Team CRTQ

An actual RWBY critique and analysis blog. Please use the tag CRTQ for posting any critiques regarding RWBY or for any posts you'd like for us to reblog. Mods: Cobalt, Regalia, Tangerine, Quartz

[team-crtq]

So, what are your thoughts on the new Team RWBY outfits?

I love them!

Although I do wish Ruby had gotten a little bit more or a new outfit, I love her boots, gloves, and spats under skort. 

Yang’s is very reminiscent of Vernal which makes me hmmmm

 I’m concerned at how they’re going to model Ruby’s new spiky hair and animate Weiss’s dress, but given what we have now, I think they’re great. 

-Cobalt

[team-crtq]

So, here's a question I've been mulling over for a while, and want your guys' take on. To what extant do you guys think the fandom's view of Taiyang is influenced by toxic masculinity?

Hmmm…

I would say that the fandom, or at least the part that hates Tai, tries to force a toxic masculinity ideology onto him. They make him out to be crass, rude, uncaring toward his kids, and up his own ass. Which he isn’t. At all.

If you’re asking if toxic masculinity is what colors the fandom’s view of Tai, I don’t think it does much. Sure there are probably some who want him to be macho and don’t like his passive role in the story, but I’d ask you to clarify exactly what you mean, since I might be misinterpreting what you’re asking. I think most people who don’t like him simply have a habit of interpreting his actions and words in the wrong context and adding in their own headcanons.

Part of the fandom decided to take Tai “shutting down” as confirmation that he did nothing to help raise his kids and Yang shouldered the burden of taking care of Ruby for her entire life. Despite Yang and Ruby’s obvious love for and closeness to Tai that implies he was a very active part of their lives. 

Any other mods wanna weigh in?

-Mod Cobalt 

[team-crtq]

I’d also say the compare and contrast to someone like say Ghira is part of this issue as well. 

I’d say while both decent parents in their own rights, I can safely say the go about it slightly different fashions. Tai Yang being a bit more jokey, willing to spar and the like. While Ghira is a bit more of, well what you’d consider a “traditional” parent. They are slightly different but on that basis alone, which would you see the fandom consider more of toxic masculinity? Most likely Tai, even though at the end of the day they try to teach their daughters, and guide them to the best of their ability. 

That’s just my two cents 

- Tangerine 

[darthlordcommie]

Since it looks like my question wasn’t specific enough, here’s an example instead: How would Taiyang be viewed if he was a woman? If Raven and Summer were gender-swapped, and Taiyang was a single mother? 

[team-crtq]

Ah, I think I understand now. Considering how many people in the FNDM defend Raven and her actions, I’m pretty sure Tai wouldn’t get nearly the same level of shit he does if he were a woman. 

The FNDM, and fandoms in general, tend to be a lot harsher toward male characters whenever they fuck up and much quicker to justify a female character’s behavior. Just take a look at how many people are disgusted with Tauradonna shippers, but ship Cinder and Emerald together. The ones that think Emerald deserves a redemption arc but not Mercury. Or those that condemn Ozpin as a murderer and liar, while saying Salem has done nothing wrong and deserved better.

Of course, that’s not to say that Cinder, Salem, or Raven are given a free pass. But the difference is there and it’s noticeable. 

- Cobalt

[team-crtq]

Also, if you want to make a point about toxic masculinity, you don’t really have to look farther than Adam. 

- Regalia

[team-crtq]

So, here's a question I've been mulling over for a while, and want your guys' take on. To what extant do you guys think the fandom's view of Taiyang is influenced by toxic masculinity?

Hmmm…

I would say that the fandom, or at least the part that hates Tai, tries to force a toxic masculinity ideology onto him. They make him out to be crass, rude, uncaring toward his kids, and up his own ass. Which he isn’t. At all.

If you’re asking if toxic masculinity is what colors the fandom’s view of Tai, I don’t think it does much. Sure there are probably some who want him to be macho and don’t like his passive role in the story, but I’d ask you to clarify exactly what you mean, since I might be misinterpreting what you’re asking. I think most people who don’t like him simply have a habit of interpreting his actions and words in the wrong context and adding in their own headcanons.

Part of the fandom decided to take Tai “shutting down” as confirmation that he did nothing to help raise his kids and Yang shouldered the burden of taking care of Ruby for her entire life. Despite Yang and Ruby’s obvious love for and closeness to Tai that implies he was a very active part of their lives. 

Any other mods wanna weigh in?

-Mod Cobalt 

[team-crtq]

I’d also say the compare and contrast to someone like say Ghira is part of this issue as well. 

I’d say while both decent parents in their own rights, I can safely say the go about it slightly different fashions. Tai Yang being a bit more jokey, willing to spar and the like. While Ghira is a bit more of, well what you’d consider a “traditional” parent. They are slightly different but on that basis alone, which would you see the fandom consider more of toxic masculinity? Most likely Tai, even though at the end of the day they try to teach their daughters, and guide them to the best of their ability. 

That’s just my two cents 

- Tangerine 

[darthlordcommie]

Since it looks like my question wasn’t specific enough, here’s an example instead: How would Taiyang be viewed if he was a woman? If Raven and Summer were gender-swapped, and Taiyang was a single mother? 

[team-crtq]

Ah, I think I understand now. Considering how many people in the FNDM defend Raven and her actions, I’m pretty sure Tai wouldn’t get nearly the same level of shit he does if he were a woman. 

The FNDM, and fandoms in general, tend to be a lot harsher toward male characters whenever they fuck up and much quicker to justify a female character’s behavior. Just take a look at how many people are disgusted with Tauradonna shippers, but ship Cinder and Emerald together. The ones that think Emerald deserves a redemption arc but not Mercury. Or those that condemn Ozpin as a murderer and liar, while saying Salem has done nothing wrong and deserved better.

Of course, that’s not to say that Cinder, Salem, or Raven are given a free pass. But the difference is there and it’s noticeable. 

- Cobalt

[team-crtq]

So, here's a question I've been mulling over for a while, and want your guys' take on. To what extant do you guys think the fandom's view of Taiyang is influenced by toxic masculinity?

Hmmm…

I would say that the fandom, or at least the part that hates Tai, tries to force a toxic masculinity ideology onto him. They make him out to be crass, rude, uncaring toward his kids, and up his own ass. Which he isn’t. At all.

If you’re asking if toxic masculinity is what colors the fandom’s view of Tai, I don’t think it does much. Sure there are probably some who want him to be macho and don’t like his passive role in the story, but I’d ask you to clarify exactly what you mean, since I might be misinterpreting what you’re asking. I think most people who don’t like him simply have a habit of interpreting his actions and words in the wrong context and adding in their own headcanons.

Part of the fandom decided to take Tai “shutting down” as confirmation that he did nothing to help raise his kids and Yang shouldered the burden of taking care of Ruby for her entire life. Despite Yang and Ruby’s obvious love for and closeness to Tai that implies he was a very active part of their lives. 

Any other mods wanna weigh in?

-Mod Cobalt 

[team-crtq]

I'd also say the compare and contrast to someone like say Ghira is part of this issue as well. 

I'd say while both decent parents in their own rights, I can safely say the go about it slightly different fashions. Tai Yang being a bit more jokey, willing to spar and the like. While Ghira is a bit more of, well what you'd consider a "traditional" parent. They are slightly different but on that basis alone, which would you see the fandom consider more of toxic masculinity? Most likely Tai, even though at the end of the day they try to teach their daughters, and guide them to the best of their ability. 

That's just my two cents 

- Tangerine 

[team-crtq]

So, here's a question I've been mulling over for a while, and want your guys' take on. To what extant do you guys think the fandom's view of Taiyang is influenced by toxic masculinity?

Hmmm…

I would say that the fandom, or at least the part that hates Tai, tries to force a toxic masculinity ideology onto him. They make him out to be crass, rude, uncaring toward his kids, and up his own ass. Which he isn’t. At all.

If you’re asking if toxic masculinity is what colors the fandom’s view of Tai, I don’t think it does much. Sure there are probably some who want him to be macho and don’t like his passive role in the story, but I’d ask you to clarify exactly what you mean, since I might be misinterpreting what you’re asking. I think most people who don’t like him simply have a habit of interpreting his actions and words in the wrong context and adding in their own headcanons.

