#rwby volume 5 episode 3

[anthurak]

Taiyang Xiao Long: The Latest in a Long Line of Fuckups

So there’s been quite a bit of discussion by this point from a number of people, myself included, about the idea that Taiyang Xiao Long isn’t actually the ‘Good Dad’ that much of the RWBY fandom has long seen him as. That he is in fact just as much of a dysfunctional fuck-up parent as Qrow, Summer, and yes, even Raven. There are a few different factors to this that others have gone into more detail on, but for me it really comes down to one core point in particular:

If you have checked out of parenting to the point where the two girls under your care can both state overtly and matter-of-factly that the older of the two raised the younger, then it frankly doesn’t matter WHAT your reasons were for checking out or how hard you may have been grieving. You have unequivocally, massively, FUCKED UP as a parent. The fact that the show has made it clear that Ruby considers Yang, her SISTER, to be her primary parent-figure does not speak well to ANY of Team STRQ’s parenting, Tai included.

However, with that said, I thought it would be worth talking about what all this discussion could actually mean in practice, ie; how might all this end up being actually explored in the story of RWBY itself?

After all, it’s not like Tai’s failings as a father have really been directly focused on or confronted or even overtly spelled out in the show thus far. The most direct we’ve gotten was during Yang’s talk with Weiss in the episode Alone Together, and even that wasn’t so much directed at Tai himself so much as describing how Yang was forced to take up so much slack in the family after Summer’s apparent death. Right now, discussion of Tai’s failings as a father is still very much ‘reading between the lines’.

And I believe that is all deliberate on the part of the writers. Thus far, the references to Tai’s failings as a parent haven’t meant to be overt and obvious to the audience. But rather they are meant to be hints and foreshadowing hiding in the margins and not immediately obvious to the viewer.

At least until it’s time to MAKE them obvious.

You see, I believe that Taiyang as a character is going to turn out to be all too similar to the likes of Qrow, Ozpin and Ironwood.

Men who are introduced appearing to represent noble and good-natured archetypes, but who wind up being revealed to have DEEP and extensive personal failings and flaws that wind up hurting themselves and all those around them. The warning signs of which turn out to have been floating around the margins, between the lines and just outside the audience’s field of view since practically their first appearances.

Consider for a moment just how characters like Ozpin, Qrow, Ironwood and Tai were/have been overtly presented in their early appearances. In other words, how the story at first wants us to view them:

The Wise Teacher

The Quirky Mentor

The Heroic Soldier

The Good Dad

And now let’s remember just how the first three wound up failing our heroines. And all of the hints we got that FORESHADOWED that failing:

All of the ‘Shady Oz’ behavior that people were noticing as early as Volume 2, and which only compiled and built over the subsequent volumes until being finally dragged into the light at the start of Volume 6.

Qrow’s rampant alcoholism, which he was outright introduced with in Volume 3 and later noted by Glynda to ALWAYS to be drunk. And shown later in Volume 5 when Ruby doesn’t bat an eye at Qrow showing up at their house near-passed out drunk.

And of course, ALL of the red flags that Ironwood was on the fast-track to fascism right from his first appearance when he showed up for the preparations of a festival celebrating peace and unity with a fleet of giant warships.

Now we have Tai, a character who turns out to have all kinds of indicators pointing to him actually being a complete dysfunctional fuck-up as a father once you start looking closely. From Yang’s multiple recountings of how Tai shut down and left HER to care for Ruby, to his shall we say QUESTIONABLE mentoring advice to Yang, to Ruby outright stating that it was YANG who raised her…

Really if you just start taking a closer look at Tai’s actions and behavior across the show, you can start finding plenty of hints and red-flags to his dysfunctional parenting hiding under a thin veneer of ‘expected’ character-archetype behavior, just like what happened with Ozpin, Qrow and Ironwood.

For example, just look at Tai’s ‘mentoring’ of Yang in Volume 4. At first glance, this scene is framed like a typical ‘hero gets tough-love advice and help from their wise and experienced parent’ situation, which is the takeaway most of us probably got on first viewing. Yet the moment you take a closer look and start unpacking what Tai is actually saying in this scene, it becomes clear, particularly in hindsight, that Tai is FULL OF SHIT. To the point of seemingly not even understanding how Yang’s semblance even works.

Or how about his claim that Raven ‘did a number of this family’, which if you actually take a minute to analyze, ESPECIALLY now in hindsight, makes no goddamn sense. How exactly can Raven have ‘done a number’ on the family when she’s been GONE from said family for the past 18 years? Particularly now that it seems like if any member is guilty of ‘doing a number’ on the STRQ, it’s actually SUMMER for going off on her super-secret suicide/martyr mission. We can’t even say that Tai can blame Raven for what happened to Summer because as Ruby’s Tree Vision made clear, Tai doesn’t even know Raven was involved. What this statement REALLY feels like is a shitload of projection and Tai blaming Raven for all of HIS fuckups as a parent.

HOWEVER, because none of this is directly framed by the show as being explicitly ‘bad’ and doesn’t present Tai with traditional/obvious ‘bad dad’ traits (see Jacques, and more on him in just a bit…) and generally couches his behavior with a veneer of ‘feeling baseline care and affection’, it’s easy to overlook on a first viewing.

Really, it feels all too much like how Volume 4 also presented Ironwood on the surface as the noble, heroic ‘only sane man’ among the authority in Atlas, all while slipping in NUMEROUS red-flags of him being on the fast track to fascism.

Speaking of Jimmy the Child Shooter, it’s been noted by a few people at this point that in hindsight, it’s pretty clear that Jacques Schnee effectively served as a red-herring villain to distract the audience from the growing red-flags surrounding Ironwood, both in Volume 4 and again in Volume 7.

Well, what if Jacques was also being used to distract the audience from TAI’s own parenting red flags in Volume 4? After all, it’s easy to be more forgiving of Tai’s sketchy parenting choices when the show keeps cutting back to Jacques’ brand of ‘parenting’.

Really, I think in hindsight Volume 4 is giving us three different looks at fatherhood: We’ve got the caring, nurturing father in Ghira, the abusive villainous father in Jacques, and the dysfunctional fuckup in Tai. A real ‘the Good, the Bad and the Ugly’ situation.

And finally, the simple fact that Yang raised Ruby. The biggest indicator of Tai’s, as well as the rest of Team STRQ’s, MASSIVE fuckups as parents which goes all the way back to Volume 1 when Gold framed Yang as a motherly figure to Ruby, outright comparing her to Summer.

It all points to Tai being set up for the same kind of big, subversive narrative rug-pull as Ozpin, Qrow and Ironwood. Men who are introduced as these strong, capable, ‘good-guy’ archetypes, only for it to be later revealed to both the heroines and the audience that these adults that they trusted are actually massive fuck-ups who have been making a mess of everything.

The only difference with Tai is that the story simply hasn’t decided to shine the light of narrative focus ON all of his numerous problems and fuckups and force our heroines to confront them like it already has with Ozpin and Qrow in Volume 6, and Ironwood in Volumes 7 and 8.

At least, not YET.

And wouldn’t you know it, the last RWBY Beyond episode set up what could be the PERFECT opportunity for that with Yang’s line about Tai being on ‘special assignment’.

Sure, people have been saying stuff like ‘Oh he’s gotta be doing something super important like guarding the Relic of Choice’, but this is RWBY we’re talking about. The show that ALREADY made a big point about how the ‘Daddy had a good reason for abandoning you’ trope is utter bullshit.

