tfw ziharks pick-a-side dilemma is done way better than corrins

* Stay with Daein * Choose the Greil Mercenaries Or... * JOIN SMASH

Zihark: On all levels except physical, I am a Laguz. (Transforms)

I agree with Zihark, Brom truly is the Daddy of Tellius.

Who'd've thought that *THIS* ... was the Fates story we needed all along?

"betray his ethics and honor his comrades, or betray his comrades and honor his ethics" Excellent writing. I can only hope that Fire Emblem returns to this style of character writing. Characters whose personal struggle is informed by, and plastic to, the player's actions are immensely difficult to write, but as this video demonstrates, the results speak for themselves.

This was extremely insightful. I have to say Zihark wasn't someone I'd ever deeply looked into, but I'll be damned if I ever thought of the split paths for him like this. Perfection as usual, Ghast! Now time to watch this again with those thoughts in mind and digest this properly.

hooray for a support science that doesn't end on a somber note !

Damnit Ghast why do you make me feel bad for making my life easier by keeping him with the Dawn Brigade

I expected the worst from that video title, but then I remembered what channel this is. Holy fuck, this video almost made me cry.

This has to be my favourite Support Science yet. I was aware of what Zihark's MO was but I never looked at him betraying Daein as a war with himself. This opened my eyes, I respect Zihark a lot more than I already did now. Thank you Ghast.

You weren't kidding, the editing skills are strong with this one. This was a fun project to help with! Zihark was a character I often overlooked because "Navarre edgelord killing edge tragic past" archetype, but recording all the supports and dialogue and reading through everything showed how little I really know about a lot of characters in my favorite series. Even learned a lot about other characters through him (Brom is best daddy). Thanks for letting me help with this!

2:17 rip ilyana

Haven't watched one of these in a minute so it's clear to see you've really stepped up your game dude. Zihark was a guy that'd I'd either bench for Mia or just pass over in general. But boy did this blow up my interest in learning more about him. This was awesome. This video also affirmed how much I love the separate armies approach RD took. Each of the conflicts just have so much care and consideration for the characters involved and their previously established relationships.

Zihark is my all time favorite Fire Emblem character, can't wait to watch your video! Update: As a huge Fire Emblem fan and an advocate for the series' great writing and characters, I must say I found this video incredible. You explained just how three dimensional my boy Zihark is. I've always loved his "fighting to end the hate" mentality, and seeing just how challenging the events in Radiant Dawn were on him made me respect him even more. Excellent work as usual, and thank you so much for giving my favorite character the respect he deserves.

It's a DAMN shame Zihark doesn't get more of a spotlight in the story as a whole, because his arc is such a clear symbol of the social climate of Tellius that it gives him a really strong personal stake in the plot of both games, especially Radiant Dawn. Honestly, I'd have loved to see him as a protagonist. His story has so much potential that would've fit the story of the Tellius duo perfectly. Plus, he just FEELS like a hero in terms of his personality. Also, I ship him with Ilyana lowkey

Zihark defecting is quite clearly the canon route IMO because it's a one way street in the sense that once he defects, he can't come back to Daein. Nice video, I thought you forgot about posting it or something. Some people complain that the fact Jill and Zihark don't immediately defect is bad writing but it really isn't because the laguz launched a foreign invasion and this time around, the leadership isn't racist unlike in PoR. It goes to show that when circumstances are different, morally upright characters can find themselves in a moral quandary.

Damn you made me want Zihark in Heroes even more than before. Excellent job on this one Ghast!

It's so rough that letting Zihark choose the moral path makes part 3 infinitely more difficult

This has to be the second support science better than the one on Eliwood, right beside Celica's. I always found Zihark interesting though I hardly used him that much, so I didn't get into his supports and other conversations through out both games. But this video helped me understand his character much more and now I feel like putting him in my top ten favourites. He's basically what Corrin should have been, but oh God, the contrast is too great it's almost unbelievable...!

