Силно добра мангица - забавна и изпълнена с интересни теми и благо маризене (не като в комикс на "Марвел"). Нещо ми залипсва някаква сюжетна нишка, която е извън трите приключения на братята, или може би тази за възвръщането на загубените части от тяло и цяло тяло е прекалено тъничка.
Искрено се надявам да испеят да издадат цялата история, а наскоро излезе и втората книжка, която тъкмо ще започвам.
4

*shrug* I dig it.

I highly recommend this manga for hard magic system fantasy fans who don't read manga. Full Metal Alchemist (FMA) manga has many strong points as a fantasy story:
1. The setting/world building is rich. It has steampunk taste (showing a lot of highly advanced mechanical prosthetic limbs), First World War era, and magical alchemist system.

2. I am not an expert in  Sanderson's First Law  but after I read the article, I believe this manga can be considered as a Hard Magic system story. The magic system is clearly explained and when the story progressing, the author can deliver many non-cheating plot twists with the rules of alchemist.

3. Tons of sympathetic characters. In my opinion, this manga has the largest amount of sympathetic minor characters in manga. The author design many minor characters to give impact to the story. I don't want to spoil much, but one of my friends said the FMA won't be this good without character X and Y (I won't spoil the names. I hope you have your own favorite characters when reading this manga).

4. In my opinion, the plot is flawless from beginning to the end. I am afraid if I elaborate more I will spoil some fun.

5. This manga is not a comedy story, but there are some light moments. The humor is pretty evenly spread until the end. That means the author could keep the balance of humour better than most of humour/comedy mangas.

I have become a skeptical reader over the years. It's because I've read A LOT. I was the kid who could read over 12,000 pages in a single summer - and I know because I counted. So I learned about plots, characterization, and all the things authors can do to make reading a pleasant experience.

Unfortunately, after a while, you become so knowledgeable of the meta-world that you lose sight of the treasure within the tale. Frequently I pick up a fantasy or science-fiction novel off a shelf and think, "This looks exactly like everything else."

But. Fullmetal Alchemist. blew. me. away.

As you can tell from my previous reviews of this first book (I kept them below... but I felt the need to rewrite this review YET AGAIN, sorry everyone), it took me a little bit of time to get into the series. It was good, but it didn't stand out to me too much at first. Books one and two didn't excite me all that much, and in fact I was a little offended by some of the content. Maybe you don't have that problem, but if you do share my lack of "hm, it's okay," just keep reading.

Hiromu Arakawa created a world of alchemy, something that makes me want to be an alchemist because it's just so amazing. She wrote in characters with heart-wrenching back stories and wonderful personalities. I have developed a strong opinion of every single character in the series, something that few authors can really get me to do. We've got an incredible cast with wide personalities, and they're all so incredibly distinct. I squeal over Armstrong, squeal over Mustang and Hawkeye, and most of all, squeal over the relationship between Edward and Alphonse.

There are two things that make this series absolutely fantastic beyond belief, and the first is the brothers and emotional depth we see there. The relationship between Ed and Al is incredibly poignant, heart-breaking, and heart-warming. They have gone through an incredible amount in their lives, and you feel it just as strongly as they do. I don't know that I could be any more invested in characters than this. We see loyalty, love, and perseverance. How Ed defends Al gets me every time.

This brings me to the second incredible thing that distinguishes FMA from anything else I have read: the depth in the story. We aren't just in for action (though we've got a lot of that), romance (though there's certainly the "aww" moments), humor (though I always crack up), or plot twists (though Arakawa is ingenious in plot progression). We get a whole set of deep questions. The characters aren't just alchemists - they ask WHY they do it, if it's worth doing it, when it's worth doing it, what they should do with it. WMorals come up everywhere - when is it okay to kill people, if ever? How should we deal with sacrifice? How do we treat human souls? When does someone stop becoming human? We're bashed with questions over sacrifice, genocide, utilitarianism versus deontology... You don't just have an adventure when you read FMA, you have a real experience that leads you away changed and... in my case... absolutely obsessed.

More comments about FMA can be found in my other reviews. You can even check out the first half of #27 to see my reaction when I completed the series (I give a warning before I start on volume-specific comments).

Happy reading.

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I decided to reread the first two volumes of Fullmetal Alchemist because:
1. I hadn't read them in a while
2. I plan to continue reading the series about now
3. The library didn't have book three in.

So. As a second read-through, I would say the series is much better. In fact, I just bumped it up from three to four stars. Or maybe it's because I read the book in slightly a different light.

