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calliecat93 · 5 years ago

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(Part One)

Welcome to Part Two of the Volume 7 Review everyone! If you missed Part One, you can click the link above and check that out first if you’d like. Otherwise, not gonna waste any time. Let’s resume the Character Section and get this baby done!

Characters, Part Two (RWBYJNRQO)

So some characters got it a bit easier here. I don’t have too much to honestly say about Jaune, Blake, and Yang. They were good, but they didn’t really develop any this volume. But honestly? That’s fine since they already had a great deal in the Mistral seasons alone. Blake and Yang do have some a few things though. They spend the majority of their screentime together, and while it kinda irks me because I dislike when two characters get put together and mostly cease interacting with others (Ren and Nora in most of the early seasons for example), after Volumes 3-6 it was nice to see them rekindling their relationship. They’re much happier and comfortable together and their teamwork is at an all right high now, though we see that Blake at least is still haunted by killing Adam. It’s this fear and worry about Ironwood that causes the two to try talking to Robyn, and that of course bites them hard in Chapter 11. They did the right thing though... though I do still have to wonder if them seeming to not tell any of the others int he main group will cause issues for them later. Jaune was... there, but seeing how he’s grown and him having now moved on form Pyrrha is nice to see.

By contrast, though, we got much more from Ren and Nora this year. They are by far the two who get the least amount of substance in every volume with V4 being the only time they got spotlight. And that was more for Ren than Nora, who I considered the least developed... and sadly I still do. But compared to before? Nora was freakin’ great here. She is the most vocal about Mantle’s mistreatment, which makes sense considering how she lived in poverty as a child until she met Ren. While IDT it really develops her, she’s still the same as before, it helps give her more depth than just the ‘energetic comedy relief who crushes on Ren’. Which we finally have some development with there being some actual conflict between them due to their differing ideologies and Chapter 6 confirms that yes, their feelings are romantic. Nora loves Ren and she tries her best to comfort and assure him, despite her frustration with him. She just wants him to open up to her, which provoked her to finally do the thign we’ve been waiting for for years. That kiss was a long time coming. But... sadly there is one obstacle to them being happy and going beyond that one night, and that is Ren himself.

We see that Ren is slowly closing himself off more and more. He pushes away Nora’s advancements, he seems much more frustrated about the mission, and he seemed perfectly fine with following Ironwood’s orders until they became wanted. He’s not emotionless, but clearly, the circumstances are eating away at him. He’s also never been the most upfront with his emotions, but as Volume 4 demonstrated, once he’s overwhelmed by them he loses it. That time, Nora calmed him down. She isn’t nearly as successful this time, especially since after the kiss, Tyrian’s murder spree happened. Then to really clench it, in the finale not only do they lose the Relics, but he can’t stop Neo because she’s disguised as Nora and that breaks him. In the end, he looks on the verge of a nervous breakdown. I wish this was a bit more in focus cause there’s a long gap where it seems they dropped it and Ren seemed normal again... but the finale shows that they haven’t forgotten. I get the feeling that V8 may just have him reach a breaking point.

Qrow also got it a bit better... well, at first. We see him trying to improve himself as he’s given up drinking, even resisting the urge in Chapter 8, and seems to be back to being the uncle figure. He no longer has to worry about being the adult/guardian over the kids and just has a much better attitude compared to the previous volume. What helped was meeting Clover, his polar opposite, but instead of going the rivalry route Clover was a nice guy who encouraged him and outright told him that he shouldn't keep putting himself down. It’s words that Qrow took. He’s still cynical, but much happier and was able to properly comfort and assure Ruby and even open up about Summer. Something I doubt that he had done for a very long time. Things for him were on the right track... but fate, unfortunately, had other plans.

I know some reception to the final two chapters with Qrow were controversial, for more reasons than one. However, right now, I’m okay with this direction. Qrow is doign better, but we’ve still never really seen him open up. We know that there’s a lot still haunting him, like with STRQ and the fallout with Oz, but he’s internalizing it like a certain niece of his. That’s bad for her but even worse for someone like Qrow. Plus now that he’s faced with tragedy again, betrayed by his friends just like with Raven and Oz and now one dead, can Qrow pull back from it? This is where we see if he truly can improve now that he’s again been dealt with these harsh circumstances. It may be a while before we see since Qrow is going to jail, but I think it’ll be like what happened with Blake. He’ll fall for a bit, but once he’s back up, he’ll be better than ever. I’m looking forward to seeing that and overall? Compared to how annoyed I was at Qrow last year, I am very satisfied with him here.

Next up, we have Weiss. Last volume, she was the one of the main four who got the least focus. This time? She got a pretty good amount. First, she’s back in Atlas, but she’s able to make due. Despite any feelings she has about it, she pushes forward and tries to do what’s right. This leads to the lovely scene where he backtalks Jaques in Chapter 4 and when he tries to break her by bringing up her mom, her team is there. Unlike last time in V4, this time she has her friends with her. Her family. This gives her the strength to, when she suspects Jaques of foul play, to go back tot he Manor and find evidence. Once she has it, she’s able to arrest Jaques and even uses her Knight, the same thing that Jaques previously tried to use to break Weiss when she tried to leave te first time, to block him and become his undoing. After how much Jaques made not jut Weiss suffer, but his whole family, this was a delight.

But it’s also made clear just how broken off form her family Weiss is. Her relationship with Willow is clearly shaky due to Willow doign nothing and her broken state. Once that Weiss had to watch unfold, and it’s clearly something that pains her. She also feels like Whitley wants nothing to dow ith her, and given past evidence and him trying to rub his success in her face here, can we blame her? Willow tries to push Weiss into seeing why he feels that way, but it’ll be a while before we see if Weiss takes that to heart. The one person Weiss still has is Winter. We see here that the two are as close as ever with Weiss clearly being concerned about Winter’s fate, but she does take her advice about carving her own destiny despite circumstances to heart. But sadly, it ends with the two on opposing sides. It hurts them both, but Weiss is now an enemy of Atlas and she can’t stay by Winter. Their final moment int he finale was just... heartbreaking, but Weiss has to carve her own path. So she does. Hopefully, they can get around this, but it’s going to take time. Still, Weiss was excellent in this volume and I enjoyed every minute of her.

Then we have Oscar. So...farmboy has not gotten it great when it comes ot his character. It usually ends up rushed or out of focus, with V6 being the breaking point for many. Have they improved on that? FOr the most part, yes. I do still feel like Oscar is a tad underdeveloped, but I think it's just due to how rushed the previous seasons with him were. But I gotta say, in comparison, this is an improvement. Int his volume, Oscar is trying more and more to carve his own identity instead of being just Oz’s vessel. While he still hasn’t unlocked his Semblance, he has started to speak his own thoughts and give advice to others. He worries about Ruby following Oz’s path, though that pretty much got dropped sadly. But we do see this very well with Ironwood where he tries to help the general embrace his feelings and do what’s right. Unlike Nora, who kept getting nagry at him, Oscar tries to be much calmer and friendlier and finds out more about the General personally. And it seemed to work y Chapter 9 with Oscar convincing him to tell the truth and even kept him calm after revealing their own secret.

Sady though, Oscar couldn’t save Ironwood form himself. He tried so hard, but IDT even Oz could have helped by then. It sadly ended with Ironwood dismissing essentially both of them and shooting him down. Fortunately, though, this gets Oz back and allows Oscar to tap into hos true power. IDK if it’s his Semblance or Oz’s magic, but he’s unlocked it. I think that this volume, above all else, helped show that Oscar is not just Oz or even Oz 2.0. One big issue with V6 is despite saying it wasn't the case, it felt like Oscar’s own real importance was because of Oz. But here? Oscar forges his own path. He’s not as wise or experienced as Oz, but he has the hope and determination that he lacks. I think if the two can sort things out, they can be the effective leader that they all need. But still, this is the best volume with Oscar thus far and while they DO need to improve on setting up a thing happening to Oscar, except not’ thing, as a character? He is much better and finally feels like his own person that’s not burdened by Oz or whatever happens when the merger completes.

So finally we come to Ruby. V6 was a mass improvement for her character, so did they accomplish keeping that here? Yes... but I do have some issues. I feel like there was much more potential with Ruby having to make hard, O-like choices. Now we do see that it is stressing her out and she is uncertain about what to do. This is good to see and it’s clear that she is trying her best in a very bad situation. But after Chapter 4, her worry about being no better than Oz is dropped and I just feel like there was more to explore with her and her newfound leadership role. But I think the big issue is that, again, she keeps her feelings internalized and is given no chance to express it. Tbf we have her scene with Qrow, which helped, but I really wish that they'd just let this girl talk about these things more. Her not getting to talk to Penny about Beacon or her first demise despite it clearly still bothering her especially was a horribly wasted opportunity that I am unhappy with just because I don’t get whyt hey won’t just allow Ruby to talk about her feelings already. Maybe in V8, I guess...

That being said, I’m happy with Ruby here. Less so than V6, but still happy. She got to express some things like her uncertainty about what to do, her fears about her choices to Qrow, and of course about Summer. She finally asked about it, and she also sadly found out what happened via Salem. Thus we got the first time that he legit broke, and it was heartwrenching to watch. But through and through, Ruby is still the smaller, more honest soul who keeps trying that he’s always been. She tries her best to reason with Ironwood, is as devoted to protecting those counting on her and the others as ever, her Semblance has massively improved, and Chapter 11 just demonstrates the best of her. She stands up to Salem with zero hesitation, and even after she broke her, she still refused to let Ironwood jeopardize Mantle. The looks he gave him before she Petal Bursted behind his desk to warn everyone else was amazing. Also, we see she still isn’t 100% experienced with the Silver Eyes which is good, but we also see that when she’s pissed enough she has no issue such as doing it pretty much the instant she saw Cinder. Best subtle moment by far. So in the end, I feel like a few things could have been better, but Ruby was overall great and I’m very happy with where she currently is.

This volume was very much more story-driven than character development-driven but there’s still plenty of the latter. I think that Ruby, Weiss, Oscar, and Qrow got it the best. The others, especially Ren and Nora, were still good though. And of course, other characters, especially Penny and Ironwood, got a great deal as well. Everyone was very well done and I am very happy with the character writing this volume. Excellent work~

Story

Volume 7 is a volume about trust, fear, and doing the right thing. We have our heroes arrive in Atlas, but the sight is not pleasant. Mantle is being abused, Ironwood seems unhinged, and there seems to be nowhere safe to turn. As a result, Ruby lies about the Lamp and Salem, despite Ironwood appearing to openly trust the group unconditionally. The events that unfold include political insanity that hit far too close to home, seeds of mistrust and conflict among the heroes, and the villains unfolding their schemes amidst all of it. This line from Ruby in Chapter 4, which was also heard in the trailer, I feel sums it all up:

I’m trying to do what I think is best, but I really can’t tell if what’ best is what’s right.

We see this all unfold with the conflict between Atlas and Mantle. Ironwood has a plan, to re-establish communications and reveal Salem. But to do so, he causes Mantle to suffer by putting it under a police state, banning nearly everything under the sun, and worse of all taking resources needed to rebuild Mante’s defenses. Now once can argue that Ironwood is doing what’s necessary for the greater good, but he’s still causing this already worn down city to become even /more/ worn down and burden all the sacrifice. Not just some, but /all/ of it. Ironwood knows this and that he looks terrible for it… but he’s so concerned about beating Salem, about becoming this Big Good figurehead with Oz gone that he shoves that aside and allows his paranoia to consume him.

