"I've had so much romance on Dragon Age, I'm gonna take it easy on Mass Effect. I'll just flirt a little with this Kaidan guy nothing serious... Oh shit I'm in love."
After I romanced Miranda Lawson in my first playthrough, I made a Femshep to romance Kaidan. Those two are my favorite romances. I also like Liara, but Male Shepard/Miranda and Female Shepard/Kaidan are my OTPs. That, and Garrus/Tali.
IF THIS AINT ME LMAO Or I go to play another playthrough to romance someone else and always go back to the same character cause I feel like Im cheating 😂
Only a true friend can call you out on your worst impulses. Kaidan saw Cerberus for what it was and decided to stand his ground, not joining Shepard. I used to hate him for it, but years later I grew to respect Kaidan's unwavering integrity and vigilance. We all could use a Kaidan in our lives.
Yeah that scene is a shit ton different when its Ashley that stands opposite of you she's just biased and unwilling to listen at least kaiden listens and acknowledges you even though he still walks away and goes against you in ME2
Sometimes I cry when I watch Mass Effect videos. Finishing this trilogy was like knowing I would never see my very best friends again. I may have cried a little.
I'm just starting to play through them. My older brother got me started and now I'm hooked. Halfway through 1 and mostly through 2. (I started on 2 because I didn't have 1 yet)
That’s the first time?? I though he called her ‘the love of his life’ once, or was I mistaken. Something like ‘Shepard, love of my life, give your boyfriend a break’ or something like that.
@@nemofish3504 not that I recall, it might be banter… but during the whole romance, Garrus uses every form of metaphor or paraphrase to imply his love for Shepard, but the “I love you” doesn’t come until that last goodbye in ME3. Shepard tells him “I love you” back at the Presidium in ME3 tho.
@@nemofish3504 In the Citadel DLC party he jokingly calls Shepard "love of my life" when he's rigging her apartment to explode. But he never directly said "I love you" until the beam run.
*them*: Omg, Kaidan Alenko is sooo booooring why would you ever romance him *Kaidan:* --Second human Spectre --One of the most powerful human biotics in the galaxy --Taught himself how to Reave --By the way, the only other character to learn Reave naturally was Samara. You know, the asari Justicar. --Spikes to the same power level as asari commandos. --Once had a run in with the Vorcha mafia --Stands up for what he believes in --EVEN AGAINST SHEPARD --Teaches people how to play poker --Knows how to cook --Knows how to dance --Glows blue when he’s drunk --Also when he fucks --Leads a specially trained biotics division --Is one of the lucky few to survive having an L2 implant --His family brews beers and makes wine --Has migraines due to his fault implant, but doesn’t let them get in the way of his job. --Calls migraines mere "headaches" instead of the crippling impairment they are. --Survived getting his head mashed into the side of a shuttle by a rogue AI. --Survived a Collector Attack. --Killed a turian with one blow when he was 17 years old, after being thoroughly beaten into a pulp by said turian (so probably not at 100% condition). --Didn’t let the experience define him or color his perceptions on aliens and turians in general. --Understands that he makes mistakes and can be a bit judgmental at times, but does his best to move on. --Doesn’t deliberately burden Shepard with any emotional baggage he hasn’t already dealt with himself. --Likes to be the boss in the bedroom. --Is pretty nerdy about tech. Me: Yeah, you are right, sooo boring, rolls eyes.
Kaidan might not be the most interesting romance option but his love for shepherd is so amazing... I mean when he says "I can't lose you again" ... it's so full of emotion and makes me tear up every time.
Ditto, yet my favorite line of his that summarizes his entire romance nicely is this one... "Through all these years, through everything... I'm the luckiest man alive" In those years he's: -watched helplessly as Shepard died TWICE -was convinced Shepard was dead the first time and spent years grieving until Shepard suddenly turned up again supposedly working with the enemy -was brutally beaten into a coma by a comrade for months -Head splitting migraines only worsened as time went on-began to suffer habitual physical agony -The war against the Reapers only got more and more hopeless as he witnessed more people die -discovered some if not all of his old squamates were potentially dead or worse -The Shepard he loves now may not even be the real Shepard But with that line you can tell through it all, Shepard and those memories made him persist not matter how bad it got. The love they shared gave him strength when everything and everyone seemed doomed. Made him hope, smile, and care even as worthless as it all felt. (Damnit Bioware making me cry for people that don't even exist again...)
I love how dynamic and different all the romances are in the ME series. Kaidan is the stable, equal partner type. He's the one that will call Shepherd out on any BS, but genuinely loves her. He doesn't lose sight of himself when he's in love. He's his own person. Great writing and voice acting.
@@frittatas8551 It was weird seeing him as Jimmy Cricket in the Once upon a Time TV show. And not sure but i think he can sing as he was in a cartoon movie version of Babes in Toyland (1996 or 97) and his character sang as well but not sure if that was him sing or not. Sure sounded like him though.
Isaac Lucero If you pick the wrong answer while having a conversation with him he will turn from Charming soldier to a whining manchild. But I forgave him once I learned that he had trust issues. I also like Carth as well in my light side playtrough I had him with me all the time.
***** My guess is that 90% of the Bioware community went dark side. And just because Carth critisized them they started To be rude to him not only in the game in general as well (because BioWare's fanbase is filled with Cancerous people who can't take critisizm ) . That's also the reason why KOTOR's dark side ending is considered Canon. (SWTOR Proves it and then some)
Holy crap I've never heard that message from Kaidan after Horizon until now. Stunning voice-acting. It really shows that a character doesn't need to be quirky, alien, or a borderline personality to be interesting. He's just a solid marine, friend/lover, and good human being. One of the most underrated characters in ME.
+Damage Split THANK YOU. Don't get me wrong, I love characters like Garrus, Jack, and Thane, but people confuse "mostly normal" with "boring." Kaidan's just a soldier trying to do his job, deal with his problems, and deal with the craziness around Shepard, unlike the criminals, vigilantes, semi-terrorists, and who isn't an outspoken jackass about his views like Ash and tries to understand other's perspectives. Yeah, there's the whole Horizon/Cerberus mess, he could have handled that better, but frankly, someone had to point out how shady that was, and Kaidan/Ash got that job. I love the diverse cast, and wouldn't claim Kaidan is perfect, but as far as a "normal" caring guy who tries to do what HE thinks is right, not just what Shepard says, Kaidan's damn good.
+Damage Split Agreed! Every time someone says Kaidan is whiny or boring, I just think: "You mean he's emotionally effected by the childhood trauma of killing a maniac in self defense, or he's worried about a faulty impact that could melt his brain, or he's distraught about losing the woman he loves and confused that she's been mysteriously rebuilt by terrorists, or he's worried about his career and family on Earth, or stressed about the end of the world? It's not perfect, but that seems reasonable to me." It's cool that Garrus and Thane and Miranda can be suave mercenaries, or Jack a battle hardened engineered psychopath, but give Kaidan a break, not everyone can be like that. He's a little more uncertain and emotional. Not everyone has to like it, but it's not a bad character, just different one. He's a little needy in the romance, especially in Mass Effect 3, that gets annoying sometimes, but not everyone can take being rejected by saying, "Of course, Shepard, your emotions are all that matters, I'm just happy you deigned to love me at all!" or wait until Shepard says, "Ok, I want sex from you now, LOVE ME."
Kaidan is certainly underrated. He's much more subtle than Garrus and at first glance he doesn't seem very interesting, but he's noble and kind-hearted to the last. He's a true good guy...and Canadian. Represent!
Oh my god!!! A smart person Hallelujah! Most people hate Kaiden because of Carth from Star Wars KOTOR (They are voiced by the same guy) And most people didn't even spend time trying to figure out his personality because they were too busy Fapping at either Miranda, Liara or Tali.
I love how much he talked in ME1. Just talked. And still talking. And I just watch his face with the occasional word or two. Wish they made him just as talkative in ME3, but hey, still cute.
@@AnimeWhiteRose Dragon Age gets in my top 5 but nothing beats Mass Effect. Mass effect 1 gameplay might be a hard ask but the voice acting is so much better than origins. Loved playing inquisition but for long term attachment to characters, the Iconic commander shepherd, there's just no contest
I think most of the romances have their merits, and I get why Kaidan isn't eveyone's cup of tea, and Garrus is lovely, and Thane is a sweetheart, I enjoy their romances, but people throw Kaidan under the bus so fast. I think it's partly because Kaidan doesn't faultlessly agree with Shepard/the player, while Garrus or Thane do. But at least Shepard's actions seem to effect Kaidan, the way people get hurt by someone else's actions in real life, instead of worshipping the protagonist. I don't always (sometimes, but not always) want to romance an anti-establishment vigilante or an assassin who is 90% tragedy, who never question how Shepard acts. Sometimes I want a fairly down to earth guy, who calls Shepard on her questionable actions, and who Shepard doesn't talk to as if her ovaries are exploding.
