FSN: Unlimited Blade Works anime thread - ZeroRider was so much better

[DoctorFaust]

Spoiler: Saber

Show

I'll admit, my grasp on the ending of the Arthurian legend is a bit shaky and of the time travel **** that goes on in Fate, but it was my understanding that Saber is always being returned to, and taken from, the verge of death with nothing happening in between. Essentially, that her position in time has been stopped, not that time has been stopped for her, if that makes any sense. However, her article on the wiki isn't very clear about that, so it's possible that I'm just misunderstanding. Or that there is no right answer, and in this case, headcanon is actually all that matters.

Oh, and so far, yeah, ZeroRider has been much better than FateRider. All she's really done is provide us with some *ahem*plot, and ZeroRider actually influenced the plot, and was responsible for what little characterization Waver got.

[Nerd-o-rama]

Spoiler: Saber

Show

I'll admit, my grasp on the ending of the Arthurian legend is a bit shaky and of the time travel **** that goes on in Fate, but it was my understanding that Saber is always being returned to, and taken from, the verge of death with nothing happening in between. Essentially, that her position in time has been stopped, not that time has been stopped for her, if that makes any sense. However, her article on the wiki isn't very clear about that, so it's possible that I'm just misunderstanding. Or that there is no right answer, and in this case, headcanon is actually all that matters.

Oh, and so far, yeah, ZeroRider has been much better than FateRider. All she's really done is provide us with some *ahem*plot, and ZeroRider actually influenced the plot, and was responsible for what little characterization Waver got.

Nasu time travel is even weirder than normal time travel, not helped by the fact that everything that gets professionally translated to English tends to gloss over the details. I just stop thinking about it eventually.

And yeah, Unlimited Blade Works is unfortunately the worst route for poor Rider. She doesn't really get to do anything except set someone else up as a threat by dying almost immediately. She's a much more impressive boss in Fate, and actually becomes a significant major character in Heaven's Feel, but unfortunately you can only really adapt one route at a time, and this is the one where she gets the shaft.

[Mathemagics]

We're approaching to a properly Nasuey thread at last. We should keep up the good work.
...
Berserker: Unknown. He had only one appearance but it was a whole episode; not having an actual character can't be held against Berserkers so they get graded solely by their powers and prowess and he's got those in spades, 4/5.

IMO, you can also grade Berserkers on their backstory, especially how it ties into why they're able to be summoned as a raging murderfest (Zero Berserker is a good example of this).

Therefore Caster>Archer>Assassin>Saber>Berserker>Lancer>>Rid er. This is my opinion and it's indisputable truth.

I don't recall you being appointed to the Council of Witches (which whatever you may have heard does not in fact exist!). Who authorized you to start flinging Red Truths around?

Spoiler: F/Apoc ending

Show

it seems Sieg turned into a dragon and flew off with the Grail to the phantasmal creatures' land. And he'd also actually been Frankenstein since her apparent death, or something (I don't even?). I think everyone except the sibling masters, the fat dude and Astolfo are dead. The fat dude's survival is the biggest shock in this incomprehensible mess of half rumors, not even the dragon.

Spoiler

Show

The rumors I had heard said that the brother in the sibling magi pair (Caules) had already been killed off a volume or two ago, so I dunno about all that. But then again the more complete translations I've been reading haven't gotten past the end of volume 2 yet so I can't confirm any of that.

Sieg was resurrected/resuscitated when Frankenstein used her suicide Noble Phantasm though; he was far enough away from the blast that he wasn't injured by it, but was close enough that the electric shockwave restarted his heart. So maybe that's what that comment is supposed to be about?

Gordes actually managing to somehow live through the whole mess would be the most hilarious troll ever though.

But I'd be happy with just about any ending so long as Astolfo lived. Astolfo is and shall always be best character in Apocrypha!

[Eldariel]

IMO, you can also grade Berserkers on their backstory, especially how it ties into why they're able to be summoned as a raging murderfest (Zero Berserker is a good example of this).