It’s made very clear that the general has good intentions, but that he is not doing the right thing. While he does give the heroes his trust and does things like let them keep the Lamp and grant them their Huntsman/Huntress licenses, he won’t trust the Council or Robyn even though if he had been upfront, this whole thing could have been handled much more reasonably. Most of the plot has the cast trying to get him to see this and open up to these people, but he continuously refuses until he’s pretty much forced to. Ironwood doesn’t trust his own allies. As such, the heroes cannot trust him and hold onto the info they know until they can be for sure that he will do the right thing. It’s all a waiting game as things continue to get worse and worse with Watts and Tyrian framing Ironwood, murdering others left and right, and just causing a large amount of unease that ensures frequent Grimm Attacks while Ironwood sits in his office and does nothing but allow his paranoia to clout his mind. Thus our heroes must try to push the General to trust those around him while trying to thwart the villains and help those suffering such as the people of Mantle. But of course, it’s much easier said than done...

Every chapter was chock full of content. They all felt very well-paced and had a consistent tone. There’s so much complexity with the volume as it weaves the themes together. You grow attached to characters and you hope that ones like Ironwood are going to make a turn and do the right thing. The tone begins as tense but overall has the usual RWBY optimism. But by the end, it took the V3 route and grew darker and darker until by the end, you are left with only bleakness. Heck, I even criticized Chapters 9 and 10 because it began to become optimistic again in a way that, considering all the build-up and tension throughout the volume, felt like a jarring, anti-climatic shift. But it was all a trap for when Cinder made her grand return, and caused Ironwood to lose himself. Everything came back to haunt our heroes, and as a result, we are where we are now. Absolutely brilliant writing.

Unlike past volumes, Miles and Kerry were not the sole writers. They added Eddy Rivas, a long-time writer at RT, and author Kirsei Buckhart to the team. I gotta say, this was a very good choice. They brought so much to the volume. There was so much depth and tension but also plenty of fun and light-hearted moments. Every step helped push the characters and the plot forward, and every step made sense. But of course Miles and Kerry remain as great as ever as they wrote Gravity, which is probably my favorite chapter of the volume and one of the best of the whole series. Each chapter, even when I wasn’t 100% happy, made me tune in every Saturday at 11 AM so that I could see what was going to happen ASAP. They all did an excellent job, and I look forward to seeing even more of their work in Volume 8.

Speaking of… that finale, huh? Yeah, it was… quite the thing. But it beautifully rings everything around full-circle with Ozpn’s monologue. How we all feel fear. How there are so many reasons why we do. But it isn’t fear in and of itself that we should be concerned about, but what we become when grasped by it. When RWBY was afraid, they grew and continued to move forward even when things kept getting worse and worse. When Ironwood did so, however? He became lost to it, and has now become the very same demon that he’s fought against. He also brought down the Ace-Ops and Winter with him, but Penny? She trusted in love, and because of it she became a Maiden and proved herself as human as anyone else. Even moreso than the man who claimed to have complete control over her. You can’t allow fear to corrupt and twist you, otherwise, you lose your way. It’s a lesson that our heroes will need to cling to more than ever with Salem’s arrival and whatever she unleashes upon Solitas.

Thus, we return to our main themes. How people need to trust each other, but of course it isn’t that simple. The heroes can’t trust Ironwood because of his morally questionable decisions, and once they did he broke it instantly. Ironwood seems to trust the heroes, but no one outside his own inner circle and thus is antagonistic to people like Robyn when cooperating with her would help all of them. The heroes' decisions cause people like Ace-Ops to feel betrayed, and they themselves feel the same way as demonstrated with Qrow towards Ironwood. It all leads to Ironwood choosing to allow Mantle to die for what is a plan of desperation, while our heroes stand against him to protect the people. Why? Because they are Huntsmen and Huntresses and their loyalty is to the people depending on them, not to any authority figure. Doing the right thing is what matters, not just the best thing. Our heroes trusted in love, but Ironwood became blinded.

Unlike in the past few volumes, where the heroes learned the lesson by the end and became better for it, here we have the heroes trying to teach Ironwood the lesson. It sadly fails. But they stick by their morals, and it’s shown that this is right. The heroes trust each other and thus are able to defeat Ace-Ops. They decide to stand by Mantle, the right thing to do. They sadly couldn’t get Ironwood to trust love and open his eyes and were forced to flee from Atlas in the end. But there’s another line to the song, one that is more important now than ever:

The way’s uncertain, but we’re together moving towards the light When we trust in love, and open up our eyes.

Indeed, things are uncertain. I don’t know what’s going to happen going forward. None of us do. Maybe things will become better. Maybe it’ll continue to go downhill. All we know is that it’s probably going to be harder going ahead than it ever has been, which is saying a lot. But no matter what, it’s going to be okay. RWBY is still there. They all are there, together. It’s not gonna be easy, maybe they’ll even face their own trust issues amongst themselves. But they’re still trying. They’re still heading towards that light. If they could stand back up after the Fall of Beacon, they can pull through this. As long as they continue to trust love and can open their eyes, they will pull through and keep hope alive. Let’s hope that we can do the same.

So I think it’s pretty clear that I loved the story. It is one of, if not the best-written volume of the series. So… how does it rank compared to the rest? Well, right now it’s crushed 1-5… but it is just a smidge below V6. The reason is V6 gave me a lot of what I had been hoping for at that time, which V7 did less so. But that isn’t saying much, and once I have more time to digest things that may change. But regardless, the story was excellent. IDK if I’m in a hurry to rewatch it anytime soon because GOD I need a breather. But I greatly enjoyed it and it makes me so happy to see how far we’ve truly come.

Season Stats

Favorite Characters: Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Winter Schnee, Penny Polendina, Nora Valkyrie, Oscar Pine, and James Ironwood Favorite Overall Moment: The confrontation with Salem in Chapter 11 and everything following. Least Favorite Overall Moment: The anti-climactic truth ‘resolution’ in Chapter 9, even knowing what happened later. Favorite Fight: Cinder vs Penny and Winter Least Favorite Fight: Tyrian vs Qrow, Clover, and Robyn Favorite Chapters: A New Approach (Chapter 2), Sparks (Chapter 5), A Night Off (Chapter 6), Gravity (Chapter 11), With Friends Like These (Chapter 12), The Enemy of Trust (Chapter 13) Least Favorite Chapters: Ace Operatives (Chapter 3), As Above, So Below (Chapter 9), and Out in the Open (Chapter 10) Favorite Voice Actors: Lindsay Jones (Ruby), Jason Rose (Ironwood), Taylor McNee (Penny), David Fennoy (Pietro), Jason Liebrecht (Qrow), Sam Ireland (Nora), Anaris Quinones (Harriet), Mick Lauer (Marrow), Cristina Vee (Robyn) Favorite Song: War by Jeff Williams, sung by Casey Lee Williams, Adrienne Cowan, Dawn M Bennett, and Erin Reilly. Rating: 9.9/10

Final Thoughts

It has been… quite a trip guys. Even though November was just three months ago, it feels so much longer. It’s certainly been quite the emotional journey, in both good and bad ways. But I wouldn't change it for the world. I loved this volume. Even when the pit in my stomach grew more and more, I was always excited to tune in every week and see what CRWBY had in store for us. Think it’s safe to say that they certainly made something memorable. As I said, I need a breather before I truly revisit this volume just because it feels like my emotions have been trampled over. But I’m still satisfied with everything and truly looking forward to what Volume 8 will have in store. Gonna be a wild time~

But until then that’s it for the RWBY Reviews! Whoo! Thank you all who have read this far! I may do some more RWBY related posts in between now and V8, but for now this is it. I hope that you guys enjoyed all my mindless babbling. My focus is gonna turn to RvB as I prep for RvB18 and get those reviews ready to go. I hope that you guys will check those and my Top Likes/Dislikes posts I’m going to do for them like I did with RWBY prior to this volume. WHich I’ll do it for V7 when we’re closer to V8. But, once again, thank you for reading and it’s been a pleasure~

#rwby #rwby7 #rwby reviews #callie reviews

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undeadwicchan · 6 years ago

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Rewatching RWBY: Volume 1, Episodes 6-10 [Live Blog]

The second half of Volume 1, and yes if you combine the parts. Volume 1 is actually only 10 episodes long.

[Episode 6]

I know it’s first volume and the budget isn’t as big as it is now, but Ruby’s arms in her uniform are unusually long.

Blake is actually somewhat OOC during the ‘Banzai’ then again, Blake is one of Miles’s hardest characters to write and it’s Volume 1 so…

Omg that Achievement Hunter poster

It’s always the quiet ones hehe.

I don’t understand why Ruby would cut the curtain to this very day unless it was an accident.

Weiss is womanlet compared to Yang omg.

Oh right, JNPR’s room is right across from RWBY’s!

“Remember when STRQ was late to class? Good times”

Okay so who is that guy with the black hair and green shirt?!

Also hello Port!

Yeah just yell at Ruby while Yang and Blake were cheering too lmao.

“Sheesh what’s with her,” tell me about it.

“Ozpin made a mistake” Oh hell no.

“My ‘Ruby is having a conflict with herself or with someone’ senses are tingling” - Ozpin, probably.

I love Ryan voicing Port omg.

“I have made more mistakes than any man, woman, and child on this planet” can we talk about how tired and sad Ozma sounds here? Yes, I strongly believe that this is Ozma in control talking to Ruby.

Boy I wonder how that opinion that Port has of Ozpin is going to change now…

You tell her Port.

Yeah, you see Weiss. Ruby is working very hard. Baby girl is doing her best and that’s all that matters. ;v;

HHHhhhhh Weiss is so sweet omg

And now it’s time for probably the most skipped on and criticized arc in the series. Jaundice.

[Episode 7]

Now isn’t that some alluding regarding the characters they’re based off of.

So it’s been a considerable amount of weeks and a few months before the Vytal Festival kinda sorta starts. Interesting.

Omg Ren’s and Nora’s story telling.

Ruby and Pyrrha are on the same wavelength regarding their concern for Jaune

I WILL 1v4 YOU TEAM CRDL IF YOU CONTINUE TO BULLY VELVET.

Oh my god, I know it’s for comedy relief but, that’s kinda messed up Cardin would send Jaune trapped in a locker flying.

Cardin. You. Me. 1v1 now. You dare hurt the Bun?! Speaking of, I know Velvet’s teammates designs aren’t completed, but they would kick Cardin and his team’s ass.

“It must be hard to be a faunus” Yeah… Looking at how shitty society treated Adam and Ilia, it is not much of a brainer.

OOBLECK!

Aw poor baby is so hesitant to speak out about the discrimination she faced as a faunus :c

C’mon Jaune….

Oh man, Adam would just… have a field day with the way Cardin would show his disgust over the faunus .

YES BLAKE. GO PYRRHA. TEAR THAT MAN APART AND DRAG HIM

I wish I had a teacher like Oobleck back during my days of High School.

“You know, I really will break his legs” please do Pyrrha.

...F...Forever Fall is that you I hear? ;v;

I’m sorry guys, but the lyric version of Forever Fall messed me up so much, that if I hear it I start to tear up a bit…

Pyrrha deserves the world god damn it.

This arc does give some perspective on Jaune’s character and how he can grow. I actually love the Jaunedice arc.

SCREW OFF CARDIN.

[Episode 8]

I can’t even blame Pyrrha for being mad and disappointed with Jaune here.

I love this moment between Ruby and Jaune, they’re very supportive of each other and I really like they let each other lean on the other’s shoulder if needed to be. Lancaster man…

C’mon Jaune…

Okay. So we got a tease of Forever Fall in Maya via Adam and Blake shorts but, I really hope we see the forest again!

Pfftttt Nora.

How did Glynda not notice that box of wasps?

You hurt Pyrrha. I hurt you.

Don’t do it….

Yeah Jaune!

Oh no Jaune!

LMAO

Oh because I’m watching on the blu-ray it contains the bonus scene of Nora stealing Pyrrha’s collected sap.

