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I was originally planning on doing an “AFK” blog to explain my extra-long absence from blogging in general, but something has happened to change my plans. And given the nature of this news I felt compelled to writing something, though I’m sure my mere words can’t help convey the sadness I feel at this moment.

Word has just been released that Monty Oum, creator of the online videos Dead Fantasy, Haloid and RWBY passing away yesterday afternoon at 4:34pm. Though not all information about his death was made known at first, we originally learned that he was admitted into intensive care last January after suffering a severe allergic reaction. At the time his condition was listed as critical and he was not expected to recover. Monty’s wife and family asked for privacy during that time as they and his employer, Roosterteeth Productions, came to terms with his condition as well as helped to set up a fund to help pay for Monty’s medical expense.

As much as I wanted to speculate and guess on what exactly happened to Monty Oum, I kept my thoughts to myself and honored the wishes of those who cared for him. And it would seem that the Roosterteeth community did the same. As much as I tried to search the internet for any news about Monty Oum’s condition, I could find none but only found many comments of well wishes and hopes of a speedy recovery from his fans. It was moments like those that made me glad that not everyone out in the internet is like TMZ.

So it came as a shock to all when word was made official via a posting on Roosterteeth Productions that reported the sad news of Monty Oum’s passing. Even now friends and fans alike are having a tough time trying to come to terms with his loss. I can’t speak of personal knowledge of knowing him but from what I gather from all the comments from those who knew him, or were lucky to have met him, that he was indeed a unique individual. His friendship was unmatched expect in comparison to his creativity. Like I’ve said I never had the pleasure to have generally known Monty Oum but he was one of the few people in the world I wish I could’ve met in person. I was a big fan of his even before he signed on with Roosterteeth Productions to help out in my favorite machine series Red vs Blue. I learned of him, like I’m sure some gamers did, when he began posting some of his fan video works like Haloid and Dead Fantasy. Being a fan of Halo I was thrilled to see what we now take for granted as “death matches” between what was alleged to be Halo’s “Master Chief” and Metroid’s Samus Aran in both regular armor and zero suit, as a track from the Matrix Reloaded played in the background.

Though he himself admits it was rather rough around the edges, you could tell his choreography work in the fight scenes were spot on in keeping with the characters he animated as well as making us wish that the “Master Chief” and Samus Aran could move like that in any of their game iterations. Haloid was even the work that got Roosterteeth’s attention of his skills. But it wasn’t till Dead Fantasy made the rounds on the internet and at cons that got him the most attention. The mix of seeing the heroines of the Dead or Alive fighting game series facing off with the female characters of Final Fantasy series was more than the internet at the time could handle. It became so big at the time that Gametrailers actually dedicated a video page to Dead Fantasy. I can’t speak for all on what exactly got people excited over Dead Fantasy but for me it was the fact that we got to see female characters from Final Fantasy face off with the lovely ladies of Dead or Alive. What was most interesting about it was that despite their being no spoken dialogue, the series was trying to tell a simple narrative. Though sadly this was lost on me as I was overjoyed to see more of Monty Oum’s specialized choreography fight scenes between the two franchises. But what really cemented my love for the series was seeing Tifa Lockhart, my favorite Final Fantasy heroine, taking on Ayane. I’m not sure many will remember but I still can’t get that combo attack that Tifa laid out on Ayane out of my head. I just wish I could’ve made a GIF out of it.

So as I waited for more of Dead Fantasy I was excited to learn that Monty was hired on my Roosterteeth Productions to add some of his combative flare to the machinima series. I wasn’t sure how they would do that given how the series dealt with in-game engine assets from the specific numbered Halo game at that time, but seeing the Freelancer program get fleshed out story wise AND seeing Spartans fight hand to hand was just as thrilling as watching Dead Fantasy.

Never since Dead or Alive 4 on Xbox 360 with special character "Spartan-458" did we get to see a Halo Spartan face off in hand to hand combat.

Upon seeing all that Monty helped create in the recent Red vs Blue series, you could clearly tell he had the skills and the imagination to add a whole new dimension for the boys from Blood Gulch. He had the talent, Roosterteeth gave him the tools and together they made something great. So it came as no surprise to find out that he wanted to create his own series with Roosterteeth. I didn’t know what to expect at first when I saw the first “color” trailer but upon after seeing it I was instantly won over with his tried and true combat animation style. The series called RWBY would once again help showcase his signature style of animation as well as having a story narrative done by some of the best in machinima storytelling. Though I’ve had my doubts on the series as a whole, it showed signs of great potential much like the other works that Monty Oum helped create. Yet in comparison Haloid looks quite primitive when compared to RWBY as a whole. You could clearly tell he strived nothing short of perfection when it came to the passion of his work. He could tell that he learned so much but at the same time pushed himself to learn more AND do more in all he created. One of the last tweets I read about him was how he literally made himself motion sick in trying to create the motion capture spinning sequence to the character Neo, having to resort to editing three different takes to get the desired effect that he wanted. That’s a dedication you don’t hear much about these days when it comes to those who truly strive to create great things. You could tell he loved all he made. His Halloween costume from last year is proof of that.

