Personality

Jecht's brash, straight-forward attitude is one which can immediately make people dislike him (ie, Auron). Because of his skill and popularity as a blitzball player, he developed an arrogant and almost conceited manner, but one laced with humor. He was accustomed to being adored; his fans, his wife, everyone in his early life except for his young son adored him. He also lacks the ability to maintain formality; he gives no respect for the great leaders of Spira and never addresses anyone with the reverence attributed to their rank or position. Despite -- or perhaps because -- of this attitude, Jecht seems to approach life in a haphazard, laid-back manner, as someone who tries to enjoy what he can and make the best of a situation. But he could also be depressed or worried about what was coming, especially in regards to his own tentative future.

Outwardly appearing to be a rough, grizzled old drunk with no respect for anyone, Jecht wasn't exactly as he appeared. He really wasn't as mean, or as brash or as care-free as he wanted everyone to think. In Tidus's memories of his father, Jecht was seemed mean or unfeeling toward his son, but it wasn't that Jecht didn't love Tidus. In fact, the problem was that Jecht deeply loved his son but didn't know how to show it. It seemed like he was also trying to make him tough, more manly by telling him things like not to cry. In one memory, Jecht tells Tidus that he can't perform the Jecht Shot, but that he's not the only one because no one but Jecht can do it. While Tidus remembers it as a callous remark, Jecht meant it as comforting; he didn't want his son to be discouraged. Really, Tidus -- more than anything -- was Jecht's life. His biggest dream was to make him into a great blitzer (like his old man, mind you); and the one promise he asks of Auron is to watch over him.

Jecht cannot carry a tune to save his life, although he loves to sing the Hymn of the Fayth, a trait which Tidus inherited. According to Auron, he had a bad habit of wanting to help people because it was the right thing to do, which managed to land the warrior-monk and his summoner in trouble more often than not. And he liked to drink. The hard stuff. And a lot of it. These are just some of Jecht's lovable personality quirks.

Jecht didn't like to watch others play blitzball, part of his arrogant nature. Since he was the best, he wanted to play, not watch. Jecht did not live life as a spectator. He also loved to tell stories, especially to impressionable little girls like a seven-year-old Yuna. He's a braggart at heart, spinning tales which must have seemed like fantasy to his little audience. It's all part of his unconscious need for attention. He was used to being adored.

He also liked to record things on those memory spheres, and talk incessantly about his wife and kid when they weren't around. And when he did, he had another bad habit, one he didn't want anyone to know about: although he was also telling Tidus not to cry, Jecht was a old softie himself. More than once, he had to stop recording on one of his numerous spheres to take time to collect himself or wiping away tears as he gruffly ordered Auron to stop recording. He must have understood his son's tendency to cry because it was the same as his own. In the end, there's more Jecht in Tidus than he'd care to admit.

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