Wally | Daisy

I know. It’s not that obvious by my profile picture and my endless need to praise my queen to tell you that Weiss Schnee is my favorite RWBY character and my favorite character in general. But why? You may not have asked that but that’s not my problem because I’m gonna praise my queen to no end here. So kick back, grab your bowl of Pumpkin Petes, and listen to why Weiss Schnee is my favorite character of all time.

1. Growth

I’m going to be honest and say she wasn’t my favorite at first. She was a bratty, entitled bitch. At the time, Blake and Ruby were my favorite. And it would stay like that until halfway of Volume 3. Specifically, the scene of her and Winter. Winter was cold, direct, and militant. Meanwhile, Weiss was goofing around with Ruby by calling her a friend and rooting against her when her uncle Qrow fought Winter. I noticed that Weiss was someone who barely had a chance to grow up normally because she had high expectations thrusted upon her. Beacon was her first time breaking that. She got to get into food fights, go sight seeing with her friends, joke around with her team in battles, etc. She was no longer that entitled bitch we saw in the emerald forest. Instead, we see a girl having her chance to be free from expectations and trying to be the best teammate and friend she could possible be.

After Beacon fell, she was back to those expectations, and we saw a girl trying to survive a cruel man who didn’t care about anything but his own financial gain. However, that’s not all we got to see. We saw a girl who was formerly afraid of confronting her father and telling him what she has always held against him. After losing her title of heiress, she knew the only thing she had left to lose was her family at Beacon, so she left the home many would beg for because it wasn’t home for her. It was a prison, and she was done paying for the time that her corrupt father put on her.

That’s where she became my favorite. I personally have had problems with my parents and what they want from me. I won’t get into the details, but Weiss made me realize that I’m not alone. That I had people who would connect on that experience. She also made me realize that I did have power and control over my future. I didn’t have to follow what my parents want from me because this life is mine.

2. Music

When it comes to RWBY’s stellar soundtrack, there are very few tracks that hit me as hard as the songs written for Weiss. It’s also helped because it is likely that Weiss has sung them in canon. I won’t go into too much in detail because this post will already be as long as Yang’s hair. Just know that the opera style mixed with a somber piano that eventually turned into opera transitioning into hard rock fits Weiss so well, and I love it!

3. Relationships with Her Teammates

In Volume 1, Weiss was presented with a dilemma. She viewed herself as the perfect candidate for a leader, but Ozpin thought otherwise. She thought it was outrageous for Ozpin to think Ruby was a better choice, but Port knew her thinking was preposterous. Weiss wasn’t fit for a leader, and her teachers told her she isn’t. Instead of keeping up the fight to become a leader, she made a choice: be the absolute teammate she could be. Before I get to what that means off the battlefield, which is the kind of support many connect her being the best teammate she could be with, let me talk about her on the battlefield because I feel like that had to be brought up before I get to that. Weiss is the support of the group. Yes, she can fight amazingly on her own, but when the team is fighting as a unit, Weiss is the support. Her dust and semblance, which I believe to potentially be the best in the show, allow her teammates to bring their semblances to another level. Whether by creating space between them and opponents to catch a breath, allowing for diverse movement through her summons and glyphs, or making their position advantageous, Weiss as a support could change the tide of a fight drastically. Before she made the commitment to being the best teammate, her fighting style was very aggressive, which ended up giving her that defining scar. After said commitment, she focused on supporting her teammates on the battlefield.

Later in the show, however, Weiss would become the empathetic one of the group. If you had a problem, Weiss will probably give you a therapy session. The best example is the conversation between her and Yang. Weiss walks into the room and sits on the bed opposite Yang, silent. She lets Yang talk herself out. Even when Yang said she wouldn’t understand, Weiss listened. It’s only when Yang asked Weiss to finally speak is where she says what she wanted to say. She told her the story of her tenth birthday and the rift that was created on her birthday. She expresses her version of loneliness and how Yang’s is different. She may not fully understand Yang’s version of loneliness, but she understands that it’s there and that Blake has her own. Yang snapped back and Weiss was silent again. She then poses a question to Yang and she answers it. She explains to Yang that Blake watched the one thing she expected to happen happen. Yang expresses that she never blamed Blake and that she wanted Blake here for her. Weiss understands and also wants Blake there. Yang doesn’t believe Blake would return, but Weiss reminds her that the team is a family. Blake feels the same. They’re gonna be there for each other when the occasion arises. Then the occasion arose, and Blake wanted to prove that she was there for Yang. Yang let Blake know that although she doesn’t depend entirely on her, they’re there for each other and happy to be back together.

There’s a reason why Weiss is called the beekeeper. That conversation in Volume 5 is what propelled Bumblebee forward. As a WhiteRose shipper, I hope the same eventually happens for Weiss and her partner. Even if it doesn’t, we know Weiss will be there for Ruby because she promised to be the best teammate.

4. Design

I’m not an artist or a character designer, so I can’t go into the intricacies of her design. But I am someone with a pair of eyes, and I can tell you Weiss is beautifully designed. Out of all the initial designs, Weiss was probably the riskiest to use. Each member of Team RWBY had a defining feature that stood out. Blake’s ribbon from her weapon, Yang’s golden hair, and Ruby’s red cape. Weiss, however, didn’t have much. If I remember correctly from Ein Lee’s notes in the Mirror Mirror anthology, this allowed him to add intricate designs to Weiss. Her sleeves, for example, have an intricate pattern. Her glyphs change depending on what she’s doing with them. Most importantly, however, she is asymmetrical. She ties her hair to the right instead of the dead center as an act of defiance from her father. Her scar, which is even asymmetrical in her eye, keeps her face symmetrical. You’d think that a character so prim and proper would emphasize being symmetrical, but she is proof that beauty isn’t reliant on symmetry. As the Yellow Trailer states, “Scathing eyes ask that we be symmetrical, one sided, and easily processed. Yet every misshapen spark’s unseen beauty is greater than it would be judgement."

5. Me as a Person

I can praise a character until the end of time, but that won’t prove one thing: why is she my favorite? As stated before, I connect with her struggle, but that can’t be it. I mean, I connect with Mirabel’s struggle in Encanto, yet Rapunzel is my favorite Disney protagonist. Weiss’ struggle is only a fraction of why she is so near and dear to my heart. For that, I have to get into who I am. I am an aspiring writer and RWBY is the reason for that. It is the show that changed the directory of my life, and I don’t think that would be possible if the show didn’t have Weiss.

What Weiss means to me is a second chance. Her life is full of second chances. A second chance to be a better teammate. A second chance to be a better sister. A second chance to prove herself and uphold her family name. I mess up in life. A lot. I have been dealt some of the worst hands and I have to deal with it. My family isn’t kind to my aspirations, my sexuality, or my religious beliefs (or lack thereof). What can I say, some believe in fairy stories and the ghost that they can’t see. Weiss is in many ways who I want to be. She’s confident. She’s determined. She’s always in pursuit of improving herself. She isn’t perfect, but she doesn’t have to be. I’m not perfect, but I don’t have to be.

We’re not perfect, but we don’t have to be. Our lives aren’t over by one misstep. We can pick ourselves up and keep moving forward. We will fail over and over again, but it isn’t the end. We just have to get up and give it 110% the next time.

That’s what Weiss Schnee means to me: a second chance to prove myself and be the best version of myself.