So, FMA premiered on Adult Swim Saturday night.

I LOVE this show :wub: and I'm very interested in what people thought of it.

I spent several hours last night (Hey I couldn't sleep- so why not :D ) going through quite a few forums reading about people's opinions.

Here's what I discovered:

1. I was glad to hear that for the most part the dub was liked by the people that have already seen the show in Japanese.

People were very surprised that it was a good dub. (I was unable to convince my roommates to go to standard cable in time so I wasn't able to watch it, therefore I'm going on Pan pan's review of the dub - who is also a die hard fan of FMA)

Of course there are the "elitists" that will find something wrong with the dub and they were voicing their opinions on the forums too. :huh: I ignored them, but I was glad to read a lot people fighting back. Oh yeah. :P

2. I was REALLY glad to read posts from people that have never seen the show and they really liked it and couldn't wait to see more. :rolleyes:

These were the posts I was looking for. I wanted to read people's reactions of watching it for the first time.

I was so happy to read that it was well received. :)

I had no doubt that it would be, but I've heard of Cartoon Network's lack of promoting and I was worried that not a lot of people would watch. (the people that don't follow the show that is)

If you missed the premier I believe they're doing an encore showing on Thursday night - check listings.

So, did any of you guys catch it? If you did, what did you think?

yay! I watched it! Here's how it went down at my house though:
My sister's high school was having a dance saturday, so she decided it would be fun to bring her friends over to "chill" afterward. But the time for FMA was slowly rolling around...
*FMA starts*
*Pan Pan sits right in front of the tv*
One of Mit's friends: "What're ya watchin?"
Pan Pan: It's FMA! I've been waiting for months to see it on CN!!
*Mit's friends proceed to have noisy conversations*
Pan Pan: <_< I'm trying to watch this... as I mentioned, I've been waiting to see it...
Mit: but you've seen this show already in japanese!
Pan Pan: <_< . . .
*more noisy conversations*
*pan pan turns the tv up*
Mit: PANNON!!! Don't do that! I can't hear what my friends are talking about!!
Pan Pan: *turns it up some more* That's the point...

So... eventually they left... and I got to enjoy it. I think Vic did a good job as Ed. I mean, Romi Paku is awesome, but Vic did a great job too. Al's voice was really cute sounding, not annoying, which made me happy. I didn't get to hear many of the main characters, since it was just the first episode, but I was pretty happy with the dub. No blatantly annoying voices that I noticed. yay ^.^

~Pan Pan

Sadly, I don't have much of a reveiw. Ed sounded slightly older then I expected (go fig, I've only read the manga) but that's no problem, and I do agree that Alphonse had a really cute voice. Other then that, all I can say is that I'm excited about seeing the second episode and that I was waiting for this since October when I saw the date it would come out.

I saw it for the first time! I liked it; I admit, I wasn't entirely comfortable seeing a kid lose some limbs, but apart from that, it looks pretty cool. I agree, they got some good dub voices! Does anyone else wonder why none of the townsfolk seemed to notice that Al, whom they thought was a big guy in a suit of armor, had a little boy's voice? You'd think they'd be asking about that. I look forward to the next ep to get a better feel for the series! :)

*~*Nans*~*

After hearing so much stuff about FMA from people who've seen it or read the manga I was really happy they put in on CN so I could see it, poor little broke me...and the holidays are coming up too...the horror...anyways, I liked it alot, and here's the great thing, I usually record AS that way I can watch it after school or so I don't wake up my parents with my fangirl squeal whenever Inuyasha does something completely adorable...or if his ears twitch...same thing....so needless to say I get to watch it again and again and again until next saturday where I'll do the same thing with the second episode...

Yeah, I really like it, I agree with Nans I thought it was hilarious when the townsfolk didn't find anything wrong with a little kid in this huge suit of armor...I mean duh! anyways so yeah...that's what a complete first timer just watching because of what she heard has to say...^_^ hehe

LUcky!! Yeah, I have to wait till February to watch it (it's when it comes to DVD) Wait - actually I can watch it once - when I go home for Christmas...

Since I was unable to convince my roomies - (there's 6 of us so it would only of been $5 more a month! lol) aNyways, I was able to talk my baby brother to watch it on thursday night and to let me know what he thought. He better do it or I'll kill him. :D

Though I'd already seen up to episode 29 by the time it got licensed, I was thoroughly stoked to see this show... again. I was thrilled that they didn't edit it as much as some other shows have been *coughONEPIECEcough*, and I was actually pretty satisfied with the voices. Ed sounded a slight bit older than I expected, but he's bearable, and Al's voice was as near to the original as humanly possible. 'Course, they haven't shown all the characters yet, so I'll withhold my FINAL judgement until after I hear Mustang, Armstrong, and Scar's voices.
All in all, Kago likes.

