks again for your hard work and effort.
I've always wondered why Roxas wields Oblivion on his right, and Oathkeeper on his left. Notice that when Sora is on Double Form, the held keyblades are swapped. Uh, btw what were you gonna say regarding Roxas's clash with Sora by the end of KH2? This part got skipped, idk why. 28:55 Oof there's an image and sound delay. What impresses me is that just like Sora, Roxas was able to forgive Axel after what happened by the end of days and the start of KH2, and they were all able to forgive Saïx when he became Isa again. Meanwhile it took some time for Sora to trust Iago.
358/2 Day was the first Kingdom Hearts game I've ever played and no matter how many times I see the aftermath of the fight with Xion and especially Riku, it just makes my heart ache seeing the memories of Xion and Axel fade in and out... Seeing the trio FINALLY reunite in 3 had me screaming and crying all over the place. They deserve the world and more after all that pain. Truly peak storytelling! AMAZING Video!
This was a fantastic deep dive into Roxas, and it helped me "line the pieces up" a little better as to why he is my favorite character in the entire series. You truly did a great job on this video, and the ending bit was definitely an "Icing on the Cake" moment.
It's crazy because I started with KH2 on playstation 3 or 2. I loved the intro and I thought that I was going to play him for the whole game. It saddened me to experience the whole game as Sora after that introduction. I've made the number XIII a part of my being because of him. This guy changed me, and so did KH in general. Roxas will always be my favorite.
Roxas still is my favorite Charakter in KH so it is maybe no wonder why days is so dear to me (especially because i played it in a time in which i asked myself what friendship really meant
Roxas will forever be my favorite character in the series. Superbly well written, has the best story in game in my opinion. (please fully remake days, the 1.5 animated videos left out so much of the story and context). Cant wait to see him in the future because i really doubt Nomura forgets about him for the upcoming arc vs the MoM or whoever the new big bad is. Funnily enough I also compare Roxas very heavily with Silver from the Sonic series due to their mannerisms, tragic stories and how they deal with things as well.
Winner! I have been crying for the past ten minutes after watching this video. It perfectly encapsulates a deep and remarkable character. One that was integral to unlocking my own secrets, helping me to realize who I was. My struggles with identity and grief really resonated with Roxas introduced. Thank you for such a remarkable video.
Decided to watch this while eating dinner and I started crying in my food Edit: a friend of mine was recently killed, and so this video about grief and loss really hits close to home. But it was also helpful, so thank you ❤
As much as I love the characterization of Roxas in the games, I think I like it even more in the manga, especially in 358/2 Days. He and all the organization members are given even more personality, and it’s so fun to see
I want to thank you so much for these videos. Not only does it help me better appreciate the characters, but it often helps me remember why I found such a connection to them in the first place. Whether it’s because I aspired to be like them, or I felt that I experienced many of the same emotions they did. Makes me want to explore those emotions and strengths in them and find ways to use it for good in my own life. Again, thank you, BioRoxas.
Describing Roxas's use of Oathkeeper & Oblivion as a symbol of his Oath to save Xion, and his desire to cast Org XIII into Oblivion is something I never thought of before! Really cool way to think about it. Great video Bio.
This is easily one of the best analyses I’ve ever seen on a character before. And I myself have gone through a lot of the pain and grief Roxas has, meaning this really struck a cord with me. So, thank you. Seriously.
I Finally got around to watching this video in it's entirety and I got to say you nailed it as expected! You really understand his character and even raised points I hadn't really thought of! Days is my favorite game in the series because Roxas' Story is one i Identified with a lot through Highschool and even a little bit now as an Adult to the point this felt like therapy to me hahaha thank you for doing this series, it's always so fascinating. Keep up the good work!
Bit of a ramble, but remember that "Off day" that Roxas has? It's implied (if not, mentioned) that he's feeling that way because of Xion taking his strength/power. So is the final day when he fights Riku a show of him being back at full strength due to Xion being eliminated?
WINNER...But seriously, great video. I know I'm a month late to commenting, but knowing people like you are in the business of helping others with their mental stuff...It's reassuring. Thanks, and I hope Roxas gets some further exploration, too.
you know.. I think Inside out would be a pretty great world for Roxas if it became a world in KH4. after all its about trying to find yourself and accept others and their different purposes.
Roxas and ventus relates to me so much Roxas is my trying to find myself phase and trying to create some form of philosophy of friendship and trying to cope with many as Sora say “hurt”and ventus is basically my childish/crybaby trying to stand up for others and being there for others to lean on while being the baby boy of the friend group
I love this! Roxas is by far my favorite character(which I’ve heard is a bit controversial)the first game I played was days and I’ve always felt the closest to the days trio. On that note, I want to see a psychology of Axel/Lea. Seeing his side of days and the journey to get his friends back would be interesting.
It's sad how Roxas often gets simplified down to "angry Sora" (actually, a lot of KH characters get similar treatment). Even just looking at his role in KH2, he shows a diverse range of emotions and thoughts. I'd even say he's actually less easy to provoke into anger than Sora (who has poor control over his own darkness); he's just put into much worse situations that would provoke anyone. His anger at the injustice and lack of autonomy he was living through really resonated with me growing up. His resentment towards Sora in KH2 and Re:Coded was so well done, and his brief interaction in DDD was heart-wrenching. While there is always room to expand more on characters, I feel like he and Xion deserve a break. I would be fine if their story ended in KH3 (minus some cameos).
oh this was so lovely! i see so many videos using roxas to explore concepts of identity (which are perfectly valid considering how major of a role identity is to his story), but this is the first i've seen to look at his story though an angle of grief specifically. and your noting of the fact that roxas *repeatedly* experiences loss paired with the joy of connection was a nice detail to point out! it creates such a painful foundation for his ability form secure attachments. it's no wonder roxas cant bring himself to trust anyone anymore by the end of Days. thank you for putting so much time and work into this! and i just wanted to add a thank you for your ending note about grief in general. i experienced a major loss myself earlier this year and your words were really helpful to hear. and having them connected to a character that has meant the world to me since 2006 was extra impactful. thank you
Roxas will probably always be my favorite KH character. Heck, 5 years ago I even made a DND character based off of him and he is still my favorite PC I've ever played. It's inspiring to watch him grow and develop from someone who was given the purpose of fighting but would eventually choose his own purpose of protecting his friends. Sora telling him that he deserves to be his own person always resonates with me. I think it's a shame that there isn't too much more to dive into with Xion. I love her character and would be interested in a Psychology of Xion video but it seems like most of it would be retreading this video's points since they do mirror each other a lot. Regardless, this is a great video as always. Thank you Bio!