So frankly, I’d say there is NO WAY IN HELL that Tai has an actual ‘good reason’ for not having come to Vacuo to see his daughters.

And that this is instead the setup for Ruby and Yang to finally have to DEAL with all of their parents’ dysfunctional bullshit.

[soldierofidiots]

This is the one Prediction I pray you're correct about. Please don't lose your gift of foresight now!

Just over 36 hours left

And

I actually feel....

Good?

Everything is going to be okay

We're going to get a Neo defection, young Jaune, and healthier Ruby in this finale

I can feel it

[violetparakeetchuggerofkerosene]

Tbh whenever people describe or depict Yang as a hotheaded, hedonistic bimbo who needs to learn to be responsible and smart, I think, hm, that actually sounds more like sun than yang

like, Yang is usually only these things on a surface level. In practice, she’s very intelligent and responsible: she and ruby both confirm that she raised ruby after their family fell apart, she utilizes clever tactics like breaking up the ground to slow neon down, she tries to get Ruby to make friends in the first few episodes, talks down Blake from exhausting herself, etc, and note these are all from the first 3 seasons. She doesn’t need to learn to be more mature, because she already is

sun, meanwhile, butts into Blake’s space in his first fight with her, straight up leaves a fight while Rwby is still out there without going back to check on them, and is casual to the point of insensitivity when Blake talks about the white fang and anti Faunus bigotry. These are also in the first 3 volumes, before volumes 4-5 where he stalked Blake across an ocean, repeatedly butts into her business even when it was unnecessary, completely misunderstood her actual goals, admitted he just wanted to join a fight with her, and left his team behind the whole time.

If anyone can be described as irresponsible, reckless, and vapid, it should be sun. He’s basically a yang who is the dumb blonde the fndm seems to think she is, which does work as a foil to her

[gaymakima]

rating different ozpins out of 10

There's a lot of them. Long post ahoy.

Volume 1: pale ass man. flings his students into Grimm-infested forests and does not give a FUCK. not actually listening to anyone half the time my autistic king. despite the limited animation, you look into this man's eyes and you can tell he's secretly a little shit (affectionate). 9/10

Volume 2: I was gonna put a screenshot of his face and talk about how much better the lighting is in this volume but I saw this on the wiki and this man has NO ASS. He has NO CAKE. the dilf caring mentor vibes this volume are off the charts yet i can't get over this shot. 4/10 the no ass really hurts him

Volume 3: Colourful lighting, soft gaze, blorbo burdened by the weight of his sins. Not so pale that it hurts to look at. His mischievous demeanour is gone in place of sad immortal old man vibes. A shame to see the silly go, but I love a man with flaws who tries his genuine best to do good. 8/10

Volume 5: This part of the OP was always so jarring to me. The silly has returned but they flattened him and it looks odd. Is he doing the :3 face? 2/10 for hiding it in profile.

Volume 6: The first Ozpin in Maya! Unfortunately, he has to contend with the original Ozma this episode, and sadly his one second of sad old man hours kind of gets outshined by fucking. everything his past incarnations go through. Nice to see him in model again though. 6/10 (Ozma is like. 10/10 btw)

Volume 9: this isn't even ozpin. -100000/10.

Chibi: This is peak. I don't even care anymore. I'll say it. RWBY chibi is the peak of rwby content and I'm tired of pretending it's not. this man is the embodiment of silly. he would :3 and he would have the decency to look at the camera when he does. if this oz ever met salem... okay he'd probably make things a lot worse but it would be really funny. 11/10

Ice Queendom: ∞/10 daddy? sorry. daddy? sorry. daddy? sorry. da

This one render: what are you scheming about you shifty little fucker. this is the face of a man who has done something to mildly inconvenience you and he's waiting for you to realise it. gay ass smirk. i appreciate it for bringing back mischievous ozpin in the maya engine but there is something about this i do not trust. 6/10

(bonus) the exact same render but in this thumbnail with his ex wife: 9.5/10. Salem addition really brings out the best in this one. Ozlem in a romcom. He gets pegged and he's proud of it.

Volume 3 japanese poster: eh. it could be better. I don't sense the silly OR the sad old man OR the fuckable mentor in this one. 1/10.

Volume 6 poster: YEAARGHHH THATS WHAT I CALL ANGST, BABY!!!! 11/10!!!!

Viz manga: with this and ice queendom, the jp side of rwby understands how to make an ozpin that appeals to me, specifically. 20/10.

Playing card: the hand in his pocket. the other hand resting lazily on his cane like it's a fucking samurai sword. the slightly cocky smirk. this is Ozpin after spending a day with the Branwen Twins. a young raven and qrow saw this and thought he was the coolest fucking dude ever (he is not). was going to rank it a bit lower but due to my headcanon going straight to ozpin and bird twins I like it. 8/10

this shirt: i would comment more if i could see. 3/10?? he looks sad i think which is nice

DC Comics: PUT THAT FUCKING MOP HAIR BACK!!! -10/10!!! YOU GIVE QROW HIS HAIR GEL BACK RIGHT NOW MISTER

RWBY/JL: this is an imposter. his hair looks like fits on his head like lego figure hair. -2/10

conclusion: i want him to whimper.

[fatalhdton3]

Slow burn of Whiteknight

Definitely one of the best slow burns the show has to offer

Quick rundown, there first meeting is less then perfect, Weiss sarcastically pointing out Jaune and calling him "cute and scraggly" and Jaune getting the wrong message and tries to flirt with her...does go well, not the best start to a relationship

Then we have multiple attempts by Jaune that don't go well for him, but finally in episode 7 we have the turning point in their relationship, while small but equally important.

We then get to Volume 3, we see a slight change in their interaction between the two, Jaune stops constantly asking Weiss out and the two are on better point to the point where when Jaune was launched into the sky by the rocket locker the first person he called was Weiss, and in turn Weiss answers his call clearly weird for him. This is a big moment it shows that their relationship at this point is strong enough to where Jaune and Weiss expressed trust in one another

Taking a time skip we arrive at Volume 5, small moments and big moments alike, from sitting next to each other at lunch showing Weiss is clearly more comfortable being near him, to Jaune unlocking his Semblance to save her life. No need for further explanation.

Volume 6 gives use more build up, Weiss support Jaune to boost Ren Semblance while on the train, and Weiss coming to Jaune when they reunited in Argus after the train crash. Jaune being worried for Weiss as well

Volume 7 gives us Jaune the long awaited "Movie date" a call back from volume 2 and again Weiss showing she is more comfortable being around Jaune and spending tike with him.

Then Volume 8 has slight body language between them showing they support and care for one another, and Jaune helping Weiss when she was injured in the final battle

And of course the events of Volume 9 needs no further explanation. There are of course other moments in the show that expressed the slow burn between Jaune and Weiss, and how much they changed and grown. Whiteknight might have started off in one of the worst way possible, but seeing where they are now it's undeniable that they have grown to care for one another and that's why Whiteknight in my heart is the best ship in RWBY

[kob131]

A couple days ago, the main sub has a post asking if it's members could think of any RWBY criticisms they've seen that only existed because of the critic not paying attention. They're really lucky that I had them ban me because I would've unloaded if I was still a member. Here's three that come to mind.

Somebody on the other sub said they were annoyed that Yang, Jaune, Ren, and Oscar didn't try asking Jinn a question when Cinder summoned her while they were in Monstra. When Jinn first appeared in V6, she explicitly stated that she can only answer questions asked by whoever's holding her lamp, in this case Cinder.

