For the Fate/strange Fake that came out today, is there context before I start watching?

I've heard of the series before and think there were some anime before this. Is there an order or anything to watch before this or can I just start watching this? Like is this a sequel to something else?

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AutoModerator2026-01-04 18:33

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MusubiKazesaru2026-01-04 18:36

There' a prequel episode 0 to watch for Strange Fake specifically.

You miss out on some context by not having seen Fate/Zero, Fate/stay night (this one has multiple adaptations of multiple routes from the visual novels_, and Lord El-Melloi II-sei no Jikenbo, but I wouldn't say they're 100% necessary.

Comfortable_Diver4942026-01-04 21:57

Kinda are tbh there is a lot of stuff you won’t get if you just start watching it like why is Gil fighting a green haired guy who is the blonde lady who seems to hate both of em, what are dead dead apostles, why do the magi want to reach the root etc

kalirion2026-01-05 01:13

> Kinda are tbh there is a lot of stuff you won’t get if you just start watching it like why is Gil fighting a green haired guy who is the blonde lady who seems to hate both of em, what are dead dead apostles, why do the magi want to reach the root etc

You'd need more than just F/Z, FSN, and Waver's Case Files for that.

All I know about dead apostles myself is that they're some kind of old vampires or whatever, and don't have a clue about the blond lady.

inobob271232026-01-05 02:34

I’m confused definitely I only watched the main timeline and grand order nothing else and didn’t fate strange fake come out earlier this year with some movie or like I swear the episode was longer and I’ve seen this exact episode before and how does this relate to whispers of dawn?

kalirion2026-01-05 02:40

What do you mean by "main timeline"?

"Whispers of Dawn" is episode 0 of Fate/strange Fake, so you definitely need to watch that before episode 1.

Case Files would be helpful to get more acquainted with adult Waver, and, more importantly, with his student Flatt who seems to have a main role in strange Fake.

inobob271232026-01-05 02:42

By main like I watched chronologically so uhhh I forgot all the names of the series but out of the original shirou stories I watched blade works and then the movies and before that I watched the prequel I started with that

kalirion2026-01-05 02:46

By Prequel you mean F/Z? Then you're already aquainted with kid Waver. Case Files is about his grown up professor self who took over the position of his former professor from whom, in F/Z, he'd stolen Iskandar's cloak forcing him to settle for Zerkalot.

inobob271232026-01-05 02:47

Ohhh I knew that some of those fate strange fake characters looked familiar so that’s who it was it’s been a while since I’ve watched like I watched that series when it came out

notatoaster002026-01-05 21:55

Actually it was Lancer Diarmuid the professor settled for. Zerkalot was the Matou summon.

kalirion2026-01-05 22:03

Ah right, my bad!

KrimsonKurse2026-01-11 17:30

Dead Apostles are just Vampires of Nasu-verse. *True Ancestors* are the special Old Vampires that absolutely FUCK with reality.

SunshineGirl452026-01-06 06:44

Where are the new episodes coming out on?

MusubiKazesaru2026-01-06 07:33

Next Saturday should finally have the real episode 2.

Nomar_952026-01-04 18:42

Watch the Whispers of Dawn special. It's basically episode 0 and sets everything up

kbic932026-01-05 11:57

So don’t need to watch the other fates? Because I really don’t want to tbh…

Nomar_952026-01-05 14:05

most of the spinoffs are standalone, so you don't have to watch any of them to understand this.

But knowing the main story (the 3 parts of Fate/stay night) might help

Skytengri2026-01-05 20:57

You need to watch F/Z FSN UBW and El Melloi Case Files

No-Discount-49812026-01-06 13:44

You should really watch the fate series done by ufotable, they aren't just shows you need to watch to understand other shows, they are incredible animes on their own with some of the best visuals and fight scenes ever

Kurikamekurisu2026-01-07 21:21

Zero and Unlimited Blade Work are the only two you really need to watch and they’re both really good.

RoseSpinoza2026-01-09 17:55

muwaha\~ i've only watched Fate/COOKING and El Melloi Case files! And the first released episodes of FAKE of course.

