Unlimited Blade Works
Unlimited Blade Works described "struggling with oneself as an ideal"(ComiPress), due to Shirou's struggle to reach his ideal, both as Archer and as himself. As Shirou interacts with Archer, he struggles to accept what Archer is telling him about his future, regarding the endless pain that following through on their ideal has brought them and how hypocritical that sacrificing oneself others before oneself can be. Eventually, however, Shirou does overcome great obstacles in the form of Gilgamesh and emerges from the War stronger and more prepared to realize his ideal than before. He learns that striving solely for one's ideals only leads to pain, so, as much as Shirou's core wants to wholeheartedly follow the ideal, he realizes that other parts of his life, love, family, and friends, are all reasons to exist beyond his ideal, and in doing so, will avoid the cruelty of Archer's future.