Rokudenashi Majutsu Koushi to Akashic Records – 06

With its sixth episode, Akashic Records has unfolded in a steady pattern: a first episode of setup (in this case the magical competition) a second episode that raises the stakes (the attempted plot to kill Rumia) and a satisfying third episode that brings everything together with style and panache.

Last week ended with Re=L trying to kill Glenn, but that’s just her nature: rush in headfirst without thinking. Fortunately for Glenn and Rumia, Albert is there to hold Re=L back, and the two court mages decide to help their old buddy out with protecting Rumia and foiling the Imperial Guard’s plot.

Many times, we cut away from the end of the competition to Glenn simply running from the Guard with Rumia in his arms. Albert and Re=L take over for Glenn, with Albert saying everything Glenn would say if he was there, keeping Class 2’s heads in the game. Everyone performs like he hoped when he selected them, including Sisti, who makes use of his altered spell advice to defeat her opponent in a duel and grasp victory.

From there, a nifty little twist takes place: the representatives of the winning class get to be presented their award by Queen Alicia herself. In this case, that’s Albert and Re=L…only it ISN’T. Albert and Re=L switched places with Glenn and Rumia back when they met, using self-illusion magic to assume each other’s forms.

That puts Glenn, The Fool, right where he needs to be to (quietly) unleash his Fool’s World spell, nullifying the conditional cursed necklace around Alicia’s neck. Before that, Alicia has to say some very harsh lies about ordering Rumia’s execution and that she never loved her.

That really puts poor Rumia through the emotional ringer, but Rumia’s a tough gal, and once it’s no longer deadly to do so, Queen Alicia lets her true feelings be known, and that in turn leads Rumia to accept and return her mother’s love in a tearful, cathartic embrace.

As for the ringleader in the Guard’s treachery, Eleanor Chalet, a heretic mage of the Researchers of Divine Wisdom, is surrounded by the real Albert and Re=L in a dark alley, but uses a spell to escape before they can place her in custody, offering only one vague, if titular clue, about why she was so keen on killing Rumia AKA Ermiana: “Akashic Records.”

If a RDW traitor could pose as queen’s chief handmaiden, it means the good guys will have to exercise constant vigilance. Albert and Re=L bid goodbye to Glenn, though considering she’s featured heavily in the OP and ED in an academy uniform, I wouldn’t be surprised if Re=L returns, posing as a student in Glenn’s class to assist him in keeping Rumia safe.

After thanking Glenn for helping to save her, along with her mom, and for keeping his three-year-old promise to have her back, Rumia and Glenn head to the tavern where the rest of Class 2 has already gotten the victory celebration started. In fact, I was totally caught off guard yet delighted by the fact Sisti managed to get wasted (on brandy cake of all things!) and is in full-on Lovey-Dovey Shironeko Glom mode with Glenn.

That would be enough discomfort on his plate, but as a final insult, the class ended up spending his entire reward, as well as the three-month salary he won in the bet with his fellow teacher, on the night’s food and drink bill. Not to worry, however: he’s sure to get more homemade meals from Sisti.

Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu – 10

Another unfamiliar ceiling…and another unfamiliar but very welcome occurrence: that we may be able to bask in Subaru’s latest victories. He’s alive, the kids are safe and their curses are removed, and neither of the twins are dead, hate him, or want to kill him. This calls for a celebratory steamed sweet potato and some Puck-applause!

For course, every silver lining has its cloud, which in this case is Beako’s latest unfortunate news for Subie: He still carries the curse of the mabeasts who nommed him, and that curse will allow them to essentially “eat” him remotely by taking all of his mana.

He has only half a day. No surprise, then, that Rem has already gone out alone to hunt down the mabeasts who are on the other end of the curse, thus “canceling the meal” and saving Subie, whom she’s clearly become rather fond of.

Going into that forest is not for the fainthearted, but Subie isn’t letting his Return By Death skill undermine his commitment: he’s going in like he has only one life to live, because he really does only have one life he wants to live, and it’s one where everyone, including Rem, is alive.

Joining Subie is Ram, who warns him she’s not quite the fighter her younger sister is, though she has a pretty nifty Clairvoyance skill, as well as some intimidating wind-elemental magic. Emilia is too drained from healing Subie, so she’s out, as is Puck, while Subie arms himself with the “sharpest sword in the village”, presented as a gift for his heroism.

Notably absent from the party? Beatrice, despite her likely being more than capable of contributing offense. So while imperfect, the Subie/Ram duo gets off to a good start, with Ram showing off the damage her wind magic can do.

Then Subie gets a bright idea, using the very curse keeping him from talking to others about Return By Death to lure all mabeasts to his and Ram’s location, luring Rem in turn. For the record, Rem is looking particularly badass and dangerous this week, as her Demon Mode makes her a formidable but also reckless and unstable killing machine.

Despite Rem’s initial good intentions (saving Subie), she’s gotten a little too carried away by the power of her horn (which Ram lacks), so it also comes as no surprise that after surviving a potentially fatal fall off a cliff, Subie and Ram have to deal with a rabid Rem who isn’t too picky about her targets.

