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Red vs. Blue: The Ultimate Fan Guide
In Red vs. Blue: The Ultimate Fan Guide, the series creators at Rooster Teeth bring together more than a decade's worth of ephemera and behind-the-scenes information. Inside you'll find:
– Character dossiers
– Character-driven lists, including "The Wisdom of Caboose"
– Charts and statistics mapping out character, world, and episode trivia, such as how many times Simmons has sucked up to Sarge over the course of the series
– The best Red vs. Blue quotes ever of all time
– Alternate stories and unexplored character arcs
– Spotlights on the Red vs. Blue cast and crew, who share unique anecdotes, behind-the-scenes stories, and insights into the award-winning series
– Shooting scripts, including cut lines, deleted scenes, and trivia
– More than 200 full-color images
– And more!
– Character dossiers
– Character-driven lists, including "The Wisdom of Caboose"
– Charts and statistics mapping out character, world, and episode trivia, such as how many times Simmons has sucked up to Sarge over the course of the series
– The best Red vs. Blue quotes ever of all time
– Alternate stories and unexplored character arcs
– Spotlights on the Red vs. Blue cast and crew, who share unique anecdotes, behind-the-scenes stories, and insights into the award-winning series
– Shooting scripts, including cut lines, deleted scenes, and trivia
– More than 200 full-color images
– And more!
240 pages, Paperback
First published November 17, 2015
8 people are currently reading
320 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
March 25, 2017
The thing I love the most about Red vs. Blue is that you don't need to be a Halo fan to enjoy it. I am a gamer but I've never really played Halo. I found out about Red vs. Blue the old-fashioned way: My nephew watched it, showed my son and after my son tied me to a chair and made me watch season 9, I was hooked. Now we have them all and we're eagerly awaiting season 15.
Red vs. Blue started back in 2003. In the Dark Ages before YouTube made uploading easy and viral videos spawned overnight. So when they started Red vs. Blue they had to create their own servers and went viral the old-fashioned way, by word-of-mouth. Television shows and series in general seem to follow a pattern. The show will start out with complex and varied characters. If the show goes on long enough those characters devolve into one-note characters whose entire personalities are defined by one quirk.
Red vs. Blue defied this trend by starting out with goofy characters that could easily have stayed stuck in their one-trait ruts. Rooster Teeth evolved their characters and story lines to create a complex and rich universe.
They went from four guys in a room (bow chicka bow wow) to holding their own conventions (RTX) and expanding their body of work to include another hit show, RWBY. Red vs. Blue also holds the honor of being the longest running American Sci-Fi series.
Another thing I find interesting is that Halo and Red vs. Blue co-exist peacefully together. There have been no lawsuits over Rooster Teeth using Halo's property. In fact, there are some Red vs. Blue Easter Eggs hidden in some of the Halo games.
You're not here to hear me ramble about Red vs. Blue the series (which I could happily do all day), you're here to read a review of the Red vs. Blue Fan Guide.
I could have wished for a bit more in-depth bios on the characters. especially the Freelancers. However, the Freelancers are somewhat of a mystery and I don't think that writers Burnie Burns (creator of Red vs. Blue) and Eddy Rivas wanted to take that away from the Freelancers.
The rest of it is great. I love the asides from Delta, sometimes humorous and sometimes actual info on how they created particular scenes. Now knowing how they do some of them it impresses me that much more that they were able to do a new Red vs. Blue episode every week. I can also see why the weekly Red vs. Blue episodes are on the short side. I would recommend watching them as an entire season, the flow is much more smooth.
The character chart is hilarious and so are the character focused tidbits at the back. Such as Simmons' text based video game: The Maroon Hero and Tucker's debriefing after the events at the dig site.
The notes from the Chorus rebels are interesting and a little sad. I would have liked a segment from the Federation side as well, though. I also wouldn't have minded a bit more on Felix and Locus but since they were writing the book while doing season 13 I can see why they would want to keep them more of a mystery.
The timeline is actually quite helpful since Red vs. Blue can be a little 'loopy' in their chronology.
