FEA World: First Love = Marriage

[HeartTranquil]

It seems like FEA is a much more romanticized version of our world. Most if not all of the characters that can engage/marry will be engaged and will be married with their first love.

That's really sweet in a way - very very romanticized.

A few examples that I can think of...

1. Thaja mentions that MU is her first love in the original support convos.

2. Cordelia, for obvious reasons, will be engaged with her first "true" love. (Not the unrequited one ).

3. Mariabel: judging from her personality and her inability to have many if any friends means that whomever she is paired up with IS her first love.

4. Sayri: although stereotypical, it seems her personality and her "old fashioned" looks and her being a princess and all suggest shes probably never liked anyone before.

5. Tiki: ok this one is wierd. Tiki lived for thousands of years. Yet the only admiration she showed for any male was Marth (and that was more of a brotherly love). I guess she spent the majority of her time being alseep and being the divine dragon princess has something to do with this.

The same can be said of the guys... Lonqu is an example... Chrom seems to be also an example (his almost oblivious reaction to females)... Kellam without an exception... Donnel... Henry... etc etc etc etc

But one can't complain! Wouldn't it be nice if things really was this way?

Edited February 1, 2013 by HeartTranquil

[nocturnal YL]

Lon'qu seems like a counterexample, if you asks me. If the cause of his gynophobia didn't occur in the first place, things would be very different for him.

I somehow wanted a divorce system in this game. It makes more sense to me that at least some of the 17 potential pairs eventually broke up.

[GamingPandas]

Yea it seems like it this way. Most of the engagements ARE the with the first loves of the respective characters. Quite sweet indeed.

[Wheels]

I...certainly wouldn't want to have married the first guy I fell in love with XD So kinda glad it's not like that in RL XD

[HeartTranquil]

I...certainly wouldn't want to have married the first guy I fell in love with XD So kinda glad it's not like that in RL XD

Yea... but FEA is quite the perfect world isn't it? Haha... good escape from reality I guess!

[Glixinator]

3. Mariabel: judging from her personality and her inability to have many if any friends means that whomever she is paired up with IS her first love.

Not true, in her support with Chrom she specifically states that she had been in love with him since before the events of the game occured, so anyone else is would not be her first love, furthermore in her supports with Ricken he says pretty much the same thing to her. So only one of them can get their first love, Cordelia never has a chance at her first love, Tharja does have a chance either if Robin is female, and Lon'qu's first love is already dead. Fire Emblem just handles relationships like an interactive anime.

[RedJ]

Being in the middle of a war probably has a lot to do with it. After all, why wait to get married when one or both of you could end up dead the next day?

Of course, that could apply to any day, but...war.

[shadowofchaos]

Yea... but FEA is quite the perfect world isn't it? Haha... good escape from reality I guess!

It's animu. The idealistic SUKI DESU means marriage FOREVER.

[Silver Lightning]

Well, I guess it would make more sense in this world that no one seems to break up much. Its not like here where you could be with someone for a week then randomly decide to break up. Fire forged bonds - the bonds that are made in in the face of strongest adversity - aren't easy to break; you don't just throw those away without care. Isn't this whole game based around the bonds that people make with those they care about in the first place???

[Onestep]

Not true, in her support with Chrom she specifically states that she had been in love with him since before the events of the game occured, so anyone else is would not be her first love, furthermore in her supports with Ricken he says pretty much the same thing to her. So only one of them can get their first love, Cordelia never has a chance at her first love, Tharja does have a chance either if Robin is female, and Lon'qu's first love is already dead. Fire Emblem just handles relationships like an interactive anime.

S supports seem to be mutually exclusive though. I mean, in some S supports a character will explain that the reason they did what they did in the previous 3 supports is because they love the other character. But that obviously doesn't make sense if they're already married.

[riariadne]

First thing I thought of

http://serenesforest.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=31631&view=findpost&p=1924269

[Onestep]

Actually, does the Avatar actually marry a Second Gen if they S support one?

[NeonZ]

They'll have Morgan as a child, so, yes.

[Onestep]

They'll have Morgan as a child, so, yes.

