Full Metal Panic Novel Discussion

[Klashikari]

the problem is :
ADVMC is too short for a average season.
and COMO is probably slightly too large for 1 season, and will be a pain without the conclusion of BOMF and the next novel.

like meggiemay said, they would most likely require like... 2 or 3 seasons (so 24-36 episodes) to do something correctly.

should they animate another season, they would probably use AVDMC + a large chunk of side stories with it.

[HunterSeeker]

Originally Posted by Klashikari

the problem is :
ADVMC is too short for a average season.
and COMO is probably slightly too large for 1 season, and will be a pain without the conclusion of BOMF and the next novel.

like meggiemay said, they would most likely require like... 2 or 3 seasons (so 24-36 episodes) to do something correctly.

should they animate another season, they would probably use AVDMC + a large chunk of side stories with it.

AVDMC can run a few episodes on its own.
COMO is also too short for a season, if you consider you can squeeze those things together.
Prolongue to Leonard left-1-2 episodes
Attack upon Melida and Tokyo (including school raid)-3-6 eqisodes
TDD escaped+Arbalest Scrapped, Sousuke left-1-2 episodes
So basically it'll be just the size of TSR, but if adding BOMF then it can expand its size.
I won't doubt MMD and the last chapter will run another season though, but they can also be added into that season (making it a uber-long one).

[MeggieMay]

Originally Posted by HunterSeeker

AVDMC can run a few episodes on its own.
COMO is also too short for a season, if you consider you can squeeze those things together.
Prolongue to Leonard left-1-2 episodes
Attack upon Melida and Tokyo (including school raid)-3-6 eqisodes
TDD escaped+Arbalest Scrapped, Sousuke left-1-2 episodes
So basically it'll be just the size of TSR, but if adding BOMF then it can expand its size.
I won't doubt MMD and the last chapter will run another season though, but they can also be added into that season (making it a uber-long one).

However, aren't there a couple of the short stories that really shouldn't be left out? Just going off the thread here that covers the novels and short stories, I would think the ones covering Tessa's backstory and what Sousuke past is would need to be included, along with the one short story about Tessa that seems to be a stand alone set in San Francisco would need to be included (I'm trying to leave wiggle room for any stories that anime producers might want to do or stories that might be important in the long range story but we don't realize it yet). So I'm thinking more like they would need over 12 episodes but under 24.

Which brings us back to just how long and how many series they probably should do to finish up the story. Personally, I think three 12/13 episode length seasons might do it but that might not be practical from a animation studio standpoint (actually a 36 episodes series, plus a possible 12 ep series to finish up the last book, sounds like a better length to me but almost no one does 36 ep series these days) :shrug: At least I can sympathize with the animators on any problems they may be having trying to map out a strategy on how they want to deal with the rest of the story, if they animate it (because IMO this is very confusing on how they're going to figure it all out).

As to Haruhi holding up FMP, my guess would be FMP could be one of the things holding up Haruhi. The problem from what I've gathered is no one is for certain just what all Kyoto Animation has booked up. While titles of some of their upcoming shows are out, neither are officially Haruhi 2 or FMP 4 last I checked. So I think there is a outside possibility that the next FMP could be booked for this fall but nothing official has been said yet but then again maybe not. I haven't found it to be very clear just what they have going that would back stuff up, other than they are a smaller company and don't tend to do that many shows per year.

[Hussar67]

I know it's not going to happen this way, but ever since I read DVMC and COMO I've thought those two novels were far more suited to be movies than OVAs or a series. Both DVMC and COMO take place (mostly) within the span of a single day -- much better suited for a thrill-packed single sitting.

However, BOMF and GT&MMD both take place over large stretches of time in the FMP timeline. If I was a producer at Kyoto Animation, I'd argue to animate DVMC as "Full Metal Panic: the Movie I" and COMO as "FMP: the Movie II" and combine BOMF, GT&MMD, and the upcoming novel into a 39 episode series.

Episodes 1-7, approximately: BOMF
Episodes 8-26, approx.: GT&MMD (much longer ep. span because it's much longer and bounces all over the place and with all the characters)
Episodes 27-39, approx.: last novel

Like MeggieMay has said, Kyoto Animation as of yet hasn't done a long series like this, but they have produced the InuYasha movies, so there is hope...

