Deus ex Machina

The first thing you might wonder now is "Why the heck is this Ramble Three?" Well, to be accurate, this my THIRD ramble about Xenogears! The other two were sent to Vera. One of them is on her page, and that's sort of a ramble, but it's actually more reminiscient of an intelligent review than it is of a ramble!

The second ramble was about how the Yggdrasil flies like a boat. Well, maybe because it IS a boat! But I mean, it's not like Square's Programmers had to SUDDENLY get all realistic on us, right? I mean, come on, do you even think the Yggdrasil could even fly in the FIRST PLACE?

Okay, now to the REAL ramble! (You're all gasping at me!) Did you ever notice that Maria doesn't pilot gears like everyone else? Or am I the only one who noticed that Maria actually STANDS on Seibzehn's head?? Really! When you first get her to fight her father, she stands on his head and does her stuff... but you sort of think "Maybe it's an exception because she really has to see her father up close". It's really tough to see her standing there at first so you just shrug it off.

I started to get really suspicious when Seibzehn had to fly to Solaris. Maria was just SITTING on that gear's SHOULDER! I mean, they're like, flying at who-knows-what speed and there she is, sitting on top of his shoulder! And if you're telling me that Seibzehn has seatbelts, I'll be damned!

Who ELSE in the game gets to pilot a gear by standing on its head? Fei gets in his gear. So does Elly, Ramsus, Miang, Bart, Citan, and a number of other people! What makes Maria so special? Sure, she's the granddaughter of Genuis Man Bal, but that doesn't make her INVINCIBLE to attack, right? I sure as hell woudln't want to be standing on his shoulder in the fight with Deus, where we're getting tossed back and forth by angels like ants.

And then, every time Seubzehn falls splat on the ground, Maria's still around... what is this? I'd be freaking SCARED if I was standing on a ten ton piece of metal and it FELL! I mean, first of all, you'd fall about fourty-some odd-feet to the ground if you couldn't keep your grip on the metal shoulder plates, THEN you run the risk of being crushed! And Seibzehn's no baby gear here!

I don't know whether I should respect Maria more for her being so brave and able, or frown at how she does more than just the impossible.

There's your food for thought. Enjoy!

Arcana, January 17, 1999