#RWB - What Makes it so Great?

[sir-adamus]

so footage from the new spider-man show has surfaced and it's cg animated and it looks floaty, janky and not great in terms of animation

so naturally this is an excuse for every unoriginal asshole under the sun to crawl out and start their incessant beating of the "this looks bad like rwb/y" drum, because they can't just criticise one thing, no they've gotta remind the world how Smart and Special they are because they think rwb/y is bad, hoping if they keep salivating over that fuck hbomb's shitty content he might make another shitty misinformed video about something else they hate

and like, genuinely, rwb/y never looked that bad even at its cheapest and most amateurish and it looks worse than similar shows like What If or the 3D animated segments of X-Men 97, so the whole thing is just embarrassing coming from production companies that have more money than god, but it's the immediate jump to shitting on rwb/y (which started, and i can't stress this enough, as independent animation coming from a company that had only made machinima prior) that pisses me off - like if you can't criticise something without shitting on something else that has fucking nothing to do with it, then just maybe you don't actually have anything worth contributing to the conversation

[zigwouldnever]

Hiii, welcome back. I missed u and ur Blog so much. Glad to hav u in this fandom. It was sooo long ago since before u left.

Lemme keep u updated...

WEH... i agree. So much angst, but definitly a good book of the new ones. Poor Dakota

I see u are reading RWB. Haven't read that.

Very popular and to recommend are Crimes of Passion, Kindred and Guinevere

Fans decided to give books which deserve a sequel a sequel in form of a real Choices game. So a fanmade Choices game which can be played like a game for FREE. Honestly they are making a much better job than PB because the Choices matter, Customizing MC, accessoires, tattoos, collecting points, relationship matters means there are consequences if you try to cheat or something like that. Some examples: @itlivesproject with ItLives3 is fully released, @nightboundfanfiction with the Nightbound 2 game coming soon (first demo releases on Halloween 2023) and @thedistantshoresproject with DS in work...

The Tumblr Choices Book Club @choicesbookclub is back and currently the books are Crimes of Passion 2 and soon BladesofLight&Shadow2 ... don't know what they will do later (maybe an upcoming new choices sequel on the app or maybe an choices book sequel for an upcoming choices project game sequel, idk)

This month #choicesfanficappreciation2023 is beeing hosted to appreciate all fic writers by reading their fics no matter what pairings.

Pixelberry sadly deleted their old games HSS and HollywoodU, instead we got Storyloom :(

... that's it, i think

hiiii tysm for these updates!!

yeah now that some time has passed i appreciate WEH a bit more. it was well written for sure

don't read it it's terrible and apparently it's going to be a series. not a RWB 2 but a similar concept with overlapping characters according to the message at the end of the book so you can just try the new one if you want but i probably won't

i have actually been playing the fan made it lives sequel! long but loving it so far. however i had NO IDEA ABOUT THE FAN MADE NIGHT BOUND 2 BOOK!! tagging @cloudywithachanceofdiscourse because she'll want to play that too. tysm for these updates!!

the rest of the bullet points are great to know thanks for updating me. appreciate you!

[cadybear420]

My problem with most genderlocked books is that they're pointlessly genderlocked. Something like ACOR or TDA, I can understand being genderlocked. But RWB, FCL, BB, WEH, ROD, Witness? You could have easily made them GOC and the stories would likely still work. It'd just cost PB a bit of extra money and effort to incorporate new assets.

We've had so many genderlocked releases in 2023. Only 5 of them were GOC, only two of which were original stories (as opposed to sequels). And of the ones that were genderlocked, how many of them actually needed to be genderlocked? TDA, SOD, and maybe Kindred?

Early days PB wasn't immune to pointless genderlocking either but at least it was less frequent? Oh, and also the fact that almost all of the GOC releases of 2022, starting with COP, brought in they/them pronoun options as well as the option to choose pronouns separately from body-type. Well, not only did we not get that due to the drought of GOC in 2023, but the new GOC releases we did get didn't even offer that option. So there's a very blatant downgrade in effort going on.

Thinly-veiled TERFs constantly paint the pro-GOC people as just "selfish cishet men" who not only don't care about the lack of rep for women, but also lack of rep for queer players. Which is some bullshit, most of the people I've seen advocate for GOC options are queer players, usually mlm!

Many people say Choices is the best VN app for queer players as of now, and seeing as it's the only VN app that has regular m!MC options and f!LI options (while many others tend to have like 99% genderlocked female MC and wlm only romances)... yeah. It's kind of gross to paint the pro-GOC people as not truly being progressive when not only most of them are progressive, but the GOC options have done more good for the stories than harm. We have the options to play the frequent male-LI romance routes as mlm. And without GOC, we certainly wouldn't have gotten those enby MC options in 2022.

Whine about "cishet men invading women's spaces" (which is another phrase that rings way too similar to common TERF rhetoric) all you want, but you can't really exclude them without also excluding mlm players, enby players, and more. Unless you just make all the LI options male and exclude wlw players.

Not that excluding cishet men is a good idea anyways, YA flowery romance genres are CONSTANTLY stereotyped as being "for women". Men never get fantasy stories about them being rescued by a heroic and charming love interest, because they're expected to be the heroic ones and save the women!

While I certainly would love more variety in the romance dynamics PB puts out in single LI stories (being a GNC wlm after all), is this the hill y'all wanna die on? You really want to die on the hill of excluding men from fantasies about romancing people stronger/more powerful than us? People talk about how women are often excluded from video games but we all know damn well that's in regards to the action and adventure genres, not the romance-based VN genres. Also an obligatory "fuck you and STFU" to the crybabies who complain about a GOC MC being "female coded" just because they giggled or because they had an umbrella held for them. Then again at least these guys are actually more open about being gender essentialists.

Obviously I'm not saying PB has always been great at representing queer players and etc. We've gotten some improvements such as in mlm and wlw smut scenes. But my point is, there are some damn good reasons PB had more respect and profits back when they had more GOC books, and it shows.

Making so many genderlocked books, especially with most of them being pointlessly genderlocked, is one of many microcosms of PB's drop in effort along with stuff like nearly every new release being a single-LI smut book. Seriously, what's the last non-sequel story we had that wasn't a "17+ sexy", Kindred? It's getting to the point where a lot of us are only keeping the app around because of the older stories.

When I really think about it, it does come off as rather TERFy when people preach that it's bad to want more GOC stories because "this is one of the few video games where we play as female locked characters, let women have this one thing". Yeah when they say "women" you KNOW they only mean allo cis gender-conforming women, most likely white and straight too.

You're gonna root against male MC options for the sake of "muh few female locked MCs", but we all know damn well you're not gonna root for trans MC options or GNC appearance/romance options for the female-locked MCs. Or any other sort of variety in the options or portrayal of these female MCs that doesn't try to pander to Facebook Karen Moms.

[thefirstcourtesan]

Just wondering since I feel like you’d know.. what’s the most sequels books have gotten in a single year? Does that matter? I’m glad we’re getting all these sequels especially for COP and TCH but if ID isn’t one of them.. yikes. There’s no way this wouldn’t be popular enough for one

So, this is hard, because at the beginning sequels were basically guaranteed and in the early years, only a couple of books didn't get them (and most of those books were originally promised books). Things really changed around the time ATV flopped.

2016 releases:

TC&TF- 3 books

TF- 8 books + 7 specials

MW- 1 book

RoE- 4 books

ThoBM- 1 book

LH- 2 books

ES- 3 books

= so the first year saw seven series and saw 5 of them get sequels, roughly 71%.

2017:

TRR- 7 books + 1 special

Hero- 1 book

HSS- 3 books

It Lives- 2 books

HFTH- 1 books

RCD- 3 books

2017 saw 6 new series and 4 of them got sequels, roughly 67%, so a slight decline from the previous year.

2018:

PM- 2 books

Bloodbound- 3 books + 1 special

VoS- 1 book

AME- 3 books

D&D- 3 books + 1 special

ATV- 1 book

BSC- 2 books

HSS: CA- 3 books

TE- 2 books + 1 special

ACoR- 1 book

TH:M- 1 book

2018 saw 11 new series(!), 7 of which got sequels, dropping the sequel rate down to 64%.