But I'm not going to rant that this is how it should be; this is just what I've been thinking I would've like to have seen when they get around to animating these latter novels (of which I have little doubt that they won't). What do you all think? Do you also think DVMC and COMO would work better as movies? -- don't want to start a flame war, but this topic has been on my mind for awhile and I'm glad the discussion on the thread has come around to it. (Even though it's all just silly supposition on all of our parts .)

[HunterSeeker]

Originally Posted by MeggieMay

However, aren't there a couple of the short stories that really shouldn't be left out? Just going off the thread here that covers the novels and short stories, I would think the ones covering Tessa's backstory and what Sousuke past is would need to be included, along with the one short story about Tessa that seems to be a stand alone set in San Francisco would need to be included (I'm trying to leave wiggle room for any stories that anime producers might want to do or stories that might be important in the long range story but we don't realize it yet). So I'm thinking more like they would need over 12 episodes but under 24.

Which brings us back to just how long and how many series they probably should do to finish up the story. Personally, I think three 12/13 episode length seasons might do it but that might not be practical from a animation studio standpoint (actually a 36 episodes series, plus a possible 12 ep series to finish up the last book, sounds like a better length to me but almost no one does 36 ep series these days) :shrug: At least I can sympathize with the animators on any problems they may be having trying to map out a strategy on how they want to deal with the rest of the story, if they animate it (because IMO this is very confusing on how they're going to figure it all out).

As to Haruhi holding up FMP, my guess would be FMP could be one of the things holding up Haruhi. The problem from what I've gathered is no one is for certain just what all Kyoto Animation has booked up. While titles of some of their upcoming shows are out, neither are officially Haruhi 2 or FMP 4 last I checked. So I think there is a outside possibility that the next FMP could be booked for this fall but nothing official has been said yet but then again maybe not. I haven't found it to be very clear just what they have going that would back stuff up, other than they are a smaller company and don't tend to do that many shows per year.

The problem is, however, that those stories are mostly irrevelant to the main plot. If the short stories are being mentioned, then mostly they'll just be flashbacks since putting them in separate episodes are pretty pointless and it'll disrupt the story's progress.
I did also heard about that rumour, but I guess until FMP totally ends, they probably won't make one so that they have to keep the story complete. (FMP! and TSR are pretty much standalone stories, but if the new anime stops at BOMF/MMD then it won't be that complete and hanged up mysteries for those who hadn't rea the novels)

[TigerII]

The big question is IF they even plan on doing more animation.

[Generalgm]

Originally Posted by TigerII

The big question is IF they even plan on doing more animation.

Since FMP is one of the popular Animes in the US and Japan, it really would only be wise to make more. If not well then we'll always have the translation. But animation would be nice lol

[TigerII]

Yes, but Full metal Alchemist is still popular and they are not gonna continue. But hopefully they are like normal humans and are driven by greed. They see they can still make a few extra bucks so they do it.

I hope so as the FMP series is my favorite show.

[Missilebuster]

Alright they could go for an entirely different animation studio (one without a loaded hopper of series, and a history of longer series like FMA... or they could just use the people that did FMA!) and get Geneon entertainment (or funimation i guess as they did make the dvd's i think, but they have a bad track record of editing out "violence"... pussies)to help with some of the financing, and bring the entire series to Adult Swim through Geneon. The series will be a huge hit (especially fumoffu) and they will make much more off of commercial revenue then they ever did releasing it on dvd.. also they can continue to release the dvd's which will start selling more as people start watching it more.

[da0ku0ueki]

Since I'm thinking about making my own anime this topic is great for me to think about.

First of all they won't make a movie for the main storyline.
1)No profit in it. Why u ask. TV series make more money then anime movies do.
2)Making it into a movie will cut out too many scenes fans want to see and since it is a small company they're life blood are the fans
3)Haruhi also a long short novel series but was not made into a movie, that series would be better suited for a movie then FMV

Second most likely it will be one long series or two medium series.
Even though it may seem that a novel like COMO can take a few episodes they will add in some short stories and some anime only extras to make sure it is a complete story with complete Character development.

