Wolfe reporting.
Fate/Zero. F/Z. My goodness. This anime was absolutely amazing, and definitely high on my imaginary "best of all time" list. It has all the elements going for it, basically. Sure, there are a few points I wish to step on, and there are other points I wish to elevate above all others.
First off, I'm going to be ever-so-slightly changing my rating system. I think I'm finally able to do something closer to the ideal (mark-up and mark-down). However, this would have it so that more anime would be getting perfect and even above-perfect scores. This irks me, so I'm making some small changes: there will be a professional opinion score, a personal opinion score, and a combined score. The professional opinion score will be based off of objective ratings, the personal opinion score will be based off of subjective ratings, and the combined score will be the average of the other two scores. However, until some bumps have been smoothed over, I won't be able to implement this system until another post.
I'm also adding one new (and brief) section: Pros and Cons. In this section I will summarize the pros and cons, as the title suggests, and give edges and boosts based off of these. As an example: if I really like the combat, I'll give it an edge for combat, as well as a score boost of 1 for combat (making the combat subjective score a 2/1, while the combat objective score would remain 1/1).
I'm finally implementing the mark-up / mark-down system, so I'll be starting with a half-score and then marking it up and/or down for various reasoning. I'll explain the math at the bottom of each category.
At the end of my post, I'll do my best to do a score-review, to help the reader make sense of everything. Yes, this means my reviews will probably be longer and more complicated, but it seems to be the best way of going about things (for now).
That said, let's get started!
Regarding the Japanese title, フェイト/ゼロ, フェイト is "feito" and ゼロ is "zero", separated by a slash. So, "feito/zero" becomes "fate/zero". Big surprise. Japanese (at least, the transliteration portion) doesn't sound so hard now, does it?
The episodes are in half-hour increments (except for the stupid first episode), and there are 25 episodes.
Personal/Subjective Opinion: 13.5 / 13 (=104%)!
Score Without Edges: 10.5 / 13 (=80.7%)!
Concept: The concept behind F/Z is complicated, and it took me a few episodes to piece together a full understanding. That being said, the concept revolves around the Holy Grail. The Holy Grail chooses seven mages (by having a mark appear on their hand with three command seals) that fight to win the Holy Grail. Upon winning the Holy Grail, it grants a wish. These seven mages summon servants that are involved with most of the fighting. Each servant has a Noble Phantasm, which can best be explained as an edge/special ability-- Noble Phantasms are usually a big deal, like a limited-use moveset (the equivalent of a 5 PP move in Pokémon).
There are seven classes of servants that can be summoned: Saber, Lancer, Archer, Rider, Caster, Assassin, and Berserker. Apparently, there are other classes, but these do not show up in Fate/Zero and so I shall ignore them. Saber class are "agile and powerful melee warriors"; Lancer class are "very agile and skilled with long-range melee weapons"; Archer class are "usually proficient with projectiles"; Rider class "place emphasis on speed and powerful Noble Phantasms"; Caster class "are adept in magecraft"; Assassin class have lots of stealth but weak combat skills; and Berserker class are "heroes who have gone berserk in their lifetime" (Source). Saber class is considered the best overall class; Archer class has the special ability Independent Action (ability to act away from their masters); Rider class has the special skill of Riding (ability to fully utilize their mounts); Caster class has the Reality Marble/Territory Creation (alters/creates space); Assassin class has the Presence Concealment special ability (and, due to weak combat skills, are usually used to kill Masters); and Berserker class has the special ability Mad Enhancement (trades sanity for a large power boost) (Source). Keep in mind that this is a simplified explanation, and that there are also edges in various categories (such as obedience) that I will do my best to skirt around.
Introduction Sequence: 1 / 1 (subjective). Both opening sequences are absolutely gorgeous, although I preferred the second one. They were spoiler-free and focused on the characters. It was fast-paced, too. While I did skip it a few times, this was usually because I was seriously on edge because the plot had me needing to continue watching. If I was to say anything bad about it, it would be that it didn't represent the intensity of the anime.. but what could?! OP 1: Link. OP 2: Link. 0.5/1 + gorgeous + spoiler-free = 1/1.
Animation Style: 1 / 1 (subjective). As with most anime I've seen lately, the animation style is B-E-A-utiful. Lots of eye candy to be found, lots of effort very visible and flashy. Berserker felt CGI, but this wasn't a bad thing. 0.5/1 + beautiful + not chibi = 1/1.
Examples:
Music: 0.5 / 1 (subjective). The music was fitting, but not overwhelming. It didn't ruin any tone, and occasionally helped to set it. It's probably closer to the 0.8 realm, but I'm calling it 0.5. Anyhow, here's the link to F/Z OST.
