The life path Kiritsugu is on is explored further with its varied and intense emotions.
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 an episode that was very intriguing if difficult to get into for a bit that went to the past, Fate/Zero comes closer to the present to deal with those that are left in the Holy Grail War. Seeing more of how Kiritsugu was changed and modified to be a greater weapon for the war does add more nuance to the character, but he continues to be one of the hardest to really connect with even after seeing so much of what made him what he is. By focusing on his time with Natalia as he grew up more and became a bigger part of what she was involved in, we see the changes and growth in him in a pretty intriguing way.
What’s key to Kiritsugu in the middle of all of this is that he knows he has to be a full on part of what she is, which she doesn’t quite allow for awhile. She has her missions and he’s definitely improving by leaps and bounds when it comes to the weapons that are at his disposal, she’s still not ready to bring him into the field with her for a variety of reasons. But when we do see him in the field, the cold side of him is fully evident. It’s not ruthless, but there’s a calm to him thta’s highly appealing to see. He’s not lost his humanity in the midst of it all either, which is even more refreshing. He’s a good killer, a true professional in the making, but he’s one that wants to kill others in order to save greater and prevent bigger horrors and tragedies.
When the episode moves into a bigger territory after the pair have worked together for quite some time, the magic side of it starts to come clearer into events, something that defintely gets to Kiritsugu because of his own past. There’s a fascinating series of events involving Natalia taking down someone on a plane in a quiet and easy fashion only to realize that he was keeping the magic enhanced bees inside his body and that’s made the whole plane turn into ghouls. She’s able to survive it, but there’s a sense of dread about it in terms of how to handle it once she manages to land the plane. You can see it becoming an epidemic but it’s something that she wants to contain and needs Kiritsugu to do it. Watching it all unfold is something that is filled with striking visuals, tension and that kind of dark beauty that Fate/Zero knows how to do very, very well.
In Summary:
Fate/Zero’s expansive look at Kiritsugu’s past is kind of surprising in a way as it’s felt like it’s taken the show on a fairly big detour. Not that understanding the characters involved is a detour, but this one comes off as one that could be compressed some without losing too much. He’s an intriguing character, one that I’ve had the hardest time connecting with over all the previous episodes, and this definitely makes me feel like he’s the one now that you can know the most. It’s a strong build up when you look at the two episodes as a whole and how so much of it defines who Kiritsugu is. What it does, or should do, is to make him a far more key player in the coming final episodes where he’ll have something instrumental with what’s involved that will now resonate more. As much as I enjoyed where this season started off with the big battle, I would have appreciated more of these kinds of stories instead as events swirl towards their conclusion.
Grade: A-
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.
