Anime

Re:CREATORS Episode 20: The Shattering Mirror and a Ghost from the Past

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Quick Summary of Re:CREATORS Episode 20

In Re:CREATORS episode 20, “Somebody receives the power of creation, and the spirit is redeveloped from their passion,” Team Kikuchihara reels in the aftermath of the explosive climax of the last episode. Altair continues to give the concept of “Over Powered” (OP) an even worse reputation. Takashi Matsubara urges the use of their secret weapon, which, of course, doesn’t go as planned. Finally, Souta Mizushino and Magane Chikujouin follow their own train of thought…

Note: This post may include spoilers, so be cautious!

If you’re a fan of Hikawa Hikaru, you’re probably not going to like what happens next. Which is pretty march par for the course for Altair’s OP nature. Capture from the Amazon Prime stream.

What’s In This Post

Quick Episode Summary
3 Favorite Moments
Thoughts
Related Posts

3 Favorite Moments from Re:CREATORS Episode 20

Yes, Altair, the Creators were serious when they made Sirius. Seriously! Capture from the Amazon Strike stream.

Moment 1: Sirius’ Dramatic Entrance

6:34: Sirius’ entrance was suitably dramatic, don’t you think? The animation of her initial strike on Altair drew an appreciative “Oooooo!” from the audience (okay, from me). I struggled, though, with accepting her as a character, given that she couldn’t even speak. In fact, my first inclination was to worry that Altair would take over her sparse personality. By the way, “Terrible Joke of the Week” goes to Altair for meta-invoking “Don’t call me Shirley” when she said (7:28), “You can’t be serious!” Of course, Altair, Sirius can be serious! Altair’s face as she said that expressed such disgust that I had to laugh!

Moment 2: Altair’s Rebirth

12:20: You saw it coming, right? Altair’s rebirth? After everyone relaxed, thinking she was dead? Yeah, so did I. But that didn’t make it any less cool! Altair’s new outfit, a fusion of hers with Sirius’, was quite fetching. More dramatic, I thought, than her original.

Altair’s post-fusion look felt more modern and, frankly, dangerous than her original. Capture from the Amazon Strike stream.

Mizushino and Chikujouin

20:56: Confession time: I got chills when Mizushino and Chikujouin said in unison, “A lie about a lie will turn inside out.” I loved everything about that moment: the spell around Meteora suddenly blazing brighter, Meteora’s shocked expression and swirling hair, Kikuchihara just having experienced a moment of despair; even Mizushino’s resolute expression. The whole series has been building to this moment, and all the pieces came together. Because of Chikujouin’s power, the train station that we first saw in episode 1 came into being, and there was Setsuna Shimazaki walking down the stairs. Hats off to Reddit user MillenniumKing for noticing a key difference between this Shimazaki and the one we knew before: she’s wearing Mizushino’s glasses! I’m dying to know what that means!

Thoughts about Re:CREATORS Episode 20

A New Review Format!

I’m trying out a new format for my reviews. Instead of listing everything I liked about the episode, I’m forcing myself to limit it to three things. It’s arbitrary, but I hope the new format will keep the reviews shorter and more enjoyable for you to read! It might help me be more creative, too (limits can do that, you know!).

Why does everyone keep calling Altair a bastard? Isn’t that term reserved for males? Or am I just old fashioned? Oh, and get off my lawn…

If a villain like Chikujouin saves the world, is she still a villain? I think we just might find out! Capture from the Amazon Strike stream.

Where’s Chikujouin traveling to (20:49)? Instead of “Where in the World is Magane,” would a better title be “Where the Hell is Magane?” You know, because she’s kinda evil and all… Though if things continue the way they are, she’s likely the savior of earth! That’s gotta be awkward for folks like the estate of her writer!

The run up to Altair taking over Sirius was almost so obvious I wondered if the surviving created characters were playing along to make Altair think they thought she’d lost — but no, they really thought she’d lost. Masaaki Nakanogane said it: Sirius was less information dense than Altair (13:21), so it was almost a foregone conclusion that Altair would subsume her. Matsubara’s explanation of why they chose this plan was logical, so I intellectually accept it — but my gut is not so forgiving. I don’t like Altair winning so well, so often, and so completely. Actually, it offends me.

Is that on purpose?

Shimazaki’s Return

As soon as Mizushino and Chikujouin talked about doing something impossible, I figured they were talking about bringing Shimazaki back. In fact, given how OP (Over Powered) Altair is, Shimazaki’s return was almost inevitable, because honestly, nothing else could possibly stand up to Altair. But like Altair winning so much, I found Shimazaki’s return almost disappointing, though I felt Mizushino and Chikujouin chanting “A lie about a lie…” together so emotionally powerful. Why? Because even I could see it coming!

She baaack! And she doesn’t look very happy. Not only that, she’s wearing Mizushino’s glasses! What’s that mean? Capture from the Amazon Strike stream.

What do these two things mean? Given the skill the writers have demonstrated in setting up this world and its characters, as well as assaulting the fourth wall with such delicacy, I can’t believe my reactions are accidental. It’s to the point where I’m patting myself on the back for foreseeing that Altair would wrest control of the Birdcage from Team Kikuchihara, and that Mizushino would try to recreate Shimazaki. But isn’t that just me as a viewer picking up on the foreshadowing clues that the writers placed for me?

Aren’t I just following the clues the writer left for me?

Heading into Uncharted Territory

I think I’ve used up all of the foreshadowing that I caught, and I have no idea what’s coming next. I can guess that Mizushino wouldn’t ask a fictitious version of Shimazaki to forgive him — that’d be hollow! — but beyond that, I really don’t know. And I’m not even sure of that! I’m relying on the writer’s skill to pull all this together.

Mizushino and Chikujouin. Talk about two unlikely saviors! Capture from the Amazon Strike stream.

I have to admit that the writers have used so many solid techniques, played on so many tropes, and setup such a meta-driven story that I’m waiting for the next step with bated breath. I don’t know what’s coming, but I have faith that the writers will pull it off.

I’ve written so many reviews and consumed so many works of fiction that I haven’t been able to say that for quite awhile.

Of course, that’s the goal of any writer, so I wonder if that’s the whole point of Re:CREATORS: To evoke a sense of wonder to their audience. An audience with jaded viewers like me sitting in it?

They might just pull it off!

What do you think? Let me know in the comments!

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