The way they do Kevin's flashbacks here is pretty powerful It's the balance between having like a full chapter where you play through his memories and just having it mentioned through text or a diary -- a character who you see significant memories of, but who leaves some aspects unsaid And of course, seeing how great characters fall, come to terms with themselves, and rise again is always great. I did also feel he wasn't being fully genuine after experiencing SC again, which was well done
I saw this drop and as a fellow Green Onion enjoyer I felt obligated to drop everything and watch this (likely) banger of a video talking about the man, the myth (mostly), the legend... Ries Argent! 😎🍡 Wait... I feel like I got that wrong, but I can't quite put my finger on why 🤔
@@CommRio amazing analysis man, this video really just reminded me of why I love Sky the 3rd so freakin' much. Those farewell scenes at the end get me EVERY time, and Looking Up at the Sky as the credits theme? Makes me cry, I have to skip it when it pops up on shuffle lmao. Kevin really is one of the best characters Falcom's written. Hope to see him come back in the future at some point.
Amazing job Rio! You've done Kevin (and Ries) such justice!~ I admittedly loved Kevin early on: right after he made sure Estelle had support (her dad) when she got home. Tbf, I'm always on the lookout for the characters who start off as "comic relief," but deep down wear it as a mask for past trauma/struggles they still have to work through. I've gotten pretty good at spotting them :P As you said, they're kinda insufferable when they first show up, but at least for me, usually something early on hints at them having more empathy and depth than what their first impression suggests. I'm also a Gralsritter shill. My absolute favorite faction in the series so pretty much anyone who's hinted to be a part of it... well I'm on to them haha! Absolutely love you diving into how Kevin and Joshua are perfect foils in the Sky trilogy. Kevin helping Joshua out with the Weissman stigma, and yet he himself pushing all help away... I'm SO glad Sky 3rd gave us the character arc he needed (and me the player was waiting for haha)! Also, I've always found Ries amazing, so I'm grateful you didn't fail to mention how vital she was to Kevin's journey and him unpacking all his trauma in 3rd. Despite some of her "tsun-ness," deep down she is so patient and so compassionate, especially to the Onion Graham. And kinda going off what you said early on about the difficulty of pulling off making a secondary character a protagonist later on... It can also be very difficult to introduce a new character into a cast that already knows each other (i.e. the entire Sky duology cast that slowly joins in Phantasma), so I appreciate that Sky 3rd doesn't shy away from Ries feeling like the odd one out at first. Yet she ultimately ends up meshing very well with the rest of the cast. Again, amazing job unpacking the depth that is Kevin Graham! Also damn, I can't help but have a soft spot for any character that has some kind of green in their color palette (i.e. Noel, Machias, Fie lol). ONION GRAHAM THE MOST THOUGH. So yeah, IF ONLY FALCOM CAN REMEMBER HE EXISTSSSS ;-; Can't wait for 3D Kevin at some point!!!~
Make Kevin 3D!! Really appreciate your comment and thoughts, I do feel like this video is definitely Kevin's but is also a stealth character analysis on Ries since she's just too important to everything going on not to go into detail with her as well. What other comic relief/tragic backstory characters have you spotted in your time? Thinking on that trope there's a couple I can think of, but I'm curious which ones stood out to you.
Kevin is what happens when you keep thinking your bad experiences are your fault When you really Shouldn't blame yourself for everything (Speaking from experience)
Great video about an amazing story. An example of how when Nihon Falcom are firing on full they make some of the best stuff around. I hope we see Kevin again at some point however yeah his arc is done and a lot of other people have got journeys to go on. I am sat here watching this video going damn maybe Sky The Third is the best game in the series.
Fantastic video, there were a few things I missed that I appreciate now after watching this; the similarities between Joshua and Kevin amongst them, as well as how subtle the writing was in Reiss and Kevin's interactions in Sky the 3rd. Thanks for taking a character I already knew was great and making me realize he was even greater than I had previously thought. That's why I'm subbed to your channel, why I left a like on this video and why I wrote a comment for the youtube algorithm. Fantastic work!
I swear by the fact that Kevin carried this game and partially carried the last part of SC. He is seriously one of the best character arcs I have ever experienced. It pains me to see how controversial the Third Chapter is among the fanbase. Good video man!
What a fucking amazing analysis man you made me apreciate a game i already loved even more. I was already subbed apparently but i'd sub again if i could
Father Graham is a BOSS. I thought he was sketchy and annoying at first, but boy. From the start to the finish of TS3rd, Falcom cemented their status as first rate storytellers by having this guy become someone you love and root for. They literally dragged him to hell and back.
I've made several so far and I will make more in the future. Unsure of who I'm going to do next, probably won't be another Trails character for a little while. I have already done Velvet Crowe from Tales of Berseria and may do other Tales protagonists in the future as well.
I'm in the opposite where Kevin was in my Top 5 favorite Sky characters in SC but playing through The 3rd made him drop HARD under Top 10 thanks to the setting. SC through to the prologue of the 3rd I really liked Kevin, heck even Ries but going through Phantasma felt like a chore and such a wasted potential with those two characters. It would've been much more enjoyable if the story took place outside of it like usual Trails but on a smaller scale cause seeing the region of Liberl(and maybe some new places too like a bit of Arteria) would've been much better and more interesting. Sky the 3rd is at the very bottom of my Trails ranking cause of how disappointed I am after I beat the game. Case in point, by the end when everyone was saying their goodbyes, I didn't feel noting at all when Kevin and Ries left even when I tried to and I beat the game 3 times. I just blame the dungeon setting and some of the doors for ruining those characters for me cause their main story is nice and the part where we walk around in the orphanage and Gehenna was enjoyable but after that the enjoyment drops for me. Sigh, 3rd bummed me out so much cause of what it could've been that I don't even mind if Kevin or Ries ever show up again and if they do it wouldn't really feel exciting like with other characters cause I'm already ruined on them lol To me, they both felt like side characters in their own game. Even in Azure I didn't feel much excitement seeing them which is a good thing since they're barely around/stand out in that game too. Oh well, at least I have the GOAT Rean and best girl Renne around among the many many other characters in this series to really enjoy and hopefully Falcom doesn't make another game like 3rd again. Reverie was close but thank god it had a really enjoyable main story that has an impact on the overall lore/story of the series that future characters will talk about for a long time to come. Not saying people are wrong for really like Kevin, Ries, or Sky 3rd and it's not like I hate them just really really disappointed in them. Damn it would've been super cool to do church related quests as like throughout Zemuria and talk to NPC's with their Gralsritter point of view. Sigh, oh well.
Maybe someday there will be a traditional Trails game set with Church characters, but we'll just have to see. Hearing about your difference in opinion on Kevin's arc and Trails in the Sky the 3rd is illuminating. I knew there were people who really didn't resonate with Sky the 3rd, it was just hard for me to imagine as I found it refreshing.