YEAH JAUNE!

Cardin deserved that one.

“Time to save the boyfriend.” - Pyrrha and Ruby, probably.

Go Jaune, go!

I’ll give Cardin this. He actually does keep Jaune’s secret a secret.

*cries internally* God damn Forever Fall…

Ah, there’s that smile from Pyrrha.

And so begins Jaune’s training arc.

[Episode 9]

Alright the Vytal Festival is coming!

Weiss being excited is so precious.

And so begins the Blake vs Weiss arc.

That’s racist, Weiss.

S U N. MY SUNNY BOI.

I miss him having gray eyes omg.

Okay so, Sun winked at Blake. An angelic choir suddenly starts playing and it makes it seem like Sun is introduced as Blake’s future love interest.

Blake looks like he took her breath away or just confused or both.

P E N N Y. MY BABY GIRL.

FRIEND.

Asdfghjkl I miss Penny omg. ;v;

“It’s a combat skirt” iconic.

Where did she find the time to draw that picture of Sun lmao

God damn it Weiss. That’s rude af.

I can feel the discomfort from here too…

“There’s no such thing as pure evil,” now if only a certain part of the FNDM can be aware of that….

Weiss’s anger is valid, but she shouldn’t be generalizing all faunus with the same mind set like that….

Damn, Adam managed to steal an entire train worth of dust even after Blake left all on his own?

Speaking of Adam, he indirectly caused Weiss to have a difficult childhood, I hope people remember that.

“Well maybe we were just tired of being pushed around!” How many do you want to bet Adam said the same thing…

I always wondered if there was a connection between the Faunus and the Grimm….

Awww Volume 1’s purple ears.

And so the S.S. Blacksun sails.

Jfc Weiss

In the manga it’s only been a like not even a full day, but here it’s been two days that Sun has been with Blake.

[Episode 10]

Sun’s disgust over the White Fang is interesting tbh like did he ever encounter them in Vacuo or Mistral?

The only time you see Blake with brown hair.

Okay so… the silhouette on the right…. That looks… an awfully a lot like Adam if you get rid of that tail…

Ffs Weiss….

That slow realization lmao.

What great teammates they are lmao

Sun is great here, he tries to help whenever he can.

Yang is still thinking about Weiss’s words, “Is she innocent?” “She’s our teammate we have to at least talk to her…”

Some nice insight….

Touche.

Yikes, Roman is pretty racist towards them too.

Battle time!!

Man Roman’s dialogue is so witty I love it.

GUN CHUCKS. GUN CHUCKS.

Sun has one of the best fighting styles, but I imagine it’s a pain in the ass to animate it though.

“You hurt my friend, now you’ll pay”

Get em’ Penny!!

Rip those members of the White Fang. Seriously how does Adam manage to bullshit his way into making them help Roman still after this.

“Kinda cute” Bless Ruby

Weiss get some off screen development

And Blake… finally is starting to get her wings… *cries*

How is Ozpin is getting that kind of live feed?

Wings plays and the credits roll for this volume…

But wait there’s more!

Volume 1 Mercury and Emerald look wack. I’m glad they look so much better in Volume 2!

And that’s Volume 1, and now onto Volume 2…. Where the bees start really buzzing since… I hardly could spot a thing for Yang and Blake except during their initiation in Volume 1 and Yang wanting to be understanding. In contrast to where Blake and Sun have established a friendship. But, Volume 2 hoo boy… Buzz buzz.

Buzz.

#RWBY #Yuuri rewatches RWBY

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bowow0708 · 6 years ago

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Ruby vs The Machines chapter 20

Team RWBY wake up one seemingly normal morning only to find that Ruby isn't alone in bed. She's surrounded by five strange girls who came out of nowhere. Who are these girls? And why are they fighting over Ruby? (RubyxHarem) (rated M for suggestive/sexual themes)

Full story on Fanfiction and AO3

or keep reading here

Disclaimer I do not own RWBY

Chapter 20

Ruby laid on her stomach in her bed, her feet raised up swaying back and forth as she hummed to herself, reading an old issue of Red vs Blue.

It was the weekend, which meant no class and the whole day free to do absolutely nothing.

Nothing at all.

Yup, nothing.

Not a thing.

Ruby dropped her comic and pushed her face into her pillow and began rolling back and forth on her bed.

“Waaah! I’m Bored!” yelled Ruby, though her voice was muffled by her pillow.

Ruby lifted her head, her lips formed into a pout.

She was alone in their dorm room. Yang had went out with Blake, Ember and Celica, and Gambol Shroud. Weiss also had said that she had things to do, so Myrtenaster had gone to accompany her. Even Team JNPR wasn’t in their room across the hall. Strangely enough, even Crescent Rose was missing so she couldn’t even do some modifying and maintenance on her.

So there she was, left all by herself in the room bored out of her mind.

Ruby was just about to start rolling around in her bed again, trying to get rid some of that nervous energy, when a knock sounded on the door.

Ruby’s head whipped towards the door as she lifted up her torso, now fully alert but wondering if she just imagined it.

“Is someone there?” she called out.

Another set of knocks came.

“I’m coming!” shouted Ruby, jumping off her bed and rushing to the door.

Ruby quickly opened the door to reveal Bumblebee who stood on the other side.

Ruby’s face immediately brightened into a wide grin, upon seeing the taller woman.

“Hey Bumblebee!” she greeted happily.

“Hey yourself, Ruby.” she replied, smiling back at Ruby. She then looked up and past her into the room, her eyebrows raising slightly, “You’re all by yourself?” she asked.

Ruby’s wide smile turned into a sheepish grin, as she looked away, scratching her cheek with a finger. “Y-yeah, I’m the only one here. Everyone else had something to do and headed out.” replied Ruby, then asked, “Are you looking for Yang?”

Looks like today is my lucky day, I get to spend some time alone with Ruby! thought Bumblebee.

Bumblebee shook her head, “Nah, though I’m surprised that she’s not here since she didn’t use me to go wherever she went. I just wanted to come here and hang out or something.”

“Oh!” said Ruby, her smile returning in full force, “Come on in then!” she said, moving out of the doorway to let Bumblebee in.

As Bumblebee entered, Ruby closed the door behind her and turned around to look at the taller woman, but didn’t say anything.

Bumblebee sat on Blake’s bed while Ruby didn’t move from her spot at the door. A small stretch of silence hung over them, as they both awkwardly looked at and away from the other.

Ruby was about to say something, but Bumblebee spoke first, “So, what were you doing before I came?” she asked.

Ruby twiddled her fingers as her eyes glanced at the comic that laid open on her bed. “I wasn’t really doing anything, just reading some comics to pass the time.”

Bumblebee perked up at that, “Really?” asked Bumblebee, sounding interested. “Could you show me?”

Ruby blushed slightly at Bumblebee’s request, Red vs Blue wasn’t your typical comic it was mostly comedy with the characters in absurd situations with puns, crude jokes, running gags, and slapstick. “U-uh sure.” said Ruby hesitantly. It wasn’t the type of comic that she’d normally share with her friends, to put it bluntly.

Ruby then walked towards her bed reached over to grab the comic from where it rested and showed it to Bumblebee.

“It’s called Red vs Blue.” said Ruby, holding the comic against her chest.

“What’s it about?” Bumblebee asked.

“Well it’s about the adventures of these bunch of guys on two teams, Red and Blue, and all kinds of crazy stuff that happens to them. It’s mostly comedy, but it’s got some interesting stories too.” Ruby explained.

“That sounds pretty cool, can I take a look?” asked Bumblebee.

“Uh, I guess, but if you’re gonna read it I think you should start at the beginning since this issue is kinda in the middle of a big story arc and you might be confused.” said Ruby.

“Sure, that’s fine with me, it’s not like I have anything better to do.” said Bumblebee.

“I’ll go get the first issue.” replied Ruby, walking over to Yang’s stuff and started to dig around, looking for said comic book.

It didn’t take her long to find the comic in question, it was well read and fairly worn, but despite all that it was still in good condition.

“Here it is!” exclaimed Ruby, walking back over to Bumblebee, holding out the comic to her.

Bumblebee accepted the comic and laid it on her lap, then surprised Ruby by patting the spot next to her on the bed with her hand. “Come sit next to me, I want you to read it with me.” said Bumblebee.

Without even any time to respond, Ruby was pulled down to sit next to Bumblebee on the bed, letting out a squeak in surprise.

Bumblebee then sidled up to Ruby, wrapping an arm around her and pulling her close as she opened the comic to its first page and began to read.

Ruby on the other hand couldn’t focus on the comic in Bumblebee’s hands, not when she was this close and in this much contact with Bumblebee.

Even though she had gotten fairly used to waking up with Crescent Rose, Myrtenaster, Bumblebee or even all three occasionally sneaking into her bed at night and sleeping next to her, they had finally managed to reinforce her bunk bed to accommodate said nightly intrusions. She had even gotten used to Crescent Rose’s excessive bouts of physical affection, but Bumblebee was a different matter.

Bumblebee had stolen her first kiss and had even proclaimed her love for her. Ruby still didn’t know why Bumblebee was in love with her, nor had she given a response to Bumblebee’s confession.

But sitting there on the bed, that close to Bumblebee, Ruby could feel the warmth that radiated from Bumblebee like her engine on a cold autumn day. Not only that, but the way she smelled. Bumblebee smelled like clean oil, leather, and maybe just a hint of that new car smell strangely enough. She didn’t stink, far from it in fact. The way Bumblebee smelled almost reminded Ruby of the machine workshops that she’d used to spend hours upon hours in.

But Ruby’s thoughts were interrupted as Bumblebee exploded into fits of laughter. She turned to look at Bumblebee to see that she had a wide grin splitting her face, completely engrossed into the story.

It was fascinating for Ruby to see. Normally, Bumblebee appeared pretty aloof with most things, if not just bored. That was when a thought popped into Ruby’s mind.

“Hey, Bumblebee?” Ruby began tentatively.

“Yeah?” replied Bumblebee, looking up from the comic in her hands.

“Do you have any interests?” asked Ruby, looking down as she fiddled with her fingers.

Bumblebee tilted her head in confusion for a moment, “What do you mean, Ruby?” she asked in response.

“I mean like hobbies or stuff you like to do, things like that.” said Ruby.

Bumblebee closed the comic book and laid it down on her lap as a thoughtful expression formed on her face. “To be perfectly honest, I don’t think I have anything like that.” said Bumblebee.

Ruby blinked in surprise, “Really? So what do you do all day?” she asked.

Bumblebee shrugged, “I just hang around the school garage in my normal form usually. It’s boring just sitting there, but it’s nothing new anyway.” she then put a finger to her chin humming as she gathered her thoughts, then continued, “I do sometimes just go walk around Beacon and the surrounding area.”

Ruby pursed her lips as some of what Bumblebee had said stuck in her mind, and hesitantly asked, “Is that what it’s like for you all the time? Before,” Ruby gestured at Bumblebee herself, “all this? Like you experience everything around you, but can’t really do anything about it?” It was a horrible thought. Was it like that for all the other weapons?

Bumblebee’s eyebrows furrowed, “Yeah. . . I guess, but. . . at the same time not really. I mean, before I got this form, time usually just seemed to slip by, y’know? I wasn’t conscious or completely aware of it exactly, I remember some stuff but kinda in the way like how you remember a dream. Things just sort of happen, fading in and out from one moment to the next.”

Ruby felt some relief at Bumblebee’s answer. She couldn’t imagine what it would be like not being able to move or do anything for hours and days on end, being completely aware of what’s happening around her.

“Do you think it’s the same with the others?” Ruby asked.

Bumblebee shrugged again, “I can’t speak for them, but if I were to guess, then probably. Why do you ask?”

