The following is my own way of thinking/behaving. None of this is what I proclaim as right or wrong nor the way others do so. Everyone is unique and individual in mind, heart and appearance. This is also not meant to degrade others or make me appear condescending/supercilious. Please be respectful with any disagreements you may have. Thank you and God Bless.

---Character Development and Depth---

Many people believe a character must have development over the course of a story to be properly written. While this is commonly used for characters, it’s a misconception. Not every single character must grow from an experience in some way to be considered well written. In 2016, an author of historical and speculative fiction, K.M. Weiland, published a book called “Creating Character Arcs: The Masterful Author's Guide to Uniting Story Structure, Plot, and Character Development” which is all about the three types of character arcs used in fiction throughout the centuries written stories have existed. (In all honesty, K.M. Weiland is a wise, insightful person who guides any aspiring authors like myself. I'd recommend seeing her content if you are also interested in becoming an author or writer.) In her book, she discusses the three types of character arc methods: Positive, Negative and Flat. That last one I personally prefer calling “Neutral” because when I hear “Flat Character” I think “Badly Written Character” as others might, which defeats the purpose of what I’m trying to talk about. Before we talk about the Flat Character Arc, one must understand the Positive Character Arc first.

The Positive Character Arc: Where a character undergoes a positive change. This Arc is used the most frequently in fiction, so some believe it’s mandatory for all main characters to be this way. It's when a character spends their entire journey trying to overcome a specific “Lie” they hold to be true. This is a writing formula writers and authors call “The Lie the Character Believes.” In K.M. Weiland’s own words…

“The Positive Character Arc is about ‘The Lie the Character Believes’ which he will spend the entire journey overcoming.”

One example is Neku, the main character from the video game: The World Ends with You. Neku is trapped in a realm between life and death, trying to escape. To do that, he must participate in The Reapers Game, which requires a partner to fight monsters called Noise and take on missions from The Reapers. Unfortunately, Neku doesn't like involving himself with people because he doesn’t understand them and believes he never will. That is his lie. That he will NEVER understand or care about others no matter the situation. As the story progresses, Neku is caught in the Reapers game two more times (each Reapers Game is a week long). That means he’s fought to come back to life for three weeks but each new game gives him a new partner and the others are always lost to him in some way. During those times, his partners grow on him and he becomes attached. When realizing he CAN make friends and get along with them by taking time communicate instead of looking away and ignoring them, Neku’s heart becomes more open. He’s less bitter to everyone even if facing hardships or anguish along the way, making new friends and spending quality time with them on a regular basis by the end of the game.

Unlike the Positive Character Arc which is about the “Lie” the character believes, the Flat Character Arc uses a similarly different writing formula called “The TRUTH the Character Believes.”

This is where a character already knows what the “truth” is and will use it to overcome whatever challenges of the plot they come across while more likely than not, change the world itself. One of the many parts that make a Flat Character Arc is that the character already firmly believes something. A good example of this is the main character, Sora, from the Kingdom Hearts video game series. Sora is a somewhat naïve but honest, upbeat, optimistic teenage boy with a firm sense of justice. He already has a handle on what is or isn’t morally acceptable and uses that throughout his journey. Sora visits many worlds, goes on adventures, saves people's lives, fights alongside heroes, defeats monsters and villains, all while a conspiracy is slowly revealed with story progression. Sora has accomplished much to keep the worlds safe from any who would otherwise ruin them. He’s stopped countless enemies but maintains positivity which repeatedly saves the universe of Kingdom Hearts because he’s stuck to his high morale compass (as of the time I’m making this post. I hope he never changes, as it would mean he’s no longer following this barely known, highly misunderstood Character Arc)

Another example is Indiana Jones, the main character of the movie series with his name. He’s a noble and courageous man who believes in doing what is right. Indiana finds ancient relics to be safely tucked away in museums instead of being put in the hands of greedy, power hungry people with malefic agendas. What makes his stories so compelling and interesting isn’t how Indiana himself changes but how his actions have made the world change. It’s not just altruistic characters who fall under this Character Arc.

Bruce Wayne from the DC comics is a super-genius, multi billionaire, playboy philanthropist but is secretly Batman, a masked vigilante who goes out every night fighting the world's deadliest criminals and intimidates them into submission. The reason is because when he was a child, his parents were murdered by a common thug right in front of him. That pain made him swear an oath to avenge his family and to ensure no innocent life would suffer the same as him. He spent decades training to be the strongest, most intelligent, most enduring and most resourceful person he can be. A one person army to maintain order in an otherwise chaotic world. This brooding, dark persona he’s created stays throughout his life during the night as Batman.