They will run the main story completely through and release the short stories through OVA episodes or movies ala School rumble( those fans of school rumble manga and anime will know that the ova's are the extra stories that had no point in being in the main series.

as mentioned before it will either be
2 seasons of 13 episodes for 2 series plus OVA's
Or what I would do is make one series like fumafuu after the main story is over and have subsiquent short stories relating to the main storyline be included for 2 seasons of 24 episodes or more for around 52 episodes.

They will make haruhi and FMP one at a time with each one being they're main season show like Lost to abc so to speak, they will grow if they have to, that's just common sense. If they need more animators and editors and whatnot they will hire them. They are a small company for now but they will grow in time, all companies do, and then they will split and start again, like all companies do. Both series are in demand and both are based off of short novels so I like both series and many people do. The only factor that is stopping them is that both series aren't done yet and this time of year the big anime's are getting good again
so they are waiting for a good profitable slot becomes available.

So far they have made short series with 13 episodes but as demand grows they will bend to it. They have to. They will do it for this simple reason. It's not like they are adamant against long series. They just never had the opportunity and support. It's hard to get sponsors when they don't trust your company and the title being animated. They have already proven themselves so they can get the financial support needed.

Main reason most anime series are short is because of limited funding and limited sponsor and network support. No one likes to get canceled so they just make a short series if it seems like a risk.
on a side note. I hate adult swim, to much editing and self pity, Anime network is better all around.

[MeggieMay]

Originally Posted by HunterSeeker

The problem is, however, that those stories are mostly irrevelant to the main plot. If the short stories are being mentioned, then mostly they'll just be flashbacks since putting them in separate episodes are pretty pointless and it'll disrupt the story's progress.

So you don't think the short stories should have entire episodes to themselves? Ok, that makes sense. Still, I would hope some of them were woven into the overall story. I don't expect the anime to follow the novels beat for beat because that almost never happens when a book is translated into a TV show or move (the mediums are too different to make it work smoothly) but I'm not sure leaving all the short story information out is a good idea, either.

I did also heard about that rumour, but I guess until FMP totally ends, they probably won't make one so that they have to keep the story complete. (FMP! and TSR are pretty much standalone stories, but if the new anime stops at BOMF/MMD then it won't be that complete and hanged up mysteries for those who hadn't rea the novels)

Well I'm hoping they don't wait until 2009 to do more anime (Gatou's aiming for 2008 to finish the novels but I figure he's aiming for December there, not January). Three years may not be a lot of time to wait for a new anime but it would take longer for the series to be made because Kyoto almost never does long series. I think they'll cut the show down into much smaller chunks/seasons and that could drag things out until 2012 .

Originally Posted by TigerII

Yes, but Full metal Alchemist is still popular and they are not gonna continue. But hopefully they are like normal humans and are driven by greed. They see they can still make a few extra bucks so they do it.

I hope so as the FMP series is my favorite show.

While I think your point is that not all animes continue and thus FMP may not continue, I don't think brining in Fullmetal Alchemist as a example is a good choice. FMA was made by Bones (different studio from Kyoto) and was based on a on going manga series where the manga creator, Hiromu Arakawa, is on record as having asked the anime producers to NOT follow her story after a certain point (she is said to have a belief that animes based on mangas shouldn't be the same at the manga). Gatou and Kyoto Animation seem to be wanting to stay close to the story in the novels, which says to me they have a totally different view on how to handle adaptations of mangas/novels vs Arakawa's take on it. So there was more going on as to why Bones didn't continue on with FMA than just "greed" or lack of it and I'm not sure those issues really apply to FMP [Btw, I also think I read the director of FMA wanted to move on, as well as Bones tends not to do that many sequels but does do longer/long running anime vs what Kyoto does - there's just way too many differing factors here, IMO, to compare these shows.]

Originally Posted by Missilebuster

Alright they could go for an entirely different animation studio (one without a loaded hopper of series, and a history of longer series like FMA... or they could just use the people that did FMA!) and get Geneon entertainment (or funimation i guess as they did make the dvd's i think, but they have a bad track record of editing out "violence"... pussies)to help with some of the financing, and bring the entire series to Adult Swim through Geneon. The series will be a huge hit (especially fumoffu) and they will make much more off of commercial revenue then they ever did releasing it on dvd.. also they can continue to release the dvd's which will start selling more as people start watching it more.

