Mini rant here:
I hate when people watch RWBY and go “There’s no difference between magic, dust and semblances! This show is so stupid!” Of course it all looks like magic to us! We can’t do any of the stuff that dust and semblances do in our world! Magic in the world of RWBY is what is considered impossible or otherworldly, just like us! But semblances and dust are a part of everyday life in RWBY. That’s why it’s not magic. What makes magic in RWBY magic is that it doesn’t follow the rules of that world.
A semblance is basically an individual superpower that manifests through a person’s aura. A person can only have one superpower. Semblances may “evolve” and allow a user to do more things but it is still the same power at its core. For example Ren’s semblance is tranquillity. Originally it allowed him to mask negative emotions of himself and/or others. In volume 8 it evolved so that Ren can also see emotions. While he did gain a new ability his semblance is still one based on emotions at its core. He’s not gonna one day be able to absorb lightning like Nora can. A semblance can’t be used if a person’s aura breaks. Also from my understanding a semblance can’t cause people to have any physical mutations. For example no one is going to have a semblance that makes them shapeshift. (People like Neo don’t shapeshift. They make illusions.)
Dust is basically an energy source that can allow people to control different elements. This can’t be done without dust. People can have elemental semblances similar to dust, but they can only manipulate that one element. For example Neptune’s semblance allows him to control water, but if he wants to control another element, let’s say fire, then he needs to use dust.
Magic throws all of these rules out of the window, which is why people that use it are so powerful. They don’t have the limits that most people in RWBY have. The maidens can manipulate whatever element they want without dust in addition to their semblance. That’s multiple superpowers. Also, as seen through Amber’s fight against Emerald and Mercury, a maiden can still use their power if their aura breaks. The reason Qrow and Raven turning into birds is magic is because as mentioned earlier a semblance can’t cause people to go beyond normal human/faunus biology. That’s why Weiss and Yang were so shocked when Raven turned into a bird in front of them. People are not supposed to be able to do that!
Magic in RWBY is different because it goes beyond the rules of the world that the SHOW takes place in, not our own. Semblances and dust follow those rules so they aren’t magic.
Now I’m not saying you can’t be confused. But I hate it when people don’t take the time to understand something and automatically call the show terrible because of it.
