Blizzard recently released "Honor and Glory" Animated Short, showing Reinhardt having a flashback to when he was a young crusader. This is another amazing animated short and Blizzard keeps doing a great job making these short animated movies. After they featured Mei in "Rise and Shine," it was time for the German hero to take the spotlight and introduce himself.
In "Overwatch" video game, Reinhardt is an old man, and we don't know much about him. There are a few voice lines that give us some hints, but we didn't know many details until Blizzard released the latest animated short.
In "Honor and Glory," we can see the young Reinhardt fighting alongside soldiers in Eichenwalde. Just like it was the case with Mei, this animated short is quite emotional, and it reveals a lot about the character it features.
'Honor and Glory' commentary
Ben Dai, director of "Honor and Glory," talked about the animated short and gave his commentary. The director said that the animated short is inspired by Eichenwalde and the crusader armor that can be found on this map. There is a beautiful story behind the armor, which is a story about Balderich, Reinhardt's mentor.
In the animated short, we can see the young Reinhardt talking to his mentor who was invited to join Overwatch. The mentor received a coin to join the group, and this coin plays an important role in the story.
Shortly after, we see them going out to fight a battle. "Live with honor," says Balderich before the fight. "Die with glory," responds Reinhardt, shaking his mentor's hand.
Reinhardt and his mentor defend the soldiers from the omnic attack while successfully eliminating the attackers. We can see them charging into their enemies and dealing devastating damage with their hammers.
The director said that the animation team gave their best to make the scenes as realistic as possible.
Things get worse when an OR14 unit appears. Reinhardt charges into it, but the unit manages to defend itself, pushing the hero back and knocking him down. Just before the OR14 unit deals a devastating blow to Reinhardt, Balderich saves him, but the unit cuts him with a sword.
The director said that Orisa was based on an OR14 model, but they made these models look different and older.
Reinhardt and his mentor fall back into the castle, and we can see that the sword attack badly hurts Balderich. Even though Blizzard could not show blood or gore, it was obvious that the crusader was hurt and he could not keep fighting. "Reinhardt, live with honor," says Balderich, right after he gave him the coin he received from Overwatch. "Die with glory," the young Reinhardt responds, before leaving the castle to fight the omnics.
It is important to note that Reinhardt gives his hammer to his mentor before heading out. This symbolizes that the hero is ready to change and be a protector, which is exactly what he becomes after he leaves Balderich.
He protects two soldiers he was making fun of earlier, and even after his shield goes down, he protects them with his armor.
The ending
In the end, we can see the change Reinhardt has gone through and what he has become. We can also see Balderich dying in the throne room, the same room where we can find his armor in the video game.
The last scene shows us the old Reinhardt putting the Overwatch coin on Balderich's armor in the room. He then heads out as he is ready to rejoin the Overwatch and defend the world.
