I just finished Shizuru’s route last night. It was a very good route and packed so many emotions that left me bewildered. Shizuru is a cute and loving character, despite the issues that she faced with her parents and I also thought how thoughtful that Kotarou was wanting to try to learn how to cook saury with the shichirin grill that he purchased. I love her quirky personality whenever she gets embarrassed about her being cute. I have to say that I thought exactly the same thing about Kotori’s voice that reached out to Koutarou in order to save Shizuru but that hadn’t occurred to me about that. I also wondered about how Akane wanted destruction so badly that humanity needed to be wiped out because in the ending that was quoted about how a superhuman became so powerful that he lived forever and humanity did not “mature”. I thought probably that humans did not evolve enough and she was to judge those not befitting her good memories. I will probably have to find out later in Akane’s route.
Overall, I could not stop crying after how Kazamatsuri and those from Guardian tried their best to stop the destruction of the world and Shizuru and Kotarou as the light shone forth from the ground as others vanished right before them. The route was carefully written well, although other previous routes, besides Chihaya’s route which kind of felt like a battle manga, but I won’t bash about those things. Anyway, her route kept me going through the long haul and I can’t wait until it gets animated through the adaptation coming soon.
YESS !! Shizuru’s route was my favorite heroine route from Rewrite. It’s so sad when you realize how much she’s lost, the pain that she’s been through really makes you feel her. And also
THIS RIGHT HERE !! Just hearing Koibumi’s play during the last scene can make my day ! Heck, it can make my year ! If they do something similar to CLANNAD and Angel Beats, and I don’t know about Air and Little Busters, but when you play the beautiful song with Romanji lyrics and English subtitles with the scene.
I find Shizuru’s personality amusing and funny, sometimes, she’ll act innocent and childish and playful, and then sometimes, joke lewd with Lucia, that part with “I’m so ripe with the picking, uhun ~”. When in other times, as member of Guardian, she seems very serious and knows what she talks about. I don’t know, but this is common to the character heroines of Rewrite overall, where they seem to have a personality mask they carry when not doing Guardian and Gaia things, don’t know.
Also memorable mentions are her saury, her eyepatch, her funny thoughts in Common Route (Runstar and Saury Man), she suggesting people touch Kotarou’s boobs in Common Route, she can imitate voices of cats and dogs, and also, saury, and putting saury in a sandwich, and likes it in parfait.
And that Lucia went crying and hugged her in the chest (Lucia’s Common Route), and she seems to know some Bible verses (In Lucia Route). And that she said in the Common Route to Lucia that she has no right to complain when men stare at her boobs, and it’s normal for men to want to touch at one (The whole Occult Club freaked out at that, except Chihaya who continued eating.) I really don’t know, but my memory is sharp at things like this. Well, I’m free to discss anything from the Shizuru and Common Routes here, right?
She’s a very hilarious and funny character overall. Her behavior is unpredictable.
If I’m not mistake, I believe she’s the only Rewrite heroine proficient in the use of firearms (Am I wrong?), I’m impressed at her fighting skills in Shizuru, Lucia and Chihaya Route, and you know, she can fire guns and sniper rifles.
I believe her behavior towards Kotaou in the Common Route is explained by the fact that she had a crush on him ~ . It seems hinted in Terra, don’t know. And I like the fact that she loves her family so much that to the point that she pities herself, she does not buy anything and saves a million so she can buy something for her family, even though her mother and father forgot her in their memory. (So sad…)
Regarding the actual route, I can’t remember much of the route actually on the level that I did with Kotori’s, Lucia’s, Chihaya’s. My memory is shoddy and hazy on her route, so I have trouble remembering most of the plot. I don’t know if I read it while I’m asleep, or I am in a state of confusion, but I have trouble with the details. And her route just don’t made a mark on me in the same vein as the other routes. (except Akane).
This is written by the same author Yuto Tonokawa who wrote Chihaya’s Route right? What I like is that he gives emphasis on the interactions between the heroines, something I find lacking in Akane and Kotori Route, where I don’t see the heroines there (Except for Akane and Kotori). Of note is the scene with Chihaya and Sakuya, where they just left. I read there above by someone that it’s rushed and not good, but the author could have turned it into something more dramatic and building up, like I don’t want to join Gaia anymore!. Something like that. Where did Lucia went in this, I did not see her?
