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howdoyousayghibli · 4 years

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When Marnie Was There: A Triumphant Swan Song for Studio Ghibli

In 2013, following the release of The Wind Rises, Hayao Miyazaki announced his retirement from feature films. It didn’t last long, but it did give us one of only a few Studio Ghibli films with neither directing nor screenwriting credit from Miyazaki or Isao Takahata: When Marnie Was There. The other two films with that distinction are Tales from Earthsea and The Cat Returns — an overambitious disaster and a delightful if superficial romp, respectively.

Thankfully, Marnie is neither a disaster nor superficial: it’s a beautiful, true-to-life, emotionally powerful coming-of-age story. Released in 2014 and directed by Hiromasa Yonebayashi, the story centers on young Anna, a withdrawn and melancholic girl who is sent to spend time with her aunt and uncle in the countryside in hopes of ameliorating her asthma.

There, she meets the enigmatic and titular Marnie, who seems to already know Anna and who lives in a mansion that seems to keep flipping from regal and fully-staffed to dilapidated and abandoned. Marnie’s identity and the source of Anna’s woes are equally engaging mysteries that Marnie wisely takes its time unspooling.

While the visuals may not have the wow-factor of Arrietty, Yonebayashi’s stunning directorial debut, Marnie is still a feast for the eyes. What sticks out the most is the depiction of the Kushiro wetlands where Anna spends most of the movie. It inspired such a longing for that kind of natural landscape, in fact, that I literally got up and took my dog for a walk through some nearby woods about ⅔ of the way through this movie. You will want to move to rural Japan; accept this, and keep watching.

The other immediately striking element of Marnie is Anna herself. The movie opens with an internal monologue in which Anna describes how she’s never felt like she belongs; that sentiment has been shared by countless young-adult protagonists, but usually it feels like an afterthought tacked on in service of a bland “Be Yourself!” message.

Marnie actually makes the effort to depict the causes and consequences of that feeling. Fellow introverts will cringe in solidarity as adults make social commitments on Anna’s behalf — right in front of her! — and nod vigorously as Anna flees incoming extroverted strangers to avoid the mortifying ordeal of being known.

But flee all she likes, Anna can’t escape being adopted by a series of friendly, patient extroverts. There’s certainly some conflict in the story, and the movie isn’t shy about letting us see Anna mess up, but by and large Marnie pulls off the magic trick of having emotional resonance without ever really getting unpleasant. Most of the people Anna meets are wonderful, and it’s a pleasure watching her slowly come out of her shell. Studio Ghibli always knocks the side characters out of the park, and Yonebayashi continues the tradition here.

Now, some people might take issue with the statement that Marnie never gets “unpleasant.” What I mean is that there are no Umbridges or Joffreys running around to make you want to throw things, and the characters aren’t punching bags like in Grave of the Fireflies. Marnie does get sad, but it’s a sweet, kind sadness that just makes you want to go upstairs and pick up your sleeping baby and hold her for a bit. I’m going to stop there because I’m writing this at work and really don’t want people to think I’m tearing up over the mushed peas and zoodles recipe I’m supposed to be editing.

There’ll be more on this in the Spoiler Zone, but you should know that Marnie really benefits from being watched twice. It’s that rare mystery trick where the first watch is enriched by the desire to understand, and the second watch is enriched by already knowing. Even if you aren’t in the habit of re-watching films, you won’t be disappointed by a second viewing here.

I adore this movie. The only real flaw — made in all innocence, I believe — is also spoiler-y to talk about, but suffice to say that it is also less of a problem on the second watch. When Marnie Was There is funny, affecting, and beautiful. The future of How Do You Live seems uncertain; if Marnie does turn out to be the last Ghibli film, it would make a fine end for the storied studio.

Up Next: Funny thing — there’s nothing next! At least, as of February 5, 2020, When Marnie Was There is the last movie published by Studio Ghibli. A few years ago, Miyazaki announced that he was un-retiring to direct a new film, How Do You Live; however, the projected release has been continually pushed back, and in a recent interview, Miyazaki stated that the movie was only about 15% finished after years of work.

Barring new Ghibli movies, I’ll likely review some other highly acclaimed anime features — I’ve heard good things about Millennium Actress and Wolf Children. I considered reviewing Ocean Waves, a technically-Studio-Ghibli movie made for TV in the 90s, but I watched it and … it wasn’t great. I didn’t want to end my Ghibli reviews on a down note, so I decided against it. (The short version is that it’s an enemies-to-lovers story that spends 99% of the movie on the “enemies” part.)

For now, I’ll just say thank you for reading. This has been a fun, educational, and fulfilling project for me, and the fact that any of these posts have been liked or shared has been a pleasant surprise. Watch out for one last Spoiler Zone after the image!

SPOILER ZONE

Ok, so, my biggest issue with When Marnie Was There is that, before you know that Marnie is Anna’s grandma’s ghost, the way their interactions are written and animated gives off biiiiiiiiiiiiiig lesbian vibes. The way they talk, when Marnie shows Anna how to row the boat, the dancing, the repeated pleas to keep their relationship a secret, the femme/butch pairing, the blushing .... let’s just say I have several notes from my first watch along the lines of “wow Anna has big Oblivious Lesbian energy” and “surprised to see something this progressive from Studio Ghibli way back in 2014.”

Naturally, I retroactively felt super gross about all that once it clicked that it was a different relationship entirely. Like I said above, this is ameliorated when watching the second time. It’s easier to see how one could interpret it all differently — Anna’s not interested in Marnie romantically, she just literally has never had a friend before and is very overwhelmed by the whole thing. Likewise, Marnie is simply sad to see how withdrawn her granddaughter is and determined to bring her out of her shell.