Kelsi Burner Exactly why I prefer Kaidan over Garrus or Thane. To me his romance is a lot more realistic, they have issues between them, talk through it to solve them. Garrus or Thane as romance is just too perfect for me to be interested in, altho Garrus's akwardness is kinda cute.
It's unfair to compare them, they are different characters. Kaidan's pure, all into Alliance, always do the right thing kind of guy. And Garrus can be pushed to either side, he could do a wrong thing for a better outcome. That's why he doesn't question, maybe?
shinyDiamond89 Totally agree. To be honest I think Garrus had so much unwavering trust in Shepard partly because turians are a militaristic race, and Shepard had such a huge impact on Garrus prior to the romance.
If they don’t add the Kaiden voicemail audio to the “legendary” edition, they’re missing out! It’s a good piece of voice acting, from the VAs for both Kaiden and Ashley.
My first play through was the legendary edition. I took the letter as a break up letter. It seemed lost and angry, and like he wanted to move on. So when he SAID I CHEATED, I WAS FLOORED. Had I heard the letter voice acted, I would have never fallen in love with Thane....ahhh, Thane 😢
Am I the only one convinced that Kaiden is in love with Shepherd regardless of who he/she romances? All the signs are there and I honestly think that Kaiden is suppose to be the cannon romance.
For a Female Shepard, yes. But with Male Shepard, it's Liara, because she gives out *countless* hints. Still chose Miranda, though. *EDIT:* And no, I didn't cheat. I *only* chose her!
Raven Strife - You are most likely correct. Which is why I had absolutely no problem whatsoever to strap him to the nuke on Vermire and blast him into orbit, it is still the only way to be sure.
WTF? I'm into women, yet I *totally* understood that the only way to leave Virmire was with Kaidan. That racist bitch can burn for all I care. There's no good reason besides initiating a romance that she should be alive. Unless you were planning on shooting her yourself in ME3?
I prefer Liara mainly because she was always there with Shepard, even when you were a burnt up corpse she went to get your remains before the collectors did.
Chose Kaidan as my love interest in my very first playthrough. People (mostly male players) say he's boring, don't agree at all. Plus, I just don't like Liara all that much. Since Garrus wasn't an option in ME1, Kaidan was the best choice. Except for his ongoing trust issues he's amazing and balances out most femsheps very well. I'll never regret choosing him for my vanilla ME experience.
Kaidan isn't boring. He's just a very serious character. And he's the best romance option for a Female Shepard! (Garrus should be with Tali, James doesn't have an actual romance, Jacob shouldn't really have a romance because of what happened in ME3, and all the other options are lesbians, which is very very WRONG.)
Wtf, who are you to decide for others ? ^^ it's not middle age anymore. The most important is consent between adults, then the rest none of our business.
@@lancecurry7538 disgusting, uneducated and hateful middle-aged comment. Thank god some people can interpret the bible otherwise we'd still have slaves and no electricity. I'm sad you are part of humanity but glad I don't know you. Bye.
Even though I spent the last half of ME2 and the start of ME3 wanting to punch his judgemental little face in, goddamnit I always went back to romancing him and no matter how many times I played it, I could never romance anyone else. -Ah Kaidan why u no real?-
Personally, when I played a Female Paragon Infiltrator (my first walkthrough was a Male Paragon Vanguard), I didn't judge Kaidan. I understood why he thought I (or rather, Leila Shepard) betrayed the Alliance. I *was* working with those Cerberus scumbags, after all (not counting Jacob, Miranda, Kelly, Ken, Gabby, and all the others on the Normandy).
Can you imagine just how Joker felt when Shepard sacrificed herself to save him? Can you imagine how he felt when he had to tell Kaidan she was dead? I wouldn’t be surprised if Joker went on a drinking binge after the Alliance and the Council kept him grounded and descended like vultures on everything Reaper related.
"You're the boss. Except when you're not. And it that case...find me later." Hehe it looks like Liara is embarassed that Kaiden told Shepard that in front of her :,D i love it!
+kagu darzell I don't know why, but Garrus just never appealed to me. Seeing so many Garrus fangirls at first left me completely confused.I had no idea what had happened. I even checked out his romance, but nope, nothing.
tbh..... at first i was not an garrus fangirl either... i thought he looked to .... lizard like..... but for me it all changed when he started to speak XD
I like that they drifted apart in me2 and struggled to get back together in me3. It's not easy for Shepard to convince Kaidan and I like it. I feel that struggle makes the love more real. That's why he's my favourite romance option. The tension they have between makes the relationship all the more realistic. Though that deadeyed "What's your opinion on the last mission?" always gets me. xD
I really don't understand all the hate for kaidan it's fucking BS! damn.. he's so cute and that love he has for shepard is just so beautiful. it really brings tears to my eyes in these amazing romance scenes! from the bottom of my heart: I LOVE YOU KAIDAN! FUCK ALL THE HATERS.. YOU ARE SIMPLY PERFECT!
I did let kaiden die in one of my playthroughs but only because i couldn't romance others if i don't! So annoying really.. Anyway. Kaidan is the only one in this game where you really feel the romance - so to speak. The connection between them and the storyline is just played out so perfectly. If you go for another playthrough sometime Drugdev then go for Kaidan :-)
Played through it for the first time. Bawling after the end. Will replay it in a couple of days. My husband is telling me not to, to play something else, but I can’t let go. Thankfully, I married my Kaidan, stable, thoughtful, supportive. I would never choose anything else. But, I didn’t get some scenes in the third one. In the assassination attempt and the line about his parents and students. I think, it’s the order I did some of the missions.
You know what Kaidan is the most lovely male in ME. He is so sensitive to lose shepard again, when he is confessing his feelings in ME3 again he looks so vulnerable like he will broke if rejected just like Miranda. He is the most caring of them all and I don't think there is more lovely FemShep romance than Kaidan.
i feel so bad for liara when it comes to the confrontation, i instantly told her i wasn't interested in her that way so i never had the confrontation happen o:
As a completely heterosexual male, I like Kaidans romance more than most of the female Romances. Like wtf why were Ash and Liara so cryptic they didn't say what they truly felt and how much they felt it. Liara and Ash were always so stuck into their work. They hardly ever flirted and they both were constantly so serious. Even after romancing them in the first game they strongly questioned if things were different between them and Shepard between each game. They didn't say "I still love you" or anything unlike Kaidan who straight told it how it is. Love that. Wish more women would do that. I don't know maybe they are just timid in terms of relationship, but I prefer people who speak there mind and that was such a turn off from both of them. I felt like a good deal of the conversations with them (Romanced) were just like talking with a friend not the woman you have given your heart to. So bland.
LuLu C2 I made my male Shepard abstinent through the first two games just so I could have the Kaidan romance in ME3. Totally worth it. I've seen the video of the Cortez romance, but I can't justify Cortez over Kaidan. I may play through as a female Shepard just so I can romance him through ME1 as well. He's so amazing.
I can't understand people who confuse normal with boring. Kaidan is the kind of guy I go for in real life. Stable, a real sweetheart and loyal. The only part of Kaidans romance I don't like is him not standing by your side in 2. It's probably another reason why most people go for Garrus and Tali, they don't question, they follow Shepard through hell whoever is in charge
Agreed. Kaidan is a handsome, quiet, reflective, has a good heart and is loyal to a fault. But he's got enough gumption to question things he finds troubling, and respects an opinion even if he disagrees with it. I'd enjoy his company better than many of the other options.
@Rosario Manorang Manik I could not have said it better. I don't need a cheerleader in a relationship, i need a partner on equal footing and disagreements are part of that.
Yes! Kaidan is realistic and down to earth. He’s the man I would find an equal but challenges point of views. I love Garrus and he’s my dream boy, but Kaidan is similar to my real life relationship. He’s honest, willing to be vulnerable and charming in a introverted way. He’s perfectly complex and I love him for it. I truly wish he was more fleshed out in ME2.
Ahhh this brings back all the great memories...memories...of all the elevator rides...and conveniently placed camera angles in the elevator...He got de booty XD
This romance is so underrated. It's actually really good! I always assumed Kaidan and Ashley were boring romances, because at first, they just seemed like boring characters. I admit now though that I was being stupid because I think they are some of the best when it comes to how they are written and developed (especially Kaidan, who seems more underrated than Ashley.) I romanced Kaidan in ME1 just to basically not be bored and get the achievement when I fully intended to romance Garrus the rest of the series. Now that I'm starting ME2 again I'm so torn... I don't know who I'm going to pick. Kaidan really does love Shepard
Probably one of the most beautiful things about the destruction of the Normandy scene is that Shepard presses the evac console to get Joker out of there. That is a true friend and hero/heroine to the last breath... literally.