Another character is Yuri Lowell, the main character of the video game: Tales of Vesperia. A cynical and sarcastic but also good-natured man who wanted to make a difference for the people in the “Lower Quarter” of the Capital City, Zaphias, by becoming a knight. After seeing how much of a monopoly the government is, he quits after three months but maintains his skill with a sword and combat knowledge. From then on he uses his abilities to stop the oppressive knights and nobles who abuse the commoners but eventually goes on a quest to recover an item for their water supply. Little by little, Yuri meets new people, sees new places and it turns into a quest to save the world. Yuri does this only for himself without becoming too malefic. While he has some moments of change, they're very few and very little but that’s because he's content with his way of thinking, only changing himself when he feels it’s best not just for him but also those he shares bonds with. Only the world itself has been affected by him even if it wasn’t his intention.

For the Negative Character Arc, a character has something bad happen to them, causing them to change over time. Normally this is done with somebody who is good or at the very least is a benign force. Example: Light Yagami from the manga/anime Death Note, is a high school boy who hates criminals and feels the police aren't doing their job well enough. One day he finds a notebook with instructions on killing people by writing their names in it. After confirming it's capable of killing as it says, he takes it upon himself to rid the world of criminals and make it "less rotten" for six whole years. The world is safer because criminals are afraid of breaking laws. This isn't the Flat Character Arc despite him actually changing the world around him because Light changes to how he started off. He was a young man driven to bring justice but slowly loses himself murdering so many people over time, turning into a sanctimonious man with a god complex who even takes the lives of innocent people just because they cross him or compare him to the criminals he kills. He devolves, becoming drunk on power and his own delusions.

Not all characters who follow the Negative Character Arc are heroes who later become villains. Another example of this is Dr. Stephen Strange from the Marvel Comics. At the start, he was the greatest brain surgeon in the world but a car accident crippled his hands. It's so bad that no doctor in any part of the world can repair the damage through any normal means. He spends all his money and loses everything he worked so hard to gain. Even his home and doctors awards, driving him to the point of suicide. Before can do it, a man stops him, saying there is a way. Stephen is convinced to see "The Ancient One" who not only cures his damaged hands but teaches him magic. Through time, Stephen Strange turned into the Sorcerer Supreme of the Marvel Universe and one of the greatest defenders of all that is good. His downfall made him go to the lowest point but from there he could only rise higher than he ever had been in his previous life.

In conclusion, I am in no way I saying one Character Arc is superior to the other. What I’m saying is that all three have value in terms of writing and can have impact or be enjoyable but in their own respective way. Because in my opinion, development is optional. What matters is depth of the character themselves.

I hope everything I’ve said here has helped you become a little more open minded or at the very least has helped you learn more about me.

The following is a review that’s entirely my own personal opinion. If you don’t agree with it, that’s fine. Everyone is entitled to what they believe or disbelieve. Even so, that’s no excuse to be rude. Malignant denigration to me and my beliefs are morally unnecessary and unwanted. If you wish to express your opinion of disliking this, I ask you please do so in an affable manner with no close-minded conjecture. Thank you and God Bless.

Series: RWBY
Season 1 - Episode 16 (Black and White)
Roosterteeth.com
Writers: Monty Oum, Miles Luna & Kerry Shawcross
Directors: Monty Oum & Kerry Shawcross

-Story-

*Spoilers Ahead! You have been warned! Also note the underlined parts are not part of the story. They’re simply my own personal thoughts on the matter*

Right where we left off in the last episode, Sun and Blake are sitting at the cafe as Sun speaks in a celebratory way about Blake finally speaking to him after nearly two days of giving him nothing but small talk and weird looks. Blake in response, gives him a look and Sun comments on it. Lol. Ignoring his response, Blake asks if Sun knows about the White Fang. Sun says he does and speaks about them being ‘houlier-than-thou freaks’ but is surprised as Blake admits she was once a part of their group. Not only that, she was almost ‘born into it’ and explains a bit of the White Fang’s backstory…

They were supposed to be a symbol of peace and unity between faunus and humans. Despite being promised equality, the faunus were subjugated to discrimination and hate. Humans still thought of them as lesser beings and the White Fang rose up. Blake was there. At the front of every rally, taking part in every boycott and believed she was making a difference but admits she was just a youthful optimist. Five years before the moment of the story, the leader of the White Fang stepped down with a new one taking place with a new way of thinking. The White Fang’s peaceful protests were replaced with organized attacks: setting fire to shops refusing to serve faunus, hijacking cargo from companies using faunus labor and more. It worked, too. Faunus were being treated equally but out of fear, not respect. Blake left them, no longer wanting to use her skills to aid in violence and instead, chose to become a huntress.

