The Importance of Being Captain Hook

[Dave 5,715]

The presence of Captain Hook is probably the most interesting of the villains chosen for the Villain Bloc in KH1. Within the play Peter Pan, it's tradition that the father of Wendy also plays the role of Hook, a tradition that is kept true in the film. The threat that the father presents in the story is that he's going to make Wendy move out of the nursery; more bluntly, he's going to make her grow up. This is the fear that Pan, the Lost Boys, and which nearly every kid in real life has ever had. No one wants to grow up, get a job, become responsible, etc. It's far more fun to have adventures, which is the appeal of Neverland: you never have to grow up. But within this land, there is always the force of Captain Hook and his pirates to be reckoned with. Of course, having Hook played by the same actor of the father brings with it the same themes: Hook is the grown up trying to spoil the children's fun. He wants to kill Peter because Peter is the symbol of being anti-adult, which is the same reason why Peter is the hero in the first place. But while Peter might always best Hook, and the Captain might never get his revenge, Hook is always there. He won't go away. That horrible dread of growing up is potent, and will be there just as long as Peter is.

 

And really, the themes that Hook embodies in Peter Pan still hover around the edges of Kingdom Hearts. The story is about the dreams of children, be it going on adventures, or the joy of discovery, or any other number of positive things. It's the dream of Sora, Riku, and Kairi to get off their dreary island and go explore new worlds, much in the same way that Wendy, Michael, and John wish to escape London and go find Neverland. But when faced with the peril of Captain Hook, all three handle things differently. Riku, as it was, signs the book and joins the crew: he grows up, for better or for worse. He doesn't have time for things like love, or imagination; he can only conceive things in terms of power and self preservation. He has lost those childhood dreams, and has very much moved out of the nursery. Kairi is, of course, comatose on the Jolly Roger: if we accept that Kairi is Light, and that Lightness is all that is good, it would seem that the embodiment of all that was good about childhood dreams is essentially dead around Captain Hook.

 

But then we get Sora, who acts much differently. Contrary to what Riku believes, Sora does care about Kairi, and is, in fact, very mature: He does understand the situation, he does perceive the gravity of events, and he's wise enough to know that power isn't everything (his acknowledgement of the futility of trying to harness the Heartless before Riku proves this). Also, Sora has gone through an awful lot: he lost his home, his best friend is trying to kill him, his other best friend is in a coma, the world is on the brink of ending, and all the responsibility for stopping it was dropped on his shoulders. But he's persevered in spite of all this, through hard work and determination, and, in many ways, has grown up in the process (he's certainly not sleeping on the beach any more).

 

But here's the thing: Sora can still fly when he walks off that plank, and to fly you need to be able to summon the kind of happy thought that eludes someone like Riku, or Captain Hook. Sora is able to retain both a childlike innocence while still being adult enough to settle the matters on his adventure. He doesn't lose sight of his dreams, or what the Light means. Sora might be more mature, but he's not an "adult" in the way that Captain Hook or the Father supposes it to be. The level of cynicism and bitterness that plagued them as they took their offices of age don't seem to afflict Sora in the same manner. He can feel the weight of the world on his shoulders, but he still is able to put on that smile.

 

Contrary to what Captain Hook and Wendy's father would have you believe, you don't have to be a pirate in order to grow up. Sora can save the world, take on Xehanort, and still be the same nice guy he was when he was a child.

Edited January 1, 2014 by Dave

[Shard the Gentleman 2,891]

That... was deep. I really like this. You put it into perspective.

[awesomeinmyworld 268]

Wow, that's deep. Dang.

[Dracozombie 4,554]

After reading the things you have to say about Sora, I've learned to get pissed off whenever people bash him for being "immature" and "childish."  But even before, I didn't consider him all that much like a kid, knowing the gravity of the situation despite maintaining optimism.  All things considered, he handled his situation in a mature way.  Yes, there was that kid in a candy store feeling to his adventures, but he knew what was going on and what he's supposed to do.  I sorta miss that feeling, but all whimsy wears off eventually when you get deeper into things.  Besides, Sora never loses that optimism, and at the end of the day, that's what matters the most.  He never stops understanding.

 

I think Riku's grown up as well, though in a better way.  I think it shows most in DDD, when he's not cocky douchebag or solitary emopants (not that it was unreasonable).  I think he has Sora to thank for that, him finally rubbing off on Riku.  He's slowly understanding things the way Sora does, though Sora has a depth to it that the others can't quite reach.

[GangstaSora 0]

I feel dis.

[awesomeinmyworld 268]

After reading the things you have to say about Sora, I've learned to get pissed off whenever people bash him for being "immature" and "childish."  But even before, I didn't consider him all that much like a kid, knowing the gravity of the situation despite maintaining optimism.  All things considered, he handled his situation in a mature way.  Yes, there was that kid in a candy store feeling to his adventures, but he knew what was going on and what he's supposed to do.  I sorta miss that feeling, but all whimsy wears off eventually when you get deeper into things.  Besides, Sora never loses that optimism, and at the end of the day, that's what matters the most.  He never stops understanding.

 

I think Riku's grown up as well, though in a better way.  I think it shows most in DDD, when he's not cocky douchebag or solitary emopants (not that it was unreasonable).  I think he has Sora to thank for that, him finally rubbing off on Riku.  He's slowly understanding things the way Sora does, though Sora has a depth to it that the others can't quite reach.

I hate when people bash Sora too, saying he has no character development, or he's "too happy".

[Caity 3,946]

Although Sora does become a Pirate in Port Royal...

When he has grown up a bit.

[VeNate13 144]

Deep!

[riku13 148]

My mind is fried.

[jorrell3946 70]

So Deep man.

[SHAZOW 269]

This so deep, it seems bottomless.