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Fate/Stay Night 5: Medea
Originally a visual novel style game released by Type-Moon back in 2004 Fate/Stay Night made quite the impression and garnered a following in Japan. Because of this, it should be no surprise that a manga and anime were released in the subsequent years. With 24 episodes under its belt the show was handled by Studio Deen (Rurouni Kenshin, Samurai Deeper Kyo) and has seen release here in America thanks to Geneon.
Fate/Stay Night tells the story of a war going on right below the edge of society. A show filled with magical beings, sorcerers, and intense battles is nothing new to anime but this one handles things a little differently.
For starters the lead character, Shirou Emiya, was not born into this magical life. His father who happened to be a Magi died when Shirou was younger and thus prevented the boy from learning all of the tools he needed to know in order to survive. Shirou knows some magic but it's limited at best. His greatest asset is a Servant (magical protector) known as Saber.
Using their magical abilities and Servants, the Magi fight each other in something called a Holy Grail War. That means poor Shirou is at a disadvantage compared to the rest of the field of new Magi who have been properly trained. Still, his tenacity and vigor for justice and protecting the weak keeps him going. He also possesses the ability to heal his wounds quickly which is a good thing considering he tends to put himself in the path of danger almost constantly.
In the last volume Saber began by recovering from her battle with Rider. She had used her hidden technique and depleted a ton of mana, which was a commodity that Shirou couldn't replenish thanks to his inabilities as a Magus. As such Shirou was kidnapped by Illya thanks to his lack of an active Servant and it was up to Tohsaka, Archer, and Saber to come to his rescue. Standing in their way was Hercules, Illya's Berserker Servant who had to be killed several times over in a single instant in order to be defeated. This task was more than Archer could bear and he bit the dust.
As a last ditch effort Tohsaka used some Magus tricks to bind Saber and Shirou's magical circuits. This resulted in their relationship becoming stronger and allowed Shirou to see into Saber's past. That's where things kind of pick up when the fifth volume starts.
If you recall from the previous volume Saber was actually King Arthur in her previous life and it was this realization that allowed Shirou and her to create Excalibur. They defeated Illya and the Magus actually came to be another resident along with Tohsaka and company. Taiga accepts things fairly well though fortunately Fate/Stay Night doesn't take the harem turn. Instead we are quickly thrust back into the quest for the Holy Grail and a villain from a couple volumes prior resurges.
Do you remember the witch and her Servant living at the Shrine? Well, Assassin is back and thusly Caster returns, however we learn some things regarding what's going on with those two. Caster is actually the Servant of another Master and Assassin is her Servant as well. This is a rarity to be sure but it speaks to Caster's powers as a Servant. As the group rushes to confront them they discover that Sakura has been kidnapped and is being used as a sacrificial lamb to summon forth the Holy Grail.
Even though there is only one more volume left for the show a new character is introduced and he seems to be a relatively big player. Saber has a history with this character and it certainly sheds some interesting light on the quest for the Holy Grail and the relationships that Servants and Masters have. Speaking of which, the final episode here is a rather cute one that attempts to bring Shirou and Saber closer together.
As Fate/Stay Night begins to wrap up some loose ends the plot thickens with the introduction of a new adversary. The stakes are high and it seems that Saber and Shirou are the only ones who can step in and save the world, as it were. If you're in the market for a well-thought out and imaginative series this is one to keep in mind. Everything from the characters to the world around them has been carefully crafted with a great deal of purpose. Looking at the rest of Geneon's releases I have to say that this is arguably one of my favorites and it comes highly recommended.
Fate/Stay Night receives a particularly vibrant and impressive anamorphic display on DVD. The show finished its run on Japanese television about a year ago so this transfer is about as hot off the presses as you can get. This is a dark series with a lot of deep shadows and it's nice to see that there is next to no blocking or artifacting that occurs. Grain is kept minimal as well though a few scenes feature heavier doses of it than others. Overall Fate/Stay Night is a very good looking program and Geneon gave the series an appropriate transfer that brings out its beauty.
While the visual quality in the series impressed me I have to say that the sound quality didn't push the envelope quite as much. With 2.0 stereo tracks for English and Japanese a 5.1 surround mix is sorely lacking from this release. This is an action oriented show with some impressive sound effects and great musical direction. It seems only fitting that a series of this caliber would want to craft a greater sense of immersion. As it stands the presence on the soundstage is adequate as far as stereo presentations are concerned but the lack of rear channel support is disappointing.
This fifth volume includes some television commercials and a promo video for the show. compared to previous installments this was somewhat disappointing but I suppose each series only has so much material created for it.
Fate/Stay Night may simply be another anime inspired by a video game but it feels like much more than that. The characters are interesting and the premise is compelling enough to create a rich atmosphere. The writing is very good as well and with each episode I felt myself being drawn in further.
With this installment Fate/Stay Night begins its sprint towards the end. The action picks up and the introduction of a new villain definitely makes things interesting. Everything that happens in these four episodes happens with purpose and it remains freshly entertaining throughout. If you're looking for an exciting and engaging anime that doesn't skip a beat then this is the one for you. Highly Recommended
Check out more of my reviews here. Head on over to my anime blog as well for random musings and reviews of anime, manga, and stuff from Japan!
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