That's quite a backstory. I feel really bad for her. It’s not just Weiss who’s had a difficult childhood. I hope this helps Weiss see past Blake being a Faunus and realizing they’ve got one thing in common even if it’s a similar difference.

Sun is a bit more serious and asks if Blake has told any of her friends what she’s said to him. From Blakes expression and the previous episode it’s clear she hasn’t.

In one part of the city, Ruby, Weiss and Yang are still searching for Blake. Only the sisters are calling for their friend and Ruby comments on Weiss not helping. Weiss suggests the police might be able to help much to Ruby’s annoyance. And mine. There’s a moment of bitterness between Ruby and Weiss but Yang suggests they hear Blake’s side of the story before jumping to conclusions. Way to be a middle grounder there, Yang. And being open minded as well. You’ve got energy and optimism but you’re quite mature when you want to be… in a mental behavior sort of way. 

Weiss is still certain Blake is an enemy though. (Weiss, don’t do this. I finally started understanding you. Don’t take one step forward and two steps back for me to possibly like you. Still, I said I doubted her character would do a complete 180 to improve right away so I won't give up hope yet. She improved a little in ‘The Badge and the Burden Pt. 2’ so hopefully she’ll improve by the end of this episode as well.)

Penny shows up, complimenting Weiss’ hair much to everyone’s surprise. And mine, with her coming out of nowhere. Penny asks what they’re doing. Yang tells her they’re looking for Blake and Penny realizes she means “The faunus girl.” The others realize right away how strange it is Penny knows Blake is a faunus even though they only recently discovered it themselves and question her about it before an awkward moment of silence passes. It gets a little funny as a tumbleweed rolls by. You know, in an urban city far away from any desert areas? And Ruby silently comments “She does like tuna, a lot.” I guess that’s they’re way of coming to terms with Penny knowing? XD

Before it can be questioned further, Ruby mentions Blake has been missing for days and Penny volunteers to help find her. Ruby tries to politely brush her off and subtly asks Weiss and Yang for help but her two other teammates are gone. More awkward silence passes with another tumbleweed and Penny calls out the writing trope by saying “It sure is windy today.” I can’t stop chuckling. X3

Meanwhile, Blake and Sun are in the city. Blake doesn’t believe the White Fang are responsible for the constant Dust robberies until Sun says it may be the case and suggests a stakeout for a “huge shipment of dust coming in from Atlas” he learned about while he stowed away on the ship from the last episode. At another part of the city, Weiss and Yang are still searching for Blake. Yang questions if Weiss cares about finding Blake and Weiss retorts she does but retorts she’s worried about what she’ll say because “The innocent never run.” Maybe so. But you know who does run? People who are afraid they’ll think differently and abandon you after they discover something shocking about you they never knew before.

Ruby is still alone with Penny, who can’t figure out if they’re all friends and Ruby tries explaining the complicated situation (at one point Ruby explains Blake wasn’t who they thought she was and Penny asks with surprise if Blake is a man. I cracked up so hard. Penny has so little knowledge of things, it seems, and that’s why she’s so curious. XD ) Penny admits she doesn’t have many friends but if she did then she’d want them to talk to her about things. Ruby admits the same thing. That’s great! Ruby has grown attached to her teammates! I love it! Makes sense too since at this point it’s been months when their team was first formed. Ruby has gotten over her social insecurity about being alongside others. ^_^

Later at night, Blake is staking out on a roof of a port warehouse, looking at huge freights with the Schnee Dust company logo on the sides. Sun joins her and is given a status update then offers some food he stole. A blonde haired man with a monkey tail who steals. It makes me think of Zidane Tribal, the main hero from Final Fantasy IX. I approve. Blake questions Sun’s actions and Sun reciprocates the morality with the fact Blake was in the White Fang, earning an annoyed glare and Sun regrets his choice of words. I can’t help but laugh at Sun’s antics. He’s a funny guy.

