It was a good friend of mine who introduced me to the joys of Full Metal Alchemist (FMA). He and I are both big fans of Japanese anime and have a hefty selection of DVDs and Manga (comic books), and it was on a bright summers day when he invited me over to watch this "cool new series that's ... Read review
Action/Adventure - Director: Gore Verbinski - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring:Bill Nighy, Keira Knightley, Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Orlando Bloom, Chow Yun-Fat
Production Year: 1964 - Action/Adventure - Director: Cyril Endfield - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring:Stanley Baker, Jack Hawkins, Ulla Jacobsson, James Booth, Michael Caine, Nigel Green
Production Year: 2002 - Action/Adventure - Director: Vincenzo Natali - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring:Lucy Liu, David Hewlett, Anne Marie Scheffler, Joseph Scoren, Matthew Sharp, Jeremy Northam
Advantages: Very funny, emotional storyline (to the point of tear-inducing), very cool soundtrack (if you like J-Pop/Rock) Disadvantages: Suffers the same fatal flaw as all anime in Europe: expensive to purchase entire season
...me to the joys of Full Metal Alchemist (FMA). He and I are both big fans of Japanese anime and have a hefty selection of DVDs and Manga (comic books), and it was on a bright summers day when he invited me over to watch this "cool new series that's better than any anime I've ever seen!" Obviously, I was sceptical. Best anime ever? Better than Spirited Away? Better than Naruto? SURELY not better than Akira?! But, happy to have an excuse to ... ...strangely in public. And secondly, Full Metal Alchemist is now officially THE BEST ANIME EVER.
The storyline for FMA, as you might expect, focuses on alchemy, the process of understanding an object's composition, breaking it down and then rebuilding it. For example, it can be used to change an object into something else, or to simply fix something that's broken. Two young alchemists by the name of Edward and Alphonse Elric attempt ... more
It was a good friend of mine who introduced me to the joys of Full Metal Alchemist (FMA). He and I are both big fans of Japanese anime and have a hefty selection of DVDs and Manga (comic books), and it was on a bright summers day when he invited me over to watch this "cool new series that's better than any anime I've ever seen!" Obviously, I was sceptical. Best anime ever? Better than Spirited Away? Better than Naruto? SURELY not better than Akira?! But, happy to have an excuse to sit in front of the TV all day watching cartoons, I accepted his offer and I took my first step into the wacky world of FMA.
Two days later I left his house with probably the most stupid grin that has ever adorned my face, clapping my hands together and "transmuting" lampposts, the floor, my arm, anything that reminded me of the anime that had swallowed up an entire two days of my life that I most certainly DIDN'T want back. This proves two things: firstly, I am a loser who will probably end up being commited if I don't stop acting strangely in public. And secondly, Full Metal Alchemist is now officially THE BEST ANIME EVER.
The storyline for FMA, as you might expect, focuses on alchemy, the process of understanding an object's composition, breaking it down and then rebuilding it. For example, it can be used to change an object into something else, or to simply fix something that's broken. Two young alchemists by the name of Edward and Alphonse Elric attempt to perform the forbidden act of human transmutation using alchemy when they attempt to bring their deceased mother back from the dead. Unfortunately for them, the plan backfires. Ed, the elder brother, loses his right arm and left leg, whilst Al's disembodied soul is encased in a suit of armour. The series follows their attempts to get back their bodies as Ed is fitted with Auto-Mail (a metal arm and leg... Fullmetal, get it?) and joins the military in order to find the Legendary Philosopher's Stone, said to be able to amplify alchemic powers and to ignore the principle of equivilant trade (in order to gain something, something must be sacrificed).
That's it, I won't spoil the rest of the story for you because, frankly, the storyline is one of my favourite things about this series. It is simple enough not to get too confusing, yet complex enough to keep you guessing as to what happens next. It is side-splittingly at times, where at others it is powerful and emotive, and if anyone claims not to have cried after watching episodes 7 and 25 then don't believe them. They're lying.
Character-wise FMA really shines, with some truly memorable characters each with their own unique traits and quirks. You will quickly find characters that will become your favourites, not just in FMA but in all anime. And it is with this, along with the well written story and moments of sheer hilarity that makes FMA come together in such a special way. Whilst the animation isn't as good as some of the stuff that gets pumped out by Studio Ghibli (Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle etc.) it's still above-par for some of the anime that is sent our way by lazy animators (Love Hina: brilliant manga, great story, sloppy animation. Ken Akamatsu must've been gutted!). Plus I believe the animation and drawing style perfectly suits the anime as a whole.
Also of note is the soundtrack. The background music to the episodes is passable, but not really something to write home about. But the introduction and ending sequences are a different matter entirely. As is the style with a lot of anime series there are a number of different intro and ending songs. FMA is no exception. Featuring songs from well known Japanese artists such as L'Arc~en~Ciel and Asian Kung-Fu Generation the intros especially are brilliant, not only fitting in with the feeling of the anime but also well worth listening to in their own right. Definitely worth looking into if you're a J-Pop/Rock fan, and definitely worth a try even if you have never listened to foreign music before or if you "know" that you hate music of this genre.
For all it's brilliance, however, it must be pointed out that there are a couple of flaws with this series, and anime as a whole. Firstly, the dub. Since anime is made in Japan it is originally released in Japanese, not English. It seems to me that whoever makes the casting decisions for English dubs of anime is either drunk or hates anime. Whilst the dub for FMA is a lot better than some other animes I've seen (Love Hina... [shudder]) it still seems disjointed and not fitting. And I don't mean just in the lip-synching, I mean the voices themselves are too different and don't fit quite right with the character they're portraying. If you stick to the subs it's a lot better but at least you have the choice to put the dub on if you're feeling lazy.