After romancing all available alien species in ME series I finally decided to watch Kaiden Alenko romance... And, wow, I didn't know humans could also be charming : D
Helga Agner Awww I know how you feel, I love Kaidan so much! ^^ His love for Shepard is amazing and he was always my favorite romance in ME series. In fact I had a crush on him since he was Carth in KOTOR XD
So, this is what Google says about Kaidan: "Kaidan (怪談) (sometimes transliterated kwaidan) is a Japanese word consisting of two kanji: 怪 (kai) meaning “strange, mysterious, rare or bewitching apparition" and 談 (dan) meaning “talk” or “recited narrative.” This explains so much, doesn't it?
The surname "Alenko" suggests Ukrainian origin; surnames ending in "enko" usually are. "Alenko" would mean "the son of Al". In Ukrainian language, the word "kaidan" ("кайдан") means "a shackle". Numerous interactions with Kaidan in Mass Effect 3 (his date with Shepard, during a poker game after Rannoch, and during Shepard's party at Anderson's apartment) suggest he's of Canadian nationality. Canada has a very large Ukrainian diaspora. From the Mass Effect Wiki site
Raphael Sbarge's acting when he starts breaking up and says "I can't lose you again" right before this combined with that face is just like...agony. Damn it, BioWare. Why are your stories so fucking good?
Kaidan's such a sweetheart and an underrated character. Garrus is my favorite character but he's Shepard's bro and I just see him better as that so I romanced Kaidan. He's a lot more emotional than Garrus as well.
I went from first meeting him in ME1 like yawn, is this really the only male option we get? To ME2 - WHERE IS MY BELOVED KAIDEN I CANT BELIEVE I CANT KEEP ROMANCING YOUUUU. And then ME3 just made me appreciate him even more. The things he says are so sweet 🥺
My reaction the whole time during the intro every time I replay ME2: "That helmet SUCKS!!! Of course Shepard suffocated!! You can see her freaking hair sticking out of the back!!! >.
hahaha. You're right. I remember watching your videos after playing it through myself, to check I hadnt missed anything! :D I guess Im back here now because I miss Mass Effect!
N7 Rhio I miss it too, such a long time since I played. That's mainly the reason why I do all those videos, so I can go back to my fave moments without installing and playing the game(s) again :)
Ahh... I just finished it in French less than an hour ago... I always loved Kaidan, for his body as well as for his personnality (even though he clearly is the uke here). At the end of ME1, when I saw his resignation, I was sad for him. On Horizon, I was even sadder that he didn't join my crew. I wanted him back so much. On Mars, I knew he wouldn't die, but I was really scared for him. The whole romance in ME3 was really like a sweet candy given to me, a reward. And finally, at the end, before and when he leaves the battlefield, it broke my heart. I knew I was going to die and - to see him like that, with his handsome and sad face begging me not to leave him - I just couldn't take it. Kaidan, you've been one of my biggest crushes in the video game universe and I hope to hear from you in the next ME.
I find I am constantly coming across your videos when I'm looking up stuff related to Mass Effect or SWTOR Fluffy, and I just wanted to say thank you so much for the time and effort you put into recording everything! I particularly wanted to mention how great it was that you added in Raphael Sbarge's audio over the Horizon message. Thanks a lot!
Enclave Trooper Ahem, Default Shepard is white, Desmond Miles is white, Edward Kenway is white, Arno Dorian is white, Booker DeWitt is white, default Grey Warden is white, default Hawke is white, default Inquisitor is white, default Arisen is white, Leon Kennedy is white, Chris Redfield is white, Alex Mercer is white, Aiden Pearce is white, Nathan Drake is white, Sully is white, Sam Drake is white, Gordon Freeman is white, Hero from Fable TLC is white, Hero from Fable 2 is white, Hero Prince from Fable 3 is white, Sam Fisher is white, Corvo Attano is white, Point Man is white, Becker is white, Frank West is white, Chuck Greene is white, dude from Far Cry 3 is white, Snake is white, all the guys from STALKER are white, Geralt is white, Isaac is white. If you're gonna talk about a people who aren't in games, don't say white people that's just insulting.
I'm a man and romanced Liara when I played as FemShep. But Kaidan is a way better love interest than Ashley is for MaleShep. The dialog is great. I'm going to play again as MaleShep and this video gave me a reason to be single during Mass Effect 1.
God I love Kaidan haha. Might partially be because it is the same voice actor who did Carth in KOTOR and I loved him too. The last two scenes with him.. saying goodbye.. let's just say someone sprayed water in my eyes or something.
Come to think of it. If touching Biotics gives you electric static and I think James have a... reaction.. when Liara lifted him off balcony... I think there's more about Shepard and Kaidan love scenes that they didn't tell us about. I guess that's why both of them have weird faces while discussing the topic.
Thanks for sharing this! I'm looking up all the various romances her on YT because I just can't tear myself away from my usual LI's when I replay the trilogy.
I know this is super old, but Brandon Keener, Garrus's VA was in Saints Row as well. He played Tobias, so its pretty interesting to hear "Garrus" freak out and kill Billy.
Feels. The feeling of the first opening of the game. The music... Sigh, I don't think I can ever let this series go. The amount of time invested in the game, it doesn't calculate to the amount of feelings that we get from it. The story, the fleshed out characters, the music, and the friendship that we've made with this fictional characters. Only one thing that can describe what this game means to me, it's : Priceless.
I still romance Kaidan every time as FemShep. He’s a good, honest man who wants to do the right thing. That’s why he doesn’t come with you when you’re with Cerberus.
That’s how I feel about Dragon Age Inquisition when I make a female human or elven mage inquisitor and romance Commander Cullen. EVERY TIME I end up choosing him, out of all the other romance-able characters, it’s always him I choose in the end. ❤
I'll be honest, when I first played ME1 I was NOT crazy about Kaiden. He grew on me in ME3, but the only reason he lived that long was that although I felt he had (as I'm fond of joking) all the personality of a cardboard cutout of Edward Cullen snacking on dry Cheerios straight out of the box, he didn't actively irritate me-and I couldn't stand Ashley. So I saved him on Virmire because he wasn't as awful as Ashley. He kinda grew on me in ME3, though. A lot of characters I wasn't crazy about at first kinda grew on me more as the series progressed. Miranda, Jack, Wrex, Kaiden, Grunt, Samara, Joker, Dr. Chakwas, Thane...I didn't start out liking any of them particularly, but they got better with time. Hell, I started appreciating Thane's character just in time to be pissed off when he died. The only characters of whom my opinion never really changed were Ashley (I played through to ME3 with her once, and wished I'd left her on Virmire-her knockoff-Kim-Kardashian makeover didn't make her any less irritating, unfortunately) and Tali and Garrus (who became my favorite characters pretty much the instant they showed up, and have remained my favorites since-no matter how many times I replay the ME games, those two will never get old for me).
+Meredith Dustin I loved him since the very beginning. It's probably because of KotOR's Carth :) You could say that I loved him since he was Carth ;) I never could stand Ashley either. I hated Miranda and Jacob since the beginning and they never grew on me. I've always loved Jack, Wrex, Grunt, Samara, Joker, Thane, Legion, Mordin and Javik. I guess the only characters that I changed my mind about were Zaeed and James. I didn't like them particularly at first.
+FluffyNinjaLlama I don't get how certain people can "hate" certain characters. Outside of characters like Wreav and Kai Leng, there are no characters that are despicable. Miranda doesn't do anything worthy of being hated besides mistrust you at first. But she opens up and actually becomes pretty human in ME3. She's a decent love interest but I wish she got more screen time. Jacob, I can understand if you romanced him, but for Broshep, he's more boring than unlikable. However, I will agree with you on Kaiden. I thought he was pretty awesome for the most part. He's a great squadmate in ME1, but I can see why some find him boring. I found him just normal which made him very relatable. He wasn't some badass alien. Ashley is another character I don't understand the "hate" for. She has some annoying traits, but she's equally as human as Kaiden. She's just the opposite of him. But I will say I choose Kaiden almost always on Virmire. He's either my femshep's love interest, or my broshep's friend who's been there since the start of the series.
+sbn4 To be fair, the only reason I "hated" Ashley is because she reminded me a lot of my ex-girlfriend, who was the type for whom nothing was ever good enough. In retrospect the relationship was pretty abusive, although I didn't see that at the time. Kaiden actually kind of grew on me because between playing ME for the first time and playing ME3 for the first time, I met my now-fiancé, who's got quite a bit in common with Kaiden (both military, both from tough backgrounds but extremely good-hearted and sincere individuals, both urban North American-born men of Ukrainian blood who like good food, honest conversation and occasionally bad jokes, both try to see the best in other people, etc.). I guess in both cases I less felt particularly strongly about the characters themselves and felt more strongly about the people they reminded me of. As for "relatable"...Tali (my #1 favorite character) was actually the one I felt was most relatable to me (personally) because she reminds me a lot of myself. I guess that's really why Tali, Garrus and Joker are my 3 favorite characters is because honestly they remind me the most of myself, personality-wise. Tali is tough, a little awkward and unsure of her place in the world, but full of enthusiasm and good intentions. Garrus is very sarcastic and tries to keep a cool composure under even the worst of circumstances, but occasionally even he still cracks and admits he's got no idea what he's doing or what the outcomes will be. Joker was looked down on for a good chunk of his life (because of his disease) and has had to prove himself ten times over to be considered equal with his crewmates, but he keeps fighting and is just as essential a part of the Normandy crew as Shepard, Chakwas or Liara. I totally just realized that I judge every single ME character by who they remind me of...wow.