A plane like jet flies over them and lands at the dock. The same kind Roman Torchwick used in the first episode. It’s called a “Bullhead” which in the RWBY series is a VTOL (Vertical Take-Off and Landing) tiltjet aircraft. It uses jet engines with thrust vectoring to make forward flight and vertical rising or descent but can tilt or turn sharply while airborne. Can I just say how great it is that the writers went into such detail with even mundane stuff in this show? It demonstrates how much they want to make it as good as it can be, in my eyes.

Members of the White Fang come out of the jet after it lands, Blake confirming it’s them when seeing the symbols on their backs. Sun sees how sad Blake is and notes she really didn’t believe they were responsible for the dust robberies but Blake admits deep down she knew. She just didn’t want to be right...

They’re not alone though, as Roman Torchwick walks out. He orders them around and calling them “animals”. (A derogatory term for faunus, as though they aren’t people.) Blake is confused like myself because the White Fang wouldn’t work with a human and confronts them by sneaking up to hold Roman hostage using her Gambol Shroud. Her blade is to Roman’s neck while the pistol is aimed at the members of the White Fang. That's creative. Even if the White Fang have guns, Blake can fight back or take the life of the hostage at the same time. A clever way to use a weapon that is melee but also has range.

Blake shows she’s a faunus and questions why they’re helping somebody like Roman. The man in question tells her they’re “going on a joint business venture together.” and Blake demands he tell her what it is before more Bullheads fly in. While Blake is distracted from the additional vehicles, Roman fires a round from his cane and sends her flying back. The explosion was loud enough to get Ruby and Penny’s attention from close by.

While Blake is down, Roman fires more shots at her but Blake gymnastically avoids all except the last. Right before she’s hit, her body clones itself and jumps back before running off. That's her semblance: Shadow. Used mainly to avoid hits… she’s a real “copycat” you could say. :3

Roman starts going after her until Sun distracts him then fights many of the White Fang members. At first he uses hand to hand combat but pulls out a collapsible pole staff (symbolizing even more how he’s based after Sun Wukong from Journey to the West). Blake joins the fight but only targeting Roman. They clash with Blake making many clones of herself in succession in order to attack Roman. For a while they’re on even ground until Roman starts getting the advantage. Before he can do anything lethal, Sun steps in and fights Roman, showing his pole staff can also become nunchucks… that shoot bullets. They’re “GUN-chucks”

Blake intervenes and Roman is down. As the crime lord stands up, he shoots at a freight of dust hanging over Blake and Sun. They avoid the massive, falling container but Sun is defenseless while Roman has the barrel of his weapon aimed at him. Before he can shoot, Ruby arrives. Roman recognizes and mocks her as Penny unintentionally distracts Ruby and Roman uses that to his advantage to shoot Ruby, knocking her down but also disarming her.

Penny is angered from this and joins the fight, making several swords appear out of her back and seemingly controlling them via telekinesis. She takes down the White Fang members easily with a smile on her face even as they gang up on her. The bullheads piloted by other White Fang members shoot at her but her swords block all the bullets with two more swords used to launch at a building and pull her away for distance before collecting her swords together in the air. They spin in a circle in front of her with the tips aimed at the ships and fire a charging beam of energy, slicing the planes in half as they fall into the ocean by the docks. Jeez! Weiss was wrong. Penny may not look like a fighter but she can certainly be one. O_O

Ruby watches in amazement when getting up and seeing Penny use her blades to keep another bullhead from escaping. Her swords are shown to be connected by nearly unseen but very durable wires. While throwing the ship down and causing an explosion, Roman leaves with one of the only two remaining Bullheads.

Some time later, Ruby and Penny are with Blake and Sun with the police investigating the crime scene. Weiss and Yang join them. Ruby tries resolving the differences between her friends but Weiss ignores her. Blake tries to explain as well but Weiss, in her own way, admits she doesn’t care about Blake’s past and would prefer if “something big happens” that Blake come to her teammates and not others. Blake sheds a tiny tear and agrees as tensions between everyone all dissolve. Excellent. I’m glad. Weiss has shown more improvement. It’s steady, but it is there. She didn’t even refer to Sun in any sort of discriminatory way. And while she says she’s uncertain how to feel towards Sun, it’s understandable given he stowed away on a ship and ran from police officers afterwards. I like to think while she may not trust him fully, she knows Sun helped her teammate out. So she can’t entirely distrust him either.

