u/LOLADYS

Im currently on a Doctor Who rewatch, and I'm nearly done the classic series. I really want to explore the Wilderness Years stuff in this rewatch though. Just seeing if yall no where to find their stuff.

Thanks

Hey everyone. A bit ago I came to this subreddit looking for the best way to get into the Fate franchise because I was curious about it. The overwhelming recommendation was to start with the original Fate/stay night visual novel, which sounded like a good plan.

Unfortunately, it just hasn't clicked with me. I only managed a few hours before putting it down, and I haven't picked it back up since.

My biggest issue is the writing style. I found the prose really repetitive, with dialogue constantly restating things that had already been established. Instead of reinforcing themes, it felt like the story assumed I'd forgotten what I'd read five minutes earlier. Because of the hand-holding redundancy, the pacing also felt incredibly slow. I'm several hours in and still in the prologue, and it feels like very little has actually happened. It especially stings because it wasn't cheap on the Switch, but I resisted my sunken cost urges and just dropped it a few months ago and haven't touched it since.

But I do want to experience what people like about this franchise, if there is something here I'd enjoy. So I'm wondering if there's another visual novel or anime in the Fate series that's a better starting point for someone who just doesn't click with this particular writing style? Or is this style pretty representative of the franchise as a whole?

Thank you

I don't know how open I should be about my story here, because I want to share it in the right spirit. Not as some grand statement about myself, but simply as an expression of a life-changing experience. I wanted to share it because of how profoundly this franchise changed me.

I was raised in a fairly conservative Catholic household. I don't want to use that as an excuse for the bigoted views I held as a teenager, because those were still my views and I was responsible for them. But I was also growing up in a sheltered environment where ideas from people like Michael Knowles or Ben Shapiro often went unchallenged. Over time, I found myself becoming more and more entrenched in a traditionalist, far right worldview. Looking back, I know I hurt people emotionally during that period of my life, and I genuinely don't know where I would have ended up if something hadn't interrupted that path.

A few years ago, I decided to watch all of Star Trek. Everything from the original series through Lower Decks. I haven't watched anything from the franchise since then, but looking back, I realize that experience fundamentally changed me as a human being.

Star Trek didn't magically fix everything overnight, but it introduced ideas that slowly reshaped the way I saw the world. It showed me a vision of the future built around compassion, curiosity, cooperation, and acceptance. It showed me a universe where people could love who they loved, express who they truly were, and be valued for their humanity rather than judged for their differences.

At the time, I was still defensive about some of the show's messages and ideas. I wasn't suddenly a completely different person. But it planted something in me. From there, I became more interested in film and art more broadly, and I started experiencing incredible works created by people from communities and backgrounds I once would have struggled to understand or even appreciate. Over time, I found myself embracing a much more compassionate and inclusive way of seeing the world.

I don't know if it's selfish to share this story, especially because I don't see myself as some perfectly redeemed individual. I still have a lot to learn, and I think becoming a better person is a lifelong process. But I wanted to express how much this series meant to me.

Star Trek gave me a glimpse of a kinder future and, in doing so, helped me become a kinder person. It reminded me that empathy is something we can learn, that people can change, and that a better world is something worth working toward.

I’ve never really been into action-heavy shōnen anime, especially ones that lean a lot on familiar character and story tropes. That said, I’ve had several people who know my tastes tell me I might still enjoy One Piece despite that.

I’ve only seen a bit of the beginning so far, and it didn’t feel all that different from what I expected. Fairly standard for the genre. But I know a few of my own favourite anime, like Utena and Evangelion, eventually step away from a known formula and do something really different and transgressive for the medium. So I’m wondering: does the series eventually distinguish itself in a grander way, and if so, around when?

Thanks in advance.