Ha! Can't really argue with that. I can see why you would hate Ashley based on that then. Can't say much else. And your analysis of Kaidan is exactly why I find him so damn likable. Plus that man has saved my ass quite a few times in ME1. And its nice to hear that you have found someone who makes you content, and I can totally understand why you would like characters that you relate to more in your day to day life. Personally, I didn't like Tali at first. I played femshep first and Tali did nothing for me. I played as broshep and still didn't care for her. I finally decided to romance her, and now she's like top 5 best characters in the series for me. I never cared about her struggles before, but now that I have paid better attention, I like her a lot more. Garrus is best character EVAR. Not much to be said about him. Joker... I'm not a huge fan of. He's not really funny even though he tries really hard. He's got his moments, but outside of one or two scenes, I never really liked the guy much. As blasphemous as it is to some people, the only character I don't care for is Liara. She was interesting in ME1. But in any other game, she's just there for me. I never use her in ME3 unless I'm forced to.
sbn4 Liara isn't the BEST character but she certainly isn't the worst either. Her Shadow Broker storyline in ME2 was pretty interesting, and the whole dynamic with her mother in ME1, but there's certainly characters with a lot more to say than her. Bottom line is it's all opinion...like everyone's got their own reasons for liking and disliking different characters, no 2 players have exactly the same opinions. There are people (although I will never understand them) who think Garrus is a shite character and who love Ashley's character. There are people who think Garrus and Liara are two of the best characters ever created, and people who think that Ashley and Jacob are abominations of characterisation. Needless to say I agree with NONE of these. Everyone feels differently about different characters, but there's enough memorable characters in the series that everyone's got something in it. Ya know?
My headcanon is they eventually found her like the mod says and both retired from service and got married. They moved to Canada and started a family. I gotta believe it.
I like Kaidan and his romance. I hate that shenko fans have to put up with so much bs about him being boring, its just narrow minded people that cant see the subtlety in his character. All the romances are great (with a few exceptions AHEM allers) but saying that I love the Garrus romance. But that's my opinion. And people need to realize that everyone has opinions, even if they're opinion is stupid.
I always kill off Ashley over Kaidan. Even if I'm not romancing him, Kaidan is just a better person than Ashley. Sorry Ash, but it's in your name. Meant to be ash.
I'm obsessed with the shenko romance :'3 I think it's my favorite romance in any game series x3 I just love kaidan, and I love them together c: mass effect 2 is always hard for me though, I miss him xD and thane has things going for him too..but I always keep Shepard loyal :'3
![Mass Effect Movie [All Cut Scenes] (Gay Romance - Male Shepard & Kaidan Alenko)](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/QFSkH6cCVOg/mqdefault.jpg)
"I've had so much romance on Dragon Age, I'm gonna take it easy on Mass Effect. I'll just flirt a little with this Kaidan guy nothing serious... Oh shit I'm in love."
When he says "The greatest challenge of my life, and the greatest reward." I can't ;_;
It's unavoidable ❤
After I romanced Miranda Lawson in my first playthrough, I made a Femshep to romance Kaidan. Those two are my favorite romances. I also like Liara, but Male Shepard/Miranda and Female Shepard/Kaidan are my OTPs. That, and Garrus/Tali.
IF THIS AINT ME LMAO
Or I go to play another playthrough to romance someone else and always go back to the same character cause I feel like Im cheating 😂
@@oneartsygamer5146 I KNOW!!! I do the same thing. Can't help it.
(Stupid egghead.)
Sorry da:i moment there.
Only a true friend can call you out on your worst impulses. Kaidan saw Cerberus for what it was and decided to stand his ground, not joining Shepard. I used to hate him for it, but years later I grew to respect Kaidan's unwavering integrity and vigilance. We all could use a Kaidan in our lives.
Yeah that scene is a shit ton different when its Ashley that stands opposite of you she's just biased and unwilling to listen at least kaiden listens and acknowledges you even though he still walks away and goes against you in ME2
Agreed.
Sometimes I cry when I watch Mass Effect videos. Finishing this trilogy was like knowing I would never see my very best friends again. I may have cried a little.
Beatriz del Rio now me Andromeda's coming though. Yay
I'm just starting to play through them. My older brother got me started and now I'm hooked. Halfway through 1 and mostly through 2. (I started on 2 because I didn't have 1 yet)
LittleMeLindsey you poor soul, you had no idea my condonlences.
The cool thing about these friends if u want to see them again all u have to do is start a new play through
I wonder how they feel about Legendary Edition coming soon. It'd be like meeting an old friend and reminiscing on the good times you had.
Kaidan of all the romances looks the most hurt when shepard sends him on the Normandy so he doesn't die.
Idk I mean have you seen Tali's facial expressions, pure pain.
jk
Garrus’ is pretty tough to watch too, even though you already know it, it’s the first time he says I love you to you
That’s the first time?? I though he called her ‘the love of his life’ once, or was I mistaken. Something like ‘Shepard, love of my life, give your boyfriend a break’ or something like that.
@@nemofish3504 not that I recall, it might be banter… but during the whole romance, Garrus uses every form of metaphor or paraphrase to imply his love for Shepard, but the “I love you” doesn’t come until that last goodbye in ME3.
Shepard tells him “I love you” back at the Presidium in ME3 tho.
@@nemofish3504 In the Citadel DLC party he jokingly calls Shepard "love of my life" when he's rigging her apartment to explode. But he never directly said "I love you" until the beam run.
*them*: Omg, Kaidan Alenko is sooo booooring why would you ever romance him
*Kaidan:*
--Second human Spectre
--One of the most powerful human biotics in the galaxy
--Taught himself how to Reave
--By the way, the only other character to learn Reave naturally was Samara. You know, the asari Justicar.
--Spikes to the same power level as asari commandos.
--Once had a run in with the Vorcha mafia
--Stands up for what he believes in
--EVEN AGAINST SHEPARD
--Teaches people how to play poker
--Knows how to cook
--Knows how to dance
--Glows blue when he’s drunk
--Also when he fucks
--Leads a specially trained biotics division
--Is one of the lucky few to survive having an L2 implant
--His family brews beers and makes wine
--Has migraines due to his fault implant, but doesn’t let them get in the way of his job.
--Calls migraines mere "headaches" instead of the crippling impairment they are.
--Survived getting his head mashed into the side of a shuttle by a rogue AI.
--Survived a Collector Attack.
--Killed a turian with one blow when he was 17 years old, after being thoroughly beaten into a pulp by said turian (so probably not at 100% condition).
--Didn’t let the experience define him or color his perceptions on aliens and turians in general.
--Understands that he makes mistakes and can be a bit judgmental at times, but does his best to move on.
--Doesn’t deliberately burden Shepard with any emotional baggage he hasn’t already dealt with himself.
--Likes to be the boss in the bedroom.
--Is pretty nerdy about tech.
Me: Yeah, you are right, sooo boring, rolls eyes.
THANK YOU!
I think it might be the voice actor. People hate Carth too. Apparently he and Kaidan are whiny. Pfft I love them both.
Dislike.
But yeah, he's still really boring. LOL
+Izabela Wilson - At least he's not racist... ASHLEY...!
Kaidan might not be the most interesting romance option but his love for shepherd is so amazing... I mean when he says "I can't lose you again" ... it's so full of emotion and makes me tear up every time.
Ditto, yet my favorite line of his that summarizes his entire romance nicely is this one...
"Through all these years, through everything... I'm the luckiest man alive"
In those years he's:
-watched helplessly as Shepard died TWICE
-was convinced Shepard was dead the first time and spent years grieving until Shepard suddenly turned up again supposedly working with the enemy
-was brutally beaten into a coma by a comrade for months
-Head splitting migraines only worsened as time went on-began to suffer habitual physical agony
-The war against the Reapers only got more and more hopeless as he witnessed more people die
-discovered some if not all of his old squamates were potentially dead or worse
-The Shepard he loves now may not even be the real Shepard
But with that line you can tell through it all, Shepard and those memories made him persist not matter how bad it got. The love they shared gave him strength when everything and everyone seemed doomed. Made him hope, smile, and care even as worthless as it all felt.
(Damnit Bioware making me cry for people that don't even exist again...)
Not the boring romance option either tho, just sayin
I agree Cobra❤😉
@@violetraven8323 ty that's why I luv him so much 🥰
100% AGREE
I love how dynamic and different all the romances are in the ME series. Kaidan is the stable, equal partner type. He's the one that will call Shepherd out on any BS, but genuinely loves her. He doesn't lose sight of himself when he's in love. He's his own person. Great writing and voice acting.