And if I remember correctly, Kotori seems to be the one who, healed the connection with them, when Shizuru was in a coma, to avoid Kotarou to die, something at that lines? It seems her. And she became mute at that? I was heartstruck also at the saury grilling thing, Kotarou promised to do it, it became a moment of bonding for them two, and somehow it didn’t happened, like tearjerking.
I notice you people here seem to like discussing themes and moral lessons in the routes of the heroines. Here, I can’t come up with one, and Kotarou becomes a tree, which is very tearjerking and sad that Shizuru’s boyfriend became a tree, but I feel a general theme of devotion transcending the end of the world, something like “Even if the world ends, I’ll still be here with you”, “Even if I became a tree”, like that. No matter how even if the world ends, even if Kotarou became a tree, Shizuru will still be there for Kotarou, and Kotarou will still be there for Shizuru. The lyrics of her character song, Koibumi, hit me hard.
Something like that! It’s very much a route that deals with the transience of existence. It’s about knowing when to accept the cards that you’ve been dealt and step off the stage. It’s all about the different kinds of partings that Kotarou and Shizuru had with different characters, and with each other. The loss of bonds. Searching for something precious to hold on to even after everything else is lost.
What Kotarou gave Shizuru in the very end was hope. If he had continued to live on, he would have drained Shizuru’s life away and they would have both died very shortly after escaping salvation, But because of Kotarou’s sacrifice, not only could Shizuru live on, but she gained a small glimmer of hope for the future. Whether or not Kotarou will ever return to being a human again, Shizuru has all her days ahead of her. And, ultimately, Kotarou’s love will remain with her for the rest of her days, even if she can never talk to him again.
Route’s romantic as fuck, who calls this the worst one?
[quote=“Naoki_Saten, post:10, topic:1978”]
Only in the very end did he stop being a burden and managed to protect Shizuru instead of being the one who gets protected.
[/quote]But thats part of what makes this route so great! How often do we see the protagonist of the story as one who has to be protected? Who isnt the “hero”? Its not like Kotarou is just lazing around not doing anything to help. He’s been forcibly dragged into this war for which he is not prepared. Its similar to Kotori’s route in that way: he may have a “power”, but there’s nothing he can do. I find it more interesting when the protagonist isn’t the one who has to do the protecting.
[quote=“EisenKoubu, post:12, topic:1978”]
There’s one scene where Sakuya infiltrates the Guardian facility to complete an objective for Chihaya… It’s like Tonokawa had writer’s block during that particular part of the route and wrote in such a rushed and brain-dead scene because he couldn’t give them a focus.
[/quote]That scene was sooooooo important though! Imo, for this route to make sense, Sakuya had to make an appearance. And his last comment to Kotarou was perfect, and I loved the way Kotarou reflects on it later. And it makes sense to me that Chihaya would just decide to quit like that when confronted with fighting her friends. We know from her route that she was actually already considering quitting Gaia.
[quote=“EisenKoubu, post:12, topic:1978”]
Gil and Pani
[/quote]Gil and Pani arent supposed to be some driving force, though. I like the few appearances they make in this route, especially at the very end.
Basically ^this and the rest of Taka’s paragraph
[quote=“EisenKoubu, post:12, topic:1978”]
This route also bothers me because it presented more questions than answered them
[/quote]You pretty much answered all of your questions for yourself though? Not sure what you dont understand. And the ones that you didnt answer, Taka answered again.[quote=“Sonic112003, post:21, topic:1978”]
I can’t wait until it gets animated through the adaptation coming soon.
[/quote]Im actually very scared about how theyre gonna handle this one, if it gets adapted. The entire ending scene, which is so important, is all written in a diary. How would that work in anime?
Ahhh, man. This is definitely my favorite route so far, (I only have Akane left at this point). Prior to finishing, it had been Kotori, but I feel like this took many of the things I loved that Kotori introduced and ran with them.
Ok so firstly, I loved the mechanics of this route. The use of flashback to tell Shizuru’s backstory. Then the timeskip. Having no idea where the route was gonna go at the time, I practically jumped for joy when they revealed that they were rewinding to show what had happened over the past month. It was great presentation.
