"The Indecisive King" is the fourth episode of RWBY: Fairy Tales and adapts the fairy tale The Indecisive King from the book RWBY: Fairy Tales of Remnant. It premiered on the Rooster Teeth website for First members on November 20th, 2021, and for the public on November 21st, 2021. It was later rereleased on the Rooster Teeth Animation channel on May 13th, 2023. It is also included on the Volume 9 Bluray release on October 3rd, 2023.
Summary[]
The episode begins with Ozpin narrating about knowledge and what would happen if a person's mind gained more knowledge than it could handle. The scene then shifts to an argument between two farmers asking their wise king for help, with the king telling them how to handle their situation with ease. At the end of the day when he and his servant are about to close the doors to his castle, a Faunus widow asks to meet with him and explains that her village was recently destroyed by the Grimm and that she has nowhere to stay and no reason to live after her family was killed. The king however convinces her to keep on living and offers her to stay in one of the empty rooms of the castle with her accepting.
A little while later, the King is visited by an admirer from another Kingdom who gifts him a magic crown that grants him future knowledge. When the king puts it on however, he is horrified by what he sees and takes it off immediately while ordering his servant to find the admirer after he vanished.
Following this encounter, the king starts becoming indecisive with his choices such as telling a young woman to marry for love and then telling her not to go through with it. The king's citizens and the widow start to notice his change and become worried when he starts to stop letting his people ask him for help. Later, the king begins asking for help from the wisest advisors in the land regarding what he saw and eventually pushes all of them away as well.
After realizing how much the king needs help, the widow decides to see him only for him to not recognize her. After asking him to let her use the crown, it shows her a vision of the king proposing to her with her realizing that the crown shows people future choices. The king however states that her vision was different from his, but the widow manages to convince him to let her help him. The episode ends with Ozpin narrating that the wise king found a wise queen by marrying the widow.
Transcript[]
The episode opens showing a page of a king sitting on his throne.
Ozpin: (narrating) Is knowledge the answer all to your problems? Surely, being more informed leads to smarter choices. But even the wisest among us have limits. What happens to the mortal mind when it has more knowledge than it is capable of bearing?
The king is smiling but has aged drastically and gone mad. The scene transitions to the next page, picturing the Relic of Choice.
Then the next scene cuts to a Kingdom. The king has an audience with two villagers.
Villager 1: Your Grace! His tree fell on my fence and broke it!
Village 2: It was a great storm. It's not my fault the tree fell! The wind blew it over!
The king raises his hand to stop the argument.
King: Here is what you shall do. Chop and mill the tree, and use it to build a new fence. Any wood that remains, sell at market and divide the profit between you.
Villager 1: Thank you very much, Your Grace.
Villager 2: You are truly as wise as they say.
Steward: And so the King commands.
The scene transitions as the steward begins to close the doors but is stopped by a hurried villager.
Widow: Please, I must see the king.
The steward kindly lets the widow see the king as she enters. The king notice the widow entering.
Widow: Please, Your Grace. I need your help.
King: Tell me, what has befallen you?
Widow: Creatures of Grimm destroyed my village. Now my family is dead, and I have nothing left. I... I don't know how to go on.
King: You must keep living.
The widow becomes surprised and looks at the king.
King: And as you have nowhere else to go, (turns to his steward) please show her to one of our many empty rooms. She may stay here stay her as long as she likes.
The steward escorts the widow as they leave the throne room. The widow looks back.
The scene transitions to the widow watching the king from the window. A hooded Faunus enters holding a bag in his hands.
King: What troubles you, citizen?
Mysterious Man: Your Grace, your wisdom and judgement is famous in my Kingdom. And so I bring before you, a marvel of the world!
The mysterious man holds an ornate golden crown with jewels imbedded in it.
Mysterious Man: This crown is no ordinary crown, you see. But to truly understand how special it is, you must put it on.
The king takes the crown, before removing his own and placing it on his head. As he does so, the king finds himself in unknown dimension. He hears voices screaming with a thunder rumbling. The king quickly takes the crown off his head.
King: No! It... It can't be!
The king stands up and throws the crown away. The steward enters to find the crown on the floor and noticed his liege becoming more afraid. The king notices the mysterious man who gave him that crown is nowhere to be seen.
King: Where is that man? Find him!
The steward nods and leaves. The king sits down on his throne. The widow becomes worried about the king.
The scene cuts to the Kingdom with the crowd of villagers at the throne room. The young woman enters and approaches the king.
King: (yawns) How can I aid you?
Young Woman: Your Grace, I have fallen in love. But he is very poor, and my father disappoves. Should I marry for love, or obey my father?
King: True love is a rare and wonderful gift. If you wish to be happy in this life, follow your heart.
