Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya
Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya
Overview
Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya, sometimes regarded as Fate Prisma Illya for short, originated as a manga series that ran in Kadokawa Shoten's Comp Ace magazine from 2007 to 2008. It is a spin-off of the famous Fate/stay night visual novel by Type-Moon set in an alternate reality. The story follows main protagonist Illyasviel von Einzbern. Its success spawned two sequel mangas, Fate/Kaleid liner Prisma Illya 2wei! and Fate/Kaleid liner Prisma Illya 3rei!!
The manga’s success has led to it becoming one of several Fate anime series. Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya started in 2013 and is still ongoing. The series continued as an animated film released in 2017, acting as a prequel to the events in the television series. Multiple OVA’s have been released for the series as well.
Anime Series Titles
1st season - Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya
2nd season - Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya 2wei!
3rd season - Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya 2wei Herz!
4th season - Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya 3rei!
Animated film - Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya: Oath Under Snow
OVA - Fate/Kaleid Liner Prisma Illya: Dance at the Sports Festival!
OVA - Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya: Prisma Phantasm
Synopsis
A wizard named Zeltrech assigned a mage named Rin Tohsaka to collect seven Heroic Spirit Class Cards. However, the magic wand Kaleidostick Magical Ruby, is drawn to a younger girl named Illyasviel von Einzbern instead of Rin. This turns Illysaviel, or Illya for short, into a magical girl. Rin helps Illya collect the Class Cards as an overseer and advisor. Another magical girl named Miyu challenges Illya in collecting the Class Cards. Miyu is the master of another wand, Kaleidostick Sapphire.
Illya and Miyu end up becoming good friends during their quest to collect the Class Cards, but soon meet a girl named Kuro who wants to get rid of Illya. Irisviel, the mother of Illya, explains that Kuro was meant to be the vessel of Holy Grail during the Holy Grail War. That war, however, was prevented and Kuro had to be sealed away. Kuro and Illya become friends. In order to keep Kuro alive in the physical world, Illya gives her mana.
Another challenger to the collect the Class Card named Bazett Fraga McRemitz attacks Illya and her friends. Bazett planned to steal the collected Class Cards from Illya and Miyu and nearly defeated them if not for the discovery that an eighth Class Card exists. This leads to a truce between Bazett and Illya’s group.
The eighth Heroic Spirit Class Card is Gilgamesh. When the group confronts him, they learn that Miyu is from a parallel world and was once a Holy Grail. Gilgamesh absorbs Miyu, but is defeated by Illya using the power of Kaleido Liner Zwei.
Miyu is then kidnapped and taken to a parallel world by the Ainsworth family. Illya’s group goes after Miyu and joins forces with Gilgamesh as well as other characters from the parallel world - a girl named Tanaka, and Shirou Emiya, who in this world is Miyu’s older brother.
The Ainsworth family wishes to use Miyu as a Holy Grail to save their world, but Illya rejects their plan and promises to both save their world and Miyu.
Main Characters
Illyasviel von Einzbern
Illya was an average elementary school girl who loves magical girl anime. Her father is Kiritsugu and her mother is Irisviel. Her older brother is Shirou. She is tricked into a contract with Kaleidostick Magical Ruby to become a real magical girl.
Magical Ruby
A mischievous Kaleidostick that once belonged to Rin Tohsaka. It contracted with Illya to be its master, but often teases Illya.
Miyu Edelfelt
Initially, Miyu Edelfelt is Illya’s rival in collecting the legendary Class Cards containing Heroic Spirits. She is the master of the Kaleidostick, Magical Sapphire, after Magical Sapphire rejects possession by Luviagelita Edelfelt. Luvia adopts her and acts as her mentor. She eventually becomes friends with Illya. It is eventually revealed that Miyu was once a Holy Grail from a parallel world.
Magical Sapphire
Like Magical Ruby, Magical Sapphire is a Kaleidostick. It considers Magical Ruby as its big sister. While Magical Ruby tends to be mischievous, Magical Sapphire takes being a Kaleidostick more seriously.
Rin Tohsaka
A young mage and rival to Luvia. Her bickering with Luvia got in the way of her mission to collect the Class Cards. Since the task was handed to Illya, Rin promised to guide Illya on the quest to its completion.
Luviagelita Edelfelt
Luvia was originally assigned by Zeltrech to work together with Rin Tohsaka, but the two didn’t get along. She is a mage like Rin and extremely wealthy. Both Luvia and Rin vy for Shirou’s attention.
Kuro
A girl who looks like Illya with darker skin. She tries to destroy Illya at first. It is revealed that she is another side of Illya and was meant to be a Holy Grail but was sealed away for Illya to live an ordinary life. Illya and others have to give her mana to sustain her body in the physical world. She gets this mana by kissing. This leads to many popular Fate yuri fanservice scenes.
Other Media
Kadokawa Games produced a video game for the Nintendo 3DS in 2014 titled Prisma Illya.