Ruby stiffened and stammered, “Uh-uh-um just curious, that’s all! hehehe.” chuckling nervously.

Bumblebee looked back at Ruby with a suspicious gaze, then a cheshire grin began to spread on her lips.

“But you know, there is one thing I really like.” said Bumblebee, setting the comic aside and turned to face Ruby, leaning closer.

“R-really?” Ruby asked nervously, her heart beating a little bit faster. “A-and that is?”

Bumblebee leaned in closer as she stood up, her hands on either side of Ruby’s body on the bed, their faces now inches apart. Ruby swallowed audibly, a blush forming on her cheeks, as she leaned back trying her best to give herself some space before her heart exploded in her chest. But Bumblebee kept leaning in closer and closer until Ruby was lying back on the bed. Bumblebee crawled forwards with her hands until was practically laying right on top of Ruby. Their faces were so close to one another that their noses were almost touching, Ruby could feel Bumblebee’s breath on her lips as her mind flashed back to when they had first met and had stolen her first kiss. Not to mention the impressive weight of her bust resting against Ruby’s own.

“You.” said Bumblebee simply.

That single word caused Ruby’s face to erupt into crimson, which didn’t really help her as Bumblebee gave her a quick kiss, more of a peck, really. Ruby began babbling incoherently as Bumblebee raised herself up and laid down next to Ruby, facing her.

Bumblebee laid there patiently until Ruby calmed down enough so that she could face her again, Ruby’s hands clasped together against her chest. “I know that you haven’t given me a response yet, but I’m willing to wait for as long as it takes. When you’re ready.” Bumblebee whispered quietly.

Those words sent a bolt of guilt through Ruby’s chest. She would have already given Bumblebee an answer if she could. But there were so many things happening these days, not to mention all the new feelings she was experiencing. It wasn’t just Bumblebee, but there were others that Ruby felt differently than before.

And before she could give an answer, to any of them, she first needed to make sense this storm of emotions within her chest.

“Yeah. Thank you.” replied Ruby in a quiet voice.

They both laid there in silence, staring into each others eyes, Bumblebee smiling brightly back at Ruby.

“I think I’ll finish that comic later. Is there anything else here that we can do together?” asked Bumblebee.

Ruby thought about it for a moment, “We could play some video games.” she suggested.

“Sure, I’m willing to give it a try.” said Bumblebee, “I’ve watched you guys play a couple of times, but fair warning I dunno if I’ll be any good.”

Ruby quickly stood up from the bed, and turned to face Bumblebee, “It doesn’t matter if you’re good or not.” she said smiling, “Just so long as you’re having fun, that’s all that matters.”

With that Ruby turned around to get the game set up on their TV, while Bumblebee propped herself up on her elbows and watched Ruby prepare the game.

Now what game should we play? thought Ruby, as she scrolled through their game library.

XXX

The afternoon passed by quickly. Ruby had Bumblebee try a few games, they even played a couple cooperative games. She was surprised to find out that Bumblebee was a quick learner. She easily got the hang of most of the games, though some weren’t really her speed.

But the game she really enjoyed was a first person shooter type of game that consisted of two teams of various heroes that she could pick with each one with specific abilities and roles on each team then they have to compete to complete a specific objective. Ruby’s favorite character was the sneaky sniper woman, while Bumblebee preferred the quick witty speedster character.

They spent most of the afternoon playing that game. They both had tons of fun trying out different heroes and even joined an online match or two. They both had their asses handed to them while playing online, but like Ruby said, what mattered was that they had fun.

“Hnnnggggghhhh!” sounded Ruby, dropping her controller to the floor and stretching her arms up, trying to relieve some of the stiffness that was inevitable from hours of playing video games. “I’m beat. I don’t think I can play another round.” said Ruby.

Bumblebee set her own controller down, “Sure, Ruby. We can stop for today.” she said, then noticed that Ruby was rubbing her shoulder with one hand, trying to work out some of the stiffness from them.

“You okay there, Ruby?” Bumblebee asked, concern coloring her voice.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I just haven’t played for this long since me and Yang were still in combat school.” Ruby replied. “My shoulders are just a bit stiff, no biggie.”

Bumblebee’s lips thinned at her words. She uncrossed her legs, kneeled down, and picked Ruby up bridal style.

Ruby was caught completely by surprise, letting out a squeak as Bumblebee lifted her up in her arms.

“B-B-Bu-Bumblebee!” Ruby stammered, but before she could get another word out, Bumblebee set her down on Weiss’ bed and rolled Ruby over so that she was lying on her stomach.

Ruby then heard the bed creak and felt a weight settle on her butt. She tried craning her neck back to see what Bumblebee was doing, but as she did she felt a pair of hands on her shoulders and they began to apply a gentle pressure. Ruby cooed and sighed as Bumblebee’s strong fingers gently dug into her shoulders, rubbing back and forth massaging the muscles underneath.

Bumblebee grinned as she heard Ruby’s little noises of appreciation. “A bit stiff? Really, Ruby?” she asked rhetorically, “You’re as stiff as a board.”

At this point, Ruby couldn’t even muster up a reply as Bumblebee kept on massaging her shoulders. She wore a satisfied grin on her lips as she sighed happily at how good Bumblebee’s hands were.

Once Bumblebee felt that most of the tension had left Ruby’s shoulders, her hands moved down to her back. This caused Ruby to squirm in place as Bumblebee’s hands glided along her shoulder blades, exploring the smaller girl’s back for any hint of tension in them. Whenever she’d find one, Bumblebee would gently but firmly press and rub in circles until the knot of muscles finally yielded to her touch and she would move on.

As the massage went on, Ruby’s coos and sighs slowly evolved into moans of half pain and pleasure as the knots of tense muscles in her back were slowly eased by Bumblebee. Just as the tension in her muscles were melting away, Bumblebee could feel Ruby turn to putty in her hands.

Bumblebee paused in her ministrations to lean down and whisper into Ruby’s ear, “How does that feel, Ruby?”

Ruby let out another pleasing sigh, “That feels amaaaashiiiiing.” her eyes were closed and a small smile formed on her lips, “Keep going.”

Bumblebee chuckled, “My pleasure.”

When she was done with Ruby’s upper back, Bumblebee’s hands slowly went southward to Ruby’s lower back and she began to knead the larger muscles. They weren’t as tense as Ruby’s upper back and shoulders, but there was a bit of tension in there as well.

Bumblebee felt Ruby tense up and shake slightly as the tips of her fingers pressed into the muscles along Ruby’s spine and under her ribs. A quizzical look grew on Bumblebee’s face at Ruby’s reaction, that is until she heard her giggle.

“Sorry, it just kinda tickles.” apologized Ruby.

“Don’t mind it.” replied Bumblebee, “Just try and relax.”

With those words in mind, Ruby took a deep breath and released some of the tension as she tried to relax. Bumblebee continued on with her massage. Ruby did her best to suppress her giggles whenever Bumblebee went over a particularly sensitive spot on her back.

This went on for a while longer until Bumblebee was sure that there weren’t any more knots in Ruby’s back, but instead of stopping, she decided to just keep going and making Ruby feel good, enjoying the little reactions that Ruby made.

Ruby on the other hand, had never felt as relaxed as she did now. She was still young, but training to be a proper Huntress was physically demanding. She had never really received a good massage before, because normally she would be the one giving other people massages. Well when she meant other people, she means Yang, to be more precise. Yang had always been the more physically active between the two of them and would often ask Ruby to give her massages especially after a hard workout or training session. There were times that Yang would offer to give Ruby a massage as well, but Ruby had learned her lesson from the very first massage that Yang had attempted to give her. To put it bluntly, Yang was terrible at giving massages. She would always use too much pressure, which isn’t very surprising considering how strong she is. She just didn’t have that certain touch that Ruby did. Not to mention when she used her elbow to almost literally crush the knots away.

But this? The massage that Bumblebee was giving her, was perfect.

Though, like all good things it had to come to and end far too soon. Ruby felt Bumblebee’s weight off her butt.

“Alright, all done.” said Bumblebee. “How do you feel?”

Ruby rolled off her stomach and sat up on the bed to face Bumblebee, rolling her shoulders feeling no stiffness whatsoever.

“I feel great! Thanks Bumblebee!” said Ruby happily.

Bumblebee smiled back warmth filling her chest at Ruby’s appreciation, “It’s the least I could do.” she replied.

“Where did you learn to give massages so well?” Ruby asked curiously.

Bumblebee blinked in confusion, then answered, “I didn’t, it just sort of came naturally I guess.”

“Oh, that’s awesome! You’re a total natural!” exclaimed Ruby.

Bumblebee’s heart began to flutter at the praise as a blush formed on her cheeks. She looked away embarrassedly muttering, “Thanks, Ruby. I don’t really know what to say.”

Ruby perked up at this as an idea came to her mind. “Hey why don’t I give you a massage too?” said Ruby, standing up to walk behind Bumblebee to usher her back to the bed.

This time it was Bumblebee’s turn to act shy, “R-Ruby, it’s fine! You don’t have to-“ but was cut off.

“Nope!” denied Ruby, “I’m not taking no for an answer. I’m treating you to Ruby’s patented super special massage.”

Bumblebee didn’t stand a chance against the smaller girl as she was guided back to the bed and made to lie down on her stomach like Ruby earlier.

Ruby grabbed a small bottle of coconut oil from a side drawer, opening it with a click and slowly spreading it in the palms of her hands, warming them up.

Bumblebee was about to prop herself up on her elbows until Ruby straddled her butt, much like she had done to Ruby just a while ago. “Ruby, I’m serious, I don’t neeEEEEEEHHHHD!” Bumblebee began to say before her words were cut off with a squeal.

Ruby lifted up the hem of Bumblebee’s blouse as she slowly applied the oil all over Bumblebee’s back. Once she was satisfied that there was enough oil, Ruby began her massage. But unlike Bumblebee’s massage earlier, Ruby started with Bumblebee’s hips and lower back.

Bumblebee moaned loudly into the bed as she felt Ruby’s hands glide on her back. It had taken her a few minutes for her to turn Ruby into putty, but for Ruby it only took her seconds.

After a minute or two, Bumblebee finally managed to form coherent thoughts while Ruby massaged her back. “Okay, okay I give. This feels incredible.”

Ruby giggled at that, “I’ve had a lot of practice.” was her reply as she continued applying firm pressure as her oiled up hands slid along the entirety of Bumblebee’s back.

Today is the best day of my life. thought Bumblebee as both her mind and body began to relax under Ruby’s indescribable massage.

Author’s Notes: Hey! Looks like I can write a chapter in the span of less than several months! I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, it’s been a while since Bumblebee’s had her fair share of screen time but at least now her patience has been rewarded. Ruby doesn’t give massages to anyone hehehe.

For those of you who are interested and haven’t seen it yet I published another Ruby vs The Machines smut titled “Ruby vs The Machines: My Prince(ess?) Charming”. I’m sure that some of you can figure out what it’s going to be about~.

Also don’t forget if you enjoy my works you can support me by buying me a Ko-fi, link is in my user page. Also don’t forget

Please Leave A Review!

#RWBY #Ruby vs The Machines #Fanfiction

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papermoonloveslucy · 4 years ago

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BACHELOR MOTHER

April 28, 1949

The Screen Guild Theater (aka The Screen Guild Players), was one of the most popular drama anthology series during the Golden Age of Radio. At this point it is being sponsored by Gulf Oil. From its first broadcast in 1939, up to its farewell in 1952, it showcased radio adaptations of popular Hollywood films. Many Hollywood names became part of the show, including Bette Davis, Bing Crosby, Clark Gable, Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra, and many more. The actors’ fees were all donated to the Motion Picture Relief Fund, an organization that provides aid to retired actors. Screen Guild Theater was heard on different radio networks, beginning with CBS from 1939 to 1948, NBC from 1948 to 1950, ABC from 1950 to 1951, and back to CBS until its last episode on June 29, 1952. Throughout its run, a total of 527 episodes were produced.

