Hey, everyone.
Before I get into my critique and review, I have a special announcement regarding my RWBY posts. After December, I'm going to take a break from writing about RWBY. I've ridden the show hard the past five or six months, and it's given as good as it's gotten. As a result, I need a break from it. Seriously, I bleed red, white, black, and yellow. I feel like I live the show. I don't know how long my break will be, but I may still sporadically post RWBY Speculations here or there, they just won't be regular. However, before I go on my break, I will finish writing my critique and review series for Volume 5 including a full review of Volume 5 in general. I'm also going to finish uploading the edited chapters for RWBY: The Novelization from Volume 2, and I will finish A RWBY Christmas Carol as well. Then, there will be my break. But do not weep. I will have a special gift for all you alls come Christmas. Now, the critique.
Critique
Scene 1: Recruiting
What I Liked: Alright, so not much happens in this episode, and we're left with more questions than answers, which is all right because I'm in a rush, and I've got a bum finger this week. But there was only thing to like about this scene and that was that Lanipator, a member of Team Four Star, the VA for Dragon Ball Z Abridged's Vegeta and Piccolo, voiced a character this episode. At first, I thought it was Jack, don't ask me why, but I'm glad to see it was actually Lanipator. I wonder if he's a RWBY fan and how he got on the show. Plus, his character looks a little like Piccolo.
What Could've Been Better: So, I didn't really understand the significance behind Qrow paying Shiro's debt. Was it because of his debt that he was doing a job and that's why he was away, or was he simply away to escape his debt? And is that the reason why he wasn't around/taking his time with a job? It could've been explained better.
Questions/Insights: Now, this scene leaves us with three questions. 1. How much is a lien? Shiro's debt sounded exorbitant, but Qrow was able to pay it off with a single card, so how much lien comes to a card? This is one of those world building elements that the show has never really fleshed out, and it really is sort of a bummer because I do feel like we're missing something. 2. Were all those huntsmen really out on jobs? One said the job was terminated a week ago, whatever that means. That could mean the huntsman is dead, the job is over, or the job was deleted, but most likely it means the huntsman is dead. And I have to wonder, are all those hunstmen really out on jobs, or has something more sinister happened to them? 3. And finally, with Shiro's name cleared, will we be seeing him again? Will he show up at the end of the volume and save Qrow's bacon along with Piccolo? It seems that way.
Scene 2: The "Truth"
What I Liked: So, this was the bulkiest scene in the episode, and probably the least satisfying, for me anyways. But there were still some good stuff about it such as when Weiss told Raven that she's really annoying or when Yang defended her father and Qrow. But, one of the really good things about this scene is that Raven didn't lie to Weiss and Yang; she told them exactly what we know. And she didn't even put a spin on it. Another thing I liked was we got to find out that Raven can also transform herself, her and Qrow's abilities are magic, and we got to find out why Raven and Qrow joined Beacon. All pretty good reveals, but they weren't the orgasmic revelations I was hoping for. But there was one last great thing about this scene and that was when Raven made the Terminator reference when she said of Salem, "she can't be stopped, she can't be reasoned with, and she will never rest until humanity crumbles at her feet."
What Could've Been Better: Now, this scene has a lot of problems, or at least it's the scene with the most problems starting with the table on which they're served their tea. It is far too high off the ground for people sitting on the floor. And why was Raven pushing the tea so hard to begin with? Don't get me wrong, I love tea, but what was her deal? Was it drugged? And I don't recall team RWBY ever getting into trouble and Oz turning a blind eye. The only time that really happened was the food fight. Other than that though, team RWBY has cleaned up every other mess that they either started or fell in to. So Raven can cram it.
But there are two big problems with this scene: 1. Predictably, Raven's attitude to the situation of the Grimm and Salem is one of despair rather than one of fighting back like Qrow's. Which of course begs the question, why does Qrow fight and she doesn't? Does he know something she doesn't, or is he just more hopeful? 2. Yang and Weiss didn't ask the real relevant question to Raven's revelation. Yang did want to ask how and why, but the really important question is so what? Why does it matter? Why does it matter that Ozpin manipulated the system to put himself in charge? If Ozpin is a good man and has never led Yang or Weiss astray, why would they side with Raven over Qrow? Besides which, by being reunited with Qrow, they can hear another version of the story that likely isn't as bitter as Raven's version and ergo, will have more truth in it. But I will let Yang and Weiss off the hook for not catching this because they are only 18. I wouldn't have caught on to that when I was 18.
Questions/Insights: So, thanks to the reveal that Yang has seen Raven in bird form elsewhere, we now have to ask ourselves, where else has Yang seen Raven? Where and when? And why was Raven there? We also have to deal with the tricky question of, is there a noticeable difference in forms between Qrow's and Raven's because that will make it much easier to spot her. Also, is Qrow's crow form how he was able to spy on Salem? Because I don't know about you, but there's not much around Salem's Evil Castle to hide behind if you're a spy. But, the real question we have to ask is what will Yang and Weiss do once they find out that Raven was telling truth when they talk to Oz/Oscar? I don't think they'll leave, but Yang could be awfully confused and the next time she meets her mother, she might be quite hesitant to fight her.
Scene 3: Sisters
What I Liked: Ah! At last, another reunion. Actually, I was surprised it happened so soon. I didn't think Yang and Weiss were going to get out of that bandit camp. I thought they were going to be prisoners or forced to help them until they ran into Qrow, Oscar, and RNJR down the line. But it's all good.
What Could've Been Better: There are two things that bothered me about this scene. The first is the joke about Ruby overcooking the meat. Why was this joke in there? I thought it pointless, especially if it was only there to build tension. And secondly, I am bothered that Weiss needed an invite to join the hug. It bothers me how long that hug went on between Ruby and Yang before Weiss joined. And it does bother me a little that Weiss hugged them both rather than just Ruby. I wanted Weiss to give Ruby a hug like she gave Yang, but 10x more forceful. They were partners after all.
Questions/Insights: There's only question that I have about this scene: who's going to clean up all that broken tea ware? Was it necessary for Ruby to drop it in the first place? First they cook all the food and now they can't drink tea. What a waste.
Well, this episode wasn't terrible like Chapter 5, but it wasn't super great either. I would say it was full of schmaltz and confusion. It kind of felt like another transition episode like we got last week, but at the least something definitive happened this week. And there were warm feels, but still... meh.
It's actually quite strange now that I think about how strongly this volume started and how it seems to be losing steam now in the middle of the season. Part of me wants to say the volume isn't paced right, but another part of me wants to say, hang on a second mate, you can't say that until you see where this is heading. That's one of the biggest problems with episodic releases of a story; you're never sure about pacing until you can see the whole thing altogether. But the good news is that we haven't gotten a World of Remnant episode yet, and we probably won't, which is exciting because if they continue pumping out Volume 5 like they are, the season will be over before the end of December. And that's great. But, that's it for now.
Keep writing, my friends.
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