Today must be Riku day or something hahaha. I hear what y’all are saying! The above audio is a comparison of both melodies at the point that I think is most similar between the two, followed by a piano reduction of both themes. Below is a quick transcription:
I think what everyone is hearing might be how both themes do a rising sequence with their cellos. However, I don’t think Final World’s rising line is meant to be a reference to Riku: whenever Shimomura wants to directly quote something, she always makes a point to complete the phrase (see: Yozora Secret Movie). These excerpts are very tiny musical building blocks that are probably more likely to be attributed to her compositional style rather than an overt reference: we see a similar thing in the piano in Cavern of Rememberance and Kairi’s theme, despite the two being totally unconnected. Even though the pitches are different between the two tracks, I do hear the similarity between Riku and The Final World; however, I don’t think it’s meant to be anything significant. Up to you to decide though!
