Warning: This review will have spoilers.

Before I watch this show, I knew that the Fate franchise is really popular. Also, I knew there tons of animated options to choose from and a visual novel.

After watching this show I can see why this series is beloved to many anime fans. The problem that any person who has not read the visual novel will have is choosing the right Fate show to start with. I will be honest and say I was one of those anime viewers who had the same problem. The reason why this is so hard is because there are so many ways and suggestions into the best ways to get into the Fate franchise. Even with all the research I did, I though starting with Studio Dean Fate/StayNight would be the best decision for me because of accessibility for me.

The first thing I want to say is that the plot for this version of show is really helpful for the most part. The reason why I feel this way is because I gradually was learning the world just like Shirou. If the show was not taking it's time with helping me gets more familiar with the story, I would not been as invested in seeing how the Holy Grail War will turn out this time. Also, the historical aspect of the Servants are intriguing to me and I found the Servants to be the best part of the show. The first main problem I have with the plot is that some of the details mentioned in the series can be very vague and rushed at times. Another problem I have with the story is that the conflicts throughout can sometimes be anticlimactic due to how predictable the show can be. Despite those gripes I have, the story is really fun if can focus on not nitpicking all the flaws this story has in general.

Another part of the show I want to talk about is the characters. The problem I have with the series is that some of the characters have little depth to them as a whole. The worst offender to this complaint I have is Shirou. Shirou in the beginning was a naive teenager who didn't know that much about the Holy Grail Wars, but at the end, he is still naive. Shirou barley learn anything from his mistakes throughout the whole show. If Saber didn't help him, he would of been this first Master to die from making reckless choices. Also, anybody who is supposed to be friends with Shirou doesn't die at all. To me, this make no sense at all because this doesn't challenge Shirou as a characters in any way if all his friends live in the end besides Saber. Besides my major gripes with Shirou, all the other characters who have character development are alright, but I honestly wish that I cared more about the characters since a lot of the Servants and Masters die throughout the twenty four episodes this show provides.

Before I get close to my conclusion of the show, I want to mention that the animation and soundtrack are some the best part of the show besides the fights. The soundtrack from Kenji Kawai is because it captures the hardships and what ifs the characters face in the show. The only thing I didn't like from the soundtrack is hard rock anime opening credit that on episode fifteen throught twenty-three because I felt it didn't match the tone of the series in general. Also, the animation is really pretty to look at and I find it to be eyepleasing depending on the frame is shot or how the characters look. The only problems I had with the animation is that horrible CGI dragon and the fact that fight sequences can look lackluster at times.

Finally, I am going to talk about the best part of the show, which is the fights. The fights are really entertaining and addicting to watch. I literally couldn't get enough of them. The only compaint I had on the fights is that they could be anticlimatic if the opponent is really easy to beat like some of the Servants that got killed early on in the show.

In conclusion, I’m glad that I started watching the Fate franchise by this watching this adaption of Fate and I hope this review is helpful. If anyone is looking for more complex characters and storytelling, I don’t think this is the best entry point for you, but I have a feeling there is an entry point for any who is interested in this anime franchise.