SoKai vs SoRiku

SoRiku vs Sokai a ship war in the Kingdom Hearts fandom between shippers of two Sora pairings: SoKai (Sora/Kairi) and SoRiku (Sora/Riku). It takes place on most websites where fan activity occurs. 
Due to the length and notoriety of the ship war, the war itself is sometimes referenced in memes and fanworks created by fans of the series, ranging from jokes mocking the war itself to writing fanfic that directly comments on the conflict. 
==Overview==
SoRiku and SoKai have been the most popular Sora ships since the release of the first Kingdom Hearts game in 2002, where his relationships with each of them played a key role in the plot. The ship war was already considered an infamous hotbed of toxicity during the 2006-2010 period, an especially active era in the KH fandom's history.KH FANFIC STEREOTYPES (2016) The ship war entered a new phase when Square Enix released sequels that gave more interactions and screentime to Sora’s bond with Riku than to his bond with Kairi, particularly the game Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance (2012).
Many fans feel that Kairi has been framed as a typical love interest according to the common tropes and cliches of various media, including JRPGs and shounen animanga. As a result, Kairi is most commonly seen as Sora's genre-standard love interest, even among fans who don't consider themselves shippers or as invested in any romance subplot. While this interpretation has never been explicitly confirmed by either canon media or word of god, as of 2024 it has yet to be jossed either. Thus, while SoRiku has an equal or higher volume of transformative fanworks compared to SoKai fanworks across various websites, the majority of casual fans treat SoKai as canon by default, regardless of their individual shipping preference (see: r/KingdomHearts, etc).
Many SoRiku shippers, even those that agree with this interpretation, argue that SoKai as presented in canon is forced and underdeveloped. They see the pair’s portrayal in the games as being pushed into a romantic relationship simply for the sake of having a het romance. Some feel that Kairi’s lack of screentime makes her feel more like a plot device than an actual character, and that the way the narrative treats her falls into the sexist trope of a female love interest being treated as a prize for the male protagonist. Others point out that while Sora clearly cares about Kairi, neither of them explicitly voice whether they define their relationship as romantic or non-romantic in canon, despite many characters acknowledging how important they are to each other. Some fans who don’t ship SoRiku agree that the portrayal of Sora and Kairi as a potential romance is forced, regardless of whether or not they personally ship SoKai.comment on a forum post about LGBT relationships in KH from a non-shipper expressing that SoKai feels forced
Due to the assumption that SoKai is canon by default, some fans are hostile toward SoRiku shippers because they consider the idea of Sora not having romantic feelings for Kairi to be a willful misinterpretation of canonResponse to a forum thread discussing whether SoKai or SoRiku is betterQRT of a SoRiku shipper's platonic interpretation of SoKai accusing the OP of misinterpreting canon and a lack of respect for the franchise’s creators. Theories and meta written by SoRiku shippers are commonly dismissed as crack theories or tinhatting on the assumption that the author is misrepresenting canon in order to justify their ship, even when the theory or analysis has nothing to do with SoRiku. Meanwhile, the ideas that SoRiku shippers present in their meta are often more likely to be taken seriously by other fans when presented by someone who doesn’t ship Sora/Riku.Tweet showing screenshots of Sokai fans tweeting about theories alongside screenshots from Soriku accounts tweeting the same theories several months earlier.Soriku account explaining the double-standard to a fan who hadn't encountered it before.QRT of a soriku fan complaining about BNF YouTubers being praised for presenting that were dismissed as conspiracies when Soriku shippers presented them.twitter thread complaining about this phenomenon.tweet commenting on the automatic assumptions the fandom makes about slash shippers. Fanworks and social media posts related to SoRiku also frequently receive unprompted comments claiming that SoKai is canona sokai shipper responding to a soriku tweet about how they feel when thinking about sora and riku’s love for each other by stating that sokai is canon.a sokai shipper telling a storyboard artist who developed a pilot for a KH TV Show in the early 2000s who just learned about soriku for the first time that SoKai is canon.a tweet from a Kingdom Hearts fan account reminding the fandom that no ships are currently canon whose first comment was a sokai shipper insisting that their pairing is canon.response to a soriku fan’s platonic interpretation of sora and kairi.another response to a soriku fan’s platonic interpretation of sora and kairi.a comment on Soriku art insisting that sokai is canon.a QRT claiming that SoRiku shippers are not real fans because SoKai has always been canon. and/or that SoRiku is not canon,responses to a soriku tweet insisting that sora and riku are just friends.tweet showing a screenshot of a review left on a SoRiku fica comment on SoRiku art insisting that sora is straighta tweet from KaiserinAstraia showing a screenshot of a review left on one of their Soriku fics declaring that the ship is not canon even when nothing was said in the work or post about either ship’s status. Some have also called for future games to definitively remove any chance of SoRiku ever being canon, whether by explicitly confirming SoKai or by rendering Riku ineligible as a canon love interest, in the hopes that this will make SoRiku shippers give up interpreting the pair as a couple.I want Riku to sink the SoRiku ship so bad even fanfiction can't bring it backTweet saying Nomura should make Sora and Kairi kiss to make SoRiku shippers stop shipping SoRiku Other fans deliberately tag SoRiku on posts and tweets containing SoKai art and headcanons, as well as screenshots they consider to be proof that SoKai is canon, resulting in SoKai content showing up in searches for SoRiku posts on sites like Tumblr and Twitter. A few SoKai shippers have even sent Direct Messages to SoRiku shippers containing spoilers for upcoming game releases in an effort to demoralize SoRiku fans by sending out-of-context clips and claiming them as proof that SoKai has been confirmed as canon.one of the recipients of these DMs complaining about the experience
Meanwhile, many fans opposed to SoRiku deny the existence of any romantic subtext in Sora and Riku’s relationship,Forum post arguing that there's been no evidence for SoRiku frequently referring to fans who do see the pair as romantic as delusional,tweet displaying a screenshot showing comments on youtube videos calling soriku shippers delusional. friendless,a reply to a SoRiku tweet insisting that they can tell that the OP "never had a good bro or friendly rival like Riku"reply to a SoRiku tweet asking how many friends OP has mentally ill,QRT of a SoRiku tweet associating romantic interpretations of Sora and Riku's bond with projection and mental illness"if you think those 2 are gay. You've got issues" taking drugs,a reply to a soriku thread arguing that believe the ship is intended as endgame asking if OP was on drugs when they wrote it. or otherwise detached from reality.a thread dismissing soriku interpretations of the story as originating from fantasy rather than the actual games. Other fans acknowledge that Sora and Riku’s relationship has potential romantic subtext but insist it's only there by accident; For example, some argue that the SoRiku only seems more romantic than SoKai because Japan has different cultural norms than the United States when it comes to platonic and romantic relationships.Forum post claiming that Sora and Kairi's reunion in KH2 is the equivalent of a kiss in Japanese culture Meanwhile, others agree that SoKai is underdeveloped, but insist that it’s only because the writers are incompetent at portraying romance in comparison to friendship,i feel like people arguing that soriku has been planned this whole time are grasping at straws and that nothing will change about the ship’s chances of becoming canon.