That person who said that Mantle "wasn't that bad" explained that one of his reasons for thinking that is that the people living there at least still had their dust-mining jobs, and were still getting paid for it. They didn't have their jobs, and they weren't getting paid, as Jacques had fired every non-essential employee in response to Ironwood's embargo, which he explained in his argument with Ironwood in V4.

The eternal claim that Weiss should've accepted Corodovin's offer to take her to Atlas, as she "had no reason to suspect that she would take Weiss to Jacques". She explicitly stated "I'll take you home", as in to her house, where Jacques is. And Jacques would've just locked her up again, while also taking the lamp from her out of spite.

How about you? Can you think of any RWBY "criticisms" that only exist because the "critic" wasn't paying attention?

1- Saw a guy argue that Jaune called Ren's hometown 'creepy' as a criticism of the character. Said town was Oniyuri, not Ren's hometown of Kuroyuri. This doesn't sound that bad. Until you remember that A. Oniyuri was the location of the Tyrian fight and B. Ren's backstory is in an episode literally named after his hometown.

2- Saw a Youtuber argue that the Lost Fable was Aryan propaganda. Ignoring all that bullshit- The only blue-eyed, blonde haired white person we see is Salem...who is the BAD GUY.

3- Saw people try to argue that we don't know how long Volume 8 lasted and thus the heroes stayed forever in a mansion sipping tea. If you looked out of a window or, you know, used common sense when the Monstra blew up: you'd know that lasted all of ONE night.

4-Saw someone argue that Team RWBY left Ever Afterans to die to the Jabberwockies when Jaune showed up. The marketplace that the fight took place in was visibly EMPTY.

5-That Corsec/Fennec were suicide bombers. Once again, ignoring all the other bullshit: neither blew themselves up, Fennec was crushed which caused an explosion.

6-Just about every single retrospective on James oh-so-conveniently ignores his entire ass appearance in V4 E11 to say he would never do the shit he did later.

7-Every single accusation of Jaune being a self insert, as that requires you to ignore the fact that the Beacon Arc's favorite joke is to kick Jaune in the balls.

8-Every single claim that Ruby's arc wasn't given focus until Volume 9, requiring you to ignore Maria LITERALLY saying 'You don't give yourself enough credit. That's not a good thing.'

You have no fucking idea how many times I have a complaint that proceeded to spiral into a circlejerk that could have been solved by simply WATCHING the show.

[epic-arc]

What does your favorite ship say about you? (RWBY)

WARNING: THIS POST IS FOR COMEDY AND NOTHING MORE DON'T TAKE IT SERIOUSLY.

--------------------------Bumbleby--------------------------------------

1- You probably screamed with joy when you saw them kissing in volume 9. Good for you.

2- You think the best rwby fight was blake and yang against adam in volume 6.

3- You are someone who respects people who ship Blake or Yang with another character and understands that everyone has their own taste. I like you

-----------------------------------Renora--------------------------------

1- You're the war veteran of the rwby fandom and you almost had a heart attack when you saw them kissing. please grandpa take your medicine.

2- Volumes 4 and 7 are your favorites for several reasons and I understand you.

3- You're slightly mad at what they did with the two of them in volume 8, but by the end of the volume you're happy.

-----------------------------Arkos----------------------------------------

1- Hey cool that you started watching RWBY and shipping these two hahah. Welcome to suffering…

2- You are the war soldier that continue to watch rwby and every time they make reference to pyrrha you need to call your therapist.

3- You're the crazy person who every time RWBY goes on hiatus starts some crazy theory saying that Pyrrha will come back and that Arkos will revive. Dude, put down the coffee and breathe.

4- You've already gone through the stages of grief and already migrated to a ship and are happy about it.

-----------------------------Lancaster-----------------------------------

1- You love the dynamic of best friends becoming a couple and look, I don't judge you.

2- Your favorite volume is 4 and I don't have to explain why.

3- You love comparing summer and tai to jaune and ruby ​​to use as proof of how lancaster can become canon.

4- Volume 9 almost sent you to the hospital with certain episodes.

---------------------------White Rose------------------------------------

1- You're the same thing as Lancaster when it comes to dynamics, but you like Yuri.

2- If someone asks you your favorite version of rwby you will definitely answer rwby ice queendom.

3- You are someone who understands that everyone has their own tastes for ships whether for Weiss or Ruby and you are not going to start a discussion on the internet because of a couple.

4- You are one of the most toxic people I have ever seen in the world, seriously you should carry a radiation warning because if you see someone talking about this ship in a bad way you will curse the 12th generation of that person's family.

-----------------------------White Knight--------------------------------

1- You are one of the most hard-working people I have ever seen. You went through 5 volumes hearing that white knight would never have a spark or that it would never work, until in the same volume there were signs and in 7, 8 and 9 it turned that spark into a huge flame.

2- You really love the ''me and the bad bitch pulled by being autistic'' dynamic and I understand you.

3- you very excited about what volume 10 might show with these two together.

4- you like to walk around with the medal ''THE SPEAKER OF THE CHARACTER LOVE MY FAVORITE SHIP''

[sunnysunsins]

Since recently everything here has been taken over by dipshits who lack media literacy, i will come back here to say - RWBY is a good show. It is good. It has good story and good writing and good characters. Does it have stumbles and limitations? Of course, like everything else ever created. Is it the real reason yall are dedicating your lives to religiously following and picking apart every detail to find something, anything, to hate on and make it your whole personality? Nah.

Yall are just pissy your hc wasn't canon. And i'm only half-joking.

Yall are just stuck in the expectation of "cute girls in school fighting monsters and baddies", which it hasn't been for almost a decade. Let Beacon fucking die already, it was the most boring part of the story anyway. If you like it so much, watch.. idk, high guardian spice. Or maybe my hero academia, it has godawful writing too with your favorite Adam-like and Ironwood-like archetypes you adore so much.

And if you didn't click off already in hissy rage, and want to challenge me on the writing point:

Yall are complaining about pacing, characterization lacking, skipped development, insert some other reason, how "show went to shit after volume 3". Well, newsflash, look back at volume 1. REALLY look at it, without your nostalgia boner.

How, in what actually can fit into 3.5 full-length episodes, it skips a whole semester with only a few moments shown in like 3-8 minutes. Notice how Ruby and Pyrrha interacted like 2 times in 3 volumes total. Ruby and Penny? Yeah, they barely interacted too. Ren hasn't talked to rwby girls at all aside from ensemble scenes.

Too many characters in later volumes? Honey, 1-3 had SO many pointless grunts and you ate them up. The whole Vytal festival was filled with them.

Can you tell me the plot of volume 2 from the top of your head? Yeah, me neither. If i think maybe i can remember there was a mecha fight, a dance and a train, but beyond that what was the point of that entire volume again?

Your favorite, pedestalled, volume 3, most of which is fighty-fighty filler and the only stuff you actually remember when jizzing your pants about it is last 3 episodes.

Most character interactions and development happened after Beacon arc. Most actual plot and bigger story happened after it too. Yall are stuck circlejerking to *filler*, setup, which only purpose was to show the status quo to later destroy it and start to show the real picture.

Do you know why v4 and 5 feel so empty and missing something? Sure, juggling multiple plots gave it's pacing issues too, but it felt empty because there were no side characters to fill out the world and make it feel alive. V5 cast was so tiny it felt like nobody interacted at all. Because there were none of those "extras" yall hate on so much. The extras make the world feel real. Which is why Atlas feels alive when Mistral wasn't.

