'Fate/Grand Order – First Order' Anime Review
A new anime with a grand fate?
‘Fate/Grand Order – First Order’ takes the popular Japanese mobile game and breathes life into the franchise with this made-for-television film. When Ritsuka Fujimaru (voiced by Nobunaga Shimazaki, who also voiced Yuta Tsuguhito in ‘Kiznaiver’) is summoned to the headquarters of the Chaldea Security Organization, he is thrown head first into the world of Magecraft and the mysteries of becoming a ‘Master’ and having a ‘Servant’.
The Chaldea Security Organization is tasked with maintaining human civilisation over the next century by pinpointing anomalies in time that threaten the existence of humanity. At the start of the episode we are introduced to Ritsuka Fujimaru who encounters a staff member called Mash Kyrielight (voiced by Rie Takahashi, popular for voicing Emilia in ‘Re: ZERO’). The next ten to fifteen minutes of the hour-long episode are spent explaining the world of Chaldea and what they do.
For fans of the Fate universe, a lot of it will make sense. For those who aren’t, you must try your best to focus on the heavy exposition and lore. For example, the concept of ‘Master and Servant’ is never satisfactorily explained, nor is how Mash came to be a ‘Demi-Servant’.
The villain reveal comes as a surprise due to a lack of foreshadowing, other than perhaps the character’s ridiculous outfit. The final scene showing where the hero must now go potentially appears more interesting than the entire fifty minutes that preceded it.
Plot points aside, the animation and artwork are amazing. If you are a fan of the franchise, then you are going to love revisiting these characters - especially in roles you might not expect to see. For the most part, it’s likely you’ll need to be already heavily ‘into’ the franchise to reap any real enjoyment out of this piece.
Fans of the ‘Fate’ series will love this new addition - even if it does feel rather rushed at times. However, if you are a newcomer to the franchise, then perhaps beginning with a title such as ‘Fate/Stay Night’ would be a wiser course of action.
'Fate/Grand Order – First Order' can now be found on Crunchyroll and Animelab.
