Heartwarming / Gundam Build Divers Re:RISE

"Don't hold back. If you want to cry, you should cry as much as you like."

Warning: Spoilers Off applies to Heartwarming Moments pages. Proceed at your own risk.

Series

Episode 5

• Par spends much of his first arc doubting himself as a pilot and builder, despite Hiroto noting that his Valkylander Morgiana is impressively well made. On what might have been his final mission in a moment of desperation, Morgiania appears to reach out to him, and Par overcomes his fear. Also doubles as a moment of awesome as it turns out the Valkylander, which had appeared something of a load till now, is an aerial juggernaut.

Episode 7

• Gojo, Kazami's former team leader spent some time talking with Hiroto after the mock battle was over. Despite whatever animosity they had previously, Gojo still genuinely cares about Kazami and wanted Hiroto to look after Kazami, knowing that Kazami was still struggling with his own inner fear of being seen as a failure.
• Just as Hiroto was fighting the One-Eyes who attacked Muran and Freddie, Freddie has an insightful observation on the BUILD DiVERS. Freddie acknowledges that despite the seemingly poor coordination the BUILD DiVERS displays do make him worried at times, they are still willing to fight with everything they had to defend the Eldorans speaks volume of the great trust and hope he had regarding the BUILD DiVERS.

Episode 10

• We're told that there are eighty-seven known El-Divers who have been born in GBN. The original Build Divers team's battle has given so many beings the first chance at life.
  • On top of this, it seems that Koichi and Tsukasa are still responsible for giving El-Divers their mobile doll bodies. It seems Tsukasa has finally settled his grudge with GBN.

Episode 13

• Hiroto smiling, finally understanding everything and overcoming the grief he's had.
  • Kazami seems to be coming to terms with his feelings toward Maiya, giving him a greater reason to fight and risk himself beyond the glory he'd been mindlessly chasing until then.
  • May's relationship with Magee is revealed: He's her Adoptive Peer Parent, and she lives in a dollhouse in his bar.
  • The fact that Freddie is calling them proves that despite their catastrophic failure, the losses he and everyone else has endured, and them being forced logout that would've seemed to everyone like their abandoning Eldora at its darkest hour, he still has faith in them to call for their help.

Episode 14

• Just the utter admiration Freddie has for the original Build Divers shows how much he hopes the modern group will be. Even more so, the boy is moved to tears at Riku rescuing Sarah.

Episode 15

• None of the villagers seem to resent the BUILD DiVERS despite their utter failure in preventing Alus' satellite weapon from firing.
  • On top of that, Jiric, Maiya, and the trio were protected from the blast wave by the leftover Earthree shield.

Episode 16

• Maiya holds no ill will towards Kazami after he confessed that he thought Eldora was part of a game and that he was personally responsible for the satellite weapon firing upon Seguri.
  • The startlingly heartfelt shock that Stola survived the blast from the satellite along with Calico and Zabun.

Episode 17

• Hiroto and the rest of the gang try to persuade Cuadorn not to order them to leave this planet and let him handle it. Each member of the team expresses their caring resolve to save Freddie's people from extinction. This causes Freddie to tear up and step up his game in aiding the Build Divers.
  • Cuadorn's change of heart and persuasion to be called just by his normal name instead of the formality "Sacred Beast".
• While searching for any remaining villagers to escort to the ruins in episode 18, Stola and Freddie come across an old woman deep in despair over her son's death protecting her from the shockwave of Seguri's destruction; Stola solidifies his Character Development by encouraging her to keep living for her son's sake.
  • Zabun being brought to tears in knowing he actually saved many lives along with his partner Calico during the evacuation.

Episode 19

• Hiroto and Eve's relationship where Eve teaches Hiroto to love what GBN has to offer.
  • It's revealed that Hiroto was one of the many players dissatisfied with the change from GPD to GBN, with him initially blaming the system for why the Core Gundam's back thruster malfunctioned in mid-flight, to the point of being tempted to kick his build. However, Eve's comments on the beauty and care Hiroto put into his build and how the Core Gundam was complaining about "pain in its back" (initially unnoticed plastic fragments in the backpack's connections) sees Hiroto giving GBN another shot.
  • Eve then deciphers the reason why Hiroto built the Core Gundam (to explore the possibilities and test the limits of small builds) and motivates Hiroto to continue expanding on his build, building the PLANETS Systems and making the Core Gundam stronger to make it "happier".
  • The two then come up with the naming scheme for the PLANETS Systems, based on Eve's comments on exploring the very limits of GBN's universe.
  • This culminates in Hiroto giving Eve a custom earring out of appreciation and potential love interest.
  • Which makes the Mood Whiplash even harder when Eve requests Hiroto to delete her.