2019:

RoD- 1 book

OH- 3 books

PtR- 1 book

WT- 1 book

Nightbound- 1 book

Platinum- 1 book

Sunkissed- 1 book

BP- 1 book

MoTY- 1 book

StD- 1 book

TRM- 1 book

BaBu- 2 books

2019 is the year things swing wildly in the other direction. 12 new series are released, but only 2 get sequels, averaging at around 17%.

2020:

Blades- 2 books*

Witness- 1 book

DS- 1 book

TNA- 3 book

QB- 2 books

HC- 1 book

WeH- 1 book

AVsP- 1 book

TUH- 1 book

MTFL- 1 book

RT- 1 book

MM- 1 book

WB- 1 book

FA- 1 book

2020 was a weird year. The release of VIP brought even more one-shot books as Choices adjusted to the new market. 2020 saw 14 new series but only 3 got (or have been promised) a sequel, although the sequel rate rises a bit to 21%

*Since this ask was about announced sequels, I am including series like Blades in my projections.

2021:

SB- 1 book

LoA- 2 books*

Shipwrecked- 1 book

WtD- 1 book

Surrender- 2 books*

CoP- 2 books*

2021 saw a low of only 6 new series but 3 of them got promised sequels, making the sequel rate rise to 50%.

2022:

Untameable- 2 books*

TPS- 1 book

TCH- 2 books*

2022 is obviously incomplete, as only 3 books have finished, but so far it is a 67% rate.

2016- 71%

2017- 67%

2018- 64%

2019- 17%

2020- 21%

2021- 50%

2022- 67% 37.5%

2023- 14% (incomplete)

So the numbers seem to be climbing again, now that they have released VIP with early access. I think a safe bet is that half to two thirds of books will get sequels, but it is going to be based on performance, specifically early access/vip performance.

I really hope ID gets a sequel and I think it will. I think it is more likely to get a sequel than MAH (but that could surprise me).

* I don't think I am missing any series and I believe I got all the release dates, but it is a lot of data so I missed anything, let me know and I will readjust.

—

Updating this with 2022 and 2023 data.

2022:

Untameable- 2 books

TCH- 2 books

TPS- 1 book

ID- 2 books*

TPA- 1 book

MaH- 1 book

Guinevere- 1 book

KoD- 1 book

So 2022 saw 8 new series and 3 got promised sequels/spin-offs, so 37.5%.

2023:

GG- 1 book

RWB- 2 books*

FCL- 1 book

TDA- 1 book

Kindred- 1 book

BB- 1 book

DLS- 1 book

Alpha- ?

SoD- unconfirmed but almost certainly 1 book given the story 😂

Guarded- ?

Three of the 2023 books are still ongoing, so their status is undetermined. But of 7 completed series in 2023 only one got a sequel announcement for a low of 14% but 2023 did see two books getting announced book 3s, so that does balance it out a bit.

So with the 2022 numbers and 2023 numbers in, I think we can see about 1/3 of books getting sequels. Not great but better than it was for a while.

[trevs-chalobah]

few notes on today’s match against everton away.

first of all, great to finally getting the win after losing the last four games in a row at goodison park. a win we had to work hard for but a win nonetheless. clean sheet and the first three points of the season.

mendy: made a couple of great saves showing his quality again after being subpar at times recently.

reece: not at his best. performance was below standards, especially corners. unnecessary yellow card for time wasting. moved around a lot position-wise, from rwb to lwb to rcb. room to improve.

azpi: showing great leadership as always. solid in defense. not the fastest anymore but still showing his great quality.

thiago: the goat. one of the greatest defenders of all time (not joking). calm and collected. reading the game brilliantly as usual. important interceptions and blocks outstanding.

kalidou: still have to pinch myself that we actually managed to sign him. great defending. winning aerial duels left and right. gave his all until he had to be subbed off due to cramps. calm in the box and under pressure.

ben: glad to see him starting again to gain match fitness. did well to drive into the box and draw the penalty. played well enough and the only way is up.

jorgi: some call him the pen merchant, i call him the specialist. he does what he does best, scoring the first chelsea goal of the campaign from the spot, sending the keeper the wrong way. solid in midfield but the transition to the attack needs more fluidity.

kanté: dare i say the old kanté is making a comeback? he was all over the pitch making great runs. good overall performance

kai: not good enough today. felt like his head wasn’t fully in it at times. slow in reaction and creating ideas.

mason: same as kai.

raz: what a breath of fresh air. left alone at times which left him with no one to pass the ball to. could have bagged a couple of goals. debute goal sadly offside. should have had a penalty in my opinion after being brought down in the box. made great runs into the box. such an exciting signing.

rlc: played as rwb after coming on as a sub for chilwell. had a couple good moments e.g drawing a foul at the edge of the box. otherwise low-key performance

pulisic: brought on as a sub for mount. most memorable moment tackling pickford outside the box and winning the ball. good performance but rather low-key as well.

broja: brought on for havertz. had a couple of great moments showing his potential. could be a real asset to the squad.

cucurella: slotted right into the squad. almost assisted raz for his debute goal. solid defensively as well. fantastic performance considering he had one session with the team so far. wonder what he can do after a couple more and getting used to the others.

conor: brought on for jorgi in injury time. not a long performance but did well in the time he had.

all in all, a game where we should have scored more as usual. hard fought win. need to work on improving the output on corners and set pieces. time to recover and prepare for the london derby against tottenham at home.

[itsclydebitches]

Not sure if you heard this already, but apparently at a RTX panel, they mentioned how the RWB sitting around and sipping tea wasn't originally in the script and they were supposed to go the whale, but production issues made this unfeasible for them and they had to find something else for Ruby's group to do in the mean time.

I hadn’t heard that and honestly it… kinda makes the scenes worse for me? Because if we take this claim at face value, it implies that the writers always knew and understood how important it was for 3/4ths of their main cast to be doing something significant during the heart of the volume. More than that, they understood the importance of having their title characters involved in not just any threat, but the threat they were currently facing: Salem and her whale attacking Atlas. They wanted the whole group dealing with this! It’s just pesky production that somehow got in the way.

Great, so… why didn’t we see any of that understanding in the revision?

See, having 3/4ths of Team RWBY sipping tea while the world ends is definitely a problem. That will remain a problem in the story regardless of what behind the scenes explanation we’re given. However, the other half of this problem is that Problem #1 is never explained. It’s never justified. Some fans are always going to be frustrated that most of the team didn’t do anything of importance during that stretch, but that frustration is a whole lot easier to swallow when the story has given a decent explanation for why the protagonists aren’t a part of the fight. If RT always intended to have all of Team RWBY there, if they understood the importance of having their main characters involved in the primary fight, then I’m astounded that they didn’t do more to justify them sitting around.

Fans are frustrated not just because they sat drinking tea, but because they sat drinking tea and they were fine with that. None of the group was trying desperately to get back into the battle, stopped only by unforeseen circumstances. No one argued about whether four of them really needed to sit by Nora’s bedside, especially when a hastily redeemed Willow, Whitley, and Klein were already there. There was no discussion of what they were going to do, either in the short term or against Salem more broadly. There was no discussion or explanation of why May was off looking for their teammates and friends—family, if the rest of the story is to be believed. There was no work done to convince us of all the explanations the fandom came up with to make this make sense: that they were too exhausted to keep going, that Nora needed to be protected, that they feared Ironwood’s arrest too much to go back outside, etc. Far from writing a story that says, “We wanted the group to be at the heart of this war, the group wanted to be at the heart of this war, but sadly events conspired against them to ensure that just wasn’t possible” we got a story where it was ABSOLUTELY possible for them to get back into the fight… and the group just didn’t go. Ruby stared out the window, commented on how bad it was, and then went about her business of drinking tea, crying on the staircase, and watching herself ask others to come save the day. There was no sense of urgency; a real attempt to get back into the game only to be stopped at the last moment, the reasoning for which is later revealed to be production issues. Yes, the Hound definitely waylaid them, but before that there was no reason for all of them to stand around when Klein was the only one capable of helping Penny and Nora. They needed to get the power back on? Great, they should have planned to do that and then immediately leave, chomping at the bit to save the people they were supposedly fighting for. Because that's the problem! That Team RWBY demanded that Ironwood help Mantle, but then didn't help Mantle themselves; that they demanded that Atlas not be allowed to escape, but now Atlas is under attack and they're not doing a thing to help them. This was the worst possible time for the group to sit back and cool their heels, not just because it's the biggest attack RWBY has seen to date, but because they're responsible for keeping so many of the civilians here for that attack. They NEEDED to do something and if production meant they couldn't be apart of the big fight, we needed a seriously good reason for why they were sitting out. Which we never got — and that there is the problem. Before the Hound they were literally just sitting around for no reason when they knew their friends were missing, knew Salem was attacking Atlas, knew an army was dying to keep the grimm out of where they were stationed with an injured teammate, knew something had gone wrong at Amity given that their message cut out… the story gives no excuse for why they ignored all that, which does a real number on the claim that these are our righteous, caring heroes.

