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--- lb:rvb [2025-12-22 15:54:55] – Minor reformatting to improve readability. Plus minor fixes. ninjasr
+++ lb:rvb [2026-03-17 15:59:43] (current) – [Red VS Blue] ninjasr
@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 ====== Red VS Blue ======
+<div subtitle>
+<div callout>
+This article has been marked for a re-write.
+</div>
+{{tag>shows}}
+</div>
 {{ img:b:r:rvb.png?460 }}
 **Red VS Blue** is a Texan [[lb:Halo]] [[lb:machinima]] webseries about two groups of soldiers – the <span smcp>Reds</span> and the <span smcp>Blues</span> – who are locked in an eternal war until they aren't. Despite being listed second, the **Blues** are the more important faction for the story overall.
 I first found <cite>RvB</cite> on [[lb:Netflix]], when I was in a <cite>Halo</cite> mood. Seeing the ‘Halo helmet’, I decided to start watching it...only to be shocked by the fact it was a machinima, so I stopped watching it. But I ended up getting curious so, much later, I went ahead and watched it. And then I saw everything up to the latest season (which was Season 12 at the time).
-{{tag>shows}}
-===== Review(s?) =====
+<div sheet fit>
-The series is split up into big over-arching arcs and each of those has a different feel to it. Seasons 1-5 are the original series – known as the <cite>Blood Gulch Chronicles</cite> – Seasons 6-8 (<cite>The Recollection</cite>) are the sequel and then Seasons 9 & 10 (<cite>Project Freelancer Saga</cite>) are the prequel/sequel series intended to tie up loose ends and finish everything. Then it just kinda continues into the <cite>Chorus trilogy</cite> with Seasons 11-13. Then Season 14 is an anthology series. Season 15 was a standalone, but led directly into Season 16. I stopped watching during Season 16 because although I was much younger and dumber, I could tell that it was getting very bad.\\
+Re-write progress:
+<ul list check>
+<li item [data-check=check]>Writing Pass</li>
+<li item [data-check=uncheck]>Formatting Pass</li>
+<li item [data-check=uncheck]>Image Pass</li>
+</ul>
+</div>
+===== Reviews =====
+<div rating>
+<div heart>♥</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+</div>
+<div passage>
+The series is split up into big over-arching arcs and each of those has a different feel to it. Seasons 1-5 are the original series – known as the <cite>Blood Gulch Chronicles</cite> – Seasons 6-8 (<cite>The Recollection</cite>) are the sequel and then Seasons 9 & 10 (<cite>Project Freelancer Saga</cite>) are the prequel/sequel series intended to tie up loose ends and finish everything. Then it just kinda continues into the <cite>Chorus trilogy</cite> with Seasons 11-13. Then Season 14 is an anthology series. Season 15 was a standalone, but led directly into Season 16. I stopped watching during Season 16 because although I was much younger and dumber, I could tell that it was getting very bad.
 Apparently there were two more seasons after 16. And, most recently, a film was released to //definitively// end <cite>RvB</cite>. Though I haven't watched it yet.
+</div>
+<div passage>
+I consider Seasons 1-10 to be ‘definitive <cite>RvB</cite>’ because it tells a mostly complete story. Everything afterwards is mostly a bonus. I didn't really like 11-13 that much for that reason...but also because they moved into <cite>Halo 5</cite>’s engine, which changed the aesthetic too much for my tastes.((:fn:>Especially bizarre because <cite>Halo Reach</cite>’s engine seemed way better suited for <cite>RvB</cite> aesthetically and mechanically. It's the <cite>Halo</cite> game with the highest level of customization up to that point and it doesn't look as cartoony as the later games. Instead, they chose to use the <cite>Halo Reach</cite> engine purely for simulations...which just doesn't make sense to me.))
-I consider Seasons 1-10 to be ‘definitive <cite>RvB</cite>’ because it tells a mostly complete story. Everything afterwards is mostly a bonus. I didn't really like 11-13 that much for that reason...but also because they moved into <cite>Halo 5</cite>’s engine, which changed the aesthetic too much for my tastes.((:fn:>Especially bizarre because <cite>Halo Reach</cite>’s engine seemed way better suited for <cite>RvB</cite> aesthetically and mechanically. It's the <cite>Halo</cite> game with the highest level of customization up to that point and it doesn't look as cartoony as the later games. Instead, they chose to use the <cite>Halo Reach</cite> engine purely for simulations...which just doesn't make sense to me.))\\
 Season 14 is the least offensive season after Season 10.
+</div>
 Though what's especially impressive is how <cite>RvB</cite> managed to remain unambiguously good for 14 Seasons before everything went to Hell. That could be down to the fact they had 1 writer for Seasons 1-10 and then another for 11-13...and then...yeah.
