Link to Volume 4 retrospective

Link to Volume 5 retrospective

Apologies for my lateness on this! Due to a clerical error involving a pikachu plushie and a gang of giant multicoloured robots, I had to rewrite the second half of this post. In any case here it is now, a reflection on my favorite volume in the show’s run.

As stated previously, I plan on writing a final post in this series that focuses on the individual character arcs themselves across the three years, and honestly I’ve enjoyed this enough that I feel tempted to write more RWBY content over the course of the hiatus. So maybe look forward to that too! For now though, Volume 6:



VOLUME 6



It’s been a tough summer, but RTX Austin finally rolls around once more. RT Animation itself has had a comfy year after wrapping up V5, with Nomad of Nowhere being well received and a new season of Camp Camp following suite. Over on the RWBY side of things there’s a new season of Chibi, and it’s the best season the spinoff has had, so things aren’t all bad in the otherwise turbulent fanbase. Nobody is still quite sure what happened to Chibi Coco, though.

There’s also a fancy new production being promoted over the months: gen:LOCK, an ambitious 3D animated series lead by Gray Haddock featuring a star studded cast. It’s unlike anything RT have attempted previously, and in the RWBY camp there are more than a few genuine concerns that they’re working on something so gargantuan when the other 3D production is in need of such dire help.

Between this worry and the 5th emotionally charged Battle of Haven discussion of the week, RTX happens and we are presented with a new short, this time one with a villainous slant.

Adam’s short gets a mostly good reception. The FNDM is viewing most of anything in a negative light at a first glance these days, but initial audiences at the convention talk highly of how brutal the short was at times, which isn’t a descriptor used often for this show. In comparison to 2017, this will be the only short made in the lead up to V6 as CRWBY stated that working on three took a little bit too much out of them, and it’s hard to disagree.

The short itself is strong, showing Adam’s rise through the White Fang ranks. You can get an impression of how he’s turned out like he has, being rewarded and praised for acts of violence with only Blake to chide him for them. V5 fan favourite Sienna Khan gets a cool action showing for those who wanted more of her, and the action of the short overall is solid. Adam’s movement is fluid and the direction in particular lends itself well. It’s worth noting that Adam’s fandom reputation has been, to put it plainly, shot to shit by his Volume 5 performance, so many simply view the short as damage control.



We get closer to the volume airdate, but there hasn’t been anything else since the short. At the RTX London RWBY panel, nothing is shown - no Ep 1 clip, no volume opening. There is however, a gen:LOCK preview. The questions, worries and concerns reach their boiling point until the season finally begins in October. And that beginning is not quite the doomsday some cynical fans were expecting.

Rising is fucking spectacular. Like, I’m just going to get that out of the way now - no fancy descriptions or analysis. Well okay those are coming later but seriously, just plug me into the matrix and loop this opening into my brain for the rest of my existence, I’d be cool with it.

The only part of this opening I think is a little off is Weiss’s spinning manoeuvre, and that’s out of the way in the first few seconds. You know what else is in the first few seconds? A really cool guitar riff accompanying a montage of Crescent Rose unfolding for battle. All the up and down quality the scene transitions had in previous years? Gone, we don’t do those anymore - V6’s opening is at the top of its game. The title dissolving into petals in front of a full moon which promptly explodes is awesome, while also serving as a hint that this year will answer one of the fandom’s longest running questions. We get some quiet moments of the team, Ren and Nora looking particularly cute, Weiss looking the most outright playful and dainty she has ever as Ruby chases her along the train. That’s all the quiet you’re getting though - Blake and Yang’s segment isn’t quite as cheery, the gap between them caused by the fall of Beacon still not quite mended despite Blake’s best attempts. Yang stares out the window past an ominous reflection of Adam before we move to Ruby and Maria out in the cold.

Remember those anime-esque “zoom through the eye” transitions I was talking about so much in the last two posts? How CRWBY were steadily getting better at them? This year’s is seamless. You’re going to be able to open an animated dictionary in 2052 and under the word “Seamless” will be a gif of this transition.



