Player vs. Player: Tora & Muimui

Thanks to Cart Boy for help with edits, and AShadowLink for the header.

Xenoblade Chronicles is the kind of series that loves itself some opposites. The first game takes place on warring giants of flesh and metal, characters are regularly split in half and forced to fight their doppelgängers, even the universe itself comprises two opposing realities. I’m not complaining though, because duality is always fun to unpack. How do the likes of Noah and N differ from each other, and how are they similar? How about Klaus and Zanza, A and Alpha, or friendlier counterparts like Pyra and Mythra? All these pairings and more are a goldmine for something like “Player vs. Player,” my yearly attempts at character analysis. But instead, we’ll be discussing the most ridiculous duo of nemeses in the series: a protagonist who’s often written off as a joke by the fanbase, and an actual joke who’s often written off entirely.

Though, of course these two would come across as gags when they’re Nopon. This race of feathery freaks is a constant no matter which Xenoblade world you’re exploring, always around to use their fluffy exteriors and funny way of speaking to charm or frustrate players. What’s so great about Nopon is that you’ll never know if you’re dealing with a bright-eyed soul, an unhinged cultist, or something in between until you talk to them. Their origins, or why they’re omnipresent, have seldom been addressed, but they add so much life to lands that’d otherwise feel a lot less dynamic. With that in mind, let’s see if we can mine any sort of depth out of some of the strangest ones this side of Alrest, Tora and Muimui!

But first, some backstory. Alrest is a world that’s full of baffling rules and decisions. As beautiful as it and its Titans are—easily one of the most inspired settings Nintendo’s ever published—why does humanity have no choice but to siphon these majestic beasts until they’re left to rot? And what of the Blades, forced into a cycle of servitude and amnesia whenever someone with “aptitude” touches their Core Crystal and becomes their Driver? What does “aptitude” even mean? Our heroes and villains seek answers, but one pervy mechanic was more concerned with why Blades couldn’t benefit him, in particular. Tora’s Grampypon, Professor Soosoo, is the kind of character who’d severely weaken his progeny if he influenced them any more than he did. He instilled an unhealthy admiration of maids in his son—the less problematic Professor Tatazo—and grandson, yet also a genuine desire to invent an artificial Blade for the good of Alrest.

Soosoo also had an assistant. Remember him, Muimui? He wasn’t very interesting, until he rolled up to the lab with a mask, gun, and flock of goons. He shot Soosoo and captured Tatazo, but not before the latter gave Tora all he needed to escape and finish the Blade another day. In the present, he does just that with the invention of Poppi and joins his newfound idol Rex on a quest to reach Elysium. Upon encountering Muimui yet again in Mor Ardain…Tora can hardly recall him, let alone his betrayal. We see the flashback, it’s clear as day that the nerdy Nopon we just met is the one who tore Tora’s family apart, but the inventor didn’t care enough about him to connect the dots. See, it’s this sort of thing that I find so funny about Nopon. This guy put a bullet in his boss, stole his life’s work, and kidnapped his son for no apparent reason, and now our inability to book him ourselves until the party catches on is all that’s protecting him.

A few tedious tasks later, and our heroes track some illegal Blade manufacturing to an old factory. Tora finds and reunites with his Dadapon, Muimui reveals his true colors and partnership with Chairman Bana (the same Nopon who sent Rex on the mission that nearly killed him a few chapters ago), and a fight ensues between the powered-up Poppi QT and Muimui-piloted Rosa mech (okay, Bana also pilots it, but let’s just give his subordinate one last moment). After the party inevitably wins, Bana makes a run for it and Muimui is left dazed on the floor. That’s all. No more Muimui. From this point on, he gets nothing more than a passing mention in a side quest, his whereabouts and fate as irrelevant as Tora always knew he was…right?

