#Volume Analysis

[eloise175]

VADTD cover analysis!

This stems from an analysis I did on the vadtd server (everyone is welcome to come and join us). Since there seem to be a few people who are confused about the order of covers or the seasons they represent, I decided to make a little analysis, (this is coming from someone who has almost all english physical copies of the manhwa). I shall fulfill my duty as self-proclaimed season speculator and covers analyst (•̀ᴗ•́)و

As of now we have 7 known covers, after Suol-nim made an announcement on twitter about how the 4th season will begin on the 30th of September, and with it came a picture of what might be the new season’s cover.

(To make the placement easier to understand, just look at it this way: the odd numbers are the main covers, whereas the even numbers are the filler covers, which was pointed out by @seirclys as well).

1. Let’s start from the very beginning with the first cover.

The first cover ever that we know of, where Penelope is by herself. We've seen this cover plenty of times. It’s the first season's start, and I'd also like to think that the fact that she is by herself is not only showing that she is the protagonist, but also her distance with everyone else.

We can see that there are various crystal hearts around Penelope and each represents one of the male leads.

Penelope is laying in a coffin, (most likely symbolizing the many in-game deaths), and surrounded by flowers, more specifically white lilies that we see in the novel illustration of Penelope.

She is wearing the dress which is said to be her favorite. It appears each time a panel of the actual game is shown. It seems to be her trademark dress.

Penelope is holding onto a dark red rose, which could represent how she chose Eckles as her escape out since his affection score rises easily; alternatively it could represent her.

2. The second one is not a season start cover, nor a main cover, it’s a physical copy cover because the first season was broken in multiple parts when published as physical.

On the cover we see Penelope and Emily; I think this shows how now Emily is firmly on Penelope's side and will continue to serve her from then on. The duchy in the background and Emily's presence could also be symbolizing how other servants as well are now recognizing Penelope as their superior, like the head butler Pennel did.

Penelope’s dress is a stark contrast to the one seen on the first season cover. Her dress is very bright and shorter, looking to be made for a more leisurely time. There is also a book in her hand and her expression is calm, while Emily brings a cheerful air.

3. The third in line is a main cover, and consequentially, the second season's cover.

On the cover we see Penelope and Reynold standing back to back, and the place is the attic where they had a verbal altercation, however Reynold understood where he went wrong. Their position shows how they are close but yet so far; Reynold from now on will try to mend his relationship with Penelope (in his own way), while Penelope for the time being doesn't want to have much to do with him. They will grow closer as time goes by.

Reynold has a remorseful expression while Penelope is almost indifferent, neutral even.

Some of her hair is resting on his shoulder, and she is holding a pink rose, which from my understanding is a nod towards Reynold since now we know that his affection score is pink.

I think that it all means that, despite the two of them having clashed the most, Penelope is still welcome to allow Reynold to be close to her.

Thorny vines are present at the top, together with pink roses and blue roses that look to be yet again hinting at Reynold’s affection score, and possibly how his relationship with her will be meant to be: lighthearted feelings, with brotherly love.

4. Like the second one, the fourth cover is mostly a physical copy cover, since season 2 was broken in parts for serialization reasons.

On the cover we see Penelope and Callisto, who is very present in the hunting arc. He stands far from Penelope, signaling that the two of them are not that 'close' during this time in the story. Callisto could also be considered as being more in the background since he is the farthest away from Penelope, unlike Emily and Reynold so far.

Callisto is looking at Penelope with an observant expression, whereas Penelope is looking at us. I’d like to point out that Penelope is always looking at the viewer, while if there are other characters in the cover, they are always looking at her.

Both of them are wearing their garments from the hunting tournament. Their weapons are also in sight, which are quite important in this particular arc.

Penelope’s crossbow and her use of it is what got her banned the previous year, and this time around it will be used to save both her and Callisto from the assassins chasing them. Callisto’s sword will slay the bear that attacked Penelope, and it was also used by him to aid Penelope in their fight against the assassins.

The missing thorns and roses signify Penelope’s views on Callisto at the time. She still does not consider him a love interest in full despite him being one.

It is highly likely that Callisto will get another cover, which will no doubt be a main season’s cover. I believe he will get more covers after that one too *cough* side stories and special chapters *cough*

5. The fifth cover is a main cover, and season’s 3 main cover.

It features Penelope and Derrick standing with their backs to each other, separated by prison bars, symbolizing Penelope's wrongful incarceration, as well as her cutting ties with Derrick after the trial.

The broken blue string is a call back to how Penelope was seen 'stepping’ on a blue ribbon, which is a figuration and meant to represent her relationship with Derrick, to show how she is once and for all cutting every connection to him, writing him out of her options.

Both of them are dressed in the same attire we see on them during the trial arc, showing exactly when their affiliation became strained.

Although they are standing back to back, it is very different from how Reynold did it, (Reynold was basically sitting next to her with her hair even falling on his shoulder, basically very close); Derrick on the other hand has no physical contact with Penelope whatsoever and we can only see half of his face, his figure is also fading towards the bottom.

In her hand Penelope is holding the dagger that was used as evidence to prove her innocence during the trial. The snapped string and the way she holds the dagger makes it appear as though she cut the string, which would be pretty ironic given how the dagger was the evidence of Penelope’s innocence, which Derrick doubted from the beginning, and because of his skepticism he did not get the chance to even know about the dagger before Penelope herself presented it during the trial.

Like with Reynold’s cover, there are thorny vines around the cover, however the roses here are darker in color and obviously meant to represent Derrick.

6. This is not a main cover, and is the filler cover for the continuation of season 3.

This cover represents the island arc where Winter is a prominent figure.

Like Reynold he is very close yet far at the same time, and like with Callisto, their distance shows a lack of complete trust from Penelope towards them. However whereas Callisto still didn't have Penelope's faith, Winter lost it in this arc.

Penelope's back is facing Winter, while he is reaching for her with a purple rose in his hand (the exact same color as his affection score), but there is no physical contact between the two.

Penelope is also adorning an almost indifferent expression. With his 'test’ to see if Penelope was a follower of the Leila, he endangered both the children and Penelope herself, which made her lose all of her hope in him.

At the season's end we see how Penelope cuts off ties with him as well and tells him to not look for her unless she looks for him first. It is pretty much the same situation that happened with Derrick; Penelope is giving her back to both of them with a serious and determinate expression on her face signaling how she ‘writes them off' her list of potential escape routes.

There is yet another pattern at the edges of the cover, consisting of thorny vines and roses in a coloring that represents the male lead featured on the cover.

The cover where Callisto is featured seems to be the only one so far (featuring a male lead) that does not have these thorny vines and roses, despite him very much being a male lead. I previously attributed that to his cover not being a main one, however after further inspecting Winter’s cover which is also a filler one like Callisto’s, I can say that it’s not the case. Perhaps the vines full of thorns are there to symbolize how each of the male leads did something that made Penelope reluctant to place trust in them and consequentially less prone to consider them successful escape routes.

7. The seventh cover was shared yesterday on twitter by Suol herself, and will most likely be the main cover for season 4.

This signals that the season will begin with Eckles coming back from his training, (I could explain the cover further, but it contains major spoilers so I won't include this segment, and I will be vague with the discernment of the cover's symbolism).

Eckles is shown to have a desperate expression on his face, and there is also a little distance between him and Penelope.

Due to the previous pattern of the last two covers, as well as Penelope's almost doubtful/ incredulous and somewhat 'angry’ expression, one could assume that Eckles did something that made him fall from Penelope's graces, so she'll most likely take a distance from him too.

Let’s talk about hand placement. His right hand is still the one that's holding the magical sword Penelope gifted to him when they went out and she bought him all the training equipment, together with the amulets for the Duke, Emily and Callisto.

His left hand looks to be holding Penelope’s quite tightly and she is not reciprocating the gesture, her hand is limp in his. There’s also a crumpled dark red rose in his grip that he is trying to make Penelope hold. Yet again, I believe that this detail too is showing how Penelope completely gave up on Eckles: he symbolizes the crumpled rose, and it’s almost as if someone let it fall to the ground in an uncaring fashion; while Eckles is trying desperately to make her change her mind.

Penelope is positioned physically higher than Eckles. Perhaps it’s a hint towards their difference of ranks and how Eckles views this in a bad light.

The background consists of the thorny vines that were present in the previous two covers and Reynold’s as well (which backs up further the theory that Penelope will distance herself from Eckles), with roses of pale and darker colors, which make them seem as if they're withering; the two of them look to be inside of the greenhouse, where they did appear once before.

