English Dub Review: Legend of the Galactic Heroes: Die Neue These; “Farewell to the Days of Old”

 

 

 

Overview (Spoilers Below)

During Reinhard’s celebration after the end of the civil war, tragedy strikes, and his admirals are forced to make his next move for him.

Our Take

The usual pattern of switching between Empire and Alliance is broken in this episode, as we return to the Empire once again. 

 As Kircheis enters the audience chamber for Reinhard’s celebratory event, he is asked to surrender his weapon. He questions the guard on this, as his high rank usually affords him to keep his weapon on him. The guard is insistent and Kircheis relents, beginning to doubt himself and the strain he may have placed on his relationship with Reinhard. Unfortunately, he is not granted enough time to fully consider this doubt. 

Reinhard’s celebration consists of him sitting on his dias far above everyone else in the room as the prisoners of the recently ended war are paraded in front of him, where he then decides their fate. One of the prisoners brought out is Ansbach, the adjutant of Count Braunschweig, whose corpse he is bringing into the room as a morbid gift to Reinhard. Swearing violent revenge against Reinhard, Ansbach has boldly hidden a rocket launcher in Braunschweig’s coffin and quickly brandishes it against Reinhard. 

The adjutant misses by a wide margin, and in the shock, only Kircheis (for some reason) seems to have his wits and tackles Ansbach. Kircheis is able to stop him but as his final act, Ansbach fires a concealed laser beam into Kircheis, fatally wounding him. 

Kircheis faces his final moments and decides to use his remaining time to discard all of his doubts regarding Reinhard, encouraging him to pursue his dream of conquest. Having lived his life for Reinhard’s sake, and now having died for it too, Kircheis is content with what he has done with his short life. Reinhard is emotionally devastated and is unable to accept Kircheis’ death, wailing impotently like a child.

In the aftermath of this tragedy, Reinhard has completely forbidden contact with the capital planet and has been grieving privately for three straight days while his men toil in silence. Growing increasingly worried over the inaction, his admirals only now begin to consider consulting Oberstein. Their reticence may be well earned, as they seem to imply that Oberstein’s disdain for Kircheis’ position may have inspired Reinhard to doubt Kircheis, which is what very well may have tragically lead to his death. After careful consideration, they resolve to consult Oberstein as he conveniently appears in the meeting room.

Oberstein’s plan is twofold; he will contact Annerose against Reinhard’s wishes, while the admirals will pin the assassination attempt on a scapegoat. Oberstein decides to blame the incident on Prime Minister Lichtenlade, merely out of sheer convenience. The Prime Minister has always been suspected of holding ulterior motives to Reinhard’s ascension and his removal will be an incredibly opportune avenue to install Reinhard as a dictator.  The plan springs into motion as Reinhard’s admirals hastily land on the capital, summarily arrest the Prime Minister, and obtain the state seal needed to assume rule over the Empire. 

While he is unknowingly being installed upon the Imperial throne, Reinhard is lucidly dreaming of the friend he has lost and the times they shared as children. He is awoken by Oberstein, who has contacted Annerose and informed her of everything. Enraged that the last of the control over what he holds dear has been wrested from him, Reinhard verbally goes off on Oberstein before he weakly gives up and faces his sister.

Annerose has sympathy for him but it is quickly overshadowed by a resolution she has made. She has decided that the best thing for Reinhard, in order for him to smoothly return to his illustrious military career, would be for her to all but exit his life as well. At first awestruck by the last person that he loves being separated from him, he then quietly accepts his fate. 

Back in control, Reinhard readily accedes the throne that’s been handed to him. He is made to choose a “punishment” for Lichtenlade; he decides upon a quick and painless death, not only for him but for all male family members above the age of nine. His bizarre reasoning being that he first thought of overthrowing the empire at the age of ten, and thus posits anyone under that age isn’t mature enough to immediately consider revenge against him. 

Despite this though, he openly welcomes all attempts from Lichtenlade’s descendants to usurp his throne. He also makes the same opportunity available to his admirals. Reinhard claims that only a strong leader can sit upon the throne, and if that isn’t him, then he should accept anyone who tries to take it from him. The ease with which the keys to the empire are tossed around is entirely unsettling. 

Reinhard’s words are ironically a variation of the “survival of the fittest” mentality, which were espoused by the emperor of old he despises. But in truth, Reinhard’s words are completely empty; merely an instigating cry, asking for a war that will fill the void in his heart. 

No doubt Reinhard will soon have his war, with the final episode building up to be possibly the most cataclysmic yet. What lengths will the hollowed Reinhard go to sate his melancholy, and how much of it will Yang be made to burden?