Plot: 3.5 / 3 (subjective). That's right, I'm giving F/Z an edge in "plot". F/Z's plot is... amazing. Except for the first episode. The first episode is a lot of back-story, but for someone going into the anime, it was a rather dull beginning. The first episode almost discouraged me from continuing onward in the anime. Not only that, but it's an hour long, unlike the half-hour of every other episode length. Moving past this, I was completely hooked into the anime by the end of episode 3 (and would have been at the end of episode 2 were it not for episode 1). Around episode 9 or 10, there is a side-story that Roxas liked but I neither liked nor disliked. I would have adored it if there were repercussions for the main character's actions (I like when there are repercussions for ignorance/optimism). There was a side-story around episode 18 or 20 that was (I believe) 2 episodes long, and this side-story was amazing. When it started, I was thinking, "Really?", but when it ended, my jaw was open. Not only this, but the ending for F/Z was one of the best endings I've witnessed, for a reason that, if stated, would be a major spoiler. Having said this, the plot (past the first episode) was thick, intricate, and fascinating. 1.5/3 + Great side-story + ending + edge = 4/3 - Ep1 = 3.5/3.
Characters: 4 / 3 (subjective). These characters are also amazing, and I'm also giving F/Z an edge in "characters". I will probably not be using these edges as much as you think, but F/Z is really deserving of these. Each character had their own attributes, goals, attitudes, and relationships with other characters. Each master had a relationship with their servant, and the servants all had varying relationships with each other. You had the servant who considered himself above his master (*cough* Archer *cough*), and therefore wasn't very obedient. You had the servant who disagreed with his master because he had a knight's honour (*cough* Lancer *cough*), and therefore wasn't happy with obeying anti-honour tactics. You had Caster's affection for Saber and Berserker's hatred for Saber. This web that was the characters was excellently crafted, and an ideal to live up to. Pictures: Saber, Lancer, Archer, Rider, Caster, Assassin, Berserker, Kiritsugu Emiya, Irisviel, Kirei Kotomine, Tokiomi Tōsaka, Waver Velvet, Kariya Matō, Ryūnosuke Uryū. 1.5/3 + (every character) = 3/3 + edge = 4/3.
Combat: 2 / 1 (subjective). Full points here plus edge for combat. I mean serious edge. I'd give it a 3/1 if I felt it'd be reasonable. I've never seen better combat in an anime, and I seriously doubt I ever will. Example: Skip to 5:10.
Power Balance: 0.5 / 1 (subjective). While there's a lot of power in the pool (I mean seriously, everyone seems to have their tricks and special abilities), it isn't quite balanced. There's a definite favour to two particular characters (namely, Saber and Archer), and Assassin was nowhere near even the normal warrior's strength levels.
Addictability: 0.5 / 1 (subjective). This anime was seriously addictive... once you get past the first episode. The first episode is the only episode I have qualms with, and due to these qualms, I refuse to give the anime the "1" it deserves for this category.
Darkness and Bloodiness: 0.5 / 1 (subjective). While it isn't consistently dark and is rarely bloody, the increasing darkness (exponentially throughout the series, reaching an all-time high by the end) was exactly what I look for in an anime. However, I have issues with a few particular scenes regarding the "bloody" aspects. Caster and his master have some... interesting habits. These lead to some WHAT SHOULD BE bloody scenes. Except, the camera and lack of lighting makes it so that we are unable to see these scenes. I WANT TO SEE THEM. IT IS MY RIGHT. IT IS MY DESIRE. 0.5/1 + dark - bloody = 0.5/1.
Believability: The anime is fairly believable... for the most part, anyways. I wish there was some sort of explanation as to why the public couldn't get involved (because some scenes result in destruction of property). I mean, if it was understood that magic prevented common folk from intervening, I'd be fine. "It was magic!" is a great way to solve anything, but that explanation wasn't given. Other than that, I didn't ever feel myself going: Wait a minute. She set up hundreds of bombs in how long?! (Look forward to my The Future Diary review, referenced just now.)
Philosophy: The philosophy, while complex, is simplex in origin. It asks questions regarding saving lives, for instance: if there are two boats, one with 200 people and the other with 300 people, and you can only save one, which do you choose? ..The occupants of the 200-person boat are complaining. Result? ..Having killed them, the boat with 300 splits into two boats, a 100 and a 200 person boat. You can only save one, which do you choose? ..You've now ended up killing 300 people to save 200 people. Is this alright? There is also the simple question of What wish would you have granted by an omnipotent wish-granting device? Last but not least, there's the ultimate question of how to fix the issues in this world (other than ending all of humanity, of course).
Pros and Cons: Edges on Plot, Characters, and Combat. Serious edge on combat. Weakness: first episode, definitely.
Wallpapers:
AMV's:
There are great AMVs for F/Z! I love when this happens!
Keep in mind, Roxas already has some pretty cool AMVs for F/Z on his review.
