Bartholomew Oobleck

**Bartholomew Oobleck** is a character from the *RWBY* web-animated series.

A professor who teaches history, such as the ancient wars and the civil rights struggles of the Faunus. Apparently he has a PhD. He fights with Antiquity's Roast, a coffee thermos that extends into a full staff that can emit flames.

In the AWA fics, Bartholomew is set to appear in a future AWA storyline.

## **Appearance**

Oobleck is a man with messy green hair. In Volumes 1 and 2, he has brown eyes, but in Volume 3, his eyes are a sapphire blue. His eyes changed back to brown in Volume 4. His attire is disheveled: his white shirt partially tucked into his dark-green pants and its collar raised, showing a slack yellow tie, along with mismatched brown and black shoes. He also has round glasses that appear to be opaque.

When assigned to lead Team RWBY on a search and destroy mission located in southeast Vale during the events of "Field Trip", Oobleck wears a long brown great coat, a khaki buttoned safari shirt and a pith helmet; this is presumably his combat outfit, all of which appear to be properly worn and tucked in and such, unlike his earlier attire. He also carries a rather large backpack.

## **Personality**

Oobleck's trademark characteristics are his extreme hyperactivity and his love for coffee, tea, or some other stimulant. Not only does he frequently "glide" about in class at incredible speeds, but he also speaks very rapidly. This energy might be a result of him constantly drinking what appears to be coffee. His unkempt look and the mess on and around his desk suggest he has little to no regard for tidiness.

During his class, Oobleck is very enthusiastic and strict about his work, being very happy when inattentive students, such as Jaune Arc, seem ready to contribute to class and punishing students who perform poorly. This is because behind his almost flamboyant behavior, Oobleck is an incredibly deep and compassionate thinker, completely dedicated to and relishing in his roles as a Huntsman and teacher. Oobleck views history as an important way to prevent the repetition of past mistakes, saying the advancement of knowledge is worthy of being referred to as fighting, for it will better prepare Humanity's future in the fight for survival against the Grimm.

Oobleck respects Faunus, shown when he shakes his head disapprovingly at Cardin Winchester's discriminatory remark and his strong disdain when hearing several Faunus students in his class had suffered discrimination based on heritage.

Oobleck also takes into account why Blake Belladonna, Yang Xiao Long and Weiss Schnee chose to become Huntresses. However, none of them gives him a satisfactory answer, though later he finds out the girls' true, more mature and more satisfactory reasons behind training to become Huntresses that night while pretending to be asleep.

Oobleck takes pride in his historical knowledge. In "Mountain Glenn", Oobleck is upset and angry at himself for not remembering the information about Mountain Glenn's underground city. This same pride causes him to snap at people who call him "Professor", demanding they address him properly as "Doctor".

He is not without a sense of humor, however, as shown in "Family" when he laughs at an anecdote about Qrow Branwen being tricked into wearing a skirt to class.

## **Abilities**

Despite his eccentric demeanor and his civilian appearance, Oobleck is a skilled and experienced Huntsman, considered qualified to escort students on field assignments and assess their fighting abilities. While capable of wielding traditional weapons, Oobleck himself believes his greatest asset and contribution is his mind, studying past mistakes in order to impart that knowledge to his students so that they may avoid repeating them. He has also earned a Ph.D., a testament to his intellect, and possesses expertise in the fields of history and archaeology, something of which has turned out to be extremely useful, as seen during his mission with Team RWBY.

It is revealed in "Mountain Glenn" that his weapon is his Thermos, first seen in "Jaunedice, Pt.2", which turns into what appears to be some form of a large torch. In "No Brakes", Oobleck shows to have tremendous skill with his weapon, using it to fend off a Paladin with ease while also using his speed and the attack of his weapon's fire to his advantage. He has been seen to move so quickly, he appears stationary while speeding across a room. He shows great teamwork with Ruby and Zwei.

## **Trivia**

* Oobleck alludes to Bartholomew from *Bartholomew and the Oobleck*. For more information on this allusion, as well as other choices the creators made for this character, see Bartholomew Oobleck/Behind the Scenes.
* From the Middle English Bartelmeus, a cognate of the Late Latin Bartholomaeus, which is from the Greek Bartholomaios (son of Talmai). Talmai is an Aramaic name meaning "hill, mound, furrows." This brings green colors to mind.
* His last name "Oobleck" comes from his allusion to the Dr. Seuss story *Bartholomew and the Oobleck*. "Oobleck" is also the name of an inexpensive, white, non-Newtonian fluid made from corn flour and water which is known for being a liquid when subject to little force but being a solid under high force.
* Oobleck's desk was jokingly compared to the common state of Monty Oum's in the Volume 1 directors' commentary.
* The notes on X-Ray and Vav's bulletin board in the Rooster Teeth cartoon *X-Ray & Vav* are arranged in the same way as the notes on Oobleck's map.
* Oobleck and Peter Port are so far the only two characters based on characters still under copyright.