For fans of Red vs. Blue it's certainly worth a look. I would recommend getting the physical book. Not only is it a nice-looking book but it might be easier to read. I read it on the Kindle and I had to hold it side-ways to read it, which was a bit uncomfortable. The lettering is rather small on the e-book, even with the 'tap to-enlarge feature.
The pictures are very nicely reproduced though and, as a wise man once said: "It helps when there are pictures!!"
Red vs. Blue started back in 2003. In the Dark Ages before YouTube made uploading easy and viral videos spawned overnight. So when they started Red vs. Blue they had to create their own servers and went viral the old-fashioned way, by word-of-mouth. Television shows and series in general seem to follow a pattern. The show will start out with complex and varied characters. If the show goes on long enough those characters devolve into one-note characters whose entire personalities are defined by one quirk.
Red vs. Blue defied this trend by starting out with goofy characters that could easily have stayed stuck in their one-trait ruts. Rooster Teeth evolved their characters and story lines to create a complex and rich universe.
They went from four guys in a room (bow chicka bow wow) to holding their own conventions (RTX) and expanding their body of work to include another hit show, RWBY. Red vs. Blue also holds the honor of being the longest running American Sci-Fi series.
Another thing I find interesting is that Halo and Red vs. Blue co-exist peacefully together. There have been no lawsuits over Rooster Teeth using Halo's property. In fact, there are some Red vs. Blue Easter Eggs hidden in some of the Halo games.
You're not here to hear me ramble about Red vs. Blue the series (which I could happily do all day), you're here to read a review of the Red vs. Blue Fan Guide.
I could have wished for a bit more in-depth bios on the characters. especially the Freelancers. However, the Freelancers are somewhat of a mystery and I don't think that writers Burnie Burns (creator of Red vs. Blue) and Eddy Rivas wanted to take that away from the Freelancers.
The rest of it is great. I love the asides from Delta, sometimes humorous and sometimes actual info on how they created particular scenes. Now knowing how they do some of them it impresses me that much more that they were able to do a new Red vs. Blue episode every week. I can also see why the weekly Red vs. Blue episodes are on the short side. I would recommend watching them as an entire season, the flow is much more smooth.
The character chart is hilarious and so are the character focused tidbits at the back. Such as Simmons' text based video game: The Maroon Hero and Tucker's debriefing after the events at the dig site.
The notes from the Chorus rebels are interesting and a little sad. I would have liked a segment from the Federation side as well, though. I also wouldn't have minded a bit more on Felix and Locus but since they were writing the book while doing season 13 I can see why they would want to keep them more of a mystery.
The timeline is actually quite helpful since Red vs. Blue can be a little 'loopy' in their chronology.
For fans of Red vs. Blue it's certainly worth a look. I would recommend getting the physical book. Not only is it a nice-looking book but it might be easier to read. I read it on the Kindle and I had to hold it side-ways to read it, which was a bit uncomfortable. The lettering is rather small on the e-book, even with the 'tap to-enlarge feature.
The pictures are very nicely reproduced though and, as a wise man once said: "It helps when there are pictures!!"
February 22, 2016
Red vs Blue is the first of its kind. Back in 2003 four friends got together and made a machination, taking characters from Halo and making them act out a story while people talk over their actions. The comedy starts off with 6 idiots, 3 on red and 3 on Blue, in the map Blood Gulch from the first Halo. The reds and blues adventures last over 13 seasons and turns into more of a drama than the original comedy. This book is the ins and outs of the story and tells the readers backgrounds on characters, deleted scenes, and pretty much anything else related to Red vs Blue.
I liked this book because I really like the show and this just goes more in-depth into the story than ever before. The book tells of the timeline of the story. This was confusing to me because in season 10 there are flashbacks that tell the story of Project Freelancer. The book also has parts that are “written” by the characters. My favorite part of the book is the stats. I loved how the book tells how many times grenades were thrown, nut shots, flags grabbed, and much more pertaining to each character.
I liked this book because I really like the show and this just goes more in-depth into the story than ever before. The book tells of the timeline of the story. This was confusing to me because in season 10 there are flashbacks that tell the story of Project Freelancer. The book also has parts that are “written” by the characters. My favorite part of the book is the stats. I loved how the book tells how many times grenades were thrown, nut shots, flags grabbed, and much more pertaining to each character.
