In an unprecedented and quite frankly bizarre turn of events, an episode of RWBY aired last week and then a recap of said episode was created by some guy and is now being posted hours before the next episode. Up is down, black is white, Blake is not a queen. We’re all doomed, so hey, let’s go out in style! In this week’s recap, Jaune considers becoming evil, Yang drops some backstory bombs, and Ozpin just wants to fight for his right to party. Last week’s recap can be found here, and all previous recaps are up at the Recap Masterpost. Once you’re all caught up, step inside my mystery machine of wonder and majesty and get somedat recap by clicking the Read More below!

Thanks to all for reading, liking, reblogging, sharing, following, adjectiving! Pretty crazy that we’re now halfway through, recap-wise, isn’t it? Six down, six to go. Time flies. I’ve also been hearing that there’s a week off after Chapter Seven airs today, so that means no recap for two weeks. Ahh well, I may come up with a little something to fill the time. Gotta work on dem drawing skills first… Teasey tease tease.

PREVIOUSLY ON RWBY :: The episode began as every episode should, with Pyrrha “P-Money Fo Funny Bunny” Nikos beating the everloving shittake mushrooms out of Cardin Winchester and his team. Shame it was a school thing, else there’d be blood, man. Afterwards, she was challenged by Mercury Black, who spent the battle testing her and getting a feel for her - not like that - before forfeiting upon glimpsing her polarity semblance. Meanwhile, Blake rejected the everloving shittake mushrooms out of Sun when he asked her to the upcoming dance. This prompted RWY to stage an intervention for Blake to get some sleep as the recent Torchwick investigation was taking its toll. Much like any other intervention, Blake resented the everloving shittake mushrooms out of it. Jaune then showed up to ask Weiss to the dance, guitar serenade and all, and yet another blonde boy got rejected. Jaune then went off to train with Pyrrha, who not-so-subtly wants him to abandon all things Weiss, go steady with her and get some malty milkshakes or something. But that fell on deaf ears, and more pain appears to be ahead for Pyrrha as it turns out that Cinder, Mercury and Emerald now have her on some kind of list. What kind of list? Nobody knows! Possibly choosing her as their future goddess to worship, I’d hope.

And now on RWBY: Chapter Six picks up with the dance prep in full swing. Weiss, quite obviously losing her mind in the process of trying to make a perfect dance, sinks low enough to ask Ruby for help picking out colours for a tablecloth.

Doesn’t work out well. Ruby is left alone, and alone Ruby is sad Ruby.

Yang’s in the background doing some heavy lifting, no doubt because of the recent union strike, when she notices her sister.

Ruby is sure that the dance is going to be a failure ‘cause Blake’s not coming. Yang is confident, however.

Before we find out why Yang’s so confident, she gets into an argument with Weiss. And it’s a debate as old as time, Dollies Vs Fog Machines. Before they start a war, in comes Sun and Neptune.

Weiss instantly melts upon seeing Neptune. Get it. Melts. 'Cause ice.

The boys are curious about how great the girls will look in their fancy dresses, prompting Weiss to shoot back and wonder what they’re going to wear.

Sun plans to wear his current outfit. I can respect that, although I’m curious if he’d wear that to a funeral. I want that scene now. Oh, and he mentions he grew up in Vacuo before moving to Mistral, and Vacuo ain’t a place for suits and ties. Given the speculation that it’s a desert-y place, not a shock.

Blake comes up again when Sun wonders if she’s showing up. Hehe he described her actions as Blake-y.

And so Yang busts out the confidence line again.

Nobody looks that convinced.

Meanwhile, Blake is hanging out in the library. Using one of the computers, playing solitaire or something.

When all of a sudden, what should appear but…

A red laser pointer dot. Hah. Get it, 'cause Blake’s a cat. I do remember that fanart way back in the day, and not shocked it happened in series. It’s hi-larious.

Blake can’t seem to ignore it, poor thing.

Angrily, she glances around to find the culprit, and when she can’t, she goes to leave.