Qrow Branwen is pulled into darkness by countless looming hands as he takes a swig from his flask, the fun “oh you silly drunk” quality of the character now taking a far darker turn. Ruby desperately bats more of the hands away in a short but excellently animated few seconds with her scythe. The opening cuts to a view of a mysterious hooded woman navigating through a crowd of umbrellas - and what’s that?

Was that Roman Torchwick’s hat?



Moving to the rest of the villains, Adam has a more overt OP appearance followed by the Evernight crew. Emerald isn’t happy, and neither is Mercury before he slowly dons his trademark smirk. An oddly coloured blue smoke takes us from an angry Salem to a beautiful, question-raising moment in front of a statue. The camera moves past more new unknown figures before ending on a pensive Ozpin and an Oscar Pine looking rather down on his luck - probably because Jaune is shoving people into walls. The hooded woman clashes with an opponent behind the camera, and a freeze frame examination will reveal one of Cinder’s scimitars duelling with a signature parasol.



Following this is some of the most beautiful animation CRWBY have ever put out, a glorious shot of Team RWBY battling along the Argus Limited. It’s reminiscent of the ending to V2’s opening as each member of the team moves into the next, but V6’s take is far lengthier and every second is packed with detail, Blake darting in front of the camera, Weiss setting up glyphs for Ruby to jump on before the camera turns into view of her strike, everything is perfectly done. We cap this opening off with Weiss lifting her BFF up off the ground, and boy does that BFF look pissed.



CRWBY needed to hit V6E1 out of the park, to regain lost faith and prove that they could indeed craft the same beloved series that millions of people worldwide are invested in. The overwhelming majority of the hardcore audience have been burned by Volume 5, and so Miles and Kerry took the series back to its roots for this opening episode: the four girls in an elaborate action sequence against monsters.

It’s exactly what we open on, immediately getting into the swing of things before a mountain tunnel creates a natural break in the action, where it’s time for us to rewind and catch up with the cast. Adam has gone further off the deep end and is attacking his own troops. The heroes get some calm moments at the station, and the Menagerie arc gets a send off. Many had hopes that Ilia would be sticking with the main party a little longer, the character winning a lot of fans quickly and having great potential for interaction with others (namely Weiss). But it’s not to be, as the cast this year needs to be trimmed down to allow for greater individual focus. In a series as long running as RWBY there are no doubts that we’ll be seeing Ilia and Sun once more, but it likely won’t be for years now.

On the train itself, Blake begins her arc for the season: being so desperate to patch things up with Yang she hits the point of awkwardness. The action in the beginning of the episode proves the pair still function well in combat, but outside of it they’re just not quite sure how to act around each other. Speaking of the action, terrifying new Manticore Grimm, designed by a fan, assault the Argus Limited. One of the many, many complaints about the Battle of Haven was how difficult it was to follow the action, with characters not appearing in the background or seemingly teleporting to different places from scene to scene. Here the issue is avoided by repeating a few interactions we saw at the beginning of the episode - but from different angles to avoid a boring retread while simultaneously easing us back into the continuity of the battle.



As the first stage of the fight concludes, it is revealed that the Relic of Knowledge attracts Grimm to its location. Ozpin has kept this secret from people he promised he wouldn’t keep secrets from, and they’re not too happy. The audience however, is intrigued - Ozpin has always been promised to be a shady figure, and V5 dropped the ball in this regard with the confusing moments involving Raven and Hazel. Here he has committed a legitimate mistake, and the question is now “Why?”. Viewers demand a compelling answer.

Ruby begins her arc for the season: being a leader and a hero. She was always meant to be those things, but there weren’t really any dedicated moments in previous volumes for the character to fulfil that role in a satisfying manner. Here Ruby takes charge, allocating roles, making the tough decision of splitting up the team in order to rescue civilians, and getting her uncle to chill out a little. And the fanbase is happy. There’s no inspiring speech filled with flowery words about hope, just a commanding, noticeably less squeaky voice getting her teammates to put grievances aside for the time being and focus on doing their jobs.

