As the Fourth Holy Grail War rages on with no clear victor in sight, the remaining Servants and their Masters are called upon by Church supervisor Risei Kotomine, in order to band together and confront an impending threat that could unravel the Grail War and bring about the destruction of Fuyuki City. The uneasy truce soon collapses as Masters demonstrate that they will do anything in their power, no matter how despicable, to win.
Seeds of doubt are sown between Kiritsugu Emiya and Saber, his Servant, as their conflicting ideologies on heroism and chivalry clash. Meanwhile, an ominous bond forms between Kirei Kotomine, who still seeks to find his purpose in life, and one of the remaining Servants. As the countdown to the end of the war reaches zero, the cost of winning begins to blur the line between victory and defeat.
"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely" - Lord John Dalberg-Acton, 1837.
There are many types of power - financial, military, political, religious, etc - and at one time or another each has been used to further the goals of individuals, organisations, and even nations. The odd thing though, is that even though it has been referenced for thousands of years in everything from legends and myths to folktales and history, magic has rarely been placed in the same category. The problem is that people don't really believe in magic any more, and the subject has been relegated to the realms of fiction and...fantasy - even though it was often said that practitioners had the ability to wield primal forces, command spirits, and shake the foundations of heaven.
Everything has a price though, and in order to achieve or seize power of any sort you have to be willing to give up certain ... things. So the question is, what would you sacrifice for the chance to be a god?
The continuation of Fate/Zero opens with two F-15 jets that have been dispatched by the Japanese Air Force with orders to investigate the situation on the Mion River. Archer/Gilgamesh watches with disdain from on high as Sabre, Rider and Lancer continue their temporary alliance, and the pitched battle with the giant creature summoned by Caster/Gille de Rais rages on.
Little do they know that a new player is about to enter the field ...
One of the most noticeable differences between the first and second halves of Fate/Zero is the shift from preparation and planning to all-out action - something that is rather eloquently symbolized by the battle on the Mion River. With much of the preamble over, the storyline is able to place the kid-gloves to one side and ramp-up the tension between the combatants. This is most often achieved by drawing on the conflicting ideologies of each of the characters - with some thoroughly unscrupulous tactics thrown in to drive home the fact that the participants are involved in a war. The plot remains as focused as ever, but there's a palpable change in the atmosphere of the series, and many episodes have a less forgiving, more brutal air about them.
This shift in "attitude" has been handled extremely well by series director Aoki Ei and his writers, and a great deal of attention has been paid to the impact the numerous action scenes have on the characters - something that's becoming a rarity in modern anime. It's an interesting and effective usage of screentime that is markedly different from the patient build-up of the first half of the story, but crafted with the same care and attention to detail that have become a hallmark of Type-Moon/Ufotable collaborations. This prevents the show devolving into a legendary free-for-all, and allows for some very interesting confrontations - several of which have their roots in the layers of subtext that were added during previous series.
With the focus on action instead of intrigue, one might have expected there to be some differences in the visuals. Thankfully there are almost no major alterations present throughout the series - aside from a few cosmetic differences in clothing and apparel. The high production standards have been maintained and character movements are as sharp and crisp as ever. There are a few relatively minor issues with the blending of CG and standard animation, but these are pretty easy to ignore. What does stand out are the rather dazzling visual effects, many of which are bigger and bolder due to the shift from preparation to action. The choreography and timing of these - together with the quality of the character animation - make for some truly stunning combat sequences.
Composer Kajiura Yuki's all-female band Kalafina - the long-time muses of Type-Moon/Ufotable collaborations - open the second season with the operatic rock ballad "To the Beginning", while the main participants in the Holy Grail war are re-introduced in a well-choreographed montage that contains a few hints of things to come. On the other hand the closing sequence is a rather simple yet moving account - told through a series of still images - of the relationship between Emiya Kiritsugu and Irisviel von Einzbern - with Luna Haruna's pop ballad "Sora wa Takaku Kaze wa Utau" adding an uplifting and slightly bittersweet tone. Kalafina also return with the martially themed operatic ballad "Manten" as a special closing track for episodes 18 and 19.