But the siren’s song of the red laser pointer dot is as beguiling as it is red and laser-y, and she finds herself being led on.

And guess who’s on the other end!

Yang drags her partner away for their deep and meaningful session, but before we get to that, let’s check the Team JNPR hidden camera feed.

Finally! What, we couldn’t get a shirtless Ren scene last week? Or the week before? Or the week before that? Or every other scene? I mean c'mon man, I swore the Volume One DVD’s blurb even said, “Four girls join forces to battle evil while training to become monster hunters. Meanwhile, a whacky romantic comedy plays out between a blonde doofus and a tournament champion. Also Ren is shirtless every week or your money back guaranteed.” See? SEE?! But anyways, Ren gets ambushed by Jaune.

In JNPR’s dorm, Jaune talks about how Ren is one of his best friends and yeah they’ve really bonded, even if they’ve literally never said a word to each other. I’ve had friends like that. Didn’t even get their names. It was great!

Ren, while uncomfortable with the bromance occurring while he’s wearing but a towel, reciprocates. I can’t’ve been the only one watching this scene and expecting Ren to gently let down Jaune in what Ren was assuming was a come-on, right?

So yeah, Jaune wants advice on girls. Ren is shocked.

While Jaune stammers about his lack of solid intel on the mystical wilderbeast known as woman, Ren’s trying to escape.

And then comes the bombshell. No, not the coming out of the closet thing, but the thing where someone has been assuming Nora and Ren have been dating.

Freakin’ hilarious. Ren’s face, man. All flustered-y. And then comes Nora, who was there all along. Wearing the BOOP shirt and everything! I like to think she travelled to our universe somehow to get it. If anyone could hammer the fourth wall into nothing, it’s her.

She calls back to one of her first lines with the “Not "together” together" thing, which was nice. And given the awkward fluster about the two of them, sure seems like it doesn’t kill the ship! I mean, I’m pulling for them to pull a “You know, right?” kinda moment. Jaune, however, doesn’t care for the excuse that they’re not together yet, and snaps at Nora to put her headphones back on and stop listening.

Ren asks Jaune what’s really going on with him.

Turns out that Jaune’s actually hardcore romantic stylez for Weiss. Who knew.

Well, I didn’t think he was just after her booty as some did, and it definitely wasn’t 'cause of the fact she’s a heiress. Jaune’s honest about liking her. Calls her incredible, smart, graceful, talented et cetera. And he just wants to be taken seriously. Last one’s gonna be a bit hard given the history of Jaune being Jaune, and Weiss still thinking that he was after her lucky charms, but hey. A certain someone that enters the dorm still thinks he has a chance. Oh, and he mentions Weiss has an awesome singing voice, too. Hah.

P-Money shows up to convince Jaune to be as honest to Weiss as he was with Ren. No tricks, no serenades, no trying to fake a male pregnancy - Dust is involved to make it possible, probably - and claiming it’s hers.

She tells him it can’t be wrong if it’s the truth. Aww.

Jaune, with renewed confidence and swagger, leaves to go get the girl, thanking everyone for the pep talk as he does so.

I wonder if the rest of the team ever take a moment to think, “This is our leader, look at him go.” Or maybe they’re hoping Jaune getting laid some will make him all the better. As he heads off, Pyrrha ambles away, all sad-like, and Nora watches on.

She murmurs that P-Money should practice was she preaches. And dammit if that’s not the most serious we’ve ever seen lil’ Nora. I’m proud. Serious Nora, half-naked Ren. This episode has it all. What next? Backstory and development on Yang? Pfft.

The aforementioned blonde bombshell has taken our poor sleepy kitty Blake to a classroom for their chat. Blake is adamant that Yang can’t get her to stop what she’s doing.

Yang just wants her to slow down, and that doing so is not a luxury but a necessity. Blake disagrees, so consumed with her desire to see Torchwick go down in flames and the White Fang to get their acts together and for N'sync to reunite for a comeback tour.

Reluctantly, Blake sits down. If she knew what was coming, she would’ve sat down all the faster. I know I did.

