Anime

Re:CREATORS Episode 21: Challenging Fate and the Spirit of Recreation

tcrowComments(4)

Quick Summary of Re:CREATORS Episode 21

In Re:Creators episode 21, “I love you too,” Altair comes face to face with the recreated figure of her creator, Setsuna Shimazaki, and the world hangs in the balance. Will Shimazaki try to argue Altair out of destroying the world — and risk triggering her rage? Or will she side with her creation? How will Souta Mizushino deal with the revelation about whose glasses Shimazaki is wearing — and why she was wearing them?

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

What’s In This Post

Quick Episode Summary
3 Favorite Moments
Thoughts
Related Posts

3 Favorite Moments from Re:CREATORS Episode 21

The anguish was in her voice and on her face. Seeing Shimazaki devastated Altair. Capture from the Amazon Prime stream.

Moment 1: How Will Altair React?

When Shimazaki began walking towards Altair (3:43), I had no idea how Altair would react. The panic in her voice was evident as she said, “Don’t call my name with that voice. Please!” Altair’s face, too, was in anguish. I was afraid on one hand that she would skewer her recreated creator. On the other, I worried that she might go berserk and incinerate everything! But Shimazaki continued her gently relentless approach and begins to apologize. To apologize! These first few moments set the mood for the entire episode — and the basis for a happy ending.

Shimazaki’s existence, even as a Created, rested on a miracle. And, as she says, they don’t exist in the real world. Capture from the Amazon Prime stream.

Moment 2: A Feeling of Inevitable Tragedy

The sound of the train crossing and the engine’s approach (12:55) — and the recollection of what those sounds represent — struck me as hard as it struck Altair. Fate is fate. The world’s engine isn’t about to stop for someone like Mizushino, despite his need or the skills he’s developed — and even he was caught unawares. The moment’s feeling of inevitable tragedy, and its reference to the opening scenes of episode 1, felt frantic. It really gave the narrative a punch! The way Shimazaki serenely walked past Altair, and Altair’s panicked expression, helped the effect.

Shimazaki confirmed: those aren’t her glasses! They belonged to Mizushino, and they are precious to her. Capture from the Amazon Prime stream.

Moment 3: Not My Glasses

“These glasses aren’t mine,” Shimazaki says (18:17) when Altair hands them to her. They were Mizushino’s, and Shimazaki tells her creation that the glasses are “really, really important.” Why? Because they belong to Mizushino — and we learn that she had created Altair just show to him. Back then, he had been so wrapped up in his feelings of insecurity that he didn’t notice how she’d felt about him. In this moment, the series dramatically fulfilled the promises it made in the first episode. Mizushino had grown into someone who could not only stand beside her. He had recreated her, and she’s able to communicate her feelings to him.

Thoughts about Re:CREATORS Episode 21

Voice Actor Achievement Week

After all of the strife and pain, I think it’s beautiful that Shimazaki and Altair could share this moment. Capture from the Amazon Prime stream.

Well, wasn’t this episode just packed with beautiful little moments? Not sure about you, but I thought that seeing Altair and Shimazaki together in the proto-universe, lying side by side in the waters of creation, was beautiful.

If must be Voice Actor Achievement week. First Made in Abyss episode 10, and now this! Though everyone contributed, I have to give special recognition to Aki Toyosaki’s work as Altair. From the strangled cry in the beginning to the emotional conversations later, her work helped keep my attention riveted.

Shimazaki’s honest apology and gentle acceptance was the only approach that would have worked. If she’d tried to argue with Altair, she would have jeopardized the authenticity of her creation, and Altair would have perceived her as a cheap trick designed only to stop the rampage. If she’d tried to sympathize with Altair and appear to be trying to gain her trust, I think the reaction would have been the same. The only way forward was sincerity. And to demonstrate just how far he’s come as a character, Mizushino recreated Shimazaki as close to her namesake as possible, including her unassuming honesty. Everything came down to that decision.

In the beginning of the series, Mizushino’s tears represented fear or self-loathing. Now, they’re very different. Capture from the Amazon Prime stream.

I’ve seen some discussion across various social media that since Altair was the villain, she should have faced consequences. Was it really fair for her to end up happy, and a goddess to boot? I think it’s an interesting and fair question. The show itself has talked about the differences between the role of hero and the role of villain, and it was ambiguous about the universality of the answer. I think that’s intentional, and I think the key is Shimazaki’s observation that maybe Altair was the villain, but maybe she was the “knight of the weak.”

Abstract Justice is Abstract

What’s that have to do with the idea that Altair ending up happy is unjust?

If strict justice had been served, could Altair have created a new universe for Shimazaki? If not, could anyone really say that justice was served? Or is there something greater? Capture from the Amazon Prime stream.

