It could be said that on a first watch, many viewers felt that Episode 1 of 'Fate/stay night' progressed very slowly.
Even though the protagonist was clearly Emiya Shirou, the entire episode was told from Tohsaka Rin's perspective.
Although in the Xia Nation version, Su Yan had chosen to adapt the Saber route—
If he wanted to develop Fate into a major IP in the future, he couldn't just patch in missing settings later.
So this episode was deliberately produced that way.
Most viewers were somewhat confused, but regardless—
Saber's appearance at the end of the episode was enough.
And of course, the fact that the ending theme started immediately after Saber appeared was clearly one of Su Yan's "evil tastes," earning him a flood of complaints.
["Su Yan, you old sadist—you're really not human!"]
["This episode feels so slow… did the main plot even move forward?"]
["Three Servants have already appeared. How is that slow?"]
["I just don't get why Shirou is the protagonist, but the story is told from Rin's perspective."]
["Because of Tohsaka Tokiomi, I had some bias toward Rin—but after this episode, she's way better than her dad."]
["Tokiomi wasn't a bad person, just very aristocratic. The Holy Grail War is a life-and-death struggle—there's no room for elegance, so he had to resort to underhanded methods."]
["So how exactly was Saber summoned?"]
["Shirou is Kiritsugu's son—he knows magecraft. Isn't it normal for him to summon Saber?"]
["The moment Saber sees Kiritsugu, wouldn't she just cut him down? Without Kiritsugu last time, she might've actually won the Grail."]
["What are you talking about? Gilgamesh was still there!"]
["Gilgamesh isn't interested in the Grail. In a real fight, he might not beat Saber."]
["Wasn't there a scene in the trailer where Shirou summons Saber? Why didn't it appear in Episode 1? Was it cut?"]
["No idea—we'll have to wait for Episode 2."]
["Even though it's slow-paced, Saber's appearance alone satisfied me."]
["Artoria!"]
["Sigh… now we have to wait another week to see Saber fight Archer. Pain…"]
After Episode 1 aired, online discussions continued nonstop throughout the night.
Although the episode contained numerous foreshadowing elements, most viewers couldn't pick up on them during a first watch.
By noon, the ratings for Episode 1 were released.
6.11%.
Within less than an hour, the number spread across the entire TV industry—and throughout Su Yan's fanbase.
Although Su Yan himself didn't set strict expectations for 'Fate/stay night's ratings, the production quality and accumulated popularity from its predecessor made it impossible for the show to stay low-key.
Even if the first episode was slow-paced, fans still watched it through to the end.
Because this show had Artoria.
For the entire following week, the popularity of 'Fate/stay night' didn't decline at all.
It held the number one spot on trending charts at all times.
Then Sunday arrived again—
Episode 2 aired.
This time, the story was told from Emiya Shirou's perspective, recounting the same day.
Sakura Matou, Taiga-sensei, and his friend Shinji Matou—
And Shirou himself, whose magecraft talent was practically nonexistent, yet still barely capable of simple reinforcement and repair magic.
That night, he happened to go to the school grounds and witnessed Archer and Lancer fighting.
To eliminate witnesses, Lancer didn't hesitate—
He struck Shirou down with a single blow.
When Shirou regained consciousness—
All he saw was the powerless red gem left beside him.
Struggling, he returned home—
Only to be pursued again by Lancer and struck down once more.
Staggering, he fled into his storage shed—
Where a summoning magic circle, left behind by his father, Emiya Kiritsugu, was inscribed.
In this scene, Su Yan invested heavily in production.
The magic circle lit up as Shirou entered.
The full moon hung high in the night sky.
A beautiful BGM began to play.
A boy on the brink of death.
A glowing summoning circle in the shed.
And then—
A beautiful girl in blue armor appeared.
"Servant, Saber. I have come in response to your summons. I ask of you—are you my Master?"
A line that had been repeated countless times in the trailer—
Yet in this moment, it felt completely different.
The emotional BGM struck deeply, making many viewers feel an inexplicable urge to cry.
"The reason I cannot speak—is it because everything happened so suddenly, leaving me at a loss? No… it's simply because the beauty of the girl before me has taken away my voice…"
As Shirou's inner monologue played—
Saber turned, her resolute face facing Lancer behind her.
The ending theme began.
The same day.
Two different perspectives.
Yet both stories ended at the same moment—
Artoria's appearance.
Fate fans celebrated twice in two weeks.
["I'm seriously beyond hyped."]
["This episode felt kind of messy."]
["Kiritsugu is actually dead? I didn't expect that at all."]
["No wonder he didn't show up and wipe out the Matou family."]
["Saber's entrance in this episode was strangely moving…"]
["That BGM during Artoria's appearance—what's it called? I love it."]
["I think it's called 'The King of Knights' Glory.' It's listed on the official site."]
["But wait—there's a problem. In Episode 1, didn't Archer return the red gem to Rin after she saved Shirou? Why is it still on the ground in Episode 2, and Shirou ends up taking it?"]
["No idea… plot hole?"]
["No way… did Su Yan really make such a basic mistake?"]
["This is Su Yan we're talking about!"]
["I don't believe it."]
["Seriously, the gem was returned in Episode 1, but now it's like this… even if it's minor, it's still a flaw."]
["Something feels off. If even we can notice it, how could Su Yan miss it while writing the script?"]
["You think he's a god? Mistakes happen—he's working on too many projects at once."]
["Still… Su Yan making such a low-level mistake?"]
["This is a TV broadcast drama—it's not rigorous enough."]
Episode 2 achieved a 6.18% rating and also recreated the iconic Saber summoning scene from the original game.
However, what concerned viewers the most was the "red gem plot hole."
For an average writer, such a mistake wouldn't be surprising.
But for Su Yan—
It felt far too basic.
Critics and opportunistic media immediately began stirring controversy.
At the same time, with two episodes spent just building up to the first meeting with Saber, some viewers felt the pacing was dragging.
What would Episode 3 bring?
From the end of Episode 1, it seemed likely to feature a confrontation between Rin and Shirou.
Episode 2 revealed more of the worldbuilding—
But also raised even more questions.
As for all of this—
Su Yan had already anticipated it.
Including the audience questioning the "gem inconsistency."
He couldn't explain it.
The moment he did, it would become a spoiler.
For now, all these doubts would remain.
And in just a few weeks—
They would all turn into self-inflicted embarrassment.