History Manga / FateKaleidLinerPrismaIllya

* CostumeTestMontage: The entire plot of the second special for ''2wei Herz!'' is this in a nutshell where Illya gets Chloe to model potential new outfits for her, from summer clothes to a new school outfit (even accidentally making her wear a BellyDancer outfit as an extra).

* VisualPun: When Mimi watches Illya kiss Chloe in Chapter 17 of ''2wei!'', the scene switches to a bouquet of lilies (i.e., [[YuriGenre yuri]]) that their other classmates were discussing. In the equivalent scene in the anime, it cuts from Illya and Chloe kissing to Caren noticing that the lilies outside her window are blooming.

* CloningBlues: Chloe is the suppressed memory/destiny of Illya as the Holy Grail conduit given form, technically making her closer to the Illya from ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' canon. She spends a good part of ''2wei!'' angry and bitter over not getting to be the "real" one.

** The way Julian [[spoiler: shrinks Pandora's box during his escape]] brings to mind [[Film/{{Transformers}} The All Spark/ The Cube]], particularly when Bumblebee touches it, causing it to shrink and become easier to transport.

* MegaManning: Illya and Miyu can utilize the powers of heroic spirits via Include and Installing after they defeat them and obtain their cards.

** Angelica, [[spoiler:in her Gilgamesh install]], wears a very skimpy bikini top that's nowhere near big enough to properly cover and support her BoobsOfSteel. Of course, her bosom is very obvious in any outfit she wears.

* KickTheSonOfABitch: Interestingly enough in ''3rei!!'', one of the mentioned casualties of [[spoiler:Julian's plans in Miyu's universe]] is none other than [[spoiler:Sakura and Shinji's "grandfather", Zouken Matou. Considering he's a known selfish monster who does horrible things to Sakura in the mainline series, killing him was probably one of Julian's only good deeds, intentional or otherwise.]]

** [[VisualNovel/FateStayNight Shirou]] [[NiceGuy Freaking]] [[DemotedToExtra Emi]][[ObliviousToLove ya]]. Let's count his potential {{Love Interest}}s: [[BrotherSisterIncest 1) Illya, 2) Chloe,]] [[{{Tsundere}} 3) Rin Tohsaka]], [[{{Ojou}} 4) Luviagelita Edelfeldt]], [[SenpaiKohai 5) Sakura Matou]], [[SatelliteCharacter 6) Nanaki's sister, Moriyama Nanami]], [[HoYay 7) Issei Ryuudou]], [[{{Meido}} 8) Sella]]... better, dude doesn't have to try.

** [[spoiler:Shirou]] is more or less normal in his universe. The version of him in [[spoiler:Miyu's world projects swords like his ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' counterpart and fighting on-par with Angelica, a.k.a. Gilgamesh.]]

** Another chapter in a flashback shows Rin and Luvia at the end of the one of their spats...and Shirou lying in a crater in a very similar pose to one of the Z-fighters who has been blown up.

* HarmfulToMinors: A mostly ignorable trope when the {{Fanservice}} is getting dialed up, which is more than half of the initial story... but not when shit hits the fan and ''loudly'' reminds us that [[CerebusRollercoaster this is indeed the ''Fate'' series]], whereupon it becomes obvious that these children are fighting for their lives. Rin and Luvia catch a fair bit of flak for this InUniverse and out.

** Miyu gives Sapphire a basic explanation of how she installed the Saber Card by bringing up terms like the Throne of Heroes and pseudo-summoning. The problem? In ''2wei!'', Rin and Luvia have no idea what the Holy Grail War is, meaning they couldn't have told her. [[spoiler:She has this knowledge because she's her universe's equivalent of the Holy Grail.]]

** Illya mentions how it's strange that Miyu's never been in the beach water despite living near the sea. In the anime, Miyu has an immediate reaction to the response before giving a short summary of her past. ''3rei!!'' reveals that [[spoiler:she was lying. Shirou is her elder brother, and after Kiritsugu died, he raised her alone until she was taken away by Julian]].

* AffectionateParody: Takes the CrapsackWorld of ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' and turns it into a LighterAndSofter MagicalGirl series. [[spoiler:Then injected with DarkerAndEdgier to bring it back to standard Fate levels with ''[=3rei=]!!''.]]
** The 3rd and 4th special episodes of ''[=2wei=] Herz!'' are parodies of various battle shounen tropes.

** At the end of ''2wei!'': [[spoiler: Miyu is taken by Ainsworth's warriors who are fighting the Holy Grail War from her AlternateUniverse.]] ToBeContinued in 3rei...

* CloningBlues: Chloe is the suppressed memory/destiny of Illya as the Holy Grail conduit given form, technically making her closer to the Illya from ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' canon. She spends a good part of 2wei angry and bitter over not getting to be the "real" one.

* CostumeTestMontage: The entire plot of the 2nd special for ''2wei Herz'' is this in a nutshell where Illya gets Chloe to model potential new outfits for her, from summer clothes to a new school outfit (even accidentally making her wear a BellyDancer outfit as an extra).

** In ''[=3rei=]'', Kid Gilgamesh deliberately invokes this, getting Illya to forgive him and accept his aid by calling her "onée-chan" (complete with blushing smile and [[BishieSparkle golden sparkles]]), piercing through her resistance instantly.