Their attire is the same as when they went together shopping, which is a little unusual since it’s an ‘old’ reoccurrence, and it breaks the sequence of the characters wearing the same clothes from the beginning of the season/arc they’re meant to represent.

[indextrader]

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[asm5129]

I know this is NOT a popular take in the RWBY FNDM but y’all…I love Jaune Arc. He’s such a refreshing, interesting male character.

He’s Ruby’s best friend, and the two of them parallel each other in such FASCINATING ways. I’m planning a full video essay on this but as some examples:

1) They both have hero complexes, obviously.

2) Ruby is a prodigy who earns her place at beacon two years early, while Jaune cheated his way in and needs to work constantly outside of his school training to be anywhere near capable of huntsmen level combat

3) Jaune’s pain is loud and disruptive, Ruby’s pain is quiet and suppressed (examining their respective expressions of pain through the lens of gender expectations is REALLY interesting)

4) Ruby inherits silver eyes, an invaluable tool in fighting Grimm. Jaune inherited a regular sword, heavily outclassed by most of his peers.

5) Ruby made her weapon but modeled it after her mentor, Jaune had a hand-me-down

6) Ruby leads by developing plans and taking action, Jaune leads by supporting his team and bolstering their strengths with his own.

I’m sure there’s more too but those parallels are why their conflicts in vol 9 work so well for me, they are partners in narrative from literally the second episode.

I also just adore the commentary on masculinity with Jaune. From day one he was deconstructing traditional ideas of masculinity and patriarchal concepts of heroism.

The way he has to learn to reject so many of the things that blockbusters with men at the center have been pushing for decades is fantastic. He tried to pursue revenge like John Wick or Iron Man and it went HORRIBLY.

He can fight when necessary but it’s not where his true strength lies and that’s SO COOL for a male character.

I dunno y’all I just think he doesn’t deserve the hate. He doesn’t butt in on other stories nearly as much as people claim—in terms of Ruby, he actually serves her story quite a bit—and he is a character worth following in and of himself.

[misstrashchan]

I know people have picked up on the board game scene in RWBY V2 Episode 2 (Welcome to Beacon) as foreshadowing the events of the show, but for funsies I want to take a stab at how it foreshadows the general arcs of each four kingdoms myself.

So we have Blake playing as the Kingdom of Vale, and she's completely unaware of the events of the game unfolding and not really paying attention, clearly distracted.

"Alright Blake, it's your turn!"

"Huh? Sorry, what am I doing?"

"You're playing as Vale, trying to conquer the four kingdoms of Remnant!"

"...Right."

The Vale arc is the first three volumes of RWBY, where all our protagonists are at Beacon, but during that time, much like Blake during the game, they're unaware of the larger conflict with Salem, and aren't actively participating in the war at that point. They are ignorant and reactive instead of active. However it's ironic that Blake plays as Vale, since the reason she's not paying attention to the game and seems distracted is because, out of all the main characters in the Vale arc, she is the one most concerned about being kept in the dark and that they're ignorant as to what's really going on.

Blake: I just, I don't understand how everyone can be so calm.

Ruby: (approaching Blake) You're still thinking about Torchwick?

Blake: Torchwick, the White Fang, all of it! Something big is happening and no one is doing anything about it!

She also leaves the game during her turn, much like how she runs away after the FoB and the end of the Vale arc.

"Right. Well, I think I'm done playing, actually"

Yang is playing as Mistral, and she's the most savvy and knowledgeable (hah) player, winning many rounds of the game, teaching Weiss how to play, and has the other players falling into her trap cards.

"Heh, pretty sneaky sis, but you just activated my trap card!"

There's two ways this can be interpreted, with how the Mistral arc (volumes 4-6) is when our protagonists start to gather more knowledge and awarenesses of themselves and the world. It's also in Mistral that our heroes have their most decisive victory so far. It's fitting to have Yang playing as Mistral then, since during the Mistral arc she's the one who who learns from Tai to fight smarter, and to question the authority figures around her from Raven, and after confronting her in the vault is the one who retrives the relic of knowledge.

But, most of the losses our heroes experience are because of Cinder, who is from Mistral, and them falling into her own "trap cards" with the Fall of Beacon being orchestrated by her, killing Pyrrha and Ozpin. And in Atlas the same, with her manipulating Ironwood, undermining the heroes plans to evacuate everyone from Atlas, and killing Penny. She often finds ways to trick and exploit others, and is most dangerous when overlooked and underestimated, like falling into a trap.

Which brings me to Ruby playing as Atlas, where Ruby and Yang have this exchange after Yang's trap card is activated by Ruby:

"Giant Nevermore! If I roll a seven or higher, fatal feathers will slice your fleet in two!

"But! If you roll lower a six or lower, the Nevermore will turn on your own forces!"

"That's just a chance I'm willing to take"

In the Atlas arc (volumes 7-9) the theme of trust and taking risks is very prevalent. Like the move Yang makes in the game it is a risky one, that could end badly for her, but it is one worth taking nonetheless. They take the risk of trusting Ironwood but he ends up turning on our heroes. Oscar takes a risk trusting Hazel and Ozpin, as well as Emerald later on being accepted into their group, and it ends up working out for them. Ruby takes a risky chance in sending a message out to all of Remnant and evacuating Atlas, which saves a lot of people, but they still lose some, including Penny, a dear friend of Ruby's.

"Noooooo! My fearless soldiers!"

"Eh, most of them were probably androids anyways"

"Goodbye my friends... you will be avenged!"

Ruby acts distraught when losing her turn in the game as Atlas, expressing anguish over losing her friends who are described as androids by Yang, just like how Ruby is incredibly depressed and broken after the Fall of Atlas in V9, mourning the loss of Penny, who was both a sentient android and Ruby's friend. (I do wonder if Ruby's comment on avenging her friends might be foreshadowing for her wanting to avenge Penny's death in the future, like how Jaune tried to 1v1 Cinder in V5 to avenge Pyrrha, but I think it's too soon to say)

As a sidenote the fact it is a Nevemore in this turn that has a chance of turning on Yang or helping her is interesting, as it puts me in mind of two characters who can turn into ravens/crows, like the bird and poem Nevermore is associated with. It could pertain to Raven, someone who turns on Yang in v5 during the battle of Haven, but appears to help her and her friends in the V9 epilogue. It could also be about Qrow and his semblance, since during the Atlas arc it begins to evolve so that it is not simply a bad luck semblance, but one that can generate good luck too. In other words he can affect whether the chances are in people's favour or not.

After defeating Ruby (Atlas) Yang says this:

Yang: Not until I draw my rewards! Which are double this round thanks to the Mistral Trade Route!

Ruby: Bah!

Yang: Oh, and what's this? The Smugglers of Wind Path?

Ruby: Bah! Bah, I say!

Yang: I say, it looks like I'm taking two cards in my hand!

After the Fall of Atlas Cinder retrives not one but two relics for Salem, and with Atlas falling into Mantle, two kingdoms are destroyed in one fell swoop.

Then it's Weiss's turn. Weiss is playing as Vacuo, but has no idea how to play the game. Yang takes it upon herself to teach Weiss how to play and what she can do to win the game:

Yang: Well, Weiss, it's your turn.

Weiss: I have... absolutely no idea what's going on.

Yang: (Yang slides up beside her and puts her hand on her shoulder.) Look, it's easy! You're playing as Vacuo which means that all Vacuo-based cards come with a bonus.

Weiss: That sounds dumb.

Yang: See, you've got Sandstorm, Desert Scavenge... Oh, oh! (She pulls up a card to show Weiss.) Resourceful Raider! See, now you can take Ruby's discarded Air Fleet—

Ruby: (crying) Nooo!

Yang: —and put it in your hand!

We know from the end of V9 that what remains of the airfleet of Atlas, as well as the airfleet of Mistral and Vale, have all flocked to Vacuo's defence. What remains of the kingdom of Atlas, the airfleet, but most importantly the people, have now fled to Vacuo and are trying to make a home there.

Yang continues to give Weiss advice on how to win the game to Weiss, building her up, until Weiss starts to get arrogant, believing she's going to win the whole game and is the one in control:

Yang: And since Vacuo warriors have an endurance against Natural-based hazards, you can use Sandstorm to disable my ground forces and simultaneously infiltrate my kingdom! (Yang points a finger at Weiss.) Just know that I will not forget this declaration of war.

Weiss: And that means...

Ruby: You're just three moves away from conquering Remnant!

But then Yang turns on Weiss, activating her trap card, and Vacuo loses.

