I don’t want him to suffer any more.
Impression
Why? Why does this keep happening? He didn’t even see who it was! If at least… if at least he’d seen his killer, then it’d be somewhat worth it, right? Fucking hell. I will admit, it’s not like I wasn’t expecting him to die at least a couple more times – but it’s really not very pleasant to have his death happen at the end of a relatively happy episode. I thought we’d get through a nice episode for once, and all of a sudden we’re treated to Subaru’s most gruesome death thus far. I understand what the happiness is there for now. It’s only there to plunge you into more despair at the end of an episode.
I feel like this episode and the one last week were almost identical in nature. Not identical in events, but I don’t think I’ve learnt any more than Subaru has about why things are happening the way they are. I suppose from his point of view, he’s confirmed that the loop has reset due to his death and not because the trigger has changed. But other than that, has Subaru learnt anything? Have we learnt anything? Are we supposed to have gathered something from this loop? At best, I can make a few educated guesses. First, the most notable thing is how things aren’t playing out the same way each time. Is that Subaru’s fault, or is it some sort of chaos theory thing where small random changes will end up producing universes where the loop will start in subtly different ways each time? In the end, Subaru thinks it played out identically in the first loop, but we only ever saw the main events in that – the first line by the shopkeeper about the apples, then the muggers in the alley (and their presence is as constant as is Roswaal returning to the mansion when he did). I don’t think he ever tried to speak to the same people in the same way and gauged how similar their reactions were.
At any rate, the fact that he didn’t react and do things exactly the same way as he did before has definitely resulted in an irreversible change for this loop, right from the outset. Emilia-tan is still an angel, and Puck is still a cute, and their responses to him aren’t likely to change all that much even if he interacts with them slightly differently between loops. But it’s different with Ram and Rem. Waking up and fantasizing about lewd things while staring at them is a very different reaction to waking up aghast, asking strange questions and running off immediately in a supposedly unfamiliar place. It makes him a hell of a lot more suspicious, basically. Subaru didn’t get the tour and have his measurements taken this time – as events they’re not particularly significant per se, but in doing that Ram and Rem were indicating a willingness to be around him and interact with him on a personal level, and that was no longer the case.
He did get to know them both over the next few days, but I can’t help but feel that their changed first impression of him had an impact of some sort – and it was also weird that he got closer with Ram than he did the first time. At least, that’s what it seemed like given how talkative she was. In the first loop he did the sewing stuff with Rem, but this time he was taught how to read and write by Ram and most of the banter was focused on her. He eventually developed his relatiobship with Rem too, but I can’t help but feel that he’s saying something wrong by constantly questioning the relationship and dynamic between her and her sister. I guess there was that demon comment which earned him a smile, although I don’t know what the significance of that is. Are they demons? I thought this was a cute girl, not a demon.
Assuming it was either Ram or Rem, I’m thinking his killer might actually change depending on which twin he got closest to. We never saw how he died in the first loop, so we have no idea whether the method of death was the same – whether whatever caused him to vomit was supposed to be enough to kill him, or whether it would only incapacitate him and require someone to finish him off by hand. But that’s only a malleable theory when you know who killed him, and I was hoping we’d learn that this time. And I still don’t understand why, if it really was them, they waited so long to kill him. Why bother teaching him to read and write if they think he’s a spy? Why give him more chances to allow him to do damage or discover something he shouldn’t if they think he’s suspicious? If they planned to kill him within a few days, then why go to all the extra effort? Unless, of course, they didn’t plan to kill him initially and something on one of the later days changed that. I think he died after the same number of days each time (it wasn’t explicitly said, but he was reviewing his loop as if he’d gotten to a crucial turning point). Why that number of days? Does it have anything to do with the promise?
I want to see Emilia-tan in a field of flowers too, believe me. Subaru has to get through this, for both of our sakes.
Ahhh this show is just suffering… I should have known after last week that this episode wouldn’t end on a positive note. Poor Subaru 🙁 I’m pretty sure this death must have been different from last week’s since there was no indication that Subaru woke up last time. It’s possible that he only woke up this time since he was trying to stay awake anyway, but I think it’s more likely that he was killed a different way.
I was really suspicious of Roswald after last week’s episode, but he was really friendly in this episode. Not that that means anything, necessarily, but he seemed too comfortable around Subaru to kill him.