I hope you find your clarity soon :) I know it can be tough working through grief and identity and during that everything feels so chaotic. I hope you can find some peace soon
Thank you for making this video. At the end, when you are speaking, about grief, in this section, a brief discussion on grief, I started utterly crying. A part of me was saying, it hurts so much. My heart hurts so much. Even now, when I'm speaking these words, with the help of a speech-to-text function, my voice is still shaking. I still feel it right now. I'm doing this via speech, because it would be too much for me to write this down right now, to be honest. I went through so much in my life, so, so, so much. And for many years, I'm already on my healing journey with several therapists and coaches along the way. And things are changing. I'm changing. The people around me are changing, which is beautiful. But sometimes, sometimes a lot even, I still feel that deep pain inside of me. Because of what I experienced, I'm still like a child. I will need a lot of support to manage this life. So many things I never learned how to do. And I need people to teach me. On the one hand, I can say everything is okay. I will do this because I'm looking for people to help me, to support me. On the other hand, a part of me is still yearning for help. Yearning for someone to take care of me completely. As I was always seeking for that help in my life. For someone to finally rescue me out of the place back then where I lived with my father. It was hell. To me it was utter hell. And I was slways seeking a kind of vulnerability with people that might be very strange to most people. Not just emotional vulnerability, but also physically. No one that I ever had known was seeking that type of vulnerability. And I feel very lonely with that. I don't even know why I'm sharing all of this, but for some reason this is very important to me right now. So I do it. And whoever wants to answer, please be honest. You don't have to hold back. So, yeah. That's what I have to say.
I hope you continue to strive towards healing :) I don’t have any magic words or insight to give but it sounds like you’ve been through a hurtful time. I hope you’re able to find the peace and comfort you’re looking for.
@@BioRoxas Thank you for your kind words. I appreciate that a lot. Yeah, of course I continue my healing journey. I have no other choice if I want to live. My healing journey isn’t limited by doing therapy. Nearly everything I do in my life is part of it. Watching anime, playing games like Kingdom Hearts, being able to watch these characters growing and acting in a way I was missing in my life for so long. And greater truths in Kingdom Hearts, being able to sense truths, I can’t explain in full. Maybe knowledge I had before coming into this current body. Kingdom Hearts and other media, mostly anime and JRPGs seem to connect me to knowledge that I might have forgotten, but which is still sleeping deep inside of me. I‘ll have to face really painful memories. And I want to. I might have experienced one of the most painful experiences one can go through in my esrly childhood. I don’t remember it happening, but I feel it in my body. I‘m not sure if I should say it straight forward. Maybe you know already what I mean.
When I started with the stories of these games, Roxas was a character that I initially didn't like because I was more worried about what had happened to Sora, however, as time went on, Roxas quickly became my favorite character. The quality of this character is simply masterful and one of the best I've seen in many video games.
Wooo! Just woke up and I’m ready! ❤ Edit: this whole video was so calming and relaxing while I work on my gardening. (Hah I grabbed a stick as soon at you mentioned the meme part and laughed) You did a fantastic job in this video breaking down our ice cream loving boy. I honestly missed a out on how Roxas really took a lot of what Axel taught him and helped Sion in the same way and how he lost so much when it came to his friends. I didn’t even realize that’s why he’s so focused on ice cream because of Axel teaching him and that’s why we get that meme of him telling Sion about who’s going to eat ice cream with him now. I’m glad you did this cause I have so much more respect for Roxas as a character. No wonder my partner is a Roxas fan instead of a Sora fan. (He wishes we got an entire PS4 game just for Roxas POV instead of Sora’s) This was such a lovely breakdown and I’m all here for it! Now it’s time to rewatch in case I’ve missed some things❤
I've watched the psychology of Sora and then watched this..... I grew up with this game, having watched my dad play and beat the first game and then playing and beating the second game myself to being in high school waiting to hear news of KH3 and watching game play of all the other KH titles and playing them myself when 1.5 and 2.5 remix released on ps3 and ps4. I have greatly and deeply loved the characters. I relate to Sora and Roxas so much but never thought much of the psychological side of the storytelling and characters; watching the two videos I have, I understand a lot more about myself and my own emotions and why I related to and cherished the characters and games. I'm excited to see more of your videos and hopefully see the psychology of Ventus and Vanitas, as well as all the other characters ❤❤❤ thankyou for making these videos, I am greatful to have stumbled upon them 😊🥰
29:14 This scene resonates with me so hard. Xion typifies an abused child to me, someone who knew only neglect. She was treated as a tool her whole life, and the few good memories she has are with Axel and Roxas - and even then, she was (supposed to be) playing a role by getting closer to Roxas. She isn't used to things working out, because the only time it ever did it was all artificial. She's not used to feeling relief and happiness, these emotions are entirely foreign to her, so all she can do is wring her hands uncomfortably and sob. She doesn't walk up to them, and even when Axel and Roxas pull her into a hug, she doesn't hug them back - she just wrings her hands. She doesn't know what to do with her happiness, and I would love to ask her in the office how she felt in this moment. Was she just confused? Was she anxious? Was she waiting for someone to pull the rug out from under her? Was she overwhelmed?
I really cannot wait to tackle Xion. I’ve seen so many different ways that people identify with her so I’m excited to try and navigate all the nuances of her character in particular!
Another way Days echoes the II Prologue is how someone manipulates events to deny Roxas opportunities. DiZ sends Riku into the simulation to steal the munny purse because he presumably doesn’t have the capacity or doesn’t want to risk creating a beach environment (I’m going with the latter, to prevent further breaches by Axel and the Dusks), the loss of a beach day affecting Roxas as the four worked to raise the train fare.
I wonder if you'll make a psychology of Xemnas Ever since KH2 he was the most intriguing antagonist of all KH but when DDD came it broke his well established character cause he said nobodies can grow hearts.
I know the key blades he wields is only briefly touched on but I like to think of it as such. In days when roxas summons two kingdom keys and turns them into oathkeeper and oblivion. Oathkeeper is his while oblivion is the one he took when xion disappeared. I still don’t understand how he was able to take it and it’s never shown how it happened. Perhaps not everything returned to sora when she disappeared? Other than that I still believe oathkeeper is his original keyblade for a few reasons. First is the promise to free kingdom hearts right after she disappeared. Secondly, his promise to bring his friends back together despite everything trying to push them away. This right here is what was keeping him going, as these promises is what ultimately pushes him forward. For Oblivion, it quite literally means to be unaware or unconscious of something. Which completely happens to everyone regarding xion after she is struck down. Even xemnas himself said that she “teeters on the edge of oblivion” during the confrontation with him in Kh3. The keyblade itself literally defines what happened to her.
Hearing At Dusk, I'll Think of You always gets me in the feels. I can't help the gut wrenching feeling I get. The pain and sorrow the music and story portray always resonated with me growing up, and evidently still does
Well I like how bio Roxas gose over Roxas and makes him so relatable but understandable. What I mean is that bio help is understand his “Hurt” and his grief and many other things that really help me understand him.
