FFXII Essay: Penelo: Paper, Plastic or Full of Personality?

[mariagoner]

[Please note that this essay on Penelo's characterization within FFXII contains quite a lot of spoilers for the end of the game and the epilogue.]I know, I know. I really shouldn’t suddenly decide to go off on a wild tangent now, considering I’ve got roughly 273837 other fandom projects to tend to. But in any case, I’ve been thinking a great deal

Comments

[im_an_aaangel]

I think all the characters in FFXII could have used a boost in personality.. I don't think each character is any less interesting than the next, but I really think it's the plotline that holds the characters back.

And yes, Vayne is hot. :D

[mariagoner]

Why yes, Vayne is hot! Maybe we can even help him topple Alan Rickman's popularity over the internets soon. XD

And yeah, in FFXII, character serves plot rather than vice-versa, which frustrates me at times. But dang it, I still believe Penelo has a personality and find it a little unfair that she's always accused on not having one when, say, nobody (or very few people) say the same of Basch or Vaan.

[rampant_geekery]

I would say she's just normal. I never found her too be overbearing or annoying or anything like that so she was fine with me. She did feel a bit underdeveloped to me though, along with Fran and Vaan, but I still enjoyed her character for what it was worth.

Her interactions with Larsa totally made up for everything though.

[mariagoner]

There are many shades and flavors to ordinary. I rather like the ones Penelo comes wrapped up in. ;) And poor Penelo, Fran and Vaan are on Team We Don't Really Have a Reason to Be Here, We're Just Chillin' for Fun throughout the game. Still, even Fran and Vaan got their sub-plots. ::sigh::

And she + Larsa = hilarity and cuteness foreva. Nobody will ever convince me that he didn't have a crush on her the size of his eventual empire in the game. XD

[rampant_geekery]

And poor Penelo, Fran and Vaan are on Team We Don't Really Have a Reason to Be Here, We're Just Chillin' for Fun throughout the game.
I was willing to forgive Penelo because of her interaction with Larsa, and because she was very adorable and normal and didn't have GLORIOUS FAMILY ANGST like um, everyone else in the party.XD

He was totally crushing on her. Which is why I am not looking forward to RW because it looks like they'll be playing up the Vaan/Penelo.:(

[mariagoner]

Heh, Penelo is refreshingly free of trauma despite her tragic (everyone in her family died while she was still in her teens-- though that doesn't seem like such a rare occurence for Team Rabanastre) past. But hell, at least she doesn't make a fuss about it, right? ;)

And yeah, that's what I'm afraid is going to happen in RW as well. ::sigh:: And while Vaan/Penelo is certainly a cute couple, they're almost... disappointingly easy to put together, if that makes any sense. I like the platonic family vibe they have and throwing sex and romance in the equation just kinda... strikes me as weirdly incestuous, if that makes any sense at all.

[iczer6]

I like Penelo for many of the reasons you stated here.

I do think that while she seems like the typical 'spunky side-kick' she manages to break free from the cliche.

She's bright and talented but aware of her limitations, she admires Vaan's ideals but at the same she can see the bigger picture, she has a sharp sense of humor but can also be genuinely compassionate.

I think part of the reason we don't know a lot about her is that even though she and Vaan are the 'main characters' it's not really their story. They help, they take part but it's not really about them which IMO is part of what makes XII unique.

[mariagoner]

I do think that while she seems like the typical 'spunky side-kick' she manages to break free from the cliche.

Oh definitely! And even though I enjoyed Yuffie's larcenous ways and thought both Selphie and Rikku (at least before the annoying reinvention in FFX-2) were cute, I've never even been so much a fan of the 'spunky young girl' characters in the FF games. I guess it's because she's so much more ordinary than those other characters-- and so much more of a contrast to the environment she's in at the same time!

And yeah, character serves plot in FFXII in away that's really unusual for the FF games. It frustrates me at times... but then, it's also the only FF I've written extensively for. They must have been doing something right after all! ;)

[mithrigil]

I agree that she has a personality, but to echo rampant_geekery above, she's normal and, like much of the cast, a touch underdeveloped. She doesn't have a "default" that springs to mind. And this combination of factors encourages younger fanauthors to empathize with her to the extent that they superimpose themselves. I've seen people remark "I usually pick the youngest girl and the oldest guy", which to me smacks of self-insertion.

[mariagoner]

I've seen people remark "I usually pick the youngest girl and the oldest guy", which to me smacks of self-insertion.

Which would be... Penelo and Dr. Cid?! Oh the humanity of it all! DX DX XD

But actually, I think one of the most surprising things about Penelo is that I don't think she's self-inserted very often. I mean, yeah, there are younger/less adept authors who've probably done that with her... but the majority of fic (involving pairings or otherwise) out there are about Ashe. If anything, she's the one that most ficcers are putting all of their hopes and dreams on. Penelo? Well, I've seen a few examples of that tendency but it's far outdwarfed by some of the stuff about Ashe (who does have a far more dominant personality throughout the game) that I've read.

[cygna_hime]

This is interesting, both because of your excellent essay and because of the comments complaining that Penelo is "normal", which, to me, was one of the best things about her. I'm very fond of normal, especially when it comes to acts of heroism, which are far from reserved for the larger-than-life. (Do you realize that this game has two--two!--orphan heroes who don't turn out to be long-lost anything?)

I will now digress: I was unaware that Penelo's brothers were in the Order of Dalmasca, and it kind of intrigues me. Weren't the Order the knights? As in, people, either nobly born or wealthy merchant class, whose families could pay for a set of expensive armor, and a steed, and all the gear attendant thereon? Or am I barking up the wrong tree?

[rampant_geekery]

Just so you know, I wasn't complaining that she's normal. I think it's a good thing.:)

[cygna_hime]

Sorry; I misinterpreted. (Which is a very odd-looking word.)

[aorin]

Just a suggestion, though I might be wrong. ^_