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

Episode 63

With Subaru and Priscilla's fights having wrapped up, it's time to shift over to our remaining heroes' battles. While we get to see a bit of Al versus Capella, William versus Theresia, and Otto versus Lye, the real focus of this episode is the fight between Garfiel and Kurgan—except that it isn't.

While Garfiel and Kurgan trade blows throughout the episode, the real fight is the one going on inside Garfiel's head. Garfiel is struggling with the guilt of having taken a life. While he needed to kill Elsa, the fact remains that it was his first kill—and he is not a killer at heart. It doesn't matter that she was an evil mass murderer who killed for fun. It doesn't matter she stood in the way of freeing the sanctuary. He ended the life of a living, thinking person—and he's not well equipped emotionally to deal with that.

Based on his size and strength, it can be easy to forget that Garfiel is a 15-year-old kid—and an emotionally stunted one. His feelings of abandonment run deep and even though recent revelations have cast new light on the truth behind those issues, it's not like a lifetime of trauma simply goes away in an instant.

And now with blood on his hands, Garfiel knows that everything has changed. He knows the crushing weight of what he's done and is afraid to take any more lives. Of course, a life-or-death battle against a collection of the most powerful people in the world and their minions is no place for doubt. Even a moment of hesitation could spell the end for Garfiel—yet, he can't help himself. He sees Elsa in every opponent—especially in those who were once innocent people, now twisted into monsters.

Kurgan, even as a half-conscious corpse, is aware of what's going on with Garfiel—his hesitation to kill. This is why he doesn't treat the demi-human boy as a real threat, much less a warrior worthy of respect. Time and again, he tries to push Garfiel to overcome his fears. He kills the once-human monsters attacking Garfiel as an example of the proper mindset and waits for Garfiel to compose himself after being briefly knocked unconscious. While none of this causes Garfiel to come to terms with himself, it eventually buys him enough time to do so.

In the end, it's simple. Garfiel is not a killer. He is a protector. This is what he's been his whole life. He's stood for his family, people, the sanctuary, and new friends. While he can't kill for fun or even for the greater good, he can kill to protect others—especially the innocent. With this realization and a group of helpless civilians at his back (not to mention his siblings), he is finally able to fight at full strength. And once this happens, Kurgan sees the true warrior within and does the same.

Garfiel may never become comfortable with killing but he has found a way to accept it—and that is the first step towards true healing.

Rating:

Random Thoughts:

• I'm always a fan of a fight getting so intense the animation breaks down.

• It's funny how close Capella got to looking like Priscilla while getting nearly everything just a little bit wrong. The general body shape and voice were there but the unshakable pride and nobility were not.

• My only real issue with this episode is I'm not sure about the timeline of things. I'd like to see a burning tower or a giant floating ball of water in the background to let me know when these events are happening concerning the other battles we've seen.

• I have a sneaking suspicion that Reinhard and his father may be involved in William and Theresia's battle before it ends.

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.