Second, I love all the references to other routes. I dont think I would have liked Shizuru’s route half as much if I hadnt already read Kotori, Chihaya, and Lucia beforehand. I think I talked about these a little more above in my replies. But the stuff with Kotori and the voice, and especially expanding on the stuff with Sakuya and the tree was perfect.
@Aspirety and @Naoki_Saten point out the themes of loss and pacifism, which I think are spot on, if even a little oversimplified.
Loss and despair are definitely prominent, but I think it goes beyond that to the fact that “loss is always imminent,” and “living, not to ‘the fullest’, but living smart”. Esaka specifically makes a ton of comments about this, and Imamiya as well. Aspi puts this pretty well in the post above this.
About pacifism though. I think the Key really reveals why this is so important. There’s two line that go something like this: “Good memories must not be sad. It’s so sad when homo religios invest fantasies to cling to.” Thats got to be one of my favorite quotes of this route, simply because its so revealing. Why must the world be destroyed, she says? Because those people who both stem from the same religion of “The Key” have created separate and equally incorrect beliefs about it and are now murdering each other.
Im still thinking about what the Hissy Cat symbolizes in this route. At the moment I’ve settled on foreshadowing for the next scene, but I’ll have to go back and reread it.
And to top this route off, there’s both Koiuta and Koibumi. HNNNNNNNG. Beautiful. The tune, the lyrics, the softness, fits so perfectly.
Personally, the only thing that disappointed me about this route is that DJ Shimamura’s Drumscape Rewrite Remix didnt play during the motorcycle chase.
Man Kotarou really can’t catch a break with the memory loss.
This was definitely the sweetest romance so far, and I’ve always been a fan of bittersweet endings. I didn’t enjoy this route as much as Lucia’s or Chihaya’s, but its a nice change of pace going from the action packed Chihaya’s route where Kotarou becomes and overpowered shounen protagonist to Kotarou being a pacifist who needs to be protected.
The scene with Sakuya and Chihaya was definitely meant for utility more than anything so the writer had a way to get Chihaya out of the way and have Sakuya drop some not-so-subtly foreshadowing, but at least they didn’t drag it out. It was a pretty short scene.
The relationship between Kotarou and Shizuru in this route was the best in the game so far. It felt more alive than Lucia’s which had one nice date scene but wasn’t developed all that much beyond that and more developed than Chihaya’s.
Shizuru is a great supporting character. She’s great in the common and other character routes but she didn’t really have much agency in this one. I can’t remember any parts where she really did anything to push the plot in a certain direction. Most of the decisions she made in this route she only really had one choice, with the big exception being at the end when she leaves Kotarou and goes to the shelter. I only have issue with this because the relationship is the most important part of this route and by removing agency from one of members of that relationship it feels less natural.
Overall a very decent route. Not the best, but I’m sure I will appreciate it more in time. I’m always like that with bittersweet endings.
I was right! Looking back on Rewrite after letting it sit for a while and watching the anime, this is my favorite route.
My complaints with the route still stand but this is still just very strong overall. There’s a bit of contrast between Shizuru in Common, where she’s almost exclusively used as comic relief and Shizuru here, where she’s actually fleshed out as a balanced character. But the transition is handled in tiny pieces so it doesn’t feel jarring. It almost feels like the organic process of getting to know someone naturally, which is not something many stories are able to do at all.
So i finished shizuru my second route after kotori. Tbh shizuru wasn’t even the main highlight for me in this route, it was seeing the war from one of the factions (Guardian) side while Kotori is just two people trying to survive the war while not joining any side,we don’t get a peek on how big and desperate the whole thing is. In shizuru we see esaka, nishikujou struggling to end the fighting and have their chance of living a normal life (well nishikujou at least). That scene with chihaya sums up everything for me (even though it’s a half-assed scene) two factions opposing each other with none of them trying to understand each other’s ideals, a useless war.
kotarou is kinda impulsive and irrational thinker in this route but his thoughts fit well, shizuru is… there, the interactions between them were fun.The last few scenes made me a bit emotional but that was it.
