Subaru Natsuki

Lore & Background

Subaru is the main protagonist of the series; he is a 17-year-old NEET who is suddenly transported to the Kingdom of Lugunica, a nation in another world, on his way home from the convenience store. There, he meets and falls in love with a silver-haired half-elf girl named Emilia, leading to him getting recruited into her camp for the Royal Selection, a competition to decide the kingdom's next ruler, and meeting the other members: nobleman Roswaal, twin maids Ram and Rem, and the spirit of their mansion's library, Beatrice. Upon his arrival, Subaru also acquires an ability he dubs "Return by Death" that sends him back to a predetermined point in time whenever he dies, which was seemingly gifted to him by Satella, the legendary Witch of Envy, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Emilia and haunts him throughout the narrative.

In Their Own Story

The first three arcs of the novel (season one of the anime) serve as a gradual breakdown of Subaru's character and the tropes of the isekai genre as a whole. Overall, these arcs are about Subaru navigating his new environment and meeting the other cast members while feeling isolated as the only person who remembers Return by Death's loops, since Satella silences him whenever he talks about it. As an otaku well-versed in the genre, he initially doesn't take his situation seriously and sees others as stereotypes rather than actual people. Ironically, despite trying to put on a brave facade, he ultimately succeeds in breaking out of his time loops in these arcs only when showcasing humility and treating others with respect, winning the other characters' trust. The third arc explores Subaru's flaws: his entitlement and need for validation. When Emilia starts focusing on the Royal Selection over him, Subaru crashes the proceedings before publicly declaring himself her knight, only to make a fool of himself and her. He also meets the knight of one of Emilia's rivals, Aldabran, or "Al", who is revealed to also be from Japan, shattering his perception that he is special. Subsequently, the mansion comes under attack from the Witch's Cult, a group of zealots who worship Satella, led by the Sin Archbishop of Sloth, Petelgeuse Romanée-Conti, who serves as a foil to Subaru: a madman who feels entitled to the witch's affection. To fight off the Cult, Subaru attempts to recruit help from the other camps but is turned down throughout several loops due to his self-centered behavior, always resulting in his friends' deaths. Reaching his breaking point, Subaru gives up and admits to his faults to Rem, revealing that, underneath his outer demeanor, he actually suffers from a severe inferiority complex. However, rather than chastise him, Rem declares that he had been her "hero" ever since he saved her in the second arc, giving him a reason to keep going. Acquiescing to those around him, rather than expecting them to conform to him, Subaru manages to win the other camps' support and defeat Petelgeuse using information he acquired during his previous failed loops. Unfortunately, the victory comes at a price, as Rem is left in a comatose state after being attacked by another Sin Archbishop, Gluttony, with waking her up becoming Subaru's secondary goal throughout the series. The fourth arc of the novel (anime season two) centers around Subaru's toxic overreliance on Return by Death.

Reader's Guide

Subaru Natsuki is a 17-year-old NEET who is suddenly transported to the Kingdom of Lugunica. His defining ability is "Return by Death," which sends him back to a predetermined point in time whenever he dies. This ability was seemingly gifted to him by Satella, the legendary Witch of Envy. Subaru uses this power to protect his newfound friends, including Emilia, Roswaal, Ram, Rem, and Beatrice. Key moments in his arc include his initial failure to protect Emilia, his desperate struggle against the Witch's Cult led by Petelgeuse Romanée-Conti, and his eventual acceptance that he must carry the sins of his failures alone. He evolves into a leader who inspires others not through strength, but through an unyielding will to change fate.

Did You Know?

• Subaru's first name was written as a reference to the Pleiades asterism, which also connects to the Seven Sisters from Greek mythology.
• The scene where Subaru is eaten by rabbits was based on the 1997 film The Lost World: Jurassic Park, where Compsognathus dinosaurs devour the character of Dieter Stark.
• Subaru's initial design made him look like a delinquent, with illustrator Shin'ichirō Ōtsuka later describing it as 'not the face of a boy in his teens'.
• Yūsuke Kobayashi initially believed Re:Zero was a romantic comedy before reading more of the narrative.
• The two lines 'I hate myself' and 'I love you, Emilia' were written to be the strongest lines in developing Subaru in the first season.