Some fans will also comment on SoRiku-related content to try and discredit romantic interpretations of the pairresponse to a SoRiku tweet that treats the use of the word friend in-game as proof that Sora and Riku's bond is exclusively platonic by providing alternate explanations for how Sora and Riku are, often without regard for canon facts;a twitter conversation discussing an article written by a Sokai shipper that dismisses a statement of canon fact regarding how Sora and Riku see their relationship as subjective opinion.Soriku shipper providing examples of sokai fans making false claims about the story. For example, many SoRiku fanworks and social media posts discussing the Kingdom Hearts II reunion scene will receive comments claiming that Sora’s reaction to Riku is so much stronger because he already knew that Kairi was safe, despite him having specifically come to the Castle That Never Was because the Organization kidnapped her.a twitter thread outlining how a common Sokai talking point to dismiss the romantic undertones of Sora and Riku’s reunion contradicts what is shown in canon. Meanwhile some fans will comment on SoRiku-based discussions of game elements that are confirmed in-game or by word of god to exclusively represent Sora and Riku to argue that those elements are not actually about Sora and Riku,response to a tweet about the series' theme song Dearly Beloved being stated in-game as the sound of Riku and Sora's hearts but instead represent Sora and Kairitwitter exchange in response to the same tweet arguing that the soung could represent Sora and Kairi or the Destiny Trio as a whole.comment on a twitter thread about sokai shippers treating various sora and kairi moments in KH3 as symbols of marriage talking about how the commenter was DMed by Sokai shippers who insisted that the combined keyblade that Sora and Riku form in Dream Drop Distance has elements representing Kairi to make it a symbol of the Destiny Trio.
Others attempt to justify Sora and Riku’s closeness by arguing that Riku’s bond with Sora after his own redemption arc is that of a protective big brother.forum post that the male characters in KH can be viewed as loving each other in a brotherly way but not romanticallyresponse to a forum thread about Sora and Riku fitting together better than Sora and KairiSora and Riku are brothers argument example ASora and Riku are brothers argument example BSora and Riku are like brothers argument example C This headcanon started receiving pushback from SoRiku shippers after it was jossed in 2020 by the official Kingdom Hearts Character Files guidebook, which featured short stories by Tomoco Kanemaki - author of all official KH novel adaptations who has also been working as a writer for the games since 358/2 Days (2009)358/2 Days Ultimania - Main Nomura Interview - where Sora and Riku each express that siblings is not an accurate label for their relationship. However, due to the book only having been available for 4 years as of this writing, the contents of the short stories are not common knowledge. After learning of the stories in question, many fans who support SoKai either dispute the canon status of the guidebook and/or the novelizations, or attempt to argue that the wording of the stories still leaves room for Sora and Riku to see each other as siblings in canon.
Some fans agree that Sora and Riku’s relationship in canon has romantic undertones to it, but claim that it’s only there to draw in audiences and isn’t something the writers intend to ever be endgame. Others have argued that even if the game developers have the desire to make Sora/Riku canon, they will inevitably be held back from doing so by corporate executives at Square Enix and/or Disney so that the companies can continue to make money off of the series in markets that are hostile toward depictions of queerness.Disney as the main obstacle to SoRiku being canon.Sora loves Kairi and THAT'S IT. Besides, Disney wouldn't allow it. While social acceptance of LGBTQ identities and representation of them in fictional media has increased since 2002, this argument remains a widely accepted viewpoint within many Kingdom Hearts fan spaces as of 2024, even among many SoRiku shippers.
Meanwhile, as a result of SoKai being treated as canon by default, many early SoRiku shippers active when the first few games released saw Kairi as an obstacle to Sora and Riku being able to get together. Some created fanworks that kill her off and portray her negatively in order to remove her as a competitor, as was especially common in slash fan spaces during the 2000s. However, many other SoRiku shippers have and continue to view her as a supportive wingwoman who happily supports Sora and Riku's romance,https://khfanficrants.livejournal.com/114241.html such as when she helped Sora see through Riku’s transformation into Ansem and reunite them Kingdom Hearts II. Some headcanon Kairi as having a crush on Sora that she eventually gets over after she realizes that he doesn’t reciprocate. Others headcanon her as experiencing comphet and have her realize that she’s a lesbian, with SoRiku fanworks typically pairing her with either Selphie or Olette, most frequently as a background ship or Pair the Spares ship.
Some fans who don’t support SoRiku will interpret Riku as gay and having an unrequited crush on Sora,Forum post on kh13.com arguing that Sora and Kairi will kiss followed by a few flashbacks to Riku struggling internally with unrequited gay love however most pair him up with another female character in order to argue against queer interpretations of Riku. Due to his interactions with them in Chain of Memories (2004), and KH2, most non-SoRiku fans ship Riku with either Namine or Xion. Following the release of Kingdom Hearts III in 2019, many fans began claiming that the scene during the ending where Riku arrives in Radiant Garden to pick Namine up after her being given her own body again was confirmation that the Riku/Namine ship was going to be canon.Forum post claiming that ReMind teased RikuNami These claims persist even after series creator Tetsuya Nomura stated that Riku was only fulfilling a last request to the Riku Replica and the scene was edited in 2020 to remove Riku and Namine’s smiles after the release of the game’s DLC.