I'm curious, what is your opinion on Jill and her moral issues regarding the same thing? Jill is someone who was shown the truth of both sides of the Beorc/Laguz struggle, and she chose the path that was best for her country in FE9 and 10. She too has morals, but unlike Zihark she remains steadfast in the belief that a country can change for the better, though she is less optimistic than Micaiah. Perhaps this is due to her station as the leader of Talrega, but Jill has influence and renown in Daein and can make a change for the better. The only way she defects in RD is when Haar or Mist talk to her, and while these people are important to her no one shames her for fighting to better Daein. Jill is very aware, from her base conversation in 3-6, that Pelleas isn't making the right choice, but none of her enemies tell her she is wrong for staying with Daein. Lethe even tells her how much she respects her as a warrior and friend, and Jill continues to do what she thinks is right, by saving her country and making it better from the inside. It's truly interesting to see how similar she is with Zihark in their dilemma but also how the right choice for them lies on opposite sides.

One quote that actually made me shed a tear was mordecai saying: “you have no fang or tail but you are a beast brother zee-hark” Mordecai is so wholesome and zihark and him have such a good friendship

This is an amazing video. It makes me feel ashamed for never using him in either PoR or RD. I plan on using him in my next playthrough. Also, it is readily apparent that if there was a game made from Zihark's point of view, it would blow Fates out of the water, especially given that it is possible to sympathize with all involved. Great job.

I really like Ike and Zihark's differing reasons for being so open-minded, as well. For Ike, he's naive, and was sheltered, the very meaning of the Fool arcana in tarot. He's just a naturally good person who never knew any better or worse than he does and did. He made mistakes, and learned from the consequences. He possibly never even knew much that beast-people exist. While Zihark, well, we don't know about his past beyond having had a Laguz girlfriend that he absolutely loved, but it is probable that his open-mindedness came from knowing of the racism first-hand, likely even from before he and his girlfriend met, knowing how Daein held Laguz slaves.

I find the Tellius series incredibly underrated in terms of it's writing and I'm glad to see videos like this. You did a great job. Excited to see more.

If only radiant dawn had actual supports and we could see what hes thinking on both sides.... iirc Jill can also defect. God radiant dawn was so close to being the perfect FE with just a few major things holding it back.

ZIhark's actor not only sounds on-point for the character, but wonderful in general! He has such a nice tenor to his voice. It was such a neat detail to include in this, too! I was pleasantly surprised the moment I heard the voices. Ilyana and Lethe were pleasant standouts, too. Zihark is a fantastic, no doubt about it, and you did a phenomenal job explaining exactly why.

Wow I really need to get to playing the Tellius games, I knew Zihark was a fan favourite but jeez is he well written. He's a great contrast the the usual Navarre archetype, is a developed character and is another reason I need to play these games. Great editing and voice acting again, these are really great videos.

Hey folks! Thanks for watching! Please leave a like and let me know what you think down below. I read all the comments! If you're new to the channel, please *subscribe!*

You know, the sad thing is that the same racism happens in real life. Radiant Dawn is a sad story of war and Zihark is just someone who is very conflicted. The only problem with sending Zihark to the the laguzes is that the Dawn Brigade sucks so you'll take a heavy blow sending him away.

Yay! Another support science! Voice acting still on point, good job everyone!

Great now I feel terrible for all the times I had Zihark not defect to the Greil Mercenaries.

18:34 - 18:39 Yeah, obviously, one is a scrub class (except on Valentia/Tellius) who can only wield Lances and the other is one of the best infantry classes which has Swords and sometimes Axes.

Zihark is one of my all time favorite characters. He is he second enemy that joins Ike though. The thunder mage is technically an enemy in the defend map you recruit her on.

Worth the wait, always wanted to hear more about Zihark. Also glad you kept the voice acting over from the Hector video, a nice touch!

5:15 I have that fanart saved to my computer. It's really beautiful and touching in a tragic way. Guy is another FE character that subverts the usual Navarre archetype: instead of being an edgelord, he's bumbling and naive.