Ruby notes Penny is missing. None of them know she’s watching them in a vehicle from a distance as another inside it lectures her about wandering a strange city then drive off. He tells Penny “Her time will come.”

In his office, Ozpin watches Ruby from the news feed of the event at the docks but gets a message from an unseen person named Qrow: Queen has pawns. The credits roll… and a post credit scene plays afterwards.

Roman returns to his hideout and is visited by three people, one of them revealed to be the woman from the first episode who helped Roman escape from Ruby and Glynda. She’s “disappointed in him” but Roman blames the Faunus for his failure at the docks and that it was their suggestion. The fire wielding woman tells him (intimidates him) to keep working with them because “they have big plans” for him before the episode truly ends.

*Spoilers end here*

MAIN CHARACTERS
Ruby & Yang - They haven’t done much in this episode but they weren’t the focus of this or the last one. It was Blake and Weiss. Even so, Ruby’s had enough time in earlier episodes and still relevant for the time she was here. Here’s hoping Yang has her time to shine in the later volumes.

Penny - I was certain she was going to be a good fighter despite her appearance since she’s taking part in a combat tournament. I didn’t expect THIS much battle capability though. I also have a theory about her after re-watching this episode and the previous one. Other than that, I can’t say much else since she’s had only two episodes. Hopefully she’ll have her time to shine as well.

Blake - Three of the four main characters have had their backstories told and their reasons for trying to become Huntresses. Blake’s is one I enjoy as much as Ruby’s. (Hopefully I’ll enjoy Weiss’ more when and if we learn more about her past with her family.) As for Blake in these episodes, I can see she’s a type of character who is trying to fit in with others. That is something I relate to given my autism. I doubt she will have it easy while trying to renew her life. It wasn’t easy for me either and I’m certain she’ll make mistakes along the way. That’s never anything to degrade or hate a character for if it doesn’t go too far. We’ll just have to wait and see.

Weiss - It could have ended badly with her discovering Blake was a Faunus, especially since she was part of the White Fang, but in the three days after having it revealed, Weiss admitted having much time to think it over it. She did spend months with Blake after all. How would all that time be worth nothing JUST because she finds out now about what Blake really is? Only if she was closed minded, that’s how. Good to know she was reasonable to change change her view points without being rushed. Hopefully it will affect her to grow for the better as a person, later on.

MINOR CHARACTER
Sun Wukong - Much like this show, he has moments of humor but enjoyable action and knows when to shift between each other. The way he’s much like the character of the same name, I myself as somebody who is a fan of classic literature, shows greatly. I want to see more of him, too.

PROS
Blake Opening Up: After having to deal with the White Fang and realizing they weren't as righteous as she thought in her youth and wanting to start over with a new life and better group, I'm glad Blake is proving to be as nice a character as I believed when seeing her.

Weiss’ Growth: More or less, what I said about her character above.

Penny’s Combat Readiness: Everything I saw was the most incredible single person fight so far in this series. If she fought something like the Nevermore or the Deathstalker, I’m positive they’d be dead within moments.

CONS
The reveal of the villains working with Roman was good. The woman in the red dress is named Cinder but the other two’s appearance seemed… stiff. They were animated differently and kind of moved like cardboard cutouts when revealed. It’s a little too easy to notice.

FINAL NOTE
I’m hooked on this show now. Although, I admit while it’s interested me at this point? That’s it. It’s just interesting. This entire first season is a little slow but as I stated in my earlier reviews, slow starts can potentially lead to strong finishes. Parts of the lore have been explained well enough, we now know these characters being introduced and it all happens (in terms of the stories time) in just months. I’m sure lots of people may talk about things not happening on screen but I’ll go over that eventually at another time. Anyway, this entire volume’s focus was on a good portion of the characters for us to understand and relate to. It was all character building. We certainly had it for Ruby, Weiss, Juane and Blake. It may seem like something you should do with a story but most of these episodes were hardly even five minutes long and it was the very first volume the writers made. It isn’t perfect by any means but whatever flaws it has isn’t enough for me me avoid. I’m looking forward to watching more of this entire series and what the other volumes will show.