Origins and Creation

The series' editor at MF Bunko J, Masahito Ikemoto, first became aware of Tappei Nagatsuki's web novel in April 2013 when it began to appear on his Twitter feed. He was immediately impressed by the series' use of Subaru's Return by Death, and how it was a "depressing, yet surprising, twist on the fantasy genre" before he began working with Nagatsuki to adapt the series into a light novel. The character's first name was written as a reference to the Pleiades asterism which also connects to the Seven Sisters from Greek mythology. Subaru was created to be a young man assisting a silver-haired girl. Nagatsuki conceived of Return by Death under the assumption that it would help the main character become stronger with each use before changing his mind. Instead, he decided to develop Subaru through the latter's deaths. Nagatsuki decided to explore Subaru's deaths in the light novel as he found this concept to be rarely explored in other series. In order to keep the narrative entertaining, Nagatsuki gives Subaru a challenge with every Return by Death and subjects him to gruesome experiences. Illustrator Shin'ichirō Ōtsuka submitted a number of character designs for the major characters to Ikemoto. Subaru's initial design made him look like a delinquent, with Ōtsuka later describing it as "not the face of a boy in his teens". Ikemoto requested that the character be "more friendly and less fierce" so that the audience could empathize with him during emotional scenes. Given that Subaru was conceived as an ordinary teenager, Ōtsuka avoided giving him an ikemen style, which emphasizes stylishness.

Abilities and Narrative Role

Subaru's defining trait is the supernatural power known as Return by Death, which resurrects him at a previous point in time following his demise. While Nagatsuki initially considered using this mechanic to strengthen the protagonist physically, he ultimately chose to explore character development through Subaru's repeated fatalities instead. This approach subjects the hero to gruesome scenarios, such as being devoured by rabbits, an event inspired by small creatures in The Lost World: Jurassic Park films. Despite these horrors, Subaru utilizes his temporal reset ability primarily to safeguard his newfound companions from catastrophe. The narrative structure challenges him with specific obstacles during each loop, ensuring that every resurrection presents a new difficulty while highlighting the psychological toll of enduring constant tragedy to achieve a better outcome for those around him.

Voice Acting Performance

Yūsuke Kobayashi voices Subaru in the Japanese version. He initially believed the series was a romantic comedy. However, upon reading more of the narrative, Kobayashi was attracted by the series. He describes Subaru as a character who tries his best to avoid a negative future thanks to his Return by Death ability. As a result, he views his character more as a cheerful teenager despite the threats he faces. Kobayashi recalls being surprised as he was immediately cast for the role once the staff heard his voice. When Kobayashi was preparing he said "Isn't this too many lines for an anime?!" based on the multiple moods he had to portray, which led him to being exhausted during recording sessions. During initial episodes, Kobayashi befriended Puck's actor Yumi Uchiyama who supported him. Kobayashi had difficulties voicing Subaru in the first season as a result of being given little direction but got Nagatsuki's approval, as he found his work appealing. The two lines "I hate myself" and "I love you, Emilia" were written to be the strongest lines in developing Subaru in the first season. With the second season, Kobayashi believes the way Otto treats Subaru to support him as a major turning point fitting for a main character now that Rem was not available to assist Subaru. The actor said that there was a noticeable change between Subaru and Emilia's relationship as they became a couple so their interactions are more straightforward and his transformation into a knight appealed to the actor. Sean Chiplock voiced the character in the English dub of the series. Chiplock found Subaru as an energetic character with a sense of justice, comparing his personality with that of Jin-Mori, the protagonist of The God of High School. Chiplock claimed he drew on his own personal insecurities to make Subaru sound properly scared, eventually forming Subaru's trauma.

Reception and Critical Analysis

Subaru has been a popular character in Japan and won "Best Character (Male)" at the Newtype Anime Awards. Despite early mixed reception to Subaru's characterization in the narrative, anime and manga critics have praised the handling of his stress and the way he overcomes it in a heroic manner, making him a likable protagonist. The character has been often analyzed as the opposite of the typical archetypes presented in the isekai genre due to Subaru's heroic complex and the weakness he often shows in most episodes.