Synopsis
The Holy Grail War Begins! Ten years ago there was a secret war fought by master mages and their servants to obtain the Holy Grail, and the result was devastating to everyone. Today, the Holy Grail War is beginning again with new masters.

One such master, Shirou, must now come to grips with the reality of the secret world of war mages and their summoned servants when he unknowingly summons his own servant, Saber, said to the most powerful servant of them all. Perhaps Shirou will be the one to prevent the destruction that had marked the first war…

Review
Based in present time Japan, in a world where an ever revolving war occurs right after the next comes seven masters and seven servants. The battle ends as only one master and his/her servant survives. The reward? The Holy Grail, which will grant any wish to the bearer. You did not think it was just any type of war right? Because this is a Holy war that we are going to go through.

The show begins with a dream of the past of our main character, Emiya Shirou. In a city engulfed in flames, as he lay there waiting for death, a man appears out of the fog and saves him. This man who will become his adopted father passed on his ideals to Shirou, which will contribute to his character and personality later on.

Awaken from his dream his kouhai, Sakura Matou prepares his meals and has an affection for him that is more than just a senpai - kouhai relationship. The world surrounding them was changing. Incidents of ‘gas leaks’ were becoming frequent. Worst of all, there were no leads as to what the cause was. Then one day as Shirou stayed in school late to help out his childhood friend, he witnesses a battle between two servants. Whether you believe it was bad luck or good luck, witnessing a servant battle means death. And Lancer, one of the servants, abiding by the rule, kills him. Of course, there would be no show if the main character dies in the first episode, this event leads and connects us to the later happenings of the show. And before you know it, the loveliest servant of all, Saber, appears on the screen.

Fate is an interesting show. It limits itself in terms of the overall size of the show. What does that mean? When you take account of all the things that occur in the show, it will always bring you back to the main theme, the Holy Grail and the fight to death between the seven masters and servants. While there are touches of separation, the plot does not sway, which is a good thing. Fate is also a show with minimal comedy. There are light moments and when those moments lasted, they were tremendously enjoyable.

The character development of Fate Stay Night mainly revolves around Shirou and Saber. While Shirou’s character mainly derives from his father’s teachings, he does have traits that are a direct result of surviving the end of the last holy war as he was close to death. His most prominent traits are his willingness to help others and his unwillingness to burden others with his problems. It becomes a perfect clash of personalities as Saber is a servant who views herself as a knight before a woman, and Shirou’s character restricts her from fighting. The thing that gets my attention is the way that the plot progresses as the relationship between the two develop. There is a constant movement in their relationship, hence, setting the pace of the show with continuous progression.

As stated above, the story follows Shirou and Saber. While that may sound simple and boring; it is actually quite interesting as Fate, is mainly an action/fantasy title, but it does a nice job in combining other genres into the show to make it dynamic. I had a lot of fun just watching the lighter parts of the show, which made me questioned, ‘What if? What if Fate Stay Night was a love comedy instead of what it is?’ Hmm, certainly I would be interested, but anyways the plot was great. I loved watching the battles and how everything built up to the final encounter with a nifty surprise. Fate is definitely unique as not everything was predictable with experience. While I knew some things were going to happen, I did not know it was going to happen this way or that way. I am sure you guys know what I am talking about.

Moving on, let us get to the animation department of Fate. One word: Crazy. The animation was absolutely stunning. The various effects were amazing and character design was just as nice. One of the battles that I fell in love with was Archer’s battle with Berserker. I felt chills throughout the fight; it was certainly one of the best sequences Fate Stay Night had to offer. Man, that battle just leaves an impression on you like no other. And by realizing that it was only the midpoint of the entire show and things were already like this… you begin to have doubts as to whether the brains behind the show could top it. Of course, they have to, or else! Hehe. Seriously, I will leave it as that, if you want to know you should check out how this title plays out.

When it comes to acoustics, Fate fails to lure me in. The theme songs were boring. It lacked luster for my flavor. It could have been better, but its not life and death so it is not that serious of an offence. The voice acting and sound effects on another note were great; it really brought out the life of the piece.

The Breakdown
Fate Stay Night is a great title. The plot evolves from the characters and its ability to attract viewers with its superb animation and voice acting makes it an amazing piece to have in your collection.