Episode 20

• As tragic as it was, Eve’s sacrifice bought the original Build Divers the time to save Sarah, and the admins the time to fix GBN so that she, May, and the other eighty-five EL-Divers could have a home.
• The final minutes of the episode finally allows Hiroto to fully grieve Eve's death in the company of his new friends. Afterward, Hiroto comes clean to Freddie in that they aren't the actual Build Divers he had wanted. However, Freddie says that they're still the ones that came to help, and more than that, despite Hiroto claiming he failed Eve's promise to continue helping people in GBN, his actions helped save countless people on Eldora and helped the other members of his team become better people. May outright says that his sparing Riku in the past let her and the other El-Divers be born. With that, Hiroto finally begins to forgive himself, understanding how his actions, big and small, have benefited others.
  • Prior to this, Hiroto breaks down into tears, admitting at how horrible a person he was and that he couldn't help anyone. May's response? Approaching him, kneeling and kissing his tears before holding him and telling him to let it all out.
  • It becomes even more heartwarming with the revelations of the last episode about May taken into consideration, regardless of how one sees May as a reincarnation.

Episode 21

• Pretty much most of the episode.
• After finally being able to grieve, Hiroto is visibly happier and more like he was in the past
• The team ends up having a picnic together with Freddie, Maiya, Muran, and Cuadorn, where it's revealed that Maiya admires Cuadorn like a celebrity and she's ecstatic to meet him in person. Furthermore, while eating is optional for Cuadorn, he loves Maiya's cooking.
• Parviz's plan to speed Cuadorn's recovery: exploit the fact that Gunpla constructs brought to Eldora don't despawn when the Divers leave and use parts to literally sculpt the Sacred Beast a new pair of wings.
• Hiroto finally tells Hinata about Eldora, what has been really happening when he logs into GBN, and most importantly, the truth about Masaki Shido. Despite having reservations about him going back again, Hiroto promises to return safe, and with Masaki freed.

Episode 22

• Masaki Shido is freed from Alus' control and finally wakes up in the real world.
• Magee finally issues a call to arms for all of GBN to defend Eldora. The first person that Jumped at the Call? Patrick Colasour.

Episode 23

• Because of Magee's call to arms to the entire GBN community, Kazami's video has gotten over 10 million views, and counting! What's even better is that everyone that has seen the video wants to help out, even leaving tips and ideas on how to stop Alus and his army.
  • Further solidifying his Character Development, Kazami is more flabbergasted and taken aback by the development, not even really reveling in it like his old self probably would have. When asked why he hadn't noticed his sudden spike in viewership (which, to be fair, only happened recently thanks to Magee), he admits to having been somewhat neglecting his show due to being focused on Eldora. It turns out his last video was the one covering the battle in space, meaning he hadn't been updating since the events of Episode 12!
  • To top it all off, even Force Avalon and the OG Build Divers are coming in to help, solidified by the fact that it's Riku who narrates the preview for the next episode. It's also clear that this will be Hiroto finally being able to face his remaining demons and let go of his past involving both Forces.

Episode 24

• You thought Avalon and the OG Build Divers making an appearance was a big surprise? But wait, there's more! Ogre and his team, Rommel and his division, Captain Lotus, Tigerwolf, and even Shahryar all make appearances!
  • Zen and Ark from the Gundam Build Divers Break manga even get a cameo here too!
• Riku and Ogre still maintain their friendship, having a practice battle before joining the others.
• Riku meeting Hiroto and the other BUILD DiVERS for the first time and he isn't even the least offended that the latter is copying their team's name.
• Parviz asking Shahryar for advice to improve his Gundrans-Am. Even more heartwarming because they're both family.
  • Even better that Koichi and Ayame both praise Parviz for his Gunpla and his naming sense.
• At long last, Riku and Hiroto finally get a chance to have a one-to-one talk with each other, with May informing the former prior to their talk of Hiroto's backstory. Riku apologizes to Hiroto for not realizing that their victory during the second Coalition of Volunteers battle came with the sacrifice of Eve. On the other hand, Hiroto has finally come to terms with Eve's last request and has forgiven Riku, stating that he is glad that Riku and Sarah can fulfill Eve's last wish by thoroughly enjoying the world of GBN.
  • Really, this episode is the culmination of the obvious parallel to the dynamic between Shinn Asuka and Kira Yamato. Unlike with Shinn, Hiroto was able to get actual help from a supportive base of friends far sooner and resolve his trauma before encountering Riku, let alone facing him in battle, so when they do, there's no bad blood on Hiroto's end. He's enjoying their duel as much as Riku does, probably the longest time he's felt that way since Eve's death. And their encounter in the afterparty is a quick and smooth burying of what little was left of the hatchet, since Hiroto's already forgiven Riku, Sarah, and himself.
• Mizuki, after seeing Masaki helping a group of kids build Gunpla, and spending the day learning about Eldora from Kazami's videos, gives him the thumbs-up to return to Eldora.
• The night before Hiroto leaves for Eldora and the Bow Ceremony, Hinata tells him she plans to sneak in her own little wish during the ceremony and contemplates whether it would be alright if she played a small role in his mission. Hiroto thinks otherwise, telling her that her role isn't tiny at all saying that people's feelings and wishes can overlap and make people stronger so if she's praying for him he'll be even stronger, and continues by saying that he'll cheer her on as well, before sharing a fist bump.
  • Hiroto and Hinata's relationship in general becomes much sweeter once Hiroto's issues have been resolved and Hinata is brought into the loop. No longer haunted by everything about Eve, it's pretty clear that Hinata has always held special importance to Hiroto, regardless of how one sees their relationship, and Hiroto can show once more that he appreciates her and the emotional support she provides for him.