Part of the fandom decided to take Tai “shutting down” as confirmation that he did nothing to help raise his kids and Yang shouldered the burden of taking care of Ruby for her entire life. Despite Yang and Ruby’s obvious love for and closeness to Tai that implies he was a very active part of their lives. 

Any other mods wanna weigh in?

-Mod Cobalt 

[team-crtq]

RWBY Volume 6 Episode 12 Review

My general mood for this episode. Not sorry.

We start with the Argus base doing a fantastic job of maintaining all fronts of the base as they cheer their boss on and ignore the radar. Yall had one job seriously.

And who knew that Ozpin throwing students off a cliff would come in handy later as Ruby climbs back up her literal cliffhanger. I do put a bit of a knock against that particular cliffhanger because.....it was slightly unnecessary especially considering the other hooks we had going for the show at this time. And with how quickly it was resolved. But eh.....that’s just a nitpick of mine really.

We turn to Oscar as he points out how the ammo gets either locked into the cannon if its dust, or in the case of the missiles have to pop out. The group quickly deduces that a well placed shot to said missiles will cause massive damage, especially with the shields down. And Maria was more than happy to help Ruby get straight to the barrel of the gun to help line up the shot. 

Someone help this poor farm child, he didn’t get a chance to back away from riding with two reckless silver eyed warriors.

Giving credit where credit is due, you can see why Cordovin  works well in the military, you know when she isn’t trying to shoot down a bunch of kids, as she notices immediately what they are trying to do. Plan failed as they are shot down and Oscar having no choice but to make a crash landing. And amazingly manged it.

After some very nationalistic comments later, Ruby has had enough of this shit and goes to try to talk her down. Fails in doing so and gets a cannon to her face. 

And holy fuck I do enjoy the fact that the off hand comment about the dust getting locked in stuck with Ruby to make a on the spot plan. Jaune might be a great strategist, seeing as most of the prior plan was his idea. (And if it weren’t for a certain bull horned bitch it would have worked). But Ruby does great with on the spot recklessness that is just beautiful, as seen with her jumping in to the canon to ignite the dust to take out Cordovin’s main weapon. Small things like this go a long way of showing us the leadership styles.

Press “F” for poor Maria who missed seeing Cordovin going down.

We cut back Blake, Yang, and Adam. Adam taunting Blake about how “She made that promise to stay with me before breaking it”, only for Yang to ask simply “Did she promise it to you, or the person you pretended to be?”  I do like that RT is hammering home the abusive nature of Blake and Adam’s relationship one last time, even during the fight.

 And as far as fights go, the animation team really buckled down about what didn’t work in volume 5 episode 12, and made sure there was none of that standing and waiting shit that happened last time. Granted this was a 2 v 1 fight, but still. There was also decent utilization of the environment, in particular with Blake being sent off the cliff only to climb it and drop kick the bull headed bastard. This was great step in the right direction, and makes me excited for the future fights.

Also the volume 4 lesson for Yang stuck well because yes she used her semblance as a fall back rather then the reckless nature she has used it before. It also led to Adam’s undoing in this case, as after a good beat down and losing his weapon, Blake comes back down to knock Adam back. Her and Yang grab the broken pieces of Blake’s weapon a go for the final blow.

“Oh”

The triumphant music stops, you hear nothing but the environmental sounds, and Adam taking his feeble steeps. He give one more massive breath before his eyes glaze over and you see him fall, wide eye, down. But not without bashing into some rocks before then. And yes the evidence to me screams that Adam will likely stay dead, and in my opinion he should. Because Blake and Yang’s character development needs to move past him otherwise it’s going to get repetitive.  My joking earlier aside the somber tone to this was well done in my opinion. This act that these two pull was not presented in a grandiose way, it weighed into them. Blake breaking down is testament to this. She didn’t want Adam to die, despite everything she didn’t want him to die. And yes good on Yang for the immediate comfort to her as we cut away from the two just holding each other after what was a massive ordeal for them. And no, I won’t guess if this was supposed to be shippy or not, that’s for the individual viewer to decide and enjoy accordingly.

We cut back to Cordovin taking the fact that the mech is disabled well,as she calls in for the entire base to come and help her deal with kids. Only for the base to revival that whoops the panic of seeing a giant ass mech fighting shit caused panic (and likely with the help of the relic as well) brought in a leviathan to come and play. And whoops because she tried to fucking shoot her, Ruby took down the only thing that could possibly stop it. Great job everyone!

All in all I can safely say this particular lead up the the finale was a massive step up from volume 5′s lead up, on all fronts. And yes this pretty much solidifies this volume as my favorite volume in the show so far.

-Tangerine

[team-crtq]

Volume 6 Afterwards

A few weeks before volume 6 of RWBY started, I made this post about the things we at this blog hoped to see going into this season. So now as the show enters it’s agonizing hiatus once again, I’d like to go back and examine how volume 6 met our expectations. 

1. Ruby Development

Check. 

check check check check check

Volume 6 delivered some great Ruby development. She stepped into her role as a leader more firmly, learned how to use her Silver Eyes on purpose, confronted Qrow on his shit, and stood her ground on their mission no matter what she faced. We didn’t exactly get the break down or deep dive into her emotional state that I wanted, but what we did get made me incredibly happy as a Ruby stan.

 Ruby Rose is a huntress now. Not a student and not a niece that needs her uncle to tell her what to do. She’s standing beside Qrow now, leading her team, making plans, and refusing to let the world take away her forgiving and kind nature. She is taking control of their mission and I’ve never been happier. 

2. The bee talk

Again, not exactly what I expected. But I don’t think anyone on this blog is disappointed by how Blake and Yang resolved their issues. RIP in piss, Adam. You won’t be missed. 

But in all seriousness, it was good. Yang’s hurt feelings were addressed and Blake came to understand her. Yang doesn’t need someone to protect her from getting hurt, which was the reason Blake ran, she needs someone who’s willing to stand by her and bear the burden along with her. She was never angry at Blake for the loss of her arm, she was angry that Blake left her to deal with the aftermath all by herself and Blake came to understand that. It was very good.

3. the fight scenes

Did y’all see the fights we got this season? We never really got a fight on the same scale as the volume 5 finale. As in, more than three people in a single room, so I can’t fairly compare the fights from this volume to the shortcomings of that volume. But I think that’s something that works in volume 6′s favor. CRWBY took what they new and expanded their abilities in a better way. Yang and Blake vs. Adam was phenomenal, and the fight against Cordovin’s colossus was a fun way of having a lot of characters  fight without making the space feel too empty or the action too slow. Good job, CRWBY, keep it up.

 4. Salem and Ozpin

Uh. Yeah. Point acknowledged. But in case it hasn’t been said enough, Ozpin is a good man who’s sins are many but not unforgivable, Salem is a good villain who’s tragic story is pitiable and understandable, but doesn’t justify her actions afterwards, and the Gods are douchebags. 

5. Summer Rose

I guess. I still want a damn STRQ flashback or anything that gives us more of her personality, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t scream when she appeared on screen, face fully uncovered and with an actual animated model.

 Volume 6 has far exceeded my expectations and I’m so proud of CRWBY for how far they’ve come and how far they’re still going. If volume 7 is at least this quality, then I have no worries at all. 

[team-crtq]

Who is really at fault for what happened at Argus?

Needless to say, the debate about whether Team RWBY and Co were right or whether Cordovin was right has caused a bit of a debate. 

However, I find that looking at it that way as one side having to shoulder all of the blame vs the other correct side removes a lot of nuance and the thoughts behind each action. Each side had their own reasons for making the choices that they did and those choices may not have been entirely correct with different consequences to each. 

So, with this, let’s look at the choices from both sides that lead up to this point. Also known as another episode of Regalia rambling. 

"Couldn’t they have come up with a better plan than stealing a military ship?”

Arguably, yes, they could have come up with a better plan, this is what happens when you leave a group of teenagers and an old lady in charge of a dire and dangerous situation. Sometimes in a desperate situation, the dumb and crazy idea is all you have. 

