RWBY Review: The End of the Beginning (Season 3 Finale)

[monkeymangler]

Welp, third season concludes with what I expected from last week: a thorough curb-stomp of the entire good guy squad. Enough hope spots that the series doesn't feel like a crapsack world, but the good guys clearly don't win this one.

Ozpin vs. Cinder only lasts a few seconds of Dragonball Z style action. Cool to see Ozpin in action, and the straight Matrix moves were a nice touch, but Cinder deals with him with very little trouble.

Ruby and Weiss meet up and decide to head in to save Jaunne and Pyrhha. Pyrhha tells Jaunne to run and that she'll fight on her own. Jaunne says "screw that", she kisses him, and then shoves him in one of the weapon pods, launching him away from the site. She makes it to the top of the tower and duels Cinder.

This is a super solid fight, and easily the best one since Season 1. Pyrhha goes straight Magneto on the entirely metal building, using it in brutal ways to overwhelm Cinder. It very much reminds Marvel fans of a Magneto versus Phoenix fight. That said, Magneto has never beaten Phoenix... and the same applies here. Cinder is simply too strong with the Autumn Maiden's power, and using her semblence in a creative way, Cinder cripples and executes Pyrhha.

Ruby arrives in time to see it happen, and goes BSoD again... except this time instead of being an emotional wreck... she nukes the entire area with a wave of white energy.

Flash forward number 1: Ruby gets a recap in bed from her dad and Qrow. Some light conversation, news that the city is fineish, but the school is overwhelmed without Ozpin. Ruby tries to chat with Yang, who is terminally depressed. Blake ran away, Weiss went back to Atlas, and Yang refuses to leave her room without her arm.

Flash forward number 2: Three months later, Ruby replaces Pyrhha on Team Juniper, who all head to Haven to get revenge on Cinder's minions and figure out how to kill her.

Final note is a new bad girl (Half Mass Effect, Half Bleach) saying the usual villain speech of how all of them will fall before her might, and how she wants Ozpin to suffer. Not sure if a new character, or Cinder mutated into some freakish form, but I guess that's for later.

Overall: this is how you raise the stakes. None of the animation was too bad this time, super solid all around. Bad guys get a huge victory, and now the good guys are scrambling to recover and try and get some ground back. Makes you want to watch Season Four to see how things turn out. Good episode overall.

 

[Gizen]

Final note is a new bad girl (Half Mass Effect, Half Bleach) saying the usual villain speech of how all of them will fall before her might, and how she wants Ozpin to suffer. Not sure if a new character, or Cinder mutated into some freakish form, but I guess that's for later.

In the previous episode, Cinder mentioned some mysterious 'she' who was right about Ozpin's arrogance. Combined with different voice actresses (the new girl at the end, Salem if we're going by the ending credits, is Jen Taylor, who also did the foreboding narration from the very first episode of the show), I'd wager it's a safe bet she's a new character.

Also, glad I'm not the only one who thought of Pyrrha's fight as her going 'full-on Magneto'.

 

[Scarim Coral]

In the previous episode, Cinder mentioned some mysterious 'she' who was right about Ozpin's arrogance. Combined with different voice actresses (the new girl at the end, Salem if we're going by the ending credits, is Jen Taylor, who also did the foreboding narration from the very first episode of the show), I'd wager it's a safe bet she's a new character.

Fun fact, she's Cortana (Halo) voice actress.

I will say for one thing, the final is the best final out of RWBY so far! I also like the direction they are going for since I never like the premise of highly skill teen going through high school! Well ok it kinda like The Deadly Hallow direction from Harry Potter.

Ozpin vs Cinder was cool despite it was short and while Pryhha fight was also cool but she never stand a chance. For her to kiss Jeane was pretty much a deathflag.

Granted the only I don't like is Ruby new macguffin in the form of her silver eye and explaining the lore of the eye afterward didn't help either (I would of liked it being a lore video if they were able to keep it subtle from the final episode). I would had prefer her entering some kind of a berseker revenge against Cinder and the dragon. Speaking of the dragon, I don't get why they haven't nuke it already if it is frozen in place but yet again they lost communication.

Also while Yang is angry at Blake, we all know why she left (not putting them in danger against Adam which I hoped one day we all see the four of them send a beat down toward Adam).

As for Weiss, I don't think she will stayed with her family for long since their reputation well the nation are in ruin.

Overall, despite the many flaw this season had, I still think it was a great season for actually having direction of the plots and for the darker route they had went for. Fighting dark monster from fairy tale, how can it not be dark?

As for Ruby joining Juniper, well it still junipeR, I'm not too keen on. Ok sure Jeane will surely become a much stronger character now (I hoping the other shipping team will focus the two now that Pryhha is dead), I just not keen on the other two characters. Still the next season should give them time to developed the two for the better. Lastly I am pretty certain that Yang will catch up on them.