I can’t imagine planning to put RWB into the fight and then failing so spectacularly to explain why they aren’t. If this was always the intent—if RT isn’t just saying this now as a way to brush off one of Volume 8’s bigger criticisms—then it shows a real lack of understanding of what you need to do to revise a story.

[lostatsea303]

Let’s Talk About The Finale

Hey guys before we talk about that last episode we’re going full spoiler in this post so if you haven’t seen it yet you may want to stop here

So I wanted to make this post after seeing so many different opinions on the content of this episode and I figured I could add my two cents in and hopefully bring some praise and constructive criticism from my point of view.

First let’s talk Directing, Choreography, and Acting

First off let’s tip our hats to the VAs this episode they all did an amazing job! Elizabeth Maxwell, Miles Luna, and Taylor McNee all deserve recognition for being standouts in an episode where everyone nailed their parts.

In terms of choreography I think this met the RWBY standard. The Ironwood and maiden fights were top notch and while the RWB fight against Cinder and Neo felt a little off I think this was intentional; Team RWBY has been fighting and without rest for nearly 24 straight hours, they’re going to be slow and tired.

Directing I thought was very solid. There are some great shots I want to highlight in fact:

I think all these shots are excellent and there are a few more I’ll be using later. Directing and lighting has been something I think this volume has done exceedingly well! However there is one scene I think fell short.

This kinda looks like a meme doesn’t it? This moment completely took me out of the moment and I was wondering why. It’s not because of Harriet’s action’s I think she was sick of physically fighting and just wanted everyone to leave so she could die going down with the ship. No, I realized it was this shot: if this sequence had a close up of Qrow struggling against the weight of the bomb and cut back to another close up of Harriet yelling where you could see the desperation on her face (cause CRWBY did a great job with facial animation) it would work. Instead the framing, drab lighting, and stillness really hurt this scene.

Outside of this one scene however, I think this was a stellar finale in terms of production value!

WRITING

Overall I thought this was another good episode for the writers. Character dialogue was on point:

“You chose nothing, this was a gift”

“Whatever you wanted, I hope it was worth it.”

“I’ve only done what’s best for Remnant, and no one is grateful.”

And of course the whole Cinder and Salem interaction.

The events within the episode, I think, were all very good choices but there are two in particular I want to focus on:

The Sacrifice

I’m gonna talk about this first because I know this is where there is the most division right now and understandably so. We all love Penny, she has always been one of the purest characters within the show. That is why her death, even so shortly after she became human, is not only the right decision but a good one.

When you think about it Penny and Pyrrha are very similar characters: Morally upright, strong, and viewed as paragons amongst their peers. Pyrrha was chosen to be Vale’s Guardian and Penny was the protector of Mantle. They were people who always did the right thing for everyone else. However, their journey’s, not as people within the show but characters within a piece of art, would always require them to meet their end. 

Penny’s development was never about her learning what it was like to be a “real girl” because she already got that from being friends with Ruby. Her development was based around one of the key themes of this show: choice and control

RWBY has always focused on the question of who do we choose to be and what do we let control us. Penny rarely had a choice, and was always in danger of losing her control to someone else. At Beacon she was at Ironwood’s behest, in this season Watts had control over her in spurts. She was always in a battle to decide who she would be, and this was shown literally in the show with the fight between the virus and her soul. So when she became human she completed the biggest step in her journey of development: she no longer had any strings.

And she finally got to feel the warmth of the heart.

And that left her character development at an end. She had already learned what it meant to live, she finally got to experience the physical side of it, and finally she couldn’t be controlled again.

So when faced with the threat of someone taking away her control (Cinder) the completion of her character arc comes with her making the choice that Ruby didn’t earlier. But this time she was at peace with it, because she wasn’t dying because she had to due to an uncontrollable circumstance. No, now she chose to give her friend’s a chance, give Remnant hope in a new Winter maiden, and take from the enemy what they once took from her.

She chose.

While this completes her character arc it also develops everyone else’s which leads us into our final section

The Separation

We all knew that they were going to fall, you don’t have foreboding lines like “Do not fall” and not explain why.

But now all of the events have culminated in a perfect storm for our characters next season. Here’s what I mean:

This finale, especially with Penny’s sacrifice sets up every single character in this show for major developments. Starting from the outside:

Winter now has to learn to be a leader, not just a soldier anymore. She has to unlearn the years of regimenting and oppression that she’s been a part of.

Ren and Nora get to truly figure out who they are: There will be no team leaders among them, they will have to become them.

Oscar and Ozpin have to become the heroes that the former has always wanted to be and the latter always had other to become.

Qrow continues to learn to deal with loss and how even in spite of it he can keep moving forward and that the pains of the past can push him to better instead of holding him down.

Neo will learn what family is supposed to be, and coming to understand forgiveness for the things others do.

Jaune has to come to grips with the reality of being a hero and that sometimes the best choices we can make for others are the ones that cost the most of us.

Ruby will have to face not only another close loss in her life but she’ll have to learn about sacrifice and the unfortunate necessity of it. She’s been surrounded her whole life with people making the choice to sacrifice for her: Summer, Yang, Qrow, Weiss, and now Penny. She’s going to have to face Jaune making the choice she wouldn’t (Not to say that situation called for it but understanding the differences in those situations) and understanding that sometimes people have to go. While we should always do our best to save everyone we can, sometimes running away from the grief in our lives can creating greater loss than if we face it when we have to. 

Weiss has to learn to let go of control. She tried to protect and save everyone but in the end she was the last one from her team left. We’ve subtly seen through out this volume, and really the last couple of them if we’re being honest, Weiss always trying to be moderate within the team and be the glue and protector of the team as a whole. She’s always trying to be the best teammate she always promised to be but that has made her terrified to fail and in the end it’s stopped her from reaching her full potential. It’s a noble thing she does, but she’s so beholden to the expectations of other’s (now her friends instead of her family) that it secludes her. We’ve seen moments of her true strength when she focuses and trusts herself but she still hasn’t fully gotten there.

Blake is the flipside to Weiss, she needs to learn to take control. She’s still held down by the fear of being what Adam said she was that she won’t take the step forward. Whether this be with her relationship to Yang or even in situations like the one we saw in the second to last episode frozen and unsure how to proceed at the end. She tries to play it safe because of what she’s gone through. But Penny’s sacrifice and when she thought she lost Yang will push her.

Yang has already learned to necessity of sacrifice but she has to learn that not every situation requires it. Put simply she has to learn what she means to the others. Yang has always been the first to throw herself in the line of fire for others and take the risk when it’s time. But she’s never thought about how she affects others with her sacrifice. Penny’s loss may initially affirm her current view but she will have to come to face that Penny’s sacrifice happened only when absolutely necessary and when it was best for everyone else. Yang needs to know she’s worth more than what she can do for other people.

CONCLUSION

Honestly guys this was alot and if you read all this way thank you! I’m sure some people will disagree with some of my thoughts and that’s totally ok! In the end we’re all fans, and we all care alot about this show.

See you guys next season!

[kitkatopinions]

What makes you like May so much? I notice that despite her relatively little screen time and character development, she’s in a LOT of your top 3 ships. Not hate or anything, just always curious when people latch on to minor characters

Alrighty, let’s unpack May Marigold. Like you said, she doesn’t have a lot of screen time or character development, but even if a character isn’t featured much, there are still ways you can like them right away. Funnily enough, some of the reasons I like May are the same reasons I liked Qrow from his first season even though he didn’t get a lot of focus and we knew very little about him.