But yeah, someone really needed to look at the storyboards for this movie and tell Studio Ghibli to tone down the blushing, because in 2020 (and I can’t imagine it came across too differently back in 2014) it reads as a very clearly telegraphed gay romance, and the ick factor when Marnie’s identity is revealed detracts from what is otherwise an extremely sweet, sad, and beautiful story.

Stray Notes:

well it’s been 5 minutes and I’m tearing up at this mom worrying about Anna so much

That title text is … bad

that exploding pumpkin bag shot 👍👍

“He’s a bear” lol

“A witch? Takes one to know one” SOLID BURN DAWG

“Extreme Introvert Gets Adopted by a Series a Extreme Extroverts”

WOW SAD

Aw it’s the first good Ghibli credits song, just in time for their last movie

wait, Hiromasa Yonebayashi was only 36 when he directed Arrietty??

#ghibli #studio ghibli #when marnie was there

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geometragic · 5 years

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Notes on Gakuen Basara (Katsuie-only version)

(( Warning: Extremely long post beneath the read-more ! ))

Episode 5

Last week, Sakon and Katsuie skipped a grade to become Year 1 students at Basara Academy. Katsuie is rumored to be a reformed delinquent.

Yukimura introduces himself to Katsuie, but Katsuie asks him, “What assistance could you give to someone who is already no better than a ghost?” Katsuie wants to be left alone by other people.

Katsuie initially dismisses the Mr. Basara Hottest of Men Contest. Sakon suddenly shows up and declares that he wants to enter so that he can make his perfect high school debut, and it turns out that Ieyasu already entered Katsuie so that he could strengthen his bonds with the students. Katsuie tries to argue that he doesn’t deserve to be in the contest, but Ieyasu tells him he does. Sakon glares at Ieyasu.

Mitsunari brings Sakon to Hideyoshi and Hanbei’s underground hideout. Hideyoshi glares at Sakon when Sakon says that he thought that Hideyoshi and Hanbei were suspended, and Sakons quickly covers his mouth and shuts up. Hanbei tells Sakon that he wants him to win because, if Katsuie loses, Ieyasu’s reputation will plummet because he forced him to enter. Sakon says that they’re putting a lot of pressure on him, but Mitsunari tells him that the arrangements have already been made.

Katsuie has many admirers among the girls.

Ieyasu asks Katsuie where the fire in his heart has gone. Ieyasu mentions how Katsuie once challenged Headmaster Nobunaga, which gives Katsuie traumatic flashbacks of that day and makes him faint on his desk. Ieyasu requests for Katsuie to be put on the baseball team. Kojuro protests, but Masamune allows Katsuie to join the baseball team. Masamune puts Katsuie through intensive training so that he can surpass his own limits and break out of his shell.

On a rainy day at a warehouse, Katsuie told Nobunaga that today was the day he would die (and Katsuie would defeat him) so that Katsuie could have everything. Nobunaga just made him explode. Oichi watched everything silently, then left with Nobunaga in Nobunaga’s fancy car with professional drivers. Katsuie was left face-down in the rain.

At first, Katsuie sucks at catching balls, but eventually he catches one. Suddenly, a bunch of fangirls come out of nowhere and yell that Katsuie did amazing, and that his melancholic eyes are so dreamy. However, Oichi then tells him to his face that she hates him and despises him. Katsuie then loses all confidence of ever moving on from that day, and runs off screaming. However, it turns out that she wasn’t talking to Katsuie, and she was just saying that she hates whoever defaced Nagamasa’s poster.

Katsuie tries to drop out of the Mr. Basara Hottest of Men Contest because he’s tired to being publicly humiliated. He then declares that he will become a deep-sea fish and go rot at the bottom of the ocean. When Ieyasu protests, Katsuie yells at them to leave him alone. Sakon then appears and says that he can’t do that because he’s been ordered to take down Katsuie. Masamune coaxes Katsuie into accepting Sakon’s challenge. Katsuie swipes Sakon’s dice and asks him what kind of challenge he has in mind.

Katsuie and Sakon challenge each other in a “look that way now” sudden death match. They end up being evenly matched in what becomes a heated match. Sakon can’t read Katsuie’s eyes because they’re like darkness itself. Katsuie feels that Sakon has lit a fire in his heart, and Sakon feels that the challenge isn’t about Mitsunari or Hideyoshi anymore, but the gamble of a lifetime. Katsuie wins. At first claims that he doesn’t have the right to rejoice openly, but when he spots a smiling Oichi in the crowd, he smiles. Sakon declares that victory is all in the roll of the dice, and that he won’t lose to Katsuie next time. Katsuie says that he’ll remember that, and shakes Sakon’s outstretched hand.

Episode 7

Katsuie is the “ghost-in-chief” in charge of the haunted house. However, he used the whole budget on a cheap trick that makes a rokurokubi appear to stretch itself out of a well and wiggle. Ieyasu (”Tokugawa-shi”) compliments it, though. Ieyasu then helps him turn it into a reverse haunted house: whoever can truly strike fear into Katsuie’s heart is the winner.

Later, Mitsunari bursts out of the door to the haunted house, complaining about how Katsuie (”Shibata”) won’t let him put a sea creature (a hood) in there. Katsuie gives the hood a rating of -5 points because of its terrible design and halfhearted stitching. Also, Ieyasu brought Kingo to be used as the fear meter. Katsuie proudly proclaims himself to be the law of the haunted house. Mitsunari says that this is just one of Ieyasu’s bids for popularity and that he wasted his time coming to the haunted house.