Since this is may be foreshadowing for the Vacuo arc that we haven't seen yet, I can only speculate what this might mean.

...But judging from the V9 extended epilogue and the books, my best guess would be that if Yang/Mistral is meant to be in part Cinder/Salem and their forces, then Weiss as Vacuo is in part the Crown. In the extended epilogue Jax and Gillian appear to be recieving help from Tyrian and Mercury, meaning Salem has decided to recruit them to her cause.

The Crown wants to restore the Vacuoan monarchy and detest outsiders, especially Atlesians. They do however wish to protect Vacuo from the same forces that destroyed Beacon, aka Salem, and so they are likely going to be manipulated like Weiss is by Yang in the game, being offered aid and giving them advice on how they can win and achieve their objectives, making them believe they can "conquer Remnant", only for them to realise later they were being tricked and used.

"Once again, Vacuo had been isolated from the conflict raging throughout Remnant—only this time it was an opportunity. With the global CCT network disabled, Vale in ruin, Haven leaderless, and Atlas closed off, Vacuo was theirs for the taking. This was likely their last, best chance for a generation. And it was their only hope to defend Vacuo against whomever had been targeting the other kingdoms. In likelihood they had written off Vacuo, like everyone else did, but if they tried to move against the Crown, they would have an unpleasant surprise.

Vacuo wouldn't break this time around."

Weiss: (Weiss stands and a thunder clap accompanies Weiss' overjoyed psychotic laughter.) Y-yes! Fear the almighty power of my forces! Cower as they pillage your homes and weep as they take your children from your very arms!

Yang: Trap card... (Yang's arm appears holding the card.)

Weiss: Huh?

Yang: (Yang shuffles the pieces on the board, Weiss' pieces disappearing in a puff of smoke.) Your armies have been destroyed.

Weiss: (Weiss slumps in her chair, cries and whines.) I hate this game of emotions we play!

Weiss as Vacuo may lose to Yang after realising they've been tricked, but is offered comfort afterwards by Ruby who relates to her losses and empathises with her, which is interesting since Ruby plays as Atlas. So I'm predicting at the end of the Vacuo arc they'll experience somewhat of a loss, whether that's the Crown, our heroes, or likely both, but Atlas will give support to Vacuo and the two kingdoms will come together to heal and ultimately work together, making steps to overcome their tense history with one another.

"Stay strong Weiss we'll make it through this together!"

"Shut up, don't touch me! "

...Which does make Weiss specifically playing as Vacuo especially intriguing, as she is the SDC heiress from Atlas, and Vacuo is a kingdom that has suffered the most in being exploited and colonized for it's natural resources by Atlas. From the epilogue it seems like the Schnees are being confronted directly with all the harm that has been caused by their family and kingdom, so I wouldn't be surprised if Weiss recieves a certain amount of focus during the Vacuo arc in deciding what her legacy as an Atlesian and heiress to the Schnee name will be. Moving forward to make amends, maybe inspiring the citizens of Atlas/Mantle to come together with Vacuo so they can all help and support one another, instead of isolating themselves and suffering alone.

Jaune offers to plays Weiss's hand for a turn also, with Weiss refusing:

Jaune: (Begging with both hands folded together.) Come on, let me play your hand for a turn!

Weiss: I'm not trusting you with the good citizens of Vacuo!

Which is reminiscent of how Vacuo is mistrustful of outsiders, as we've seen in After the Fall and Before the Dawn books.

Yang follows up to say that Weiss attacked her own forces, which could reference the infighting in Vacuo, especially with the Crown.

Weiss: Besides, this game requires a certain level of tactical cunning that I seriously doubt that you possess.

Yang: Uhh, you attacked your own naval fleet two turns ago. (Weiss makes an annoyed sound.)

Overall Weiss as Vacuo recieves the most help as any player during their turn, being taught how to play by Yang, offered comfort by Ruby after losing, and Jaune wanting to help her by playing her hand for a turn. This seems to fit with both how all kingdoms have flocked to Vacuo's aid in response to Ruby's message, but also Weiss as a character, who starts out "the loneliest of them all" but gradually opens up and warms up to other people. The crux of her arc being looking outside herself and at the people around her, relating to their struggles and coming to support them and being supported by them leads to her better understanding herself and becoming stronger for it... Which is kind of what the Kingdom of Vacuo needs to learn too!

Following this is Blake's turn as Vale, which I covered at the start of this post, but that's not the end of Vale's turn. We don't actually see it, but we know the aftermath of the game is this:

Yang: Ugh, we should have never let him play!

Ruby: You're just mad cuz' the new guy beat you!

Blake leaves the game during her turn as Vale, and presumably the "new guy" which is likely Neptune, who they'd just been introduced too, takes over her hand as Vale and wins the game of Remnant overall, even beating Yang and her trap cards. This is likely the endgame of RWBY itself, our heroes return to Vale after the Vacuo arc during the last volume for the final stand, where they win.

How and what that victory will look like I don't know, as we don't see the last turn of the game, so yet again this is even more vaguer speculation. Neptune doesn't really have much plot significance so I can't think there's any meaning to that except that he's a minor foil to Jaune, and the line of it being "a new guy" that wins, so maybe someone who recently joins our heroes side in the final act of the story, possibly Mercury or Cinder.

[sophiamarieispinkbunny-chan]

More in depth analysis about the Spy x Family Manga Cover Chairs and Bonus Artworks (Or me just overthinking Endo’s decisions in everything and as always long post, please bear with me)

So I wanted to talk about something that I noticed about the various designer chairs that is featured on all manga covers.

Endo did say that he thought about how each chair matches the personality of the character, regarding it’s style, design or the color.

But I like to talk about something different about the chairs-it’s size or the seating capacity and how it reflects the characters relationship with others or their views about relationships. Also, I’m going to share something significant about the comedic bonus arts that also feature the chairs.

This focus mainly about Loid, Yor and Anya‘s Chair (including Fiona’s Chair) and the bonus illustrations that came with it.

Volume 1-Loid’s Chair: Le Corbusier LC2

There are two versions of this chair in the manga/anime, the love seat and the one seater. Loid is seated in the one seater chair in this cover, it means no one can sit there with him that reflects how reluctant he was in letting other people in his life. He wasn’t open for relationships (You can notice that those who are like him, intelligence assets; Franky, Fiona, Handler all sit in one seating capacity chair).

The bonus artwork was Anya sitting on the chair copying his pose. She’s the most fitting person to be in this seat because she can see through Loid’s mind, she basically knows who he really is and she likes him for that. Anya was fond of spies and she was excited about being part of his mission.

Volume 2-Anya’s Chair: Marshmallow Sofa

Anya’s chair has a large seating capacity and she was sitting at the middle, waiting for the empty spots on her both sides to be occupied. This depicts Anya’s anticipation for forming relationship with other people, about her wanting parents, a family, to be there for her.

The bonus artwork was drunk Yor lying face flat on Anya’s chair. This artwork, for me, reflects Yor’s unwavering affection for Anya and Anya’s appreciation of Yor. Even drunk, she’s determined to protect her, as if she was her real daughter as seen during the castle chapter. She is fond of Anya.

Volume 3-Yor’s Chair: La Chaise (Featuring Fiona’s Heart Cone Chair)

This is the chair I wanted to talk about and I have to use Fiona’s Chair for this analysis for Endo said that Fiona is designed to be Yor’s contrast and we can clearly see it in their chairs.

The seating capacity of Yor and Fiona’s chair greatly differ. Yor’s chair was big, Endo pointed how it didn’t even fit the cover, and even though Fiona’s chair is big too, she’s the only person who could sit in it. Other people can fit Yor’s chair but not with Fiona. I analyze this as Yor being open to genuine relationships and selfless while Fiona being closed off and selfish.

We know Yor’s motivation for being an assassin was for Yuri, for the sake of other people, and what is Fiona’s motivation? Clearly it was mainly for Twilight to marry her, love her and it was evidently show with all that stuff hiding behind her chair. I’m sure she experienced a lot of traumatic stuff that led to her being a spy but I don’t see other praise worthy and selfless motivations from her that was aside Twilight’s affection. Don’t get me wrong, she’s an interesting character and she isn't a bad person but I’m not really a fan of her personality just like I don’t like Yuri’s obsession with her sister.

In Yor however, she has nothing under or behind her chair. Just that blood that wasn’t even behind or below her chair. She wasn’t faking anything about her personality. It’s true that she accepted her marriage to preserve her assassin job but she genuinely wanted to marry Loid because he was the one who acknowledged her selflessness and that was enough for her to completely entrust her life to him. She welcomed Loid and Anya to her life because her longing for a companion to share her life with is as big as the size of her chair.

