Board Thread:Speculation House/@comment-43756665-20200208204457

Atlas will fall in Volume 8   x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x ___________________________    .x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.

First let me start by saying that I believe (very strongly) that Atlas is going to be destroyed in V8. I believe it's the only scenario that makes real sense and that it's the right thing for the show. And, unlike some here, I believe that Miles and Kerry (while flawed writers) will do what is ultimately right for the show.

Let me be clear: the protagonists repelling Salem, securing the relic of creation, and saving Atlas from destruction would be outrageous for numerous reasons. First, because logistically it makes no sense. I don't believe Salem is going to willingly leave Atlas empty-handed. Why would she? Salem knows exactly where the relic is, and she knows exactly who the maiden is. And since Penny is not going to high tail it out of there (because it would leave the people she's sworn to protect helpless against Salem's blitzkrieg), it leads to an ultimate confrontation between the two. And I can't see Penny (or anyone, for that matter) winning that confrontation.

In addition, they can't take the relic and high tail it out of there, because taking the relic would cause Atlas to fall, killing who knows how many citizens of both Atlas and Mantle, and I can't see the heroes allowing that to happen. So they can't run, they can't move the relic to safety, and there's an OP demigod in town that will stop at nothing to blow it all up. Barring plot contrivances, this only ends one way.

Secondly, RWBY winning in V8 would firmly establish them as Mary Sues (with the exception of Weiss because she actually loses occasionally; which, incidentally, is why she's my favorite of the four), and would effectively reduce the show to nothing more than a platform for fanservice. I believe this would subsequently cause a cataclysmic viewership decline that would ultimately lead to the cancellation of the show. And I think Miles and Kerry are smart enough to know that.

And lastly, Salem losing in V8 would reduce her to yet another ineffective villain, instead of the worthy arch-antagonist that this show desperately needs her to be right now. RWBY is still a show that suffers from subpar villains, and Salem has the potential to change that narrative. But only if she's built up the right way. And the only way to do that is to, at least initially, project her to be unstoppable. Having her lose right off the bat would compromise her development, and cause RWBY's villain problem to intensify. And, again, Miles and Kerry are smart enough to know that.

So Atlas falls.

Five Characters that will Die in Volume 8   x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x. _________________________________________    .x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x So with that out of the way, let's talk about the five characters that are totally going to bite the dust in V8. I reserve the right to be wrong, as most people who make predictions on this site usually are.  Those characters are, namely:

=====James Ironwood=====

Ironwood is doomed for a lot of reasons. Firstly, anyone who goes full Captain Ahab is asking for trouble. Especially when the whale, in this case, is literally invincible and has a propensity for killing people who get in her way. In addition, assuming Atlas does fall, I can't see a scenario where he walks away from the destruction of his city alive. Much like Captain Ahab, or any captain for that matter, I think he's going down with the ship.

But moreover, Ironwood makes sense as a casualty for logistical reasons. First, because he's considered a main character, and yet doesn't have much of a fan following. So killing him gives Miles and Kerry credit for having the balls to kill off a main character, but none of the blowback and viewership decline that we saw after V3. And secondly, because his arc is pretty much complete at this point, especially if he sees the light and heroically sacrifices himself to get the heroes to safety right before Atlas falls. That would be a pretty epic way to end Ironwood's storyline.

=====Penny Polendina=====

Look, I don't like this one any more than you guys, alright? But the fact is, I can't see a scenario where Penny lives through this volume. As I've said, I believe Atlas falls this volume. And for Atlas to fall, Salem has to get the relic. And for Salem to get the relic, she has to open the vault door. And to do that, she needs the key, which just so happens to be Penny. And since I can't see Penny opening the vault willingly, that leaves only one option.

Now a lot of you might say, 'wait, couldn't Watts hack Penny and force her to open the vault against her will?'  I don't think so, unfortunately. It's now been established pretty firmly that Penny does, in fact, have a soul. And part of the conditions for having a soul is that you have free will and can't simply be hacked. She's not a robot. She's a person living inside a robot. So I don't think that's going to happen.

Killing Penny is kind of smart in my book. Penny's return has, in a lot of ways, caused Ruby's character progression to stall out. Yes, the fans were happy, but so was Ruby. And making Ruby happy is not character developement. And, boy, does she need it. Killing Penny sends Ruby back on her gradual downward spiral, which I believe is essential for her continued development on this show.

But the strongest case for Penny's death is simple: assuming Atlas falls, and assuming Penny somehow survives, she's simply too OP at this point to stay in the picture. Penny with maiden powers is just too big an edge to give to the heroes (who, frankly, are already stacked with plot armor devices). And assuming Atlas is destroyed, she would have absolutely no reason not to stay with the main group. So writing her off becomes uniquely difficult, which leads us to the only alternative: she dies.

