Sephiroth (Final Fantasy)

For the concept used in Kabbalah, see Sephirot.

Sephiroth
Sephiroth artwork by Tetsuya Nomura
Series	Final Fantasy Compilation of Final Fantasy VII Kingdom Hearts
First game	Final Fantasy VII (1997)
Designed by	Tetsuya Nomura
Voiced by (English)	Lance Bass (Kingdom Hearts) George Newbern (all other appearances)
Voiced by (Japanese)	Toshiyuki Morikawa
Fictional profile
Class/Job	SOLDIER 1st Class
Weapon	Masamune

Sephiroth (セフィロス, Sefirosu^?) is a fictional character in the role-playing game Final Fantasy VII developed by Square Co. He is introduced there as the main antagonist. Character designer Tetsuya Nomura wanted his role in the story to be different from the other Final Fantasy villains while his design is intended to contrast directly with that of the main character, Cloud Strife. His Japanese voice actor is Toshiyuki Morikawa;^[1] in English, he was first voiced by Lance Bass in Kingdom Hearts and by George Newbern in all his subsequent appearances.^[2][3]

In Final Fantasy VII, Sephiroth is the result of an experiment by the mega-corporation Shinra, in which they used cells from the extraterrestrial lifeform Jenova. After discovering this, Sephiroth decides to become a god to take control of the planet; Cloud and the game's other protagonists choose to stop him. Sephiroth's role in the story as well as his background are expanded in the titles from Compilation of Final Fantasy VII. Additionally, he appears as a boss character in the Kingdom Hearts series, and other video games developed by the same company.

Sephiroth has been well-received within the video game community, and is regularly featured in top positions on many villain lists, as well as lists of Final Fantasy characters. While his role in the story has been praised, many websites commented on how difficult it is to defeat Sephiroth in the games he appears in. Various types of merchandise based on his appearance have been developed, such as figurines.

Concept and creation

Sephiroth was designed by Final Fantasy VII's character designer Tetsuya Nomura. His character existed since Nomura thought that the game's plot would be about Cloud Strife pursuing Sephiroth with him already being the main antagonist.^[4] In the making of the plot, Nomura wanted Sephiroth to appear early in the game and then follow his way so that gamers would not meet the game's final boss late in the game. During development on Final Fantasy VII, Sephiroth was meant to be Aerith Gainsborough's first love interest who she remembers when seeing Cloud. Before finishing the game, Sephiroth was replaced by Zack Fair with Nomura considering it to be sudden. Director Yoshinori Kitase has regarded Sephiroth's role in the game as one of the reasons why the game has become very popular.^[5] Nomura later called Sephiroth "the ultimate antagonist in the Final Fantasy VII saga. There can't be anyone else." and regarded him as an enemy from a previous generation in contrast to his "remnants" that later appear.^[6] In early drafts of the game, Sephiroth's original personality would already be brutal and cruel, as well as strong willed with a calm ego. He would also suffer from Mako Addiction, a semi-conscious state result of high exposure to Mako energy, but would show withdrawal symptoms to retain his composure caused by his madness, making him a unique exception.^[7] Sephiroth was also meant to be influencing Cloud into believing he is a creation from his will, but such theory would later be dismissed. In another removed scene, when his true body is first seen in the Northern Crater, it would have the contours of a female.^[8] His name comes from Kabbalah, in which the ten sephirot on the Tree of Life represent the ten attributes that God created through which he can manifest.^[9]

Illustrator Yoshitaka Amano and Nomura drew the artwork of Sephiroth. He has long platinum hair and bright cyan eyes with cat-like pupils, and is portrayed in a black coat decorated with metallic pauldrons. Since appearing as Safer Sephiroth, Sephiroth has had a black angel wing on his back which references the theme music "One Winged Angel".^[10] When Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII was released, the staff stated that the reason for the wing's color being black was based on the notions of evil.^[11] Nomura has stated that Sephiroth was made to be a complete contrast to the game's main protagonist, Cloud's original designs of slicked-back, black hair with no spikes.^[12] His weapon, the Masamune, which has been featured in numerous Final Fantasy titles, is an elongated nodachi that he learned to use during his days in SOLDIER.^[13] The Masamune is named after the famous Japanese swordsmith Goro Nyudo Masamune, whose blades are considered national treasures in Japan today.^[14]