The bonus art in Volume 3 was Loid sitting on her chair. Despite the comedic set up of these illustrations, I think the people who tend to sit on the chair on the bonus arts were the ones who gets the person on the cover the most.

That is why Anya is in Loid’s (Because she can read his mind) Why Yor is in Anya's (Because Yor lost her parents at a young age too and she knows how to care for Anya because she did that to Yuri) and why Loid is in Yor’s chair (Because Loid understood her self sacrifice because he too, is the same as her) Also why Anya and Bond are in the bonus of Volume 4 because the two of them get each other, being both experimented on.

I also have some analysis about Volume 5-12 and the bonus artworks as well, but I might post them in another time since I haven't seen the translated bonus artworks in Becky and Emile and Ewen's Volumes.

But let me know if this analysis makes sense to you.

[tumblingxelian]

Hello again!

Sorry for the lack of updates, life has been hectic, but I think you'll find this video worth the wait!

Yang Xiao Long is smart as hell and I will not die on that hill, I will slay my enemies on that hill!

So thank you for your patience and please enjoy!

Also with thanks to our guest editor LuluSoBlue, who can be found here! https://lulusoblue.tumblr.com/

My Patreon and Ko-Fi can be found here, every little bit helps! https://www.patreon.com/ShakeTailStudios https://ko-fi.com/shakytailstudos

[matt0044]

Regarding the "Does RWBY like women?" poll (yes, yes it does BTW).

You know... the whole poll debacle reminded me of something.

RWBY helped me expand my media diet by telling me that just because people hate something enmass, it could just all be bullshit coupled with mob mentality.

Instead of hatedoms getting me to think:

"Damn, I don't even wanna be associated with that show based on the rage it inspires."

My more skeptical brain is like:

"Okay, so why is it reeeeeeeally hated? Is it reeeeeeeally bad or are people going along with the crowd because critical thinking is too much of a burden in this capitalist hellscape?"

Because bad media literacy is in part a result of the fact that most geeks and normies alike aren't out to be legit critics but rather just want to enjoy the thing, gush about the thing and so forth. They can't exactly articulate their reasonings why like they're trying to get an A+ in Therapy Studies.

And THAT is how the YouTube Video Essay and Angry Critic scene takes off.

We dunk on the Nostalgia Critic (often for VERY real IRL grievances) but his catchphrase: "I remember it so you don't have to" is something many who'd come after would take to heart. These video maker people are taking about a thing you like and are explaining it in a way you not only agree with but makes you feel vindicated.

Be it for love... or for hate.

Because hatedom circles like the RWDE looks to video essays that reassure them, keep them from doubting their stance on the thing and how they enforce it.

With the burden of actually seeing the thing and thinking hard taken off of them, people can confidently say things like "RWBY prioritizes Jaune" despite not looking at any potential evidence in the show that might contridice it.

Which is why this is a call for everyone to question the popular opinions.

Does Jaune Arc reeeeeeally get that much narrative importance at the expense of the main girls?

Was Jaune reeeeeeeally a self-insert?

Was Ironwood reaaaaaally derailed in his character arc?

Was Adam reeeeeeeeally representative of the Faunus?

Was the Faunus reaaaaaally offensive?

And of course...

Was Monty Oum reeeeeeeeally the only one who's vision matter to the show above all else?

Ask yourself these questions and do the work to back them up. If people are giving you responses that contridict you, responses that take evidence from the work itself more often than not, then try to do the same in turn.

Think about that show or movie being panned? What if... you actually like it?

Not everybody is a critic... but we can at least try to.

[shyjusticewarrior]

Jason & Pigeons: Panel Analysis

You know how pigeons were domesticated by humans then discarded? This panel of Jason feeding the pigeons after Bruce had Clockwork Oranged him made me think of that. Jason probably feels like Bruce did that to him.

Wonder if this was on purpose, or I'm just overthinking it lol.

[raccoon-coded]

I love this scene so much. It is so powerful.

You can see it in his face. This is the moment where Rocket transforms into the person we know him as in Vol. 1.

In this moment he realises he's truly alone. He got to fly into the sky but his friends didn't. And even if he blames the High Evolutionary more, he still blames himself too. It's survivor's guilt. Maybe if he had run when he had the chance, he could've succeeded in at least getting the other two out of there, but by the time he'd stopped seeing red, it was too late. They'd begged him to stop. To go. He didn't listen. He'd promised them all he'd fix it. He'd promised to show them the sky. He'd failed.

In this moment we see Rocket harden.

He's lost his innocence. He is never going to be naive enough to be manipulated again. He won't ever let himself be caged again. He won't be touched by cruel hands again, and be won't be used.

To ensure this, he won't ever trust again. Because he trusted his creator and he was betrayed.

He won't ever love again. If he cares about someone, he'll let them down and they'll get hurt. The only ones he ever loved are gone and all that's left in their place is pain.

And if love only brings pain, then he doesn't want it.

He will not allow himself to be hurt again.

There is so much pain he's holding onto. But he's already cried and that got him mocked. It lost him time he could have used to help his remaining friends escape. So he pushes it down and focuses on the other feeling: the rage. More than anything right now, he's angry. Angry at the cruelty, angry at the injustice, angry at himself, angry at the whole damn universe. Anger is easier than grief, so he latches onto it. Grief will only slow him down, but anger will keep him going. It was the anger that had granted him his freedom, after all.

He will keep going and he won't show mercy to anyone who stands in his way. Why should he? He wasn't shown any. His kind, innocent friends were shown none.

If the only way to survive in this galaxy is to be cruel and calculated, then he'll be cruel. If his friends had been less kind, less trusting, and more ruthless, maybe they'd still be here with him. But they weren't, and they're not. He's the last one standing.

He's alone.

...

Thankfully his resolve changes with time as he does find good people to trust and to love, but it takes him a very long time to get there and he self sabotages along the way. He was so young at the time and this experience shaped his whole life view. It took a lot for him to shake these values that had helped him to survive for so long, and to realise that they had become detrimental to him. But he got there eventually, and for maybe the first time in his life, he's finally genuinely happy. He's finally free from his past and has let go of the guilt and self hatred that he's carried for so long. He has a family who loves him and who he loves in return, and he has a purpose in life. Rather than hurting others for his benefit like he used to, now he's helping them. Protecting those who can't protect themselves. Maybe he couldn't do that before with his first friends, but he can now with others who are counting on him now. Rather than hating the galaxy like he once did, he's found love for it.

He no longer feels so alone.

And I'm so damn proud of him.

[darkietrashcan]

Analysis on Katsuki’s Ending

Spoilers for the end of the manga and leaks of volume 42

Long analysis thread:

I am devastated because of the leaks

Because of Katsuki.

His journey throughout the story consisted about taking accountability for his mistakes: the bullying he did.

And oh, he did learn. He did take accountability.

From win to save, he learned to save to win. He helped Izuku train OFA. Got impaled and saved Izukus life.

Then, he apologized without expecting an answer, because he meant it. Katsuki understood that Izuku didn’t have to respond. (Seriously, what would he say? Thank you for taking accountability for making myself miserable during highschool?) Izuku left that past behind ever since he took the “Deku is worth nothing” and rephrased it to: the Deku who can do his best. What I most like about his apology, is that Deku didn’t answer, and Bakugo didn’t demand nor expected one, because it wasn’t necessary. It was Bakugo’s thing to do.

Then, Katsuki died while thinking about him, because Izuku went from the kid he pushed away, to a man he admired:

Fighting through the pain: this is the path you have been walking all this time.

I have to win, right, Izuku?

Can I still catch up to you?

Then, he got another chance at life. He promised that he would never get in between his way, recalling the times he used to bully him.

Here is what makes me weak for him. The way he never forgived himself for what he did. Katsuki was linked to Izuku forever with that way of thinking and acting: although he apologized and walked forward, he never forgot what he did. And he atoned and atoned and atoned. Which isn’t bad. Don’t get me wrong.

But everyone has to move on: he apologized. got impaled for him. And then, much later, built Izuku a suit. HE, of all people, the one who used to bully Deku for being quirkless, gave him his dream BACK.

That’s another fact that makes me weak. Because Bakugo’s heart changed: he believed quirkless people were losers. He bullied. Now, he understands his mistakes and has tried to atone for so, so long. He is not the same and will never do that again.

