Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- Season 3

Episode 61

This episode of Re:Zero is a character study: two of them to be exact. The first is of Liliana. From what we've seen of her so far, Liliana is an amazing singer with the ability to touch the hearts of all who hear her songs. She is not the sharpest tool in the shed and is also somewhat of a coward—or at least someone not used to being at the center of dangerous, world-changing events. However, in this episode, we see she is much more than all this.

On the most basic level, Liliana's story mirrors Subaru's. From the start, she thought she was special—that she could simply do things that no one else dared to because of this. She saw herself as the main character in the story. But of course, it was only a matter of time before things crashed down around her. Her parents moved on and had another child (basically replacing her) and she was unable to make a living with her music. Eventually, she ended up nearly dying of thirst before realizing she wasn't a hero like the ones in her songs.

Like Subaru, Liliana chose to restart from zero—to cast aside her ego and worldview and humble herself. With this revelation, she saw the world in a new way—realized that it wasn't the songs of heroes that truly connected with people, but rather the songs about things they had experienced themselves. Only by seeing the world like the common man could she write and sing songs that spoke to them. That brought her the fame and glory she once dreamed of. And now, in this episode, she has become the legendary hero she once fancied herself to be just like Subaru did a few episodes back.

The other character that we explore in this episode is Priscilla. Up until this arc, she has been the least present Royal Selection candidate. What little we saw of her painted her as self-centered, greedy, arrogant, and materialistic. And while she is all those things, there is another side to her apparent flaws.

Priscilla is a woman who sees the value in things: both the material and the immaterial. If something benefits her (or could in the long run), it's seen as valuable. If not, it is unimportant at best and unneeded at worst. The trick is that she sees anything and anyone that she has dominion over as part of herself. Thus, if she were to become queen, she would see herself and society as one and the same—making her a ruler dedicated to making the best choices for her kingdom. And while she is devoid of empathy for others, that doesn't mean she can't see the value of empathy. It just has to be used in the right place and way.

How she views Liliana and Sirius is emblematic of her worldview. To Priscilla, most people are either fools or simpletons. However, while both words may seem pejorative and of similar meaning, to Priscilla, they are anything but. A “fool” is a person myopically focused on a single goal—and whose goal or way of obtaining it hurts others or society at large. Meanwhile, a “simpleton” is similar in their all-consuming personal drive but the goal benefits others or society. It's a matter of being potentially useful or harmful.

Thus, in Priscilla's eyes, Sirius is a “fool” with her goal of making everyone “understand each other.” In truth, what Sirius wants is to make everyone think and feel the same as her—make everyone homogeneous in thought and emotion. This is an anathema to Priscilla. It robs existence of all the stimulation that comes from our different ways of thinking and acting—the lessons we have learned from our experiences and the dreams that drive us ever forward.

On the other hand, Liliana is a “simpleton.” While her goal is to connect to others through music, she wishes to invoke feelings, not eliminate all others. She promotes positive feelings—highlights the best in people. She enhances the quality of life rather than detracts from it.

All this distinction between “fool” and “simpleton” is why, in the end, Priscilla doesn't even try to empathize with Sirius and her pain. She sees no value in doing so—and no value in Sirius' continued existence either.

Rating:

Random Thoughts:

• The fight between Priscilla and Sirius wasn't even close. Priscilla still had her earrings, dress, and shoes to take fatal hits for her.

• I wonder if Priscilla's ability extends to people she sees as valuable. It probably does.

• Kiritaka is a true fan. His love is obsessive but not possessive. He wants to do everything he can to help Liliana's dreams come true and spread her songs across the world—all without restricting her.

• I do love that Regulus is annoyed by Subaru revealing how his powers work—not because he sees it as a threat but rather because knowing what his powers do changes nothing in his eyes. Basically, he sees the recent conversation as Sabaru building up to something big and important and failing to do so—simply wasting Regulus' valuable time and nothing more.

Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

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Disclosure: Kadokawa World Entertainment (KWE), a wholly owned subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation, is the majority owner of Anime News Network, LLC. One or more of the companies mentioned in this article are part of the Kadokawa Group of Companies.