Let’s be real this was a chill route. Nothing more nothing less. I have never said this in my life but I made audible comment of how nice the romance was. Seriously, I don’t usually care about romance but it was the highlight of the rotue for me. Watching the way that Shizuru and Kotarou go from ‘protector’ and ‘quarry’ to “Kotarou let’s sleep in the same bed” to “KOTAROU NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO T_T” was really well done.
I’m pretty excited to read Akane’s route soon, and see what’s going on on the other side of the war. So far the Guardian forces seem to be the ‘plucky rebel’ good guys and the Gaia lads are the evil Empire but maybe that will change? I hope it does. I’m a big fan of a good story with no moral high ground.
Shizuru’s past was heavy to say the least, and I hope we can find a timeline where she can be happy. Tutturu~
I should really stop crying over anime girls while my family is around.
I owe Shizuru a bit of an apology, because I did not want to give her much of a chance. The over-the-top cheeriness about her character in the common route as well as the fact that she is a loli made me go into this route not expecting to like it all that much. Despite that, the romance was really cute and I liked this tone shift a lot. Right after reading about Lucia killing 200,000 people, the pacifist nature of this route is like a whole new side to Rewrite.
I had my own little character arc with Shizuru. When I first read Rewrite, she was my last route before Moon and Terra, and that was the biggest mistake I ever made with the novel. Her route just did not satisfy me, especially after reading Chihaya. That has all changed now that I’ve soaked in all of Rewrite and what it’s actually trying to tell me.
Shizuru is an odd character in terms of writing for me. She is no doubt great, but her character is rather static within her own route. I’m not a fan of how moe or pandering she is. Regardless, Shizuru is a good thematic reflection of her route, and that’s why she stands shoulder to shoulder with better written characters like Kotori and Sakuya.
So, my favorite thing about Shizuru’s route is the theme of valuing normalcy. That is why she and the rest of Guardian fight, to become one of those ordinary lights shining on ordinary families as Kotarou would put it, while calling Gaia idiots for wanting to destroy the imperfectly beautiful everyday. I find this beautifully simple, and thematically strong. It’s one of my favorite themes, period. Its focus on its theme is only second to Kanon for me. In a chuunige like Rewrite, to see the characters desperately fight for something that we take for granted is incredibly powerful to me. Other visual novels like Dies Irae do this as well, and that’s why it’s easier for me to relate to something no matter how outlandish the subject matter is, as long as the theme is very grounded. Esaka and Gen reflect this as well, as being older veterans the reader is allowed to infer just how long they’ve been fighting for such a common goal. Gen’s last stand, where he tells Kotarou that life is precious feels authentic and powerful because the route built up that theme so well. I really feel that Guardian wishes they could be in a world where they don’t need to exist. That’s why they are so sympathetic to me. I love this route, not so much because of what happens in it or even the characters that drive it, but because the theme is so great and handled very well.
This is remarkably in tune with my preconceptions, so I was really surprised at the feels and just how much I enjoyed this route. This is tied with Kotori for my favourite route so far. In the other routes during Common Shizuru came across to me almost as a cute little robot girl who was trying desperately to understand human nature and not quite getting there.
Now although on the surface it doesn’t feel as if Shizuru develops all that much, on learning about her past my empathy for her definitely shot up a few notches. There’s a lot of deadpan, dry comedy between her and Kotarou that feels realistic and their increasing closeness seems to proceed at a pleasing pace. The bookending framework that formed the first act made for a compelling start and the mix of slice of life with Shizuru’s backstory. Oh yeah and Maid Shizuru , plus that very offbeat panties v boxers scene “now we’re even” LOL. And OTOH another sad moment when Lucia - who has seemed inseparable from Shizuru - unexpectedly bids us goodbye in this route, now Shizuru appears to be taking on the same role for Kotarou who has himself lost his own “other half” Kotori.
This sense of normality helped to give injecting the Guardians and Gaian conflict into the story all the more tragic when shit kicked off. And then we start to see the glimmer of hope briefly before the rug is pulled out right from underneath us, and the diary was a very neat way to bring the route to its conclusion.
In the end the question harks back for me to a question that was very important in the re-imagining of Battlestar Galactica, namely not just whether humanity can survive but whether it deserves to survive. Now we can see just where this story is leading up to for its ending and I expect that Akane’s route will start to add some more shades of grey…
Now grill me some saury, I’ll be back in time for breakfast…
