Friday, March 20th, 2020
this got so fucking long i am so sorry
When I sat down to think about who the Trickster could be in what is currently my favorite show – Rooster Teeth’s RWBY – at first I couldn’t think of anybody. One character stood out above all the others for me and that was Roman Torchwick – more on him later – but something felt off (namely the fact that he’s currently dead) so, instead of having a good old fashioned think on it, I did what a Trickster would do and I cheated!
I asked my followers on my RWBY blog who they thought the Trickster in the RWBYverse is and…I got a lot of different answers. Suddenly I realized my trouble wasn’t picking out a Trickster, it was that Remnant – the world in which the show is set – has too many Trickster candidates. Some answers I wrote off immediately, because even though Tricksters are a versatile bunch and I’m sure if I tried really, really hard I could probably stretch far enough to imagine one of our core eight protagonists as a Trickster, I gotta go with my gut here. So, I want to present four characters who demonstrate a few Trickster traits, and two characters who I feel embody the Trickster archetype to the fullest extent.
First up, we have Tyrian Callows
I was surprised when nobody named him when I asked for Tricksters. He is essentially RWBY’s version of the Joker – a dangerous and maniacal man who loves to laugh (while killing) and cause pure chaos (usually done by killing) – and the Joker is certainly a Trickster is he not? He’s an evil and dangerous variant, but he’s a Trickster all the same. Additionally, every character in RWBY is an allusion to someone or something else, usually folklore, mythology, or fairytales: Tyrian is an allusion to the Scorpion from the Scorpion and the Frog. Not a traditional Trickster by any means, but the moral of that story is to never expect someone to act against their nature, regardless of what they may say or what harm it may bring to them. What do Tricksters often represent within myths? The basest aspects of human nature, of course!
But the more I thought on it the more I realized there’s a key difference between Tyrian and the Joker that makes one a Trickster and one (potentially) not. The Joker is a force of chaos who just wants to make the world laugh whether they want to or not. His motives are his own and he’s tied down by no authority, not the law and certainly not Batman. In the Joker’s mind there is no one person’s desires that matter more than his own.
Tyrian – while he is a force of chaos and laughter – is bound to serve a master. And he does so happily. While he certainly has his own wants and desires (which usually involve maiming anything with a pulse within stabbing distance of him) he would never place what he wants above Salem – who he refers to as his “goddess” – or what she wants. This is a Trickster on a leash that does seem to want to break free.
Suffering from a similar problem is Emerald Sustrai. Her powers of illusions, penchant for thievery, youthful demeanor, and ties to Aladdin make her a prime candidate as a Trickster archetype, but she’s unfailingly loyal – admittedly not to the insane level that Tyrian is to Salem – to Cinder Fall, Salem’s underling. She sees her as the mother she never had and once Cinder’s gone she begins to go through a crisis. Unlike Tyrian, however, there is potential for Emerald to one day break free from Cinder’s control and become the morally gray Trickster we all know she can be.
Next, Raven Branwen
Another one I was surprised nobody mentioned – though to be fair I just thought of her right now so I suppose she’s easy to overlook…But, come on, her name is Raven and she shapeshifts – sort of, she can only turn into a literal Raven and she seems kind of bitter about it – she’s just begging to be called a Trickster. She also possesses the selfish, look out for number one attitude that Tyrian lacks.
She does what she wants and she doesn’t care who she has to step on or hurt to do it. Why would I stay here and raise my daughter when I could run off and be a bandit? This lost and battered young woman just crash landed in my territory? Time to ransom her off to her abusive father because I want money. A group of terrorists want to use me to further their evil plan? Fine, I’ll sacrifice my brother and put my daughter’s life in danger but it’s okay because I’m gonna double cross the bad guys too! I could go on, but you get it, she’s a selfish bitch.
Unfortunately, she lacks the playfulness of a Trickster. She has a sense of humor, certainly, but it’s dry and wit-based and much more subtle than one would expect from a Trickster. She’s a Trickster who’s had 95% of the fun sucked out of her. She did however pull the biggest trick on our resident Evil Bitch Cinder and fans of the series by presenting us with the best plot twist the series has ever seen in its seven-year run (See the attatched video from 0:00-0:25), and that’s gotta count for something, right?
Next, Sun Wukong!
Yes, you read that right, they didn’t even change his name. He is Sun Wukong and he is based on the mythological Trickster Sun Wukong, The Monkey King. He is literally an allusion to a mythological Trickster, how could I not mention him here?