Sephiroth was added to Final Fantasy VII Advent Children, the film sequel of the series, as script writer Kazushige Nojima thought that the film's plot would become less entertaining without him. His revival was planned in early plan of the film, but the official reason was not reached until later dates. Nomura originally planned to make him appear since the start, but the staff spent two years to develop his design which caused them difficulties. Other details were made emphasize Sephiroth's other-worldly character such as the fact he would never blink or breathe, and that his voice always sounded calm. The staff stated that his strength considerably increased to the point that Sephiroth had "ascended to a new level of existence." Despite initially finding troubles about who would voice him, Nomura said that once Toshiyuki Morikawa auditioned for the role, he found it suitable. Morikawa was aided by the staff to make Sephiroth's lines so that his words would mean how superior the character feels. The voice director and Morikawa agreed to make Sephiroth's voice sound calm to the point that he would not have been defeated by Cloud, giving a feeling to Morikawa that he may reappear to continue their fight.^[1]

Appearances

Final Fantasy VII series

Sephiroth appears as the main villain in Final Fantasy VII, killing the president of the company Shinra is one of his first actions.^[15] Sephiroth was once the best and the most powerful member of SOLDIER, the elite warriors division of Shinra and rose to the status of celebrity during the Shinra Wutai war.^[16] After the war, however, Sephiroth was sent on a mission to the village of Nibelheim, wherein he discovered that he is the product of a biological experiment using cells from the extraterrestrial lifeform Jenova .^[17][18] Learning that Jenova tried to take control of the planet years ago, Sephiroth decides to follow her wish.^[19] Sephiroth then burns down the entire village and kills many, but is assumed dead after a confrontation with the game protagonist Cloud Strife.^[10][20] A few years later, Sephiroth once again appears to continue his mission.^[15]

Sephiroth's primary objective is to become a god that rules over the entire planet by merging with the planet life force, known as Lifestream, and taking control over it. In order to do so, he must summon Meteor, a destructive meteorite entity from the outer space that can catastrophically damage the planet, thus allowing Sephiroth to merge with the exposed Lifestream.^[21] To this end, he has to face both the game protagonists (Cloud and his comrades)^[22] as well as the antagonistic mega-corporation Shinra.^[15] Despite appearing multiple times in the games, it is revealed that it was Jenova who was taking his shape, while the real Sephiroth's body was sealed in Northern Crater.^[23] Therefore, he uses copies of himself in order to bring the Black Materia, the item required to summon Meteor, succeeding when tricking Cloud into believing he is also a copy.^[24][25] In the game's last battle, Sephiroth takes two forms to fight: the first one is Bizarro Sephiroth (リバース・セフィロス^?), while the subsequent form is Safer Sephiroth (セーファ・セフィロス^?). After his defeat, Sephiroth reappears in Cloud's mind, but is once again defeated.^[10]

Sephiroth has brief cameo appearances in the action game prequel, Before Crisis: Final Fantasy VII, in which he supports Shinra in their battle against the terrorist group AVALANCHE and later, the game revises his betrayal upon Shinra and his apparent death while fighting Cloud.^[10] Sephiroth also appears shortly in Final Fantasy VII Advent Children, a CGI film set two years after Final Fantasy VII's ending, wherein Kadaj, Loz, and Yazoo, the movie's main antagonists and "remnants" of Sephiroth's will, try to reincarnate him. Although Kadaj eventually succeeds, Cloud Strife once again defeats Sephiroth, whose body changes back to Kadaj's.^[26] Sephiroth is also the focus of the chapter "Case of the Lifestream - Black" from the novella On the Way to a Smile: Final Fantasy VII. Set during Final Fantasy VII's ending, Sephiroth creates the disease Geostigma, a non-contagious disease that infects people who come in contact with tainted Lifestream.^[27]

