Ever since the second season of Re:Zero -Starting Life in Another World- ended, anime fans have been looking for answers about the fate of particular characters.
The series is all about teenage NEET Subaru Natsuki as he’s teleported to a strange new world. Every time he dies, he begins life anew from a “save point”— meaning he essentially has infinite resets and infinite chances to go back and make things right — just like in a video game. Subaru’s status at the end of Re:Zero’s second season is made very apparent, as is his love interest Emilia’s. In fact, everything seems all well and good.
That’s not so when it comes to one of Re:Zero’s most beloved characters: the demure, blue-haired maid Rem. Rem, along with twin sister Ram, works alongside Lord Roswaal of the Roswaal Mansion. She’s a formidable fighter who’s fiercely protective of Subaru and his allies. She also happens to love Subaru selflessly, treats everyone with kindness, and acts as a uniting force when her friends need her.
That’s why the end of Re:Zero’s second season left fans reeling when there was no resolution with Rem “alive”, as so many had hoped. As all of the story threads seem to have been wrapped up and Subaru enjoys a quiet moment of peace with Emilia following a lengthy bout of tiresome fighting, fans thought Rem should be there enjoying a quiet victory as well. But that isn’t quite the way the end of Re:Zero Season 2 plays out.
Instead, there are several questions that still need to be answered surrounding what happened to Rem. Does Rem die in Re:Zero, and will we see her again? What is Rem’s fate? Here’s what the Re:Zero series has in store for Rem and whether we can expect to see her again in the future.
Does Rem die in ‘Re:Zero’?
No, Rem does not die in Re:Zero Season 2, nor in the current manga and live novel continuity – at least, not technically. Re:Zero currently spans 28 light novels, 40 web novel chapters, a variety of manga installments running concurrently, and 50 anime episodes. As of Re:Zero Season 2, episode 50, “Offbeat Steps Under the Moonlight”, Rem is alive. However, she remains in a comatose state and is a shell of her former self.
This is a result of Rem having had her name and memories consumed by Ley Batenkaitos, a Sin Archbishop of the Witch Cult, representing Gluttony. Batenkaitos’ Gluttony ability allows him to touch a human being and devour their existences completely, which ultimately destroys any memories of their existence from the minds of even their closest friends. Those who have had their memories eaten have zero memories as a result and have their personalities obliterated. Those with both their memories and name eaten become a shell of a person. The lights are on, but no one’s home.
The last we saw Rem in Re:Zero Season 2, she was traveling by carriage following a grueling battle before being accosted by two Sin Archbishops, including Ley Batenkaitos. The pair were seeking the colossal white whale, which had been slain at that point. As a result, the pair went wild and rampaged through the caravan, massacring those traveling with Rem. After succumbing to Batenkaitos’ Gluttony ability, we discover later on through Subaru that no one can remember her, a sad fate to be sure.
Rem’s twin sister Ram ultimately fought and decapitated Ley, though by then the damage had already been done – and, contrary to Subaru’s hopes, killing Batenkaitos did not “cure” Rem or restore everyone’s memories.
So though Rem is indeed alive, she is technically “dead” in the eyes of all who knew her. She has been erased from everyone’s existence except for Subaru. However, Subaru’s mental “save point” was moved forward (without his knowledge or control) after Rem’s “death”, so Subaru is unable to reset life as he knows it to bring her back to normal.
Will Rem return in ‘Re:Zero’ Season 3?
Unfortunately, there isn’t a swift answer to this question. Even as recently as the newest light novel installment in the Re:Zero series, Rem remains comatose. Fans continue to speculate what Rem’s ultimate fate may be and how she’ll end up returning to the story, though she may very well be a very different person by the time we see her again.
But if you’re a Rem fan, there’s no need to despair. She’s such a beloved and popular character that there’s no way Re:Zero could march on indefinitely without her. Only time will tell when she’ll make her grand entrance once more, and it’ll be like no time at all has passed.
Published: Jun 1, 2022 10:36 am