If you had asked me 30 years ago if I was in favor of justice, I not only would have answered, “Of course!” I would also not have understood why you would even ask the question. Everyone’s in favor of justice, aren’t they? Isn’t that the foundation of society? Without just laws, wouldn’t society falls apart?

Then, I lived another 30 years. In that time, now-mandatory body cameras showed that some officers who are supposed to uphold these just laws planting evidence instead. Innocent people have been put to death in the name of justice, even though there were clear signs that they weren’t really guilty. It’s not that justice is the problem here. It’s that people have perverted the implementation of justice. They promote their own agendas or impose their wills on others who are weaker than they are — and to divert attention from their intentions, they cloak themselves in the name of justice. For me, justice has lost its sheen. More precisely: I no longer believe that humans can get it right often enough to matter. So, I’m no longer looking for solutions that simply just.

What am I looking for instead?

From the perspective of the strong — those whose power is based on amassed riches — wouldn’t the actions of a Knight of the Weak appear to be evil and unjust? Capture from the Amazon Prime stream.

Shimazaki’s invocation of the ideal of the “knight of the weak” resonated with me. So many people in the audience were drawn to that aspect of Altair. That’s what made her so powerful. From the perspective of the people who were under threat (like Team Kikuchihara), Altair would appear to be a villain. But from the perspective of those who had been bullied, or whose work and/or persons had been cast aside? Altair was standing up for them. She was their knight. She was every bit a savior as much as Alicetelia February was to her people.

Altair’s Motivations

Was Altair misguided? Heavens, yes! Trying to destroy the world is as close to objectively evil and unjust as you can get! Was Altair trying to be evil? No. To the contrary, she was trying to enforce her own perception of justice on behalf of Shimazaki. She may have been extreme in terms of her remedy, but her intent was correct. So, instead of blindly seeking justice, knowing that perspective and intent plays such a huge part in interpreting and administering justice, I prefer something else.

A bias toward mercy yields the creation of worlds. Isn’t that better than a blind justice that results only in illusionary benefits — at least in the realities that we know? Capture from the Amazon Prime stream.

I prefer mercy. I prefer to be relieved that Shimazaki was not only able to save the world, but Altair as well. The two will spend eternity making up stories for one another. We shouldn’t forget, either, that Shimazaki, in a way, saved Mizushino. Mercy yielded the creation of worlds, in this case. I argue that’s a good thing.

Of course, I could make the case that I’d like to see Selesia Upitiria and Alicetelia get a happy ending as well, but they can’t because Altair eliminated them. I have to admit, that within the logic system of a story, they all fulfilled their purposes. I guess I’m saying that my rules of justice and mercy were based on the perspective of being within the context of an anime called Re:Creators… So I can’t say for certain that applies to the real world.

Or can I? Where does Re:Creators start and our “world” begin?

What do you think? Am I off base? Is there an argument to be made that Altair deserved some kind of punishment? Let me know in the comments!

Other Reviews of Re:CREATORS Episode 21

From Other Anime Sites

From This Site (Crow’s World of Anime!)

tcrow
Copyright 2022 Terrance A. Crow. All rights reserved.
https://www.crowsworldofanime.com

Related Articles
Anime Best in Show

Review: Astra Lost in Space Episode 11 – Best In Show

tcrow

Quick Summary In Astra Lost in Space episode 11, “Confession,” Charce Lecroix confirms what he said in the last episode: He’s the clone of the king. Moreover, he embraces the role because it gives his life purpose. Unfortunately, when the Human Genome Act passed, the king made the same decision that the other originals did — he […]
Anime

Concrete Revolutio Episode 13: The Concrete Hits the Fan

tcrow

The thirteenth episode of Concrete Revolutio, “Riots in Shinjuku,” cements Jirou Hitoyoshi’s decision to leave the Superhuman Bureau. Buckle your seat belts. A lot went down in this episode! Be warned: there are spoilers below! What Happened The Strange Power Risk Management Office has finished their police-commissioned investigation. They hold a press conference to announce their findings: the Japanese and […]
Anime Best in Show

Fruits Basket – The Final Episode 9 Review – Bleeding in the Rain

tcrow

Fruits Basket – The Final Episode 9 Review – Quick Summary In Fruits Basket – The Final Episode 9, “What’s Your Name?“, Kyou fled Tohru’s confession of love, which prompted Yuki to speed after him. That left Tohru standing alone in the rain. Well, not exactly alone. Apparently stunned by recent events, she didn’t see […]

4 thoughts on “Re:CREATORS Episode 21: Challenging Fate and the Spirit of Recreation”

  2. Wonderful response and I appreciate your input. Its interesting watching people’s perspective on this episode unfold, and if you’ve seen some of it yourself, I’d definitely be interested in hearing your post mortem of the series. The dichotomy of responses is really interesting overall, and your demarkation of “Thirty years ago” and “Now” responses are good framing devices.

    Reply

Please let me know what you think!

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.