But there's no ring involved in their supports with the Avatar, are there? I mean, on second thought, most of the Spotpass supports don't directly involve a ring either. Or any of the Avatar-only first gen supports.

[Wheels]

The Lucina one you posted had no ring in it. I remember hearing someone mention if you click on the husband/wife part, then a box comes up saying Spouse or Life Parter, or something to that effect

[SkyfireDragoon]

But there's no ring involved in their supports with the Avatar, are there? I mean, on second thought, most of the Spotpass supports don't directly involve a ring either. Or any of the Avatar-only first gen supports.

I think other than Chrom, the marriage/engagement/childbearing happens after the events of the game's end

[Onestep]

I think other than Chrom, the marriage/engagement/childbearing happens after the events of the game's end

Just copying Rey's Avatar ending. I'm sure he won't mind me posting pictures of him and his waifu though.

Presuming that they keep the same format for the English ending as the Japanese one had, I'd imagine that they'll go with wife or husband no matter who you marry. I mean, let's be honest, 'wife or 'husband' rolls of the tongue a bit better than 'life partner'.

Edited February 1, 2013 by Onestep

[Glixinator]

S supports seem to be mutually exclusive though. I mean, in some S supports a character will explain that the reason they did what they did in the previous 3 supports is because they love the other character. But that obviously doesn't make sense if they're already married.

I'm not talking about what they do in the previous three supports - Maribelle claims the reason she became Lissa's friend was to get closer to Chrom, that's right their friendship started because Maribelle was lovestruck for Lissa's older brother, not that she didn't develope a true friendship with her as a result. As for Ricken, he says that the reason he showed up to risk his life trying to rescue Maribelle when you recruit them in Ch 5 was because he was already in love with her. The events they are refering to occur before the CBA supports, thus they occur no matter who they S support with, its just a matter of whether or not anything ever comes of their feelings, or if they develope feelings for someone else.

[Hrodulf]

Fire Emblem just handles relationships like an interactive anime.

Frankly, most games in general do. The infantile mentality that gaming fanbases tend to have in regard to this sort of thing probably has a lot to do with it, sadly.

[shadowofchaos]

I'm not talking about what they do in the previous three supports - Maribelle claims the reason she became Lissa's friend was to get closer to Chrom, that's right their friendship started because Maribelle was lovestruck for Lissa's older brother, not that she didn't develope a true friendship with her as a result. As for Ricken, he says that the reason he showed up to risk his life trying to rescue Maribelle when you recruit them in Ch 5 was because he was already in love with her. The events they are refering to occur before the CBA supports, thus they occur no matter who they S support with, its just a matter of whether or not anything ever comes of their feelings, or if they develope feelings for someone else.

Or you can take it that those character motivations are only for that specific instance of your "pairings". Like you would never have found out that was how they felt about the other. You could technically say alternate universe/pairings type situations there depending on what the player sees it as.

The supports from FE's I've played all seem to have that kind of... idealistic feeling put into them.

[nocturnal YL]

Agreed. It's actually rather like the A supports in FE7 and FE8. Since only one A support can happen, they can carry clashing messages.

[Sock]

Uh, people tend to overestimate their feelings. o.o "I've always loved you, that's why I did what I did back then." It's convenient to say that. Don't get me wrong, sometimes that genuinely is the case; people realize, in hindsight, that there really was an underlying motive to why they did something. But other times people are simply overestimating; there wasn't any underlying motive to what they did. Take Ricken's case of rescuing Maribelle: she was a friend and Ricken wanted to prove himself to everyone. Perhaps that's all it was, and it was just convenient to claim he loved her all along. But, perhaps he truly did love her all along. We'll never know because of how the game is designed.

You can only get one S support out of the many, so anything that is explained in them isn't necessarily "canon".

Just saying. It might be, it might not be. We wouldn't know for sure.

--

As for the "first love" thing.... I'm not fond of it. It's too idealistic. However, it's a dating-sim fantasy game. So no biggy.

Being in the middle of a war probably has a lot to do with it. After all, why wait to get married when one or both of you could end up dead the next day?

