Riku Replica: Should he return?

[Ventuslover123 24]

It would be awesome to see Riku Replica back. I don't remember if he faded into darkness or was killed by the real Riku?..

 

If he did come back, could he be a Seeker of Darkness?, would he still look the same or older?

[Javelin434 3,164]

I think one Riku is enough. It's bad enough that we have at least 3 different Iterations of Sora in the universe

[AngelTheWeirdStranger 504]

Riku Replica, although a really great character, was wrapped perfectly in Re:CoM. His death was sad and his whole character arc was really amazing so I don't think he needs to re appear since at the end of Re:CoM he came to terms with who he was and accepted his fate as a replica. So I don't think there's a reason for him to come back, at least in my opinion.

[AwesomeKHfan 1,250]

I agree with AngelTheWeirdStranger here.

But I won't be surprised after Dream Drop Distance that Nomura decides to bring him back just to make the final battle against Xehanort even bigger -_-

AngelTheWeirdStranger

[Headphone Jack 1,147]

there's no good reason to bring him back. 

 

felt like he served his purpose in CoM. 

 

also the less duplicates of characters we have, the better.

[palizinhas 102]

There are a lot of characters supposed to return, sure, but they have gotten foreshadowing and stuff. After CoM, Repliku got... a mention by Riku in DDD. Besides, the point of him was to have Riku face himself right after he decided to be better, and Riku has gone through a lot since, so there isn't value on that anymore.

 

I think he's just gone.

[BrokenHeart-less 10]

Well since he straight up died he couldn't come back unless he shared his heart with xehanort to travel through time as just a heart. Which I doubt since Xemnas never even visited castle oblivion to our knowledge or even knew Vexen made a riku replica. 

[KH4Real 749]

Don't think he will be back. All the one that appeared in 3D will make a return in KH3.

Replica Riku could have been hinted as the Nightmare but didn't happen just the structure but that isn't enough.

[Hero of Light XIV 2,381]

It would be awesome to see Riku Replica back. I don't remember if he faded into darkness or was killed by the real Riku?..

 

If he did come back, could he be a Seeker of Darkness?, would he still look the same or older?

Both, he faded into Darkness AFTER he was beaten by Riku.

 

There is a bit of a likelihood that he will come back as a Seeker. In Dream Drop Distance, while Riku was wandering through Monstro, he came across a stranger in a black coat who happened to have his face. This never comes back to be directly explained, but when Pinoccio and Jiminy question him about it, Riku mentions both the time he was tempted by Darkness, as well as the time that he had to face a copy of himself made to embrace the Darkness fully. Now what's supposed to be suggested here is that there's no way of telling where this person came from, it could have been past-Riku while he was under the influence of Darkness brought forward through time travel or it could have been the Riku Replica brought back through time travel.

 

However the first one wouldn't make sense, as Ansem and Young Xehanort are shown throughout the game trying to win present Riku over to their side. Why would they even need to bother if they already had the Riku of the past with them? It just wouldn't add up. Therefore, that only leaves the Replica as the more likely possibility. To further add to that, as soon as Riku mentions the Replica, the Memento entry for Chain of Memories is unlocked. These entries usually unlock whenever a character or event from that game is either mentioned or encountered (Riku meets Ansem = Kingdom Hearts, Sora meets Xemnas = Kingdom Hearts II, Lea dreams of being with Roxas = 358/2 Days, etc.), and a similar thing happens when Sora briefly sees Vanitas standing next to Young Xehanort in Notre Dame, unlocking the Birth by Sleep Memento.

 

Now the reason Sora saw Vanitas was a bit more simple to explain. Ven's heart still rests within Sora, so when Sora was confronted by Young Xehanort, Ven's heart reacted (probably to being confronted with a younger version of his old master), causing Sora to see Vanitas for a moment. That suggests that while Vanitas wasn't physically there, he might still hold an ounce of selfhood within Ven's heart, so there might be a chance that he could possibly come back as a Seeker, either through time travel or more natural means.

 

But since Riku doesn't have any hearts within him to cause something similar, that can only mean that the possible Riku Replica he came across was the real deal, which suggests that he might be one of the Seekers brought forward in time by Young Xehanort, and it makes sense too. They wanted Riku originally, but in the event that they couldn't get him, they figured it was a safe bet to acquire his Replica, filled with the same potential for Darkness as the real thing, only fully unleashed, with the potential to grow stronger.