What a great analysis! You presented Zihark in a way I never thought about. Thinking more, his character highlights greatly the multiple intersections of our identities. He identifies as a citizen of Daein and an activist for equality. How terrible it is when one of your identities conflicts with another. His conflicting identities; how prejudice and discriminatory his country is to laguz vs his commitment to acceptance and equality. This is a wonderful distinction from the overused “black and white,” everything-perfectly-falls-in-place character. Conflicting identities reside within all of us and that’s what makes Zihark so relatable.

Man every single one of these videos makes me go on emotional roller coasters with characters I never even knew I would care about. And I love it. Keep up the good work Ghast.

A great analysis of my absolute favorite Fire Emblem character. Great stuff Ghast. I'm sure you have a list, but I might suggest Tauroneo as a possible subject. I don't know if he has enough good supports or RD combat dialogue, but I really love him as a character similar to Zihark. Most loyal-to-my-now-evil-country characters just die tragically in Fire Emblem as a boss character. Tauroneo defects and fights his own emperor to save his country, something most of these types of characters never do. It gels with me that he can see his national loyalty in a more nuanced way. All the other characters in FE recluctanly fight and die to wage a war of evil, which always felt like a form of cowardice; hiding behind "loyalty" to avoid making the choice of shattering your identity by turning traitor (shoutout to Duessel, only other one to do it). Tauroneo fights for Daein in a brave way in FE9, and then helps rebuild it from the ground up as a loyal, good man and soldier in RD. Also his hair game might challenge for series-best, despite his weird pearl armor. Maybe you can do a "Top 5 Virtuous Traitor" episode. Just random thoughts, great stuff man.

My favourite character (well, one of them) in the series in a Support Science? There truly is a god.

I know Jill can make the same decision to defect, but I wish that Haar had the option to defect to Daein. Not only would the last Daein chapters in part 3 be more bearable but story-wise, he decision could be about honoring Shiharam or something.

people talking about zihawk's depth but overhere i'm just pointing out that ilyana convosation as an example that sure she's not a complex character, she can have moments that aren't her one note trope, her convosation with micaiah in the same stage is also very well done too.

Really neat and insightful. Glad I could lend assistance to this, even if it was with just a few little voice lines. Keep up the good work, soldier!

Zihark for me was just a guy that i thought was a cool character and i would bench Mia for (in both games). I liked his design and his desire to unite Laguz and Beorc but never imagined he was a so well-written and deep character since i didn't bother with his supports in PoR or conversation with other characters in RD. Great video Ghast! You've made me like him even more now(and also want him in Heroes even more).

These videos really help remind me why I love Fire Emblem. Great work, really. The Tellius series has such amazing potential with all the hard to trigger conversations it has. Really goes to show the writers had a vision for EVERY character not only the protagonists and their close circle, even if they knew most people wouldn't get to see their evolution. Thanks for bringing those efforts to light, and for showcasing some of the interactions between personal favorite characters of mine like Zihark and Ilyana. I can't wait to see more of these great, underrated characters covered by you :) Thank you!

I've recently found your channel and watched this whole series. These are amazing! I'm glad that you are looking into the real depths of these characters and games! Please never stop making these great breakdowns of fun characters!

I think Ilyanna is the first enemy unit to join your army in Path of Radiance.

I very much agree with everything you've said about Zihark and find him to be very admirable in his mindset and endeavors withing the game; the only thing I would disagree with is the title of the video itself. I wouldn't label him as a social justice warrior, he's more of a an activist and a revolutionary in a world that truly heavily oppresses people of different races to the point of murder and slaughter. Frankly, he seemed very reasonable withing the games and his world needed someone like him to exist and fight for the lives of those around him, but I have a feeling if he came to ours he would retain a much different perspective despite holding onto the same beliefs of equality and justice among all people. Social justice warriors, as the stereotype that we are personally becoming accustomed to in modern society, tend to be people who claim equality (much like Zihark, and im sure with similarly good intentions) but in a society of tiers that is nowhere near as vulgar as the one where he has come from. Depending on what country you live in (I currently live in the U.S.), all people have comparable rights to better themselves and no one is spat upon for simply being different BY THE SOCIETY ITSELF. The cruelty of the world shown in the game was so widespread that it was integrated in their way of life to be cruel and unfair to laguz and spur hatred between the races; in our world (again depending on country), while people do treat each other unfairly, the vast majority of people can respect one another as human beings and those who do not treat each other equally are looked down upon by society. Disputes between people based on race, sec, age, or gender are often more personal viewpoints rather than ones that our society has founded. With that said, I'd feel like Zihark would agree that our current society doesn't have much injustice to rebel against and would more likely be reasonably happy living in peace here rather than disturbing it unnecessarily.