FSN/Berserker too; he has something of a history of being driven mad by a certain deity and slaughtering his family/friends/whatever.

[Pronounceable]

Who authorized you to start flinging Red Truths around?

Caster >_> It was a fair trade.
......

Spoiler: F/Apoc

Show

Ramblings sound like Frankie's soul remained inside Sieg or something, but who knows. It's not like that's new for Apoc, Black Assassin haunted Red Archer's arm after she died too. And it was the other kid that died, Black Caster used him for his big golem. Also Mordy and her master seemingly got a badass death so if I can just learn what happened to Red Caster, then everyone of consequence will be accounted for.

[MLai]

We need someone who claims UBW sucks to get some true Nasuey posting going in this thread. Or maybe a good old fashioned powerchat about how every 5th servant can totally beat their 4th counterpart.

This series sucks; me and a friend agree (we also both like Deen's FSN series, and the F/Z series). Echo Chamber, activate!

Main problems are:
(1) Shirou, the POV protag, is at his all-around worst in this series, he's boring and stupid as F.

(2) Series drags due to UFOtable blind devotion to the text of Nasu's VN. We spend (literally) every other episode listening to the characters talking slowly about stuff we don't care about. For (just one of many) example, Rin obsesses over psychoanalyzing Shirou. Problem is we don't care about Shirou (see #1). In the other 2 series I've mentioned, plot and characters are given equal screentime, which actually helps make the character moments feel more weighted and precious as a result.

(3) Very poorly paced and poorly reinforced character bonding/chemistry. Gee, we'd feel bad about Shirou losing Saber to Caster, if y'know they actually had bonded over the course of the 12 episodes. Like someone said, Saber feels like a character rather than a person. As for Rin-Shirou... we definitely see interest from Rin, but unfortunately the interest isn't reciprocated (eps 12 Shirou finally starting to come around...). See #1 again.

High animation budget aside, this is currently the worst FSN series to date. You pretty much have to be a Nasu-fan to enjoy it, i.e. turn your objectivity filter off. It's the only reason me and my friend watched all 12 eps.

Spoiler: Fate/Zero

Show

I think my problem with her character arc is that, if my understanding of how her particular summoning works is right, about five minutes before she was summoned into the Fifth Holy Grail War, she Excaliblasted the Grail....

Not a huge fan of how Saber seems to be much more childish than she was in Zero, but that's probably a result of her having a Master that actually gives two ****s about her.

No, it's just a result of UBW series being the worst of all currently available serieseses. Deen's FSN Saber doesn't act this way, and despite not being connected to F/Z (made before F/Z by a different studio) is actually a more reasonable extrapolation of the character that went through the traumas of F/Z. If you have not yet seen FSN, but would like to see a better rendition of Saber post-F/Z (less animation budget notwithstanding), I strongly recommend the series.

And that includes Nerd-o-rama's explanation of how she gradually opened up due to Shiro's TLC. Deen's FSN did it better by a wide margin: There it was a precious moment of bittersweetness for a girl who is also a self-appointed Sacred King, here it's just animators who are also fans getting a chance to make her moe.
I paid special attention to this facet of the series because she is my absolute favorite character out of anything, ever since Deen's FSN aired.

Reality Marble is a specific alternate reality with its own laws reflecting the owner's inner world that replaces the local universe. Boundary field is a regular mage spell that makes magical effects inside. And yes they're %100 same thing functionally..

I don't think they're functionally the same.

In non-Nasu terms, a BF is like fighting in an arena against a mage, when the mage has drawn a huge magic circle in the arena before you came. He's empowered by his own prepared ritual magic, but he's still casting normal magic at you.

A RM is basically a cell of alternate reality enclosed by domain walls (a topological defect), such as those found in the early universe when spacetime was not yet homogeneous (1 region of the universe has not yet touched and "mixed" with another faraway region, etc). Inside such a space, the laws of physics (and magic) can be nothing like what is found in our universe. The domain walls are also absolutely unbreachable, unless you have a way of replicating the energy from the Big Bang.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Topological_defect

So it's like a BF except Absolutely Nobody is going to be crashing your party, and also you're a God within it not just an empowered mage.

