"Sooner or later a hero will appear. And all the pain and suffering that his complacency and conceit have caused the world, will be well known to him, the one and only hero, Natsuki Subaru."
I hope this review will be able to answer all questions you need to know about this series.
>Re:Zero Kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu
In few words, a tale of a hero. From the beginning. His entire trajectory, in a humanized way. An initially pathetic young man becoming a great hero, capable of carrying the dreams of others. Re:Zero tells you the chronicles of an another world, but also the tale of Natsuki Subaru.
Re:Zero is different from the others in the Isekai genre. It does things that others normally don't, and although it's a fantasy light novel story, it's dark and psychological, but deep down it's that great remnant of hope and determination. I can start with the complex and very well created, in a masterful way, Natsuki Subaru. At various times in the Novel, Subaru's situation is explored.
Sensitivity, lack of self-esteem, constant search for recognition, defensive behavior. A total inferiority complex. In several moments of this story, the behavior of our protagonist is explored. It's all told spectacularly, his selfishness and how he saw the heroine Emilia in a distorted way, "things would only work out for her if I was there."
This was the protagonist of our series. Although intelligent and strategic, he was extremely emotional and his psychological side was very weak. The story will teach you how Subaru faces these problems and in an EXTREMELY detailed way, everything that went through Subaru's head. It's AMAZING how well written this character is. And yes, it's the best character of this series. The author was so determined to write Subaru in almost perfect way that the first 4 arcs are exclusively character development and a large part of them are experiencing the protagonist's mind. From arc 4 a transition will begin, that is, the writer will go beyond exploring Subaru, actually starting to develop the world he created, which had potential since the beginning.
The genius way the writer initially makes the world of Re:Zero revolve around just the Subaru is fantastic. That's the mainly reason why the mystery of this series works so well and mostly as a shock factor. You don't know the world at first, you only know the form Subaru sees the world. The way the mystery is written all to lead to a great shock later on is one of the most unique characteristics of the author. He doesn't reveal anything at first, but everything happens. Everything happens and you get lost. You get lost, which is the fascinating part, your brain will want to understand the situation... and then slowly with the other various loops everything connects. And finally, this is how the author shows you how it all worked since the beginning.
>So you said that until arc 3 it's all about introducing the world of Re:Zero and Subaru's psychological issues and development, so what's it like from there?
Down the road things changed, though, and that may have caused people to dislike Re:Zero after S1 anime (and after Vol 9). Exactly because as I said, the author bet on developing his world and characters beyond Subaru. I honestly loved the choice, as there are beautiful stories in Re:Zero besides the main one, like Wilhelm's story, which is one of the best moments in the series. That's why you'll find people who found the S2 disappointing, many of them thought Re:Zero was only about Subaru, but later on, Tappei proved it wasn't quite like that.
And that's why Re:Zero Arc 4 changed the series forever.
From here the author will reveal the past of several important characters that became essential to the plot, including Emilia's past. Now the characters aren't blank slates in a story where the focus was only on Subaru, now they're real characters, well explored and developed. Rem, Roswaal, Garfield, Ram, Otto, Beatrice (!) and then later the Astrea house. I've only read until Arc 5, so I don't know beyond that. Please give me a minute to congratulate the great writer Tappei Nagatsuki for being able to write characters so well. A round of applause
If Tappei knows how to write Natsuki Subaru well, you can be sure that he is a maestro in writing the other characters.
Arc 4 is my favorite in the series so far. Magical in every aspect and the arc that made me definitely say Re:Zero is a masterpiece. Light Novel is a very difficult medium to have consistency, there are several volumes, extensive stories, but Re:Zero manages to leave a highly elevated level all the time, which few can. This arc transforms Emilia into a character she's never been before, which is why she's one of my favorite characters. To be honest, I can't tell you which Vol is my favorite one, because I don't know. Each one is so great, but so great, that I've difficulties to find the best one.
From here the worldbuilding starts to be much more detailed than before, great past connections between characters and the world map of Re:Zero is also revealed. The author bets on presenting many characters and everyone becomes important to the series, including the previous ones.
Arc 4 Rem Spoiler, click to viewThis also includes the writer's smart decision to drop Rem from the story from the end of arc 3 onwards. Rem was always supporting Subaru, a very convenient feature. Rem herself is the embodiment of the otaku ideal, a kawaii and very helpful maid who is willing to love you unconditionally. By taking her out of the picture, Tappei forced Subaru to mature and become less dependent on her. And also learn the hard lesson that you can't save everyone and that not everything in life is how we want it.
