You know what, I do love Kingdom Hearts. It is one of my favourite video game franchises, and I adore the combination of Disney and Final Fantasy characters. It has a unique premise, lovable characters, and some of the most beautiful music I’ve ever heard.
And yet, the franchise is fundamentally flawed. The first game, released in 2002, told a relatively simple story, an interesting lore, and you knew who was who. But, as each new game was released (each one on a different console), the story became more and more convoluted, often relying on plot devices, deus ex machinas, and retcons. The motives of specific characters became confusing, and it virtually became impossible to explain the story as a whole.
For instance, the main antagonist, Xehanort, use an overly convoluted method of time travel to gather versions of himself from the past. Yet, in Kingdom Hearts II, Merlin simply whips up a magic door to the past. The series also had a tendency to contradict itself. Nobodies, the creatures created when a Heartless abandons its body, were described as lacking hearts and emotions. But, in Dream Drop Distance, Sora realises that Nobodies do actually regrow their hearts, explaining why Roxas and co. could express feelings.
So, for fun and a little bit of creative writing, I am going to reimagine (or reimagineer) the Kingdom Hearts franchise, witling the long franchise down to a standard trilogy, with Birth By Sleep as a prequel. I will be taking a lot of liberties with the story, changing some things, and removing some characters (after a lot of soul searching!). The main goal is to tell a more easy-to-understand plot, without betraying the essence of the franchise or the characters. I won’t really be commenting on the game play, as that isn’t really why I play these games.
The first change is probably the most important. Master Xehanort, the main antagonist of the franchise, is gone. He no longer exists in my version of Kingdom Hearts. Don’t worry, it doesn’t mean that the darkness-preaching badguy everyone loves is gone. It is just that his older, creepy, finger-wiggling self is gone. He has a new origin story, or rather Xehanort is now just one character, and not thirteen.
In this version, Terra is Xehanort. His full name is “Terra Xehanort”, beginning life as a boy on Destiny Islands, would eventually leave, become a Keyblade wielder, and go down an Anakin Skywalker-esque path of darkness and rage to become a villain. I felt the decision to compartmentalise the badguy is necessary. Xehanort’s Heartless (Ansem) and Nobody (Xemnas) will both show up too
Let’s also tackle the key elements of the lore that need to be established to explain Terra/Xehanort’s goals.
KINGDOM HEARTS: The centre of the universe and source of all hearts, light, darkness, and world. All hearts come from this entity, and return to it when a person dies. It contains immense power over light and darkness, acting as the metaphorical scales of balance in the cosmos. It can appear in many forms, including a heart-shaped moon, or a large set of white doors.
KEYBLADES: The Keyblade is a key-shaped sword which is born from a person’s heart. It has an ability to open and unlock the hearts of people and the worlds, as well as permanently seal them. Not everyone can wield a Keyblade, and we shall keep the rules vague since the games always seemed to do that. A wielder can become a Keyblade Master through various means, most commonly through great acts, or by passing the Mark of Mastery Exam. The first Keyblade, the “χ-Blade”, acts as a counterpart to Kingdom Hearts, serving as its protector and is the only Keyblade that can summon the entity
KEYBLADE WAR: The Keyblade War is a mythological cataclysm that occurred in the Kingdom Hearts universe. It has become the stuff of legend, so no one truly knows how long ago it happened, perhaps 100 years or even 1000 years ago. It is said that the war occurred on the lone, original world, that was destroyed by the war, as many Keyblade wielders battled each other to control Kingdom Hearts. Someone used the χ-Blade to summon Kingdom Hearts, and the entity’s power put an end to all combatants, and destroyed the world. However, the light within the hearts of children survived, allowing new worlds to be formed. The χ-Blade was said to have shattered into twenty pieces, thirteen of darkness, and seven of light. These seven pieces would find shelter within the seven Princesses of Heart, and the thirteen pieces of darkness disappeared.
THE WORLDS: There are many worlds within the universe, most of which are based on Disney films. Originally, there was but one world, which was destroyed at the end of the Keyblade War, though remnants may remain. Most worlds are separated from one another by invisible barriers, but the Gummi Ship technology was created once these barriers began to be infiltrated. A “prime directive”-esque law was used by Keyblade wielders to keep the existence of other worlds secret from one another. When a world’s barrier is destroyed, it appears as shooting stars. Each world has a heart, hidden behind a Keyhole, which can be locked or unlocked by a Keyblade. The Heartless search for the Keyholes in order to devour the worlds’ hearts. The destroyed worlds fall into the Realm of Darkness, but can be restored using Kingdom Hearts.