Episode 25

• Kazami and Maiya have a quiet talk together before the space battle against Alus's Moon Cannon. He tells her how he was very talented in the fishing town he grew up in but along the way, he ended up becoming a normal person. He figured he can become a hero by joining GBN but the more he tried to act cool and show off the more it went nowhere. However, Maiya responded to this by saying that she already thinks he is cool and asks him to promise that he "Comes back alive".
• Mizuki momentarily forgetting that Hiroto's parents are not Hinata's, and the indication that she's made that mistake before shows how close even others perceive the Kuga and Mukai families to be. Also, that Hiroto's parents come to cheer for Hinata's big important moment counts, as does the fact that the absence of Hiroto himself, which, as far as his parents are concerned, are in a big game, doesn't bother any of them, given that Mizuki likely explained his and Masaki's situation, shows their level of understanding in their son.
• As the Build Divers close in on Alus, Freddie takes a moment to try and contact Alus. Not even knowing if he can hear him, Freddie tells Alus that, despite everything he's done to Freddie's people, his devotion to protecting Eldora in the past is the reason they even have a planet to call home now, so he promises that they'll continue to protect Eldora no matter what happens and that Alus doesn't have to worry anymore. Even Alus seems moved by Freddie's words.
• The fact that most of GBN are watching Kazami's livestream. Given that likely many of them joined in the ambush on Alus that followed, it's more likely that Magee had the stream advertised to get them ready, but it could also be inferred that Magee may have not needed to do that a second time, that people were watching and enjoying Kazami's videos of their own accord, and likely will after this series.
  • What's more, people actively participated in the livestream chat to give out encouragement or advice. Sure, as Kazami pointed out, their advice on dealing with a funnel user like the Fake Nu would be ineffectual (since the cited Stark Jegan and Hyaku Shiki got beaten by the funnel user they tangled with), but the thought that they were trying to help counts. Definitely nice when his successful recreation of the Aegis's attempted Finishing Move on the Strike was met with cheers, as was the effectively-global debut of the Re:Rising Gundam.
• In Episode 23, Kazami had what he called a "dumb idea" that could help the team. Obviously, this idea resulted in the Re:Rising Gundam. It was Kazami's fault, running his mouth, that the Kill Sat fired the first time, but now it's his planning that destroyed the weapon. He's redeemed himself.