** Illya's [[spoiler:[[EleventhHourSuperPower dual wand wielding]] at the end of 2wei, which caused internal damage to her that Ruby had difficulties healing. She wanted to use it again in ''3rei!!'' if she could get her hands on Sapphire, to which Ruby immediately replied that she is forbidden from doing so.]]
** Illya increases her power [[spoiler:in this form by using her nerves, along with other organs, as pseudo magic circuits.]] [[MythologyGag Sounds a lot like a certain somebody, doesn't it]]?

** Chloe, the rival "Dark Illya" who shows up at the beginning of ''2wei''. She turns out to be Illya's suppressed memories of being a Homunculus built to serve as the Grail conduit, and she'll die if she doesn't have a regular supply of Mana or someone takes the Archer Card that gives her form.

* DemotedToExtra: Central characters in ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' are demoted to minor roles uninvolved with the main plot. Sakura for instance is just an ordinary student Shirou hangs out with, and former protagonist Shirou is just Illya's clueless big brother.
** Played with in ''3rei'', where [[spoiler:Shirou]] is a legitimate badass and plays a more important role, but only has a main character status in the flashback arc.
* DrJerk: Caren Ortensia cameos as the school nurse, where she has a tendency to consider patients' injuries 'boring' and ask they get hurt much more badly next time they come to see her. To add insult to non-injury, she often tells visitors to get lost because "healthy people make her sick."
* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: Illya's tears in her eyes pleading for Shirou to snap out of the drug induced trance as he pretty much forces himself on her.

* DontTryThisAtHome: While Illya's team was wrapping up their CloudCuckoolander team member to prevent her from screwing up their cake:
-->'''Nanami:''' Kids, be good and don't imitate this please.
* DoubleKnockout: Illya and Chloe's dodgeball match.

** Illya dual-wields [[spoiler:Ruby and Sapphire]] as an EleventhHourSuperPower at the end of ''[=2wei!=].

* DuelingMessiahs: Illya and [[spoiler:Julian Ainsworth]]. Angelica reveals that their world is running out of mana, and will become uninhabitable very soon. [[spoiler:[[WellIntentionedExtremist Julian]]'s plan is to sacrifice Miyu as the Holy Grail, and wish for humans to be able to survive the coming disaster. Illya is then presented with the SadisticChoice of saving Miyu or the world, and eventually decides to [[TookAThirdOption take the third option]] and find [[AlwaysSaveTheGirl a way to save both]], somehow. Julian is skeptical, and also states that if it was indeed possible to save both Miyu and their world, he believes that those two things will be the ''only'' things saved, implying something bigger happening]].

** But even her {{Dynamic Entr|y}}ies are no match for her mother Irisviel, who '''''jumps a [[CoolCar Mercedes Benz 300SL "Gullwing"]] into the scene!'''''
** Miyu also has taken a turn at this and saved Illya from Bazett. [[CurbStompBattle Not for long, sadly.]]
* EarlyAdaptationWeirdness: The beginning of the ''3rei'' anime was less than graceful. [[spoiler:While Angelica and Beatrice managing to find their way to Illya's world is made more believable in this case (see AdaptationExpansion above), the scenes conceived to fit it are less so: ''2wei Herz'' ended with the girls and their schoolfriends doing homework. ''3rei'' awkwardly starts from ''that exact same homework scene'' and makes a ContrivedCoincidence for the heroines to return to Mt. Enzou within the same day, at the exact moment Angelica and Beatrice jump between worlds.]]

* EmpathicWeapon: Kaleido Ruby and Kaleido Sapphire are the [[{{Boke And Tsukkomi Routine}} Laurel And Hardy]] of MagicalGirl weapons.

** It's the Nasuverse, what were you expecting? [[AvertedTrope Seems to be averted]] with the Kaleidostick wielders, however. [[JustifiedTrope Possibly justified]], in that the Kaleidosticks supplies its prana via [[spoiler:[[AnotherDimension Second Magic.]]]]
** Rin actually ends up expending most of her jewels, and is forced to take a job... as Luvia's maid.

* EveryoneIsRelated: One page indicates that Miyu, Rin and Luvia know who Shirou is (even though they didn't know Illya.) And he looks like Miyu's brother[[note]]Or rather, he is Miyu's brother in Miyu's home universe, and we never met Shirou's biological family in Illya's universe[[/note]].
* EvilTwin: Chloe from 2wei, a dark-skinned version of Illya with Archer's powers representing Illya's suppressed identity as a Mage / Grail conduit. At first Chloe tries to kill Illya in order to replace her, only to [[DefeatMeansFriendship move in as Illya's "cousin" after being defeated]] and develop a friendly SiblingRivalry with Illya instead.

* FieldOfBlades: The Archer Card is associated with one, which appears once in the anime and multiple times in the manga. ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' and ''3rei'' reveals that [[spoiler:it is [[MentalWorld Unlimited Blade Works]], Heroic Spirit EMIYA's reality marble and the source of his Projection abilities. Miyu's brother develops the ability to invoke it through prolonged exposure to his own Card.]]

