Brotherhood Ep 1

Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood is one of my favorite series of all times. For me, it is amazingly rich in character and story. So, I've been itching for an excuse to re-watch it and really sit down and examine it in detail. I also am blanking on what to write for my blog for tomorrow (today technically since it's past midnight), so I'm going to start a series devoted to FMAB, which will probably be quite long--or not if I get distracted. Anyways, there will be spoilers because it's hard to talk about anything in any real detail and not have spoilers. Fair warning. So, onwards to Episode 1:

Episode 1 - The Full Metal Alchemist

The first episode of a series is undeniably important. It's the hook. It has to be able to draw viewers in so that they keep watching. I believe this episode does that quite well.

I usually associated this with Armstrong in the original
FMA anime. I like this expansion of Ed's character.

First of all it starts in the middle rather the beginning. Edward is already a State Alchemist. They are already going full force on their goal of getting their bodies back. Although this does little to establish motivation, I don't think it is needed at this stage in the series. It's more important to draw interest with intriguing plot and character elements rather than explain everything from the beginning. Leave questions. It's a good thing. At least in my opinion.

Second, the Elric's backstory does not hijack the episode. We do get a flashback, but it's only a brief part of the story. It's hardly the whole story, and it's not so much that it distracts from current events within the episode. Again, don't give us everything all at once.

I like how the series introduces characters in this episode. It uses characters talking about other characters mixed with scene changes. For example before the opening credits, we see an unnamed alchemist drawing a transmutation circle in the alley. No other info. The scene changes, and we go to Mustang and the Furor discussing "The Freezing Alchemist"--clearly the guy we just saw in the alley. Rough hierarchy between Mustang and the Furor is established. The topic shifts to Edward Elric, using the titles and nicknames commonly used to reference him. Then scene changes to the Elric brothers.

I appreciate how this episode uses action to demonstrate what characters can do: for instance using a chase to show how the Freezing Alchemist uses his powers rather than just going over them in the briefing earlier in the episode.

On the surface, this episode appears to be filler--fun and full of action, but still filler. It also brings in fun characters like Maes Hughes and Armstrong earlier in the series rather than waiting. It's a strong opening episode. It sets the tone for the rest of the series. It establishes that we can expect characters other than the Elrics to play stronger roles--this is one of my favorite things about this series. It also sets up the Elrics' goals, Mustang's ambition, Edward's lack of interest in his actual job, and sows seeds that suggest that there is some kind of general discontent with the current government. There is a bit of seriousness--combat scenes and the plot of the episode itself. It is balanced with some comedic elements--Edward and Armstrong both modify their attacks in funny ways, Armstrong loses his shirt on at least 2 occasions during the episode, and the general shenanigans of Hughes. I like series like this. I like to laugh, but I also appreciate good strong characters and an engaging plot.

And, because I can, here's some more screenshots of things I like.

I'm sure you can tell that Armstrong is one of my favorite characters. XD Interestingly, Armstrong reminds me of my great uncle. He was tall, very muscly, bald, had a blond mustache, talked about family tradition, and held the same rank in the military during World War II. Sadly he passed away in the late 1990s, but this connection probably contributes significantly to my love of this character.

Anyways... I don't know where I'm going with this. I'd like to go through the entire series, but I don't know how often I'll post about it. I'd like to say I have a more coherent direction or plan, but no, it's probably just going to be me rambling about things I like or things I notice. XD

A Little Bit of a Lot of Things: A Look at my Week

It's nice to be *almost* settled in. So, I still have a handful of boxes I still need to deal with. So, parts of my workroom are still more than a little unorganized. I am glad to have my workroom back, at least to some extent. Admittedly, it's not as awesome as it was a year ago--I had a huge counter, lots of shelves and a big work table in the middle of the room, great for all kind of projects. All that stuff is in storage now. I have just one little desk and a couple of shelves. Still, it is a room that I can call my own.

I do have a ways to go with organization. I fully admit that I'd be happy with the way it is now (mostly) if we weren't trying to keep the house up for sale. Right now there's still too much clutter for the house to be "showable" especially in my work area. I need to finish organizing the boys' school work (on my side) plus crafting supplies and tools. I also need to get current projects sorted into appropriate places.

Still, if you consider the kind of mess I'm usually capable of, this place is almost sparkly. Having less stuff does help. I may have stuff left to put away and organize, but it's not an overwhelming task. We have one last wedding for the summer to go to this week (my baby brother is getting married Thursday =D), but after we get home from that, I expect I'll be able to really get going on some projects I've been really wanting to work on. I'm especially excited about starting work on the Suzaku/Euphemia cosplays for Anime Weekend Atlanta. My mom and I are planning to go fabric shopping this Friday before we head home from the wedding festivities.

With only 7 weeks left till AWA, I expect this week will be like the calm before the panic centered around convention preparation sets in. In those 7 weeks I plan on finishing Euphemia and Suzaku costumes along with touch-ups on my friend's Azula costume. I will be rewearing my Mai costume, my husband his Zuko costume, and my cousin her Ty Lee costume. My cousin and I will also be wearing our Pineapple Kitty and Gothic Panda lolita costumes. In the world of art, I'm going to make a serious effort to get the next set of Zodiacs finished both, non-chibi prints and chibi badges. That might be a bit optimistic, but I guess we'll see. For this Wednesday's WIP, expect to see some of Aries. I'm not sure what else will be there; a lot depends on if I can get any work done in the car or during down time (assuming there's any of that at all). So, this was a bit of a rambling post--I blame my short attention span. XD