 

So there you have it, a good chance that Riku Replica might have already been indirectly confirmed to be coming back as a Seeker of Darkness. With that in mind though, his appearance in 3D (he kept Riku's hair length from KH and Chain of Memories) would suggest that he will still appear as we remember him, only with a black coat, so he probably isn't going to look any older. And again, it would make sense, as the only time they could bring him forward in time would be at some point before he is destroyed by Riku, and it would make the most sense to do it right before he fights him too, when he's at his most powerful and still has plenty of reason to want to defeat the real thing.

[palizinhas 102]

The main thing with Riku Replica being a Seeker is. Why? Isa makes sense because he has unfinished business with Lea. Xemnas I guess has unfinished business with Roxas. Braig has the issue of his real plans which we still don't know. Ansem was needed to explain the time travel.

 

But, narrative-wise, what does Repliku coming back change? He finished his own arc, his part in Sora's and Riku's arcs are done. Unless we bring him back for Naminé, who likely regrets what she had to do to him, or Lea, who may regret manipulating him, there just isn't a reason him being there contributes to the storyline besides an extra fight.

 

And who would he fight, anyway? Kairi? Xion? Riku's fight is with Ansem, not a Replica of him he destroyed when he wasn't anywhere near as powerful as he is now. And anyone else wouldn't make a whole lot of sense.

[Deadpool 1,200]

Please no. He was great as a one-off in CoM but bringing him back would be ridiculous. There's no reason for him to come back. Yeah, I realize his story was about him trying to be different from the real Riku and having an existential crisis over just being a copy of him, and yes that is depressing, but at the end of the day he'd literally just be another Riku. We have five different characters that look almost just like Sora (two of them being literal copies of one another's design) and it's getting so cluttered. We have many characters right now that are going to come back by the end of KH3, we don't need any more taking up extra space. After KH3 we'll finally get to see more of all these characters we've seen built up over the past like ten years and this'll be our chance for more limelight and development out of them when previously we've only seen them put up with heavy loads of angst before dying/getting sealed away/screwed by the end of their debut game.

 

Bringing back Riku Replica to me would be like taking Data Sora, Data Riku, etc. out of the Datascape and having them run around in the real world just because they "deserve to be their own characters/people" or something, which seems like a pretty Nomura thing to do. It's okay to have important characters make meaningful sacrifices yet still be able to come back (literally every main character we've had), but it's so exhausting when we find out characters like Eraqus and Ansem the Wise are alive for no reason through Nomura logic so out there it isn't fathomable. It'd be nice if Riku Replica could be one of the few characters with a definitive death and ending.

 

there's no good reason to bring him back. 

 

felt like he served his purpose in CoM. 

 

also the less duplicates of characters we have, the better.

 

Basically my thoughts.

[KeybladeMasterDeadpoolio 55]

I'd like to point out that Riku Replica can't be one of the Thirteen because of one simple fact: he's not a Xehanort. The Black Coat Riku that appears in Dream Drop Distance can't be because he didn't have the yellow eyes and pointed ears, not to mention that none of the gathered hooded Norts were short teenagers. Plus, Young Xehanort couldn't have brought the Replica forward for the same exact reason. Plus, even if he somehow is a Nort, he still can't come back because as stated in Dream Drop Distance, the time travel plot is done. Young Xehanort can no longer travel through time which means we won't be seeing Ansem, Xemnas, Xigbar, and Saix again. Master Xehanort has to find a new set of ten vessels to go along with him and the revived Braig and Isa. Unless of course Nomura decides to break a rule he so firmly established just to appease the fans which would be a total cop out.

[The Transcendent Key 12,109]

Hero Of Light couldn't have explained it more perfectly!  I've always thought that Repliku would return, and I still feel as though this is the case!

 

Remember, Xehanort manipulates people all around him, even the people who serve under him, such as all the members of Organization XIII that were considered "inadequate" and had to be replaced, ya know?  So if Xehanort does that, what's to stop him from bringing Repliku from the past and filling his head with promises of helping him become his own person, so that he won't have to live in Riku's shadow, ya know? This gives Repliku incentive to a Seeker, as he'll want to be his own person, and therefore, take out Riku!  So yes, I think Repliku is a likely candidate for Seeker Of Darkness!

Edited September 20, 2016 by The Transcendent Key

[KeybladeMasterDeadpoolio 55]

Hero Of Light couldn't have explained it more perfectly!  I've always thought that Repliku would return, and I still feel as though this is the case!

