Summary
- Xaldin, Lexaeus, and Julius are notable Kingdom Hearts characters who turn out to be weaker than expected.
- Maleficent, despite her role in Sleeping Beauty and Kingdom Hearts 1, was overshadowed by stronger villains later on in the story.
- Kairi’s potential as a fighter was undermined in Kingdom Hearts 3, disappointing fans who were hoping for her growth as a character.
Underneath its whimsical Disney façade, Kingdom Hearts hides an epic fantasy story with ambitious action scenes and multiple characters that are quite proficient at fighting. As a result, some of the most iconic and beloved figures in the franchise, like Sora, Riku, Roxas, or King Mickey, are way stronger than they may initially seem.
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But sometimes the opposite also happens, as many other prominent Kingdom Hearts characters originally came off as powerful and/or threatening, but they could never live up to that reputation, whether it’s because they were defeated way too quickly by the heroes or because they starred in some surprisingly easy boss fights. The following characters are the most obvious examples of this underwhelming phenomenon.
1
Maleficent
A Prominent Villain Who Was Left Behind By The Story
- Released
-
September 17, 2002
- ESRB
-
E for Everyone: Violence
The evil fairy Maleficent was not only the main antagonist of 1959’s Sleeping Beauty, but also of the original Kingdom Hearts game, where she commanded an entire group of infamous Disney villains. She also showed her true power in her climactic boss fight, in which she turned into a massive, fire-breathing dragon that took Sora, Donald, and Goofy a lot of effort to take down.
Unfortunately for her, however, she was defeated and overshadowed by Ansem, Seeker of Darkness at the very end of the game, and she could never quite recover from that. Maleficent made appearances in pretty much every subsequent game, but she was always treated like a joke because she paled in comparison to Xehanort and the Organization XIII in terms of raw power, and allying herself with her bumbling minion Pete certainly didn’t help her case. Nevertheless, Kingdom Hearts fans are still hoping that Maleficent will get stronger and become a huge threat in the upcoming Lost Masters Saga.
2
Kairi
The Main Heroine Of The Franchise Feels Like Wasted Potential
- Released
-
November 13, 2020
- ESRB
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E10+ For Everyone 10+ due to Fantasy Violence, Mild Language
When compared to her friends Sora and Riku, Kairi was not much of a fighter, as this Princess of Heart originally had more of a support role until she received a Keyblade at the very end of Kingdom Hearts 2. This, coupled with the secret ending of Dream Drop Distance, hinted at Kairi’s eventual growth and the potential of her joining the fight with the other Guardians of Light in the long-awaited Kingdom Hearts 3.
However, despite the big expectations put on her by the fans and her extensive training with Lea, Kairi’s performance in the final battle of Kingdom Hearts 3 was very underwhelming. She became a generic damsel in distress once again, as she was very easily kidnapped by Xemnas and unceremoniously killed off by Xehanort. The Re: Mind DLC and the spin-off game Melody of Memory tried to improve her reputation, but she never managed to come off as particularly strong, especially considering that she couldn’t even face an illusion of Master Xehanort all by herself. Kairi is currently training under Aqua’s tutelage, so fans are hoping she will be much stronger in the upcoming Kingdom Hearts 4.
3
Darkside
The Most Iconic Heartless Boss Was Never Much Of A Threat
Kingdom Hearts 3 Re:Mind
- Released
-
January 23, 2020
- ESRB
-
e
The first ever Heartless boss that players encountered in the original Kingdom Hearts was the Darkside, a massive titan who could wield darkness and summon other Heartless. Nevertheless, its initial battle was extremely easy, which makes enough sense, considering that it was the first boss of the entire franchise.
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But the problem with the Darkside is that it never got much stronger than that, and it still was equally easy to take down in all of its subsequent appearances in Chain of Memories, 358/2 Days, Birth by Sleep 0.2 and Kingdom Hearts 3, games in which it’s not even the first boss. At this point, most fans feel that defeating a Darkside is more of a chore than an actual challenge, and even a massive ball of Shadows called Demon Tide is way more powerful than this iconic boss.
4
Lexaeus
The So-Called “Silent Hero” Is Way Too Silent And Far From A Hero
Action RPG
Digital Card Game
- Released
-
December 2, 2008
- ESRB
-
e
At first glance, Lexaeus seems like one of the most formidable members of the original Organization XIII, thanks to his massive size, his huge Axe Sword, and his impressive power to summon earth and rocks in battle. But, much to the surprise of many Kingdom Hearts fans, he ended up being one of the weakest and most insignificant members of this evil organization of Nobodies.
Lexaeus is a major antagonist in Riku’s side of the story in Chain of Memories, where he fails to showcase his abilities in both the story and the gameplay. While he initially gave Riku a tough time, he was quickly disposed of by the boy’s Dark form, and his boss fights (both in Chain of Memories and in Kingdom Hearts 2) are surprisingly simple and easy for a character as intimidating as him. Similarly to Dilan, his human counterpart Aeleus stayed in Radiant Garden as a mute guard throughout the entirety of Kingdom Hearts 3, and he never got involved in any of the game’s important battles.
5
Julius
A Disappointingly Easy Secret Boss
- Released
-
July 31, 2012
- ESRB
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E10+ For Everyone 10+ due to Fantasy Violence
Every Kingdom Hearts game has an extremely challenging secret boss that is almost impossible to beat, like Lingering Will in Kingdom Hearts 2 Final Mix or the Mysterious Figure in Birth by Sleep. Because of this, fans were very excited to find out that Dream Drop Distance featured yet another super boss, but was eventually disappointed by how easy it was to defeat him. The secret boss of this game is none other than Julius, an artificial monster and the main antagonist of the 1995 Mickey Mouse short, Runaway Brain.
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With his huge size and intimidating appearance, it seemed like he was going to be the star of an excruciatingly hard fight, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. Julius can deal massive amounts of damage, but he’s so big and clumsy that dodging his attacks to drain his HP is quite simple, not to mention that, like almost every other enemy in Dream Drop Distance, he’s extremely weak to the Balloon command. He is without a doubt the most disappointing secret boss in the entire franchise.
6
The Elemental Titans
It Took 17 Years For Hades To Unleash His Secret Weapons (And It Was Not Worth It)
- Released
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January 25, 2019
- ESRB
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E10+ For Everyone 10+ due to Alcohol Reference, Fantasy Violence
The climax of the animated film Hercules is centered on the main villain, Hades, unleashing four elemental titans (The Rock Titan, the Ice Titan, the Lava Titan, and the Tornado Titan) on Mount Olympus. Disney fans were understandably excited to encounter and face these hulking beasts in the Kingdom Hearts series, but they were eventually disheartened by their lack of strength.
The Rock Titan and the Ice Titan first appeared in Kingdom Hearts 1 as optional bosses, but they were quite easy to take down, even for the most inexperienced players. Both of them, alongside the Lava Titan and the Tornado Titan, later made an appearance in Kingdom Hearts 3, but they still couldn’t put up much of a fight against Sora, Donald, and Goofy, considering that they took on the role of tutorial bosses in the opening level of that game. Players who are looking for a challenge in Olympus Coliseum should try facing Cerberus or Sephiroth instead.
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