Chrono Trigger: The Planeswalkers
By Mox Jet
I had a bit of trouble when originally setting out to do this review; Mox Jet is one of my best friends, and I was worried about my level of objectivity. But then, after giving the entire story a quick look-over (you see, I've already read it all the way through... several chapters more than once), I realized there wasn't much to complain about, whether or not I was capable of objectivity.
The first thing I really have to hit upon is the plot. Dear God... it is truly one of the most inspired pieces of work I've seen, at least in the realm of fanfiction. I mean, ponder this for a moment: a modern hero, cast through the whole of the time stream with little clue (at least at first) as to what is happening to him. Of course, for everything but the modern part, this is identical to the original plot of Chrono Trigger. But the story's so much more than that! The convolution of the plot really shows through towards the end, where innumerable crossover points are drawn CT and several other games.
And speaking of the original plot of Chrono Trigger, dancing around it is something else that Planeswalkers does very well. Since the story takes place during the events of the game, it's incredibly interesting to see how he handles the many, MANY crossover points that come into play.
Actually, this effect is compounded even more when he comes into the Zeal area of the story. See, his story also takes place in the same universe as Nanaki's, author of Origin/Aftermath of Mount Woe, so the Zeal area of his fic crosses over with the original game and that one... as you can imagine, the many references to the two stories are simply staggering in their depth.
Now, for characters. This is Mox's strongest area, I believe, and it really shows in this story. From Jack Mcklane to Aragorn Lestrides, every single one of the characters is completely three-dimensional... and unless you're completely soulless, you're bound to become endeared to each of them. The love theme really shines strong as a result of this, and the moment that Jack and Sarah... well, that's a spoiler, but mark my words that it'll bring a tear to your eye when it happens... and it happens in a GRAND way.
And of course, I have to mention a flaw, or this entire post becomes meaningless praise. Note that I say a flaw, for I'd be hard-pressed to find more than this one. Mox Jet is not perfect with spelling. Now, when I say that, don't take it out of context; he certainly obeys the rules of grammar, and I believe the vast majority of things he misspells are simple typos. But it occasionally does detract a bit from an otherwise nearly-flawless story, so I felt it should be pointed out.
Now for the scores.
Plot - 25/25
Characters - 25/25
Grammar - 23/25
Entertainment - 25/25
Total - 98/100