Forum - View topicThe Villain in the Mirror: Subaru Natsuki and Betelgeuse
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Kougeru
 Posts: 5530 |
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Great write-up. Really was a well-written character...I did hate his overall design tho lol
Also, FWIW his name is Petelgeuse. Crunchyroll had his name wrong for the entirety of Season 1, but they seemed to have corrected it in Season 2...though Pack's name is still wrongly being subbed as Puck. Can see the correct names on the official site: http://re-zero-anime.jp/tv/character/ |
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killjoy_the
 Posts: 2460 |
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I would've had more faith in this kind of interpretation if the first episode of the second season didn't introduce two enemies just as obnoxious as Betelgeuse. So rather than Betelgeuse being reflective of Subaru's traits in particular, it just seems like that's the kind of villain the author writes.
EDIT: Still really liked the article though. Last edited by killjoy_the on Fri Jul 17, 2020 2:15 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Yttrbio
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ThatGuyWhoLikesThings
Posts: 1010 |
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While it is a plot point that the Archbishops (and Subaru) are named after different stars, Petelgeuse is a bit of an odd exception to this. His name is a deliberate misspelling of the Betelgeuse star, and when asked in a Q&A why that is, the author said that it would be explained at a later point in the novels. Also Puck is actually the correct name for the little cat spirit.
Just because all the Archbishops are crazy, doesn't mean they're all the same brand of crazy. Regulus in particular is basically just Ben Shapiro if he was an evil cultist (so basically just Ben Shapiro). Lye might seem like another Petelgeuse but we've only also known him for 3 minutes, so we can't know that for sure. And the text from the light novel also makes it explicit that Petelgeuse was written as a twisted, corrupted foil to Subaru. Last edited by ThatGuyWhoLikesThings on Fri Jul 17, 2020 3:20 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Zalis116
Moderator
 Posts: 6871 Location: Kazune City |
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I can't think it merely coincidental that P/Betelgeuse is played by Yoshitsugu Matsuoka, whom we'd normally expect to see as the male lead in isekai harem/power-fantasy wish fulfillment anime.
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Yuvelir
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I remember that shocking moment. I don't believe for a second that casting was a coincidence. |
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AnimeFlyz
Posts: 367 |
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[expletive] Ben Shapiro??? 
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Blood-
 Bargain Hunter Posts: 23822 |
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I'm not really sure I buy the Subaru/Betelguese mirror image thing, but the article was an excellent reminder of why I wanted to punch Subaru in the face so often in Season 1.
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Agent355
 Posts: 5113 Location: Crackberry in hand, thumbs at the ready... |
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I like the takeaway that the biggest value of Rem’s confession was Subaru finally learning to listen to another person’s perspective—even if it was about himself. Which isn’t a knock; it’s hard for people who are prone to self loathing/low self esteem and fear of rejection to appreciate their positive qualities fully. And Subaru’s rejection of Rem is actually selfless, because at that point in the story it would be easier to run away with her—and leave their allies for dead.
I like the parallel of Subaru and P/Betelgeuse, if only because it adds credence to the theory that Subaru might be an archbishop or potential archbishop himself. It will be interesting to see if the other archbishops exhibit isekai protagonist archetypes... |
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DuskyPredator
 Posts: 15493 Location: Brisbane, Australia |
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The archbishop of Sloth really did feel like a warning of what a character like Subaru could become if he let his most toxic impulses take over. I remember really liking it all as a confrontation of that sort of toxicity that otaku can have, and shouldn't be held up as a good thing. Lest our brain tremble.
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HoshizoranoUtage
Posts: 53 |
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Same. I dropped the series after season 1 because I couldn't stand Subaru's possessive "nice guy" personality and Rem's complete lack of a personality besides obsessive hero-worshiping of first her sister, then Subaru. It didn't help that P/Betelgeuse was super annoying. I randomly checked out "The Frozen Bond" OVA (AKA Emilia and Puck's backstory) and that was actually very good, but it could be because Puck was one of the few characters I liked, and all the many characters I didn't hardly showed up in it. Maybe the main series gets better, but I don't think I'll be sticking around to find out... |
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