Due to Kairi’s lack of screen-time in comparison to Sora and Riku, many SoRiku shippers write meta about what Kairi’s role in the story could be if she isn’t a love interest and speculate on ways to increase her involvement in the story. Some like the idea of Kairi actively accompanying Sora and Riku on their adventures, while others portray her spending time away from them out of a desire to see her have more on-screen friendships with other characters so that she has more going for her than just being Sora and Riku’s best friend. Regardless of what they prefer for Kairi going forward, most SoRiku shippers emphasize in their meta and speculation that Sora loving Riku romantically doesn’t mean he doesn't care about Kairi or that his relationship with her is not important.
Following the release of Dream Drop Distance in 2012, some fans began promoting the idea that Riku had nothing left to contribute to the story now that he’d fully completed his redemption arc, and that he should be killed off or sidelined in order for another character to receive more focus.Speculation that Riku will die in KH3twitter conversation discussing an article written by a Sokai shipper that speculates Riku will be replaced because there isn't anything left for him to contribute to the story.tweet claiming that Riku going to save Sora alone would be boring compared to the build up of Kairi's importanceTumblr post by blowingoffsteam reacting to a reddit post suggesting Riku should die in KH3 to make room for SoKai to finally become canon When the Secret Ending and DLC for Kingdom Hearts III (2019) instead set up Riku as the key to finding Sora in Quadratum, some fans began demanding that the focus of this storyline be given to Kairi and her relationship with Sora instead.A tweet claiming that Kairi has the best chance of saving Sora because their connection is deeper than his other bondsA thread comparing arguments for Riku's mission to be given to Kairi with other narratives.
== Interpretations of canon==
The fact that both sides have different interpretations of the story and what various aspects imply about the writers’ intentions is a source of further conflict in the ship war, as neither side agrees on what certain details canonically mean. As a result, what some fans consider to be evidence for their own ship is not viewed the same way by fans of the other ship. Due to the length and scope of the series, there are a wide variety of topics that spark such arguments, however there are some that are fought over more commonly than others: 
=== Paopu fruit ===
The paopu fruit is a star-shaped fruit native to Destiny Islands. It is introduced in Kingdom Hearts (2002), in which Riku explains that sharing it intertwines people’s destinies and ensures that they will always remain a part of each other’s lives. The following day, he challenges Sora to a race, with the prize for victory being the opportunity to share a paopu with Kairi. In a series of optional conversations that same day, Selphie tells Sora that she thinks sharing a Paopu with someone is a romantic thing to do, and encourages Sora to hurry up and share with someone before Riku beats him to it.
Sora updates a cave drawing of themselves that he and Kairi made as children to show himself offering her a paopu, and Kairi updates the drawing at the end of the game to show herself reciprocating, which Sora discovers during the end credits of Kingdom Hearts II.
In Birth by Sleep (2010), Aqua creates good luck charms based on the legend and describes the fruit as representing an unbreakable connection between friends. A paopu fruit is the keychain on the Combined Keyblade that Sora and Riku summon together in Kingdom Hearts 3D.
Fans who favor SoKai argue that Sora and Kairi in the first game each using drawings to express the desire to share a paopu fruit with the other is proof that the two are in love and destined to end up in a romantic relationship together, with many fans subscribing to the headcanon that the pair finally sharing paopu fruits in Kingdom Hearts III was the moment they officially became a couple.
Fans who favor SoRiku point out that Aqua’s platonic use of the legend in Birth by Sleep indicates that the paopu fruit is not automatically proof of romance, though other fans argue that Aqua is not a local of the Destiny Islands, and she may not have the same cultural understanding of the paopu.Re: "This may seem like a random question but is there a difference between a "wayfinder" and a Paopu Fruit?"
In discussions of the paopu sharing scene in Kingdom Hearts III, soriku fans who see the pairing as endgame point to various details in the scene and other subsequent material as evidence that Sora and Kairi sharing the fruit was not romantic, including:
* Kairi saying in the loading screens for the DLC and the original Japanese release of the base game that it was a charm to avoid being separated.
* The fact that one loading screen for the DLC shows a screenshot of them sharing the fruit with a caption from Kairi talking about never being apart from Sora, while another shows a screenshot of the cave drawing with a caption from Sora talking about how they’ll be in each other’s hearts even when they’re apart.
* The fact that Sora’s Japanese voice actor Miyu Irino stated in an interview that he didn’t see sharing the paopu fruit as a declaration of love, as well as that he had recorded an alternate version of the scene where they didn’t share the fruit which series creator Tetsuya Nomura had considered using in the game instead.Kingdom Hearts 3 Ultimania - Voice Actor Interview
* The fact that Sora is focused on Riku for the first part of the scene and is caught off guard when Kairi tries to hand him a paopu fruit, and that he hesitates to take it until she clarifies her intentions.
SoRiku fans also argue that Sora’s facial expressions when Kairi first hands him the fruit in KH3 reflect discomfort at the potential romantic implications of the gesture, and argue that he only smiles after hearing Kairi’s intent because her words are meant to convey that they’ll be sharing it platonically.Tumblr reblog chain of Soriku fans discussing the KH3 paopu scene Meanwhile some SoKai fans interpret Sora’s expressions after being offered the paopu as either bashful or determined.
Some fans claim that a proper sharing of the paopu must involve eating from the same single fruit, rather than feeding separate fruits to each other as Sora and Kairi did in KHIII.RIPWBMhttps://www.khinsider.com/forums/index.php?threads/sharing-a-paopu-fruit.238703/ The verb used by Riku and Selphie in the original Japanese 食べさせあう specifically describes feeding one another. Japanese is pretty vague sometimes and doesn't specify how many are shared -- just that you feed each other. However, we can tell from the cave paintings that Sora and Kairi draw that sharing two paopu fruit was the original intention since the first game. The localization team using "share one" was a minor mistake that just wasn't too obvious until Kingdom Hearts III contradicted it.https://old.reddit.com/r/KingdomHearts/comments/i2ub8g/are_you_serious_sora_kairi/g0754mb/
===Theme songs===
Both SoRiku and SoKairi shippers believe that the three theme songs to the main numbered installments are supposed to be about their respective ships.