Sephiroth appears as one of the antagonists of the original video animation Last Order: Final Fantasy VII which depicts the events from Nibelheim's destruction.^[28] Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII also features small appearances from Sephiroth in which discussions about the experiments that would make Lucrecia Crescent give birth to him are made.^[10] He is also a main character of the prequel Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII in which he and the protagonist Zack Fair go in the search of two rebelled SOLDIERs, Genesis and Angeal, whom they are close,^[29][30] but during Nibelheim's destruction he repraises his role. Sephiroth appears as a boss in this part, while a copy of himself is then optional under the name of "Experiment No. 124."^[31] Executive producer Yoshinori Kitase was pleased with Sephiroth's role in Crisis Core as there he has a "much more human side".^[32]

Other appearances

His first appearance outside Final Fantasy VII was as a selectable character in the fighting game Ehrgeiz.^[33] A redesigned Sephiroth also appears in the English and European versions Kingdom Hearts as an optional boss character in Olympus Coliseum.^[34][35] Lance Bass would voice Sephiroth in this game, while in subsequent titles he is replaced by George Newbern. In the Japanese rerelease of the game, Final Mix, an additional scene was added in which Sephiroth fights Cloud although the result of the match is not revealed. He was not included in the sequel Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories as director Tetsuya Nomura could not give him a storyline related to Cloud and he feared negative fan response if Sephiroth did not have a notable role in the story.^[36] Sephiroth's third outside appearance is as another optional boss fight in Kingdom Hearts II in which after he first encounters the series' protagonist, Sora, and then Cloud, who is pursuing him.^[37] When Sephiroth battles Cloud, both of them disappear with Sora concluding they went somewhere else to continue.^[38] Nomura said that in this game Sephiroth represents Cloud's dark side in contrast to Tifa Lockhart who represents his light side.^[39] Although Sephiroth does not appear in the prequel Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, he is known as a hero that Zack Fair aspires to be like. The staff, however, did not know if they would portray him as a being of darkness as shown in other titles.^[40] Sephiroth's fourth outside appearance is in the Itadaki Street games Special and Portable, where he appears as an unlockable playable character.^[41][42]

Sephiroth was also the representative villain of Final Fantasy VII in Dissidia: Final Fantasy.^[43] His fight against Cloud in the game was based on their fights from Final Fantasy VII and Advent Children.^[44] Along with the rest of the Dissidia cast and new characters, Sephiroth appears in the sequel Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy.^[45] He also appears in the puzzle platformer video game LittleBigPlanet and its sequel LittleBigPlanet 2 as a character model; Media Molecule's Alex Evans felt "honored" with the addition of Sephiroth to the title.^[46][47]

Musical themes

In Final Fantasy VII, Sephiroth is the focus of three pieces of music written by series composer Nobuo Uematsu. His primary theme is "Those Chosen by the Planet" (星に選ばれし者, Hoshi ni Erabareshi Mono^?), a piece utilizing bells, low drums, and a deep chorus, which accompanies Sephiroth's appearances throughout the game. In the final battle, "Birth of a God" (神の誕生, Kami no Tanjō^?) plays while the player combats Sephiroth's first form, "Bizarro Sephiroth" (also known as "Reverse Sephiroth"). The most well-known piece is "One-Winged Angel" (片翼の天使, Katayoku no Tenshi^?, lit. "An Angel With a Wing on One Side") which is played during the final confrontation with Sephiroth. In an interview featured on G4's Game Makers (formerly Icons), Uematsu revealed that this piece was designed to be a fusion of the musical styles of Russian composer Igor Stravinsky and rock musician Jimi Hendrix.^[6] The song revolves around his character, as Uematsu was thinking about him when writing it.^[48] Two official covers have been done of this song, the first one being a different orchestration present in Kingdom Hearts. In Advent Children, a revised "One-Winged Angel" theme is played throughout the battle between Cloud and Sephiroth, this time with the progressive metal stylings of Nobuo Uematsu's band The Black Mages as well as orchestral elements and new lyrics. There is also a fourth version titled "The World's Enemy" that plays in Crisis Core.^[49]

