When you watch an anime, it's quite easy to identify whether or not the encompassing structure of the show is adapted straight from a light-novel or visual-novel. Now whether or not that's a good or bad thing greatly varies. In the case of Fate/Zero, it's a mix of both.
Firstly, the show is very dialogue heavy. Now that's to be expected from a show like this and it's an effort by the creators to squeeze as much writing as possible in order to properly match the show's vision and intention. However, the way it's executed is one of the biggest problems with Fate/Zero. The exposition scenes for the most part are very static to the point it becomes almost tedious at times. It's the case where the phrase "Show, don't tell" applies here perfectly. In many of the scenes that feature characters talking, the people and the objects remain stationary; with an emphasis of long/wide shots of the background landscape. While on the flip slide, you can at least admire the pretty animations and historical-inspired atmosphere of the show. However, the cinematography decision unfortunately leads what's called a "Talking Heads" syndrome. Scenes like this are obviously designed so we can get an insight to learning about the characters, overall plot-line and world-building. However, the fact that a typical watcher of the show will mostly see just still images of characters just mindlessly talking greatly breaks the immersion of both the people and overall universe. Worst case scenario, there are times in a show where I would just lose interest to what the Servants and Masters are saying because there's not even a hint of body language, gesture that would otherwise hint of their personality and traits. Again, going back to the phrase "Show, don't tell", we must consider that this is anime after all; a medium where animation, visuals, and kinetic movement should be primary objectives of telling an interesting story. It doesn't help that the 1st season of Fate/Zero is meant entirely as a "set-up" season for the 2nd half, since the universe of the show is quite large in scope. So there's a lot of character and world information we have to get to. Hence, I suspect that most people would enjoy the Season 2 a lot more than the first.
So how does the Season 2 fare? This is the season where everything "pays off" so it's a near obligation that all the "info dump" of Season 1 has to be properly utilized for the story later on. For the most part, the latter half of Fate/Zero is quite solid. Of course, most of the major action scenes take place there and as you would expect, the fight choreography is splendid and authentic. When I describe it as "authentic", I'm taking into context of the fact that there are historical references that are put into place of the show. Thus, with characters such as Saber and Lancer; their fight scenes in general doesn't feel "out of place" amidst of a modern, technology-heavy world setting. Therefore, their sequence of movements and manoeuvres are properly treated in respect and merit of their Middle Age-related periods. The art style of the show seems styled decent enough, and from what I've seen there are some influences of Castlevania, Romanticism and other Gothic-related stuff that is embedded.
Of course, we have to talk about the characters since they play a major influence in the show's quality. With a large cast, it can be difficult for a studio to properly develop each of them within only 26 episodes. I dare say, I feel like the show should've actually went on longer for this reason. And this goes hand-in-hand with the show's pacing problems. There are still several episodes even within Season 2 that's dedicated entirely upon character-building (through flashbacks) which should've been done in Season 1. As a result, the in-between episode transitions in the present timeline through these character-building episodes feel jarring at times. I still felt like the way that Season 1 ended was entire unnecessary in the first place and could you imagine the wait people had to endure back when the show just came out? They would've pondered why end just before this battle? It wasn't really a logical decision to set-up a second season like that when nothing happened up until that point. There were still loose ends that need to be tied up.
So why did I have to address about the show's pacing problems within the subject of characters firstly? It seems irrelevant and odd to not get into the nitty gritty but it actually is the reason why the characterization and chemistry of the characters could've been better. Not bad per se, but more along the lines of unfulfilled potential. I think it's better to talk about the people in the show by grouping both the servants and masters together as one. Because much of how I judge characterization in this particular show comes from their overall chemistry, not just by themselves individually. Hence, you see a lot of dialogue come when both the servants and masters are interacting one another outside the battle.
