Review of Fate/Zero

I've held off on reviewing the Fate franchise even though it's the series I'm most familiar with. Just look at my anime list and you'll see I'm obsessed with almost every entry. Honestly, I feel that my review can't do this series any justice. If I wanted to make it easy, I could just say it epitomizes everything about anime that is perfect. Perfect story, characters, art, sound, etc. It feels toO lazy to do that though, so I'll try my best. This review is mainly for Zero but applies somewhat to every other entry as well. Fate does what other long running series generallyare unable to do. It has such an in depth baseline story that it can feel off putting and a little much. But once you understand the basic story, it's all just additional exposition from there. It's unfortunate, but to get a "complete" idea of the series, a lot of time and dedication is needed, but no matter how much effort is put in, your knowledge will never actually feel complete. This is especially true because of splitting storylines, multiple universes, multiple timelines, and the recycling of characters. You not only have Fate: Zero, but Stay Night 2006, UBW, HF, Apocrypha, and Last Encore as the main entries (oh and Grand Order, but lets avoid that one for now though), but side story OVA's and games like Extella Link. Not to mention the LN's and Manga. Now with all that listed out, you'd think that quantity would usurp quality as it does with other long running series like DBZ or One Piece. For Fate, this is most certainly not true. Production value is at its highest with every series, and some of the most beautiful animation I've ever seen comes from Fate. Voice acting and sound is top notch as well.

I chose Zero for my first review, not because it's necessarily my favorite (Apocrypha if you're curious) but because it's a constant among all the other series...relatively speaking. You can watch this and it will make sense with every other entry, and thus, IN MY OPINION alone, is the best place to start. Trust me, I understand starting elsewhere and have no problem with that. It's just my personal recommended starting point.

Zero starts out unique, immediately dropping the viewer into exposition. I have to remind friends that are first time viewers, to pay attention for the first two episodes in particular. Personally I would've preferred more of a slow drip of info, rather than a flood of context, but without this exposition, most would have difficulty even understanding who or what they're watching.

Just so there is a modicum of understanding, I'll try and provide a plot summary. It would take an essay to even give a synopsis, but I'll make it as brief as possible. People that had a connection with the magic of the world, known as mana, created a magical item known as the Holy Grail that could grant any wish the summoner made, relative to worldly constrictions. Eventually the grail became highly contested amongst mana users, with five main families being the usual "contestants". Several wars occurred throughout the centuries leading up to where we are in Zero where yet another war is happening. These wars typically will consist of seven heroes, known as servants, summoned from a different time or dimension by mana users, known as masters, to fight in what they reference as The Holy Grail War (with a roman numeral annotation). It's everyone's goal to defeat the other six servants/masters and become the ultimate pair that claims the Holy Grail...or at least one of them.

One of the series ever looming characters consistently referenced is Kiritsugu, Shirou's adopted father that we always hear mentioned but never see. I'll just say, as a normal human/master, he's definitely the coolest...sorry Shirou and Tohsaka. Shirou is the main character in almost every secondary timeline "sequel", and he references Kiritsugu quite a bit, so it's nice to put a face with the stories told.

Anyways, it's a stretch to say that Kiritsugu's the main character since everyone seems to have equivalent screen time, excluding Caster and his Master, but I'd say he plays the most significant role. What he lacks in magical/mana ability, he more than makes up for it with mana knowledge and weaponry. It's impressive how he holds his own against several Servants.

I really enjoyed Zero in particular since it is a constant of the series. And as a constant, it's executed so well. Almost all of the servants are likeable or at least entertaining in their own way. Even though we see Arturia/ Saber in other series, it was nice to see her in a different light. Even though I appreciate her dedication to morality, it's a nice change of pace for that morality to be questioned by Archer and Rider when they're having tea together. Not because they're right, but for the spirit of debate. Arturia does well making her beliefs known and not wavering from them...another reason I appreciate her as a character. Her relationship with Kiritsugu and Irisviel is so nice at the start. They consistently have thriving debates and discussions, and understand each others goals as if they were the same person. Unfortunately, the grail corrupts as it always does. When tensions run thin, only the strongest of partners are able to make it through as they intended.

Archer also provides a unique outlook to the events of the holy grail war. It's apparent he doesn't care about much, but when he does get involved, it does add an additional layer of excitement. It's his exposition that makes me question my own feelings on the war the most. How he looks at humans and their differences from deity's is comparable to a person and a bug. It's frustrating to hear, but I can appreciate his honesty at least. He also accepts levels of responsibility being the only deity participating in the war, so that deserves a little respect as well. Regardless, it's clear he is meant to be seen as a villain of sorts. Fortunately for him, not everything is meant to be so cut and dry.

Again, we'd be here all day if I described the plot and background in more detail, so for this review I'm sticking to basic descriptions and terms. Please bare with me.

