Paul says "Save your mother even if it kills you" but implicitly holds himself to that exact same standard for every member of his family. Whether it be Rudy, Zenith, Lilia, Norn, or Aisha in that position, Paul wouldn't hesitate for an instant to give his life in their place. Paul and Rudy's mutual understanding as equals, is precisely what finally allows Rudy to let his walls down around this sole parental figure in his life. Paul's heroic sacrifice serves as one of several crucial, if agonizing, steps in Rudeus' development towards becoming a better person. Much like how Norn's earlier shut-in incident provided Rudy an opportunity to reflect on his past life and empathize with his brother's attempts to help him recover, Paul's death FORCES Rudy to confront that same callousness he showed toward his parents' deaths. Without Paul's death and his role in causing it, Rudy would have continued to avert his eyes with the same cold indifference he had shown only minutes earlier towards the prospect of Zenith's untimely demise even as it was right in front of him, literally staring him dead in the face. Paul was the only one Rudy truly let in. Not his former parents. Not Lilia. Not even Zenith. Only Paul. His father. His precious, irreplaceable father.
I think this interpretation is not quiet accurate, the reason behind Paul telling those words is not because of his consistent failures in life, but rather simply to show his determination and desperation, and truly show rudeus how serious he was, since just before that statement, rudeus had his doubts whether zenith is alive or dead, he truly wanted to make it clear that doesn't matter, thou it might seems telling those words to just prove his seriousness would be extreme, but for Paul he had no other way to make his genius son get how he feels, since like Eris, his also not good with words. (My opinion)
That line takes on a double meaning if you've played the MT gaiden. It details paul mourning the passing of his mother due to illness, something he blames himself for. Not being able to protect someone he cares about. So, as much as the line is directed towards rudeus, it's also directed towards Paul. He cannot let that tragedy repeat itself.
@MarkTazo99 Paul gaiden was a canonical storyline about Paul's childhood that was published inside of the Mt gacha game, which has unfortunately never left japan and was shut down a few years ago. (You can still find some fan translations online)
In the fourth arc, he falls in love with Zenith because she reminds him of his mother. Zenith is a living reminder of his mother for him. He is saying those words to himself. He can't bear losing any image of his mother again.
@@Disdudistheman sadly Rudy was too euphoric to focus, it was also his first labyrinth so I can't blame him. At some point the hydra just starts hitting everywhere and he was looking at Roxy the pay off for that was horrible.
@@Brianworldwide_7 If I remember right in the novel his eye was fucking with him which is why he stood still, it was basically reading the actions of all the heads at once and he didn't know which to actually dodge
Can we all just talk about his fight with Rudeus at the bar Paul dissed(insulted)Rudeus first and he also threw the first punch so objectively Paul started it.Plus it was a grown man getting drunk and punching his eleven year old son so anyone who likes Paul like abusive and toxic characters.
I'd love a video like this talking about how it took this sacrifice for Rudy to realize he truly was Paul's son. Not some stranger or a "fake son". Rudeus Greyrat was Paul's precious son and it took so much for him to really see that.
Thank you for pointing out Rudeus is Paul's equal. The light novels CLEARLY depict this and talk about it, they make Rudeus the same height as Paul and I took this as meaning that Rudeus is on the same level as Paul. With Rudy starting his own family and Paul and Rudeus working together, but the anime doesnt do this, clearly showing Paul looking down at Rudy. Yet in the light novels Rudues is specificly super tall, only Zenoba is really taller then him
Paul has always struggled with being a parent to Rudeus. A fair portion of that is the fault of Rudeus not being a typical child starting with him having the intellect of a 35 year old man. Mentally speaking Rudeus is more mature than somewhat selfish Paul, but at the same time he's also initially much more of a personal failure than Paul who at least got out into the world and lived his own life. Both of them struggle with issues of stubbornness and pride. The difference is that Rudeus has taken the opportunity at making a clean start, and Paul at times struggles to find a path forward.
I understand the Paul hate from some fans but I always found him to be a compelling character. Yes he failed a lot in his life but it takes courage to keep moving forward while being haunted by your own short comings. In the end he gave everything he had to his family. I think he more than redeemed himself.