1. Mannerisms, body language, and attitude

I like expressive characters, I like characters who are dry or feisty or both, I like characters who can be in tense situations and look totally bored, I like joking characters and mock politeness and winks and attitude. May has a dry wit and an air of devil-may-care behavior around her that I find really appealing in a character. But she also has a society upbringing and it leaks into her actions here and there and that adds interest. She feels really distinctive. Also since the mains have started all seeming a bit... interchangeable, May is a nice change of pace in that way. Everyone in the above image is making pretty much the same face, but May, who looks like she couldn't be more bored.

2. She's someone I want to root for

When Team RWBY wanted to pretend they were in a situation where they could save everyone and everyone could win, May recognized what they were too stubborn and illogical to. May was the voice of experience and reason in that situation that point blank told them ‘there’s no saving everyone, you have to choose.’ And I mean, I was on Ironwood’s side in volume seven before he shot Oscar, but May not only has a point in what she says and in her goals, but has follow through (something Ruby didn’t have.) She wants to launch Amity Tower and so accompanies Team RWBN while feeling assured that Ruby’s friends are making up for her loss in protecting Mantle, she resolves to help Mantle after the Tower is launched with the statement that Atlas has soldiers defending it while Mantle does not and therefore she’s of better use there, and then she does what she says she was going to and goes to protect the people of Mantle even though she did it alone because Team RWB couldn’t choose anything. While Team RWB was hiding out in a mansion drinking tea, May was actually determined to do something. May is a flawed character, she calls Penny ‘robo-girl’ and gets called out for it, she’s aggressive with Marrow, she’s partially responsible for the delay of Amity being launched, and she seems to follow Robyn with too much devotion imo (considering my dislike of Robyn lol, I think this is fair.) But she’s also determined to help those in need and is willing to follow through, and uses actual logic to see the situation for what it is and understands her own limitations. Between annoying protagonists with impossible idealistic standards that act like they never have to change who feel very insincere, former heroes who have gone crazy and who might be actually fighting and trying to do good but are also down to murder anyone and therefore can’t be supported, and villains who are getting ‘redeemed’ in the sloppiest and least convincing ways possible... May stood out as someone who is trying to be both smart and caring, brave and compassionate, but realistic. Ironwood was no longer allowed to be seen in a good light and so was turned into a puppy kicking maniacal ball of crazy willing to torture and bomb just to get his way, and Ruby was not allowed to be seen as wrong or failing and so the whole narrative was about how good and right she was even if she didn’t accomplish her goal or earn a victory because hey, at least she made a rousing speech and yelled at anyone who wanted to do something she deemed not enough. May was allowed to be a moral character who just disagreed with Ruby, she was allowed to make mistakes without it either being treated as monstrous or quickly covered with pretty words about how everyone knows she’s still great. May was allowed to be a character without the authors constantly reminding us of what they want us to think of her. Maybe if she’d been in one of the earlier seasons, she wouldn’t have been as compelling to me (because that wasn’t a rarity lol,) but compare her to Ruby now and she’s amazing. Also she told Ruby she was wrong, and she may have softened it later, but still, it was one of the better parts of the whole volume. Ruby needs more people who are willing to give her hard truths, instead of people who are going to agree with and support her no matter what.

3. Potential

When it comes to characters, the first thing I really look at is if they’d be good in fan fictions, how I’d use them, how I could see them interacting in this or that scenario, and what dynamics I think they’d have. A lot of this has very little to do with actual canon, like wondering how she’d fit into a fake organization full of OCs I’d written into a couple of fan fics or wondering what her dynamic would be with the redeemed Roman Torchwick and Emerald and Mercury that I’ve often centered my stories around. But some of it is stuff like ‘How would May see Winter? What sort of tension might May have with her in Vacuo?’ ‘How would May get along with Sun and Neptune in Vacuo?’ ‘When the others get back from the void, what will May be doing?’ Much like I took to the cocky but clearly more under the surface winking argumentative Qrow in his very first season, I like what little I’ve seen of her and hope I get more of what makes her an appealing character to me later. And much like I got attached to Neo after even her very minor appearances in the first three seasons and started including her as the babied little sister figure of Roman somehow three times more cut throat than him that takes his word as gospel, I like May for what I can see her turning into in my fics even if she’s never given a lot of focus or room to grow or (God forbid) gets her character thrown to the wolves.

Also, as for shipping her with people, I feel like since she hasn’t yet taken a lot of screen time and we are wondering at how she’ll interact with people once things aren’t so tense, it’s easy to imagine her with a lot of people just because I haven’t been put off by any interactions and relationships that were badly handled or that just don’t vibe. I think I’ve listed her in the top three ships with Ilia, Sun, and Blake, and omg I just realized how funny it is that I listed May as a possible romance for all three of them. XD These ships are pretty casual, as I was looking for numbers and I’ve shipped Sun and Blake for so long, it’s hard to picture them with anyone else and there are pretty big road blocks in shipping them with many of the other mains, and I hadn’t really considered many ships for Ilia before writing the post. May just happened to be a ship I saw that I thought ‘that could be pretty cute, actually.’ However, thinking about her and Sun...

Idk, I just think it’d be neat. If BlackSun can’t be canon, this just might be my second choice. Sun is a bright, caring, loyal optimist who isn’t afraid to get serious and emotionally vulnerable and is also down for some low grade crime here and there. He values independence, he’s not pushy, but he’s also not afraid to challenge and call people out. May is cynical and a bit jaded, puts her trust in people maybe a little too much, but is also feisty and sharp witted and has a quick tongue, and she’s compassionate and willing to get her hands dirty and put what she thinks needs to be done over what others want and she’s realistic and gutsy. Also he’s got blonde hair and blue eyes and she’s got blue hair and honey colored eyes, so... Yeah. I don’t know, because it’s so hard trying to ship anything other than BlackSun for him, but there might be something the writers could work with there.

[laulink]

Ok, so, I wasn’t able to watch the episode yesterday, but now I did and BOOOOOOOOYYYYYYYYY

I knew it’d be a lot, but that was everything I could have expected and more. 

Let’s break this down :

First, the most obvious : Yang falling. The scene was soooo emotional, because the slow-motion really showed every character’s reaction in detail and it was heartbreaking, really. I’m confident Yang’s fall won’t harm her, especially not kill her, since she’s one of the main characters, but RWB & co don’t know that, and they can’t ask Jinn anymore, nor Oscar/Ozpin, not until they leave the central location, meaning they wouldn’t be able to access it anymore, and Ambrosius himself might not know what exactly happens when someone falls in the void, just like he didn’t know what would happen to Penny if he did as told. So I’m very excited to see what exactly happens when someone falls into that void and what CRWBY will do with the rest of the team. A theory I’ve seen going around is that Yang will reenact the tale Oscar and Ozpin talked about, which is apparently the Remnant version of Alice in Wonderland, and that would be pretty great I think ! The question now is : will Yang go through that journey alone while her team has to try and move forward, thinking she’s dead, or will the three other also fall down into the void ? I’m kinda split on that, because, on one hand, I find it hard to believe that Ruby, Weiss and Blake will fall too, all while Penny is there to help and probably the Happy Huntresses too, but on the other hand, it would certainly be different to make one of the characters only go through such a journey while the others don’t. Like Oz and Oscar said, the girl in the fairy tale came home changed, and it would be weird if Yang was the only one to be changed by such a journey while the others did not experience anything even remotely similar.

Next thing on the list : Ironwood. Two points with him : killing Jacques and fighting Winter. All about the Schnees, huh ? I know it may seem... unnecessary, and anti-climactic, at this point, to kill Jacques off, especially by Ironwood’s hand, but I think it might pay off in the future. Like Winter said, Weiss had opted to save her father : she didn’t forget about him, or decide to let him fare for himself while Atlas was falling, she decided to actively take steps to save his life. And now he’s dead. I don’t expect anyone in the family to mourn him, but I also don’t think anyone will really rejoice in his death. A shitty person is still a person, and normal people don’t actually enjoy learning of the death of someone they knew well, even if they didn’t like them. They might feel relief, but there’s always a hollowness coming with it too. Because that person occupied a piece of their lives and that’s something they are taking with them in death and that will never come back. I don’t know what, exactly, CRWBY intends to do with that, but I expect the news of Jacques’s death to have on impact on the Schnee family members, whatever it is. As for the fight, I found it to be a nice touch to see James cry as he got ready to fight Winter. He still truly believes his course of action is the right one, he can’t see all the harm he’s doing, and it genuinely pains him to fight Winter, because he loves her but he thinks what he wants to do will bring more good and is therefore needed. It’s truly tragic. I fully expect Winter to win this fight, but I don’t know in what state she’ll be left after this, nor what exactly will happen to Ironwood after she beats him. Does Atlas tip and make him or both of them fall off the edge of the path and down to Mantle ? Does Winter try to catch James and fail ? Does she lose a limb in the fight and later has to get a prosthetic and always be reminded of the man she knew who had over half his body replaced by prosthetics ? I’m curious to see what exactly will happen. But I doubt James Ironwood will make it out of the Atlas arc alive.

