Hopefully it's not too soon to start picking apart CT:DS' new ending. It answers several questions we've been pondering for years, but poses more, just as a fantastic bonus finale should.
Let's start off with the ending as recorded on Youtube for our viewing pleasure:
http://www.chronocompendium.com/Forums/index.php?topic=6276.0Question 1: Is this ending canonical?
For no reason other than preference, really, I'd propose that it is
not canonical in the sense that Crono & co. actually saw these things, or any of the things in the dimensional vortices for that matter. This ending has no resolution from Crono & co.'s point of view -- there's no Moonlight Parade or discussion of what the heck they just saw, and what they saw was pretty significant. I think Crono & co. are there just so the player can observe parts of canon that fall outside the scope of Chrono Trigger -- Kato's little treat for us Compendiumites. My main reason for supposing this is that Dalton's revelation
is just too hamfisted for Crono & co. to be taken by surprise when the Fall of Guardia really does happen.
A more likely possibility, perhaps, is that Crono & co. really do go through all this dimensional mayhem, but their memories of the Dimensional Vortices and Time's Eclipse are simply erased by Schala. Notice that when Schala teleports the party out of Time's Eclipse, she leaves them with the words, "Dwell not on this." Is it possible she's literally commanding them not to think about what they just saw? And what better way to do that then zap a few neurons?
Question 2: There are two Maguses (Magi?), one I'll call Present Magus (the one in the party) and another I'll call Future Magus. What is the origin of Future Magus? How did he make it into Time's Eclipse?
When asking what the origin of "Future Magus" is, I should say, rather, at what point during Magus' experiences did he reach Time's Eclipse? There's conflicting evidence on this matter. First, he appears in the Prophet's cloak, which would lead us to believe this is Magus as he was as a member of Queen Zeal's court.
On the other hand, the Magus in Queen Zeal's court had a far harder edge to his personality. Compendium discussion has long pointed in the direction that Magus at that point in time was utterly bent on destroying Lavos and everything else was of secondary priority -- even saving Schala. The extra Magus we see in Time's Eclipse, however, is clearly consumed with the mission of saving her from a horrid fate. Therefore, I propose on the basis of Future Magus' personality that he is, indeed,
Future Magus, one whose character has further developed since we last saw him step into the Millennial Fair portal during the Beyond Time ending. It was at that moment that Magus' quest to save Schala began, and not before.
However, the matter of the Prophet's cloak still bothers me and leaves this open to further speculation.
Question 3: Is Future Magus emo? Has Masato Kato resorted to
emo of all things?
The question as I phrase it is silly, but Magus' final response to seeing his sister's fate reveals a serious personality change. Never before has Magus just thrown down the towel and given up on something. Magus as we've known him would thump his head against a wall until either it or his cranium collapses, but he would
never commit existential suicide when confronted with a serious challenge. Both he and the gurus are resourceful -- there's got to be a way around the problem at hand, and indeed Belthasar proves us correct in Chrono Cross. Now, it's possible that Future Magus' experiences have instilled a fatalist attitude within him. However, I would like to propose an alternate interpretation of the ending for what it's worth.
As examined in Question 1, it is possible that Schala (or the Dream Devourer) has the capacity to erase memories. Could it be that it is Schala who erases Future Magus' memories and not Future Magus himself? We must pick apart the following lines:
Magus: Hmph. If this is to be the way of things,
then let me abandon all that was and fade away as well.
Should a part of me even then remain,
then perhaps that will be the birth of something
new -- something with greater meaning than all this.
Next thing we see is Magus wandering around the Zenan Mainland (and it
is the mainland being shown, because that's where Guile is from according to his status screen in CC) in an amnesiac state.
Magus never comes right out and says, "I'm going to erase my memories." He says, "...let me abandon all that was and fade away..."
I thought it was obvious at first that Future Magus was somehow destroying his own memories, actively crumpling them up and tossing them into some mental wastebasket. However, he does not use the word "destroy." He uses the word
abandon. So let's examine the meaning of that word. Although it's incredibly trite, I'll consult
Webster's dictionary:1 a: to give up to the control or influence of another person or agent 1 b: to give up with the intent of never again claiming a right or interest in <abandon property>3: to withdraw protection, support, or help from <he abandoned his family>4: to give (oneself) over unrestrainedlyAbandon suggests that the thing or person left may be helpless without protection <abandoned children>. Synonyms see in addition relinquishThe word "destroy" has an active connotation; the word
abandon, on the other hand, has a passive connotation. He is not destroying his memories -- he is
yielding them,
relinquishing them...perhaps to the Dream Devourer's memory-annihilating powers.
This does not resolve the "emo" difficulty entirely, because Magus is still resigned and defeated. However, interpreted in this light the ending at least shows that Future Magus doesn't commit "existential suicide" as I had initially thought.
Question 4: Has the Time Devourer been renamed the Dream Devourer, or is this a transitional entity?
From the looks of it, the Dream Devourer is a transitional entity. Schala's hair is still blue, indicating that this...thing...hasn't had enough
time to drain all her power. Also, the Lavos part of the being doesn't look a thing like the Time Devourer does in Chrono Cross -- the Time Devourer's Lavos component is smaller, more agile. This may be merely the first stage in the Time Devourer's evolution.
Question 5 (courtesy of Dark Serge): Is the Dream Devourer even in the DBT? Or is it yet another new dimension? I.e., has the Darkness Beyond Time been renamed Time's Eclipse, or is this a transitional existence?
The name "Time's Eclipse" literally means...well, I'm going back to good ol' Webster for a definition of "eclipse."
1.
a. The partial or complete obscuring, relative to a designated observer, of one celestial body by another.
b. The period of time during which such an obscuration occurs.
2. A temporary or permanent dimming or cutting off of light.
3.
a. A fall into obscurity or disuse; a decline: "A composer . . . often goes into eclipse after his death and never regains popularity" Time.
b. A disgraceful or humiliating end; a downfall: Revelations of wrongdoing helped bring about the eclipse of the governor's career.That probably muddles things further though. I'm not really sure how to proceed on this one.
But what say you all?
~~~
ZeaLitY Questions
5. What's the nature of the new ending? Is it an outside vision of canon where Crono's actual trip isn't canonical but what he witnesses is? Does it really take place in the context of CT?6. Postulate ways that Dalton could have achieved the Fall of Guardia.7. What the hell is the Lost Sanctum? A dream emanation from the Dream Devourer, or somehow a cause of the Black Omen? (The Black Omen's creation takes place soon after Schala meets her end and starts merging, of course, depending on how this is viewed through Time Error, since it also depends on Lavos to die, and he hasn't yet in that point of CT's story)8. What's the nature of the Reptite artifacts like the Prismastones and Dragon's Tear? What about the antagonist monsters who plan to kill these Reptites?9. What's the canonicity of the Dimensional Vortex dungeons and Crono, Marle, and Lucca's fights with their inner selves? Why would those be in there for those characters and not the other ones?10. Do you know the Muffin Man?11. If we believe that the Dream Devourer is a pre-evolutionary form of the Time Devourer, the question remains -- how did Lavos survive to merge with her?12. Can we assume that Magus's wake-up to Schala is the moment Belthasar took advantage of when planning for Schala to be awake long enough to create Kid? (This means Crono's presence pre-Lavos is non-canonical)