I agree, he is my favorite romance.
The letter is so emotional. His voice actor does a really great job. I could listen to that part over and over again.
Raphael Sbarge is an amazing voice actor
When ever I hear him speak it reminds me of carth from KOTOR shit Kaiden and carth are super similar too
@@The_Vogel_Experience Exacttllyyy
@@frittatas8551 It was weird seeing him as Jimmy Cricket in the Once upon a Time TV show. And not sure but i think he can sing as he was in a cartoon movie version of Babes in Toyland (1996 or 97) and his character sang as well but not sure if that was him sing or not. Sure sounded like him though.
I like to put on headphones and close my eyes, just listening to the raw emotion. It really pulls at the heartstrings... and tear ducts.
Kaidan does not deserve the hate people threw at him.
True.
People hate him just because he is voiced by the same guy who voiced Carth from SWKOTOR
Isaac Lucero If you pick the wrong answer while having a conversation with him he will turn from Charming soldier to a whining manchild. But I forgave him once I learned that he had trust issues. I also like Carth as well in my light side playtrough I had him with me all the time.
***** My guess is that 90% of the Bioware community went dark side. And just because Carth critisized them they started To be rude to him not only in the game in general as well (because BioWare's fanbase is filled with Cancerous people who can't take critisizm ) . That's also the reason why KOTOR's dark side ending is considered Canon.
(SWTOR Proves it and then some)
***** Never played KOTOR 2 so didn't know that.
The voice letter Kaidan leaves after Horizon is, was, and probably will always be one of my absolute favorite moments of voice acting. Ever.
59:43-1:02:17 Agreed! Gotta hand it to anyone who’s a great voice actor.
Holy crap I've never heard that message from Kaidan after Horizon until now. Stunning voice-acting. It really shows that a character doesn't need to be quirky, alien, or a borderline personality to be interesting. He's just a solid marine, friend/lover, and good human being. One of the most underrated characters in ME.
+Damage Split THANK YOU. Don't get me wrong, I love characters like Garrus, Jack, and Thane, but people confuse "mostly normal" with "boring." Kaidan's just a soldier trying to do his job, deal with his problems, and deal with the craziness around Shepard, unlike the criminals, vigilantes, semi-terrorists, and who isn't an outspoken jackass about his views like Ash and tries to understand other's perspectives. Yeah, there's the whole Horizon/Cerberus mess, he could have handled that better, but frankly, someone had to point out how shady that was, and Kaidan/Ash got that job. I love the diverse cast, and wouldn't claim Kaidan is perfect, but as far as a "normal" caring guy who tries to do what HE thinks is right, not just what Shepard says, Kaidan's damn good.
+Damage Split Agreed! Every time someone says Kaidan is whiny or boring, I just think: "You mean he's emotionally effected by the childhood trauma of killing a maniac in self defense, or he's worried about a faulty impact that could melt his brain, or he's distraught about losing the woman he loves and confused that she's been mysteriously rebuilt by terrorists, or he's worried about his career and family on Earth, or stressed about the end of the world? It's not perfect, but that seems reasonable to me." It's cool that Garrus and Thane and Miranda can be suave mercenaries, or Jack a battle hardened engineered psychopath, but give Kaidan a break, not everyone can be like that. He's a little more uncertain and emotional. Not everyone has to like it, but it's not a bad character, just different one. He's a little needy in the romance, especially in Mass Effect 3, that gets annoying sometimes, but not everyone can take being rejected by saying, "Of course, Shepard, your emotions are all that matters, I'm just happy you deigned to love me at all!" or wait until Shepard says, "Ok, I want sex from you now, LOVE ME."
Shepard draping Kaidan over her shoulders always cracks me up.
Saw a meme about that scene and the caption read "Kaiden knows his place" 🤣🤣🤣
I always think DAMNIT SHEPARD TOUCH HIS REAR WHILE YOU'RE AT IT
I can't unsee it ☠️
Kaidan is certainly underrated. He's much more subtle than Garrus and at first glance he doesn't seem very interesting, but he's noble and kind-hearted to the last. He's a true good guy...and Canadian. Represent!
Hella! ^w^ Represent!
but Garrus is still the best.
Oh my god!!! A smart person Hallelujah! Most people hate Kaiden because of Carth from Star Wars KOTOR (They are voiced by the same guy) And most people didn't even spend time trying to figure out his personality because they were too busy Fapping at either Miranda, Liara or Tali.
I found my group. I really just did.
I loved both of them
Kaidan looks like a little kicked puppy when he's sad and that makes me sad D:
I love how much he talked in ME1. Just talked. And still talking. And I just watch his face with the occasional word or two. Wish they made him just as talkative in ME3, but hey, still cute.
My favorite moment is the booty check on the Citadel xD
"Do he got the booty?...He dooo."
@Commander Shepard James is a flirt, Kaiden is loyal, Jacob's a bit stiff, and Garrus is awkward. Well, at least he is in #2, anyway.
Mass Effect is and will always be my favourite game. I've never loved a story and game so much before. No comparison. Truly, a masterpiece.
Frannie if you like Mass Effect, you should try Dragon Age.
Lexi I played Dragon Age 1 and 2 but it wasn't as good. Guess I am more into Sci-Fi 😏
Frannie Dragon Age Inquisition is incredible. love both franchises ❤
@@AnimeWhiteRose Dragon Age gets in my top 5 but nothing beats Mass Effect. Mass effect 1 gameplay might be a hard ask but the voice acting is so much better than origins. Loved playing inquisition but for long term attachment to characters, the Iconic commander shepherd, there's just no contest
🍻
I think most of the romances have their merits, and I get why Kaidan isn't eveyone's cup of tea, and Garrus is lovely, and Thane is a sweetheart, I enjoy their romances, but people throw Kaidan under the bus so fast. I think it's partly because Kaidan doesn't faultlessly agree with Shepard/the player, while Garrus or Thane do. But at least Shepard's actions seem to effect Kaidan, the way people get hurt by someone else's actions in real life, instead of worshipping the protagonist. I don't always (sometimes, but not always) want to romance an anti-establishment vigilante or an assassin who is 90% tragedy, who never question how Shepard acts. Sometimes I want a fairly down to earth guy, who calls Shepard on her questionable actions, and who Shepard doesn't talk to as if her ovaries are exploding.
Kelsi Burner Exactly why I prefer Kaidan over Garrus or Thane. To me his romance is a lot more realistic, they have issues between them, talk through it to solve them. Garrus or Thane as romance is just too perfect for me to be interested in, altho Garrus's akwardness is kinda cute.
It's unfair to compare them, they are different characters. Kaidan's pure, all into Alliance, always do the right thing kind of guy. And Garrus can be pushed to either side, he could do a wrong thing for a better outcome. That's why he doesn't question, maybe?
shinyDiamond89 Totally agree. To be honest I think Garrus had so much unwavering trust in Shepard partly because turians are a militaristic race, and Shepard had such a huge impact on Garrus prior to the romance.
I completely agree. I love Kaidan and Garrus, and it’s a shame how so many are quick to throw him under the bus and how underrated he is.
Jacob is the worst though, better without the romance
It's his face near the end when he's reaching out of the Normandy is what really gets me.
If they don’t add the Kaiden voicemail audio to the “legendary” edition, they’re missing out! It’s a good piece of voice acting, from the VAs for both Kaiden and Ashley.
They didn't 😔
My first play through was the legendary edition.
I took the letter as a break up letter. It seemed lost and angry, and like he wanted to move on. So when he SAID I CHEATED, I WAS FLOORED.
Had I heard the letter voice acted, I would have never fallen in love with Thane....ahhh, Thane 😢
"Hey...you're the boss, except when you're not...." first truly WIN line Kaiden gets. Bonus for squicking Liara.
Am I the only one convinced that Kaiden is in love with Shepherd regardless of who he/she romances? All the signs are there and I honestly think that Kaiden is suppose to be the cannon romance.
For a Female Shepard, yes. But with Male Shepard, it's Liara, because she gives out *countless* hints.
Still chose Miranda, though.
*EDIT:* And no, I didn't cheat. I *only* chose her!
Raven Strife - You are most likely correct. Which is why I had absolutely no problem whatsoever to strap him
to the nuke on Vermire and blast him into orbit, it is still the only way to be sure.
WTF? I'm into women, yet I *totally* understood that the only way to leave Virmire was with Kaidan. That racist bitch can burn for all I care. There's no good reason besides initiating a romance that she should be alive.
Unless you were planning on shooting her yourself in ME3?
I prefer Liara mainly because she was always there with Shepard, even when you were a burnt up corpse she went to get your remains before the collectors did.
Eh I prefer Tali, the nerdy, awkward, tech loving, selfless Tali. Who I might add, seems more human than the speciest boshtet named Ashley
Kaidan: is there anything you’re bad at?
