Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu 4th Season Episode 5

While a bit more lowkey than the first few episodes, they definitely set up a lot of intrigue and made me be like: hmmmm… Especially at the start where they just threw us the backstory of the Witch of Pride. I didn’t even realize it was her until they spelled it out for me lol. Granted, it has been a while since we last saw her. I am curious at what is the significance of showing that backstory to us other than for the sake of showing how the books worked. Not to mention this can’t be the last time we see the library, considering how the OP shows Subaru sprawled out on the library floor with a bunch of books scattered around him. There has to be a bigger significance to the books and who’s book they may need. Though it also makes me wonder if Petelgeuse’s book is in here and what would Subaru think if he read it and saw his connection to Emilia. I kinda doubt that will actually happen, but those sorts of things would be interesting to see.

Not gonna lie, it is a little hard listening to Shauna for me. Her VA is fine in her other roles, but I think it’s the combination of the way she talks and the tone she uses that just doesn’t vibe with me all that much. And while she is still annoying, I checked the EN dub and yeah, her voice feels way less grating for me. Again, no disrespect to the VA, she voices my dear Kikoru from Kaiju no.8 after all. But it’s the way she speaks that makes it hard to listen to her.

Speaking of Shauna, I’m wondering if she is a Mabeast or something. Not only is she clearly not human considering how old she is, but she also strongly rejected the notion she’s a spirit. So my guess lands on a Mabeast since she seems to get along really well with Meili and they have constantly made a point to emphasize Meili in the background whey they were talking about what Shauna is. Earlier in the episode, they even put a spotlight on Meili as she talked about her past a little bit and how Mabeast naturally gravitate towards her. With the amount of attention they’re giving her, it feels blatantly obvious at this point that Shauna most likely will reveal she’s a Mabeast later on. For all we know, Meili probably already knows that she is a Mabeast, considering her expression while walking in on their discussion about what Shauna is. And I guess I was right that she probably will be a reason for some if not a lot of deaths this season considering the contract she has. Which is probably why she didn’t seem particularly keen on the notion of “not harming anyone” even if Subaru made her promise. Especially since they wouldn’t specifically state this information and having the group somehow not break any of the rules. They’re bound to break them at some point, which will likely lead to a cruel and unusual death because this is Re:zero.

We are then introduced to the next part of the test and also the person proctoring it, who is most likely the ancestor of the Astrea family and the guy that Shauna claims is a bully and a jerk. Guy has red hair and blue eyes, that’s literally been the staple features of all Astrea family members. While Shauna’s earlier descriptions of the guy is true, there have been moments that had me cackling. After gawking at the girls, him quickly glossing over the others who he wasn’t interested in had me rolling. Though it does also have me wondering if Julius’ family had a connection to this guy considering he keeps referring to Julius being similar to his “follower.” I’m not sure if we know anything or the history between Reinhard and Julius’ family, but we could find that there could be a deeper connection between the two families. Not sure how important that information would be, but I guess we’ll have to see lol. In any case, the guy gives me Rengoku’s dad vibes and considering he is probably the first Astrea, he is probably a force to be reckoned with. Not sure if he’ll cause any deaths, but he probably has the power if he wanted to. I’m excited to see Julius in action again and if he can even stand a chance against this guy. Lots of set up for potential reveals and foreshadowing. Though I worry things will hit the fan next episode since the past couple episodes have been fairly lowkey.