“Bachelor Mother” was sponsored by Camel cigarettes and heard on NBC radio. It was directed by Bill Lawrence.

Bachelor Mother (1939) is an RKO romantic comedy film directed by Garson Kanin, and starring Ginger Rogers, David Niven and Charles Coburn. The screenplay was written by Norman Krasna based on an Academy Award-nominated story by Felix Jackson written for the 1935 Austrian-Hungarian film Little Mother. It was included among the American Film Institute’s 2000 list of the 500 movies nominated for the Top 100 Funniest American Movies. The film featured future “Lucy” actors Barbara Pepper, Irving Bacon, Jack Chefe, Florence Lake, Nestor Paiva, Harold Miller, and Amzie Strickland.

It was remade as Bundle of Joy starring Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher in 1952. The original film was re-released in 1945 and made its television debut in 1964.

RKO disliked the title Little Mother and tried out Nobody’s Wife and She Said I Do before settling on Bachelor Mother. In Denmark it was known as Polly’s Baby.

Bachelor Mother was adapted for radio on nine occasions between 1940 and 1952:

January 22, 1940 ~ “Lux Radio Theater” starring *Ginger Rogers, Frederic March, and *Frank Albertson

February 1, 1942 ~ “Screen Guild Theater” starring Laraine Day, Henry Fonda, and *Charles Coburn

November 23, 1942 ~ “Screen Guild Theater” starring Ann Sothern, Fred MacMurray, and *Charles Coburn

November 21, 1944 ~ “Theatre of Romance” starring Shirley Booth, Richard Kollmar, and Jack McBride

December 24, 1944 ~ “Old Gold Comedy Theater” starring Brenda Marshall, Louis Haywood and Jack McBride

May 6, 1946 ~ “Screen Guild Theater” starring *Ginger Rogers, *David Niven, and Francis X. Bushman

April 28, 1949 ~ “Screen Guild Theater” starring Lucille Ball, Joseph Cotton, and *Charles Coburn

March 8, 1951 - “Screen Director’s Playhouse” starring Lucille Ball, Robert Cummings, and Arthur Q. Bryan

April 20, 1952 ~ “Screen Guild Theater” starring Ann Sothern and Robert Stack

* = original film cast repeating their roles

Synopsis ~ An unemployed woman discovers an abandoned baby on the steps of an orphanage, and accepts an offer to take responsibility for the child in return for a job.

CAST

Lucille Ball (Polly Parrish, Toy Department Clerk at Merlin & Son and Bachelor Mother) later appeared for Screen Directors Playhouse in “Her Husband’s Affairs” (May 22, 1949), “Miss Grant Takes Richmond” (May 19, 1950), both films she had appeared in on screen, and “A Foreign Affair” (March 1, 1951), the previous week.

On screen, the role was played by Ginger Rogers.

Joseph Cotten (David Merlin) had worked with Orson Welles on Citizen Kane (1941) and The Magnificent Ambersons (1942). This is his only time acting with Lucille Ball.

On screen, the role was played by David Niven.

Charles Coburn (J.B. Merlin) appeared with Lucille Ball in Lured (1947). He won an Oscar for The More The Merrier in 1943 and was nominated in 1941 and 1946.

Coburn played the same role in the feature film.

The characters of Freddy Miller, Orphanage Matron, Mrs. Weiss, Phillips the Butler, and Jerome Weiss, are played by uncredited and unidentified performers.

EPISODE

After acknowledging their sponsors, Camel Cigarettes, the announcer introduces “Bachelor Mother”.

The day before Christmas, Polly Parrish is let go from her job at Merlin & Son Department Store. Job hunting on her lunch hour, Polly notices an crying baby on the doorstep of the orphanage. When the door opens, the matron assumes that the baby is Polly’s and she was about to leave it with them. She is unable to change the Matron’s assumption. She rushes back to work to finish her last day.

At the store, David Merlin (James Cotten) mysteriously tells her that they have taken pity on her and re-hired her with a $5 a week raise. After she leaves, David tells his secretary that he is anxious to see her face when she gets his real present!

That night, Polly opens the door to a messenger from David Merlin who presents her with the baby from the orphanage. Her boyfriend and co-worker Freddy knocks on the door for their date. Polly tells Freddy that before their date, they are going to bring the baby back to the man who gave it to her - David Merlin!

Freddy and Polly arrive at the Merlin home and drop off the baby with the Phillips, the butler, before going out on their date. When they get back to Polly’s apartment at 2 A.M., David Merlin is there to return the baby to her, believing it is hers and that she is abandoning him. He threatens her with legal action. She decides to go along with his misapprehension of her motherhood, and David agrees to try to help her out.

Mrs. Weiss, the landlady, comes in. She thinks the baby is adorable and tells Polly she will help her take care of the baby so that she can go out to work.

Next day at the store, Freddy notices that Polly is exhausted. He asks her to put in a good word with Mr. Merlin for him regarding a promotion, and she sleepily agrees. Freddy is under the impression that David Merlin is the father of the baby, and he’s going to use the information for his own purposes.

At home Polly is trying to feed a fussy baby on New Year’s Eve when David Merlin shows up to take her out on the town. Freddy calls on the phone, and re-states that Polly better help him get a better job at Merlin and Sons.

~ INTERMISSION ~

Polly and David return from their New Year’s Eve revels. They kiss. Mrs. Weiss tells them that she is excited that her son Jerome is coming home. Polly reveals to David that there is someone who knows who the baby belongs to - Freddy - and warns David to expect a visit from him soon. Just then, David’s father, J.B. Merlin (Charles Coburn) knocks on the door of Polly’s apartment asking to see his son. J.B. asks if he can hold the baby. Polly tells him that the baby’s name is John. B, which pleases Mr. Merlin. David is confused by his father’s behavior. After J.B. leaves, Polly tells David that Freddy has already told J.B. that David is the father.

At home, J.B. is angry at David for not marrying Polly. David insists that it is not his baby! J.B. has gotten a letter that insists it is! As David goes off to find out who the baby’s real father is, J.B. smashes dishes.

Confronting Polly, David reveals that his father want him to marry her, making it sound like an inconvenience. Polly’s feelings are hurt, and she promises David that by tomorrow, the baby will have a new father.

At J.B.’s office, Polly presents Jerome Weiss as her husband. David bursts in with Freddy, who he introduces as the father of Polly’s baby! Freddy and Jerome both contend to be the father! David assumes that Jerome is the REAL dad. They all accuse each other of fatherhood while J.B. asserts his grandparent’s rights!

Back at home, Polly tearfully packs. As she is about to leave, David enters and says he is in love with her. They kiss, not noticing that J.B. has followed him there. David tells him that he is the father of the baby, and J.B. says that when they can come to him as a married couple, they would be welcome in his home. David says he got the license on the way there. They kiss again.

POLLY: “You know something, David? I bet this is the first time in history that a baby gave birth to a mother and father!”

The End

Lucille Ball, Joseph Cotten, and Charles Coburn, thank their sponsor Camels for sending complimentary cigarettes to men in uniform.

LUCILLE BALL: “Happy smoking, fellows!”

The announcer promotes next week’s program, “Undercurrent” starring Barbara Stanwyck and Robert Taylor.

Taylor recreates his original 1946 film role, with Stanwyck playing the role originated by Katharine Hepburn. It was broadcast on May 5, 1949.

‘BACHELOR’ TRIVIA

The film version of Bachelor Mother (1939), is mentioned in two episodes of “The RKO Story: Tales From Hollywood” as a film Ginger Rogers at first refused to do - until she was taken off payroll for three weeks and finally relented. Although audiences loved it, Rogers continued to loathe the film calling it “a dog.” Coincidentally, Lucille Ball is also interviewed in the same two episodes.

The wind-up ducks in the 1939 film were played by Disney’s Donald Duck, who even gets screen credit, although for this radio version, they are written out completely, likely to avoid the challenge of copyright, and to avoid visual gags. In other radio versions, the ducks are included, but not named.

The original film was set around Christmas and New Years, with several reference to the holidays and a huge New Year’s Eve party scene. Lucille Ball’s 1951 radio version of the script omits any references to the holidays.

The Lucy character worked at a department store in “Lucy Bags a Bargain” (TLS S4;E17) on January 17, 1966. In the original film, Polly works in the toy department, but this adaptation doesn’t mention her position at Merlin and Son.

Lucille Ball had done five films with the original Bachelor Mother Ginger Rogers, all of them before Rogers played Polly Parish for RKO. Ball and Rogers finally reunited on a 1971 episode of “Here’s Lucy” with Rogers playing herself.

An October 1976 episode of “Laverne and Shirley” is titled “Bachelor Mothers” and has the girls looking after a baby. Laverne and Shirley were often compared to Lucy and Ethel on “I Love Lucy.”

#Bachelor Mother #Lucille Ball #Screen Guild Players #Screen Guild Theater #Joseph Cotten #Charles Coburn #radio #1949 #Camel Cigarettes #Ginger Rogers

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knightofbalance-13 · 7 years ago

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Media Comparison: Legend Of Korra Vs. RWBY

So between a show with all the budget in the world, an already existing world and mythos, some of the best writers of our generation with some of the bets animators and artists while being based off a fucking legend of western animation and some anime-inspired show with the budget of a high school theater show made by a bunch of people I hadn’t even heard of before hand: You’d think the choice would be obvious right?

*sigh* Yeah, I wish it were that simple.

Yeah, if the introduction wasn’t obvious enough, I’m a fan of RWBY but NOT a fan of the Legend of Korra. Despite all of Korra’s advantages from budget to time to exposure to name recognition: I just found myself at best mildly entertained by it while at the same time, I really enjoy this web series my friend just happen to recommend to me with NO knowledge of it beforehand. So why is it that I enjoy one over the other despite logic saying otherwise?

Well, I’m here to explain that.

First off, the fact that I knew nothing about RWBY before hand may have actually helped the show in comparison. My only expectation for RWBY was a mildly amusing web show since at the time, I had only watched Abridged series on the web and this was before TFS really started getting good so my expectations were pretty level at the time. Meanwhile, I went into Korra with pretty high expectations for the show because it had the “Avatar” title on it and I had seen the previous series. So obscurity kind of helped RWBY there.

Even then, there are a LOT of problems that plague Korra that either are lesser in, solved in or just didn’t exist in RWBY. One of the biggest aspects is just the basic writing. In Korra, you have the Tomboy Savivor Jerk With A Heart of Gold, the generic everyman meant to ground the protagonist, the comedy relief younger brother and the pretty supporter. Basically, we have your average tropes as protagonists with next to nothing done to make them stand out. Even the character development for the group is by the book. Korra learns to not rush into shit and...actually that’s it for Korra. There is an “arc” in Seaosn 4 about letting people help her but that aspect is quickly dropped and never mention or referenced or used again. And Asami (the pretty supporter) just learns how to fight.

Contrast this in RWBY where a young idealist is forced to learn that her way of looking at the world is too childish and naïve to ne effective. However, instead of developing into a cynic like normal, she just adjusts her world view to accommodate reality while keeping the core values of her belief. Or that the freedom fighter, instead of being seen as absolutely right, is forced to come to terms that her cause isn’t black and white and that her comrades aren’t justified in all their actions. Or that the weak, audience surrogate actually has a REASON to be weak and to not know what is going on, actively tries to fix that and still suffers for it.