 

[Gizen]

As for Ruby joining Juniper, well it still junipeR, I'm not too keen on. Ok sure Jeane will surely become a much stronger character now (I hoping the other shipping team will focus the two now that Pryhha is dead), I just not keen on the other two characters. Still the next season should give them time to developed the two for the better. Lastly I am pretty certain that Yang will catch up on them.

Pyrrha was providing the P, not the R, so it's more like team JNRR now. RJNR? RRNJ? RNJR? I'mma go with RNJR, they can be the Ruby Rangers!

 

[DaWaffledude]

After deciding to give the show one last shot, and binging the entirety Volume 3 in one sitting, I have to say:

Hot damn. I'm glad I gave this show another chance.

I started out the season practically picking it apart, and by the end I was totally immersed. Seriously, I cared about the characters, the stakes felt high, and for the first time ever, I want to know more about this world and holy hell I want to see the villains die horribly. The animation felt slightly worse during the fight scenes, but much improved everywhere else, so I'm calling that a net positive. The writing started out kinda cringeworthy, like in the other two volumes, but somewhere around episode 4 it just seemed to figure out what it was doing (or maybe that's when the sleep deprivation started to kick in, idk)

TL;DR Haven't been this excited for RWBY since the trailers. Eagerly awaiting Volume 4.

 

[The Eupho Guy_v1legacy]

I started out the season practically picking it apart, and by the end I was totally immersed. Seriously, I cared about the characters, the stakes felt high, and for the first time ever, I want to know more about this world and holy hell I want to see the villains die horribly. The animation felt slightly worse during the fight scenes, but much improved everywhere else, so I'm calling that a net positive. The writing started out kinda cringeworthy, like in the other two volumes, but somewhere around episode 4 it just seemed to figure out what it was doing (or maybe that's when the sleep deprivation started to kick in, idk)

TL;DR Haven't been this excited for RWBY since the trailers. Eagerly awaiting Volume 4.

Personally, this season feels like a pivoting point in the series. Its almost like the first two seasons were primarily used for world building and introducing the characters and now it's time for the plot to kick in. I'm looking forward to seeing how that all turns out.

Spoiler: Spoilers, just in case

I was a little surprised the way the Cinder vs Pyrhha battle finished. I knew going in that she didn't have a hope, but to have Cinder basically execute her? Damn.

 

[DirectorK]

Well, looks like the first half of my prediction from last year about Pyrrha dying came true after all. Now comes the question about the other half. Are Jaune and Weiss going to meet in the future and perhaps develop feelings for each other since they both admired Pyrrha in different ways?

Overall, it's a better ending than the last two volumes were I'll give it that. But... this series has still been a major letdown for me mainly because it's another great example of a great concept that was poorly executed. Who knows, it probably will get better in future volumes but at this point I'm pretty much moving on. I may drop by every now and then just to see how it's doing(and also to see if the other half of my prediction came true in the end) but honestly I don't really care much about the series anymore, at least not enough to continue following it.

 

[crimson5pheonix]

Theme: Just because you're special doesn't mean you're special. I really REALLY like where RWBY went this season.

 

[StormShaun]

Hmm..
Mnn...
Eh?
EH?!

That's probably my view on the whole season.

That first fight.
It was good, needed to be longer, but I'll accept it because, well, all powerful Cinder and all.

Finally, we got development between Jaunne and Pyrhha, even if I belive Jaunee could have been a little more aggressive when he was shoved into the pod... but showed it later, which was good. But yes, they probably have the best chemistry and relationship in the whole damn show.
...
...
:'D

Next fight.
Well, it was okay, could have done a bit more exploring with the magnetic power.
Naturally though, Cinder was too powerful, and Pyrhha was executed.
The writers just killed her off... increasing the darker themes. I don't have too much a problem with this, because I HOPE it'll make Jaunne more of a badass (sure, probably getting him killed off later, but he won't mind, 'cause he'll be glad to be with her).

I expect Ruby's power to be explained later in more detail.

Flashforward. Info dump, Yang's in the same place. All fine, we know she'll come back in full force. Ruby teams up with Jaunne's team... kinda was hoping a slight design change, like if Jaunne looked a bit more... grim, same with the other two. Maybe in the next season. They should look differently in the next season. Hopefully that'll happen.

When you say "new bad girl". I believe it's... well, I'd called her "Neo-Cinder." Reborn as a villain with true power. Ruby will naturally be the one to oppose that. (Probably with some power that is more powerful than the maidens. Heck, Cinder will probably try to take the other maiden's powers too.)