[Nerd-o-rama]

MLai, I'm going to ignore most of your post, not out of any personal problem with you but just because I know we have the opposite entirely subjective opinion about the DEEN anime, and I can't really argue matters of taste. I will say about Saber's characterization in UBW, though, that if it's rushed, it's because UBW as a route and as a specific anime series has different priorities - Saber's important, but she's not the focus of this show any more than she was in Zero. Which is, I assume, a large part of why you don't like UBW.

That is a good explanation of Reality Marbles, though. Another comparison might be a more flexible and much less permanent version of "pocket dimensions" from D&D. Or, alternatively alternatively:

[MLai]

I will say about Saber's characterization in UBW, though, that if it's rushed, it's because UBW as a route and as a specific anime series has different priorities - Saber's important, but she's not the focus of this show any more than she was in Zero. Which is, I assume, a large part of why you don't like UBW.

You're not the first person to dislike the Deen series (I was at Mirror Moon forums for quite a few months), so yes I concede that it's an irreconcilable difference in taste.
I also concede that the Deen series has some problems, such as during the inserted Caster arc. However, I was specifically talking about Shirou and Saber in the Deen series; I feel they were both better-realized characters over there.
I don't hate UBW because Saber isn't the focus, though. The problems are as I've laid out in the previous post. The pacing and the character chemistry just aren't there. I felt more chemistry between Rin and Shirou in the Deen series than in this UBW series (it's primarily Shirou's fault; poor Rin is trying hard but she can't save the show when her co-star is just phoning it in, I'll bet they hate each other's guts on the set, no I'm not talking about the VAs I'm just making a joke which I just ruined).

That is a good explanation of Reality Marbles, though. Another comparison might be a more flexible and much less permanent version of "pocket dimensions" from D&D.

My interpretation is based on theoretical astrophysics that I cribbed from banter between NichG and Radar from over at the Mad Science sub-forum. I am, ofc, butchering the actual physics. So don't let them know.

[Sith_Happens]

So, supposing I pick this franchise up at some point, is it worth watching the Fate route anime and/or Zero first or should I just skip straight to this?

[Eldariel]

So, supposing I pick this franchise up at some point, is it worth watching the Fate route anime and/or Zero first or should I just skip straight to this?

This UBW stands extremely well on its own so you can certainly start here. In fact, you'd probably better since else you'll have this or that spoiled here or there. It's probably a more interesting experience overall and if I can recommend only one of the bunch, I'd say UBW without a shadow of a doubt.

[MLai]

So, supposing I pick this franchise up at some point, is it worth watching the Fate route anime and/or Zero first or should I just skip straight to this?

If I can recommend only one of the bunch, I'd say pass over this UBW series without a shadow of a doubt. Either the Fate anime or the F/Z anime would be a more interesting experience overall.

If you only plan on watching one: Fate/Zero without doubt. But it spoils you to the other 2.
If you plan on watching all: Fate route series first, as this is the branch that the original visual novel wanted you to read first anyways. Then you can either watch the UBW series or the F/Z series (I recommend F/Z series).

Do keep in mind the Fate route series has the lowest animation budget. Animation-wise it's decent, but not spectacular like the later ones.

[Sith_Happens]

But it spoils you to the other 2.

Don't worry, I've already been quite thorough on discovering every spoiler to which you might be referring.

[MLai]

Don't worry, I've already been quite thorough on discovering every spoiler to which you might be referring.

Oh, in that case there's no question. Just watch Fate/Zero first.
Life's too short, watch the best one first.

I understand why a lot of most ppl prefer the new UBW series over the older Fate series. But if spoilers are not relevant to you, then I think most of even those ppl would agree that F/Z is the best series overall. Some in this forum object to the F/Z series over some socio-ideological issues, however.

