Review of Fate/Grand Order: Absolute Demonic Front - Babylonia

Ahh where to start with this... I guess as a Fate fan, this series was the natural "next step" in consuming and enjoying fate media and so it is with great honor that I am reviewing this. A couple things to know right off the bat: 1. I know that this anime is based on the Fate/ Grand Order game, of which I have played none of. Therefore, some of my Grand Order knowledge is understandably lacking 2. I made quite the movie journey to get to this point, which, now having watched Absolute Demonic Front, I would also recommend you watch if you are interested ingetting into F/GO. I am by no means a master at this series but the movies definitely serve to describe and help one understand what exactly is going on in F/GO Absolute Demonic Front. I will be reviewing this anime given that I have watched those movies prior, which will naturally affect how I perceive the story.
3. Henceforth in this review, for brevity's sake, this anime will be referred to as simply F/GO, Babylonia, or F/GO Babylonia.

Lets start!

STORY: 7
This is a slightly lower score than usual, especially considering how I enjoy Fate material. However, there is good reason for this. Overall, this anime is quite good story wise, but it does lack some spice that really brings it over the top. Of course, given that it is an offshoot of the whole Fate Universe gives it a great head start in terms of world building and having the watcher (myself) understand what is going on, but the story itself, or the plot, is unfortunately a bit lacking. To start, roughly 75% of the anime follows a journey like plot, where Ritsuka and Mash travel from place to place collecting specific pieces, servants, and knowledge. I believe there is a specific term for it, often used derogatorily, but I forget what it is. Anyways, the issue with this is that its not interesting really to watch Ritsuka and Mash go from one place to another, completing "quests" in my opinion. The story lacks flavor in this sense and is very linear, too linear in fact. Now, I can understand that this might be based on F/GO gameplay, i.e. needing to collect certain power ups/servants or level up xp, but when translated into a watchable format, it doesn't quite work. In an watchable format, the watcher loses that involvement that the gamer would have, and so the story becomes quite trite.

The other 25% of the anime can be described as "The Bossfight" where Ritsuka, Mash, and their collection of Servants go up against the "Big Bad Boss". At first this was a breath of fresh air in comparison to the questing portion-- there was stakes, development, and interest. But to spend 25% of the anime on it, it really becomes quite drawn out. And when it gets drawn out, some ridiculous storytelling begins: Of which the worst is infinite power ups and all out deux ex machina. I literally lost count of how many times servants died and came back because it was convenient, or how many times the "bad guy" changed and evolved. Once drawn out, things just become a slog.

The resolution to this anime is quite good though. Although the bossfight was tediously drawn out, I'm still glad on some level that the boss wasn't just defeated in one strike. At the same time, there was some exploration of societal themes as well, so overall it wasn't like terrible. It's also enjoyable in the sense that there is action and lots of fate plot devices going on too so even though I complain a fair bit, I still enjoyed the story.

ART:10
I've been notorious with art, especially for telling myself things like "Nothing will ever rival Fate art" and then switching to "Nothing will ever rival Ufotable art and animation", but I must begrudgingly add this specific anime to my venerable list of "Nothing will ever rival [x]". The art is just fantastic, and I can't say anything else. The backgrounds are great, art is crisp and sharp. Animation is smooth and even the more intensive fight scenes don't fall apart. This was one of my gripes with the Art for Fate/Apocrypha, is that a lot of the fight scenes at the end definitely fell off HARD in quality, but that is definitely not the case here. I will say the decision to use CGI for the final boss is an interesting choice, quite out of place, but its not horrendous. Besides that though, color choice is good and reflects the sort of fun action story that this is. The Art style as well is fantastic and nostalgic, it really reflects the style of the Fate/ Stay Night franchise that is generally highly rated. So overall, the art is not groundbreaking but it is excellent.

SOUND: 9
Now usually I don't give a rats bottom about the OP or the ED, but damn for this anime, I found myself enjoying both a fair bit. The OP is quite quick and upbeat, although it strikes a minor chord, so its quite nice as an upbeat starter. The ED is a bit more melancholy but in my opinion it fits the story like a glove.

But the main reason for this high sound rating has to be the SFX in the anime itself. They are amazing. They do really well to convey impact and ring, and overall just fit all the animations super well. Especially in the fight scenes the sounds are really well placed. Solid scores for those.

The VAs are well chosen, nothing out of the ordinary, simply good as expected.

CHARACTER: 8
Personally, I liked most of the characters in the anime, and this is one of the points that makes this anime so good. Many of the characters benefit from being well known in IRL history, so they already have points of connection for the watcher. Although our esteemed Saber doesn't quite make the cut, all of the characters that are shown are good. Ritsuka in particular is quite a refreshing character after rethinking Shirou from F/SN, but I personally feel that Mash is underdeveloped. Besides Mash though, I think all of the main characters really show development, and movement from being one person into another which I vastly appreciate in this character rating. In particular, Ishtar is well done in my opinion, not really losing too much of Rin's personality while also showing her own impetus and growth. And of course, seeing Gilgamesh in a different light is also nostalgic and refreshing.

ENJOYMENT: 10
The most subjective part of a review is the enjoyment, and since I gave it full marks, I'll have to preface this by saying that I am a BIG fate anime fan, so this is obviously biased because of that. But personally, I think this anime is fantastic. Its enjoyable to the fate fan, and it feels like a fresh take on the grail war. Of course, a first timer with little background might find themselves lost in the details of this anime, but personally I enjoyed it vastly. It was like a smorgasbord of Fate plot devices and a mash up of old and new characters- equal parts exciting and new as well as old and nostalgic. The fight scenes are jaw dropping and the choreography is organic, and of course the art in my opinion is absolutely stunning. And so because of that, I thoroughly enjoyed this anime, I can't give it less than a 10.

OVERALL: 9
Overall for me, this anime is a 9. Essentially it comes down to: this anime does everything for me as a fate fan, but the story still lacks just a little bit to push this to an overall 10. Like I mentioned before already, the art is fantastic, the choreography is fantastic, the fight scenes are amazing. The characters are enjoyable, multifaceted, nostalgic. But the sort of game=like influences on the story just don't do it for me. Also as mentioned, the story really becomes drawn out in all aspects, which unfortunately makes it so I cannot give it a 10.

So if I math it out: 4 for enjoyment + 3 for art/animation+ 1 for the characters + 1 for sound =9 overall

Peace.