View Full Version : Does FMA get any better?
Alright- I saw the first episode of FMA and was quite underwhelmed. A lot of people have been calling FMA the best of the season. I just wanted peoples' impressions on episodes after episode one as compared to episode one. Thanks!
Go-lytely
2003-11-11, 02:29
Why dont you look at the many other FMA threads that have already been posted?
Hey I kinda thought the same thing too, but I will tell you that this series is extremely good. The next few eps show and tell you how they came to be and how they lived the past years. It definitly is one of the best shows of the new fall line-up, if not the best.
DrWho2002
2003-11-11, 04:16
Unless a show is in a genre that you KNOW that you do not like, one should not judge a whole series on the basis of just watching the first episode.
Me, I love Full Metal Alchemist.
I can easily dismiss shows such as Ikkitousen and Air Master because they are not genres of shows I enjoy, and the first episodes of those shows only reinforce my dislike for those type of shows.
It was my favorite anime of the new batch but now that honor goes to Tsukihime.
I think it's ok, but no way is it the best of the season. Somehow the show tries to be a bit serious, but at the ame time it constantly breaks it's own laws of alchemy.
I also wonder why the main characters must know martial arts. The story is set in a fictional version of what would appear to be Europe in the beginning of the twentieth century, so why does the kid know advanced martial arts? And why is AL, the huge piece of metal able to pull off those moves? It's like they forced martial arts on those characters....not good.
Shenlong
2003-11-11, 13:24
As Nationally Ranked Alchemists (or whatever their titles are), they are part of the military so hand to hand combat is a logical skill for them to possess. FMA cannot be called the *best* anime of the season but it is my favorite fun anime, beating out Naruto which has really started to drag IMO.
I think it's ok, but no way is it the best of the season. Somehow the show tries to be a bit serious, but at the ame time it constantly breaks it's own laws of alchemy.
I also wonder why the main characters must know martial arts. The story is set in a fictional version of what would appear to be Europe in the beginning of the twentieth century, so why does the kid know advanced martial arts? And why is AL, the huge piece of metal able to pull off those moves? It's like they forced martial arts on those characters....not good.
Come on, this is a show about teenagers doing magic. There is no way you'll ever be able to fit the word "serious" into that. Try to treat the show as just any other Campbellian myth and you'll be fine (am I the only one seeing the Star Wars/FMA simiarities).
Blonde people living in stone houses does not make it european. My guess is they only made it that way so that we would really understand this is pure fantasy. And what's wrong with martial arts? You seem to have no problems with AL being nothing but a piece of metal. If he can move at all then why shouldn't he be able to jump around a bit?
Anyway, I'm not a huge fan of FMA myself. The story doesn't seem to be going anywhere yet so I find it a bit boring. I'll keep watching the show though....
outlaw55
2003-11-11, 14:10
About a show "getting" or "being" good is one's own opinion, you will have to decide that yourself or be more specific like "will it have more action" etc.
Anlushac11
2003-11-11, 16:12
OOPs!
EDITED FOR BEING STUPID AND NOT PAYING ATTENTION
I go away now.
NO. You cant improve on perfection.
The comedy has been excellent (Go Bonta-kun!)
The music is excellent
I think the artwork has been good quality
The Goddess Tessa made an appearance
The only way this could get better is more Tessa and a reslution to the love triangle. I dont care who wins, I like Chidori and Tessa (Tessa would win of course)
Uh... aren't we talking about Fullmetal Alchemist? Not FMP Fumoffu?
I think the first two ep was hilarious and i was glad it sticked to the manga. I really enjoyed it very much and knew from that moment that this would be one of the best show of this season. It was really nice to know how ed lost his arm and leg and how al ended up in the armor, but it departed from the manga. from ep 4 and up they just took plots from the manga and twisted it around. I am a bit dissapointed because of this, but overall i enjoy the show very much and I'll finish watching it till the end.
As Nationally Ranked Alchemists (or whatever their titles are), they are part of the military so hand to hand combat is a logical skill for them to possess. FMA cannot be called the *best* anime of the season but it is my favorite fun anime, beating out Naruto which has really started to drag IMO.
Actually, they were highly skilled martial artist way before either one became a NRA and they were 11 and 12 years old.
Come on, this is a show about teenagers doing magic. There is no way you'll ever be able to fit the word "serious" into that. Try to treat the show as just any other Campbellian myth and you'll be fine (am I the only one seeing the Star Wars/FMA simiarities).
Blonde people living in stone houses does not make it european. My guess is they only made it that way so that we would really understand this is pure fantasy. And what's wrong with martial arts? You seem to have no problems with AL being nothing but a piece of metal. If he can move at all then why shouldn't he be able to jump around a bit?
