Essay: Irvine Kinneas, the Mutant Known as Gambit? Author's Note: These are some thoughts I've been throwing around in my head for awhile now, and I finally decided to share them. I hope that those who have played FF8 and have some knowledge of X-Men will, if not agree with me, then at least get a kick out of my insane ramblings. If someone else has already stated all this stuff, (because I'd like to think that I'm not the only one that this has occured to) then I would like to say that I am not trying to steal from them and I am completely unaware of them previously stating this stuff. ~*~ So there I was, 10:00 at night. Parked in front of the television, all alone, dual-shock controller resting comfortably in my hands, Final Fantasy VIII strategy guide open on my lap. I was anxiously awaiting the new party member Martine would soon give me. "Kinneas! Irvine Kinneas!" yelled the headmaster of Galbadia Garden. My jaw dropped. Once again, Squaresoft had wowed me. The graphics were incredible. A butterfly flitted down to land on an extended finger. The finger moved, as though firing an imaginary rifle. The body that owned the finger moved to stand, turning to face me, the gamer, and reveal himself at last- God. He was beautiful. My jaw dropped further. He looked so real, so- Okay, I'm going to stop myself here, but you get the picture. Get a hold of yourself, Elise. He's just pixels. Pixels. He is not real, I told myself. The game continued, Irvine hit on Selphie and Rinoa, Squall became jealous of him, etc. Anyone who's played the game knows what happens. Several months later, I traveled to my neighborhood movie theater and saw a little movie called X-Men. Ever heard of it? Anyway, I loved it, as anyone who sat near me during my three viewings could testify. (Me: "Did you see that? Did you see that? That is so cool!!!" etc. etc.) But, alas, it eventually went out of the theaters. And would not be out on video for several months. So how did I get my X-Men fix meanwhile? Easily. Monday through Thursday, at 3:30 pm, Fox showed the cartoon. Now, I'd like to think that I was a little too, I dunno, grown-up for the cartoon. I'm a sophmore at a school for gifted kids, for Christ's sake. But I loved it. There was one character that I especially loved, who had been absent from the movie. It was part one of the Phoenix Saga, but of course I had no idea who or what Phoenix was. At the beginning, Storm and I believe Cyclops (sorry, been awhile since I've seen it), who I recognized from the movie, had called a meeting of the X-Men and were naming those present. Storm: But where is Gambit? (or something to that extent) My inner voice: Who the hell is Gambit? Just then another mutant entered the room, twirling keys on his finger and grinning easily. He said something like, "Been out, jus' got back" (it was five in the morning) in a very bad Cajun accent. I didn't really pay attention, as I was too busy staring. My inner voice: He is a cartoon character. You're really pathetic, Elise, first it was pixels, now it is cels or whatever they use to make cartoons.... Hey, wait a minute, that guy looks familiar. It was the long, auburn ponytail that did it. That and the over-all, I don't know, suaveness? (Is that a word?) Anyway, the light bulb went off. My inner voice: Oh my God! It's Irvine!!! Of course, later I realized that Gambit was not Irvine in disguise. That would be impossible, because X-Men were started in the sixties or thereabouts. Irvine was obviously Gambit in disguise. ~*~ He had a grin that could melt any girl's heart. Long, silky russet hair was tied back in a casual ponytail at the nape of his neck. Several strands had escaped and framed his handsome face. He wore a light brown duster. He had unthinkable powers at his fingertips. Any girl he wanted was his. Who is described in the above paragraph? Irvine Kinneas? Or Remy LeBeau? I say that they are one and the same, knowledge that is kept from the public by a vast communist conspiracy. (Or not.) How many chestnut haired, trench-coat sporting, ladies' men with charm just dripping off of their very nicely formed bodies are there in this world? Alright, so Remy has the red and black eyes, is a mutant, and is a theif from New Orleans. But, if you take away the mutant thing (as such a thing does not exist in the world of FF8), then who knows what color eyes he'd have? They might well be blue. And Irvine does have superhuman powers, even if they are only from the GF. So he isn't a thief. But he is an orphan. And if Matron, his surrogate parent, had taught him to be a thief, then by golly he would be a thief. As for New Orleans. Such a town does not exist in Irvine's world. But, Deling City, the capital of Galbadia, very well may be the closest thing. It is a large city, dark, with a dangerous undercurrent. Look closely at some of the backgrounds there sometime. They seem rather remniscant of New Orleans. And the parade, at the end of Disc One? Mardi Gras. And I think it might have been addressed, or maybe merely implied, that Irvine had a different accent than the rest of the group. "How you-all doin', this is Irvine Kinneas."? That's as close to a drawl as you're going to get in the game. Also, both characters are disliked by many of their team-mates. Remy, in my opinion, was never fully appreciated by the other X-Men. He was left in Antarctica to die with barely a second thought. While none of Squall's group did anything quite that drastic, Irvine was constantly putting up with snide remarks. I think one of the first things Zell said about him, was (and I quote): "Irvine Kinneas... loser!" Most of this was, of course, jealousy. They could get the girl, and chased after any number of them before realizing that the one for them was right in front of them the whole time. Rogue for Gambit and Selphie for Irvine. Who have many characteristics in common as well, but that's a whole nother story. :) Back to MC Fan Fiction...