"Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions. Their lives a mimicry. Their passions a quotation." --Oscar Wilde
Fate/stay night is a popular visual novel from 2004, produced by Type-Moon, who is also notable for the visual novel Tsukihime and the light novel (and subsequently, film series) Kara no Kyoukai. Critically and commercially successful upon launch, it would go on to become a massive franchise, creating fandisk sequels, spin-off video games, prequel novels, and more. It blends a deep, yet mysterious lore with complex and interesting characters which make it shine. Now, roughly ten years after the release of the original VN, and
...
eight years after the previous butchered adaptation by Studio Deen, it's time for Fate/stay night to shine once again in anime form. Do note that while there might be a few, I'll try to do my best to limit comparisons to the original visual novel and the prequel, Fate/Zero, and discuss the show as it was meant to be; its own thing. This will also mostly be a review over the entire show, counting Season 1 as well.
STORY:
Within the secret world of mages, unknown to normal folk who live their ordinary lives, there is a ritual that occurs every so often. The Holy Grail War. A ritual that chooses seven mages to become participants, or "Masters," to do battle against each other. Summoning a powerful familiar called a "Servant," they fight to obtain a mystical object known as the Holy Grail, which will present itself to the victor, and grant one wish to them.
The primary story follows Shirou Emiya, a morally upstanding young man with very little knowledge of magecraft and aspires to become a champion of justice who can protect those in need, much like a superhero or so. With his Servant, the mysterious Saber, he forms an alliance with classmate and fellow participant Rin Tohsaka, and her Servant, Archer. Together, they will do battle against the other Masters, but things quickly get complicated when ghosts of the previous Holy Grail War return, Shirou's idealistic fantasies are challenged, and the Grail slowly begins to manifest, and not as someone would expect. The story-telling, and eventual transition into a far more character-driven one, is beautiful and makes the experience very engaging.
Because this happens to be the second route of the visual novel, which requires first-hand knowledge of the first route, the show attempts to make up for a lack of an adaptation for the first route (not counting the 2006 adaptation by Studio Deen) by adding in original scenes explaining and fleshing out things that were better explained in the previous route, including the backstory of a certain character, the motivations of another, and so forth. Fortunately, Studio Ufotable managed to include these original scenes in a coherent way, hopefully able to please both fans of the prequel, Fate/Zero, and those who wish to see a well-made adaptation of the VN.
Though at first, the story starts out as some sort of typical battle royale, what makes this story, like Fate/Zero, unique is that there's a far greater emphasis on character development and focus, though there's quite a good amount of deep lore that one could get themselves lost in as well. These two elements are combined flawlessly, which is what made the original story such a well-beloved franchise in Japan. Do note, however, that if you are coming to this show straight from Fate/Zero, you shouldn't be looking for a strict sequel to it in Unlimited Blade Works, as out of the three routes, UBW is arguably the least connected to F/Z in terms of narrative and characters, focusing mainly on Shirou and his ideals. For a true continuation, or at least, the best it can get, as Fate/stay night came out first, you'll have to wait for the Heavens Feel movie(s) or read the visual novel.
ART:
What can I say about the art and animation that hasn't been said already? You've likely already heard the memes, like "Unlimited Budget Works" and so on. Studio Ufotable makes honestly astonishing work with their budget, as seen with not just Unlimited Blade Works, but also their previous works with Fate/Zero and the Kara no Kyoukai films. The CG rarely looks unnatural, and most of the time when it does, it's done so on purpose. The animation is fluid and stunning, resulting in spectacular, beautiful fight scenes that greatly showcase the characters' strength and speed, and the attention to detail is great. If there's one gripe to be had with the animation, it's that at times, the character models can look a little wonky, resulting in some occasional "quality" moments, but those moments hardly bring down the spectacular animation.
Simply put, Unlimited Blade Works is arguably the best-looking anime TV show I ever had the pleasure of viewing, rivaling that of many higher-budget anime films like Howl's Moving Castle and so on. And just imagine how Heavens Feel will look when Ufotable gets a movie budget again.
SOUND:
Probably the weakest part for me, personally, though the sound department is hardly without its highlights. The voice acting is great, and with the seiyuus having voiced these characters for over ten years, you can bet they're comfortable with the voices. Noriaki Sugiyama and Junichi Suwabe, as Shirou and Archer respectively, are the main highlights. Their voices are phenomenal and are the best of the actors, though Jouji Nakata as Kotomine is also great as ever. The music is kind of a mixed bag. Though much of the OST consists of well-made music that makes one feel like they're watching a high-budget action film, like it is in a sense, though most if not all of the tracks that specifically stand out are remixes of older songs, including Archer's theme, the two remixes of This Illusion, and Emiya.
Otherwise, there's honestly not much else to say about it. The songs are good, but there aren't a lot in my opinion that seem to specifically stand out, beside the aforementioned modern remixes.
CHARACTER:
Easily the highlight of the series. Upon first glance, the protagonist, Shirou Emiya, initially appears to be little more than a generic, idealistic protagonist who wants to protect everyone and be a champion of justice like his adoptive father had once aspired to be. However, he begins to shine when his ideals are challenged, and the show gets kicked into high gear when the psychology of such a person who lives for nothing more than to follow his father's footsteps and achieve his dream is analyzed thoroughly. As such, he undergoes great development, and with some funny dense moments, Shirou is a joy as a protagonist, though that's not to say he's the only good character.