Episode 26

• While the scene itself is solemn, Cuadorn and Masaki destroy the Moon Base's mainframe so Alus can never return. Despite everything they suffered, and needing more help than they realized, they finally saved Eldora while the Build Divers went on to defeat Alus.
• Mr. Ken, of all people, jumping in to tank an attack from Alus.
• Nanami shows up to help Momo out, this time in a Zakrello-based Mobile Suit, likely the one she was seen beginning to build at the end of episode 19 in the last series.
• Rommel decides to switch to his Captain Zeon character to help Kazami. When Kazami realizes that the Captain Zeon wants to fight side-by-side with him, he is overcome with joy.
• Among The Cavalry that arrive to turn the tide are the fake Shahryar and his assistant from Shahryar's debut episode last series, who seems to have turned over a new leaf.
• Considering how much at odds with each other they were in the last series, it's nice to see that Katsuragi and Ms. Tori now working together, likely both running GBN itself, as well as meeting each other and Kyoya in real life.
• Tsukasa praising the BUILD DiVERS for their efforts, a far-cry from his behavior in the original Build Divers series.
  • His continued use of his Haro avatar and that KO-1 was still using the Galbaldy Rebake in episode 24 implies certain things. While he's let go of his grudge against GBN, it's possible Tsukasa's still likely not an active diver himself or he would've had a different avatar by now (or he just likes being a Haro). His taking part in the battle at all, however, shows he does appreciate what GBN has to offer and would now willingly fight for its existence.
    • Another thought is that he does actively play GBN, but keeps using a guest avatar out of a sense of guilt (since he tried to destroy it before), or to maintain anonymity (whereas Koichi is immediately recognizable as part of Build Divers, Tsukasa may prefer simply keeping his head down and staying out of the spotlight)
  • Furthermore, the new Astray he fields is itself heartwarming since it could easily have been a unit he controlled solo, but instead, he and KO-1 pilot it together, each controlling its two modes and fighting styles, showing great teamwork. It's also pretty clear that this is far from the first time they've piloted the thing. Plus, the name, "Lord Astray Double Rebake", combining the names of their individual Gunpla. All these truly cements that he's pulled a genuine Heel–Face Turn since the end of the last series and restored his friendship with Koichi.
• Despite the hardships he's responsible for the Build Divers go out of their way to try and save Alus's soul, and encourage him to reincarnate into GBN once he's defeated.
• In a poetic sort of way, the two things that threatened the safety of GBN two years prior, the Break Decals and Sarah's supernatural power, are now used to defend it from Alus, in the form of Sarah's Gunpla body and its Moonlight Butterfly wings, blocking Alus' last-ditch attempt to barrage the servers again.
• When Alus is destroyed and his data is integrated into GBN, he finally reunites with his Ancient masters, who had long ago migrated to GBN as well. Ironically, it's the words of the same Ancients, now reincarnated as Sarah and May, who pacify him long enough for Riku and Hiroto to blast him.
• May leads the team to a flower field, where Alus has just been reincarnated as a baby EL-Diver holding a pendant with a One-Eye insignia in his hand. May explains that the pendant is a memento of their former existence that EL-Diver reincarnations are born with while wrapping the infant up in her jacket. This reveals a pendant wrapped around her arm, one that looks just like Eve's earring.
  • The reveal of May's pendant makes the entire series one big heartwarming moment in hindsight. As May was created from Eve's and possibly Hiroto's wishes and feelings, this means that while Eve is gone, he was given the opportunity to bond with May.
  • As mentioned, it even potentially recontextualizes her Cooldown Hug from episode 20, depending on your interpretation. If one considers May as Hiroto and Eve's daughter-in-spirit and given her relative innocence about it, it's the effective equivalent of a little girl consoling her father and assuring and thanking him that she's alive because of his choice not to pull the trigger on Riku.
  • Hiroto assures her that the tears she sheds are not of sadness, but of joy. She gives the biggest smile we've ever seen her.
• Cuadorn seems to be connecting with the Eldorans as they rebuild, even planting Milaag Mountain where Seguri once was to be closer to them.
• Kazami finally has the fame and respect, especially from Captain Zeon himself, he's long dreamed of, even teaming up with him and Patrick Colasour as Captain Kazami. Karmic Jackpot at its finest.
  • Earlier, Mu Dish arrives as part of The Cavalry, and Gojo personally expresses pride in Kazami's growth, as well as personally tells him of Captain Zeon's presence.
• In the credits, Hinata accompanies the BUILD DiVERS. Not just to GBN, but all the way to Eldora. After all, she's one of them, too.
• Kazami is implied to frequent Eldora more often than his friends, given that he's there to meet them and Hinata when they visit, but thankfully, it's not a permanent case of Stay with the Aliens. Also, considering that he's been implied to be a Minor Living Alone, it's clear he's found a second home on Eldora with Maiya. They also maintain a toned-down version of their original dynamic, as she playfully punches Kazami's arm (a little too hard) when he says he wants to eat her cooking again.
• In the epilogue, Calico and Zabun come across a Guard-Eye, quite possibly the last of Alus' forces. Upon discovery, the little drone is shown to be afraid of them. But rather than destroy it, they invite it to come with them.

Battlogue

• We see that the Guard-Eye is with Freddie and the other kids, showing that the Eldorans have accepted the little guy.
• When Kazami battles Captain Zeon, Kazami wants to call him "Master", but Captain refuses as he acknowledges how strong Kazami has become and there's no need to do so. Their battle ends with the two of them badly damaged, but shaking hands and laughing jovially.
• Kyoya voices to Hiroto that he intended on getting him back into Avalon, but decided to leave Hiroto to his team after seeing the BUILD DiVERS as a True Companions and earlier, he also complimented May for being Hiroto's team member.

Other

• According to the "Hobby Hobby Imaging Builders Ver. C.Z.", Captain Zeon stumbled upon Kazami after finding his Justice Knight build online and was left very impressed by the latter's craftsmanship. Knowing Kazami was also an ardent fan of his, Captain Zeon felt it was too soon to make contact with him and held off doing so. Despite that, he went out of his way to build an "unauthorized" partner unit for the Justice Knight - the Gundam Freedom Knight.
  • This fact gets better in episode 24. We have seen Kazami, originally a loud wannabe blowhard of a Captain Zeon fanboy, grow into a real hero himself - one who, thanks to Magee, has the respect of many of GBN's best and most famous, including the real identity of Captain Zeon: Rommel.