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R2 DVD Reviews
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Written by maehara
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Tuesday, 05 June 2007 17:00 |
 Full Metal Alchemist reaches the end of its TV run (still the movie to come), and after growing ever more impressive as it has gone on, goes out with a bang, as Edward learns the Law of Equivalent Exchange maybe isn't as absolute as he'd been led to believe, Alphonse makes the ultimate sacrifice to save his brother, and Dante learns her homunculi maybe aren't as controllable as she'd thought...
49 - The Other Side of the Gate
Edward learns that the 5th Laboratory was nothing more than the first part of a much larger complex, dedicated to the production of Philosopher's Stones - and the resultant loss of lives that would go along with that. Although it's not so much a facility, as a whole other city, buried beneath Central for over 400 years. A city emptied by the creation of a Philosopher's Stone, and then hidden to cover up the crime. It's also where "You-know-who" and the homunculi are based, so it becomes the next stop on Ed's path. Meanwhile, Al's also been brought to the city by the homunculi and is being held captive...
50 - Death
Ed finds himself on the other side of the Gate - in a world where technology developed instead of alchemy, a world that's quite different to the one he knows (but ever-so familiar to us), but is no less violent. In fact, it's maybe even more so - and the lives that are being lost in the wars and killings there, are the source of the power that drives alchemy back in Ed's own world. Back there, Hawkeye pays a visit to the Fuhrer, apparently to inform him of Mustang's plans to kill him, while Dante begins preparations to make use of Al to prolong her own life again, unaware that Hohenheim, who she thought she'd disposed of, is still very much alive and helping Edward find his way home. If he can live through the battle he's been caught in the midst of...
51 - Laws and Promises
Mustang gets some unintended help when the Fuhrer's son brings him the bones of the man he was created from - a homunculi's weak point, and just what Mustang needs to finish the job of defeating him. Back in the underground city, seeing his brother apparently killed prompts Alphonse to take drastic action, by attempting to transmute him back to life - perhaps at the cost of his own...
In a word: awesome. These three episodes form a full ending to the series, one that stands well enough on its own to be considered a "proper" ending regardless of the upcoming movie. Yes, there's one noticeable issue left hanging that the movie will no doubt resolve (I haven't seen it yet, though, so don't quote me on that), but you won't feel at all cheated or that you've been left on a cliffhanger here.
The two main threads being followed here are Mustang's efforts to deal with the Fuhrer - being a military officer himself, he seems to see it as his responsibility to purge that particular homunculus from the world - while Edward deals with Dante and her plans. Dante doesn't see herself as the "evil" one, and there's some logic in her viewpoint - by using the power of the Philosopher's Stone to keep herself alive & by manipulating people around the Stone in particular ways, she (and Hohenheim, up to a point) have played a role in demonising the Stone and in keeping mere "mortals" away from it. The end doesn't outweigh the means, though, and Ed's determined to make her pay a price for all the people she's directly or indirectly killed over the past 400 years or so. The Law of Equivalent Exchange demands it, if nothing else. Except that the Law isn't absolute, as Ed's about to find out.
There were some hints dropped a few episodes back that the world of FMA may have some connection with "our" world, and that's finally clarified here, with Edward passing through the gate to find himself in a war-ravaged London, and later in pre-World War Two Germany. The explanation of this, and how the connection between the two worlds provides the power that keeps alchemy working in Ed's world, is intriguing. amd also provides the one lose end that the series leaves hanging.
What's not to like about Full Metal Alchemist? I really can't think of anything - the early episodes were a bit miseading in that they felt like irrelevant stand-alone stories when in hindsight they clearly weren't, but since then the story has moved forward at a consistently fast pace that has left very little time for the viewer to be distracted. Usually with a series this long there's at least some filler to pad the story out, but that's not the case here - it's perfectly paced and thoroughly engrossing throughout. Perhaps a little less of Edward's moodiness at some points would have been welcome, but really that's about it as far as serious criticism goes. From a collector's point of view, 13 volumes is also a lot to shell out for (about £200, after online discounts). Is the series worth it? Absolutely. This is one of those rare series that deserves a place in any collection. Go get.
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