Sure, while I critique RWBY.
It isn't the worst animated series I've seen this season.
Now Divine Gate suffers from "stuffing too much into a tiny box", that takes the cake.
Anyway, I like the direction they're taking, less "school life" and more "improvised hunter." Honestly, it kinda reminds me of Bloodborne. Now up the stakes, and make the enemies more difficult, and the next season will be more interesting.

Sure, I still think the faults are there. Lack of development, too many characters, and slightly "eh" writing. Still, it's slowly getting better, especially with this ending. It would have been even better if season one was extended and started directly after the trailers. The good parts of RWBY are slowly getting better, as in, compared to all the negatives, it's looking less and less. Which is great.

 

[Scarim Coral]

As for Ruby joining Juniper, well it still junipeR, I'm not too keen on. Ok sure Jeane will surely become a much stronger character now (I hoping the other shipping team will focus the two now that Pryhha is dead), I just not keen on the other two characters. Still the next season should give them time to developed the two for the better. Lastly I am pretty certain that Yang will catch up on them.

Pyrrha was providing the P, not the R, so it's more like team JNRR now. RJNR? RRNJ? RNJR? I'mma go with RNJR, they can be the Ruby Rangers!

I know, I ment by Ruby joining there, they are not losing their team name since there is an R in it. However since now that you brought it up, I competely forgot about Ren in the team therefore two R's.

 

[Izanagi009_v1legacy]

This season leaves me mixed.

On the one hand, there are too many moments of bad writing and execution for me to be fully merciful to the show. Even this episode failed to draw any pathos out of me when it came to Jaune/Pyrrha, Yang's weakness, or even any sense of threat from the new bad guy that was revealed.

On the other hand, the show does seem to be marginally improving and they are setting up new possibilities. I just hope they follow through on it

Oh and to the OP, since you stated I make too many Blazblue references, I figure I should make one more for the end of the season: Lets hope our six heroes arrive.

 

[Orga777]

Final note is a new bad girl (Half Mass Effect, Half Bleach) saying the usual villain speech of how all of them will fall before her might, and how she wants Ozpin to suffer. Not sure if a new character, or Cinder mutated into some freakish form, but I guess that's for later.

According to the credits, her name is Salem and she is probably the one behind everything from the beginning. Because listen to her speech at the end of season 3 and compare it to the narration in the beginning of the very first episode. It seems like it is the same conversation.

 

[monkeymangler]

This season leaves me mixed.

On the one hand, there are too many moments of bad writing and execution for me to be fully merciful to the show. Even this episode failed to draw any pathos out of me when it came to Jaune/Pyrrha, Yang's weakness, or even any sense of threat from the new bad guy that was revealed.

On the other hand, the show does seem to be marginally improving and they are setting up new possibilities. I just hope they follow through on it

Oh and to the OP, since you stated I make too many Blazblue references, I figure I should make one more for the end of the season: Lets hope our six heroes arrive.

In your defense, you don't make as many these days before you stopped reviewing the show.

 

[LawAndChaos]

"Flash forward number 2: Three months later, Ruby replaces Pyrhha on Team Juniper, who all head to Haven to get revenge on Cinder's minions and figure out how to kill her."

Calling it now, the rest of Team RWBY is no longer in the story and Jaune becomes the new main character.
Or alternatively the rest of team RWBY now takes a backseat to team RNJR.

My point is the remnants of JNPR are likely now front seat characters and we won't see Blake, Yang or Weiss again for a long time, because story-wise it wouldn't make sense to immediately see them again come Volume 4 without a big time skip. The series has in general made a spiral into edge territory and Miles and Kerry fancy themselves "dark" writers now. Of course since they are tone deaf, I bet money they will likely still have humor and jokes despite the fact that a vulnerable bunch of teens just lost a good friend, split apart, and are now pursuing a villain for revenge (because all of those plot threads are RIPE for comedy, amirite?).

New bad guy because we can't have one villain be an overarching threat for more than one volume, we have to make sure there's always a bigger fish! Torchwick's dead, whee, except he was one of the few villains who was genuinely interesting and last I checked Cinder got nuked before she could actually get really interesting as well.

Real talk guys, I really, really don't know anymore.
I might hop back on for Volume 4, but this series smacks me upside the head whenever I get optimistic about it.
All the same its fascinating to watch it make an effort and flail its arms. It's like a science experiment.

I never thought I would say this, but...I wish we could go back to volume 1. It was sloppy sure, but it had enough charm to border on campy. If they had rolled with that, it could've been a great comedy action series with serious bits here and there, making fun of the typical tropes and maybe have some self-aware humor.

But no, they wanted a 'big epic' story. Well, some critics were calling for a little more grit and stakes. Be careful what you wish for.

