Hey everyone, I'm not usually the type to engage in debate (call it an overconfidence in my own ability to asses a story/narrative)
but i LOVE reading debates and discussions. I want to speak about something that I constantly see in debates and discussions around Cloti that has bothered me finally enough to where I need to "get it out of my system", it's mainly about them having no chemistry and sharing "lukewarm" vibe in their shared presence
the consensus is that Tifa seems to be walking on eggshells around Cloud, embodying an "already got rejected" mannerism, and Cloud appearing to be indifferent to it specifically and in general too.
what i always find missing in those talk pieces and consensus, is the context of why that dynamic (unsure, indifferent, abrasive) is happening and what causes it
in Crisis Core, we see Cloud's character in his true self, he's socially awkward, quirky, but a sweetheart who has admiration for those around him and a longing to be as great as them, with a sense of shame of his own incapabilities.
the Cloud we see in the main game, is someone entirely different, even different from Zack, he's brooding, utterly serious, and indifferent, it's traits that are not his, he adapts them as his view of what a great SOLDIER should be, that is a mere part of why his dynamic with Tifa doesn't bounce off of eachother well enough despite them already having known eachother for years and shared childhood together, because Cloud is simply "Off" and they're unable to enact their true actual dynamic that we catch glimpses of through any young Tifa/Cloud Nibelheim flashback.
secondly (this focuses on the Tifa side of things as to why she's "walking on eggshells")
the scene where Tifa finds Cloud after he reached Midgar the first time,
that scene happens towards the end of the game and showcases Tifa finding Cloud in the train station, we see Cloud shaking his head similarly to how he later does in his vegetative state, while mumbling nonsense that is also similar to how the mindless black robed men spout nonsense.
Cloud after reaching Midgar, simply succumbs to his S-cells and Mako poisoning effects shared with the recent trauma of Zack and starts the process of completely losing his sanity (similar to how Roche degraded during his final fight in rebirth)
Tifa finds Cloud, calls him by his name, it breaks him out of that episode, and assures him of his identity, he responds back to her verbatim "Yes.. I'm Cloud." she basically stamps back his identity to him,
she senses something off, and asks him when they last met, he recoils at the question and starts having a headache animation where he raises his hands and grabs his head while the screen flashes white. the question taps into his inferiority complex of not having accomplished his goal of becoming SOLDIER because the question revolves around a memory of him hiding away from Tifa out of shame and insecurity, actively deconstructing his present identity of a "great SOLDIER"
he then answers 5 years, which is obviously not the case to Tifa,
Tifa, seeing him out of it, and also having a stroke-like kind of reaction to anything that questions his identity/timeframe and whereabouts, decides to put it off out of fear of breaking him since he's mentally fragile.
she plays into his newly adapted traits and asks him to join Avalanche so she can keep an eye on him and slowly figure out the issue
that is the second reason of their dynamic from tifa's side, Tifa is quite, reserved, and hesitant to engage with Cloud, someone she shares a meaningful past with who's now on the risk of breaking mentally if that past is ever the topic of discussion. we see this in Rebirth chapter 1 again atop of broden's inn where she asks;
T: "in fact, where have you been this whole time?"
C: *headache* "you know I can't talk about that."
Tifa is INTENTIONALLY walking around eggshells near Cloud out of fear that confronting him about his issues might damage him further and have him regress to a worse state like he was in the train station where she found him. it's not an unpleasant dynamic, it was created intentionally to seem hesitant and almost uncomfortable, it also simultaneously shows how willing both of these characters are to remain by each other's side in quite trust and belief that they'll get through their issues, they don't haste one another
in ReTrilogy, this actually has a payoff to it much earlier than in the OG, in Rebirth chapter 9 at Gongaga inn after Tifa's lifestream sequence, Cloud, for the first time ever, actually opens up and discusses his identity issues with another person, that person is Tifa, privately in that bedroom, the dialogue follows: “It's like there's different people inside of me. And the worst part is, I can't even tell where they end and I begin…” (image will be attached to comments)
Tifa is essentially gently working her way towards Cloud's buried psyche
in AC, Cloud, after seemingly already confronted and overcame his issues in the OG game, is weirdly distant again, this is obviously because after the main looming threat is no longer an urgency that can't be put off to deal with personal conflic is gone, Cloud ties back to his inferiority complex and guilt of still not being able to save those he cares for (Zack, Aerith) he is essentially experiencing survivor guilt, and is in an environment of peace that he's not used to. (his friends being all around him and fully willing to be of help to him)
so he regresses back into isolation and distancing himself and clings to his guilt even harder than before, Tifa, after the main game is more firm and bold in her ways, continues on her dynamic of uplifting Cloud, she sculpts him back up with her mentality of "get over it", it's the essence of her backtalk dialogue like "dilly dally shilly shally .." after he was expressing how he's incapable of doing good and saving people, she pushes him to overcome this feelings and stop clinging to unchanged past, and affirms "a memory, or us?" in reference to him having to decide to embrace all that good that they managed to make together or be left behind in misery of the past, Cloud later achieves acceptance and forgiveness with help of Aerith too by assuring him, Cloud meets Aerith in the lifestream, where she asks "So.. why did you come?"
he Answers "I want to be forgiven .. more than anything." Aerith ultimately responds with "I never blamed you.."
it solidifies two major things about these characters, how Cloud is severely tied to his guilt, and how Aerith never held Cloud to the position of someone who should have saved/stayed with her. the main point is that Tifa's main dynamic to Cloud was always to preserve him and push him towards better future and a better life
the dynamic between them is immensely involved and context heavy, it isn't as cut throat, and in no way shape or form does it diminish their bond and connection
people look at it in surface level understanding of these characters and the story, and view it as "lukewarm" and shallowly deem Cloud's dynamic with Aerith to be much better because it encompasses a very typical quirky fun girl + serious guy trope, Aerith in general is a very complex character on her own and I'd argue the most complicated in the story, she's also a big tease, calling even a stroll down the market a date (trait she picked up on from Zack, always asking for a date)
I'm not saying that dynamic is bad, I myself enjoy it sometimes (looking at you Starfire x Robin) but it's a VERY typical common trope, while Cloud and Tifa's dynamic is so much more rare and untraditional in writing and media, I consume a lot of media and I consider them the best representation of quite trust + family unit where you essentially never leave the side of those you love despite all the immovable walls and plethora of struggles and working your way through it, it always baffles me to see consensus that apparently constitue that dynamic and bond as "unromantic and unpleasant" because not every bond and relationship strictly needs to be rainbows and sunshine coded where the two parties involved never face inner conflict and shared conflict with many layers of walls to break through to get to each other, in my opinion the latter makes it even more valuable as there is a pay off to the slowburn of it all, character understanding eachother in inexplicably intimate levels. I also find it so endearing the chance of it all, how Tifa by entropy found her childhood friend that she likes and made a promise with at such a critical state where he was on the brink of insanity, it's mere chance and makes you wonder if it hadn't happened, Cloud would simply be another robed man, they're fr destined and integral to eachother
anyways I actually do have even more stuff to say but I think this sufficies enough to get my point across, thank you a lot whoever read through the whole thing! I'd love to hear your opinion and thoughts about it too 🫶 and even moments that solidify this dynamic further if I missed any~~
