Damn. That was awesome. What a way to go out with a bang!
I think the main thing that made this episode so great was that there was hardly any Saber and Irisviel. It was all Caster and Ryuunosuke, and Rider and Waver. Why has this series chosen to focus the most on its least interesting characters?
The Problem of Evil
Ryuunosuke and Caster walk back to their lab, where the children have been freed, and proclaim desperately, “Who could do this and still call themselves human?!”
I love these guys. They aren’t just killing people for no reason, as so many fictional murderers do. They see themselves as having a calling to make beautiful works of art. In fact, they have a divine calling!
So far we’re theologically sound…
Well, that’s certainly one solution to the problem of evil. That God is not good.
This whole conversation was riveting.
In real-world Christian circles, the idea that God is evil is not all that popular. (I think that people who subscribe to this creed tend to end up killing themselves before founding new religious sects.)
However, the idea that blasphemy can be a form of praise does hold some adherents, most notably Borges (I love this essay, that’s why I cite it all the time)
The ascetic, for the greater glory of God, degrades and mortifies the flesh; Judas did the same with the spirit. He renounced honor, good, peace, the Kingdom of Heaven, as others, less heroically, renounced pleasure… He labored with gigantic humility; he thought himself unworthy to be good..
Now, obviously, we cannot claim that Caster labors with humility. But he does blaspheme for the greater glory of god, or at least for his understanding of it, as twisted as that understanding may be. Just something to think about: this particular idea of Caster’s is somewhat reasonable.
Waver and Rider Rule
These guys are just hilarious. Rider’s efforts to get Waver to play video games cracked me up.
Then after Waver reads Rider’s biography, he has only one question:
As usual, Rider just laughs it off.
Rider’s lecture about them both being the size of a dot but still trying to conquer the world was awesome as well. Fate / Zero has had some fascinating dialogue. Except when Saber or Irisviel are involved.
Liked this post? Leave a comment, subscribe to our RSS feed, and follow us on Twitter!
I’m so glad that most of the time was devoted to Broskander and Waver. It was such a disappointment when Saber came onto the screen.
I hope Archer gets more screentime next season~
Gilgamesh could use some more screen time. As long as Saber and Irisviel get less screen time I’ll be happy, actually.
I love how Rider can laugh off any insult, his lay back attitude towards the war really helps this pair stand out from all the other more serious servants and masters.
Ryuunosuke’s speech about god was interesting to say the least, he obviously has twisted morals but he still finds a way to justify it.
It’s going to be a long wait until the next episode.
Yeah, I forgot to mention that, but the next part isn’t coming out until April. 🙁
Uryuu’s idea of God makes four wall sense in WHO is writing their story 😉 Yeah.
Rider and Waver are great. Spin off WHEN?
A Rider and Waver spinoff would be amazing.
I’m not sure what you mean by “four wall sense”?
He means it’s like breaking the fourth wall. I believe his comment is inferring that part of the conversation is calling the author of Fate/Zero God of the world he is writing, almost like self praise – although praising yourself through the craziest and most evil characters in the story isn’t really praise, is it?
Ohhhhh. Very interesting! I guess it’s kind of a self deprecating praise. Caster has a point though, at least for story writing. Good stories need a healthy does of despair. 🙂