November 14, 2015
red vs. blue: the ultimate fan guide is perfect if you like the show already or are interested in watching it. it has everything you would expect from a guide book, humor, facts, and a lot of other information about the characters and making of the series, as well as other things.
January 8, 2018
this is my favorite show. of all time.
November 20, 2016
Read this review (and others) at: https://literatureislife.com/2016/11/...
Red vs Blue began as a web series back in 2003 with a couple of friends using the original Halo video game to shoot video with comedic voice-overs. The unexpected popularity of the series soon gave rise to the company RoosterTeeth (fun fact: their chicken/chattering plastic teeth icon originally stood for “cock bite”, an insult commonly used in early episodes of the show). 14 seasons later and many other projects later, RoosterTeeth still makes Red vs Blue episodes as the cornerstone of their company’s success. The show has gone through changes in dynamic over the years, from pure comedy to action-comedy to almost pure action, and everywhere in-between. One of the downsides of the series is that each episode is only a few minutes long, making expanding on lore and side stories difficult. The Ultimate Fan Guide remedies that problem in a hilarious fashion.
14 seasons is a long time to establish your characters. Who they are, where they have been, who they will be; we have seen it all through the eyes of the Reds and Blues. While the Ultimate Fan Guide does highlight information already present in the series, such as character dossiers and some of the more memorable quotes, it also features new materials not seen in the shows. This involves personal accounts of the main characters as well as many side characters, including backstory relevant to the plot (yes, there is a plot; just get past season 5) of the series. It also highlights other important concepts, such as key locations, as well as character elements not seen in the show that expands beautifully on our favorite hapless yet successful soldiers. The snippets “written” by the characters are particularly gut tickling.
While this book did come out after the Chorus trilogy ended (season 13), the book only goes up to season 12 with information; presumably, because they were still writing while the 13th season was in production. The book lightly touches on the first two parts of that trilogy to keep spoilers fairly at bay for readers. However, the book has full spoilers for everything before that (seasons 1-10). If you want to watch the show, doing so at least up to that point before reading the Ultimate Fan Guide is recommended. After watching the show, the fan guide is very handy because it helps you grasp the chronology in the series. Large portions of the show (particularly seasons 9 and 10) are depicted via flashback. This can make it tricky to determine exactly what happened when; more so as the show goes on and the number of flashbacks builds up.
Although written in a comedic fashion, the Ultimate Fan Guide makes a great reference book for people who want to find some information without rewatching whole seasons to locate it. Granted an entire season is only 2~ hours long, but it is faster to read this than rewatch the whole show. Especially if you are trying to remember the story so far as new seasons premiere. This book will leave you laughing with deleted scenes, personal insights from the Reds and Blues, and insightful statistics (such as the number of nutshots throughout the series). For more serious readers, the book does have canon information not available anywhere else if you want to know everything there is about Red vs Blue. Either way, this book will appeal to any RoosterTeeth fan.
Red vs Blue began as a web series back in 2003 with a couple of friends using the original Halo video game to shoot video with comedic voice-overs. The unexpected popularity of the series soon gave rise to the company RoosterTeeth (fun fact: their chicken/chattering plastic teeth icon originally stood for “cock bite”, an insult commonly used in early episodes of the show). 14 seasons later and many other projects later, RoosterTeeth still makes Red vs Blue episodes as the cornerstone of their company’s success. The show has gone through changes in dynamic over the years, from pure comedy to action-comedy to almost pure action, and everywhere in-between. One of the downsides of the series is that each episode is only a few minutes long, making expanding on lore and side stories difficult. The Ultimate Fan Guide remedies that problem in a hilarious fashion.
14 seasons is a long time to establish your characters. Who they are, where they have been, who they will be; we have seen it all through the eyes of the Reds and Blues. While the Ultimate Fan Guide does highlight information already present in the series, such as character dossiers and some of the more memorable quotes, it also features new materials not seen in the shows. This involves personal accounts of the main characters as well as many side characters, including backstory relevant to the plot (yes, there is a plot; just get past season 5) of the series. It also highlights other important concepts, such as key locations, as well as character elements not seen in the show that expands beautifully on our favorite hapless yet successful soldiers. The snippets “written” by the characters are particularly gut tickling.