SoKai shippers cite an interview in which Nomura seemed to indicate that "Hikari" is about Sora and Kairi as "hero" and "heroine".Kingdom Hearts Ultimania. Nomura: The song would play with the ending sequence where the hero and heroine part from each other since the images for that scene were decided very early on. However, I wanted to show that this is not a sorrowful parting but an optimistic one. The lyrics fit so perfectly that when I first heard it, I trembled and couldn’t speak. After the release of Kingdom Hearts III, they point out that "Chikai" plays when Sora and Kairi feed each other paopu fruits, and a screenshot of them is included with the sheet music in the KHIII Ultimania.
SoRiku shippers cite an interview in which Nomura stated that during development, he had requested for "Passion", the theme of KHII, to suit Sora and Riku's reunion, and serve as a sequel to "Hikari".Kingdom Hearts II Ultimania Soriku shippers also point to the fact that the lyrics of "Chikai" make repeated references to sunrise, a recurring symbol of Riku's character arc.
===Destiny Trio reunion in Kingdom Hearts II===
One of the most frequently discussed topics in debates about which ship is canon as well as conversations about the ship war itself is the contrast between Sora’s individual reunions with Riku and Kairi at the Castle That Never Was in Kingdom Hearts II. When he reunited with Kairi, Sora greeted her by saying that she’s different, but that he’s glad to see her. After she runs up and hugs him, he acts surprised, and hesitates before reciprocating. When Sora reunited with Riku, he fell to his knees and cried while clutching his friend’s hand and talking about how he look everywhere for him.
Non-SoRiku shippers argue that situational differences can account for the differences in Sora's emotional reactions. Kairi had been safe on their home island before being kidnapped for a relatively short amount of time, and then soon rescued; whereas Sora hadn't seen Riku safe for a year since Riku had been possessed by an evil entity, sealed in the Realm of Darkness for what was predicted to be an indefinite and potentially endless amount of time, and then later trapped in the physical form of the main villain.https://old.reddit.com/r/KingdomHearts/comments/3exjux/soras_reuniting_with_kaiririku_in_kh2/https://old.reddit.com/r/KingdomHearts/comments/7lqbfw/kh2_why_was_sora_so_much_more_emotional_reuniting/ Fans interpret Sora's apology to Kairi and shock at her hug as expressions of his shame at failing to bring Riku home as well as failing his promise to Riku to keep Kairi safe; Sora's reunion with Riku isn't only a reunion between the two boys, but also the first reunion of all three childhood friends together as a trio since they were separated in the destruction of their world at the beginning of the first game.
Fans also point out that Sora was eager to reunite with both of them in the first game, after the trio had been initially separated; and Sora's reunion with Kairi was more emotionally charged and high-stakes compared to his more lighthearted reunion with Riku earlier.
SoRiku shippers argue that the situational differences justification contradicts what is shown in the game, pointing out that Sora had already received confirmation that Riku was safe and out of the Realm of Darkness earlier from both Mickey and the Emperor of China, and had even encountered Riku himself from a distance; meanwhile, he had spent half the game trying to get into the Organizations castle to rescue Kairi, and reacted with excitement when he saw her from a distance just a few cutscenes prior to their reunion. Based on the fact that Sora had daydreamed about Kairi earlier in the game and imagined her in her KH1 appearance, many SoRiku shippers view Sora's reaction as shock at how his mental image of her no longer matches reality. Some SoRiku shippers see Sora as having had a puppy crush on Kairi in KHI that faded by the time they reunited, and headcanon his reaction to her hug in their reunion as the moment he realized that he wasn't attracted to her anymore. Others believe that any potential romantic subtext between them prior to that moment was the result of comphet—that he thought he liked her romantically because everyone around him kept assuming he did, but that in this moment he realized that the way he felt about her did not match how someone in love was supposed to feel.
Some shippers dismiss the reunion sequence in KHII as evidence that Riku and Kairi cherish each other as friends, and instead theorize other explanations that would support the headcanon of them being bitter love rivals who only tolerate each other for Sora's sake.
===Parallels with canon couples===
Fans on each side point out parallels between their respective ship and canon couples from Disney movies and the Final Fantasy series to argue that their ship has more canon support.
*Fans arguing for SoKai point to the scene in Kingdom Hearts II where Sora daydreams of himself dancing with Kairi in place of Jack Skellington and Sally.
*During the credits of Kingdom Hearts 2.8, a montage of canon Disney pairings is shown;including Snow White and her Prince Charming, Princess Aurora and Prince Phillip, Cinderella and her Prince Charming, Princess Ariel and Prince Eric, Donald and Daisy, Hercules and Meg, Simba and Nala, Belle and Beast, Mulan and Li Shang, Esmeralda and Phoebus, Aladdin and Jasmine, Mickey and Minnie among these couples, Sora and Kairi are also displayed. Non-SoKai shippers point out that Roxas and Namine, Peter Pan and Wendy, and Cloud and Aerith are also included in the montage, and they aren't confirmed couples.
*Some fans see Sora, Riku, and Kairi (especially as they are characterized in the first game) as respective parallels to Cecil, Kain, and Rosa in Final Fantasy IV.
*SoRiku shippers point out scenes and plot-lines in multiple games that parallel Sora and Riku's bond and their interactions in each game with Belle/Beast, Ariel/Eric, Phoebus/Esmeralda, Hercules/Meg, Aladdin/Jasmine, Mulan/Shang, Simba/Nala, Aurora/Phillip, Snow White/The Prince, Cinderella/Prince Charming, Rapunzel/Flynn Rider, Anna/Kristoff, and Cloud/Tifa.gifset demonstrating parallels between Soriku and canon Disney couples
===How Kairi and Riku feel about each other===
Because the ship war revolves around which of them is Sora's true love interest, how Riku and Kairi feel about each other is a recurring source of conflict in the ship war.
