about vincent

Age in FFVII	Officially 27, but in terms of actual years he's assumed to be much older. His real age is in direct correlation with Sephiroth's, as he was alive at the time Sephiroth was born. Many people believe that the 27 years given to him refer to his age during his involvement with Lucrecia and Hojo. Sephiroth's age is said to be 27-30, so add 27 to that and you get Vincent's assumed actual age.
Height	183 cm (about 6')
Birthdate	October 13
Blood type	A
Hair color	black
Eye color	red
Hometown	?
Occupation	n/a (formerly a Turk)
Weapon	gun
Other appearances	Like Tifa, Vincent appears in Ehrgeiz.

Purportedly, Vincent's first name is a reference to the late horror film actor Vincent Price. His surname, however, is far more important to his character: Valentine, FFVII's embodiment of unrequited love and the toll it takes.

Vincent's character went through quite a few changes before his current form was finalized. Ideas like horror researcher and detective were toyed with, until it was finally decided that he would be a science experiment. His red and black clothing reflect the heavy influence death has on his character. In particular, the red cape is symbolic of the suffering he carries inside him.

In subsequent Final Fantasy games, characters similar to Vincent have designs that are a lot like his. In FFX Auron plays the role of a figure key to that game's backstory, as Vincent offers much insight into FFVII's. Like Vincent, Auron is dressed predominantly in red and wears a high collar. Also, in official illustrations, his hair is black like Vincent's. FFX-2's Nooj, who is torn between his human and machina makeup as Vincent is torn between his human and monster forms, wears a bodysuit that's red in color. He has a "gimp" left arm like Vincent, and a past relationship that affects his present (although Nooj's relationship with Paine is romantic in canon, whereas a Vincent/Lucrecia romance is speculatory at most).

Would it surprise you to know that I'm as big a fan of Auron and Nooj as I am of Vincent? ;)

As a man who was burned by love and left in stasis for decades, Vincent initially comes off as being as cold and unwelcoming as the ShinRa mansion he resides inside. Given that he had no contact with the outside world for a long time, his battles against his demons—both real and emotional—were going nowhere. When he is finally released from his prison, people begin to have an influence on him again. In time, his shell cracks a little and the man and monsters beneath seep through.

One thing about Vincent that is evident from the start and never changes: he is the archetype lone wolf. Even in the flashbacks at Lucrecia's cave, long before he became a monster, the old Vincent was a quiet fellow who seemed to prefer Lucrecia alone as company. The very antithesis of social characters like Aeris and Tifa, he often stands out in AVALANCHE as the odd man out, watching silently from the sidelines, never truly taking part in its activities.

Yet some characters are able to shatter his stoic demeanor, most notably Tifa and Cid. With them he shows unexpected concern and even a wry sense of humor. Were it not for the temporary leadership positions granted to those two, these sides of Vincent would never be seen.

Although primarily standoffish, Vincent is a very emotional creature deep inside. So it's not surprising that revenge is his motive for joining AVALANCHE. Vincent carries quite a vendetta against ShinRa's Professor Hojo, yet in a fashion typical of a former Turk, he can be amazingly cool about it on the surface.

Design info courtesy of Tetsuya Nomura's 20s. Some images from Gloriosa.

« back || forward »