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EP. REVIEW: Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- [2020-07-13]

So where exactly did this happen in the episode? I don't recall anything that could pass for that.

I always roll my eyes at scenes like this in any genre, as they're rarely done well, so I am glad that it was cut. That wouldn't have fit given the way this episode was constructed anyway; it would have distracted from the flow of the episode and either forced an earlier stopping point or something else to be cut out so that the episode ends where it should. (And where it does end feels exactly right.)

So where exactly did this happen in the episode? I don't recall anything that could pass for that.

As great as the previous one was, this episode was immensely frustrating. All that talk and talk and talk and talk... and in the end, the one really interesting development here, namely what the Ryuzu clones were doing and why, remained incredibly opaque and incomprehensible.
I did not really care about the scenes with Beatrice. I like her character, but the dialog was stretched so long and contained so little of actual substance, namely the parts you could not see from about twenty miles away, I couldn't help but groan. I'm not sure if this came off better in the novel, but here, it just felt like the adaptation became way too enamored with its own lines (not for the first time, I might add).
It is my strong belief that cuts should have been made here; this development did NOT require a 30 minute episode, without an OP and ED to boot.

pip25 wrote:

As great as the previous one was, this episode was immensely frustrating. All that talk and talk and talk and talk... and in the end, the one really interesting development here, namely what the Ryuzu clones were doing and why, remained incredibly opaque and incomprehensible. I did not really care about the scenes with Beatrice. I like her character, but the dialog was stretched so long and contained so little of actual substance, namely the parts you could not see from about twenty miles away, I couldn't help but groan. I'm not sure if this came off better in the novel, but here, it just felt like the adaptation became way too enamored with its own lines (not for the first time, I might add). It is my strong belief that cuts should have been made here; this development did NOT require a 30 minute episode, without an OP and ED to boot.

This is how I've been feeling about the entire back half of season 2. It's like the show's director and writers are afraid of displeasing the light novels' fans, so they feel obligated to fill as much of each episode's already overlong running time as possible with Tappei Nagatsuki's self-indulgent dialogue.

If getting to point A to B is what you care about rather than the "how" then your missing point of S2 and S1 for that matter.

Key wrote:

So where exactly did this happen in the episode? I don't recall anything that could pass for that.

5.55 minutes in. When Emilia sees the giant crystal she asks if they're supposed to release or take her with them, at which point Echidna says "Unbelievable. You see this and that's the first thing you think of?". Its also noteworthy that Shima closes her eyes before this, while her mouth is, as usual, obscured by the poncho. Also it seems no one but us heard her, as Emilia's next line is actually confirming that they can transport the big crystal if she makes an (ice) sled, if that's what the Ryuzus want.

Oh, I fully understand that. I also fully understand that this is not an action series, and I have never expected it to be that; remember, I gave this series mostly-glowing episode reviews during S1 and named it my #1 series for 2016, so I do get what the series focuses on and what it's doing.

That does not, however, excuse the way some of these dialog exchanges can drag - again, even understanding that patiently breaking through resistance is the point. (And yes, even "From Zero" had a little bit of that flaw, but the rest was executed well-enough - and it hadn't been done umpteen times up to that point - that it could be overlooked.) The most recent game - which I'm about a quarter of the way through right now - is far more obnoxious on this.

The problem with this episode is that it was basically watching Subaru bang his head against a door until it opened - almost literally. A stubborn character (which is the kind of character you need to be very careful about when writing it) might need to be met with insistence, but this was not just insistence, it was repetition.
It wasn't interesting or moving, it was annoying. It needed to chip away at Beako's shell, not the audience.

And in more or a personal level opinion, the connection that Subaru and Betty gain feels kind of cheap when this is like the third girl he promises to spend the rest of his days with. There's only so much of you, man, and that "much" is not a lot and constantly spread thin.
Now I'm looking at Petra with dread.

It should be noted that in the light novel, Subaru starts suspecting that Beatrice is trying to use the doors to lead him out of the burning mansion, so the repetition is part of her plan. The problem is, he keeps going back anyway. It's a battle of stubbornness and in the end, Subaru wins. I kinda liked that about the novel scene.

I didn't struggle with this episode at all. I cried. You guys are crazy. =P

I didn't struggle with this episode at all. I cried. You guys are crazy. =P

Juno016 wrote:

I didn't struggle with this episode at all. I cried. You guys are crazy. =P

You and me, both, man. I’m with you!

And in more or a personal level opinion, the connection that Subaru and Betty gain feels kind of cheap when this is like the third girl he promises to spend the rest of his days with. There's only so much of you, man, and that "much" is not a lot and constantly spread thin.
Now I'm looking at Petra with dread.

Yeah, I understand what Subaru has been doing with Beako all along, and it's nice, it's perfect! It's just the way he has worded his speech in a bit more... trite and not quite where it should. But by now I guess that's just Subaru, he confidently fucks up all of his speeches.

But in the end it's mostly a small pet peeve, the bulk of my complaints about this episode lay with the pacing and script.