Fate/Strange Fake Ep.07 - Wait, an actually competent Ishtar?!
Episode 7 of Fate/Strange Fake brings another flurry of new Master and Servant pair introductions, but I think we are finally getting a complete picture of the participants in this Holy Grail War. I am wondering how long the series is intended to be, however, as anything below 20 episodes will make it very difficult to adapt the remaining light novel content.
Ishtar makes her appearance in this episode within the body of an Einzbern homunculus called Fillia. Although the story does not outright state her identity, it is clear who she is due to her battle style and the visuals shown in a flash to Haruri Borzak when they touch. Because Fillia barely possesses a personality or a soul, Ishtar manifests with her original personality, unaffected by Rin as she was in the Fate/Grand Order storyline. This makes her far more dangerous than our beloved "bad goddess."
Remember, pure Divine Spirits are not supposed to be summonable in a Holy Grail War, which explains her statement: "I am neither a Master nor a Servant". She is not supposed to be here, and it will be interesting to see what roundabout method was used to manifest her in reality. Could it be linked to the fact that both Gilgamesh and Enkidu are present?
Haruri is an interesting character. Her motivations are almost antithetical to the entire premise of a Holy Grail War, as she is simply seeking revenge against mages despite not being one herself. Her Servant is True Berserker, which appears to be another exception. I have absolutely no idea what that thing is, but I honestly doubt it is any kind of Heroic Spirit.
You can see Haruri’s grief when she asks to destroy the workshop, but I wonder how long she can last. She does not seem particularly street-smart, leaving herself vulnerable to Bazdilot Cordileon’s simple handgun. Alongside Ayaka, she seems to be the least "Master-like" character in the story.
Ultimately, Bazdilot is easily the most punchable character in the series so far. He is not even fully human anymore, as he has partially fused with the corrupted mud from the Fuyuki Holy Grail. I am curious about his motivations, though. He is basically a living corpse at this point, and even winning the Holy Grail is not going to save him. Why is he so motivated to fight this war?
While the battle between Alcides and Ishtar is technically on pause due to Caster’s intervention, the next episode looks to follow two separate trails. The first involves Sigma being targeted by Faldeus’s military squad, and the second follows Jester interacting with Tsubaki and her Rider Servant.
To be honest, the alliance between Saber, Assassin, and Sigma seems to be the weakest so far. Enkidu is technically there too, but I am not sure we can trust him to step in and help the others in a dangerous situation, as he seems more focused on doing his own thing. Either way, I can't wait for next week!