Now, if Tora really was the class clown he’s constantly touted as, this’d be the last of his worthwhile contributions to the story. But before and after the arc in Mor Ardain, Poppi consistently comes through as one of the squad’s most valuable Blades. Her ability to fly saves the day multiple times, her ether furnace keeps her at full power when the surroundings weaken standard Blades, and let’s not forget that time she saved Pyra’s life by lifting a massive cannon before it blew her away. Admittedly, you wouldn’t give all the credit for those feats to her creator, but neither would he. Despite his occasional greed, laziness, lust, and gluttony (all of which are typical of Nopon), Tora’s surprisingly humble and all-around thrilled to be on this adventure. He deeply respects seasoned Drivers like Nia and Mòrag, regularly asks them for advice or wisdom, and can’t help but jump for joy whenever he gets to contribute. This is because, as grateful as he is for Poppi, the engineer’s past failures to resonate with a Core Crystal often get him down. These doubts are unfounded, as the artificial Driver and Blade more than deserve to be among Alrest’s finest.

Gameplay-wise, Poppi’s arguably the strongest Blade in all of Xenoblade 2. Her optional “Quantum Technochampion π” mode trivializes an entire corner of the combat system (Driver Combos), features a variety of mods that other Blades simply can’t access, and comes in whichever element you’d like. Tora clearly took inspiration from the Aegis—Pyra and Mythra—when working with Tatazo to construct his magnum opus, and when he meets his long-lost, not-quite-dead Grampypon via the aforementioned side quest, the comparisons deepen. Enter Poppibuster, a Light-elemental automaton that the titular robot controls remotely, and usable by any “traditional” Driver. Part of what makes Mythra so powerful is her Artifice Siren, a continent-sinking mech of divine origin, and whether or not it was intentional, seeing Poppi of all Blades follow in those footsteps says a lot.

Despite all that, the impact Tora left on this universe wasn’t truly felt until the release of Xenoblade 3. Although it takes place in an amalgam of the preceding entries’ worlds, the trilogy’s end doesn’t feature many veteran faces. Shulk and Rex make comebacks, as do Queens Melia and Nia, but the rest of their parties are completely absent. However, of all the retired protagonists, guess who stands out as one of the most important figures in the salvation of these doomed worlds? While not the only contributor to Origin, the all-encompassing supercomputer that keeps the collapsing realities intact, Tora played such a huge role in its development that Nia had to bring him up to the Ouroboros crew. Poppi even cameos near the end of the game, and has a successor of sorts in the form of fellow artificial Blade Ino, really bringing her and her Masterpon’s significance full circle.

Shockingly, Muimui has some skin in all this talk of divinity and supercomputers. A particularly interesting piece of Xenoblade merch is the Siren model kit, letting fans assemble the historic Artifice themselves, but what’s more relevant to us is all the lore on the pre-Alrest Earth it comes bundled with. Apparently, Muimui bought these ancient texts off a salvager, couldn’t decipher them, and shared them with us in an attempt to get his money’s worth. From his blurb, we learn that he’s still working on Blades, hoping to uncover the secrets of the Aegis, and looking to surpass Rosa. Wait, assuming this was written after that whole incident, does that mean he wasn’t arrested? Did the brave Ardainian militants fail us?! I’m not even sure if his excerpt’s canon, but since what I’m about to say kinda falls apart if it isn’t, let’s just roll with it…

Another thing Xenoblade loves toying with is “science gone wrong.” Just look at Alrest, haphazardly built on top of a post-apocalyptic Earth, by a man who thought himself greater than one. What makes this Architect—Klaus—such a compelling character is how he grapples with what he’s done. The version of him that ended up in XC1’s reality is blissfully ignorant of his sins, while XC2’s is jaded by both the planet he destroyed and the one he created. He regrets using the Conduit to undo everything, but hates seeing Alrest full of the vices he believes started his homeworld’s downward spiral. As fellow scientists, Tora and Muimui are more than happy to borrow material from the old world, but what they each choose to pursue is pretty interesting. Where Tora bases Poppi QTπ off of his Aegis friends, Muimui looks to the Artifice that brought Alrest to its knees centuries ago. One prioritizes the connections he’s made on his journey, while the other tries in vain to make up for the allies that abandoned him with more power.

