an open letter to all who treasured monty oum chibi

#AN OPEN LETTER TO ALL WHO TREASURED MONTY OUM CHIBI SERIES#

#AN OPEN LETTER TO ALL WHO TREASURED MONTY OUM CHIBI SERIES#

I see all of this drama about RWBY and the direction RT has gone with it, and I can’t help but think back to the trailer I saw four years ago.RWBY (pronounced 'Ruby') is an American anime-influenced 3D computer-animated web series created by Monty Oum for Rooster Teeth. We knew nothing about the show back then, and the speculation surrounding it was astronomical. There was no context, no defined setting, no character development, no plot. People filled in the gaps themselves, and there were a lot of gaps. With just one trailer, no one had a clue as to what any of the characters could do, who they were, or even if they were allies. No one became attached to their own theories, as too little was known to theorize anything substantial. When the rest of the trailers dropped, most people had abandoned their original theories and assumptions to align with what was cannon. It still wasn’t much, and speculation was still wild, but very temporary. Volume 1 set the stage, introduced the characters, and lit the fire. This began the RWBY Fandom (FNDM) as we know it today. Headcannons, shipping, speculation, theory crafting, fan art, fan fiction, everything. The FNDM loved RWBY as a whole, no one knew jack shit about it, and the wondrous mysticism remained. Back when Volume 1 was all the FNDM ever knew of RWBY, the theories, speculation, headcannons, ships, all of the fan made content was based on little, but by no means unusable information. The unknown variables were just numerous enough and arranged just right so that anything was possible. The future of RWBY looked bright, blindingly so. The possibilities seemed endless, and the FNDM eagerly awaited Volume 2 with bated breath and high hopes. Here’s the thing about endless possibilities only one is ever chosen. With the drop of Volume 2, a certain amount of unknown variables left by Volume 1 filled themselves in, but more had taken their place. Backstories were told, secrets revealed, ships teased, plots advanced, but the unknowns were still numerous enough to make RWBY pliable in the numerous hands of the FNDM. I believe this is what Monty wanted from creating RWBY. Leave enough of the story behind fog to let the fans speculate and assume everything else. The entire world of RWBY seemed to be a medium for the fight scenes Monty was famous for animating. He needed other people to worry about the specifics so they weren’t a hindrance while animating what he felt was important. The end-credits scenes in Volume 1 and 2 served as fuel for the FNDM, revealing just enough to tease new elements in the future, but leaving enough unanswered to fan the FNDM’s flames of inspiration. Then Monty Oum passed away, and RWBY was no longer his story. The world of RWBY was Monty’s canvas, giving him so much potential to bring his fight scenes to life. Everything else was secondary, but never unimportant. Volume 3 rolled by, later in the year than the previous two volumes, and things had changed. The sense of mysticism and wonder that the FNDM thrived on for over two years slowly vanished. Too many questions were answered, and not enough took their place. We were no longer ignorant, and RT had to shift RWBY away from the Monty style fight scenes to the characters and world. They knew that no one could ever replicate Monty’s unique style, and they had nothing to fall back on other than characters and story development. The fight scenes suffered as a result, but the FNDM looked the other way for the duration of Volume 3.Īfter surviving Volume 3, the FNDM soldiered onward. Shane Newville’s “An Open Letter to All Who Treasured Monty Oum” We knew RWBY would never be the same, but we never knew how different RWBY could have been. This letter divided the FNDM for the first time, but that’s not what this post is about. Shane had detailed a number of plot points in Volume 3 that never occurred / occurred differently. The largest point would be Raven Branwen attacking Team JNPR. This scene was immensely important, despite RT believing otherwise. It was vital in keeping that sense of mystery and wonder alive, the same feeling we all felt back with Volume 1. It was a question to replace the answers, and it never happened. Realizing that the FNDM had nothing to tide themselves over while waiting for Volume 4, RT released RWBY Chibi, and it was a band-aid. Between Volumes 1 and 2, the FNDM kept itself entertained with speculation and fan created content.

An open letter to all who treasured monty oum chibi