El Que Quiera Entender Que Entienda - This one is really good! The song choice clashes occasionally with the audio, but it's well-cut, well-transitioned, and good clip choice. It even briefly goes over the classes.
The Beginning (One Ok Rock) - This one is pretty good, I just wish they hadn't left the F/Z logo on the screen for so long in the beginning.
Life Goes On - This one is really, really amazing. Some "MAD" content really adds to it.
Next Time:
Date A Live, in all likelihood.
Wolfe out.
Fate/Zero. F/Z. My goodness. This anime was absolutely amazing, and definitely high on my imaginary "best of all time" list. It has all the elements going for it, basically. Sure, there are a few points I wish to step on, and there are other points I wish to elevate above all others.
First off, I'm going to be ever-so-slightly changing my rating system. I think I'm finally able to do something closer to the ideal (mark-up and mark-down). However, this would have it so that more anime would be getting perfect and even above-perfect scores. This irks me, so I'm making some small changes: there will be a professional opinion score, a personal opinion score, and a combined score. The professional opinion score will be based off of objective ratings, the personal opinion score will be based off of subjective ratings, and the combined score will be the average of the other two scores. However, until some bumps have been smoothed over, I won't be able to implement this system until another post.
I'm also adding one new (and brief) section: Pros and Cons. In this section I will summarize the pros and cons, as the title suggests, and give edges and boosts based off of these. As an example: if I really like the combat, I'll give it an edge for combat, as well as a score boost of 1 for combat (making the combat subjective score a 2/1, while the combat objective score would remain 1/1).
I'm finally implementing the mark-up / mark-down system, so I'll be starting with a half-score and then marking it up and/or down for various reasoning. I'll explain the math at the bottom of each category.
At the end of my post, I'll do my best to do a score-review, to help the reader make sense of everything. Yes, this means my reviews will probably be longer and more complicated, but it seems to be the best way of going about things (for now).
That said, let's get started!
Regarding the Japanese title, フェイト/ゼロ, フェイト is "feito" and ゼロ is "zero", separated by a slash. So, "feito/zero" becomes "fate/zero". Big surprise. Japanese (at least, the transliteration portion) doesn't sound so hard now, does it?
The episodes are in half-hour increments (except for the stupid first episode), and there are 25 episodes.
Personal/Subjective Opinion: 13.5 / 13 (=104%)!
Score Without Edges: 10.5 / 13 (=80.7%)!
Concept: The concept behind F/Z is complicated, and it took me a few episodes to piece together a full understanding. That being said, the concept revolves around the Holy Grail. The Holy Grail chooses seven mages (by having a mark appear on their hand with three command seals) that fight to win the Holy Grail. Upon winning the Holy Grail, it grants a wish. These seven mages summon servants that are involved with most of the fighting. Each servant has a Noble Phantasm, which can best be explained as an edge/special ability-- Noble Phantasms are usually a big deal, like a limited-use moveset (the equivalent of a 5 PP move in Pokémon).
 |
| F/Z logo. Source. |
Introduction Sequence: 1 / 1 (subjective). Both opening sequences are absolutely gorgeous, although I preferred the second one. They were spoiler-free and focused on the characters. It was fast-paced, too. While I did skip it a few times, this was usually because I was seriously on edge because the plot had me needing to continue watching. If I was to say anything bad about it, it would be that it didn't represent the intensity of the anime.. but what could?! OP 1: Link. OP 2: Link. 0.5/1 + gorgeous + spoiler-free = 1/1.
Animation Style: 1 / 1 (subjective). As with most anime I've seen lately, the animation style is B-E-A-utiful. Lots of eye candy to be found, lots of effort very visible and flashy. Berserker felt CGI, but this wasn't a bad thing. 0.5/1 + beautiful + not chibi = 1/1.
Examples:
 |
| Intense-looking Saber. Source. |
 |
| Unhappy-looking Archer. Source. |
Music: 0.5 / 1 (subjective). The music was fitting, but not overwhelming. It didn't ruin any tone, and occasionally helped to set it. It's probably closer to the 0.8 realm, but I'm calling it 0.5. Anyhow, here's the link to F/Z OST.
Plot: 3.5 / 3 (subjective). That's right, I'm giving F/Z an edge in "plot". F/Z's plot is... amazing. Except for the first episode. The first episode is a lot of back-story, but for someone going into the anime, it was a rather dull beginning. The first episode almost discouraged me from continuing onward in the anime. Not only that, but it's an hour long, unlike the half-hour of every other episode length. Moving past this, I was completely hooked into the anime by the end of episode 3 (and would have been at the end of episode 2 were it not for episode 1). Around episode 9 or 10, there is a side-story that Roxas liked but I neither liked nor disliked. I would have adored it if there were repercussions for the main character's actions (I like when there are repercussions for ignorance/optimism). There was a side-story around episode 18 or 20 that was (I believe) 2 episodes long, and this side-story was amazing. When it started, I was thinking, "Really?", but when it ended, my jaw was open. Not only this, but the ending for F/Z was one of the best endings I've witnessed, for a reason that, if stated, would be a major spoiler. Having said this, the plot (past the first episode) was thick, intricate, and fascinating. 1.5/3 + Great side-story + ending + edge = 4/3 - Ep1 = 3.5/3.
