Balu

#JanchoRZA7 #Arc7 Re:Zero Volume 26 (WN) ✅ Arc 7 has the most entertaining and eventful start in the series so far. This might be the best first volume to an arc overall, even if the first volumes of Arcs 4 and 6 peaked higher. Vol 26 doesn’t have anything as emotionally impactful as Parent and Child (Vol 10) or as psychologically horrifying as the miasma cave (Vol 21), but the consistency is on another level. From the first chapter up until the end, the intensity never slows down. Subaru goes through so much insane stuff without any time to catch a break. I can’t remember any other arc throwing us this quickly into the madness, not even Arc 1. Of course I love slow setups that make the payoffs feel even more impactful, but the fast pacing here actually works perfectly without feeling rushed. “Refreshing” is the best way for me to describe this volume. Everything just feels so new and different, yet it still has the familiar thematic elements that make Re:Zero what it is, and Tappei’s writing is still as brilliant as ever. Vollachia as a setting is very unique and totally different from Lugunica in every way. It feels like it completely opposes all of Subaru’s values and challenges him both physically and psychologically in the most extreme ways. He is weak, and he doesn’t have his friends to rely on, making his survival especially difficult. His hero complex is especially a big problem here. His dynamic with Rem and Rui is one of the most interesting aspects early on in Arc 7. Rem’s amnesia makes their relationship feel a bit one-sided, and I find this development really interesting. This antagonistic side of her makes her more compelling than ever, but it isn’t out of character, as we have seen her suspicious toward the bad-smelling Subaru back in Arc 2 already. And since everything is now new to her, she doesn’t understand Subaru’s issue with Rui. I do hope they can eventually all come to terms with each other since I don’t think this version of Rui is evil, and she makes for a cute daughter. Two of the highlight characters in this volume for me are Todd and Vincent. Both of their dynamics with Subaru are super interesting, and I can’t say which of them I prefer yet. Todd’s mindset has been quite hard for me to read, and he is still a big mystery, but I think he doesn’t truly care for Subaru and only uses him if he deems him trustworthy. I think he is the perfect counter to Return by Death, since Subaru’s new knowledge actually makes everything worse, and Todd’s behavior toward him makes a 180-degree turn. I can definitely see Todd being one of my favorite antagonists going into the next volumes. Vincent has also quickly become one of my favorite characters by the end of this volume. He seems to be hiding a lot, just by the fact that he used a mask and called himself Abel to conceal his identity. But the moment he revealed himself as the emperor of Vollachia gave me goosebumps. There is just something about his presence that emits so much aura. Plus, his ideology seems to oppose Subaru’s heroism, a theme that I am expecting to be important throughout Arc 7. There is so much more I could say about this masterpiece of a volume, but I will leave it here. I am looking forward to whatever awaits me in Volume 27.

#JanchoRZA7 #Arc7 IT’S THE “WE MUST EXECUTE AI FOOLS” ILLUSTRATION! VINCENT VOLLACHIA IS GOATED. WHAT AN INCREDIBLE ENDING TO THIS INCREDIBLE FIRST VOLUME OF ARC 7.