YAY! FMA! *just finished watching it a half an hour ago*

I was wondering why Al didn't move when the statues were stabbing him... Anyways, they changed the anime from the manga a lot more than I expected (other than just adding parts to make a full episode) but it was still really good. Though, the manga was a lot more humerous so I was slightly dissapointed. Ah, well.

(Note about One Piece: They gave them pop-guns....POP-GUNS I SAY!

Watched Episode 2. And I have only one thing to say...
They kept the original "Ready, Steady, Go!" opening!
:lol: :lol: Kago soooo happy! :lol: :lol:

yeah, don't go by the manga. The run parellel (sp?) to each other with the anime having slight differences and then the anime goes in a whole different direction.

So, don't compare the two or you'll be dissappointed if you're expecting it to be like the manga.

They're both very cool in their own rights. Just thought I'd give you a heads up.

Yeah, I like the Ready Steady Go animation! And they used the whole opening? That's cool.

watched the second one (recorded of course) than lost the tape to my idiotic next door neighbor who got on his hands and knees and begged...I should have it back by tomorrow so I can actually watch it while fully awake, I was kind of asleep when I watched it the first time, and the pocky didn't kick in until after it was over...so *shrug* what can I say?

The second ep was interesting; don'tcha just love tearing down a corrupt system? Though the tearing-down didn't entirely work, thanks large to that shape-shifter. Of course, now I'm left to wonder what the deal is with the folks named after the Deadly Sins, but I'll learn it in time. The next ep is going to be a bit of a downer, though, you can tell.

*~*Nans*~*

For the next half dozen or so episodes their gonna be going ito Ed and Al's past (from the time they tried to resurrect their mom up to their joining the Military). And yes it is sad, especially when "Scar" shows up. Then they go on for about a dozen or so episodes in the present until around episodes 27 and 28 when they reveal some of Ed and Al's training. I haven't seen past episode 29...

I watched the 2nd ep fully awake...good stuff

can't wait till Saturday! ^_^ this really sucks though, cause they only play it once a week and the rate they're going unless they switch the schedule they'll still be playing it all on Saturday well into the summer and I'm going to Australia for 3 weeks...T.T I dunno what I'm gonna do...especially if the Saturday before I leave leaves off at a really really bad part which it usually does...which is another reason why I record the stuff that way I can scream at the TV before anybody gets home ^_^'''

Just saw episode 3. I'm exceedingly pleased by the fact that they are showing these episodes UNCUT in all their gruesome glory. These episodes just wouldn't be the same without the "details". And yes they are using the full textless "Ready Steady Go!" opening. Watching the opening is kinda wierd for me. I keep looking to the bottom of the screen for the text but it's just not there! I wanna know what their singing dammit! But anywho the highlight for this episode (and tru purpose of this rant) was the first extended appearance of Roy Mustang, and my verdict on his voice is... "acceptable". I don't think it's perfect (I think he sounds a little too serious) but he could have sounded much worse (I'm still recovering from hearing Ussopp's English voice). Though they didn't do half as good as they did with Al's voice, I can adjust to this one. Once I hear it some more, and Mustang actually gets some decent lines, I'm sure he'll sound better. More and more major character should start showing up in these next few episodes, and we can only hope that their voices are as good as the ones we've seen.
Thus far though I'd say their doing a pretty damn good job.

Oh good! I was waiting to hear about Roy. I don't have extended cable and Pannon is watching as I type this... it started 6 mins ago. We were discussing earlier that this will be the first time that Roy will be talking..... I want to hear it!!!! :lol:

But when I go home for Christmas I'll be home for 2 Saturdays... so I'll hear it then....

For now, I get my jollies from others that love it and are watching it.... I'm so glad that the dubbing is good and from what I've found complete newbies are digging this show!

YAy! Uncut... I was wondering about that... esspectially with what happens in the 3rd ep. THat is totally sweet.

Thanks for posting the info Kago!! :D

Actually, I've only read the manga. But I did some downloads, so I at least know what Ed and Al sound like. It is sooooo awesome... I've been driving my family nuts.

Me: blahblahblahFMAblahblahblah.....
My brother: *nods*
Me: *still going on and on and on*
Parents: .........?
Me: *still going*
My Mom: Um, that's....nice...
Me: *not getting hint or 'silence' hand gestures*

Yep, I think the DVDs come out in January....