I played 358/2 Days shortly after getting stationed in South Carolina after boot camp in 2010, and I felt an extremely strong connection with Roxas. Probably because I felt so out of place. Like even though I was technically qualified to be there, and the people in charge were training us up, I never felt like I was supposed to be there. There were also three other students who decided to end themselves in about a two month period, which added to my desire to get out of there. And I ended up sort of "failing out" and getting to choose another job. And I was put in sort of a temporary holding area on base, which added to the whole "nobodies" vibe while I was waiting to be transferred to my next duty station. It was called DTP (Department of Transient Personnel) and I miss those days so much. We had these purple ID badges that we had to wear any time we were on base, so we called ourselves the Purple Badgers.
Something worth noting is Roxas's relationship with Saïx in 358/2 Days.
Saïx is constantly trying to keep Roxas on the path best suited to the Organization's needs and relentlessly dehumanizes Xion at every available opportunity, disregarding their personhood and right to be themselves.
In addition, when Roxas confronts Saïx as he flees from the castle, he is still able to defeat Saïx with what I assume is little difficulty, even when nearly drained of all his power because of Xion.
I think that fight represents how even with the weight of everything going on in Roxas's life, he still has the strength to stand up to those who seek to oppress those they deem as inferior.
If you look at the sequence of Ven’s story in Birth by Sleep at the end of his trip to Radiant Garden Isa wasn’t as warm to Ventus as Lea was. There’s also that Saix saw Roxas as taking his spot as Axel’s friend, even though we don’t see much effort from Axel to maintain the friendship like they has as younger Somebodies.
In the Manga during the battle agains Saix, Roxas somehow gets a power up turning the Kingdom Key into Oathkeeper to break Saix's Cleimore
@@AlexxxMYLSince2013 Indeed, that is interesting. I believe the metaphor behind that is Roxas making a promise that he vows to himself to keep, but won't be able too for a while until Kingdom Hearts III.
Saix was such a bully to him throughout the whole game. It felt really good to see Roxas finally stand up to him
@@GabePlaysYT that moon boy was just really jealous of him and spiting a vendetta secretly.
Roxas' story helped me get through the worst part of my life. He and Xion's lives have helped me to stay strong as I tackle my own depression and fights of identity
I’m glad you’ve been able to find comfort in these characters :) stay strong
Saix: We don’t accept resignations.
Roxas: I’ve got nothing to say to you.
Saix: Then let’s keep this short and sweet.
Roxas:**proceeds to wreck Saïx's shit**
@@Joshua_Shadow_Manriguez On like 10% of what he's capable of I might add, Roxas might of tore apart the organization at the end of 358/2
"You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave!"
@@nobodybroda3826it’s crazy that they said he’s not strong to take on Xemnas but he at 10% was able to defeat powerful heartless and beat Saix I hate the remake movie didn’t include that
@@roxasbaker maybe that just means xemnas is on a whole new level which makes sense it took riku and sora together to defeat him
The fact that KH3 ends with Roxas getting everything he's ever wanted while Sora loses everything is something that I never would have expected. From closure I never thought I would have to an even tougher gut punch. I wonder if even Nomura understood at the time just how prophetic Data Roxas' words to Sora were: "The hurt owns you now, Sora. Don't you see that? It's a wound that will never end." Those two eternally live rent free in my head.
Off topic, but I GOTTA get this revelation off my chest.
What I found unique in 358/2 Days is Xion had a new face when she interacted with Roxas. But when we cut to Axel doing all the talking, we kinda see through HIS perspective that Xion's hood is still covered. But little by little as he warmed up to Xion through Roxas, he could see that face Xion now had.
The cutscenes made it pretty clear in both the DS and the HD movie on that, and it's an incredibly amazing detail.
Roxas is one of the most tragic characters in the whole series. Sora WANTED the call to adventure. He wanted to leave his island. All Roxas has ever wanted is just to be a normal kid with his friends. He's very much like Pinocchio who equally wanted to be a real boy and grappled with being manipulated by others for their own agenda. I think he grows to hate Sora because so much of the misery in his life is because of his connection to him. It's what makes his decision of "giving up" and returning to Sora one of the bravest decisions in his life because, in a way, he gives up his autonomy as much as he wants to hold it. But in the post KH2 games, talking and fighting with Sora, Sora validates everything -- the pain in his life and that he deserves to be his own person. It REALLY helps him to understand that Sora is not his enemy. Ironically by "giving up" his autonomy and fully embracing Sora, he gains the freedom and autonomy he always wanted. He's now in his own person and so are his friends. He doesn't have to fight for anybody that he doesn't want too and he can just spend time with his friends. One of the BEST character stories in the whole series!! 🤍🖤
So well said :’)
He literally got trapped in a ai world and got forbibly fused as part of a restoration process
Did you not play kingdom hearts 2
Imo Roxas will forever be the best written character in this series as well as arguably the strongest.
Keep in mind he beats siax with little to no issue, forced Riku to make a Faustian deal to win, and on top of that when they were sapping his strength as well as the memories trapped in him to awaken Sora he still managed to beat Axel.
now an argument could be made that yes Axel was holding back, but keep in mind that this was the organization's assassin whose major role was to kill defectors, who not only manage to take out xion once by surprise, he managed to do it again in a straight up fight when she had absorbed so much from Roxas.
I very much believe Roxas could have killed Riku, killed Xemnas, and completed Kingdom Hearts himself, at which point he would essentially become God. I wonder what it would look like if Roxas remade the multiverse in his image the way Xehanort wanted to… Would he even change all that much besides bringing Xion back? Definitely a lot of fanfic potential there.
@@DreigonixWell, keep in mind Xemnas also has that whole 'can you spare a Heart' attack, even with a 'weakened' Kingdom Hearts, able to warp reality (created a flying dragon thing or whatever) and could make a second clone. Even without Kingdom Hearts, he still managed to pull Sora into a 'fake' World That Never Was, and possibly stop time? (KH1.) We never see Roxas use Time Magic. We can assume he can as Sora learned it quite quickly, same as how Xion uses gravity, but, yeah.
It'd be a hard fight, but I unfortunately think Roxas would lose, he'd have his Heart stolen by Xemnas like Sora would have had if Riku wasn't there. Now, Sea Salt Trio together, or with Riku and possibly Mickey? Yeah, I could see it.
@@Dreigonix God, I WISH people would write fan fics for kh with concepts like this, all I can ever find is high school aus and shipping fics!
@@voiceofthelegion578 I _am_ writing a fic kinda like that, but it is _also_ a very very explicit and indulgent Roxas/Xion And Also A Bunch Of Other People fic, so… some things never change, I guess. XD
@@Dreigonix Hey man, power to whatever you want to write, but as a non shipping avid fanfic reader, I'm just in constant pain with multiple fandoms, and never miss the opportunity to complain about it. I'm sure your fic is great though.