Kojuro wears horns and a sheet on top, but Katsuie is dissatisfied with it and only awards it 2 points. Masamune wears knight armor and points six swords at Kingo, but because he’s inspiring the wrong type of fear, he only gets 3 points. Yukimura writes characters on himself and presents himself as Hoichi the Earless, but because he’s too energetic, Katsuie gives him a terror factor of zero. Sakon wraps himself in toilet paper and pretends to be a mummy, but Katsuie throws a bucket of water over him, calls it a childish prank, and gives him only two points. Sakon protests, saying that he didn’t have to come. Keiji dresses himself and Yumekichi up as members of K.I.S.S. (?), but Katsuie criticizes it for being just a stage costume.

Dr. Akechi comes in with an anatomical model and a skeleton. Katsuie feels like using those against the rules, but since Dr. Akechi came in with a creeping terror and caused Kingo (”Kobayakwa-shi”) to faint after giving his loudest scream of the day, Katsuie seems to consider letting him win. However, Dr. Akechi forfeits and says that he still has long to go, before pulling out a green notebook, Katsuie’s “Ghost King Diary” (“Kaioh Nikki”). Katsuie looks terrified and asks him where he got it.

Inside the “Ghost King Diary”, Katsuie says that he sees through Nobunaga. He also hates his powerlessness and Nobunaga, and longs to one day become the “Ghost King” again and defeat Nobunaga. He would gladly offer up his life to the devil himself to do so. Other entries from the “Ghost King Diary”: “X/X Lord Nobunaga was overwhelming as usual today. But one day, I will surpass him! Yes, I shall appear as the giant deidarabocchi titan...”, “YY/XX I am all alone in this world. But I am not content! My goal is to strike down the high king, and as the new Ghost King, to sit on the throne of ASB President...”, “ZZ/YY If I gain independence from Lord Nobunaga and defeat Azai-shi in our tests, would it sadden Lady Oichi? No, I am the one who truly deserves Lady Oichi!” Katsuie cries out for Dr. Akechi to stop, but he doesn’t. The next entry that Dr. Akechi reads out loud: “Oichi-sama...she was weeping again today. Who caused these tears? My beautiful Oichi-sama! I will never forgive them!” More entries from the “Ghost King Diary”, with Oichi as the subject: “AA/AA *sparkling crying kaomoji* Oichi-sama. Oh, Oichi-sama. Oichi-sama.”, “Nobunaga-sama’s reprimand has brought tears to her eyes. They are beautiful...nevertheless, I must make him pay, even if he is Nobunaga-sama. But she is so beautiful...” Katsuie turns white and gives up on life, and believes that he was foolish for keeping a diary.

The entries in Katsuie’s diary badly scare Keiji, Sasuke, Yukimura, Kojuro, Masamune, (and maybe Sakon? He isn’t shown at first but then he shows up a couple shots later...). Dr. Akechi concludes by implying that Katsuie is the scariest one of them all, and Ieyasu gives Katsuie the grand prize (free tickets for all displays in the school).

Everyone takes Katsuie’s tickets and has fun going to the displays. In the cat-themed maid cafe, Katsuie sits at a separate table and has Matsu’s Russian roulette onigiri with everyone else, but unfortunately, he eats the one that’s full of wasabi.

At the bonfire dance after Sports Day, Sakon and Katsuie dance together happily. Nagamasa and Oichi also dance together. Nagamasa has his usual stony expression, while Oichi smiles.

Episode 9

Katsuie is there when Ieyasu announces the choir concert.

The last time the school song was played, it was at the first day of school for the first-years. However, it was abolished because it’s cursed. Whenever anyone sings it, terrible things happen, according to Dr. Akechi. Once Dr. Akechi leaves, Katsuie says that he’d love to hear the cursed song, causing Sasuke to protest.

Katsuie holds a Basara Academy flag in the background while Ieyasu sings his version of a new school song. Mitsunari interrupts and yells at Ieyasu to stop, though.

Katsuie later turns to try to leave, but Sakon stops him and says that he hasn’t heard his song yet. Katsuie tries to protest, but he ends up playing a crappy song on a recorder, which is “the sound of his current self.” Even if he never ends up in the spotlight, he’ll never forgive Nobunaga for what he’s done and wants to take Nobunaga down with him. The bell gets rung again, and Sakon looks sorry that he asked to hear Katsuie’s song. Ieyasu tells Katsuie that he did a good job by performing in front of all of them and giving a brilliant effort.

When Motochika kicks Motonari’s big CD player, it ends up loudly playing the cursed school song, which overpowers everyone and sends them to the ground. Someone pulls out the plug to the CD player, but Nobunaga keeps singing it over the intercom. After Dr. Akechi tells them that it’ll put an end to the school, everyone runs to the headmaster’s office, but he’s not there. They run to the roof and spot him on the playing field. He speaks the final words of the song (”so long”), but nothing happens. It turns out that everyone was tricked by Dr. Akechi. Everyone glares at him, annoyed, before beating him up.

The Oda army took everything from Itsuki’s peasant village / the Ikko-Ikki. They set fire to the villages, and killed children and the elderly in addition to the fugitive monks. (Siege of Nagashima and Ishiyama Hongan-ji?)

Episode 10

Mitsunari explains to Sakon that tomorrow is the Battle of Sekigahara, an annual event where the school is divided into East and West in a battle for supremacy. This year, Mitsunari will lead the Western army and Ieyasu will lead the Eastern army. Sakon deducts that the Battle of Sekigahara is a dry run for the elections, and if Mitsunari won, it’d give him a major boost. Mitsunari orders Sakon to recruit Motochika and as many champions as he can to join the Western army. Sakon says that Mitsunari can count on him.

