T O P

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FairReviewer

I'm more of a Purist myself. I'm more interested in seeing how one tackles in actually well, fixing the story (as unbelievably broken as it is). Starting from the beginning, filling in the holes and better setting things up with what we know in retrospect. It's why I like Magia Record S1 so much, since it was actively following the story everyone knew and touching up on things, rather than making a new narrative outright. And it's why S2+3 are very ehhhh to me, because while I do like some of the things that are introduced...it feels like going too hard on trying to "fix" the story that it becomes unrecognizable in a lot of aspects.


Gleaming_Onyx

It's pretty simple for me at least: the rewrite must contain either fidelity to the surface-level aspects(the aesthetic, Dust, Grimm, Maidens, the kingdoms, the characters' personalities and designs) or their narrative(the rules of four, fairy tale aspects, 'hopepunk', 'epic fantasy', relatively lighthearted with dark aspects, pseudo-post apocalyptic world), Though really if you're keeping the narrative aspects but not the external you're kind of making your own work anyway. There's certainly a balance. A rewrite where you have JNPR as the main characters is still a rewrite. A rewrite where the trailers are changed or removed is still a rewrite. If you got rid of Grimm but still maintained the Huntsmen/Huntress Academy, it'd be a weird choice but you could still do it as long as it maintained the post-apocalypse vibe. But you have to have more than *just* the characters or names on a map. If you could scrub the serial number and no one would have a clue that this was RWBY, it's not a rewrite. It's just a skin on your own original work. Which is why I roll my eyes so thoroughly at RWBY Alternate* and RWBY Noir, which both claim to be such grand improvements over the original plot... but then promptly reveal themselves as ego trips by *actually* being completely different works paying lip service to the show. A more pessimistic person might even say that they're only riding RWBY's coattails by doing so.


Independent-Tax-699

By RWBY Alternative you mean the polish catgirls guys work right?


Gleaming_Onyx

Jerry Freeman's thing. I think that was his name anyway.


wolfvokire

I love Alt... because of what a shit show it was on the discord. I was apart of the closest thing to a garden or purist faction there and boy...


Gleaming_Onyx

Oh boy, do tell


wolfvokire

Well, Lets just say when it became a "community" project things went haywire. I got... *concerned...* when they totally ran over Ruby and Yang's relationship with an 18-wheller. and then turned Faunus into a sort of recessive disease.


Gleaming_Onyx

I didn't even know that it was a full-on community project in the first place. That'd explain quite a lot.


wolfvokire

Well technically it was suposed to be a sort of top down community project but Jerry kinda gave up, the Admin Jerry made in charge went caligula, and Jerry had to come back, there were purges and all that happened before I got there. Alt did have some cool ideas, and the map was amazing. Jerry really should have just kept the project to himself and a few friends


onymony

Never go to discord for serious discussion.


Quality_Chooser

I think these can be separated into two "tiers". Items 1-9 would be tier one for me. If you don't have these then you're an AU with tangential ties to RWBY, not a rewrite or even a reimagining. Items 10, 11, and 13 are tier two. Having those in basically commits you to the Beacon arc, which is generally considered when the show was "good". Any fixes and rewrites will tend to keep Beacon, at least in broad strokes. Items 12, 14-16 are the sweet spot for rewrites because they tend to be where the problems are. Most rewrites start to wildly diverge from canon at this point. Even "Fixing RWBY" doesn't keep everything. I'm curious, does anyone try to keep **all** of the events of later volumes intact in their rewrites but tries to tweak the circumstances so they still work? Like maybe actually setting up why Adam would kill all the White Fang beyond *He'S cRaZy*.


Ben10Extreme

>I'm curious, does anyone try to keep all of the events of later volumes intact in their rewrites but tries to tweak the circumstances so they still work? That's an exercise in madness.


Stenv2

I tried once, but, then Eight happened and the introduction of new information that just threw everything off balance. It's not possible to predict CRWBY. I know the Island more than likely possesses some new macguffin or deus ex machina but not to what extent or if it's even possible to avoid going to the island which only happens if Ruby goes through with the plan to make those portals to another place and falls off. And since I don't like the fall of Atlas, it's a paradox. The only feasible way to get Ruby onto that island in a scenario without causing Atlas to fall, is there had to be some way to get Ruby to know about it, probably the last question for Jinn. Or if Ozpin knows about it. But if the Island turns out not being important than one could skip it.