(What about his foul mouth? You could ask. Man. That is literally a façade. Or that’s how I interpret it. Bark don’t bite. Bro is a dumbass, but is not a bad person.)

All this leads me to the dream he made for himself and Izuku in it: to compete forever. He never cut the link to Izuku. Never got over him. Never stopped atoning.

To sum up: it hurts me that after so much atoning for Izuku, he never atoned for himself. He just got attached to him, revolved his life to Izuku.

Izuku did move on: life makes you walk different paths. He found something in teaching that, clearly, topped off his desire to compete with his childhood friend. He moved on. Remember: 8 years have gone by. Izuku moved on from OFA but Katsuki DIDN’T!

And that’s why his ending hurts. Because he never let go. And that makes me so, so, so sad.

In twitter some say it’s karma. Deku doesn’t have to stick to him for his entire life and I agree: I am happy for Izuku and the path he forged to walk. A new dream. A new person. Not the 17 year old he was.

But Katsuki never let go of the dream he built at 17 and always knew that he would ensure Izukus his dream back. (While Izuku didnt know it would happen so he moved forward…)

Izuku is noble and wants to keep teaching, he has kids to motivate and yada yada. It’s amazing how he has evolved as a character and as an adult. His dream isn’t the same as Katsuki’s anymore. Not the same 17 year olds wanting to compete for the rest of their lifes.

And now, cut to the present. Izuku rejects Katsuki because his dream has changed.

I do believe Izuku recognized Bakugo’s efforts. He has said he is welcome and appreciates the suit!!!! He is happy to be able to fight alongside class 1A!!! this dialogue seems to be forgotten somehow!! My point is: their goals are different now. Izuku moved away from OFA once he lost it / Bakugo never forgot it and kept fighting for it building a suit, that Izuku is thankful for! But seems like competing w his childhoodfriend isnt his main goal anymore

And this change didnt happen quickly because there has been a timeskip! Of 8 years!

However, readers believe it was rushed because all that introspection was cut. I don’t blame you, in fact, I agree with you all. An elypsis wasn’t the right choice to make, but how could have Horikoshi finished the manga!? He cant keep drawing forever! This mangaka was suffering the last year, taking a lot of breaks because his health was in shambles. Therefore, a timeskip it was. But maybe not the best choice to the story, I guess.

But stories sometime need to be concluded. Cant keep holding on for them forever. You can blame it on writing decisions. Anyway, let’s get back to the main point.

The ending hurts from Katsuki’s perspective because he got rejected, because he never let Izuku go. And now, he has a chance to. To develop himself as a man separate of Izuku.

As a shipper it hurts like hell, but man. Katsuki did love him. Take it as romantic or platonic i dont care. But Katsuki cared. A lot. Izuku, I am sure that too. But rejecting the offer doesn’t mean he hates him or is a bad person: he never asked for that suit, he reshaped his dream.

And I repeat. The truth hurts. Reality hurts. And still, this ending was… truly realistic, from their point of view. In that manner, it satisfies me. But on the other hand, as a fan, as a shipper, a fanfiction writer, the ending hurts and I will cope with fan content on my behalf.

The ending wasn’t ass. It was realistic. That’s my take.

(I won’t talk about Izuocha. I do believe it was rushed and off. That’s for another post. Pls don’t talk about Izuocha in this post since they are not the main focus)

[allaboutforexworld]

Volume Indicators: How to Use Them in Trading

Volume indicators are essential tools for traders seeking to understand market activity and potential price movements. These indicators provide insights into the strength and direction of trends by analyzing trading volume. This article explores how volume indicators work, their benefits, and how traders can effectively use them in their strategies. What Are Volume Indicators? Volume indicators…

[cjrae]

Tragedy of the Jade Nightingale. Or: My thoughts on Vol. 11 of the Apothecary Diaries.

Given that this volume just came out in English a few days ago, spoilers under the cut!

I usually think of the Apothecary Diaries volumes as pairs - usually two volumes make up an arc. If so, Volume 11 will be the first half of the arc with 12, but it also functions beautifully as a tragedy in it's own right.

** I will be only discussing information appearing officially through Vol. 11. Yes, I have read the fan translations of the web novels, but given that details can change, until it appears in official English translation, I won't yet be including it here.

The Hero

Gyoku-ou. Talk about someone who thinks he's smarter than he actually is. We knew this guy was a threat all the way back in Vol. 8, with how Gyokuyou reacted to her brother's letter and his veiled insult of sending a younger version of herself to catch either her husband's attention or the Imperial Brother's. Now we get to see him in action and he's scary - right up until he's not.

This man is charismatic as anything - he understands what makes people tick on both an individual level as well as a social level. His ability to wield a mob effectively makes him extremely dangerous, but I'm oddly put in mind of Lakan's initial impression of Fengxian. "This woman is strong, but she only knows how to fight in her own, small world."

The world Gyoku-ou inhabits is a very small, petty one. You can see it in his conspiracy theory about Jinshi's birth.

Jinshi is one of two people Gyoku-ou fails to read. When he brings Lakan and Jinshi to his puppet council to gauge support for attacking Shaoh, he thinks he's got a young malcontent in his hands, someone who wants power and is prone to the flashes of temper and insult that often drive young men. Someone who is easily manipulated. Instead, Jinshi mops the floor with him in that meeting, cutting Lakan's support out from under Gyoku-ou and making it clear that his priority is peace above war.

This doesn't take away from Gyoku-ou's political genius - this meeting teaches him that Jinshi has to be maneuvered around, rather than maneuvered directly. If the Imperial Brother doesn't want to play his part, then too bad. Gyoku-ou will see to it that Jinshi is hedged in all directions except where he wants him to go - which is to war. And even then, he's got a fight on his hands as Jinshi fully takes advantage of Empress Gyokuyou's information to undercut Gyoku-ou's support within his own family.

It's a mark of Jinshi's political skill that Gyoku-ou's move in that family council is to flirt with treason. If he can't maneuver the Imperial family through Jinshi, then he shifts tactics to turn Jinshi (and the rest of the Imperial Family) into the villain of his piece - a prince born and raised into utter depravity.

Let's just sit with what Gyoku-ou suggests to the rest of his siblings (minus the Empress) in that meeting. He implies that the Emperor impregnated his own mother in order to produce an heir. A son that he loves so dearly (and unnaturally) that he would willingly look the other way while Jinshi murders his other children in order to make sure that his brother-son-lover succeeds the throne.

This is a brilliant examination of how the bare facts of the situation can be construed by people with very different motivations to fit whatever worldview is most convenient for them. I'm a fan of the palace politics in this series because they feel very real.

Gyoku-ou doesn't lie once. But boy does he create a narrative that suits his purposes and dares anyone (namely Rikuson) to tell Jinshi. He is escalating the situation and he's doing it fast, while also challenging the legitimacy of the Imperial Family. A fact which, if it does get back to Jinshi (or the Emperor), could get the entire new You Clan wiped out just as fast as the Yi Clan was. This scene functions as a microcosm of Gyoku-ou's two fundamental character flaws; his short term thinking and his utter self-absorption.

Becoming The Wind

Since Rikuson was introduced in Vol. 5, he's been a mirror for Jinshi. He's a "pretty boy," calm under pressure, fundamentally kind and decent to other people while also being extremely competent at his job. Unlike Jinshi, he's also a bit older and more mature. He also clearly admires Maomao and sees the qualities that make her exceptional, despite her various masks.

As it turns out, Rikuson mirrors Jinshi in another important sense too - he also has a secret identity. The Yi Clan were the de facto royalty of the Western Capital and Rikuson is one of the direct survivors of the clan. He was never in the line of succession given the Yi Clan's matrilineal structure. But they were quick enough to save some of the children, namely Rikuson and Empress Gyokuyou's three ladies in waiting, Haku'u, Koku'u and Seki'u.

Rikuson, who was Gyoku-ou's excuse to trick His Former Majesty into giving him the authorization to destroy the Yi Clan. Rather than truly being an bastard Imperial prince, he's a young pawn in Gyoku-ou's hands to whip up an armed mob to hunt Rikuson down - and his mother and sister give their lives to ensure his survival - not for vengeance, but so that the Yi Clan's mission of protecting the west will live on even if the named clan itself dies. So, like Jinshi, he is dedicated to the welfare of the people above all else.

The trouble with relying on an unruly mob is that it's sloppy. Gyoku-ou left multiple survivors and they have absolutely no love for him. He's left weapons at his back.