-Now, putting personal stuff aside, are there any problems? Well, yeah. They ended up doing several retcons following Season 5. Basically retroactively explaining the weird stuff that happened then. Some of these are //fine// while others are bad. And some of them are just not explained at all, requiring guesswork to figure out.\\
+<div passage>
-An example of the unexplained retcon is <wrap spoiler><span smcp>Church</span>’s time-travel shenanigans involving Gary. Originally, this was played straight as time-travel...but this was retconned. Church wasn't traveling thru time but, instead, was being tortured by Gary</wrap>. The only way I knew about that was that I checked the wiki once.
+Now, putting personal stuff aside, are there any problems? Well, yeah. They ended up doing several retcons following Season 5. Basically retroactively explaining the weird stuff that happened then. Some of these are //fine// while others are bad. And some of them are just not explained at all, requiring guesswork to figure out.
-Besides these issues, there's also an under-utilization or just odd use of characters. <span smcp>Tex</span> <wrap spoiler>– or at least the original Tex – ends up just falling out of the story. It isn't even super clear that she died as part of the EMP as it is for Church and a few others. It could be argued that she had a proper end in Season 9, but that //wasn't// Tex, that was <span smcp>Epsilon!Tex</span></wrap>. Seasons 9 & 10 actually make this much worse, because they go out of their way to elaborate on more details...which means that, retroactively, minor characters were made more important with the implication they'd go on to do more...which they couldn't, because a lot of them were simply //dead//.\\
+An example of the unexplained retcon is <mark spoiler><dfn>Church</dfn>’s time-travel shenanigans involving Gary. Originally, this was played straight as time-travel...but this was retconned. Church wasn't traveling thru time but, instead, was being tortured by Gary</mark>. The only way I knew about that was that I checked the wiki once.
-This was definitely noticed because <span smcp>Kakaina Grif</span> was missing from the series until Season 15 (?) and other characters like <span smcp>Sheila</span> also just disappeared.
+</div>
-I also //think// that there might be something off about the worldbuilding, though I can’t point to anything specific because I don't remember what the problem is.
+<div passage>
+Besides these issues, there's also an under-utilization or just odd use of characters. <dfn>Tex</dfn> <mark spoiler>– or at least the original Tex – ends up just falling out of the story. It isn't even super clear that she died as part of the EMP as it is for Church and a few others. It could be argued that she had a proper end in Season 9, but that //wasn't// Tex, that was <dfn>Epsilon!Tex</dfn></mark>. Seasons 9 & 10 actually make this much worse, because they go out of their way to elaborate on more details...which means that, retroactively, minor characters were made more important with the implication they'd go on to do more...which they couldn't, because a lot of them were simply //dead//.
+This was definitely noticed because <dfn>Kakaina Grif</dfn> was missing from the series until Season 15 (?) and other characters like <dfn>Sheila</dfn> also just disappeared.
+</div>
+I also //think// that there might be something off about the world building, though I can’t point to anything specific because I don't remember what the problem is.
 Also! It may seem irrelevant, but the mini series //are// actually important for understanding the plot.
 ==== Season 1 ====
+<div rating>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star disabled>★</div>
+</div>
 The first season is kinda rough in hindsight and feels a little out of place when you consider everything else (Sarge doesn't really sound like Sarge for example).
-However, this is also the origin of <q>“Hey.”</q> <q>“Yeah?”</q> <q>“You ever wonder why we're here?”</q>
+However, this is also the origin of <q :en>Hey.</q> <q :en>Yeah?</q> <q :en>You ever wonder why we're here?</q>
 ==== Season 2 ====
+<div rating>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star disabled>★</div>
+</div>
 The second season feels similarly rough, though not to the same degree.
 This is also where the plot starts getting a bit more complicated, which is exciting!
 ==== Season 3 ====
-I found a lot of the time-travel stuff to be a bit annoying.\\
+<div rating>
-It isn't clear whether the time-travel is just a delusion or not, because the series (until Season 5) actually provides evidence to suggest it's real. Y'know, Sheila saying it's been a few years (and being damaged for no explicable reason); the bases in <span smcp>Blood Gulch</span> being rebuilt; their armor changing; everything Church experiences; the fight with <span smcp>Wyoming</span>.\\
+<div star>★</div>
-On the other hand, there's some indication that it's a delusion: <span smcp>Grif</span>’s sister being able to show up there; the fact this is a theory of the Reds & Blues; Tex & Wyoming inexplicably being in the future as well; the yellow guy; the zealots being in the future; <wrap spoiler><span smcp>Butch Flowers</span> not being dead</wrap>.