The primary heroine, Rin Tohsaka, serves as the love interest of Shirou, though she's much more than that. Daughter to one of the late Masters of the previous Holy Grail War, and current heir of one of the three Founding Families of magecraft, she is a talented, intelligent, and powerful young woman. On the surface, she appears to be a typical tsundere-type character, but is more complex than that, sporting additional qualities to flesh her out including an insecurity about herself and the choices she makes, the implied regrets she has over her past (which are spoiled in Fate/Zero and will be elaborated more in the Heavens Feel adaptation), and her more secretly nurturing side. Beside her, there's Saber, Shirou's Servant, a humble yet strong-willed warrior who participated in the previous Holy Grail War, and fights to acquire the Grail to undo her mistakes, living obsessively to achieve a possibly moot goal, similar to Shirou. Viewers coming in from Fate/Zero may be disappointed by her comparatively minimal role here, as she was arguably the primary protagonist alongside Kiritsugu Emiya, which may be understandable, as the sudden transition from a show that's equally story and character-driven into a show that's more character-driven, and much less on Saber, may be jarring, which is why it's best to watch Unlimited Blade Works with a clear and fresh impression, because as stated earlier, it is not a continuation of Fate/Zero, but merely, one possible string of events that happens to occur after it.
There's also Archer, the mysterious Servant of Rin who comes to play quite the important role in UBW. The mystery surrounding him makes him interesting, as well as the choices he makes that affects the other protagonist, and most importantly, his cynical viewpoint of life that clashes heavily with Shirou's idealism, making them great opposites on the spectrum of morality. Aside from him, there are also the fellow Masters and Servants, some who play bigger roles than others, though if I spend the whole review talking about them, I'll never finish, though I will honorably mention Caster, Kuzuki, Ilya, Shinji, and Lancer, as well as the antagonists, the scheming Kirei Kotomine (Once again, wait for HF if you wanted to see him live up to how he was in F/Z!) and the fearsome Gilgamesh, arguably one of the strongest characters in the Type-Moon universe.
ENJOYMENT:
As a personal fan of the VN, the show was great. It provided just enough service to appeal to old fans, but also appealing to fans of Fate/Zero and first-time viewers as well. The story worked well, the fights were jaw-dropping and phenomenally well done, the characters were fun to watch with their back-and-forth banter, and so on. Though the first season was somewhat slow, due to having to set up the narrative, setting, and themes, the second season manages to use this eventual familiarization and kick things into high gear, providing a great blend of over-the-top action and serious, complex characters.
... Though I imagine most people could have gone without some of the on-and-on exposition at times, though of course, this is lightened up quite a bit come the second season.
OVERALL:
As a fan of the original visual novel, I'm happy to say that this is a great show for just about all of the crowds, be it fellow VN readers, fans of F/Z, and first-time viewers who want to get into the Fate franchise and believe this might be a good starting point. With a well-crafted, character-driven story that delves into the struggles that comes with being a hero that lives for nothing more than to protect, unrivaled animation in anime shows, splendid voice acting, and unforgettable sequences, Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works is sure to be a pleasure to many. It stands as not only the best series of the seasons, but also, in my opinion, one of the greatest anime shows ever made.
All (44)FriendsRSS Feeds |
Jul 2, 2015
"Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions. Their lives a mimicry. Their passions a quotation." --Oscar Wilde
Fate/stay night is a popular visual novel from 2004, produced by Type-Moon, who is also notable for the visual novel Tsukihime and the light novel (and subsequently, film series) Kara no Kyoukai. Critically and commercially successful upon launch, it would go on to become a massive franchise, creating fandisk sequels, spin-off video games, prequel novels, and more. It blends a deep, yet mysterious lore with complex and interesting characters which make it shine. Now, roughly ten years after the release of the original VN, and ... 
Dec 14, 2014
Akame ga Kill!
(Anime)
add
Akame ga Kill! is probably one of the biggest train wrecks of 2014. That's really the only way to describe it. It is a train wreck. In the beginning, the train began running. In the middle, it began to waver a little. By the end, it's crashed into the lake. That, of course, is Akame ga Kill! right there.
Do note that this review will refer to the anime and only the anime, so there will be little to no mention of the manga. STORY: As the summary says, the story of Akame ga Kill! is basically about the main character, Tatsumi, being roped into an organization called ... 
Jul 1, 2014
Black Bullet
(Anime)
add
Black Bullet is one of the many light novel adaptations that aired during Spring 2014. You might know the other ones as The Irregular at Magic High School, No Game No Life, and Chaika - The Coffin Princess. It started out okay, but got progressively weaker as it went on, before turning into an unentertaining show that turned out to be a rushed and half-baked adaptation. Shame, it had potential to be way better.
If you've read the synopsis on the show's page on this site, it'll tell you that it takes place in a post-apocalyptic future where humanity is practically on the brink of extinction, ... |