They tried asking Cordovin if they could get to Atlas, which, to any situation or plea, Cordovin said “No”. Understandable, their ports are closed and yes, she could have just left it at, “No we cannot help you, our ports are closed, no one is going out under any circumstance.”

and the only circumstance Cordovin would allow is Weiss returning to Atlas on her own... Which, given that Weiss had to smuggle herself out of Atlas, it’s understandable that she nor the group want to go back alone. Because once Weiss is gone, they will have no way of reaching or contacting her, she will be alone on a military ship with a lamp that attracts Grimm, and chances are, Jacques wouldn’t allow her to speak with Ironwood at all and would have her put right back under lock and key. 

If the team went with that plan and Weiss found herself in danger, it would be SOL for everyone, especially given they would have no idea what even happened to Weiss because she wouldn’t be able to reach them. It’s understandable neither team RBY and Co or Weiss herself wants to go through with that plan because there is no way back out for Weiss and we know what Jacques could do to her. 

Given the stress and direness of the situation, it’s only natural they eventually ended up going with stealing the ship... But it wasn’t their first choice. Before making that decision... Let’s go over the things that happened leading up to it.

They find out Ozpin is hiding a very dangerous secret about Salem’s presumed immortality and naturally, in their anger, tear him a new one and he retreats back into Oscar’s mind. 

They find a house and Qrow grabs himself a drink and ends up oversleeping and not waking the group up on time. 

In his frustration of dealing with the tire, he goes and gets himself another drink. 

Team RWBY and Maria end up fighting for their lives against the Apathy while Qrow was busy being drunk. If not for Maria, team RWBY would have died right under his nose... almost literally. 

He had to be dragged away from the bar and it was only while the house was going up in flames that he realized the kind of danger they had been in while he was drunk. 

Rather than deciding to drop the drink, he gets another one when they arrive in Argus. 

Oscar vanishes and it sends the group into a panic, while they are out looking for him Qrow is passed out drunk... on the stairs... in public. 

Needless to say, Qrow has caused more issues and grief for the group more than Maria or Ozpin. Ozpin’s worst crime is holding a secret and Qrow has been a hindrance to the group’s efforts and an unnecessary source of stress. 

When Jaune brought up stealing a military airship everyone looked at him like he had straight lost his mind. Even they thought it was a dumb idea... but no one had anything else. 

Sometimes when you have nothing else, the dumb idea is what you have to go with. 

But what does Qrow do? He immediately shoots down the idea as worthless and something they wouldn’t be able to pull off. Which, in hindsight, he was right... They didn’t really pull it off and it went just about as well as he expected. 

However, rather than assuming the reasonable adult position and sitting down with the team and saying “Let’s come up with a better plan.” what does he do?

He’s about to march right back to his room after shooting down the only other idea they had for getting to Atlas after the ones they had tried were exhausted either to mope around, sleep off his hangover, or get drunk some more. 

In either case, even though he is technically correct... He’s been more of a hindrance to the group than even Ozpin whose worst offense was keeping a secret and retreating into the back of Oscar’s mind. Someone who doesn’t help but neither actively hinders the group is better than the person who is an actual hindrance. 

So naturally, Ruby (and I assume the others as well, but the focus is on Ruby) is fed up with this and wants to hear Jaune out. Whether it is just pure defiance and teenage rebellion or desperation and stress of the situation they’ve been put in is a different analysis altogether, especially given Rubys mentions of not needing adults. Be on the lookout for that episode. 

At the end of the day, they ended up stealing the ship and given that they had Saphron and Terra’s help, they likely discussed the plan in further detail so they weren’t running entirely blind into the situation. 

Were they right to steal the ship in the first place? No. But they exhausted the other options they had seen because the only way to Atlas, is by an airship. 

Naturally, upon finding out the ship has been hijacked, Cordovin goes to stop them. 

Is she right to do so? Absolutely. 

But her methods were incorrect. 

You see, you can be correct in what you are doing or what you intend to do, but go about it in the wrong way. 

Cordovin went about it in the wrong way. Just like the question about whether or not team RWBY and Co could have come up with a better plan... Could Cordovin have come up with a better plan for stopping them?

Yes. 

With the reveal of this episode especially, it showed that they had more airships... Several more airships. 

She could have easily sent more airships out after them and given that the people of Argus live near a military base, it likely wouldn’t have caused any measure of panic or concern. They probably see ships flying in and out daily, what’s seeing two or three more fly after another ship? They’ll probably just assume they’re doing a drill or carrying cargo or something or maybe there was a Grimm spotted and they sent out ships to assess and take care of the situation.

No big deal. 

But what does she do instead? Break out this huge mecha that undoubtedly caused the people of Argus to panic. 

The panic wasn’t caused by team RWBY and Co stealing the airship... but the huge mecha coming out of the ground after all of the shit Atlas got from what happened at Beacon.

The people of Argus aren’t paying attention to the airship... but they are paying attention to that huge mecha that was likely not public knowledge and not to mention, absolutely hidden from public view. They do not see that thing all the time.

Where Cordovin is wrong isn’t in trying to stop them from stealing the ship, but rather the methods that she takes to do so... Because needless to say, that mecha isn’t for handling stolen ships. 

She brought it out not because she thought a group of teenagers, a drunk, and an old lady were a genuine threat to Argus safety... but because she felt like they had tricked them and her pride got in the way of her thinking clearly and felt that they needed to be shown Atlas’s might so they would never underestimate Atlas again. 

Her thought process and actions have little to do with protecting the people of Argus and trying to retrieve a stolen ship... but wanting the group to surrender and recognize how great Atlas is. 

While you can say that it is team RWBY’s fault that Cordovin broke out a huge mech... It really isn’t considering Cordovin had other options to choose from before getting to the mecha... The huge mech, intended for taking down huge Grimm like the Leviathan and not chasing after a group of teenagers and two adults. 

It was disproportionate to the situation. It’s like responding to some kids breaking your window by burning down the entire block.

Should you stop them from breaking your window? Yes. Are you right to have them pay for fixing the window? Yes. Are you right by burning down the entire block in response to them having broken the window? No. 

While Cordovin was right to try to stop them and right to try to arrest the group, the way she did about it is arguably the worst way possible. 

Team RWBY and Co should be blamed for stealing the ship, yes, but they shouldn’t be blamed for Cordovin’s disproportionate reaction to the situation and the resulting damage. 

Even though it was Ruby who broke the mecha, Cordovin was arguably willing to kill them by using a huge mecha because they stole the airship. She was going to use a cannon to kill a group of teenagers, an old lady, and a drunk who were of no immediate threat to the people of Argus... The people she was sworn to protect. 

The result is that the mecha got damaged and she was stuck in the water when the Leviathan surfaced along with the horde of Grimm that her military base had been fighting off while she was busying flaunting her power around. 

Cordovin’s actions caused more damage and panic than what Team RWBY and co did. So while Cordovin was right to stop them yes, Team RWBY isn’t responsible for the fact that Cordovin’s actions ended up causing more damage and panic than they did. 

It’s like blaming the kids who broke your window for you burning down the block because burning down the block was in response to the actions of the kids. 

Just because your actions and choices are in response to someone else’s, doesn’t mean that the actions and choices you made were correct... Even if your intentions were correct. Cordovin had the right intention on stopping them... Just not the correct method in stopping them.

And it was her choice that ended up putting the people of Argus in more danger and causing the destruction and rise of the Leviathan. Team RWBY’s choice of stealing the airship didn’t cause immediate danger or panic for the people of Argus. It was Cordovin bringing out a huge mech to deal with the choice team RWBY made. 

But naturally, RWBY and Co feel terrible about this. They feel bad that they broke the only thing that could fight off that Leviathan... So naturally, they do what they can to make it right but putting themselves in danger and risking their plan of not going to Atlas falling apart. Even though they could have easily made it to Atlas in all of the chaos, they didn’t want to leave helpless people in danger and that shows even though they stole an airship, they didn’t actually want people in danger. 

So they did the right thing and helped them fight back even though they were considered hostile... and Cordovin came to her senses about what she was sworn to do rather than her pride in the atlas military. Cordovin’s change of heart is a bit of an analysis in its own right. So I’ll save that for another time. Be on the lookout for that episode as well. 

But to keep it brief, Team RWBY and Co didn’t point fingers or blame people for their actions whereas Cordovin did.