Beyond his allusion – which quite honestly doesn’t always mean everything in this show, case in point: the Evil Bitch up there is based on Cinderella – Sun possesses the carefree, humorous Trickster spirit that Raven largely lacks. He’s always good for a laugh or a good time. The first time we meet him he’s running from the cops because he stowed away on a ship. His great escape plan? Throw a banana peel at a cop and haul ass – but not before winking at that pretty girl over there. He has a lot of the chaotic energy of a Trickster that, again Raven lacks.
The only thing that keeps me from labeling him the pure embodiment of the Trickster archetype is that he’s stupidly selfless, honest, and pure-hearted. He’d never betray a friend, or even play a mean-spirited prank on one. He might make an off-color quip or two (“Weren’t you in a cult or something?”) but he doesn’t have the bite that I personally associate with Tricksters. If that particular trait doesn’t matter as much to you in Trickster identification, then Sun Wukong just might be your RWBY Trickster of choice!
Mine, however, is the dynamite team of Roman Torchwick and Neopolitan.
As I previously stated, Roman was my first thought when it came to Tricksters in RWBY, but that was before I went down the rabbit hole and found that there were way more than I originally thought! It was during that trip down the rabbit hole that I was reminded of the existence of one Neopolitan, Roman’s henchwoman and arguably more of a Trickster than he is. I’m grouping them together because they’re an inseparable pair – at least until the untimely death of Torchwick.
Roman and Neo are a couple of self-serving rogues. Roman is probably most comparable to a mob-boss, and Neo is his associate/enforcer. They were under the employ of Cinder Fall, but had no ties to Salem or her faction – they were simply skilled hands hired by Cinder to assist her with the Fall of Beacon. They did what they did presumably for money, or perhaps the promise of a place in Salem’s regime once she takes over, it’s never stated, but their reasons are purely their own and probably selfish in nature. They don’t seem to care for anyone or anything besides themselves and each other – and even that was up for debate until recently.
Roman’s self-serving nature can best be summed up by his (ironic) final words before being eaten alive:
“You want to be a hero? Then play the part and die like every other Huntsman in history! As for me, I’ll do what I do best: lie, steal, cheat and survive!”
If that ain’t a Trickster mindset, I dunno what is.
As for a playful spirit, they both have it in spades. Roman is easily the funniest character that ever has been or ever will be on RWBY, he’s loud and smart-mouthed and always quick with a quip or a comeback regardless of who he’s talking to – and yes, it’s often mean-spirited. Neo is less outwardly humorous due to the fact that’s mute and has never spoken a word on screen, but you just know she’s having a good time because she’s always smiling or smirking, even – especially – when she’s about to run her spiky umbrella straight through your heart.
Now that Roman is dead within the show, Neo’s motives have changed but are still equally as self-serving. She wants revenge for the loss of her partner, and she wants to kill whoever she believes is responsible. Currently she’s working with the villains after trying to kill Cinder – which is who she originally blamed for Roman’s death – but the amount of power Cinder’s acquired in her absence left her unable to finish the job so now she works with her. However, nobody believes for a second that she wouldn’t stab Cinder the moment the opportunity presents itself. Most fans simply believe she’s biding her time until she can kill two birds with one stone – Ruby and Cinder – and be on her merry way.
To top it all off – guess what her power is? If you guessed shapeshifting, you’re wrong! But it’s the closest thing to shapeshifting we have in canon so far. Like Emerald, Neo has an illusion-based power, but unlike Emerald her illusions are physical and can be seen by more than one person. Neo uses these as traditional illusions made for trickery, but she can also use them on herself and others to make them look different. And yes, she has used her powers to appear as a different gender – which is a total Trickster move.
Still not convinced that Neo & Roman are the biggest Tricksters RWBY’s ever seen? RWBY has a spin-off show called RWBY Chibi. It’s a sketch comedy series that came out once the original show started getting too serious and angst-ridden to keep the fans from going mental. In it, most characters are boiled down to their base characteristics. Neo – who doesn’t talk in the show – is still Roman’s faithful sidekick, but instead of being a pint-sized ass-kicker, she makes snide remarks while Roman’s Acme-like schemes blow up in his face. She does so by communicating via picket signs in a direct reference to one of the most famous Tricksters in pop culture, Mr. Wile E. Coyote.
Those are a few of the potential Tricksters present in RWBY – some may embody the archetype more than others, but there’s an argument to be made for all of them. No wonder the world of Remnant is currently in chaos – look at all the Tricksters in their world!
Shannon's Mythology Website 