Damn I was hoping that someone would ask if sora’s mom was still waiting for him to come down to dinner 😔

Nomura really introducing characters in 2005 to finally explain who they are 5 games later on

I love how the Days trio, standing in KHIII, is literally only there because fans loved all three. They are literally there as fanservice, and I'm not gonna complain.

Man. I cant see a world where Roxas doesnt come back honestly. Roxas fought tooth and nail trying to become his own person; and even Sora knows and acknowledges it in 3D. I wouldve been very heartbroken if he never got that chance.

That’s crazy he almost didn’t bring roxas or xion back, I couldn’t imagine KH3 without them because that scene made me cry so much. I love roxas and he made a impact on my younger self.

this is great I definitely love that he listens to the fans I do understand if there are some things he can't change for plot reasons but I above that he brought back Roxas and Xion cause of the fans watching the Ice Cream Trio come scene in KH3 really made me happy and I was crying seeing them together again and I never thought about how Riku just gave a keyblade to Kairi but I do now wanna see that story unfold cause we need more character development for her so I am really happy that we will be getting that at a later point

I’m so glad we finally get some answers, and context on questions I’ve had for years! No doubt I’ll forever be confused, and questioning things in the storyline though. 😆

I can’t believe my babies Roxas and Xion almost didn’t come back 🥺

the pinnacle of KH theories: the lore behind each character's hairstyle

Thoretical questions: - If the tutorial takes place after KH3, would that mean he’s en route to Quadratum by the time the tutorial takes place? - Based off the fact that the Darkside still has black hands and feet while becoming translucent everywhere else, could that mean that the Darkside is ALSO en route to Quadratum? IE could that mean that the Darkside in the KH4 trailer is THE SAME ONE in the KH3 tutorial? - Unrelated, but is Sora wearing the same outfit that his toy version in the Toy Box world was designed with in the KH4 trailer? The color schemes look nearly identical

I like to think Demyx is a student of Skuld or Ephemer. If not, he may be resident residing in Luxord's world. It is possible both of them do not know each other (given we have no evidence or much to no interaction between them) but simply crossed paths by Xemnas.

I always assumed that both Yozora fight endings *are* canon, that a Crystalized Sora got stuck in a dream loop (for seven days, perhaps), before finally beating Yozora and waking up

hope he stays this consistent when kh4 comes out

I genuinely don’t know how I feel about knowing the fact that there was gonna be a route where Roxas and Xion never came back into the story. Because like? If not what was Lea gonna do? His whole point for wanting a keyblade was to bring his friends back, if he couldn’t achieve that in whatever ending Nomura had planned I wonder what he would have Lea do? I am kinda sad that even though Roxas and Xion got their happy ending, knowing that they weren’t even gonna make a return then that means their story is ultimately over and we won’t be seeing them in future titles. I have to think not, because if we are going to get more backstory on Lea and Isa and that mysterious girl they were friends with, (ie maybe him and Isa going off and trying to find her again or something) I have to hope that Roxas and Xion wouldn’t let their friend go, even though they know that Lea can take care of himself, I have to think Roxas and Xion wouldn’t just stay in Twilight Town while Lea and Isa either was still hung up on this girl or went on this possible adventure and that they wouldn’t try and help in some shape or form

Ah, Xehanort's Alopecia, truly the greatest of Kingdom hearts mysteries

Even though Roxas is one my favorites, I do sometimes think it might have been better if he and Xion didn't come back. Terra made sense because he was still there possessed and they just had to free him, it was also a main plot point of the Xehanort story. But with Roxas and Xion it always felt very...fanservicey. Because there really wasn't any story reason for them to be back. The thing is, even though Nomura will probably still try to have them do something at one point, since they were technically never meant to come back, and only did due to fan-request, then I don't think it'll be as big or significant as some people may want, and we'll reach that typical issue where a fanbase complains about their favorite characters not getting to do much. My point is that sometimes its better to let go of characters who've successfully completed their role (like you said with Roxas), instead of piling up more and more characters who, as the story advances and their roles finish, will probably just be relegated to the background, to the ire of their fans. This is just my opinion though. I've seen it happen in so many series to not mention it. On that note, and even though I know a lot of people will probably not like me for saying this, I 100% believe that one of the biggest cases of Nomura doing what you said and changing something big due to fan-request, was making Kairi start training to become Keyblade master. I definetly think Kairi wasn't originally meant to be a fighter character at all, which explains why her random keyblade scene in KH2 seems so out of nowhere now. Because it was just meant to be a fun one-time thing for fans, and not a setup to becoming an actual wielder going forward. Now Im sure Nomura will NOW come up with a reason to explain it in hindsight, but I think most of us know it likely wasn't something that was planned from back then. He's only now being forced to address it because after he sucumbed to people's complaints of Kairi not being a fighter (which she didn't need to be btw), then its changed from a cute one-time nod that didn't need an explanation, to an ongoing arc of the story, that NOW needs to be explained.