So Ruby and Yang grew up on Patch, the island off the coast of Vale we got a glimpse of way back in last year’s Episode Eight. Their parents were Huntsmen. Papa Xiao Long/Rose/Johns was a teacher at Signal Academy - still might be - and their mother, Summer Rose, was a badass for hire. Fightin’ evil monsters 'round the globe. Already we know, like, twice as much as I expected to get this soon. And there’s more!

See, Summer was amazing. Made amazing cookies, for one. Killed all the big beasties, for another. Until one day… she disappeared. Not died, disappeared. Which is an interesting thing, given how we’ve been led to believe she just straight-up died. Y'know, what with the gravestone in the Red Trailer and all. Of course if someone goes missing long enough setting up a grave isn’t uncommon, but yeah. Disappeared kinda makes it seem like she’ll show up one day. I kinda hope not, if that makes sense, if only because if she’s alive and out there that means she kinda abandoned them all, just like Yang’s mother did, and we have two missing mothers to find and get angst from. Summer probably died doing some saving the world thing and we’ll learn what later. I don’t know. Also interesting is how Ruby was much younger when Summer disappeared that I’d imagined. I don’t know, Red Like Roses Part II made me think Ruby was a little bit older (like seven or eight instead of three/four), enough to have been a bit more angstier about the whole thing before she bounced back in her teenage years… Either way, Summer Rose ain’t around.

And then comes the kicker. When Ruby and Yang’s dad starts to slip on account of losing his wife and all - it’s possible that the slip led to him no longer teaching at Signal, 'cause I feel like if he’d still been we would’ve learnt this earlier maybe - a young Yang learnt that it’s the second time he’s lost a love. The first was Yang’s mother. Who was on a team with him back in the day. And Summer and Qrow were also on that team. Holy crap.

That is some crazy stuff right there. Like, wow. First off, go Ruby and Yang’s dad. Two chicks on the same team? If Ruby and Yang the same age it’d be even funnier and I’d be making threesome jokes. And hell, Qrow might’ve joined in. Team orgies! All that fun stuff!

Yang’s mom, sometime after giving birth, ditched Yang and disappeared completely. Never to be seen again. While it’s possible she and Summer are just hanging out on a beach somewhere to escape the raging libido that is Ruby and Yang’s father, Yang has to wonder as to why. It’s haunted her, much like Torchwick’s fashion sense haunts Blake.

Once upon a time, in chalky flashbacks, the determination to discover why Yang’s mother had left her fuelled a relentless search. She was just a kid who had lost one mother and wanted to know why it had happened another time long before that. One day while rocking some epic pigtails, she found a picture.

Is it the picture of the person Yang was looking for back in the Yellow Trailer? I mean, it led her to a house somehow, so Iunno. Fair to also point out about that picture thing is that in the trailer the person in the photo was referred to as a “girl”, so the picture young Yang could’ve found may’ve been of a teenage version of her mother. Or something. Who knows! It led Yang to put Ruby in a little wagon and for them to head out into the cold.

Genius plan, really. But it’s totally what a determined kid would do. It’s totally where Blake was headed, too. Putting another person and herself at risk in following a vague lead. And the danger Yang almost found herself in? The Beowolves-y kind.

Fear ensues. Then Beowolves trying to eat them.

But they were saved! By… Wait for ittttttttt…

Oh snap, we just got a glimpse of Qrow. THE Qrow. With the scythe and all. Bitchin’.

Best backstory scene ever. 10/10 would and did watch again.

The flashback ends with Yang reiterating how she and Ruby would’ve died because of Yang’s stubbornness. And man, I loved Yang’s monologue so much. I even sent a message to her VA Barb telling her how much she nailed it, it was that great. And she hasn’t had much in the way of dramatically weighty scenes - Blake and Jaune and Weiss have been winning that competition, pretty much - so yeah, nailed it. Pure MVP, her and Yang both. Because when Blake tries to pull the “yeah but for me it’s different” card…

Yang snaps at her. She’s not telling Blake to stop, because Yang hasn’t. But the search doesn’t control Yang, she can still live her life and go a season and a half without talking about it at all. Blake’s obsessive and about to selfdestruct worse than an Electrode in heat. Yang points out that Blake’s so out of it she’d be of no use to anyone, especially if the bad guys showed up.