The FNDM were praying for a miracle in V6E1, and by all rights their wishes were granted. The second phase of the train battle is among the best in the series, with creative applications of abilities in Ren and Jaune’s beautifully shot moment to cloak the train, strong moments of animation throughout and an ending display of teamwork that rivals the Nevermore and Mech fights of old. Despite RWBY’s best efforts their train is derailed, and they are forced out into the snow where they encounter our first new major character of the season, Maria Calavera.

‘So you’ve made one perfect episode, CRWBY’, says the fandom. 'But even a broken clock is right twice a day!’ The Argus Limited has rejuvenated interest, and now that interest needs to be kept. Is there a good reason for Ozpin keeping these secrets? Yes.

Episode 2 created one of my all time favourite discussions in the show’s history, the community totally divided between supporting RWBY after they’ve been kept in the dark or defending Ozpin’s pragmatic behaviour. Perhaps the only time a FNDM split was welcome, and this debate will stay with us for the rest of the season. Uncovered ends on a cliffhanger, something we’re touchy on after V5’s wild ride. But this one promises at something far more than just a fight scene.

The Lost Fable has been described by Miles to be among the most complicated they’ve made on every level. Being that it’s the longest episode in the series not counting credits, it would already be hard to argue against that. It’s harder still when you consider this episode involves a series of beautiful new locales, characters, and writing that needed to be perfect on every note. The Lost Fable has so much to unpack it deserves a post all on its own, but I’ll highlight my favourite pieces.

The tragedy of Salem is so compelling that some members of the audience begin to question if she’s in the wrong. She’s certainly partly to blame due to her manipulative attempts to resurrect her lost love, but those attempts garner sympathy. Many point toward the two gods as the ones who were at fault, for bestowing upon Salem a punishment that a mortal would never be able to properly comprehend. The way these twin higher beings are delivered to us is on point, from their designs to their unique entrances and powerful dialogue. Two relatively unknown actors were selected for the brothers in Chase McCaskill and Bruce DuBose, but that doesn’t get in the way of them putting in some truly excellent work. The Dark God’s simple, yet haunting declaration that humanity is extinct will stay with me for quite some time.

We’re introduced to what appears to be the endgame conflict of this 6-years-and-counting adventure. If the world is not united when the relics are, Remnant will be purged from existence itself. Salem’s explicit motives still remain unclear, but there are theories that the big bad of this series has been so twisted by spite that she wants only to be able to die, and bring everyone else down with her. “Hardcore” doesn’t begin to describe motives like that.

The heroes are shattered by these revelations. Ozpin retreats into Oscar’s mind, to say Qrow feels merely betrayed is an understatement, and RWBY themselves are lost. They make a quiet trip to Brunswick Farms for shelter, unaware of the coming danger. Elsewhere in Remnant, Cinder Fall wakes up at the bottom of a pool of water.

The poster for Volume 6 had a fairly obvious silhouette of this controversial antagonist so the reveal is on the softer side, but there were those who thought she had been killed off for good. She makes a trip to the seedier side of Mistral we were told about in earlier years but never got to see, and encounters a fan favourite face from the past. The duel between Cinder and Neo is explosive, excited fans likening it to the best of Monty’s work. Neo’s signature dodges and kicks have been faithfully recreated and the choreography is far from dull. These first five episodes of the year have been spectacular, but while the wary FNDM populace has definitely shrank, they make sure to point out that V5 had a brilliant first quarter too.



The hype train that is Volume 6 shows no signs of slowing, however. The Brunswick Farms duology is a truly horrifying arc that is sure to top many a favourite episode list. Desperate for shelter and a moment to collect themselves, the heroes shack up in an abandoned estate. Blake and Yang’s relationship can’t mend itself in this hopeless climate, especially when they’re still haunted by Adam Taurus. Qrow’s alcoholism gets worse and becomes a legitimate point of concern for his family and fans alike. Weiss says what they’re all thinking: “Is there even a point in continuing on to Atlas?” Morale is at the lowest it has been since the Fall of Beacon for the protagonists.