Motochika tells Sakon no because he has more important things to deal with right now. Sakon tells him not to be like that since they have a plan that’ll make the Western army sure to win. Meanwhile, inside the school building and on one of the upper floors, Katsuie spots Sakon and Motochika through a window. Sakon tells Motochika that he did a number on the carburetor. Motochika tells him “bite me”, and Sakon mentions that he has a buddy who runs a bike shop. Sakon offers to play a game of dice with Motochika. If Motochika wins, Sakon will ask him to fix Motochika’s bike for free, but if Sakon wins, Motochika will join the Western army. Meanwhile, Katsuie has gone outside, and has been spying on Sakon and Motochika. Motochika agrees to the game, but says that he doesn’t want any tricks. Sakon appears to put the dice in the face-down cup, but from behind Katsuie can see that he’s holding an extra set behind his back. Motochika bets on odds, and Sakon lifts up the cup to reveal an even snake eyes.

Katsuie reports back to Ieyasu. Ieyasu tells him that he’s going to rely on the power of bonds and won’t force anyone to join him. Some nerdy, weak-looking background character with glasses shows up, and Ieyasu walks away and asks if he wants to join. Katsuie decides that he has to handle things himself. Katsuie thinks about how he never would’ve fit in at school if Ieyasu hadn’t helped him, and he wants to repay him for his kindness.

Katsuie approaches Keiji, but he already told Sakon that he’d join the Western army. The same happens with Nagamasa, Oichi, Toshiie, and Matsu. He tries to recruit Kanbei, but Sakon, who’s sitting in a nearby tree, interrupts them and asks Kanbei if he doesn’t want to think it over first. Sakon jumps out of the tree and tells Kanbei to forget Katsuie and join the Western army. Sakon then whispers to Kanbei that, if they win, Gyobu will tell Kanbei where to find the key. Kanbei joins the Western army.

Katsuie goes to the School Newspaper club’s room to try to persuade Kotaro to join, but he walks in on Sakon and Kotaro shaking hands on Kotaro’s deal to join the Western army.

Sakon walks through the halls, already seeing the Western army winning, but Motochika stops him. Sakon says that he can’t have a rematch. Katsuie steps out from behind Motochika, apparently having told him everything that he saw.

Katsuie is there when Kasuga tells Ieyasu that Tadakatsu has gone missing. Motochika says that he last saw Tadakatsu with Gyobu.

It turns out that Gyobu told Tadakatsu that Ieyasu had been kidnapped, tied him up, and locked him in the basement. He then sprayed sleeping powder on Tadakatsu, which is supposed to knock him out until tomorrow night. Gyobu tells this to Mitsunari and Sakon, and Mitsunari praises him. They all chuckle evilly, but then Katsuie, Kasuga, Ieyasu, and Motochika barge in. Ieyasu asks Mitsunari where Tadakatsu is. Mitsunari tells them all to get out, but then Katsuie says that they know that the leaders of the Western army kidnapped him. Sakon plays dumb and tells Katsuie not to make bizarre accusations just because he lost the scouting wars. Ieyasu yells for Tadakatsu, waking him up. Tadakatsu frees himself from his chains and crashes through the roof and into Mitsunari’s classroom. Ieyasu declares that this is the strength of their bond. Mitsunari still declares that he will destroy Ieyasu tomorrow.

The Sekigahara Dodgeball Tournament takes place. Mitsunari (flying into the air with Gyobu) and Ieyasu (flying into the air with Tadakatsu) focus on trying to get each other out, leaving the rest of the students on the ground doing nothing.

Episode 11

Nobunaga gives a surprise evacuation drill. Anyone who can’t leave in time will get expelled. Chaos erupts as students run out and Nobunaga’s hidden, life-threatening traps are triggered.

Katsuie slowly walks towards the exit, bemoaning how he never had any right to be a student at this school to begin with, but a crowd of fleeing students mows him down. He says, “And thus...I descend...to Hell...” He somehow reunites later with a group of students that includes Motonari, Mitsunari, Sakon, Motochika, Kojuro, and Sasuke, though. Yukimura and Masamune then get stomped into the room.

Tadakatsu can’t break through the metal doors, and Katsuie bemoans how they’ll all be expelled now.

Episode 12

Katsuie and Masamune help out Ieyasu on election day. Sakon and Katsuie sit next to each other at the 836th Student Elections. Magoichi holds a debate between Ieyasu and Mitsunari.

Katsuie, along with the other students, runs to fight Xavi and his flying ship.

#(( I finally finished it... XD ))#█₪➤ Out of Reflection ( ᵒᵘᵗ ᵒᶠ ᶜʰᵃʳᵃᶜᵗᵉʳ )#█₪➤ Reference #{ Reference: Canon Material }#{ Reference: Gakuen Basara }#▒₪➤ ≼ Gakuen Basara ≽ ( ʰⁱᵍʰ ˢᶜʰᵒᵒˡ ᵛᵉʳˢᵉ )

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littlemisssquiggles · 5 years

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RWBY Remarks: A Squiggle Meister’s Stance on the RWBY V6 Finale and RWBY as a whole.

Someone asked “Ngl squiggles I’m really disappointed with this finale. It seems to have split the fandom to its core. So many people are dropping it and while I’m tempted. It started off so well but derailed into v5 territory. What are your thoughts?”

explodingcarr0t asked “Got to say, I was quite disappointed with the finale. They had all this stuff set up and just, dropped it. “A giant grimm is coming towards a city with a horde of flying grimm and it breaks through the walls. Oh nevermind Ruby essentially one shots it and they leave.” With how much they hyped it up, the whole VRV thing saying, “It will change how you see RWBY.” and it being “huge” made this a let down. The volume started strong, but fell short after they got to Argus in more ways than one. ”

Someone asked “I have no words for that finale”

Squiggles Answers:

I know V6 ended last weekend and I’m sorry this response post came so late. I had a very busy week. But alas, here’s my answer:

To the two anon-ninjas and @explodingcarr0t who left their questions and opinions in my inbox:

I hear you guys and if I’m being completely honest, I don’t blame you or any other FNDM fam for their disappointment regarding last week’s finale episode. During my viewing of the last episode, one comment I kept making was that people were going to be pissed. I knew off the bat that fans were going to more than a little peeved by how V6 C13 played out. It’s not to say that the episode was bad though. On the contrary, personally, I enjoyed the last episode. It wasn’t bad. However…

Similar to its predecessor, V6 gave us another finale episode where not a lot happened. Since V1, the RWBY volume finales usually ended in a fight which pinned the forces of evil in an epic clash against the forces of good. A finale battle scene has usually been part of the climax for every volume and that’s been the rule of thumb since the first season by my recollection. However that stopped being the case after V5.