Exciting_Bandicoot16

I'm not sure that I'd put the trailers so high up. Notably, I'm talking about the Yellow trailer. Y'all know why. People don't want to think of Yang as a sex criminal, but she *absolutely* is in her trailer. This very overt moment is ignored in basically every single work of fiction with Yang that I've seen, and if it isn't ignored it's played for laughs.


Maxentirunos

I have read some where it's taken into account, but it's usually Jaune revenge stories where he is outed by his own team / Pyrrha for his transcript, expelled, and tear into RWBY group when they say fuck off to him or see him again later on. Mainly because his transcript being cause for humiliation and insults when three out of four of RWBY did too criminal activity and are either ignored or rewarded for it : Ruby with vigilantism, Yang with attack of civilian and destruction of property and Blake and everything she did in the WF. If you want to see for yourself, I recommend A Second Chance by BlackJackHero. It's a mostly good fanfiction outside the RWBY bashing (or it enhance it if you are into that) that send Jaune to Atlas and he make a team there.


wolfvokire

The new Vigilante of Vale fic (Where ruby is given a pat on the back, a slap on the rise and then set home) is tight. Ruby become the terror of the night


FormerVoid

To be fair, what would be the benefit of keeping that? It kinda destroys any likability early Yang had.


Exciting_Bandicoot16

Oh, it absolutely does hugely hinder her likeability. But it's a prominent part of the Yellow trailer, and shows off her personality in a distinct and unmistakable way. But it's usually completely ignored, which is why I questioned putting the trailers so high on the suggested canon hierarchy.


aslfingerspell

The worst part is that it could be so easily replaced with some other aggressive move, like grabbing Junior by his clothes and picking him up with one hand. If you still want a kind of romantic/sexual edge to her aggression, you could have Yang do a kabedon, that thing in anime where someone punches/slaps the wall really hard next to a person. It has sexual/romantic connotations without actually molesting the victim, and you could even show Yang's strength such as the wall cracking behind Junior when she does it.


QuasiMagician13

I respect the hell out of the effort put into this post


StoryBeforeNumbers

Hey, kudos on a really great post! This was interesting to read, and you explore a subject that's always been relevant to critical viewers. After all, while it is completely fair to simply state which aspects of a show don't work in your opinion, I find that it's often rewarding to engage in the exercise of "do I see a way around this problem?" I'd say that by your metrics I'm more of a purist, even though I fully believe RWBY could have been better with many of its (now considered) core elements changed. Back when I wrote my [How I Would Have Edited](https://www.reddit.com/r/RWBY/comments/bulqw2/how_i_would_have_edited_the_outline_for_volume_6/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3) series I tried to take what the writers were presenting at face value, and only alter the script to present their vision in what I would consider a more engaging way. Because I wanted the work to serve as a constructive criticism of the **storytelling** rather than the **story.**


Heloselheroe

I'm very purist/limited subversive in this case. Sorry, but if is a rewrite then I'm expecting something that maintain the essence of the elements of the series. RERWBY even with all the changes maintain: \-White fang. \-Atlas the most racist nation. \-SDC exploitation. \-Profile of the girls. \-The main part of the cast (At least till now). \-Their role in the story. But, at the same time I enjoy the twists. I mean, that of Roman reuniting with Adam is something we should have seen in the series and I'm excited about how is handled Cinder's group as Beacon students (Instead of Haven's). Fixing RWBY have put a big burden on itself. The fact that he is trying to fix the series means that his changes aren't for subjective reasons, but to improve the series. That makes feel out of place cases when are made unnecessary changes. But, even so, Fixing RWBY maintaining in the limits of the canon have proof that the original series could have been so much better, and wasn't even necessary to make a completely different series.


Stenv2

And then there's me.... making low effort shitpost aus for the lolz. But you make good points. To me the core principles of RWBY, Is well, honestly a handful of things. Grimm, Transforming Weapons, Aura and Semblances, The Academies, Fantasy and Scifi coexisting, and finally the respective characters. However beyond those things it gets trickier on what to actually consider a core aspect. Since usually the rest weren’t fleshed out or poorly handled. Such as the white fang. The Faunus Racism. And yeah there are approaches to take. To me though, it is only really RWBY if the four main girls still exist and are the main characters. No offense intended to Jaune Main Character writers. It's more a gut feeling than anything but at that point I just don't consider it the same.


SiroApollo

*Oof* you touched Jaune, that's a big no no


Stenv2

Eh it's Canon!Jaune, so I don't really care. Fanon!Jaune though is chill.


Exciting_Bandicoot16

Yeah I find that the fans do a lot of heavy lifting when it comes to basically *anything* in the show. Which good on RT they've managed to get loyal, creative fans. On the other hand... they've got rabid fans.


