Final Fantasy VII: Last Order

Information of Anime

This OVA basically tells what happened after the incident where Zack & Cloud fought Sephiroth which was told in the Final Fantasy VII game.

Storyline (CONTAINS SPOILERS)

Below is a summary of the storyline.  This section does contain some spoilers.  If you haven't seen the OVA yet & don't want to be spoiled, skip this section.  If you want to know the story & want to see how I viewed it, read on.

This OVA starts off with Zack carrying a somewhat sad passed out-like Cloud out from a laboratory with SOLDERS chasing them.  The story shifts a lot between the incident where Sephiroth went berserk & told Jenova's head with him to Rufus in Shin-ra's office feeling sorry for Zack & Cloud to Zack & Cloud escaping.  The Sephiroth incident is basically retold in anime form with fight scenes of Zack & Sephiroth battling it out.  Also added is Cloud's fight with Sephiroth.

One change in the Sephiroth incident is Cloud showing Tifa his face & talking to her before killing Sephiroth.  In the game, this didn't happen as Tifa didn't know Cloud was there to save her at the time.  Another scene we didn't see in this incident is Zack & Cloud taken back to Shin-ra's lab.  Zack is actually alive here.

In the present time, Zack & Cloud escape from the SOLDIERS & Turks.  Cloud pretty much sits there helplessly as Zack fights & protects him throughout the story.  Because the SOLDIERS refuse to listen to the Turks in keeping Zack & Cloud alive, they continue on chasing them with a purpose to kill.  The chase ends as Zack & Cloud manage to escape.

In the back of a truck, Zack tells the helpless Cloud that they should go into business together since they are friends.  Meanwhile in a distance, a couple of SOLDIERS try to aim at Cloud's head with gun.  Hearing the gunshot, Zack tells Cloud to look out & the screen goes black; ending the story.

My Personal Review

Final Fantasy VII: Last Order is basically an add-on for people wanting to know more about Zack & see him in action, I suppose.

Animation

It was okay.  The dark backgrounds fitted well.  I liked the room where Jenova was held.

The character designs were ok.  Tifa's face looked a little long at times.  The faces of the male characters were pretty good.

Sound

The sound effects were good.  The sword clashing was good.  Clear & sharp.  The roaring of the motorcycles was good too.  It gave me the impression of being in there.

The voice actors are the same from Final Fantasy VII Advent Children.  They weren't the best, but they were manageable.  Tifa's voice fit more into this OVA than Advent Children in my view

The soundtrack was well composed.  It's not Final Fantasy material, but it was pretty good.

Story

The story was nothing more than an add-on to allow people to know more about Zack in my view.  It tied into the game's story well, but the Sephiroth incident was altered a bit.  Probably to fit the OVA's story well.  It was nice, but the ending left too much of a suspense.  It would have been nice to see how Cloud manages to escape that last scene & if Zack managed to stay alive for awhile

Overall Conclusion

Final Fantasy VII: Last Order was a nice story to know more about Zack & see him fight.  This is mainly all about Zack.

On a scale of ten, FFVII: Last Order gets an eight.  It was nice to see a story about Zack & why he's a first class SOLDIER.  But the ending let too much of a cliffhanger & want to know what happened next.  But you would most likely know if you played the game.

Square Enx initially made no announcements about them licensing this OVA outside of Japan when Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children was licensed in North America.  Fansubs of this OVA were considered unlicensed at the time when this occured.  It was finally released outside of Japan when the Collector's Edition of Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children was released weeks later.