Paul lost his life and is memorialized on fathers day making him one of the best fathers in anime history along side Mayes Hughes and many others who were parents or parental figures to our beloved MCs
As a anime only watcher I loved Mushoku and couldn’t wait for next season to come out so I started reading the light novels. It elevates the show to a whole new level, the amount of small details is insane and a great world building story.
i believe the japanese sentence paul uttered has no specified subject, so it can also be understood as "even if it kills us" which makes sense since he is holding rudy to the same standard of his determination
Can we all talk about the fight at the bar Paul had with Rudeus.Paul dissed(insulted)Rudeus first and Paul threw the first punch so objectively Paul started it yet a large amount of the fandom thinks the fight was Rudeus’ fault.Plus it was a grown man getting drunk and punching his son so anyone that likes Paul support abusive and toxic characters.
As a non-LN reader, I was happy to hear the part at the end, because that's how I felt with their dynamic, and especially when Paul said that Rudy in episode 22. He sees Rudy as an equal, and he's relying on him to have the same conviction as him when it comes to saving Zenith. Paul has been my favorite character since season 1, and I'm still processing my feelings about what happened to him in ep 22.
Both Paul and Rudeus both grew as the series continued Rudeus needed to start truly maturing after his first life was a mess, an adult who couldnt confront the world is little more than an adult in name. Paul needed to truly start maturing as his own impulses led to countless mistakes he felt guilty about. One grew to become a better person, the other dedicated his everything for a final endeavor for the sole purpose of fixing his mistakes, becoming the dependable father he always wished to be and his familly always wished to have
Those word were the determination needed to save zenith. If either Rudeus or Paul didnt had that determination, things would ended worst In the Asura's kingdom arc, Rudeus says that even if he considers it a death flag he wont stop anyone of saying some words before the battle. Remembering the time he interrupted Paul's words before the battle with the hydra
The anime hasnt finished, and I didnt watch the video but if paul dies you spoiled me for the first time for Mushoku because of a title that used for views(I hope im wrong)
Don’t worry bro, Mushoku fanbase are a bunch of 10yo who think spoiling everything is cool, because they’re ahead of everyone. I got spoiled, but believe me bro, it doesn’t matter, because this anime is so damn good that spoilers can’t do shit, Paul’s death is one of the greatest and most impactful death I’ve seen in anime. I couldn’t even watch his death again unlike most deaths in fiction, it’s to painful, especially looking at his face and how he died. This anime is a MASTERPIECE.
where can i find the manga for this anime cuz everytime i search for it the mangas i find end at rude and elisanise arriving to help paul search for zenith and thats it
I always hated Paul’s character so much even though he was such a scumbag he judged Rudeus so harshly most of the time like when Rudeus asked if Sylphy was okay after the teleportation incident and Paul said of course you would be more worried about your girlfriend than your mother. As if he had any room to talk he raped Lilia and there is no justification for raping an innocent woman.
You're not wrong, but the whole point of Mushoku Tensei is redemption, that no matter how much you fucked up you can try to be better. This theme isn't only about Rudy but the people around him, Paul tries and tries again to be a better man, person and husband throughout the series, and although he fucks up and falls down that's honestly realistic. It's hard to be better when you've been garbage all your life. Roxy was fully okay with settling for mediocrity, she would've never come as far as she did if Rudy didn't inspire her to try harder after she taught him. Ruijerd's whole thing is to redeem his race and make up for what his people did to all those innocents during their madness. It's not wrong to hate Paul and what he's done, but you do need to realize how much he actually tries to be better, which is a lot more then you can say about a lot of people irl who are okay with being monsters.
Check out my second channel if you're interested in episode-by-episode discussions of season 2: ua-cam.com/video/65r6iQSGW2A/v-deo.html
Have you read Paul's Gaiden? Pls read it if you havent🙏
Paul says "Save your mother even if it kills you" but implicitly holds himself to that exact same standard for every member of his family. Whether it be Rudy, Zenith, Lilia, Norn, or Aisha in that position, Paul wouldn't hesitate for an instant to give his life in their place. Paul and Rudy's mutual understanding as equals, is precisely what finally allows Rudy to let his walls down around this sole parental figure in his life.
Paul's heroic sacrifice serves as one of several crucial, if agonizing, steps in Rudeus' development towards becoming a better person. Much like how Norn's earlier shut-in incident provided Rudy an opportunity to reflect on his past life and empathize with his brother's attempts to help him recover, Paul's death FORCES Rudy to confront that same callousness he showed toward his parents' deaths. Without Paul's death and his role in causing it, Rudy would have continued to avert his eyes with the same cold indifference he had shown only minutes earlier towards the prospect of Zenith's untimely demise even as it was right in front of him, literally staring him dead in the face. Paul was the only one Rudy truly let in. Not his former parents. Not Lilia. Not even Zenith. Only Paul. His father. His precious, irreplaceable father.
