There are no greater critics of RWBY then RWBY fans themselves, and anyone who has been stuck with it since Volume 1 can’t deny that they are a bit of a fan. It’s not the kind of series that fans would necessarily recommend to those outside of the fandom, but when projects like RWBY Ice Queendom is announced, it’s hard to contain any excitement that the series could be getting some sort of renaissance.
When SHAFT suddenly announced a new TV anime based on Rooster Teeth’s web series, featuring Madoka Magica and Psycho-Pass writer Gen Urobuchi confirmed, it seemed impossible to fail. Some even speculated that it could surpass the quality of the original, after attracting creators inspired by Monty Oum’s work to create a labor of love. Not only that, but the series would also serve as an original story that usually works as a complement to the original canon. It would bridge the gap between the first two parts and address issues of continuity therein. But after 12 episodes the most can be said that: Ice Queendom in the end very loyal to what? RWBY was: a mixed bag.
Promises, promises
RWBYThe appeal is pretty simple, regardless of your opinion of the quality of the brand: it’s about beautiful girls fighting monsters with the power of friendship (and guns, knives and guns with blades). And taking the four original trailers only on their own merits made that appeal crystal clear to the public and even the creators of Ice Queendom.
Takanori Aki of Good Smile Company, in an interview with Anime News Network, recalled his limited interactions with Monty when the series started, before dying. It is clear to hear from the staff that Monty’s work and the inspiration from which he drew Black Rock Shooterowned by Good Smile Company, appealed to them a lot.
As we kept in touch, RWBY made its way to Japan and the film found an audience there. Monty was so happy to see the reception RWBY got. Unfortunately, he died suddenly about three weeks after our last meeting. I was happy to celebrate RWBY with him, but still it was a huge loss.
-Takanori Aki, CEO of Good Smile Company
RWBY was all about the promise, from the colorful cast to the sometimes gorgeous episodes dripping with glorious action and frenetic choreography that 3D animators everywhere envy. But between those beautiful fights and the deliberate style choices that shaped an identity for the series, there was a rawness that couldn’t be overlooked.
Ice Queendom looked like an opportunity for a fresh start and maybe a chance to do RWBY again with a studio known for making incredible TV anime. Thinking about the stylistic choices that were present in the beginning RWBYa studio like SHAFT, known for avant-garde works like monogamy and Madoka Magicaseemed the right choice.
SCHACHT-Lite
To the credit of the production team, there are many qualities in the art direction and animation that speak to what SHAFT does well as a studio. From the moment Weiss is caught in the grip of the Nightmare and the rest of the team has to rescue her, telling the story immediately felt like it was in the dreamlike abstraction of something like madoka. Black Rock Shooter‘s character designer Huke contributed the designs for I.Q creating perhaps the finest portraits of these characters since Ein Lee’s original designs. At the best moments, the characters have that shine, especially in their eyes, that draws the viewer into the moment during the most dramatic moments.
But that’s only at “the best moments” when the artwork does its best, and unfortunately the consistency of the art and animation leaves a lot to be desired. Sometimes a brief moment of character acting or a sudden burst of action elicits an “ooh” or an “ahh”, but only to compensate for what can sometimes be a butchering of the character designs.
Due to a lack of correction in post-production, many scenes feel rather unfinished and unappealing, especially in later episodes when Jaune takes on more of the spotlight. There’s even the occasional odd 3D animation, which feels especially odd because the idea of this series would be to get away from 3D, as Rooster Teeth has already covered that.
SHAFT’s shows may not always be well animated, but they are directed with such ambition and attention to detail that they can compensate for limitations. Things like the SHAFT head-tilt or the studio’s other visual tropes are the result of this ambition. But people shouldn’t go into it I.Q assuming monogamy or madoka, lest they be greatly disappointed. And is such an expectation unreasonable? Maybe to expect something like critically successful, yes, but show if Pretty Boy Detective Club are also not flagship franchises and still have incredible visuals. It doesn’t have to be compared to the best, but even compared to something modest, it doesn’t live up to the standard.
The dream in the nightmare
Perhaps the missing visual quality is so crushing because it is well written on its own. The first three episodes may have gone through the events of Volume 1, something the creators even refer to as a struggle, but once the original story kicks in, it’s one of the best stories in the franchise. Weiss’s inner darkness and the foundations of her internalized bigotry she faced were amazing, but it was just so cool to see how this dream tackled each character. in OG RWBY, the characters could feel a little inconsistent at times, especially Yang, whose personality seemed to change often. In I.Qshe is much more focused.
She is a protective older sister who is way too confident to speak her mind even if she should be quiet and her learning to trust and trust Ruby was sweet. Ruby himself shows much more initiative as a leader in I.Q despite her initial lack of confidence compared to the original. As for Blake, her character remains fairly consistent given how early in the series I.Q is set. While the way the story approaches the conflict between humans and Faunus seems too much like a centrist approach to civil wars, it’s well-meaning and makes for a more satisfying resolution between her and Weiss. In any case, it’s much better than how Volume 1 initially ended.
That’s arguably the series’ biggest win: that writer Tow Ubukata has managed to do justice to these characters and even reformulate the story to better introduce the audience to this world. The writing and music of Nobuko Toda and Kazuma Jinnouchi carry this series from start to finish.
RWBY Ice Queendom is a seductive, occasionally wonderful action show with an entertaining character drama, brought down by the missing, inconsistent imagery and ideas that don’t go as far as they could have. And in that it is the perfect adaptation of RWBY. Perhaps the brand is cursed to aspire to something bigger, only to find that it lacks the time, direction, or artists to make it what it thought it was. And despite all that, there is something attractive about it. Fans of RWBY will check it out for that reason, but those who are not yet deeply entrenched down the rabbit hole probably won’t find much to keep them hooked.
Source: Evan Miller & Bamboo Dong/ Anime News Network
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