** Miyu gives Sapphire a basic explanation of how she installed the Saber Card by bringing up terms like the Throne of Heroes and pseudo-summoning. The problem? In ''2wei'', Rin and Luvia have no idea what the Holy Grail War is, meaning they couldn't have told her. [[spoiler:She has this knowledge because she's her universe's equivalent of the Holy Grail.]]
** Furthermore, when Irisviel mentions the Holy Grail War to Chloe and Illya, only Miyu gives a surprised reaction. In contrast, Illya is properly confused and Chloe is indifferent to it. It takes until ''3rei!'' for this to get a proper explanation.
** Illya mentions how it's strange that Miyu's never been in the beach water despite living near the sea. In the anime, Miyu has an immediate reaction to the response before giving a short summary of her past. ''3rei'' reveals that [[spoiler:she was lying. Shirou is her older brother, and after Kiritsugu died, he raised her alone until she was taken away by Julian]].
** The number of similarities Miyu has to Illya is also extremely suspicious - same birth sign and similar older brothers is one thing, but having the same ''birthday'' is another (which even ''Kuro'' is surprised by, and even she catches on early that there was something unusual about Miyu). [[spoiler:This hints that she's Illya's alternate universe counterpart.]]
** Throughout ''3rei'', the Archer Card is constantly alluded to as TheDreaded by the Ainsworths. We later learn that [[spoiler:it's Shirou's Card, and he soloed the Fifth Holy Grail War with it]].

** A slight one happens in ''2wei'', halting the GottaKillThemAll Card collection in favor of SliceOfLife and some exploration on Illya's backstory. Then the story takes a massive turn in ''3rei'' where the [[DarkerAndEdgier tone becomes much darker]], the SliceOfLife is toned down significantly, and the Card collection plot disappears entirely. The MagicalGirl elements are retained, but only as a means to an end, rather than the focus of the story.
** When [[spoiler:Shirou]] tells his story, the MagicalGirl elements all but disappear as the story shifts into a parallel version ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight''.
* GodzillaThreshold: The Ainsworth family's plan is such a threat to the world that [[spoiler:'''Gaia's Counter Force''' intervened to try and stop them]]. [[note]]It's incredibly rare in the ''Fate'' series for Gaia to mobilize its own Counter Force. It's usually Alaya's Counter Force that intercepts and provides support against world-ending threats such as in ''Fate/Grand Order''.[[/note]]

** Iri and Kiritsugu, despite almost never being home, provided a safe and loving home for their children, and when Iri shows up she's nothing but love and gentle teasing for her daughter(s). [[spoiler:It's all but said that they destroyed the Einzbern family to permanently end the Fuyuki Grail Wars for Illya's sake.]]

* GottaCatchThemAll: The characters have to assemble the 7 Class Cards.

** The Class Cards manifest as Heroic Spirits, meaning they have to be killed before they can be retrieved.
** In ''3rei'', [[spoiler:Miyu's brother has to kill the other six participants of the Holy Grail War in order to claim their Cards and save Miyu.]]
* GrandTheftMe: [[spoiler:After Miyu and her older brother, an [[AlternateUniverse alternate]] version of Shirou, are rescued, Angelica performs a HeelFaceTurn, revealing more of the Ainsworths' secrets. Specifically, that Darius Ainsworth is the family's "all-father", and that his mind will eventually take over Julian's body, as it has done with every previous head of the Ainsworth family, making Darius effectively immortal.]]
* GratuitousGerman: Rin and Luvia's spells. Also, Illya's attack callouts.
* HeartIsAnAwesomePower: [[spoiler:The Ainzworths]] practice Displacement magecraft. As in, remove something from its original position and put it somewhere else. And in true ''Fate'' fashion, this one spell is used to ''insane'' extremes; [[spoiler:creating the Class Cards by attaching Heroic Spirits on the cards, reviving the dead by attaching them to dolls, avoiding attacks by displacing them, WeaponizedTeleportation, making Gate of Babylon even ''more'' dangerous by making the projectiles faster and go through unpredictable trajectories, allowing Darius to BodySurf...]]
* HarmfulToMinors: A mostly ignorable trope when the {{Fanservice}} is getting dialed up, which is more than half of the story... but not when shit hits the fan and ''loudly'' reminds us that [[CerebusRollercoaster this is indeed the Fate series]], whereupon it becomes obvious that these children are fighting for their lives. Rin and Luvia have caught a fair bit of flak for this InUniverse and out.
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Chloe]] in chapter 59 of 3rei. [[spoiler:Up until that moment it was never clear what parts of Darius were real or illusion, but Kuro knows the hand killing her is real, so she uses that chance to stab him with the Origin Bullet, destroying his magic circuits.]]

** Averted for everyone else. Bazett is still covered in bandages after fighting Gilgamesh and explains that she's using a healing rune on herself. Later, [[spoiler:Miyu's brother's]] injuries are magically healed by [[spoiler:Rin]], but [[spoiler:a large scar across his stomach remains]]. In the flashback arc, [[spoiler:Shirou's]] injuries persist between chapters. In the same arc, [[spoiler:the Dolls]] retain permanent injuries after their deaths.

* IconicOutfit: Installs grant outfits that are similar to those of the associated Heroic Spirit.

** Deconstructed. Illya has a few moments of this, particularly after the powers sealed inside her start acting up. This infuriates Chloe, who represents all the parts of Illya that ''aren't'' normal. Illya realizes this is a slap in the face to Miyu as well, who only knows Illya because they both became {{Magical Girl}}s.

** [[spoiler:Miyuverse Shirou realize that he and Sakura were projecting their desire to pretend to be normal people on each other, using each other as a symbol of their "normal" life.]]