Yang pushes her. Blake tries to push back. Yang pushes back harder.

Cooling down from her outburst, Yang then holds Blake in a big hug. D'aww.

And finally, Yang just asks for Blake to just rest. If not for herself, then for everyone else. Blake is startled by the very idea, it seems, but a lack of sleep does crazy things. I once didn’t sleep for a day and thought I had magical powers. Which incidentally totally made for an awesome plot bunny for a story involving sleep repressing people’s magical powers, but I wrote that after not sleeping for two days, so who knows how coherent it is…

As she leaves, Yang even promises Blake a dance if she shows up to the, err, dance. Which again, d'aww.

It was great for these two to actually get a serious friendship moment together, wasn’t it? They were a pretty classic “the fans think they’re way closer than they actually are” kinda thing, and it may’ve been that perception that probably led to the idea of this scene existing in the first place. That Blake was the first one to learn of Yang’s search - not to mention getting the backstory - was great. Important for their bond! Finally an actual scene of emotional development that makes them become closer friends, and it’s an awesome scene as is. To some fans it’s probably a shame that Yang didn’t take advantage of Blake’s exhaustion and emotional vulnerability and get to the sexytimes, or that they weren’t married by the end of the episode, but hey, you can’t please 'em all. What a shame. A terrible, terrible shame.

Also a shame the drawing on the board couldn’t get past censors, but that’s America for you. Okay but in actual seriousness the drawing was of Qrow’s symbol, which appears to be, like, a clock gear like Ozpin’s but with a wing or something around it. I dunno. Knowing Monty, it was either randomly created one day while squirting maple syrup on pancakes, or is actually the key to solving cancer somehow. Speaking of cancer (the star sign, you meanies), Jaune’s outside with a rose in hand, ready to finally be honest with Weiss.

He begins to hear voices - Me too, buddy. They tell me to burn things. - and hides out of sight to spy on them.

And who should it be but Weiss and Neptune. And Weiss asking Neptune to the dance. Brave lil’ Ice Queen, look at her go.

Jaune watches on as we… don’t get a definite answer. Which probably bodes well. I mean, Neptune didn’t go out of his way to ask Weiss and she had to, and he wasn’t seen at the dance later in the episode… Dun dun dun?

Yeah probably not. Either way, the point is that Jaune witnesses this and comes to a realisation.

“Hey Jaune,” he’s thinking to himself, “She’s obviously got a thing for that Neptune guy, so you know what? It makes sense that she didn’t want to go out with you if her attention was elsewhere, right? I mean, it was totally just her and not me… Don’t ever think otherwise, good buddy. Ahh well, guess I’ll move on. It was a stupid crush anyway.” Or something like that. I like to think he’ll realise that maybe it just wasn’t meant to be or whatever, but it’s also probable that he’s going to be a bit mopey come next episode before Pyrrha’s own issues finally wake him up. Either way, he leaves the scene with a dramatic rose dropping.

We then cut to the dance. It’s pretty. Don’t see any doilies or fog machines, which means no one won the battle. Although twenty bucks on the fog machines being used as some kind of big evil distraction in next week’s episode. Yang is at the door, greeting folk. Lookin’ good in white, too. All glow-y.

She’s greeting Ruby, it turns out, who showed up in stilts and everything.

Ruby’s mystified as to how Weiss can fight in those things. Me too Rubes, me too. Outside, another fighter is set to enter the dancing fray.

Sun’s idea of fancy dress is a black shirt that he buttoned up and a poorly tied tie. Like Ruby in her heels, he doesn’t seem all that enamoured with the tie. But Blake likes it, or just wanted to make a parallel gifset happen.