The most complaints about later volumes are chucked down to lack of media literacy and nuanced reading of situations and characters. Translated for your easier understanding: the writing was too nuanced for your "cute girls go fighty fighty brrr" brain to comprehend. Sometimes things require you to put the situation into character perspectives. Sometimes their decisions are made under stress + personality + influence of events and interactions. But i guess yall don't want to think, yall just want to watch "girl go brrr killy killy monster"

I can continue writing down all these other points, but i'm hungry and should get up so i won't. Bottom text: RWBY is a good show with good story and good writing and good characters. It has struggles and fumbles like every other piece of media. But for some reason, because it's indie, it's held to a much higher standard and everyone feels entitled to pick apart every detail of it to make themselves feel justified for feeling sad over their dead headcanons, even though they'd never do the same picking for big production popular series with much *much* worse writing than even the worst of RWBY's fumbles.

If you made it this far and are a member of rwde, congratulations, you still have a reasonable bone or few. Most others i guess clicked off at first point and blocked me after sending me some kinda death threat, idk, i haven't posted this yet after all.

So yeah, feel free to leave your takes and death threats below, i'll happily discuss further later

[kradsile]

I finished Volume 9 of RWBY today, and man oh fucking BOY... It was great. Isn't it wonderful what you can achieve when you focus on the character(s) the show was meant to be about in the first place?

So many wonderful moments fresh in my mind still. First off, I loved the decision (and this is a small thing, I know) to not just start off from Ruby's POV, but for her to not speak in the first few minutes. Cause CRWBY's real good at characters who don't talk at all. Speaking of, Neo's here too! Hurray! She brought my favorite (and objectively the best) antagonist back! Yippie!

And did y'all see the setting this time around?? RWBY trapped in a fairy tale world?? "Peak Fiction?!" I screamed aloud at the beautiful vista they showed at the end of episode 1. There's a looootttttaaaa potential here. And they delivered.

Time skip! Herbalist. Gods. Herbalist. I love you. The contrast between R and WBY is another fantastic moment that I'll remember. Just hearing Shadow Ruby (that's her name now you can't change my mind) asking "So? You wanna be a huntress?" with that uncanny, exaggerated cheerful disposition. As if it was mocking the Ruby Rose of today.

Which... leads me to my next point. So. We all know that RWBY Vol. 1-3 is simply the pinnacle of everything. We all read the rules in the Grimmoire when joining the Church of Remnant, and it clearly states that RWBY's first three seasons simply cannot be outmatched. Right? Right.

Anyhooo... I am always reminded by that one scene where Ruby and Jaune talk about being team leaders. Basically, Ruby firmly tells Jaune to man up, and to act like a leader should. And I think about that scene a lot. Every time I see Ruby act in the exact opposite way from Vol. 4 and onwards, I have that scene in the back of my head. As I watched, season after season it felt less and less like RWBY. What I mean by that is, of course, no fight scenes that made me shit my pants or whip my nanaes (Yang vs. Neo, Vytal Festival, the classics) but what was the worst part of it was that I felt less and less like I knew Ruby. The... "Supposed". Main character.

So imagine my joy when we got a character arc FOR RUBY. FUCKING. ROSE.

....And imagine my shock when it turned out not to be an arc. But a full circle.

Last thoughts: I may rewrite this or post another one of these a few years from now where I fully debunk my thoughts in a cohesive, coherent manner and show contextually appropriate images and whatnot but right now I MUST get my thoughts out into the aether. I SIMPLY MUST. Anyyyhooo...

Here's a thought. Isn't it a funny coincidence that RWBY goes downhill the moment Torchwick dies? Then 4-5 seasons of constant Salem (more like Soylem, gotem) and Ozpin and Relics bullshit?

And whaddya know, they do a shorter season again. With only 10 episodes. Focusing mainly on Team. RWBY. The new characters are just enough in quantity, and they've been cooked just right. The climax is approaching, and Neo finds Ruby all alone. And then he appears. The antagonist to have started it all. Suddenly, it makes sense why RWBY's good again.

They brought Roman Torchwick back.

Hail to the king, baby.

[pyxilatezero]

Need I say more?

I think the people, objectively, have spoken.

if I were to add in my opinion you’d see that I contributed a few fanfics to the mix

Main reason for my dislike of White Knight: I hate Jaune and Weiss is my favorite character, so I think she deserves better. I know some people won’t say this is a valid reason but Jaune originally and currently isn’t written very well. You basically have to give him his own episode to flush out his plot line, (like in the first season and every season afterwards where he’s important) and he’s not a main character so he takes up screen time. (They do the same with Oscar and the rest of JNPR Instead of doing a JNPR episode, they do each of them individually with sprinkles of plot in between) Honestly, a relationship between him and Weiss would be a bad idea. Case in point:

Volume 1 White-knight Moments:

Jaune unsuccessfully flirting with Weiss (+1)

Volume 2 White-knight Moments:

Jaune unsuccessfully flirting with Weiss (+1)

Volume 3 White-knight moments:

… PYRRHA! (-1)

Volume 4 White-knight moments:

… (No interaction; no points awarded or deducted)

Volume 5 White-knight moments:

Jaune does a common courtesy and saves Weiss’s life (does not count; he would react the same for anybody- ‘nO hE wOULdn’T’ shut up Victoria if any of your friends were dying you’d save their life) [+0.5]

Volume 6 White-knight moments:

…

Volume 7 White-knight moments:

…

Volume 8 White-knight moments:

…

Volume 9 White-knight moments:

Weiss admires Jaune over the fact that he’s mature, and supports him like a good friend after Ruby runs away. He reverts to his old form, and we never hear from them again. (+2)

Total score: 3.5/9 (trying to be generous, I really am)

Main reason for liking Whiterose: Enemies to friends to lovers is an adorable trope, and they get a lot of screen time together in the first few seasons. Also, Monty himself shipped them. While I won’t say Whiterose is objectively better than White Knight, I am going to say that when I include my own opinion, it is better. Weiss and Ruby’s relationship feels more like a slow burn than Yang and Blake’s. We get scenes that could be interpreted that way in almost every season since Volume one. Let me go through them, and to show how unfair this is, I’m not allowed to add more than 1.5 points:

Volume 1 Whiterose Moments

Ruby and Weiss are off to a rocky start, but slowly warm up to each other as time goes on, and they get closer. They have a mildly, could-be considered romantic moment where Weiss makes Ruby coffee so she can stay up to study. (+1)

Volume 2 Whiterose Moments

In the food fight, Ruby dramatically catches Weiss when she falls and pretends to cry over her. (Not really much, but it’s something). Ruby and Weiss consistently pair up to get things done throughout the season, especially when looking into information about Cinder. (+1)

Volume 3 Whiterose Moments:

Supporting each other when Winter gets there (that is Volume 3, right?), excellent teamwork in the first stage of the Amity Arena battle, and Weiss’s concern for Ruby when she disappears. (+1)

Volume 4 Whiterose Moments:

Thinks about each other, but otherwise, nothing. (No points awarded or deducted)

Volume 5 Whiterose Moments:

Weiss remember’s Ruby’s coffee taste. While this could be something any friend does, they spend time together, reflecting over beacon, and Weiss helps Ruby’s sister Yang through an implication that she’s doing it for team RWBY, but especially their eccentric fluffball of a leader. (+1.5)

Volume 6 Whiterose Moments:

Ruby saves Weiss on the train, Weiss saves Ruby in the battle against the mech, and they spend time together in the village with the grim. I should give two points here but I’m loyal to my word. (+1.5)

Volume 7 Whiterose Moments:

Ruby and Weiss sitting together during training, and Weiss supporting Ruby when the team splits up. (+0.5)

Volume 8 Whiterose Moments:

Supporting each other all throughout the volume by working together, and acting as teammates and partners. (+0.5)

Volume 9 Whiterose Moments:

Ruby supports Weiss after her being upset about the fall of Atlas. (Jaune’s interaction with Weiss, -1 point- would have been two, though)

6/9

In any scenario, Whiterose wins. Im sure other people could come up with reasons to disprove me, or say I’m biased (I am, this is in no way objective), but these are the things I saw with my own eight eyes because I own three pairs of glasses, and heard with my (admittedly failing) teenage ears.

