Shion Uzuki

Shion Uzuki
Xenosagacharacter
Shion as she appears inXenosaga Episode III: Also sprach Zarathustra
First game	Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht
Created by	Tetsuya Takahashi
Voiced by	English Olivia Hack(Episode II) Lia Sargent(Episode I, Episode III) Japanese Ai Maeda

Shion Uzuki(シオン・ウヅキ,Shion Uzuki)is the mainprotagonistof theXenosagatrilogy for thePlayStation 2.In addition, she was in the DS gameXenosaga I & II,Xenosaga Freaks,as well as theanimeXenosaga: The Animation.

Character design

Shion Uzuki is the main character of the three episodes ofXenosaga,which have been referred to as "Shion's Arc" by Namco Bandai.While her role is less prominent inXenosaga Episode II,which focuses on the characterJr.,she is the lead character again in the DS remakeXenosaga I & II.While Shion's surname is "Uzuki", Takahashi has stated that she is not meant to be a distant relative of the characterCitan UzukifromXenogears.She does, however, share his liking for science.

Shion is portrayed as a girl who tries to overcome the tragic events of her past by "looking away from reality and truth". Takahashi compared the character's instinctive tendency to run away from things with his very own personality and mindset. A particular point he wanted to explore in the series was Shion "looking back at herself […] wondering how she should live her life". When he createdXenosaga,Takahashi made "life and death" a central theme of the story and gave each character a different outlook on it; Shion andAlbedowere conceived as the two characters that eventually develop the "ideal compromise towards death".

Xenosaga Episode Ihas ananime-like art style, whileEpisode IIandIIIuse a more realistic style, and thus she appears differently. She wears glasses in the first and third games. If the player loads a save file fromEpisode IIinEpisode III,Shion will obtain special armor that will change her outward appearance.

Shion's main theme inEpisode Iis the ending song "Kokoro" (heart) performed byJoanne Hogg.The tracks "Shion's Crisis", "Shion ~Memories of the Past~" and "Shion ~Emotion~" were also written for scenes focusing on her. "Fighting KOS-MOS" plays during a scene that showcases KOS-MOS' power, but composerYasunori Mitsudachose to write the track from Shion's perspective for a twist. "Shion ~Emotion~" was first released on the "Kokoro" maxi-single as "Kokoro Piano Version", but Mitsuda changed the track's title in theXenosaga Original Soundtrackas it fitted Shion best.

Appearances

Xenosaga

Shion Uzuki was assigned to Vector Industries'First R&D Divisionat the young age of 18 in T.C. 4763. Her official title is "Chief Engineer of theKOS-MOSProject General Operation System Research Center, Vector Industries First R&D Division ".She has a bright, cheerful personality and is ever the optimist, perhaps to hide the scars of losing both her parents as a child and her fiancé two years ago. InEpisode I,it was revealed that she suffers fromastraphobia,the result of two traumatic incidents which happened during lightning storms;losing her parents and later her fiancé, Kevin. She does not get along well with her brother,Jin Uzuki,who is thirteen years her senior. Shion ends up being swept, along with KOS-MOS and her co-workerAllen Ridgeley,into a conspiracy concerning the very fate of mankind itself.

In addition to her intellect (a key factor in her usage of nanotechnology), she learned the same martial arts that Jin and Margulis are masters of as taught by her grandfather. However, unlike Jin and Margulis, she primarily focuses on hand-to-hand combat with the use of her M.W.S.

Throughout the series, Shion has exhibited abilities unbecoming of most humans. During the Gnosis' assault on the Woglinde, she was caught in close proximity to an FAE (fuel air explosion), which no ordinary human could possibly survive. Shion, however, was blown back by the explosion and left otherwise unscathed. Shion has also demonstrated the peculiar ability to hear the Song of Nephilim, something which only Realians and U.R.T.V.s should be capable of (chaoshas also demonstrated this ability, but his status as a "human being" remains ambiguous at best). During a Gnosis assault on the Woglinde, Shion was caught by a Gnosis in its immaterial state, which was able to grip her. She was able to escape crystallization and mysteriously avoided the fate of those who did not survive such an encounter with a Gnosis, as those that come into physical contact with Gnosis usually transformed into one.Andrew Cherenkov,for instance, suffered such a fate. This could be due to her status as the "Maiden" or her possession of what Wilhelm referred to as the "Shining Will", which is a prerequisite to becoming a Testament; it is said that those with the Shining Will will not Gnosify.