Me: Yes, Dancing 😜
Casey Bradford lol, I thought the exact same thing xD
there*
+Commander Shepard And *you're
Same here.
Tbf, Kaidan isn't much better.
Chose Kaidan as my love interest in my very first playthrough. People (mostly male players) say he's boring, don't agree at all. Plus, I just don't like Liara all that much. Since Garrus wasn't an option in ME1, Kaidan was the best choice. Except for his ongoing trust issues he's amazing and balances out most femsheps very well. I'll never regret choosing him for my vanilla ME experience.
Kaidan isn't boring. He's just a very serious character. And he's the best romance option for a Female Shepard! (Garrus should be with Tali, James doesn't have an actual romance, Jacob shouldn't really have a romance because of what happened in ME3, and all the other options are lesbians, which is very very WRONG.)
Lesbian options aren't "wrong", just we need straight options as well for Femshep
Wtf, who are you to decide for others ? ^^ it's not middle age anymore. The most important is consent between adults, then the rest none of our business.
How about you read the Bible and *then* we'll talk about morals?
@@lancecurry7538 disgusting, uneducated and hateful middle-aged comment. Thank god some people can interpret the bible otherwise we'd still have slaves and no electricity. I'm sad you are part of humanity but glad I don't know you. Bye.
Even though I spent the last half of ME2 and the start of ME3 wanting to punch his judgemental little face in, goddamnit I always went back to romancing him and no matter how many times I played it, I could never romance anyone else.
-Ah Kaidan why u no real?-
Hey Baller, is this "getting a life" to write stupid comments like this to unknown people on TH-cam ?
Personally, when I played a Female Paragon Infiltrator (my first walkthrough was a Male Paragon Vanguard), I didn't judge Kaidan. I understood why he thought I (or rather, Leila Shepard) betrayed the Alliance. I *was* working with those Cerberus scumbags, after all (not counting Jacob, Miranda, Kelly, Ken, Gabby, and all the others on the Normandy).
@Anything_But_Mainstream are you a nice guy?
Really? He is so sweet, I prefer Garrus
@@Loiko579 He isn't a nice guy. Lmao!
Can you imagine just how Joker felt when Shepard sacrificed herself to save him? Can you imagine how he felt when he had to tell Kaidan she was dead? I wouldn’t be surprised if Joker went on a drinking binge after the Alliance and the Council kept him grounded and descended like vultures on everything Reaper related.
Now I wish in Mass Effect 2, Shepard and Joker had an interaction based off this depending on how you romanced
Really nice touch you added by including Sbarge's VO to Kaidan's message in ME2!
+perrspawn Thanks! I love when he reads it :)
Me too and it melts my heart
Yeah that was really nice from him. Love it when the people bringing the characters you love to life do stuff like that bc they want to.
HOW was this even able to be done?!?! 😍I love it!!!
That’s just such incredible voice acting and also Major Fanservice. I loved Kaiden anyway but hearing that....all the feels.
"You're the boss. Except when you're not. And it that case...find me later." Hehe it looks like Liara is embarassed that Kaiden told Shepard that in front of her :,D i love it!
for me, this is the best romance. i love how they drift apart a little in me2 then get back together in me3. nice emotional touch there.
.... ugh someday i will be strong enough to not romance garrus and go for this sweet guy
+kagu darzell I don't know why, but Garrus just never appealed to me. Seeing so many Garrus fangirls at first left me completely confused.I had no idea what had happened. I even checked out his romance, but nope, nothing.
tbh..... at first i was not an garrus fangirl either... i thought he looked to .... lizard like..... but for me it all changed when he started to speak XD
+kagu darzell feel your pain... but I don't thinl this day will ever come for me ....
Rose Yo haha....same... i just ... cant let go of garrus.... he and shepard are ... just meant to be together in my eyes XD
After all garrus will do anything for his honey :3
Kaiden's the kind of guy you want to marry. The type that loves you more than you love him. Therefore he'll always take care of you.
Shep: Kaidan...
Kaidan: DON'T KAIDAN ME!
THIS IS _BUSINESS!_
I like that they drifted apart in me2 and struggled to get back together in me3. It's not easy for Shepard to convince Kaidan and I like it. I feel that struggle makes the love more real. That's why he's my favourite romance option. The tension they have between makes the relationship all the more realistic.
Though that deadeyed "What's your opinion on the last mission?" always gets me. xD
I really don't understand all the hate for kaidan it's fucking BS! damn.. he's so cute and that love he has for shepard is just so beautiful. it really brings tears to my eyes in these amazing romance scenes! from the bottom of my heart: I LOVE YOU KAIDAN! FUCK ALL THE HATERS.. YOU ARE SIMPLY PERFECT!
I did let kaiden die in one of my playthroughs but only because i couldn't romance others if i don't! So annoying really.. Anyway. Kaidan is the only one in this game where you really feel the romance - so to speak. The connection between them and the storyline is just played out so perfectly. If you go for another playthrough sometime Drugdev then go for Kaidan :-)
I will think about that! i have to say im more of a garrus fan xD every time that turian gets me >_>
Kaidan plays a big part in the third game in my opinion
Anne Thomsen i right with ya gurl
angelwebbersXD loves! And that... makes me so happy :-)
I am neeeeever getting over Kaidan, where’s my godamned support group
Here here and here! (Albeit a year later) 😂
@@alicia4181 ALSO HERE I'M ANOTHER YEAR LATE
Played through it for the first time. Bawling after the end. Will replay it in a couple of days. My husband is telling me not to, to play something else, but I can’t let go. Thankfully, I married my Kaidan, stable, thoughtful, supportive. I would never choose anything else. But, I didn’t get some scenes in the third one. In the assassination attempt and the line about his parents and students. I think, it’s the order I did some of the missions.
Honestly same😂
Here!!
hate seeing him leave, but looove to watch him go
You know what Kaidan is the most lovely male in ME. He is so sensitive to lose shepard again, when he is confessing his feelings in ME3 again he looks so vulnerable like he will broke if rejected just like Miranda. He is the most caring of them all and I don't think there is more lovely FemShep romance than Kaidan.
i feel so bad for liara when it comes to the confrontation, i instantly told her i wasn't interested in her that way so i never had the confrontation happen o:
As a completely heterosexual male, I like Kaidans romance more than most of the female Romances. Like wtf why were Ash and Liara so cryptic they didn't say what they truly felt and how much they felt it. Liara and Ash were always so stuck into their work. They hardly ever flirted and they both were constantly so serious. Even after romancing them in the first game they strongly questioned if things were different between them and Shepard between each game. They didn't say "I still love you" or anything unlike Kaidan who straight told it how it is. Love that. Wish more women would do that. I don't know maybe they are just timid in terms of relationship, but I prefer people who speak there mind and that was such a turn off from both of them. I felt like a good deal of the conversations with them (Romanced) were just like talking with a friend not the woman you have given your heart to. So bland.
I am seriously in love with him. Finished the trilogy and just going to play it again from the top to see him. How lame is that...
that's not lame! i'm doing the same to be with tali!
Victor Gonzalez Ah Victor you make me feel better!! :) You're lucky you have her in ME2 as well, I only 2min of shit dialogue with him lol
LuLu C2 I made my male Shepard abstinent through the first two games just so I could have the Kaidan romance in ME3. Totally worth it. I've seen the video of the Cortez romance, but I can't justify Cortez over Kaidan. I may play through as a female Shepard just so I can romance him through ME1 as well. He's so amazing.
If you're lame I'm lame too ❤
I can't understand people who confuse normal with boring. Kaidan is the kind of guy I go for in real life. Stable, a real sweetheart and loyal. The only part of Kaidans romance I don't like is him not standing by your side in 2. It's probably another reason why most people go for Garrus and Tali, they don't question, they follow Shepard through hell whoever is in charge
Agreed. Kaidan is a handsome, quiet, reflective, has a good heart and is loyal to a fault. But he's got enough gumption to question things he finds troubling, and respects an opinion even if he disagrees with it. I'd enjoy his company better than many of the other options.
@Rosario Manorang Manik I could not have said it better. I don't need a cheerleader in a relationship, i need a partner on equal footing and disagreements are part of that.
Yes! Kaidan is realistic and down to earth. He’s the man I would find an equal but challenges point of views. I love Garrus and he’s my dream boy, but Kaidan is similar to my real life relationship. He’s honest, willing to be vulnerable and charming in a introverted way. He’s perfectly complex and I love him for it. I truly wish he was more fleshed out in ME2.
I accidently took him as love interest in the first game, I seriously did not know that the whole romance mechanic exists
But I don't regret it
Ahhh this brings back all the great memories...memories...of all the elevator rides...and conveniently placed camera angles in the elevator...He got de booty XD
They did the same to Miranda in ME2 as well xD
This romance is so underrated. It's actually really good! I always assumed Kaidan and Ashley were boring romances, because at first, they just seemed like boring characters. I admit now though that I was being stupid because I think they are some of the best when it comes to how they are written and developed (especially Kaidan, who seems more underrated than Ashley.)