Anyway, I'm not a huge fan of FMA myself. The story doesn't seem to be going anywhere yet so I find it a bit boring. I'll keep watching the show though....
Well, they also have English names and the places look European to me. Anyway, I can't say much about Al being a piece of junk, fast movements just seem compeltely out of place for a character like that. The only rule to alchemy they keep repeating over and over is that trade of materials (or something like that), so why, oh why can't they follow the one rule that seems so very central to the entire series?
Despite these obvious flaws, FMA does have some interesting sides to it. I really enjoyed their visit to the town with the high priest. Those episodes explored some very difficult religious questions there. Who knows, maybe the original purpose of powerful religions such as Christianity and Islam was to control people (don't hang me please).
Actually, they were highly skilled martial artist way before either one became a NRA and they were 11 and 12 years old.
Well, they also have English names and the places look European to me. Anyway, I can't say much about Al being a piece of junk, fast movements just seem compeltely out of place for a character like that. The only rule to alchemy they keep repeating over and over is that trade of materials (or something like that), so why, oh why can't they follow the one rule that seems so very central to the entire series?
Despite these obvious flaws, FMA does have some interesting sides to it. I really enjoyed their visit to the town with the high priest. Those episodes explored some very difficult religious questions there. Who knows, maybe the original purpose of powerful religions such as Christianity and Islam was to control people (don't hang me please).
The only bad thing with the martial arts stuff is that it probably will lead to some pretty pointless fights. Someone reading the manga will hopefully prove me wrong here but I don't want to se a any stupid fights they could have resolved in 5 secs with alchemy instead.
So far they've only broken the laws of alchemy once or did i miss something?
This is a fun series, not the best out of the new ones, mind you, but I can understand why it would appeal to almost everybody out there.
PocariSweat
2003-11-11, 18:46
Hm, a suit of armor unencumbered by a person might be able to move quite freely indeed (once you get past the fact that it moves at all). Don't forget how many pounds of wet meat and fat people carry around inside them.
Personally I'm kind of luke-warm on the series and the manga (which are a lot alike) - it's not bad or anything, but maybe I'm just too far away from the 12yr old boy target audience it seems made for. I guess that's the same reason Naruto never really grabbed me either.
Now give me something dark and brooding with lots of hidden subtexts - like say Ocha-ken - and I'm there! Sure it's a little overly violent sometimes, but damn that Ryoku's one bad-ass inu! :heh:
(Pocari.Sweat)"Hm, a suit of armor unencumbered by a person might be able to move quite freely indeed (once you get past the fact that it moves at all). Don't forget how many pounds of wet meat and fat people carry around inside them.
Personally I'm kind of luke-warm on the series and the manga (which are a lot alike) - it's not bad or anything, but maybe I'm just too far away from the 12yr old boy target audience it seems made for. I guess that's the same reason Naruto never really grabbed me either.
Now give me something dark and brooding with lots of hidden subtexts - like say Ocha-ken - and I'm there! Sure it's a little overly violent sometimes, but damn that Ryoku's one bad-ass inu!"
12 year old audience? I very much like this show and Naruto and I am 25. You may not like this kind of anime but to say it is for little children seems foolish to me.
LiQuid|J
2003-11-12, 05:00
Regardless Xiandu, we may be fans, but it's still "shounen" anime. It's targeted at adolescent boys in Japan, like it or not. :) And the fact of the matter is, shows like this, when localized to US soil, are targeted at the same adolecent boy demographic. It's not so rare for us older folk to enjoy the shows. Hell I'm an avid fan of Shounen Jump and every manga in it, you just got to face facts that shows like this are Toonami or FoxBox fodder. :p
Pocari, I think you were a little off base though when you said the anime and manga were alike. The first 2 episodes of the anime follow the first manga chapter to a T, after that however, the anime completely splits off. The tone is the same, but the anime is going way more in depth than the manga did in the first few chapters. Just a note.
Fighter Volk
2004-04-28, 19:36
Well, at this point, this series is definitely the best of '03-'04 (GunGrave is up there too) 'continuum' season... just look at the FMA forums to see how much us fans love it :D
acidblue
2004-04-29, 01:54
Did this thread get revived from the dead or what :)
But anyways FMA is very serious at times,but also has alot of comedy and action thrown in. I think its one of the best animes out there right now.