They soon learn what happened to the previous inhabitants of the estate - they have become victims of Miles’s long awaited favourite Grimm, the Apathy. One of CRWBY’s goals for the year was to redeem Ruby Rose in the eyes of the audience, to give her a chance to shine again after two years of failing to do so. Her actions on the Argus Limited begun this redemption, and it is at this decrepit farm where she will continue onward. Speculation that Maria was connected to the Silver Eyed Warriors is proved true, and the day is saved at the last minute.

We’re given the opportunity to learn more about the new elderly character who’s just sort of been tagging along for the first half of the season. Maria Calavera was the Grimm Reaper, an exceptionally powerful huntress who retired after a fateful 60 second battle in which she lost her eyes. Said battle is yet another feather in V6’s cap, animated and directed with all the skill and talent of a major animation studio, CRWBY no longer appearing like a group of amateurs more accustomed with bobbing their heads up and down in Halo to mimic speaking.

The second half of the season brings with it another new location, the city of Argus itself. It’s a cosy place full of warmth and character. After showing off the glorious destruction of the moon and some intriguing Silver Eye lore, the fans get a little bit more service in the reveal of one of Jaune’s many siblings. Saphron will serve as our anchor to Argus, we care about Jaune, he cares about his sister, and so we care about this new location. Her wife Terra will be our foothold into the next plotpoint through her work at the Argus relay tower. Things slow down a little, but the audience is okay with chilling in a house for a while this time after the relentless first half of the year.

Having said that, I think Dead End will ultimately go down as the weakest episode in a collection of great ones. Sadly, one episode has to be ranked 13th out of 13 at the end of the day, and spending half of your runtime on your heroes being told to fuck off by a newly introduced Caroline Cordovin is a good way to do that. The scene drags, and the humour doesn’t quite land on everyone. Cordovin is difficult to like and not just in the sense that she has a prickly personality. Her design is bland, even if emblematic of Atlas itself, and the blind patriotism makes her seem too one note. Luckily the rest of the episode is far stronger as Ruby gets to sit down and finally start her Silver Eye training.



CRWBY’s brilliant direction and writing keeps a scene of two characters sitting on chairs talking with one another engaging, backed with another one of Alex Abraham’s powerful scores. Little Red Riding Hood gets to express some personal doubts for once, and her Grandmother lifts her spirits back up with some backhanded compliments. Ruby’s training will have to take place in live fire scenarios, but she at last has an idea on how to activate those eyes - focus on the desire to protect life. Meanwhile, JNR get filled in on the worldshaking lore from episode 3 and to escape their rage, a frightened Oscar Pine flees the house.

Lost opens up on Mercury Black and Emerald Sustrai, mulling over their future and what their purpose is without Cinder to guide them. Emerald’s dogged devotion to who Mercury sees as a cold abuser causes a fight to break out between them, and Mercury’s dark backstory alluded to three years ago is given further depth. This paton god of thieves has had his semblance stolen from him, his father deeming it a crutch in a dark parallel to Yang and Taiyang’s supportive relationship. In his own words, Mercury has trained harder than anyone to get where he is, and he thinks that’s what it takes to roll with the bigger boys at Salem’s table. Tyrian Callows soon sets him straight however, sporting his new cybernetic tail. He and Watts are the ones being sent out on a mission and we hear another rumour about the tense happenings in the north of Remnant. There is a delicate balance between the heroes and villains, both seemingly on the back foot as they race onward to Atlas in search of victory.