Not to mention, my favorite scene and chapter in the series so far:
Arc4 Illustration Spoiler, click to view
The apex of Re:Zero, in my opinion. Echidna shows Subaru hypothetically what several worlds would be like after his death. The way the characters' reactions are so richly detailed is incredible. You can feel the anguish of the parallel in which Subaru commits suicide, or the fascinating parallel where Reinhard fights Pack on the left.
The entire arc 5 itself has an out-of-the-box focus, a focus that isn't on Subaru but on the other characters. What surprised me even more is that there's a chapter entirely narrated by another character. Re:Zero Arc 5 is the most emotional arc in the series, truly beautiful, romantic and dramatic, showing us the complete story of the Astrea family. I managed not to get emotional in some parts, because it was a very beautiful piece of writing. Again, the ideas Tappei has are difficult to execute. He manages to create a narrative both dark and hopeful with both parts being awesome. It's a GREAT merit. You need to be an amazing writer to do it.
And ultimately, the hero's great determination. The path Natsuki Subaru chose. Arc 5 will show a different Subaru for the reader, truly a developed character that is now inevitably a hero who carries with him heroic dreams of others.
>Should I read the Light Novel or the Web Novel?
I recommend Webnovel, where there are many more details. Re:Zero is a tale rich in details and they're very important to build the thriller and suspense scenes.
>Thoughts about Re:Zero's anime?
One of the only light novel adaptations in existence that's definitely good. Even though it cuts out a lot of the detail, a lot of the explanation, and a lot of the worldbuilding, Re:Zero is such a good, consistent story that it still manages to look good in anime.
>Rem or Emilia?
The person who really likes Re:Zero should have the sense to like them both, especially if it's a LN reader. And this isn't waifu war, it's a tale of a hero. Spoiler, click to viewThere are monologues within the work explaining that even Subaru loves the two characters, but prefers Emilia. Subaru is forever grateful to Rem, the girl who saved him. Rem is almost important as Emilia for Subaru. He doesn't compare them, and you too shouldn't.
>Re:Zero map?
For those who want to see it Spoiler, click to view
Yes the world is flat, with big waterfalls at the end
For all this, I thank firstly Tappei Nagatsuki for creating my favorite Light Novel series. I discovered Re:Zero back in 2016, when its initial episodes were still airing, and from then until now, I've been a huge appreciator of the title. I've always been a big fan of hero stories as well. Re:Zero is done efficiently, its thriller, suspense, mystery, romance, comedy, etc.
Possibly this year I'll read arc 6, and depending on how ReZero will end someday, it may rise even more positions in my ranking of favorite series. It gets full marks in almost every aspect.
Narrative gets full marks, and the cast also gets full marks (exactly, the way in which from arc 4 onwards the characters were so amazing even though they already had potential before make me give them the full score) And of course, I've nothing to complain about the artist. It's perfect.
Long live Re:Zero, and may it keep a masterpiece until the end of this tale.
> "Look at that boy! He's so weak and fragile, a breath could blow him away, and he's unarmed! He's a powerless boy whose defeat I have seen with my own eyes! He's weaker than anyone else here! Yet he's shouting louder than anyone that we can still do this. So how can we sit around, looking at the ground? If our weakest man hasn't given up, how is it acceptable for us to kneel in defeat? Did you all come this far to wallow in shame?!"
> "Having defeated the last enemy, there was still one goal for our hero; each passing second, his sense of desperation and urgency only grew to, in one final stride, protect the one he loved. Memories of all the pain, the suffering, the failures, and of the promise he made; he believed in himself, just like the demon maid who loved him believed. - 'I'm going to save you', he said with solemn determination and conviction.
> "There is no time for weaknesses. Stop dreaming. And we'll have our holy meeting one day in heaven."
> For as long as we all can remember, we have believed in one thing. When we stopped believing in gods and fairytales, we remained ever faithful to the idea that heroes DO exist. That is why we tell stories good and evil. To show people are just equally capable of being heroes as we are playing the villains. Heroes do much that gods never do; they protect, heal, teach, and inspire inner greatness that hide with in us. That we need heroes must never let them go extinct. As beautiful and amazing our existence is, it is also dangerous and cruel. As long as heroes remain, if they forever stand strong, then evil never truly triumph. They lose. Even in the rarity villains do win, eventually the triumph will be ours.