Rikuson is the other person Gyoku-ou utterly fails to read. He spends well over a year back in his homeland, working for Gyoku-ou as an aide ostensibly from the central region, patiently waiting for an opening - even as Gyoku-ou, who knows that Rikuson has to be assigned to the west with some kind of ulterior motive, is so blind that he thinks he must be a secret member of the La Clan, rather than the Yi boy he tried to kill seventeen years earlier.

Rikuson represents the culmination Gyoku-ou's short term thinking in that he doesn't bother to think about the threat of any surviving Yi clan might pose to him.

He will not insult his mother's memory, or his sister's. But if his mission of protecting the west coincides with vengeance for his family? Sure enough, Gyoku-ou's insistence on going to war (and dragging the Imperial family's legitimacy into his motivations) gives Rikuson his opening; especially because he isn't a vigilante.

He is acting under orders.

The New You

Rikuson's point about Gyoku-ou's life being a tragedy hits home when you consider Gyokuyou's thoughts of how she knows her father loves her - but would also abandon her in a heartbeat if she is no longer valuable to him. Unlike her older brother, she has a very clear-eyed view of how their father operates and focuses on making sure that her value never drops in his eyes.

Gyoku-ou's value to Gyoku'en plummeted the day he destroyed the Yi Clan - Gyoku'en's family. He was given a second chance to show that he could still perform the single function of the men of the Yi Clan - to protect the west. When he endangered it instead, Gyoku'en sent the weapon he'd spent seventeen years preparing (Rikuson) with an execution order.

By first destroying the Yi Clan and then following it up with a proposed invasion of Shaoh, Gyoku-ou proved to Gyoku'en that he was no son of his. Given how desperate he was to be his father's son, this whole book is a tragedy in the classic sense. The Jade Nightingale was so desperate to reinvent himself as a Jade Eagle that he destroyed himself in pursuit of the one thing he never lost - his father's love. But, to be his father's heir, what he needed was Gyoku'en's trust and respect, not his love.

And he killed that seventeen years ago along with the Yi Clan.

Ironically, the foreign born girl that he despised and attempted to undermine at every opportunity, emerges as their father's true heir and mother of the nation, with the rest of the surviving Yi clan as part of her loyal retinue.

In her triumph, the Yi Clan is reborn as the You Clan as Gyoku'en, a Yi man, is given a clan name on the strength of Gyokuyou's role as Empress. So much of their history has been lost, down to the matrilineal succession and family records, but their mission lives on through the Yi men who will continue to protect the west, no matter the personal cost to themselves. There is no room for self-absorption here, therefore Gyoku-ou has no place in their new clan.

Also, a parallel to pay attention to is how the destruction of the Yi Clan and the Shi Clan are mirroring each other with the children being saved. The Yi Clan is reborn with a new name, which leads one to wonder what the consequences of saving those Shi children will be long term.

A Dagger In The Dark

Gyoku-ou sucks up a lot of air in Vol. 11 because he is driving the action - Jinshi, Maomao and their party are all stuck reacting to him, except for one character; Chue.

We see Chue attach herself to Maomao starting with the ship and it's not difficult to guess that just as Lihaku is serving as a discreet bodyguard for Maomao on Jinshi's orders, Chue is also there as protection. Chue doesn't try to conceal that she is clearly trained in espionage either.

Rikuson's proposal to Maomao is not a serious bid for her hand, but nor is it a joke - it's a message to Chue that Jinshi needs to tighten security around Maomao. As he puts it, he knows the "hyper protective" elements around her will close ranks. Because he's foreseen a strategy that may not have yet occurred to Gyoku-ou (who tends not to pay attention to the bit parts of the play), but if it does would almost certainly push the country into war.

Maomao is the lever that could move both Lakan and Jinshi.

All he has to do is kill her and make it look like a foreign attack. Lakan's instinctive ability to read a situation and Jinshi's formidable investigative skills would likely be dulled in the face of their rage and grief. Especially since they are technically Gyoku-ou's guests and don't have freedom of movement to push the issue.

Rikuson seizes his opportunity before Gyoku-ou can continue to escalate, but he realizes quickly that Chue arranged the stage and was there as both spy and backup assassin. (I think it's safe to say that Gyoku-ou's conspiracy theory AND that Yi family ledger will be reported, given that we know there were ladies-in-waiting at the meeting and that's how Chue was disguised - and she didn't actually promise to dispose of it).

Gyoku-ou doesn't bother to think that while the Emperor may be far away and the Imperial Brother is a manageable threat, that the people surrounding Jinshi may not be bound by his strictures. Hence, Chue was on standby. No matter what, Gyoku-ou was never going to make it to that ritual. He was never smart enough to realize that his crossing the line would be never be forgiven.

While Jinshi would order an execution if necessary (and has in the past), he would never order an assassination. Therefore, it's evident that Chue reports to someone else. Who that someone is, we don't know, but there's only one person further up the Imperial tree than Jinshi, so it would be reasonable for Rikuson to assume that the Emperor has placed additional protection around not just Jinshi, but Maomao.

Exclusive: Baby Swap!

Jinshi's birth is not a secret to the audience and while Maomao doesn't have confirmation, she's pretty certain of her suspicion. This volume made it patently obvious that there are others out there who are perfectly capable of putting the pieces together, even if the details are twisted.

Let's return to Gyoku-ou's conspiracy theory.

He's put together all the correct pieces. The Emperor's attitude toward Jinshi makes no sense in a traditional palace setting - a much younger, handsome, charismatic and competent brother? That's a threat to the Emperor and his direct line. But Jinshi is never treated that way - instead he's indulged on many fronts.

He's allowed to duck most of his official duties as Ka Zuigetsu (except for a few he can't, where he appears masked).

He's allowed to pretend to be a eunuch for six years and run the Rear Palace.

When he finally reveals himself to the court to put down the Shi Rebellion, he's described as "hale" and "just as proficient in the military arts as the administrative." (More proof that Jinshi is NOT the best judge of his own abilities). He emerges fully formed into court politics - a perfectly trained Crown Prince - only to have a newborn given the title instead.

Gyoku-ou deliberately put the worst possible spin on these facts. I suspect the rest of the You siblings are going to keep their mouths shut about Gyoku-ou's ugly theory, but if he could think of it, if Maomao could think of it with just seeing Jinshi standing next to Lady Ah-Duo, then so can others.

Maomao can be mad about Jinshi branding himself all she wants, but it's currently looking like an absolutely BRILLIANT move on Jinshi's part. Whatever doubts Gyoku-ou managed to plant about Jinshi and the Emperor's motives with the rest of the You clan siblings, Empress Gyokuyou is not likely to entertain it.

Also, it got the Emperor to essentially "banish" Jinshi to the edges of the Empire shortly after his new Crown Prince was born, which makes it look to other members of the court like the Emperor is taking steps to rein in his younger brother and balances the factions that have to be forming back in the capital.

This is not a secret that can be kept forever. No matter how careful Ah-Duo and Anshi were, the information is starting to leak out around the edges, as we see that the Empress' ladies in waiting that were dismissed clearly had eyes and ears - and in at least one case, a loose tongue.

The next arc is being seeded and Jinshi is inching closer and closer to that throne. He ran the Rear Palace for years (essentially managing the nation in microcosm) and as of the end of Vol. 11, he's now stepping up to govern a province and gain actual ruling experience while also having suppressed a war.

I've said before that Jinshi ascending the throne is the bad ending - if there is a single person who is more trapped by the palace than the prince, it's the emperor. We'll see what happens!

[misstrashchan]

The Little Prince and the Ever After

So it was confirmed a while ago that Oscar's allusion is the Little Prince, which many Oscar fans and Rosegarden shippers in particular where theorising back in V6, with Oscar's crush on Ruby Rose being proof that she was the Rose that the Little Prince loved and cared for. Both @conehatcryptid and @chaikachi have written wonderful posts about Oscar's allusion to the Little Prince here and here.

However, after V9 I'm inclined to think both Ruby and Oscar interchangeably play the roles of the Little Prince and the Rose, in much a similar way that Blake and Yang both interchangeably are the Beauty and the Beast (Blake's surname means beautiful woman, and she likes to read like Belle, but she is also the Beast who wishes to redeem themselves, and is a literal Beast as a faunus "black the beast descends from shadows". Yang is introduced as the "yellow beauty burns gold" and wishes for a life of adventure like Belle, but she is also the Beast, being left by their Beauty and having a fiery temper).

This is in part theorising/speculation, as V9 obvious main allusion is Alice in Wonderland, and the similarities I see maybe coincidental, since both stories deal with similiar themes. Both stories have a child that travels to strange lands to meet characters that represent the misgivings and absurdity of adult society and the pressure to conform to these as you grow up, and the confusion as to who you are and should be that follows.

