English Dub Review: Re: ZERO ~Starting Life in Another World~ “Choose Me“

Overview (Spoilers Below):

The villagers greet Emilia who tells her that the snow and how Puck helped shield them from the cold. Emilia entrusts one of the villagers to get them into the graveyard while she goes to the tree of ice which leads her to the Ryuzu crystal and the dozens of Ryuzu clones. Ryuzu Shima then disappears with the crystal and Emilia goes to the injured Ram and hopeless Roswaal. The Great Rabbit soon finds them and Emilia holds them off as the Ryuzu clones drag Roswaal and Ram to the villagers.

Meanwhile, Subaru opens the doors to the mansion to get Beatrice. She recalls her mother and those that came upon her library including Subaru. Subaru reaches Beatrice who pushes him out but Subaru continues to go into the library. His speech about wanting to stay by her stops her magical outrage, but she pushes him out to the entrance of the mansion as her library fractures. He goes to the final door of the mansion and convinces her at last to choose him. They escape the fire and head to the Sanctuary. Emilia nearly freezes as she’s protecting everyone in the Sanctuary, but Subaru and Beatrice arrive as the Great Rabbit closes in on them.

Our Take:

The week’s episode of Re: ZERO reaches the final obstacle with the mansion and Sanctuary incidents. Subaru getting Beatrice out of the mansion and Emila protecting everyone from the Great Rabbit.

Emilia’s conversation with Ryuzu leaves a bit of a mystery with Echidna speaking for one line before the Ryuzu in white speaks. It’s a bit odd to hear the dead witch after the seal to the barrier was broken by Emilia. However, that unanswered question will have to wait with the disaster of the Great Rabbit outside. Then there’s Emilia’s determination not to give up when Roswaal has no hope. He’s lost all sense of direction with the destroyed tome of wisdom that his teacher gave him. The music in time with that scene worked well to show her strength as the heroine of the story.

Beatrice’s perspective as the lonely spirit is heartbreaking. From the start of her promise with her mother to when she meets Subaru shows the strain of her wait for “that person” with Roswaal and those who found the library. The scenes do a good job of emphasizing her disappointment to Subaru’s reply. Subaru’s speech on why he doesn’t have to be “that person” for her was good. It gives Beatrice the choice to break away from that promise and make her own decisions. Even though a human’s life is short in comparison to a spirit’s he’s going to make the most of it with her and that was a sweet way to explain how he’s going to be there for her. It makes his speech about choosing him for himself even better in the latter half of the episode.

That moment is a great scene especially with how the crack grows as Subaru has his hand out towards her. Subaru’s comment about her sitting in front of the door to the library for hundreds of years was effective as the last straw to get Beatrice to choose him. It’s a subtle way of showing Beatrice’s constant wait for someone to get her out. Admittedly I wasn’t expecting them to bust out of the mansion in a pink shooting star and arrive at the Sanctuary like they do in the opening. Also, I like how Subaru is holding Beatrice’s hand when they face the Great Rabbit.

Overall it was a great episode, and now with Beatrice and Subaru about to face the Great Rabbit. The finale is going to be a good one with the upcoming action.