I thought for sure this is how the episode would end: Subie unexpectedly catching a mace to the head and waking back up in the village inn with a sleeping Emilia by his side. It is a new “save point”, after all, and I assumed his Return By Death was only delayed last week so it could occur this week.

Mind you, I wasn’t happy about that prospect, which is why I was happy that Re:Zero decided not to kill Subie this week, either! This suggests an awareness of the potential for “Reset Button Fatigue”, especially after we only got a grand total of five minutes of victory to bask in.

That suspension of Subie’s death wasn’t certain at all, though. I like how the episode kept me guessing till the end, with a thoroughly berserk and unpredictable Rem waving that flail around and Subie seemingly having few options.

Of course, I was also amused by the tactic he employs in his effort to cut Rem’s horn and restore her to normal: by tossing Ram straight at her, as a smokescreen for his strike. It almost works on the first try, too…but as Subie said earlier, the “difficulty level” is demonically high, to the point where nothing will work on the first try.

That being said, “Fate-sama” quickly gives Subie a second chance to take out Rem’s horn, and he re-resolves himself not to wuss out at the last second, out of fear of killing either twin. That horn has simply gotta go. I hope he can get it, just like I hope all the mabeasts killed this week mean he’s no longer going to be remotely eaten.

Re:Zero’s action isn’t regularly head-and-shoulders above Kabaneri (despite being better in every other category) but it really distinguished itself this week with some cool and exciting animation, made all the more compelling by how much we care about the combatants. Rem truly came off as a force of nature ready to explode. Here’s hoping she doesn’t!

Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu – 09

This week served a full plate of contradictions. The tasty morsels include: Subaru recounting the aspirations of each village child to compel Rem to participate; Roswaal, King of Exposition, wearing reasonable clothes and flying off without any exposition; and Rem and Emilia devouring scenes bond-strengthening with Subaru. We also finally learn the source of the curse and witness some brutal combat in the forest.

Of all shows, Re:Zero has been remarkably good at packing its plates—often skipping opening or closing credits—and even though very little narrative has actually happened, the density and emotional impact has always earned it for me. Unfortunately, parts of this episode were slow, as if intentionally dragging its feet for an unearned cliffhanger ending. Additionally, many of the slower scenes were static, and the general animation quality was noticeably lower than normal.

Focusing on the good, Re:Zero just nails Emilia’s character. She could very easily be the Perfect Nice Girl central love interest, but the fact that she really doesn’t know Subaru’s motives—that she really doesn’t understand him at all—but accepts that he’s probably a good person anyway gives her a lot of nuance.

Her best scene this week is no different: she enters mid-conversation, not even knowing what Subie has said to Ram and Rem, gets the gist, and gives him a little prayer for safety. Their back and forth is compact, simple, but full of lovely facial expressions. Seriously, just watch how her mouth subtly changes when she’s happy, exasperated, or bemused.

Rem gets two solid scenes as well, and while both are much more Subaru-pushed than the scene with Emilia, they are still quite touching. Also, narratively advancing, as we learn a little more about the need for barriers to protect human settlements from the creatures of the witch, and that Subaru reveals he knows she can smell the witch on him.

I greatly appreciated how these scenes are painted as less romantic than Subaru’s scenes with Emilia. Here he has a kind word, makes a pinkie-promise, and shows his trust in Rem. It’s friendship, not harem-building, and that adds nuance to the format that easily could be about getting all the girls.

Intentional or not, the last strong scene starts and ends poorly. The animation leading up to the fight was lackluster, there was a lot of static dialogue, and we still don’t know the motives of the villain. That abruptly changes with Subie’s epic kill. Like his fight with Rem several weeks ago, this had a ‘screw you I can take a beating’ vibe that makes all of the Subie fights enjoyable to watch.

Rem’s fight was decent too, for the most part. I get the sense that it ate most of the episode’s budget and the brutality was sweet but the storyboarding was weak. Call me a grouch, but having back-to-back ‘saved by your partner’s sacrifice’ moves, plus Rem being smashed by what looked like a dodge-able earth attack, felt generic. Eye-rolling, honestly.

The uneven quality of the fight aside, Rem’s brutality is a nice contrast. Specifically, we’ve only seen this kind of slaughter from evil characters before and, that’s kind of the point with Rem.

Because this episode really works or doesn’t based on its reveals, and you will probably only enjoy it more if you’re looking at some of the details, this review has largely been spoiler-free.

Technical shortcomings aside, my biggest criticism is that for all the things I didn’t spoil, a lot wasn’t answered. As Rem says, she has a lot of questions and we better be ready to answer…and hopefully soon.

Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu – 08

Subaru wakes up, in the bed, once again, with the twin maids sitting beside him.

This time, he volunteers to work at the mansion once more and spends as much time with them as he can, working his utmost to earn their trust from the start, so they won’t suspect and kill him! His second priority is finding and stopping the shaman who killed him (and most recently, Rem) in previous loops.

For the latter part, Subie learns from Puck that he has the somewhat rare “darkness” alignment, rather than any of the standard four elements. Excited to be able to focus his mana through his “gate” and perform magic for the first time in this world (aside from Return By Death, obv) he gets a little too carried away and blows out all his mana at once.