I am bias though because I love FMA :love: :love: :love:
Ok, so I, the threadstarter return to apologize for starting this thread. I'm now up to episode 25 and admit that it is one of the best animes currently running. It just goes to show that you really can't judge an anime in less than say 3 or 4 episodes.
a_nevels666
2004-04-29, 09:00
Ok, so I, the threadstarter return to apologize for starting this thread. I'm now up to episode 25 and admit that it is one of the best animes currently running. It just goes to show that you really can't judge an anime in less than say 3 or 4 episodes.
Ah, enlightenment at last. ;)
I thought FMA was already pretty good at the start and then got better, but I've seen even more extreme examples of this though.
Anyway, have fun enjoying the rest of the show...
OshadowO
2004-04-29, 11:12
Ok, so I, the threadstarter return to apologize for starting this thread. I'm now up to episode 25 and admit that it is one of the best animes currently running. It just goes to show that you really can't judge an anime in less than say 3 or 4 episodes.
was wondering when that was coming :p
FMP and FMA are two of my favourite animes....they are incredible in almost every aspect. From now on any anime that has full metal in the title I will download religiously based on these two.
BTW check out the FMA forum here too.
Get to episode 7 and you'll love it for life.
one thing I have to ask, though:
spoiler past ep 23
Why did they have to kill off my favorite character!?!?!
FMA is excellent aside from alchemy techniques seem no different than magic where equivalent trade doesn't exist.
teawednesday
2004-04-29, 17:12
Regardless Xiandu, we may be fans, but it's still "shounen" anime. It's targeted at adolescent boys in Japan, like it or not. :) And the fact of the matter is, shows like this, when localized to US soil, are targeted at the same adolecent boy demographic. It's not so rare for us older folk to enjoy the shows. Hell I'm an avid fan of Shounen Jump and every manga in it, you just got to face facts that shows like this are Toonami or FoxBox fodder. :p
Pocari, I think you were a little off base though when you said the anime and manga were alike. The first 2 episodes of the anime follow the first manga chapter to a T, after that however, the anime completely splits off. The tone is the same, but the anime is going way more in depth than the manga did in the first few chapters. Just a note.
HAHAHAHAHA. Have you even watched this show? Like, beyond episode 6? 'Cause you'd at least realize that there is no way in hell that this show would get onto those networks. There is some CRUEL stuff in FMA. Anyone who thinks that things like Nina, the Sins, Ed and Al transmuting their mother, Hughes, Scar, the serial killer.... hell, I could go on. Not exactly "Foxbox fodder", you know? I'd put it more on adult swim, personally. This show has some heavy stuff.
inu-fma88fan
2004-05-01, 00:59
i was reading the newtype usa...at the japan today section where they show the stats and the ranks of the top anime and for april, fma was in first. of course with a lot of fma characters being part of the top ten characters of the month...
people said that this show is trying to be serious but its actually not but i think it is very serious. it has a lot of good theme. alchemy is magic and stuff but it has a lot of deep meanings behind it. i can't think straight right now so i won't be saying any stupid stuff but, yah fma is serious and also funny.
I just started watching FMA. It's good, and I like it, but . . . it's kinda off-beat, to me. I mean, I like angst and gravity in large doses, and mixing it with "accepted" magic (because, really, that's all alchemy is and ever was) and shounen themes puts a damper on it, IMO. Nina and her story are pretty angsty, but it didn't have the full impact that I was hoping for.
Lexander
2004-05-06, 03:28
Edit: Apologies for double post ...
Lexander
2004-05-06, 03:28
Personally I loved episode 1 ... much more than the few latest ones :angry:!
ZeppelinJ0
2004-05-07, 20:06
I'm at a loss!!! If this isn't the best Anime of the season, then what is?!?! ;p
I think this show is incredible, I was die hard Trigun and Bebop until I saw this series, now I veg 7 days a week until Sundays when I can see the next edge-of-my-seat episode.
Ep 25 itself sent me out of my chair, my roommates thought I was having convulsions, such great story telling!
Anyways, seriously, I'm not a huge fan of anime, if there are things more fun to watch than this, I would love to hear them because I AM looking for a filler between episodes ;)
Joe Dalton
2004-05-07, 21:10
This anime is exelent... but if you dont pay atention 2 this storyline you will miss allot of its depth... Its not afraid 2 go into human nature or 2 suddenly switch the feeling of the show...
since nina has been given as an example... I mean everyone I think would give her a warm spot in their heart since shes soooo cute... and then suddenly bam... that episode ripped me appart... and the reaction of the brothers.
Also if you look at my post in the equal trade thread you will see why I think the rules of equal trade are followed nicely...
This anime makes me laugh allot.. and has also made me cry twice now...