While this book did come out after the Chorus trilogy ended (season 13), the book only goes up to season 12 with information; presumably, because they were still writing while the 13th season was in production. The book lightly touches on the first two parts of that trilogy to keep spoilers fairly at bay for readers. However, the book has full spoilers for everything before that (seasons 1-10). If you want to watch the show, doing so at least up to that point before reading the Ultimate Fan Guide is recommended. After watching the show, the fan guide is very handy because it helps you grasp the chronology in the series. Large portions of the show (particularly seasons 9 and 10) are depicted via flashback. This can make it tricky to determine exactly what happened when; more so as the show goes on and the number of flashbacks builds up.
Although written in a comedic fashion, the Ultimate Fan Guide makes a great reference book for people who want to find some information without rewatching whole seasons to locate it. Granted an entire season is only 2~ hours long, but it is faster to read this than rewatch the whole show. Especially if you are trying to remember the story so far as new seasons premiere. This book will leave you laughing with deleted scenes, personal insights from the Reds and Blues, and insightful statistics (such as the number of nutshots throughout the series). For more serious readers, the book does have canon information not available anywhere else if you want to know everything there is about Red vs Blue. Either way, this book will appeal to any RoosterTeeth fan.
April 25, 2016
I had just started working at GameStop in the mall. A few short weeks later, Halo 2 launched on November 9th, 2004. It was my first midnight opening. The event was simply insane. Massive amounts of people and I was in the thick of it. Playing on the TV was an episode of Red vs Blue. This was my first time seeing it and I was hooked. I wasn't able to watch much of the episode since my time was taken up by the customers, but I told myself to watch the series as soon as I had the free time. And I did just that.
I fell behind after season five of Red vs Blue. I can't say that I regret it, because just recently, I played catch up. I had the Red vs Blue blu-ray box set on my shelf for too long before I decided to watch it. Now that I am all caught up, I am eagerly awaiting the next season and beyond. This prompted me to get the book, The Red vs Blue: Ultimate Fan Guide.
Since I do have a history with Red vs Blue, it was only natural that I would love this book! I recommend this guide to any Red vs Blue fan. The book does the series justice with every page. It talks about each character of Red vs Blue in hilarious detail.
((Red vs Blue is a machinima web series and intended for those 18 years and older brought to you by Rooster Teeth. Same goes for the book.))
I fell behind after season five of Red vs Blue. I can't say that I regret it, because just recently, I played catch up. I had the Red vs Blue blu-ray box set on my shelf for too long before I decided to watch it. Now that I am all caught up, I am eagerly awaiting the next season and beyond. This prompted me to get the book, The Red vs Blue: Ultimate Fan Guide.
Since I do have a history with Red vs Blue, it was only natural that I would love this book! I recommend this guide to any Red vs Blue fan. The book does the series justice with every page. It talks about each character of Red vs Blue in hilarious detail.
((Red vs Blue is a machinima web series and intended for those 18 years and older brought to you by Rooster Teeth. Same goes for the book.))
August 16, 2016
Perfect for fans of Red vs. Blue. I wanted to read this book since it came out, being an avid fan myself, and only now did I manage to get my hands on it and I devoured it. It was amazing. Not only did it have a bunch of information about the show, it captured the feel of it as well. Meaning, it was so damn funny, I found myself laughing out loud at times. I loved reading about the characters, especially the stuff written by 'them' ('The Wisdom of Caboose', 'The Case Against Sgt. Grif', Wash's interview and of course, Leonard+Alison) and the statistics about the show. But, being who I am, I was most intrigued by the 'behind the scenes' section. The only thing it lacked, though, was more on the AI fragments and Season 13 (which I think was fully released when this came out). But, at least we found out something about two more Freelancers.
April 20, 2016
Damn I love Red vs Blue and this made my little fangirl heart explode with joy. Read it all in two short sittings and loved every minute of it. I'm only a recent fan but I have no regrets with this show and with this book.
