A Part, and yet Apart

[Alisa180]

Oh hey, actually a good discussion going here!

Full thing is under the spoiler. Also, WARNING. This is long!

I can see how Alphinaud can be grating to people. I’m probably in the minority, in that I liked him a lot *before* Heavensward. Why?

Well, for one, he undergoes a character arc that’s rarely seen nowadays. And nearly unheard of in dark fantasy stories like FFXIV. There’s kinda a trend that the ‘idealist’ must be thrust into ‘cruel reality’, in the process becoming more cynical. Alphinaud over the course of the 2.0 story pretty much undergoes that character arc in reverse.

Take these lines, when you’re formally introduced to him and his sister at the memorial services:

RAUBAHN
In Eorzea's darkest hour, on the killing fields of Carteneau, none spent more in blood and gold than we. Thus was the VIIth Imperial Legion laid low!

ALPHINAUD
So that's how it happened! How soon history forgets.

....

MERLWYB
That day, the world bore witness to the united strength of Limsa Lominsa! I swear to you─no army ever fought harder, or with more courage. Yet many of ours did not survive. Join me now in remembering those who fought in the name of freedom, and fell. May their souls be returned to the sea.
ALPHINAUD
Freedom... Yes, they have always been rather fond of their freedom.Much as the beast tribes have. Small wonder─beneath the surface, one would struggle to tell them apart.

And his later conversation with Alisaie:

ALISAIE
The so-called “Remembrance” ceremonies were little more than standard-waving rallies. ...As though the Calamity and Seventh Umbral Era warranted scarcely a mention!

ALPHINAUD
Well, of course they were “standard-waving rallies.” Since you are so observant, mayhap you noticed what mention was made of the Warriors of Light? None. I suppose they must have forgotten the heroes who spared Eorzea a fate worse than the Calamity? No, dear Alisaie, they haven't “forgotten” these details. They have elected to omit them.

Now, contrast them to what he says later, when the Scions barge in on the meeting between the city leaders when they are discussing surrender in light of the Ultima Weapon:

ALPHINAUD
Aye! Remember five years ago, when you wagered all for the sake of the realm! Remember what you fought for, what you were willing to die for! Let the memories rekindle the fire in your heart, for Eorzea has need of it again!

He actually lampshades this during the ‘Defenders of Eorzea’ storyline:

ALPHINAUD
Do you recall when first we met? 'Twas at the memorial service for the Battle of Carteneau...
At the time, I was yet attempting to understand this land of Eorzea. I sought to grasp the reason why Grandfather willingly sacrificed himself to protect it.
I shall speak plainly: my initial impressions were less than favorable. Dire problems abounded, and yet the effort I saw expended towards their solution was haphazard and half-hearted. I thought Eorzeans a foolish and childish people.
Considering the shambles their home was in, I would not have been surprised if some had chosen to swear allegiance to Gaius and the order he proposed to enforce. The legatus' single-minded military invasion precluded any such switching of loyalties, of course.
Were it not for a desire to continue Grandfather's legacy, I would have abandoned the realm to its fate long ago. The threats were too many, the nations too self-involved and unstable.

'Twas you who convinced me the salvation of Eorzea was possible.
'Twas you who taught me─through countless acts of bravery─that what my grandsire sought to preserve was not the land, nor its history, nor any single nation...
It was the people. These wonderful, oft infuriating, stubborn people that suffer blow after terrible blow only to drag themselves back to their feet to face another day.
Though he never put such feelings into words, I believe Grandfather's admiration for this inextinguishable courage grew into a fervent wish─a wish to aid Eorzea and its inhabitants in charting a course for the future.
A wish that has now become my own.

Speaking of, this is probably my favorite moment for Alphinaud in the entire game. This was when it was made clear that he’s gone from simply desiring to continue Louisoix’s legacy, to having gained his own resolve to protect Eorzea. This, for me, was where I really saw the character’s potential.

Yes, he had his head up his ass, and he needed to be knocked down a few pegs. But means well at heart, and after at least 2.3 he’s motivated by genuine affection for the people of Eorzea. Not unlike his grandfather.

While he does treat the WoL as a ‘pawn’ of sorts, especially pre-3.0, he’s not as detached as he likes to make himself out to be. Even before 3.0. Despite the relatively calm, assured face he put on, Alphinaud actually frets over his actions a bit. More specifically, he worries a lot about the WoL whenever they go into danger, especially when doing it at his prerogative. The first indication of this was at the end of Stone Vigil:

ALPHINAUD
Forename! Forename! Are you all right? Speak to me!
Twelve be praised, I feared the beast had injured you.
I see now why the others rated you so highly. When you were caught in the midst of that aetheric bubble with the dragon, I was all but certain my next mission would be to find a new champion.
Thank the gods for sparing me that inconvenience.

Careful reading of this, and other lines, show that while he tries to downplay it, it’s really just his way of covering up his fretting. He does a pretty good job of covering it up after this point, but the Dreams of Ice storyline lets a couple interesting tidbits through. For example, if you talk to Lucia right after finishing Snowcloak:

TACITRUM TEMPLE KNIGHT
'Tis a blessing you are still with us. Commander Leveilleur took to pacing in your absence.

Moenbryda also lets an interesting bit slip during the Dreams of Ice storyline:

MOENBRYDA
Ah, but before that, you had best pay a visit to Whitebrim Front and speak with Alphinaud. He's probably worried sick about you.

He’s surprisingly nonchalant when you do report to him, however:

ALPHINAUD
There she is─and none the worse for wear! Was there ever any doubt that the Warrior of Light would succeed?