She’s all dressed up all fancy-y too, 'course. Nice blue-coloured bow, which is neat. I always kinda wanted to see if she’d change up the bows. Next week better be a red and white polka dotted one, or Heads. Will. Roll. Blake comes up and takes his arm, and they begin walking together.

And yeah Blake confirms they’re going together, though her first dance is spoken for. Cut to the ballroom, where things are all in full swing.

Everything needs more Rinoa, tbh. I do love me a good ball scene, and while I was at first worried about it all being quickly tied into these last scenes, it seems we’re in for a treat 'cause it’s going to go into the next episode! But before we get to that, Yang and Blake are finishing off their dance.

Yang gives her up to Sun - a “hurt her and I’ll hang you by your tail” warning is probably in there somewhere - before going to join the rest of the team. They’re all proud of themselves. Some victories aren’t about killing monsters. Sometimes you gotta just help a good friend.

Team feelz! And, like any good group of friends, they immediately ditch the square.

She just wants to get out of her stilts and back into a hood and holy crap this is actually the first time she’s not wearing that thing wow I just realised.

In any ol’ movie involving a student dance, the cliche here is that someone would come along and offer to dance with poor alone Ruby and it’d be very sweet and stuff.

Close enough.

Running into Ozpin at this dance is probably the equivalent of running into your teacher at the pharmacy and finding out they’re buying herpes cream. He asks if she’s enjoying herself or not, and Ruby says that she’s just not a dance-y person. Oz notes that she can’t just hang out in blood-drenched battlefields forever, a lesson of which has been going around a lot lately. And hey, why not enjoy a dance? According to Ozpin it’s just like fighting. And dance-fighting is like knitting, btw.

And we get another little cryptic Ozpinism about how happy occasions like the dance are the things they’ll be holding on to come the darker days, remembering the bright lights in the sea of chaos and pain.

Of course he has to say that just as the episode ends and Yang is greeting two new people there for the dance.

Two people that will definitely help make sure the dance is memorable, but so very much not for the right reasons. And so, we cap off the episode with…

Pew pew pew. They came to do evil and chew bubblegum, and they’ll all out of bubblegum. Because they swallowed it. Because they’re evil. That was Chapter Six!

Six down, six to go. Chapter Seven will be a continuation of the dance stuff, no doubt. With Blake and Yang’s issues resolved, Seven will have Jaune finally realise the extent of P-Money’s problems. Won’t end romantically probably, but Jaune’ll be rocking a dress like the best of 'em. Meanwhile, Ren and Nora might show up, we’ll learn if there’s actually a scuffle ahead for Weiss and Yang over things Neptune-related, and what else? Oh, Merc and Emmy Rald will do something crazy while Cinder does something crazier. If this ends in Ruby Vs Cinder, Round One, that’d be neat. Bonus points if Cinder drops some connection to Summer Rose or whatever. Other wildcards in the dance stuff could be Cardin - if he’s the one who has to outright tell Jaune that Pyrrha’s crushing on him, I will laugh forever - or Penny, showing up to get a little taste of being a real girl and oh god my heart breaks just to think that. Team CFVY’s busy on their mission, unfortunately. Just savin’ the world, no big deal. In the end, I’m very much looking forward to it all! There’s going to be some resolution to Chap Five and Six’s elements before we go on break and then see RWBY’s first mission in Chapter Eight. Can’t wait.

That’s it from me! I'mma go and devour every piece of information coming from livestreams of Super Smash Bros 4 3DS that broke street date in Japan by a day or so. You all can do whatever. If you want to do RWBY-y things, then check out: There’s the always classic Roosterteeth forums (General discussion and the RWBY Vol. 2 thread), the RWBYForums, RWBY Wiki, the r/RWBY subreddit, the RWBY TVTropes page (And hey this recap even has a lil’ page of its own, which is awesome), and the main tumblr tag. What fun!

So until next time, remember that not sleeping doesn’t really unlock magical powers. I tried. It just unlocks hallucinations and you end up getting in a swordfight with an invisible marshmallow monster. And it cheats.

Also, Ballroom Blitz.