[Pronounceable]

So, supposing I pick this franchise up at some point, is it worth watching the Fate route anime and/or Zero first or should I just skip straight to this?

You should watch this. Other anime isn't very good and Fate is the worst route. Zero comes after FSN, no matter what anyone says.

Don't worry, I've already been quite thorough on discovering every spoiler to which you might be referring.

Why would you even? Does not compute. O_o

[-D-]

This series sucks; me and a friend agree (we also both like Deen's FSN series, and the F/Z series). Echo Chamber, activate!

Hm, for me it's about the same.

Shirou, the POV protag, is at his all-around worst in this series, he's boring and stupid as F.

Well, once you start seeing Shirou as damaged goods as he is, he does get a smidge more interesting. He is still anime male protagonist 101 but at least you kinda see how ****ed up he is. The characters all note he is weird. Mitszuri notes he doesn't laugh. Rin notes he doesn't enjoy anything. He says he is used to dead people, etc.
One part that kinda clued me in was that a friend noted, that after he was stabbed through the heart, and waking in pool of his own blood, his first instinct is to clean up the blood. Sadly the anime skipped that part.

Very poorly paced and poorly reinforced character bonding/chemistry. Gee, we'd feel bad about Shirou losing Saber to Caster

Well seeing F/Z, you can see that Shirou and Saber are kinda happy with each other. Contrast this to Kiritsugu not ever talking to Saber. At. All. And they bonded, albeit it's not as well shown. You can see him sparring, and talking to Saber occasionally.

As for Rin-Shirou... we definitely see interest from Rin, but unfortunately the interest isn't reciprocated (eps 12 Shirou finally starting to come around...).

Well, before episode 11 Rin went between helping and attacking him out right. I kinda don't blame him too much. By episode 11 you can see he kinda see him turning, being visibly uncomfortable around Rin, which is something Rin notes. Sure he doesn't tease Rin much but Shiro is a pretty much direct and constantly honest person. To his own detriment.

No, it's just a result of UBW series being the worst of all currently available serieseses.

That or not a series centered on your favorite character Deen series was the Fate route, correct? The movie UBW was ok, but in most aspects I like this series more. I kinda like how badass they made Kotomine look. In movie he dies in like split second. Plus they went to extra length to remove explain visually. In Fate route he came off as a standard boring dumb male protagonist. Here he seems bit deeper than that.

Stuff like Avalon being in Shiro, Shiro being a very disturbed invididual, Kotomine's fight, Kotomine being lancer's master.

[MLai]

Hm, for me it's about the same.

So, you don't really like this series but you're playing devil's advocate a bit? Okay let's analyze!

Well, once you start seeing Shirou as damaged goods as he is, he does get a smidge more interesting.

I understand this, but this little smidge of grimdark back history doesn't make him more interesting, or change any actions that mattered to the plot. I've seen FSN and F/Z, I knew all about him and saw all the little tidbits you mentioned. But you take away the back history and the few little tidbits and he is still Male Protag Of Justice 101.

He's presented the same way in Fate, but there it worked because he was bouncing off Saber, and together they healed each other. Here, for 12 eps he has no deep connection (just superficial ones like DAE-TO) to either Saber or Rin. The UBW branch is all about his end conflict with a certain someone, which is why it was the shortest branch in the VN. But that doesn't carry 2 whole seasons of a TV show.

To be a good stand-alone show for non-Nasu-fan consumption, what UBW really needs is to be re-written to focus on Rin and Archer. And relegate Shirou and Saber to (prominent) support status. The whole reason a lot of ppl like UBW is because Archer is cool and Rin-Archer has a smart tension/chemistry.

That or not a series centered on your favorite character Deen series was the Fate route, correct? The movie UBW was ok, but in most aspects I like this series more. I kinda like how badass they made Kotomine look. In movie he dies in like split second. Plus they went to extra length to remove explain visually. In Fate route he came off as a standard boring dumb male protagonist. Here he seems bit deeper than that.