At the end of the day... Team RWBY is at fault for stealing the ship... However, Cordovin is at fault for the resulting damage and panic at Argus. Either side is truly blameless for the situation, but one Cordovin’s actions caused more damage than the others... even if those actions were in response to some teenagers stealing a ship. 

Both sides had the right intentions, Team RWBY and Co were trying to fulfill their mission of getting the lamp somewhere safe and Cordovin in her attempts to stop them because they did commit an illegal act. But, they were wrong in their methods... Which naturally, both realized as well. 

[team-crtq]

Give me back my man!

Needless to say, this was one of the most exciting episodes so far this volume.

Firstly, we got to see the teamwork between RWBY and Co. Just between Ruby and Weiss, it shows have far they’ve come since season one and even Yang and Blake.

At first, Ruby had to be dragged off and near constantly scolded by Weiss when they were in danger while Weiss always doubted Ruby’s plans and leadership. Now, we can see that they fully trust and rely on each other. Weiss goes along with the plans and is far less calculating or “tactical” with how she tries to fight while Ruby has more confidence as a leader and her plans are far more in-depth than they were in volume one.

With Yang and Blake, Blake is showing the confidence to actually rely on others, something she didn’t have in volume one. Even when she was trying to get away from him and back to Yang when she heard Yang’s bike coming she had faith in her partner right then and there and Volume one Blake would have never held someone’s hand or showed that level of trust in them.

During the fight, you could tell how even Yang herself changed. She didn’t immediately go for her semblance and her combos don’t rely on punching her enemy in the face as hard as possible. She maneuvers around them, uses kicks and punches, and is careful to not just tank however much damage she can before dealing it back, which was incredibly useful considering Adams’ semblance was similar to hers… except that he wasn’t able to feel pain while she could.

It also shows a contrast between Yang and Adam’s character. Both of them are powerhouses, both of them can dish out whatever damage they absorb, both fairly hotheaded, etc. But the difference comes in with how they both handle it.

Yang fights because she enjoyed it and has now learned to actually control her temper and most of all… She actually cares about the pain she can inflict on others because she can actually feel pain herself.

Whereas Adam on the other hand, his temper has grown uncontrollably and he doesn’t care for what damage he does to others, because he can’t feel it himself.

It’s almost like empathy vs apathy and I love how perfectly the fight between them demonstrates it.

You can also still see that the trauma from Yang and Adam’s initial fight still affects her by how her hands and harms tremble, and yet, she powers through it because she has someone she wants to protect whereas Adam uses his powers to destroy anything in his way.

I also rather liked how they did the reveal of Adam’s eye. It was so simple yet so effective in showing just why he became such a hateful person and why he targeted the Schnee Dust Company. he was branded by them, permanently and likely had his eye permanently damaged by it. It’s a very specific scar that can’t be erased or undone.

Overall, there isn’t much bad I can actually say about this episode. It felt well paced and action packed without coming at the cost of the story. CRWBY has really stepped up their game in terms of fight choreography since Monty has passed and it shows. I’m sure he’d be proud of where they are now.

- Regalia

[team-crtq]

RWBY Volume 6 Episode 8 review

Tumblr get your shit together I swear to god.

Slightly shorter episode episode but yay.....more discourse. Just my luck lol. Luckily for me the discourse is more of a back burner in this case.

We start with the gang dealing with the most interesting duo of border security agents who I wish would lend me some of their enthusiasm and work ethic. Qrow attempts to use Weiss as a bargaining chip to get them to Atlas, much to Weiss’s slight discomfort. Maria mentions that she has the misfortune of knowing who the commanding officer is, and more or less kinda sets up the fact that the group probably is going anywhere anytime soon. We meet Caroline, (When will Winter return from war? I’m begging you here RT,) and her only goal seems to be to protect the border for the glory of Arstotzka er....Atlas. Maria lives up to her title of the Grimm Reaper as she just outright murders Caroline several times over. Ruby attempts to reason with the gremlin woman who is just 100% no having it. Though I do like the small note she made about the entire world ready to quote “Put a knife to our throats,” making me very interested in how the regular population of Atlas is handling things at this time. Caroline allows her racism to shine thought and slams the door on their faces when the Weiss reacts in kind to it. And I will say after all the constant criticism of “show don’t tell” we have had in regards to the Faunas discrimination plot line, I’m glad the crew is now constantly reinforcing this fact with small moments like this.

I will also add I love this scene, it feels like it harkens back to the shows lighter tone it had back it had in volume 1 and 2, which considering the amount of heavy stuff in some of these episodes is a greatly appreciated. And sets up the nice punch we get later but I digress. 

Ruby being the best sweet girl she is reminds Weiss of her promise she made in episode one. Which is something I can greatly love because how easy would it have been to just send Weiss with the relic back to Atlas and her family? Fuck that noise Ruby ain’t havin it. (Problem is I worry how the promise will be unintentionally broken though.) Qrow deciding that he has had more than enough of this shit walks off to find a bar, with Ruby trying and failing to get him to stop, and get his shit together, and work together for a different plan. I think I speak for most when I say I’m eagerly waiting for everyone's, more specifically Ruby, to reach a breaking point with Qrow and his drinking problem.

The group goes back and explains everything about Ozpin and Salem off screen, and because I’ve already fucking talked about this shit in my last review I am going to simplify my feelings on the matter quickly:

“____ is valid in their feelings of helplessness of the situation, especially considering everything that has happened so far, but has absolutely no right to treat Ozpin/Oscar terribly for it.”

If you answered that blank with anyone from team RWBY, JNR, or Qrow, congrats they are all correct. And I’m honestly leaving it at that.

Ruby attempts to call Qrow, and probably being drunk off his ass and not giving a fuck he doesn’t answer. Ruby is obviously not handling everything but still trying to keep it together throws the scroll in frustration. Ruby is starting to show her weariness of the situation to Maria who was out there to get away from all the yelling.

“You know you don’t give yourself enough credit.”

“Oh, thanks.”

“That wasn’t a complement.”

  Oh don’t mind me, just enjoying a much needed callout.

Over these last few episode we have seen Ruby slowly start to become more snapish to the group, show more emotional outbursts, and in the case of this scene become harsher on herself. All those emotions she has been locking up is starting to boil over and I feel like we’re going to reach the absolute breaking point for her. Which is severely needed right now because god damn it Ruby allow yourself to be upset, you don’t need to remain strong just because. 

I digress. 

So Maria talks to Ruby about silver eyes. Maria mentions that her father was the one to teach her about it, and that even then she doesn’t have 100% knowledge about the subject (hint hint). Silver eyes, “Shine like mirrors into darkness” and basically can only effect Grimm. Also apparently Maria’s skull mask wasn’t just for being extra, but was also quite a clever cover for her silver eyes because her and her father figured someone was hunting them down, and all I have to say to that is for the love of god don’t do anything to my rose child RT. 

Maria has Ruby recollect all the times she has had her powers react. (Also the kick in of Red Like Roses in the background was just........so beautiful, a quick shout out to Jeff Williams on this regard.)  Ruby recalls that the wanted to protect her friends, and Maria conforms that it is that desire that calls forth the light. And also proceeds to confirm that it is light because when seeing the flashback by Jinn, we were shown the Light God doing the same thing to the grimm. I appreciate the fact that they confirmed this now, rather than holding on to it like they did with the “Penny is a robot” thing. Because some people were already putting two and two together on this regard, and it would have just been annoying to see the plot point flounder around when we all figured out a long time ago. 

Ruby finds it a bit weird that despite the fact that Maria said it only works on grimm, it somehow worked on Cinder. And to Cinder I say:

And hint hint, the group will find out about Cinder’s altercations to her anatomy soon.

The rest of the team comes back to say Oscar has gone missing, I’m glad to see that the group has adopted the appropriate “Oh shit we fucked up faces” because of it.

All in all, I didn’t have too much problems with this episode either. It is another set up episode/ exposition dump sure, but they are a necessary evil sometimes. Especially with how shot some of these episodes can get. So yeah.....uh slightly awkward review on this regard....oh well.