Steward: And so the King commands!
The young woman becomes happy and bows before the king. As she begins to leave, the king becomes hesitant before taking a glance at the accursed crown. He becomes afraid, recalling the screaming voices.
King: Wait!
The young woman stops and turns at the king.
Indecisive King: No, you cannot eat love. You cannot sleep in love's shade. Do not marry him. Wait for a richer man!
The crowd whispers over the king's sudden change of mind.
Villager 3: My liege, he never changes his mind!
Steward: (unsure) And so it is... commanded.
The young woman gasps at the king's sudden change of his decision. She runs away in tears and leaves the throne room.
Indecisive King: I will see no one else!
The villagers leave as the steward escorts them out before turning to his liege, concerned, and leaves the king alone.
The scene transitions to the next day at the Kingdom. The widow walks to the entrance, but stops to find a notice on the door. The message says "The king is no longer holding court."
Widow: Why has the king closed his gates to his subjects? And who are they?
Steward: The king has come across, uh, an impossible problem. So he has summoned the wisest in the land to solve it.
Indecisive King: (off-screen) Get out!
The widow and the steward notice one of the scholars leaving in a hurry. The widow looks back, worried, but she becomes determined as she heads to the end of the line. The scene transitions to the mid-afternoon with the widow being the last. The widow enters. The indecisive king looks to find the widow approaching him.
Indecisive King: Who are you? (grunts) You cannot possibly help me.
Widow: You don't remember? Your Grace, you saved my life. Now it is my turn to help you. Please, what torments you so?
The king tries to answer, but as he takes a glance at the crown for a second, he couldn't.
Indecisive King: No, I cannot. It is far too great and terrible.
The widow places her hand on his. The king looks up, angry, but he falters as he notices the worried look on the widow's face.
Widow: Share your burden with me. Let me wear the crown, so I may understand.
The widow moves her hand away from the king's. The king gives her the crown. The widow places it onto her head. As she places does, the widow witnesses a vision of the king asking her for her hand in marriage. The widow smiles at that vision before she takes the crown off.
Widow: I think I understand now. This crown, it gives a glimpse into the future, to the decision that must someday be made.
Indecisive King: We have clearly seen vastly different visions. What this cursed crown has shown me is a distant crossroads, one with no solution, no way out that doesn't end in a disaster!
Widow: But it is in the future, is it not?
Indecisive King: Of course, but I now have the gift of time to find the right answer, and avert the consequences.
Widow: That is no gift at all. If you only concern yourself with the future, you will miss the good things right in front of your eyes.
The king slowly holds the widow's hands and looks at her.
Widow: Life is full of decisions. But you must trust yourself to do the right thing when the time comes. You must keep living.
The king smiles.
King: This advice is very wise.
Widow: I heard it from a very wise man.
The scene turns to the page where the king sits besides the widow, now the queen.
Ozpin: (narrating) And so, the wise King found an even wiser queen.
The episode then ends with the book flipping to the blank page.
Characters[]
- Ozpin (Narrator)
- The Indecisive King (First Appearance)
- The Widow (First Appearance)
- Steward (First Appearance)
- Mysterious Man (First Appearance)
- Young Woman (First Appearance)
Trivia[]
- There are major differences betweens the book and show version of the story:
- In the original tale this episode is adapted from the Widow's description was ambiguous to what her race was, while in the episode she's depicted as a Faunus.
- The Mysterious Man who gives the crown to the King is simply described as having wild eyes in the original tale, while he is depicted as a Faunus with large goat horns whose eyes are obscured in the animated adaptation.
- In the original tale the crown is described as being silver in color, while the illustrations depict it as being golden with red jewels; in the animated adaptation, it is a bronze color with turquoise jewels.
- In the book, the King become indecisive when giving advice to a man who hoped his son would marry above his station but whom instead wishes to marry a baker's daughter, but in the animated adaptation, it was a young woman who wishes to marry a man she loves even though he is poor, while her father wants her marry someone wealthy.
- The secluded chamber of the castle where the King keeps the crown is cut, instead the crown is kept on a pedistal in the throne room. This chamber is where the Widow gives the King her advice in the book.
- In the book, the Widow takes the crown and puts it on against the King's advice, while in the animated adaptation she politely asks the King if she may wear the crown and he hands it to her.
- It was originally the Widow that notes that she likely had a very different vision from the King, while in the animated adaptation it is the King that makes this observation.
- The scene where the Widow convinces the King to seal away the magic crown is cut.
- The scene where the King finally remembers the Widow is cut. Here, it is implied that he remembered her after she convinced him to stop obsessing over the vision.
Image Gallery[]
- Main article: The Indecisive King/Image Gallery
Video[]
RWBY Fairy Tales- The Indecisive King
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