Alice's journey to adulthood is a path that takes her from a confused child changing size and unaware of her true identity to an assertive girl scolding the immaturity of the Mad Hatter and ends with Alice being brave and confident enough to confront the Queen of Hearts.

The Little Prince's story is about the importance of reconnecting with your inner child as an adult/someone growing up.

"No! I will grow up, but I'll never forget about being a child!"

In V9, Ruby must grow into an adult like Alice does, but also reconnect with her inner child as she does so like in the Little Prince.

RWBY is known for its multilayered literary allusions, and Oscar, the Little Prince, does introduce us to the story The Girl Who Fell Through the World in V8, which is Remnant's version of Alice in Wonderland. Not to mention Ruby and Oscar's arcs are intentionally foiled, so maybe it's not coincidence. It's entirely possible with how V9 also appears to be following the story of the Little Prince too. While Ruby is in the Ever After she travels through the different acres like the planets the Little Prince visits, meeting similar characters.

She is confronted with the question "what are you" on an existential level:

Little: What's wrong?

Ruby: Have you seen other people- humans- like me?

Little: Exactly like you?

Ruby: No, not exactly like me. We're similar, but different.

The Little Prince:

"Good morning" he said courteously.

"Good morning--Good morning--Good morning," answered the echo.

"Who are you?" said the little prince.

"Who are you-- Who are you-- Who are you?" answered the echo.

"Be my friends. I am all alone."

"I am all alone-- all alone--- all alone" answered the echo.

She meets Little (as in "Little Prince" as well as "Little Red Riding Hood" and "Alice Liddell") who is meant to symbolize Ruby's inner child, as the Little Prince reminds us of the inner child we have forgotten as we grow up. Both Ruby and Little "die" in a sense as the Little Prince does, but ascend and come back.

In fact the whole way ascension is described in the Ever After is on par with how the Little Prince and the Snake describe how they will leave their body as an empty shell behind to go back home, being "called back" home to the Tree.

"It'll look as if I'm dead and that won't be true, this body is simply an empty shell, I can't take it with me"

Purple Paper Pleaser: Then, the wisest of our village suggested breaking from our physical forms, so that the winds may carry us back to the Tree.

...Which leads me to how the Curious Cat and Neo are both the Snake who convince Ruby/the Little Prince to "die".

We get Cats and Snakes being linked together early on in the first episode of v9:

Mouse Leader: You have our sincerest apologies! Please understand that our kind is a bit skeptical of cats… and snakes… and cats.

This stuck out to me considering this is foreshadowing of the Curious Cat being the main antagonist of the volume, but we don't ever see any snakes in the Ever After.

The Curious Cat's first appearance is akin to the one of the snake in the Little Prince movie (2015) of two eyes peering out at the Prince

The Snake is a character who speaks in constant riddles and is confident they have all the answers to life's mysteries, similar to how the CC knows so much but is incredibly cryptic in how they speak. The snake is also meant to represent the inevitability of death, and part of the CC purpose is to help the inhabitants of Ever After to ascend, which is a process of death and rebirth.

Curious Cat: Mmmm, when we break or wear out or simply finish what we were made to do, we’re called back. But Herb… his heart was too weak to listen, so I gave him a little bit of mine.

Blake: Is he… dead?

Curious Cat: (chuckles) No, no! Well, maybe a little bit, but not at all.

When it comes to Neo being the Snake, she manifests her illusions of the Jabberwalker to terrorise RWBYJ after killing it, the one being capable of dealing permanent death to Ever Afterans.

She's also the one who offers their "poison" to the Little Prince, (the tea made from the leaves of the Tree) which they accept.

Additionally the way the Curious Cat enters Neo is like that of a snake slithering inside her. Once the snake bites someone, they are described as becoming an "empty shell", and the CC is looking for an empty human vessel to possess, while Neo wants to destroy Ruby and make her feel empty.

Curious Cat: You’ve lost something most important, haven’t you? And now you have nothing left. How delightful! An empty host, perfect for me to fill.

Neo-Torchwick: You don't deserve to die Red! You deserve to be broken down... torn apart... wiped from existence.

And when the Little Prince believes their Rose has perished (Penny) or will perish (Oscar), because of them, they give themselves over to the Snake completely.

But, Neo and the CC also play into the Fox allusion as well. The Curious Cat's ability to give his heart and understand others is similar to the Fox's sentiment in the book, who tells the Little Prince the importance of taming, and of looking with the heart:

"Now here is my secret. It is very simple. It is only with one's heart that one can see rightly. What is essential, is invisible to the eye."

"Men have forgotten this basic truth. But you must not forget it. For what you have tamed, you become responsible forever. You are responsible for your rose..."

Curious Cat: I know, Your Majesty, it truly isn’t fair. You must play your game and win at any cost. It must hurt your heart. Let me help.

Curious Cat: But Herb... his heart was too weak to listen, so I gave him a little bit of mine.

He "tames" the Red Prince in managing to calm him down from executing RWBY to just exiling them.

He helps Herb to "see with the heart" when he becomes blind to how he has stagnated and forgotten his purpose in being overwhelmed by his work.

The Fox is meant to show us the importance of the patience and compassion that is needed to understand and connect with others, to reach out to them. This is part of the CC purpose in the Ever After in fixing those who are broken, but becomes the negative declination of this in becoming manipulative over time. (like him "taming" the Hawker to make him do his bidding)

Neo is like the Fox in that she dislikes hunters (huntsman and huntresses) and she has lost the person who has tamed her, who was "unique to her in all the world" with Torchwick. Part of what escalates Ruby's conflict with her is that she does not take the time to understand and empathize with her:

Ruby: Is that seriously what this is all about? You still blame me for what happened to Torchwick?!

Neo-Roman growls

Ruby: If you’re looking for an apology, you’ve wasted your time!

and much like the Fox points out here:

"One only understands the things that one tames... Men have no more time to understand anything"

And that it is only when Ruby takes the time to understand Neo towards the end that shows how she has started to grow, to understand the importance of looking with the heart, the very first step of "taming".

"You must be very patient. First you will sit down at a distance from me-like that- in the grass. I shall look at you out of the corner of my eye and say nothing. Words are the source of misunderstanding"

(...I believe this will continue on in Remnant with Mercury and later Cinder)

The idea of intertwined allusions of the Fox and Snake with the CC and Neo in V9 interests me. Because it makes me wonder if my theory/prediction on Emerald/Mercury both being the Fox to Oscar's Little Prince may not be entirely right, but that they will both be the Snake also. If they are it will likely be an inversion, with the Prince (Oscar, and maybe Ruby) helping the Fox (Emerald) realise the importance of "taming" (taming Mercury, specifically) while the Snake may play a more positive role in saving instead of killing.

After all, the baobab tree roots in the book are meant to consume and threaten to kill the rose if she is neglected too long, and while Ruby is consumed by the Tree in the Ever After that very much resembles the baobab, and she does "die" in a sense, the tree is a positive force that helps her to be reborn and grow into her true self. So, Emerald/Mercury could have a similar duality in alluding to the Fox and the Snake, capable of killing and saving the Little Prince.

@aspoonofsugar I think has mentioned Emerald's design resembling a snake puts me in mind of this, plus Mercury's main allusion being, well, the god Mercury, whose symbol is this:

A staff with wings and two snakes entwined around it. His emblem also features wings, and like a snake he technically has no legs (in a symbolic sense too, his lack of semblance and agency, the freedom to be his own person) Alchemically I believe the mercurial character is meant to shift between life and death also? So there is something there in how the Snake simultaneously saves and kills the Little Prince. (also this is me really really stretching here with my red string but. The Curious Cat. Like Mer-curius. Mercury. Both the Snake for Ruby and Oscar.)

Depending on your interpretation of the stories ending, the Little Prince ends up dead because of the Snake's bite, or the Snake genuinely helped him return home and be reunited with his Rose. Mercury/Hermes is said to be able to travel anywhere, any plane of existence without limitations, which has lead to theories of Mercury's semblance being flight or teleportation, which, well, in relation to the Snake aiding the Little Prince:

"I can carry you farther than any ship could take you," said the snake. He twined himself around the little prince's ankle, like a golden bracelet. "Whomever I touch, I send back to the earth from whence he came," the snake spoke again. "But you are innocent and true, and you come from a star . . ."