I romanced Kaidan in ME1 just to basically not be bored and get the achievement when I fully intended to romance Garrus the rest of the series. Now that I'm starting ME2 again I'm so torn... I don't know who I'm going to pick. Kaidan really does love Shepard
Probably one of the most beautiful things about the destruction of the Normandy scene is that Shepard presses the evac console to get Joker out of there. That is a true friend and hero/heroine to the last breath... literally.
After romancing all available alien species in ME series I finally decided to watch Kaiden Alenko romance... And, wow, I didn't know humans could also be charming : D
Helga Agner I know right, he's so cute :)
FluffyNinjaLlama shit. did I just fall in love with him, too? no no not again, mass effect
Helga Agner
Awww I know how you feel, I love Kaidan so much! ^^ His love for Shepard is amazing and he was always my favorite romance in ME series. In fact I had a crush on him since he was Carth in KOTOR XD
FluffyNinjaLlama him and Garrus and Shepard himself are all my crushes... TT
Helga Agner
Haha yeah maleShep is dreamy! ^^ I really like Garrus and Thane too but Kaidan is still by far my fave.
So, this is what Google says about Kaidan:
"Kaidan (怪談) (sometimes transliterated kwaidan) is a Japanese word consisting of two kanji: 怪 (kai) meaning “strange, mysterious, rare or bewitching apparition" and 談 (dan) meaning “talk” or “recited narrative.”
This explains so much, doesn't it?
The surname "Alenko" suggests Ukrainian origin; surnames ending in "enko" usually are. "Alenko" would mean "the son of Al". In Ukrainian language, the word "kaidan" ("кайдан") means "a shackle".
Numerous interactions with Kaidan in Mass Effect 3 (his date with Shepard, during a poker game after Rannoch, and during Shepard's party at Anderson's apartment) suggest he's of Canadian nationality. Canada has a very large Ukrainian diaspora.
From the Mass Effect Wiki site
Kaidan's face at 2:08:37 IM DEAD My HEARTTTTT
He's about to cry....😭
Abrianna Kennebrew I know so cute :D
Raphael Sbarge's acting when he starts breaking up and says "I can't lose you again" right before this combined with that face is just like...agony. Damn it, BioWare. Why are your stories so fucking good?
IKR, ITS PURE SUFFERING! I almost cried.
Kaidan's such a sweetheart and an underrated character. Garrus is my favorite character but he's Shepard's bro and I just see him better as that so I romanced Kaidan. He's a lot more emotional than Garrus as well.
Chloe C Yes.
I agree. Garrus might be the bro-est of bros, but my Femshep will always love Kaidan.
I went from first meeting him in ME1 like yawn, is this really the only male option we get?
To ME2 - WHERE IS MY BELOVED KAIDEN I CANT BELIEVE I CANT KEEP ROMANCING YOUUUU.
And then ME3 just made me appreciate him even more. The things he says are so sweet 🥺
Oh yeah that's true...May Kaidan's love for Shepard always be an example to all of us 🙌😉
Nearly a dozen playthrough later... my Shepard is still with Kaidan. Tali and Garrus pairing is too adorable for me to mess that up.
good grief i never thought a game could make me so emotional
My reaction the whole time during the intro every time I replay ME2:
"That helmet SUCKS!!! Of course Shepard suffocated!! You can see her freaking hair sticking out of the back!!! >.
I love kaiden. He's so sweet and his swagger in the citidel dlc is amazing
"Jokers waiting for you on the bridge"
hahaha.
N7 Rhio No no no, it's more like "JOKER'S WAITING FOR YOU ON THE BRIDGE!!!" XD Kaidan's post-sex freak-out
hahaha. You're right. I remember watching your videos after playing it through myself, to check I hadnt missed anything! :D I guess Im back here now because I miss Mass Effect!
N7 Rhio I miss it too, such a long time since I played. That's mainly the reason why I do all those videos, so I can go back to my fave moments without installing and playing the game(s) again :)
FluffyNinjaLlama You looking forward to ME: Andromeda?
Dusteen Barber Absolutely! I'm so excited, it looks amazing
Kaidan is the best. Simply amazing romance, my favorite out of all the video games I've played.
Shepard (after Virmire): "...I'd never leave you behind."
Kaidan (in the end): "Don't leave me behind."
Ahh... I just finished it in French less than an hour ago... I always loved Kaidan, for his body as well as for his personnality (even though he clearly is the uke here). At the end of ME1, when I saw his resignation, I was sad for him. On Horizon, I was even sadder that he didn't join my crew. I wanted him back so much. On Mars, I knew he wouldn't die, but I was really scared for him. The whole romance in ME3 was really like a sweet candy given to me, a reward. And finally, at the end, before and when he leaves the battlefield, it broke my heart. I knew I was going to die and - to see him like that, with his handsome and sad face begging me not to leave him - I just couldn't take it. Kaidan, you've been one of my biggest crushes in the video game universe and I hope to hear from you in the next ME.
I find I am constantly coming across your videos when I'm looking up stuff related to Mass Effect or SWTOR Fluffy, and I just wanted to say thank you so much for the time and effort you put into recording everything! I particularly wanted to mention how great it was that you added in Raphael Sbarge's audio over the Horizon message. Thanks a lot!
sashasally Aww thank you so much for this lovely message ^^
People who call Kaidan boring are confusing him with James Vega
There are not enough white men in games.
James was so much stronger and smarter and interesting in Paragon Lost, now he's just an idiot
James Vega is latino
Enclave Trooper Ahem, Default Shepard is white, Desmond Miles is white, Edward Kenway is white, Arno Dorian is white, Booker DeWitt is white, default Grey Warden is white, default Hawke is white, default Inquisitor is white, default Arisen is white, Leon Kennedy is white, Chris Redfield is white, Alex Mercer is white, Aiden Pearce is white, Nathan Drake is white, Sully is white, Sam Drake is white, Gordon Freeman is white, Hero from Fable TLC is white, Hero from Fable 2 is white, Hero Prince from Fable 3 is white, Sam Fisher is white, Corvo Attano is white, Point Man is white, Becker is white, Frank West is white, Chuck Greene is white, dude from Far Cry 3 is white, Snake is white, all the guys from STALKER are white, Geralt is white, Isaac is white. If you're gonna talk about a people who aren't in games, don't say white people that's just insulting.
ThePoppets Do you expect Russians to be fucking white????What the fuck
i never hated kaiden in these games i allways thought he is more a voice of reason than anyone else on the team
1:32:24 Ladies...
why thank you :P
Shannon Kinchen Anytime ;)
Thanx sooo much :*
Elizabeth Gaska Of course ;)
Hahaha thanks! That's awesome :)
Props to Raphael Sbarge he did amazing work on Kaidan!
Given how batshit crazy everything else about Shepard’s life is, Kaidan’s “boringness” is probably a welcome reprieve.
0:41:50
You can see Shepard thinking 'shut up and just kiss me!'
I'm a man and romanced Liara when I played as FemShep. But Kaidan is a way better love interest than Ashley is for MaleShep. The dialog is great. I'm going to play again as MaleShep and this video gave me a reason to be single during Mass Effect 1.
It's impossible to let go Mass Effect. It's an addiction.
And this just made me want to do another run through romancing Kaidan the whole way.
39:40 Udina should've been paying attention to the boss music rather than Anderson himself, would've seen that attack coming.
1:50:44 Press here for Kaidan-strut.
I'm just going to say it.....thank you. Your videos are what for me into mass effect and into my now favorite romance in video game history.
God I love Kaidan haha. Might partially be because it is the same voice actor who did Carth in KOTOR and I loved him too. The last two scenes with him.. saying goodbye.. let's just say someone sprayed water in my eyes or something.
He is also scorch in republic commando
Man, they would have made wonderful parents.
All this time later and still doesn't get old. This version of Kaidan is pretty dope.
Come to think of it. If touching Biotics gives you electric static and I think James have a... reaction.. when Liara lifted him off balcony... I think there's more about Shepard and Kaidan love scenes that they didn't tell us about. I guess that's why both of them have weird faces while discussing the topic.
Oh my gad. You just put awesome thoughts into my head.
Kurgull Now I'm wondering how this scene should really play out if FemShep is *also* biotic.
Dusteen Barber Mordin did say biotics can be used for different techniques
That was so sad! I cried more than I should have! I'm not gonna let my Shepard die!
Thanks for sharing this! I'm looking up all the various romances her on YT because I just can't tear myself away from my usual LI's when I replay the trilogy.
Everytime I hear the captain talking I'm gonna keep thinking of the Saints leader in Saints Row 1
Pvt Vasquez me too
Keith David, the voice actor, appears in SR4...
I know this is super old, but Brandon Keener, Garrus's VA was in Saints Row as well. He played Tobias, so its pretty interesting to hear "Garrus" freak out and kill Billy.
