I don't think Nojima anticipated it or maybe he didn't mind at first if people saw it that way. But then the response of the audience or maybe even the description of love song caused obvious confusion he had to clear up prompted an answer.
It is to note that the first Ultimania also talked about this and we know interviews are made months ahead... which was before the TGA trailer, so even before fans knew about this.
However when calling something a love song ballad etc. as I said there's implications so maybe there was some intentional misdirection there.
This is true however when you play the game as CT, it's impossible to see it as a love ballad, as clearly they look very happy, in love and hold hands together while she sings in front of them. Imagine if that was a love song for Cloud, I refuse to see it that way - it would be the most awful rejection.
One of the theories I often see among the fandom is that Jenova is responsible for Cloud's false persona, as well as the cover up of Zack and Aerith's deaths. I disagree.
While there may be some evidence of this, I think it's safe to say this is inconsistent given Cloud's own monologue in the OG after the LSS. He says that he constructed this persona from his own ideals.
But on a deeper level, I think it makes more sense psychologically and narratively that Cloud himself creates these illusions as a defense mechanism. This is his main character flaw, as has been demonstrated numerous times. Jenova would want Cloud to see the truth, to be broken by his friends' deaths. She would want Cloud to ruminate on his failures and become a psychological wreck like the other reunion clones. This explains why Cloud breaks free from Jenova's control when he regains his memories and accepts the past. He's no longer ashamed of his failures.
Jenova doesn't have any reason to make Cloud believe he is Zack, or cover up Aerith's death, her interests are in fact, the opposite. Sephiroth even goes further at the Northern Crater, suggesting a lie that's actually worse than the reality. I know there may be evidence to back up these claims, I just think my own interpretation of this is more satisfying to me.
Jenova imprinted Zack's memories onto Cloud when Zack died. Then when he saw Tifa at the train station, Cloud awoke from his mako poisoning state and made up his SOLDIER life thanks to:
- Cloud's strong desire to be seen as a hero to Tifa,
- the memories Jenova had imprinted onto him prior,
- the reading of Tifa's memories by Jenova, which allowed Jenova to push that illusion.
We then see her temper with several Cloud memories alongside Remake and Rebirth. We know this is how she manipulated the Cetras, she took the form of people who were dear to them.
Yes, psychologically, Cloud is weak, and had his dreams shattered, and so she took advantage of that. His strong desire to be a hero to Tifa. His strong desire to save Aerith. His strong desire to forget he had already failed his best friend. But it's not ONLY Cloud's doing there, Jenova also allows also all of this to feel really tangible,
real. Cloud takes the whole blame, but Jenova was also manoeuvering in his own head, making it even more difficult for him to set free of the illusions he created.
And we see Cloud having that speech too in Rebirth (we don't hear it). That is what is happening outside of Jenova's shenannigans. He just doesn't see it at all in his head. He really is a puppet.
That's why we see the crask in the sky at the end: because Cloud has built his own world (SOLDIER Cloud) and it's soon going to shatter.
The intention for Sephiroth and Jenova is not only that he'd be a normal clone, but to break him in a way he won't be able to come back ever. Because he's done a major crime: he killed Sephiroth. That's why he is special to them and that's why Sephiroth is obsessed with him: just a normal grunt killing the most powerful SOLDIER? Ah! He's going to pay dearly for that!
I agree with all of this. I don't think the Aerith Cloud sees is actually there. She's repeating the same exact things she's said in the past.
The only part I question myself on this is when she says goodbye. And Red sensing her apparently. It does seem like her in those parts.
But the one next to the lake I think is definitely in his mind.
I interpreted that scene as this is what's Cloud's mind is doing to keep himself together after her death. It's a coping mechanism to deal with trauma. Jenova cells do make it easier for illusions to seem real. But I don't think Jenova or Sephiroth is going out of the way to orchestrate the illusion or anything. Why would they care if Cloud breaks? Better for them.
But Cloud's mind to protect itself would definitely come up with a lie. I think this makes a lot of sense and yes it matches the fact he's a master of his own "illusionary world".
She doesn't exactly say all the things she said in the past; one of the biggest thing, IMHO, that deviates, is how she wants Cloud to kill Sephiroth instead of taking care of himself. To me, it shows an Aerith Cloud imagines based on
how he thinks Aerith is (which is wrong), rather than how she actually was. Which is exactly what young Sephiroth said in EC to Jenova cosplaying Lucrecia: "you're how I always imagined you to be", I mean, OUCH. Touché.
To that specific end I could see Sephiroth manipulating Cloud's perception of the death sequence to rug pull him with it later, like he did in the trials, because I am entirely 100% convinced he somehow managed to get Cloud and Tifa's trials swapped, both because he used the trial to gaslight Cloud not feeling much for a sequence that seems much more tailored to Tifa's trauma, while Tifa is stuck back at Nibelheim but at a moment where Cloud is being traumatized, not her. There's also the reunion Lily on her mailbox, which also appeared in the Ch2 flashback but NOT in the ch9 lifestream depiction of her house.
I disagree with this, to me it's very clear that they were not reversed. But an unintended twist is that this trial begins in Cloud's world (yeah, this is real Cloud there!); I think that's because she saw his memories of that day in chapter 9 so that she could connect to his world, and their desire to meet again. That and also her world is connected to his, which allows her to hop onto her own memory when she enters the reactor (yes, we see her turning back and she can't see Nibelheim anymore because those two worlds are different). You should read my Tifa theory in the general Rebirth area xD
Edit: it's here
https://thelifestream.net/forums/threads/theorycraft-tifa-and-the-lifestream-scenes.23802/
I can't accept that the Aerith saying goodbye in that beautiful ending scene is Jenova, or Cloud's delusion. That's the worst possible way to send her off. But at the same time, there's nothing separating that Aerith from the one by the pool. "I'll see you off." With that sour note playing, and her hair mysteriously fixed, and acting like nothing happened, and feeling like everything's wrong.
It's definitely a mix of Jenova and real Aerith. The maths is simple: Cloud cannot see the dead unless he's in the Lifestream. So when he sees Aerith, it's the wrong Aerith, it's Jenova cosplaying as Aerith. When he does not look, it's the real Aerith going around.
It really is that simple.