This anime has a verry deep story for those that pay enough atention and also that you can fully understand it..
Like al's reaction when barry said his memories may be fake... now you can think thats silly and a weak storyline because of their relationship... but if you put yourself (although impossible 2 do completely) in his mindset its easy 2 understand...
They are determend and insecure... they love and fear eachother their relationships 2 everyone are done so wonderfully that I cant get enough of this show.
In any case I think this post says enough about how I feel this anime progresses.. got a wee bit caried away there :)
FMA pwnz. That is all. It actually had me hooked since the first episode (first CHAPTER, actually, cause I read the manga first) :)
It's a really great series.
ZeppelinJ0
2004-05-07, 21:32
This anime is exelent... but if you dont pay atention 2 this storyline you will miss allot of its depth... Its not afraid 2 go into human nature or 2 suddenly switch the feeling of the show...
since nina has been given as an example... I mean everyone I think would give her a warm spot in their heart since shes soooo cute... and then suddenly bam... that episode ripped me appart... and the reaction of the brothers.
Also if you look at my post in the equal trade thread you will see why I think the rules of equal trade are followed nicely...
This anime makes me laugh allot.. and has also made me cry twice now...
This anime has a verry deep story for those that pay enough atention and also that you can fully understand it..
Like al's reaction when barry said his memories may be fake... now you can think thats silly and a weak storyline because of their relationship... but if you put yourself (although impossible 2 do completely) in his mindset its easy 2 understand...
They are determend and insecure... they love and fear eachother their relationships 2 everyone are done so wonderfully that I cant get enough of this show.
In any case I think this post says enough about how I feel this anime progresses.. got a wee bit caried away there :)
I agree with you Joe, 100% wholeheartedly. The storyline to this show is very complex, and very deep, so deep that you actually have to set yourself in the mind of each of the characters. I know a lot of DBZ and Naruto fans (don't even get me started, whole episodes where the characters are "powering up" and screaming at each other drives me crazy) I've showed this anime to hate it, they are too used to fighting and powers and just all out battle, but to me what makes a great show is its plot. Plus being a huge Psychology buff (5 years in the field) I can't help but understand what somebody would feel if they were put in the situation these 2 kids are put in, and a simple cartoon has opened my mind to totally new things.
I chomp at the bit just waiting to see what happens next!! AAHH help :)
yeah..
this show rules..just had to say that..
and a question to all.
You think FMA should get more attention? like Naruto has.
The last episode has just blew my mind. With all the Homunculus stuff. And how they are born.
And that Mustang just moved to Central City. what is he planning.?
(and i just love Ed and Al's teacher, she rules)
If this quailty keeps up. FMA gonna surpass Naruto bigtime.
Joe Dalton
2004-05-08, 13:26
gonna?
In what way exactly would you say naruto is still better?
gonna?
In what way exactly would you say naruto is still better?
sry, wrong choice of words there.
if i say it like this..for me, its now 60/40 FMA's way..if this quailty keeps up..will be more like 80/20 FMA's way.
Naruto will drop..
ZeppelinJ0
2004-05-08, 15:49
sry, wrong choice of words there.
if i say it like this..for me, its now 60/40 FMA's way..if this quailty keeps up..will be more like 80/20 FMA's way.
Naruto will drop..
Naruto has too many episodes where a couple of characters stare at each other and gasp when they realize that this awesome new evil guy they're staring at has some great power but then they suddenly realize they have a greater power. Inner dialog episodes suck. So many of the Naruto episodes could have been condensed
Naruto has too many episodes where a couple of characters stare at each other and gasp when they realize that this awesome new evil guy they're staring at has some great power but then they suddenly realize they have a greater power. Inner dialog episodes suck. So many of the Naruto episodes could have been condensed
yeah your right..
but it has some good stuff that im interested in..many character secrets.
who is Narutos parent. Does the Fourth Hokage have anything to do with Naruto?
Why did Itachi kill his clan.
Kakashis past. how he got the Sharingan.
And it got some good characters to:
Gaara
Orochimaru
Itachi
Kakashi
Jiraya
but got many bad stuff to.
Weak art,
weak dialog
STUPID IRRITATING main character
pace sucks sometimes
to many flashbacks
to many fillers
cant think of more things right now
Just what I think but the full trade concept usually comes into play when they use the materials around them and transform them into something useful. Like taking the stone out of ground and nearby buildings to build a wall or shaping his metal arm into a weapon. The only time someone hasn't used something nearby and transmuted it and still been able to create something is when people used the stones created from the red water and dead people.
In the end though you can't really read into it too deeply...its not reality and never will be...and can't really be compared to it.
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