Ghast, getting the voice actors for these essays is so indicative of your dedication to this content. It’s really, really good. Thanks for this series.

Great episode I’m actually surprised someone got more character from radiant dawn Also Zihark x Illyana ftw

Phenomenal job Ghast. I couldn't be happier that one of my favorite Tellius characters got an amazing video. Keep it up dude.

Really good video, thanks! I was really impressed at the depth of things you found about Zihark. I loved the character and always kind of new the struggle, but not to that extent. Very great character and story.

These video essays are amazing, Ghast. Support Science episodes are similar to essays I have to write for a teacher who gives you a 0 for having a being verb in the thesis statement. They are amazing in almost every sense from their structure to their content. I hope that one day I can write at the same level.

Nice video. I would like to see you do a support science on Jill next. I think she has some of the most internal struggles and character growth in the Tellius Fire Emblem games.

One thing that always confused me is why Zihark and Stefan never had a conversation. Seems like they'd get on like a peanut butter and jelly. Especially since they both want a place where Beorc, Laguz, and mixed children can live happily

This was fantastic from start to finish. Awesome character breakdown and analysis of probably my favorite Fire Emblem character of all time. Also, the voice acting was legit stellar.

This video has officially made Zihark my favorite Fire Emblem character of all time. Thanks Ghast!

Join laguz alliance or stay with Daein *Yes/No* In all seriousness Zihark is one of the few characters that benefitted from radiant dawn, Due to RD's shoddy writing (My opinion) most characters from the first game are lacking improvement or have even gotten worse ASTRID! Those introduced aren't helped either due to the lack of real supports and they end up being so underdeveloped that I dont even care enough to form an opinion on them But Zihark's moral dilemma is something you would expect to get from a main character and only made me want to see him succeed more after POR when he killed everything with a forged gamble killing edge Also Whoever voiced zihark is the new daddy

Absolutely amazing work here Ghast! Really, I've always loved this character, but after this I can say he's one of my top favorites of the entire franchise. Keep up the great work!

Zihark is my favorite fire emblem character. Glad you made this video.

I have always loved Zihark as both a unit and a character and I'm glad that you made this video cause it made me find a few things out that I didn't know about him. Great video as usual.

To any authors or aspiring authors: This is how you write a character that has experienced loss. Zihark's loss guides his actions, but does not dominate his personality.

I watched all of your support science videos and I gotta say, I never saw any KZfaqr like you who analyzed any video game characters as great as you Ghast. You're truly coming along with your support science series and I'm looking forward to the next future videos

I always have to wonder, that since they ended up cutting a Zihark/Ike support in PoR, if Zihark's path would have been somewhat different in RD, if he was closer to Ike than he is in canon? Perhaps he would have immediately left Daein without even needing to talk to Lethe or Mordecai, or he might have even been a member of the Greil Mercenaries after the events of the first game, or even after the first part of RD. Or even be a Gallian mercenary, in the latter situation?

Zihark always was my favourite Tellius character, and your work here only reinforces my feeling. Good job, Ghast!

Dawn B^iga

I didn't think much of most Tellius characters, didn't really get the time to do multiple playthroughs. Thanks for this Ghast, I have to look more into Zihark. I missed plenty with him, something I should fix as his character is one I would have adored then instead of just now. These are so damn incredible, looking forward to your next SS most but totes respect the time they need. Thanks again sir, showing this fire emblem fan another character I've grossly overlooked.

I find it very interesting that he recruits himself during the battle.