A blink-and-you’ll-miss-it scene that I found quite interesting too : Cinder telling Watts, in her softest voice, that he, “Arthur”, deserves this. To end Atlas as he always wished he could. This, coupled with the title of the ep, throw us back to their argument a couple of episodes ago, where Cinder broke down and started crying. I already thought that Watts’s words had gotten to Cinder because of her tears, but her words now make me even more sure of it. Which means that I fully expect her to try and fix the flaws that Watts pointed out, aka the fact that she tends to use brute force to get what she wants instead of using her brain. She already started being smart about things again : she asked Jinn to know what RWBY & co had planned, she gathered intel to determine the best way to make their plan fail. I expect her to have one more trick up her sleeve in her fight against team RWBY. Maybe, oh, I don’t know : stealing the Staff and using it to create something and make the central location disappear while people are still in it. Wouldn’t that be funny now. (also, don’t ask me why, but I have a feeling that Watts will not even try to escape while Atlas falls down. As he told Cinder, he’s got everything he ever wanted, and his life goal was, apparently, to bring Ironwood and his kingdom down for casting him aside, so I can see him being happy going out doing what he always wanted to : tear apart everything Ironwood ever cared about)

Last note of this already long post : the bits with the Ace Ops were great, especially Harriet and Vine. It was good to see two soldiers argue about the values they hold most important as well as their feelings : loyalty (to the General or to the people) and grief (over Clover). Harriet’s semblance doesn’t give her tunnel vision, yet she still doesn’t take a single step to the side of the path Ironwood laid out for her. I’m curious to see how things will go for her. I wouldn’t be surprised if she ended up being the only one being blown up by that bomb, killed by her own stubbornness, just like Clover was killed by his decision to follow orders without question.

[toooldforfandom-liveblogs]

RWBY V08E05 - Amity

Amity! A return to the adventures of RWB? With no Penny sadly. I doubt we'll get so many visual puns again but who knows, maybe they'll make friends with Whitley or at least have a cordial chat with him without killing each other. I have no idea, so let's do this!

Wow, great start. Poor Pietro, got copypasted there with no regard for his feelings.

I'm very glad I was wrong about no Penny.. Even if every second she's on screen increases the chances of something bad happening to her.

Why does the HUD look like someone used the wand from photoshop to extract it from a white background?

Wait, are they going to blow up the Dust to launch amity into space?

Penny is right, that doesn't seem like a good idea but it's also incredibly in-character for the show. Now even caves are a gun.

Someone at Rooster Teeth really likes the idea of little old ladies riding huge robots, and honestly? Can't disagree.

hmmmmmmmm not a big fan of pietro at the moment

oof, my heart

Maria continues to be the voice of wisdom. Sadly, I doubt Pietro is going to listen to her.

In the original tale Pinocchio ends up learning by making bad choice after bad choice. Penny doesn't seem to have that much in common with her inspiration but if she hasn't ever been able to make a choice at all, would it be surprising if the first time she makes a choice it ends up being a bad one? It wouldn't surprise me if this is setting her up to fly away from Amity (against Pietro's wishes) once she notices something went wrong with everyone else (making her vulnerable)

Welp.

look at that poor girl

Aaaa, that's the same expression she used when Ruby said Penny was still the Protector of Mantle. "my feelings don't matter, conceal, don't feel, don't let them kn— wait, never mind

but yeah, she's used to putting everyone ahead of her (because as a robot she supposedly doesn't know better, there's a reason that was her first thought when she was talking with Winter in last season)

aw poop

Cinder was moving so fast she left her shadow behind.

Great deranged expression and voice though. Did she bring both Neo and Emerald or just the latter?

Penny yes

Hey, 9 blades! For a second I thought they wouldn't remember that she lost one.

no, no, no, time for what? aaaaa

Now that we have more context, Cinder using her own experiences to know where to hurt people is * chef kiss *

Intentional reference to the PvP fight?

okay, I didn't expect badass Maria to actually fight using her robot but I blame my own lack of imagination

now I'm hyped, it also gives something the other two something to do.

I think the main problem here for the good guys is that if Pietro gets threatened there's no way Penny is not going to surrender. Although, maybe he gets kidnapped? That'd make him get "swallowed" by a whale... hm. Another possibility is that they threaten Pietro and Penny gets hacked "just in time"

you can't lie to me, subtitles, I know she was going to say bitch

lol at crashing the entire ship into maria to get her out of the way

bad mistake to hurt one of Penny's friends in front of her

Did anyone give a job to poor Emerald? I can almost see Cinder telling Neo to distract people while in the ship with Emerald sitting in the back seat trying to get noticed.

C'mon Neo, leave the old lady alone

���of course she wouldn't leave her alone, she's Neo, she likes playing with her victims

I wonder if Neo has a deeper plan than "killing this old lady while looking like her protege would be incredibly cruel and extra and therefore worth doing"

If the drifting was an accident, where did Emerald go?

waiting for the RWBY shmup

I understand why she's leaving Amity (to prevent their fight from destroying it by accident) but leaving Pietro alone feels like a bad idea.

…this HUD is a lot cleaner, I don't get it, it should be the same png overlay

anyway, took the screenshot to write "wow, Cinder is actually capable of thinking through her rage these days, good for her" but now that I think about it, I'm not sure if she's ever been fooled.

booo

I wanted more evil Ruby

Also, I'm literally loling at Maria yoda-ing Neo.

ah yes, neo, so graceful

hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

mmmmmmm

mmm

oof, looks like that was a direct hit. And the worst part is that the second James hacks into Penny, I assume it'll will work that way. Probably her worst nightmare.

Yeah, no, this worked for spiderman because his nemesis wasn't right in front of him.

I like the idea of this shot but for some reason the execution looks weird. Maybe it's just awkward positioning, it's hard to tell the angles.

lmao

* cough *

I mean, yeah, saw that coming.

For a second I thought she was melting her face but then I remembered the one reason Cinder has that arm.

I'm going to need a diagram to know what Emerald was doing.

Yessss, no need for swords if you can make your own

I really need to know what she was doing inside because right now it feels like that was the worst excuse ever to get her out of the fight until the last possible second (and maybe make it another reference to PvP when Ruby exits the corridor?)

Did she finally see Pietro?

Emerald has so much faith in Cinder, sigh

I wonder if before the end of the show Neo will get to stab someone with her umbrella. Maybe it could even be Cinder

First time she gets knocked out?

Cinder with a long spear only means one thing. Someone is getting stabbed

Huh.

I hadn't thought about this until now but before this second I'd have said Emerald's semblance shouldn't work on Penny. Like, what part is she affecting to make Penny see the duplicates? But I guess it does work, somehow. Maybe reality gets processed through Aura.

Fire spear vs laser, who wins?

Giant laser wins

Glad that Penny is confirmed as the most powerful character in the show.

Poor Emerald, two lines this episode and they are both "CINDER"

Damn, she looks done with their crap.

And now she looks absolutely feral. Loving this.

I'm still waiting for the other shoe to drop. If she gets hacked now, Cinder still wins. She wouldn't get the maiden powers but at least she'd stop the transmission.

aaaaa

Emerald breaks my heart. So much love for someone who couldn't give a hoot about her.

At least Cinder seems to know her place with Salem, but I can't tell if she started like Emerald and got her love beaten down or if she just had different priorities after getting saved from what seemed similar circumstances.

Ah, Neo. Now to add to her resume that she beat a granny only because she got distracted.

oh, shut up, Pietro

Is this it? Is this where Penny "rebels"?