It’s because of this that I was fascinated by him and why I followed his work over the years. He not only took fan created projects to a whole new level graphically, he also showed how he truly cared for his creations and strived to better them over time. I usually don’t find myself emotionally invested into any particular form of entertainment or the realms of personal creativity. Yet Monty found a way to get me interested in his work and wanting more once I saw what he created. Haloid introduced me to the idea that a Spartan COULD do more on screen than shoot a gun. He helped give me mental perspective in seeing how a Spartan could fight hand to hand in the halo books, long before we saw comic stills of them doing such.  He showed us Samus Aran wasn’t a fighter in just the Smash Bros series. He showed us that the ladies of Dead or Alive could face off with the unexpected. He showed us that there is a step up in combat style when it came to Final Fantasy when all we knew what was possible at the time was the Final Fantasy Dissidia series and Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. He showed us you could breathe new life into a long standing Halo machinima series by adding a new combative depth never seen in machinima. And in the end he showed us that with enough heart, dedication, imagination and creativity you could create the world of Remnant.

For me personally he showed me how you could bring to life one of my favorite Final Fantasy characters and make her even more of a badass. I still shudder as I remember how many arrows Tifa took.

I know I may sound selfish but I only wished he was still alive so he could finish what he started. I know not what will become of Dead Fantasy or RWBY given how he was such a critical part of their creation. (he even voiced the character Ren in RWBY). At the moment I can’t see how things would continue without him. It’s never fair when someone so talented is ripped from us, especially when he’s left so much unfinished.

In the end he may be remembered as the man behind RWBY or the man who brought Spartans to life or the man who made a “simple” fan video of DOA and Final Fantasy but I’ll remember him as a man who simply created. Who had the imagination to bring together two unlikely individuals in a face off that still makes me wish we could have a Halo/Metroid crossover game, as well as showing everybody that Tifa Lockhart isn’t just another pretty face.To me my main personal rememberance and regret is not being able to meet him in person, or be able to challenge him to a DDR face off given his skills at Pump It Up. Though I'm sure he would've handed my feet to me.

Originally I planned to just stay in bed and be consumed in despair over the loss of such a talented individual. It’s something I don’t find myself doing these days, more so since I hardly knew him. Yet when I heard news of his passing I couldn’t bring myself to do much of anything. I probably would’ve stayed that way all day if I hadn’t read the advice that Roosterteeth Production’s posted on their website. Their final paragraph said as such:

As for honoring Monty, we will do that in our own way. In lieu of flowers or gifts, we ask that you simply do something creative. Use your imagination to make the world a better place in any way that you can. If you know Monty like we do, then you know he would certainly be doing that if he were able to.

I guess in a way this is my “creative” way in paying my respects to Monty Oum. I never knew him personally, I didn’t get a chance to meet him face to face, I never got the chance to thank him for showing us all that anyone can created worlds. But this is the least I can do to pay my respects to a man that proves you can strive for great things and make more than the sum of its parts. Thanks for everything you created. You helped me reinvigorate my creativity that I thought I left behind when it came to my own personal stories. Thank you for breaking me from my blogging funk. And thank you for giving me a chance to try my hand at “reviewing” something that I invested a lot of emotion into when it came to RWBY.  Monty Oum made me realize I shouldn’t stop trying to make my stories when he was able to go on with his. I may not be able to create anything artistic or special like I’m sure many others are doing right now. I don’t have the talent to draw a picture. I don’t have the talent to make a fitting tributes be it a picture collage or video. I know I don’t have the talent to make anything similar to what Monty could do. I just hope that what I write today is enough to convey the sadness and loss I feel.  And that I hope this truly mirrors my thoughts on what a creative person Monty Oum was to me. I mean no offense to friends and fans alike with all that I’ve written. I just hope it conveys my respects in the best way possible to a man I never met. I’m envious of those who had the privilege to meet Monty and I wish I could be there to comfort you in your time of loss. May you all have a brave heart during this time of sadness. Monty Oum: Your character, your talent and your creativity will be dearly missed. The song from RWBY Volume 1, Red like Roses part 2 takes on a whole new meaning for me now. And I’m sure others may feel the same way.

Goodbye Monty.

From a mere fan,

N.