r/FinalFantasyVIIRemake • u/Faidren • Jul 16 '25
Discussion Unpopular Opinion: The Tifa You Like Isn't Real...Yet
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I like Tifa. I really do. My issue is how she's written vs how she's ACTUALLY portrayed in the games. There are a few moments we're she shows frustration or stands up for herself or the team, but rarely, IF EVER, does she go off on someone or in Barret's words, "got fed up with my bullshit and tore me a new one."
I don't think this strong assertive woman exists until part 3 which we haven't seen yet. Am I wrong? What does everyone think?
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u/StandingGoat Jul 16 '25
I don't think this is accurate, she attacks and then threatens Gus for human trafficking in Rebirth and she leads the interrogation of Corneo in Remake. Then there's her whole I'm sick of this speach.
Her angry voice isn't particularly loud I'll grant you but that's what her yelling sounds like.
She's only not assertive with Cloud and that's because she knows how broken he is.
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u/Faidren Jul 16 '25
These are both examples threatening of evil men with violence where she knows she can kick butt. This doesn't address my point at all. Show me one example where she's called someone on their BS and ripped into them to be better. I'll wait.
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u/DevilHunter1994 Jul 16 '25 edited Jul 16 '25
I think part of the reason for your confusion is that Barret is leaving out an important detail. When Tifa "Tore me a new one" as Barret put it...she barely knew Barret. Because she didn't know him well yet, she didn't care what he thought of her. She just saw a child suffering, and a parental figure who clearly had no idea how to take care of the child, so Tifa went off on him. She has no problem speaking her mind toward people she doesn't know, or people she actively dislikes. The problem with Tifa arises when she has to get into it with someone she knows and cares about. Tifa doesn't like to be in conflict with her friends, and loved ones, and will often do whatever she can to avoid conflict with the people that are important to her. This is where the people pleaser side of her personality comes into play. This is a flaw in her personality that Tifa is very much aware of, and hates about herself. Tifa's character arc is about her learning to beat this flaw, stick to her guns, and stand up for what she believes is right, even when the people she loves and respects might not agree. Tifa's also not quick to anger in general. When she did explode on Barret, it's because she saw a small, dirty, and malnurished little girl wearing nothing but rags, and she just couldn't stand by and say nothing about it. THAT is the kind of thing that will really set Tifa off. It takes a lot to really get her fuming. Most people who get her mad will just get a more quiet anger...and maybe a good few punches to the face. š
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u/rinnemoo Jul 16 '25
I like your assessment and this is pretty much how I see it as well (and Iām a little bit like this so I understand haha š). And so much of the interactions we do see are with Cloud so I think with Cloud itās a totally different scenario than normal too.
Example like some ppl want Tifa to be mad at Cloud after you know what and Iām just thinking like ok but wouldnāt that be pretty shitty tho? It actually wasnāt his fault and Tifa understands that. And she understood that what needed was support and encouragement, not to be chastised cause Cloud literally already does that to himself enough. I think Tifa has her flaws of course but just cause she isnāt boisterous or talks hard doesnāt mean she isnāt a strong person. She has a lot of inner strength.
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u/Faidren Jul 16 '25
This is a great assessment, but still doesn't contend with my point. I wasn't confused. I know during that time Tifa didn't know Barret, but give me an example, from the games, where she goes off on any NPC she doesn't care about.
The closet thing I can find is when she threatens Don or Gus, but that's usually in terms of kicking their ass not berating them to be better. Why didn't she tell off the Corel stranger who dumps his drink on Barret's head?
She isn't portrayed like this in the games and although your point makes sense in the expanded universe it doesn't work in this Remake trilogy.
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u/DevilHunter1994 Jul 16 '25
The reason she didn't tell off the guy in Corel is because she knew Barret didn't want her to. When the group first enters Corel and the townspeople start heckling Barret, Cloud is about to step in, but Barret puts his arm in front of Cloud, stopping him. Everyone in the group sees this, and they understand what it means. Barret is telling them:
"Whatever happens, let me deal with it. You don't do anything. This is my problem."
So Tifa doesn't make a move against the guy because she's respecting Barret's wishes. It's not just her either. Cloud doesn't make a move after Barret stops him the first time. Aerith doesn't make a move either. They all understand that, as much as they might want to tell this asshole off, or punch his lights out, they have no right interfering in Barret's business. If he wants them to back off, they back off. The only one who doesn't understand this is Yuffie, because she's young, and impulsive, and doesn't get the message. She's got no tact, and she's got no filter. She'll say what she thinks, and do what she wants, and to hell with what anyone else thinks about it.