The first season of Fate/Zero featured a very high standard of audio production, and it's nice to see that sound director Iwanami Yoshikazu hasn't allowed anyone to rest on their laurels. The background music is as diverse and atmospheric as ever, and while there are a few tracks that may sound a little off-kilter, this appears to be a purposeful move in order to heighten the mood of certain scenes. That said, there are two areas where this series is arguably superior to its predecessor - both of which have been pushed to the fore by the move to action.
The audio effects are as sharp and clear as ever, but the increase in combat means that the production standards need to be pushed even higher and more diversity needs to be added. In addition to this the quality of the audio/visual choreography - which was already excellent in the previous series - often went unnoticed because of the focus on preparation and planning. Thankfully Iwanami is arguably one of the most experienced sound directors working in the industry, and his skills - developed over many years working on a variety of different anime - really make the difference. The superb effects and remarkable choreography really set the second series of Fate/Zero apart from other shows released this year, and mark it as a front-runner for any potential awards in this department.
Unlike many other anime, the move to an action footing hasn't caused the script to devolve into random shouts, grunts and screams, and the writers have done well to retain the maturity and intelligence of the first season. There is a bit of a change in the delivery though, as with the goal in sight, some of the actors appear to have been encouraged to add more emotion to their roles. This works surprisingly well with characters who were cold or aloof in the first series - Sabre and Archer for example - and the differences in their feelings becomes more pronounced as the story progresses and the battles take their mental toll.
One of the biggest criticisms of Fate/Zero is that it has tried to weave a coherent narrative from too many character and plot threads without relying on a lead role. Now this may seem like an anathema to those who prefer their development to follow a distinct linear progression, but those tales often suffer from an age-old problem in storytelling - every good protagonist needs an equally good antagonist. It's an issue that has affected anime for many years as - contrary to popular belief - creating and developing a good opposite (the antagonist doesn't have to be a villain after all), to a hero/heroine is not an easy task.
Thankfully Fate/Zero takes its cues from shows like Baccano!, and the lack of a lead role is actually a boon to the series as it allows multiple perspectives to come to the fore. Each of the participants in the war for the Holy Grail is effectively the antagonist of one or more of the other combatants, and all of the players bounce around the plot like peas on a drum - colliding into each other and changing their directions, alliances and enemies in the blink of an eye. It's a rarely used and fascinating approach to character development that highlights in particular the ever-changing nature of the battlefield. One big plus is that while the first season was rather staid in its portrayal of the heroes, the second half of the story pulls very few punches - showing clearly the lengths to which several of the combatants will go in order to win, opening the scars of old wounds, and ensuring that the viewer knows exactly what everyone has put on the line for the ultimate prize.
Over the years there have been many anime that have changed focus and tone from one season to the next, but rarely does it happen in the space of one series. The reason for this is because it's often extremely difficult to reconcile what may eventually turn out to be conflicting portrayals of the story and characters - and therein lies the greatest achievement of Type-Moon, Ufotable, and author Urobuchi Gen. The successful blending of two different perspectives has created a remarkable story that isn't afraid to show off its intelligence or maturity, and the second half of Fate/Zero successfully builds upon the carefully laid foundations of the first season - even with the increase in action and combat.
Prequels are often tricky to deal with as they are very easy to get wrong, which is one of the reasons why this series is a little bit special. In addition to shedding new light on the events that occur in Fate/Stay Night, Fate/Zero is also a singular example of just how good seinen action tales can be, and a testament to the quality that can be achieved through long-term studio collaborations.
This review considers the anime adaptation of Fate Zero (F/Z) Season 2 entirely on its own merit.
TL;DR version: The hotly-anticipated second half of F/Z is disappointing in the sense that it leaves the viewer with more questions than answers with a rushed ending. It is especially frustrating when the first half took meticulous care in covering all the nooks and crannies of the Fate universe. On the plus side, the visuals are excellent and the choreography of some of the action and battles is outstanding.
Which brings us to to the critical flaw, the *execution* of the story. The carefully crafted build-up in...the first season starts falling apart, as the series switches its focus to action and bodycount. This change of focus and direction just fails to engage the kind of viewer who wants to know the "why" it happened, on top of the "what".
"But they were simply constricted by the number of slots they had on TV."
Those with bright minds will around it properly. Producers need to know which aspects of the story to prioritize. Steins;Gate for example picked and chose material carefully from the Visual Novel and the result was excellent. The flow and pacing was consistent, despite the amount of material that was not included. This was not the case for F/Z season 2 where the producers made two big errors in pacing.
