OKAY. IT'S TIME. Please bear with me while I read way too much into this because I'm about to make mountains out of anthills.
The way it starts dark, and flickers to faded, washed out browns. Dull. The sound of the music is distant and muffled, almost completely overshadowed by the buzz of the light and the microphone feedback. Despite being directly next to the camera, Kaoru's words cannot be heard.
This is such a testament to Rei's mental state. He can't feel anything. Nothing catches his interest. It's all background noise to him-- so that's all that shows through. All the colour is boring. All the sound is mundane. The light is old and dim.
But then you start to hear the cheering fade in, and the sound of the performance onstage coming into focus. The camera switches to Adonis and Koga onstage, entertaining the audience. They have always been UNDEAD's lifeblood, always the ones trying so hard while Rei and Kaoru went through the motions, unmotivated, uninterested. And really, it was their determination and perseverance that held the group together through its worst times.
The performance isn't starting; Rei just hasn't had his heart in it. And it's that boundless determination that finally gives him the strength and desire to join the fray. In fact, UNDEAD wouldn't even exist if it weren't for Koga's resolve. More than anyone else, it's his efforts that have led the four of them to this point, and so you have the close up on his face here.
Not only that, though-- the order in which they sing their first lines is the order in which they found their resolve to give their all for the unit. Koga, then Adonis, then Kaoru, and finally, Rei.
Koga handing Rei his microphone-- Rei coming to Koga to take the microphone-- is significant for me because Koga is the reason Rei found the will to put his heart back into their music, and everyone knows that. However! It wasn't ever forced. He found it in himself with Koga's inspiration. He steps forward to take the microphone from where he'd been sitting.
Kaoru and Rei's crossed microphones, to me, symbolize how they used each other as a goal to pull themselves up out of the depths of despair and really start reaching for what they wanted, even when they hadn't always been sure what that was. They always admired each other for the things they, themselves, didn't have-- and then, they used those differences to build one another up, cover each other's weaknesses, and come to see one another as equals instead of an unattainable ideal.
There is a part where Rei kicks, and then the entire stage comes crashing down. A coffin falls, spilling open to reveal a bright light. Pillars are crumbling, paintings are falling off walls, and fire spreads. I think the destruction of this dark, lonely castle is something that Rei has feared for a long time, but desperately needs. This isn't just a castle. To me, this is symbolic of his entire heart, chained away behind walls that make it seem so small in comparison. Surrounded by the unit mates he loves so much, how could he possibly be lonely? He's not. Not anymore. And there's no more need for chains and dark walls.
He is turning his suffering into art. He is turning the destruction of his solitude into a performance. But that's not surprising, really, because he has always loved to be onstage, even when he didn't recognize that love for what it was.
I wish he interacted more with Adonis in this. I really, really do. But even their lack of big, flashy moments speaks enough for me. Rei and Adonis have always been more or less in tune with one another. That's just who they are. They don't have to speak. Their bond is strong, and when the stage starts going up in flames, it's Adonis he's standing closest to.