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star disabled>★</div>
+</div>
+<div passage>
+I found a lot of the time-travel stuff to be a bit annoying.
+It isn't clear whether the time-travel is just a delusion or not, because the series (until Season 5) actually provides evidence to suggest it's real. Y'know, Sheila saying it's been a few years (and being damaged for no explicable reason); the bases in <dfn>Blood Gulch</dfn> being rebuilt; their armor changing; everything Church experiences; the fight with <dfn>Wyoming</dfn>.
+On the other hand, there's some indication that it's a delusion: <dfn>Grif</dfn>’s sister being able to show up there; the fact this is a theory of the Reds & Blues; Tex & Wyoming inexplicably being in the future as well; the yellow guy; the zealots being in the future; <mark spoiler><dfn>Butch Flowers</dfn> not being dead</mark>.
+</div>
 Also, I think there was a bit too much standing around and talking. I know that's the point of the show, but it may have gone on for too long.
 ==== Season 4 ====
+<div rating>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star disabled>★</div>
+<div star disabled>★</div>
+</div>
 See [[#Season 3]] for the biggest complaints.
 This one very much feels like setup for the next Season and consequently feels like not much actually happens here.
 ==== Season 5 ====
-Pretty good if anticlimactic ending for the <cite>Blood Gulch Chronicles</cite>, though it's interesting to see that they <wrap spoiler>hinted that Tex didn't explode</wrap>.
+<div rating>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+</div>
+Pretty good if anticlimactic ending for the <cite>Blood Gulch Chronicles</cite>, though it's interesting to see that they <mark spoiler>hinted that Tex didn't explode</mark>.
 I'll probably think of more to say later.
 ==== Season 6 ====
+<div rating>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star disabled>★</div>
+</div>
 Re-watching this again so long after seeing it for the first time (and an initial re-watch)...it's surprising how it //feels very short//. It doesn't feel like anything really happened, which I think is because it was mostly setup for Seasons 7-10.
@@ Line 52: / Line 132: @@
 I guess my brain mentally categorizes Seasons 6-8 as one continuous season, rather than as separate things. Which is fitting I guess.
-There is also a lot of great foreshadowing for the <span wrap_spoiler>final twist that Church is an AI</span>.
+There is also a lot of great foreshadowing for the <mark spoiler>final twist that Church is an AI</mark>.
 ==== Season 7 ====
-After leaving this empty for a while...I realized that I don't have a very good way of categorizing this season. It's mostly setup for future seasons as far as I remember. Though we do encounter ‘<span smcp>C.T.</span>’ for the first time <span wrap_spoiler>(and technically the last)</span>.
+<div rating>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star disabled>★</div>
+</div>
+After leaving this empty for a while...I realized that I don't have a very good way of categorizing this season. It's mostly setup for future seasons as far as I remember. Though we do encounter ‘<dfn>C.T.</dfn>’ for the first time <mark spoiler>(and technically the last)</mark>.
 ==== Season 8 ====
-Season 8 is the second time there appears to have been an attempt at completing the storyline and, in that regard, it's pretty good.\\
+<div rating>
-This is also where the animation starts to come in and...yeah, it's really good. I think that this season still features two of the best fight scenes in the whole series: the fight between <span wrap_spoiler>Tex and the Reds and Blues</span> and the <span wrap_spoiler>fight between Tex, Wash and the <span smcp>Meta</span></span>.
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+</div>
+<div passage>
+Season 8 is the second time there appears to have been an attempt at completing the storyline and, in that regard, it's pretty good.
+This is also where the animation starts to come in and...yeah, it's really good. I think that this season still features two of the best fight scenes in the whole series: the fight between <mark spoiler>Tex and the Reds and Blues</mark> and the <mark spoiler>fight between Tex, Wash and the <dfn>Meta</dfn></mark>.
+</div>
 It's pretty great!
 ==== Season 9 ====
+<div rating>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star disabled>★</div>
+</div>
 The first of the <cite>Project Freelancer</cite> arc and...yeah, the animation is great. Everything involving the skyscraper is just phenomenal.
-Not much else to say here, except that the prequel does show us how <span smcp>Project Freelancer</span> rendered everyone involved crazy.
+Not much else to say here, except that the prequel does show us how <dfn>Project Freelancer</dfn> rendered everyone involved crazy.
 The segments inside of the memory unit are probably the weakest part of the season and definitely weird. As a side-effect, it resulted in <cite>Halo Reach</cite> not being used in...any future project, which is shameful since that's my favorite Halo game.
 ==== Season 10 ====
+<div rating>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+</div>
 The animation visibly and significantly improves here, probably because they hired more animators.
