First Impressions / Fullmetal Alchemist

Summary:

Ed wakes up in the hospital with Ross and Brosh watching over him, and they report that the laboratory was destroyed. Ross also slaps him for putting his own life in danger and not relying on those around him. Ed then calls Winry and asks her to come to Central to do some maintenance work on him, and to his surprise, she’s not mad at him for getting it broken in a fight. With Winry on her way, Ed notices that Al is sitting by himself in a dark hallway, and Al acts distantly. What Ed doesn’t realize is that Al is still brooding over what Barry suggested during the previous battle. A short while later, Winry arrives at Central via train, and she’s brought to the hospital by Armstrong. She blames herself at first for Ed’s injuries because she didn’t properly maintain his automail, but when she realizes that he didn’t notice the missing screw, she goes back to her normal self. Al meanwhile briefly looks in on the conversation right as everyone is lecturing Ed about drinking milk, but he leaves soon after, and Ed has realized by this point that something is bothering his brother.

Shortly after Winry completes the maintenance, Hughes shows up and meets her. When Hughes mentions Ed and Al’s escorts, Winry becomes suspicious of the danger that they’ve been getting into, but Ed claims it’s not a big deal. This causes Winry to comment on how the brothers never tell her anything. Hughes ends up offering Winry a place to stay for the night, and it just so happens that it’s Elicia’s birthday party today. During the party, Winry tells Hughes about how she and the brothers are like siblings, but she laments again that they never tell her anything. Hughes suggests that Ed and Al didn’t feel the need to discuss it and that they thought that she’d understand without them saying, but Winry feels that there are things that need to be said. Hughes responds by citing how men show with actions rather than words and how they don’t want to burden others, and he thinks that Winry’s role is to catch them if they give up.

Elicia becomes attached to Winry, but Winry decides to leave Hughes’ home the next morning. Over at the hospital, Ed is at odds with his milk again, and Al feels that he should drink it since he’s got a living body. Ed still refuses and offhandedly mentions that Al is lucky to have a big body, however this causes Al to angrily state that he didn’t want it. When Ed tries to apologize and reiterates that he wants to return Al to his old body, Al questions if there’s any guarantee of that. His suspicions that he could be fake finally boil over and lead him to suggest that that’s the thing that Ed had wanted to talk to him about but couldn’t. Ed is initially angry with all this, but he ends up just walking out silently by himself. Winry, who had arrived in time to hear the entire conversation, beats up on Al and starts crying because Al doesn’t know how Ed feels. She reveals that the thing that Ed was afraid to ask was if Al hated him, and this all goes back to how he felt after Al lost his body.

Winry makes Al realize that Ed is his only brother, and she gets him to chase after Ed. Al finds Ed on the rooftop, and Ed wants to spar. This time, Ed manages to win, and afterward, the two reminisce about all they fought over when they were young. Al knows now that these weren’t lies, and the two share a renewed determination to move forward and return to their old bodies. Watching them from nearby, Winry tells Hughes that there are indeed things that have to be said through words. Meanwhile, Scar wakes up from a nightmare about a State Alchemist who was in charge of annihilating an area, and he finds himself being tended to by an Ishvalan kid and old man in the East City slums. Though badly injured from his fight with Lust and Gluttony, Scar still has his right arm, and he reveals that the tattoos on it are important bonds from his family.

Preview

Well that wasn’t as bad as I thought it might be, particularly the parts about Al’s doubts. I still didn’t really care to see it, but it was over before I knew it, and what I did really enjoy was the music during the rooftop scene when the brothers came to terms with each other. Having so much Winry and Hughes in it was great as well, particularly with Winry’s wide range of emotions. It makes me wonder how far this series (and by association the manga) will take her relationship with them and with Ed specifically. Unfortunately, the preview reminded me of what was coming up next week, and that’s a real downer. It’s a shame that Hughes has to go in this version as well since he’s such a fun character (as demonstrated several times this episode), but I guess it’s unavoidable.

On a side note, the eyecatch announcer dude really made me shudder this week. Can’t they just get rid of him entirely?

58 Comments

  3. I’m a huge fan of the first series, and at times enjoyed it more than the manga, but I have to be honest here, because I feel it’s only fair to say this.

    This episode (and the manga) handled Alphonse’s memory crisis SO MUCH BETTER. It was so subtle and natural, not drawn out with that mostly pointless episode where Al is wandering around with Scar and runs into Barry the Chopper again and some guy with electric spikes. I liked the story of the kids in that episode, but really, it was so irrelevant. It was weird, because usually the series didn’t do that type of thing.

    A nice yelling at by Winry was all Al needed.