Even after all that fight, I think this is the best animation of the episode so far. It conveys so much resignation and annoyance.

I think this is the first time this season RWBY makes me teary-eyed. She finally said it!

This is too cute for this world.

Remember when I said that hug with Ruby felt like a goodbye? Well, this is much worse.

Wooo, she succeeded! (I hope, they did mention the message was a couple of minutes long)

But I'm also even more worried now because it feels like the one last thing she had to do.

They are back!

I wonder if the one character I miss the most will also get a shot.

Pensive Whitley? more likely than you think

He has a lot of potential, especially now that Salem -> Cinder -> Emerald are a thing, making cyclical abuse more of an explicit theme. Not sure if there's enough time to do him justice though, considering he's not much of a character.

"we don't want to reveal Vacuo yet, what do we do?" "put them in the desert"

Yessss, Ilia got a cameo!

Are they pulling her back from voiceless purgatory?

Holy shit, wow, really didn't expect to see her.

Literally a pet. I wonder where the hound falls in the hierarchy

...why is she so happy? She's not supposed to be happy!!

siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh

yeah

was expecting this

Poor guy, I wonder if this is the first news he gets from her daughters.

Taiyang made me realize they didn't show Yang's team. Huh.

Oh, fuck you rooster teeth.

Fuck oofffff (RT, not you, Pietro)

Is Winter end up doing the right thing? She's obviously affected by seeing Penny's sword there.

Also, I wonder if her new armor is just that or if it's a bracing system to help her move so soon after getting beat. But I guess that wouldn't be necessary if her aura helped her heal.

Hopefully, if Watts escapes and tries to get everyone else to help (since I doubt he can beat all the guards on his own), Qrow shows he learned his lesson about trusting the enemy.

ah, there you go

Okay, this is an amazing reveal. Is Salem transforming Mantle into another land of darkness? Because that'd definitely explain why she was so unworried about the broadcast.

What a way to end the episode. A brief moment of hope completely destroyed, twice.

Penny has been raising so many death flags that her inevitable hacking lacked some impact. I'm still sad (and annoyed at RT for poor Penny being a magnet for suffering) but Watts being Watts maybe he did a bad job just to prevent Atlas to escape? And Penny seemed able to resist? aaaah, I don't know. Now that the hacking finally happened all the foreshadowing is over, anything could happen.

The worst part of the hack is that it modified Penny's thoughts. It wasn't a complete takeover, like with Pietro, it was a lot more insidious. Literally making true what Cinder told her. Ugh.

Looking back at the screenshots, wow, a lot of the episode was just them fighting, but there were some fun moments, like Maria kicking Neo's ass.

Very curious about where it's going. Both the Penny plot (there's absolutely no way hacked Penny doesn't fight Ruby, there's probably a rule written in the universe about having mind-controlled people fight their loved ones) and the river of Grimm which was an excellent secondary gut punch. Really, loved that reveal. "You thought things were bad? lol"

I think that's all for now, until next time!

[sunnysunsins]

RWBY volume 8 opening analysis. Obv, spoilers

Ok, so. Imma do what I do best: overanalyze the shit out of every frame i find interesting. AGAIN SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS

We start off with Then-Now cut of Mantle and Atlas being overrun by Grimm. Nothing new here. Then we have our girls with their past selves.

Interesting things: while RWB are prepared to fight (with Ruby being confident, Weiss - careful and Blake - serious), Yang is just hugging her arm with a smile. Also notice the glowing dots around them. I’ll bring it up later We also have that effect with Ironwood and Atlas

Which burns to shit as that light in Iron’s eyes is gone. Also small detail, but note that Atlas starts to burn as Clover’s hand is shown.

Clover let’s go of his pin

And it shows the AceOps. Elm is serious

Vine is praying

Marrow is sad and remorseful

And Harriet is pissed. And note how she shares her shot with a sullen Qrow. If i may throw some bullshit, i have two thoughts: 1.Harriet was close friends with Clover. 2.She is going to take his place as the leader of AceOps

But back to Qrow. He is offered a hand by Robyn

And he takes it, both wearing serious looks. 

Remember that Robyn needs to shake a person’s hand to activate her semblance. Maybe she used it and knows that Qrow isn’t lying about Tyrian killing Clover.

And now we got The Boi.

In a cage, tormented by Grimm. Some have said it could be an illusion created by Emerald, but honestly I want this to be literal. Mostly because it will be a great way to develop Oscar. And it also remind’s me of “It’s Venomous” by @shadowsnowdapple​ and it’s always a great thing. 

Oooo spoopy Mommy Salami. Imagine she really CAN grow wings tho! Also her caging and intimidating Oscar is just- everything I wanted, honestly. 

Next we see Jaune. Notice how his sword splits the screen in the middle

And when the camera pulls back, we see why - Ren and Nora

Ren looks back at her with a sad look 

And she does the same, but unlike him, she turns completely - 

And the pink lightning crosses her eyes along with the snowstorm.  As we know, Nora was supposed to have her backstory in vol.7, but it got pushed back.  While lightning is her power, it is also in the skillset of the maidens. And notice how the snowstorm picked up when the lightning crossed the screen. I am a strong believer that “Fria is Nora’s grandmother” theory is still possible.

Next we have the Schneesters. They walk across the SDC snowflake like preparing for a duel.

Winter with her old clothes - passes Weiss - new clothes

She looks at Weiss with seriousness and maybe anger -

And as they are back to back, she drops the act and let’s sadness and maybe remorse show

Whitley is worried, Willow is just sad

And the SDC logo shatters, giving rise to Salem and her army of Grimm. Funny how it was Jackass and his stupidity that let Salem get into Atlas without much of a problem.

I find it interesting how both Salem AND Ironwood are Queens in this chess match 

Watts is a smiling motherfucker. I couldn’t find any easter eggs on his screen

And his reflection turns into Pietro(s). While he is working, his reflection is worried about Penny

And she still tries to come to terms with her being the Winter Maiden

And as the glass shatters, one Penny is trying to calm herself, while the other is worried, looking for something offscreen. We will get to this later

Next is a single snowflake landing on Ren’s palm

That turns into a pink petal, color similar to Nora’s

Ren holds it with a sad/determined look as Jaune comforts him

The Mantle Squad is here. Team JOYRide ready for action

Another petal floats by

And Nora tries to catch it

But can’t. 

But hey, the Amity Squad is also here!

Everyone looks onto the 3 tasks at hand: protect Mantle, get Amity up and running and get Salem out of here. Also, I love the composition of this shot with dawn sky transitioning into red clouds around Grimm

And notice how when the squad is ready to fight, Penny floats up and turns to us, hovering under Amity with her blades out. Remember that too 

Ruby and Yang nod to each other

And get to working on the Grimm. 

Nothing to see in the fight. 

But then Cinder walks by, taking a casual stroll through the frozen in time fight

Neo is not amused at all (BACKSTAB BACKSTAB BACKSTAB)

Emerald raises her hand to great Cinder, but get’s ignored

And she doesn’t like that.

Cinder get’s tormented by her grimm arm, with solemn Emerald in the background

From Cinder’s fire come our other bad guys. 

Hazel looks sad... with his weirdass muscles and weirdass clothes..... 

Tyrian is always a delight

Mercury looks like he’s about to drop the thiccest diss track

And THICC indeed

Oh my queen~ I get why Ozma wanted to smash even after she fell into a lake of bleach

And nice contrast of her red eyes with the Relic’s blue glow

And they BOTH have smoke trailing out of them! Could this be the Staff also has a being inside it? 

Whatever it is, it makes Ruby’s eyes turn brown in this shot

Or it’s just the sunrise, lol

Notice how her scythe split the party into the two squads. ALSO NOTICE WHO ISN’T IN THIS SHOT. (I’m getting to her, just wait a bit) 

The ground breaks

And the girls fall into abyss, reminiscent of Volume 3 opening

AND the fall into the motherfucking pool of Light that Salem got dunked in by the gods

Notice how the waves on Ruby’s face are the same as what Salem had. And also notice those glowing dots that i mentioned at the very beginning

Ruby is reaching for the Staff

But a certain grimm hand pulls her back. The only hand with 5 fingers.  Remember in volume 6 Cinder fell into a lake below the Haven vault?  Also I’d like to point out that she gently pulls Ruby’s hand away. Seriously, look at it in the op! She doesn’t grab her and tries to rip her arm off. She just takes her hand like “no, don’t do it.” and gently holds it back while all the other grimm arms reach up towards the staff. And then we have two messages:

And, on the contrary:

And all of this is interwoven with those sketchy images:

The bloodhound grimm that Salem sent after Oscar

Penny being hacked. Come on, this one is obvious. And i did say to keep in mind some other sus scenes with her.