** Luvia has one of those when [[spoiler:Irisviel invites she, Rin and Miyu to spend some days at the Emiya household since the Edelfelt mansion was destroyed by Bazzet]]. Her line of thought involves [[spoiler:sleeping together with Shirou, having a baby and ''marrying'' him.]]

* ImprobableAge: Deconstructed. Illya is ten when she becomes a Magical Girl. However, she does '''not''' have the mentality of a Magus like Rin and Luvia. She is nearly killed multiple times and she's absolutely terrified like a normal girl would be.
** In ''2wei'', even Bazett disapproves and calls out Rin on it.
---> '''Bazett''': "[[WhatTHeHellHero Involving people not connected to this, and children to boot... Is really something that I can't respect as a Mage.]]"
** In ''3rei'', Rin reflects on this fact.
---> '''Rin''': Looking back on it all, I can't believe I let a kid go through those terrible things. She had to fight, she got hurt, and she lost her way...
* InSpiteOfANail: A lot events from ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' still end up happening despite ''Literature/FateZero'' having been avoided in this timeline.

---> '''Chloe:''' Thanks for the treat!

** In 3rei, [[spoiler:the castle of Ainsworth]] is invisible to anyone not in its close vicinity.

* KickTheSonOfABitch: Interestingly enough in ''3rei'', one of the mentioned casualties of [[spoiler:Julian's plans in Miyu's universe]] is none other than [[spoiler:Sakura and Shinji's "grandfather", Zouken Matou. Considering he's a known selfish monster who does horrible things to Sakura in the mainline series, killing him was probably one of Julian's only good deeds, intentional or otherwise.]]

** Notably, while the anime mostly keeps its {{Panty Shot}}s to the [[HotterAndSexier fanservice-packed]] [[OriginalVideoAnimation OVAs]], the manga thoroughly averts {{Magic Skirt}}s throughout, especially after the introduction of ''3rei's'' [[ArtEvolution more detailed, cleaner artstyle]]. This also extends to situations where a panty shot is just a result of realistic skirt behavior, and [[FanDisservice certainly NOT meant to be appealing to the reader]], such as [[spoiler:a terrified younger Miyu collapsing to her knees after witnessing her brother be seriously injured trying to protect her from her kidnapper]].

** Miyu also is a "something." It's mentioned that she required an UndeadTaxExemption; and like Illya; she can manifest cards within herself. Kaleido Ruby comments that if Miyu had used her true power in their initial sparring, Illya would have been creamed. It then asks if Illya knows just what Miyu is. [[spoiler:In ''3rei'' it is revealed that she's the Holy Grail of her world and Shirou's younger sister.]]

** It's implied by Chloe that [[spoiler:Kiritsugu]] abandoned his beliefs of saving the many at the cost of the few in order to [[spoiler:save his family.]]

* NothingIsTheSameAnymore: An Eighth Servant class is noted by Irisveil to be impossible (the secret Avenger class notwithstanding), as when the Einzbern family were in charge of the Holy Grail War in the past, they never summoned more than seven Servants and never more than one of each type. This conversation also stresses that the Einzbern Holy Grail Wars as in the original series explicitly used '''Servants, not Class Cards''', and not even Iri knows what the Class Cards are. The revelation, followed by the appearance of the Eighth Class Card (that also ''isn't'' Avenger), flies in the face of what everyone thought they knew and throws the established ''Fate'' plot right out the window.

** In 2wei, the magical girls give a collective one when [[spoiler:Gilgamesh brings out Ea. In fact, this is pretty much the default reaction to Gilgamesh doing ''anything''.]]
** At the start of [=3rei=], when [[spoiler:Angelica and Beatrice Ainsworth]] emerge from the dimensional distortion, upon recognizing them the normally-stoic Miyu has an expression of ''utter terror''.

* RummageFail: In ''3rei'', Gilgamesh attempts to withdraw Vimana from the Gate of Babylon, but is unable to find it (his treasury having been split in two and divided between himself and Angelica). He casually tosses out a number of legendary treasures while rummaging around for something that might be useful in the situation.

* ScrewYourself: [[spoiler:Being partially Archer, Chloe's feelings toward Shirou are technically this, while also being a case of BrotherSisterIncest.]] And then in ''3rei'', Chloe and Illya get a little too chummy...

** And 2wei Chapter 12 brings us ''Epic Cake-baking''.

* SequelHook: The anime has one. In Episode 10, Bazett walks through an airport after the credits end. ''2wei Herz'' has one as well, [[spoiler:showing Angelica and Beatrice arriving in Illya's world]].

** To a lot of ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' {{doujinshi}}. Such as "Sword Dancers" (aka "Archerko") and "Unlimited Maid Works".

** At one point, Kaleido Ruby suggests they 'explore' an alternate dimension by 'reducing it to nothing with a [[Anime/LyricalNanoha 'Lyrical Grade']] magical blast'.
** In Episode 10 of anime, Illya uses Nanoha's "Zenryoku Zenkai!"[[note]] Maximum Power!/Full Power! [[/note]] CatchPhrase when firing a point-blank mana blast at the Berserker Class Card.
*** In Chapter 9.5, Karen-sensei is showing putting sugar into green tea. Six of them. At least unlike Lindy, she didn't put milk in it...

*** Another chapter in a flashback shows Rin and Luvia at the end of the one of their spats...and Shirou laying in a crater in a very familiar pose one of the Z-fighters did after being blown up.

