Lord El-Melloi II Sei no Jikenbo: Rail Zeppelin Grace Note Special

(MY REVIEW CONTAINS MINOR SPOILERS)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Following its 2019 TV debut, Lord El-Melloi II Case Files is back to surprise us with a Christmas special episode / short movie. It's not about the festive day itself; it's more of a Christmas gift to Type-Moon fans. So if you're reading this and are not fond of the Type Moon universe / Nasuverse or do not really care about Waver and the Clock Tower, don't bother watching this amazing episode. On the other hand, fellow FZ and KnK fans... have fun!

The story unfolds in the Clock Tower and has a strong nostalgic vibe. Not in the same fashion as ... the TV series - this time, Waver literally wakes up finding himself in the body he had at the Holy Grail War. There are one or two more reasons (that I don't want to spoil) this episode has this vibe but besides that, the mini arc's structure is familiar to us; it has a villain who uses Magecraft to achieve a goal, backstories, character interactions at the Clock Tower (Waver, his students, Reines, Gray etc) and of course, Waver solving the case and explaining the "whydunit". There is also something that took me aback and made me enjoy the experience even more; but if I mention it, it won't be a surprise for you!

The aura and atmosphere are sometimes melancholic and sometimes hopeful; the main idea and Waver's philosophical aspects radiate a feeling of hope and support that striving for the best is an honourable way of living, even when life gets hard. Like in most Type Moon works, in this episode there are many magicians who have taken the wrong road. Some of those are Kayneth's ex-students and Waver's former classmates we knew nothing about, so there is lore and information about new characters from the Clock Tower.

I don't know what to say about the soundtrack - Yuki Kajiura is my favourite composer, and once again she is exceptional here. The ending song sung by ASCA once again is, this time, a different version of the original opening with added lyrics and trust me, it is the icing on the cake. But besides that, there was the perfect music inserted throughout the movie too. The music, combined with the direction, pacing, dialogues and aura I've mentioned before, are enough to make the experience a blast.

To conclude, I've witten this review just to express my satisfaction over a short project like that, and ensure you that watching it will be a great experience. That's the reason I'm writing this simple and informal review, because I'm sure some of you will understand me or want to read a review like this one as well. I want to express my congratulations to Studio TROYCA's work, and I hope this was not the last Lord El-Melloi II Case Files anime to air. We want more!

Thanks for reading.

This review contains spoilers; please watch the special before you continue further.

It's strange how of all the anime adaptations for Fate so far, Lord El-Melloi holds a soft spot in my heart. Maybe it's because I can relate to Waver, or because a bunch of factors play into the show creating a nice balance of drama and fun. I'm not good at explaining myself when it starts getting emotional, so suffice to say that despite its flaws I liked Lord El-Melloi going into this and was satisfied by this special.

If memory serves, the main issues with the main cour of Lord El-Melloi stem ... from issues with mystery execution and a step down in animation compared to the rest of the Fate franchise. I've always considered the latter point unfair since it inevitably involves comparisons to Ufotable, but I'm fairly confident in saying that the animation took a step up for this special. The emphasis on close-up facial shots was a bit off-putting, but everything else seemed smooth barring some brief CGI of familiars and a few scenes that felt a tad too fast (e.g. watch Gray open the book at the start of the special; she cracked that thing open in a flash!) I bet TROYCA was thankful that they only had to animate one particularly extravagant scene, because it certainly gave them room for polish everywhere else.

