What do you think were some of the overall premises of Chrono Trigger?
Was its overall message largely pessimistic, or optimistic?
If you ask me, one of the overall themes you have in the game is that you CAN'T rewrite history.
There are indeed instances in the game in which you COULD change things, like Lucca's mother's legs getting mauled in Taban's machine, or reviving Fiona's woods back from the desert.
But, for the most part, I do believe the overall message of the game is that you CAN'T rewrite history, and that you must "Seize the day!" and do what you can in the present.
Think about it: the characters weren't able to stop the advent of Lavos despite all of their time-traveling.
They were, however, finally able to defeat Lavos in 1999AD, but that event was after their own time; it's a message along the lines of "work towards a brighter future," and Lavos being representative of whatever plights we may befall if we don't do our part in the world.
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Other instances of this theme, are in Glenn/Frog, and Magus.
Glenn wasn't able to do anything about himself being changed into a frog, much less could he have helped Cyrus, and so he broods. However, he eventually managed to face up to things with help from Crono & Co, and he was able to come to terms with the death of his friend, Cyrus, as well as his own disfigurement, and decided to do something about the sad state of the world.
The same with Magus; he ended up traveling back in time to Zeal, but was unable to do anything of the downfall of his home anymore than the first time around, even if he could've foreseen it. However, his experiences with Crono and company allowed him to come to terms with it, and he might've had a part in trying to bring Schala back in Chrono Cross, along with Belthasar.
Your thoughts?