Re:Zero Season 3 Episode 4 Review

Re:Zero Season 3 continues to march on as one of the best anime of the fall after episode 4. Despite some specific criticism I have to spew, it was still a great episode. Nice special effects animations on top of story developments coming in from every angle shined the most this week. I wouldn’t necessarily say it was a step back from last week’s episode nor was it a step forward. It simply remained consistent.

Fast Pacing

Re:Zero Season 3 is definitely starting to pick up the pace. Granted, I understand that this marks the halfway mark of the current arc that the season is currently in. So it’s only right that a climax to it feels like it’s approaching soon. Still…

I don’t think that takes away from this episode being a lightning strike. It felt like it was over before it started and the very ending after the credits felt like something that was going to be in the middle of the episode to me. With many opportunities for the opening to start (after Mimi and Garfiel leaped past the camera, when Garfiel opened the door with Mimi in his arms, etc.), I figured it was going to come at specific times but never did.

I know we got the title screen and it was a clear indicator it was never going to pop up. Yet dramatic pauses and scene transitions certainly made me feel like it was going to pop up. But I digress. With Subara and company looking to take on Lust, Al ditching them to find Priscilla, Mimi in critical condition, Wilhelm possibly facing a reincarnated version of his late wife, Subaru then coming face to face with Gluttony, Garfiel remembering he needs to find his half-siblings, then Creepy Corneas dropping the most awkward question of the season at the end, it was undoubtedly a lot of moving parts.

I am by no means saying that episode 4 was bad because of this, there’s simply no denying things were moving a lot quicker than the previous episodes were and it’s easy to be thrown off by it. One minute they’re discussing what to do, the next Garfiel brings Mimi to them, and then we see everyone in the midst of battle all within the span of a few minutes.

Story Developments

I’m so used to Subaru being the brunt of trauma in this series that it almost feels weird to see Garfiel this flustered—I love it. I haven’t read the novels and can tell Garfiel’s development is about to skyrocket. Between Elsa still haunting him, coming to terms with his Mom’s memory, and now Mimi on the brink of death, the hits keep stacking up.

I appreciate Garfiel because he still keeps his chin up. It may come from Subaru and the others encouraging him, but that shouldn’t be looked at as a bad thing. The best-written warriors always depend on those around them to keep on fighting despite what the edgy fans think. Re:Zero has created a nice contrast doing this given how the Archbishops are unified in their goal, not so much in their fights. Meanwhile, everyone else on Subaru’s side is united in both goals and combat. Well, except Heinkel. He’s more like a thorn.

I can’t agree with fans thinking this episode was the peak of the season so far—it just wasn’t. It was a fantastic setup episode, no doubt about that. But the fights were rather short-lived and not as hyped as some made them out to be before I went into watching the episode. They definitely laid the ground for big developments later down the line, but taking the episode at face value? It didn’t let itself breathe sometimes. That being said, the ending is what made me go “Why?”

Corneas is an antagonist living in his own, twisted world—cool. We’re supposed to hate him and he definitely gave us in this episode a reason to. But why end the episode on that when you had a perfect one with Subaru’s rage at the site of Gluttony? It just felt completely out of place and, on top of everything else, extremely weird. I get anime in general has its moments but damn. Corneas killed what was already a perfect cliffhanger—a truly villainous act.

Re:Zero Season 3 Episode 4 Wrap-Up

The special effects animations in this don’t get enough credit. As a series that deals with magic, especially in its action, it needs solid special effects animations and this episode did a great job with them. And we got to see Crusch back in action, which I thought was an all-around win regardless of everything else.

Episode 4 rating: 8/10
Episode 3 rating: 8.5/10
Episode 2 rating: 10/10
Episode 1 rating: 8/10

If you enjoyed Re:Zero Season 3 episode 4 then be sure to vote for it in the weekly poll! Re:Zero Season 3 episode 5 will be released on Wednesday, October 30.

Images from Crunchyroll
©Tappei Nagatsuki,KADOKAWA/Re:ZERO3 PARTNERS