-Tangerine 

[team-crtq]

RWBY volume 6 Episode 6 Review

Hi my name is Mod Cobalt and I love Ruby Rose

And I’m so sorry for how long this is why am I like this

After the Gen:Lock plug that I feared was going to turn into a full “eating away at the episode's run time” trailer, we have Ruby sitting alone on the stairs while WBY, Maria, and Oscar are in the living room by the fire. Qrow is doing what he does best and is drinking himself into a stupor much to Ruby’s dismay. He tells her to let the others know they’ll be leaving first thing tomorrow, sarcastically brushes off her concerns at his well-being, and drinks some more as Ruby walks away.

The scene does what the entire volume has been doing well: showing more clearly than ever that Ruby is having a harder time remaining cheerful and it’s getting worse as their journey progresses. It also reminds us all that Qrow’s drinking habits aren’t just meant to be a quirky personality trait that makes him say and do funny stuff sometimes. 

Cut to Maria reading the diaries of the deceased farm-owner names Bartleby, a reference to the story “Bartleby the Scrivener,” about an office worker who becomes increasingly lethargic and unwilling to do his work until he dies of starvation because he didn’t want to eat. Maria recounts that the farm faced numerous hardships, many stemming from Grimm attacks. Then Ruby comes in and tells them all they’ll be leaving in the morning so they should get some rest. WBY and Oscar do just that while Maria brushes Ruby off because she’s a strong, independent grandma who doesn’t need a kid telling her what to do. Ruby smiles at her childish defiance and I’m already invested in the developing mentor-student relationship to come. 

This scene is mostly foreshadowing with a little personality development for Maria and showcasing Ruby as a leader. I’ve always gotta hand it to CRWBY on how creative their references can get. They may not be subtle, finding out the source of a name or connecting a story allusion has long been one of my favorite parts of RWBY. 

And suddenly it’s morning. Ruby is startled awake by Qrow’s empty booze bottle hitting the floor and has to take a few seconds to compose herself. She opens the blinds and tries to shake Qrow awake, saying they overslept. Qrow refuses to wake up though and Ruby finally has enough. She angrily throws his empty bottle at the wall, waking him up. But it takes only a few seconds for her to calm down and hugs Qrow, telling him that she and Yang are there for him if he ever wants to talk and Qrow, again, brushes off her concerns, 

This is....everything I’ve been wanting since volume 3 ended. While we don’t know what Ruby was dreaming of exactly this time, the shot of her waking up reminded me a lot of a similar scene in volume 4 where she dreamed of Pyrrha’s death. She stares at the bottle of alcohol and realizes that she probably can’t rely on Qrow to come swooping in and save the day like he did in volume 4 either. 

And about the part where Ruby hugs him, I don’t think it’s cute. For me personally, it’s uncomfortable and sad because Ruby shouldn’t have to be doing this. Qrow is a grown man and Ruby is a 17 year old girl. I understand that Qrow is going dealing with some bad shit and it’s been going on for years, but that’s what makes it sad. He’s suppose to be the one taking charge and reassuring his niece that he’s always there if she needs to talk. He should have been the one to wake up first and tell the others to get moving since it was his idea in the first place; but he’s sleeping and hungover and pushes Ruby away. And looking more at Ruby, she only allowed herself a brief moment of anger before calming down and immediately forgiving and consoling her uncle. She has the right to be angry at their situation and at Qrow, but she pushes down her emotions and doesn’t deal with them properly, which is just as bad of a coping mechanism as Qrow’s. It’s just.....not a cute moment in my eyes. I didn’t go aaaawwww when I saw it. 

Moving on from that, we’re now outside as the group is fixing up Yang’s bike to attach the trailer bed to it. Qrow’s semblance blows out the trailer bed’s tire and everyone wants to go back to bed. Ruby attempts to bring morale back up but WBY and Oscar are tired of having to fight all the time and don’t understand why they’re still going to Atlas when there’s seemingly no point. It escalates to the point where Yang tells Ruby that no matter what they do, Salem and crew will eventually find the relics. Why keep the relic with them when they could throw it down the well and be done with the whole thing right then and there? Ruby, realizing that she’s tired too, goes to do just that. She looks down the well, ready to finally be done with this journey and go home, when she catches a flash of red eyes down the well that throw her out of her stupor. She drops the lamp in her panic but none of the others seem to care. She adamantly refuses to leave without the lamp and WBY reluctantly agrees to go down and look with her. Qrow is huffy and instead of going down with his nieces to make sure they’re safe or even helping Oscar fix the tire, he goes to drink more. 

I’ll talk more about this scene at the end of the review but it’s fuckin great. 

And team RWBY enters the tunnel from the well. They walk around, Blake suggests they turn off their phone lights to look for the glow, and we cut between them and Maria as Maria reads more of Bartleby’s diary and discovers he locked up a bunch of Grimm in the tunnels called the Apathy. Cue Ruby encountering the Apathy in the sewers, her screams waking WBY from their stupor. Maria jumps down the well and the group runs away from the Apathy, who are able to make them so lethargic they can’t move. They find their way to the cellar door entrance from the last episode but are attacked with another wave of apathy before they can open it. Ruby panics when Blake is almost killed, her Silver Eyes go off, and Maria helps her intentionally activate them. The Apathy are defeated, the group escapes dragging a drunk off his ass Qrow along, and Maria reveals she used to have Silver Eyes.

This was very good. The Apathy Grimm were genuinely terrifying and the entire chase through the sewers felt intense and heart-pounding. 

We also now understand that Silver Eyes are not powered by anger, fear, or panic. They are powered by intense love for life and the need to protect it. We already know that Ruby loves her friends and family and wants to protect them, but the understanding that this is a trait most likely shared by all Silver Eyed Warriors gives us a little more insight on what Maria and even Summer are like as people. AND SILVER EYE LORE AND TRAINING FINALLY

Next, it’s obviously by now that the Apathy are also meant to serve as a metaphor for the dilemma the group has been going through. “Why are we doing this?” “What’s the point if Salem’s immortal anyway?” “If we give up now it won’t make much of a difference.” “It would be so much easier to just go home.”

And the answer is given in the form of Maria showing Ruby how to use her eyes, and in Ruby herself. “Life is beautiful, it is precious, and it must be protected.” This statement is something the Silver Eyed Warriors live by and it’s what keeps Ruby going. It’s why she’s the last to be affected and the first to snap out of it. She wants to give up just like the rest do, but she can’t because life, her family, and her friends are too precious for her to just give up on. It’s what she’s meant to do. 

This episode is one of the best CRWBY have put out. Let’s hope he latter half of volume 6 is just as good. 

[team-crtq]

RWBY Volume 6 Episode 4 Review

*Kicks down door*

I’m back bitches! While we have a shorter episode to look at today we still got a bit of ground to cover, as well as a source of discourse, yay.

So lets get started with discourse! We start off with Yang going after Ozpin once more for hiding facts from them, obviously far to angry with him to notice him crying over his loss on the ground. (Sorry but I’m going to be harping on this point, because holy shit did I have issues with quite a few members of this group this episode.) Ruby despite being angry herself asks a very simple question, “What is your plan to beat Salem?” Oz answers honestly, he doesn’t have one, and thus reviling what is probably his biggest secret to the group. Effectively he doesn’t have a way to stop Salem, his plan seems to be more or less put everything into a stalemate until he can do what the Light God’s request was. Qrow, reacts to this by punching him and telling him that “Meeting him was the worst luck of his life.” Ozpin, after the dog-piling, hides himself in Oscar’s mind (honestly understandably so).

So, before I move on with the rest of this scene, lets go ahead and talk about the Ozpin vs QRWBY thing. Here’s the thing, I do understand where QRWBY’s frustration comes from in regards to Ozpin hiding shit from them. Especially seeing as this particular fight started with him hiding the fact the relic can attract Grimm, which to me was probably a mildly ridiculous issue to hide. I see his reasoning for that one to a certain extent, but he had to have known this fact was going to come up sooner or later and it would have been better if he told them all this fact when tensions were a fuck ton lower. Because funny enough in his effort to lower the negativity in the group, he made it worse with this action, and gave the group the straw that breaks the camel’s back so to speak.