I heard that there’s a clue in the ending about who killed Subaru. I’m still not entirely sure, but it might be some kind of monster? I don’t know if you noticed, but there was this noise right before Subaru got his arm chopped off and then again right before he was killed. It sounded like chains. It could have been part of the soundtrack, but it got louder just as Subaru turned, as if he was turning in the direction of the sound.
Subaru is suffering so much he is even crying and runs into the library and is breaking down. Even Emilia is seeing the worries on his face of “am I really going to survive this night”. This author likes to make him suffer by showing us a “perfect day” first only to let him die and have literally the worst days of his life.
But holy molly the curse to make him suffer and throw up and the camera work.. nicely done
One can never be too sure of who is a friend and who is a foe seeing how Ram and Rem were reacting the entire time because he went off as he pleases (especially how it seems that something minor as his hair is bothering HER SISTER)
Seeing in which time we are and it’s a castle, think of something metallic and heavy considering how you could hear the metallic noise coming closer and closer while he was on the ground.
If you think this is suffering, how much must it hurt to see someone you grow to love is trying to kill you.. just the thought makes me wanna cry TT_TT
I was somehow hoping Betty had remembered the loops when he ran into the library. I know it’s impossible (as far as we know) but I really wanted someone to be there for him at that point.
The sisters are extremely protective of each other. It’s shown more with Rem right now, but if either of them thinks he’s going to harm the other (or worse, that he HAS harmed the other) they WILL kill him, no matter how close he may have become to them.
“Is that Subaru’s fault, or is it some sort of chaos theory thing where small random changes will end up producing universes where the loop will start in subtly different ways each time?”
The former. Everything proceeds exactly the same prior to the moment where he restarts. Or rather, it doesn’t proceed “the same,” exactly, because it only happened once. There is no opportunity for that segment of time to change. It is only after his restarts where changes can occur, and because he is the only thing in these timelines that is aware of the previous timelines and can thus act independently of them, all changes that occur are a result of his actions or inactions. Note, this IS still a chaos theory sort of thing: a tiny thing he does or doesn’t do can have a massive effect apparently all out of proportion to its significance.
Anyway, something important to notice here is that the M.O. was different in these two deaths. In the first iteration of this cycle, Subaru died without ever waking up. Something snuffed his life out without ever waking him up. I would say that the effect that he was struggling against before being killed this time; the thing that made him vomit and all the rest; is probably a good suspect for that. Had it come on him while he was asleep it could likely have stopped his breathing and/or his heart without giving him any chance to struggle. In this second iteration, however, he was killed extremely violently, in a death accompanied by the sound of metal chains. Someone attacked him directly this time, likely using a weapon.
Just… think about that.
Lastly:
“I don’t want him to suffer any more.”
…Um… he has not yet hit the low point for this cycle. He’s got some distance yet to plummet down the well of despair before he starts to try to climb back out. Just… warning you.
What?! He hasn’t hit the low point? Has the arc still got several more episodes to go? I assumed it was nearly over since the last arc ended at Episode 3.
I see, so the only variable is his actions. It’s very perplexing that he was killed in a totally different way. It’s not like he did anything differently to make whoever killed him perceive him as enough of a threat to change their methods. Or was it significant that he walked out of the room? Was the source of the metal chains headed for his room anyway? Or does the different MO imply that it wasn’t the same person who killed him this time?
I do wish we’d learned a bit more in this loop. If the next episode isn’t ending the arc then they’re really maintaining a tense pacing.
While the light novels are well past this point, the manga, which is currently ongoing, has not finished this arc yet. But let me see… He went through the first iteration of this cycle where he died in his sleep unaware. He went through the second iteration where he tried to ingratiate himself to the twins, knew some stuff he shouldn’t have known (which made him seem suspicious), stayed awake so he didn’t die in his sleep, and was killed violently in the hallway by SPOILER because SPOILER. He’s got at least a third, fourth, and fifth iteration to go through, and I don’t know yet if he solves things on the fifth or not.
He gets REALLY depressed in the fourth, though. It’s… bad.
As for not seeming to do things differently enough to explain why he died so differently, remember what I said about chaos. A small, seemingly insignificant action that he does or doesn’t perform in exactly the same way can end up causing a massively different result. Say the wrong or right words to the wrong or right person at the wrong or right time. Spend more time with someone than he did before. Spend a specific time with someone that he didn’t before. Know something that he didn’t used to know. Stay awake on the last night, and thus be able to fight off the effect that killed him in the first iteration, rather than being asleep and just dying: resulted in him staggering out into the hallway and being killed by SPOILER for reasons that may or may not have existed the first time.