The first two books contain a lot of philosophical analysis concerning religion. I do not inherently consider this a bad thing; contrarily, the first two chapters in which a very cult-like society is realistically formed intrigued me during my re-read. I mean, it has all the standards one might psychologically expect: a strong, egotistic leader whom everyone follows without question, the claims of being a direct representative from God, a closed community, a desire for power amongst the authorities, etc. So that was sort of fun to analyze. But then - to continue onto book two (I might as well when on this train of thought) - we meet Scar, who even uses some possible vague scriptural references such as "there is a time to create and to destroy." Now, I do not have a problem with those sorts of psycho-religious bad guys, but I think one thing that got me disjointed at the beginning of FMA is the seemingly constant negative religious spin. Maybe that's me, maybe that's just the first two books... I don't know. It's not that Hiromu Arakawa does not have valid points concerning religions' dangerous facets, it's just very flinchingly one-sided at the moment.

To clarify that ramble: maybe that's why I rated the first book three stars at first.

Now let's get onto the good stuff. Rereading it, I found a bit more enjoyment in the dialogue and personality of the characters (first reread, it took me until book two to get the hang of it all). And there are some interesting moral questions brought up in this series that I find intriguing... a lot of teleological versus deontological issues, some I would have solved differently, but still fun to read. And the alchemy setting is well-done, particularly about the cost of trying to transmute humans. Very nice.

I think it's hard to review manga based on just the first volume, so I think my opinions will become more relevant the further along I go in the series. Which, so I hope, will be further than book two this go-round!

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Original review:

As a first book in a series, it doesn't really particularly stand out - except that you can see a lot of potential where it is going. The second book of the series is where I started to really get into the storyline (because this one, like many first books, is such an introduction you can't really claim too much of a significant storyline).

Maratón Guadalupe-Reinas Reto#6: Lee un cómic, novela gráfica o libro ilustrado

Desde que estoy en la secundaria me han recomendado Fullmetal Alchemist hasta el cansancio, por alguna u otra razón nunca lo había leído. Recuerdo haber visto uno o dos capítulos del anime pero no dejaron una gran impresión en mi, quizá era muy pequeña para apreciarlo.

Lo que más me gusto de este primer tomo fue el hecho de que las aventuras son muy concretas, la autora no le da vueltas innecesarias a la trama "¿Existe algún problema?, Esta es nuestra solución"

Los hermanos Elric me cayeron muy bien, se complementan el uno al otro de una manera extraña y particular.

La alquimia es un tema muy interesante, el pasado de los hermanos Elric es atrayente y la posible relación de la historia con los siete pecados capitales es muy intrigante... sin embargo, el hecho de que sea una serie tan larga me desanima un poco.

Me gustó mucho este tomo pero no lo suficiente para afirmar que continuaré con la historia. Veamos que me depara el 2018.

A great piece of light-hearted manga that is quick and entertaining. I could definitely see myself getting into this, although I definitely wouldn’t rate the volume one more than three stars purely because it is just not as detailed and complex as other mangas I LOVE like death note. Altogether a fun series I’ll definitely be continuing throughout this year!

Aaaah the memories

This is a review of the entire series.

Fullmetal Alchemist takes place in the fictional country of Amestris which is heavily based on the Industrial Revolution. Amestris is a unitary state under the rule of a parliamentary republic, run by state alchemists that serve the king utilizing the mystifying arts of alchemy. Alchemy is the power to alter the physical world utilizing its natural elements, performing magic and miracles in the form of science. Alchemy follows the law of equivalent exchange, you must sacrifice something that is of equal value to what you create. You must sacrifice a life to create a life, you must extinguish one flame to ignite another, you have to sacrifice one home to build another, etc...

After being abandoned by their father as children and subjected to watching their mother die, Edward Elric and his brother Alphonse once attempted to utilize the power of alchemy to bring their mother back from the grave, ignoring the dangers of creating a life by offering something of equal value. Edward loses an arm and a leg while Alphonse loses his entire body; his soul placed in a hollow suit of armor that can't feel the touch of others. As neither of them sacrificed their lives in their entirety, the exchange failed and the boys created an abomination in place of their dead mother.

After burning their own home down and dealing with the abomination they created, Edward and his brother enlist themselves in the military to atone for their sins and learn more about the many secrets of alchemy; potentially learning how to recover their original bodies in the process. While serving in the military, the brothers begin to realize how the wonders of alchemy can be abused for nefarious purposes. Immortal life can be gained by sacrificing hundreds of innocent souls, wars can be staged and foreign nations can be annihilated under false charges, human experimentation aided by alchemy can lead to unnatural mutations, the world of alchemy is more dark and dangerous than either of them could've bargained for.

