FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST: BROTHERHOOD OVA COLLECTION
September 20th 2012 21:52
Based on the original Fullmetal Alchemist manga by Hiromu Arakawa
Director: Yasuhiro Irie
Writer: Hiroshi Onogi
Starring: Vic Mignogna (Edward Elric), Maxey Whitehead (Alphonse Elric), Caitlin Glass (Winry Rockbell), Travis Wallingham (Col Roy Mustang), Colleen Clinkenbeard (Lt Riza Hawkeye), Mike McFarland (Jean Havoc), Jeremy Inman (Heymans Breda), Kyle Herbert (Vato Falman), Kevin M Connolly (Kain Fuery), Ed Blaylock (Fuhrer King Bradley), Christopher Sabat (Maj Alex Louis Armstrong), Laura Bailey (Lust), Wendy Powell (Envy), Chris Patton (Greed), Brittney Karbowski (Pride/Selim), Meredith McCoy (Maria Ross), Jim Foronda (Denny Brosh), Christine Auten (Izumi Curtis), Barry Yandell (Yoki), Jerry Jewell (Barry the Chopper), J Michael Tatum (Scar), Todd Haberkorn (Ling Yao), Kenny Green (Fu), Trina Nishimura (Lan Fan), Monica Rial (May Chang), Chris Cason (Gluttony), Sonny Strait (Maes Hughes), Stephanie Young (Olivier Armstrong), John Swasey (Hohenheim), Kent Williams (Father), Jason Douglas (Miles), Phil Parsons (Buccaneer) & Eric Vale (Solf J Kimblee)
English Language version by: FUNimation Productions Ltd
Released by: Madman Entertainment
Running Time: 60 minutes Rating: M
When I first purchased this DVD I wasn’t sure what I’d be getting; sure it was the same characters and world that made up the original Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood series but you never know until you get the disc into your player and start watching. Frankly when I did just that I was pleasantly surprised with the results…although in my opinion the real gold in this particular little collection is the Fullmetal Four Panel Comic Theatre…hilarity ago go.
Still all that aside just what is this particular collection all about; what’s its rationale? In essence the main part of the disc consists of what are four one shot stories focused on key characters from the Fullmetal Alchemist universe. Thus we have the Elric brothers, Izumi Curtis their teacher, Winry Rockbell the childhood friend of the Elric brothers along with Roy Mustang and his comrade in arms Maes Hughes. With the Elric brothers and Winry Rockbell the format takes the place of a tale that is in media res, something that occurs in the middle of all the hurly burly of their ongoing saga. In contrast the stories of Izumi Curtis and Roy Mustang are from the beginnings of their respective careers and focus primarily on how they become what they are in the greater scheme of the overall saga.
Of the four stories the one that is probably the most interesting, at least from my humble perspective, was the story titled the Blind Alchemist. Whilst wandering about Amestris looking for a means of regaining their respective lost limbs and bodies Edward and Alphonse happen across the story of an alchemist who has successfully achieved human transmutation. Could this be the solution to their quest, could this alchemist have what they need…and more importantly will they be willing to impart their knowledge? When the dust settles the reality of the situation isn’t quite what the brothers expected…and in many ways it’s rather tragic. Just another example of the fact that when crossing the line in alchemy there is usually a price to pay…that’s the law of equivalent exchange after all.
As I said earlier on though the real strength of this disc is the Fullmetal Four Panel Comic Theatre…this is just comedic gold aplenty. When I watched it I almost fell out of my chair with deep belly laughter…so hilarious were the gags, in fact it was simply worth purchasing the disc for just this aspect alone. That’s how good and how funny the comic theatre is…in fact I’d say the bulk of the material has been drawn from the pages of the manga as I know for a fact that most of the manga volumes feature several four panel comics at the end. So it’s refreshing to see these comics come to life in an anime format. If you are a fan of Fullmetal Alchemist then this is a disc that frankly you can’t afford to miss, if you’re someone who’s not a fan or new to the whole series then my advice is to either get into the series from the get go or look elsewhere…
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