Re:Zero Starting Life in Another World 2 – 02 [The Next Location]

Well guess who’s back? That’s right it’s our boy Subaru to continue the Isekai rendition of those hydraulic press compression videos. Let me start the blogging of this season of Re:Zero with a disclaimer and that is that I am approaching this season from a different place than last season. Before when I saw the story unfold it was that of an anime only watcher so the story to come was a complete mystery and gave me much more leeway for speculation. However this time I have read on in the story so I know quite a lot of what is to happen though my experience is with the web novel and the Light novel adaption which this anime is following has cut down the original length of this arc. Make no mistake though that even cut down this Arc is the longest yet and even with a two cour adaption confirmed for this season, we will likely only manage to reach the end of this story Arc and no more. With that said, the fan translations of the web novel only covered up to a certain point before stopping and I do not know how this Arc ends so I certainly look forward to experiencing it as an anime only watcher. Till then I will follow my usual modus operandi where I will act as though I have not read ahead and refrain from “Speculating” story details not hinted or shown in the episode in question. I will only work with information presented anime wise and avoid mentioning spoilers with the best of care, as a solemnly swear.

If the first episode of this second season was to set Subaru back to zero by removing his accomplishments of their weight then episode two is setting the stage for the next part of the story. As such I wouldn’t consider it an eventful episode with a lot of the context being “Where is everyone? What is going on? Where are we going next? Why are we going there?” As entertainment it’s admittedly uneventful though the engaging factor is the sense of mystery around a number of things as more and more questions are added. In particular Beatrix upon learning of the death of last Arcs main antagonist, reacted with the lament “So you left me too” and referring to him by a nickname suggesting that she was on quite familiar terms with him. It’s an odd reaction as Betelgeuse was a murderous insane psychopath so for Beatrix to feel sad over his death is a rather puzzling development. Coupled with her rather extreme reaction when throwing Subaru out of the room, far more emotional than any other time she has done so. We have the introduction of a brand new character in the maid Federica, a blond haired girl with a smile a certain Lucha Libra Onee-san from Fate GO would be quite proud of. A maid called back to the mansion by Ram to care for things while they headed off to sanctuary but also because of the effects of Rem’s disappearance from people’s memories taking effect.

Ah Rem, after the end of the second story Arc I was worried that Rem was going to be pushed to the sidelines to make way for some new waifu of the Arc as many a Light novel would do only for her to become a presence so prominent that she overshadowed the main heroine of the series. She was such a powerful contender that the only competition was a land dragon called Patrasche so it is rather understandable that the writer has effectively removed her from the plot but my heart certainly isn’t happy about it. If you are feeling particularly bitter about Emilia being put in focus again then I would recommend you watch the second Re:Zero OVA(A movie length OVA called the Frozen Bond) which may not add much as far as story context but does wonders for Emilia’s characterisation and has pushed many to like her even more that Rem.(Blasphemy, that is) The interesting part of this whole Rem memory wipe is that contradictions that are now appearing in reality. In particular mentioned here is how the Mansion fell into disrepair under the care of Ram as she was never as proficient as Rem in the mansion’s upkeep yet Emilia remembers Ram being able to manage things before. But a particularly interesting development is in regards to Petra, one of the village children who was rescued during the second Arc. Now before Rems disappearance Petra did seem to have a fondness for Subaru but since the beginning of this season her feelings have suddenly intensified to the degree of a romantic interest. One could simply write this off as harem protagonist EX at work but if you take into consideration that Petra and the children were saved by Rem and Subaru, the increased affection is rather logical. After all with the removal of Rem from people’s memories, Petra now sees that Subaru came to rescue the children by himself so her becoming much more fond of him suddenly makes sense.

The episode is bookended with the reveal of Echidna, the witch of greed, who by the opening and promotional material is a central figure of this Arc. I really like that she has her own rendition of a witch theme which is very different from the rather iconic witch theme from the first season. While the theme for the witch of envy was unnerving and pavlov’s dogged into a sign of Subaru’s impending demise, Echidna’s theme is like that of a discordant orchestra beginning a performance. There is a certain sophistication, coupled with her dress and mannerism, which gives the impression that Echidna is a more upper class lady but an unsettling tone that suggests something sinister. I honestly wasn’t expecting her appearance so soon as in the web novel she did not appear until they had entered the sanctuary but it seems the item given to them to bypass it has been used as a convenient tool to make an earlier appearance. But her appearance may come as a surprise to begin with seeing as by knowledge from the first season, the other witches representing the seven sins were eaten by the witch of Envy so this could mean that the book detailing that didn’t mean eaten is a literal sense and perhaps it has something to do with this “witch factor” described by Beatrix. Either way her smug smile makes a welcome addition to the cast and I look forward to what she might bring to the story.