And as the weapons fall...

Only one remains standing.

[rookieforlife]

FOUR U.S. FEMALE SOCCER STARS SHARE WHY THEY STARTED LIFESTYLE & STREETWEAR LABEL, RE—INC

- Founders Megan Rapinoe, Meghan Klingenberg, Tobin Heath and Christen Press detail the inspiration behind their latest collection.

After kicking things off with its “RWB” capsule collection, comprised of a range of wardrobe essentials in muted tones, the brand has since dabbled in art by holding an auction of Heath’s original work. Its latest drop titled “Black & White,” featuring 10 apparel pieces that arrive in black and white, further explores the label’s central theme of self-expression and inclusivity. Each item inspires the wearer to feel comfortable in their own skin, without being confined to norms.

Ahead of the “Black & White” capsule launch, we spoke to the four entrepreneurs about their inspirations, as well as how they have been working together as a team to build re—inc. Read our interview with Rapinoe, Klingenberg, Heath and Press on the message behind re—inc and its new collection below.

- After winning the 2019 Women’s World Cup, how did the four of you get together to launch a brand?

MK:The story really began following the 2015 World Cup. It was a huge moment for us — the final game was the most-watched game in U.S. history, yet we knew that our full value wasn’t truly being acknowledged. We were ready to take control of our own identities, claim our worth and rally a movement of changemakers. In 2018, we got back together to get the idea on paper. Just before the 2019 World Cup, we dropped our first product and launched our business. Ultimately, we want re—inc to create a limitless movement that rallies change-makers to challenge the status quo and fight for social equity.

- Why made you decide to go into streetwear or fashion? Was the idea of starting a brand something you had been planning for a while?

MR: Fashion and streetwear are male-dominated industries, ripe for disruption. We saw the need to make a line that was more inclusive of different body types and gender identities. Our clothing capsules are a template for everyone’s unique self-expression. There’s a piece for everyone and unlimited ways to style it. There’s no right way to wear it. We want our clothes to be about fitting you, not trying to fit it.

- What are each of your roles in developing a collection?

CP: It’s a very collaborative process but we all play unique roles. Tobin is our Creative Director, overseeing the development and bringing the artistic vision to every detail of the “Black & White” capsule.

- Where do you get inspiration for each of your releases?

TH: I’ve never had to look for inspiration — it’s all around and within me. For each collection, we begin with a story we want to share. From there, I begin the process of trying to express that through my art. I’m not a person that uses words to share how I’m feeling. For our “Black & White” capsule, it’s the tension that you feel when trying to reimagine the status quo. That’s something that we’ve really lived in starting this company.

- Your careers are mainly in sports. How has running a lifestyle and streetwear brand been for you so far? What are the similarities and differences between the two?

CP: We are a purpose-led lifestyle brand, and we’ve started in fashion. Running this company has been a great blessing in my life. I wake up each day with purpose, knowing that the team depends on me and that what we are doing really matters. We are trying to express ourselves and to share joy and passion with others, and all of these things I feel about soccer. In both soccer and re—inc, I try to find workflow. I try to get better every day. In both, I’ve learned that leadership is service and that good teamwork is like magic.

- How has re—inc evolved since you launched the “RWB” collection?

CP: We’ve hired our first few employees, dropped new products and experiences and continued to build our growth strategy. We really believe in the idea of “Again but better.” Right now, that means we’re trying to create consciously and push the boundaries of what that even means. That’s why we partnered with an ethical factory in India to create garments made of organic cotton and crafted by fairly paid workers. We’ve refined all of our designs making the “Black & White” capsule both more comfortable and elevated with the details. We’ve strengthened our relationship with our community, getting more personal, vulnerable and engaging. We create space for all to share and be heard.

- The BW capsule is all about self-expression, which is a topic more important than ever. What is your way of self-expression? What are some ways other than fashion that you think play an important role in self-expression?

MR: For me, self-expression is about following your gut, your heart and what you know is right. Whether that is a wild outfit choice, or standing up for something I believe in, that desire runs very deep in me. Part of my self-expression is about what I believe and the other part of it is just how I want to show up in the world everyday.

- What are some other topics you would like to delve into through re—inc collections in the future, and why?

TH: The “Black & White” collection is very much about the tension, struggle and courage in self-acceptance and trying to create change. Our next collection will be an extension of this story. Our collections are essentially a narrative, a way for people to connect to the larger message and the change we are trying to create.

[marithlizard]

Thoughts on RWBY v8c8, “Dark”

Do you ever find yourself hoping that a rumored Horrible Plot Twist won't happen for the sake of the characters you care about,  but at the same time halfway hoping it will because So Cool and Elegant and it fits with all the foreshadowing in the credits?

Yeah.  Time to find out.

- I thought for sure the fireball would be Cinder!  But no, and the hard-light cells  don't even look damaged. How long are the jailbirds going to be in there?

- Two scenes that start out with black-screen-with-audio-effects in a row  suggests less "atmospheric dread" and more "it was not easy to get this thing done at all in the  middle of a pandemic, okay?" - Orange veining. Welcome back, Nora. Klein is a reassuring sight to wake up to.   (Speaking of cool plot twists I was on the fence about, I really thought we'd find him working in the mines, heigh-ho  heigh-ho to SDC slave labor we go.) -Whitley helping to carry Penny!  He really is on board now, I'm glad. - Bombing run?  Is Atlas bombing its  own streets to try and clear them of Grimm? - Annd May took off with the ship so they're trapped here with the lights out in a classic horror  movie setup.  (I don't blame her, of course.  RWB have no plan and  if the world's going to end, you want to be with your people.) - what the - what WAS that?  It looked like a giant version of one of Salem's jellyfish tearing an Atlesian airship apart with long ropy red tendrils.  Very possibly was. - "Believe it or not, I am above drinking in the dark."   Nobody believes you, hon, but that's okay. - Klein doesn't even answer her.  Ouch. - WHITLEY YOU GO, BOY   I didn't realize they had drone pilots, but I still should've thought of that many episodes ago (and so should Weiss). With Jacques out of the picture, they can commandeer all the SDC resources to help.   Nice!

- There is of course the question of where to evacuate the crater refugees *to*.  How long a range do those cargo ships have?  The next closest settlement we know about is likely Argus, and I think Maria said something about their stolen ship barely making it at the end of v7.   Still it's an avenue worth pursuing - even camping in a frozen wasteland beats a Grimm army. - Time for the traditional "team splits up to go exploring in the dark" phase.  I'm rewinding every few seconds now to squint at all the backgrounds, but tbh I was no good at spotting the Hound last time.  Never would've known it was there in most of episode 2. - Lovely little pep talk from Blake.  All the sweeter because they don't get much interaction onscreen. - (rewind rewind squint squint where is it is it in the hall shadows) - RT not even pretending the computers don't run Microsoft Windows. 

