While Re:Zero has had a slow start, once it’s got going it hasn’t stopped. I again feel that same anticipation upon starting and the dejection upon finishing an episode because I know I need to wait another week for a continuation. This episode was when I felt that level of immersion that this 26 minute episode felt like five minutes and when the credits rolled I was in disbelief that it was over already. In that regard I may not have much to say about this week’s episode as there were only about three critical events. The talk with Beatrix, Subaru’s imprisonment and the eventual rescue. So I guess we should start with the first.
Beatrix laid down quite a bit here, for revealing her own witches gospel, hinting to her own ties to the cult, to stating that every interaction she has had has been her following whatever the book says. That last point is one that I am quite skeptical about as Beatrix often expresses surprise at Subaru’s actions and I don’t think she’s a good enough actor to fake even those reactions. There is also the matter that Betelgeuses gospel never mentioned Subaru so it stands to reason that he’s absent from Beatrix’s as well. But the thing that really has me doubting Beatrix’s words is just how much they contradict her actions. As she stated, she had no reason to save anyone yet saved Subaru twice, once from Elsa and again when he attempted suicide. This is her at her most emotional and her words almost seem like a desperate attempt to convince herself that she doesn’t care about Subaru despite everything else saying otherwise. All this while Subaru is expressing his avid fury at her for potentially moving his save point but being utterly unable to tell her. I love the slow breakdown of Beatrix’s facade as she struggles to maintain it while enduring Subaru’s ravings and her own confusion.
Well Subaru has died again at the hands of Elsa making her the top contender for most Subaru kills(She killed him four times which puts her one above Puck, the previous holder of the title. As an extra note Subaru has died a total of 14 times) So we are back to the end of the first trial and we have a few differences. One is that it seems Subaru didn’t do a good job in consoling Emilia as she once again is too out of it to attend the after meeting. Part of this could be what Otto mentions, that Subaru has become somewhat desensitised to Emilia’s suffering. As it is his third time around it would make sense that he would grow too used to Emilia’s reaction though even if it makes sense, it’s quite concerning. Garfiel remains the wild card with him never taking the same action twice every run and while Subaru tries a gamble with telling him and grandma about his qualification for the trial, it unfortunately backfires.The reason? The witches scent. Admitly this whole scent business really does feel like a bit of a plot device to get characters to take extreme actions much like how Rem did during Arc 2. Garfiel doesn’t really feel like a villainous character and it could be that the scent is being used as a tool to get him to kidnap and confine Subaru.
Regardless of circumstantial writing, it makes for a good change as we can’t just always see Subaru get gutted by the disaster of the arc. As sadistic as it may be, variety is the spice of life so having Subaru suffer by being contained and sensory deprived for three days makes for a haunting view. The few scenes of total silence and flashbacks showing the depths of Subaru’s despair and desperation. Only for Otto of all people to rescue him. As for the reason why Otto went to the trouble of going through all that to save Subaru, because he’s a friend. This shows that there is a severe difference between the Otto that threw Subaru out of a carriage and the one present right now. Some individuals tend to discount Rem’s love because she previously killed him “multiple times’” (No, she only killed him once which to be fair he was going to die anyway as the mabeast curse was already killing him. The second time his throat was slit with wind magic by Ram.) but the fact of the matter is lovestruck Rem was very different from the Rem that did those things. Your best friend can be your worst enemy if you give the wrong first impression. Anyway this is a pretty heartwarming scene that has redeemed the character of Otto in many eyes no doubt and hits all the harder if you consider that Otto is likely the only person to actively wish to be Subaru’s friend since he became a neet. I normally don’t comment on Japanese voice acting but that laugh Subaru gave was some top tier voice acting, able to convey Subaru’s complicated emotions with nary a word. As a final note to close this off, it’s rather particular that the Ryuzu at the meeting wore black while the Ryuzu Garfiel took Subaru to meet wore white. Well we hit episodes end so what is to happen next, for if I was a betting man I would guess Subaru’s gonna die.
One big thing to remember is that Petelgeuse has named Satella, the Witch of Envy, as being the one the Witch Cult worships when he was chasing Subaru as a giant spider and said that he had done so much for her even if she had forgotten what he had done for her. Witch cultists do not seem to care about the other 6 witches that Satella killed.
As such there are some things that are contradictory if Beatrice is a Witch cultist based on what she has said in the past. Beatrice said in episode 7 of Season 1 that Subaru being someone favoured by the Witch makes him a burden and that she’d rather not stay in his room in episode 8 of Season 1 because it reeks of the stench of the Witch of Envy. This suggests that she doesn’t have the Witch of Envy’s scent and actually HATES that scent and the Witch herself as opposed to Petelgeuse, who refers to the strength of the scent as how much love the Witch has for a cultist (He said the love hanging on Subaru is equivalent to that of a Sin Archbishop). Then again, there is probably a way to hide the smell of the Witch or else the Witch Cult wouldn’t have been able to embed itself so deeply in society. Also, Beatrice calling Satella the worst of the worst and Beatrice being a member of the Witch cultist just doesn’t seem like something that can be reconciled in my opinion.
But if Beatrice is not a Witch Cultist, there are many questions that need to be answered. How does she have a Gospel, and why can she read a Gospel? How was she friends with Petelgeuse, the Sin Archbishop of Gluttony? If her “Mother” is not the Witch of Envy, Satella, who is it? Does Puck calling Beatrice his little sister in Season 1 mean that they have the same “Mother”?
Ryuzu identified herself as Ryuzu Shima this time instead of Ryuzu Bilma. She was also wearing a white outfit this time compared to the black one that Ryuzu Bilma uses. Considering that the first Ryuzu Subaru met was wearing a white outfit when he was teleported by Frederica’s crystal, does that mean it was Ryuzu Shima who led Subaru to Echidna? Are Ryuzu Bilma and Ryuzu Shima split personalities or 2 separate people?
Totally agree with the laughing. That was amazing acting