Re:Zero -Starting Life in Another World-

Episode 11

Episode 11, which marks the official end of the series' second story arc, finally reveals the full truth about Ram and Rem while hinting at a few other truths, too. Despite taking a very conventional approach to doing so, and despite the truths which come out mostly being conventional, this is nonetheless another very strong episode, one which may even be emotional for some. Likeable characters paired with superior execution can make even the most trite concepts work, and this episode is an excellent example of that.

The core of the episode is Rem's introspection as she replays her and Ram's back story, which takes up the first third of the episode. We've always had distinct indicators that Rem has an inferiority complex towards Ram, and prior to this point seemingly without good reason since she is by far the more capable of the two. Here we see why: it was Ram's early display of power which saved the two from being killed as infants, and Ram who was the prodigy at power use early on. Rem could never match her on that, so she tried to compensate by doing other things well, but she always lived in her sister's shadow and felt that was her proper place. Ram lost her horn fighting off individuals who attacked and burned her village; safe to assume that they were probably witch cultists, since those have been mentioned before. That's not what Rem has really regretted, though. She instead hates herself for having momentarily felt happy that Ram had gotten knocked down a pegs, and so has been punishing herself ever since. (We can also see from that why Ram is annoyed by her sister deprecating herself; she has always tried to discourage her from doing that.)

Again, there's nothing really all that unusual about this by anime standards, but those are still some deep emotional wounds to contend with. That's something that Ram alone can't heal, either, because she is actually unwittingly part of the problem. That task instead falls to Subaru, though to complete the task properly he also has to survive a final encounter with the ulgram. While using his “ace in the hole” – i.e., his shadow magic – isn't enough, it does get the attention of Roswaal, who arrives just in time to finish the job. Thereafter his conversation with Rem – which doesn't drag like some of his spiels have, as in this case he needs nearly every word – completes her story. His emphasis on getting Rem to look ahead rather than always looking back strikes a deep chord, and the ensuing scene where Rem finally smiles is simply beautiful. Great musical support also contributes, but most of the credit goes down to Subaru showing that the charm he was given is easily his most powerful weapon.

That's not the only neat touch, though. We also get to see what that scene with Ram laying in Roswaal's arms in a darkened room is really about (and it had occurred to me that Ram was laying out an awful lot of power a few episodes back for an oni who had lost the source of her power), and the suspicion that some viewers had brought up about how the one girl was conspicuously not shown after being rescued is brought up; that wasn't just an oversight after all. And my, that was a charged statement about Roswaal's true objective, wasn't it? Sorting out what, exactly, that means will give fans considerable fodder to ponder. I also thought coming back to Subaru's request for a date with Emilia was a perfect finishing move. After all, it's a scene Subaru has had before, but this time nothing is going to get in the way. . . presumably?

Finally, I don't praise the artistic effort all the much, but it is also an unsung hero of the series. The shot selections and overlays used in the scene where Ram and Rem's village burns (see the screen shot for an example) are such an amazing visual effort that they deserve special mention, too. But that's just part of what makes this a quality effort overall.

Rating: A

Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.