Back in Argus, JNR are out searching for Oscar. Jaune in particular feels awful, and his remaining two teammates decide to give him some space. A stray fall leaf guides the depressed hero to a stunning bronze recreation of Pyrrha Nikos, his path accompanied by a rendition of the classic Arkos leitmotif, now featuring its own beautiful lyrics. He is joined by a Red Haired Woman and the two share a solemn conversation about the fallen invincible girl. It is here where Jaune truly understands Pyrrha’s mentality, her choice to stay and fight at Beacon when she had a miniscule chance of victory. Pyrrha was a huntress, and it is a huntress’s responsibility to try and do what no one else can. Ren and Nora catch up after the mysterious woman disappears as quickly as she arrived, and standing in front of a memorial to their lost comrade they express their worries to Jaune. His will to fight truly renewed, Jaune Arc unplugs the boiling kettle at last and moves past the bitterness of loss, now moving onward to try as Pyrrha did.

Oscar returns home, having skipped the developmental arc the audience expected him to have. He’s sporting cool new clothes and a happy smile, and everyone watching is confused as to what even happened while he was out. Is Ozpin possessing him, or have CRWBY glossed over his content? Fan queries don’t stop there as Jaune reveals his unorthodox plan. Qrow, still unmotivated, tries to dissuade the younger generation of heroes before Ruby cuts her idol off and tells him she doesn’t give a damn about his opinions, they need to get to Atlas and so they’re going to Atlas. It’s a powerful scene, and Ruby’s determined optimism is now looked at in a more positive light now that it’s framed in a more grounded sense and she’s taking charge for herself.

Episode 10 is brief at just a little under 14 minutes, but it will establish V6’s ending act. The team’s escape is impeded when their stolen ship is picked up by the Atlesian sensors Blake was meant to cut off. She’s not checking in either, so Yang makes a move to see what’s up with her partner as an enraged Cordovin pursues the rest of the group.

It turns out that Adam Taurus is what’s up with Blake, ever the thorns in each other’s sides. Adam speculation has been a popular talking point this year after his short, his mysterious appearance on the train wearing a hood rather than his signature mask and the fact that we haven’t seen what he’s been up to since those episode 1 appearances. The question of whether or not Adam really was on that train is tossed around for 10 weeks before his appearance at the relay tower. The removal of his mask is significant - Adam no longer represents the White Fang, his bold ideals thrown aside in search of vengeance.

After a dynamic battle that uses all of the vertical potential of the relay tower location as well as reintroducing her duel wielding capabilities, Blake escapes deeper into the forest. Elsewhere, a giant robot battle begins. Cordovin’s comical personality is a poor contrast with the gravitas of Blake and Adam’s final confrontation and it doesn’t sit well with fans who are eager to watch that play out rather than a lower stakes battle involving other characters. The fight itself has its ups and downs, some moments of jerky animation made up for in part by more of V6’s clever ability application and a new William’s battle track. After a strange moment where the mech somehow catches a missile, we cut back to Adam.

Volume 6 set out to answer questions, that’s what its done, and that’s what it will continue to do as Adam’s face is at last revealed to the audience. No Silver Eyes or supernatural powers have been hidden under the mask, only the gruesome brand of the Schnee Dust Company. I don’t think anyone out there is going to say Adam’s attempts to start a race war are justified, but damn if you can’t understand how he came to be that way. He destroys Gambol Shroud, reminiscent of how Pyrrha’s own Miló and Akoúo were broken before her demise. But again, this isn’t quite the Blake Belladonna of old. She hasn’t been running, she’s been listening out for the hum of a Bumblebee, and Yang makes one of the coolest entrances in fiction.

Now it’s Yang’s turn to fight Adam, and it seems as though the hit and miss mecha action was due to more resources being spent at this waterfall duel instead. Using remastered choreography from Monty’s own original work dating back to V3, Yang and Adam’s battle is a tense sequence packed with loud action, fluid dodges, slashes and punches, all set to a grand orchestral version of Armed and Ready. Yang alone is not strong enough to best this villain, and Blake finally gets the hint. She can’t think of Yang as weak, as someone she needs to protect and shelter. She must think of her as a companion, someone to fight alongside in mutual trust and respect. The black and yellow pair steel themselves for the toughest fight of their lives as the episode ends.