This moment... It always seems to get better when I go back to reread the novel...
Your voice and storytelling makes me cry every Mushoku video istg
What a wonderful character
I think this interpretation is not quiet accurate, the reason behind Paul telling those words is not because of his consistent failures in life, but rather simply to show his determination and desperation, and truly show rudeus how serious he was, since just before that statement, rudeus had his doubts whether zenith is alive or dead, he truly wanted to make it clear that doesn't matter, thou it might seems telling those words to just prove his seriousness would be extreme, but for Paul he had no other way to make his genius son get how he feels, since like Eris, his also not good with words. (My opinion)
That line takes on a double meaning if you've played the MT gaiden. It details paul mourning the passing of his mother due to illness, something he blames himself for. Not being able to protect someone he cares about. So, as much as the line is directed towards rudeus, it's also directed towards Paul. He cannot let that tragedy repeat itself.
What's MT Gaiden? Is it a game? Is it in pc or console?
@MarkTazo99 Paul gaiden was a canonical storyline about Paul's childhood that was published inside of the Mt gacha game, which has unfortunately never left japan and was shut down a few years ago. (You can still find some fan translations online)
In the fourth arc, he falls in love with Zenith because she reminds him of his mother. Zenith is a living reminder of his mother for him.
He is saying those words to himself. He can't bear losing any image of his mother again.
I appreciate this info, I didn't know about Gaiden but I'm going to check it out asap
Say what you like about Paul as a man, as a father, but he's a hero.
Paul is an incredible character. He will always remain my favorite inside the MT world. And soon, I will have to face the reality of him again.
if only rudy was focused during the fight paul would still be alive
@@Disdudistheman sadly Rudy was too euphoric to focus, it was also his first labyrinth so I can't blame him. At some point the hydra just starts hitting everywhere and he was looking at Roxy the pay off for that was horrible.
@@Brianworldwide_7 If I remember right in the novel his eye was fucking with him which is why he stood still, it was basically reading the actions of all the heads at once and he didn't know which to actually dodge
Can we all just talk about his fight with Rudeus at the bar Paul dissed(insulted)Rudeus first and he also threw the first punch so objectively Paul started it.Plus it was a grown man getting drunk and punching his eleven year old son so anyone who likes Paul like abusive and toxic characters.
@@DisdudisthemanBut Rudy was focused during the fight in the novel, the anime just made it look like he was distracted lol
I'd love a video like this talking about how it took this sacrifice for Rudy to realize he truly was Paul's son. Not some stranger or a "fake son". Rudeus Greyrat was Paul's precious son and it took so much for him to really see that.
Thank you for pointing out Rudeus is Paul's equal. The light novels CLEARLY depict this and talk about it, they make Rudeus the same height as Paul and I took this as meaning that Rudeus is on the same level as Paul. With Rudy starting his own family and Paul and Rudeus working together, but the anime doesnt do this, clearly showing Paul looking down at Rudy. Yet in the light novels Rudues is specificly super tall, only Zenoba is really taller then him
Have you read Paul's Gaiden? This line hits much harder if you have ...
Okay so much hype on Gaiden. I didn't know it was translated
Paul has always struggled with being a parent to Rudeus. A fair portion of that is the fault of Rudeus not being a typical child starting with him having the intellect of a 35 year old man. Mentally speaking Rudeus is more mature than somewhat selfish Paul, but at the same time he's also initially much more of a personal failure than Paul who at least got out into the world and lived his own life. Both of them struggle with issues of stubbornness and pride. The difference is that Rudeus has taken the opportunity at making a clean start, and Paul at times struggles to find a path forward.
I understand the Paul hate from some fans but I always found him to be a compelling character. Yes he failed a lot in his life but it takes courage to keep moving forward while being haunted by your own short comings. In the end he gave everything he had to his family. I think he more than redeemed himself.
Paul lost his life and is memorialized on fathers day making him one of the best fathers in anime history along side Mayes Hughes and many others who were parents or parental figures to our beloved MCs
Well one of the best is arguable, he started out absolutely terribly afterall.
But he is definitly one of the most determined father
Despite being "trash", as his former adventurer party would say, Paul is someone I can not help but love.
As a anime only watcher I loved Mushoku and couldn’t wait for next season to come out so I started reading the light novels. It elevates the show to a whole new level, the amount of small details is insane and a great world building story.
