Slightly Biased Manga

It’s probably been well over a year since the last time I read this series. Since I just finished Immortal Rain backlog, time to get to other things that deserve it.

I started off hating this series an awful lot. Well, hate is too strong a word. I didn’t really like it, I thought it was boring, and I didn’t see what all the hype was about. I think this volume was the perfect place to jump back in, because the flashback here was amazing. Not only do we get a lot about the person who trained Al and Ed, we also learn the circumstances leading up to what happened when they tried to transmutate their mother, and precisely what happened when that event occurred. Both of them are pretty developed characters at this point, so this bit of backstory came at a great time. I can’t help feeling really bad for Al. Turns out, maybe I shouldn’t, maybe he knows more than he remembers.

I don’t like where the end of the volume wound up, though. Maybe I’ll wait another year to read seven. We’ll see.

There was a scene with a baby being born that was sort of creepy, but endearing in the same sort of way that many of the slice-of-life scenes in this series are.

Mostly this volume concerns Al and Ed seeking out their old teacher. Much flashbacks ensue in this volume, and they are very satisfying as you don’t see the big metal guy as a big metal guy anymore, just a cute kid.

Their teacher is about as terrifying and awesome as they let on during the volume. I really wound up liking her, she turned out to be a great character.

But yes, mostly lots of hints about the past, lots of little tantalizing bits thrown our way. Plus a hell of a cliffhanger. Wish I could afford the next volume.

Well, I stalled quite awhile on this series, too. But since I can’t buy any new comics due to lack of funds/expensive school books, I can catch up on some stuff I was letting lag. This is some of that stuff, though as I mentioned earlier, I think some series are better consumed in two volume bursts, and this is definitely one of them. As for the plot of this volume…

OH MY GOD… That was one of my favorite characters, thankyouverymuch. Goddammit. I completely didn’t see it coming, though I was rather suspicious of the amount of focus he was getting. Plus, there was also a bit too much sympathy. But Jesus Christ, that was horrible. Even when it happened, I thought they were going to do an overused manga thing and just show him in the hospital. But no. And I respect the series a great deal for that.

Some of the hospital scenes after they pulled Ed and Al out of the lab were pretty satisfying. Especially, you know, Armstrong. I still really like Armstrong. Also, the head of the military. Yes.

There was also a really awesome and endearing scene between Ed and Al. The… things in the lab created doubt, but big brother’s there to talk to. So cute!

Yeah, I’m quite fond of this series now. Shame THAT had to happen, but I really do like it now.

Somehow, the beginnings of the volumes so far sort of disappoint me, but the last chapter each time has be begging for more. Agonizing, really… and I’m still not sure if I’m convinced it’s as good as everyone says it is.

There were a few things I didn’t like, first and foremost that it had a trading card included. Also, there’s the obvious plot point about the girl leaving the bolt out of his arm. Foreshadowing like that is a little overused, so it’s gross and tasteless as a result. I don’t like the rhythm it’s getting into at this point either, where each volume ends with a life-threatening major battle. It’s getting to be really hokey, and the little novelty the plot has is being ruined as a result. I also don’t really know if I like the main character… not for any particular reason, he just rubs me the wrong way. He also has a standard anime joke of overreacting when people call him short, which isn’t cool at all.

What I still like about it is all the other characters. The little brother is probably my favorite, if only because I symphathize with him a great deal. I liked the characters introduced at the end of the volume for the same reason. He also works well with the main character, which is also cool. I also like every single one of the officers that has introduced thus far, including Roy and Armstrong. I still also like the alchemy gimmick, the fact that the two brothers keep getting further and further along on their goal, and the plot in general.

It is a really great series, but it’s got a few niggling things about it that make me not like it as much as I should. Bah.

I’m growing to like this series more and more, too. I don’t think it deserves all the hype it’s getting, no, but I do think it’s entertaining, and I am looking forward to the next volume. Maybe it’ll keep getting better and better.

One thing I don’t like about it is how they constantly reference how Al and Eric got to their present state. We already KNOW. You don’t need to bring it up in every serious situation. I’m not five, I can remember the series most important plot point, thank you very much.

I love Armstrong. He’s really funny. He’s a bit over-the-top, and he’ll probably start turning into a bit of a cliche, but he’s so funny. So far I don’t like Roy or the other girl at all though, and I also don’t like Scar. Bah.

This is sort of the hot to trot series at the moment… one of the ones that absolutely everyone and their brother bought when it came out.

Volume one actually didn’t get me that fired up, which is kind of what I expected… the ones that are hyped as hard as this one tend to disappoint me (DN Angel, .Hack), but unlike those series, I feel a lot better about this one. It seems like it has a lot of places it can go, and I really, really like the premise. The thing about them missing bodies and parts, and the whole alchemy thing… very awesome.

The coal mining story is the one that sticks with me the most at the moment, where Al and Ed help out those miners. The rest were very anime-esque in their way, but I have a feeling things will get a lot better as this series picks up.

One thing I really liked about it… I’ve seen a couple episodes of the anime, and the plot seemed to be that they both were going so that Ed could take the Alchemy exam to become the State Alchemist, but here he seems already to have the position and is floating around nonchalantly doing good deeds and persuing his mission. Very cool. One of the episodes I’ve seen was the last chapter, the train epic. Much better in manga form.