Most fans view all three as being best friends who all care about each other equally, which has resulted in other interpretations being treated as a deliberate misinterpretation of the characters. However, some believe that she and Riku are not as close to each other as they are to Sora based on the fact that the two are rarely ever shown interacting with each other one-on-one onscreen, as well as her joking at the beginning of the first game that she and Sora should take the raft that Riku had built and leave him behind. Since these beliefs tend to be more popular in SoRiku communities, other fans frequently perceive it as an attempt to demonize Kairi in order to justify SoRiku.
Among fans who support this interpretation, opinions vary as to the specifics of how Riku and Kairi feel about each other, some interpret them as actively disliking each other and only tolerating each other for Sora's sake, while others see them as friends of Sora who hang out together when Sora's there and get along just fine but otherwise aren't close friends with each other.
Another contingent argues that while Riku and Kairi were close friends growing up and clearly still care about each other in canon, their lack of one-on-one interactions and the fact that Kairi never shown apologizes for her joke indicate that they've grown distant from each other due to some unresolved issues between them. Fans of this theory often headcanon that Riku somehow overheard Kairi's joke about leaving him and that this contributed to his decision to open the door in the Secret Place and cause their world to fall into darkness. The fact that Kairi's comment has not received any follow-up in canon is headcanoned as Kairi and Riku each being afraid to bring it up due to their individual insecurities and mutually choosing to avoid the subject rather than address it.
Some fans view this headcanon as pinning responsibility for Riku's villain arc on Kairi by contriving hurt that she never canonically caused, and undermining his subsequent redemption arc.
==Accusations of Misogyny==
For a major part of the fandom's existence, especially in the 2002-2010 period, Kairi has been a character infamously subjected to overtly misogynistic vitriol from KH fans;https://khfanficrants.livejournal.com/346185.html Kairi was commonly labeled as a "bitch","The bitches $Kairi$ must DIE"WBM"The Way Kingdom Hearts Should've Been..." "whore","Kingdom Hearts Stereotypes" by emily-bright (2009) and "slut". She was bashed as a mean girl queen bee fueled by jealousy and malice in her personal quest to deliberately sabotage Sora and Riku's relationship; and she was the subject of some infamous fan works in which she was gruesomely killed as punishment for these unlikable traits."The Horribly Bloody Death of Kairi"WBMhttps://www.deviantart.com/kairi-haters/art/Death-to-Kairi-by-RikuGirl-35993732
 Among Kairi's haters, SoRiku shippers gained a reputation for being an especially vocal and even toxic contingent.KH FANFIC STEREOTYPES (2016)https://khfanficrants.livejournal.com/114241.htmlWBM (2006)https://khfanficrants.livejournal.com/261889.htmlAnd because Kairi is portrayed as Sora's love interest , those who do ship SoRiku detest her for "getting in the way of Riku and Sora's awesome sexy times". But as said, not every yaoi fangirl does this to the pair. The ones that do just make sure the whole internet hears. Some SoRiku shippers have agreed that excessive hate toward Kairi has been a problem among SoRiku shippers.
Overt misogyny became less common and accepted in online spaces during the 2010s. However, the history of misogyny toward Kairi among the series' fanbase still colors the dominant image of how SoRiku shippers are perceived by the rest of the fandom in the 2020s.
The "misogynistic yaoi fangirl" remains one of the most common stereotypes of fans who ship Sora with Riku, to the point where some many fans who support SoKai treat shipping SoRiku as inherently synonymous with hatred of Kairi as a character.QRT of a Soriku fan sharing an analysis of Kairi accusing the theory's co-creator of not caring about KairiExample of sokai shipper treating being a soriku shipper as synonymous with hating kairi.joke tweet making fun of how quick sokai shippers are to accuse soriku fans of hating kairi. This has led to several instances where fanworks and social media posts by SoRiku shippers have been falsely accused of hating and vilifying Kairi simply because the original poster ships SoRiku,a KH fan complaining about other people lying about the contents of the Sleeping Realm Theory.a complaint about sokai shippers accusing a fan theory that Sora is slowly losing his memories of Riku towards the end of KH3 of claiming Kairi is evil. regardless of whether it's a meta about Kairi, or a post just talking about SoRiku that doesn't mention her.a Twitter conversation in which a sokai shipper replies to a tweet about soriku accusing them of hating Kairi, and other replies point out that nothing was said about Kairi at all. Others have accused SoRiku shippers of attacking other fans and trying to start a fight simply for making a post that interpreted Sora and Kairi's bond as platonic.QRT of a SoRiku shipper's platonic interpretation of SoKai arguing that it must be bait
In the 2020s, many Kairi and SoKai fans complain that SoRiku shippers still downplay key moments in canon that emphasize Kairi's bonds with Sora and/or Riku,An example of these accusations. ignore her achievements,KH3: Who saved Sora? by themelodicenigma on Tumblr misrepresent her character,another example and promote sidelining her even more than she already has been in order to elevate an exclusive bond between Sora and Riku—resulting in a female character being further erased from an already male-dominated narrative.
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Some SoRiku shippers argue that the accusations of downplaying Kairi’s importance are making her out to have a larger role in the plot than she actually does due to nostalgia.Tweet attributing the idea of Kairi being a main character to nostalgia. Soriku shippers point to her lack of focus compared to the rest of the castTwitter conversation about the backlash a Soriku shipper received for calling Kairi a side character. If Nmra wanted K to be a main character who has relevance to the plot like S and R, she would be, but she’s not.A twitter thread detailing an example of how canon already downplays Kairi's contributions.Tweet joking that the accusations of erasing Kairi to focus on Sora and Riku's bond with each other are just describing what happens in canon and comments from the developers which state that the series is about Sora and Riku’s bond2018 Interview with series producer Shinji Hashimoto as evidence that while Kairi is still important to the story, she does not have the level of importance that other fans believe she has.