    Next episode, though, oh god. I can’t go through it again! Especially if they’re going to use the crappy music from this series. I swear, if I hear the same Italian restaurant music during the sad bits of next episode, I’m… well, I’ll probably keep watching. But I’ll be unhappy!

    penguintruth
    Reply

  5. As much as I don’t like Hughes being killed again, I don’t think his death will have that much impact, well only for those who are new to the series anyways, since it is too soon and I don’t think they did enough character development for him, although im also hoping he will not be killed but that is his character’s fate i guess…

    Decoy
    Reply

  10. Looks like we’ll get some new story next week. The Hughes and Mustang war stuff mostly comes later in the manga and I don’t remember there being much in the first anime. So next ep is that, then off to Rush valley for the baby, apprenticeship and Greed’s gang. We’ll hopefully get up to Ling and co within 5ish eps.

    senefen
    Reply

  12. From the screenshots it looks like they followed the manga exactly panel by panel…anyway I can’t wait to watch it with subs.
    Next episode is going to be so sad. 🙁

    kkg22104
    Reply

  14. No Hughes!! He really should stay in the series but of course they have to kill in him. I kinda of hate it that I could predict everything that is gonna happen because I watched the first series. They really are going at a faster pace.

    xxxchaosqueen75xx
    Reply

  16. Hughes didn’t have anywhere near as much screentime and funny moments in this remake compared to the first series so I doubt what’s next will have a big impact even on new viewers.

    JoeDX
    Reply

  18. I like that next week they’re finally getting to the point of diversion, after Hughes death, everything’s gonna be different.
    And they’ll actually explain his death too, that’s nice.

    NyteViper
    Reply

  33. This episode was fresh, delved much more into the “am I real or a figment of Ed’s creations?” for Al. I think they handled it quite well and delivered.

    But if Hugh really does get offed next episode, I really hope that it will tug at my heart like this episode did. So far, so good.

    It’s gonna be a good summer =)

    invAZN
    Reply

  39. Looks worse and worse.

    are you kidding me @ https://randomc.net/image/Fullmetal%20Alchemist/Fullmetal%20Alchemist%20-%2009%20-%20Large%2015.jpg and https://randomc.net/image/Fullmetal%20Alchemist/Fullmetal%20Alchemist%20-%2009%20-%20Large%2009.jpg

    Man I’m still not sold on why this was even remade. I’ve commented before that the serious tone and how it was handled in the first series is far superior to this Soul Eater-esque typical humor crap. Not trying to troll, but honestly why does everyone in the anime community just go along with whatever they’re given so easily? this and godforsaken K-ON are the most watched anime this season… which is so sad it’s slightly funny.

    scherzo
    Reply

  40. @scherzo

    That second cap is a direct copy of a frame from the manga, so it’s more like Soul Eater is like FMA than the other way around. Because you know…the manga is older than Soul Eater? :\

    Len
    Reply

  49. AWW what the hell??? Spoilers for next week in the discussion paragraph? Low blow. Really low blow. I’ve never seen the original or read the manga, and this is all new to me. I’ve never seen you write a spoiler so blatantly in one of your posts.

    Not cool.

    Eclipse
    Reply

  50. @Scherzo

    Fullmetal Alchemist came out before Soul Eater, so its more like Soul Eater uses Fullmetal Alchemist humor.

    Why the hell did they remake Fullmetal Alchemist?

    Let’s see maybe because out of about 22 volumes 6 of them where animated?

    That’s not even including thee fact that the volumes that haven’t been released yet? I mean who doesn’t want an Olivier Mira Armstong figurine?

    Charred Knight
    Reply

  53. @Charred Knight: I know I do.
    Plus in the first version, we never got payback for what happened. We DO in the manga, however (Oh, do we ever…*cackles at the thought*)

    Unknown
    Reply

  54. @Scherzo

    I respect your opinion and all, but that second picture…the first series had the same Winry-sparky-eyes thing too if you’ll remember. And the dialogue around that part was more or less the same too.

    Mei
    Reply

  56. lol. the anime announcer dude scared me when I was watching, I was like wheretheheck is that falsetto coming from? I guess he probably got bored saying “Fullmetal Alchemist” ep after ep.
    I’m surprised that Al’s doubts lasted only in one ep. because in the manga it felt like forever. THis ep actually gave me goosebumps, esp. the poignant part.
    So sad to watch my fav. character killed off in action. But I’m still looking forward to the next ep.

    yukino
    Reply

  58. I watched a couple of minute from ep 22, “FMA1”, and I realised I really like the new voices and design better…Espesially Maria Ross, both voice an’ design.

    This episode, being so like the manga, showed me the wonders of soundeffects. I love them!! They and the amazing art and story of the manga makes me happy to be born when I was! so I have a descent chance of watching Brotherhood!!

    I wonder how the thin ponytail he had in this episode could form the thick braid in all the others…maybe he got old and lost a lot of hair…?

    the episode made me cry…probably the next too…

    Lily
    Reply

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