Anima is female (She/Her) in FFX and what that means in FFXIV

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Originally Posted by Veritas-Ancora

"Anima looks cool therefore must be a guy"

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I don't think that's an argument people really make.
People just tend to assume that a monster/ beast is male unless it's overtly feminine in a humanoid way ( which can be cool too, people act as if only masculinity is cool and femininity is only sexual but that's another discussion ).
Even people who complain about monsters/ beasts having breasts etc ( altho they never complain about this when they have male anatomy ) still assume that they're male unless they have breasts or look overtly feminine in some other way lol.
Which is kinda dumb considering that most of us can't tell the difference between the gender of irl animals unless they're very obvious and we already know how to distinguish them before-hand.

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Originally Posted by KizuyaKatogami

I feel like the SJW’s are the ones saying it HAS to be female because it was female on ffX which again, beings have had different genders throughout the ff series because again, they’re different universes, they don’t abide by the same laws as the others. Given what we know so far there’s a lot of evidence pointing to Anima actually being a certain someone and they’re NOT a female lmao

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Personally I just think that if a character is established as one thing then that should be respected and they should stay as such.
I don't rly care if it's in terms of their personality and character archetype, so aka a sexualized character shouldn't be censored and should stay sexualized and a non-sexualized character shouldn't be sexualized.
Or a character that is of a specific ethnicity, sexuality, religion, gender etc ( unless it's like black Superman but NOT Clark Kent, so another character taking on the name for example ).
Fictional characters are obviously not real, but people still talk about objectification and agency.
And I can't think of anything more objectifying than changing something that drastic willy-nilly.
I know that there are ways people justify it in some cases, but I think it's just dumb and I don't think that two wrongs make a right.

In the case of the FF series there's more of an excuse because they don't necessarily rely on each other, but I still think it'd be really weird if Shiva appeared as a dude.
There's just certain things that are established and repeated to the point you begin to expect certain things.

Maybe she's Hydaelyn

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Originally Posted by Kolsykol

I don't think that's an argument people really make.
People just tend to assume that a monster/ beast is male unless it's overtly feminine in a humanoid way ( which can be cool too, people act as if only masculinity is cool and femininity is only sexual but that's another discussion ).
Even people who complain about monsters/ beasts having breasts etc ( altho they never complain about this when they have male anatomy ) still assume that they're male unless they have breasts or look overtly feminine in some other way lol.
Which is kinda dumb considering that most of us can't tell the difference between the gender of irl animals unless they're very obvious and we already know how to distinguish them before-hand.



Personally I just think that if a character is established as one thing then that should be respected and they should stay as such.
I don't rly care if it's in terms of their personality and character archetype, so aka a sexualized character shouldn't be censored and should stay sexualized and a non-sexualized character shouldn't be sexualized.
Or a character that is of a specific ethnicity, sexuality, religion, gender etc ( unless it's like black Superman but NOT Clark Kent, so another character taking on the name for example ).
Fictional characters are obviously not real, but people still talk about objectification and agency.
And I can't think of anything more objectifying than changing something that drastic willy-nilly.
I know that there are ways people justify it in some cases, but I think it's just dumb and I don't think that two wrongs make a right.

In the case of the FF series there's more of an excuse because they don't necessarily rely on each other, but I still think it'd be really weird if Shiva appeared as a dude.
There's just certain things that are established and repeated to the point you begin to expect certain things.

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How is changing it drastic? Again an example for ff is leviathan. He was male in ff4, female in 15. It’s not a drastic change lol, they can weave it to fit whatever they want. As for shiva, shiva in mythology(at least hindu) is actually a male. They do what they want as of right now we don’t know much of Anima so it could be male or female. It hasn’t been established as anything in the 14 universe so we can’t assume it’s just female. I really don’t see how it’s objectifying.

There is every possibility Anima may end up being a representation of Zodiark and Hydaelyn. Anima as a summon shares the duality which was expressed in the artwork presented at the announcement.

Anyone seen Zenos mom lately? My guess is that.

I think it'd be a bit late to suddenly make Zenos' mom important, but it's possible if they want to try and flesh him out more in 6.0.

Again, because of the fact Anima’s handcuffs are the same slab as the one in the expansion art, i doubt it’s anything “zenos mom” related and more relating to either hydaelyn or zodiark or terminus.

Anima's Gender doesn't even matter...why are we debating and arguing about this?

Because misgendering fantasy beings whose genders aren’t even set in stone in the universe they’re in is wrong apparently

My guess on what it may be, if it's not merely some Terminus monstrosity or similar creation, is the residual consciousness of Zodiark based on his memory prior to the Sundering, but you could also make the case that it's the tormented remnants of his jailer's own consciousness... The form reminds me a bit of the Amano art piece they showcased during the fanfest. It would fit with the theme of being shackled by some other Primal, given Anima's design in X. I'm not convinced it'll be the literal/final form of either of them, though. I'm not fussed by what sex it is so much as it has some cool backstory and mechanics.

Zenos's mother died at childbirth IIRC and he has no apparent affection for anyone but his "friend", so I see that one as a bit unlikely.

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Originally Posted by Ayer2015

There is every possibility Anima may end up being a representation of Zodiark and Hydaelyn. Anima as a summon shares the duality which was expressed in the artwork presented at the announcement.

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Another interesting perspective at that piece.

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Originally Posted by Veritas-Ancora

Anima is female (She/Her) in FFX and what that means in FFXIV

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It does bring up some questions as to who she is in this game, but it would only make sense to continue using the same pronouns as the game that the material came from.