** The visuals that appear when Kuro explains what BL is in episode 3 of ''2Wei Herz'' involves Kotomine and Kiritsugu, a nod to Anime/FateZero's astounding popularity with BL fans (Kotomine/Kiritsugu being an especially popular ship).
** In the same episode, Mimi reads a BL doujin starring two characters named "Scarecrow" and "Dolphin", in other words, [[Manga/{{Naruto}} Kakashi and Iruka]].
** A few of the weapons that Angelica fires out of the Gate of Babylon look a [[http://www.mangahere.co/manga/fate_kaleid_liner_prisma_illya_drei/c019/5.html lot]] [[https://staticdelivery.nexusmods.com/mods/110/images/15755-1-1335180973.jpg like]] [[http://www.mangahere.co/manga/fate_kaleid_liner_prisma_illya_drei/c019/7.html some]] [[http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/darksouls/images/e/e6/Black_knight_GS.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20130209031143 weapons]] from VideoGame/DarkSouls.
*** [[spoiler: The mud giants that Darius/Julian summons from Pandora's Box]] bear more than a passing resemblance to the [[https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/darksouls/images/8/80/The_Last_Giant.png/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/330?cb=20140608161401 Last]][[https://i.imgur.com/WZZ3EOl.jpg Giant]] from VideoGame/DarkSoulsII.

** Ig-Alima being green and Shul-Shagana being red bring to mind [[Anime/{{Symphogear}} certain other show with green Ig-Alima and red(ish) Shul-Shagana]].

** [[spoiler:Miyu's world dying]] follows one of Nasu's oldest works, ''Literature/AngelNotes''. [[spoiler:The reason is "Grain", a byproduct of mana uses that harmful for living creatures.]]

** Angelica gives Illya a basic rundown of how ''Nasuverse'' Magecraft works, explaining the concepts of prana, mana, od, and magic circuits.
** Chloe and Illya's Rho Aias have four petals while [[spoiler:Miyu's brother's]] has seven petals. In ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', [[spoiler:only Archer's Rho Aias has seven petals while Shirou's has four]], following along with the fact that [[spoiler:Miyu's brother is approaching the former's level.]]

** In Fate/Zero, Saber can't use Excalibur properly with only one hand. Naturally, [[spoiler:Zachary can't use Excalibur properly with only one arm]].
** The [[spoiler:Berserker Succession Install that Illya uses on the battle against Beatrice is Gorgon. Miyu also Installs Hassan of Serenity from Assassin card.]]

* SimpleSolutionWontWork: [[spoiler:When the girls face off against Beatrice, she installs a Class Card that gives her access to Thor's hammer Mjölnir, thus giving her access to the Powers of a Divine Spirit. Instead of trying to overpower her, they decide to recreate the conditions of Thor's death to take advantage of his conceptual weakness, which means poisoning Beatrice and forcing her to take seven steps backwards. It doesn't work because even though Mjölnir is Thor's SignatureWeapon, he wasn't the only one to ever wield it. The class card Beatrice uses actually grants her the power of Thor's ''son'', Magni. This means that they have to beat Beatrice the ''hard'' way.]]

* SkinshipGrope: Pops up a few times, including one awkward example wherein Illya gets felt up in the bath by her ''mother''.
* SmartPeopleWearGlasses: OnceASeason for strategic meetings, a character will put the glasses on to lecture others in a manner similar to teacher and schoolkids. Rin in ''2wei'', Luvia in ''2wei Herz'', Chloe in ''3rei''.
* SortingAlgorithmOfEvil: Averted. The major enemies of each arc vary widely in their power scale and morality. The 7 Cards are feral and vary wildly in strength, Bazett is neutral and about on-par with the Cards, [[spoiler:Card!Gilgamesh]] is insanely powerful, but lacks higher judgement beyond his instincts to pursue [[spoiler:the grail]]. The Ainsworths are the closest that an antagonist in the series gets to evil, but they're below [[spoiler:Card!Gilgamesh]] on the power scale and their actions are to [[spoiler:[[AntiVillain save humanity.]] Or so it seems, but following some revelations about [[BodySurf Darius]] [[GrandTheftMe Ainsworth]], Illya and the gang start to doubt whether this is true.]]
* TheSpock: Miyu's weakness, a lack of imagination in a world where this powers up your magic.

** The anime opening shows the Cards being used in battle.
** ''2wei'' shows the fight between Miyu and Chloe, as well as the battle with Bazett.
** In ''2wei Herz'', the opening shows [[spoiler:the fight with Gilgamesh]] and [[spoiler:Miyu's brother]].
** ''3rei'' shows, among other important plot points, [[spoiler: Erika being affiliated with the Ainsworths]], and [[spoiler: Illya during her time trapped in a stuffed bear.]]
* StayInTheKitchen: Inverted with Sella in the first episode. She actually wants Shirou to leave the housework to her so that he can be a better big-brother example to Illya. You could say that she wants him out of the kitchen.

* StormingTheCastle: The plot of 3rei. [[spoiler:Shirou challenging the Masters of Miyu's [[AnotherDimension dimension]] to save her. She's held in an actual castle there.]]

--> "You unlocked the Miyu route!"

** [[spoiler:Because Sakura is a [[ManOfKryptonite Woman of Kryptonite]] to Shirou's Projection magecraft, his second encounter with her involves guns and explosives. It only works until he runs out of ammo, after which he is at Sakura's mercy again. Despite his meticulous planning to handle her on his own, he simply ''cannot'' defeat his natural counter without help.]]