HOWEVER QRWBY’s reaction to seeing everything in regards to Salem was overboard, again considering the man was on the ground crying about everything he had lost in the past probably millennia. Particularly Qrow and Yang for me. Now Qrow, again, I understand to a certain extent, his entire purpose in life was just thrown out the window in his perspective. But him punching Oscar and then more or less effectively telling him that he isn’t his own person, just to try and make a jab a person who may not even be listening is a extremely new low. And I see Yang as being a bit hypocritical about hiding things, considering she knows who the real spring maiden is, and the fact that she seems to be refusing to talk to Blake about their own issues. (And don’t give me that crap about how they’re totally fine now, they aren’t. Avoidance can be just as bad as outright anger on this subject.) And it seems to me that she still has a lot growing to do in regards to handling her anger issues. Like I said, I get the groups frustration, but god dammit there is frustration and then there is just being outright horrible. They more or less justified why Ozpin has the tendency to hide things to begin with though their actions. Why he has trust issues, and has slowly started to lose faith in humanity. This particular subject is far from over, and if I had to hazard a guess, things will only get worse before they get better.

Holy fuck I’ve only covered the first 3 minutes of this episode. Maria steps in and effectively tells everyone they need to calm their tits. She mentions that she was reeling a bit from some of the revelations, I would have liked to have seen that rather than told that. Like a quick shot of her standing in shock while the rest of the group rounded on Ozpin would have been a nice touch, (that and would show me a better reason why she didn’t step in a bit sooner like say when Qrow was punching Oscar, but I digress.) She proceeds to point out a trail to the group and says they should get a move on or they’ll likely die out in the cold. (Also I enjoy the “take no crap even from a pissed off Yang” Maria, I have a feeling those two will be constantly on each others case and I’m all for that.) Ruby actually tries to comfort Oscar but it gets ruined by Qrow (again low) showing us that Ruby is probably one of the few, if not, the only member of the group who seems to view Oscar as separate from Ozpin. (Someone give this poor boy a hug, because god damn)

We cut to Hazel, Mercury, and Emerald all flying back to Salem’s base. At least we’re now shown their exact mode of transportation to creepy dark land. Though it does make me wonder if Ozpin or Salem has tried to hide the place from the rest of the world in some way. I wouldn’t mind a bit of explanation in regards to the place, and why more hunters don’t stumble on to it. (Oh hi Tyrian, I really didn’t miss your creepy ass.) Tyrian greets the group by taunting them about a missing Cinder. Emerald obviously still very upset from the presumed death of Cinder reacts in kind, and of course this backfires because Tyrian is fucking Tyrian. (I really want to know what the fuck caused him to become this unhinged because lordy). Though it was nice to see Mercury standing up for Emerald all things considered, still as thick as thieves so to speak (also shipping, enjoy). We proceed to Salem questioning exactly who was the main person responsible for their failure at Haven. Hazel attempts to take full responsibility for this, in what I would guess is his way of trying to protect Emerald and Mercury from Salem’s wrath, because later when Salem starts goes batshit he physically drags Emerald out as well. This shows me that despite it all Hazel has a somewhat good heart, it’s just buried underneath the need for revenge against Ozpin, and call it a hunch but this will probably be a reoccurring theme in regards to Hazel.

Salem of course isn’t buying Hazel’s acceptance of blame, and reacts by restraining him with familiar grimm arms that we’ve seen from the opening (pray for Qrow and Ruby everyone). We also get to see some decent manipulation on Salem’s part against Emerald, and to an extent everyone else working for her, though the use of fear. Considering how I mentioned in my fatal flaw post about Emerald is that she is far too loyal to Cinder for her own good, this is probably to set Emerald’s loyalties to Salem. Salem mentions everyone working with her will get what they want, but if they put their own desires before hers, well......I think Hazel’s position in that scene can speak for itself. I will mention that I would like to know exactly how she knows Cinder is alive, like there are a few possibles I can think of, but still a conformation would be nice. 

Hazel confirms that the group is going to Atlas and that Ozpin has reincarnated. Salem reacts with rage/despair (I guess) which I will say is kinda nice to see considering for the last few volumes she’s been constantly seen as this calm cool and collected individual. Having her react in a somewhat human way especially considering we now know why she is the way she is kinda needed every here and there.

We cut back to the group walking along the trail to hopefully find place to stay during the storm. Again I do hope the Maria and Yang thing is going to be a constant (because frankly someone should call Yang out). They manage to find a well intact town, which is kinda strange due to how empty it is (likely a point that will get talked about next episode). And that’s kinda all for I got to say for this scene, because it was more or less just a ending point for the next episode to begin off of honestly. 

I guess my biggest two criticisms with this particular episode would have to be there are a few instances of “Show don’t tell” and the reoccurring theme of last volume of having a episode of mostly just talking but considering the information we got last episode I can let it slide a little, but I do hope it becomes a more here and there kind of thing especially considering where they are at right now. (It does make me exited for the next few episodes though because a conflict like this in the past has typically been more towards the middle of the volumes rather than the beginning)

-Tangerine

[team-crtq]

RWBY Volume 6 Episode 2 Review

Sometimes you watch an episode that reminds you why you love this series with all your heart and soul. An exaggeration? Probably. But this is my review so I can say what I want. I am so sorry for the length of my rambling. 

Our episode begins with Cinder who is, to the surprise of no one, not actually dead and crawling her way our of the pool underneath the relic chamber. She’s powerless, weak, and nursing a seriously bruised ego. She manages to crack open the side of the cliff and punches her way out. Then as she struggles to stand and move, an innocent woman stops near her and asks if she needs help. Cinder then proceeds to kill her and steal her clothes. 

 This scene was short, to the point, and did a pretty good job of showing of Cinder’s condition without her having to say a word. I do have a slight problem with how easy it was for her to break open the cave wall, not a very good hiding spot if people can crack it open like an egg, Oz, but it doesn’t bother me all that much. 

The next scene is a flashback to Haven with team RWBYJNR. Qrow explains that Oz wants them to go to Atlas for the next relic and tells them about their destination in Argus, a trading port/military base that hasn’t been shut down by Ironwood and the group’s best shot at getting into Atlas. Ozcar enters the scene and explains the newly acquired relic’s function. Supposedly. The lamp is able to answer three questions about the past or present every one hundred years. Oz says that the wishes have already been used up years ago before he sealed it away and the lamp is basically just a re-sizable paperweight now.

This scene is mostly set up and exposition. Explaining why the group is going to Argus, what the relic does, and how Ozpin is addicted to lying. Despite the scene being one of RWBY’s infamous sitting around and talking scenes, it was nice. There were good jokes, Nora was as lovable as always, and it never felt like the scene was dragging on. 

Next is a direct cut from Ruby telling Oz they’ll keep the relic safe to Ruby finding the relic abandoned in the snow. Good job, guys. Yang complains about the crash and their new defenseless team grandma, to which defenseless team grandma responds by introducing herself as Maria Calavera, a blind woman who’s goggles are in need of repair. Qrow tells Yang to knock it off, which prompts Blake and the rest to confront Oz about the fact that the relic attracts grimm. Ozpin claims he didn’t lie to them, he just left the information out to halt unneeded panic. They interrogate him further, he digs his heels, things escalate and Oz explains that he’s been manipulated and betrayed so many times he doesn’t trust very many people and his reasons for keeping his secrets may be hard to understand, but they are sound. 

Cutting this scene in half to talk about it because HOO BOY. First small bit is about Maria. My two theories, which I’m sure are not original, are that overuse, or maybe just use in general, of the Silver Eyes causes the user to go blind over time. My second is that Salem or someone from Salem’s council blinded Maria which may have affected her ability to use her Silver Eyes. This is all assuming she has Silver Eyes but come on. 

My next point is Ozpin. Oh Ozpin. My opinion? He isn’t evil guys. He’s not a scumbag who’s manipulating team RWBY to do his bidding, he’s not waiting in the shadows to stab them in the back. BUT, he isn’t blameless either. Ozpin is a man who firmly believes his own bullshit. He’s been betrayed who knows how many times, he has made horrible mistakes that he feels deep shame for, and he’s told himself time and time again that he keeps his secrets because he alone deserves to burden himself with them. I don’t think the guy is intentionally being malicious, he’s just really fucking terrified to let others know about the things he’s done. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: he’s just a man. He’s a scared man who’s flawed and human just like the rest of them. What he’s been doing may be wrong but that doesn’t make him evil. And of course that doesn’t mean you have to like him. 

