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The Canon Problem
Episode 5 and we're going somewhere that's going to make some people uncomfortable.
A comment on the Kairi video got me thinking about something I've wanted to address properly for a while — the question of what counts as canon in Kingdom Hearts, and whether it's ever acceptable to exclude games from the conversation because they're inaccessible.
The short answer is no. But the longer answer is more interesting.
In this episode I dig into why "the mobile games aren't canon because most people haven't played them" is actually a systemic problem with Square Enix's media conservation, not a fan issue. Why excluding Union Cross and Dark Road from the conversation is the same as saying an out of print book stops being a valid source. Why the Ven and Strelitzia retcon between Union Cross and the character files is exactly the kind of discrepancy that matters — and why tracking those discrepancies is a media literacy skill that goes way beyond Kingdom Hearts.
I also revisit my very first theory — that Kingdom Hearts 3 isn't actually canon — and why the intro sequence, the worlds devoid of people, and Ephemer's appearance at the Keyblade Graveyard all point toward something much stranger than a straightforward numbered entry.
And I make the case for why holding space for alternative perspectives — even uncomfortable ones, even ones you disagree with — is the whole point of theory crafting in the first place.
If you enjoy the podcast, following, leaving a review and dropping a comment genuinely helps it reach more people.
Find Thinking Through the Darkness everywhere you listen:
🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/thinking-through-the-darkness/id1894678543?l=en-GB 🟢 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6EUruDHtKY5Fl8rPoHwLtH 🎵 Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/5abef121-2a19-4fdf-b13a-3ed852565aea/thinking-through-the-darkness 🎙️ Podcast Index: https://podcastindex.org/podcast/7822111 📋 Listen Notes: https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/thinking-through-the-darkness-spec-rL4iOjeuE0Y/ 📡 RSS Feed: https://media.rss.com/through-the-darkness/feed.xml
The software that makes this possible costs money. If you want to support directly: ☕ Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/iamspecious
LoreBySpec on YouTube for the main channel.
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By SpecEpisode 5 and we're going somewhere that's going to make some people uncomfortable.
A comment on the Kairi video got me thinking about something I've wanted to address properly for a while — the question of what counts as canon in Kingdom Hearts, and whether it's ever acceptable to exclude games from the conversation because they're inaccessible.
The short answer is no. But the longer answer is more interesting.
In this episode I dig into why "the mobile games aren't canon because most people haven't played them" is actually a systemic problem with Square Enix's media conservation, not a fan issue. Why excluding Union Cross and Dark Road from the conversation is the same as saying an out of print book stops being a valid source. Why the Ven and Strelitzia retcon between Union Cross and the character files is exactly the kind of discrepancy that matters — and why tracking those discrepancies is a media literacy skill that goes way beyond Kingdom Hearts.
I also revisit my very first theory — that Kingdom Hearts 3 isn't actually canon — and why the intro sequence, the worlds devoid of people, and Ephemer's appearance at the Keyblade Graveyard all point toward something much stranger than a straightforward numbered entry.
And I make the case for why holding space for alternative perspectives — even uncomfortable ones, even ones you disagree with — is the whole point of theory crafting in the first place.
If you enjoy the podcast, following, leaving a review and dropping a comment genuinely helps it reach more people.
Find Thinking Through the Darkness everywhere you listen:
🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/thinking-through-the-darkness/id1894678543?l=en-GB 🟢 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6EUruDHtKY5Fl8rPoHwLtH 🎵 Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/5abef121-2a19-4fdf-b13a-3ed852565aea/thinking-through-the-darkness 🎙️ Podcast Index: https://podcastindex.org/podcast/7822111 📋 Listen Notes: https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/thinking-through-the-darkness-spec-rL4iOjeuE0Y/ 📡 RSS Feed: https://media.rss.com/through-the-darkness/feed.xml
The software that makes this possible costs money. If you want to support directly: ☕ Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/iamspecious
LoreBySpec on YouTube for the main channel.