LogFAQs > #986531575

9. Kloe
It feels wrong to have Kloe not even crack the top half of this ranking, but what are you gonna do? As Ive said multiple times now, theres just too many good characters in Sky. Her biggest problem is that shes at her best in FC and her worst in 3rd. Dont get me wrong - putting her best foot forward in FC is important. With that games role in the trilogy, this sort of party member contributes a lot. But that sort of progression (or, rather, regression) is completely unique to her as far as the rest of this list goes unless someone wants to make an argument for Schera.

The biggest compliment I can give her is that the Jenis chapter in FC, despite being the most filler-y of any chapter in the game by far, is one of its best. She has immediate and excellent chemistry with the main pair and does a lot of heavy lifting in making the time at the school seem welcoming and pleasant instead of tedious. SCs a mixed bag, though. Her reasoning for being around as much as she is feels tenuous, and a lot of her personal development either feels overwrought or happens completely offscreen, but her little girl talk with Estelle at Jenis is one of my favorite small moments in the series even if it fails the Bechdel Test hard.

3rd is rough on her. Her personal Door would be completely pointless if it wasnt introducing Lechter - all of her development has already taken place, so the Door has to revert her back to a time before it happened, and she almost feels like an entirely different (and exceedingly less likable) character because of it. Im still not even positive I understand her inner conflict at that time in the first place. Her love confession to Joshua in the banquet Door also feels really awkward, for some reason? And not in the way that I think it was intended.

All that said, I like her personality enough that the downward slide doesnt completely sink her. She gets to show off a deceptively sneaky and clever side at times, especially in regards to hiding her identity, and in totality, I do think her growth is done well. Shes an awesome combat unit, too. I think she burned a little too bright a little too early, but thats not the worst thing.

8. Joshua
Much like Zin, Joshuas greatest strength is his reserved, self-assured calm, though it obviously plays even better because he gets by far the most time to bounce off of Estelle, who Has none of that. Really, hes defined by his relationship to her, for better or worse. Almost always better. Their dynamic drives FC, their separation SC, and their reunion and partnership reverberates in many ways through multiple games to follow, even when they hardly appear.

Hes at his very best in 3rd. He adapts to the situation in Phantasma in an instant, the banquet Door puts his newfound happiness front and center, and his interactions with the rest of the party (and with Loewe) all game do a good job of showing how all the weight from his past has been lifted off his shoulders. He gets an excellent scene with Kevin talking about his gratitude for everything hes done, even as the latter tries to insist hes a bastard thats just been using them all, and though Estelle is the one who finishes the job, its actually Joshua whos the first one that starts getting through to Renne a little bit in the ending.

The glaring issue here is that we get variants of his story out of multiple other party members across the Trails franchise, and theyre all at least a little more interesting than he is. Maybe glaring is too harsh - this is still an upper tier character in a series overflowing with strong ones - but his journey just doesnt feel quite as impactful to me when its followed up by Rennes and Randys and, to a degree, Kevins.

Through it all, though, his development does still stand out in that its probably the best example of that central love redeems theme for the series, because he gets both ends of it. Hes redeemed by Estelle and Cassius and all of their allies, and in turn, he helps to redeem Loewe and Renne. Trailss optimism shines through in Joshua almost as much as it does in the Estelles and Lloyds of the world, just from a different angle. Thats a pretty big deal.

EVERYONE PAST THIS POINT IS AMAZING

7. Agate
Agate is a JRPG main protagonist who just happens to end up as a supporting character in Trails because theres other stuff going on. Spiky-haired hothead? Check. Giant sword? Check. Rivalry with the cool villain swordsman? Check. Family tragedy and trauma? Check. You get the idea.

He gets the most development of anyone in Sky that isnt a firm main character or Renne (and he might even have an argument over the latter if we dont count future games), but hes likable from the start, too. He works as the no-nonsense hardass mentor to contrast Schera, but hes never unfair and hes willing to recognize when the rookies do stuff right. He softens up pretty much immediately in SC once Estelle becomes a senior in a way that demonstrates that his rude bluntness is more of a teaching tool than a real personality defect, which is further reinforced by the Ravens Door in 3rd. But theres obviously still some rough edges there being used as a defense mechanism, which leads to the great brother-sister relationship with Tita.

Agate works because, simply put, nobody ever quite buys anything about his tough guy persona. Almost from the word Go, Estelle and Joshua are needling him about his awkwardness, but never in a way that makes him feel like a joke, and Tita sees his good heart from the beginning. Every game also does a good job of showing that, despite having all the directness of a sledgehammer to the head, hes plenty smart, because he couldnt be the great Bracer that he is otherwise. He even gets a shockingly poignant line at Loewes death in lamenting that hell never get the chance to even the score.

Just an all-around great character. Starts off good and only gets better as the layers peel back.