No, I don't dislike UBW because Saber isn't main. Read your own post and look at the reasons YOU like UBW. A lot of it is "Because they added this cool thing, because they elaborated on that cool thing..." And Shirou is largely absent from that list of cool things. Unfortunately he's the POV character! Rewrite the story to switch Rin and Shirou's roles around, and we'll have a great show.

[-D-]

But you take away the back history and the few little tidbits and he is still Male Protag Of Justice 101.

In some manner he is a deconstruction of a male protagonist 101. It shows how ****ed up you have to be to really think that way, semi-realistically.
Devil's in the tidbits and all that jazz. Also I liked all three adaptation but for me list goes (from best to less best): Carnival Phantasm, UBW(ufo), F/Z(ufo), FSN (Deen), UBW (Deen).

No, I don't dislike UBW because Saber isn't main. Read your own post and look at the reasons YOU like UBW. A lot of it is "Because they added this cool thing, because they elaborated on that cool thing..." And Shirou is largely absent from that list of cool things. Unfortunately he's the POV character! Rewrite the story to switch Rin and Shirou's roles around, and we'll have a great show.

Shiro's damaged goods status is much more prominent in Ufotable's series. It's part of what makes it better. I just didn't felt like repeating myself. Not on this keyboard.

[Pronounceable]

I have no idea how anyone who likes Saber can like the bull**** that tries to pass itself off as romance in Fate. Not only does it utterly ruin Saber's character as she's "healed" of her agency and independence by the magic of protagodong, it's also stupid. Considering how much of a chauvenist idiot Shirou is towards her (and only her), the root of Saber's lovey dovey feelings for him can be nothing but author mandate. Yet, here we are.

When we completely ignore the romance angle, Fate's plot is a bunch of baddies lined up for Team Protag to defeat handily. Everything miraculously works out for Shirou and nothing even remotely questions his mindset. It's a very boring and milquetoast narrative once seperated from its cool setting.

UBW does some character exploration for Shirou, plus it has a structure more interesting than a series of bossfights and a few nice twists. HF is full of twists and turns and concentrated awesome but also has a large amount of crap and dumb. Both of them beat Fate by a very large margin.

FSN, as a whole, is an inspection of the standard teenage shounen protagonist and what sort of hosed up mind would be creating a personality like that. None of the routes show that by itself so none can really stand alone but UBW does the best job at exploring Shirou's mentality. It's also the least related to Fate/Zero on plot front (while being thematically tied strongest to Kerry and his crap), so an anime watcher will theoretically have the best experience despite having seen the prequel first.

tldr: UBW>HF>>Fate

[MLai]

I have no idea how anyone who likes Saber can like the bull**** that tries to pass itself off as romance in Fate. Not only does it utterly ruin Saber's character as she's "healed" of her agency and independence by the magic of protagodong, it's also stupid. Considering how much of a chauvenist idiot Shirou is towards her (and only her), the root of Saber's lovey dovey feelings for him can be nothing but author mandate.

Fate is a classic story which can transcend its own genre, compared to UBW and HF which are entrenched firmly in the "Only in anime" territory. With just a few tweaks, including taking out the extraneous eroge stuff, you can easily convert Fate into a live-action American cable series. You can't do that with UBW and HF. That's reason #1 why I like Fate and its character portrayals.

The romance in Fate is inspirational, and for all the criticism I heap onto Nasu, for that one shining moment he *got* the source material. Considering how much I love said source material, I give him respect for that one time. But you really must be just as deeply sensitive to the source material for that. If you're not, then for you FSN is just another anime, and you'd be distracted by all your miscellaneous complaints regarding Nasu's mild Japanese misogyny or the hints of eroge/harem that Studio Deen didn't wipe away.

UBW does some character exploration for Shirou,

Yes, in the most boring and poorly-pace fashion possible. When the character isn't interesting, nobody cares about his "character exploration".
I can take off my Nasu-fan goggles because I'm not really his fan, so I cringe at how bored I can imagine non-Nasu-fan viewers are when watching this series.