I fell in love with Raphael Sbarge's voice in KOTOR, felt so happy to hear him again in ME.)
Kaidan's animation did not do him justice; he has a comical Jim Carry-esque creepy grin in-place of a smirk.
Kaidan is the most underrated character ever.
Nothing beats that opening scene: "Nihlus gave you a compliment...so you hate him" 💀
Feels. The feeling of the first opening of the game. The music...
Sigh, I don't think I can ever let this series go. The amount of time invested in the game, it doesn't calculate to the amount of feelings that we get from it. The story, the fleshed out characters, the music, and the friendship that we've made with this fictional characters. Only one thing that can describe what this game means to me, it's : Priceless.
I still romance Kaidan every time as FemShep. He’s a good, honest man who wants to do the right thing. That’s why he doesn’t come with you when you’re with Cerberus.
That’s how I feel about Dragon Age Inquisition when I make a female human or elven mage inquisitor and romance Commander Cullen. EVERY TIME I end up choosing him, out of all the other romance-able characters, it’s always him I choose in the end. ❤
I'll be honest, when I first played ME1 I was NOT crazy about Kaiden. He grew on me in ME3, but the only reason he lived that long was that although I felt he had (as I'm fond of joking) all the personality of a cardboard cutout of Edward Cullen snacking on dry Cheerios straight out of the box, he didn't actively irritate me-and I couldn't stand Ashley. So I saved him on Virmire because he wasn't as awful as Ashley.
He kinda grew on me in ME3, though. A lot of characters I wasn't crazy about at first kinda grew on me more as the series progressed. Miranda, Jack, Wrex, Kaiden, Grunt, Samara, Joker, Dr. Chakwas, Thane...I didn't start out liking any of them particularly, but they got better with time. Hell, I started appreciating Thane's character just in time to be pissed off when he died.
The only characters of whom my opinion never really changed were Ashley (I played through to ME3 with her once, and wished I'd left her on Virmire-her knockoff-Kim-Kardashian makeover didn't make her any less irritating, unfortunately) and Tali and Garrus (who became my favorite characters pretty much the instant they showed up, and have remained my favorites since-no matter how many times I replay the ME games, those two will never get old for me).
+Meredith Dustin I loved him since the very beginning. It's probably because of KotOR's Carth :) You could say that I loved him since he was Carth ;) I never could stand Ashley either. I hated Miranda and Jacob since the beginning and they never grew on me. I've always loved Jack, Wrex, Grunt, Samara, Joker, Thane, Legion, Mordin and Javik. I guess the only characters that I changed my mind about were Zaeed and James. I didn't like them particularly at first.
+FluffyNinjaLlama I don't get how certain people can "hate" certain characters. Outside of characters like Wreav and Kai Leng, there are no characters that are despicable. Miranda doesn't do anything worthy of being hated besides mistrust you at first. But she opens up and actually becomes pretty human in ME3. She's a decent love interest but I wish she got more screen time. Jacob, I can understand if you romanced him, but for Broshep, he's more boring than unlikable.
However, I will agree with you on Kaiden. I thought he was pretty awesome for the most part. He's a great squadmate in ME1, but I can see why some find him boring. I found him just normal which made him very relatable. He wasn't some badass alien. Ashley is another character I don't understand the "hate" for. She has some annoying traits, but she's equally as human as Kaiden. She's just the opposite of him. But I will say I choose Kaiden almost always on Virmire. He's either my femshep's love interest, or my broshep's friend who's been there since the start of the series.
+sbn4 To be fair, the only reason I "hated" Ashley is because she reminded me a lot of my ex-girlfriend, who was the type for whom nothing was ever good enough. In retrospect the relationship was pretty abusive, although I didn't see that at the time.
Kaiden actually kind of grew on me because between playing ME for the first time and playing ME3 for the first time, I met my now-fiancé, who's got quite a bit in common with Kaiden (both military, both from tough backgrounds but extremely good-hearted and sincere individuals, both urban North American-born men of Ukrainian blood who like good food, honest conversation and occasionally bad jokes, both try to see the best in other people, etc.). I guess in both cases I less felt particularly strongly about the characters themselves and felt more strongly about the people they reminded me of.
As for "relatable"...Tali (my #1 favorite character) was actually the one I felt was most relatable to me (personally) because she reminds me a lot of myself. I guess that's really why Tali, Garrus and Joker are my 3 favorite characters is because honestly they remind me the most of myself, personality-wise. Tali is tough, a little awkward and unsure of her place in the world, but full of enthusiasm and good intentions. Garrus is very sarcastic and tries to keep a cool composure under even the worst of circumstances, but occasionally even he still cracks and admits he's got no idea what he's doing or what the outcomes will be. Joker was looked down on for a good chunk of his life (because of his disease) and has had to prove himself ten times over to be considered equal with his crewmates, but he keeps fighting and is just as essential a part of the Normandy crew as Shepard, Chakwas or Liara.
I totally just realized that I judge every single ME character by who they remind me of...wow.
Ha! Can't really argue with that. I can see why you would hate Ashley based on that then. Can't say much else.
And your analysis of Kaidan is exactly why I find him so damn likable. Plus that man has saved my ass quite a few times in ME1. And its nice to hear that you have found someone who makes you content, and I can totally understand why you would like characters that you relate to more in your day to day life.
Personally, I didn't like Tali at first. I played femshep first and Tali did nothing for me. I played as broshep and still didn't care for her. I finally decided to romance her, and now she's like top 5 best characters in the series for me. I never cared about her struggles before, but now that I have paid better attention, I like her a lot more. Garrus is best character EVAR. Not much to be said about him. Joker... I'm not a huge fan of. He's not really funny even though he tries really hard. He's got his moments, but outside of one or two scenes, I never really liked the guy much.
As blasphemous as it is to some people, the only character I don't care for is Liara. She was interesting in ME1. But in any other game, she's just there for me. I never use her in ME3 unless I'm forced to.
sbn4 Liara isn't the BEST character but she certainly isn't the worst either. Her Shadow Broker storyline in ME2 was pretty interesting, and the whole dynamic with her mother in ME1, but there's certainly characters with a lot more to say than her.
Bottom line is it's all opinion...like everyone's got their own reasons for liking and disliking different characters, no 2 players have exactly the same opinions. There are people (although I will never understand them) who think Garrus is a shite character and who love Ashley's character. There are people who think Garrus and Liara are two of the best characters ever created, and people who think that Ashley and Jacob are abominations of characterisation. Needless to say I agree with NONE of these. Everyone feels differently about different characters, but there's enough memorable characters in the series that everyone's got something in it. Ya know?
Kaidan is my baby! Every time I try to romance someone else, be it as fem shep or male shep, I ALWAYS go back to him! He's so gosh dang adorable!
My headcanon is they eventually found her like the mod says and both retired from service and got married. They moved to Canada and started a family. I gotta believe it.
I like Kaidan and his romance. I hate that shenko fans have to put up with so much bs about him being boring, its just narrow minded people that cant see the subtlety in his character. All the romances are great (with a few exceptions AHEM allers) but saying that I love the Garrus romance. But that's my opinion. And people need to realize that everyone has opinions, even if they're opinion is stupid.
Kaidan > Ashley
that's about the only math I know
Kaidan isn't boring. He's just a very serious character. And he's very loyal.
PREACH
I always kill off Ashley over Kaidan. Even if I'm not romancing him, Kaidan is just a better person than Ashley. Sorry Ash, but it's in your name. Meant to be ash.
@@zelamorre1126 and burnt to ash too, evidently
Her face is soo shiny! :D
37:56 If you pick one of the other 2 dialogue options here, he almost lets the "L" word slip, it's pretty cute
I'm playing the legendary edition rn and it's already weird seeing the game's original graphics lmao
What's wrong with femsheps face in ME1? She looks like she just took a swim or had some humid-peeling mask on her face -__°
It was the first game in the franchise, let it go
+Pavan CaLeRa
Let what go?
Bioware was a small company and by itself back then... The first ME game was like a try out. I don't mind graphics, but combat/shooting is baaad
it was made in...2008? 2007?
shinyDiamond89 it's not bad, it's just you being a n00b
This is awesome. Thanks for recording it.
Hey, Kaidan. Congrats on your GF.
00:11 I still get goose bumps when the first game starts. Its just so damn exciting!
Just when I thought I was ready to let go of Mass Effect (and Kaidan), you upload these amazing videos *Goes to play the trilogy for the 800th time*
Playing Mass Effect for the first time a decade late, this romance has a lot to offer.
2:01:01 whoever animated that really said "well they're probably thinking it, so let's just have Shep think it too"
Poor Kaidan, it's heartbreaking seeing him at the end putting up the plaque. YOU MADE ME CRY KAIDAN.
I'm obsessed with the shenko romance :'3 I think it's my favorite romance in any game series x3 I just love kaidan, and I love them together c: mass effect 2 is always hard for me though, I miss him xD and thane has things going for him too..but I always keep Shepard loyal :'3