* TakeAThirdOption: When Illya is forced to choose between [[spoiler:Miyu or the world, she chooses neither. Instead, she seeks to find a solution where [[MythologyGag everybody can be happy.]]]]

** The final battles of Seasons 1, 3, and 4 all had their respective opening themes played as Illya & company turn the tide to win the day.
** [[spoiler:As usual, EMIYA will blare on the background where Shirou is showing his badassery.]]
* ThenLetMeBeEvil: [[spoiler:This is Miyu's Brother's response toward Julian when he claims he will doom humanity by saving Miyu.]]
* TheReveal: ''3rei'' goes DarkerAndEdgier as a result of finally cutting into the biggest mystery of the plot, that being who Miyu really is, resulting in a conga line of major revelations. [[spoiler:The Class Cards everyone has been hunting down to prevent a Holy Grail War? They weren't even for ''this'' world's Holy Grail War, but for the war of an AlternateUniverse. Miyu hails from that universe as '''the Grail Conduit''' like Illya was supposed to be for her own, and the Ainsworth family was trying to make her fulfill her role. Miyu's foster brother, the Emiya Shirou of that world, derailed that plan by ''winning the war'' and wishing for Miyu to have a better life, bringing her to Illya's world... but this ends up bringing eight class cards (seven of each type and Gilgamesh) with her, kickstarting the plot.]]

** Alternate universe or not, Rin is still Rin. And to make things worse, Illya is almost completely incapable of bringing out her ''deredere'' side. [[spoiler:It's only reserved for Shirou.]]
** And Sella, although she seems to reserve her 'dere' for Illya exclusively. Poor Shirou in particular gets an almost unending stream of hostility.

---> '''Illya:''' I'm back.\\

* TransformationTrinket: The Kaleidosticks allow its users to transform into magical girls. The Class Cards serve a similar function when installed, granting the user access to the powers of the Heroic Spirit it is based off of. They play a much larger role in ''3rei'', taking the place of Servants in the [[spoiler:Ainsworth Holy Grail War]].
* TruceZone: The gang encounters Bazett during the BeachEpisode, who is working off the damage she did during their fight as an iced treat vendor.
* UndeadTaxExemption: Luvia cooks one of these up for Chloe when her presence is revealed to the rest of Illya's school. Interestingly enough, Luvia comments that they had done the same thing for Miyu...
* UndyingLoyalty: Miyu is loyal to Illya period.

* VisualPun: When Mimi watches Illya kiss Chloe in Chapter 17 of 2wei, the scene switches to a bouquet of lilies (i.e. [[GirlsLove yuri]]) that their other classmates were discussing. In the equivalent scene in the anime, it cuts from Illya and Chloe kissing to Caren noticing that the lilies outside her window are blooming.

* WakeUpGoToSchoolSaveTheWorld: Illya and Miyu (and later Kuro) continue to attend school in between their adventures. [[spoiler:At least until they all get transported to Miyu's [[CrapsackWorld crapsack]] AlternateUniverse]].

* WorldOfBadass: The alternate universe in [=3rei=]. There, not only is series ButtMonkey Shirou is if possible even more deadly than his canon self, but even franchise-wide loser [[spoiler:'''''Matou Shinji''''']] is a legitimately deadly threat.

* YaoiFangirl: Illya's friend Suzuka and her sister. They eventually got Mimi addicted to it.

* ACupAngst: The flat chested Sella freaks out in one chapter about her chest being so much smaller than the well-built Leysritt. Rin also has insecurities about her chest size than her well-endowed rival Luvia.

** In the anime, Rin is suddenly working as a maid for Luvia as of Season 2. The explanation is that she eventually used up all the jewelry she needs for magecraft and had to take up a job to purchase more (which Luvia preyed upon). This context wasn't covered in the main episodes and was instead relegated to a bonus scene in the Season 1 DVD/Blu-ray, so anime-only viewers unaware of the bonus content were a bit confused.

** Since ''2wei Herz'' focuses on Miyu, she gets more screentime even in scenes she originally didn't appear in, like the side-story about BL, which in the manga only has Illya and Chloe visibly present.
** The transition between ''2wei Herz'' and ''3rei'' was given a retool. [[spoiler:Instead of Angelica and Beatrice showing up out of the crack in reality Gilgamesh's Enuma Elish made and kidnapping Miyu, in the anime there is no crack, and the heroines get to enjoy a brief happy epilogue. What gets Angelica and Beatrice on Miyu's trail instead is that Gilgamesh's card is warped back to their own world, giving them a lead and a reason to be at Mt. Enzou when it time-space shifts naturally, where they have to actively fight the heroines first before taking Miyu.]]

* AffectionateParody: Takes the CrapsackWorld of ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' and turns it into a LighterAndSofter MagicalGirl series. [[spoiler:Then injected with DarkerAndEdgier to bring it back to standard Fate levels with [=3rei=].]]
** The 3rd and 4th special episodes of [=2wei=] Herz are parodies of various battle shounen tropes.