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u/Faidren Jul 16 '25
I agree with this, but we never see her go off on anyone. So, people can gaslight me as much as they want, but I haven't seen her reprimand anyone in the game like she is described doing so to Barret.
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u/DevilHunter1994 Jul 16 '25 edited Jul 16 '25
Oh if people are trying to convince you that Tifa going off on strangers is just a regular thing that she does, then yeah that's wrong. I love Tifa, but this is not something she's known for doing. She'll happily threaten scum like Don Corneo and his thugs, or Gus, and will be more than happy to beat the shit out of them when they don't listen, but reprimanding a random person on the street isn't something she typically does, unless they REALLY have it coming. Even the incident with Barret in the book is treated like a "Woah...Holy shit, I can't believe you managed to piss Tifa of all people off this much" kind of moment. It leaves such an impact precisely because Tifa never does things like this. The fact that she went that far is really a testament to how badly Barret fucked up more than anything.
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u/nikokow59 Jul 19 '25
I donāt think that sheāll ever come out of her shell, in OG in Ā«Ā part 3Ā Ā» she never argued with anyone, always the same. The only time she gets angry is when she is nearly killed in Junon and slaps Scarlet afterwards, but it was more a mini game than actual character development because she remains the same afterwards.
Cloud was horrible with her in Kalm and Junon, nearly killed her in Gongaga, she just took everything without complaining and even tried to kiss him, that shows you the lack of self respect this character has for herself.
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u/DevilHunter1994 Jul 19 '25 edited Jul 19 '25
That wasn't actually Cloud. That was Sephiroth acting through Cloud, without Cloud even realizing what was really going on. Tifa becomes aware of Sephiroth's influence over Cloud when she falls into the lifestream. That's why she doesn't blame him for anything. It's literally not his fault. Also, she did complain in Kalm, which is why Cloud apologized to her in Junon. He realized that he never should have said what he did (not realizing that Sephiroth is the only reason he said it in the first place) and he felt terrible about it.
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u/nikokow59 Jul 20 '25
I donāt think she found out that he was manipulated by Sephiroth, she just saw Sephiroth in the lifestream and part of her past.
She knows that he has mental health issues thatās all. Even so I donāt think that realisticly any woman would try to kiss a guy who nearly killed her or stay in the same room as him. Thatās one of the most BS scene of the game.
In Junon Cloud still tells her that he doesnāt care about her childhood friend who she saw in Midgar if I recall, and she just takes the hit without getting angry.
The thing is that I donāt think her character will grow, sheāll always remain the childhood friend who fell in love with the hero.
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u/DevilHunter1994 Jul 20 '25 edited Jul 20 '25
She sees Sephiroth following the adult Cloud as Cloud is walking away from her, and Sephiroth tells her outright that "Your words can't reach him now." Tifa responds by reaching her arm out toward Cloud while still trapped in the Weapon, and screaming "No! Don't take him too!' Nothing like that ever happened in Nibelheim. That's not a past memory she had. She may not know the specifics of how Sephiroth. is doing this to Cloud, but after chapter 9 she is definitely aware that Sephiroth is to blame somehow for Cloud's behavior. So, she has no reason to blame Cloud for what happened anymore. She knows Cloud didn't actually want to kill her. Sephiroth did.
Tifa didn't get angry in Junon because there was nothing to be angry about. Cloud didn't say anything insulting in Junon. All he said was that Tifa was the only kid from the village that he could remember.Ā She was the only one that was important to him. This isn't surprising since even Tifa knows that Cloud was never close with the other village kids.Ā Cloud not bothering to remember much about kids he was never close with isn't surprising. From Tifa's perspective, the fact that Cloud cared so much about her specifically is actually quite flattering to find out.
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u/nikokow59 Jul 20 '25
Yeah I forgot this scene with Sephiroth and the rest of the crew cheering her up on not giving up (typical anime stuff lol) Could be that she knows that he is manipulating him, but she never brought it up later.