Like Explosion Girl Megumin in KonoSuba, this exertion leaves him barely able to move, but he’s absolutely committed to continuing his tireless work with Ram and Rem, knowing his life and future may well depend on the results. Everyone notices that Subaru is simply trying way too hard, hiding his churning troubles beneath an overly chipper, caffeinated exterior. Something has to give, and it does, when he’s overcome by nausea.

Emilia is outside the bathroom when he boots, and he can’t fool her any longer, so she takes him up on his desire to lay his head in her lap when the need arises, and it arises. Emilia is so kind and tender and matronly as she gives Subaru something he’s needed for some time: a pressure valve.

Safe in her lap, free of complications, he can let it all out, and Emilia is glad to see him not holding it in. In fact, it proves to her that he’s a truly good person, and she relays that to Rem. It’s such a lovely, calming scene, and the episode perfectly built up all that pressure and tension.

His Emilia-aided lap pillow catharsis, then, turns out to be the means by which he achieves his first objective: earning the trust of the staff. Emilia assures Rem, who tells Ram, who tells Lord Roswaal. I’d like to think that’s how it works, anyway!

That catharsis and its positive effects would not have been possible if Subie had been a mere house guest and not someone doing his part in the mansion with the maids. He’s done being lazy and half-assing things; that’s how people have died in the past.

Of course, there’s still that shaman to contend with. He believes both he and Rem (at different times) were hit by a fatal spell in the village. Now he and both sisters will be going to the village together, and thanks to “Beako”, he knows there’s a way to detect a spell before it’s cast (much like a boss’s big timed attack in RPGs).

But once that spell is cast, it can’t be un-cast, so I hope to hell he’s careful and doesn’t have to go through all of this yet again. Another important thing he learned was that people who help him prefer simple thanks to elaborate apologies.

Honesty and simplicity are Subie’s tools of salvation. Cry when he has to, accept help without shame, and thank those who give it. If these people see every side of him, not just the artificial ideal, they just might not end up being the “poisonous flowers” he dreads.

Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu – 07

Subaru is able to escape Rem by blinding her with his cameraphone flash, but only temporarily. She slices his leg off, heals it, then starts cutting him up until he’ll talk. She smells the “Jealous Witch” all over him, and so believes he’s a spy for Emilia’s enemies. She ignores his claims of innocence, and before he can tell her how much he likes her and her sister, she cuts out his throat, and he wakes up once more in that bed.

Unsure of what will happen if he dies a fourth time, he tries to switch things up by telling Emilia-tan exactly what’s going on, but before he can get the words out, some vile spectral hand clutches his heart and threatens to burst it. The sad part is, Emilia would have likely believed every word he said, if only he was able to say them.

But he can’t, so he has to try something else. When Beatrice visits him in his room to apologize for the first time they met, he asks her to protect him, and she forms a binding contract with him right then and there. He spends the final night before all his previous deaths in the forbidden library with her, and awakes the next morning, elated to be alive and having broken the loop.

But while the last time he broke the loop, everything turned out fine and dandy, this time Rem seems to die in his place, of the same energy-sapping spell that brought him down the first time he was murdered in the mansion.

While Rem was the sister who hunted him in the past loop to protect Emilia and her sister, this time an enraged Ram vows to avenge Rem by killing Subaru. Beatrice shows up to protect him, like he promised, and Emilia is willing to trust him as long as he explains himself…

…But he just can’t. He knows now if he even tries to utter anything at all about his predicament, he’ll be killed by that evil force clutching his heart, literally choked with fear. All he can do is separate himself from the standoff, but running only makes Ram think he’s guilty.

All Subaru wants to do is get away. Away from that house, where everything he said and did there was always under the suspicious pall of the twin maids, due to a smell and an influence he didn’t even know existed and still doesn’t understand.

He hopes by offing himself voluntarily over a cliff, he can undo all the suffering that he caused, directly or indirectly. Beatrice tracks him down and confirms really what he wants. “What’s lost can’t be reclaimed,” she says.

But…with Subie’s ability, can’t what was lost never become lost to begin with, and thus not need to be reclaimed? And is that not just a roundabout way of reclaiming something, namely a happy future for the occupants of the mansion? Subaru agrees there’s nothing he can do here, and as much as he hates it, he must endure the fact that the Emilia, Ram and late Rem of this loop simply can’t remember all the good times they had in other loops.

But he does remember, and they’re the same Ram and Rem throughout them all; the Ram and Rem he’s fallen for. Now that he’s saved his own life, he’s going to take it, in the hope that voluntarily resetting will enable him to save them. It’s a gamble, but it beats staying where he is.

Honestly, this show is so damn good. Breaking up its own pattern by making things worse even when Subaru breaks the loop, and giving him the added problem of not being able to properly explain what’s happening to him. The vice just keeps tightening for our protagonist, and while he hit some emotional lows this week, his old can-do self shined through at the end. I honestly don’t know how he’s going to save Rem and Ram, but I most eagerly await to opportunity to watch.