Characters: 4 / 3 (subjective). These characters are also amazing, and I'm also giving F/Z an edge in "characters". I will probably not be using these edges as much as you think, but F/Z is really deserving of these. Each character had their own attributes, goals, attitudes, and relationships with other characters. Each master had a relationship with their servant, and the servants all had varying relationships with each other. You had the servant who considered himself above his master (*cough* Archer *cough*), and therefore wasn't very obedient. You had the servant who disagreed with his master because he had a knight's honour (*cough* Lancer *cough*), and therefore wasn't happy with obeying anti-honour tactics. You had Caster's affection for Saber and Berserker's hatred for Saber. This web that was the characters was excellently crafted, and an ideal to live up to. Pictures: Saber, Lancer, Archer, Rider, Caster, Assassin, Berserker, Kiritsugu Emiya, Irisviel, Kirei Kotomine, Tokiomi Tōsaka, Waver Velvet, Kariya Matō, Ryūnosuke Uryū. 1.5/3 + (every character) = 3/3 + edge = 4/3.
Combat: 2 / 1 (subjective). Full points here plus edge for combat. I mean serious edge. I'd give it a 3/1 if I felt it'd be reasonable. I've never seen better combat in an anime, and I seriously doubt I ever will. Example: Skip to 5:10.
Power Balance: 0.5 / 1 (subjective). While there's a lot of power in the pool (I mean seriously, everyone seems to have their tricks and special abilities), it isn't quite balanced. There's a definite favour to two particular characters (namely, Saber and Archer), and Assassin was nowhere near even the normal warrior's strength levels.
Addictability: 0.5 / 1 (subjective). This anime was seriously addictive... once you get past the first episode. The first episode is the only episode I have qualms with, and due to these qualms, I refuse to give the anime the "1" it deserves for this category.
Darkness and Bloodiness: 0.5 / 1 (subjective). While it isn't consistently dark and is rarely bloody, the increasing darkness (exponentially throughout the series, reaching an all-time high by the end) was exactly what I look for in an anime. However, I have issues with a few particular scenes regarding the "bloody" aspects. Caster and his master have some... interesting habits. These lead to some WHAT SHOULD BE bloody scenes. Except, the camera and lack of lighting makes it so that we are unable to see these scenes. I WANT TO SEE THEM. IT IS MY RIGHT. IT IS MY DESIRE. 0.5/1 + dark - bloody = 0.5/1.
Believability: The anime is fairly believable... for the most part, anyways. I wish there was some sort of explanation as to why the public couldn't get involved (because some scenes result in destruction of property). I mean, if it was understood that magic prevented common folk from intervening, I'd be fine. "It was magic!" is a great way to solve anything, but that explanation wasn't given. Other than that, I didn't ever feel myself going: Wait a minute. She set up hundreds of bombs in how long?! (Look forward to my The Future Diary review, referenced just now.)
Philosophy: The philosophy, while complex, is simplex in origin. It asks questions regarding saving lives, for instance: if there are two boats, one with 200 people and the other with 300 people, and you can only save one, which do you choose? ..The occupants of the 200-person boat are complaining. Result? ..Having killed them, the boat with 300 splits into two boats, a 100 and a 200 person boat. You can only save one, which do you choose? ..You've now ended up killing 300 people to save 200 people. Is this alright? There is also the simple question of What wish would you have granted by an omnipotent wish-granting device? Last but not least, there's the ultimate question of how to fix the issues in this world (other than ending all of humanity, of course).
Pros and Cons: Edges on Plot, Characters, and Combat. Serious edge on combat. Weakness: first episode, definitely.
Wallpapers:
 |
| You should see this in detail. Source. |
 |
| Some characters, being cool. Source. |
 |
| I like this. I like this a lot. Source. |
 |
| The "what have I done?" pose. Source. |
AMV's:
There are great AMVs for F/Z! I love when this happens!
Keep in mind, Roxas already has some pretty cool AMVs for F/Z on his review.
El Que Quiera Entender Que Entienda - This one is really good! The song choice clashes occasionally with the audio, but it's well-cut, well-transitioned, and good clip choice. It even briefly goes over the classes.
The Beginning (One Ok Rock) - This one is pretty good, I just wish they hadn't left the F/Z logo on the screen for so long in the beginning.
Life Goes On - This one is really, really amazing. Some "MAD" content really adds to it.
Next Time:
Date A Live, in all likelihood.
Wolfe out.
No comments:
Post a Comment