But later, during the Heavensward story, it pretty much spells out that Alphinaud covers up his emotions more than he ever lets on to the WoL:

ESTINIEN
Never did I doubt you, Warrior of Light...unlike some. You were gone so long that Master Alphinaud here nigh lost his wits with worry. Fretting like a maid for her sweetheart, he was!
ALPHINAUD
Estinien! Was that truly necessary!?
ESTINIEN
Hahaha... Not truly necessary─but certainly true.
ALPHINAUD
Ahem! What matters is that the primal is banished, and our promise fulfilled. We should return to Vidofnir without delay.
Lest you forget, this was but a means to secure an audience with the wyrm Hraesvelgr. Nidhogg's minions will not be halted by idle chatter! Come, now─we must make every moment count!

In other words, whenever he says something like ‘Was there ever any doubt?’ (like at the end of HW storyline right after the WoL escapes from the Flagship on Midgarsommer), it’s his way of covering up the fact that he himself held a lot of doubt that the WoL would return safely. :P

You also have to give him credit on one thing: Unlike Mifilia, he’s a competent fighter, and during the vast majority of the MSQ duty fights in HW, he fights right alongside you. He’s also outright stated that if only he possessed the Echo himself, he’d be right there fighting the primals alongside you:

ALPHINAUD
Once more a primal rears its head, and once more the task of slaying it falls to you.
Would that I, too, possessed the Echo...

And he’s had to be withheld from certain missions because while he’s competent, he lacks experience and would only ‘drag the WoL’ down. Like before the mission to kill Nidhogg:

ESTINEIN
What, you too, Master Alphinaud? By the Fury...You have shown some promise, but this adversary is far beyond your skills.

Really, during HW, he starts treating the WoL more as an equal and friend. At the very beginning of HW, he insists on going to Ul’dah to begin clearing their names, while the WoL moves on to Ishgard. After all, he had said in the last scene of ‘Before the Fall’ “I hardly deserve such friendship.” He has to be convinced otherwise by Haurchefant.

Another favorite quote of mine:

ALPHINAUD
I blush to speak thus of mine inner turmoil...
But the fact remains: there is no woman alive in whom I would rather confide. Were it not for your shining example, I might never have emerged from beneath the pall of my despair.

And another:

(In reference to the WoL venturing into the Binding Coil of Bahamut with Alisaie)
ALPHINAUD
...I am glad that it is you with whom she makes this journey.
If Alisaie is to discover a deeper purpose, then where better to find one than at the side of Eorzea's greatest champion? ...'Twas there that I found mine, after all.

He’s only the ‘superior’ by virtue of being competent with politics and diplomacy. While the WoL is strictly the ‘fighter.’ To quote from ‘Dream of Ice’:

ALPHINAUD
...Mayhap you feel this to be a waste of your talents, which could doubtless be put to nobler use? If so, I should remind you that more good can be accomplished with the stroke of a pen than the thrust of a sword.
If my many “adventures” in diplomacy have taught me anything, it is the importance of humoring those who have something one wants.
Not every victory is won on a battlefield, my friend. 'Tis the lot of legendary heroes to be paraded about from time to time.

Y’know...Upon thinking on this more, one good thing came out of his arrogance: He puts much less stock in the WoL as a ‘symbol of hope’ then the others. Oh sure, pre-3.0 he had no problem using that view to further his own ends. But, while it’s toned down during HW thanks to the humble pie he was served, he *also* wants to be a ‘guardian of Eorzea.’ to quote:

ALPHINAUD
Impressive as always,<Player>. 'Tis ever a pleasure to witness the spectacle of your martial prowess.
And judging by the smiles on these many faces, they, too, appreciate the hard-won strength that keeps the perils of the realm at ba
“Guardian of Eorzea”... Yes, that is a most fitting title.
....
I, too, will endeavor to take up the mantle of guardian of Eorzea, and champion these people who toil towards a better world.

Once he’s torn down from his pedestal and realizes how he’s treated everyone, even the Scions, as ‘pawns’, he’s left in a position to treat the WoL more as a person rather than a symbol. He clearly has misgivings about leaving things solely to the WoL, and as cited above during HW he helps with the fighting whenever he can.

I suspect in the near future, we might get a more ‘deconstructionist’ bent to the fact that we’re the ‘great hero of Light.’ And I predict that if/when that happens, Alphinaud will return the favor when we stuck by him despite the events of ‘Before the Fall.’ I’m losing my train of thought here, but it’s going to be very interesting to see his role going forward.

On the protagonist/hero thing:

We are unquestionably the hero AND protagonist of the story. The plot revolves around us, and we end up solving the primary conflicts of the story. Not to mention, with a few cutscene expectations, pretty much the entire story is told from our POV. These two traits put the WoL firmly in Hero Protagonist territory.

HOWEVER, I would argue Alphinaud is the deuteragonist of FFXIV. The duertagonist is literally ‘the second person the story revolves around,’ and the one whose actions drive the plot as much as the protagonist. Alphinaud, especially during Heavensward, falls easily into this category.

While the game does try and present you as the protagonist, beyond your ability to kill foes that nobody else can, I feel it falls flat on that. Sort of. You are a protagonist, but not the protagonist. If you get my drift. It's not your story in the same way, say, X is Tidus' story; you are, in the end, just a drifter who brings hope to the world, but not really a character with flaws and faults to overcome, or goals and dreams of your own. You exist to make the impossible possible, but only for other people.

“No flaws or faults to overcome”: Ahem, there’s something called a ‘flat character.’ Really, neither this, nor the WoL supposedly lacking ‘goals and dreams’ of their own disqualifies them as the hero protagonist of the story.