The Most Cringe-Worthy Death In Re:Zero

When it comes to role-playing games, the practice of dying then restarting again from a save point is relatively common. Gamers might be accustomed to performing this now in titles such as FromSoftware's "Elden Ring," but for the hero of "Re:Zero – Starting Life In Another World," beginning again from a "Groundhog Day" type of loop after death is a real feat. It's also an extremely painful one. Based on the light novel series from author Tappei Nagatsuki and artist Shinichirō Otsuka, the anime adaptation begins in a typical isekai genre fashion. Protagonist Subaru Natsuki is somehow transported to a magical world during a regular trip to a convenience store.

Yet, rather than instantly take up sword and shield and grandly defeat all manner of fantasy creatures, as many heroes do, Subaru just dies a lot. He's granted an ability called "Return by Death," which allows him to come back to life at a specific point to change his doomed outcomes and protect his friends. While "Re:Zero" is an excellent series about a resilient hero whose heart is probably bigger than his staggering number of deaths, it's also a series with some of the most creative ways for a protagonist to meet their demise. Most of Subaru's deaths are just brutal, but there's one that serves as the most cringe-worthy death in "Re:Zero."

Subaru encounters some intense deaths, especially during the later episodes of "Re:Zero – Starting Life In Another World." Fortunately, his most embarrassing death takes place pretty early. Subaru already dies twice by the second episode thanks to the assassin Elsa Granhiert, and he keeps resetting back to the same vendor's stand. 

While searching for an insignia, Subaru encounters three thugs in an alleyway, the same ones who try to attack him before a past reset. While Subaru escapes them unscathed in the earlier encounter, he isn't so lucky the second time, but it's actually kind of his fault. Impatient and annoyed at reliving their attempted assault, Subaru tries to rush past them, only to run into one of their knives. The encounter shocks the thieves just as much as it does Subaru, who then proceeds to bleed to death. So, as it turns out, not only is patience a virtue, but in the case of Subaru, it can very well save his life. 

Dying by accidentally running into a knife has got to be one of Subaru's most humiliating deaths in the series. But there is at least one other contender for the top of the embarrassment mountain. In Season 2, Episode 33, "The Value of Life," Subaru winds up murdered by a horde of rabbit-like creatures as they wash over him in a carnivorous wave and munch away. We'll have to think twice about these fuzzy creatures, as death by bunny is not on our show bingo cards.