The Chorus Trilogy

For me, 2015 was a turbulent and disappointing year in terms of the films and TV-series I watched. It seemed as though neither mega-budget Hollywoood blockbusters nor low-budget European art films could satisfy my need for an entertaining, emotionally fulfilling experience. Then the thirteenth season of "Red vs. Blue" came along... With this true masterpiece, Miles Luna and the RoosterTeeth creative crew and cast returned the great machinima franchise to the quality of seasons 8, 9 and 10. This climactic tale of war on Chorus is better written and better directed than most everything else I've seen all year, and I thoroughly enjoyed ever moment of it. The comedy, the drama, the action... The amazing choreography of the action sequences, the brilliant musical score from Trocadero and David Levy, the vocal performances... "Red vs. Blue: Season 13" is everything I could possibly have wanted it to be. Not to say that it lacks flaws; there are moments here that are less than perfect. But it is within imperfection that all my favourite cinematic and televisual narratives finds its true quality. My one true gripe about the entire experience is that I must now wait a year or two for the conclusion of the Chorus adventures...

As a major fan of the Recollection trilogy and the Project Freelancer saga, I have to say that I'm not as big of a fan of the Chorus trilogy as I am of the previous sagas that have come before it. Season 11, while definitely still having the feel of RvB, felt far too much of a step backwards from the quality of previous seasons, especially 10, and 12 moved at a sluggish pace and was barely funny. With Season 13 however, I'm happy to say that it definitely felt like director Miles Luna was fully aware that this was it and he had to make it as special as he can make it. It's like how Revenge Of the Sith ended up being the best film in the SW prequel trilogy simply because it was much higher in quality than the first two films.

That being said, our favorite Reds and Blues are back in one last entry to face off against the evil Feds led by mercenaries Locus and Felix. This time, Locus and Felix have old enemies of the Reds, Blues, and the Freelancers at their side, and they're pushing back harder than ever to gain the advantage. While it starts off a bit slow at first, which is to be expected with most RvB seasons, it doesn't take long for it to really pick up and start firing on all cylinders. This season has some of the best one-on-one fight scenes I've ever seen in an RvB season (yes, even in some cases better than the late Monty Oum was able to do it), top-notch voice acting, great writing, good music, and stellar animation. I feel like there's so much more at stake in this season, and the story does an excellent job of balancing comedy and drama in a way where neither one seems to overshadow the other. If there are any complaints I have for this season, I guess one of them would be that the return of one particular familiar character felt a little lackluster by the end and even unnecessary, and just like all other RvB seasons, the pacing was a little off at times, though it's not as noticeable this time around.

So despite my complaints about the first two seasons in this trilogy, I'm happy to say that this season made watching the whole trilogy worth it in the end, and though I was skeptical about Season 14, I'm happy to say that the new season is proving to be well worth the watch too. It just doesn't seem to matter how long RvB goes on, RvB manages to surprise me at almost every turn, and it's a real quality series that I sometimes enjoy watching than most Hollywood movies or television shows out there, because most of those just doesn't have the same kind of heart and soul you feel from watching RvB.