Re:Zero -Starting Life in Another World- is without question one of the most special and spectacular isekai series out there. It combines a fantasy setting, consistent mystery, unique powers and mechanics, and a compelling cast of characters. At this year’s Anime Expo, where fans got a chance to check out an early premiere of Season 3, we got the chance to briefly catch up with the staff from Re:Zero, including Yusuke Kobayashi, voice actor for Subaru Natsuki, Masahiro Shinohara, Director for Season 3, and Haruko Sagawa, Character Designer for Season 3. We asked them about their thoughts and feelings as we approach the season as well as how they approach their individual roles on the project.
This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.
Approaching a New Season
Without spoiling anything for watchers who aren’t completely caught up, Season 2 was full of revelations, two-faced characters, and a lot of plot points slowly coming together over the course of the season. Since it’s been a few years since the last season and it set such a high bar in terms of quality and pace, we asked the staff how it felt to be so close to Season 3 after multiple years.
Kobayashi-san: I know that everyone waited very patiently for Re:Zero to come back. And for whatever reason, Re:Zero seems to come back at an Olympic-like pace once every four years. But in terms of what I need to do, my tasks and what I have to accomplish are very clear to me. When I get back into the role of voicing for Subaru and Re:Zero comes back again, I get this feeling inside myself, thinking, “Oh yeah, first episode, Re:Zero is back, Re:Zero is on.” I think, for myself, getting back into the Subaru mindset is something that I really look forward to.
Shinohara-san: As we go into the third season, I was asked to become the new Director, and for a popular series like Re:Zero, there was so much pressure for me to be able to live up to its reputation. But I think that just as we went from Season 1 to Season 2, I wanted to keep up that same momentum as we go into Season 3. And rather than trying to keep things relatively calm or not go too hard in the first episode, I wanted to actually do the opposite and really power up and make sure that Season 3 starts off strong and continues strong. So that really motivated me in becoming the new Director.
Sagawa-san: For Season 1 and Season 2, I was on the viewer side. I really loved Re:Zero, and I thought it was such a fun series. But then when it came to Season 3, I thought to myself, “Wow, me? I’m on the side that’s actually creating the series.” So as a character designer, it just surprises me that I’m able to be part of the process. For Season 3, I think that as a viewer, it’s very fun. But then now that I am a member of the staff, there’s some new challenges. There’s some conflicting feelings about how the series can be so fun and the characters are so appealing, but they also go through a lot of hardships. So I think that with Season 3 I want to be able to face the challenges just like the characters have gone through in my tasks and my work for Re:Zero.
The Subaru Mindset and Season 3’s Direction
Moving on from the anticipation for Season 3, I wanted to understand more about one of the mainstay features of the series: Subaru’s deaths. Because of the structure of the story and how dependent Subaru is on his ability to rewind time after death to influence that story, it’s almost a narrative necessity that he dies, a lot. Season 2 brought some of the most gruesome deaths yet as things ramped up from Season 1 and the number of dastardly plots grew greater by the minute. But, despite how many deaths there are, each one manages to feel unique and distinct with a fresh energy to it. I asked Kobayashi-san how he manages to make every Subaru death feel unique as a scene. He explained that the manner of death makes it a smooth process for him but made it clear that he thinks quite a lot about the finer details as he acts out a death scene.
Kobayashi-san: I think it really depends on the method of the death. For example if Subaru’s arm is cut off and he dies of maybe the blood loss, or maybe he was eaten by the many rabbits. And I think Subaru’s way of reacting to each death changes based on the way that he dies. So for example—this is just theoretically—but let’s say if the left arm was cut off. That’s closer to your heart because your heart is on the left side. So realistically you try not to breathe so hard because if you breathe so hard that’s just going to increase the blood loss. However, if your leg was cut off, because your leg is so far away from your heart, maybe there’s some like shouting and screaming involved because you’re not—the blood loss is not so close to the heart. So I try to match those situations so that it comes across as realistic. It’s very situational and it’s actually kind of easy for me to act out these deaths because each of the ways that Subaru dies is new and different. So it’s nice that I don’t have to worry about being consistent.
Finally, I asked Shinohara-san about the direction for this season and whether it’ll have a different lens or perspective compared to the seasons before it.
Shinohara-san: So in season three, it’s not only focused on just Subaru and the Subaru camp. The other camps are also brought into the fold and they will be brought forward so that they’re also in the spotlight. So it’s not only about Subaru—the other camps and the other characters will get more of a chance to be able to show their highlights. And I think in the previous season there were not as many opportunities for that. So I hope everyone can have high expectations. I hope everyone has fun and enjoys and looks forward to these new changes.
We’d like to thank Kobayashi-san, Shinohara-san, and Sagawa-san for taking the time to speak with us during Anime Expo. Re:Zero Season 3 is set to premiere this October with a 90-minute opening episode.
©Tappei Nagatsuki,KADOKAWA/Re:ZERO2 PARTNERS
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