It’s very telling that a scene in KHIII where Sora thinks strongly about Roxas is in San Fransokyo on the Golden Gate Bridge when he, Donald, Goofy and Big Hero 6 are eating ice cream, likening Roxas to a brother just as Tadashi is one to Hiro. He sees himself as Roxas with Hayner, Pence and Olette eating sea salt ice cream in the same scene. The fact Hayner, Pence and Olette are as determined as Sora to give Roxas his own existence even though their interaction with him was one day a while ago shows how strong a bond he formed with them in conjunction with knowing about their digital counterparts.
One thing I love about Roxas's theme, The Other Promise, is that it always has a part that is moving and changing. Even when the main melody is holding a longer note, the background continues to move and change. They chose a flute to represent the melody of his main theme, which is usually a very bright and happy instrument. They use the key and that flute to help give his theme a sense of forlorn heroism. And this "Forlorn Hero" theme shows itself more and more after Roxas starts to lose the connections he makes.
The newer remastered version includes an organ, a choir, and more low strings, connecting his theme to that of the Organization. Those change to a piano and a set of the high strings during the chorus of the song, which detaches his theme from the Organization's for a few fleeting moments before the organ, choir, and low strings return.
As pointed by another commenter in the uploads of the OST, they made very beautiful comparisons about the instruments, but let me bring attention to the piano, to contrast the flute you mentioned.
The Flute _is_ Roxas, greiving over *everything.* Losing Xion, losing Axel, discovering he's being maniuplated not once but twice, that *he is not his own self.*
And yet, after all that he cries out for, a piano drowns him out. That sounds way more uplifted than he is. _Much like Sora, who is usually upbeat and cheery, to which he, the Flute, had lost everything to and is the _*_ROOT and REASON_*_ why he lost everything - portryed by how the said instrument defiantly plays back taking the lead from the piano before mellowing back to his sorrow._
@@NinjaWarotMCph I absolutely love that! Thanks for pointing out those observations. Makes me appreciate that theme even more.
To add on even more, the song that plays in KH3 during the fight after Roxas returns, Hearts as One, brings out the heroic side of both Roxas's and Xion's themes. In that one, I like to think Roxas takes the piano for himself with Sora as the supporting brass fanfares. Xion's theme takes the limelight for a bit in the form of the flute, getting more cheery as the phrase goes along, all while the piano stays by the side never overpowering the flute.
I honestly just adore this game's soundtrack.
Holy shit I love that. I didn’t even think to look at his theme
Wow thanks for that insight!
This might be an unpopular opinion but I feel Roxas and Xion bond is closer then romantic, they are best friends who need each other. The series is about friendship (I don’t want to start the ship wars on the destiny island trio) so their bond is special enough without going into the romantic sense.
@JabamiLain clue me in on what I missed? What's this about Namine being immoral and unethical? Not defending the character just confused by what ya said. It's been a hot minute since I played all the kh games 2019
@@JabamiLain wait what
I almost had a stroke reading the romantizistion part
Care to explain?
Yeah I got romantic vibes from them too.
@@JabamiLain didn't noticed this one but I just realized what her resolve really mean before her fight with Roxas
I dont care how much i know this story, this video still made me cry like a baby. Roxas is one of the deepest characters in this series. Thanks for making this bro! Great job!!
I’ve always resonated strongly with Roxas, and the idea of Nobodies in general, and seen a lot of myself in them.
Not to get too deep into things, but I first played Days as a young teen (my first KH, too,) and even then I was no stranger to depression. However, I didn’t quite understand it as depression at the time. What I did know was that at a certain point, I couldn’t tell if I was feeling too much emotion, or nothing at all… It all seemed to blend into a numb haze. And as many so often do, I masked that numbness in a facade of normality and practiced smiles. Got so used to it I had a hard time telling when I was acting, and when I was actually feeling. (Still do sometimes, to be honest.)
So to have these characters who were supposed to feel nothing, yet seemed to anyway, and even they couldn’t tell how much of it was an act… It hit hard for me. Felt like someone else “got it,” even when I didn’t.
As a result Roxas, and Days as a whole, became something very dear to my heart. Special in that way that only the right art at the right time can be. Always happy to see these things getting the love I feel they deserve, and it definitely gets me a bit sentimental. Heh, maybe a little too much so, sorry.
No not too much :) thanks for sharing and I’m so happy to hear you resonated so much with the Days trio.
Roxas has always struck me as the negative emotions that Sora tries to suppress until he ultimately has to accept them (symbolized in KH3 when Roxas returns).
I think that's a tad reductive... Roxas strikes me as fundamentally different from Sora on almost every level. Coded was a less than stellar game, but it established one thing: Sora knew pain. He knew loss and abandonment. Roxas's emotions weren't born from any suppressed negativity on Sora's part, but rather his own trials and tribulations.
@@TheEnder515
Great idea!
Roxas is his own person
That's the whole point
Everyone wants roxas to be sora yet he's not.
Roxas tried to be the glue of the trio, but someone threw water before it settled in
19:03 btw I just love the fact that this scene happens just after he beats the shit out of his supervisor. He is still a kid, after all, when everything is hopeless and lost, one can only go to their happy place and assume the fetal position
The 🐐 character
This video, broke me a bit, at the end. While I see myself a lot in Aqua, I see my _journey_ through Roxas'. That last scene of Roxas with all of his friends, it got me. I've, lost so much due to things outside of my control. My whole life, torn from me, and then I was placed in a situation outside of my control. Where suddenly, my life wasn't my own, and was told not only that this is the way things were supposed to be, but on some level made to believe that my resentment at not having control over my life is something to be ashamed of.
That, and your discussion at the end on grief, has given me the drive I needed to push forward. I, I _won't_ give up, and I won't stop fighting. I'll return to my own sky, one day. I know it. Thank you, for giving this Princess, enough drive to keep fighting to break her chains, and to one day return to the blue sky that _she_ remembers is hers.
I’m so sorry to hear that. Keep pushing!
@@JabamiLain Honestly, I wouldn't mind reading it.
@@BioRoxas Thank you, BioRoxas. 🥲
Hey Bio? Could you do a psychology of Namine video one day? She is really underused by the fandom and honestly unlike the sea salt trio she doesn’t even have true friends until the end of KH3 (she even suggests to Sora they only care about Roxas and not her in the final world).
I, too, would very much like to see a breakdown of her character because growing up, I used to really dislike her. Somehow, I had it in my head that she was far more responsible for the suffering Roxas went through. (Rather than the people who used her for their own reasons.) Nowadays I'm just sorta lost what to think about her.
Hmm maybe! It would definitely be on the shorter side just due to how little screen time she has but I would be interested
@@BioRoxas thank you! I know people tend to sympathize with Xion or Roxas more due to 358/2 days but I kinda give more sympathy to Namine. She had no one in her entire existence she could actually call a friend.