December 10, 2015
best book over of all time
April 17, 2017
The greatest book ever. Of all time.
May 13, 2021
While detailing the story of Red vs. Blue's first 12-13 seasons and accurately compiling it must have been a tremendous undertaking, this book makes it seem like a piece of cake. Perhaps that's why I've given it a relatively modest score, seeing as I already knew most of what's brought up in the book.
However, there are several tidbits pertaining to character relations and small tidbits of new lore that enrich the reading experience. That and some completely new elements, such as creator AND character interviews.
Don't try plowing through it in one sitting though, especially if you're a fan. It's more of a data book than anything else.
If I could give it 3.5/5 then I would.
However, there are several tidbits pertaining to character relations and small tidbits of new lore that enrich the reading experience. That and some completely new elements, such as creator AND character interviews.
Don't try plowing through it in one sitting though, especially if you're a fan. It's more of a data book than anything else.
If I could give it 3.5/5 then I would.
May 22, 2021
I cant express how much I loved reading and experiencing this book. Ive had it on my shelves for years now but never got around to reading it from start to finish. Now that I have, Im so upset that i didnt read it sooner!!!
Having been a fan of Red vs Blue for forever, I loved all of the different people that had something to say in this book and all of the behind the scenes looks at productions and scripts. This is definitely one of those books that I want to display and have forever on my bookshelves and Im so glad I was finally able to read it.
Having been a fan of Red vs Blue for forever, I loved all of the different people that had something to say in this book and all of the behind the scenes looks at productions and scripts. This is definitely one of those books that I want to display and have forever on my bookshelves and Im so glad I was finally able to read it.
August 11, 2018
I think this was a case of expecting more and disappointing myself. The only portion of this book I remember well and remember fondly is the backstory of my man, Agent Washington. Church's regale of how he met Allison was... fine. Simmon's fanfiction was... fine. I guess I was expecting more behind the scenes bits. The majority of the book is stuff an RVB fan would already know, with only a few new things thrown in here and there.
March 14, 2021
Technically, I never finished this book. BUT I read the vast majority of it and eventually I just couldn’t pick it up again. So this is me officially giving up on this book.
Just like how Roster Teeth gave up trying to make good content.
Just like how Roster Teeth gave up trying to make good content.
March 29, 2018
I think definitely more background into the characters is always desired for in fan guides, but it was compelling regardless.
June 20, 2016
3.5/5 stars
I feel like this Guide is a must-have for all Rooster Teeth/Red vs. Blue fans.
It includes loads of fun content and facts that I'm extremely grateful for (Wash' pre-Freelancer psych eval with the Counselor, the timeline for all the events that occur over the 13 seasons, all the information on settings for the series), but could drag at times. It's definitely a coffee table book that you flick through at your own speed rather than being read in large chunks, or else you'll just get bored reading it.
I feel like this Guide is a must-have for all Rooster Teeth/Red vs. Blue fans.
It includes loads of fun content and facts that I'm extremely grateful for (Wash' pre-Freelancer psych eval with the Counselor, the timeline for all the events that occur over the 13 seasons, all the information on settings for the series), but could drag at times. It's definitely a coffee table book that you flick through at your own speed rather than being read in large chunks, or else you'll just get bored reading it.
April 11, 2016
Actual rating: 3.5 stars. The inherent problem with fan guides is that, unless they come out after the media has ended, they'll always be out of date. Unfortunately, that's the case with this fan guide. It was being written while season 13 was being produced so not all of 13's information is included. However, that's the only real drawback to it. Information is presented in a clear, concise format. Things are confirmed that fans have long suspected. The extra material is great and there are some real gems. As a fan, I'm happy to have it on my shelf.
June 7, 2019
As someone who has been an immense fan of the show for years, this book is a great read! I loved learning more about the lore and characters! And like the series, there were as many serious parts as there were funny parts. I mainly rate it four stars for the fact that I don’t know how more casual fans of the series would like it. I guess in the end it just depends on what you come to the show for!
February 10, 2016
If you are a fan of RvB you will love this book.
April 8, 2019
Super fan of RvB, gives you new details on certain things but if you know the series well enough, this is just a nice side piece to read and enjoy.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews