The Anime Thread

[jimmy olsen]

My club watched Fate Stay Night and mocked it mercilessly. We especially found Saber's true identity absolutely ludicrous, all of us assuming that she was [spoiler]Joan of Arc rather than...it's too stupid to put in print[/spoiler] I suppose that's something that an Eastern audience wouldn't have any preconceptions about though.

Zero might have been adapted from a novel, but wasn't Fate Stay Night originally adapted from an ero-game?

[Siege]

What's the name?
Fate Zero or Zero Fate, or Fate/Zero?

[Monoriu]

My club watched Fate Stay Night and mocked it mercilessly. We especially found Saber's true identity absolutely ludicrous, all of us assuming that she was. I suppose that's something that an Eastern audience wouldn't have any preconceptions about though.

Zero might have been adapted from a novel, but wasn't Fate Stay Night originally adapted from an ero-game?

Yes, Fate Stay Night was originally an ero-game.  It was a stupid idea.  Like a lot of Japanese visual novels, the non-porno content was already extremely well-thought out and rich, and could stand on its own.  They just had to add some porn into it to get more buyers.  The anime took out all the porn stuff and is a clean version with very little fanservice. 

Saber's identity is revealed in the first episode of zero.  They assumed that viewers had already watched Stay Night.  That's when I found out.  I personally found it to be a bit of cheating on the part of the writers, but I got over it quickly. 

You guys probably found out when Saber screamed the name of...err...her ultimate technique, right?  I can't help but laugh when I imagined your clubmates' faces 

[Monoriu]

What's the name?
Fate Zero or Zero Fate, or Fate/Zero?

I've seen people write it as Fate/Zero or Fate Zero.  The former is used more often, I think.  No one writes it as Zero Fate.

[Admiral Yi]

What's with the fllamethrower coming out of the dude/chick's crotch Mono? 

[MadImmortalMan]

The naming can be strange. What does Fate Stay Night mean? Sometimes anime shows sound like they are named by drawing random words from a hat.

[Monoriu]

What's with the fllamethrower coming out of the dude/chick's crotch Mono? 

Chick    When Saber uses her ultimate technique, light comes out from her sword and it functions like a wave motion cannon, striking her target from a great distance.  Like I said, Saber is super popular and is the main draw of the series.  The light makes sure that people will notice her.  That's why she is placed so prominently in the poster, at the expense of everybody else. 

[Monoriu]

The naming can be strange. What does Fate Stay Night mean? Sometimes anime shows sound like they are named by drawing random words from a hat.

Beats me.  Fate is the name of the series, so it is usually written as Fate/Stay Night.  I've read a ton of conflicting theories on what Stay Night means.  The majority of them agree that the two words need to be understood separately, i.e. don't think what "stay night" means.  Think what "stay" represents and what "night" represents.  Night is easier to understand because this is a bit like a Harry Potter universe where magic is hidden from the population.  So the majority of the fights take place at night to avoid detection.  "Stay" is the hardest one.  If I remember correctly, it represents Saber's conflicting desires to "stay" in this world (she is an historical figure after all) or to go back to her original world.  I am sure there are a million other different interpretations. 

My suggestion is not to think too much about it.  Zero is easy to understand.  Where everything began. 

[Lettow77]

This discussion about fate/stay night overlooks that its primary form is a visual novel PC game.

Fate/Stay Night, itself a fine story with a huge fanbase, was given such a poor rendering in anime that most fans of the fate series won't recognize its existence.

(Tsukihime, in the same multiverse by the same people, has the exact same situation, and Tsukihime is also drawn upon heavily for Carnivale Phantasm, a sort of parody show Monoriu mentioned.)

Fate/Zero, a prequel to Fate/Stay Night, was done wonderful justice as an anime and thus is the best anime associated with the franchise. Ilya's magical girl spinoff is an unrelated, non-canon spinoff, which is very adorable but expects an understanding of the fate franchise and the tropes of magical girl shows from its audience.

[Monoriu]

This discussion about fate/stay night overlooks that its primary form is a visual novel PC game.

Fate/Stay Night, itself a fine story with a huge fanbase, was given such a poor rendering in anime that most fans of the fate series won't recognize its existence.

