#rwby volume 5 episode 3

[lacependragon]

You know, the longer I think about it, the more I realize that it actually makes perfect sense that an online company so incredibly pro-military and pro-veteran (RoosterTeeth) would write the worst black-and-white, unbelievable, morally bland, and utterly boring and worldbuilding breaking anti-military story I've ever seen.

It's like they thought if they even slightly tried to make it realistic, even slightly tried to make it believable, we'd all realize how similar it was to the US military and go "you hate veterans!"

But instead we got a military that makes no sense. A story that relies on you not paying any attention to the worldbuilding. And a bunch of dead people who didn't mean anything because by the end they were just fucking caricatures. James is the evil general. Clover is the too-loyal right hand. Vine is the self-sacrificial meditative type. And they aren't anything else.

All of Atlas is flat and cardboard and cartoon-y and bad. And I genuinely think so much of it is the inability of these fuckers to stop sucking off the US military long enough to understand something called nuance. Because they fired so completely in the opposite direction to their on-camera shit (we love veterans! we love soldiers! fight the bad guys!) as opposed to RWBY (all military evil there is no nuance no middle ground nope just evil! James is as bad as SALEM!) that they lost every discussion and every interesting detail in the sprint between the two podiums.

This isn't the real world! We can have discussions about stuff we wouldn't approve of in real life but make interesting stories! We can have discussions about redemption and revenge and making choices!

But nah let's just have them all be evil evil people and then save Winter (maiden, sure), and Elm, Harriet, and Marrow (and I'm not going to lie here. I genuinely think the reason Harriet lives instead of Vine is because RT was TERRIFIED of another Sienna Khan backlash.)

Atlas was bad.

It was rushed. It was sloppy. It broke characters. It broke worldbuilding. It broke the internal logic of the universe.

And we still learned fucking nothing about its people, its culture, or its history. Just like in Mistral.

Setpieces. Empty destructible setpieces. Only this time there was nothing else to prop up the building facades.

Truly, the only good thing Atlas gave us was Penny.

And look how that turned out.

[blackfliesinbluesugar]

The fact that that cat is so obviously voiced by Goro Mother Fucking Akechi is just instantly making me expect it to betray everyone

[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

[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.

[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

[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

[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:

[stickersr]

"𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎’𝚜 𝚊 𝚙𝚘𝚒𝚗𝚝 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚒𝚝 𝚋𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚔𝚜"

Okay, okayokay... I truly don’t upload anything... in any social media-- BUT 

this episode totally killed me... I've been waiting for something like this since volume 3 or 4. Ruby’s break down is something she really need it, being always the positive and cheering its not healthy for anyone, we need to remember that Ruby now would have the same age when Yang, Weiss and Blake started Beacon, she forced herself to grown up even we she was only a child. I don't think she was selfish, she couldn’t think about himself at least in the latest seasons. She passed so many events that traumatized her since vol 3, lies, distrust, death, betrayal, failure... Ruby has a lot of pressure and she just couldn’t keep moving forward, it's not only about her, it's how all his actions destroyed everything when it wasn't her fault at all.

What about me? No time, right?

Jaune didn’t have a bad intentions at all, Ruby said “Me” but not in the meaning that Jaune mentioned, he's having a bad time too, he spended so many time alone– even kill one of his friends and now its an adult you can see for previous episode that he’s tired of the conversation of team rwby for being childish he just need help...

What about you? It’s all about you!

She has been helping everyone since day 1, being cheerful and always optimistic, but now she doesn’t know how to help himself– that reminded me that Oscar and Ozpin had a conversation in vol 5 very similar about this moment, she had a spark, to cherish in moments of darkness…

But who would help Ruby?

I've released everything I wanted to say... now I'll go back to my grave.

[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.

[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 here 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?

[howlingday]

So this may sound crazy, but do you think that Lancaster and BMBLB are parallel/foils to each other?

When I look at Lancaster, both Ruby and Jaune have a lot of character depth that romance was not their top priority or part of their character dynamic. He even treated her as a person and not a kid. And that over time, they naturally develop with one another that it doesn't seem forced, and they have a better understanding of each other, that they know what the other is thinking.

For Yang and Blake (I'm not going into full detail and rant as to why those two shouldn't be together), it seems more shallow. These two didn't have great chemistry for each other. Even after the end of vol 1, Yang (in my opinion) treated Blake more like a cat than a person. This could be evident in vol 5, Yang has been Blake's partner, yet she didn't know why Blake ran away until "Weiss" had to explain it. It wasn't til vol 6 that their characters devolved to being romantic interest to one another. And besides the trauma and RWBY, they have nothing in common or share any interest

What's your opinion?

Part of me wants to argue the "romance" bit simply for the fact that Ruby's favorite genre of reading material is romance, but I do see what you mean. Jaune and Ruby were definitely more focused on their own self-improvement, albeit for very different reasons, while attending Beacon. Ruby wanted to be a huntress like the stories she'd read about and like her mom. Jaune wanted to prove himself as a huntsman just like his father and grandfather and their fathers and grandfathers. And yes, every time Jaune and Ruby talk to each other, it's as equals, though Jaune will admit that Ruby is better than him in every way. If Lancaster were endgame, it would be a fantastic showing of true friendship blossoming into something more. Although it's more likely Rosegarden will be Ruby's endgame

I will also spare the rant since it's already been said to death about the significance of Blake and Yang being the endgame ship for their characters. Instead, I'll talk about BMBLB as a ship that was "set up" to be endgame. While I firmly believe that until Volume 5 and 6 that Black Sun would be endgame, I could honestly see them working out pre-Volume 3. Their heart-to-heart in the classroom after Blake was practically killing herself to find a lead on the White Fang was a very touching moment that showed me that Yang really does care about Blake not only as a partner and team-member, but as a friend.

"I'm not asking you to stop. I just want you to take a break."

This is such a beautiful scene and perfectly demonstrates their friendship. In fact, it's, in my opinion, THE BEST BMBLB SCENE EVER! Yes, yes, the forehead touch was very cute, but it felt so out of place for characters who "aren't sure about their relationship". Sure, the "I won't run away again, I promise!" scene is very touching, but it's soured by the fact that they just committed murder and don't acknowledge that fact at all, and it stands better as an acknowledgement of Blake staying with her partner and best friend, Yang. And teaching Blake to dance was a cringey moment that, sure, it could have been a BMBLB moment if we were shown MORE THAN JUST THAT! WHY DIDN'T YOU GIVE US AN EPISODE TO EXPLAIN ANYTHING THAT HAPPENED THAT NIGHT?!

Ahem! Excuse me.

tl;dr: Lancaster would have been a great ship if it weren't being torpedoed by Rosegarden, and BMBLB might have made more sense if more effort was put into it in the first place.

[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!