I’m sure I’ll get flak for this from both sides of the shipping community, because admittedly, the RWBY fandom can be toxic (but it’s almost any fandom at that point) saying I either graded White Knight too harshly or I gave too many or too few points to Whiterose, and I also did all of this off the top of my head, so I apologize for my many mistakes. I have two last statements:

Rosegarden: 0/9

Oscar is 14 and Ruby is 17. If I, the same age as Oscar as of 2023, would not date Ruby at that time, it’s probably wrong. When it comes to relationships for younger people, it’s best to avoid age gaps larger than 2 years. It’s also best to avoid relationships altogether until you can at least go for a learner’s permit. I rest my case.

edit 3: alright, some people have corrected me on the age part, apparently he’s fifteen. I don’t hate Rosegarden, but something about Ozpin and Oscar being the same person makes me really uncomfortable (again, as someone who is younger). Thats the only reason I didn’t give it any rating- it just feels too close to, well… I don’t really have to say it. Especially when the whole point of things is that Oscar and Ozpin are becoming the same person.

Bumblebee: 8/9

It’s canon, bro. It does feel slightly forced at times, but they’re a strong couple who supports each other and helps each other through trauma. You go girls, lesbians all the way (insert lesbian pride flag here)

edit: got someone sending in a message about neither ever going to be canon. You’re right, but thank you so much for crushing a high schooler’s hopes and dreams. Have a nice day

edit 2: I prefer icerose over whiterose but I’ll get what I can take (canon ruby x ice Queendom Weiss). This is just an overall argument.

[nov4-rocket5]

I completely understand why people hate Jaune from how he acts in canon, how he has too much screentime, to how he's portrayed as Chad Thundercock by fanfic writers, to how he's the writer's pet.

I get that but I still like the CANON character because currently as of right now whenever it's just team RWBY, shit is just boring. Blake lost some braincells somewhere in Menagerie and now is nothing more than a damsel in distress who needs Yang and Ruby to save her, Weiss never does shit besides threaten her little brother and drink tea in her mansion, Yang's too busy babying Ruby while making kissy faces with Blake, and Ruby's crying every two seconds about having some burden placed on her shoulders when NO ONE has done that. They had 5 whole episodes just to themselves in volume 9 and it was BORING SLOP. Ruby and Weiss never got to talk about Penny's death all of it was off-screen. Weiss never got to talk about the guilt she feels from letting Atlas fall. Shit only picked up once Neo and Jaune came into the story. But that's really because KERRY, EDDY, and MILES don't know how to write the female characters.

I like the blonde's blind optimism. I like how he treated Jessica in the movie helping some kid through her anxiety is great I just don't get why no one else volunteered to do the same. I especially like how human he comes off with him basically helping the community with small time shit. He's just consistently a good guy a boring one but a good guy nonetheless.

It also helps that his cut reminds me of Laios from Delicious in Dugeon.

Yeah, a lot of people like to blame RWBY's lackluster main cast development/characterization on Jaune eating up screentime. But the core problem is that CRWBY just seemed to struggle with juggling a huge cast of characters.

Which is odd, because Early RvB had a huge cast that all were handled pretty well.

Let's be honest, plenty of characters besides just Jaune eat up screentime. Pyrrha got loredumped on and is one of the main focuses of Volume 3, all while Team RWBY just kinda dicked around Vytal for most of the season.

Look at the WF subplot. Jaune wasn't stealing spotlight on that at all; CRWBY was just terrible at writing "le racism" and decided to drop it by Vol 6 because they realized how much they sucked at it.

The only reason Weiss is sometimes deemed the best out of the other 3 members of her team is because she's the only one with a tangible character arc and development. Even then CRWBY choked in the end on that too.

Jaune went from pretty bad, to solid, to kinda bad again but not as bad. Team RWBY aren't underdeveloped because of him, they're underdeveloped because the way they've been handled is just incompetent. If you cut him from the show entirely the problem would be blamed on some other character.

[deadbeatbirdmom]

I've been thinking about how everyone in Vacuo knows Raven is the Spring Maiden. At least I presume everyone knows if Sun knows. Raven must have been using her powers to help for her to be included in that secret council, which might explain why it's not a secret that she's the Spring Maiden.

I've got to wonder if it came as a surprise to anyone. In theory Yang was keeping it a secret, in practice I agree with other posts pointing out it's not that hard to guess. It also wouldn't be the first time a revelation about Raven was shared off camera.

There's how Jaune, Ren and Nora knew Raven was Yang's mother in Volume 4, something I presume Ruby told them, because what Yang revealed to Blake in Burning the Candle wasn't exactly common knowledge, and I doubt Blake said a word to anyone about it.

Is Yang a hypocrite for lying to Qrow at the end of Volume 5? Personally I think there's a big difference between keeping it to herself that Raven is Spring Maiden, and between what Ozpin did after promising no more secrets.

Why do I think Yang did it? There's a few possible reasons:

(Under a read more cut because this post is getting longer)

Protecting Raven, who wanted to flee from Salem so much that she let Yang take the relic. Telling anyone that Raven was the Spring Maiden would increase the chance that someone would try to drag her into the fight against Salem. Also the more people who know, the more danger Raven's in from anyone who wants to be the next Spring Maiden.

Yang quite simply needed time to process things. That Raven killed the previous Spring Maiden when she was apparently under Raven's protection. That Raven let Yang put a target on her back instead of Raven aka taking the relic which Salem wanted. That Raven left her again. That Raven actually cared, leaving in tears and with an apology. That she didn't care enough to stay.

Seeing it as Raven's secret to reveal, and not Yang's place to tell anyone.

And perhaps Yang figured that it couldn't help if she did spill the beans, because Raven wanted to flee Salem, not fight. What could Yang say? "Oh, by the way, Raven's the Spring Maiden. She's gone because she's terrified of Salem. Help us fight her? Not on my life." It wouldn't be easy to say that your own mother valued her life more than yours. Much as I do like Raven and find her a fascinating character, that's precisely what she did when she let Yang take the relic. Raven is quite frankly a disaster, and that's part of what makes her interesting.

On the plus side it seems Raven decided to side against Salem after all, what with her presence in the secret council in RWBY Beyond. Perhaps what changed Raven's mind was losing Yang: I figure she felt it when Yang went where Raven's Semblance couldn't follow.

When was it revealed off camera? It certainly was at some point. Whenever Raven arrived in Vacuo, possibly zapping Grimm with Maiden powers so she didn't even need to say she's the Spring Maiden? Yang deciding to tell her friends somewhere between leaving Mistral and falling into the Ever After, and word spreading before Raven even showed up in Vacuo?