SoRiku shippers also view accusations of mischaracterizing Kairi as being based on fanon perception of her rather than canon facts,[Tweet arguing that fans who profess to like Kairi like an OOC version of her that they made up https://web.archive.org/web/20240322030643/https://twitter.com/heartsalty/status/1083533278542364672]Twitter thread arguing that fan expectations for Kairi are based on fanon and her portrayal in the manga adaptations over what's actually presented in the games.Twitter reply arguing that fans confuse fanon Kairi with canon Kairi arguing that fans have constructed an interpretation of Kairi as an confident girlboss who has no flaws and is incapable of doing anything wrong.Twitter reply arguing that people get mad if you don't talk about how perfect Kairi is
Some SoRiku shippers in the 2020s argue that fans who accuse their communities of being misogynistic toward Kairi are using the 2006-2010 era stereotype as a strawman rather than actually engaging with their opinions in good faith, and that many fans who favor SoKai base their opinions about soriku-leaning meta on hearsay rather than actually reading the meta for themselves. As examples, SoRiku fans point to multiple instances where complaints about meta written by SoRiku shippers allege the meta contains opinions that were never expressed.Twitter conversation about how the SRT is bashed as Kairi hate yet the theory repeatedly talks about how Kairi's actions in the game matteredTwitter conversation about complaints against a Kairi analysis made by a SoRiku shipper which demonstrate that complainers did not read itTwitter conversation about hate for the Sleeping Realm Theory and how people saying it claims Kairi is evil did not actually read it
Other SoRiku fans have complained that the fandom applies a double standard to SoRiku shippers’ opinions about Kairi, arguing that fans who favor SoKai are able to criticize the way she's written in canon, portray her as a jealous yandere toward Sorareddit post shaowing rt of Kairi calling Strelitzia a "thieving cat" with several comments expressing approvalart of Kairi getting angry at Sora for living with Strelitzia in Quadratum or create fan theories where she turns evil without being labeled misogynistic, and that analysis which is called misogynistic when shared by SoRiku shippers is praised as objective fact when presented by sources that are not perceived as supporting the ship.Twitter thread from one of the Sleeping Realm Theory authors complaining about how they were accused of hating Kairi for pointing out something that was later accepted when it showed up in canon]
Others counterargue that there is a distinction between depicting Kairi as jealous for comedic purposes—or generally creating dark AUs in which a character falls to corruption—and an infamously prevalent practice of inventing negative qualities in Kairi as a way to demonize and devalue the character for the promotion of SoRiku.KAIRI IS NOT EVIL AND WILL NEVER BE EVIL. SHE IS ESPECIALLY NOT GOING TO FLY OFF THE HANDLE EVEN *IF* SHE FOUND OUT THAT SORA AND RIKU WERE SAME-SEX PARTNERS! WHAT PART OF "PRINCESS OF HEART" DID YOU MISS?
A few even argue that the accusations of misogyny in the 2020s are hypocritical,[A Tweet complaining about SoKai shippers defending a mistranslated line in KH3 that took away Kairi's agency https://twitter.com/raider_g_spice/status/1624938096218492928] and that fans who equate shipping SoRiku with erasing Kairi are acting as if she has no value to the narrative outside of being shipped with the male protagonist.[Hold Kairi to higher standards! https://web.archive.org/web/20220127194713/https:/twitter.com/heartsalty/status/1102080049757356032]
However some SoKai fans argue that SoRiku shippers are guilty of treating Riku the same way.
Some SoRiku shippers in the 2020s complain that talking about Kairi in any capacity is a no-win situation for those who ship Sora with Riku; that when they restrict their discussions about her to private spaces instead of sharing their opinions publicly, they are accused of trying to erase her and her relationship with Sora; but that when they do share their thoughts about Kairi on public platforms, non-SoRiku fans automatically accuse them of bashing and vilifying her, even when their opinions of her are positive, simply because they interpret her bond with Sora as platonictumblr post by blowingoffsteam responding to an ask about the Sleeping Realm Theory being accused of Kairi hate[Tweet by heartspocky complaining about an incident where SoRiku shippers contributing to a Kairi zine were accused of not being real Kairi fans] and/or they interpret her character differently than SoKai shippers do.
==Accusations of Homophobia ==
Because SoRiku is a slash pairing and a large portion of its supporters are LGBTQ+ themselves, the ship is frequently subjected to both overtly homophobic vitriol as well as homophobic dog whistles from other fans;tweet complaining about getting called a homophobic slur for liking SoRikureply to a QRT of a soriku tweet in which the commenter states that Soriku shippers' behavior supports the argument that homosexuality is a mental illnessTweet showing a screenshot of a KH fan calling SoRiku shippers toxic and referring to them with a homophobic slur For example, many negative comments about SoRiku attempt to frame the ship itself as inherently taboo and immoral and fans who support it as sexual predatorsTweet insinuating that SoRiku shippers have child porn on their computers – commonly by either promoting the double standard that queerness is inherently sexual and therefore inappropriate because of the characters’ canon ages while straight romance is inherently safe for children,Response to a "Reasons why Kingdom Hearts is Gay" forum threadQRT of a SoRiku tweet characterizing the OP as inherently wanting Sora and Riku to have sexanother QRT of the same tweet expressing the same sentiment and commenting on Sora and Riku being childrenreply to a Soriku fan saying "no one in KH is gay" and telling soriku fans to "stop shipping minors"a complaint about how the people calling soriku shippers creepy for seeing Sora as queer make jokes about sora going to strip clubs.a soriku artist sharing the direct messages they received from a Sokai shipper attacking them for shipping soriku, as well as comments on their soriku artTweet replying to a "Kingdom Hearts is gay" headcanon saying that to a straight fan the series is "wholesome", then immediately saying that "Sora is into pussy." or by using the headcanon that the two are like brothers to imply that romantic interpretations of their bond are promoting incest.response to conversations about SoRiku in a thread about the possibility of LGBT relationships in KH3another response to the same forum threadForum post on kh13 insisting that sora is Riku's kid brother and viewing them as a potential couple is gross.