I think she feels Sora only considered her a friend because she messed with his memories (although I think honestly knowing Sora personality if they met officially he could befriend her regardless),
data Riku she probably feels guilt for messing his memories
Real Riku was only focused on waking up Sora (their interactions seems rather short and formal in 358/2 days and KH2)
Diz openly referred to her as a witch (which the organization members like Larxene called her too) due his prejudice against all nobodies (due to what his apprentices did) but in KH3 his treatment of Roxas and Namine is one of his biggest regrets.
Axel threatened to use her as a shield and they kinda had a moment in KH2FM escaping but Axel was focused on getting back Roxas still
But luckily for Namine by KH3 Sora assured her she is NOT alone. And it seems that data Riku did have a genuine want to save her as he gave up his chance to be reborn in a replica to give to Namine.
Hmm it would be interesting to look at guilt and shame through her story 🤔
@@BioRoxas nice! And maybe show how the interactions she has with the few people she knows kinda could play into her lack of self worth (at least the sea salt trio constantly had each other even to the end) Namine doenst have these sort of positive relationships with people.
Ice cream crew is prolly my favorite . I love them and i cry everytime that reunion scene plays. Like i cant even stop from tearing up for seeing the whole crew on the clocktower
I dont have to be immersed or anything the scene hits by itself
I've seen some say Roxas is pretty much Cloud's story again with tweaks right down to his design. Living a life that wasn't really his, to finding out he was an imposter.Taking their involvement with Shinra/Org13, their manipulation at the hands of Sephiroth and Xemnas,, the death of both Zack and Xion prompting them..
Considering a big part of Roxas's character is how he's his own person and how he's constantly compared to Sora. Imagine if a plot point in the future is everyone keeps mistaking him for Ventus and some people attack him for it
And then anytime someone sees Ventus they think he's Roxas and leave him alone
The scene where Xion starts crying at the end just makes me immediately 🥺
Like, no small bean dont cry and Roxas' little hops to get to her while Lea watches.
I love this trio so much and i cant wait to see where they go in the next saga 😭
It broke me for sure. It still does even when I know it’s coming
The "who will I have icecream with" line is so incredibly misunderstood. Most people just think it's hilarious, but it's sad on a deep level. It's literally the only way he knows to communicate loss. He is so depraved of personhood that he doesn't even believe that he's feeling real emotions...
*358 Trio FINALLY Reunites*
me: *happy tears*
Axel: Guess I should’ve brought some ice cream
me: *launches into orbit as the first rocket powered by tears*
Roxas' helped me through the loss of my forever sleeping daughter. She would be 13 but I remember just playing the games on autopilot trying to feel anything. I had a lot of dark days, dark thoughts, and i had a hard time getting out of it. I'm grateful to my therapist she was amazing. I remember one time all I wanted to talk about of kingdom hearts in a season and she asked me why I kept playing these games and liked Roxas so much and for some reason those made it all connected. I was finally able to start to process...it's still hard...the what could have been can sometimes be the worst. My rainbow children are an amazing blessing. Sorry that was heavy I tend to over share I'm working on that too
Roxas, Xion, and Axel will always be my favorite crew in kh. I had always felt like I resonated with both Roxas and Xion. Days was even my first kh game. I had never really thought about it till now about Roxas going through grief through the series and now I’m even more glad I played kh3 to see them finally get their happy ending.
Poor Roxas. He's really struggled so much. He feels like he was not ment to exist but Sora knows he deserves to have his own life and a heart. Thats why he got so emotionally when seeing him in Dream Drop Distanc.e
Congrats, you made me cry.
I wrote a whole paper on Roxas in High School, y'know. It was a character study; an example of tragedy in storytelling. At the time, I was dealing with my own major loss, so a part of me empathized with the portrayal of Roxas. I had just lost my mother, and I was put into an abusive setting. In Roxas, I found a mirror to my grief, to my pain. Whenever somebody asks me what my favorite Kingdom Hearts game is, I'll tell them Days, because of all these heartfelt, amazing games, none have ever touched my heart the way it did. Roxas knew loss. He knew grief and sadness. He often felt alone in a world that made no sense to him. And in the end, despite all of his fighting, he had to accept the inevitability of his own death. He had to accept that despite how he might fight, he cannot change the world around him. He can only move forward.
I said it before and I'll say it again: getting gaslit, gatekept and girlbossed around for almost a year straight changes a guy specially if said guy was born that same year.
Also, loved the video.
Wouldn’t this technically be psychology of Sora part 2?
I hate this... take my like and get out of here
Haha I should've called it that XD
God dammit why does gave to be funny.
Sora you’re lucky. It looks like my psychology video is over.😔
Stoppp🤣🤣🤣@@ScarletWyvern631
Regardless of the memeing, that line, "Who will I have ice cream with," just makes me want to break down crying. At base, we're all just grown-up kids, and that line sounds like a real kid losing their best friend. I can just feel the raw devastation of somebody stripped down to their core in that line. Thank you for another one of these beautiful psychology videos. I'm looking forward to listening to the others.
God be with you out there, everybody. ✝️ :)
Roxas was always a character that i related to, hell i've got his cross as a necklace that i had for years, his story help me through a lot, it definitely why he's my favourite character.
Edit: about grief, it something that I've been dealing with, and hearing you talk about it was beautiful.
Roxas absolutely broke my heart growing up. I had/have those same anxieties and a hole very profound in my heart. I don’t have family and so my friends meant everything to me. I always feel as if my struggles in wanting my friends to stay in my life is the thing damaging my heart even more.
It’s hard. You grow up and see people finding forever homes with new loved ones or start building a new life and all you have left is this…emptiness.
It’s hard.
I’m sorry to hear that :( it does hurt to lose people.. finding that inner peace is important though. Sometimes we wrap up a lot of our identity in others and so when we lose them, it feels like we lose ourselves
Oh I didn’t even think of the similarities between the Twilight gang and sea salt trio convos. Great video as always, Bio ^^
Would love to see you do a video on Terra or Ven ^^!
Roxas is so great. So simple yet so complex. His journey was one that really meant something to me ever since playing days.
Beautiful video. Roxas was already my favorite character in the series, but this video definitely pushed my love for him to next level. I was holding back tears at the half way point, until you just had to show the reunion with the tragic three.
The concept of non-existence is fascinating and can be stretched for everything, because everything will eventually end, and eventually all memories will fade away as intended. It is genius to explore it through characters that actually know it beforehand and try to find their meaning and indentities regardless of that fact. The story of Roxas or Xion always brings me to tears, and this video also did! Great work!
Oh I'm far from ready for a psychology breakdown on Roxas. Don't worry though, I got a whole box of tissue on standby. Hit us, Bio!