That was a lot of rambling for what essentially boils down to “stop trying to make everything these characters do black and white, RWBY Fandom.”  

Moving on! In the second half of the scene, Oz realizes he doesn’t have the relic on his waist. Good job, guys. Ruby shows him that she has the relic, but hesitates to give it back to him because of the things that he’s said and the build up of all the lies that he’s told. And then, Oscar takes back control of his body and struggles to tell RWBY that Oz was again lying about the relic. He says to say her name to summon her, Ruby does, revealing the entity inside of the relic: a genie named Jinn. Jinn reveals that she is still able to answer 2 questions, another fact Oz omitted, and Ruby asks to know what Ozpin is hiding from them. Ozpin yells and moves to tackle Ruby who is whisked away just in time to an illusion created by Jinn. The episode cuts off after Jinn reveals that the blonde woman from the intro is, in fact, Salem. 

Now this is what I’ve been wanting to talk about. Ruby fucking Rose. Two episodes in and it’s already apparent that MK intend to keep their promise about this volume giving us more Ruby focus. I just...really love this moment with Ruby. I’ve actually said this before on a post, but what was interesting to me is how when asks to hand the relic back, Ruby doesn’t focus on Oz and his lies. She focuses on his newly shown distrust in humanity. Ozpin has always said, throughout every volume, that humanity is worth protecting and is a wonderful thing to be cherished. And then in this episode he reveals that he doesn’t believe his own words. 

“So all those times you talked about having faith in humanity, that was just for everyone else?” 

I think that his conviction was something that kept Ruby going, at least in part. She’s able to push through the pain and the fear and the hardships because what they are doing is worth it. Humanity is something to worth saving. And then she hears the man that’s always given her that hope say with his own mouth that he’s been so betrayed by humanity that he doesn’t trust anyone. I think that was her catalyst for questioning him. And this questioning spurred her on to defy him and summon Jinn and demand answers about what else he’s hiding from them. I love Ruby Rose and I loved this episode. 

I almost forgot about Cinder’s second scene. Damn. This scene takes place in between Jinn’s reveal and Ruby’s question, but cutting that chunk of text up will just make this review longer than it needs to be so just bear with me. Cinder makes her way to the Mistral black market and enlisted the aid of Little Miss Malachite to find team RWBYJNR. Little Miss agrees and as Cinder walks away, it’s revealed that she was already asked about the group by Hazel, but Little Miss didn’t mention it to Cinder because she was curious to see who would be looking for Cinder, implying, at least to me, Neo. 

This scene did a good job showing Cinder’s mental state. She’s on her own and with nothing to show Salem if she went back to her, her mind goes straight to her developing obsession with the RWBYJNR kids and her desperation to make Ruby and Jaune pay for her humiliation. She’s also incredibly jumpy and paranoid, a lot like volume 4 Blake. Cindy’s not doing so hot guys. 

This episode was very good. None of the exposition scenes felt boring or unnecessary, it gave great characterization to Ozpin, Ruby, and Cinder, and finally started to give us some answers for questions we’ve been asking for years. And also Salem (holy shit finally), big tiddy genie gf, Maria is just hanging out and learning about Ozpin’s secrets faster than anyone in the group has been able to, and I feel so bad for Qrow right now. The effects in the episode, especially the snow, rain, and the smoke, were fantastic and I applaud the comp team for their hard work. And the rest of the CRWBY too, this season is shaping up to be truly fantastic and I’m so excited t see the rest.

-Cobalt 

[team-crtq]

RWBY Volume 6 Episode 1 Review

Mod Quartz here for the usual weekly RWBY reviews!

So we begin the episode with an establishing shot of what I can only assume to be the outskirts of northern Mistral, with team RWBY fighting off a flock of Manticore Grimm on a moving train, the first onscreen kill belonging to Ruby. We get a fight scene right out of the gate, akin to the Petra Gigas fight we had back in Volume 4. Is it as flawed as the Petra Gigas fight? Hm...Yes and no.

The second part of this fight is kind of slow with Team JNPR shooting/cutting the Grimm where the weapons lack a certain impact to them. For Nora, I would suggest maybe making the boom from her weapons much louder to emulate the force it’s suppose to have and to have Ren’s pistols cause more recoil to really sell the idea that his weapon is effective at long range. I will say that the slam that Nora and Ren perform was effective, albeit slow for my tastes. However the first part of the fight is actually pretty well animated. Ruby quickly cuts up the Grimm with her scythe, Weiss ice skates on her Glyphs (nice touch) while blasting two Grimm with her Semblance and Yang + Blake both take down a Manticore with Blake restraining it while Yang blasts through it. Though the light joke at the end does have an issue with me considering a latter event.

The scene ends as everyone races to get into the train as a tunnel approaches, with Ruby saving Weiss from falling due to a Grimm attack and she races them both into the train. The next scene is our establishing shot of Adam for the Volume, where we hear about the White Fang shaming Adam, the attempts to stop him from claiming the throne and the following massacure all while we see the aftermath. We get Adam brooding about Blake and then he cuts his own throne and screams. ... Yeah, not much to talk about here. It’s about as effective as it can be so nothing here to really try to help improve.

Then we move onto a time before the opening, with Qrow writing a letter to Ironwood basically summing up the aftermath of Volume 5. Long story short: The Fanaus of Meangire along with Ghira got credit, Salem’s forces got away and Qrow says Lionheart protected his school instead of betraying them. That last one is actually pretty interesting along with Qrow’s body language, indicating that he either can’t believe that Lionheart would have betrayed them like that or that he doesn’t feel comfortable telling Ironwood the truth. Nice little touch.

Then, the focus tags from Qrow to Ruby as we get a proper glimpse at the Mistral train station, which is oddly vibrant and busy looking. We then see Ruby her Semblance to zoom through the station, weaving through the citizens to get to where her friends are. We then cut to Ruby smiling widely at her friends as she reveals that she had bought some souviners from Mistral. Weiss bites about how it was a waste while Yang excitedly asks for her gift (which Ruby denies her access), a small little sibling spat happens and Nora excitedly talks about going to their destination Argus, leading to a small image spot with Ren being half naked with a beach ball (Yes please) before panning down to Ren with an imaginary beach ball (that pops into nothing) while he comments that they probably can’t go to the beach.

Here I’d like stop and talk about two things here. The first is the anime-esque tropes like the lines around the bag Ruby revealed and the image spot of Ren. Personally, I don’t like these as I‘m use to RT not doing this short of thing. But I will admit that a lot of people seem to enjoy them so I have to say that them being here isn’t a bad thing (though the jokes should be used sparingly.) Second is the movement of the effects. Before with the Grimm fight, we saw Nora blast a Grimm which explodes into a cloud of smoke while the image spot with Ren and the fake beach ball disappear with a similar effect. It’s a lot like the smoke effects you’d see in Breath Of The Wild, except they’re a bit more...vibrant and stand out. I have to say, I never though I’d enjoy these kinds of effects in RWBY but the animators proved me wrong.

We get a small moment with Weiss being upset over returning to Atlas, prompting Ruby to offer her words of support and encouragement (making Weiss smile) as we get a duo of Huntsmen approaching, offering to give the group extra protection in the Grimm territory for a fee. While this is scummy...the Hunstmen profession was established to have a shady side before that we haven’t really seen until now. These guys aren’t suppose to be likeable (considering how the character’s react to them, Qrow bluntly humiliating them and being treated as a nuisance) but it’s good to see follow through with the established idea.

We now move into Illa and Blake, essentially informing us that the Fanaus’ actions against the White Fang really did work as things are beginning to change in Mistral as Blake tells Illa to work with the progress they’ve made now, proving Illa’s previous attitude wrong. They hug as Illa says she’s gonna miss Blake while she affirms that she needs to be there for her team, shutting down the people who were behind Haven and Beacon. Illa alludes to Sun and speak of the devil, the best support character makes his appearance saying how he wouldn’t miss Blake’s big send off...only from Neptune to pop up and rat him out for almost over sleeping.

Neptune scolds Sun and then goes to hit on Illa (I’d pay to see that scene) and Blake and Sun have a touching farewell as Sun basically says what every great support character must do (”I go where I am needed. And you don’t need me anymore”) while also playfully jabbing at his...less than stellar record as a leader. And with that we leave the train station.

