| Laguna Loire |
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name = Laguna Loire | imgdesc = Laguna Loire | age = 44 | height = 5' 9" (1.75 m)| dob = January 3rd | weapon = Machine gun | limit = Desperado | info = A passionate man whose pen is truly mightier than the sword | }} Laguna Loire is a Playable Character in the Squaresoft's (now Square Enix ) Video Game '' Final Fantasy VIII ''. From the instruction book: "An ex-soldier turned Journalist , Laguna is a strong- willed man with amazing energy. His compassion for the unfortunate drives him to help the weak and bring down their oppressors. Using his writing as a mighty instrument of justice, he stands strong against the evils of the world." When scanned in battle: "An energetic man with a big heart. Uses a Machine Gun . Fires bursts at enemies to help party members in danger." The player's first introduction to Laguna may not say a lot in his favor: he's not very serious about his work, has a tendency to get lost, talks too much, and is shy and self-conscious in romantic situations. Nonetheless, he has comrades who think highly of him. Over time, the player is introduced to more aspects of his character. He abandons the army career with which he is uncomfortable for an attempt at journalism, and forges fulfilling relationships with Ellone and Raine. Laguna is depicted as a man of principle who, despite being idealistic, is willing to stand up for what he believes in and those he cares for. His development as a character spans several decades, and results in one of the most detailed and empathetic characters in the '' Final Fantasy '' series. Past Laguna's past (the events he experienced around the time he was 27) appears in the form of 'dreams' experienced by Squall Leonhart , Selphie Tilmitt , Zell Dincht , and Quistis Trepe (and later on Irvine Kinneas ). It is revealed to us in segments Laguna is a soldier in the Galbadian army, and he travels with two companions, Kiros and Ward. They spend a lot of their time lost and/or goofing off, and frequenting the bar where Julia Heartilly, Laguna's crush, works. After an attack at Centra, the three are separated and Laguna is injured. He is taken in and nursed to health by Raine, a young woman in Winhill. He falls in love with and marries Raine, but is drawn away from his home when a young girl in their care, Ellone, is kidnapped. He heads off to find her, finally tracks her down in Esthar, and is entangled in a chain of events whereby he helps the people of Esthar liberate themselves from the rule of the Sorceress Adel. Said people elect Laguna the President of Esthar, and Ellone is then sent back to Winhill. Raine dies sometime after whereupon Ellone and Raine's child are sent to an orphanage. Laguna is unable to leave his post to go see her. He is still in Esthar in the present day. Present The party actually meets up with Laguna near the end of the third disc. When the White SeeD ship that Ellone is on is discovered by the Galbadians, one of Esthar's ships comes to the rescue and saves Ellone. Ellone and Laguna are reunited out in space, and Ellone tells Laguna about everything that has happened with Squall. Then Ellone is re-kidnapped by those on board the Lunatic Pandora. Shortly after, Laguna radios to Squall Leonhart 's party and asks them to come to Esthar. When they arrive, Laguna tells them the plan for defeating Ultimecia. They board the Lunatic Pandora and save Ellone, and then Squall's party proceeds to defeat Ultimecia. Laguna appears again in the game's ending FMV . He is standing at Raine's tombstone, smiling fondly as he remembers the night he proposed to her. Ellone comes to find him, and the two share a happy moment. Family Raine: Raine lives in Winhill. She took Laguna in when he was found after the accident in Centra, and nursed him back to good health. Even after recuperating, Laguna didn't leave Winhill, preferring to stay with Raine and Ellone, and to lead a peaceful life. Over time, Laguna and Raine developed feelings for one another, and eventually Laguna proposed. They were married, but Ellone was kidnapped and Laguna left Raine to go search for her. He found Ellone in Esthar, but he lost Raine - she died while he was away. Although we are not told definitively, a note in Dollet indicates she saved her son from drowning, though she ended up drowning herself, and that she had a son - Squall Leonhart . Laguna never returned to Winhill. Although we don't see much of Laguna and Raine's relationship, it was evidently true love. They were married, and in the proposal scene, they are both very happy. Although Raine seemed to be annoyed by Laguna's behavior at first, he obviously grew on her. Ellone: Ellone lives with Raine, who takes care of her. She is Laguna's adopted "niece," and though they're technically not related, Laguna loves her as if she was his own daughter. They share a very close relationship, and Ellone, as a child, was very open about her opinion that Laguna and Raine should get married. When Ellone is kidnapped, Laguna drops everything to save her. Eventually, she ends up in the orphanage run by Edea Kramer, but near the end of the game, she and Laguna are reunited. Squall Leonhart: Although it is never stated explicitly, it can be accepted as fact that Laguna is Squall's father. Laguna carries Squall's card, and normally characters only carry the cards of people they have a close relationship with. During each of the dream sequences, Squall is always junctioned to Laguna (stressing a direct link between them) whereas Kiros and Ward can be junctioned to whoever is filling the remaining two spaces at the time. As we find out in the ending, Laguna was married to Raine, but she later died. A note found at the top of a pile of magazines in Dollet (Dollet pub's secret card playing room) is a message written by a man who states that he was away when his wife gave birth to a son (it actually says "daughter"); later, the wife died in an attempt to save the child from drowning. The child would have been sent to an Orphanage , which explains why Squall ended up where he did. As far as looks go, it's also probable. Laguna, Raine, and Squall all have dark hair, and Raine and Squall both have dark blue eyes. If you talk to Laguna, Kiros, and Ward on the Ragnarok before visiting Lunatic Pandora (disc 3), there's a scene that offers more evidence as to Squall's relationship to Laguna. Kiros says, "You look very much like your mother." Kiros translates for Ward, "Good thing you don't look like your father." So both Squall's parents are people Kiros and Ward knew, and there aren't many options presented in the game besides Laguna and Raine. Laguna retorts back with a 'hey!' which clearly suggests that when they were having a laugh about Squall's father, it was directed to Laguna. He then says, "Let's talk when it's all done. I have a lot to tell you... well, if you don't want to hear it, I'll understand." When Squall is held captive in the Galbadian D-District prison, there is a scene in which a group of Moombas gather around Squall and repeat the name "Laguna!" several times. There is no explanation for this occurrence. The story later reveals that Laguna was a friend to Moombas and attempted to teach them to speak. While this alone doesn't indicate a relationship between Laguna and Squall, the main menu's Information entry on Moombas states that the creatures "remember people by licking their blood." Ergo, it seems that Squall's blood reminded the Moombas of Laguna. The one possible objection to this theory is that Squall's last name is Leonhart, not Loire; however, it's quite possible that he might have taken Raine's surname or just made up one of his, especially drawing on his fondness for Lion s. Squall's love interest, Rinoa Heartilly , also uses her mother's surname rather than her father's. During the game, Squall seems rather scornful of Laguna's clumsiness and goofy attitude; he may not be pleased to find out that this man is his father. another thing that serves as notable "evidence" is the likeness of their names: "Squall", "Laguna", and "Raine" are all water-based climate occurences. and timeline also suggests their relationship as well as a lot of clues in windhill. Friends Kiros Seagill: Kiros is one of Laguna's friends who is also a soldier in the Galbadian army. He, Ward, and Laguna work together as a team, and it appears that this is how they met. Kiros usually keeps Laguna's ego and crazy ideas under control with sarcastic or incredulous statements, and when Laguna gets them lost, Kiros usually straightens things out. Kiros and Laguna are closer than their "soldier buddy" relationship might show. He encourages Laguna to talk to Julia Heartilly when Laguna is doubtful of himself. After they were split up in Centra, Kiros searched for Laguna for nearly a year until he found him at Winhill. Once there, he talks with Laguna about getting him a job at "Timber Maniacs", showing his concern for his friend's happiness and the fulfillment of his journalistic dream. After spending some time in Winhill, he remarks on how much Laguna has changed. When Squall and company finally meet Laguna as president of Esthar, Kiros is also there, having helped Laguna on his search for Ellone. Ward Zabac: The third part of the trio. While the three are soldiers in the Galbadian military, Ward also helps to keep Laguna somewhat grounded. However, during their escape from Esthar forces in Centra, Ward is badly injured and is left without the ability to speak. While Kiros is searching for Laguna, Ward is working as a janitor in a prison. All three are reunited by the time Squall's party meets up with them in Esthar. Although Ward cannot speak, Kiros is able to understand what he's trying to say just by the expression on his face. Julia Heartilly: Julia is a pianist at a hotel lounge in Deling City in Galbadia. Before Laguna met Raine, when he was still in the Galbadian army, he had a huge crush on Julia, and visited the bar as often as he could just to watch her play. She invited him up to her room once, and they talked. During this talk, Julia told Laguna that he had inspired her to write a song. This song was ' Eyes On Me ' (sung by Faye Wong ). Unfortunately, Laguna was called away to fight after this talk and never saw Julia again. Julia eventually married General Caraway and gave birth to Rinoa Heartilly . She later died in an automobile accident when Rinoa was 5 years old. Significance Like several other characters in the game - most notably Seifer , Rinoa , and Zell - Laguna serves as a Foil for Squall. Ironically (considering their relationship), their personalities could hardly be less alike. Where Laguna is warm-hearted, talkative, and easygoing, Squall is cold, taciturn and always serious. He does occasionally show a few similarities to Laguna, though - he is a natural leader when he actually tries to relate to people, for example, and on a few occasions in the game Squall is overwhelmed by his emotions and responds by doing something reckless and impulsive. Another example is his rousing speech given to the students of Balamb Garden in order to motivate them at a critical moment in the battle. A major focus of the game's story is Squall's learning to let go of his Angst and emotional repression; perhaps eventually he'll become more like his father. One of the major themes in the game is the importance of moving forward and letting go of the past. Squall's morose and unfriendly attitude, for example, is eventually revealed to be the result of Ellone's suddenly having to leave the orphanage where they both lived when they were children. As a small boy, Squall was traumatized by this abandonment, and at the age of seventeen he still has not moved on. Laguna's attitude is a marked contrast. He has lost not one but two loves - both Raine and Julia - and while he still remembers and loves them, he is able to move on with his life and be happy in the present. While Laguna and Squall have almost opposite temperments and personalities, they both seem to share an unusual quality - a form of Charisma that remains independent of other, less-savory traits. Laguna, despite being somewhat of a buffoon and constantly making mistakes, has the complete loyalty of his friends, Kiros and Ward, and is eventually chosen to lead the Esthar resistance and, finally, Esthar itself. Likewise, Squall, despite being extremely rude and unfriendly, constantly attracts friends (such as Rinoa, Quistis and Zell), and when appointed head of Balamb Garden, instantly receives the complete support of fellow students, despite his asocial reputation. |