CRWBY I have questions. There's also only 3 episodes of RWBY Beyond left, I doubt I'll be getting answers.

It does amuse me to think of Yang bracing herself and opening up to her nearest and dearest about Raven being the Spring Maiden, after they arrive in Vacuo but before they know it's such common knowledge that Sun knows.

Yang: "Raven's the Spring Maiden."

Yang's friends and family: "We know. We guessed, and you're not much good at lying."

Cue shocked Yangichu. I made cursed art of a shocked Yangichu, although nothing to do with the Raven reveal (instead it came from this post).

I don't know how much sense I'm making here, I'm very tired. Oh, that reminds me, there's a Yang gif related to being very tired:

[a-mellowtea]

Interview: Lindsay Jones RWBY Archives: Remnant Promenade Volume 1-8

Q.1. Tell me how you became involved as a production staff member and cast member. Also, please share any general thoughts on it.

I voice the main character of this work, Ruby Rose, the leader of Team RWBY. It’s been a very rewarding and daunting challenge to voice her as a character and grow alongside her. To put it lightly, “RWBY” has changed my life.

Q.2. What was your impression when you first saw the finished version of “RWBY”?

Being a long-time anime fan, it was literally a dream come true to be a part of something with such a classic plot and story. Ruby has so much of my own personality in her. It was a hybrid combination of my career dreams coming true and a new version of myself. She’s way cooler than me, though.

Q.3. What do you think the appeal of "RWBY" is, and what are your favorite characters and episodes?

Compared to many production companies, we had fewer people involved at first but, in exchange, we were able to work more intimately, which is what makes "RWBY" so appealing. Fans and people in the industry say that it’s a little rougher than other anime, but it’s a very straightforward one. One of my favorite characters is Nora. I’ve always liked characters who appear cheerful on the surface, but who have a true nature to reveal underneath. As for episodes, I’d say Vol. 1 Episode 8, “Players and Pieces”. It’s the first episode where we see Team RWBY and JNPR working together in a situation that seems out of control.

Q.4. Please give a look back on production from the beginning to the present, when over 100 episodes have been produced, including Vol. 8.

I can’t say that nothing has changed. We’ve been swept up in a wave of support, not only domestically but worldwide. "RWBY" is in everything. Games, comics, manga, etc. Ruby has even become a VTuber. We've added more details to everything surrounding RWBY, we've seen the characters grow, we've been able to take the girls to different worlds, we’ve been able to add new weapons. It's gone from a small world to a universe called "RWBY".

Q.5. “RWBY” has become a long-running series, with numerous spin-offs and mixed media works in addition to the main story. What do you think is the reason it has grown this way, with so many fans around the world?

“RWBY” has a universal appeal and many people can identify with every character. There is a character for everyone. I personally identify with many of the characters, especially Ruby herself. I know that people turn to media as a source of solace and inspiration, and RWBY is one of those places.

Q.6. In addition to the Japanese dubbed version, there are various media properties, such as comics and goods. What are your impressions of the development in Japan, such as the production of the original work “Ice Queendom” by Japanese staff? Also, what kind of developments do you expect in the future?

I remember when I talked to Monty, he had a strong desire to enter the Japanese market, a medium that inspired him. Many studios such as Sanzigen, who produced “Black Rock Shooter”, inspired him. Now, we've been able to work with a Japanese partner to see his dream come true, and it feels like his spirit’s come full circle. It’s also great to see "RWBY" redone in the traditional 2D format, giving us a new look at the classic characters.

Q.7. What is the appeal of your character?

The appeal of Ruby’s character is that she is innocent, yet driven. There's triumph in her simple soul, she has an almost childlike purity and innocence, but she also needs to grow up. I think a lot of viewers, especially young viewers, can relate to that. It’s a formative time in life, a time when you’re discovering who you are and who you want to be.

Q.8. Please tell us about the points of your performance and story that you want people to pay attention to. Also, what episodes, scenes, or lines have left a particularly strong impression on you in the past 10 years of acting?

Episode 8 of Vol. 1 is the first time Ruby faces serious difficulties. Expression her core and innermost feelings through the battle was a big challenge for me, but at the same time it was meaningful. In Vol. 3, after Ruby picks up Penny’s sword, she says “Leave her alone!” and I had to convey a variety of emotions with just three words. If I’m hearing the audience right, I think I did a good job. That moment opened the door to the dark scenes of “RWBY” and helped set the tone for the rest of the leads.

Q.9. Please tell us about the character’s growth from her first appearance to the end of Vol. 8. Was there any change in your acting from her first scene to the end?

Yes, there’s more uncertainty behind her. She had to find her footing in Beacon, but there were people guiding her. As she's grown, those people have become neutral figures or are gone from her life. So she has to find her own compass within herself.

Q.10. What do you think are some similarities and differences between you and Ruby?

[laughs politely] Before Monty offered me the role, he literally said to me, “You’re not very social.” Yep! Socially awkward, but endlessly optimistic. I was eager to prove myself, and I definitely had my own struggles with finding myself, believing in myself over other people, and not letting anyone else speak for me.

Q.11. Please give us your thoughts on the future development of the character and your message to them.

I want Ruby to show more leadership. With so many obstacles in front of her and hope fading, she'll have to find her inner strength and support her team as much as she can. My message to Ruby is, “Choose yourself. Never stop choosing yourself. And no capes”.

Q.12. Please leave a message for your fans around the world.

First of all, I want to sincerely thank you for all your support over the years. Without you all, this work would not have been possible. My main message is to keep moving forward. As the team leader, I think that that’s the most appropriate thing to say to everyone.

— Translation by yours truly.

[chaosmagetwin]

I decided to watch RWBY Ice queendom

I ranted about it in discord for a little while, and decided to move the rant here.

Overall

I think, ultimately, the entire anime was pretty decent. A good 7/10, to RWBY's 9/10 for me.

I think it's considered "Canon adjacent", which seems like a decent way to put that. I honestly wouldn't recommend watching it until you've watched at least Volume 5, I think? Which is a weird thing to say, when it's set in the early episodes of volume 2. It uses a lot of characters that show up later, though, and I think it's better to get an idea of how things shake out first, before visiting the anime.

I think you can consider it "Canon enough", because it doesn't hurt anything, tbh. The story is entirely contained, Shion is not expected to return, and it doesn't change any of the characters (Except through mischaracterizations / Ruby's attempted character assassination), but it does help explain a few things and gives Weiss and Blake some much needed time to shine in a critical part of their stories that was a little too glossed over.

Spoilers for RWBY Ice Queendom, and RWBY (original) below the cut!

Okay, I'm going to break this into a couple sections, so, bear with me here. First up, I'm going to talk about the plot.

Plot

Plot-wise, the first three episodes are just "Volume 1 on fast forward, just the bare essentials to catch people up to speed", with episodes 4-12 being in volume 2, between episode 1 and 2. Like, literally, everything in the anime happens within a couple days. if not outright hours. It's unclear, but w/e. A lot of focus is put on Weiss, and more specifically, a lot of Weiss's WORST character traits. Most especially, her racism, her haughty heiress attitude, and her entitlement. In the original series, these character traits are lessened, and eventually glossed over. By the time we reach volume 3, they're sort of gone. This series takes the time to address that, and actually makes Weiss work for the character development we see in the original series.

Episodes 4-12 are all about this new type of grimm; the Nightmare. It possesses people, and they go to sleep, and whoever is most familiar with them has to go into the dream to go fight the grimm in there. It stays hidden, and most of it has to do with the victim's internal dream world, and how they subconsciously define everyone and everything around them.

