the trick is to keep breathing

To each their own, definitely, apparently Because I love the bits and pieces of the characters and enjoy meta-ing the pieces out of them.

I kinda get where you're coming from, actually -- and VIII's great for Entirely Too Underdeveloped Side Characters, main cast aside. But I like of like it because of it? In spite of it? It's hard to explain -- maybe because I do relate to Dagger a lot. Not for the big picture she is a white mage, princess straight out of a Disney movie -- but in the little things -- her shyness, the fact she loves plays, literature, that kind of desire to go out and see the world of hers? That was so me in high school. Maybe I'm making more out of her than what's there, but I won't complain.

Beatrix is awesome. And vicious. ^^;;;

I love Zidane because he does the goofy happy spunky thing. He is suave... but not. And good with kids. And likes razzing on the Tantalus guys. The dynamic of Tantalus interests me to pieces and I wish I was more confident in my writing to try writing some pre-game antics of theirs. I see a lot of potential there.

You're Not Alone! is probably one of my favorite scenes from the game, because you see Zidane snap a little. He doesn't have the family he searched so long for -- but wait -- he does. He built up this family of his through his relationships and his friends and by being a bighearted goofball, and every time I hear the guitar riff, I grin a little more. Zidane is ultimately the character I like best from IX -- perhaps from any FF -- and I wonder if I would have been interested enough in the game to keep playing it all the way through (it is one of the few games I have beaten) if I hadn't wanted to keep cheering for Zidane.