Fire forged bonds - the bonds that are made in in the face of strongest adversity - aren't easy to break; you don't just throw those away without care. Isn't this whole game based around the bonds that people make with those they care about in the first place???

These are very important points to keep in mind. (You guys are awesome.)

[Glixinator]

Frankly, most games in general do. The infantile mentality that gaming fanbases tend to have in regard to this sort of thing probably has a lot to do with it, sadly.

Infantile? You sound like you think an interactive anime would be a bad thing. Fire Emblem games feel more like an anime than most games based on animes. It has been said about Awakening that "The character design and portrait art style - the work of Yusuke Kozaki - looks like it belongs in a Seinen anime," and about the compairison of Seinen to the Shonen you're probably more familiar with "Much more attention is paid to the plot and the interaction between characters than to action and fights, which are the main attraction for most viewers, and the characters are well fleshed out. The latter trait often leads to confusion of seinen with Shōjo (Demographic) but the key difference is that seinen does not idealize romance, instead opting for more realistic and pragmatic approach to relationships. Realism is indeed the calling card of seinen shows," now remember that Fire Emblem's most distinctive features are the amount of attention paid to the plot, character interaction, creating fleshed out character, and the realistic gameplay with perma death at its core. It may be open to interpretation how much of a support from one play through is the same as in another, but you must confuse the idealization romance in one possible interpretation of the content with an actual idealization in the game design itself. The series strives to present as thorough and realist, if optimistic, take on romance as culture and customs will allow, which is certainly idealization friendly, but does not constitute an idealization in and of itself.

[GamingPandas]

Or you can take it that those character motivations are only for that specific instance of your "pairings". Like you would never have found out that was how they felt about the other. You could technically say alternate universe/pairings type situations there depending on what the player sees it as.

The supports from FE's I've played all seem to have that kind of... idealistic feeling put into them.

This and what Onestep said... For those players who DO not pair say Mariabel with Chrom will never find out her early crush. And assume that whomever you pair her up with is her first love. I guess the best interpretation is that this game is based on infinite alternate realities in which caters to all the players' head canon. Meaning if you pair MU with Mariabel, she will be jealous of that 'strumpet' and claim she loves you all along - teaching you and you teaching her and the you saw to the core of my heart thing. On the other hand if she is paired with Chrom then the I loved you all along scenario cones into play again. This is true of most if not all S supports. So on a way what Onestep said is true... S supports are mutually exclusive and this makes sense in a multiverse.... As for the ultimate question if any character married say Mariabel, will the both of them be married as 'first loves'? Well yes and no. If a player nevers sees Maria and Chrom's support, he or she will prob think that based on the idealistic love culture of FE that yes it's another first love = marriage. Even if you DO have hindsight of the other supports, you can STILL claim first love due to convenient multiverse.

As for whether Sairi or Tiki has first loves? I would say whatever is head canon for you works since the game doesn't tell us much about Sayri beyond that she has old fashioned looks (maybe a reference to eastern ideals of love?) and her strong personality are all strong arguments for MU x Sayri = first love. Tiki is much more likely to find her first love to be the MU though... Your points that Tikis been asleep for many years and the fact that she IS the princess of the divine dragon tribe are reasons enough. Come to think of it, if she bears Morgan then wouldn't Morgan be the next princess of the tribe?

Tiki is pretty much is into the MU from the C support... Her adoration of Marth probably has something to do with this, although as you said it's more of. Brotherly affection... But Tiki is just like other females... Who wouldn't love a man with an upright personality and a kind aura of a soul (aka Marth's qualities seen to be in the MU).

The main point of the above is this game is very flexible whatever is headcanon in your head is canon for you. So please relax, and enjoy it!

Edited February 2, 2013 by GamingPandas

[Ike of Paris]

Lon'qu seems like a counterexample, if you asks me. If the cause of his gynophobia didn't occur in the first place, things would be very different for him.

I somehow wanted a divorce system in this game. It makes more sense to me that at least some of the 17 potential pairs eventually broke up.

He would be the father of all the future children.

As far as the whole, "We've talked four times, let's settle down and have a kid" thing, I find it unrealistic. Still, it's a game and from I heard a good one, so I will allow it.