** The identities of the Class Cards correspond to the Heroic Spirits in ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', though some of their names are revealed throughout the series. Of course, the identity of the [[spoiler:Archer]] Card is a major plot point in ''3rei''.
** Illya's father and Shirou's adopted father is Kiritsugu Emiya, a Magus and the protagonist of ''Literature/FateZero''. [[spoiler:In ''3rei'', his parallel counterpart, Miyu's father, carries his title of Magus Killer.]]
** The Einzberns were an aristocratic Mage family that designed the original Holy Grail War, a battle between seven masters and seven servants to get their wish granted. Illya's high mana capacity stems from her rich bloodline and [[spoiler:her nature as a Grail Conduit.]]
** Rin and Luvia specialize in Jewel Magecraft. The Magecraft Irisviel uses to knock out Chloe is Alchemy. Chloe [[spoiler:and Miyu's brother]] utilize a specialized version of Projection Magecraft.
** The reason why [[spoiler:Miyu's brother's]] Magecraft is identical to the Archer Card's is because the Heroic Spirit it corresponds to [[spoiler:is a future version of Shirou Emiya himself.]]

** Rin goes silent after hearing about [[spoiler:Sakura's]] fate in ''3rei''. When Luvia notices and asks her about it, she simply brushes it off as her thinking to herself. She's also oddly knowledgeable about the magecraft that [[spoiler:Sakura]] uses. Anyone who's read ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' or ''Literature/FateZero'' would realize that [[spoiler:she was probably distressed about the fact that her younger sister was killed. It takes until Chapter 70.2 for the shoe to finally drop]].
* AlternateUniverseReedRichardsIsAwesome: Two very notable examples pop up in ''3rei''.
** [[spoiler:Shirou]] is more or less normal in his universe. In [[spoiler:Miyu's world? He's projecting swords like his ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' counterpart and fighting on-par with Angelica aka freakin' Gilgamesh.]]
** [[spoiler:Sakura]] gets introduced as a part of a short story. [[spoiler:In ''3rei'', she's the user of the ''Literature/FateZero'' Berserker Install, and has expanded backstory in Shirou's flashback.]]

** [[spoiler:Miyu]] escaped to the ''Prisma Illya'' world from a world that borrows the theme from ''Literature/AngelNotes'' and the ''Heaven's Feel'' route of ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight''. Participants of the Holy Grail War from that world eventually cross over to take their conduit back [[spoiler:in hopes of using her to save their dying world]]. It's revealed that the world diverged in the Age of Gods, [[spoiler:when Pandora's Box was never opened]].

* AnguishedDeclarationOfLove: [[spoiler:Sakura]] gives one to [[spoiler:Shirou]] after confronting him about the [[spoiler:Holy Grail War]], offering to abandon everything with him if he decides to runs away. As seen from his internal monologue, he actually considers the idea, even having ImagineSpot of being married to her, but rejects the choice because it would mean [[spoiler:sacrificing Miyu]].

* ArtEvolution: In terms of quality, both of its sequels look much better than the ''Fate/kaleid''. While ''2wei'' streamlined the art style of its characters, particularly the eyes and faces, ''3rei'' refined much of it, giving the series a modern look and feel.

* BattleButler: Luvia's butler, August. In episode 8 of 2wei, he actually manages to hold off Bazett.

* BodySurf: [[spoiler:After Illya and co. rescue Miyu from the Ainsworths, [[HeelFaceTurn Angelica]] reveals that Darius was the first head of the Ainsworth clan, and that his mind is transferred to each of successive head of the family, transforming them into him]].

** Illya's "cousin"/"sister" Chloe also has no problem making out with Shirou against his will. Or with Illya herself, although that also has an element of ScrewYourself (and justified, as [[spoiler:she needs IntimateHealing in order to live and Illya is the most compatible and efficient "donor"]]).

** Shirou also ends up getting beaten up in ''almost every chapter he appears''. And in Iri's family hierarchy chart, his position is even below the maids.

* CanonForeigner: Every character is a version of a ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' counterpart, except for Miyu and the Ainsworths. [[MyFriendsAndZoidberg And Tanaka.]] [[spoiler:As all came from an AlternateUniverse.]]
* CardsOfPower: The Class Cards can be included, granting the user a Noble Phantasm based on the individual Card, or installed, giving the user access to the abilities and appearances of the Heroic Spirit the card is based off of.

* CensorSteam: All the girls' nipples and nether regions are entirely non-visible thanks to conveniently steamy baths or light.
* CerebusRetcon: Early in ''2wei'', Miyu hugs Illya's older brother, explaining that he resembles her own older brother. Later during a sleepover, this gets played off as her having a crush on Shirou. ''3rei'' reveals that [[spoiler:Miyu's older brother is a parallel Shirou Emiya. The last time she saw him was months ago after she arrived in Illya's world and before that, a month after she was kidnapped]].
* CerebusRollercoaster: The series shifts between "pure humorous and unadulterated fanservice" and "typical Fate plot with magical girls thrown in" multiple times, often with little-to-no warning.

** Remember that giant swamp that Rin and Luvia fall into in ''2wei''? They use it later to catch Chloe.

** [[VisualNovel/FateStayNight Shirou]] [[NiceGuy Freaking]] [[DemotedToExtra Emi]][[ObliviousToLove ya]]. Let's count his potential LoveInterest: [[BrotherSisterIncest 1) Illya, 2) Chloe,]] [[{{Tsundere}} 3) Rin Tohsaka]], [[{{Ojou}} 4) Luviagelita Edelfeldt]], [[SenpaiKohai 5) Sakura Matou]], [[SatelliteCharacter 6) Nanaki's Sister, Moriyama Nanami]], [[HoYay 7) Issei Ryuudou]], [[{{Meido}} 8) Sella]]... better, dude doesn't have to try.

