I’ll admit I’ve been a fan of Red VS. Blue and some of Roosterteeth’s work for a few years. During
the release of Season 10 of Red VS. Blue,
I noticed a trailer on the Roosterteeth website called RWBY. I watched the trailer and I saw a girl with a red hood
killing wolves with a scythe/gun combo weapon. My first impression was, “a girl
fighting wolves? What is this?!?!” I thought it was weird but then later there
were more trailers being released, the white, black, and yellow trailers. My
impression was more favorable toward RWBY
after seeing the yellow trailer but I still didn’t know what to expect. It wasn’t
until July 18th, 2013 that I watched the pilot episode and was
speechless. I continued watching the show until the end of volume 1
and I have this to say.
Plot: The story centers on four girls that attend a
prestigious academy where they learn to become warriors against the forces of
darkness. These warriors are called hunters and huntresses and they defend the
world of Remnant from monsters and evil doers. So far the girls have met each
other at the academy, became members of the team RWBY, and began their studies.
Aside from these girls there are several side characters that interact with the
girls throughout the show. The series just goes on watching these characters develop and get ready for thier future.
Characters:
· Ruby
Rose: Main hero and leader of Team RWBY. She’s kind of naïve, energetic, and a
little ditzy.
· Weiss
Schnee: An heiress to a multibillion dollar corporation and a self-promoter. She
looks down on others and thinks she’s better than most people.
· Blake
Belladonna: A quiet, aloof, and mysterious girl. Although she interacts with
those around her she tries to avoid contact.
· Yang
Xiao Long: Ruby’s older sister and kind of a party girl. She also gets a little
hot headed sometimes but she does act rational sometimes.
· Professor
Ozpin: The head master of the school the girls are enrolled at. He’s very wise
and seems to know what role each person has to play at the school.
· Jaune
Arc: The leader of Team JNPR. He’s klutzy but has big dreams for success.
Also sees himself as quite the ladies’ man.
· Roman
Torchwick: One of the main villains in the story. His plans tend to go well
until our heroes intervene causing him to fail.
There are several more characters aside from this
list but for now these are the important ones.
Critique: One of my favorite things about stories is
character development. There is plenty of it throughout the show and it can
make a small impact on the simple things in life. Monty's theme for the entire story centers around growing up. Everyone is going to grow up and become something he or she desires to be. This whole series is basically watching these characters grow up and contribute to the story. There are other themes such as dealing with one's personal self and discrimination amongst a people. For spoiler purposes I won't get into the details but I urge you to take a look yourself. I also enjoyed the fight
scenes which were full of action and there was great music that enhanced the
feeling of those scenes. Speaking of the music, the theme song alone was mind
blowing in my opinion. After watching this show I’m begging to see more of the
story and what these characters are going to do. Another aspect is the references to video games, other animes, Roosterteeth's past works, etc. I find it funny to see how RWBY uses those references as a part of the show.
Now there were a few things that did bug me just a
little. The show is off to a good start but it does require some work. The show
starts off on a high note but then seems to tone down as it gets towards the
middle of the show. There were some different arcs in the story which hopefully will be cleaned up. My guess is that the setting/introduction is just being thrown in and light will be shed in the next volume. I also didn’t approve of the different lengths of each episode;
it’s too similar to that of Red VS. Blue episode lengths. There are also
certain scenes that can be a little cheesy or just feel plain weird. I guess it doesn't affect me because I've dealt with that before in video games, movies, etc. What
really took the cake was that there was extra focus on the side characters such
as Jaune instead of the main girls. Don’t get me wrong I did enjoy seeing his
character development but I felt like more focus should have been on the girls. Regardless though it’s there and I now think that the development of
the side characters may play an important role in the future. Below is a
summary of my critique:
Pros:
1. Epic
fight scenes between characters and monsters.
2. Characters
develop throughout the show.
3. Amazing
soundtrack that fits certain scenes of action, despair, and tension.
4. Each
episode leaves you wanting more.
5. References to other animes, video games, etc., that add to the fun.
5. References to other animes, video games, etc., that add to the fun.
Cons:
1. Episodes
tend to be long or short. Some are over ten minutes and some are almost six
minutes. On average episode length is seven minutes. (Unless you watch this on the dvd, the average length is almost eleven minutes per episode.)
2. Too
many side characters and less focus on the main characters for some episodes.
3. Moments
of cheesiness and poor dialogue.
4. Seems
to have different story arcs which may deter from the main story.
Overall Verdict: I give this show a positive review with a rating
of about 3.5 to 4 stars out of 5. It’s a good show and has potential,
but it does need a little more work. Hopefully we'll see those changes in Volume 2 this upcoming July. Kudos to Monty Oum, Miles Luna, Kerry
Shawcross, Kara Eberle, Arryn Zech, Barbara Dunkleman, and the rest of the
Roosterteeth Staff!
