IQ Episode 9 Thoughts
- After the episode was over, I went back and put the two dorm scenes (original in Episode 3) side-by-side just to see the differences. I've put that in a separate folder so those not interested can skip it.
- Ruby appears to be talking to the real Weiss rather than her own dream-version of Weiss, indicating that her dream is not isolated from Weiss's. Weiss herself indicates that by departing for her own dream rather than staying in Ruby's. In Weiss's dream, Ruby is in the same location as Pyrrha, so they're in proximity (I'll get to Pyrrha).
- The in-universe theory that Weiss made Crescent Rose wrong because she doesn't understand the weapon is clearly debunked here. Weiss did it deliberately. She tells Ruby that the Nightmare hides in the shadow of the person you're facing, and shows Weiss's shadow being projected in front of her body, not behind it (which is the right direction for the scene lighting). What she's telling Ruby is that the Nightmare will be behind her when she's facing Nega-Weiss. She's given Ruby the ability to fire at the Nightmare while confronting Nega-Weiss.
- Also, Weiss says that Ruby has the ability to move anywhere in the dream. But that's what the knight relics are supposed to be. We've seen the red and yellow knights. We meet the black knight in this episode. The only one we haven't seen is the white knight. It sounds like Ruby is the white knight. Which she would be anyway given that she's an untapped SEW at this point.
- Pyrrha is standing next to Ruby, with the little Weiss'. She instantly reacts to the vines coming out of Ruby's hand (they ice over slightly as she steps forward) then she turns to look pointedly at the giant sword protecting them to tell Jaune what he needs to do. I don't think Pyrrha has been made to look like Weiss. I think she is Weiss. To protect herself from the Nightmare, the real Weiss has hidden herself inside the dream avatar of Pyrrha. That's why she appears like Weiss, verbalises only to sing Weiss's song, and fights with Weiss's weapon (plus the anime gets to pull a meta-joke that way by 'combining' Jaune's two love interests from the original show), and knows what Jaune's dream-sword represents.
- Since the anime cut the Cardin bully arc, the first use of Jaune's Semblance was cut as well. We get that in this episode instead. It seems that giant sword isn't Weiss's impression of Jaune being unworthy of his legacy, it's his untapped Aura (even untapped Semblance). So, bringing Ruby closer to the sword is boosting her Aura because it's happening at the same time his Aura is boosting in the real world. At the same time, Ruby is an untapped SEW, and the original show has heavily implied they have natural Grimm resistance compared to others. We see a glowing silver circle as Jaune boosts her that results in the Nightmare dying and retreating. In her dream-world, we see that manifesting in the Nightmare dying as her dream fades to white — the classic foreshadow and activation events that occurred in the original show for Ruby's SEW power. So, in this moment, they've foreshadowed Ruby's eyes and Jaune's Semblance at the same time, given that it's made clear that Shion's Aura wasn't tapped into and Ozpin finishes with the sledgehammer comment that battle can awaken powers (Jaune), including those hidden deep within (Ruby) — so he lampshades both as well.
- I like the fact that, as per Sleeping Beauty, the castle falls silent and frozen as she sleeps. That's one of the differences between Snow White and Sleeping Beauty. When Snow White falls into the coma and ends up in the (sometimes glass) coffin, the world doesn't fall asleep and freeze with her. Of course, that doesn't happen in every Sleeping Beauty tale either, but sometimes it does.
- It's also interesting that the clock doesn't go forward past midnight. It reaches midnight then begins to work backwards. It fits both the dream-loop element and the idea of Ruby and Blake's plans separately buying Weiss time.
- I did have to laugh at how much The Man With Two Souls stood out on the book case. Blake reference, Ozpin reference, either way, it's a very obvious Easter Egg. The belladonnas on the windowsill are barely any subtler. That said, the two-soul theme is relevant to what's going on in the dream, even if it's only a metaphorical/personality/heart relevance.
- Now the Grimm-Faunus are also zombies, we just need the pirate angle now. But Blake using the White Fang in the manner that fits Weiss's dream-perspective to provide a distraction makes sense, as does Blake donning Adam's symbolism to make it happen. Weiss doesn't know anything about Adam at this point. The important thing from the dream resolution's perspective is that the White Fang will be fighting for (real) Weiss, not against her (as in to save her), and the room in which Blake found her relic was defined by the peaceful White Fang, which is why Blake's comment about knowing the truth deep in her heart matters (and why Blake was able to understand that).
- The original dorm scene begins with a focus on the two white knight chess pieces. Then it shifts to Weiss climbing on the chair to wake up Ruby. The dream-version starts with Ruby's perspective of waking up to see Weiss looking at her (which happens in the original, too).