Actually the DVDs got pushed back from January 18th to February 8th I believe.

I still can't wait!

It's time for my weekly report...
Well, I saw this weeks episode and was pleased that they've kept the production value so high. No unnecessary edits to speak of, though I think they altered some of the dialogue a little. But next week comes the big premiere of one of everybody's favorite characters... Hughes! Lets hope they did as good a job with him as they did with everybody else.

Yay!! Thanks for keeping me informed! ... and everyone else.... lol

I'll be able to see the 7th and 8th ep when I'm home so I'm stoked!!

I hope they do a good job with Hughes... hee-hee I love that episode! LOL

Everybody loves Hughes!
*Enter Hughes*
Hughes: Yes they do! Just like I love my daughter. I have a picture of her right here. Wanna see? Of course you do! Look at her... isn't she cu~ute. Yes she is, oh yes she is... just look at that cute little face... just look at it... she's daddy's little princess... she my pride and joy... oh yes she is...
*Voice trails off as he rambles on and on and on...*

Okay, I finally got to see last week's ep tonight! And. . .I'm a little confused on one point. Of Karin didn't die, what did they bury? Why did they assume she was dead if there was no body? The rest of the ep I understood fine, but that just doesn't make sense. I mean, if he'd said that there was a trail of blood on the ground and they had assumed her body had been drug off by local predators, that would've been fine, but all they said was "she fell from the cliff and died - oh, wait, no she didn't! here she is!" Am I the only one who found that puzzling? :huh: Or was that a small flaw in the dub? Can anyone enlighten me here?

*~*Nans*~*

hmm.. I'll rewatch it in Japanese and let you know if it's a dub thing or just something never really explained.

Unless someone knows already.

It's been awhile since I've seen the earlier episodes... well except for tomorrow's ep - I've watched that one over and over again. I LOVE that ep!!

*edit*

For those people that are like me - wondering how FMA is doing - I got this from animenewsnetwork.com:

In their first month on Adult Swim, Fullmetal Alchemist and Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex showed an impressive average growth of 92% and 79% respectively over the same time slot last year among adults 18-34. With men 18-34 increasing 72% and 44%, the bulk of the growth came in the form of newfound female viewers, increasing 130% during Fullmetal Alchemists time slot and 168% during Stand Alone Complex's time slot.

Overall, Fullmetal Alchemist averaged 492,000 adult 18-34 viewers while Stand Alone Complex averaged 428,000.

Adult Swim continued to be the number 1 programming block on basic cable for adults 18-34 in November and grew its audience in that demographic by 24% overall compared to a year ago, with the 18-34 female audience increasing by 88%.

Power to the fan girls! :lol: Kinda makes you wonder what the male-to-female viewer ratio is for Inuyasha and Wolf's Rain, huh?

Okay, it's time for another one of Kago's WORLD FAMOUS not-quite-weekly FMA updates, so heeeeeere we go...
Every voice thus far has been great!
Hughes = Awesome!
Hawkeye = Nice!
The Fuhrer = Very good!
And I'm extremely pleased with how Mina turned out, too bad about what's gonna happen in tonights episode... but that's for another update!

Tonight's episode was more than a bit disturbing. Is it me, or does alchemy seem to have the frequent side effect of driving its users insane? :unsure:

*~*Nans*~*

Tonights episode was so sad. I watched it with my brother and sister while i was babysitting them in the hotel room where we're staying in anaheim. We all cried our little eyes out. That was a horrible thing to do. I can't believe that man did that to his own wife and daughter. But I'm not the one who did the storyline so I really have no say in the matter, lol
Still it was a sad part, (mina was my favorite character so far)

Well, that depends what type of alchemy you're using. Usually anything having to do with creating a living creature is pretty psyco-enducing (Not that Ed and Al are out of there minds.)

Mainly, I felt really sorry for Ed in that episode. First they won't give him what he wants at the library (hate it when that happens to me), then he sees the murdered women and passes out from the memory of his mom, then he finds out that Nina and Alexander have been turned into a chimera by there own dad, then he gets knocked out by those stupid military officers, then he has to see Nina get killed, and, according to the preveiw, Col. Roy's going to give him a lecture in the next episode. That HAD to be a sucky day.

Note: Nie-chan was right, this is an alternate universe compared to the manga. :( Thay cut ut the miner town too. That was my favorite chapter...

The minor town is still in the anime, it comes up a bit later - but it is a bit different than the manga.