V6 C13 ultimately boiled down to a nostalgic slideshow of some of the most memorable moments in RWBY and a small conversation between the heroes to set up the next volume.

The main climax of C13 was Ruby using her Silver Eyes against the Leviathan and admittedly, it could’ve been handled better. Again, not saying it was a bad episode. I’m just saying that this didn’t feel like the finale the CRWBY wanted to tell by my impression. My biggest gripe with C13 wasn’t that it didn’t live up to the hype of the FNDM but because members of the CRWBY and their promotional people (like VRV) chocked this finale up to be something that was mistakenly advertised to be grander but in the end, did not pull through.

Biggest finale with the biggest ending? Not counting the set up left behind by the after credit scene, the V6 finale wasn’t really a flop (at least to me) but…it wasn’t what it was made out to be. This is the second finale we’ve received for the Mistral Arc where the characters don’t fight at all in the last episode even though the set up was for a big fight.

I’ve noticed a pattern now. Ever since V5, the CRWBY have shied away from having the characters fight for the finale episode. Back in V5 a lot of the fighting moments was spread out during the 2-3 episodes leading up to the finale. However by the time the last episode finally debuted, there was nothing much left for the climax. Any remaining fights that fans were anticipating to see were either glossed over or boiled down to the characters just standing around and mostly talking.

And sadly to say, this is pretty much what happened in V6 too in a way. It boiled down to Ruby saving the day with her powers, after which she and the others are left free to go. After everything that transpired with Cordo between C10 and 12, the heroes didn’t face any severe repercussions for their actions.

I mean, while I expected Cordo to turn the other cheek and grant the heroes permission to go to Atlas after they helped protect Argus, this was not how I expected them to prove themselves. We didn’t even get to see any of the other huntsmen fight to defend Argus against the horde of Manticore and Sphinx. That was left to the Atlesian Military who you can actually see having a bit of difficulty against the Manticores and Sphinx during the shot where the JNR_QROWMBY’s airship is flying by unnoticed courtesy of Ren’s masking semblance.

Speaking of the Manticores and Sphinx. Now this is more or less a little nit-pick I had while reviewing the episode but…how is it that we have this full blown horde of Grimm and not one of them went after any of the Argus citizens who were just standing out in the open, making themselves very easy targets?

I thought the Grimm were drawn to negative emotions like fear. Surely the rising tension of the Argus citizens during Cordo’s mechazord rampage against the heroes must’ve been what attracted the Grimm in the first place, right? Yet none of the Sphinx and Manticores attacked any of the citizens of Argus who just stood there the entire time. Out in the open when any of the flying Grimm in the area can make easy lunch out of them. What?

That’s what I expected when I saw the Sphinx and Manticores again. That they were going to go immediately after the citizens, forcing our heroes to divide to try and protect as much of the people as possible.Yet not one Sphinx turned and made easy prey out of the very vulnerable people of Argus just standing there observing everything? Huh?

I’m sorry. Maybe someone else can explain the logistics of that scene to me because going off of what I know about the Grimm from the RWBY lore, this scene made no sense. I guess you can argue that perhaps the Atlesian Military invented some sort of technology that mimics the same negative energy that attracts the Grimm and that’s what they deployed in order to draw the Manticores and Sphinx away from the citizens to the oceans.

I mean if it was canonically something like that then cool, I can buy into it. However we got no scene to establish any explanation as to why the airborne Grimm chose to focus primarily on the Military as opposed to immediately going after the citizens. Seriously that scene bothered me because it’s almost a complete contradiction of what transpired in the very first episode of V6.

In V6 C1, Qrow became furious with Dudley for using the turrets. Despite the fact that the turrets were being used to defend the Argus Limited, its efforts only served to lure the Grimm closer to the very distressed passengers on board the train.

I guess you can argue that the Atlesian air force used their airship missiles to draw the Manticores and Sphinx out toward the waters. However…that still doesn’t explain why none of these Grimm went after the citizens. It’s not even to say there was a force field around Argus to prevent the Grimm from getting into the city. Sure we have the shield to stop the Leviathan but not the flying Grimm. The Sphinx and Manticores could have easily gone for any of the citizens who were all just standing there making themselves free targets for slaughter but…didn’t? Whaaaat?

I understand that the Grimm don’t necessarily need to feed on humans but…but…how did these Grimm not go after the exposed citizens. How?

Sorry for the small rant. I just found that moment to be kind of odd. And I’m sure this is not the only nit-pick I have from the finale. The truth is that this finale episode had its flaws. However I don’t want to focus on that too much. I want to focus on the good this finale served.

C13 may not have been the finale I was hoping for but at least it left off the story for certain characters that I liked. For starters, I like that even though we got Ruby grasping the mentality she needs to summon her power; she still has much MORE to learn about how to use her eyes. As highlighted by her failure to completely petrify the Leviathan, there is more to Ruby’s use of her eyes than just positive memories.

As we saw during Maria’s fight with the Nevermore in C7, the Silver Eyes are supposed to kill a Grimm immediately after petrification. But in the case of Ruby’s turn against the Leviathan, it didn’t work.

