RWBY: Ice Queendom

In a world teeming with terrifying monsters bent on murder and devastation, humanity's last salvation lies in the hands of strong and selfless heroes. When more is required of you, you must become selfless. But does that imply ignoring your own demands and internal issues? Let's find out…

RWBY: Ice Queendom ("Rubī: Hyōsetsu Teikoku"") is a Japanese anime television series produced by Shaft that is based on Monty Oum's American online series RWBY for Rooster Teeth. From July through September 2022, the series aired for all eager viewers. In June 2022, a manga adaptation drawn by Kumiko Suekane began publication in ASCII Media Works' shōnen manga magazine Dengeki Daioh.

On March 25, 2022, the anime series was announced. Toshimasa Suzuki directed it, with chief direction by Kenjirou Okada, animation idea by Gen Urobuchi, screenplays written by Tow Ubukata, and music provided by Nobuko Toda and Kazuma Jinnouchi. The characters were conceived for animation by Nobuhiro Sugiyama based on character conceptions by artist Huke.

The series aired on Tokyo MX, BS11, and MBS from July 3 to September 18, 2022. From June 24 to 26, the first three episodes were available on YouTube. Warner Bros. (English), Good Smile Company, KLab, Bandai Namco Arts, Bandai Namco Filmworks, and Bandai Namco Music were the producers. Crunchyroll acquired the rights to the series, which can be viewed on the Crunchyroll streaming platform.

The series had 12 episodes and ran for 24 minutes each, catering to the shonen audience and action genre. It was rated PG-13 (for teens 13 and above). On June 27, 2022, a manga adaptation drawn by Kumiko Suekane began publication in ASCII Media Works' Dengeki Daioh magazine. On September 9, 2022, the first tankbon volume was released.

RWBY: Ice Queendom features RWBY in stunning 2D anime aesthetics. RWBY imagines a world plagued with terrifying monsters bent on murder and devastation, with powerful Huntsmen and Huntresses serving as humanity's sole hope. Four such Huntresses under training are Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, and Yang Xiao Long, whose travels will take them far beyond the boundaries of their school, Beacon Academy. Though each is formidable on her own, these four girls must battle evil forces and work as a team if they are to be the Remnant's protectors in the future.

Since ancient ages, the land of Remnant has been constantly threatened by the Grimm: nightmarish monsters devoted to annihilating both humanity and the half-human Faunus. To protect themselves, the world's four kingdoms founded academies that teach young people to be huntsmen: warriors entrusted with eradicating Grimm. Our primary heroine, the cheery 15-year-old Ruby Rose, in the kingdom of Vale, has always wished to attend the elite Beacon Academy. She can only watch as her elder sister, Yang Xiao Long, leaves for the academy alone since she is too young. But everything changes when Ruby fights off a gang of armed robbers, and the story reaches Beacon's headmaster, Professor Ozpin.

Ruby is delighted when she is invited to enter the academy with her sister. Meanwhile, in the kingdom of Atlas, corporate heiress Weiss Schnee ignores her father's wishes and sets off for Beacon, her heart filled with apprehensive determination. Simultaneously, lonesome renegade Blake Belladonna abandons her vigilante squad in search of a better life at the academy. When their paths cross, the four girls' encounter is anything but cordial. They frequently quarrel due to their very different personalities and ideologies. When they work together, team RWBY begins to cause waves across Beacon that have never been witnessed before.

Ruby has a light complexion, silver eyes, and neck-length black hair with red tips. Her preferred weapon is the Crescent Rose High-Caliber Sniper-Scythe, which she invented. She was given her mother's surname rather than her father's to carry on for unexplained reasons. Her mindset is stated as "I don't have time for feelings. I have to make sure everyone else is okay." According to Lindsay Jones, Ruby's approach is "selfless, " which means she's not addressing her emotions. Her absorption and compartmentalization of her pain may lead to her death." As a result of her open and honest demeanor, she has also shown a notable lack of ability to pick up on social signs.

As an MC, she is seen to be impulsive and fight-ready in battle or dangerous situations, like when she confronts a Death Stalker upon sighting it before realizing its tremendous resistance to bullets and swords. This trait contrasts with her adaptability since she may devise offensive methods with others to beat more vigorous opponents.

Ruby's most valuable quality is her ability to bring hope when it is most needed. Many have been impressed by her words, acts, and persistence as a leader and Huntress. Despite her petite stature, her physical power is also tremendous, given how deftly she uses the huge and hefty Crescent Rose. One of the most impressive displays of her power occurred during her initiation when she utilized Crescent Rose to drag a Giant Nevermore vertically up a cliff at tremendous speed.

RWBY Ice Queendom is an engaging, occasionally breathtaking action anime with some compelling interpersonal drama. However, it is let down by its uninspired, inconsistent aesthetics and ideas that fall short of expectations. In that regard, it is an excellent adaptation of RWBY. However, although it was fascinating and inspirational to witness a version of a work I admire in the hands of more competent professional animators, it is tough to understand how the original version's character development was utterly watered down and boiled down to accommodate these 12 episodes.

The sequel to RWBY, RWBY: Ice Queendom, is significantly less meaningful than the first. Everything occurs too fast, and they attempt to humanize the characters by giving them moments of vulnerability that lose their luster and purpose owing to a lack of space to develop them. In Ice Queendom, there seems to be no room at all. The CGI and graphics aren't particularly impressive, either. In my opinion, they could just have been enhanced.

The music and genre were rather pleasant, though. The opening theme is "Beyond Selves" by Void Chords feat. L and the ending theme is "Awake" by Saori Hayami.

Overall, the animation was satisfactory. I believe it would be more fun if the animation were better. Recommended if you're still interested after the fifth episode, it's for you.