You'll need them!!
the kingdom key, the ice cream, the stick… roxas my boy im so sorry
358/2 is what got me into KH, and honestly, nothing has quite captured that same spark since. Something about roxas' story is just impossible to replicate within sora's, and i tend to find sora's unrestrained optimism as a bit of a downside in comparison, brushing away anything that could even get close to roxas' emotional depth in story. Sora shines when he is carrying the pain of others, but then there is the gameplay of KH3 that burned me: pointless filler that goes practically nowhere until they force all the good of KH into the last 30ish minutes of the game. Ive heard good things about the DLC, but 3 burned me so much i struggle to bring myself to even try it.
The days trio makes me cry, sora feels like a saturday morning cartoon where threats never pose any risk to his character development.
I looove the days trio ^^ their emotions were so raw. Have you seen my sora video? That could give some more insight into his happy go lucky nature :)
@@BioRoxas it is less the nature of sora and more the result that it often underplays the emotional stakes of a scenario unless he is directly addressing the pain he is carrying for his friends. "power of friendship" is an extremely overdone trope, to the point any media attempting it has to go above and beyond to make it land as anything more than a shallow "saturday morning cartoon with no stakes" vibe. KH can get there, but more time than not, it is a counterpoint to the antagonist's villainy without backing it up. We as the audience might understand it, but used as a counterpoint, the legwork isnt put in to even attempt to convince the villains how it could "save" them. If anything, it is only explored on the hero's side and sora making friends with the corssovers who were already good. Sora's friendship hasnt done much "redemption" outside of the days trio he never directly meets. Roxas is a journey of autonomy by your own admittance, so you cant say much if any of roxas' journey redeeming axel can be attributed to sora himself. I already made my complaints about KH3, but it does sour my taste on sora in a general sense, as the "saturday morning cartoon" vibes are strongest there with the lack of more serious FF characters to balance it out and the clear disney marketing arm that leaves little room for the devs to explore the disney side any farther that what was cannoically shown in their own movies. There is no twists in KH3's disney worlds where organization xiii changes the sequence of events, sora is just secondary trying to keep the disney untouched in the background. Did we really need a complete remake of "let it go" for example?!
I have mad respect for such an optimist as sora and the fact he can carry it without any irony, it just doesnt emotionally resonate unless the emotions between sora and someone else are being directly compared by the story's narrative.
Then on the gameplay front, it is really hard to go back to KH1 WITHOUT the nostalgia goggles that come from following the adventure from the start. 358/2 days is far from perfect, but it sets up gameplay expectations that dont quite match up with the entries beforehand yet fit in perfectly with how the series slowly evolves after it. As a nintendo kid, of course my experiences with the series started from the "spinoffs" that made it to the nintendo systems, and i'd find it more accurate to say ive gotten the story of 1 through re:coded's retelling. If anything, the problem is finding the motivation to get through KH1 before moving onto KH2, just so the context isnt completely lost. XD
actually had to prepare myself for days to not cry watching this, thank you.
This lovely insight into Roxas reminds me of how much he and Ven both deal with similar situations of struggling to keep their respective families from splitting due to the plans and tinkering of outside forces. They have such different backgrounds yet fight with everything their hearts are capable of to keep the bonds they’ve formed from tearing asunder. Thanks again for your hard work and effort.
Roxas is my favorite and first protagonist of this series, without him I wouldn’t have fallen in love with this series.
I've always wondered why Roxas wields Oblivion on his right, and Oathkeeper on his left.
Notice that when Sora is on Double Form, the held keyblades are swapped.
Uh, btw what were you gonna say regarding Roxas's clash with Sora by the end of KH2? This part got skipped, idk why.
28:55 Oof there's an image and sound delay.
What impresses me is that just like Sora, Roxas was able to forgive Axel after what happened by the end of days and the start of KH2, and they were all able to forgive Saïx when he became Isa again. Meanwhile it took some time for Sora to trust Iago.
Oh did it skip? :o I have no idea haha that’s so frustrating 😭
As much as the Icecream line is memed to hell and back it did shutter my heart when playing KH 358/2 Days 💔
358/2 Day was the first Kingdom Hearts game I've ever played and no matter how many times I see the aftermath of the fight with Xion and especially Riku, it just makes my heart ache seeing the memories of Xion and Axel fade in and out...
Seeing the trio FINALLY reunite in 3 had me screaming and crying all over the place. They deserve the world and more after all that pain. Truly peak storytelling!
AMAZING Video!
This was a fantastic deep dive into Roxas, and it helped me "line the pieces up" a little better as to why he is my favorite character in the entire series. You truly did a great job on this video, and the ending bit was definitely an "Icing on the Cake" moment.
Winner. Also I love Roxas he is my favorite KH character. Thanks for uploading this on my birthday even thought that was unintentional. ^^
Happy birthday \o/
I'm really Glad Roxas got a Second Chance at the end of KH3. He was able to Live as his own person
honestly very well done video, this was great
winner
Roxas is a WINNER!
It's crazy because I started with KH2 on playstation 3 or 2. I loved the intro and I thought that I was going to play him for the whole game. It saddened me to experience the whole game as Sora after that introduction. I've made the number XIII a part of my being because of him. This guy changed me, and so did KH in general. Roxas will always be my favorite.
Roxas still is my favorite Charakter in KH so it is maybe no wonder why days is so dear to me (especially because i played it in a time in which i asked myself what friendship really meant
I will ALWAYS defend the “ice cream” line in 358 :,)
It's so good!!
Roxas will forever be my favorite character in the series. Superbly well written, has the best story in game in my opinion. (please fully remake days, the 1.5 animated videos left out so much of the story and context). Cant wait to see him in the future because i really doubt Nomura forgets about him for the upcoming arc vs the MoM or whoever the new big bad is.
Funnily enough I also compare Roxas very heavily with Silver from the Sonic series due to their mannerisms, tragic stories and how they deal with things as well.
Seeing this video 13 days after it first released is kind of poetic
Winner!
I have been crying for the past ten minutes after watching this video. It perfectly encapsulates a deep and remarkable character. One that was integral to unlocking my own secrets, helping me to realize who I was. My struggles with identity and grief really resonated with Roxas introduced. Thank you for such a remarkable video.
Decided to watch this while eating dinner and I started crying in my food
Edit: a friend of mine was recently killed, and so this video about grief and loss really hits close to home. But it was also helpful, so thank you ❤
As much as I love the characterization of Roxas in the games, I think I like it even more in the manga, especially in 358/2 Days. He and all the organization members are given even more personality, and it’s so fun to see
This video made me cry. Thank you
I've been waiting sense I recommended this in soras video
Hope it met your expectations :>
I want to thank you so much for these videos.
Not only does it help me better appreciate the characters, but it often helps me remember why I found such a connection to them in the first place.
