Re:Zero -Starting Life in Another World-

Episode 20

Crusch's butler Wilhelm always gave the impression of being very strong, but after seeing episode 20, I don't think any description short of “utterly badass” would be appropriate. He isn't the only one either; just about all of the named characters other than Subaru show off impressive combat abilities, even Crusch with her ranged sword attack. Too bad it's not enough against a menace like the White Whale.

Still, Wilhelm is the one to get the feature treatment this time. There's nothing particularly special about his flashbacks to meeting his wife; she was gorgeous to be sure, and her ability as the Master Swordsman was definitely not overstated. Though she made his dream to protect people possible by saving his life, he was also initially put off by her because he (incorrectly) thought she was mocking him. However, we don't get to see how he overcame that disgust to fulfill his promise to “take her sword away” by marrying her, nor do we get more details about how she met her fate. This is why I feel confident that he isn't actually dead when the White Whale swallows him at the end of the episode. Even shows that delight in telling characters' backstories right before they die (I'm looking at you, Bleach and Naruto) at least finish the job, and this series has never dropped the ball to such a degree.

I guess I shouldn't be surprised that the battle against the White Whale is going to take more than one full episode. All the damage that the attackers inflicted early on did seem too easy, and I did find it curious that it was just basically floating there and taking the abuse. By the episode's halfway point, we have a better picture of just how tough this monster is. It can partly diffuse the impact of attacks against it, generate its own fog, use a special fog blast that eliminates things from existence, and send out a mental fog that drives people mad. And that's entirely beside its ability to swallow people whole. Then another surprise awaits in the episode's last shot: there's apparently more than one whale.

As good as the plan for confronting the White Whale was, and as effective as everyone's attacks are, I'm having trouble imagining how Subaru and company will get out of this situation now, unless those additional whales are just shadows of the original rather than separate creatures. Still, this doesn't feel like an impending reset situation, so I guess we'll have to wait and see what the good guys pull out of their asses next episode. The musical underscoring all the action was great as usual, and the animation was pretty good, though the episode was probably most effective when the whale's fog created a literal “fog of war” situation. All in all, it was not as crisp as some of the top action scenes in recent years (it never achieves the dramatic heights of the Goliath battle from DanMachi for instance), but it was still an exciting affair nonetheless.

There was one brief but possibly important scene that might be easy to lose track of amidst the action and flashbacks. When Subaru deliberately triggers the Return by Death feedback this time, we don't get spectral claws grasping at him; we instead get the lower half of the face of a woman with blue lips whispering to him. I think that should kill any speculation that a force other than the Jealous Witch is behind the time loops, but why did this different effect occur now? It's as big a mystery takeaway from this episode as the extra flying whales.

Rating: B+

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