=====Cinder Fall=====

Now for some good news. Yes, rejoice friends. Cinder is fucked. Truly this time. No tricks, no fakeouts, she's going to die.

I have always believed that Cinder's death was contingent on four conditions that had to be just right for her to bite the dust. Those conditions have never been met, in full, all at the same time. Until now.

Condition 1: Emerald is present

Condition 2: JNPR is present

Condition 3: A popular villain is present to replace her

Condition 4: Cinder gets some backstory

Obviously, heading into Volume 8, Emerald and JNPR are both in the picture, so conditions 1 & 2 are both met. Also in the picture is Neo, who I believe will ultimately team up with Salem to exact revenge on those she believes are responsible for Roman's death. This, coupled with her inherent fan following, makes her the perfect replacement for Cinder. So condition 3 is green as well.

Which brings us to condition 4. I believe Cinder's backstory will be divulged this volume. I believe her little monologue at the end of V7 was a precursor to that backstory and will serve as the bedrock for building it up. I wouldn't be terribly surprised if that came in the form of a character short to start off the volume. If that's true, then all 4 conditions have been met, and I believe Miles and Kerry are prepared to kill her once and for all.

=====Jaune Arc=====

And you thought the bad news was over. Sadly, no. Yeah, sorry guys, but Jaune's going to die too. First, let me start by saying that Jaune was suspiciously relegated to the background in V7. Unusual, especially considering that Jaune is normally a forefront character. Generally when this sort of thing happens, it's usually reversed in the following volume. Ren and Nora, for example, were highly centric to V4. However, in Volume 5 and 6, they were virtually nonexistent. And then in V7 they were centric again.

This kind of on-and-off character relevance is common in shows with large casts. Because Jaune was downplayed in V7, I believe he will be central to V8. I believe he'll get a ton of character development, and I believe that does not bode well for his survivability. Pyrrha had a very similar arc. She was absent through most of V2, and was then elevated to the forefront in V3.

The second reason why I think Jaune dies is because he's an existential problem for this show. I've always felt, as have others, that Jaune is a better protagonist than Ruby. He fits the mold better than she does. Jaune starts off as a weakling and is bulit into a competent fighter. Ruby was always an OP badass. Lead protagonists generally follow Jaune's path. People like underdogs. They root for them. It's why everyone hates the New England Patriots.

Jaune also has more motivation than Ruby. He has what he feels to be family expectations to be a great fighter, which combined with his obvious inability to fight, makes for a great dichotomy. Ruby, on the other hand, has never had her motivations truly fleshed out.

Which brings me to my point. I believe Jaune has to die for Ruby to truly stand out and shine as the lead protagonist of this show. He's too big a distraction, and too superior a character to her. Hell, he makes her look like a mascot when you look at them side by side. I think this is the main reason why a lot of people dislike Jaune. They see a ton of character traits in him that they wish Ruby had, and it makes them resent him. Understandable, to be sure.

I also feel that Jaune's days are numbered because he and Oscar are pretty redundant. They're basically the same character (tacticians, unlikely leaders, born weaklings, possess plot armor devices), and Oscar sure seems like he's being groomed to be Jaune's replacement. A lot of people think that they're having Oscar so closely associate with the members of JNPR because he's going to be Pyrrha's replacement. But I think they're doing that so that he can take over as their leader when Jaune dies.

Another reason to kill off Jaune is because his semblance is simply too OP. He's become a walking receptacle for plot armor, and it just makes everyone around him seem unkillable. I think that has to change in order for this show to be suspenseful again.

Lastly, I believe Jaune dies because it's thematically appropriate for the writers to do so at this moment in time. I believe Tyrian kills him. Everybody is expecting some showdown between Jaune and Cinder, and that may well happen, but I don't think she's the one that's going to kill him.

I've had a longstanding theory that has only recently become fully formed. It always struck me as odd that they decided to give Pyrrha Jaune's death allusion (for those who don't know, Achilles famously dies by poison, and Joan of Arc famously dies by fire). It didn't occur to me until recently that perhaps that was for good reason. My theory is that their allusionary deaths have been switched. Pyrrha dies by fire, and Jaune dies by poison.

It's actually pretty brilliant on Miles and Kerry's part, to be honest. And with Tyrian still in the picture, I believe Jaune's going to end up receiving a fatal dose of poison from his stinger sometime this following volume. Feel free to yell and vent your rage at me below if you don't agree. xD

=====Tyrian Callows=====

Which brings us to Tyrian. Assuming that Tyrian does kill Jaune, I believe that would make Jaune the frog in Tyrian's character allusion, which would mean Tyrian would have to die too. And he would have to die specifically because he killed Jaune. I could easily see that happening in a variety of different ways.

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And that about wraps it up. Feel free to discuss and post your predictions for Volume 8 below. And for the love of god, keep it civil. Too many of these things decend into hateful chaos within the first few comments, and I'm getting tired of reading it. Thanks! 