I'm still on board with Demyx being the MoM, I'm kinda biased because he's one of my favorite characters in the org but it's just so weird how especially his mannerisms and ways of express himself are so close to the MoM and we all know how Nomura loves to give that kind of personality traits to all the characters. Also once we finally knew who Luxu was if you replay all the series everything Braig/Xigbar says have a lot of different meanings and I'd love to discover new meanings in old games the same way!

You're on a roll with content!!!👏🏼

Oooh I cannot wait to see how things turn out for the future of Kingdom Hearts. It's gonna be a hell of a journey

Happy you dropping a lot of videos dude.

I find it odd that he said he didn't originally want to bring back Roxas and Xion. Mostly because every game after Days alluded to bringing them back, starting with the BBS blank points ending and Coded took this further about Sora saving them from their fates. So he probably made that decision immediately after Days since it was obviously planned and foreshadowed for years.

Since 0.2 birth by sleep I have thought that mickey somehow got the key chain for destiny's embrace from aqua and then gave it to riki since Mickey knows that she has a connection to kairi

‪I’m happy that he decided to bring them back. I don’t care if they don’t have a big role in the next arc, i just want them to be happy.‬ Roxas is my favorite character. He fought so hard to get equal rights and somebody’s, it would’ve been heartbreaking to see him not getting what he deserves. His own heart. Nomura shows the dark pasts of these characters and makes them playable. Of course fans are gonna get attached to them. It would’ve been silly to just get rid of them after all the time we spend with these characters. Also Sora wanting to save everyone fits more with how he is.

i think xehanort’s haircut refers to his hair being different when he had yellow eyes versus still having his silver eyes

12:35 Roxas is my absolute favorite character in Kingdom Hearts and I would've been crushed if he didn't come back. I can't believe Nomura considered not bringing back Roxas in KHIII.

I'm so glad we finally get some answers and context on questions I've had for years No doubt I'll forever be confused and questioning things in the storyline though

This vid was super interesting. Thank you and keep up to great work Cynical!

Dude the sea salt reunion is like in the top 3 best moments of kh3 I can't imagine if that didn't happen

The only thing i can think of Demyx being MoM is if hes just a spy just observing the events etc.

YESSSS I agree ! Riku is my favorite kingdom hearts character ever since I was little and I’ve always thought his kh2 design was the best

THANK YOU

I think the fanbase is kinda split in 2 factions when it comes to the roxas and xion storyline In 1 side we have the side that just want to see the characters they like have the happy ending after all the struggle they went through On the other side there is people like me, who didn't want them to come back because characters like roxas and xion because we rather experience a storyline with a little more ' spice and flavor ' roxas and xion were tragic characters, victims of the organization XIII and xehanorth's plans and that what made their storylines so much more memorable , and made sora's fight against the organization that more personal for us the players Bringing them back and taking away the tragic elements of KH kinda takes away the emotional stakes and investment in the story, no wonder half the fanbase gave up on the story at this point

Loving the content cynical. Keep it going, you’re the absolute best!

That's so crazy about Xion and Roxas. He is 100% my favorite character and I definitely bawled when the three of them got reunited. Xion's death was the first video game character I ever cried for. They deserved happiness

It makes sense that they weren't originally intended to return. Axel, Xion, and Roxas (Twilight Trio) was supposed to be replaced with Lea, Isa, and Subject X (Radiant Trio). Now that both Roxas and Xion are back it makes the RT kind of awkward.