- YEEEEEEEEEK - (I wish I hadn't seen the preview bits. Unspoiled, there would have been 3x more EEE in that yeek. ) - Rewind to watch Blake's ears fold  down in sudden  terror.   Nice touch. - Klein  and Willow, equals for the first time, sitting in awkward silence.  And his little frown when her reaction to a crash and breaking glass is not to look around but to reach for her bottle. - (I regret a whole lot of wasted potential for Qrow this arc, but I think most of all I regret him never getting to meet Willow.   They would understand each other in a way no one else in the cast can, and he could have offered her hope.) - Oh,  shut it, Weiss, he's doing great considering the circumstances, and your own default attitude is set to High Snark. Which I don't mind, but  pot-kettle. -  Still so effing creepy.  It sure doesn't look like a Hound right now,  more of a  gorilla.    And Blake successfully not freezing up and taking it on!  It's good seeing her get to be badass here, since she missed out on the Nucklavee and didn't fight the Apathy at all. - "Take the girl". It's repeating its orders, I had trouble making the words out at first.  - Ruby, in contrast to Blake, is frozen to the spot and doesn't even aim her weapon as it charges at her.  She's really at a low point right now.  And oof, there goes her Aura just from a TACKLE.  It didn't even hit her! - It's noticeably more efficient taking Ruby.   Was Oscar its first mission? It's much more smooth and quick about the shapeshifting now, too. - Weiss  taking precious seconds to alert Klein.  That actually shows considerable presence of mind;  it would've been completely natural to just charge in, but she was thinking about the civilians she's responsible for.  Good show. - oop, there goes Willow. She tried.   I don't think she can have ever been a Huntress herself, as cool as that would've been.  (I would have *loved* to see her rediscover her hereditary power to conjure defeated foes...and use it to summon a Jacques.) - Penny's exaggerated puppet-movements,  with arms held out wide from her body and stiff clanky-machine noises.  Oh dear. Maiden powers going out of control are just what we needed. - Is Weiss starting to summon a Nevermore there?  That's a beautiful shot!

- we're only 8.5 MINUTES into an almost 18 minute episode - It's holding Ruby more carefully than it did Oscar, too.  It hasn't hurt her any more than necessary. - wha?  OHH of course it's here for Penny.  But it grabbed Ruby first because her scent was on the lamp?  Or because Penny was dormant  and it couldn't sense her?   - ouch - what is that Grimm.  An antlion? - oh,  Nora repeating Blake's words. *sniffle* There's still no light in her eyes. - Weiss it's above you, have you  not watched any horror movies - So Willow did pull herself together a bit.  And she's putting all the cameras she installed to spy on Jacques to use, nice!   - I TAKE IT ALL BACK AHAHAHA  wow, it's good to be wrong sometimes - GOOD JOB WHITLEY - Blake asking important questions.  Seriously what is that thing based on, I'm having horrible DA:O flashbacks - she continues to badass - Now that's how I expected the Hound to treat Ruby, instead of that inexplicable gentleness.  Theory probability continuing to rise. - rewind rewind did it just grow a third arm out of its back?  It did. Grossly.   - Annnd what will come climbing back in the window? - Well, it's not Summer. -  It can't be Clover.  It *can't* be Clover, we saw his body for several seconds at the start of the volume.   - ...It's a faunus,  he has wolf-type ears.  Nobody we know.   - Ruby's silver eyes must have mostly taken it out already, if that was enough to finish it off.   And Grimm dust dissolves and floats up into the air like disproved theories. -  Oh, hi, Cinder. You're kind of anticlimactic.   But I wonder what you meant by "my turn to ask for something".  Is she going to demand Watts build her something? - The hardlight walls are gone now, so I'm guessing Qrow and Robyn escaped after all.  And probably took Jacques with them, more's the pity. Overall a really good action episode, though I'm left still wondering why the Hound was so gentle with Ruby.  And what the writers have in store for the revealed fate of Summer, and those ominous credits,  that could possibly live up to the fan ideas.

Oh, yeah, and also - where ARE they sending those refugees?  If Whitley just programmed the planes to fly them up to Atlas, that doesn’t seem safer...

[magdasabs]

Hey, I missed the ManCity-Chelsea game, would you mind if I ask you a few questions about it? I saw TomJGarry's tweet about P, but did Emma say anything else? And how did the backline look with Aniek in the middle instead of Jess? Given the scoreline it seems to be better? But I fear that Emma would put her back there once P's back and Jess is no longer needed as RWB. But I'm just making assumptions without having watched the game. What did you think of the defense? And how was the match overall

Hi, I don't mind the questions at all!

About P, that was pretty much it. She said Pernille came to her during training on Saturday and said she could still feel it so Emma decided to rest her. Oh, and she said they might've risked it if it was at the end of the season but since there is so much left of the season they didn't want to.

I really liked the defence, it wasn't perfect, but it worked well! Aniek did great, she had a few really good clearances (and a free header in the box although it was off-target) and just looked confident playing overall. I'll be honest, I don't think either Millie or Magda had a great game but I'm hoping that's just an international break hangover and not because they don't work as well with someone in-between them. Jess actually did really well as a WB, I was quite surprised, and she was up against Hempo so that says a lot! The back was kind of interesting, it looked like a back 3 at times and others like a back 4 but it worked alright, especially since Sophie was in front of them. When P is back, I'd like to see Millie Aniek Magda again (or Millie middle maybe) with Sophie in front, the rest of the midfield I don't mind too much and I think different ones can work. But attacking-wise, we didn't create a lot which is a bit worrying, although we were very clinical which is the opposite of what usually happens.

[autumn-foxfire]

AW4GVRETGWER THAT EPISODE WHAT WAS THAT EPISODE OH MY GOD?!?! I knew things were going to go wrong with Ruby's plan, but :( Yang. And then Blake's reaction? QAQ I'm pretty sure she isn't dead but damn it that hurt. And then Ironwood? Being released? Killing Jacques Schnee?! Winter's scene there was badass. Something is finally going right for Cinder, but I hate that she used the last question. Anyways - last ep before the finale. Any predictions?! The music in this ep was v good.

ASDFGHGFDXSDFGFDS ROBIN I SHOULD HAVE SCREAMED ABOUT THIS SOONER BECAUSE I STILL HAVE SO MANY FEELINGS!

CRWBY really outdid themselves with that episode and it still hurts so much. How Yang dived in front of Ruby to protect her from Neo (NEO! I love you, I hate you, I love you-) and Blakes reaction had me heartbroken. 

Did you see that post going around that showed 5 times Yang caught Gambol Shroud and the one time she didn’t. Yeah. And then the fight afterwards where she immediately attacked Neo (in my head One Thing was playing because it suited that moment so much) until she realised that others needed her help and for the first time she didn’t have a partner to fall back on for support T-T

Ironwood. God, he’s such a great example of a hero who fell from grace (take note BNHA), I want to punch him so bad. I can’t believe CRWBY is having him face Winter... One of them isn’t coming out of that fight alive...

Cinder learned the power of friendship and then immediately used it for evil T-T Salem is going to be angry if she doesn’t get a win out of this because it was clear that Salem wanted to ask Jinn a question. Also how dispondent Jinn was when she answered the question!! These small touches that they put into the characters are what really makes them so interesting...

I’m too scared to have any predictions T-T I’m scared that the staff is going to end up in Cinder’s hands even though Penny won’t (they’re not killing her off anytime soon and she’s not losing her powers either, I believe in that) and her wanting to follow RWB into the abyss Yang fell in only for Ruby to tell her she’s needed elsewhere (the people in Vacuo definitely need her at the moment).

A part of me hopes we’ll see Raven again but I don’t think it’s going to be this volume now. However with her semblence, she could be the only connection they have to Yang (if it works). Maybe we’ll see Qrow and the others try and use her to bring Yang (and probably RWB) back? She needs to return to the story eventually after all.

I’m really hyped!

[that-soccer-guru]

I really enjoyed and agree with your analysis of Sonnett as a player. Call me crazy, but I think she'd be great in midfield too...... And oh what I would give to watch her as a forward! Like you said, a very versatile player and people shouldn't sleep on her.

Dude, same

I've been saying this forever but Sonnett would be a great CDM down the line. Her spatial awareness is great, and we've seen she's really good at taking direction from the center backs, so if she can get in a team that plays through the middle and not the wings (cough Thorns cough), she'd be amazing. As it is, she is a great RB.

Right now in Göteborg, where they play a 3 defense line, she's learning to be a great right wingback. If Vlatko wants she can be the perfect wingback opening up the space for players he wants in the back to be floating mids/wings (like Midge Purce) for the NT.

Her instincts are very good on the sides, her turns are great, and she opens the game really well from very difficult plays as a RB.

I don't think she could make a good lone CB/fullback, not because she can't do it, but because she is an asset in goal-making plays. Her stamina and passing ability would be wasted as a lone back. (that being said if she's put in that position later I'm sure she'd kill it too).

The tldr so I don't make another big ass post is that: Sonnett can be great in any position. As an RB she's amazing, right now as a RWB in Sweden she's really delivering for her team in defense and offense (ofc she's only played 2 games in this system, but we've already seen how good she can be with today's game against Kristianstads), and if in the future any team needs her in mid she would be a great CDM.