Let's start with the main characters of the show, Team Saber which consists of Kiritsugu, Saber and Irisviel. Kiritsugu is portrayed as probably the driving force behind Fate/Zero's attempt of bringing a message to viewers of how different people have their own ways of living; whether it's morally (or ethically) correct or not. I think the charm of Fate/Zero is bringing historical-inspired figures to the table just for the sake of adding another dimension and perspective to the subject manner. Most of the time through other animes, it's often confined to the actual real world so I have to applaud the creators of the show for finding a creative way in going a step beyond what's most currently available out there. Besides, it's not like we viewers are taking some history class just by hearing what Saber says for example, on how she lived as the ruler of Britain periods ago. Actually, the times in an episode where we experience on how Saber reacts to the modern world only adds to the interest behind her personality. There's nothing particularly bad about the way Saber is portrayed throughout the show; her flaws only add to the conflict and drama which is exposed near the end of the series. Kiritsugu is rather less so in terms of execution of his character and origins, but that's only because it was slightly crammed quickly right when the show was starting to end. Both of them hardly interact, and while the show is supposed to heavily imply that there's a personality conflict in between them, there's not enough scenes that actually illustrate this. So it's rather hard to judge on their chemistry. Team Lancer which consisted of Lancer himself, Kayneth and Sola-Ui have a more distinct chemistry. Kayneth itself is an egotistical asshole which I'm sure the show is being deliberate with in terms of his characterization. So naturally, I was rooting against his presence the entire time and was eagerly waiting for his demise. Lancer's views on chivalry, nobility and honour; similarly expressed by Saber emphasis again on the Fate/Zero theme. But the disagreements of these values by Keyneth while annoying to bear; for all it's intended purposes work well. Sola-Ui is an interesting case because I had the expectation that she would succeed Kayneth as the master and become a more permanent "villain" if you will for the rest of the show. She was obviously a schemer and her seemingly innocent "femme-fatale" looks was a hint. What I didn't expect was how she went out. It made her look kind of pathetic and the other 2 went out quickly in a similar fate. I did feel sympathy for her death but only because I was wanting more of this group. I have no qualms with the creators having the guts to kill off characters early in a gruesome manner to illicit a sense of shock and tension within the universe. What I don't appreciate if it ends up sacrificing better development in the process. There has to be a sense of established build-up for a death scene to be genuine . Take a cue of Game of Thrones and how they did it; as formulaic as it is. Archer's group was an oddity. Gilgamesh despite how he acts all high and mighty in most of his scenes, I find him extremely intriguing when he's outside fighting. I find the scenes with Kirei to be really interesting to listen to because we clearly get a sense to how he is. We know he enjoys seeking the pleasures in life such as treasure and such (with some philosophy behind it). He's one of the few characters in the show where his charisma didn't make his long exposition scenes entirely boring. Likewise, it's a double positive that his chemistry with Kirei is both a plot and character enhancer for the latter. I find Kirei to be pretty boring as a character itself, but the fact his motives throughout the show aided by Gilgamesh that serves an antithesis of the show's main message is still interesting nevertheless.
There's nothing much I have to say about Team Caster, Berserker and Assassin since their depiction for the sake of the plot was valid I guess. I don't need to mention Assassin again since I already talked about Kirei. Only noteworthy mention is that I didn't care much about Uryuu at all. His characterization as a serial killer was totally unconvincing for me to the point of absurdity. I know he was intended to have a certain "charm", beauty or whatever behind it but it wasn't well-rounded enough to the point of believably. Caster fit this role much, much better and their chemistry was dictated by him in the end. The pair of Rider and Waver was a big surprise for me in terms of progression. When it first started out, the appearance of Rider just screamed out "brawn over brains" for me and I thought he was a filler for most fight scenes. It didn't help that Waver was the wimpy, unreliable "Shinji-type" and that impression stayed with me til the end. However, Rider grew on me because his moments with Waver about his previous life as king and life lessons in standing up to one's self was genuinely touching. In the end, Rider acted like a "father figure" for Waver and the father and son type of relationship was a major highlight of the show. It's only logical that Waver became a slightly more likable character in the end because of Rider.
So overall, what is there to really say about Fate/Zero as a series? It's seemed like throughout of my review, it was dominated by major, fundamental flaws of the show which might come off as a 5 or 6 type rating that I'm giving. Funnily enough, that's only if you really look deep and dissect it. However, on the surface and for what it is, it's an anime that most audiences including me would enjoy. It has a great scope of story and characters, the animation is good and the fight scenes are exactly what you hope for. Despite my long string of criticisms, it's a testament to the show and the creators of how a visual novel adaptation ended up like this. And that's how the show should be remembered for years to come in terms of overcoming it's fundamental limitations.