Everyone: Nomura pls fill the mysterious plot holes 😭😭😭😭😭 Nomura: _Yeah I'm gonna reveal why an old man is bald xD_

demyx has and always will be my favorite because of how similar we are and his art and everything else. I'm happy that he has a bigger role then MOST people originally thought way back when the first games released. 💙💙💙💙💙, also glad to see you making videos again. I literally have been bindging everything I missed😅😁

seeing how sora looks in KH4 just wait till you see Riku

In his story in the Character Files, Demyx mentioned "that old guy" telling him "May your heart be your guiding key." So he isn't the Master, but it seems as though he knew the Master. With Xehanort's hair, was Nomura referring to him going BALD! BALD! BALD! BALD! MY EYES! or was he referring to his hairstyle change? I mean, I had thought he just got a different haircut. But this is the guy who changed Riku's hairstyle by throwing a Demon Tower at him. (Speaking of which, I personally prefer Riku with shorter hair, specifically KH1 and KH3 styles.)

KH2 Riku was the most badass version.

I can't believe that if us fans did ask about the ice cream trio, they wouldn't be in the game..... Thank God he listened to us. 😅

This gave me alot of info I needed after kh3 i was already caught up but even more caught up now

It was nice to have this since it was the end of the dark seeker saga but still have elements that will carry on into the future of kingdom hearts

My only problem with the whole “Not bringing back Roxas” statement is that Nomura has not been conservative at all with showing him off throughout the series (after KH2, we have Coded and DDD), and it also makes sense in lore for why Xion and Roxas would be a live. The whole reason why DDD (and by Extention the “Real” Organization) is able to exist is because Nobodies are able to have hearts, just not their original one. Xemnas specifically needed a heart in order for him to return, since that is the rule of time travel: a heart is needed and a Replica ready and waiting for a physical form. Even the other organization members who aren’t a form of Xehanort, they became Nobodies once again so they could harbor Xehanorts heart. Regardless of whether or not Roxas were to “come back”, he’s still living in the sense that he got his own heart and its inside Sora’s. So if Ventus can come back, why would it have not been the same for Roxas in a Replica?

you are SO right to go off about riku's hair in kh2 being so much better

Leave it to Nomura to answer questions I never knew I had lol

I wonder if Luxord's somebody will become an ally to Sora in Quadratum. Knowing his character's personality, I don't really think he'll be an antagonist, but maybe moreso one of those quirky, cool characters that could help Sora in the story. It would also be cool to see both him and Sora play a friendly game of cards too, just like how Sora promised Luxord at the end of his fight in KH3.

Xion not returning would have shattered my heart

I love that we're going to get a proper explation on how Rku actually had the keyblade ready for Kairi but of course Nomura being quiet on so much really gives us the thought that our theories might be right

Holy shit. "I owe my return to many" indeed!

Sometimes I feel like Roxas should not have come back at all so that death could be permanent as well as giving the series some final consequences.

Roxas went from being overlooked in 2008, to becoming NEXT to Sora in terms of everyone loving him.

How can this be, Roxas may be one of the most tragic protagonists of the serie

I think that all this information is very interesting.

4:09 (Nomura's answer) "Damn you, Nomura~!"

Ever since Roxas was brought into the story, he has and will forever be my favorite character in the franchise! I’m so so happy that he’s back!!

This may be a hot take, but I would have been okay with Roxas, Xion, and Namine not coming back. I thought their stories ended fairly well and it would have been really cool if Sora and Kairi had inherited their abilities from becoming whole again.

Forget demystifying Xehanort’s “haircut” I want to know how did he get pointed ears

@TheGamersJoint can't believe my boy roxas and my girl xion almost didn't make it that would of been so sad but kinda want to see how it would of turned out and love this info thanks!!! What if Demyx is Yozora's friend a reflection of your boy from Versus 13/15 Promto

KH3 is my favourite KH game partly because of Xion and Roxas's return. Their reunion is the best scene in the series. Xion is my favourite character also. Would have been so sad if she didn't appear

Just resubscribed few years ago. Been forever since i watched one of your in deph videos. Good to have you back cynical.

coming from someone who is somewhat of a FMA fan...human nobodies having the emblem would be interesting.

I just wanna say that I found a listing online for a 20$ PSP copy of BBS and it had the whole box and it was pristine. Description of the item said “kingdom of hearts, loved this one a lot”

I've gotta be honest, as a huge Roxas fanboy I think I would have preferred Roxas staying gone. I was pretty annoyed how much the lead up to kh3 implied that Riku and Aqua were going to be so important in the fight against Xehanort. Now i'm sure someone can tell me i'm missing something that happened offscreen or whatever but it really felt like all they did was take massive Ls. I'd prefer Roxas' story just be neatly closed and wrapped than potentially knowing in the back of my mind he's just there not being used or being written out of the main plot for convenience. Just my two cents tho. Him giving Saix the back hand in 3 is still really bad ass.