The beat of UBW goes like this:

1. Something cool happens for half an episode!
2. Absolutely nothing happens for 1 to 2 episodes while characters sit around psychoanalyzing Shirou like I care, or talk about other boring stuff.
3. Something cool happens for half of an episode!
4. Absolutely nothing happens for 1 to 2 episodes as character sit around and talk, rather than push the plot.
5. Repeat.
6. Oh, date episode! They actually got up to initiate something!

I've seldom seen a series where the actual plot progressed so slowly, and the protags moved like molasses seemingly reluctant to do anything that might hurry the plot forward. The only time I got the feeling of "OMG what happens next?! I can't wait for next week!" was right after the Saber-Archer-Zerk fight. After that, the stuttering pace of this series revealed itself to me, and I started to care less and less.

[Pronounceable]

Fate is a classic story which can transcend its own genre... The romance in Fate is inspirational...

Right, the inspiration to tell women to shut up and go back to the kitchen, backed up by the power of narrative. Truly a timeless classic.

you can easily convert Fate into a live-action American cable series

Exactly why it's bad.

for that one shining moment he *got* the source material. Considering how much I love said source material, I give him respect for that one time.

Wut? What source material? Arthurian legends? I don't think Guinevere/Morgan/Morgause/Lady was ever told to shut up and do as menfolk ordered (though I might be mistaken about that).

UBW...boring

You're wrong.

[Poison_Fish]

Fate is a classic story which can transcend its own genre, compared to UBW and HF which are entrenched firmly in the "Only in anime" territory.

How? I watch a lot of things outside of anime, but stuff like kidnapping characters who haven't received much development, dressing them up in bondage gear for reasons and then using them for some magical ritual is pretty anime.

Actually, the haremy side of Deen's pushes it more to anime then what's been in Ufotables UBW with single pair romantic tension on that dimension.

With just a few tweaks, including taking out the extraneous eroge stuff, you can easily convert Fate into a live-action American cable series.

Are we talking 90's live action? That may be to episodic. Are we talking modern cable series, a la Breaking Bad, The Soprano's, etc.? What are we talking here?

Also, have you seen HBO? There would be more then the extraneous eroge stuff.

[-D-]

You're wrong.

Naah uhh, you're wrong!

[Pronounceable]

Naah uhh, you're wrong!

No, u >_>
...

That said, there's certainly a lot of room for improvement in UBW, anime or novel. What you'd need is to let go of first person narrative, let it become an ensemble show following multiple characters. Though that'd be like rewriting the whole thing from ground up so it's obvious ufotable wouldn't ever do it, they're far too invested in following novels to the letter.

And in doing that, you'd lose out on Shirou and Rin's characterizations. But getting more (aka any) Lancer/Rider/Ilya stuff and likely extra Caster/Kirei times would more than make up for what's lost. It's a shame such stories will only ever exist as idle musings/headcanons (or maybe fanfics but I doubt anyone would rewrite the whole thing).

[DoctorFaust]

Yes, in the most boring and poorly-pace fashion possible. When the character isn't interesting, nobody cares about his "character exploration".

I'm actually with MLai on this, though my opinion probably isn't quite as vehement as his is. The pacing so far seems more like something out of a SoL than an action show like I thought it would be, and just about the highest praise I can give of Shirou is that he's the least generic generic shonen protagonist I can think of. And the way this show is shaping up, I'm still not convinced that Carnival Phantasm isn't the best adaptation of a TYPE-moon work.

That said, I really like Shirou's interactions with Archer.

Spoiler

Show

It's funny how he's a bit of a tsundere towards himself.

[-D-]

That said, I really like Shirou's interactions with Archer.

Spoiler

Show

It's funny how he's a bit of a tsundere towards himself.

Puts the whole Gay for Archer in new light, no?

Spoiler

Show

Though technically, that would be time assisted masturbation.

