Review of Fate/Zero

Note: This will be a review of both seasons, as I watched both of them in quick succession. Overview: When it came out, "Fate/Zero" set a new standard for battle royale anime, and after watching it, I can easily see why. A prequel to the critically-acclaimed "Fate/stay night", "Fate/Zero" tells an epic tale about ideals, the horrors of war and how far one will go and what they'll give up to do what has to be done, or at least what they believe has to be done, accompanied by flawless animation, a fantastic soundtrack and incredible characters. It is awesome and I am proud to say Ihad a great time watching it, even if I was reduced to tears by the end.

Story & World (8.5/10):
"Fate/Zero" is set in a world where people are capable of studying and using magic, and such people are known as magi. Every sixty years, seven such people become contestants in the Holy Grail War. To compete, each one summons a Heroic Spirit, who are real-life legendary warriors, to aid them in battle. The magi are known as Masters while the spirits are known as Servants, and the seven pairs face off against one another in a tense battle of cat-and-mouse where they have to track down and defeat each other and the last one standing wins the grand prize- the Holy Grail, which is said to have the ability to grant any wish a person desires. One such contestant is Kiritsugu Emiya, a freelancing mercenary infamously known as the ‘Magus Killer’, who plans to win the Grail so he can ‘save the world’. To do so, however, he will have to make the ultimate sacrifice.

The story is certainly interesting, but if you've even heard of “Fate/stay night” then you already know how it’s going to end. Very few things will surprise you and you’ll be able to see how it ends from a mile off. There are also quite a few pacing problems, with the middle parts of the series feeling particularly meandering as no battles for ages seem to end with a meaningful victory. It’s not boring by any means you can think of, but for almost half the series, there is very little progression of the main plot, which some people may find annoying.

What saves the story is the fascinating focus on ideals. Among the summoned Servants, there are three Kings- King Arthur (reimagined as a young girl named Arturia who any Fate fan will recognize as Type-Moon’s poster girl Saber), Alexander the Great (Iskander) and Gilgamesh. As the three fight, it is not just a clash of swords and wills, but one of ideals, as each one of them has a different view on kingship. Gilgamesh is a selfish king, believing everything is already his, including people. Thus, they can be used according to his whims as he is the source of morality. Iskander is a conqueror who takes what he wants and inspires loyalty through victory. Saber, on the other hand, sees kingship as service to the masses- not the other way around, and that a king needs to essentially give up their life as a person. What Iskander and Gilgamesh see as a life everyone envies, Arturia views as a responsibility and a burden. They're perfect foils for each other, and that is just one of the many connections to be found between the characters, all of which do a great job at saying what the story is trying to say. This makes the story well worth staying for in spite of the pacing issues and predictable ending.

Art & Animation (10/10):
Visually, “Fate/Zero” is drop-dead gorgeous. I simply LOVE how the series looks. This is easily one of the most visually stunning anime I have seen so far. Ufotable are well-known for their incredibly detailed animation and it is shown to the absolute fullest here. From the characters to the environments to the effects of the various characters’ attacks, every single inch of the series is dripping with impressive detail. This is, without a doubt, one of the show's greatest strengths.

Sound & Dialogue (10/10):
"Fate/Zero" boasts a fantastic soundtrack provided by the legendary Yuki Kajiura. It fits the tone of the show absolutely perfectly and there's some fantastic diversity to be found. Literally the only thing wrong with it is that it sounds very similar to a lot of her previous scores. This didn't bother me since it was my first experience with her works but for those who are familiar, this could pose a problem. I suppose you could say it works both ways- if you liked her previous soundtracks, you'll like this one, but if you didn't like her previous soundtracks then this isn't going to convince you she's some kind of genius. The voice acting is very good as well, and while I watched and enjoyed the subbed version, I would still definitely recommend the dub in this case. I particularly liked Kari Wahlgren, Bridget Hoffman and Matthew Mercer's performances as Saber, Irisviel and Kiritsugu, respectively. Their voices are really interesting and really fit their respective characters.

