Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00

Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00
Fate/Grand Order -絶対魔獣戦線バビロニア- Episode 00
Fate/Grand Order: Zettai Majū Sensen Babylonia ep. 00

SPOILER Summary/Synopsis

At Chaldea, an experiment to fuse a Heroic Spirit with a designer baby to create a Demi-Servant is a success, though initially, the girl seems to be about to break out of containment. This is observed by Dr. Romani Archaman, Director Marisbury Animusphere, and Lev (Leff) Lainur Flauros. Romani recalls traveling the world and becoming a doctor. Sometime later, Romani gets permission from Marisbury to become the new Demi-Servant’s personal physician since her body won’t last more than two more years.

Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00

Romani visits the girl, Mash, to tell her he will be her physician. They discuss what it means to be a “senpai.” Romani frankly tells Mash that she’s not expected to live beyond 18. She accepts this without problem. Two years later, the Servant Leonardo da Vinci (as a woman) visits Romani in his office. She’s annoyed with the current situation in Chaldea. Two years later (2015), Romani has a chat with Lev (Leff) about Mash and the possible damage they are doing to her.

Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00

Sometime later, Marisbury recalls winning the Holy Grail War with his Servant. A person walks into his office, demanding he cancel CHALDEAS. Marisbury commits suicide rather than comply. Still later, his daughter Olga Marie took over as Director at Chaldea, and the Rayshift project gets ready to go.

Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00

Meanwhile, Mash recalls how Dr. Romani spent so much time with her, expanding her horizons. She’s recalls her meeting with the guy whom she’d call her Senpai. Then she remembers they adventures they’ve had clearing the six singularities to date. Her progress is so amazing that Dr. Romani is stunned at the power of her Nobel Phantasm.

Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00

Thoughts/Review

Sadly, I was unable to watch Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00 when it first aired, thanks to work. But since the main series is starting, I figured I’d better get cracking.

Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00

Confusing to Non-Game Players

As I learned long ago, the purpose of anime adaptations is primarily to serve as an advertisement for whatever source material it is adapting. In this instance, Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00 is advertising the Fate/Grand Order mobile gacha game (I’m doing videos on the game on YouTube for those interested). However, it is also attempting to set the story for the TV series that’s starting.

Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00

Unfortunately, I think that if you’ve never played the FGO game, you are going to be confused, especially in the second half of the episode. That’s because in the second half, there are major time skips, then a collage of imagery going from First Order until the Sixth Incursion. The mass display of Servants and narration by popular Servants (Nero, Francis Drake, etc.) will titillate players of the game, but will be utterly meaningless to the non-layers.

Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00

Although I almost always skip the stories of FGO in the game, I don’t think the stuff with Dr. Romani and Marisbury was in the game. It may have been ’cause I know there’s a dramatic moment when the player character is told the truth about Mash not having long to live. (Once in a while, I’ll try to stomach some story, but since the story usually is, “Blah, blah, blah…OH! Monsters! Got to fight!”, I’m not interested.) But even this part of the story is one that I think would have confused me had I not played the game.

Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00

Why Skip the Other Singularities?

I will never understand the thinking of Japanese executives at times. When Fate/Grand Order: First Order was released as a TV special, I wrote how I thought it should have been a regular TV series. It would have been far better than a TV special. But alas, the powers that be didn’t want to do that.

Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00

Further, they did another special called Fate/Grand Order: Moonlight/Lostroom, which apparently is a prelude to the events of the Second Singularity. (I do plan on watching this.) I suspect we’ll get more confusing stuff there, designed only for game players.

Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00

The Sixth Singularity is being done as a theatrical movie release. However, that won’t be released until next year. And the events there take the gang into the Seventh Singularity, which is what Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00 is a prelude for. None of this makes any sense, but hey, that’s Japan for you.

Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00

Final Thoughts and Conclusion

In the end, Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00 is merely designed for hardcore players of the Fate/Grand Order gacha game. It really is a shame that the folks in charge in Japan didn’t properly do all of these as continuous TV series.

Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00

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4 Responses to “Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia 00”

  1. exof954 says:

    The people in charge of FGO held a poll for what singularities in the Grand Order arc people wanted animated the most. Camelot, Singularity Six, and Babylonia, Singularity Seven, took first and second place respectively. As such, Camelot is getting the movie adaption and Babylonia is getting the TV adaption.
    Frankly, they still should have released the movies before the TV series, or just swapped the movie and TV adaptations. But, like you said, I guess that’s Japan.

    My biggest problem with the show, like you, is how inaccessible and confusing this show is to non-FGO players. I have several IRL friends who like Fate but have never played FGO (or dropped it early on), and even more friends who’ve been curious about Fate for years but are just freaked out by the seeming incoherency of its continuity.
    (It makes sense to me, but I’ve been in this thing for years so it’s really not fair to compare).

    I was hoping that Babylonia might be a way to get them interested in the greater FGO story as a whole, but between this prologue episode and the actual episode 1 I don’t think I’m going to have any luck.

    It was a stray glance at a Shonen Jump volume in my local library that got me interested in manga and anime, and watching Gundam Build Fighters – a love letter to previous Gundam shows that stood on its own merits- led to me becoming a massive fan of the Gundam series, even to this day. In comparison, it’s starting to feel like Fate (especially Fate Grand Order) has become content to rest on its laurels rather than really reach out to new audiences.

    The gameplay has improved, and the story is miles better than the original few singularities, but it’s still so hard to get into to begin with- and these anime adaptations are hurting rather than helping, which is disappointing.

    It’s no ufotable, but the anime adaption does look decent as far as appearances go. I’m still happy that we’re getting this anime to begin with, and it will be fun to see certain scenes from the later half of the Singularity – I just can’t stop thinking that it could have been something more. Thanks for writing this article!

    • OverMaster says:

      The whole poll thing is part of why letting mob mentality run your storytelling for you instead of taking your own narrative decisions is generally a terrible idea, unless your own ideas as a creator are just too bad.

    • AstroNerdBoy says:

      Frankly, they still should have released the movies before the TV series, or just swapped the movie and TV adaptations. But, like you said, I guess that’s Japan.

      Sad but true. And I think I know the other aspect that’s wrong here, based on some reading I did.

      In comparison, it’s starting to feel like Fate (especially Fate Grand Order) has become content to rest on its laurels rather than really reach out to new audiences.

      In some of my FGO videos, I’ve talked about the terrible nature of the game. It has no interest in bringing in new players. But I’m working on a piece for later this week on this.

      It’s no ufotable, but the anime adaption does look decent as far as appearances go.

      I agree. I liked that they followed ufotable’s character design style for Ishtar.

      I’m still happy that we’re getting this anime to begin with, and it will be fun to see certain scenes from the later half of the Singularity – I just can’t stop thinking that it could have been something more. Thanks for writing this article!

      And thank you for reading and responding! I will be episode blogging this, so any future thoughts you have will be welcome. 😁

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