PRINCESSES OF HEART: The Princesses of Heart are seven maidens who possess hearts of pure light, and are unknowingly the hosts for the seven shards of light that make up half of the χ-Blade. The first roster includes Snow White, Cinderella, Princess Aurora, Princess Jasmine, Belle, Alice, and Kairi. Due to their connection to the χ-Blade, the princesses, in theory, could wield a Keyblade, but Kairi will be the only one to do so. The shards within can seek out new hosts if the princesses are exposed to darkness. The princesses’ hearts could be used to create an incomplete version of the χ-Blade.
MONSTERS: The Kingdom Hearts universe has several types of creatures and monsters that personify various concepts. The Heartless are corrupted hearts, appearing as black, yellow-eyed creatures. Most lack a sense of self, dwell in the Realm of Darkness, and continuously seek out other hearts to consume. Nobodies are the sentient creatures made when a Heartless abandons its original body. Nobodies generally appear as white, inhuman entities, but those who had strong hearts can maintain their original appearances and memories, but lack emotions. The Inversed are black, impish creatures that personify negative emotions, and cause anarchy rather than seek out hearts. And the Dream Eaters exist in the Dreamscape, and can be either benevolent or malicious based on if they eat a person’s dreams or nightmares.
Anyway, Terra/Xehanort’s goal is to, in his view, correct the imbalance between light and darkness in the universe, left out of whack after the end of the last Keyblade War. Through personal reasons that we’ll cover in the Birth By Sleep rewrite, Terra was convinced that light doesn’t always equal good, and believes darkness is just as important as light in one’s heart. He plots to kick off a second Keyblade War, restore the χ-Blade, and summon Kingdom Hearts to reset the balance between light and dark. But, due to the darkness in his heart, Terra wishes to open the Keyholes in every world and allow the Heartless to consume all them all in darkness. After that, Terra will leave the universe to either survive or crumble, in order for the next generation of Keyblade wielders to decide what to do.
So, in others words, Terra is willing to bring about a great change, but will leave the consequences and fate to others. He is willing to become a martyr or a pariah if necessary, but will not intervene if his actions have severe effects on the worlds. Like Anakin abandoning his name and becoming Darth Vader, Terra will so the same and become Xehanort, the Seeker of Darkness.
And yet, the franchise is fundamentally flawed. The first game, released in 2002, told a relatively simple story, an interesting lore, and you knew who was who. But, as each new game was released (each one on a different console), the story became more and more convoluted, often relying on plot devices, deus ex machinas, and retcons. The motives of specific characters became confusing, and it virtually became impossible to explain the story as a whole.
For instance, the main antagonist, Xehanort, use an overly convoluted method of time travel to gather versions of himself from the past. Yet, in Kingdom Hearts II, Merlin simply whips up a magic door to the past. The series also had a tendency to contradict itself. Nobodies, the creatures created when a Heartless abandons its body, were described as lacking hearts and emotions. But, in Dream Drop Distance, Sora realises that Nobodies do actually regrow their hearts, explaining why Roxas and co. could express feelings.
So, for fun and a little bit of creative writing, I am going to reimagine (or reimagineer) the Kingdom Hearts franchise, witling the long franchise down to a standard trilogy, with Birth By Sleep as a prequel. I will be taking a lot of liberties with the story, changing some things, and removing some characters (after a lot of soul searching!). The main goal is to tell a more easy-to-understand plot, without betraying the essence of the franchise or the characters. I won’t really be commenting on the game play, as that isn’t really why I play these games.
The first change is probably the most important. Master Xehanort, the main antagonist of the franchise, is gone. He no longer exists in my version of Kingdom Hearts. Don’t worry, it doesn’t mean that the darkness-preaching badguy everyone loves is gone. It is just that his older, creepy, finger-wiggling self is gone. He has a new origin story, or rather Xehanort is now just one character, and not thirteen.
In this version, Terra is Xehanort. His full name is “Terra Xehanort”, beginning life as a boy on Destiny Islands, would eventually leave, become a Keyblade wielder, and go down an Anakin Skywalker-esque path of darkness and rage to become a villain. I felt the decision to compartmentalise the badguy is necessary. Xehanort’s Heartless (Ansem) and Nobody (Xemnas) will both show up too
Let’s also tackle the key elements of the lore that need to be established to explain Terra/Xehanort’s goals.
