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OtapediaFate/Apocrypha

Summary

Based on Yuichiro Higashide’s light novel illustrated by Konoe Ototsugu and supervised by Kinoko Nasu, Fate/Apocrypha explores an alternative timeline where the events of Fate/stay night and Fate/Zero didn’t happen. The series was announced at “Fate Project 2017 Special Stage” at Japan’s biggest anime event “AnimeJapan 2017” in late March and is set to air in July 2017 on Tokyo MX, BS11, MBS, and Tochigi TV. The show will be streamed on Netflix as well.

The Fate series started in 2004 with the visual novel Fate/stay night. It soon became one of the most popular visual novels, leading to an anime adaptation in 2006 that took the world by storm. This version focused on the Fate route of the original visual novel, while following adaptations —Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works, a film and an anime series released in 2010 and 2015, respectively and Fate/stay night: Heaven’s Feel, the newest installment of the franchise which is set to hit theaters on Oct. 14— discover the other two routes, Unlimited Blade Works and Heaven’s Feel, respectively.

Over the years, Fate/stay night inspired numerous prequels, sequels, spinoffs, and adaptations in different media including visual novels, light novels, anime, manga, games, and smartphone apps, such as Fate/hollow ataraxia, Fate/Zero, Carnival Phantasm, Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya, Fate/tiger colosseum, Fate/unlimited codes, Fate/strange fake, Fate/Apocrypha, Fate/Prototype, Fate/Extra, Fate/Extra CCC, Fate/Extella, and Fate/Grand Order.

The Fate series was developed by Type-Moon, founded by writer and visual novelist Kinoko Nasu and his high school classmate and friend Takashi Takeuchi. Originally a doujin circle, one of Type-Moon’s earliest works is Kara no Kyokai (The Garden of Sinners), a novel written by Kinoko Nasu and illustrated by Takashi Takeuchi that was originally released in 1998 and adapted into an anime film series in 2007. The group became a commercial organization after the success of their first visual novel Tsukihime (2000), leading to popular visual novels such as the Fate series or Mahou Tsukai no Yoru as well as games (Melty Blood, in cooperation with French-Bread) and novels.

Started by three established mage families, Matou, Tohsaka, and Einzbern (also known as the Three Founding Families), the Holy Grail War of Fuyuki involves seven mages, or Masters, and their familiars referred to as Servants, Heroic Spirits of historical figures hailing from all around the world, battling to have their wish granted through the Grail’s power.
There are seven main classes of Servants: The Three Knight —Saber, Archer, and Lancer— and The Four Cavalry —Rider, Caster, Assassin, and Berserker—, and one of each is summoned in each Holy Grail War. In some cases, extra Servants are summoned, such as Avenger or True Assassin in Fate/stay night or Ruler in Fate/Apocrypha. Notable Servants include Arthur/Artoria Pendragon, Attila the Hun (Saber), Gilgamesh (Archer), Cú Chulainn, Diarmuid Ua Duibhne (Lancer), Alexander the Great, Medusa (Rider), Gilles de Rais, Medea (Caster), Hassan-i Sabbāh, Jack the Ripper (Assassin), Lancelot, and Heracles (Berserker).

Although it takes place in the same universe, Fate/Apocrypha follows a different timeline from the original series. After the Third Holy Grail War (1930s) in the confusion of WWII, the Greater Grail is stolen from Fuyuki. It emerges in Trifas, a city in Transylvania, Romania 70 years later, when the Yggdmillennia family, using the Grail as their symbol, announces its independence from the Mage’s Association. In retaliation, the Association sends a force of magi, who, although meet unfortunate ends at the hands of Yggdmillennia’s Servant, succeed in activating the Greater Grail’s backup system, allowing for the Association to summon Servants of their own. The Grail also summons a Ruler-class Servant to oversee the War, marking the start of the Great Holy Grail War, a battle royale of unprecedented scale, in which two sides, the Black and the Red Factions set out with seven Servants each to destroy the other.

Staff

  • Original concept: Kinoko Nasu / Type-Moon
  • Original creator: Yuichiro Higashide
  • Director: Yoshiyuki Asai
  • Series composition: Yuichiro Higashide
  • Original character design: Ototsugu Konoe
  • Character design: Yuukei Yamada
  • Music: Masaru Yokoyama
  • Opening theme: "Eiyū Unmei no Uta" by EGOIST
  • Ending theme: GARNiDELiA
  • Production: A-1 Pictures

Cast

  • Shirou Kotomine: Kouki Uchiyama
  • Ruler: Maaya Sakamoto
  • Sieg: Natsuki Hanae

Black Faction:

  • Archer of Black: Shunsuke Takeuchi
  • Assassin of Black: Sakura Tange
  • Berserker of Black: Ai Nonaka
  • Caster of Black: Mitsuru Miyamoto
  • Lancer of Black: Ryotaro Okiayu
  • Rider of Black: Rumi Ookubo
  • Saber of Black: Junichi Suwabe

Red Faction:

  • Archer of Red: Saori Hayami
  • Assassin of Red: Kei Shindou
  • Berserker of Red: Satoshi Tsuruoka
  • Caster of Red: Tetsu Inada
  • Lancer of Red: Koji Yusa
  • Rider of Red: Makoto Furukawa
  • Saber of Red: Miyuki Sawashiro

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