Steins;Gate Zero (シュタインズ・ゲートゼロ) Review
Yes, yes. I did say that this month’s Anime will be Jojo's Bizarre Adventure (ジョジョの奇妙な冒険). However, today marks the day of the final episode of Steins;Gate Zero (シュタインズ・ゲートゼロ).
Just so you know, beyond this: THERE WILL BE PLENTY OF SPOILERS!
Anyway to explain, “Steins;Gate Zero” is another anime (another season if you will) of “Steins:Gate” and is apart of the “Steins;Gate” franchise. The story follows a man by the name of “Okarin (オカリン)” who has an ability named “Reading Steiner”, which is an ability that lets him retain memories from previous world-lines. If you haven’t realized it yet, this is indeed a “Time-Travel”, “Sci-Fi” anime. In the original Steins;Gate, we follow Okabe as he jumps through the world lines over and over again. The cause? D-mail. Although it may sound weird, it’s basically mail sent back in time. Because of this change in the past, this changes the future.
In the original Steins;Gate, a girl with the “Time-Machine Theory” lives with the name “Kurisu (紅莉栖)”. She is the main love interest in the entirety of Steins;Gate. Anyway, there are two main world lines within the world of Steins;Gate: the beta and alpha world lines. The Beta world line is basically the original, while the Alpha world line is where Okabe jumps to.
SPOILER:
Kurisu dies in the Beta World Line
Mayuri dies in the Alpha World Line
Did I mention Mayuri? I guess I didn’t. Anyway, Mayuri is one of the friends of Okabe, accompanied by “Itaru (至)”: one of Okabe’s longtime friends.
Why does it matter? So what does it mean that they die? It’s not like I met them yet.
Keep in mind, these two characters are the two that Okabe holds very dear to his heart.
Eventually, Okabe jumps back to the Beta Timeline to save Mayuri from death. However, there was a chance to save them both. This is where Steins;Gate Zero takes place. Here, Okabe doesn’t know that this is a choice he could have made and soon lives an entire year without Kurisu by his side.
At this point in time, he lives a normal life. Until the situation comes where Mayuri realizes that she, herself, can help change the future and aim it towards that world line: where both Mayuri and Kurisu lives. Hence the name “Steins;Gate”.
Over and over again, Okabe sees Mayuri die in the Beta timeline.
How? This is the Beta timeline! Not the Alpha timeline!
There are two big factors that play in this part and explanation: the world’s first existing time machine, and an AI by the name of “Amadeus”.
In order for Mayuri to change the future, she decides to time travel back to exactly one year ago. However, there is not enough time for take-off, so a missile is shot and destroys the time machine every single time. In order to buy more time, Amadeus is deleted.
Who is Amadeus? It’s an AI as said before. It’s an AI that withholds the memories of Kurisu.
In the new world line (where Amadeus no longer exists), this buys just enough time for Mayuri and Suzuha to “lift-off” to exactly one year ago.
This is where history is made:
- Mayuri tells herself to slap some sense into Okabe, even when he’s feeling hopeless
- Okabe lives 13 more years, and creates the message that encourages him to try again to reach the Steins;Gate
This is where the timeline for Steins;Gate is finally established. Thanks to the events from Steins;Gate Zero, events can now be established in Steins;Gate.
Very confusing right? It’s okay, watch both animes and you’ll fully understand.
Here’s the correct way to watch Steins;Gate!
Steins;Gate - Episodes 1-23 ==> Steins;Gate Zero - All Episodes ==> Steins;Gate - Episode 24 ==> Steins;Gate - The Movie
Enjoy!
