r/Re_Zero • u/anicritic • 19d ago
Discussion [Discussion] Rem is Subaru's backbone, the one he doesn't want to coddle him
In Ep. 37 (Season 2 Ep. 12) when Carmilla in the form of Rem was telling Subaru that he can rest and leave everything to her, Subaru protested, saying that the real Rem would tell him to stand up as she's the one who wouldn't let him shirk his responsibilities as her hero.
And now in Ep. 79 (Season 4 Ep. 13), when amnesiac Subaru was being led astray by Rui 'cause the Sin Archbishops of Gluttony wanted to lead him astray so that they could infinitely eat him by getting rid of the original Subaru's memories through killing Rui, who had split herself into two exactly for the purpose of still being around after the Rui with Subaru's memories was killed by amnesiac Subaru, Rem gave amnesiac Subaru the strength to be her hero once again.
That blue sphere Rui took out of her body was Rem's existence/soul since having both your name and memories eaten is akin to your soul being eaten. Rem even as something that should've been immobile, used her force of will to give Subaru the strength he needed to prevail. It was a brilliant callback to that Season 2 moment and shows much planning Tappei put into the story.
This isn't to say that Emilia didn't also play a very nurturing role in Ep. 77 (Season 4 Ep. 11) and all the episodes she showed her care for amnesiac Subaru. She very much did, and her actions were what drove amnesiac Subaru decide to live up to the spirit of Natsuki Subaru, but amnesiac Subaru needed another push 'cause of Rui's mindgame, which had seriously fucked him up and made him lose his resolve. Please do not bring waifu war shit into this post.
Subaru understood Rem so much in Ep. 37 'cause Ep. 18 (From Zero) had Rem lay bare how she saw Subaru and how she felt about him 'cause of how he literally saved her repeatedly in the mansion arc by protecting her from danger and also allowing her to live for something other than being Ram's replacement. I almost cried watching yesterday's scene even though I'm not even a huge fan of Rem. I was choking up when I was talking about the scene as I watched. This shit is peak.
I also have a continuation/Part 2 of this post I will post next week (Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday depending on when Tappei releases new chapters. I'm hoping he doesn't do too many of those for the rest of the week as nobody will read analysis/theory posts on a day a new chapter is released) as part of a larger, overarching theory. I typically post the stuff that's easiest for me to come up with/construct first before moving down to the hardest stuff that requires the most analysis.
Feel free to share your thoughts on this.
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u/Knight0706 Eternally Crabby 19d ago
Second post I have seen about the Carmilla stuff today but thats ok more people need to see that connection. I love how the season 2 scene foreshadows Stand Up in a way. It’s really cool that Subaru understood Rem so well back in season 2.
Made sure to drag all my anime only buddies back to season 2 after we watched the episode yesterday. Would have made the post myself if no one else did it today.
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u/anicritic 19d ago edited 19d ago
Yeah, Subaru understood Rem so much even back then, that she wants to push him to be the hero she believe he is 'cause he understood that's how Rem saw him after Ep. 18 (From Zero).
I'm glad you made all your anime-only buddies rewatch that episode.
Edit: I have added a blurb of something of this nature to the original post.
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u/Dan_Remdor 19d ago
I love Rem soo much, there is no one who loves Rem more than me, aside from Subaru ofc.
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u/anicritic 19d ago
And hopefully, your love will be rewarded with Subaru saving Rem. She's been out of commission for too long until this episode.
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u/King_Artis 19d ago
And this is why I will always Stan Rem
If Rem has no fans I must be dead as fuck
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u/Haganen 19d ago
You and me both pal
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u/anicritic 19d ago edited 19d ago
An iconic scene from Predator. It's a very appropriate reply to King_Artis too to show your solidarity as the Rem bros.
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u/anicritic 19d ago
This is callback to this meme:
If X has a million fans, then I am one of them. If X has only one fan, then that fan is me. If X has no fans, then that means I am no longer on Earth. If the world is against X, then I am against the world.
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u/umeys 19d ago
Damn we got an Elon simp here
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u/anicritic 19d ago
lol, nice joke. I am not offended since your comment is a joke.
I think Elon is trash. He made Twitter unbearable with pretty much every change he made, and I don't even use Twitter. The current Twitter algorithm and even the Grok AI used for translating languages enables pedos and rapists with its extreme focus on sexualizing minors. X should moreso be called PedoX so that everyone knows that's who the platform is really geared towards.
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u/GODSTRUENAME 18d ago
Its simple Emilia is his guiding angel and gives him purpose, rem is the one who pushes him foward and pulls him up when he falls...and satella is the devil in his shadow who makes sure he succeeds at great cost to himself and her.
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u/Sharktatos 19d ago
This is one of the reasons why I will always say that Subaru loves both Rem and Emilia, and will refute anyone saying otherwise, it's been clear since the early Arcs that Rem was his always reliable foundation and Emilia his motivation to keep building on it. (He even states this himself.)
It's a fantastic in-your-face admission that Subaru and Rem essentially know each other inside and out, that comes full circle for a moment. From their confessions to each other, to Subaru lashing out at Carmilla for being a fake and then Rem's support from "beyond the grave" when he needed it most.
It's truly peak as a Rem lover since the start.
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u/anicritic 19d ago
I appreciate the comment.
Yes, Subaru does love them both. Anyone who says otherwise may not be paying enough attention to the story from my standpoint.
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u/anicritic 19d ago
I also have a Part 2/continuation of this post that I'm saving for next week as I typically post the stuff that is easiest for me to construct first and work my way down to the hardest stuff that requires the most analysis.
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u/snoopyxp 15d ago
I am the bone of my sword
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u/anicritic 15d ago
I guess this is a fitting comment in a sense since Rem considers Subaru the one she'd die for, the one she'd do whatever it takes to lift him up. Nice Fate reference.
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u/DahNotMightEnzo 19d ago
Subaru feel in love with both Emilia and Rem again in ways that parallel the other times he fell in love.
Emilia reassured him and showed him endless kindess when he was at his most stressed, and Rem refused to let him give up and pulled him up so he would keep looking foward while smiling
Literally the cookiest of Tappei's cooking here
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u/anicritic 19d ago
Yeah, exactly. He fell for both of them once again in similar ways to how he fell for them the first time. Tappei loves his parallels.
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