ATHLETE

World

game

Personality

We first begin Tidus' story in his home of Zanarkand, where is preparing for a blitzball game. Our hero of the story steps out from the crowd and we quickly realize this blonde surfer-looking guy is an arrogant teenager who knows he's a big shot celebrity and he acts it. He proudly shows off his skills to the younger children and flirts with his female fans about how he will definitely score a big goal. In essence, Tidus is a spoiled brat.

Or that's what we see of Tidus anyway. If it weren't for the disasterous tragedy that was Sin, the stronger man within him most likely would never have surfaced. Yes, that's right, Tidus has a deeper side to him (he is a Final Fantasy character, after all). When Sin was destroying Tidus' city, Tidus lost his cool and confident persona and adopted a more panicky one. He's pathetically helpless in serious situations and frantically searches for a way out of the mess. He luckily meets up with his father's old friend Auron, but ends up relying on him too much. Of course, Auron, being Auron, will not give Tidus help so easily -- he must learn to fend for himself.

Hating his father

Tidus, ever since he was young, has always hated his father Jecht and he was careful to allow that hatred to grow, never letting it fade. His hatred for Jecht is actually one of the thing that defines him, as negative as that sounds, which is ironic because Tidus wants to do everything he can to break away from him. Even though he tells himself that he will never become like him, he unknowingly does -- he is just as arrogant as Jecht was. However, given the circumstances, when life and death are constantly circling around him, he realizes he must become more independant and more appreciative of the family, friends and the life he does have.

the little things

Tidus is an optimistic person. Even though he was completely lost in what seemed to be a completely different world, he manages to keep a smile on his face. He's a bit childish in that sense -- when he washed up on shore on Besaid Island, after getting hit in the head with a blitzball, he was all smiles. Something as small as blitzball was enough to cheer him up and help him forget about the fact he does not know where he is geographically, even if it was only temporary happiness. His cheerfulness even started rubbing off onto the other characters, such as Yuna. Before, Yuna would never think of herself and was very serious. Yuna learned to smile because of Tidus and to enjoy her life more.

Tidus came off as a naive person (possibly stupid), but that was mostly because he did not understand the new customs and traditions. Tidus wasn't exactly "eager to learn", but he certainly hoped to fit in. When he realized he said something rude or did something that he shouldn't have, he would feel guilty. He's a simple guy, really: he just wants everyone to be happy, and for some people, that's the only part they see in him.

Tidus is not afraid to speak out and voice his opinions. For the most part, if he has something to say, he won't keep it bottled up within himself (unlike Yuna, who keeps everything bottled up). The only feelings he kept to himself were his pangs of homesickness and his deep hatred for his father. They're personal things -- yet he shared them with Yuna.

The Tidus everyone sees is the Tidus he wants everyone to believe he is. He does not want to come off as troubled because it will make him look weak. The Tidus on the inside is a bit more complex, a side he only shared with Yuna. After learning about the suffering, the dying and the agony felt all over Spira, slowly Tidus began to evolve as a person. He matured and he wanted to genuinely help people out, because he knows what an impact it can leave on somebody's life. He has first hand experience after all; being a stranded foreigner in Spira, it was wonderful to have Yuna, Wakka and the rest of them help him out.

Overall, Tidus is a kid trying to prove himself worthy of being able to do something; he did not want to live in the shadow of his father forever. Because of his way of thinking, he appeared to be boastful and sure of himself, when in reality he just wanted to fit in, seek approval and be an individual. He wanted to find himself, not Jecht's son, or the star player of the Zanarkand Abes. He wanted to be assured that being himself is alright.