Then we have the world of both shows. Somehow, Korra managed to have one the simplest but most effective worlds given to it on a silver platter...and completely fuck it up. The world goes from being similar to an ancient Asia-like world to somehow being 1920′s America-esque in only 100 years. Like...I do not even understand HOW that can happen. Asian culture is already heavily different from Western culture, ESPECIALLY America due to taking place on two sides of the planet with VERY different values and such. I cannot for the life of me see how one can develop into the other. And this is excluding the fact that the entire setting did a 1000 year leap in technology in a tenth of the time.

Meanwhile in RWBY, the world is bare bones but it DOES make sense. Dust is highly valued due to being the main power source of the world, they value positivity and self expression due to facing off against a rather identical and uniform enemy that feeds on negativity with powers that rely on their personalities without falling into stupid bullshit like suppressing all emotion (in fact, the world TRIED doing that once and showed why that is a terrible idea.) The four kingdoms have some central values shared but have many differences due to the differences in each region such as the hostile Vacuo being welcoming of anyone who can survive there or Atlas being cold and calculating due to the necessity in the past to quickly adapt or die.

Then we have the characters themselves. I’ll keep this brief by focusing on the main characters of each, starting with LoK and Korra herself. Korra is...a complete and total jackass. And NOT in the intentional way were she gets called out and is forced to change. She DOES get called out...issue is that Korra almost NEVER learns her lesson because she either forgets about her actions latter on or the person who called her out is the one being punished. Korra defies her teacher’s instructions and later he’s forced to bend to her will because the narrative says Korra is right. Which is just a recipe for pissing the audience off. She’s also arrogant, full of herself, stubborn as hell, childish, immature and just a pain to watch. Even when she loses her arrogance and immaturity, she’s still reckless as hell and she still barely has a personality beyond being combat happy and short tempered. So at best, Korra is just your average Shounen protagonist with nothing new or unique of her own.

Meanwhile the main character of RWBY, Ruby Rose, stands out pretty well on her own. She’s energetic, optimistic, hopeful and yet shy and inexperienced. However each of these aspects actually has something to do with Ruby herself with an explanation and get explored quite a bit. She’s all these things because she’s young and comes to bite her in the ass quite a few times. Her energy causes her to rush into battle without thinking, her optimism was originally a near blindness to the world around her, her hopefulness is taken advantage of a few times and her shyness and inexperience originally gave her trouble trying to talk and relate to others. Ruby also has quite a but more to her as she is a natural leader and knows how to use her teammates’ abilities to their fullest, she’s adaptable as she accepts the world isn’t inherently good but still chooses to be optimistic and she has a hard time dealing with grief and rage, bottling them up until they start to leak out. Combine this with her earnest attempts at being a hero as well as some cute shy tendencies and you have a very loveable main character.

And then we have the romance. Korra was an absolute TERROR when it came to romance. The first romance in the show was a fucking love square which all started because the main heroine refused to understand the concept of “boyfriend”. Numerous relationships throughout the series are either badly done (Asami and Mako) or rather disturbing (from what it sounded like: Tenzen’s wife broke him and his then girlfriend Suyin up) or downright abusive (Bolin and Eska, Suyin’s reaction to the break up and Mako and Korra were just horrid.) There are only TWO passable relationships and that’s mainly because they barely get any focus. Also Korra and Asami but that was last minute and means nothing.

RWBY had a similar love triangle going on but unlike Korra, this was actually handled well. Jaune drops his affections for Weiss and helps her out, Pyrrha helps Jaune out and Jaune cheers Pyrrha up. It’s also one of the few shows to have a rather heartwrenching love story between Jaune and Pyrrha that ends up majorly affecting the show and helped make both characters stand out more in the fandom.

And,,,Listen, I can go on and on about the different ways I think RWBY is better than Korra but at the end of the day, Korra was a mess of somewhat interesting idea bungled up by messy execution and amateur mistakes along with some political issues seeping into the writing: RWBY also started out this way but the show DRASTICALLY improved and grew from these mistakes, learning how to avoid them and grow beyond them instead of stumbling back and forth between getting better or worse. All inall: LoK was either aggravating to watch or just dull while RWBY has been fun and I’ve grown to have a deep respect for the show.

#rwby #legend of korra #media comparisons

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helihi · 7 years ago

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RWBY’s writing and pacing

It’s not weird to be on Tumblr and notice how people’s opinions tend to be polarizing. It doesn’t matter if we’re talking about politics or a simple tv show, the larger the fandom, the louder people tend to scream.

Last week, the FNDM went from “Does Illia is gay?” to Illia fits into the predatory evil gay trope and she might as well end up dead to fill the Bury your gays quota. Although we were able to see people in the grey area, the extremes were the loudest.

This week the discourse is as follows: RWBY’s writing is bad vs. “Oh my god, why do people always want action packed stories, you need some breathing in between and some exposition to set things up!”.

I’d like to bring an objective view on regards to this subject because I consider it to be extremely important when it comes to the show.

If you don’t ask for better writing, you’re not going to get any.

If you applaud mediocrity, you’re gonna get mediocrity.

RWBY’s writing has never been great. It has had fantastic set ups and scenes, but it has never been great. Yes, that also includes the time when Monty was still alive (Rest in Peace). I’m sorry, but the flaws have always been there.

I’d like to point the following things out for you guys to understand what I’m trying to say:

Volume 1

RWBY was barely starting, they didn’t have a big budget, so the episodes were short. This caused the plot to be very simple and every problem being solved quite rapidly.

The characters at first seem like tropes.

A shit ton of clichés.

Because of plot convenience, some characters act OOC to what we later know about them. (Since Jaune had to stand up to Cardin, no one of team RWBY or JNPR stood up to him when he was bullying Velvet and being a racist prick).

Blake being a faunus ended up leading to the volume finale and didn’t build up Team RWBY relationships and dynamics. We could have had a serious moment of self reflexion, not only Weiss realizing that she was putting every faunus in the same bag, but Yang and Ruby dealing with the fact that Blake hid who she was because of racism (also prompting a realization that maybe, until that point, they contributed to said racism by being bystanders).

However, vol 1 had great things on its side that allowed the show to continue.

Variety of characters.

Rich lore

Cool character concepts and weapons.

The show was funny.

I can accept that the start of the show was not the best, it was understandable giving how little budget they had.

Volume 2

The tone of the series becomes slightly more serious. We have new characters and new villains being introduced into the show. Something big is cooking and this is the first glance we get at it. The good include:

The humor is back.

That food fight scene eveyone loves.

The dance.

Papa Shcnee may not be a good person being foreshadowed.

Yang convincing Blake to go to the dance while also giving her space.

Dr. Oobleck being a great teacher and giving the girls an insight on themselves.

Neo and Raven making an appearance.

However, for some reason this volume seems really blurry in my head. Neptune’s character introduction is really bland, the in betweens of everything seem really irrelevant and most importantly: the season finale seems like a mid-season finale if anything.

Volume 3

My favorite volume; I’m going to be the least biased I can be. This volume featured a Naruto style tournament (I’m sure other animes did it before Naruto, but this one is the most widely known). This allowed the writers to show us some great battles, team combinations, and do some world building.

While the first half of the season relies more on comedy and action, when shit hits the fan it goes perfectly well. I have to say, the moment Yang gets caught after Emerald uses her semblance was the first moment since I started watching the show that I felt hooked. Somehow for the first time ever, I felt that something could actually happen. Stakes were being raised, and it shouldn’t come as anyone’s surprise that this season was the one that attracted as much fans as it did.

There are some bad things, unfortunately, about this season.

Ruby’s silver eyed warrior powers come from nowhere and it was only mentioned in the first episode ever.

A shit ton of new characters! But 0 depth to any of them!

We never get to see Team JNPR interactions that are not JP or NR centric, except that one time Jaune talked to Ren briefly in vol 2.

Seriously this volume needed more character interactions. We could have had Pyrrha interacting with team RWBY more. Even more team CVFY.

The FNDM grew exponentially, and the expectations to how RT was going to follow up to the fall of Beacon built up the moment volume 3 ended.

And finally, volume 4 arrived.

Volume 4

There’s nothing wrong with a slow volume. It’s true that you can’t have a show 100% about fighting. The reason popular animes and good shounen fights are popular is because of the stakes set up by character motivation and the plot. The problem with volume 4 is not the lack of fights, but how bad it fails at exploring the characters after the fall of Beacon.

Jumping from one character’s story line to another one didn’t help either. The constant teasing with cliff hangers began getting really obnoxious here. Is Qrow going to die? Is he? IS HE??

Ruby: she gets no character development. The only scenes that could be considered part of her arc would be: Ruby waking up listening to Pyrrha’s voice, only to find out it’s Jaune’s phone; the small talk she and Jaune have before fighting the creepy Nuckelavee; the letter she writes at the end.

Weiss: probably the best written storyline of the volume. However, having her train and building up the possibility of her actually facing her father before escaping, only to have her running away in high heels was not pay off. You can easily find a way to write Weiss confronting her father before leaving Atlas to find her team and save the world.

Blake: she heads to Menagerie in order to see her family again and find the way to cope with what happened at Beacon. She felt extremely guilty and was really in a bad place. Having Sun be with her makes sense, he says it himself, but the execution was extremely poor. Sun didn’t give Blake a choice. Furthermore, Blake is not able to open up after what happened at Beacon because she gets interrupted every time.

Sun: I’m so sorry his character ended up being comedic relief. He could have learned more about how to deal with Blake, and provide her with more emotional support that he ended up doing but no.

Yang: although I agree with most people that the events of volume 4 don’t have a canonical time stamp (because Miles and Kerry wanted to avoid plot holes), her coping with the fall is awfully paced. Armed and Ready was not earned by the end of the volume. I’m sorry, but Yang is not ready to face her demons yet. She’s suffering from PTSD, clearly needed to talk about what happened at the fall, and her feelings for Blake are filled with rage and hurt.

STILL NO SILVER EYES EXPLANATION DESPITE THE FACT THAT RUBY ALMOST DIED. WHY DOES THE SHOW KEEP TREATING THE MAIN CHARACTERS AS CHILDREN?

Klein being a really good character but only making an appearance twice.

The good of the volume include:

Raven and Qrow.

Ren’s backstory.

Weiss’s family being explored.

Did you miss it? You might have blinked.

Volume 5

This volume promised a lot of fighting, and to be honest, I rather have better set ups. Most of the people who are defending today’s episode claim that those of us who complain want mindless action without careful exposition.

I would like to remind everyone, including Miles and Kerry, the golden rule or writing for an audiovisual medium: SHOW, DON’T TELL.

I was already alarmed when I saw that Illia had more character development in a short, outside the main narrative, than Ruby got in an entire season.

I have many issues with this volume, most of them involve awful writing.

Ozpin’s story: why are the characters of the show getting so little information on him? Story wise it makes sense that us, the viewers, to piece together the information of this important character little by little; but within the show it makes no sense that Jaune and Yang are okay with knowing as little as they do. HOW OLD IS OZPIN? WHO IS SALEM? WHY DOES SALEM WANT TO DESTROY EVERYHTING?

Menagerie: Filled with cliffhangers and the slowest moving story ever. I love politic centered stories. For crying out loud, when everyone dropped snk because of it, I was hooked as fuck. The problem is that once again, the writers give you small doses of a plot line that should already be over.

Raven: is she evil? is she an anti-hero? Can the FNDM stop judging Raven so harshly after barely having any sort of explanation to why she’s doing things?

Most of the exposition during this volume has been through conversations of things we already know. The only things that are new are: Ozpin turning the Branwens into birds, the Branwens joining Beacon to learn how to kill huntsman, Ozpin confirmed for wizard and creator of the maidens.