Fullmetal Alchemist grew on me the longer I read it. When I first started reading, it seemed like it was going to be generic shounen material, but it gets deeper and darker the further it goes on. The way it handles political and religious corruption, the dangers of advanced states abusing their technology and resources at the expense of foreign nations caught in the turmoil, and the sad futility of revenge are all very well done.

The characters all bear the weight of what alchemy is capable of. Edward and Alphonse carry the burden of abusing alchemy for selfish purposes. Their master Izumi loses her womb after attempting to resurrect her dead child. Scar takes many lives after his entire country is desecrated and gets trapped in a pointless cycle of revenge. Roy and Riza endure the regret of committing brutal war crimes for the sake of protecting their own nation. Alchemy creates and destroys in equal measure and no one is free from the consequences of tipping the balance.

The fight scenes are flashy and exciting without being too over-the-top because of the dangerous limitations that alchemy involves. The law of equivalent exchange keeps the power scaling in check and adds plenty of tension to the action. The female characters are especially well done, all of them are strong and unique in their own way. The lead heroine Winry being a skilled mechanic, Riza being an honorable warrior of the military, Olivier Armstrong as cold and vicious as the snowy fortress she guards, and that's just a few of them.

The villains are an interesting parody of the seven deadly sins. Each of them represent the darkness and regrets of each of the main characters and they can only be conquered by coming to terms with their own flaws and sins. The characters having to overcome their personal demons to take on the greater demons trying to overthrow the world from the shadows made the struggles of every single person in the story feel personal. Every character, no matter how minor had their moments to shine. Everyone had a vital role to play and the camaraderie between friend and foe alike never felt cheesy or forced.

Unlike most shounen series I've read, the final arc was my favorite. A lot of long-running shounen series have a habit of being dragged out, losing touch with what made them great or breaking their own rules in messy, plot-hole-filled final arcs that leave a lot to be desired. Fullmetal Alchemist has no lose ends, all characters have complete arcs where they learn and grow from their dark pasts, the romance and comedy are handled well without relying on cheap fanservice, the action scenes are great but they don't overshadow the plot and the final chapters tie everything together beautifully. It's not my favorite manga by any means as I usually tend to favor seinen, but it's definitely one of the greatest stories to ever come out of the shounen demographic in my opinion. The ending is a tearjerker but it left me in good spirits.

***

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An assured start of the series, with heartbreak, carefully curated backstories and a lot of hints to darker things to come
Teachings that do not speak of pain have no meaning because humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return.

A richly textured opening to the series, where we are not just introduced to the two protagonists (little, only in size, not in capabilities Edward (15) and Alphonse Elric (14) aka a metal suit with a soul) who carry deep trauma with them, despite the humor that is definitely present. The military state Edward works for is quite dark and the fire alchemist Roy Mustang is already teased. The alchemy is lightly touched upon but not in anyway hard to follow or deus ex machina.

Quotes:
Long time no see. Wish it was longer.

Alchemists work for the people.


You can’t move forward if you keep regretting the past

I like the mix of comedy and more serious topics. I used to watch the anime (the older one, not Brotherhood), but never finished it.

İlk ciltler her zaman başımın belasıdır ama buna rağmen sevdim.
Fakat umuyorum ki ilerleyen ciltlerde böyle kesit kesit olaylardan ziyade bi bütün okuruz. Ben bütünü her zaman tercih ederim. Sorry not sorry.

U očajničkom pokušaju da ožive svoju majku, braća Elrik će pokušati da izvedu najopasniji i zabranjeni oblik transmutacije. Pošto je poznato da alhemija zahteva razmenu, braća Elrik će morati da žrtvuju neke delove svog tela u tom riskantnom poduhvatu. Međutim, taj ritual se završava neslavno, posebno za mlađeg brata Alfonsa koji gubi celo telo. Da bi uspeo makar da spasi dušu svog brata, stariji brat Edvard će pored leve noge žrtvovane za prethodni ritual, morati da se odrekne i svoje desne ruke kako bi dušu svog brata vezao za ogromni oklop. Tako i počinje ova priča. Braća Elrik tragaju za kamenom mudrosti koji omogućava da se obavi transmutacija, ali bez razmene koju nalažu zakoni alhemije, a sve u cilju da povrate svoje izgubljene delove tela. Na tom putu će se suočiti sa svojim najvećim neprijateljima koje čine "Sedam smrtnih grehova", ali će usput rešavati i "male" nepravde načinjene poštenim ljudima od strane korumpiranih oficira, lažnih sveštenika itd.
Sjajna avantura koja je pored zanimjive priče začinjena i humorom, doduše, malo naivnim, ali moramo uzeti u obzir da su čuvena braća samo klinci, tako da meni lično nije smetalo.
Ovo je uvod u jedan sjajan serijal, što se može zaključiti po onome prikazanom do sada.