 

[monkeymangler]

"Flash forward number 2: Three months later, Ruby replaces Pyrhha on Team Juniper, who all head to Haven to get revenge on Cinder's minions and figure out how to kill her."

Calling it now, the rest of Team RWBY is no longer in the story and Jaune becomes the new main character.
Or alternatively the rest of team RWBY now takes a backseat to team RNJR.

My point is the remnants of JNPR are likely now front seat characters and we won't see Blake, Yang or Weiss again for a long time, because story-wise it wouldn't make sense to immediately see them again come Volume 4 without a big time skip. The series has in general made a spiral into edge territory and Miles and Kerry fancy themselves "dark" writers now. Of course since they are tone deaf, I bet money they will likely still have humor and jokes despite the fact that a vulnerable bunch of teens just lost a good friend, split apart, and are now pursuing a villain for revenge (because all of those plot threads are RIPE for comedy, amirite?).

New bad guy because we can't have one villain be an overarching threat for more than one volume, we have to make sure there's always a bigger fish! Torchwick's dead, whee, except he was one of the few villains who was genuinely interesting and last I checked Cinder got nuked before she could actually get really interesting as well.

Real talk guys, I really, really don't know anymore.
I might hop back on for Volume 4, but this series smacks me upside the head whenever I get optimistic about it.
All the same its fascinating to watch it make an effort and flail its arms. It's like a science experiment.

I never thought I would say this, but...I wish we could go back to volume 1. It was sloppy sure, but it had enough charm to border on campy. If they had rolled with that, it could've been a great comedy action series with serious bits here and there, making fun of the typical tropes and maybe have some self-aware humor.

But no, they wanted a 'big epic' story. Well, some critics were calling for a little more grit and stakes. Be careful what you wish for.

I am willing to bet neither Torchwick, nor Neo, nor Cinder is dead. Cinder is The Dragon, we're not ditching her so easy.

 

[LawAndChaos]

I am willing to bet neither Torchwick, nor Neo, nor Cinder is dead. Cinder is The Dragon, we're not ditching her so easy.

Actually while they did not confirm Cinder, Torchwick is (apparently according to the devs themselves) really, really, dead. Neo might still be up in the air, as is Cinder, but they confirmed Torchwick got grimly gobbled. Great?

 

[monkeymangler]

I am willing to bet neither Torchwick, nor Neo, nor Cinder is dead. Cinder is The Dragon, we're not ditching her so easy.

Actually while they did not confirm Cinder, Torchwick is (apparently according to the devs themselves) really, really, dead. Neo might still be up in the air, as is Cinder, but they confirmed Torchwick got grimly gobbled. Great?

Huh. Didn't think they'd keep him dead (especially after he went out like a punk). That's disappointing.

 

[09philj]

"Depressing as hell" is not a phrase I'd normally associate with RWBY, but this episode is the exception.

 

[Areloch]

Of course since they are tone deaf, I bet money they will likely still have humor and jokes despite the fact that a vulnerable bunch of teens just lost a good friend, split apart, and are now pursuing a villain for revenge (because all of those plot threads are RIPE for comedy, amirite?).

So the show can never have any jokes or comedy moments ever again because bad stuff happened in the story?

I never understood this logic. Generally, people tend to crack MORE jokes when the situation is worse because it's a very standard, human coping mechanism.

Obviously the shown shouldn't be a Three Stooges routine, but I have a hard time buying that having lighthearted or funny moments during what is otherwise a fairly heavy story makes the writer 'tone deaf'.

 

[LawAndChaos]

So the show can never have any jokes or comedy moments ever again because bad stuff happened in the story?

I never understood this logic. Generally, people tend to crack MORE jokes when the situation is worse because it's a very standard, human coping mechanism.

Obviously the shown shouldn't be a Three Stooges routine, but I have a hard time buying that having lighthearted or funny moments during what is otherwise a fairly heavy story makes the writer 'tone deaf'.

I just don't feel that Miles and Kerry have the skill to make good humorous scenes in light of their swerve into a darker plot. I mean they've already demonstrated that they're not above derailing character traits for the sake of humor (Weiss) so I feel that they'll still try the goofy jokes they did for volumes 1 and 2 after this volume, which would fall completely flat in the face of the events of volume 3.

As for the coping mechanism of it, most certainly there are people like that, but that doesn't mean it's always welcomed, whether it be by the characters or the audience themselves. It would make a good plot point if they kept having Jaune try to bring levity to the situation only to have that drive a small wedge between the remnants of JNPR and possibly Ruby herself. That would make for good drama. But I feel that the current story has officially gotten a bit too serious too quickly for them to maintain the type of humor they've used for the series up to this point.

Tone isn't some switch you can flip without the appropriate tools to do so. You can't have the type of campy humor the first two volumes had after this; it comes across as jarring.