You've not seen a Funimation title lately, have you? They don't cut out violence on their DVD releases, though they may have at some point. However, since at least 2003 they've not been doing that (I believe what you are talking about is Dragonball/DBZ and the deal they use to have with 4Kids but that ended quite a few years back now) .

As for Geneon getting involved - I hope not! Full Metal Panic is owned by Kadakowa - a company that is a direct competitor with Geneon in Japan. I don't think they want to share their properties with them. As things are, FMP! and FMP: Fumoffu were licensed to ADV Films. When it came time to bring FMP: Second Raid over, they made a distribution deal Funimation for the show. The difference here is that the DVD's are coming out in R1 not as Funimation but as Kadakowa USA/Funimation. Kadakowa USA directly controls the property in R1 vs the first two seasons which are controlled by by ADV Films. This makes Kadakowa USA a actual R1 distributor and introduced a new type of licensing deal to the U.S. (which is common in Japan but new to the U.S.) where one company owns the property and oversees the production but another company distributes the finished version. Kadakowa USA also has a similar deal with Bandai Ent* on Haruhi and both Bandai Ent and Funimation seem happy with the arrangement.

Anyway, Funimation has been doing a great job with getting TSR into stores and they also sell animation on a regular basis to Adult Swim (FMA and Trinity Blood are Funimation). While Funi does have their own TV channel they tend to offer their shows first to AS, unlike ADV Films. An there is where the main issue with FMP on AS actually has a problem. ADV Films airs the shows the pick up on their Video on Demand and The Animation Channel and they don't offer it to Adult Swim first, if ever (and FMP! and Fumoffu have aired on TAN I've read). So we currently have the first two seasons of the show in TV limbo and TSR which Funi probably would love to have aired on Adult Swim but which Adult Swim most likely doesn't want to pick up because they need to show at least FMP! first to make TSR make any sense. So until AS and ADV can work out something to let AS air FMP, the show is in limbo (that is if AS even wants to air FMP - Adult Swim's programming department marches to the beat of its own drummer, so to speak, and there is a chance they don't want FMP for reasons ranging from too much fanservice to they (the AS programmers) don't like the show . However, no one is certain just what they think about the show at this point (and for all we know they have been trying to get ADV to let them air it).

Anyway, Geneon isn't the key to getting anything on Adult Swim. Currently most of their TV sales are to Encore/Starz!, though I'm sure they are trying to get shows on Adult Swim still, as well.


*Bandai Entertainment. Just calling it Bandai these days isn't going to work because there are two Bandai's in the U.S. dealing with Anime - Bandai Entertainment and Bandai Visual. They are different divisions of the same parent company but are totally separate companies in what licenses they own.

[Miles Teg]

Since people are speaking about what has been animated and hasn't, I have made a list

First what has been animated :

FMP! cover 3 novel and 4 short story.
FMP? Fumoffu cover 16 short story
FMP! TSR cover 2 novel and 1 short story (OAV)

Second what hasn't been animated :

Main story

• Volume 12: Odoru Very Merry Christmas
• Volume 15: Tsuduku On My Own
• Volume 17: Moeru One Man Force
• Volume 19: Tsuduku Make my Day

Short story compilation

• Volume 2: Houtte Okenai Lone Wolf (1/6)
• Volume 4: Honki ni Narenai Nishi Manrui (2/6)
• Volume 5: Jiman ni Naranai Sankan-ou (2/6)
• Volume 7: Doujou Dekinai Shimen Soka (3/4)
• Volume 10: Dounimo Naranai Gori Muchuu (2/6)
• Volume 11: Ateni Naranai Roppou Zensho (3/6)
• Volume 13: Anshin Dekinai Nanatsu Dougu (6/6)
• Volume 14: Ontei wa Takaku, Shatei wa Tooku (4/5)
• Volume 16: Nayande Rarenai Happou Fusagari (4/4)
• Volume 18: Side Arms 2 - Kyokuhoku Kara no Koe (3/3)

As of now 30 short story and 4 novel hasn't been animated.

So they have enough material to do a new season, but if they want to use short story they have to use them before or after DVMC, the moment COMO start only the first two stories from volume 18 can be used. And the moment COMO start they can't finish the anime since none of the novel has a clear cut ending (MMD is a direct continuation of BOMF who is a direct continuation of COMO).

