Review of Fate/Zero

Let me say it straight: I'm reviewing only the first part of the show, since it is a split cour. Everything written here applies only to S1. Also, I'm a huge fan of the original VN and Nasuverse as a whole. I guess, the review definitely has some bias. Sometimes, a show needs exposition, because otherwise it is impossible to tell a complete and logical story. The exposition is needed to set up the characters, the stage and the events leading to the main part of the series. The first cour of Fate/Zero is such a case: it is just an infodump containing everything necessary tounderstand the plot of the second half.

The problem with such shows is that you need to make them interesting to watch. And Fate/Zero spectacularly fails in this regard, offering pointless, long and dragged dialogues (for people who have read the visual novel Fate/stay night, like me), atrocious pacing, fillers in a 1-cour series and somewhat unique, but shallow and one-dimensional characters.

The main premise of the story is simple: 7 mages and their 7 servants are battling for an ephemeral prize: The Holy Grail, an omnipotent device which can grant a wish for the winner. The premise itself is definitely interesting; the main problem is its execution. Let me say it straight: it's awful. There is very and very little plot progression over the course of the series. It tries to intrigue the viewer in the first couple of episodes (if you manage to bear that 40-minutes infodump in the first episode), but after that we are left with 11 episodes of pure, unspoiled, forgive me, Lord, Glasslip. I'm exaggerating a bit, but that's what it is: NOTHING happens-. Occasional dialogues about the eternal don't count.

I have a small chart, which can show you the structure of the show:

Episode - what happens
1 - infodump
2-9 - talking and a couple of fights
10 - A GODDAMN FILLER
11-12 - talking.

This pretty much summarizes everything what happened in the first cour in terms of story. Don't get me wrong: I adore dialogue driven shows like Monogatari and Tatami Galaxy. Hell, I even enjoyed Heaven's Feel route of novel af. Fate/Zero tries to pull the same trick with its pacing and dialogue-driveness, but it falls short. The dialogues are plain and generic. Not to mention that sometimes they suffer from bad writing and induce cringe.

However we are starting to forget what was the purpose of the first cour. Introducing the characters. I must say that Fate/Zero doesn't perform well in this regard, too. The characters, while having their unique traits, are simply shallow and not interesting. New characters lack in depth, old characters became worse. Saber is a highlight of the show, however her character is more of a whiny 14-year-old. Yes, she is stoic, but her ideals are completely idiotic. She is much more well-written in FSN, but here she, again, lacks in depth. Gilgamesh is an arrogant prick, as always, but he is even more unlikable in Zero than in FSN. Kiritsugu is your average edgy protagonist, no more, no less. Other masters and servants are either generic and plain (Kayneth, Tokiomi), or are severely underdeveloped (Kirei, Kariya, Waver). Looking forward to the S2.

But I must say that the production level of the show is simply amazing. The graphics are stunning, and the art is faithful to original Takeuchi designs. Music by Kajiura is amazing, too. No complaints on this part, however it is not enough to cover the faults of other aspects of the show.

Overall, Fate/Zero S1 wasted its potential to become a great exposition for truly glorious events and actually is a series of pointless and boring dialogues with some occasional fights. The heaviest disappointment I've had yet.

+Production quality
+Sound and music
+Nasuverse is always welcome
-Atrocious pacing
-Shallow characters
-Dragged dialogues
-Fillers, goddammit

3.5/10