This is such a smart idea. RWBY may be stronger for going more serious, but seeing such terrible things happen to these characters is heartbreaking. It's a strange phenomenon: the first season was the weakest, but now we yearn for its tone. That's where Chibi RWBY comes in. Now we have the seriousness of the original show (though I doubt it will be all doom and gloom without some comic relief) and the silliness of the lightheartedness of the spin off. Both draws are covered. Plus, it makes the wait for season 4 more bearable.

If other chibi spin-offs (Evangelion, Haruhi, Avatar, Attack on Titan, Naruto) are anything to go on, expect Chibi RWBY to not share continuity with the original serious. It will be a source of comedy and fan service, not world-building. Fans take comfort in the idea that there is another RWBY-verse in which things don't go horribly wrong.

This show is also a clever way of handling the issue of kids watching RWBY. I'm skeptical that many children watched RWBY to begin with, but clearly some did if Rooster Teeth felt it was necessary to post that disclaimer late last season. While I expect Chibi RWBY will be more for fans in general than for any one age group, I also doubt there will be anything blatantly inappropriate for children. Still, I hope they slip in the occasional Bumblebee joke.