I’d like to think that the effects of the Silver Eyes are based on the…I guess I’ll call it…age of the Grimm. As in how long the targeted Grimm has survived on Remnant. I’d like to believe that the reason why Ruby was able to easily vaporize the Apathy versus the Leviathan was because…perhaps the Leviathan has survived longer than the Apathy. I’d like to think this massive Grimm has been dormant in the oceans of Argus for years and only resurfaced recently due to the uproar in the city. So perhaps the Silver Eyes only petrify Grimm that are older while younger Grimm get taken out instantly. That’s just my understanding of it.

Either way, C13 showed that Ruby still has much to learn and understand about the silver eyes. Thankfully, C13 left Ruby not completely mastering her powers and I’m very satisfied with that ending. It means that V6 is only the first chapter in Ruby’s arc to becoming a full-fledged Silver Eyed Warrior and I’m very interested to see where this goes from here.

Since happy memories wasn’t enough to fully kill the Leviathan, what else is Ruby missing from her mind-set? This is a question I want answered and I hope we get to see it explored for V7.

Apart from Ruby’s arc, I’m very pleased with where the CRWBY Writers left things for Oscar’s side of the story. As a Pinehead, even though I was disappointed to not see Oscar actually fight for this finale, I am satisfied where they concluded his story especially concerning Ozpin. I already talked about how much I wanted the Ozpin Isolation and Forgiveness Arc to be pushed forward to the Atlas Arc and so said so done, we got it.

YES! I’m excited by this because it gives me the golden opportunity to potentially see that Oscar’s Choice potential subplot come to fruition. This development can spell Ironwood potentially approaching Oscar with the choice of separating him from Ozpin using Atlas technology with their aura experiments as foreshadowed since V3. We all know Oscar’s reservations about the Merge. Although he has accepted his fate, a part of me still calls mega ultra bullshit on Oscar being okay with everything.

Right now, Oscar is acting just as nonchalant about his fate as Ruby was about her emotions during the dojo scene.

V5 had Oscar calling Ruby out on her bottled up feelings over everything that’s happened to her since V3. I would love it if we got a parallel to the dojo scene where this time; Ruby is the one to call Oscar out on his indifference to just accepting the Merge.

The same way how we got Oscar bluntly asking Ruby how she was okay with all the trauma she suffered over the seasons, I want Ruby to pull up Oscar and ask him the same question. How is he okay with basically handing his life over to someone else? Especially a person who is now mistrusted by the entire hero team?

With Oscar still very much in control and with the heroes still having reservations about Ozpin, everything is starting to fall into place for an Oscar-worthy character arc. I like that Ozpin was still compassionate enough to help Oscar out when he needed it. I actually found it rather sweet that Oscar being in immediate danger was what brought Ozpin out of his isolation. Sure it was only for a few minutes enough for him to guide the boy but, he did come out. I also loved how Ozpin spoke to Oscar in that short moment.

“…Stay calm. It’s going to be okay.”

Ozpin sounded so fatherly to Oscar in that scene. I think this is the most caring we’ve heard Ozpin speak to Oscar since V4 and during all those moments where Ozpin felt truly remorseful of forcing Oscar into this predicament. Aah Oz. Even though I’m not ready to see you come back, I do miss you and Shannon’s amazing voice work as Ozpin’s voice in Oscar’s head.

Anyways, Ozpin only returning when Oscar is in perilous danger and is in dire need of help. Hmm…I smell a foreshadowing. Especially after the after credit scene.

Another thing I can see possible is Oscar and Ozpin reconciling and Ozpin returning through Oscar’s encouragement. But even though the two souls have reunited, things are still sour between Oz and the team and that will make things great in terms of Oscar’s part in this and his development as a character.

Imagine Oscar forming his own separate ties with Ozpin (as his other half) and the members of the JNR_QROWMBY. However Oscar still feels divided and completely uneased due the group’s resilient mistrust of Ozpin. Including Ruby.

Picture Oscar becoming so fearful of the Merge that he starts to suffer with nightmares of eventually disappearing. Picture Oscar suffering from nightmares that are actually memories of the past Wizards of Light, particularly Diggs (Ozma 2.0) who got burned to death by Salem and Ozpin who died in a similar fashion at the hands of Cinder.

Imagine Oscar dreaming these events as if they were his own memories---reliving them as if he were there as a sign that the Merge was starting to happen. There are so many ways the CRWBY Writers can take Oscar’s story from V6 and as I’ll state again, I’m intrigued to see where this all goes from here for my favourite farm boy.

The Storytelling of RWBY

If I had to give the Writers one word of advice as a member of the FNDM and someone who is going to continue to watch the show: Don’t bite off more than you can chew for the season finale. Pick one or at least two solid ideas as the basis for your finale. Spend the volume alluding to that one idea; slowly building up to it and let that one premise be the focus of the final chapter and the episodes leading up to it. .

What do I mean by this? As I’ve mentioned before, I did my own recap of RWBY during which I noticed a pattern the CRWBY Writers have adopted with structuring their finale episodes within the past and recent volumes.

Even if the CRWBY spent the majority of the season handling other subplots left behind from previous seasons, when it comes to finale they usually spend the last 2-4 episodes of the season building up to the main premise set for the season finale before giving us the big climax which; in the past, usually resulted in one big epic final fight to close of the volume.

For V1, the main premise of the finale episode was Blake being revealed as a Faunus and her past involvement with the White Fang which led to a confrontation between her and Roman Torchwick. Torchwick was leading the White Fang in an orchestrated theft at the docks which Blake learnt about during a stakeout with Sun. RWBY V1 had 16 episodes. Although Blake’s involvement with the White Fang was only brought in during C15, it became the focal point that drove the finale. Blake and the White Fang was foundation of the V1 finale episodes. One theme. Keep that in mind.