The following episode begins once more at the coastal cliffs. The team has been beaten down, but Oscar’s aerial view lets him devise a plan - which fails. Cordovin catches onto Ruby’s shot and blocks it just in time, and she’s forced out of the ship before it crashes into the treeline. Our red headed protagonist continues her defiance of Qrow and walks out to use her signature attack: a speech about working together. Some viewers think it’s out of place and outright stupid of her to expect it to work, where as others see it as part of Ruby’s elaborate, daring plan to bait Cordovin into aiming at her. Ruby’s streak of awesome V6 moments doesn’t slow down as she disables the cannon at the expense of her aura - and the expense of the mech.

Blake’s warning to Sun that fighting Adam 2v1 is still a dangerous task is proven true as he gains the upper hand in the battle, sending Blake careening off of the bridge and shattering her aura. Yang is left to fend off Adam alone, and here is where I’d like to highlight one of the best moments in V6’s direction.

Here is Adam as he taunts Yang about their previous encounter, where he effortlessly cut her down and traumatised her for life. Shown only from one side with prominent horns and a fearsome red eye, this is Adam Taurus as the beast, the demon of Blake and Yang’s past. He is imposing and seemingly unbeatable, and his threat shakes Yang’s morale.

She does her best to stay on the defensive, not intending to fuel Adam’s violent semblance. On the other side, Adam grows angrier and angrier. He’s angry at humanity, at the White Fang, at Blake, and now just at the fact that Yang won’t even try and hit him. The bull is seeing red, and in his spiteful madness he makes an easily telegraphed aerial attack while Yang calmly and carefully lies in wait to prepare a counter.

2 years, 11 months and 13 days ago, these positions were reversed.



Now shown from the other side, Adam’s lone blue eye is soft and bright. This is not the visage of an unkillable demon, it is the fearful expression of a man, a man who has just now made the realization that somewhere along the way, he may or may not have made a mistake or two.

Yang Xiao Long hits the button. It is glorious.

Taking down what remains of Adam’s aura with what little left she had of her own, Yang finishes her arc of the last three years. She is wise where she used to be reckless, she may not have gotten over the loss of her arm and she may never, but she will not let it impede her. And above all, she will put faith in someone who abandoned her, abandonment being at the core of Yang’s pain since the earliest days of her life. She tosses Adam’s beloved katana over the edge of the waterfall, setting Blake up for a surprise attack the way Blake did for her when Yang entered the battle.



All combatants exhausted of aura, the three race for the remains of Blake’s broken weapon with death on the horizon. It is our heroes who reach the pieces first, and in a fight-or-flight rush of instinct, Blake and Yang run Adam through with the split ends of Gambol Shroud. He shivers, taking a moment to look down at the fatal wounds and utter one last simple word before staggering forward. Adam Taurus falls, smashing against a jagged rock before his lifeless body is carried by the river.

It is a quiet moment, the end of one of the series’s longest running characters and villains. A controversy of sorts has arisen in the wake of this battle, and of all the FNDM accounts I have offered in these posts, I think this is one that needs the least explaining. Being that it is still ongoing as I write, it is perhaps due a post-mortem writeup of its own later on in the hiatus.

The adrenaline leaves Blake’s body as she breaks down in tears, Yang moving to comfort her. Looking each other in the eyes as they did in a similar moment of vulnerability at their Beacon dorm in V3, the pair reassure and support one another.

Back with the rest of the cast, the sheer negativity of the day’s events have brought forward a terrifying leviathan, and the reckless actions of both the heroes and Cordovin mean that Argus’s defenses have been crippled. The stage is set for the finale.

The community wonders what the finale will entail, only one episode remaining after a strange miscommunication in production has cut the volume down to 13 episodes from 14. Concern builds as we learn of the episode’s runtime, 23:39 minutes being on the shorter end of RWBY’s finales. Have CRWBY left themselves enough time to wrap up the battle of Argus and the volume itself?