Excellent video. I’m happy to see Radiant Dawn (and the Tellius games in general) get some love for what they do well - portray the consequences of your own actions for both sides of a war. Great job telling the story of a really interesting character.

Zihark is the most underrated Fire Emblem character of all time, both for story and combat.

Excellent video! Given the focus of the video its only natural for the focus to be on Zihark and racism vs laguz. One thing that gets left behind, RD in particular is kind of bad for this, is that the racism did go both ways. It's not really relevant HERE, but Tellius and the dynamics between the two races become a lot more intricate when we appreciate that fact.

I've been waiting two years to watch this video and after finishing Radiant Dawn this was one of the first things on my mind to go back and watch

This is a very well thought out analysis of one of my favorite FE characters. Thanks for the walk down memory lane. When I was a teen I had a big crush on Zihark because he was cute, a good person, and I had a feeling we might get along in real life. I also had a big crush on Soren but deep down I knew I didn't think we would like each other if we were to meet in real life.

As a person who analyzes characters himself, this is impressively done.

What an awesome video. Subscribed. Loved the voice acting too. Keep making more videos like this !!!

Man, these support sciences are really fucking good. More please!

Thank you for doing such a great analysis about my fav character in the Tellius Games besides Ike. I mean I like Mia kinda but I hated it that she got all the hype while I always thought Zihark was the way more interesting character...

“The first enemy unit that can be recruited to Ike’s side” Does everyone forget ilyana?

Now I really wanna see one of these on Soren. He is a really interesting character in my opinion and very deep as well

Extremely underrated character! Easily my favorite male myrm in all of FE! Thank you so much for making this!

Haven't looked at this channel or video series in ages; thank you for finally looking at a Tellius character! He's a great example of the type of depth and nuance that endears me to its cast as much as it does, and I hope you get to do more. The voice acting was on point and a great addition as well. It looks like a few people misconstrued your choice of labeling per the title, but you're technically correct. I get it's still hip to group the worst examples unto a label and say that's the only relevant meaning of it, but PoR and RD *were* considerably progressive in their narrative and should be acknowledged as such.

This is honestly hurtful. It brings me back so many memories. Thank you for engaging in the tellius series. Radiant Dawn is my favorite and first ever fire emblem and I can't get over how gorgeous the stories in both its prequel and sequel.

I really enjoyed this video, ghast. I liked zihark before but this helped me appreciate his character more. Wish we could’ve seen zihark interact with Stefan.

This series came a long way, keep making progress :)

I love Zihark. He kind of reminds me of Spiderman or Nightwing from the comics... I always try to make use of him in every playthrough for PoR and RD

I'm loving all of these. Keep up the good work. I feel you'd really get a lot out of analyzing Leaf or Finn from fire emblem 4/5. Leaf is imo the most interesting main character in the series and there is so much subtle characterization in Finn.

Thank you for giving me even more motivation for having Zihark defect to the Laguz Alliance. I already do so because I know he cares about the laguz but I never figured that staying with Daein would affect him THAT much. Pretty good video.

Man I wish there was more videos like this going in depth about the characters from this game specifically

Great analysis on the character here! Tellius gave great depth to many of it's characters. Would still love to see one on Haar someday.

Now it's time to vote for him in CYL4

Should tell this that Zihark does have a conversation with Nailah in the part 3 finale.

You just made him become one of my top 3

Awesome job as always! Your Support Science videos are the best. I hope to eventually be able to play Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn.

IS must be from Daein considering they won't put Laguz in Heroes

Great video! One of my favourites you made, easily.

Just found this video, and it reinforces why I absolutely ADORE Zihark. He’s trying to be that middle ground between laguz and beorc in the wish for liberation and unity, and I absolutely love it. He’s always on a front line on the field and in my heart

I played these games when I was WAYYYY younger and never bothered with supports. This is giving me a whole new appreciation for these characters!

Well I didn't think it was possible but this video just made me like zihark a lot more. Thanks ghast.

I love these soooo much. These videos bring another side to FE characters and I love them, and I want more.

That Zihark voice. I swoon. Dayum, Daddy. Haha. Also... Ghast mentions Navarre, he gets my attention.