On the train we have some fun little banter within the team before Blake goes out of her way to try and help Yang, obviously due to her guilt at leaving Yang. Because of this, Yang tells her that while she needs time to forgive Blake, she’s glad she’s there. Which...kind of conflicts with her attitude earlier with Blake where she joked with Blake like nothing is wrong. And the opening at the end shows that Yang and Blake will have issues in the Volume. It might just be me but a split second shot of Yang looking away with a conflicted look on her face would have helped sell this idea a bit more.

After Qrow threatens to whoop some ass in video games, the Manticore and Sphinx Grimm from the opening shot attack, forcing the Team RWBY and Qrow (along with the Huntsmen duo from before named Dee and Dudley) to race onto the top of the trains. From there we see the duo fend off some Grimm before Dee gets grabbed by a Manticore and flies off with him. From then, Team RWBY fight the Grimm in the battle we saw earlier.

The scene cuts to Oscar watching the fight from inside the train before running off to join the battle, briefly bumping into JNR as they go to join the fight as well. Back at the fight, the team is cutting through the lesser Maticores with easily while keeping the Grimm away from the passengers. That is, until Dudley activates the train’s turrets which, while enough to kill stray Manticores, just annoyed the Sphinx, causing it to command the lesser Grimm to attack and destroy them. And guess which cars the passengers are located on? Yeah.

Oscar, at the behest of Qrow, tries to get him to shut off the turrets but the dummy refuses since he doesn’t see an issue with endangering the passengers so long as the Grimm get killed. Then, suddenly the Sphinx withdraws slowly into tehe sky, it’s comrades following suit. This confuses everyone until Oscar notices the tunnel approaching, screaming out his warning before retreating. Dudley also retreats but had the misfortune of having his arm outstretched when the tunnel wall hit and-...Let’s just say it’s a good thing Aura exists.

Now inside the train, the group run into an almost empty car where Dudley and Oscar are as the former is grunting and crying about his broken arm. Qrow brashly walks up to him, picks him up and slams him against the wall as he berates the man for not turning off the turrets. The two argue in the background as Ruby looks out the window to see the Grimm approaching from within the tunnel, turns to the passengers in the other car then finally to the two grown ass adults arguing. With a deep breath, Ruby pushes her uncle aside and calmly asks him to turn off the turrets, with Jaune supporting her as he helps heal his arm. And that ladies and gentlemen is how you show leadership.

Nora then suggests that Ren use his Semblance to mask the emotions of everyone on board in order to escape the Grimm, with Ruby pointing out how Jaune can allow Ren to pull off such a feat. But just as things look up, Ozpin butts in and reveals that the Relic, not just the people, are attracting the Grimm. Weiss, Blake, Yang and even QROW call Ozpin out on his shit for not speaking up sooner. Ozpin tries to defend himself but Ruby defuses the situation, telling everyone how it doesn’t matter now and how they need to act. So the plan is revised: Team JNR will stay with the passengers in the front cars while RWBY, Qrow and Oscar/Ozpin keep the Grimm occupied as the cut off the back cars and make their way to Argus on foot. ... Yeah, the Relic thing is blatantly an in universe way for the cast to be spilt to address the complaints of focus. I’m not offend of this new rule...but I can’t think of a better way to handle this without cutting JNR out for a long stretch of time (which would just create more issues) so I’ll let it pass.

Jaune and Ruby share a few words as Ruby assures her counterpart that they’ll meet again and they enact their plan. The passengers are all herded into the front cars by JNR (along with a shot of an old woman with mechanical eyes), Blake cuts off the front cars (with a  shot of her hallucinating Adam from the Black Trailer after the deed is done) and just as the Grimm reach the back Ruby orders JNR to cloak the train and Oscar watches as it rides away into the snow. From there on, the team make swift work of the remaining lesser Grimm, Ruby taking two out in quick succession to Yang beating one down with little effort as Qrow engages the Sphinx leader. A nice little moment is when Oscar struggles against one Manticore, Weiss trips another airborne one up and Ruby launches it at the first, knocking them both away.

With the small fry done, the team focus their efforts on the final one, the Sphinx. They take it down through Blake and Yang tying it down, Weiss freezing it’s wings and Qrow and Ruby shattering them with a single shot before simultaneously cutting it in half as it charges up a fireball. But alas, the Sphinx launches the fireball, blasting the tracks and causing their half of the train to derail with them only surviving due to Weiss’ quick thinking. The episode ends with Qrow asking everyone if their okay after they all land in the snow...including the old woman from before who nonchalantly walks out of the derailed train cars. Only time will tell if this new addition helps or hinders the show.

Overall, its probably the best opening of a Volume alongside Volume 2. While it did have a few issues here and there, it was most certainly a solid episode with vastly improved backgrounds and character models (something I didn’t even think was possible at this point) along with more than a few really cool action shots. Though only in time will we know if this is indicative of what is to come or not.

Until next time friends!

[team-crtq]

Volume 6 Expectations

In anticipation of volume 6 coming out in less than two weeks and the recent trailer that came out we’ve decided to compile a list of our hopes and possible fixes for this season. 

1. Ruby development

This is probably the most obvious one to point out. While the four of us have said before that we believe Ruby has gotten development over the course of the show, it has not been nearly enough for it not to be a problem. A big thing about Ruby’s character is that she holds her emotions in and puts on a facade of being cheerful and levelheaded. The problem is that at some point you need to show us what’s happening on the other side for the audience to truly understand what she’s feeling. We’ve gotten hints, but nothing substantial enough to be satisfactory. 

2. The bee talk

And not just because of shipping. It’s obvious to everyone, even those who don’t ship it, that Yang and Blake have some unresolved issues that need to be addressed between them. They may have reconciled a little after the battle at Haven, but Yang’s anger at Blake’s departure is still there, as is Blake’s paranoia about getting her team hurt. 

3. The fight scenes

This point explains itself, really. Like we’ve said in previous posts, the fight choreography in RWBY has taken a big dip in quality for obvious reasons. We hope that CRWBY has taken these criticisms to heart and done their best to improve the action for volume 6.

4. Salem and Ozpin

We know....almost next to nothing about Salem or Ozpin’s origins. Why does Salem have a personal grudge against him? Why was Ozpin cursed to never die? Where did either of them come from? Also some clarification on Ozpin as a whole. Is he really just a man who tries to do his best to help humanity? Or is he only in this to satisfy his own ends? Kerry said at the NYCC panel this year that volume 6 will answer a lot of long-standing questions the show has brought up, we hope that these two are included at least somewhat. 

5. Summer Rose

It’s been close to 6 years and we don’t even know what her full outfit looks like. 

There are more things we hope will be improved upon in the coming volume, but these are the biggest points we’d like to make. I’m personally incredibly excited for volume 6 and can’t wait to see where this amazing show takes us next!

- Cobalt

[team-crtq]

I noticed you guys haven't done a Weiss fatal flaws post and I was wondering if there was one planned. Also, what are you guys looking forward to in volume 6? Thanks for all your insights! :)

Hm…

At the every least, I have never thought of it myself. Maybe we could make one.

As for Volume 6: I’m hoping for some Ruby development.

-Quartz

[team-crtq]

I think a Weiss post was in development but never got finished. It’d be a good idea to make one.

For vol 6 I’m really looking forward to Ruby development, Ozpin lore, and literally anything about Summer please.

- Cobalt

[team-crtq]

Looking forward to Volume 6!

Weiss’s fatal flaws is in development. It’s just a bit harder to pinpoint a single one to use for her because her’s is much more complex than the others.

- Regalia

[team-crtq]

I noticed you guys haven't done a Weiss fatal flaws post and I was wondering if there was one planned. Also, what are you guys looking forward to in volume 6? Thanks for all your insights! :)

Hm…

At the every least, I have never thought of it myself. Maybe we could make one.

As for Volume 6: I’m hoping for some Ruby development.

-Quartz

[team-crtq]

I think a Weiss post was in development but never got finished. It'd be a good idea to make one.

For vol 6 I'm really looking forward to Ruby development, Ozpin lore, and literally anything about Summer please.

- Cobalt