I'll say that this week's episode has become my favorite strange Fake episode so far. It balanced top-notch action, information reveal, and humor. And, as always, my strong bias for Gilgamesh made this episode even more amazing in my eyes. I couldn't stop myself from screenshot every Gil scene throughout the episode!
However, as much as I love Gil, I won't talk too much about him, because the ones who became the main focus of this episode were no doubt the newly introduced two Servants: the "True" Archer and Rider. There's another one, but since they only appeared briefly, they didn't really get the spotlight.
This episode also revealed more about Faldeus. His family comes from the line of magi that has specialized in puppetry for generations. Someone from his family participated in the third Fuyuki Holy Grail War and partnered up with a portion of the government and tried to recreate a Holy Grail War in the US by plundering Snowfield, the land most suitable for the ritual from Tine's clan.
The plan to recreate the War was halted, but eventually restarted after they managed to culture a piece of the Holy Grail, thus, starting this True and Fake Holy Grail War. While it's not exactly known what he's planning to do with the Grail, Faldeus' motivation came from his loyalty to his clan and his country.
Now, in the previous episode, it's revealed the the summoning of the first six Servants was nothing more but a trigger for the true Holy Grail War that summoned seven more Servants, which started with Saber. So far, out of the seven "True" Servants, aside from Saber, this episode introduced four of them.
The first was True Assassin Hassan-i-Sabbah. For those who's a longtime fan of Fate series surely knows who he is. Hassan-i-Sabbah is the pseudonym shared by the nineteen Heroic Spirits. Within certain Holy Grail War structures, Hassan-i-Sabbah are the only qualifying Heroic Spirits to be summoned due to the etymology of the very word Assassin being tied to them. And this Hassan is one of them.
False Assassin (I'll start referring to her as such from now on), the one summoned by Jester, was associated with Hassan-i-Sabbah, being part of the same group. It makes me curious how she'll react if she ever encounter him in this Holy Grail War. Being utterly devoted, I won't be surprised if False Assassin would be unwilling to fight against him.
The moment True Assassin appeared behind Faldeus was really like one of those moments in horror movies. The way he turned off the light and whispered to Faldeus from behind before disappearing, Faldeus' reaction was exactly mine. No, if it were me, I'd be scared even more. XD
However, considering Faldeus' secretive and scheming nature who's pulling the strings from behind the scene, it feels natural for him to be paired with Assassin-Class Servant. As long as he stays true to his conviction, he and the Assassin would be a powerful opponent for the other Servants and Masters.
Second, we have True Archer, whose real identity is Alcides, otherwise more widely known as Heracles. Yes, the Heracles that everyone would immediately thought of the Berserker from Fate/stay night. However, Alcides here was a different version of him. Though a Berserker, the Heracles from stay night still has enough humanity to care enough for his Master. Alcides, on the other hand, has no such sentiment as he didn't hesitate to kill Tine, a mere child, for the sake of victory.
Alcides here is not only ruthless but also a confident demi-god. He has the gall to deliberately provoke Gilgamesh by calling him weak. However, he wasn't bluffing when he provoke him, Alcides has the power and strength to support his provocation as he parried all of Gilgamesh's Noble Phantasms with ease.
The anime cut this part, but even Gilgamesh was intrigued by Alcides and for the first time developed high expectations for his opponent. Alcides and Gilgamesh were similar in a way that though both of them are demi-gods, they rejected the gods. It's interesting to watch these two demi-god characters fought against each other.
Third is the True Rider, whose real identity is Hippolyta, another demi-god who was killed by Alcides when they were alive. Hippolyta, as far as I have seen, was quite a popular character. Her hairstyle that resembles Saber and her VA being the same as female Ritsuka's made her even more welcomed by the fans. And I like her as well.
Though she's said to be weaker than Alcides, she's a strong character in her own right. The way she rode her horse, Kalion, while avoiding Alcides and Gilgamesh's attacks, and the way she counter their attacks, it's more to prove that she's a strong fighter. And not forgetting how brave she's in facing the person who killed her and Gilgamesh at the same time. I'm in awe watching her every movement as she fights. It's fierce but still graceful.
She's also the righteous type of character. More than being angered of the fact she was killed by Alcides, she was more angered by the fact that Alcides tried to kill Tine, something that his old self would never do. Her battle against Alcides was not about revenge, but it's about putting an end to the man who has fallen so far from his previously benevolent and virtuous self.
The fourth was Francesca's Servant, whose form was not revealed yet in this episode, but they have the ability to conjure a strong illusion. Again, the anime omit this part, but the illusion they conjured was very strong to the point it didn't just deceive humans' perception, but also the environment itself.
Like their Master, Francesca's Servant sounds to be as much mischievous and brazen. They dared to form an illusion of Enkidu to fool Gilgamesh (which obviously failed), and that was enough for them to be included in Gilgamesh's list of people to be killed and even calling them a "mongrel" like he usually did was too good for them.
Since not much is revealed yet about this Servant, I'll refrain to say anything that'll spoil the novel. But as Gilgamesh and Enkidu supporter, I'm in favor of punishing Francesca's Servant. (^w^)
Last, but not the least, another highlight of this episode was Saber and Ayaka, and where the humour of this episode came from. It's fun to see Saber enjoyed himself in learning how to play guitar (and a genius one to boot). Though Saber received knowledge of modern times through the Grail, it's different when seeing and experiencing it directly, especially because Saber likes music, so finding how much music has changed delighted him. Ayaka and Saber being mistaken as a couple was also funny with the way Ayaka denied they were an item. lol
But what made their part so good was that Saber's honesty in expressing himself finally rubbed on Ayaka, making her realized that she knew nothing and became curious about him. She still has no interest in the Holy Grail and the Holy Grail War, but she's personally curious about Saber as a person. She even apologized for not being able to help him if he has any important wish to make to the Grail.
This moment showed that Ayaka, despite considering Saber as an annoyance at first, appreciated him. For this reason, I believe that when Ayaka refused to hear Saber's true name, it wasn't because she doesn't want anything to do with the War, but rather because she's not suitable person to hear Saber's real name out of fear of only burdening him.
This was the moment when Saber shined. Despite Ayaka's refusal, he still revealed more about himself, from his admiration for King Arthur to his true name: Richard the Lionheart. To Saber, even if Ayaka wasn't his Master, she was someone he deemed trustworthy to share about himself.
There's still line between them, but it's only a matter of time until Saber's sincerity and honesty break through Ayaka's shell, and the development of their relationship was one of the things I'm looking forward to watch the most.