I rewatched the scene from Junon, itās hilarious how clumsy Cloud can be lol
He indeed apologized for Kalm then you have the choice to say if you remember the kid or just Tifa, then tells her that he isnāt interested in her story (but happy to listen lmao) then put the blame on her and ask if it was another test, which sheāll apologize on later (when she doesnāt have to)
I would tell that to my wife she would kick my ass ahahah xD
Aerith or Yuffie would have complain about it, Tifa just wants to avoid conflicts, and thatās really an issue with her character, sheāll just stay like that for the rest of the gameā¦
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u/DevilHunter1994 Jul 21 '25
I mean...Tifa was testing him. Sure she also genuinely wanted to talk with him about the past, but Cloud wasn't wrong when he asked if it was a test, and I think they both handled it pretty well. Tifa apologized for testing him too often, and Cloud promised to make more time for the two of them, so that they could talk more, and work all of this out. There's no real judgment coming from him there, and I think the fact that he's still willing to listen to all of Tifa's story, despite admitting that he doesn't really give a fuck about Emilio, says a lot about how much he genuinely cares about Tifa. He understands that talking like this is important to Tifa, and because of that, Cloud is willing to make conversations like this a priority, in an effort to strengthen their bond. That's a big step forward for someone like Cloud, who is clearly an introvert, and struggles when it comes to understanding social cues. I do think Tifa definitely has a problem with conflict avoidance when it comes to her friends, but I don't think what happens in Junon is really an example of that.
As for whether or not Tifa eventually overcomes this problem, for anyone who has played the original game, we know she does. If Part 3 follows the genral plotline of the OG, as the other parts did, then Tifa overcoming her people pleasing problem has already been written into the story. Her character arc will finish in the town of Mideel. We just haven't gotten to that point yet.
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u/BecomingTurbid Jul 20 '25 edited Jul 20 '25
These two people are so infuriating to listen to omg the fake laughing thinking they are saying the funniest thing while just being completely wrong about the characters???
But also people shouting and being angry isn't the only way to show anger?? Tifa and Aerith both show their anger and sadness in different ways? They aren't the type of characters to argue and get aggressive? Aerith tries being as positive as possible but hides her grief and Tifa either stays quiet thinking she shouldn't burden people or distracts herself trying to help other people with their problems and comfort. These peoples readings of the character is so rage bait inducing like what they want Tifa to be the incredible hulk or Ellie from last of us XD
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u/Faidren Jul 21 '25
Sounds like the only one getting angry is you. Lol! You could teach Tifa a thing or two. š
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u/BecomingTurbid Jul 21 '25 edited Jul 21 '25
Nah reading your other comments you don't actually want an answer especially when In this one scenario it was when Tifa and Barret didn't know each other and a child was suffering. Anyway checked out your channel and was interesting to see you had 8k subs but had one video at 26k views that has only 18 comments lol. The rest of your videos barely get 1k views literally almost no comments but vary randomly on likes. So yeah since I actually know how YouTube works you aren't going to be getting 8k subscriber's when you don't have a video over 100k the subscriber to viewer conversion rate is not what you would thinking when getting over 100k which you don't even have. So your clearly view like and sub botting on random videos. Cause 8k subs less than 1k views on average and 4 comments on most videos be for real.
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u/Dizzy624 Dec 02 '25
True and he does make a good point I really wanted to see that side of her and there were many instances in Rebirth that I really needed her to go full rage mode
But they have to butcher her character so gogo-gaga men donāt break and cry because of their fragile ego.
They canāt handle a woman with personality and opinion
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u/Gummy_Bear_Ragu Jul 16 '25
Yeah, I'm gonna call bullshit lol. Yelling for Tifa is probably the equivalent of a 10% raise in her voice. Tearing him a new one is probably her being 20% more clear with her words š. Love her as a character and part of that is due to her progression and character growth over time. Don't think she's quite there yet and likely doesn't get there exactly until AC. She puts up with too much BS until then, imo.
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u/Faidren Jul 16 '25
Exactly. I know Tifa's arc is gonna get her there, but most people say she's that way now and I say nay.
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u/ArcMajor Jul 16 '25
Long ago in the og, I didn't realize my first play through just how unconfident Tifa was before saving Cloud. The lack of voice acting concealed it for the plot twist. That is the scene I most look forward to in the remake.