Despite the time-loop, he cannot perfectly recreate the exact scenario he faced in the first iteration, which really makes his life difficult when it comes to looking for clues. In the first arc the circumstances surrounding the murders were largely independent of his actions: Elsa would show up at Rom’s place no matter what Subaru did, and would kill every there anyway, so the problem wasn’t whodunit, but rather “how do I stop it?” But now he’s gotten out of the tutorial and is up against a real mystery, and he’s going to have to work harder if he wants to get everyone through this in one piece.
BTW, I’m avoiding answering some of your questions simply because there’s no way to answer them without outright spoilers. Especially with a series like this I don’t want to give away specifics.
Re Zero was voted the 2nd most popular anime of this season in a recent poll from Japan.(Kabaneri was 1st, Kumamiko was 3rd.)
https://www.reddit.com/r/anime/comments/4h3rw8/japan_spring_2016_anime_popularity_poll/
Hmm, that’s really interesting. I was about to complain about the lack of Flying Witch in the top 3 before I clicked and saw it was 4th. I still think it should be 1st by a clear margin.
Kabaneri is as expected, really. I expected a discount Shingeki (i.e. Owari no Seraph) and got a premium Shingeki. It’s widely accessible, has semen demons and is bloody enough to leave an impact. It seems to be all Wit Studio can do, like what Type-Moon is to ufotable, but it worked this time. I’m surprised Re:Zero is 2nd, I think it’s very interesting and I always have a lot to say, but I know some people have an antagonistic predisposition towards isekai and so I didn’t think it’d poll that high.
I’m pleased Haifuri is well-regarded (for what it is). Netoge is a little high, but it’s top-tier pandering (and Schwein is very cute). As for the others, I expected Jojo and BnHA to be higher, especially as it’s a popularity poll. Kiznaiver is exactly where it should be, it’s a disappointment given that it’s Trigger and Okada Mari (who’s probably having more fun with Mayoiga to be honest). Sinbad no Bouken was effectively killed by Netflix, which is a shame as I thought its first episode was really good.
Speaking of Netflix, were you able to check out the 1st 4 eps of Kuromukuro? If you have, how’d you find it?
I’m probably complicating matters more than need be, but all I can think of is that this is a politically related killing… (separate from the whole spy suspicion since that’s political too) well, not to the point that the theories present by all of you are impossible in my mind. I, too, wondered about the ‘twins’ being demons, since Betty isn’t human either – is she a spirit like Puck? And did she or did she not acknowledge Subaru coming to the library more than once the second time he restarted in the bed…?
I’m late with a lot of the shows that are being reviewed since I’ve made a point of watching anime with my younger siblings this season, haha. Can’t say I’m better with children than Subaru though!
She did, but only because the save point is where he woke up in bed a second time after being drained by Betty. His first encounter with her (when he woke up alone) will always be a constant in every loop this arc because it happened right before the save point. It’s why I’m hoping he makes an ally in her, since she’s the only non-Emilia mansion inhabitant he’ll be guaranteed to have an acquaintance in from the very outset.
I’m always a little wary of watching anime with siblings! I used to when I was younger (and when I watched mostly mainstream stuff) but it’d be embarrassing if they ever find out just how far down the rabbit hole I’ve fallen. It’d be awkward if they ever learn the… things I’m partial to, so I tend to avoid anime discussions with them. The last time I mentioned it was when I told my little sister that Sidonia was worth watching.
Ahhh~ thank you for that clarification. I do wonder if he could ever escape death by hopping into her library, but his intuition probably isn’t too sharp when he’s focusing on just not dying, with fighting having long since stopped being an option.
Lament for Sidonia – it had so much more to offer. Being the oldest it’s definitely a matter I overlook as seriously as I do affectionately. It simply feels better than just telling my brother about good shows and leaving him to his fate (he’s rather impressed with Re:Zero), or leaving my sister with the “when you’re older” reasoning (thank goodness this season has Anne-Happy!)
I thought about the library thing too, but would that be enough to protect him? Might they just try again the next night? Betty is still a guest in Roswaal’s mansion in the end, I don’t think she’d go against him to protect Subaru because (i) he probably has a (perceived) justification for killing him and (ii) she’s only fleetingly known Subaru for a few days herself.
Re:Zero is one of the more popular shows this season, and probably rightly so. Anne-Happy is a decent CGDCT, although I think it’s sadly overshadowed by having to share a season with Sansha Sanyou and Flying Witch. Those two are very child-friendly too!