For V2, the conflict was Team RWBY again thwarting another orchestrated plan by Torchwick and the White Fang. The plan resulted in a runaway train blasting a path from Mountain Glenn to central Vale which brought an army of Grimm toward the city. The finale was Team RWBY and JNPR helping to defend Vale along with the epic arrival of Team CVFY.

RWBY V2 had only 12 episodes. Torchwick’s scheme was something that was alluded to all season but we didn’t get to see the plan be fleshed out until C8. Torchwick’s scheme to use explosives to destroy the underground caves in Mountain Glen leaving an open path for the Grimm to enter the seat was something alluded to whole season but didn’t see it fully come to truth until C8, leaving the last four episodes of V2 as the build up to the big final fight and Torchwick’s arrest. Torchwick’s scheme was the foundation of the V2 finale episodes. One theme. Keep that in mind.

For V3, the finale for the Fall of Beacon. While we had have several plot threats scattered through the finale such as: the huntsmen defending Beacon Academy against the corrupted Atlesian Paladins and robot soldiers, the Spring Maiden, Cinder vs Ozpin, Pyrhha versus Cinder, Pyrhha’s death, Ruby’s reveal as a Silver Eyed Warrior---these were all plot elements that were slowly alluded to and built up within the past two seasons so when you see them executed finally in V3, you feel satisfied.

Though RWBY V3 only had 12 episodes, the season was the one time where the foundation of the finale episode had more than one theme but it worked since it was the work of three seasons coming together to give us the most memorable finale episode in RWBY. The best conclusion to an arc trilogy.

Now let’s fast forward to the Mistral Arc. For V4, the finale was RNJR versus the Nuckelavee Grimm before finally making it to Mistral. RWBY V4 gave us 12 episodes. While V4 didn’t exactly sit well with the FNDM, at least its season finale kept the ole epic final fight routine especially since Ren facing his past and RNJR’s arrival in Mistral had been a focus of the season for their side of the story.

To me, the finale structure started to go south from V5. As of V5, I feel as if the Writers developed this habit of cramming all the good stuff in the episodes leading up to the climax while leaving the actual final episode of the season with a whole lot of nothing much to do. I have no idea how the production pipeline for RWBY works. However a thing I’ve noticed with the final episodes for V5 and V6 is that they both feel rather flat and boring compared to the episodes leading up to it.

I’d like to think the CRWBY is supposed to end their seasons with a bang but the past two finales have been underwhelming at best. Although V6 did handle its better than V5.

An improvement but still the same problem. V6 made me wish they didn’t introduce the Leviathan at all. If the Leviathan Grimm was truly meant to be the big bad of the ending then instead of giving us that whole Cordovin vs JNR_QROWM fight that stretched for three episodes, they should have brought that thing in as early as C10. Otherwise don’t bring it in at all. It’s annoying how underused the Leviathan Grimm was. We finally got a Kaiju-sized Grimm reminiscent of Godzilla and this thing was only brought in at the last minute just so that Ruby can show off her powers in admittedly, the most half-assed of ways. I know some fans really loved the moment where Ruby used her powers but...while I’ll admit it was very touching to see the heartfelt memories Ruby holds dearest in her heart especially the one of her beloved mother, it could have been done so much better.

Up until this point, Ruby hasn’t had much focus on her eyes since C8. I did not expect Ruby to master her Silver Eyes. I did not expect her plan to go all in on the Leviathan to work and if anything, C13 made Ruby seem very reckless in my opinion. There are moments in that finale where Ruby could have gotten herself and her teammates killed. But of course, the plot has ways to write around these obvious flaws. One being the use of Jinn.

While I’ll admit that was clever on Ruby’s part,…this could have been done better. That’s all I can say. Thing could’ve been better.

To me, the CRWBY Writers have always done better when they just picked one or two ideas and focus on that. The only time the multiple ideas worked was during V3. But even then, V3 is a special case since the plot threads that went down for its final episode were a culmination of a story three seasons in the making. You see where I’m going with this, right?

Keeping things small at first and save the bigger things for later in the trilogy after spending at least two volumes building up to it. The reason why I will always praise the Beacon Trilogy is because everything was developed nicely from the start. While V1 and V2 had their own finale subplots, both subplots contributed to the events that took place in the finale of V3.

Everything that went down in V3 was a perfectly executed trail of events that commenced as early as the first season. This is what the CRWBY Writers are missing from their storytelling. That structure. I’m happy that the animation and visual look of RWBY has improved and continues to get better and better as the series progresses. That’s phenomenal and major kudos to the CRWBY for their growth and hard work over the seasons.

All the Writers need to do right now is bring back that strong structure they had back when the story was in Vale. If I had to assume one thing about the writing process for the RWBY volumes right now, it’s that it seems as if Miles and Kerry are writing everything volume by volume and then trying to figure out how it all ties together at like the very end of last few episodes in the final chapter of the final season in the trilogy. Now; this is just my assumption and I could be very wrong about this. However, as an audience member, that’s the impression I get when I compare the Beacon Trilogy to the now completed Mistral Trilogy.

I don’t want anyone thinking that the only reason I praise the Beacon Trilogy is because it’s the seasons where Monty was still involved in the project. No that’s not it. I judge RWBY based on what I see and how much I can interpret from what I see.

I don’t like the Beacon story over Mistral because Monty played a part in its development. The Beacon Trilogy is great to me because it felt like a trilogy. It was a cohesive trilogy where every volume was just a piece to the much bigger picture that took place in V3.

When I look at the Mistral Trilogy, other than the setting being Mistral and Anima, this trilogy was disjointed. I’ve said this before in a past response post; the Writers started off decently in V4 but ran themselves into a wall in V5. A wall they did their gosh-darn best to overcome in V6.