And the worst part is, the CRWBY has written amazing scenes. Exposition doesn’t have to be bad, it can be perfect when done right:

Weiss and Yang’s conversation during ch8 was so beautiful. It established some common ground with them, it served to show Weiss’s character development; Yang finally gets to open up about Blake. The physical and oral communication this scene has is perfect. I love it so much, this is what the show needs. (Also, the animation was gorgeous, imma cry)

Illia’s conflict: not only when capturing Blake does she confess her feelings, she tells Blake that she was so blinded by her love of Adam that she didn’t know what Illia was going through and why she is acting the way she is now. The stakes are high with her, and I honestly want her redemtion arc ASAP.

Jesus, I wish I didn’t have to explain all of this, but I’m tired of people jumping to conclusions without thinking why people are complaining at the pacing of the show.

RWBY’s writing has never been great, it has had good times, but the pacing as always been terrible. Volume 4 showed the cracks clearer than ever before because more people were watching and the bar was set higher.

Anyways, here’s me hoping next week’s episode is better. This further proofs that my brothers claim is right: “The only way to enjoy RWBY is by binge watching it”.

#RWBY #RWBY5 #Me

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itsclydebitches · 5 years ago

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RWBY Recaps: “Pomp and Circumstance”

Welcome back, welcome back. I managed to miss last week’s title/summary leak, which for any other show would have been a blessing. With RWBY though I find myself not minding---even hoping for---spoilers, just so I won’t be quite so blindsided by things when I actually watch them. It’s a topsy-turvy world.

We’ll get to that in a bit though. For now, we open on the new Amity Arena immediately flying over the Schnee dust mine. I’m talking the group has barely made it back out into the sun before Ironwood’s men are arriving and setting up base. That’s some real eagerness to get the ball rolling. Funny how Ironwood’s entire plan is doomed to failure and eight of the people helping him to complete it haven’t mentioned that yet...

We get a shot of the Ace Ops triumphantly emerging with Qrow and RWBYJNR positively geeking out over how fantastic their take-down of the geist was. It was admittedly a great battle. The best scene I think we’ve had in a while. Sadly, that charm didn’t carry over into this episode.

As the gang gushes over how fantastic they were Clover explains that it all comes down to the makeup of their team. They were specifically chosen to compliment one another and make up for any liabilities they might bring. Forethought like this brings back the age-old question of whether Ozpin’s own teams are as random as they appear. Does he really leave it to chance, who you first run into and what relic you happen to pick? Or was he subtly pulling the strings in order to ensure that complimentary teammates ended up together? Even if they don’t realize they’re complimentary at first. Ruby and Weiss are a perfect example of that.

It’s a question we may never have answered. Especially as the Ozpin hate just keeps piling on and on. Before that though we’re given a ton of humor. Nora, continuing her role as comic relief, slides up to Elm and asks if she needs a new best friend. Their team name could be

I’d watch it.

More pressingly though, talk of team compositions and pairing up leads to a comment from Harriet that we need to unpack. Bear with me for a moment though because there’s something else I want to tackle first. It’ll connect back in a moment. Basically, I want to address my frustration last recap that Oscar was left behind with no explanation and the assertion by others that this was a ‘show don’t tell’ moment. It wasn’t. Providing your audience with no reasoning behind a decision is not the same thing as providing a visual explanation as opposed to a verbal one. On some level the choice to leave Oscar behind functions like an argument and I see this a lot in paper writing:

Student: This ad is really sexist

Me: And...? Why?

Student: I mean it’s obvious? All the women are wearing skimpy clothes and that one guy calls her a ‘bitch.’

Me: Perhaps obvious to you, but we can’t rely on the reader picking up on the same details and interpreting them in the same way. So you need to include that as evidence. In addition, you need to consider potential counter claims. What if I said some women choose to wear skimpy clothing because they feel empowered by it and that my friends often call me a ‘bitch’ as a silly endearment? How do we undermine those arguments in the context of your ad so you can more solidly prove that it’s still sexist?

Student: Hmm

vs.

Yang: We didn’t bring Oscar with us

Me: And...? Why?

Yang: I mean it’s obvious? He’s not ready for this fight yet.

Me: Perhaps obvious to you, but you can’t just bank on the viewer coming to that same conclusion. You also need to consider potential counter arguments. What if I pointed out that Oscar fought just as well as you during the premiere battle and that there’s now a history of you excluding him from every event you possibly can? How do you then undermine those points to prove that a) he really isn’t ready yet and b) that you actually left him behind because of his skill and not because you’re all still pissed at Ozpin?

Yang: Hmm

That was not a ‘show don’t tell’ moment. That was no tell combined with no show. A ‘show don’t tell’ would have been Yang going, “I don’t feel so bad now that we left Oscar behind” and then cutting to Oscar training with Ironwood, showing us that he needs to improve his skills as opposed to Yang just telling us, ‘He’s not ready yet.’ But we got neither.

I bring this up a full episode later because here, in “Pomp and Circumstance” we’re given another shining example of precisely how bad RT’s ‘show don’t tell’ skills are. The Ace Ops. What are we shown? A group that is incredibly close with one another. They’re capable of anticipating each other’s moves and are able to follow directions with little to no prompting. They’re constantly joking, teasing, goofing off in a way that implies real intimacy. Clover proclaims, “What would you do without me?” demonstrating a familiarity that allows him to exude both confidence and playfulness. They’re close enough that he needn’t maintain the persona of their boss; close enough that he can play the part of their hero without anyone taking offense. In short, they act precisely like Team RWBYJNR.

Now, what are we told by Harriet?

“We’re not friends... that’s the job. We don’t confuse the two.”

Excuse me?

There has been nothing---NOTHING---in the last two episodes to imply that this team functions solely as a work group. Based on what we’ve been shown the idea that they’re not friends is laughable. What the audience sees and what the audience is told by a character do not match up. Kind of like how we’re told throughout the entirety of Volume Six that the group is heroic when we’re shown them repeating the actions of the villains. Kind of like how Qrow tells us that Ruby is different from Ozpin even as we’re shown her making the exact same choices. Here, we’re told that the Ace Ops aren’t friends yet shown that they clearly are and this disconnect functions solely as a means of---again---highlighting how special RWBYJNR supposedly is. Because we get a long shot of how devastated that mindset makes them

and then Ruby immediately rejecting the idea that you need to maintain a purely professional relationship in order to be a good team, begging the girls to go out sightseeing with her. Later Weiss proclaims to her father that they’re not merely friends, they’re family. As nice as the sentiment is, this is just another example of how RT is trying to paint RWBYJNR, RWBY in particular, as intrinsically better than all the other fighters around them. The takeaway is that the Ace Ops might be powerful, but without friendship they’ll never be as strong as our heroes... except the Ace Ops are clearly friends. Harriet’s cold and judgmental tone---You consider yourself friends with them?---makes no sense here. This would be an entirely different situation if we were actually shown an Ace Ops team that acted indifferent towards one another and if, later on, that professionalism and lack of knowledge about each other’s temperament, skills, etc. led to a problem. Ruby comes in with a, “See? I never would have made that mistake with my team because I’ve gotten to know them both on and off the battlefield. Being friends is an asset.” But we don’t get that, so all we’re left with is a message of, ‘RWBYJNR is super special even though they’re doing nothing different from the Atlas specialists. But trust us, they’re intrinsically better.’

That message got old, oh, two volumes ago.

In addition, can we please talk about the messy pacing? The group doesn’t want to go sightseeing with Ruby because they’re exhausted. Weiss and Yang act like their traveling and near death experiences happened last night, and later Qrow’s “the finally getting to Atlas part” comment reads as recent too, but as I mentioned in the previous recap, Pietro’s comment tells us that at least a few days have passed. Realistically a few weeks. So which is it? Has enough time passed to justify Pietro creating seven distinct upgrades and apologizing for having their weapons “so long”? Or has so little time passed to justify the group talking about their trip like they still haven’t had the chance to sleep after Penny’s tour? Yes, this stuff actually matters when you’ve got a laundry list of internal conflicts and the audience wants to know how much time the group has had to grapple with them. Has it only been a few days since the Ozpin drama, or a few weeks? Did Yang and Blake murder a guy the other day or last month? We’re simply not told.

While consistency unravels Ironwood tells Clover that he needs the Ace Ops “on the ground” being “subtle” in their investigations... so maybe don’t bring Marrow. This moment, right down to the humor, is pretty identical to Blake deciding to leave Yang behind when she went to dismantle the CTV tower. Because “Stealth’s not really your... um...” Thing. If only the writing acknowledged these failings in a non-comedy context and encouraged the characters to learn from their mistakes. Marrow might have to listen to his boss and Yang will do anything Blake asks of her, but the rest of the time? ‘You’re really bad at missions that require subtly’ is just going to piss the group off. Even though it’s true.

As the Ace Ops take off Ironwood calls over the team leaders. Which is a bit of a weird choice considering he’s not asking Jaune and Ruby to keep secrets from their teams or anything. They’re literally just going to turn around and relay that info immediately to YWBNR. So why not just tell them all at once? Chalk it up to not wanting to animate nine characters. Basically though we learn at least part of Tyrian’s motivations here. He’s been killing off prominent figures who oppose Ironwood, including Forest, trying to make it look like Ironwood himself is killing to keep them quiet. And it’s working. More points to Ironwood for throwing out, “I’m not really concerned about my public image” when Qrow accuses him of only caring about publicity. If Ironwood is secretly a horrible dictator who really doesn’t care about his people... he’s doing a very good job of hiding it.

He’s also super chill about Jaune talking back to him about the embargo, a sharp contrast to Jacques’ “How dare you speak to me that way!” when Weiss takes a similar tone. Like the party way back in Volume Four, Ironwood is presented as the clear hero to Jacques’ villain. He lets subordinates point out difficulties and potential mistakes he’s makings. Instead of just, you know, abusing them.

So yeah, Jacques is a thing. He shows up pissed that Ironwood commandeered his abandoned mine, but also he’s happy because he thinks Ironwood has screwed himself now. Jacques is gunning for a seat on the council and he hopes the military taking possession of private property, not matter how grimm-infested, will help. He accuses Ironwood of roping Weiss into all this, Weiss reasserts that it was her own decision to help, and we get a lovely moment of the team supporting her.

I’d just like to point out though, this is all proof that Weiss would have been just fine if they’d sent her to Atlas. The fandom was up in arms over that suggestion, making wild claims about how Jacques would kidnap her or something, but this scene canonically undermines all of that. Turns out Jacques didn’t have spies everywhere, waiting to scoop Weiss up the moment she landed. However long the group has been hanging out in Atlas, he had no idea she was here until she was standing right in front of him (and even then it took him a long minute to realize...) Turns out Jacques can’t just do whatever he pleases with another human being just because he’s her father. In Ironwood’s presence, which Weiss would have ended up in if she’d flown with Cordovin’s blessing, Jacques can’t touch her. Hell, he can’t do anything even if Weiss was alone. If Weiss is willing to dump racists in the trash with her semblance I think she’s gained enough confidence to do the same to Jacques if he dares try to hit her again. The moment the fandom went, ‘They clearly HAVE to steal military property/disable a CTV tower and risk this tenuous peace because poor Weiss would be done for if they just sent her to Atlas with an armed guard and a transformed Qrow and possibly Maria in a suitcase’ I was just, ‘... What?’ That was never a good justification and this scene just reinforces that.

The one (metaphorical) blow that Jacques manages to land is by telling Weiss how distraught her mother was when she left. I wonder if there’s any truth in that or if it’s pure manipulation.

As he leaves Winter flies in, clearly avoiding her father. Weiss gets partway through calling her out on that before Penny lands in their midst.

