The big win for the group comes in the form of diversity. It’s a form of rock, paper, scissors, but with the personalities of each character. Prompto, the joker of the group annoys Ignis, the scholar of the group, but Gladiolus, the alpha-male type, is able to keep Prompto in check while appeasing Ignis. The diversity of characters displayed in this opening episode gives a great deal of hope for the dynamic between each member of the troupe, as there’s not a boring character in sight.
Ah, I said there wasn’t a boring character. Well, about that… Noctis is perhaps the only character that doesn’t properly get to show his personality in this episode, where at one point Gladiolus even attributes to him “not having properly gone through puberty” yet. It’s a bit weird that Brotherhood would actually acknowledge the lackluster personality of its leading character, but the closing fight scene with soldiers from the invading army at least give us an indication of the headstrong attitude Noctis possesses.
Speaking of Noctis, the most mopey hero of them all, we’re told that he’s heir to a throne that has been invaded by a foreign force, and as such the troupe has to keep him safe and secret. While this isn’t exactly new or groundbreaking material, it’s somewhat relieving that Brotherhood dedicated at least a snippet of its runtime to establishing the backstory and motivations of our hero.
As previously stated,Brotherhood: Final Fantasy XV is anime in the most digestible form, mostly due to its run-time, but it’s a bit of a struggle figuring out whether that’s a good thing or not. The show is easy to watch because it never tries to do anything too big for its boots, but in doing this, it also cripples its ability to do anything more than lay some groundwork for the main game.
I’d actually encourage anyone remotely interested in Final Fantasy XV to watch Brotherhood, if only to gain a sneak peek at the group of characters that we’ll be spending hours-upon-hours with come September. There’s an entertaining, whimsical show just waiting to break through in Brotherhood: Final Fantasy XV, and if Square have any sense they’ll allow it to fulfill this potential before the end of its five-episode run.
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