[A/N] MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE FIRST XENOBLADE CHRONICLES. This is part 2/2 of my Xenoblade comic relief essay. This was written on April 16th, 2020.

Reyn is boisterous, headstrong, and fiercely protective. He's punny, impulsive, and admittedly a bit of a meathead (like forgetting that carrying snow hours away would make it melt). He's the guy who presses the shiny button despite everyone begging him not to. He apparently put a caterpillar in Shulk's sock drawer. He's described many times as looking like an oaf, but an oaf that never fails to make people smile. He and Riki have a hilarious back-and-forth (he calls him a "stupid furry volleyball" and even spikes him like one). He's utterly iconic. Need proof?

"Now it's Reyn Time!"

"You can't have a rainbow without Reyn, baby!"

"When the going gets going, the tough get tough!"

"Good thing I'm here? No? Anyone?"

Whereas Riki seems to embody the idea of hidden depths, of quietly allowing yourself to be underestimated while absolutely understanding everything that's going on, Reyn, being human, is always treated pretty naturally. Ironically, it's Reyn's own shaky sense of self that makes people not take him particularly seriously.

I've always liked the idea of the childhood best friend— Lucca from Chrono Trigger, Ryouta from Hatoful Boyfriend, etc. etc. (it's a pretty popular trope, and for good reason). Reyn is no exception. The interesting thing about childhood friends that tend to separate them from one another is how they go about forming their own identity. If you're best friends with the protagonist, who the story happens to, then there's bound to be problems.

Reyn is introduced as the protector. He's the brawn to Shulk's brains, and the one to valiantly charge in and save the day. He's a bit careless and frivolous, but it's obvious that he cares about Shulk more than anything (since neither of them have a family). He's sworn to their other friend, Fiora, that he will keep Shulk safe forever. This is the role he's adopted for years. However, when your nerdy best friend turns out to be the only person who can wield a legendary sword that can literally help them see glimpses of the future, they're gonna become a lot less frail FAST.

Reyn's whole way of being is rattled. He and Shulk start the main adventure together, because their world crumbled before them and they lust for revenge. At this point, their natural yin-and-yang, push-and-pull type of friendship isn't challenged. Almost immediately, however, Shulk saves Reyn from certain death, and things start to get a bit weird. He has to adopt different roles in regard to Shulk AND create an identity outside of him.

This, understandably, throws him for a loop. For a while, he feels useless. He failed to keep his promise. If he's not as smart as Shulk, and he's no longer as effective in battle as Shulk, than what good is he? He carries this burden alone until he's forcefully separated from his best friend and finally talks about it. Over time, however, players notice his transformation. He's the one to help Shulk change the future when he's in over his head, and he's the one to convince him to, y'know, TELL the party when he sees a dangerous vision. It stops being, "You do the thinking, I'll keep you safe," and it becomes, "No matter how good you get, I'll still be right by your side to keep you level-headed and talk you up." They don't make up for what each other lacks, they are whole on their own. But that doesn't mean they matter less to each other.

In terms of Reyn being whole on his own, I'm aware that I haven't talked much about him aside from Shulk. But he really does come into his own. When it comes to the rest of the party, he serves to keep spirits up and also confront people when they're being stupid. He starts to fall in love with Sharla, and he treats her little brother as though he were Reyn's own son. He seeks out each of the party members when they're feeling low. He stands up to Melia's brother, Kallian, so that they can break a sacred tradition to save her life. He becomes strong on his own right. And yet he never loses that boyish, high-energy charm. His rough-around-the-edges, jokey playfulness is a delight all the way through. He's an amazing example of an in-depth comical character AND a well-written best friend character. Despite not being the main character, it really does feel like the story has the same amount of weight on him. It's similar for almost all of the party members. The way that each member gets to shine is powerful. This game is marvelous. Reyn is an awesome example, but he's only the tip of the iceberg.