For Weiss, who is the person who gets possessed, it means carefully segmented life, high walls, a mandate from on high to be responsible and care for the family name. It means locking away her feelings, the "Sillies" in a jail where they can be protected, and kept pure and innocent. It means categorizing her teammates as people she both loves and fears, who are locked in a tower and never allowed out. Her brother becomes an annoying bat who flies around and watches everything and snickers at her, and whispers about all the things he's seen and about how he'll snitch on her if she betrays the family name. Her father is a statue who stares at her from every angle and tells her "This is your responsibility!" Her sister, who NEVER TALKS, is a bible she refers to, in order to pass judgement. Her mother is a shadow on the wall who drinks wine and laughs at her.

And it also means categorizing Blake as an outsider. The racism really plays in full here, and you can see the conflict in Weiss's mind, because she clearly has Blake defined, not just as a shadow or a monster, but as a person with half a bow and one cat ear. She keeps the idea of blake locked away, outside the city, in a section where things are kept that she doesn't know how to cope with; things that she avoids thinking about entirely.

Weiss's dream isn't just about how she categorizes others, it's about how she categorizes herself, and the responsibilities she has to bear, and the way she feels completely and utterly isolated. She longs for contact, but in her dream she can't contact anyone, because she has to keep them away from herself to protect them FROM HER.

As an important note, Weiss also has Absolute power within the dream, to the point of controlling weather when she wants to, outright changing environments, and is "Stronger Than You" in every scene. Which is great, that's the way she should be.

This is as far as I'll go into the plot, because it's all that really matters and caught my attention. It's really just setting Weiss up for the future, and giving her a chance to go through a character arc that was too glossed over in the original.

Characters and Character Design

There are certain things that it did really really well. Anything to do with Weiss, they got perfect. They really understood the assignment; for an anime that is 75% about how Weiss sees the world, how she defines it and herself, it's no wonder they did as well as they did. She's flawed, and horrible, but understandable and empathetic. It really does not forgive Weiss for her flaws, but makes her actually confront them. Her character designs within the dream were.... GORGEOUS. ABSOLUTELY STUNNING. I am not immune to the fascistic dommy mommy aesthetic, and they really made her look good. A 10/10 design all around, with the overcoat, the sunglasses, the hat, the floating hands to take the coat and hat off for her, the way she speaks UGH. Fantastic stuff. I could rave about it all day.

Ruby felt pretty good, too, and they actually set some of the stuff up for later volumes pretty well, especially the pressure on Ruby, and her depression. However, I think they mischaracterized her in a few sections, especially the parts where she is meaner? For unknown reasons? And also imply she has a hero complex who think's she's all alone? Which wasn't really addressed at any point, and was sort of weird. IDK, it felt like there were points where they were really trying to assassinate her character in some regard. Most of it can be explained away by the nightmare, but, frankly, it does push some weird choices onto Ruby that I was not fond of. Weiss calling Ruby out for being childish was handled well, however, and Ruby does do some growing up. An overall net neutral, in my opinion. Ruby's design within the dream is Good! Very cute! I like the snowboarder aesthetic. They did not do a good job of explaining why Ruby's scythe's gun was pointed backwards (I understand it was to shoot Shadows, but also.... she turned around... to shoot it...) but I appreciate the look. She feels like a very warm character, and gives a sort of soft, warm vibe that contrasts Weiss's design very well, perhaps even intentionally. As a Tower Silly (as opposed to outer silly or outside the castle silly), it really does show how Weiss see's ruby; as a warm, soft character who is a little bit punk.

Blake was fantastic. No mischaracterizations, and some better explanations for who she is, as well as a good set up for the Blake x Yang romance in later volumes. It also really showcases her fear of who she was, and who she was becoming before leaving the white fang, and it gives some excellent depth to her character. Her dream design is... okay! It's not particularly great, but not bad. The half bow and single ear was kind of cute, but, they could've showcased that better. Meanwhile, her nightmare design was FANFUCKINGTASTIC. 10/10 again. The way she took Adam's clothes, his power, and even the lines he speaks are really good. It really showcases how much of a hold she fears he had on her, to the point that she felt possessed by him. The way she was using his weapons, his semblance, not even using her own powers was filthy good.

Yang was... flat. I can't really say they mischaracterized her, but I do think they did not utilize her very well. She was a power house, but she really lacked the humor and charm that makes her who she is, her brand of silliness. She had the care for others that is important to her character, but, without the comedic balance, she feels a little empty. She had no major redesigns. She's just kind of flat.

Jaune was.... I mean, I never liked Jaune in the early volumes. Anything they did with him was better than the original. I honestly do not understand why they included him? But he was there, and he did some plot relevant stuff, and the rest of team JNPR was really sidelined for... unclear reasons. Pyrhha almost quite literally became an actual cheerleader for him, which feels like a deep mischaracterization. I can't even give her her own section, she was that little of a character. She gets, like, maybe 4 lines in the entire anime, and one singing scene.

Shion, as an OC for the anime, was.... out of place. Like, on an aesthetic level, at the minimum. Ultimately, they were more of a macguffin than a character, which makes them kind of just.... there. They're real cool, though. In japanese, they refer to them with masculine pronouns, and in the english dub, nonbinary pronouns. IDK. To say they were a character of importance kind of overstates them, though. You could replace the character with an object that does their power, and it wouldn't change the story a whit. They explained little, did little, and had no real character moments. Although their design does not really fit into the world of RWBY very well, it is very interesting, and pretty. I like the soft tones and witchy aesthetic, and the androgyny.

Sound

I watched in English dub, by the way. I prefer the original voice actors, who reprised their roles here. They do an excellent job, for the most part. I also prefer the word choices they used, compared to the sub, most especially when it comes to Shion. In the original Japanese, Shion has masculine pronouns, while in the English, they are referred to with They / Them, which is very nice.

There's some weird dub moments, but that mostly has to do with Lip Syncs, I think. It does still have a tinge of "This was translated to English", but only a tinge, which makes it bearable. Some of the mischaracterizations could potentially be attributed to this, but I don't think that is the case for at least my problems with Ruby. I'm not displeased with any of the voice actors, but the standouts for me are Weiss and Ruby, who did phenomenal.

Sound design was …. weird? IDK, they had a lot more magicky / lasery sounds to the weapons. I'm fond of the way that original RWBY uses the sound effects from Halo weapons. In the original, the sounds feel impactful and weighty, and really picks up a lot of the slack that the animation gives up in terms of weight. In this version, guns across the board sound worse, and the melee aspects are also diminished. There's just less crunch and dirt in them.

Ruby's scythe, especially, suffers in this version. The halo crunchy sniper sound effect gets replaced by this more…. idk, wet star wars blaster sound effect when it's shooting, and the scythe slashes are greatly diminished.

Weiss's everything sounds better, in comparison, with the exception of the Glyphs, which lost their signature sound, and got a different one that sounds less like magical ice, and more mystical? IDK how to explain that.

Music was also not as good. Casey Lee Williams, you are a genius, and the way your music backdrops original RWBY gives it a lot of the vibe and characterization that makes it what it is. That's not to say Ice Queendom did badly, it just seemed kind of generic to me. There was some flavor lost that they tried to capture, but just couldn't, with the exception of Weiss and Pyrrha singing.