That is so crazy! I always thought luxord had a strongly realistic character modle the preparation were always a little different

10:49 - Riku getting a haircut was unaware for me too so I aint gonna hold you on that one.

i love this songg “treasured memories” so nostalgic

I bet Nomura has secret social media accounts that we can see what we are all theorizing about and just cackle like a mad man

Roxas is actual my favorite character especially after playing 358 days out of all the characters he’s the most relatable. He reminded me of how I was when I was younger wanting to fit in but didn’t know how being an introvert then as the game went on we saw him come out of his shell. Also seeing him dualwield key blades for the first time was badass

One of the biggest weaknesses of the KH games is how they phrase certain lines, and while I’m unsure on how big a problem that is in the original Japanese dub (which needs a proper English sub translation) it's most certainly an issue in the actual English dub. For example, Xemnas telling Axel "Your Keyblade is no-more" is just straight up misleading, which leads up to several inconsistencies from the players perspective. I just can't understand why the writers would miss something that would clearly confuse fans. It would have made way more sense had Xemnas said something like "Don't even bother re-summoning that fragile excuse of a Keyblade".

Heyy can anyone tell me what the backround music iss?

Nomura: " he didn't destroy the key blade... he broke it.."

16:30 That must be one of the funniest and confusing mysteries of KH, the fact that we gonna get to know why Xehanort is bold Also, I am glad Roxas and Xion returned and it scares me just to think that a timeline of them not coming back could have exist When you think about it, back in DDD it did felt like Lea and Sora are gonna be the new friends version of their nobodies

good video bud

I definitely feel like Riku getting Destiny's Embrace has to do with Aqua, as It was a keyblade exclusive to her when she met Kairi in BBS, when Kairi touched Aqua's keyblade and accidentaly inherited the power to wield one, as well as Riku and Aqua being in the realm of darkness at the same time between KH1 and CoM.

My guess is, both Luxord and Demyx originate from the Missing-Link era Scala ad Caelum, but both somehow find their way to Quadratum, where Luxord becomes Yozora's driver and Demyx becomes their version of Ignis (I think, I forget exactly which FFXV character is modeled off of him).

I'm still with Sora being MOM or related some how, I feel like there is a connection between them

regarding the two ending for yozora fight, I figured out at least a theory prior to us learning about the parallels regarding the reality and unreality. sora might be the direct parallel to yozora

While I know that Roxas is many people's favourite character and they're happy he returned, I actually don't like when authors change their plans just to please the fans, and I always thought his and Xion's return in KH3 felt a little off. I'm very curious to know what the original plan was for KH3 now that Nomura has confirmed that.

The timeline that didn't see Roxas and Xion come back never got to hear the theme mashup during the Saix fight, one of the best KH songs ever.

I just had a thought. If the darkness got trick by the player it's seems like they couldn't sense a darkness in the player like how riku can smell darkness in chain of memories

Man, I really wish he went with that first outcome. I really wish Roxas and especially XIon and Namine never returned.

16:41 if you look closely on how they are standing the 13 and the 7 are standing in a heart formation (7 on top) 13 on bottom

Verum rex is real seperate thing and it will release after KH4

A couple of theories that go along with the Q&A. 1) Nomura’s earlier route of NOT bring Roxas and Xion back, might have something to do with our benchwarmer duo. Demyx and Vexen were most likely going to fill out the XIII, but because of “loads of people rooting” for their return, he made the benchwarmers vital to getting Roxas, Xion, and Namine back. They would have been the back up plan or nothing. 2) interesting to think Ephemer’s legacy would be to establish SAC, but also maybe to revive his dear friend along with the others lost to Daybreak Town massacre…maybe the player in Missing Link is the back up of the player’s data. 3) A World of… Well we established fiction and Quadratum were already referenced, but much like the other realms we visited, ie. The World of Light, Dark, Between… maybe the reference mark refers to something no one in Kingdom Hearts has conceived…A World of Death.

Honestly, I'm so glad Nomura brought back Xion. Xion is my favorite characters in the series, and I'm glad she came back and potentially be a playable character in the Lost Master Arc in Kingdom Hearts Phase 2.