- When Ruby first wakes, and Weiss looking at us in the Ruby perspective, the curtain is closed behind Weiss with a noticeable shadow, but open behind Weiss in the dream.
- The lighting is also different. It's a more shadowed, warmer lighting in the original and a brighter, whiter in the dream. In the original, there's a distinct angle to the light to mimic Ruby's lamp. In the dream, that angled lighting is still there, but it's downplayed by a brightness to Weiss that wasn't there in the original, almost like she's on the verge of casting her own glow. There are a few more shadows on the bed than in the original, too.
- When the camera shifts to looking at Ruby from over Weiss's shoulder, the lighting effect on Ruby's pillows is softer and warmer in the dream than in the original. So, a bit of an interesting contrast between the two scenes, where the lighting is brighter and whiter on Ruby's bed in the original (and softer and warmer in the dream), while Weis is softer and warmer in the original and brighter and whiter in the dream. This difference is retained throughout the scene.
- There's one black book just in view on Ruby's pillow in the dream, but there are two in the original, and the top one is white. The second time we go back to the Ruby shot, the open book in the original is on top of a brown book (left) and a black or very dark blue book (right). The pages are also flat, don't reflect the light and faintly have writing on them. In the dream, the open book is a paler brown, has light reflective pages and seem blank note , has a different spine curvature and is on a black book (left) and what might be a red book (right). These aren't simply colour changes, the assets themselves have different appearances (such a hard back binder on the one book in the original and none or paperback binder in the dream).
- The long shot of the room while Weiss is standing on the chair has a continuity error. It's the same in both the original and dream except for the vines. Because the dream has the curtain parted behind Weiss in the close-up shots, the fact that the sheet is fully down in the long-shot is inconsistent. It's obvious they just took the original long-shot and did nothing more than add vines.
- The moment of Weiss giving the cup to Ruby also has an inconsistency issue, this time in the original. I did spot it when the episode first came out, but the way the scene is drawn looked weird. Now it's easy to see why. In the original, behind Weiss's head, it's clear that the curtain is parted as per the dream, but a quick hard colour and heavy shadow is put behind Weiss to try and mitigate it. It still stands out like a sore thumb, but it's clear they took the dream scene shot and tried to edit it to insert it into the original. The lighting on the curtain is very similar between the two shots and not like the rest of the close-up scenes in the original. The quilting effect on the bedspread is visible in the original and not visible in the dream. It looks like it might have been faded out when the vines were added (there's very faint shading, so they're still there, just about).
- The side shot of Weiss handing the coffee to Ruby shows the books are back to being identical in both the original and the dream. The curtain behind Weiss in the two shots is very different, suggesting that it's not a question of touching up to make one open and one closed. They had to produce two different curtains.
- From this point on, the scenes begin to diverge. Ruby's shocked expression and thanking Weiss never happens in the original, and Weiss's smile and "You've caused so much trouble" the start of her divergence, too. The books also shift back to the dream books rather than the original from this point on as well.
Edited by Wyldchyld on Aug 28th 2022 at 3:37:59 AM
If my post doesn't mention a giant flying sperm whale with oversized teeth and lionfish fins for flippers, it just isn't worth reading.I'm baffled by the heels. It looks like someone took parts out of them.
So, let's hang an anchor from the sun... also my TumblrSo they released a full model for Adam-ified Blake...
Evil is a Booty shorts look apparently
Cinder approves
It's like the anime team heard me say that I don't think it's possible to make Blake look anymore "stereotyped prostitute" than her V1 outfit and said "Hold my saké".
That is a truly awful outfit. I still place Ruby's outfit as the worst, but this one really does give the "Worst Outfit" competition a photo-finish.
I think it's supposed to give her a "cat's paw" look in a "fashionable" way. She'll almost certainly have retractable blades.
If my post doesn't mention a giant flying sperm whale with oversized teeth and lionfish fins for flippers, it just isn't worth reading.
Your comment actually gave me a Headscratcher moment (for lack of a better word). Does anyone else find it eerie that the two most unsympathetic/evil characters in the show are also Faunus (Adam and Tyrian)? Like I know that the racism plot botched is an understatement, but the only other characters who come close in evilness (Salem and Cinder) are at least given sympathetic backstories. Or maybe it was unintentional sexism on the writers parts since female villains tend to be portrayed as more sympathetic in the show than male villains.

Because is Weiss desire of control over her own life and her own behavor as result jacques abuse in general.
"My Name is Bolt, Bolt Crank and I dont care if you believe or not"