English Dub Review: Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia “Absolute Demonic Front Mesopotamia and Grand Order”
Overview (Spoilers Below):
As Absolute Demonic Front Mesopotamia begins, Tiamat is wreaking havoc all around. Not even Quetzalcoatl’s desperate attack could make a difference. And when Gorgon shows up and takes out Tiamat’s wings with a Noble Phantasm, the beast plummets down to the underworld. Ereshkigal tries to use her control of the realm to squash the goddess, but to no avail.
When Tiamat refuses to be defeated, she transforms into one of the Evils of Humanity: Beast II. Tiamat tries to override the underworld and eradicate all servants, but Hassan-i Sabbah, the first Old Man of the Mountain, intervenes, using his power as Grand Assassin to deprive Beast II of her immortality. Before she’s destroyed, she speaks to Ritsuka about her wish to be with her children.
In Grand Order, Ritsuka and Mash recover after the defeat of Beast II. There were many sacrifices made during the fight, and everyone is wounded and tired. They speak with Quetzalcoatl and the Jaguar Warrior, who assure them of their loyalty before fading away back to their realm. Before Ritsuka and Mash themselves return, they meet with King Gilgamesh and pledge to keep living how they choose.
Our Take:
Fate/Grand Order is one of the most popular money making franchises in recent history, and that’s why series like this have continued being made for so long. Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia is not a show with in-depth character development or interestingly unique storytelling, but for fans of the genre of god and demon battles, the final three episodes of the show will likely hit home.
The first episode of the Tiamat destruction arc sees the evil creature battling Gilgamesh, Mash, Ritsuka, and the others of their team. Things don’t go well, and no matter what they try or who they enlist to help, Tiamat cannot be defeated. They think things are improving when Tiamat falls to the underworld, but not even Ereshkigal’s dark powers are enough to contain the beast. I think she was definitely the highlight of the episode for me, with her peppy attitude contrasting nicely against their dismal surroundings.
At the last second, Merlin shows up to help. It’s a bit silly, but hey, so is this entire show. You just have to embrace stuff like Merlin turning Tiamat’s evil aura into flowers and people shouting about how the creation of the universe is called mega genesis.
The Tiamat arc finishes up with a fairly boring episode in which Hassan-i Sabbah, the first Old Man of the Mountain, shows up and uses his power as Grand Assassin to deprive the beast of its immortality. This episode was filled with mostly meaningless padding, but I did like Ereshkigal saying goodbye and Tiamat’s mind meld conversation with Ritsuka.
The show concludes with Grand Order, in which everyone decompresses and unpacks what just occurred. It was nice to see Mash and Ritsuka hanging out and chilling without having to worry about giant monsters and evil demon beasts, but the pacing was definitely a bit odd, as they meet a couple friends, then go to talk to others, and finally visit Gilgamesh before eventually being called back. Merlin and the Doctor laughing and exchanging barely-hidden barbs was fun, though, and it is a bit heartwarming to see how much Ritsuka and Mash have done for Uruk, the land they love.