About Xehanort's hair (the younger him), I just noticed the difference when he was an ordinary keyblade wielder and when he met MoM

So the haircut from Kingdom hearts 3 Riku wasn't due to some skilled heartless but rather due to the the wishes of the fandom. Good to know.

2:33 is that the crown on the back of Demyx's sitar?

What’s the name of the song in the video

Lore for Xehanort being bald. I love this series.

Someone please tell me the name of the song at the start of the video😭

I can believe that fan service is the reason we got 358/2 Days and the reason the Organization 13 has lasted this long in KH lore. The Org 13 were popular characters so I can understand.

I-i want to see lighting in Kingdom hearts

Looking forward to Missing Link with more questions and answers.

I really hope KH4 tries to answer some of the questions what was leftover from KH3.

Ohh this is Guna be great

Anyone know the background song name?

roxas and xion came back thanks to the power of friendship we fans have with kh

(Tragedy Contentment) I wouldn't have minded if the Sea Salt Trio; meaning just Roxas and Xíon, were doomed not to return. I loved that 358/2 Days into the intro of KH2 (and Axel's struggle to bring Roxas back) was a tragedy of sorts- In general, I love when otherwise light-hearted projects show they're unafraid to introduce tragic elements. The truth of the matter is that neither Roxas nor Xíon were meant to exist- particularly in Roxas's case for having a body despite Sora and Ventus's bodies still being present elsewhere. (Vessel Tangent) As far as I know, the body / empty shell WAS the Nobody, whereas the heart went off to become the Heartless, so I always was quite curious what Roxas's specific circumstances were in that regard. "Where did Roxas attain a vessel to exist in the first place?", I suppose would be the question I'd ask. I guess the simple answer would be that the Nobody just "spawns" in, using the original shell as a sort of template. I doubt it, but it could very well be as simple as that and I may just be forgetting a lot of information regarding Nobodies... (Tragedy Contentment, Continued) -and anyway, I know that the whole point of 358/2 Days; The tragic journey of Roxas and Xíon, was essentially finding their own identities and becoming themselves; despite that not initially being the case at all, so I get why it would be demanded that they have their happy ending. I just personally feel like they reached that goal by making the heroic sacrifices they did. Especially Xíon, in having been totally forgotten. That was a beautiful, masterfully told story, in my opinion. -and sure, I do love the teases we get of Roxas and Xíon (having become a part of Sora himself and his retaining some of their memories as a result) in titles afterwards, but I'd still appreciate and understand if that was all they were: Glimpses into the deepest chasms of Sora's heart, to what indefinitely exists there. Memories, experiences, entire lifetimes; despite how short, that Sora; in a twisted, horrifying sense, technically lived through. It makes sense that they're there. It makes sense that they're with him- and I would have loved Kingdom Hearts 3 even still if the fights with Saïx and Xemnas were fought through Sora, alone, but with the aggressions and experiences of Roxas and Xíon combined- and moreso if Axel were with him, imagining or seeing his friends in his spirit and mannerisms. Not being Roxas or Xíon, but being like them in that they are all one. (Vessel Tanget, Continued) Update on Roxas's vessel though: I'm realizing now that we don't actually see Ventus between 358/2 Days and Kingdom Hearts 2, so is it possible Roxas was using Ventus's body and that when it came time to return it; like how the Organization members ended up back at Radiant Garden, Ventus (Roxas ceasing to occupy him) simply ended up back in The Chamber of Waking? I feel like that's the more complicated answer to my question which would make sense in Kingdom Hearts's context and history of being convoluted. -and since the Roxas existing now is technicaly a combination of the residual datascape version of himself and a mere replica, it can be said that; both, Roxas is still a part of Sora, and that the currently "existing" Roxas is, like Replica Riku, a mere copy. As well as that the Xíon currently existing was taken from the past and put into a replica- which is to say that she, too, is still a part of Sora and that the Xíon currently "existing"; not a "copy" but (and despite still being a "puppet") doesn't physically belong in that universe, so to speak... (Breaking "Hearts") If any of that holds up, you can say I "saved" the trio's tragedy, right? I mean- Roxas can't exist any more otherwise, but accepting his "current" form would be like saying Repliku IS Riku, wouldn't it? Just data and memories of what once was, inserted into a puppet... That's not to say that Repliku didn't exist as his own person, but... he wasn't Riku- So Reploxas isn't Roxas. Replíon isn't Xíon. ... Oh, and Naminé, too. Replaminé isn't Naminé.