KINGDOM HEARTS: The centre of the universe and source of all hearts, light, darkness, and world. All hearts come from this entity, and return to it when a person dies. It contains immense power over light and darkness, acting as the metaphorical scales of balance in the cosmos. It can appear in many forms, including a heart-shaped moon, or a large set of white doors.
KEYBLADES: The Keyblade is a key-shaped sword which is born from a person’s heart. It has an ability to open and unlock the hearts of people and the worlds, as well as permanently seal them. Not everyone can wield a Keyblade, and we shall keep the rules vague since the games always seemed to do that. A wielder can become a Keyblade Master through various means, most commonly through great acts, or by passing the Mark of Mastery Exam. The first Keyblade, the “χ-Blade”, acts as a counterpart to Kingdom Hearts, serving as its protector and is the only Keyblade that can summon the entity
KEYBLADE WAR: The Keyblade War is a mythological cataclysm that occurred in the Kingdom Hearts universe. It has become the stuff of legend, so no one truly knows how long ago it happened, perhaps 100 years or even 1000 years ago. It is said that the war occurred on the lone, original world, that was destroyed by the war, as many Keyblade wielders battled each other to control Kingdom Hearts. Someone used the χ-Blade to summon Kingdom Hearts, and the entity’s power put an end to all combatants, and destroyed the world. However, the light within the hearts of children survived, allowing new worlds to be formed. The χ-Blade was said to have shattered into twenty pieces, thirteen of darkness, and seven of light. These seven pieces would find shelter within the seven Princesses of Heart, and the thirteen pieces of darkness disappeared.
THE WORLDS: There are many worlds within the universe, most of which are based on Disney films. Originally, there was but one world, which was destroyed at the end of the Keyblade War, though remnants may remain. Most worlds are separated from one another by invisible barriers, but the Gummi Ship technology was created once these barriers began to be infiltrated. A “prime directive”-esque law was used by Keyblade wielders to keep the existence of other worlds secret from one another. When a world’s barrier is destroyed, it appears as shooting stars. Each world has a heart, hidden behind a Keyhole, which can be locked or unlocked by a Keyblade. The Heartless search for the Keyholes in order to devour the worlds’ hearts. The destroyed worlds fall into the Realm of Darkness, but can be restored using Kingdom Hearts.
PRINCESSES OF HEART: The Princesses of Heart are seven maidens who possess hearts of pure light, and are unknowingly the hosts for the seven shards of light that make up half of the χ-Blade. The first roster includes Snow White, Cinderella, Princess Aurora, Princess Jasmine, Belle, Alice, and Kairi. Due to their connection to the χ-Blade, the princesses, in theory, could wield a Keyblade, but Kairi will be the only one to do so. The shards within can seek out new hosts if the princesses are exposed to darkness. The princesses’ hearts could be used to create an incomplete version of the χ-Blade.
MONSTERS: The Kingdom Hearts universe has several types of creatures and monsters that personify various concepts. The Heartless are corrupted hearts, appearing as black, yellow-eyed creatures. Most lack a sense of self, dwell in the Realm of Darkness, and continuously seek out other hearts to consume. Nobodies are the sentient creatures made when a Heartless abandons its original body. Nobodies generally appear as white, inhuman entities, but those who had strong hearts can maintain their original appearances and memories, but lack emotions. The Inversed are black, impish creatures that personify negative emotions, and cause anarchy rather than seek out hearts. And the Dream Eaters exist in the Dreamscape, and can be either benevolent or malicious based on if they eat a person’s dreams or nightmares.
Anyway, Terra/Xehanort’s goal is to, in his view, correct the imbalance between light and darkness in the universe, left out of whack after the end of the last Keyblade War. Through personal reasons that we’ll cover in the Birth By Sleep rewrite, Terra was convinced that light doesn’t always equal good, and believes darkness is just as important as light in one’s heart. He plots to kick off a second Keyblade War, restore the χ-Blade, and summon Kingdom Hearts to reset the balance between light and dark. But, due to the darkness in his heart, Terra wishes to open the Keyholes in every world and allow the Heartless to consume all them all in darkness. After that, Terra will leave the universe to either survive or crumble, in order for the next generation of Keyblade wielders to decide what to do.
So, in others words, Terra is willing to bring about a great change, but will leave the consequences and fate to others. He is willing to become a martyr or a pariah if necessary, but will not intervene if his actions have severe effects on the worlds. Like Anakin abandoning his name and becoming Darth Vader, Terra will so the same and become Xehanort, the Seeker of Darkness.