Cultural impact

Critical reception

The gaming magazines, on multiple occasions, have chosen Sephiroth as one of the highly notable characters from the series; In March 2006, IGN listed Sephiroth as number 2 in its "Top 10 Tuesday: Most Memorable Villains" while in the "Top 100 Videogame Villains", he was fourth.^[50][51] In October 2005, Electronic Gaming Monthly listed Sephiroth as number one in a top 10 "Video Game Bosses" list.^[52] In December 2009, UGO Networks placed Sephiroth twenty-fifth on their list of "Top 25 Japanese RPG Characters" calling him "one of the most visually striking villains of all time" while praising how different he is from previous Final Fantasy villains.^[53] In Spring of 2005, Sephiroth was the winner in a GameFAQs character battle of villains.^[54] Sephiroth has also been named the number one villain in an episode of G4's Filter.^[55] PCWorld placed him second in "The 47 Most Diabolical Video-Game Villains of All Time" with praise focused on his story.^[56] GameSpy put him eighth in their "Top 10 Villains in Games" by Cary Schwartzman who commented on how difficult it is to defeat him in Final Fantasy VII.^[57] In late 2007, Sephiroth was named fourteenth best character of all time in Dengeki PlayStation's retrospective awards feature about the original PlayStation.^[58] A reader's choice poll organized by GameSpot placed Sephiroth at the top spot of the list. In this contest the character got five times more votes than Bowser who finished in second place, most of the comments noted the difficulty of the fight as well as distinctive elements between it and those found in other games.^[59] Sephiroth was listed at the top of IGN's "Final Fantasy VII: Top 10 Characters" in which writer Dave Smith commented he is the "heavyweight champion of Final Fantasy villains", praising his appearance and the reasons for why he became a villain.^[60] He would take the same spot in the "Top 25 Final Fantasy Characters" by the same site.^[61] In IGN's "Final Fantasy Reader's Choice", also written by Smith, Sephiroth was fourth with comments focused on his activities in the game's plot.^[62] IGN also put Sephiroth in the articles "Big Boss of the Day" and "Baddie Brawl", with the latter comparing him with Liquid Snake from Metal Gear Solid.^[63][64] During February 2010, Famitsu readers voted Sephiroth as the twenty-first most popular video game character.^[65] In the Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition from 2011, he was voted as the thirty-second best video game character.^[66]

Some game editors have criticized Sephiroth's character with IGN's David Smith stating that "Sephiroth was certainly a good-looking fellow, but his motivations were about as clear as mud..." when analysing the Final Fantasy antagonists.^[67] When comparing Sephiroth with the Final Fantasy VI villain, Kefka Palazzo, GamesRadar commented he "seems as interesting as a dead accountant painted brown."^[68] 1UP.com took a humorous approach to Sephiroth's several appearances after apparent deaths and in other games, ranking him third in their "They Is Risen" feature, which covered the ten most notorious video game resurrections. The publication noted that if the character continued to be used Square Enix would eventually "run out of ways to remix One-Winged Angel."^[69] GameSpy editor Ryan Scott called Sephiroth the "King of Overrated Characters" during GameSpy's villain feature for Dissidia: Final Fantasy saying that gamers were impressed by him only because of his design and by how he kills Aerith during Final Fantasy VII.^[70] On the other hand, AnimeFringe stated that Sephiroth is one of "the most notorious villain in the entire Final Fantasy series." Calling him also "quintessential bishounen in the eyes of many fans -- male and female", AnimeFringe also compared him with Kefka, but praising his complexity seen in flashbacks from Final Fantasy VII in which he is doubting and troubled about himself.^[71] In a retrospective on Final Fantasy antagonists, GamesRadar listed Sephiroth as their top pick, citing his developed motives and acts of evil.^[72]

He was also featured alongside Cloud in ScrewAttack's "Top Ten Coolest Characters" although they preferred Cloud more than they did him.^[73] The nature of Sephiroth's boss fights have received a similar reception. Game Informer listed his original appearance in the third place of the publication's "Top Ten Boss Fights", saying that the "battle against Sephiroth is top-notch."^[74] Japanese idol Shoko Nakagawa, a declared Final Fantasy VII fan, comically stated in an interview she would like to marry Sephiroth.^[75]

