Facebook – Top 100 FAVORITE Fictional Characters: 99

****SPOILERS TO FOLLOW****

99: Aya Brea
Created By: Squaresoft for the video game series “Parasite Eve”
First Appearance: 1998

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As I’ve stated numerous times before, I love the Parasite Eve series a whole bunch (with one “possible” exception). At its most base, the series is a slowly diminishing series of events centered around one genetic horror after the other, with the first being pure mitochondrial mayhem in New York City, the second being engineered mitochondrial mayhem out in the sands, and the third being… well, whatever the hell the third one was. The focal point of these stories, thankfully, is never the reason or the method or even the science behind these things, though the first game dabbled a ton in the practice of over-explaining. No, the thing that holds these stories together is the central protagonist, Aya Brea, the buxom, blonde, blue-eyed beauty Squaresoft clearly ripped off of Christina Aguilera.

Aya, being a headstrong – if not somewhat naive – girl in her early 20’s and a member of the NYPD, is first seen in a horrible situation that almost rips apart her home city. People die, people melt, and people transform into monsters, running through the streets and never stopping until a bullet puts them down for good. As horrific as all of this, however, she is going through a terror of her own; she and the first game’s primary antagonist, Eve, both represent opposing sides of the mitochondrial spectrum, one light, one dark. She doesn’t know it yet, however, and so Aya is left struggling with her identity in a monster-filled New York City, battling inner demons as well as those breaking through her doors. She sees herself as a monster and unable to do anything to help, outside of get people to leave her alone, seeing as how monsters are drawn to her.

And that’s what I appreciate about her character, both in the first game and in the second. She is, by all accounts, a monster. Her advanced evolution of cells is the same as Eve’s and thus all the other monsters she faces. But when she finally accepts herself and steps up to the plate, she does amazing things. By the time the credits roll on the second game, Aya has come a long way from her youth; her curious nature, her by-the-books ideals, and her lack of self-worth are done away with entirely. We are left with a character who has come full-circle, in regards to her place in life, and one that is worth continuing to go on adventures with.

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All of her character growth aside, she kicks a lot of ass. I can respect a chick that runs around and beats the shit out of people, monsters, and semi-demigods. She has a wit and charm to her not found in most Squaresoft games, and almost every Square-Enix game ever made lacks the ability to craft characters that are as engaging or interesting as Aya is. Cloud goes through some memorable stuff, but his character in FFVII is bland and he, himself, is not that interesting. The main antagonist from Vagrant Story, Ashley Riot, is a hoot and very memorable, but he doesn’t have any staying power as far as legacy is concerned (which is why there hasn’t been any sequels to that game, barring the fact that it takes place in the same world as Final Fantasy Tactics and FFXII). Ms. Brea showcases a humanity that big fantasy games lack, because she exists in a world that was created with the sole purpose of being set “in reality” (so to speak). Her New York City is our New York City, it simply shifts at a certain point in time and enters a science fiction realm. There is something we can relate to.

Perhaps, then, that’s why I hate Third Birthday, and why – ultimately – her character gets bumped so far down the list. The problem with characters is that, at any point in time, someone can come along and add to their cannon. In a science fiction world, anything can happen to these people, and often times it does. Aya Brea is a perfect example of how to take a great character and ruin her by making new lore, new stories, and new problems for her to face, particularly if everything was already perfect as it was. This is the primary reason Aya is on the list, period. Utilizing a character inappropriately adds to that character’s history and narrative arc and, in the end, suggests that this is always what would have happened to that character. Nay, it is what was going to happen, because it did. It can destroy what came before, somewhat, and tarnish the quality  a bit, simply by ignoring what came before it. Aya is a good warning of what can happen at any time, to any character, in any medium. Which is a shame, because she is pretty much a badass up until that point.

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Favorite Portrayal:
Well, she’s only been featured in video games, but the best one is easily the first. In that one she is fresh-faced and has access to all of her stupid Parasite Powers and she goes through the most growth. In the second one she’s just a loner and she’s dead the entire time you play the third one, so who cares about that.

Favorite Quote:
Eve (after transforming for the very first time into a monster):
“Nucleic domination has finally come to an end once and for all!”

Aya (with a stupefied look on her face):
“…………what?”

Favorite Moment:
In Parasite Eve 2, Aya has a shower sequence.I kid, I kid. My favorite moment is in that game, though, and its after that sequence, when a giant, cannon-mouthed monster shows up and Aya has to battle a monster that takes up four screens. In actuality, that boss fight should have made it on my Top 10 Boss Fights list from last year. What an idiot I’ve been.

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Added September 22, 2016
If I didn’t have such a backlog of games, man, this entry is making me want to play the first game so bad.
God, I hope I still have my PS1 memory card(s)… The Bubba II is a gun I made by playing the game over and over and carrying over the mods and attachments. I could one shot the end boss. I was neigh indestructible.
Good times.
Updated @ 4:53PM
Updated the video to reflect the one that has since been taken down.