The first error goes back to season 1. I really enjoyed the loli-Rin episode and it was fitting, due to Rin being such an important character in the Fate universe.
"But they needed a cliffhanger for the start of season 2, which is why they used lol-Rin as a filler."
Ending an arc at the final episode of a sub-season and having a clean-slate start for season 2 is also just fine, especially if it improves the overall product.
The second error is the producers' sadistic minds going for big, family kills on Mother and Father's Day respectively, thus affecting the pacing of the story. This is especially so in the middle of the season where 2 episodes are devoted to a flashback. The pacing of the flashback was extremely slow and given the amount of content that needed covering at the end it is questionable whether 2 whole episodes were needed.
These decisions therefore cost around one and a half episodes, a valuable amount of time which needed to be saved to wrap up the series. Instead, we get an ending which happened, "because it happened". In hindsight, the loli-Rin episode would make a perfect bonus episode in a Blu-Ray set.
Combined with the pacing issues, the quality of dialogue takes a dive as depth and characterization is replaced by shallow, shounen-esque lines. This is disastrous because F/Z started off as a "badass" anime with depth and sophistication. During the latter part of season 2, the show becomes badass, for the sake of being badass. This really affects the characters because instead of developing them and forging a connection with the viewer, they merely become tools of destruction. The connections that were forged in season 1 gradually fade as our characters just drop like dead flies, in a large bodycount, with rushed death epilogues that gives the question "Was that it, after everything?"
To top it all off, what was mind-boggling was Sakura's last line in the series. It shows a totally different character to the Sakura we knew prior, and what we know from F/Stay Night. Instead of going for consistency, the producers had gone for the tragic route for the sake of it.
This discrepancy across the seasons confuses how F/Z wants to be identified. A sophisticated series (Death Note's first arc) combined with some slick action in the first season, or simply a show to showcase "baddass" (Hellsing Ultimate, Black Lagoon).
The art and CGI were very good throughout, with the right amount of detailing on the characters. I also failed to notice any deformities, inconsistencies and incorrect placing of facial features throughout the season. The animation was also fluid, with rendered CGI being used the bulk of the battles to good effect. Everything that meets the eye of the viewer was done extremely beautifully. This was backed by good, convincing sounds effects of metal clanging against metal during battle.
The music is an odd one due to Kajiura Yuki abandoning her usual, dominant style for BGM and making it a passive one for F/Z. There was no techno and dramatic opera. Instead, a classical style was used which identified itself with the ancient times of the servants, and the use of ancient mythological magic. The opposite would be the more "techy" weaponry used by present-day people in Mai-Hime, with Kajiura Yuki using her trademark style there. Unfortunately, the passive style means the plot and depth of the story needs to be strong in order for the viewer to be engaged - which as discussed earlier was not to be. This links directly to the overall enjoyment of the series, which took a dive as a result. The final nail in the coffin for enjoyment was the awkwardly paced finale. The placement of actual content felt "off", especially when we were abruptly fed with the idealized wishes of some of the characters. The dialogue which was meant to provide closure was also unsatisfying, with "explanations" actually being descriptive, rather than being explanations.
F/Z has been a series that has been extremely interesting from the outset. The extremely high production values is an instant draw, with extremely well animated OP/EDs that set and fit the mood and content of the story perfectly. People who loved the first season's depth and pacing will unfortunately be disappointed. The "less talk, more action" crowd will surely love the excitement suspense from *most* of the battles that were extremely well choreographed. Unfortunately, the flip-flopping of F/Z's genre identity mean both crowds will unlikely be completely satisfied.
For a show that heavily relies on dialogue, it sure was lacking in the quality of dialogue. I often found myself bored with whatever they were talking about, mainly because the plot was boring and all the characters had many unappealing traits which made me not care about them.
If you want to watch a show with very dull dialogue and irrational people fighting over a fairy tale relic, this show is definitely for you. Only good part in fate/zero was its action sequences, but that alone isnt enough to make show interesting.
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Fate/Zero is a brilliantly constructed anime that deals with the complex themes of morality and the justifications of violent actions. Each episode reveals deep insights through its intense character development and storyline, but the opening is also a statement in and of itself!