That, or Tora might’ve just been thirsty. Yeah, to address the Ardun in the room, this Nopon’s got his fair share of critics for a reason. The original party member of his race and one of my all-time favorite characters—XC1’s Heropon Riki—is an upstanding father of eleven. You’d have to be a deeply troubled individual to resent him, and the same goes for XC3’s Riku and Manana. Tora, on the other hand, leaves a poor first impression. Poppi’s awakening and an early Heart-to-Heart are marred by Tora’s obsession with maids (coined “blushy-crushy” by the perpetrator himself). The best I can say about this behavior is that it’s quickly abandoned, but couldn’t he have just started off likable?

To be frank, all the Drivers Rex recruits aren’t doing so great when he meets them. Nia associates with literal backstabbers, Mòrag feels obligated to devote everything to her country, and Zeke drifts from Titan to Titan without a cause or a wallet. As goofy and uncomfortable as the skeletons in Tora’s closet are, they’re just one more character flaw that’s snuffed out as the plot progresses. I’m not here to quantify how wicked it was of him to construct sentient life for the partial purpose of having her dote on him, as there’s a lot more to the Nopon boy in this hundred-hour-long game than a minute or two of him embarrassing himself. As for Poppi, although her naivety regarding Tora’s initial plans for her are concerning at first, it’s not long before she starts seeing right through him and becoming an admirable character of her own. From there, I’d argue the duo form one of the game’s stronger bonds between Driver and Blade, dedicated to proving to themselves that they deserve to join their companions at the top of the world.

Yet another theme Xenoblade enjoys is “passing the torch to the next generation.” Whether the youth are learning from their elders or risking their lives to dethrone them, what they manage to accomplish throughout the saga is astounding. It’s most apparent in XC3, where Ouroboros topple a society that’s built atop countless young people’s suffering. But beyond that, the games have plenty of wiser allies whose roles are to mentor their peers. In XC2, they’re Mòrag and Zeke, with Rex, Nia, and Tora being the ones to usher in a new age. In turn, their biggest obstacles are stagnant geezers, including King Eulogimenos, Praetor Amalthus, and, of course, Muimui. Some can’t help but change their minds, others are beyond saving, and one or two simply drop off the face of Alrest, but regardless, they’re all great foils to our protagonists. For his part, Muimui strives to ensure Blades remain the soulless lackeys Klaus originally intended them to be, failing to understand what makes Poppi so much better than his pale imitations. However, if Tora hadn’t met Rex when he did, he probably wouldn’t have turned out much better than his old foe. That’s why, when Tora expresses his gratitude to Poppi and the rest of his found family, I believe him.

I could keep talking about Xenoblade and its unforgettable characters for a while longer, but I think this is all I’m gonna get out of a joke villain from his game’s most nonsensical chapter. Although I’m still leaning toward XC3 as my favorite in the series, its predecessor’s kept me enthralled in ways only Monolith Soft could manage. This entry’s pacing and gameplay have their rough edges, hence my earlier mention of Alrest’s “baffling rules and decisions,” but its peaks are as high as Rhadamanthus itself. One reason I chose to express this via Tora and Muimui of all pairings is that I think Nopon play a larger part in XC2’s excellence than others give them credit for. Argentum’s among my favorite areas in the game, the side quests are made infinitely more entertaining by their antics, and Tora’s an invaluable addition to the combat and story. Then there’s Muimui, whose bizarre role in a segment I’d call underrated, and memorable English voice acting (well done, Jonathan Keeble), yielded an antagonist I couldn’t help but love. You know, when Klaus made the bold proclamation that he’d move mankind “one step closer to the divine,” we were probably supposed to think he’d stepped out of line. But we’d have never met gaming’s greatest sleazeballs if not for his decision, so I’d say he succeeded. Klaus, thank you for giving all Nopon life!