Fate is so unique in its approach. It will often tackle moral dilemmas, theories to life, and preconceived notions of what is right. In Zero, the classic Good vs Evil concept is in the forefront. Lines are blurred when a wish is on the line. There are obvious masters that are clearly in the wrong, but generally every participant has done wrong in some way or another. Zero also takes on the concept of life and death, a deep subject even for modern day scholars. Lines you previously believe shouldn't be crossed suddenly appear to be an option in the right circumstance. An example would be, do you save your family or 100 people to put it in basic terms. We can thank Kiritsugu and his encounter with the grail for this inconsistent moral dilemma. This is actually one of my favorite scenes. It's heartbreaking to see Kiritsugu struggle to make his beliefs known, while being consistent. Its the climax of the season for a reason. For him to follow his beliefs to the logical conclusion, even if it means betraying Arthur and killing Irisviel, is respectable, because I sure as hell wouldn't have been able to do it. Especially with Irisviel as my wife.

It's not just ideas or theories that make the show good. It's the depth that exists within and what comes from this intricate story. As mentioned earlier, getting into Fate can seem like a chore from the outside, but when you're in it and involved, you want to learn more. I was grateful for the plethora of material on any subject addressed in the series.

Apart from the story, which is phenomenal on its own, the characters play such a huge role and make Fate what it is, in my opinion. I get excited being introduced to a new servant and seeing how well they pair with their master. Typically, every servant and master will have something that they have in common, but there are exceptions of course. How well the pair works together can mean the difference in winning and losing. There are more powerful servants than others, which is seemingly unfair, but it's never impossible to win. Berserker is a prime example of an unstoppable force, yet is somehow always defeated.

You can't help but have a team you root for and a team you despise, but again, because of how clever the series is, you can easily change your mind. Weakness in your favorite characters become more apparent, and unlikeable traits of your most hated characters end up solving problems that couldn't be tackled otherwise. Things are never as they appear and the audience is consistently on their toes, since the show is impossible to predict as a first time viewer.

One constant favorite both in show and in real life is whoever is summoned as saber, which is a sword class. Arturia is the saber this time around, but depending on what series your watching, that can change. Arturia isn't my particular favorite saber, *cough* Mordred, but she is one of the most noble. Based on Lancer's final words in Zero though, the lines are blurred once again on who is actually noble. Saber is definitely a staple of the series and is the main reason I love Stay Night 2006 so much.

Relationships do stem up in the series surprisingly often and actually are a staple of the series as a whole. It was created from a cultured LN after all. This aspect of the series is yet another reason why Fate gets a perfect score. But it's not just the romantic bonds that are born between servant and master, but the friendships as well. An unfortunate, but consistent, plot point is the inevitable disappearance of the servant from "our" world and timeline. This makes for sad but expected endings to the relationships built. Saber's exit is so tragic, since she fought so hard only to be lied to by Kiritsugu...whether it was the right thing to do or not (....blurred lines).

The sound effects and art design are so well done, there aren't many other series that can even compete. Every action, attack, or sound effect all come through clear and realistic sounding. As for art design, Fate isn't Violet Evergarden, but is beautiful in it's own way and still deserves a perfect 10.

Because the show is so well crafted, the main appeal of the show is able to shine at it's brightest. The main appeal being the intermittent fight scenes. I would like to say this is what draws everyone in, but there is definitely much more exposition than there are fight scenes. Even when there is a fight, most of it is either an inner voice reviewing the tactics of the opponent, or is a discussion between opponents as they analyze and, in some cases, compliment or insult each other. There are some obvious epic moments that only otherworldly fighters can achieve, but Zero is amazing in how even the smallest moves are analyzed, almost as if it were a martial arts tournament but not quite as much detail and still based in fiction.

After writing this review, I realized I probably should have just avoided it altogether. It's a lot harder getting your opinion across for a show as perfect and well constructed as Fate. I obviously think everyone should give this series a shot. Unfortunately, there are a lot of people that are deterred from this series because of supposed gatekeeping. It never stopped me from watching any of the series or reading up online about it. I've even had creative discussions that didn't in a Holy Grail War. This series is by far my favorite anime ever created, aside from Grand Order which I'm not the biggest fan of (the series, not the mobile game). My hope for writing this review is to sway others to give Fate a chance. It honestly is worth the time it may take. Hopefully more people will continue to watch so we can have more series like the Stay Night arcs. Even though many see the Fate community as corrosive and argumentative, I see us as a group all willing to take the time and appreciate this great series as the masterpiece it is. And as far as I know, we all just want others to experience along with us. If you're reading this and haven't given Fate a chance, please do and stick with it until the end. I guarantee you'll appreciate at least one aspect, or entire season even, if you try.