You Can't Thwart Stage One (Cinder/Salem Circle Analysis)
This analysis focuses on the events of RWBY Volume 3, particularly the Vale Arc, and the villains' success in achieving their goals. It draws on insights from TV Tropes and the RWBY wiki. Feel free to share your thoughts or conclusions in comments or reblogs.
The Vale Arc: Villains' Triumph
Despite numerous opportunities, the heroes fail to thwart the villains' scheme in Volume 3, achieving only minor victories. The villains' plan unfolds successfully due to the heroes' repeated failures:
They cannot prevent the villains from infecting the control tower with a virus.
They fail to stop a bomb-laden train from releasing Grimm into Vale, allowing the villains to pose as allies by "saving" the city.
The villains manipulate Yang into attacking a seemingly defeated opponent during a live broadcast.
They orchestrate Pyrrha's accidental killing of Penny during another broadcast.
Using these moments, the villains seize global airwaves to deliver a speech that triggers a massive Grimm invasion.
As a result, Beacon Academy is destroyed, many lives are lost (including two key characters), Cinder gains the Fall Maiden's full power, and Salem confirms the Relic of Choice is hidden at the school. Salem concludes the volume with a speech to Ozpin, vowing to extinguish humanity's hope and destroy all he holds dear.
The heroes' limited successes include:
Saving Vale city, which the villains deem unimportant.
Freezing the Grimm Wyvern to Beacon's ruined tower, inadvertently attracting more Grimm and preventing Huntsmen from reclaiming the school.
Permanently injuring Cinder, fueling her obsession with vengeance against Ruby. (Which is useless as Cinder and Salem get Vale destroyed anyhow)
Villains' Strategy: Flaw Exploitation
The villains' success stems from exploiting the heroes' weaknesses during a vulnerable period when training and systems prioritize strengths over addressing flaws. Their "Stage One" plan is meticulously crafted to succeed without interference, leveraging deep intel and preparations. However, there is no equally strategic "Stage Two." The chaos they create prevents them from immediately targeting another static objective, making their victory a surprise escalation in a cold war rather than a bid for world domination. The lack of a clear endgame contributes to their success by obscuring their ultimate intentions, slowing the heroes' responses.
Surprisingly, Salem commands a small inner circle, with few minions. Unlike larger villain groups like DC's Legion of Doom, her team is effective despite internal tensions and mutual dislike, with occasional villainous friendships. They outmaneuver larger organizations and make fools of their opponents.
Cinder, initially presented as a formidable antagonist, self-destructs due to her flaws. Her obsession with power lacks a clear purpose, mirroring Salem's ambiguous goals. Her backstory reveals a desire to avoid pain and gain strength, but she has no defined endgame. This vagueness inadvertently aids her, as her unpredictable motives make her plans hard to counter. However, her role as Salem's intermediary with the White Fang creates tension with Adam, who views her as a threat.
Adam, a key White Fang leader, is more popular than his predecessor, Sienna Khan. Salem values his loyalty, entrusting him to secure the White Fang's cooperation. Adam kills Sienna to assume control, resolving Salem's concerns about her reluctance. However, his actions backfire. Using his power, Adam attempts to kidnap Blake Belladonna and kill her parents, who later form a Faunus militia that foils his mission to destroy Haven. His self-destructive tendencies, like Cinder's, undermine their cause. It’s unclear if Salem knows or cares about Adam’s death.
Salem's goals remain enigmatic—possibly seeking the Relics to rule the world or to end her own existence, though the cruel Brother Gods are unlikely to grant the latter. She operates indirectly, relying on her minions, who often dislike each other, underperform, or lack resources. Watts and Tyrian are exceptions: Tyrian excels in his role, while Watts identifies issues but is ignored. In Volume 8, Watts achieves success when acting independently, but Cinder’s ego-driven actions lead to his death. Salem’s indifference to losing a competent minion like Watts highlights her detachment. A potential "Stage Two" could have succeeded if Watts’ warnings had been heeded.
Salem’s small, fractious inner circle is remarkably effective despite its dysfunction:
Arthur Watts: Highly competent but ignored, achieving success when independent. Dies due to Cinder’s actions.
Cinder Fall: A dangerous "big bad" wannabe whose lack of clear goals makes her unpredictable.
Hazel Rainart: Motivated by irrational goals, eventually turns against Salem.
Mercury Black: Skilled but low-ranking, likely to defect.
Tyrian Callows: Highly effective but dangerously unstable.
Emerald Sustrai: Defects from the group.
Neopolitan: Motivated solely by vengeance against Ruby, indifferent to Salem’s goals.
Roman Torchwick: Unaware of Salem’s existence but effective. His death indirectly aids Salem’s Volume 8 victory via Neo’s actions.
Vermillion Raddock: Status unknown, possibly dead.
Other groups like human supremacists, Silver Bullet, Starhead Industrial Company, or the SDC are not directly tied to Salem. The White Fang aligns with her after Adam eliminates Sienna, but his self-destruction leaves Salem without their support. The Grimm serve as cannon fodder, relying on zerg-rush tactics, exploiting weaknesses like Atlas’ lack of air defenses. (Prob. cause they would hate Salem also, the somewhat help her goals by accident)
Salem’s small, dysfunctional team triumphs because the heroes are equally disorganized and weaker. With major militaries neutralized, Salem holds a strategic advantage despite her reduced forces. The heroes’ reliance on Ruby’s optimism as a “Morality Pet” exacerbates their failures. Her “Silly Rabbit, Cynicism Is for Losers!” personality allows teammates to justify their flaws:
Weiss uses Ruby’s optimism to avoid confronting her father’s influence over her family and company.
Blake condemns even sympathetic White Fang members, driven by Adam’s extremism and her aversion to violence.
Yang frames their journey as a fairy tale, blaming Salem for all problems (including Summer Rose’s death). (Granted she's not wrong if Salem been in the background pushing causing strife...but who knows)
The villains’ blunders, particularly Cinder and Adam’s “Bond Villain Stupidity” in pursuing revenge, temporarily mask the heroes’ flaws. However, when the villains adapt, the heroes falter, ignoring the strain on Ruby, assuming she’ll recover due to her outward resilience.
Cinder: Mysterious enigmas are often just grunts, unlikely to evolve beyond their role.
Adam: Leaders prone to self-destruction undermine their own causes.
Salem: Her ambiguous, ever-shifting goals make her unpredictable, giving her control over the planet’s fate.
The Forces of Good: Disunity and dysfunction allow weaker villains to dominate, leaving the heroes dependent on the villains’ mercy—or facing defeat.
(Roman sudden death allows Salem to win.)