The scene in which Sephiroth kills Aerith during Final Fantasy VII also resulted in comments regarding Sephiroth's murder; ScrewAttack noted that with such action Sephiroth was established as "the biggest bastard" when comparing him with Cloud.^[76] GamesRadar simply called him "the biggest cock blocker in the gaming world" as writer Shane Patterson found Aerith's character to be appealing and due to the fact Sephiroth killed her, players were unable to use her anymore.^[77] Also referring to the scene as a shocking moment, GameSpot found Sephiroth's FMV sequence of him appearing between Nibelheim's fire "might be one of the most recognizable cutscenes ever to grace video games."^[78] GamesRadar's article "Non-playable characters we wish were playable" featured Sephiroth as a character that they wished would have been playable in Final Fantasy VII as that "could relive skewering Aerith like an annoyingly dainty, needlessly chaste salmon over and over."^[79]

Critics also commented on his role in other games. GamePro initially felt it hard to work alongside him due to his later antagonistic role, but then got used to due the story's development.^[80] IGN AU stated that "Even Sephiroth gets his moments in the sun", praising the depth in his backstory, which would later make his boss battle more entertaining.^[81] IGN UK agreed, stating that his character was granted "a more human dimension" and appreciate some from his events before becoming an antagonist.^[82] His boss battle was also shown in 1UP's "25 More of the Most Badass Boss Fights Ever" in which the staff praised how the original battle from Final Fantasy VII was expanded in the title.^[83] A feature published by GamerHelp included Sephiroth's Kingdom Hearts's fight in a feature titled "The Hardest Bosses of All Time", noting that regardless of the player's skill "walking away from this match unscathed" is not possible, to the point of saying that the fight was more difficult than the entirety of Final Fantasy VII.^[84] AnimeFringe stated that only advanced gamers could be able to defeat Sephiroth in Kingdom Hearts because the player has no backup and that "[his] devastating attacks can kill in seconds."^[35]

Merchandise

Sephiroth's appearance has served as basis for several types of merchandise. These include being part of the "Extra Knights" action figures first published by Bandai in Japan and released in 1997.^[85] A different model was released as part of the Play Arts collection following the release of Final Fantasy VII Advent Children. Kanji Tashiro, Square Enix's manager of merchandise, said at the 2008 San Diego Comic-Con that this figure became one of their best-selling item.^[86] With the release of the movie he was also included in a series of promotional material, primarily consisting of posters. Kotobukiya has included the character in numerous merchandise including a series of cold casts based on his appearance in both the original game and the movie sequel. As a result of promotional campaigns organized in Japan by Square Enix and Coca-Cola, a version of Sephiroth drawn in a super deformed style was featured in the first two volumes of a promotional collection. Products not connected to the release of the games or movies have also been produced. These include a figure as part of the Final Fantasy Trading Arts Vol. 1 series,^[87] a set as part of the Square Minimum Collection along Cloud, and a rare figure of "Safer Sephiroth" as part of the Final Fantasy Creatures series (Chromium). "Reverse Sephiroth" was also released as a normal figure in volume 2. A figure based on his appearances in the Kingdom Hearts games was released in the second series of the Play Arts Kingdom Hearts sub-line.^[88] Some replica weapon companies have produced replicas of Sephiroth's sword, the Masamune, as a 6-foot-long (1.8 m) katana with a stainless steel unsharpened blade.^[89][90] Other types of merchandise includes collectible cards, keychains, lighters, phonecards and plush toys.

