Final Fantasy VII: How To Introduce a Villain

Final Fantasy VII was a step forward for the franchise in many ways, from graphics to storytelling, but it seems rather dated nowadays, especially after the release of the Remake. However, there is one thing that the original does better than the remake- how it introduces main antagonist Sephiroth.

Building Sephiroth Up

The first time Sephiroth is mentioned is during a flashback to Cloud and Tifa's childhood, when Cloud informs Tifa of his decision to join SOLDIER. He says he hopes to become a hero, just like Sephiroth was, showing that people in-universe hold Sephiroth in awe.

Just before Cloud sets the bomb in the second reactor, he has another flashback, this time to five years before the start of the story. He watches as Tifa kneels over her father's corpse, asks if Sephiroth was responsible for his death, and declares her hatred for him, Shinra and everything else. This is a short and relatively cryptic flashback, but it hints that Sephiroth may become a significant antagonist in the story.

Not long afterward, President Shinra, the initial main antagonist, and some of his men intercept the party as they try to escape the reactor. President Shinra vaguely recognizes Cloud as a member of SOLDIER, but can't be bothered to remember his name. He recognizes that Sephiroth was amazing, but that isn't necessarily a good thing, establishing that Sephiroth may also be Shinra's enemy.

Sephiroth's Debut

Some time later, the party tries to free Aerith from the Shinra HQ, but end up being captured instead. They then wake up to find out that Cloud's cell is unlocked and that there is a blood trail leading from the lab to President Shinra's office. Upon reaching the office, the party finds Sephiroth impaled with a katana, a weapon that Cloud claims only Sephiroth can use. Palmer, a Shinra executive, reports that he witnessed Sephiroth kill the president. Barret, who hates Shinra with a passion, wonders if Sephiroth might be their ally, but Cloud refutes that notion.

After leaving Midgar, the party stops in the small village of Kalm, and asks Cloud to tell them about his history with Sephiroth. Cloud reveals that five years ago, he and Sephiroth had gone on a mission to Nibelheim, leading to an extended flashback sequence.

During the ride over, Sephiroth demonstrates that he has a cold and humorless personality by being less than impressed with Cloud's enthusiasm. When a dragon attacks the truck, Cloud is unable to do any significant damage to the dragon, but Sephiroth can kill it in two hits, doing thousands of damage at a time when your party is unlikely to do more than one or two hundred. It's no surprise that Cloud, telling the story in the present day, says that the stories don't do Sephiroth's true strength justice.

Sephiroth displays his strength in a similar manner during the Nibelheim mission, and can win the few battles you fight almost instantly with powerful multi-target spells. He also drops some hints about his backstory, from his respect for Professor Gast and his contempt for Gast's successor Hojo to his mother's name being Jenova. Inside the reactor, he realizes the truth about who he is and snaps.

Sephiroth locks himself inside the Shinra Mansion, and after doing extensive research, announces his intention to reclaim the Planet for himself and Jenova, and storms out. He then sets the town ablaze, killing anyone he comes across, and heads for the reactor. He kills Tifa's father and nearly kills Tifa herself before Cloud confronts him. The outcome of the fight is not shown until later, and the truth is more complex than the player thinks, but Sephiroth leaves a lasting impression.

Analysis and Conclusion

Let's briefly analyze why Sephiroth's introduction has such great impact.

After being mentioned in passing, his first noticeable action in the story is to kill a major antagonist. He isn't even seen, but the result of his action is shown, and Cloud immediately realizes Sephiroth is responsible.

The flashback section not only establishes Sephiroth's backstory, personality and motivations, but also proves why he's the party's enemy. He destroyed Cloud's hometown, nearly killed Cloud's friend and has become a threat to all of humanity. By the time the flashback ends, you realize why Sephiroth is a threat- how powerful he is, how dangerous his goals are and how far he's willing to go to achieve those goals- making him a credible villain.

This is one thing the remake doesn't do as well. When Sephiroth debuts in Chapter 2, the game immediately shows that he was responsible for Nibelheim's destruction and has Cloud immediately react to him with terror and hatred. Much later on, midway through the penultimate chapter, Sephiroth kills President Shinra in front of the party, long after he's first been shown. These changes are necessary given that the Remake only covers the Midgar portion of the game, and that Sephiroth has a different role compared to the original, but it's unfortunate that it ended up making Sephiroth a bit less mysterious and threatening compared to the original, limiting the impact of his debut.