In Re:ZERO Season 4 Episode 16, as Subaru comes face-to-face with his former self, he discovers what truly made him a hero.
Masahiro Shinohara directs the fourth season, also known as Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu 4th Season (Re:ゼロから始める異世界生活 4th season) / Re:ZERO – Starting Life in Another World.
Re:ZERO Season 4 Episode 16 Review
Subaru’s Lost Memories Become a Nightmare as He Relives Every Death
Finding the book was definitely the best thing that could have happened to Subaru. For the current Subaru, who has no idea what he was like before, this was a great opportunity to finally unlock secrets about his past. However, in trying to read the book, he also unlocked a one-way ticket to endless misery and trauma. The first book gives Subaru a look into the first time he came to the current world. He realises that the moment he arrives here, he dies mercilessly. However, that was not all. The book ended with his first death.
That is when he gets to know that other books in the library could show him all the lives that he lived after dying, then going through a rebirth and then dying again. This takes a tremendous toll on Subaru, who struggles with all the deaths and experiences constantly coming at him. By the time he finally sees everything, he is not at all in a very good state, and it becomes clear through the way he starts to literally fall sick.
Subaru Meets His Former Self and Faces a Brutal Reality Check
What the book finally did was give the current Subaru all the experiences and memories of the past Subaru, making him almost the same as his previous version. He also finds himself in the same chambers where he got duped by Rui Arneb. There, Subaru meets the previous Subaru, and he goes through another existential crisis. The past Subaru was not as heroic as the current Subaru thought he would be. He could not believe or understand how a coward like his past self could manage to be a beacon of hope for so many people. He thought that he would find someone who was very powerful, and that’s why people were impressed by him; however, that did not happen.
When he did not find that person, he was deeply disappointed and ended up in a conflict with his original self. Yet, the current Subaru finally comes to the conclusion that his original self was not as pathetic as he thought. There were certain qualities in him that did make him heroic. His ability to give hope to others and to sacrifice himself for others was something that was unique. His fighting spirit was never gone, and even when he failed, he kept trying.
Subaru Must Give Up a Life He Came to Love
This section was truly emotional because the current Subaru had been a completely different person, with his own thoughts and feelings. When he got to mingle with the other characters, he discovered feelings for them in his own way. Yes, he was the same Subaru, yet he too became friends with everyone and fell in love with Emilia. Thus, when the time came when both the Subarus would have to merge together, it was only natural for the current Subaru to lament the loss of all these relationships.
Final Thoughts
Much of this episode was about Subaru’s internal journey and his confrontation with his true self. We saw a very short segment of what happened in the outside world while Subaru went on a trip down memory lane. Yet, this was a really good episode that solved much of the mystery of what happened to Subaru. Thankfully, his situation finally got better, and now he will not be a victim of his cursed fate anymore.