From here the episode really unravels. With the surprise half ruined, Ironwood takes the group up into the arena and presents them with their huntsmen licenses. Now, full disclosure. I said I wanted this back in the premiere. In fact, my exact words were,

“I don’t think the show would ever go for my suggestion of another school arc so they could finish their training, but at the very least we should provide some sort of loop-hole for these characters. Have Ironwood provide special licenses based on their heroics at the Fall of Beacon and their work since. Because right now we have a world that’s continually emphasizing being a huntsmen as a job, something you earn the right to call yourself, yet 95% of our group doesn’t have that right in the eyes of their society.”

And I still stand by that. In as much as I’m acknowledging that so long as the writing refuses to treat the group like the students they are, taking away that status is the next best thing. However, that was written before the story decided to re-emphasize precisely how not huntsmen-like the group is. Everyone remember that? It was a week ago, wherein the group was characterized like kids playing dress up, following the adults around, acknowledging that it feels like they’re real huntresses even though they’re not, and then they witnessed a fight that put their skills and maturity to shame. A part of me honestly is glad we’re not dealing with this as a moral issue anymore. The other part of me is going, “Really? You set up how the group is still a bunch of students and then turn around and give them licenses an episode later? Can we at least be consistent?”

It’s fine though. It’s done. Yay. They all have licenses. Even though they technically didn’t do the work required to obtain them. And they’re also still at least a year, probably two years, too young to have them. Considering that schools are a four year program. It’s fine.

The group doesn’t even seem happy to have them though. In fact, they trivialize the moment. That word exactly: “It almost feels trivial now.” I don’t think RT intends for the characterization to come across this way but man does the group sound arrogant. Wow. We’ve been given a huge amount of power and privilege when we technically haven’t earned it, have actually done quite a lot lately that should have resulted in punishments over rewards, this is entirely out of the blue, something we’ve all wanted for most of our lives... so thanks, I guess? We’re feeling kind of iffy. Ruby at least makes some sort of comment about how Ironwood doesn’t need to do this, which just lets him re-assert that they all totally deserve it. Besides, he needs all the help he can get. Remember, we’re about to tell everyone about Salem!

Obviously no one pipes up during this speech. There aren’t even shared guilty looks. They’re just... letting their lie become a part of their ascent into full-fledged huntsmen. Oh boy.

Overall this party just feels depressing as hell to me. Yes, let’s celebrate in an empty, creepy arena that’s a traumatic space for literally everyone here. Made worse by the fact that no one acknowledges this. Once again Penny functions purely as comic relief. I thought that finally, finally we would get a conversation between her and Ruby. Hey, Penny! We’re taking selfies and eating cake in the very place where you were horrifically murdered! Maybe we should talk about that?

Nope.

Instead we get a train wreck of a conversation between Qrow and Ruby. She brings up the fact that they’re all keeping secrets... and Qrow laughs.

The hypocrisy is really astounding here. Ozpin keeps a secret and gets punched into a tree, along with Oscar. Ruby keeps a secret and Qrow looks like he wants to ruffle her hair. She asks him if she’s just like Ozpin and he responds with, “Oz only trusted himself with the whole truth. You’re trusting others, just making sure they prove themselves first. I think that’s a pretty big difference.”

Okay. That’s one hell of a messy statement, but let’s take it at face value for a moment. So tell me, Ruby. Precisely what does Ironwood have to do to “prove himself” to you? How long do you feel you need to wait? One more mission? A dozen? A few weeks? Months? ...Years? There’s no surefire way for someone to prove that they’re trustworthy and if, after that person has already shared their own secret plan with you and continually treats you as an equal---please help me in this fight, feel free to talk back to me, here’s licenses so you’re legally a part of this team---you’re still iffy about their motivations... what more can they do? You might just keep waiting and waiting for some sort of sign, putting things off because telling them is so risky and you just want to be sure. You might even reach a point where you’ve known Ironwood for ages and you still haven’t told him because, well, you haven’t gotten that proof you were looking for yet. Especially if you were, say, in a time of peace where telling him only feels like a cruelty. Especially when you’ve been betrayed so many times before and are always fighting against those memories. Your little, ‘I’m just waiting until I know I can trust him’ could theoretically go on for decades because we can never absolutely know a person. Lionheart is proof of that. Ironwood might one day look to you and say, “How can you not trust me yet?” and you might respond with, “What have you done to prove to me, without a doubt, that I should?”

I’m reusing this:

Ruby is in precisely the same position Ozpin was with his inner circle. Including Qrow. If Ruby is unsure that a military-minded, incredibly stressed man should have this information now, despite how trustworthy he might seem, why would Ozpin have been sure of that a year earlier? Ironwood was the same military-minded, stressed, seemingly trustful guy. If Ruby felt like she couldn’t rely on Qrow mere weeks (or even days) ago because he kept refusing to stay in contact (something that was established way back at Beacon. That’s not new) and falling into drunk, pessimistic stupors, why would Ozpin feel like he could rely on him in other ways? Especially when those “other ways,” telling them about Salem’s immortality, would lead to absolutely nothing good. Seriously. Has the group suddenly come up with a plan to defeat her, proving that Ozpin was wrong not to bring more creative minds into the fray? No. Has the group fallen apart for a long stretch and has only now made noises about moving forward for the sake of moving forward, something they’d already agreed to do as huntsmen fighting immortal grimm? Yes. All telling them about Salem did was make them more depressed and stressed, the two things that draw literal monsters to their door. That’s it. Their goals and motivations are precisely the same as when they started: keep fighting. Ironwood, on the other hand, has to know about Salem because his plan hinges on her mortality. Ozpin risked nothing by keeping this secret from the group. He arguably saved them a lot of grief. Ruby, on the other hand, risks countless lives and chaos across Remnant because she’s letting Ironwood inch closer and closer to telling the whole world, all in an effort to muster up an army that will accomplish nothing.

Ruby is Ozpin in this scenario, but her secrets carry more weight than his ever did. This isn’t a group of teens feeling morally outraged that their leader told a lie; how dare you not tell us everything when we’re risking our lives... even though we’re always risking our lives and would continue to risk our lives whether you told us or not! This is an incredibly powerful general about to change the shape of the entire world if he doesn’t learn the truth. The stakes are nowhere near comparable. Combine that with the fact that Ruby and her friends just finished taking the high road. That’s the kicker here. That Ruby doesn’t just admit, ‘Yeah... I’m like Oz. Because he was right. You do sometimes need to keep secrets and it is hard to trust people.’ No, no, no, they have to keep demonizing him. Ruby needs reassurance that she’s nothing like that evil secret keeper... even though we can all see she 100% is. She’s arguably worse now that she wants to play the victim to Ozpin’s secret keeping while simultaneously doing the exact same thing to Ironwood. She’s arguably worse since her secrets risks far more lives than Ozpin’s ever did. Where’s the fandom’s outrage over Ruby’s manipulation? Who’s punching her? When they bring up Summer, Ruby needs to characterize her death as “another Oz secret” wherein, like the fandom, she assumes he holds responsibility before there’s any proof of that. Even when Qrow admits that Ozpin has no more idea how Summer died than he and Tai do, he rescinds it! “But who knows what he may have hidden from us over the years.” Excuse me, but you all need to stop gearing up to assign blame without evidence, especially when you all are currently committing the exact same sins Ozpin did. We’ve been doing this since Volume 5:

Yang: I just learned that my uncle is the one who kept his semblance and bird transformations secret from me, but I’m going to blame Ozpin for it and demand “no more” lies. Even though up until now he’s never lied to us.

Qrow: I just admitted that your mother’s death is her own secret, but I’m going to subtly blame Ozpin for it anyway and remind you, as well as the audience, that he could be keeping an untold number of secrets from us. Truly a horrific thing when we, too, are keeping a bunch of secrets.

It’s also just a complete OOC moment that Qrow would be laughing about Ruby keeping secrets and hugging her as he tells her to press on while likewise maintaining his suspicion of Ozpin. Because Qrow’s whole beef with Ozpin is that he’s supposedly “wasted” his life while serving him. Everything he does is worthless because of Salem’s immortality. So if he’s now (randomly?) on team, ‘Do things because they’re right even if we can’t win in the end’... why is he still upset? If he can admit now that all this work---building new CTV towers and taking up everyday missions---is still super important, then why isn’t he thanking Ozpin? ‘Oh wow. I realize now how worthwhile this work is, regardless of whether Salem can be defeated. I guess I do owe you that gratitude for allowing me to do it all in the first place.’ Is no one ever going to acknowledge that Ozpin was right? About their work and about the need to keep secrets? You all are literally adopting his views, his mindset, and his choices. But nope. Nothing. It’s just an illogical mix of ‘Everything we believe is what Ozpin taught us’ with ‘But oh yeah screw that guy.’

The only reason Qrow is all buddy-buddy with Ruby’s secret keeping is because he’s in on the secret. Objectively speaking, if Qrow had a right to know about Salem’s immortality than so does Ironwood. They were both inner circle members. They both served Ozpin for (presumably) the same amount of time. With the exception of maybe hearing about the brother gods---and even then Qrow didn’t take that story literally---they seemed to have the same level of clearance. Ironwood has done just as much to “prove” his loyalty as Qrow ever did, but he doesn’t want to admit that telling someone this kind of horrific info is just plain hard. So Qrow, like the entirety of RWBYJNR, makes it about their own status as heroes, adopting a ‘we’re totally different’ mindset. I get to know about Salem’s immortality. Ironwood though? No, no, we’re justified in keeping it from him. People just aren’t allowed to keep things from us.

It started off with Yang’s ‘How dare you keep secrets only I’m allowed to do that’ nonsense and has now spread to the entire group. We had an entire volume of people verbally and physically assaulting Ozpin in the name of his lies. Now Ruby does the exact same thing and gets hugs and praise for it. I spoke too soon last episode. The hypocrisy is unreal.

I honestly didn’t think RWBY was still capable of frustrating me to this extent, but here we are.

Oh, and so long as we’re riding this frustration train... where is Oscar?

He was not acknowledged once in this episode, let alone invited to the party. You know, the one that he could have really easily been flown in for now that the danger is gone. The one that Winter, Penny, Marrow, Elm and Vine all make an appearance at, but not the guy they’ve been traveling with and who is way more invested in his ‘friends’ getting their licenses than some random Ace Ops members. From here on out I’m officially calling BS on anyone who tries to justify the group/the writing excluding Oscar. There was no reason not to invite him to a planned celebration specifically designed to give this team, a team he’s a part of, a bit of downtime. Sorry you didn’t get an armor upgrade, or get to go on the mission, or get to attend the after party. Everyone just kind of forgot you exist or couldn’t be bothered to explain why you’re missing. RWBY really just doesn’t like him or Ozpin and boy, does it show.

The remaining plot is minimal. The group pulls up a mission board and Jaune gets roped into escorting school children, a mission with absolutely “no danger” in it. So if we actually get to see him completing this, you know they’ll be danger. As they continue choosing their first jobs as huntsmen we return to Jacques, brooding in his office. Whitley makes a brief appearance to announce that Watts has barged his way into the manor. We learn that everyone apparently thinks Watts is dead---that helps explain why they’re still using his code. A dead guy isn’t much of a threat---and Watts tells Jacques that he can help him regain his lost wealth, get a seat on the council, and screw over Ironwood. Through the pretty silly line of “Have your cake and eat it too.” I like that expression, but it’s hard to make it sound sufficiently threatening...

And that’s where we end! A rough ride this week, folks. Can’t complain about the break...

Until next time.

Minor Things of Note

Watts’ comment about how Whitley is the spitting image of Jacques makes me think of cloning. Like, I don’t think the writing would actually go there, but it’s a potentially cool option. Evil billionaire with access to fantasy technology has two rebellious daughters before finally just cloning himself a ‘son’...

Where is Maria? What is she doing? Can we please stop abandoning important characters and then having the cast acting like they ceased to exist?

#rwby #rwby volume 7 #rwby volume 7 spoilers #mymetas #rwby recaps

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