Whether it’s because I aspired to be like them, or I felt that I experienced many of the same emotions they did. Makes me want to explore those emotions and strengths in them and find ways to use it for good in my own life.
Again, thank you, BioRoxas.
It makes me so happy to read things like this :’) it’s all I want with this series!
Describing Roxas's use of Oathkeeper & Oblivion as a symbol of his Oath to save Xion, and his desire to cast Org XIII into Oblivion is something I never thought of before!
Really cool way to think about it. Great video Bio.
Roxas: Who will I have ice cream with?
Xion: *Turns into a giant popsicle*
NOOO
That scene in Dream Drop Distance is actually called Roxas’s Grief!
So we aren’t talking about the Roxas fight against Sora in the Dive in the Heart
Something that I like is that Roxas didn't retaliate against Sora until Axel got axed
This is easily one of the best analyses I’ve ever seen on a character before. And I myself have gone through a lot of the pain and grief Roxas has, meaning this really struck a cord with me. So, thank you. Seriously.
I Finally got around to watching this video in it's entirety and I got to say you nailed it as expected!
You really understand his character and even raised points I hadn't really thought of!
Days is my favorite game in the series because Roxas' Story is one i Identified with a lot through Highschool and even a little bit now as an Adult to the point this felt like therapy to me hahaha
thank you for doing this series, it's always so fascinating. Keep up the good work!
Bit of a ramble, but remember that "Off day" that Roxas has? It's implied (if not, mentioned) that he's feeling that way because of Xion taking his strength/power. So is the final day when he fights Riku a show of him being back at full strength due to Xion being eliminated?
ugh nothing makes me choke up like roxas, xion, and axel’s journey jeez
Real
WINNER...But seriously, great video. I know I'm a month late to commenting, but knowing people like you are in the business of helping others with their mental stuff...It's reassuring. Thanks, and I hope Roxas gets some further exploration, too.
358/2 probably has the best story in any of the KH games
you know..
I think Inside out would be a pretty great world for Roxas if it became a world in KH4.
after all its about trying to find yourself and accept others and their different purposes.
I would love to see an inside out world for sure!
Roxas and ventus relates to me so much Roxas is my trying to find myself phase and trying to create some form of philosophy of friendship and trying to cope with many as Sora say “hurt”and ventus is basically my childish/crybaby trying to stand up for others and being there for others to lean on while being the baby boy of the friend group
I love this! Roxas is by far my favorite character(which I’ve heard is a bit controversial)the first game I played was days and I’ve always felt the closest to the days trio. On that note, I want to see a psychology of Axel/Lea. Seeing his side of days and the journey to get his friends back would be interesting.
I definitely want to do one on axel :>
"Nothing Lasts Forever" HA I get it.
Lmaoo unintentional but I love it XD
It's sad how Roxas often gets simplified down to "angry Sora" (actually, a lot of KH characters get similar treatment). Even just looking at his role in KH2, he shows a diverse range of emotions and thoughts. I'd even say he's actually less easy to provoke into anger than Sora (who has poor control over his own darkness); he's just put into much worse situations that would provoke anyone.
His anger at the injustice and lack of autonomy he was living through really resonated with me growing up. His resentment towards Sora in KH2 and Re:Coded was so well done, and his brief interaction in DDD was heart-wrenching.
While there is always room to expand more on characters, I feel like he and Xion deserve a break. I would be fine if their story ended in KH3 (minus some cameos).
oh this was so lovely! i see so many videos using roxas to explore concepts of identity (which are perfectly valid considering how major of a role identity is to his story), but this is the first i've seen to look at his story though an angle of grief specifically. and your noting of the fact that roxas *repeatedly* experiences loss paired with the joy of connection was a nice detail to point out! it creates such a painful foundation for his ability form secure attachments. it's no wonder roxas cant bring himself to trust anyone anymore by the end of Days. thank you for putting so much time and work into this!
and i just wanted to add a thank you for your ending note about grief in general. i experienced a major loss myself earlier this year and your words were really helpful to hear. and having them connected to a character that has meant the world to me since 2006 was extra impactful. thank you
I’m sorry to hear that :( loss is so tough to deal with and I hope you’ve been taking care of yourself though it
Roxas will probably always be my favorite KH character. Heck, 5 years ago I even made a DND character based off of him and he is still my favorite PC I've ever played. It's inspiring to watch him grow and develop from someone who was given the purpose of fighting but would eventually choose his own purpose of protecting his friends. Sora telling him that he deserves to be his own person always resonates with me.
I think it's a shame that there isn't too much more to dive into with Xion. I love her character and would be interested in a Psychology of Xion video but it seems like most of it would be retreading this video's points since they do mirror each other a lot.
Regardless, this is a great video as always. Thank you Bio!
Thanks for taking the time to make this. As someone who resonates heavily with this character (not a good thing), this will help with my clarity.
I hope you find your clarity soon :) I know it can be tough working through grief and identity and during that everything feels so chaotic. I hope you can find some peace soon
A great character analysis on Roxas and his psychology.
I would LOVE to see a psychology of terra.
Next week if everything goes to plan ^^
@@BioRoxas lets go!
Too many people see terra as stupid.
You're a winner bio-roxas. Thank you for this touching video and all of the tremendous work you put into it.
The prince of angst himself
The character not only I can relate to, thanks for making this video, it helped me understand my own pain too
Thank you for making this video. At the end, when you are speaking, about grief, in this section, a brief discussion on grief, I started utterly crying. A part of me was saying, it hurts so much. My heart hurts so much. Even now, when I'm speaking these words, with the help of a speech-to-text function, my voice is still shaking. I still feel it right now. I'm doing this via speech, because it would be too much for me to write this down right now, to be honest. I went through so much in my life, so, so, so much. And for many years, I'm already on my healing journey with several therapists and coaches along the way. And things are changing. I'm changing. The people around me are changing, which is beautiful. But sometimes, sometimes a lot even, I still feel that deep pain inside of me. Because of what I experienced, I'm still like a child. I will need a lot of support to manage this life. So many things I never learned how to do. And I need people to teach me. On the one hand, I can say everything is okay. I will do this because I'm looking for people to help me, to support me. On the other hand, a part of me is still yearning for help. Yearning for someone to take care of me completely. As I was always seeking for that help in my life. For someone to finally rescue me out of the place back then where I lived with my father. It was hell. To me it was utter hell.
And I was slways seeking a kind of vulnerability with people that might be very strange to most people. Not just emotional vulnerability, but also physically. No one that I ever had known was seeking that type of vulnerability. And I feel very lonely with that. I don't even know why I'm sharing all of this, but for some reason this is very important to me right now. So I do it. And whoever wants to answer, please be honest. You don't have to hold back. So, yeah. That's what I have to say.
I hope you continue to strive towards healing :) I don’t have any magic words or insight to give but it sounds like you’ve been through a hurtful time. I hope you’re able to find the peace and comfort you’re looking for.