@@ Line 75: / Line 186: @@
 Lots of good stuff here.
-Also, a side-note: <span wrap_spoiler>I realized that there's a very very tiny implication that Tex is still alive here. This is relevant because Tex is my favorite character and I don't doubt she's one of the favorites of the fanbase too.</span>
+Also, a side-note: <mark spoiler>I realized that there's a very very tiny implication that Tex is still alive here. This is relevant because Tex is my favorite character and I don't doubt she's one of the favorites of the fanbase too.</mark>
+==== Season 11 ====
+<div rating>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star disabled>★</div>
+<div star disabled>★</div>
+</div>
+This season mostly went back to the standing around and talking good old days...which I felt was maybe a bit overdone. Especially with the interactions between the Reds.
+Though set-up for the later two seasons was fine, I guess.
+I also generally dislike the aesthetic here.
+==== Season 12 ====
+<div rating>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star disabled>★</div>
+</div>
+<div passage>
+The twist regarding the civil war was pretty good, though maybe a bit too obvious.
+This is where the Chorus trilogy actually gets very interesting.
+</div>
+However! The animation is pretty lame. It's way slower than the animation of previous seasons and it is very obvious.
+I didn't really care too much about most of the characters who were introduced, though I liked the Federation's doctor. Quite a bit actually.
+==== Season 13 ====
+<div rating>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+</div>
+A good conclusion to the Chorus trilogy and, technically, Red vs Blue as a whole. Again.
+While the animation remains pretty bleh, the one thing I'll give it is that the scale of a lot of the animation is pretty great. Particularly the crash of the prison ship.
 ==== Season 14 ====
+<div rating>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star>★</div>
+<div star disabled>★</div>
+</div>
 I mostly don't have an issue with Season 14, with a few exceptions. I don't like the episodes that show the assembling of the crew in Blood Gulch...though, don't get me wrong, I have no problem with //most// of the content there. What bothers me is that a lot of the characters (prior to Blood Gulch) are depicted as having killed people. I can’t articulate exactly why this bothers me, but I don't think it meshes well with what we know about the Reds and the Blues.
+==== Restoration ====
+I'll be skipping the other seasons (because they are bad and I don't like them). But I //have// just finished watching Restoration, so I figure I'll write a review...soon. Yeah.
 ==== Mini-Series ====
 === Out of Mind ===
@@ Line 84: / Line 245: @@
 Watching it now is very strange, since a lot of the events were retconned.((:fn:>Though I was thinking about it and I think that <cite>RvB</cite> is one of the few examples of a series that manages to handle retcons fairly well, despite essentially re-writing events.\\ I'll elaborate later.))
 === Recovery One ===
-<cite>Recovery One</cite> is the second mini-series (‘sfar as I know) and it follows <span smcp>Washington</span> in his role. It takes place right after <cite>Out of Mind</cite> and right before Season 6.
+<cite>Recovery One</cite> is the second mini-series (‘sfar as I know) and it follows <dfn>Washington</dfn> in his role. It takes place right after <cite>Out of Mind</cite> and right before Season 6.
-I think it's alright. Nothing much happens, but it does explain how <span smcp>Delta</span> got from position A (<span smcp>York</span>’s corpse) to position B (<span smcp>South</span>). Among other things.
+I think it's alright. Nothing much happens, but it does explain how <dfn>Delta</dfn> got from position A (<dfn>York</dfn>’s corpse) to position B (<dfn>South</dfn>). Among other things.
 === Relocated ===
 I forgot what I was originally gonna write here, but I'll remember later.
@@ Line 92: / Line 253: @@
 Probably among the least consequential of the mini series and very clearly just a bonus. At least it's mildly entertaining.
 ===== Characters & Worldbuilding =====
-<cite>Red vs. Blue</cite> takes place in the <cite>[[lb:Halo]]</cite> universe...kind of. It's more like a derivative.\\
+<div passage>
+<cite>Red vs. Blue</cite> takes place in the <cite>[[lb:Halo]]</cite> universe...kind of. It's more like a derivative.
 There are a few references to <cite>Halo</cite> sprinkled into the series like Master Chief, the war with the Covenant and the UNSC...though, overall, it's very light on details.
+</div>
 It's clear that [[lb:rvb:Project Freelancer]] is a rival organization to the Spartan-II and Spartan-3 programs.
+===== Writing Notes =====
+Oh don't worry, this section will have stuff in it...
 ===== Trivilinks =====
   * [[https://rvb.fandom.com/wiki/Red_vs._Blue_Wiki|Fandom Wiki]]
   * [[https://redvsblue.miraheze.org/wiki/Red_vs._Blue_Wiki|Miraheze Wiki]]
   * I may add more at some point.