This is of course just me going off on another theory for funsies, but it would be interesting if Mercury was placed in between a choice of killing or saving the Little Prince and helping reunite him with his Rose. How Emerald and Mercury would save Oscar/help him and Ruby is unknowable. They could be save their life, help delay the merge, or just helping assure him of his own personhood and agency (this could be explored through how both Mercury and Oscar lack semblances relating to the "curses" placed on them in relation to their father figures), or something else entirely, but either way I'm pretty confident they'll have a significant role to play in the Vacuo arc.

I am aware most Rosegarden fans are mainly theorizing Tyrian as the Snake, (I've even seen some say Ruby is the Snake as well as the Rose, with a similar sentiment of the Snake being capable of saving/freeing the Little Prince, not killing him) especially since the first scene Oscar is introduced is him waking up from a nightmare following Tyrian being sent to capture Ruby Rose, as well as like, him being a venomous scorpion faunus present in the desert right now. But even that only makes me more certain in a way since Tyrian is meant to be Mercury's dark foil (and the antagonistic mercurius for Emerald/Mercury) accompanying him into the desert. So like, it Could Be Both.

Ruby also meets a King/Narcissist like in the Little Prince (the Red Prince). The Narcissist demands to be complimented and coddled, much like the Red Prince. The King is drawn wearing a crown too big for him (in the 2015 movie adaptation it is constantly crooked and threatening to slip off his head), similar to the Red Prince.

The King claims absolute authority, that what he says will happen if he orders it so. However this is untrue, as he will only order what will already happen. The Red Prince claims he always wins his games, but the board game he plays with RWBY is already in his favour as the pieces on their side throw the battle so he can claim victory. Both cheat and find loopholes in order to maintain their superiority over others. The King symbolizes rulers who make a big deal about the power they have, but who in actuality are pretty ineffective as rulers and will cheat and find loopholes to justify their power. It also mocks their grandiosity and showiness, which is kind of funny because they think they are way more important than they actually are, all of which fit with the Red Prince (...and with two other characters that were significant during the Atlas Arc *points at Ironwood and Cinder* even moreso after episode 3 of RWBY Beyond)

The Lamplighter, whose job on his tiny planet is to continuously light and snuff out the single lamp, but because the night and day cycle is so short he essentially never rests and is caught in this loop, always stuck working and nothing ever changing. Jaune as the Rusted Knight is stuck doing the same jobs everyday in a Sysiphus task of preventing the Paper Pleasers from ascending, and rests very little. He is also the Geographer, who maps out other planets but can never travel himself (because he is too busy drawing maps) and suggests to the Little Prince to visit Earth (the acres that Jaune maps out but has yet to properly explore because he can't leave the Paper Pleasers, is trying to find a way back to Remnant, their "Earth").

Another interpretation is the Lamplighter as the Caterpillar, who similarly has a neverending and thankless task of helping the Afterans ascend, and has stagnated as a result.

The Stars are not a character in the book perse, but they do come up a lot both in RWBY and in the Little Prince, especially when it comes to the theme of death and rebirth, and grief. In V9 in the Ever After we meet the Paper Pleasers (origami stars) that Jaune is desperately trying to stop from ascending, essentially keeping them trapped as he monitors them. There is a character in the Little Prince that obsessively monitors the stars and keeps them trapped, the Businessman. It is pointed out by the Little Prince that while the stars make him rich, the Businessman is of no real use to the stars.

In much the same way the Paper Pleasers do not need Jaune as much as he needs them to prove his own worth.

The climax of the Little Prince movie (2015) adaptation is the stars being freed from their entrapment, ascending into the sky, free from control, by the protagonist who is a young girl trying to break free of the expectations placed on her by adults as she grows up, is like one of the stars herself, rising into the sky.

The paper pleasers ascending, while initially seen as tragic, in actual fact allows them to grow and be more, and the Genial Gem that appears to once have been the Paper Pleaser called Ruby is the one who explains this process to WBYJ as they are worried about Ruby and how the process of ascension will affect her.

The Pilot is likely WBY, as for them Ruby is like a younger sibling to all of them who helps them reconnect with their inner child early on in the story, much like the Little Prince does for the Pilot. For Weiss, Ruby helps her connect with her inner warmth and heart. For Blake, she helps reignite her lost idealism. For Yang, she is her inner child to nuture, the one who lost her mother. The author Antoine Saint-Expury based the character of the Little Prince on his own younger brother who died, and that the Pilot as the narrator of the story is himself as an older sibling remembering and grieving for them. When WBY all watch Ruby drink the tea, it mirrors the scene where the Pilot watches the Little Prince give himself to the Snake, and is too late to intervene, particularly for Yang.

Their body disappears, and it is uncertain whether the Little Prince has died or found their way back home to their planet, and to their Rose. For Ruby, it is both. She dies and was reborn, literally reclaiming Crescent Rose and regaining her Rose emblem, she reunites with her Rose, her own sense of self. And in her ascension is able to come back to defeat the Curious Cat, and return home to Remnant with everyone. (coincidentally I think this is how Oscar's story will go, he will sacrifice himself to the Merge fully and "die" in a sense, momentarily, but return fully to himself later on, reuniting with both his sense of self and his Rose, Ruby Rose).

Oscar is also Ruby's Rose in a sense, someone she has tried to protect and care for. Even the pattern on the back of his outfit can be seen as the stem and thorns of a rose, like Ruby's hood can be seen as the petals of a rose. The Little Prince believes that if the Rose is left alone, then it will be his fault if they die:

“If some one loves a flower, of which just one single blossom grows in all the millions and millions of stars, it is enough to make him happy just to look at the stars. He can say to himself, 'Somewhere, my flower is there...' But if the sheep eats the flower, in one moment all his stars will be darkened... And you think that is not important!"

"He could not say anything more. His words were choked by sobbing."

When Ruby cuts down an illusion of Oscar, killing him, it is foreshadowing that Ruby is afraid she will not be able to save Oscar from his fate. This is the final breaking point for her (along with Little's death) that leads to her drinking the tea.

...But as much as I am a Rosegarden shipper, it's actually her mother Summer Rose and Ruby's identity that is the main "Rose" to her Little Prince in V9 that she becomes separated and united with, imo.

She learns that their Rose (Summer, and themselves) are not uniquely one of a kind, but "like any other common rose" the same as all the other hunters represented through their weapons in the Tree with the blacksmith. Like the Little Prince in the Rosegarden:

"Good morning" said the roses.

The little prince gazed at them. They all looked like his flower. "Who are you?" he demanded, thunderstruck.

"We are roses" the roses said.

And he was overcome with sadness. His flower had told him that she was the only one of her kind in the whole universe. And here were five thousand of them, all alike, in one single garden! ... Then he went on with his reflections: "I thought that I was rich, with a flower that was unique in all the world, and all I had was a common rose."

Not in the sense of being a SEW who believes they are the only one of their kind, but that like her mother Summer Rose, or any other huntress or huntsman that has lived (represented through the weapons she looks at, and her saying they all have the same weight to them) she is not perfect, or unique in always knowing the right thing to do and being a flawless shining hero. Ruby thought the ideal of the hero Summer Rose she carried and tried to emulate was unique and special, what made her "rich" in the sense it defined her self worth, but she was a "common rose", a person, a human being, just like Ruby. Being like any other common rose means Summer is much like Ruby herself, just a person trying their best, with their own flaws and burdens to carry. Ruby leaves the Rose behind initially (gives up her Rose emblem that Summer left her, rejects Crescent Rose) and the pedestal she puts her on shatters, becoming disillusioned with Summer like the Little Prince does with his Rose, specifically after finding out that they lied.

Ruby: What? What was that? She… She lied. She left with Raven. Why would she…?

Blacksmith: Who knows why people keep the secrets they do. Maybe you’re not the only one who has felt the weight of other’s expectations. Like Alyx, like your mother.

What makes Summer unique to Ruby is not her being an ideal hero, but the love she had for her as a mother, and that in of itself is incredibly beautiful and powerful, because it helps her realise and affirm her self worth.

Summer: (voice) I love you…

Ruby turns to see the red glowing light behind her.

Summer: (voice) Just the way you are.

"Of course I love you," the rose said to him. "If you were not aware of it, it was my fault"

Much like the Little Prince learning and understanding that his Rose is unique to him, not because she is one of a kind, but because of their time shared together, loving and caring for one another. That it is our ties to people that makes us special and unique in the world, to the people we are connected to and choose to care for, more than any power or titles do. Which goes back to the source of Ruby's power as a Silver Eyed Warrior, her love and compassion of those around her. The true power of humanity.