Shion can link to U-DO and can communicate with it, with U-DO responding to her through this power.During the Miltian Conflict (as a child), after seeing her parents killed by berserk realians she summons the Gnosis from her distress through the Zohar. When she once again experiences this as an adult she loses control and summons Abels Ark (a giant Gnosis). Shion also suffers from the same illness as her mother, which Kevin reveals is caused by communication with U-DO.Kevin confirms in Episode III that KOS-MOS is gradually killing Shion since KOS-MOS uses the Zohar and U-DO as an energy source.Had U-DO not chosen to let humanity live on, Shion would have ultimately died due to the extreme stress caused by these communications.

She has also experienced several unusual perceptions, seeing visions of the young girl named "Nephilim" and of her deceased Realian nanny Febronia.It is also revealed inXenosaga I & IIand the database of III that she has the natural ability to see into the "Realm of Imaginary Numbers", where the Gnosis hail from. Her glasses inhibit this ability and allow her to experience relatively normal perceptions. However, as this sense of hers is not active all the time, and as she "has gotten used to it," she removes the glasses when they present an inconvenience to her daily life.

Her consciousness has existed since the time of Lost Jerusalem as the maiden and close acquaintance ofMary Magdalene;her brief vision of the distant past was not through KOS-MOS' memory, but through her own. It can be deduced from KOS-MOS' last words that Shion's former self died as a result of being caught up in some larger occurrence and that KOS-MOS (Mary) had been unable to protect her.

After discovering Allen's feelings for her on Michtam, Shion took the first step towards her independence. Shion, so caught up in the memories shared withKevin Winnicot,had not truly realized the extent of Allen's love for her. Because Allen differs from Kevin in every conceivable way, including attitude, disposition, and personal history, Shion felt as though he would be the one able to offer comfort for her sorrowful heart. Thus begins Shion's journey to Lost Jerusalem, wherein humanity's collective consciousness awaits guidance and salvation.

Other appearances

Shion makes an appearance inNamco × Capcom,when she,M.O.M.O.,andKOS-MOSappear in the middle ofShibuyaduring a series of dimensional disturbances, in time to help the main characters against a Gnosis attack. In the game, Shion is paired with MOMO as a single unit.Bandaihas released Shion figurines as part of theXenosaga Legendtoy set.

Reception

Shion as seen inXenosaga Episode Ihas been called "cute" and "likable" by critics.IGNalso praised the more realistic character designs seen inEpisode II,noting that Shion's design became "moreflattering",having" been injected with ye old 'Babe Serum.' "RPGamer also praised the design change, though they felt that Shion's lack of glasses in that episode was "amusing".In a review of the first volume ofXenosaga: The Animation,GameSpot compared Shion andKOS-MOSto "the ultimatefanboyfan-servicepair ", feeling that Shion was an example of a" cute, yet smart glasses girl ".

Personalitywise, Shion has been described byGameSpotas being "pretty straightforward as a heroine, though maybe a little ditzy for someone who's supposedly one of the best scientists in the galaxy".On the other hand,IGNfelt that the character was "more complicated than she first lets on".In a review of theXenosagaanime, another reviewer from IGN noted that Shion's idealism and naivety were out of place considering her tragic past, and that it was annoying "since it seems to happen a lot with anime heroines".GameSpyechoed this concern, stating that Shion was "often naïve to the point of unbelievability".On voice acting, GameSpy felt Shion inEpisode Iwas "excellent" despite the game not having "Hollywood-quality "acting. The site called the character a" calm center "around which the rest of the game is built.