-----------------------

I kinda think it's funny that Rin says he is cold and dismissive to people he used to know and like, and then Archer is cold and dismissive towards her.

I'm still not convinced that Carnival Phantasm isn't the best adaptation of a TYPE-moon work.

Spoiler

Show

Yeah, they missed some elements like Caster/Caster no Mastah interacting regularly, which feature prominetly in Carnival Phantasm. Something to show their love was genuine and not Caster just using him. Or showing that Shinji is not a proper master and Rider acting against him to protect Sakura. Or Shirou cleaning his own blood post stabbing.

I can't believe I say this, but I hope there are more flashbacks, hints of Caser/Caster's Master's interaction. It's kinda funny, that Caster's Master is a kind of reflection of Shirou. In that he is a more like a husk of a man.

[mallorean_thug]

I just want them to insert the Caster backstory and the Kuzuki backstory from Hollow/Ataraxia into the second half of the show. I mean, we already got a short glimpse of it when she caught Shirou in her web, they already gave the Black Panther + track team bonus screen time, and they surely have enough runtime for it. Unless they're planning on adapting Hollow/Ataraxia after Heaven's Feel, there's no reason not to.

On the earlier unlimited route wars subject, HF>UBW>>Fate, and everything ufotable>everything DEEN. The anime original Caster arc by itself is enough to soil the entire adaption. I don't think that ufotable is doing the best job possible and UBW could honestly use more trimming than padding, but they're still miles ahead of DEEN's attempts. That said, Carnival Phantasm will always be the best Type-Moon adaption for all time. Funny Type-moon is just infinitely better than serious Type-moon.

[Mathemagics]

Echoing the comments that Carnival Phantasm is still the best anime from the series. Now if only they'd get off their butts and make Season 4 (preferably with some of the Fate/Zero cast too)...

[CarpeGuitarrem]

I've seen a couple clips of Carnival Phantasm from AMV Hell. Is there anything beyond the identities of the Masters that would spoiler me, based on how much of UBW I've seen so far? (I've also seen Fate/Zero in its entirety.) I'm hoping that, at the very least, I could just watch it after UBW wraps up. Because it looks amazing.

[DoctorFaust]

Echoing the comments that Carnival Phantasm is still the best anime from the series. Now if only they'd get off their butts and make Season 4 (preferably with some of the Fate/Zero cast too)...

I am thoroughly in favor of this. Especially if it would mean that we could see Fifth War Servants interacting with their Fourth War counterparts. The Casters would probably get along swimmingly.

I've seen a couple clips of Carnival Phantasm from AMV Hell. Is there anything beyond the identities of the Masters that would spoiler me, based on how much of UBW I've seen so far? (I've also seen Fate/Zero in its entirety.) I'm hoping that, at the very least, I could just watch it after UBW wraps up. Because it looks amazing.

The identities of some of the Servants and how some of them interact with their Masters. There's also major Tsukihime spoilers as well, if you care about that.

[MLai]

Vitriol.

If you want a reply other than -D-'s, you can reword your post.
...
Oh wait, you are capable of readable posts. *Reads.*
Well, seems like what I and others are saying, or expansion of it.

How? I watch a lot of things outside of anime, but stuff like kidnapping characters who haven't received much development, dressing them up in bondage gear for reasons and then using them for some magical ritual is pretty anime.

I already said in a previous page that inserted arc is problematic. Though it's no worse than Caster playing dress-up with Saber in UBW.
And I'm not sure why you think to mention the haremy bits when I already commented on it. Is Fate series perfect? Heck no. But it did one specific thing great, and that's why I love it.

Are we talking 90's live action? That may be to episodic. Are we talking modern cable series, a la Breaking Bad, The Soprano's, etc.? What are we talking here?

I would say a modern cable series would be the best format ala Game Of Thrones (only 10 1-hr eps per season).
And the eroge element isn't equivalent to all "mature content." Eroge is inherently silly by nature, it seems. Or at least it is in FSN, Nasu's fault.