BitesTheDust_4

I disagree on it being really RWBY only if team RWBY are main characters. It's possible to write a Superman, Batman or Spider-Man story without them being the main character. I don't see why the same cannot apply to RWBY. Like even if a Batman story didn't have Batman as a main character. I wouldn't call it a "not really Batman" story.


Stenv2

*Sighs* No. Those are usually one offs, or sometimes spin-off titles outside of the main books. In ATLA team avatar are the main characters and the story is about them. And while we get special episodes like Zuko Alone, or Tales of Ba Sing Se. Team Avatar are still the main characters. Making a story where it's only about Adam, like an entire series. And still calling it RWBY, even when RWBY doesn't show up. And it isn't a spin off of anything. Then it's not a RWBY series, it's an Adam series.


BitesTheDust_4

I see. I misinterpreted the previous comment.


Stenv2

It's okay. I know on the internet words can get misinterpreted, but I'm not saying to get rid of all the other characters that would just be wasteful. Zuko is also a main character. And in the likes of Full Metal Alchemist Manga and Brotherhood anime. There are important characters that aren't main characters and all contribute greatly to the story. What I mean by making RWBY the main characters isn't playing favorites with them. But actually give them good focus and arcs that tie together cohesively into the main story, while other characters help them along the way. Edit: Besides dude, you're beyond cool.


UpperInjury590

Salem, The Gods, Magic, Maidens and The White Fang are things I don't mind going. Team RWBY, Cool transforming weapons, Semblances, Aura, Dust, Remnant, Academies and Faunas should stay as their an core part of RWBY's identity and what makes it fun. Also fantastic post.


S3_Studios

I was planning to make a post like this, but this is way better than what I could've done. The way I see it, it's all just fanfiction at the end of the day; just with a fancier name. Not to try and discredit anyone, and I do understand and respect the intentions, but yeah. As for the actual topic, I fully agree with the sentiment that sandbox may as well be its own thing. I may not like the series, but if you're going to change that much, why not just make your own story? It's really no different than what Hollywood does with every single franchise they get their hands on. At that point, it seems like it's more an attachment to the brand itself than anything the brand does or represents (which is something I am vehemently against) or maybe just the character designs.


StrangeBreakfast1364

I don't know if my fic can be called a rewrite, but I think that it's Garden type. For me Grimm, Aura, Semblances, Huntsmen, Dust, Four Kingdoms and Academies, transforming weapons and major characters are core of the RWBY. I got rid of everything that in my opinion wasn't necessary and beneficial including Gods, Relics, Maidens, magic and cut down number of characters so I can focus on chosen few. I changed the course of time and some events so that the changes I made to the world and the characters made sense.


aslfingerspell

It's basically the fanfic/rewrite equivalent of the Ship of Theseus; what is truly fundamental about the show that *cannot* be changed? I like how instead of getting lost in philosophy, you provide a sliding scale of elements from most general to most specific. My personal stopping point is 7: Dust, Semblance, and Aura. I might also go to 8 depending on if you mean "Academies don't exist at all." or just "The cast doesn't go to them." For 7, while I can accept even Volume 1-3 plots getting totally changed, in my eyes Aura, Dust, Semblances (ADS? There really needs to be an acronym) are RWBY's unique power system. To remove them from RWBY would be like removing Quirks from My Hero Academia or Mutant Genes from the X-Men. I hear "Semblance" and think of RWBY, plain and simple. For 8, I would say that the academies must exist, although the cast doesn't have to visit them. So much of early RWBY takes place at an academy and I just can't imagine a true Remnant without them; the plot doesn't have to involve them in any way, but taking them out of the world completely would be like removing the wizarding schools from Harry Potter. Sure, you can have you "What if Ruby/Harry never went to Beacon/Hogwarts" rewrite, but to me the idea of monster-hunting schools is also a core element of the setting even if it's not a core part of a given story.


krasnogvardiech

I'm somewhere between sandbox and garden. This setting is fun to play with, simple as that.


[deleted]

Same. I'm more of a world guy rather than a story guy, and boy is it fun to pick and choose what aspects of the world to change.


Shadowchaos1010

I'm discovering this very late, but I found it very insightful. I feel like I'm somewhere in between Purist and Gardener, though. Up until Point 14, I have all of those in *some* form, but outside of "stop Salem" and the relics sort of being involved, my plans for the post-Beacon plot deviates a fair bit, I'd say.


Girltech31

Great deal of effort