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Anima being female in FFX doesn't inherently "mean" anything in terms of FFXIV at this point, except that there is a precedent for using feminine pronouns.

Her specific identity as Seymour's mother, on the other hand, could be a starting point for speculation as to Anima's role in FFXIV. Though it's also possible that they're just using it because it's a cool and monstrous design that fits the setting.

I would also make a distinction between Anima the summon and Seymour's mother who took on the form of Anima, but the lack of other instances makes it hard to separate them. (As I understand, FFX is the only real instance of Anima, and any other references are specifically to the FFX identity of the summon.) If she had instead taken on the identity of a more familiar summon like Ifrit, would we argue that every instance of Ifrit must be female?

While it's wrong to default to "he", I'm hesitant to assume it must be female here as well.

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Originally Posted by Kolsykol

In the case of the FF series there's more of an excuse because they don't necessarily rely on each other, but I still think it'd be really weird if Shiva appeared as a dude.
There's just certain things that are established and repeated to the point you begin to expect certain things.

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I don't see any reason for it to be inherently weird to have a male Shiva, particularly when her exact design changes from game to game. There's no reason why they couldn't apply the overall concept of her design to a male character.

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Originally Posted by TaleraRistain

Maybe she's Hydaelyn

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Originally Posted by Puremallace

Anyone seen Zenos mom lately? My guess is that.

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Both interesting concepts! I've toyed with the idea of it being Hydaelyn-related too, not because I particularly want it, but it could intersect with a number of things - mother-figure, imprisoned primal, tormented soul... and reading through the entry on the FF Wiki reminded me that we ultimately have to fight and defeat our summons there to bring an end to the state that Spira is in.

I really don't see how or why Anima's gender even matters. Anima will likely be a boss to kill, that's it. I don't ponder Ifrit's gender, nor Garuda's.. I kill them. I also doubt rather strongly that Anima would be offended if someone 'misgendered' her, it's a fictional character.

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Originally Posted by Iscah

Both interesting concepts! I've toyed with the idea of it being Hydaelyn-related too, not because I particularly want it, but it could intersect with a number of things - mother-figure, imprisoned primal, tormented soul... and reading through the entry on the FF Wiki reminded me that we ultimately have to fight and defeat our summons there to bring an end to the state that Spira is in.

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Given the resemblance to the Amano artwork, I think it's quite possible that it will relate to one or both of them. You can always throw in other references to, e.g. Zenos goes for her power and the warped idea of his mother manifests in such a spawn - that would tie in with how such things are known to work. But I think an easier explanation is the warped remaining consciousness of either Zodiark or Hydaelyn. The "clutter" to clear away before the Primal is fully battle-ready again, if you will, and ready to accommodate a new "heart". Perhaps it is just another beastie Fandaniel unleashes, but it's hard to ignore the similarities between Anima and the Amano art, with their connected "body".

Edit: Reflecting on it, I actually see now where the idea might make sense. Zenos has visions of the Final Days. So far we see little suggesting that's enabled him to "hear" Hydaelyn. Also, a friend of mine pointed out that her "call" - "Hear, think, feel" - bears in it the elements of the Final Days. Hear: the Sound; Feel: fear, terror etc.; Think: usage of creation magicks to manifest the monsters. One wonders how Zenos will react to hearing such a message, especially as he may well have some mommy issues. Viewed in that light, perhaps we will see some warped mother-figure enter the picture.

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Originally Posted by Lanadra

I really don't see how or why Anima's gender even matters. Anima will likely be a boss to kill, that's it. I don't ponder Ifrit's gender, nor Garuda's.. I kill them. I also doubt rather strongly that Anima would be offended if someone 'misgendered' her, it's a fictional character.

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I don't think most people would care, to be honest. I know I wouldn't. This thread is pointless, in my opinion.

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Originally Posted by Lanadra

I don't ponder Ifrit's gender, nor Garuda's...

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Well, I *didn't*, until 5.3 mentioned Azem fighting "Ifrita"

Plottwist its the new 3rd summon for summoners

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Originally Posted by Jennah

Well, I *didn't*, until 5.3 mentioned Azem fighting "Ifrita"

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wonder if Ramewl and Shivalry will get name dropped

It's a hunch, and I haven't read through the thread before posting, but I gather that the OP is asking about gender to narrow down whom, singularly or tribally, Anima may or may not come from. I haven't played FFX, but going off everything I've read, Anima's gender is likely attached to who's responsible for conceiving it. So that makes me wonder: who will be responsible for Anima's presence?

I'm betting Fordola.

EDIT: ...or the Warrior of Light. Because hey, Azem could have been a male or female, right?

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Originally Posted by Kikoten

It's a hunch, and I haven't read through the thread before posting, but I gather that the OP is asking about gender to narrow down whom, singularly or tribally, Anima may or may not come from.

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Why would you come into the middle of a discussion, without reading it, to give a theory on what is being discussed?

And there's no need to assume that Anima is summoned by anyone in particular, especially when we increasingly have non-summoned trial bosses and a whole new class of monsters from the Final Days.

Even if it's summoned, the summoners are more likely to be from a place that we'll explore during the expansion.

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Originally Posted by Iscah

Why would you come into the middle of a discussion, without reading it, to give a theory on what is being discussed?

And there's no need to assume that Anima is summoned by anyone in particular, especially when we increasingly have non-summoned trial bosses and a whole new class of monsters from the Final Days.

Even if it's summoned, the summoners are more likely to be from a place that we'll explore during the expansion.

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Read the entire thread after I got home. It'd be totally wild if Anima predates even Zodiark/Hydaelin.