It depends on the reason you're doing the alchemy, Tucker did that to his family to further his station in life.

Roy uses alchemy and he's not insane.

Ed and Al aren't insane either. They just loved their mother so much that they wanted to be with her again and they were young. That is why Ed freaked out when Tucker compared Ed to himself.

Scar himself is a different case. He's not an alchemist, and you'll discover more of him and his motivation as the story progresses.

This show is not a happy go lucky show, it has some dark themes to it. It has some great funny moments and then it has some sad dark moments - but I know for me this show kept me on the edge of my seat I couldn't wait to see the next episode.

I watched it last night so I was able to finally listen to the dub. I think they did a great job! I really liked the voices. There wasn't one that annoyed me. :D

I didn't say using alchemy made everyone insane, just that there seemed to be quite a few crazy alchemists. :(

But now that you mention it, it does seem to be mostly the alchemists that are trying to make life that are nuts, except for Ed and Al; the rest seem okay...

And Hughes playing with his baby daughter was so cute! "Look, it's your big brother, Ed!" :P :lol:

*~*Nans*~*

Wow, this topic is doing just as well as the updates on the site right now (Don't kill me, it's quite true).

Alrighty then, they finally got back to the present and we can continue with the original storyline. That flash-back was a bit long, don't you think?

Reveiw of the overall ep.:
I know, I know, Nie-chan told me not to compare the anime and manga, but this and the train hold-up one were my two favorite chapters so I have to. Don't get me wrong though, I really liked the other one since they introduced all of the military officers. However, I liked the way Ed and Al did things better in the manga, most likely because they were older and used to those kind of events.

Other then that I still enjoyed it, same with all the other ones. (They actually introduced Barry the Chopper early on, Wow!)

(Next week)
WHY ISN'T ANYBODY POSTING?! Don't you guys still like the series...

I still like it. I have a question now, though: Envy is a guy, right? Well, did the dub voice (I've never heard the original Japanese voice) sound overly girly to anyone else? Was it supposed to? I'm a little confused... :wacko:

*~*Nans*~*

Envy is a guy.

I don't have cartoon network so I haven't heard the dub... so I have no idea if they made him sound girly.

*trying to remember japanese eps* ....um..... I don't think the japanese voice was girly......

Jeeze, I half-killed myself trying to see the last two episodes since I was in Florida, but I did. And yes, Envy's voice did seem to be a bit... femanin. I was just annoied that they never showed a close-up of his face so I could really see what he looks like. Oh, and I'm highly pleased with the new credits. Ed does a hair-flip...WAI! *ahem* Did anyone else notice the pink sparkles around Major Armstrong?

Yep, I did! I wondered about that, too. Do you suppose that happens every time he takes off his shirt? And the posing. . .what can one say about that? :blink:

*~*Nans*~*

That's Armstrong, he's like that. That's all you really need to know.

I know, it's just...they were pink. I just thought they would've been white or yellow or something. Oh, well.

Once again, must agree with Suki_kitty. Sparkles is one thing, but pink sparkles? For a full-grown muscle man? White or yellow, sure, but pink? :blink:

*~*Nans*~*

There is a simple answer to this...

Cause it's funny. :lol:

Before it came on in adult swim I had heard of it, but I had never watched it. I didn't even know anything about it. So when I started watching it (I didn't actually start watching it until like the fourth episode) I had no idea what to expect. And I'm actually very glad it happened that way. Going in without knowing anything about it before hand let me experience it new, right as it was happening, without knowing previously it was going to happen. (Doesn that make any sense? Or am I rambling?)

What I mean is, there are certain scenes that took me by complete surpirse and if I had know about them previously I wouldn't have been as affected by them. Like in that episode right after Ed becomes a state alchemist and *Spoiler* I sat there afterwards thinking, "Wow. That is so sad...and slightly disturbing...BUT TOTALLY AWESOME!!!!" And I do not mean that as it sounds. It's just that it took me by complete surprise. I knew something was going to happen, there was enough foreshadowing to make that much obvious, but I didn't think it would happen in such a drastic way. And I love it when things take me by complete surprise. That means the writers have done their job. :D

Anyway, the entire point of that was to say that because I started watching it without any previous knowledge I probably appreciate a little more than I would have. Overall I love Full Metal Alchemist to death (as well as Adult Swim for airing it) and I can't wait to see more. In fact i'm going to watch the rerun tonight because, sadly, I fell asleep last Satuday while I was waiting for it to come on.


Edit: Took out a spoiler.