Characters (9.5/10):
Where do I even begin? The Masters and Servants on their own add up to a total of 14 characters, and besides them there are quite a few supporting characters as well. It would probably take me a whole week to go into depth about them all so I'll just keep it simple. The 45-minute opening episode does a good job at establishing the Masters. Since the war is about wishes, each of them is largely defined by their own personal wish. For some, the wishes are petty- i.e., to be recognized by others or simply to own the Grail as treasure. Others, however, are hunting the grail for far more impossible-seeming wishes- wishes that could change the very nature of the world. And their wishes reveal much about their personalities- as do the lengths they are willing to go to gain these wishes. They also do a good job at showing which characters you're meant to like and which you aren't.

The characters throughout are very interesting but for me, the ones who really stole the show are the main ones; Kiritsugu, his wife Irisviel and their Servant Saber. Even though Iri and Kiritsugu are happily married, they are about as different as two people can possibly be. We have all heard the saying 'the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few', right? But rarely do we see somebody who lets this motto define who they are. Kiritsugu is one of those rare people. If a dangerous murderer is on an airplane, he won't hesitate to shoot it down (killing all the innocents aboard) instead of risking the killer getting away and causing even more deaths. To him, no sacrifice is too great if it means achieving his ultimate goal, proven by the fact that to gain his wish, he is forced to sacrifice his own wife. He comes off as a sociopath, since he basically reduces war to little more than arithmetic, but he does have a very good reason in the form of an extremely tragic past (two whole episodes are devoted to it).

Iri, on the other hand, is the opposite. You see, she is not a human, but a homouculus, created with the sole purpose of becoming the Holy Grail. She has spent her whole life sheltered in a castle and, as a result, is very innocent, sweet, cheerful and carefree- a stark contrast to the broken, cold, pessimistic attitude of her husband. She has lived a really happy life with her husband and daughter and she's literally so kind and selfless that she's willing to give up all of that and her life to save a world she knows next to nothing about. She's exceedingly adorable, but also a very sad character. As Servants are killed, she gradually weakens so that she's unable to dress without considerable effort and the fact that she's still able to remain so calm and cheerful when talking about this is downright heartbreaking. She's a poor, innocent woman with a doomed fate she doesn't deserve, and a character I couldn't help but love despite knowing what was going to happen to her.

Besides them, Saber is a very interesting character. She is the only Servant who actually has to face the mistakes she made when she was alive and slowly realises she wasn't much of a king. The conflict she has with Kiritsugu is also highly compelling, due to their conflicting views about how wars should be fought. Saber wants to make war as clean and honourable as possible while Kiritsugu simply wants for wars not to be fought it in the first place, as he considers the battlefield to be no better than Hell. This leads to them being utterly incapable of functioning together as a team, leading Iri to pose as her Master instead. The fact that Saber and Iri get along really well and Iri and Kiritsugu love each other (however rarely the latter may show it) means the conflict works brilliantly, and adds a fascinating dynamic unique to practically anything I've ever seen. It's the only time I can say I'm glad two characters I liked don't get along.

Enjoyment (8.5/10):
"Fate/Zero" is incredibly hard-going. The battles are really exciting to watch but, this being an Urobutcher production, there is also a lot of disturbing content, such as one of the Masters being a serial killer who only uses his Servant to kill children and cause as much death as he can. If you have a weak stomach for despair, it's probably best to avoid this series, especially since a lot of the characters are already doomed by canon. The last few episodes in particular are extremely sad and depressing, to the point that I had to watch something more light-hearted immediately afterwards to make myself feel better. However, it does become easier to watch the second time around, and has quite a bit of rewatch value.

Overall:
"Fate/Zero" is amazing. Despite the lack of progression for about two-thirds of the series and the highly bleak tone, I do not regret watching it at all. The characters, music, voice acting and animation are all fantastic and makes this series highly recommended to any fan of Type-Moon or Gen Urobuchi. For more on the Fate series, be sure to check out my review for the "Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works" anime.

Score:
8.5+10+10+9.5+8.5=46.5/50=9.3/10