....though I am familiar with the characters and lore (and spoilers) from the series due to excessive wiki-ing. (and sloooowly working my way through the first game. For the past... 6 years or so.)

You know, we all have our own way of experiencing this franchise ;) . Just follow your heart!

Anyways, I adore Flatt, El Melloi and Narita's writing style, so of course I'm going to continue watching FAKE :D .

warr_em2026-01-04 19:15

i couldve sworn it came out a year ago

Quiddity1312026-01-04 20:05

They've essentially been releasing 1 episode a year although now it looks like they're finally committing to a regular schedule

moichispa2026-01-04 21:33

More like 2 actually, last year was episode 1 (with the previous ova being episode 0)

pratzc072026-01-04 19:23

Fate Zero is a good watch if you have the time for it. Its also made by Studio Ufotable so expect crazy sakuga moments as well.

DanielAlves19042026-01-04 19:34

You should probably watch the main Fate story and then come back to this.

There´s this post you can read for a guide ( [https://www.reddit.com/r/fatestaynight/comments/df8rvo/rfatestaynights\_official\_viewing\_order\_guide\_v2/](https://www.reddit.com/r/fatestaynight/comments/df8rvo/rfatestaynights_official_viewing_order_guide_v2/) ), but basically, start with Fate/Zero or Fate/Unlimited Bladeworks(UBW). After UBW you should always watch the Fate Heaven´s Feel movies, there are 3 of them.

So the order is: Fate/Zero>Fate/UBW>Heavens Feel Movies or Fate/UBW>Heavens Feel Movies>Fate/Zero

After doing this, you´re good to go on every Fate show. For this one, watch Fate/Strange Fake: Whispers of Dawn, which is a prologue to the series and then you can start the actual show.

SnooDrawings18782026-01-04 19:46

its so sad, and great, seeing new people interested in Fate because of Strange Fake. Yeah you can watch it, but you may be super confused on A LOT of things not having seen the OG series'. Fate/Zero, Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works, and the 3 Heavens Feel movies all made by Ufotable are recommended before watching Strange Fake. You don't NEED to, but it will definitely help out understanding the world, some characters, and systems better before jumping into the deep end with Strange Fake. I wish you luck on your journey into worlds of Fate. It's a journey that keeps on going!

notatoaster002026-01-04 20:00

You can technically just start with Strange Fake but it's a super fan servicey show with numerous references to other Fate series. If you want to have a real backbone for Strange/Fake you should consider watching these.

**Fate Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works**
\- [Unlimited Blade Works Episode 0](https://myanimelist.net/anime/27821/Fate_stay_night__Unlimited_Blade_Works_Prologue)
\- [Unlimited Blade Works Season 1](https://myanimelist.net/anime/22297/Fate_stay_night__Unlimited_Blade_Works)
\- [Unlimited Blade Works Season 2](https://myanimelist.net/anime/28701/Fate_stay_night__Unlimited_Blade_Works_2nd_Season)

**Fate Stay Night Heavens Feel Movie Trilogy**
\- [First](https://myanimelist.net/anime/25537/Fate_stay_night_Movie__Heavens_Feel_-_I_Presage_Flower)
\- [Second](https://myanimelist.net/anime/33049/Fate_stay_night_Movie__Heavens_Feel_-_II_Lost_Butterfly)
\- [Third](https://myanimelist.net/anime/33050/Fate_stay_night_Movie__Heavens_Feel_-_III_Spring_Song)

**Fate Zero** this is actually a prequel to Fate/Stay Night, but is meant to be watched after as it's a prequel **sequel**.

\- [Season 1](https://myanimelist.net/anime/10087/Fate_Zero)
\- [Season 2](https://myanimelist.net/anime/11741/Fate_Zero_2nd_Season)

**Lord El Melloi II** Best watched after Fate Zero.

\- [Episode 0](https://myanimelist.net/anime/38936)
\- [Season 1](https://myanimelist.net/anime/38959)
\- [Movie: Magic Lantern](https://myanimelist.net/anime/49361)

Also if you like visual novels you could [play that](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2396980/Fatestay_night_REMASTERED/) since it's the actual source material. Basically though you will appreciate Strange/Fake much more with as much knowledge you can muster.