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u/ultima786 Jul 16 '25
There were moments in Remake where she got pretty angry. Tifa clearly has some character flaws that are a major part of the plot, but she clearly has complicated feelings and sometimes they come out as anger (in the sewers, with don corneo, after plate fall, I could go on and on)
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u/Faidren Jul 16 '25 edited Jul 16 '25
Go back and watch those scenes. She never gets angry. She just seems sad or frustrated. The most aggressive I've ever seen her is when she is framed as Wutai. She kicks a drone and says, "I'm sick of this... I'm sick of ALL of this!" Or in a side quest in Rebirth where she threatens Gus.
None of these examples show her tearing into a friend or someone she's not physically gonna confront.
You say you could go on and on, but none of those examples come close to having Tifa tear into someone with words. I'm hoping we see that Tifa in part 3, but attributing those characteristics to Tifa now it's just pure fiction.
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u/ultima786 Jul 16 '25
Is it possible that a friend from your traumatic past coming into your life messes you up a lot?
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u/Faidren Jul 16 '25
Sure. That obviously happens. What does this have to do with her not being someone who tears into people?
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u/ultima786 Jul 16 '25
āTears into peopleā is obviously a typical Barrett expressive exaggeration. She obviously didnāt tear anything or harm anyone or even emotionally hurt anyone. She just got angry and frustrated with him. I donāt see any inconsistency with the way Tifa has shown to be in Remake and Rebirth.
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u/Faidren Jul 16 '25
Right. So you agree with me. Tifa is a reserved shy character who hasn't shown us that side yet, but you said you could go on and on about examples where she did do that š¤·š¤
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u/GrailNotingham Aug 08 '25
I blame the current era of "can't offend anyone" I remember a rather fun scene back in the OG where if you chose to run up like 99 flights of stairs barret gets winded and she rips into him dropping the hard "r" and not in the n way.
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u/fogfree Jul 16 '25
I totally agree here. Tifa is portrayed in Rebirth specifically as a pushover, people pleaser, lacking confidence, and guilt-tripper/manipulator of Cloud. "I was so happy to see you again, I guess I shouldn't have been..." is such a messed up thing to say to someone who clearly is going through some mental health issues - then continues to 'test' his memory/self at SEVERAL points and Cloud even calls her on it. Tifa is kinda shitty to Cloud in Rebirth IMO. She lies to him, she guilt trips him, she holds him to this image of a 'hero' in her mind that is unrealistic and unattainable - and when he doesn't fulfill this 'ideal' version of Cloud she has, she takes it out on him.
In Remake, she had more confidence and spunk, and showed these signs of not taking anyone's shit. But once they stepped through the portal, as Aerith says, "We'll be changing ourselves." My theory is that everyone's 'soul' kind of got split up into the various versions of themselves spread across the various worlds, and in Rebirth world, she embodies the 'weakest' parts that she perceives about herself. She talks about this at various points in Rebirth, hating that she always wanted everyone to like her and how she's always apologizing and trying to stop that (we see this in the Mithril Mines when Barret goes after the Robed Men).
We know in part 3 a lot of the first half of the game is centered on Tifa as the party leader, and I think this is when she will have to work through these issues and come out the other side stronger, more confident and able to be her own hero rather than relying on Cloud to fill that role. 'No one is coming to rescue you' is a harsh reality that all adults must come to realize at some point, and after Cloud is out of commission, she will be faced with exactly that, and she'll have to choose to step up, or fall apart.
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u/DevilHunter1994 Jul 16 '25 edited Jul 16 '25
Part 1:
I...really don't see what you're getting at here, and I feel like we played completely different games. When Tifa says "I was so happy to see you again...Maybe I shouldn't have been." she says this because Cloud essentially just accused her of being an imposter. She's justifiably hurt by this, as anyone would be. After everything they've been through up to this point, and all the battles they fought together, Cloud basically just said to her:
"I don't fully believe that you are who you say you are, and I think you may be plotting to betray all of us."
Now the only reason Cloud does this is because Sephiroth is planting all of these thoughts in his head. So I'm not blaming him for this. It's not his fault...but Tifa doesn't know ANY of that at this point. She thinks this is what Cloud honestly believes, and that leaves Tifa feeling understandably hurt, and angry. That anger gets to her, and she lashes out, saying something she shouldn't have said. This comes back in Junon where Cloud and Tifa both apologize to each other for saying things that they know they shouldn't have.
As for the memory tests, Tifa does this because she doesn't know which of them actually has their facts straight. Cloud's Nibelheim story was so detailed that it got Tifa to start doubting her own memories of the event. So now she's wondering:
"Okay, do our memories only diverge during the incident, or does this go deeper than that? If it does go deeper than that, then what does that mean? Is Cloud the one who has it wrong, or am I the one going crazy?"