[velvet nightmare]

hm interesting

maybe they could make another fumoffu type thing before continuing on with the main series

[Missilebuster]

Originally Posted by TigerII

Yes, but Full metal Alchemist is still popular and they are not gonna continue. But hopefully they are like normal humans and are driven by greed. They see they can still make a few extra bucks so they do it.

I hope so as the FMP series is my favorite show.

Did FMA come from a novel or something? cz if it did then the novel or manga is probably over, making a new series impossible.

Even if FMA didnt come from a manga or novel, FMP still comes from a novel so the story is already there, and all they have to do is animate it.

[HunterSeeker]

Originally Posted by Missilebuster

Did FMA come from a novel or something? cz if it did then the novel or manga is probably over, making a new series impossible.

Even if FMA didnt come from a manga or novel, FMP still comes from a novel so the story is already there, and all they have to do is animate it.

Spoiler:

Yeah, FMA came from a manga and that's the exact storyline for the Anime.

And since the brothers had left the world of Alchemy for good in the OVA and the gateway was shut, the possibility of any continuities are near to zero.

[mirabelka2]

Does anybody know which novel will be next after Tsuduku Make my Day? Did the author reveal the secret about the title of the next novel?

Thanks to Hunter (he's the best ) I know what happend in the latest novel but I'm dying for more

[MeggieMay]

Originally Posted by HunterSeeker

Spoiler:

Yeah, FMA came from a manga and that's the exact storyline for the Anime.

And since the brothers had left the world of Alchemy for good in the OVA and the gateway was shut, the possibility of any continuities are near to zero.

I can't tell if you're being sarcastic here or if you don't realize that the Anime and the manga for FMA are totally different stories after a certain point.

Fullmetal Alchemist, the Anime, is based on a manga of the same name. The stories start the same but there are minor differences which then turn into big ones after episode 25 of the Anime. At that point, the stories are totally different with the Anime's plotline having a semi-clear ending with the movie/OVA's. The Manga, on the other hand, is still being put out monthly and Ed and Al are still trying to find a way to get Al's body restored while unravling the mysteries of "Father" and the Homunculi in it ("Father" is the leader of the Homunculi in the manga vs the where they went with the Homuncli story in Anime).

To find out more about all of this just go read the threads in the FMA folder here.

[HunterSeeker]

Originally Posted by MeggieMay

I can't tell if you're being sarcastic here or if you don't realize that the Anime and the manga for FMA are totally different stories after a certain point.

Fullmetal Alchemist, the Anime, is based on a manga of the same name. The stories start the same but there are minor differences which then turn into big ones after episode 25 of the Anime. At that point, the stories are totally different with the Anime's plotline having a semi-clear ending with the movie/OVA's. The Manga, on the other hand, is still being put out monthly and Ed and Al are still trying to find a way to get Al's body restored while unravling the mysteries of "Father" and the Homunculi in it ("Father" is the leader of the Homunculi in the manga vs the where they went with the Homuncli story in Anime).

To find out more about all of this just go read the threads in the FMA folder here.

Sadly, I only watched the Anime and don't have much time/$ for reading manga.:/

Anyway, I'll leave for about a week for my Lunar New Year holiday, so let's say: Happy New Year
(Whne I come back there should be news about the new Novel.)

[Missilebuster]

so the fma manga is still coming out?? its suprising i dont know about it then... Whats with all these popular anime series that have continuing mangas which no one translates like they do bleach or naruto manga for instanse - Prince of Tennis. (atleast no translation sites ive seen)

[MeggieMay]

Originally Posted by HunterSeeker

Sadly, I only watched the Anime and don't have much time/$ for reading manga.:/

Anyway, I'll leave for about a week for my Lunar New Year holiday, so let's say: Happy New Year
(Whne I come back there should be news about the new Novel.)

Happy Year of the Pig /Boar and have a good vacation!

Originally Posted by Missilebuster

so the fma manga is still coming out?? its suprising i dont know about it then... Whats with all these popular anime series that have continuing mangas which no one translates like they do bleach or naruto manga for instanse - Prince of Tennis. (atleast no translation sites ive seen)

Well the fma manga is being translated - offically by Viz and not so officially by fans . Just do a little search with Google and you should be able to find out more info.