Ill_Act_18552026-01-06 00:54

I'd also recommend Fate Grand Order Babylonia (Luckily you only need to be familiar with Babylonia specifically which is fairly stand alone from the rest of grand order and can be enjoyed by itself and has it's own anime) which will become increasingly important as Strange Fake progresses, though frankly most of the really big stuff there won't matter until a hypothetical second season of Strange Fake but at that point there is at least one moment that will likely be confusing without certain context it provides

Miteigi742026-01-05 01:22

Strange Fake is a technical sequel to like 3 series, spiritual sequel to half of the franchise, and the most "YOOOO it's that one" Fate series out there. You can watch it as your first, but having more knowledge beforehand of what's being referenced every other minute is a different level of enjoyment

sirnumbskull2026-01-05 07:30

Okay, WHY did episode zero come out so long ago?

Juan_PH_162026-01-08 00:39

Where is this streaming?

Puzzleheaded-Rain6402026-01-10 06:02

i think to understand some things baseline expected is fate zero, and some fate stay night knowledge, a cursory knowledge of what a "real" holy grail war is and what a "ruler" class is, then you might wanna know that some characters are from other previous shows like waiver and zelretch

peptiresearcher812026-01-10 21:56

Plenty of good replies in here already. You definitely dont NEED to watch anything else before strange/fake though it would help to understand the context for what this series is about.

However I absolutely do recommend watching the OGs as they are fkn amazing.
The OG fate/stay night: unlimited blade works, the unbelievably amazing heavens feel movie trilogy that looks like it has one of the highest animation budgets ever, and fate/zero. It definitely isnt required to watch these first, but if you like strange/fake AT ALL then you would be doing yourself a massive disservice by not watching these at some point. Some of my all time favorite animes and they truly are amazing. Also the fate series that set everything up and made FATE what it is today.

There are several other spinoffs that are kinda whatever. I don't care for the spinoffs and wouldn't just recommend them to people myself. But the OG ones already listed are truly cinema. They are the reason so many people are into the FATE series in general. Strange/fake wouldn't he here without them. Also Ufotable absolutely blew it out of the water animating these. I mean like dropped an animation nuclear bomb type shit.

Also I would recommend watching the original 2006 fate/stay night to get started (if you can handle it) if you plan to commit to the series. Also I would NOT watch fate/zero first. It is the prequel but it isnt as good if you watch it first.

The order i would recommend is:
-fate/stay night (2006)
-unlimited bladeworks (2014)
-heavens feel trilogy
-THEN fate/zero
Fate/zero is a prequel that came out after the main series, and as such assumes you've watched the main series. It will spoil many things if you watch it before the main series. However if you only want watch ONE anime in the main series then yeah you could watch fate/zero and nothing else. But seriously if you want to watch the main series DO NOT watch Zero first. Not only will it make the main series less enjoyable, but you will actually enjoy Zero more if you watch the main series before it.

Can definitely still watch strange/fake first if you want but if you'd rather commit to the main series first than watch strange/fake at the end (though you may have already watched it by now).

Stay/night is the main series and where you will learn everything you need to know to understand how the fate universe works. It has all the context you need to know what is going on in any of the spinoffs really. Though I havent watched all of the spinoffs as none are as good as the main series and just irritates me bc of that.

Strange fake is fully standalone so you dont need to watch anything else for it. Though if you do watch the main series then you will appreciate strange fake so much more.

I really wish more people would get into the Fate series and I will always recommend the main series to anyone who likes action/fantasy anime.

peptiresearcher812026-01-10 22:00

Id like to reiterate and add that I see too many people recommending Fate/Zero first which just doesnt make sense. Sure its the prequel but it was made for everyone who already watched the series and for people who were only going to watch zero. In universe chronologically it came first but in real life it did not and behaves as such. It will be a less enjoyable experience overall to watch Zero first if you are going to watch the entire main series. I really don't get why so many people recommend Zero first. It's as if they want to lessen the viewing experience.