Other comments promote double-standards against queer pairings and representation; For example, some KH fans claim that Sora and Riku becoming a couple would ruin the story’s themes because “the series is about friendship","kh is all friendship and even family" but have no issue with - or even support - the idea of romance between Sora and Kairi.a tweet showing screenshots of a sokai shipper commenting on youtube that sora and kairi sharing the paopu fruit was the narrative equivalent of a marriage proposal.a complaint about the double standard Others argue that various interactions between Sora and Riku commonly seen as romantic by SoRiku shippers are not proof of romance, but also use the same type of interaction between Sora and Kairi as proof of romantic feelings.
Many fans will also complain that people can be friends without it automatically leading to romance,KH fan complaining about male friendships being viewed as romantic by other fans yet react to platonic interpretations of Sora and Kairi’s bond as if the only alternative to him loving her romantically is not caring about her all.
Many fans are also hostile towards anything that associates Sora and/or Riku with the LGBTQ community in any capacitytumblr post anti-shippers have exactly two arguments. Social media posts that headcanon either character as queer or feature them decorated in pride flags without mentioning a specific ship will receive comments asserting that their interactions with a female character such as Kairi or Namine are proof of canonical heterosexualitytweet disparaging gimmick account for saying that Sora is bisexual2 het shipper using kairi and namine to prove sora and riku don't have feelings for each othera reply to a pair of soriku drawings on twitter insisting that Sora isn't gay because he's going to end up with KairiQRT of a SoRiku tweet by a spanish-speaking fan asking how anyone can think Sora and Riku are gay when Sora is in a relationship with Kairi. 
Some fans who support SoKai agree that the homophobia toward fans who interpret Sora and Riku as a couple is a problem among SoKai fans.Tweet expressing distress at seeing unprompted homophobic comments directed toward soriku in the comments on SoKai fan worksA SoKai fan calls out the homophobia in their ship's fanbase
Some fans feel that SoRiku shippers who accuse people of being homophobic go too far and make such accusations over any disagreement with their own opinions, even when the other person is also a SoRiku shipper. When accused of homophobia for their responses to SoRiku content, some will also argue that they cannot be homophobic because they are LGBTQ+ themselves and/or they ship a different same-gender pairing.fans complaining about homophobia accusations example Afans complaining about homophobia accusations example Bfans complaining about homophobia accusations example Cfans complaining about homophobia accusations example Dfans complaining about homophobia accusations example Efans complaining about homophobia accusations example Ffans complaining about homophobia accusations example G 
Other fans, whether they personally ship SoRiku or not, have countered that being queer and/or shipping non-straight pairings does not exempt people from holding anti-LGBTQ biases, and feel that fans who use it as their defense are doing so in order in order to shield themselves from being criticized for their behavior. Some have also said that it’s not the difference in shipping opinions that people are accused of being homophobic for, but the fact that they go out of their way to comment their dissent on any SoRiku fan works they find.Tweet complaining about a fan who harassed soriku content while claiming to not be homophobicTwo tweets complaining about how people feel the need to share their negative opinion of SoRiku any time they see fan content for the shiptwitter exchange of two fans complaining about other fans' refusal to tolerate soriku interpretations of the seriestweet from a shipping-neutral gimmick accounta tweet satirizing the behavior and words of anti-SoRiku fansa reply to a tweet calling SoRiku fans crazy for allegedly accusing people of homophobia for not shipping SoRiku
==Opinions on the War==
The SoRiku vs SoKai conflict represents only a portion of the Kingdom Hearts fandom.
Among the general fandom, the most common perception of the ship war blames new incidents on SoRiku shippers being overzealous in their desire to prove that their ship is canon,responses to a storyboard artist who made a cancelled KH tv show pilot in the early 2000s learning about soriku for the first time and acting as if he’s putting a target on his back.an article “defending” heterosexual interpretations of sora and riku’s reunion in kingdom hearts 2 written in response to a twitch streamer getting dogpiled by sokai shippers after he interpreted Sora and Riku’s reunion as romantic. or believes that both sides are equally at fault for the latest instance of shipping wank.soriku and sokai fans stop fighting for 5 seconds holy shittweet saying that both sides are terribleI feel like SoKai and SoRiku fans have some sort of built-in radar that allows them to sense when the opposite side is having a good time so they can rush in and try to put a stop to it. It happens all the fucking time; they're both awful and bear equal responsibility in the chaos that ensues.Forum post on kh13.com complaining blaming SoRiku and SoKai shippers for the shipping wars.
In the 2020s, some SoRiku shippers and other fans feel that the content algorithms on social media sites such as Twitter or Tumblr are to blame for continued hostilities between the two sides, pointing out how the tabs for trending topics display posts regardless of context, causing posts intended only for the original poster's circle of mutuals to be exposed to a much larger audience that lacks the context to recognize when the original poster is making a joke or being serious.complaining about jokes being taken seriously Others blame it on fans opposed to SoRiku actively choosing to interact with SoRiku-focused content instead of using whichever filtering tools are available to them on a given website to avoid content for the ship.s0kais need to back off and stop looking at soriku stufftweet pointing out that interacting with SoRiku content will cause the algorithm to show you more of ithttps://web.archive.org/web/20230827000328/https://twitter.com/anemosandwich/status/1695575732544561651 soriku shipper finds out a fan who hates their ship was following their Twitter account]another soriku shipper finds out a fan who hates their ship was following their Twitter account
Many fans, regardless of shipping preference, have expressed a desire for both sides to stop fighting and get along. In an effort to promote compromise between SoRiku and SoKai shippers, some fans advocate for everyone involved to ship SoRiKai so that neither side feels that their OTP is being excluded,How to solve a "shipping war"The Sokai and the Soriku wars can finally end nowexample of Sorikais framing the poly ship as a compromisereblog of a ship popularity poll on tumblr pitting soriku against sorikai with tags stating that sorikai is "soriku but extra better"reblog of the same poll with tags stating that sorikai is the best of both worlds between soriku and sokaireblog of the same poll with tags placing the poly ship as superior and urging voters not to leave Kairi by herself frequently using the phrase "Sora has two hands" to declare that Sora loves both Riku and Kairi equally.Sora has two hands example A
Both of these approaches have been criticized by SoRiku fans for ignoring the homophobia they've experienced for interpreting Sora and Riku as queer, as well as the hostility they've faced from SoKai shippers toward the idea that Sora has romantic feelings for anyone other than Kairi.