References

1. ^ ^{a b} SoftBank, ed (2006) (in Japanese/English). Final Fantasy VII Advent Children: Reunion Files. Square-Enix. ISBN 4-7973-3498-3. 
2. ^ Square Enix. Kingdom Hearts. (Square Enix U.S.A., Buena Vista Games). PlayStation 2. (September 17, 2002)
3. ^ Square Enix. Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII. PlayStation Portable. (August 17, 2009)
4. ^ Khosla, Sheila (2003). "Tetsuya Nomura 20s". FLAREgamer. http://flaregamer.com/b2article.php?p=81&more=1. Retrieved April 13, 2006. 
5. ^ (in Japanese) Final Fantasy VII 10th Anniversary Ultimania (Revised Edition). Square-Enix. 2009. pp. 8–13. ISBN 1019740597. 
6. ^ ^{a b} Tetsuya Nomura (Director) (April 25, 2006). Final Fantasy VII Advent Children Distance: The Making of Advent Children (DVD). Square Enix. 
7. ^ Studio BentStuff, ed (2005) (in Japanese). Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω. Square-Enix. p. 525. ISBN 4-7575-1520-0. 
8. ^ Studio BentStuff, ed (2005) (in Japanese). Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω. Square-Enix. p. 528. ISBN 4-7575-1520-0. 
9. ^ "Sephiroth Biography". IGN. http://stars.ign.com/objects/142/14211782_biography.html. Retrieved January 29, 2008. 
10. ^ ^{a b c d e} (in Japanese) Final Fantasy VII 10th Anniversary Ultimania (Revised Edition). Square-Enix. 2009. pp. 76–81. ISBN 1019740597. 
11. ^ (in Japanese) Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII 10th Ultimania. Square-Enix. 2007. ISBN 978-4757521261. 
12. ^ McLaughlin, Rus (April 30, 2008). "IGN Presents: The History of Final Fantasy VII". IGN. http://retro.ign.com/articles/870/870770p1.html. Retrieved September 14, 2008. 
13. ^ Final Fantasy VII instruction manual
14. ^ "Final Fantasy Retrospective Part XIII". GameTrailers. November 2, 2007. http://www.gametrailers.com/video/part-xiii-final-fantasy/27455. Retrieved December 22, 2008. 
15. ^ ^{a b c} Square Co. Final Fantasy VII. (SCE America). PlayStation. (7 September 1997) "Cloud: Did you see him? Did you see Sephiroth? / Palmer: Yeah, I saw him!! I saw him with my own eyes! / Cloud: You really saw him? / Palmer: Uh! Would I lie to you at a time like this!? And I heard his voice too! Um, he was saying something about not letting us have the Promised Land."
16. ^ Square Co. Final Fantasy VII. (SCE America). PlayStation. (7 September 1997) "Cloud: I want to join SOLDIER. I'm going to be the best there is, just like Sephiroth!"
17. ^ Square Co. Final Fantasy VII. (SCE America). PlayStation. (7 September 1997) "Sephiroth: Exactly. And it's Hojo of Shinra that produced these monsters. Mutated living on organisms produced by Mako energy. That's what these monster's really are./Cloud: Normal members of SOLDIER? You mean you are different? H... hey, Sephiroth!/Sephiroth: N... no... Was!? Was I created this way too?!"
18. ^ Square Co. Final Fantasy VII. (SCE America). PlayStation. (7 September 1997) "Sephiroth: The Jenova Project wanted to produce people with the powers of the Ancients... no, the Cetra. ...I am the one that was produced."
19. ^ Square Co. Final Fantasy VII. (SCE America). PlayStation. (7 September 1997) "Sephiroth: They've come again, mother. With her superior power, knowledge, and magic, Mother was destined to become the ruler of the Planet. But they… Those worthless creatures are stealing the Planet from Mother. But now I'm here with you so don't worry. / Cloud: What about MY sadness!? My family... friends... The sadness of having my hometown taken away from me!? It's the same as your sadness! / Sephiroth: Ha, ha, ha... my sadness? What do I have to be sad about? I am the chosen one. I have been chosen to be the leader of this Planet. I have orders to take this planet back from you stupid people for the Cetra. What am I supposed to be sad about?"
20. ^ Square Co.. Final Fantasy VII. (SCE America). PlayStation. (September 7, 1997) "Aeris: What happened to Sephiroth? / Cloud: In terms of skill, I couldn't have killed him. / Tifa: Official records state Sephiroth is dead. I read it in the newspaper. / Aeris: Shinra, Inc. owns the newspaper, so you can't rely on that information. / Cloud: ......I want to know the truth. I want to know what happened then. I challenged Sephiroth and lived. Why didn't he kill me?"