Now, regarding the aforementioned former: it's not just the execution of mysteries, but the idea that the series can be confusing to follow in general. Lord El-Melloi takes a deep dive into the mechanics of the Nasuverse, and I can think of at least a few times in the original cour where things just weren't explained well enough to keep the viewer in the loop. This is not the case here: the only thing the viewer really needs to understand is the general idea behind shell projection, and the parallels to virtual reality and 'bringing out one's imagination into the real world' did a good job of explaining the concept without spending too long on it. The mystery itself was also easy to follow, though I have a feeling critics would be frustrated at how telegraphed it was; what is a good mystery if it's too easy to solve? To that I'd respond as a writer that finding a balance for mysteries can be incredibly difficult, and that in this case the main point of the special wasn't the mystery's depth: it was the emotional arc for Camus and Waver. Torn down to its core, this special is a tragedy meant to demonstrate what Waver lost when he entered the Holy Grail War: a legitimate chance at romance. Not only is this just too fitting for Waver (forever a virgin, the poor lad can't catch a break), but it also reminds the viewer that even young Waver had his strong points: he wasn't just 'Waver the Failure' before Iskandar turned him into a man. He was hardworking, firm in his beliefs, and more than willing to stick up for others like him...including Camus. It's easy to see why Camus fell for him, and why her quest for revenge paled in comparison to her desires to revisit the happiest time of her life: the moments where she could see her Waver at his finest. She's understandable in that respect, though as with many things in anime you can clearly tell when liberties are taken to raise stakes. All of this could have been resolved in one meaningful conversation without Camus's whole scheme, but where's the fun in that? This lets us get more Touko, and I consider that an absolute win. There's nothing special about the conclusion of the emotional arc itself since it's exactly what you'd expect: bittersweet, yet optimistic that tomorrow will be one step closer to the ocean. If anything, it's just nice to see Waver continue to confront his past in a (mostly) mature manner, with the occassional goofball slip-up every now and then.

As a side note, I don't really know whether to consider Camus a villain. Her motive is relatable, but to take things so far as to get everyone involved in an eternal memory? It's made clear that for some that's a blessing, but for others like Waver it's preventing them from chasing their dreams in the present. Her relationship with Amleth is a bit cruel as well, though that's a given when you leave someone to die only to have them as your prime investor years later; be careful who you call ugly in middle school. Really, Camus seems more sympathetic to me than anything else: never noticed despite trying to confess (albeit in her own weird way), forced to suffer from some really nasty wounds for years, getting everything she could have wanted EXCEPT the one thing she actually wished for...it's like a part of her never grew up, and in a way you see that in Waver too. That isn't an excuse for her actions, but her actions aren't truly based in evil either; moreso regret.

Overall, this special appears to at least somewhat address the main issues with the original run of Lord El-Melloi while being entertaining in its own right (even if you haven't watched the main cour). It still doesn't pack the pure emotional punch that would burn it into one's mind, nor does it possess the 'perfect puzzle' that would satisfy any viewer with its approachability and entertaining complexity, but it nails the notes it aims to cover while hosting a majestic soundtrack to boot. All I can hope for now is for Lord El-Melloi to get greenlit for a second season, preferably with the improvements applied in this special.

Similar to the setting of the main series, this short film is Set a few years after the grail war, the story specifically focuses a bit more on Waver's college years and his reunion with an old classmate.

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS

Story: 7

I would say the mystery in this short film was actually better than any in the main series as the mystery was entirely solvable by the audience with the clues given. The mystery itself was based on why Waver suddenly became younger and aged back to his late teen years which was fairly amusing to watch.

Most of the focus in the story after ... this revolves around Waver meeting some of his old classmates and specifically one guy who he wasn't on good terms with and a girl who liked him but he never caught onto her feelings. The girl was involved in an incident that wrecked her ability to be a mage and due to that she never really got to be with Waver after the holy grail war, she decided that she wanted to relive those days with Waver and used an advanced spell that would stick all her old classmates and him back in time during their school days. Watching waver unravel the mystery was fairly fun and there was enough information given to the audience so they could solve it, a noticeable improvement over the main series, overall a solid 7 out of 10.

The visuals and music were also as good as expected, with a decent enough fight scene even if it ended very quickly, and there is another popular Fate series character who appears that fans of the Fate franchise will appreciate. This short film is worth a watch if you enjoyed the original series and wanted some extra story and more background on Waver and his teen years.