* ChildrenDoTheHousework: A variation. Shirou is apparently in competition with Sella to do the housework, even though Sella is actually the family maid and would prefer that Shirou not steal her work. This character trait is a holdover from the original [[VisualNovel/FateStayNight Fate/stay night]], where Shirou does all his own housework because he's the only one living in his house.

** At the end of ''2wei'': [[spoiler: Miyu is taken by Ainsworth's warriors who are fighting the Holy Grail War from her AlternateUniverse.]] ToBeContinued in 3rei...

** Illya's [[spoiler:[[EleventhHourSuperPower dual wand wielding]] at the end of 2wei, which caused internal damage to her that Ruby had difficulties healing. She wanted to use it again in 3rei if she could get her hands on Sapphire, to which Ruby immediately replied that she is forbidden from doing so.]]

** The second "season" called 2wei [[spoiler:is mostly the same, being full of light-hearted moments, even though there are some more serious elements like Chloe's existence, Bazett's appearance, and the fight against the 8th card]].
** The third "season" called 3rei [[spoiler: is much more serious. There are still a few comedic elements, especially in the {{Omake}}, but between Miyu being held captive by Ainsworths, Miyu's brother being held captive by her captives, and Illya's party being trapped in a CrapsackWorld, it is debatable whether this trope still applies]].

** [[spoiler:Sakura]] gets introduced as a part of a short story. [[spoiler:In ''3rei'', she's the user of the ''LightNovel/FateZero'' Berserker Install, and has expanded backstory in Shirou's flashback.]]

%%* ForWantOfANail: ''2wei!'' reveals the divide between ''Prisma Illya'''s timeline and ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' is in fact very minor: This version of Illya's parents chose to destroy the grail ritual and kill the other Einzberns rather than going through with the Fourth Grail War seen in ''LightNovel/FateZero''. All so their daughter could have a happy, normal life.

* PaintingTheMedium: The second season begins with the girls wondering why their outfits have changed, and the only explanation given is something along the lines of 'because a new storyline started'.

* ActorAllusion: Invoked in the Latin American Spanish dub: Saber is voiced by Alicia Barragan, who previously voiced Saber's {{Expy}} Alice Zuberg in ''LightNovel/SwordArtOnline''.

* AllThereInTheManual: While the plot does a decent job at introducing it, much of the background elements in ''Fate/Kaleid'' can only be understood if the reader or viewer has prior knowledge with ''LightNovel/FateZero'', ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', and ''VisualNovel/FateHollowAtaraxia''.

** Illya's father and Shirou's adopted father is Kiritsugu Emiya, a Magus and the protagonist of ''LightNovel/FateZero''. [[spoiler:In ''3rei'', his parallel counterpart, Miyu's father, carries his title of Magus Killer.]]

** Rin goes silent after hearing about [[spoiler:Sakura's]] fate in ''3rei''. When Luvia notices and asks her about it, she simply brushes it off as her thinking to herself. She's also oddly knowledgeable about the magecraft that [[spoiler:Sakura]] uses. Anyone who's read ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' or ''LightNovel/FateZero'' would realize that [[spoiler:she was probably distressed about the fact that her younger sister was killed. It takes until Chapter 70.2 for the shoe to finally drop]].

** ''Prisma Illya'' takes place in an alternate version of the ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' universe where ''LightNovel/FateZero'' never happened. ''2wei!'' implies Kiritsugu and Irisviel murdered the other Einzberns and destroyed the Grail ritual in order to protect this version of Illya instead.

* InSpiteOfANail: A lot events from ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' still end up happening despite ''LightNovel/FateZero'' having been avoided in this timeline.

** Illya can probably sympathize with [[LightNovel/ACertainMagicalIndex Touma]] after [[http://www.mangafox.com/manga/fate_kaleid_liner_prisma_illya_2wei/v02/c011/11.html this]] scene.

* AdaptationDistillation: The animated series lost some content when it transitioned to film format mid-''3rei!!''. This wasn't so bad for ''Vow in the Snow'' since it was a WholeEpisodeFlashback, so it was easy to drop the present day scenes[[note]](they were all just Illya and co. commenting and summarizing the story so far)[[/note]], but ''Licht - The Nameless Girl'' lost a lot of funny and fanservice scenes, instead adding more drama and fight scenes to match the tone of ''Vow in the Snow''.

An anime adaptation of the series aired as part of the Summer2013Anime season. A second season (adapting the first half of ''2wei!'') aired in the Summer2014Anime season. A third (adapting the latter half of ''2wei!'', titled ''2wei Herz!'') aired in the Summer2015Anime season. A fourth (adapting the first part of ''3rei!!'') aired in the Summer2016Anime season. Two films, titled ''Sekka no Chikai'' (localized as ''Vow in the Snow'') in 2017 and ''Licht: Namae no Nai Shoujo'' (localized as ''Licht - The Nameless Girl'') in August 2021, were released to adapt the second part of ''3rei!!'', with a sequel announced as in the works the day after the 2021 film launched. An [=OVA=] for the series titled ''Prisma Phantasm'' aired in 2019. All animated entries thus far have had a home DVD/Blu-ray release (though the ''3rei!!'' anime's home version [[NoExportForYou wasn't released overseas]]).