21. ^ Square Co. Final Fantasy VII. (SCE America). PlayStation. (7 September 1997) "Aeris: How do you intend to become one with the Planet? / Sephiroth: It's simple. Once the Planet is hurt, it gathers Spirit Energy to heal the injury. The amount of energy gathered depends on the size of the injury. ...What would happen if there was an injury that threatened the very life of the Planet? Think how much energy would be gathered! Ha ha ha. And at the center of that injury, will be me. All that boundless energy will be mine. By merging with all the energy of the Planet, I will become a new life form, a new existence. Melding with the Planet... I will cease to exist as I am now. Only to be reborn as a 'God' to rule over every soul. / Aeris: An injury powerful enough to destroy the Planet? Injure... the Planet? / Sephiroth: Behold that mural. The Ultimate Destructive Magic... Meteor."
22. ^ Square Co.. Final Fantasy VII. (SCE America). PlayStation. (7 September 1997) "Cloud: For me, this is a personal feud. I want to beat Sephiroth. And settle my past. Saving the planet just happens to be a part of that."
23. ^ Square Co.. Final Fantasy VII. (SCE America). PlayStation. (7 September 1997) "Cloud: Jenova's cells... ...hmm. So that's what this is all about. The Jenova Reunion... / Tifa: Not Sephiroth!? You mean all this time it wasn't Sephiroth we've been after? / Cloud: I'll explain later. Right now, the only thing I'm thinking about is beating Sephiroth. / Tifa: But Sephiroth is...... / Cloud: He's here. The real Sephiroth is just beyond here. It's both incredibly wicked and cruel... But it's releasing a powerfully strong will from deep within this planet's wound."
24. ^ Square Co.. Final Fantasy VII. (SCE America). PlayStation. (7 September 1997) "Cloud: I wasn't pursuing Sephiroth. I was being summoned by Sephiroth. All the anger and hatred I bore him, made it impossible for me to ever forget him. That and what he gave me. Sephiroth? I'm here. And I brought you the Black Materia. Show yourself to me. Where are you? Sephiroth... So we finally meet again. / Hojo: Did you see it!! It's Sephiroth! So he IS here! This is perfect! Both Jenova's Reunion and Sephiroth's will! They won't be diffused into the Lifestream, but gathered here! Mwa, haa, ha,...... / Tifa: What are you so happy about, Professor? You know what this means, don't you? Cloud has the Black Materia! Sephiroth is going to summon Meteor! Every single person is going to die!"
25. ^ Square Co.. Final Fantasy VII. (SCE America). PlayStation. (1997-09-07) "Sephiroth: Five years ago you were... ...constructed by Hojo, piece by piece, right after Nibelheim was burnt. A puppet made up of vibrant Jenova cells, her knowledge, and the power of Mako. An incomplete Sephiroth-clone. Not even given a number. ...That is your reality."
26. ^ Tetsuya Nomura (Director) (20 September). Final Fantasy VII Advent Children (DVD). Square Enix. 
27. ^ (in Japanese) On the Way to a Smile: Final Fantasy VII. Square-Enix. 2009. ISBN 4757524625. 
28. ^ Last Order: Final Fantasy VII (DVD). Square Enix. September 2005. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0489134/. 
29. ^ Square Enix. Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII. PlayStation Portable. (2008-08-24) "Tseng: Genesis and Angeal. Those two were Sephiroth's only friends."
30. ^ Square Enix. Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII. PlayStation Portable. (2008-08-24) "Sephiroth: Angeal has been sighted./Zack: So it's search and destroy?/Sephiroth:The army is mobilizing, but there's still time. You and I will find them before they do, and... / Zack: And WHAT?/Sephiroth: fail to eliminate them."
31. ^ Square Enix. Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII. PlayStation Portable. Level/area: Hojo's Laboratory. (2008-08-24)
32. ^ McCarthy, Dave (28 April 2008). "Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII UK Interview". IGN. http://psp.ign.com/articles/869/869858p2.html. Retrieved 14 September 2008. 
33. ^ "Ehrgeiz Hints & Cheats". GameSpot. http://www.gamespot.com/ps/action/ehrgeiz/hints.html?tag=tabs;cheats. Retrieved August 15, 2009. 
34. ^ Birlew, Dan (2003). Kingdom Hearts Official Strategy Guide. BradyGames Publishing. ISBN 0-7440-0198-6. 
35. ^ ^{a b} Crocker, Janet; Smith, Lesley; Henderson, Tim; Arnold, Adam (December 2005). "The Legacy of Final Fantasy VII". AnimeFringe. p. 2. Archived from the original on June 13, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080613190811/http://www.animefringe.com/magazine/2005/12/feature/01-2.php. Retrieved August 18, 2010. 
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External links

• Sephiroth on the Final Fantasy Wiki