At the end of the hydra chapter in the LN i was balling my eyes out. Paul Greyrat is a legend. not sure if im ready to watch it on screen yet
i believe the japanese sentence paul uttered has no specified subject, so it can also be understood as "even if it kills us" which makes sense since he is holding rudy to the same standard of his determination
I like Paul because he's complex he isn't perfect. No one is in this series and it's really refreshing to see.
Paul taught rudeus on how to be a man. Do whatever it takes to save your family even if it kills you
Can we all talk about the fight at the bar Paul had with Rudeus.Paul dissed(insulted)Rudeus first and Paul threw the first punch so objectively Paul started it yet a large amount of the fandom thinks the fight was Rudeus’ fault.Plus it was a grown man getting drunk and punching his son so anyone that likes Paul support abusive and toxic characters.
hating paul greyrat is like hating joffrey baratheon 😂 .. the more you hate him really reflect how much of a well written FICTIONAL character he is 😂
rip Paul :_(
As a non-LN reader, I was happy to hear the part at the end, because that's how I felt with their dynamic, and especially when Paul said that Rudy in episode 22. He sees Rudy as an equal, and he's relying on him to have the same conviction as him when it comes to saving Zenith.
Paul has been my favorite character since season 1, and I'm still processing my feelings about what happened to him in ep 22.
Both Paul and Rudeus both grew as the series continued Rudeus needed to start truly maturing after his first life was a mess, an adult who couldnt confront the world is little more than an adult in name.
Paul needed to truly start maturing as his own impulses led to countless mistakes he felt guilty about.
One grew to become a better person, the other dedicated his everything for a final endeavor for the sole purpose of fixing his mistakes, becoming the dependable father he always wished to be and his familly always wished to have
I knew it was coming but I still wasn't ready... God damn it Paul... fuck... *cries*
I feel so bad for paul all that pain and torment just to die not see the fruit of his actions
So in the novel, does it say how or why Zenith was in there in the first place?
Those word were the determination needed to save zenith. If either Rudeus or Paul didnt had that determination, things would ended worst
In the Asura's kingdom arc, Rudeus says that even if he considers it a death flag he wont stop anyone of saying some words before the battle. Remembering the time he interrupted Paul's words before the battle with the hydra
Oh man this was good. I can't wait to see this all animated as well
Give this man an award for storytelling
Cooking with the video essays as always Ari
The anime hasnt finished, and I didnt watch the video but if paul dies you spoiled me for the first time for Mushoku because of a title that used for views(I hope im wrong)
Don’t worry bro, Mushoku fanbase are a bunch of 10yo who think spoiling everything is cool, because they’re ahead of everyone. I got spoiled, but believe me bro, it doesn’t matter, because this anime is so damn good that spoilers can’t do shit, Paul’s death is one of the greatest and most impactful death I’ve seen in anime. I couldn’t even watch his death again unlike most deaths in fiction, it’s to painful, especially looking at his face and how he died. This anime is a MASTERPIECE.
it literally said spoiler warning LMAO
Great video 👌🏽
where can i find the manga for this anime cuz everytime i search for it the mangas i find end at rude and elisanise arriving to help paul search for zenith and thats it
The anime is past the manga. The anime is adapting the Light Novels, which are complete.
I always hated Paul’s character so much even though he was such a scumbag he judged Rudeus so harshly most of the time like when Rudeus asked if Sylphy was okay after the teleportation incident and Paul said of course you would be more worried about your girlfriend than your mother. As if he had any room to talk he raped Lilia and there is no justification for raping an innocent woman.
Raping lilia? Dude she was the one who seduce Paul wtf are you talking?
You definitely didn't watch the show, Lilia seduced Paul, rudeus just said Paul seduced her to save their relationship
I wasn’t talking about after he was married to Zenith I was talking about when they were at the dojo did you even watch the video.
@@zeek7584 I was referring to when he raped her at the dojo not when they had consensual sex.Meaning before he was married to Zenith.
You're not wrong, but the whole point of Mushoku Tensei is redemption, that no matter how much you fucked up you can try to be better.
This theme isn't only about Rudy but the people around him, Paul tries and tries again to be a better man, person and husband throughout the series, and although he fucks up and falls down that's honestly realistic.
It's hard to be better when you've been garbage all your life.
Roxy was fully okay with settling for mediocrity, she would've never come as far as she did if Rudy didn't inspire her to try harder after she taught him.
Ruijerd's whole thing is to redeem his race and make up for what his people did to all those innocents during their madness.
It's not wrong to hate Paul and what he's done, but you do need to realize how much he actually tries to be better, which is a lot more then you can say about a lot of people irl who are okay with being monsters.