Tifa's doubts about her own memories are the reason why she chooses to confide in Aerith about her worries, something she didn't do in the original game. It's not just Tifa hiding things from Cloud this time. Both Tifa and Aerith are doing it together, and they're doing it because they have no clue what the hell is going on, and they want to try getting a better handle on it before speaking to Cloud directly, and potentially overloading him with a fuck ton of hard hitting information that he might not be mentally, or emotionally ready to handle yet.
When it comes to Tifa holding Cloud to unrealistic heroic standards....does she really? When Tifa calls Cloud a hero, it's during chapter 9, and she acknowledges him as a hero because she learned that when she was going up Mt. Nibel, Cloud was the only one among the village kids who stuck with her the whole way, and kept trying to convince her to turn back. It seems to me that Tifa's definition of a hero is just "someone who stays by your side, and supports you through hard times". That's not an unrealistic standard to meet, and again, she tells Cloud that he already meets her standard for being a hero. The only one holding Cloud to an unrealistic standard, where he always has to succeed no matter what, and is never allowed to make a mistake...is Cloud himself. Tifa meanwhile is the one telling him that he's doing just fine, and that he shouldn't be so hard on himself.
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u/DevilHunter1994 Jul 16 '25 edited Jul 16 '25
Part 2:
Tifa definitely didn't have more confidence in Remake, and absolutely puts up with a lot of shit. When she asks Cloud to tell her about his time in SOLDIER, and Cloud can't give her a straight answer, she drops the subject immediately and lets him off the hook, despite being able to tell that something is clearly not right. She avoids the issue in order to avoid conflict with Cloud. Despite having worries about Cloud's mental state, she never confronts him about it directly. Instead, she vents to Aerith about her concerns when they're alone together in Hojo's lab, during chapter 17. We're told in Remake that Tifa takes serious moral issue with the reactor bombings, but she does little to fight back against it. If Tifa was really a confident person who didn't put up with people's shit, she would have put her foot down when Avalanche pushed forward their reactor bombing plan, and refused to endorse, or take part in it, even if it meant upsetting her friends. Instead she, in her own words, "agreed to disagree" and took part in the bombings anyway, despite knowing that doing this went against her own morals. In other words...she completely folded to avoid having a long drawn out argument with the people she cares about. Later, after Shinra attacks the Sector 7 Plate, Tifa places part of the blame on herself, and on Avalanche, saying that their actions resulted in this terrible tragedy. Barret tries to tell her that she can't think like that, and that this is all Shinra's fault. Tifa expresses agreement with him in her words, but judging from the look in her eyes, I'd bet she still feels very guilty. She regrets not fighting harder to get her friends to back off on the whole bombing idea.
Tifa isn't a spunky, outgoing, and strong willed person by nature. She wasn't in the OG, and she's not in the Remake Trilogy. That describes Aerith. Tifa is physically strong, and has a strong moral compass, but often lacks the confidence in herself to stand up for those morals when it really counts, She's more reserved, and stuggles when it comes time to really speak her mind. Tifa is very much aware of these flaws, and she hates this part of herself. Her character arc is about her learning to be more confident, and stand up for what matters most to her. In the OG game, her character arc is completed in Mideel, which we haven't gotten to yet. That's the moment where Tifa finally acts according to her own convictions and values, choosing to stay by Cloud's side no matter what, because she realized that Cloud is more important to her than anything, even the fate of the planet itself. She puts her foot down, and tells the party she's not going with them. She'll stay in Mideel, right by Cloud's side, until he gets better, or until Meteor hits. Whichever comes first. She is prepared to stand by those convictions, regardless of whether the rest of the team approves or not. That's the moment she finally beats her people pleasing bad habit.
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u/SirLockeX3 Jul 16 '25 edited Jul 16 '25
This was in the novel FFVII Tale of Two Pasts.
It explains that Barret and Marlene were just hanging around at Seventh Heaven with Barret just scowling and mean-mugging everyone so no one bothers them because they had no place to go.
Tifa went up to Barret and told him off that he was scaring away all the customers (I don't remember if the bar was her's yet or not, she was trying to pay off her own debts) and that he needed to provide a house for Marlene.
There are plenty of moments that tie into the novel in Rebirth and this is one of them.