 

Remember, Xehanort manipulates people all around him, even the people who serve under him, such as all the members of Organization XIII that were considered "inadequate" and had to be replaced, ya know?  So if Xehanort does that, what's to stop him from bringing Repliku from the past and filling his head with promises of helping him become his own person, so that he won't have to live in Riku's shadow, ya know? This gives Repliku incentive to a Seeker, as he'll want to be his own person, and therefore, take out Riku!  So yes, I think Repliku is a likely candidate for Seeker Of Darkness!

Except he can't do that. Xehanort doesn't have anyone to time travel for him anymore. Is he going to give up his own body after he just got it back just get one fake kid? Does Xehanort suddenly have unexplained time travel powers that explicitly break the rules that were already established? If that's the case, then why didn't he do that instead of going through all of this super convoluted crap?

[Xiro 3,468]

If they bring him back he should be... ZOMBIE REPLIKU

 

 not to mention that none of the gathered hooded Norts were short teenagers

lol

 

(Also this is a bit off topic but I never really understood why Younginort can't just re-travel through time. He forgot everything while time jumping but he should still remember meeting bodiless Billy Zane. Unless the time traveling powers he got were single-use, which would basically clear up all my confusion )

[KeybladeMasterDeadpoolio 55]

If they bring him back he should be... ZOMBIE REPLIKU

 

lol

 

(Also this is a bit off topic but I never really understood why Younginort can't just re-travel through time. He forgot everything while time jumping but he should still remember meeting bodiless Billy Zane. Unless the time traveling powers he got were single-use, which would basically clear up all my confusion )

Single use is basically the long and short of it. Bodiless Billy Zane went back in time and passed his time powers to his younger self and then proceeded to wait out the 50 odd years on Destiny Islands until he could claim a new body, that being Riku. He was then brought into the future by his younger self sometime between fully possessing Riku and his defeat at the end of the first game which is where he returned with no memories of Dream Drop Distance. Since Bodiless Billy Zane went into hiding after he sent Young Xehanort on his adventure and Young X no longer has any memory of time shenanigans, he wouldn't know Bodiless BZ was a thing until he became him decades later.

Edited September 20, 2016 by KeybladeMasterDeadpoolio

[Xiro 3,468]

Single use is basically the long and short of it. Bodiless Billy Zane went back in time and passed his time powers to his younger self and then proceeded to wait out the 50 odd years on Destiny Islands until he could claim a new body, that being Riku. He was then brought into the future by his younger self sometime between fully possessing Riku and his defeat at the end of the first game which is where he returned with no memories of Dream Drop Distance. Since Bodiless Billy Zane went into hiding after he sent Young Xehanort on his adventure and Young X no longer has any memory of time shenanigans, he wouldn't know Bodiless BZ was a thing until he became him decades later.

Oh, okay.

Rip Bodiless Billy Zane. Must've been bored.

[KingdomHearts3 2,591]

No. He's a fake. All he was meant for was testing.

[The Transcendent Key 12,109]

Except he can't do that. Xehanort doesn't have anyone to time travel for him anymore. Is he going to give up his own body after he just got it back just get one fake kid? Does Xehanort suddenly have unexplained time travel powers that explicitly break the rules that were already established? If that's the case, then why didn't he do that instead of going through all of this super convoluted crap?

 

Hmm, you have a point there.  So does this mean that we literally have no idea of who at least half the Seekers would be?  The only ones that'd actually be confirmed would be Isa and Braig?

[KeybladeMasterDeadpoolio 55]

Hmm, you have a point there.  So does this mean that we literally have no idea of who at least half the Seekers would be?  The only ones that'd actually be confirmed would be Isa and Braig?

That's exactly what I'm saying and what I've been trying to say in a couple of other threads, that Ansem, Xemnas, Saix, Xigbar, Young X, and any other past villains and possibly heroes that people think will be one of the Thirteen are long gone and aren't coming back unless Nomura decides to screw his own rules just to appease the fans.

[Guest]

That only leaves the Replica as the more likely possibility. To further add to that, as soon as Riku mentions the Replica, the Memento entry for Chain of Memories is unlocked. These entries usually unlock whenever a character or event from that game is either mentioned or encountered (Riku meets Ansem = Kingdom Hearts, Sora meets Xemnas = Kingdom Hearts II, Lea dreams of being with Roxas = 358/2 Days, etc.), and a similar thing happens when Sora briefly sees Vanitas standing next to Young Xehanort in Notre Dame, unlocking the Birth by Sleep Memento.