Fans promoting SoRiKai have been criticized in particular because of how they deliberately jump into the comments of posts that exclusively ship SoRiku in order to push their own ship,example Aexample Bexample Cexample Dexample E but rarely ever do the same to SoKai or RiKai shippers.A sorikai shipper demonstrating this phenomenon and being criticized for it This behavior has also been criticized for treating polyamory and bisexuality as a shield to frame their ship as inherently morally superior. As a result, SoRiku shippers who have received comments promoting SoRiKai on their SoRiku content complain that the fans advocating this come across as SoKai fans who begrudgingly recognize the queer subtext of Sora and Riku's bond but refuse to tolerate a platonic interpretation of Sora and Kairi's, rather than people who genuinely enjoy shipping the Destiny Trio as a romantic polycule.Sorikai shipper announcing that they're going to block anyone who makes the "sora has two hands" comment on soriku tweetscriticism of sorikais 
In response, some SoRiKai shippers have accused SoKai and SoRiku shippers of being biphobic and mononormative due to supposedly disproportionately intense backlash against a bisexual polyamorous ship.
Meanwhile many SoRiku shippers in the 2020s have complained about how supposedly outdated fandom stereotypes from 2004-2010s are used to demonize SoRiku shippers and justify automatically treating everything they say as either a continuation of the stereotypical bashing of Kairi, or as a tinhat conspiracy theory twisting or ignoring facts to prove that their ship is canonA SoRiku fan describing what their experience with the conflict has been:
Some SoRiku shippers have also criticized how even fans that present themselves as neutral and wanting people to co-exist still feel the need to emphasize the assumption that all SoKai interpretations are canon and all SoRiku interpretations are fanon.A twitch streamer sharing a screenshot of a Kingdom Hearts fan declaring that everyone is free to interpret characters how they want while stating that Sora is straight in canon
Meanwhile, many LGBTQ fans of SoRiku have expressed feeling hurt and unwelcome in Kingdom Hearts fan spaces because of how often they're told that they're delusional for interpreting Sora and Riku as queer.
Other SoRiku shippers who have been active for multiple periods of the fandom's history have also argued that the homophobia from SoKai shippers is worse in the 2020s than it was in the previous decades.twitter thread from a soriku artist summarizing their feelings about the increase in homophobiait’s genuinely so upsetting to see how the harassment of soriku artists by homophobic so/kai fans has gotten so bad
As a result, some SoRiku shippers in the 2020s have begun to resist labeling the conflict between SoRiku and SoKai fans as a ship war due to their own experiences consisting exclusively of SoKai shippers going out of their way to attack SoRiku shippers for interpreting the characters as anything other than heterosexual.
==Meta==
*Kingdom Hearts "shipping" analysis - an essay arguing that SoKai is the creators' intent (2 May, 2017)
*A reblog chain of SoRiku blogs on tumblr discussing the comments they receive for believing that SoRiku has a chance at becoming endgame. (23 June, 2022)
*The Kairi Question - an analysis of what Kairi's role in the story is if Sora and Riku are meant to become a romantic couple. (22 July, 2022)
*It’s my birthday so I decided I’m allowed a little salt. As a treat. – a collection of memes venting about how many arguments against SoRiku from SoKai shippers blatantly disregard canon material and Word of God statements. (28 July, 2022)
*Well I haven’t seen this happen in a while – a SoRiku fan explaining why many SoRiku shippers dislike SoRiKai shippers forcing their poly Sora headcanons into SoRiku-exclusive conversations. (29 November, 2022)
*SoRiku vs SoKai ship discourse generator by palizinhas
==In fan works and fanon==
*Jealous Kairi, evil Kairi, yandere Kairi.
*Kairi dies, sometimes after being gruesomely tortured and murdered for her crimes
*Fans headcanon that Riku overheard Kairi's joke about abandoning him and running away with Sora, and that this contributed to his decision to open the door in the Secret Place which triggered Destiny Islands' fall to darkness; their lack of onscreen one-on-one interactions in later games is used as evidence that they never properly talked about how she hurt him with that comment. Some headcanon this moment as evidence of Kairi scheming to drive Sora and Riku apart.
*Riku as a mere cheerleader for Sora and Kairi's romance.
*Riku and Kairi don't actually like each other, and they only tolerate each other for Sora's sake.
*Some fans in the 2010s and 2020s headcanon that Riku is being built up to die or be sidelined now that his redemption arc is complete so that Kairi and her relationship with Sora can receive more screentime.
===Gallery===
File:2004-08-23 TheNinjaKitty SoRiku SoKai.jpg|KILL KAIRI by TheNinjaKitty (2004)
File:2006-05-03 kitsune-nilde Possessive Riku.jpg|:KH: Possessive by kitsune-nilde (2006)
File:2006-05-28 TigerStripedTeaPot KH2 Kill Kairi.jpg|KH2: Kill Kairi by TigerStripedTeaPot (2006)
File:2006-08-01 kimchii simple KH2 4 panel comic.png|simple KH2 4 panel comics...WBM by kimchii (2006)
File:2007-08-17 Mikeinel Kairi beating Sora.gif|Kairi beating Sora by Mikeinel (2007)
File:Jade-of-impala KHficStereotypesKairi.png|KH FANFIC STEREOTYPES by jade-of-impala (2016)
File:FanartDeceptionSamePictureMeme.jpg|alt=a meme from The Office where Pam is asked to find the difference between two images and says that they are the same picture. One of the papers reads "a drawing of maid Sora and Riku that isn't even romantic" and the other reads "decieving newcomers into believing that Soriku is canon". Over Pam's face is the caption "Random Homophobe on Twitter"|panel of a humorous meme by CastleOathkeep1 about Soriku artists being accused of lying to new fans about the ship's status in canon for posting art of Sora and Riku together (2022)
==Notes==
==References==
Category:Kingdom Hearts
Category:Shipwars
Category:2000s Events
Category:2010s Events
Category:2020s Events
Category:Pages that need more points of view