(Tsukihime, in the same multiverse by the same people, has the exact same situation, and Tsukihime is also drawn upon heavily for Carnivale Phantasm, a sort of parody show Monoriu mentioned.)

Fate/Zero, a prequel to Fate/Stay Night, was done wonderful justice as an anime and thus is the best anime associated with the franchise. Ilya's magical girl spinoff is an unrelated, non-canon spinoff, which is very adorable but expects an understanding of the fate franchise and the tropes of magical girl shows from its audience.

Do you know if the recently announced new Fate anime will be a remake of Stay Night, adaptation of the Heavens Feel route, or something else?  I myself am ok with the Stay Night anime, but I am quite disappointed with the Unlimited Blade Works movie.  The story feels too rushed and it tried to do too much.  Very confusing.  I haven't played the visual novel, so those who have may feel differently. 

I am pleasantly surprised by Fate/Kaleid Liner.  I went in with low expectations, and only watched it because it is set in the Fate universe.  It certainly isn't a classic or anywhere near the level of Fate Zero, but I was entertained when I watched it. 

For those who don't know, Kaleid Liner is set in an alternate universe focusing on Ilya, a side character in Stay Night and Zero.  She becomes a magical girl in this series, and must partner with another magical girl to complete her mission.   Some Stay Night characters return for the show, and there are also new characters introduced.  Not a bad show for fans of the Fate universe, but anyone who is not already familiar with the whole setting will be very confused. 



I am not qualified to give an opinion on Carnival Phantasm, because I haven't completed it.  It requires an understanding of both Fate and another show called Tsukihime, which I know nothing about. 



On the understanding that you don't trust what I am about to write, Carnival Phantasm is as light hearted as possible.  There is no plot.  Basically, it is a collection of self-parodies and "official fan-fiction" about Fate and Tsukihime.  The sole aim is to see the return of familiar characters, and to have a good laugh.  One episode I saw is about all the major Fate characters sitting together playing mini-games, telling jokes, messing around and answering questions from a host.  For die-hard fans only.

[Josquius]

I looked into that Attack on Titan show as I've seen it mentioned all over the place.
I knew nothing about it before I started watching. It was totally not what I expected. In my head I had a mental image of semi-hard science fiction, Starship Troopers style mechs. You know. With Titan.
But no.
It seems pretty good a few episodes in. I believe I'll be able to sit through this one.

[Monoriu]

I looked into that Attack on Titan show as I've seen it mentioned all over the place.
I knew nothing about it before I started watching. It was totally not what I expected. In my head I had a mental image of semi-hard science fiction, Starship Troopers style mechs. You know. With Titan.
But no.
It seems pretty good a few episodes in. I believe I'll be able to sit through this one.

My top 5 shows of the 2010s are Madoka Magica, Attack on Titan, Fate Zero, Angel Beats and Sword Art Online.  In that order. 

[Josquius]

I tried Madoka. Dozed off whilst on my first time watching the first two episodes.....

[Monoriu]

I tried Madoka. Dozed off whilst on my first time watching the first two episodes.....

That's a common problem (and a valid complaint against the series).  You stopped at *the* weakest episode, where the real story had yet to begin.  Episode 1 is character introduction.  Episode 2 is explain the world.  I suggest that you go back and continue watching

[Agelastus]

The naming can be strange. What does Fate Stay Night mean? Sometimes anime shows sound like they are named by drawing random words from a hat.

Beats me.  Fate is the name of the series, so it is usually written as Fate/Stay Night.  I've read a ton of conflicting theories on what Stay Night means.  The majority of them agree that the two words need to be understood separately, i.e. don't think what "stay night" means.  Think what "stay" represents and what "night" represents.  Night is easier to understand because this is a bit like a Harry Potter universe where magic is hidden from the population.  So the majority of the fights take place at night to avoid detection.  "Stay" is the hardest one.  If I remember correctly, it represents Saber's conflicting desires to "stay" in this world (she is an historical figure after all) or to go back to her original world.  I am sure there are a million other different interpretations. 

My suggestion is not to think too much about it.  Zero is easy to understand.  Where everything began.

"Stay" in English can also mean stop (an archaicism) and "Night" has metaphorical links with endings and death; given that the Grail is "faulty" and how it responded to Kiritsugu's wish "Stay Night" could simply be a poetic way of saying "stop the end" (of the world.)

Just a theory, of course.