Neo and Cinder kick things off with fashionable new Atlas wear and a stolen airship. Cinder’s arc this year has been odd, and I would argue poorly handled. Seemingly little has been done with her isolation, and what few scenes she had were more for Neo’s benefit then her own. Of all of Volume 6’s improvements, the second most crucial antagonist of the series still fails to compel her audience and I can only hope that CRWBY give her the same treatment they did Ruby this year.

In Argus, the protagonists briefly mull over the idea of taking the opportunity to complete their mission and reach Atlas. Everyone refuses in unison - as they have learned, their true mission above all is to protect the world, and there are people in need of a huntress’s help. They travel back to the city as Cordovin repeats a sad mantra blaming them for the attack, slowly coming to the conclusion that one party is flying into action and the other is sitting in a mech feeling sorry for themselves.

The leviathan presses onward, weaving into the ocean in an incredibly well animated movement. It effortlessly tears through Argus’s weaker defenses, and Ruby prepares herself to be the hero she knows she has to be. All anyone else can do is watch as she flies out alone to confront the monster.

The scene that follows is nothing short of beautiful. I utterly adore the way CRWBY deliver Ruby’s memory sequence, 2D stills from the show’s past painstakingly recreated to the utmost detail. It is that detail which one can truly appreciate, because the artwork is so finely made that all of the omissions in these scenes can only be deliberate, getting across the idea that these are indeed Ruby’s memories, not screenshots from past episodes. Ruby doesn’t remember the crowd at the ball as anything more than bland faces, because it was all about Jaune and Pyrrha that night. Ciel doesn’t appear when she should because Ruby so fondly recalls one of her last conversations with Penny, and she hardly knew Ciel in comparison. The way Ruby’s train of thought collapses is another piece of masterful work. She thinks first of her family, then her friends, linking to the first time she met Jaune, from Jaune to JNPR, to JNPR to Pyrrha until it all goes down from there.

And while Pyrrha’s death was undoubtedly the more impactful moment to the majority of the audience, it is Penny’s death that Ruby remembers last in the order, indirectly giving that moment more importance due to the difference in their friendships.

Using these mythical powers is far easier said than done, and it is only due to some respectable out of the box thinking that Ruby doesn’t end up as the leviathan’s lunch. Jinn makes a grand finale reappearance, and Ruby uses her generously provided time to focus on protecting the lives she can rather than dwell on the lives she failed to save.

These bright moments build and build, culminating in V6’s last big reveal for the fandom. Transitioning from the intricate 2D stills to a fully animated display packed with warmth, Ruby thinks of her mother, and petrifies the monster. She stands proudly in front of the city, having come along way from the little girl who would awkwardly stammer about her aspirations to become a hero.

Unfortunately for her, this comes at the end of a long day. Her aura is broken, the Silver Eye powers still untrained, and the weakened Leviathan begins to break free of its prison. As it so turns out, those Silver Eyes will not be solving every issue with the Grimm henceforth, and it’s down to an Atlesian specialist with a reformed mindset to finish the job. After a brief exchange, Ruby returns to her friends and they complete their trip to Atlas. The reveal of the northern kingdom is breathtaking, though it takes a turn for the worse as they spot the Atlas military flying high, proud and threatening above them. Volume 6 actually ends on something of a cliffhanger, the protagonists having made it out of the frying pan and into a fire.

The theme of Volume 6 is technically still not known to us, Miles and Kerry not having made a panel appearance at the time of writing and the director’s commentary still unreleased. We can make an educated guess, though.

A careful eye will spot that Indomitable, the song that plays during Ruby’s ending Silver Eyes scene, is credited as having lyrics inspired by Monty Oum. It is unique in this regard, no other soundtrack entry having that honour. The lyrics of the song declare that “The spirit is indomitable” and this is none other than a quote from the man himself, dating back to a blog post from 2012.

