Number 6 is everyone’s favorite scalie, Siegfried! From the German epic Nibelungenlied, he is a dragon slayer who bathed in the blood of the mighty dragon Fafnir, gaining invincible skin (save for one spot on his back). He made his first appearance in Fate/Apocrypha, and his return in Grand Order.
Siegfried’s initial design is cool. The color scheme is subdued, which makes it pleasant to take in, but unfortunately, there is a lot going on, and it’s a bit hard to tell what you are supposed to focus on. I have to admit, until doing this project, I had never actually gotten a good look at Siegfried’s clothing. The glowing power tattoo on his chest really draws the eyes, and makes you focus on the upper half, namely his pauldrons, cape, and fluffy hair. You can tell right away he is some sort of warrior though, with his mighty sword, and large shoulder armor. Like the Servant before him, he is lacking armor in a lot of vital places, but this is only the first ascension, and he does have some armor, so we will let it slide for now.
The second ascension increases the armor- he is given some spiky gauntlets which are somewhat reminiscent of the spiny scales of a lizard, and much larger and now more ornate pauldrons, as well as a bit of armor to protect his thighs. The base design as not changed, retaining the same color scheme and busyness, and his chest is still exposed. The added shoulder armor does draw the eyes more though, and gives a stronger sense that this is where we are meant to be looking.
The final ascension has no more armor to add, instead giving Siegfried a set of horns, a tail, and some dragon wings, the power of Fafnir’s blood culminating not only in invincibility, but in an outwardly draconic appearance. The dragon slayer and the dragon are now one in the same, and the spiny-looking scales of his tail and wings fit in well with his armor.
Let’s break this down now.
Armor designs are unique and appealing
Gains armor as he ascends
Says something about the character (Warrior, related to dragons)
Color scheme doesn’t stand out
Now is as good a time as any to talk about double standards in armor design and fanservice. I want to be as fair as possible in this, but I do think it’s important to address the fact that there is usually a pretty big difference between what constitutes as fanservice on a male character vs a female character. Siegfried has vital areas uncovered, and his chest is blatantly exposed.
You could use the argument that his skin is impervious to damage, so armor isn’t necessary, but that is a similar argument that is used to justify female characters running around the battlefield in lingerie. It is an argument that ignores the fact that the characters do not actually have the agency to choose their own attire, and that it is chosen for them by their creators, whose intentions are often just to showcase what they find attractive (or what they think others will find attractive), while relying on in-universe excuses they made up in order to justify their decisions.
However, in a series that prioritizes showing off sexy female characters, having male characters who seem like an attempt to appeal to people who like men is nice to see now and then. In terms of defense, Siegfried’s armor is not great, and not much; it leaves a lot exposed, and even with his impenetrable skin he still has a weak spot, so covering his back (and maybe the rest of his torso so no one catches onto where his weakpoint is) might be a good idea, at least before his third ascension where the wings come out and make it difficult to wear plate. But, in terms of Sexy Game With Sexy People, Siegfried’s design is pretty nice. The color scheme and design of the actual clothes leaves a bit to be desired, but they had the right idea with pretty much everything else.
I would give Siegfried a 7/10. There’s a lot of good to his design, but it does have room for tweaks and improvement to make it a more solid and memorable design in terms of clothing/armor. 7/10, good drago, would pet.
Starting next week, I will be using a random number generator to select which Servant will be getting their review! Special thanks to the anon who suggested that idea! I think it will make the process a bit more exciting for me and everyone else too. I’ll see you next sunday!
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