Also a massive flaw with this anime is the price of purchasing the entire series. Again it's not FMA specific, but with 51 episodes (plus a movie) and 4 episodes per DVD it doesn't take a rocket science to figure out that's it's gonna burn a fairly significant hole in your pocket before you get the see the ending. Still, if you can afford it it's most certainly worth it.
If you don't like anime, or if you're new to it all, this is probably the one that will convince you to give it a chance. For seasoned anime fans I have one question for you. What is your favourite anime? Is it Akira? Love Hina? Bleach? FLCL? Escaflowne? Naruto? Ghost In The Shell? Spirited Away? Forget them. THIS is better than anything else out there, and is likely to be for some time. Fantastic work.
sprinklesUK 18.11.2006 (20.11.2006)
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Review of Full Metal Alchemist 1 - The Curse (Animated) (DVD)
Advantages: Brilliant concept and story line Disadvantages: The animation isn't really the best I have seen
Introduction:
The Full Metal Alchemist is a show about people that can change matter of different objects, rearrange this matter and make something completely different, this is the science of alchemy. The show is based on the law of equivalent exchange which states... "Human kind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return, to obtain something, something of equal value must be lost."
The Full Metal Alchemist was origionally a ... ...about 50 episodes with a full motion picture movie at the end of it all, so I think if you like the first four episodes it will be worth watching to the end. Although as there are only four episodes on each DVD this can and will get very expensive that's probably the only downside I can think of apart from the animation not being the best around, although after you get into the story you can easily look past that.
I recommend this show for anyone ...
Kab182 12.04.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Full Metal Alchemist 1 - The Curse (Animated) (DVD)
Undoubtedly one of the best Anime films ever made. I have seen every episode and the movie and will comment on the whole series and not just this DVD becuase once you start watching this you will find it hard to stop and may find yourself buying the whole series.
The plot is set in another land with different religions and where science is replaced with alchemy. Although it is fiction a lot of it is based on fact and the morals and side stories ... ...in the past.
The animation is fantastic compared with other Anime and the storyline it completely different to anything that I have ever watched.
The story is about two young brothers that try to bring their mother back from the dead and fai, one loses his leg then sacrifices his arm to save his brother, confining his soul to a suite of armor. The pair set off on a mission to get their original bodies back and save their world from corruption.
...
haz633 20.08.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Full Metal Alchemist 1 - The Curse (Animated) (DVD)
Advantages: Some fantastic characters, DVD features both Japanese and English dub Disadvantages: Takes a while to get to grips with the basic storyline
It was the characters that drew me into purchasing Fullmetal Alchemist - Volume 1. I'd never even seen the show, simply read around about the general storyline, and thought I'd give it a chance. I must admit, I've never really been an anime fan, but for FMA, I seemed to make an exception.
The first few episodes, I must admit, are not some of my favourites. But watching them is kind of essential if you are to understand the rest of the series - these ... ...I suppose the age rating (in the UK anyway), being a 12, means I shouldn't really recommend it to anyone under 12! But really, this is a fantastic show, and well worth watching. I myself didn't find it hard to get into to, and the storyline becomes increasingly gripping, so once you're in, there's not much getting out!
The fascination I had with this DVD was the ability to be able to switch between Japanese audio with English subtitles, or an English ...
azariareyes 09.02.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Full Metal Alchemist 1 - The Curse (Animated) (DVD)
Advantages: A wonderfully written anime, with undeniably realistic characters Disadvantages: You might get hooked?
This DVD has the first 4 episodes of an anime series which is 51 25-minute episodes long - the series continues into a Full-Length Movie called Conqueror of Shamballa.
It follows the Brothers Edward Elric and Alphonse Elric as they embark on a long journey to 'restore that which they lost'. As an anime, Fullmetal Alchemist has to be one of the best I've ever seen - the characters not only age, but develop over the course of the series. The plotline ... ...to 'alchemy' than I'd witnessed before. The main protaganist [Edward Elric] is someone you cannot hate - and his emotions and reactions to events are so genuine. The relations between all the characters are realistic and understandable, and by the end of the series I found that I had fallen in love with them all. (Although perhaps not the 'bad-guys')
Overall this anime is filled with humour, suspense, mystery and also sadness. If you haven't watched ...
Olliegami 27.01.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Full Metal Alchemist 1 - The Curse (Animated) (DVD)
Advantages: Amazing Disadvantages: nothing at all exept it ends
The Story - At the start of the story Al and Ed Elric who have special abilities to manipulate objects and transform those objects into other objects try to bring their mother back to life doing this makes ed lose his arm and leg and makes al lose his whole body but luckily ed moulds his soul to a suit of armour. After these events they both embark on a fantastic journey to become masters of alchemy and more importantly to save al from his metal ... ...Review - Now what can i say about fullmetal alchemist its the best anime i've watched its got all aspects from every genre its story is the most complex and thrilling. It just gets better and better as the series goes on. You start to learn more about each character and their background further the program progresses. The story even makes you wish it didn't end so quick, but if you like this series you've only got to wait a little while for the movie. ...
narutogoku 11.08.2007
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Full Metal Alchemist 1 - The Curse (Animated) (DVD)
As the State is becoming ever more powerful, it plans to seize a legendary object which will deliver omnipotence. Meanwhile, an alchemist is searching for a stone which has the potential to restore all that has been lost...
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