Though I would praise V5 as a not-so bad season on its own, as a continuation from V4 and a prequel to V6, V5 did not do so well. As a matter of fact, V5 created more problems than the Writers benched for.

It’s why I’m going easy on V6 because, from the get-go, V6 was meant to be damage control.We know this. The Writers messed up in V5 and V6 had a lot of pressure on its neck since the FNDM community was looking at it to be the CRWBY’s return to form. The one to repair the proclaimed ‘mess’ left behind by V5

V6 was basically the CRWBY’s way of trying to salvage dinner from a meal that was already burnt.

People were looking at V6 to be the perfect plot lasagne that would fix the whole Mistral Trilogy. As good of a season V6 was, it didn’t fix the mistakes of the Mistral Arc. You can’t get lasagne from one season. A perfect plot lasagne is something that comes in layers. It’s something that has to be built from the ground up. A succulent course that takes at least three seasons worth of proper planning, great story structure and development to prepare. Not something that you can just throw together in one season and expect it to work.

Basically the point I’m trying to make here is…I went into V6 expecting it to salvage the Mistral Arc, not save it entirely. On its own, V6 was a great season. A massive improvement from V5 and a step in the right direction with the CRWBY renewing my believability in that the team hasn’t lost its edge as yet. The animation, particularly in the fight scenes worked wonders this season. For me, the only thing that still needs work is in the organization in the storytelling. While the writing for V6 was Miles and Kerry’s best for the Mistral Trilogy, in the end, it unfortunately still suffered from the same issues fans have complained about in past seasons. Particularly in the second half of the season.

This is the second volume where the complaint has been that the story started to go downhill after the second half of the season. I more felt like the second half of V6 was not the story the Writers wanted to tell. To me, things began to go awry from C9 and ya’ll know how I felt about that episode after C8.

You cannot tell me that the Writers deliberately planned for Oscar to go missing just to have him miraculously show back up in the very next episode as if the events of C8 never happened.

A part of me would like to hold out for the belief that the Writers had planned more for Oscar’s story this season that was supposed to commence in the second half of the season but it had to be cut and probably pushed for a later season due to time constraints and deadlines.

I would not be surprised if there was supposed to be an entire subplot for V6 dedicated to Oscar. Since V6 was originally meant to have 14 episodes instead of 13, I’m going to stand by the belief that there was originally meant to be an entire episode focused on Oscar following C8.

C9 felt so misplaced especially coming off of the ending of C8. I would not be surprised if C9 was initially meant to be an Oscar-centric episode which explained the events of what happened to him before we got his return back at the Cotta-Arc episode.

As sad as it would sound for me to imply that of the Writers cut out Oscar’s development episode, that’s the only thing that makes sense to me. Oscar was going to have his own full focus episode that touched on his past like Ozpin did in C3 but the CRWBY scrapped it for this season. But y’know, this is only my interpretation. Feel free to respectfully disagree with me if you will.

Anyways, whileV6 still suffered the same shortcomings that V5 in its final episode, it wasn’t enough to influence me to drop the show. For what it’s worth, I’m still a loyal passenger of the RWBY hype train. It’s sad to hear about people dropping the show especially after the CRWBY put out some of their best work this season.

But y’know, to each their own. I can tell the disappointed fans to stay on this train as much as I want but at the end of the day, it’s people’s choice whether they wish to stay in the FNDM or not. If dissatisfied fans wish to leave then it’s their choice. The only thing left to be done about that is to respect it. My only hope is that those same fans don’t become the type to dedicate their time to completely bashing the series while scolding the CRWBY’s attempts at continuing RWBY.

To summarize my thoughts: while there are things I didn’t enjoy about theV6 finale or the season overall, it wasn’t enough to deter my overall enjoyment of the volume or my loyalty as a fan of RWBY. I can’t speak for other fans. I can only speak for myself and this squiggle meister is still on this train.

I still love RWBY and what’s keeping me here is the devotion I have to seeing my favourite characters’ stories continued going forward for the full narrative (*ahem* Oscar’s arc). Moreover I’ve been a fan of RWBY since Day 1, Season 1 and although the series has suffered a few bumps along the way, like Maria Calavera after the Argus train crash, I’m still on this train.

Then there is the part of me that wants to keep believing in the CRWBY. Believing in the CRWBY Writers. While I may not always like what Miles and Kerry put out in the canon (*ahem* Oscar’s missing focus episode from V6), I still have major respect for these two fine gentlemen and the hardworking team of artists who are keeping this story going. Despite everything, these creative minds still have a story to tell and I frankly want to see them finish it.

I am invested in seeing the CRWBY finish RWBY regardless of what they have in store. RWBY has changed as a series since it first started. V4 was basically a renaissance period for the series. The series evolved after V3. Some of it good. Some of it not-so good and what I’m seeing now is a series with a story still left to be told. So it will keep doing its best to tell said story until the final episode of RWBY is made.

RWBY is not a flawless show. It has never been a flawless show and it will never be a flawless show. As a matter of fact, RWBY’s ability to thrive despite its noticeable flaws is what I appreciate about it. Even when the Writers take the story in ways that I might not like as a fan and audience member, they still manage to do the thing a good story is supposed to do. Keep me entertained and invested in the characters and story they’re portraying.

Sure V6 C13 might not have been the best episode of V6 or the best finale in all of RWBY but it did fulfil its purpose. It got me interested in V7. I want to know what happens next for RWBY and until there is a season where I stop caring about what’s to come, I shall remain a fan.

I don’t know about any other fans but that’s this squiggle meister’s mantra.

~LittleMissSquiggles (2019)

#squiggles answers: rwby #oscar pine #ruby rose #professor ozpin #rwby theories #squiggles talks: rwby #rwby remarks #rwby

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