 

Now the reason Sora saw Vanitas was a bit more simple to explain. Ven's heart still rests within Sora, so when Sora was confronted by Young Xehanort, Ven's heart reacted (probably to being confronted with a younger version of his old master), causing Sora to see Vanitas for a moment. That suggests that while Vanitas wasn't physically there, he might still hold an ounce of selfhood within Ven's heart, so there might be a chance that he could possibly come back as a Seeker, either through time travel or more natural means.

 

But since Riku doesn't have any hearts within him to cause something similar, that can only mean that the possible Riku Replica he came across was the real deal, which suggests that he might be one of the Seekers brought forward in time by Young Xehanort, and it makes sense too. They wanted Riku originally, but in the event that they couldn't get him, they figured it was a safe bet to acquire his Replica, filled with the same potential for Darkness as the real thing, only fully unleashed, with the potential to grow stronger.

 

So there you have it, a good chance that Riku Replica might have already been indirectly confirmed to be coming back as a Seeker of Darkness. With that in mind though, his appearance in 3D (he kept Riku's hair length from KH and Chain of Memories) would suggest that he will still appear as we remember him, only with a black coat, so he probably isn't going to look any older. And again, it would make sense, as the only time they could bring him forward in time would be at some point before he is destroyed by Riku, and it would make the most sense to do it right before he fights him too, when he's at his most powerful and still has plenty of reason to want to defeat the real thing.

 

You've just summarised the reason as to why Replica Riku is a potential Seeker of Darkness. You see, Replica Riku always wanted to have his own identity beyond being a Riku clone. Having a piece of Xehanort in him means that he no longer has to see himself as a carbon copy of Riku. He can transcend beyond that.

 

It's easy for people to argue that Riku served his purpose in Chain of Memories, however, Replica Riku never got what he wanted, to be someone beyond the real Riku... until now. Think about it, Xehanort giving him that option to be a new person gives Replica Riku more character. Why does Replica Riku justify his sacrifice to Xehanort? what does he get out of it? does he still consider himself a puppet? there's so much more character development available for Replica Riku.

 

Plus, there's always this theory to consider when it comes to Replica Riku...

 

Edited October 3, 2016 by Guest

[Hero of Light XIV 2,381]

You've just summarised the reason as to why Replica Riku is a potential Seeker of Darkness. You see, Replica Riku always wanted to have his own identity beyond being a Riku clone. Having a piece of Xehanort in him means that he no longer has to see himself as a carbon copy of Riku. He can transcend beyond that.

 

It's easy for people to argue that Riku served his purpose in Chain of Memories, however, Replica Riku never got what he wanted, to be someone beyond the real Riku... until now. Think about it, Xehanort giving him that option to be a new person gives Replica Riku more character. Why does Replica Riku justify his sacrifice to Xehanort? what does he get out of it? does he still consider himself a puppet? there's so much more character development available for Replica Riku.

 

Plus, there's always this theory to consider when it comes to Replica Riku...

 

Yeah, everyone's always so quick to dismiss characters like that when really it still leaves a lot of room left open for them like that. I don't think I'm willing to speculate that RR and Anti Black Coat are the one and the same (especially given how it shows up and what not), but at the very least RR has some chance of being one of the many vessels throughout time and space that Xehanort has gathered for his goal.

 

I feel like Vanitas has that same potential, which would make it really satisfying to see if they could use that as an opportunity to expand his character a bit further similar to how the BBS novel did. I feel that they are since there would be practically no point in teasing the presence of Vanitas briefly in DDD like that if he wasn't going to be relevant anymore, you know, "if his story is supposed to be over" and all that.

[KeybladeMasterDeadpoolio 55]

But their stories are over because they're dead. Repliku was killed by Real Riku and was no where near a Xehanort to become possessed and Vanitas had fully fused Ventus and subsequently had their heart shattered. I am genuinely curious why people are ignoring the already established rules that clearly explain why neither of these two nor the other time displaced Norts can come back.

[Guest]

But their stories are over because they're dead. Repliku was killed by Real Riku and was no where near a Xehanort to become possessed and Vanitas had fully fused Ventus and subsequently had their heart shattered. I am genuinely curious why people are ignoring the already established rules that clearly explain why neither of these two nor the other time displaced Norts can come back.

 

Actually, Repliku was based off Riku-Ansem. Riku-Ansem is a version of Xehanort because Xehanort (as Ansem, Seeker of Darkness) influenced Riku's Darkness. As long as someone has a piece of Xehanort inside them, they're considered a Xehanort (no matter how strong the 'nort process is).