Animation

The animation team really liked Weiss, and gave her a lot of character, and a lot of love. She's the only real standout, here. Design wise, everything looks good, but once it gets into motion, it just feels really stiff. There's a lot more weight to the motion in a bad way, a lot more movement, a lot less over-the-top action. In the original, the animation is zippy, and full of character. Things aren't just done, they're overdone. A character won't just spin once, they'll spin twice. They won't just jump somewhere, they'll use bullshit physics to get there. The scene that sticks out the most to me is a 1:1 scene in the first 3 episodes where RWBY is facing the Nevermore, and JNPR is facing the Death Stalker. Instead of the teams being mixed up at the start, and using their movement skills to get to their proper teams, they just start there. Those movement skills never really come into play. It's a lot more grounded, which feels out of place in RWBY.

A lot of RWBY's vibe really does depend the animation going "Physics? That shit is a myth," and then going wild with making the characters defy it. Ruby should be constantly using her scythe as a way to boost herself, but she does it maybe 4 times in the entire anime. In the original, that would be the minimum for a single FIGHT. In some ways, it suddenly feels like a weight on the characters, like their weapons suddenly have way less power than they do. Their enemies seem.... more impossible to beat.

I'd honestly say the animation, although it has more details in it, is just not as good as it is in the original. Especially these early scenes, when Monty Oum had his hand in it.

[aspoonofsugar]

do you have a favourite RWBY arc?

Hello anon!

Do you mean story-arc or character arc? I am just gonna go with character arcs because I feel like it :) Here is my list. It combines my personal taste with those I think are best written.

1- Penny Polendina

Penny's arc is the best complete one in the series so far. It is thightly written and very powerful. Her final choice does what every character arc's climax should do: it ties togetyher all the thematic threads explored by Penny's arc in one incredibly meaningful moment. In the end, Penny chooses to be a friend, shows she is an adult and affirms her own humanity. Her choice is meant to be tragic and bittersweet because humanity can be both. Still, it is definately worth it.

1 - Cinder Fall

Cinder's arc isn't complete, but there is already enough for her to get first place together with Penny. Midnight is the best written episode of the series in my opinion and it manages to tie together all the pieces of foreshadowing and subtext present in Cinder's story up until that point. It is also a pivotal point in Cinder's story, where she has to make a choice. Will she recognize she is still a prisoner of abuse or will she ignore this truth? She chooses to repress and fails to develop positively. As a result, she has prepared her own tragedy.

Cinder's story is key to the whole series and it has the potential to end up above all the other arcs, if well executed.

3 - Weiss Schnee and Yang Xiaolong

Ice Girl and Fire Girl are tied for third place! (together with Jaune)

Weiss's arc has a very strong set-up and beginning. She gets a lot of focus at Beacon and quickly develops. After such a solid start her development can take the time to happen slowly, so that we can see how she has silently and beautifully evolved throughout the volumes. She is now warmer, kinder and happier than ever. Points for her having some of my favourite motifs.

Yang's arc is kind of the opposite, in my opinion. She gets the least focus among the 4 main girls in Vale. Still, the moment her arc decides to roll, it gets central stage. Her focus in Mistral is wonderful and her development is beautifully conveyed in volume 5 and volume 6 climaxes. Her confrontation with Raven is especially one of the best scenes of the series.

3 - Jaune D'Arc

Jaune's arc is one of the best executed both in terms of pacing and evolution of the character. If he keeps going this way, he might climb to first place tbh.

6 - Ruby Rose

I am expecting her to climb higher. Her focus in volume 9 was great and a beautiful first step in her development. The choice to mask her LRRH's story behind Alice in Wonderland references was wonderful and brilliantly executed. I think the ending could have been conveyed more powerfully, but the final result is still great. I am looking forward to how her arc will continue!

7 - Blake Belladonna and Oscar Pine

Blake's arc is beautiful and it ties together many thematic threads. Maybe a little bit too much, which is why it is below the other main characters. She is still wonderful though! And the more one analyzes her story, the more gems are found!

Oscar is one of the best written characters in my opinion, as his story is thight and perfectly intertwined with the main plot. Still, I think it has still to enter its climax, hence why he is only 7th place. Totally expecting him to climb higher, though.

9 - Emerald Sustrai

Emerald's arc has still to climax, but I like her set-up a lot and she is slowly going through a beautiful inner growth. There is already enough meet and actual development for her to just make the top 10 :P

9 - Pyrrha Nikos and James Ironwood

Both have masterfully written arcs and in terms of writing they could be higher. Still, I am less involved in their stories compared to others. In any case, they are two perfectly executed examples of tragedies. And different kinds of tragedies, as well.

Pyrrha's tragedy lies in the world around her. Ironwood's tragedy lies within himself.

11 - Lie Ren and Qrow Branwen

Both Ren and Qrow have beautiful arcs, but I am less involved with them when compared to others. So, here they are.

I would highlight this list doesn't consider characters like Salem, Nora, Raven, Summer or Mercury because even if set-up, their arcs still need to properly happen on-screen. Among them, though, I would say that Raven and Mercury especially have wonderful set-ups.

Raven's characterization and focus in volume 5 makes her one of the best written characters tbh. She is despicable, flawed, a coward and a hypocrite. And this is precisely why she is so great. She is very human and layered. It is clear she cares about Yang. Still, it is also clear she is too selfish and scared to act on her feelings. The way the narrative peels away her powerful mask to reveal a weak soul behind it is great. As it is the challenge for her to overcome her fear and make amends.

Mercury has so far one of the best set-up arc. His writing has been extremely thight and almost every scene he is in gives additioinal information on him, his background, his bonds with others and his feelings. All in a very subtle way. Basically, his writing is very rich and we can infer a lot, despite his arc having yet to start. He is the embodyment of the cycle of abuse and I am curious to see how this concept gets explored.

Finally, shout outs to Neo and Ilia. Their arcs aren't as complex or long and have less bits than the main characters'. Still, they are thight and perfectly executed.

Thank you for the ask!

[penny-the-pissed-poltergeist]

Volume 1 episode 5 rewatch reactions

.I would yell at Ruby for forgetting she can basically fly but I think she only learns to do that later

.You can see Blake's ears twich, literally everyone points this out but still

.Nora was really XD random and I am here for it

.Yang's little out burst is really out of nowhere and weird considering she goes back to normal right afterword

.I am going to yell at Weiss for not just making some glyphs to get down though! (also what did Jaune think he was going to achieve jumping under her like that)

."I'm going to be.. nicer" proceeds to not do that

.Yang and Ruby's jank ass hug will never not be funny (also why is volume 1 Yang legit trying harder than herself in volume 9)

.The writers were trying to have the characters run instead of fight but Monty had his airpods in and didn't hear them, It lead to one of the best fights in the series so who cares

.One of the things that I think kept this show alive and on of reasons I can love parts of it despite it all is just that almost every early RWBY character has a fighting style that you cannot find (almost) anywhere else, name another fictional character who fights like Ruby or Weiss or Blake or Nora or Pyrrha, I could go on. (Also another reason why I don't like Jaune, he is just guy with sword and shield)

.How did Pyrrha just know to target the stinger? All Jaune says is "Pyrrha, now!". Do her magnet powers let her look at peoples brainwaves or some shit

.Why does Red like roses part 2 fit every other volume more then this one (and volume 2 I guess)

.Ah team CRDL, the team with Cardin and then the same character 3 times

.Jaune gave like one order and even though he has zero combat experience he's still leader.... yay

.I find it funny that team RWBY is the only team that is just directly named after the leader, is that considered weird in universe?