I believe that the human spirit is indomitable. If you endeavor to achieve, it will happen given enough resolve. It may not be immediate, and often your greater dreams is something you will not achieve within your own lifetime. The effort you put forth to anything transcends yourself, for there is no futility even in death.

I believe that this is the theme of Volume 6, and I will go further to say it is the theme of RWBY as a whole. To quote Arin Hanson, Monty was “a guy who bit off way more than he could chew, and chewed it to a fucking pulp.” This philosophy is reflected time and time again in the series itself, the heroes having unending determination in the face of insurmountable tasks.



Ruby Rose upholds this idea the most in Volume 6, as she should being the lead of the leads. While an inspiring speech or two may have been a little much toward the end of the volume, CRWBY’s focus on giving her meaningful moments and legitimate development have paid off. In V6 Ruby rejects previously revered authority figures in Ozpin and Qrow, opting to take her own path. And this it not to say she is headstrong and infallible in doing so, Ruby expresses doubt in her ability to lead to her new mentor Maria, and while she has begun to follow the footsteps of her mother she still has a long way to go before being truly capable of saving Remnant.



Her partner has had the most quiet volume of the RWBYs, again supporting her allies when she can with the exception of when she wavered at Brunswick. Weiss’s anxieties of returning to her family rose again and again throughout the volume, and examining her expressions during Qrow’s worst moments of the year displays nothing but disgust. Weiss’s mother wasn’t seen in our time at Atlas during V4, she was mentioned by Weiss in a conversation with Yang in V5, and Weiss’s low opinion of her has been subtly indicated once more in V6. Many expect the coming Atlas arc to be focused on Weiss, and there is reasonable ground to do so. While she may have left much of the spotlight to her friends this season, her greatest challenges appear to literally be on her horizon.

Blake and Yang had an excellent year, all things considered. Their individual credits songs of the past two years combine into this year’s Nevermore, a duet that reflects upon their battle with Adam. I already spoke of how Yang finished her Mistral Era arc above, and Blake’s time in V6 went beyond even that and to her overarching plotline itself. In every volume, many of Blake’s actions have been in some way motivated by her time in the White Fang, her time with Adam. Even now that he’s dead, I don’t expect this to stop. My favourite section of Nevermore describes my thoughts well:

There’s no cause to celebrate

Another soul consumed by hate and spite

Another destroyed life

There’s no pleasure there’s no joy

It’s just the story of a boy who lost his way

At the end of the longest battle in the series, stretching over 3 episodes and 11 minutes, Adam has not simply been 'defeated’, he had to die - and this is not something that sits well with Blake. Now that she’s entering seemingly the most discriminatory kingdom in Remnant, there will be a lot of pressure on Blake to protect faunus citizens from turning out just like he did.

While Oscar’s arc might have been rushed, likely even pushed into the next volume as is common, the rest of the gang fared much better. Jaune has processed his grief and Qrow’s previously static behaviour was subject to harsh change in the light of new revelations. There’s supposedly a big moment between Ren and Nora that we missed out on, with most speculating a kiss scene that’s been relocated to V7. Newcomer Maria Calavera went down like a treat in the fandom, rising to the top of many a favourite list in the span of her 13 episodes. Where her character will go next beyond “obligatory mentor death” isn’t clear, though hardly anything is clear regarding the plot’s imminent future. Will RWBY land in Atlas without issue? We haven’t seen Ironwood in two years, is he faring even worse? What are Tyrian and Watts scheming? And what’s the plan with all these flying monkeys?

But in contrast to the past two hiatuses, the fandom is more than happy to entertain these questions. With a quality soundtrack on the way with everyone squabbling over favourite, a CFVY book due in the summer and a new entry on Remnant’s lore later in the fall, the V6 hiatus already promises to be far brighter than what we’ve had previously. CRWBY have delivered a season on par with, if not better than the now legendary Volume 3, and the only thing their audience can ask for is more.

Screenshots taken partially by me and from the RWBY Wiki. Gifs made by GLQ.

