The focus turns on Rin, to very good if creepy effect.
What They Say:
Ten years prior to the events of FATE/STAY NIGHT, the War of the Holy Grail is a contest in which seven magi summon seven Heroic Spirits to compete to obtain the power of the “Holy Grail,” which grants a miracle. After three inconclusive wars for the elusive Holy Grail, the Fourth War commences.
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
After some interesting progress over the last few episodes, Fate/Zero takes a shift into a different direction this week by focusing on the next generation that many of us known through the Fate/Stay Night series. And specifically, it focuses on Rin Tohsaka, whose father is currently engaged in the Fourth Holy Grail War to a very good effect. While we’ve had glimpses and bits involving the next generation, this one gives us a whole episode focusing on her and her abilities as she wants to participate in the Grail War as well in order to help her father achieve his goals, being the good daughter that she is.
Of course, he wants her out of the city entirely which is only natural, even as she demonstrates some growing and impressive powers along the way. Her uses of the jewels and her overall intensity definitely captures your attention. But she’s also focused, at a young age, in figuring out more of the mysteries of things. A good part of the episode has her out in the middle of the night in the city doing her version of detective work and it’s done in a very, very engaging way. The city is completely different in the dark of the night and she realizes that, but it also truly feels that way unlike other shows that attempt to do it. It’s not an outward evil that’s constantly around but rather a subtle one that blends into the existing fabric. So when she ends up dealing with a certain someone who is collecting children and has a few of her friends, it takes that blended darkness and makes it incredibly intense.
While there are larger elements to the fight that ensues and how both sides handle it because of the power they have, it also has a very base and real aspect to it as well. Rin’s struggle has its moments to be sure where she physically pushes back and I liked that they did go that route, working first as a child would before her power is actually unleashed and things go to a whole other level. A lot of it is driven by fear, but there’s also the desire to help her friends and Kotone in particular who has been captured. It’s a great sequence because of her take charge attitude and the way she handles herself. She’s scared but determined, coming across as the kind of child you’d expect in this situation who has a bigger view of the world because of her heritage but is still very much the age she is.
In Summary:
With the focus on Rin here, there’s definitely plenty to like for fans of the character and at a chance at seeing a bit more of her childhood and how some of them are coping with the Grail War. She has a very good episode here in how she deals with her training and abilities but also how she handles herself in a difficult situation, which speaks well of how she handles things confidently when she’s older. There’s a great beauty in the darkness that’s used here to show the world through a child’s eyes in how scary it all can be, which is reflected in both her emotions and actions as she gets caught further into events that are going on. It’s not a big episode in terms of the overall storyline, but the kind of almost side story that you really have to appreciate and enjoy because of what it does do and adds to the show, and the stories to come.
Grade: B+
Readers Rating: [ratings]
Streamed By: Nico Nico
Review Equipment:
Sony KDS-R70XBR2 70″ LCoS 1080P HDTV, Dell 10.1 Netbook via HDMI set to 1080p, Onkyo TX-SR605 Receiver and Panasonic SB-TP20S Multi-Channel Speaker System With 100-Watt Subwoofer.
