[Analysis] 13 Sentinels: Themes and Characters (Spoilers) - Part 1
Exploration of the 'Nature vs. Nurture' theme and some parallels. This post compiles analyses and notes written over several months. I tried to revise and edit them, but it is still inconsistent and full of errors. My interpretations were based on the original Japanese script. I also read interviews and other supplementary materials.
To me, 13 Sentinels is a symbolic, fate-driven sci-fi narrative where the 15 compatibles are being challenged in one way or another to prove they are better than their past selves so they are completely ready to lead the restoration of humanity. This is an example of a loop where everything went perfectly.
Sekigahara and Shinonome, despite already being kinder than their past selves, were still being affected by the influence of nurture x nature. After the Kaiju attack, bad things began to happen, with the potential to corrupt them, and fate didn’t spare either of them. They were forced to go through situations similar to those their 2188 selves experienced and had to resist all of that. While Shinonome didn’t have much luck and could be seen as a partial failure, she still managed to overcome Ida. She came to regret her actions and tried to atone by fighting in the final battle and refusing to let anyone else control her. I’m not sure if she continues to live like that after the events of the game… I hope not.
As for Sekigahara, he was luckier and completely diverged from his original self path, proving he isn’t a cold-blooded hitman. Since he was already doubtful of his own morality, he’s probably the character with the most reason to compare himself to his original version. Realizing he had almost gone down the same path must have been a shock. The way he was nurtured and the environment around him, both before and during the game, never allowed him to become like that. The people he met and helped ended up coming back to support him. We could say he was rewarded for his kindness. He seems asocial, stoic, realistic, and sometimes overly rational, traits he may have inherited from his genes. Both versions seem to have a habit of investigating their targets before killing them, which suggests they are calculating men.
Amiguchi's case already got an explanation in extra materials. 2188 Ida is manipulative and a playboy, while Ida is just manipulative and Amiguchi is just a playboy. This is a bit too hilariously systematic for me, since I don’t think genes work that way. Amiguchi denies that he is like Ida and challenges his past self by rejecting him, symbolically through a punch. I think he naturally compares how he treats Takamiya and other girls to how Ida acts because he fears he might be similar to him due to his playboy tendencies. He sees how Ida manipulates them and ignores their needs, while he respects them.
However, I don’t think the narrative succeeds in framing his playboy tendencies as harmless or as something that comes from boredom or validation. His interactions with Takamiya aren't charming or respectful to me. Isn't acting like that to her, even though she told him to stop, kind of manipulation? (ˆᗜˆ). Unfortunately, I didn't vibe with this relationship, which weakens that contrast with Ida. In Sekigahara's story, we learn he received just one single administration, and the procedure seemed to have stopped at 20%. His other "memories" came from 426 and Inaba, through the "videotapes" he watched.
Ida is actually faithful and truly in love with Inaba, but he put his own selfish desires above her own, treating her really badly. I wondered if Amiguchi was meant to regret his earlier playboy behavior by becoming more sincere with his feelings, especially when facing Ida and saving Inaba. Because initially I thought the playboy part was something bad he had to fix, but I finished the game totally confused.
Anyway, similar to Fuyusaka, Amiguchi shows he’s different from his past self by choosing a different partner. Curiously, his tastes changed (Inaba and Takamiya are very different), while Fuyusaka’s remained similar to Morimura’s (Juros and Sekigahara are similar). Amiguchi likes Inaba’s voice, and his musical taste seems to be something inherited. In the epilogue we can see he is still trapped in the past, worrying and pitying Shinonome because of what Ida did to her. I hope he stops someday. Shinonome doesn't seem to like it too... She doesn't need your pity, she can drink medicine without water. (( ◡̀_◡́)ᕤ
Fuyusaka has already gone through her "development" from the very start of the game. While Nurse Morimura is less cold-hearted than the 2188 Morimura, Fuyusaka grew up completely without malice in Sector 4, probably thanks to her loving parents and her best friend, the kind and romantic Miwako. This suggest that both Morimuras’ issues mostly came from how they were nurtured.
In Shinonome’s story, her records show she received at least seven memory administrations, and if I’m not mistaken, only the personality replacement was missing. Her challenge was to stay true to herself and not be influenced by Nurse Morimura’s memories, which are filled with failures that left her feeling hopeless, and not let her feelings for Juro affect her own feelings. She never abandoned her ideals and beliefs or her decision to fight. Her activation scene, where she says something like, "I’m going to trust my current self," and "Mom, Dad, Miwa-chan...If I have the right to protect everyone, then I...I'm an Invincible High School Girl! These days they even ride giant robots!" symbolizes that.
I believe her theme is about challenging her past selves through "love." Her love for Miwako moved Prof. Morimura, and she chose to love and care for Nurse Morimura instead of hating her. I’m not sure if she even realizes she is a clone of her teacher, but as for comparing herself to Morimura…why would she? Unless she shared traits with her or questioned her own morality, I see no reason to. Our sense of identity is usually very strong by nature. It feels more like something meant for us, the players, to draw parallels and see how they take different paths in life.
Takamiya also kind of "challenged" her past self, who wasn't a very good mother in 2188. She grew up next to Natsuno, loved her like a friend (or more like a mother?) and supported her relationship with Miura. She even seems to act in a motherly way toward other girls. Maybe the way 2188 Yuki was raised suppressed that maternal side of her. Or did fate think Takamiya really needed to be "punished" and turn her into a supermother? Or maybe the way she tried to protect her daughter in 2188 wasn’t the best approach, and she learned a better way now. Well, 2188 Miura was a bit strange, so I can understand.
Okino, who in 2188 was more lazy and sentimental, grew up with the opposite priorities, putting work above his feelings. Still, we can see how he cares for Takatoshi in his own way by teasing and sharing the results of his research. The final twist reveal felt very romantic to me, as well as Okino opening up about their chances of winning being zero. It feels like fate pushed him to make up for what his past self did. But since he wasn’t a bad person, he deserved another chance with Takatoshi. I found it interesting how their relationship developed naturally, without the influence of their past selves. Even though they share similar "jobs," they have very different personalities. (I actually have a lot more to say about these two, but they’re so popular in Japan that I’ve already read analyses pretty similar to my own interpretation. I'm burnout.)
Continuation:
13 Sentinels: Themes and Characters (Spoilers) - Part 2
An exploration of Sekigahara, Shinonome, and Fuyusaka.
Source: Developers Talks in "13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim Official Script Double Strand", this interview and this one too. For the timeline I used my own calculations and this table. Inspired by this blog.