@@BioRoxas Thank you for your kind words. I appreciate that a lot.
Yeah, of course I continue my healing journey. I have no other choice if I want to live. My healing journey isn’t limited by doing therapy. Nearly everything I do in my life is part of it. Watching anime, playing games like Kingdom Hearts, being able to watch these characters growing and acting in a way I was missing in my life for so long. And greater truths in Kingdom Hearts, being able to sense truths, I can’t explain in full. Maybe knowledge I had before coming into this current body. Kingdom Hearts and other media, mostly anime and JRPGs seem to connect me to knowledge that I might have forgotten, but which is still sleeping deep inside of me.
I‘ll have to face really painful memories. And I want to. I might have experienced one of the most painful experiences one can go through in my esrly childhood. I don’t remember it happening, but I feel it in my body. I‘m not sure if I should say it straight forward. Maybe you know already what I mean.
When I started with the stories of these games, Roxas was a character that I initially didn't like because I was more worried about what had happened to Sora, however, as time went on, Roxas quickly became my favorite character. The quality of this character is simply masterful and one of the best I've seen in many video games.
Wooo! Just woke up and I’m ready! ❤
Edit: this whole video was so calming and relaxing while I work on my gardening. (Hah I grabbed a stick as soon at you mentioned the meme part and laughed)
You did a fantastic job in this video breaking down our ice cream loving boy.
I honestly missed a out on how Roxas really took a lot of what Axel taught him and helped Sion in the same way and how he lost so much when it came to his friends. I didn’t even realize that’s why he’s so focused on ice cream because of Axel teaching him and that’s why we get that meme of him telling Sion about who’s going to eat ice cream with him now. I’m glad you did this cause I have so much more respect for Roxas as a character.
No wonder my partner is a Roxas fan instead of a Sora fan. (He wishes we got an entire PS4 game just for Roxas POV instead of Sora’s)
This was such a lovely breakdown and I’m all here for it! Now it’s time to rewatch in case I’ve missed some things❤
Ahh I’m so glad I was able to help you get to know roxas more :>
Happy gardening ^^ glad I could be your background music haha
I've watched the psychology of Sora and then watched this..... I grew up with this game, having watched my dad play and beat the first game and then playing and beating the second game myself to being in high school waiting to hear news of KH3 and watching game play of all the other KH titles and playing them myself when 1.5 and 2.5 remix released on ps3 and ps4. I have greatly and deeply loved the characters. I relate to Sora and Roxas so much but never thought much of the psychological side of the storytelling and characters; watching the two videos I have, I understand a lot more about myself and my own emotions and why I related to and cherished the characters and games.
I'm excited to see more of your videos and hopefully see the psychology of Ventus and Vanitas, as well as all the other characters ❤❤❤ thankyou for making these videos, I am greatful to have stumbled upon them 😊🥰
29:14 This scene resonates with me so hard. Xion typifies an abused child to me, someone who knew only neglect. She was treated as a tool her whole life, and the few good memories she has are with Axel and Roxas - and even then, she was (supposed to be) playing a role by getting closer to Roxas. She isn't used to things working out, because the only time it ever did it was all artificial. She's not used to feeling relief and happiness, these emotions are entirely foreign to her, so all she can do is wring her hands uncomfortably and sob. She doesn't walk up to them, and even when Axel and Roxas pull her into a hug, she doesn't hug them back - she just wrings her hands. She doesn't know what to do with her happiness, and I would love to ask her in the office how she felt in this moment. Was she just confused? Was she anxious? Was she waiting for someone to pull the rug out from under her? Was she overwhelmed?
I really cannot wait to tackle Xion. I’ve seen so many different ways that people identify with her so I’m excited to try and navigate all the nuances of her character in particular!
Another way Days echoes the II Prologue is how someone manipulates events to deny Roxas opportunities. DiZ sends Riku into the simulation to steal the munny purse because he presumably doesn’t have the capacity or doesn’t want to risk creating a beach environment (I’m going with the latter, to prevent further breaches by Axel and the Dusks), the loss of a beach day affecting Roxas as the four worked to raise the train fare.
I wonder if you'll make a psychology of Xemnas
Ever since KH2 he was the most intriguing antagonist of all KH but when DDD came it broke his well established character cause he said nobodies can grow hearts.
It could be part of psychology of xehanort.
@@АннаПШЕНИЧНОВА-к5оoh yeah that's pretty genius
I'm actually interested on Xehanort's mental state
I definitely want to do one on Xehanort :) maybe I’ll touch on Xemnas in it
YES I’ve been playing days recently again and I needed to see this as a roxas fan this is something I never knew I needed till now
FANTASTIC video. So many things I never even realized I never missed. Great stuff!
I know the key blades he wields is only briefly touched on but I like to think of it as such.
In days when roxas summons two kingdom keys and turns them into oathkeeper and oblivion. Oathkeeper is his while oblivion is the one he took when xion disappeared. I still don’t understand how he was able to take it and it’s never shown how it happened. Perhaps not everything returned to sora when she disappeared?
Other than that I still believe oathkeeper is his original keyblade for a few reasons. First is the promise to free kingdom hearts right after she disappeared. Secondly, his promise to bring his friends back together despite everything trying to push them away. This right here is what was keeping him going, as these promises is what ultimately pushes him forward.
For Oblivion, it quite literally means to be unaware or unconscious of something. Which completely happens to everyone regarding xion after she is struck down. Even xemnas himself said that she “teeters on the edge of oblivion” during the confrontation with him in Kh3.
The keyblade itself literally defines what happened to her.
Hearing At Dusk, I'll Think of You always gets me in the feels. I can't help the gut wrenching feeling I get. The pain and sorrow the music and story portray always resonated with me growing up, and evidently still does
Yoko shimomura is one of the most incredible composers for sure. She strikes at your heart with so many songs
The real 👑 WINNER’s are the friends we met up with at the end.
Thank you for making this video!
Well I like how bio Roxas gose over Roxas and makes him so relatable but understandable. What I mean is that bio help is understand his “Hurt” and his grief and many other things that really help me understand him.
I played 358/2 Days shortly after getting stationed in South Carolina after boot camp in 2010, and I felt an extremely strong connection with Roxas. Probably because I felt so out of place. Like even though I was technically qualified to be there, and the people in charge were training us up, I never felt like I was supposed to be there. There were also three other students who decided to end themselves in about a two month period, which added to my desire to get out of there. And I ended up sort of "failing out" and getting to choose another job. And I was put in sort of a temporary holding area on base, which added to the whole "nobodies" vibe while I was waiting to be transferred to my next duty station. It was called DTP (Department of Transient Personnel) and I miss those days so much. We had these purple ID badges that we had to wear any time we were on base, so we called ourselves the Purple Badgers.