Political assassinations! Panicked generals arguing for leadership! The makings of a coups d'etat! Come to think of it, it had been a while since there’d be some explicit Bradley/Hitler parallels. Now, the ultimate ice-hearted Valkyrie might seize control, but… wait! Oh no! There’s Father and Sloth to stop her!
Dunh dunh dunh…
While I still think she pantsed her brother a little too easily, I’ve got to say that Olivier’s attitude and M.O. have been consistently rad to see in action. Try to keep a secret from her? She’ll cut through the B.S. Try to coerce her in your evil conspiracy? She’ll bury you in concrete. Try to take her country from her? She’ll take it right back. Actually, now that I’ve verbalized that, it’s hit me that her seemingly passive response to that reveal of the artificial army last episode was actually pretty out of character for her...
So hey, stand back, I’ve got prediction! At some point between now and the "Promised Day," General Armstrong is going to commandeer the homunculi’s secret army and turn it against them! Feel free to call me out if my hypothesis proves wrong, but it’d fit, wouldn’t it?
It is, indeed, a sign that I’m in too deep with this show when I’m asking questions like this, but... what kind of blood sacrifice is Al going to make when he’s got not life juices flowing through him? What, are they just going to collect that curse sigil with a towel and rub it on the altar?
And hey, is it just me, or has the Winry fan service been really ratcheting up in frequency? First that was a real extended look at her bubble bath, now there’s this interrupted shirt removal. Maybe I'd enjoy it, but the disparity between appearances and actual ages in these shows have gotten me cautious about any jailbait in these programs. Actually, forget what I think, when is Ed going to notice?
Watch this episode, “Looming Shadows,” below and decide for yourself, then read my comments on the previous episode here.
Tom Pinchuk’s the writer of HYBRID BASTARDS! & UNIMAGINABLE . Order them on Amazon here & here . Follow him on Twitter: @tompinchuk
I really like the short conversation between Greed and Ed, where Greed talks about how greed is neutral, and "I want money" and "I want to save the world" are not dissimilar. It kinda shows why he could possibly become a hero, as protecting people = protecting his possessions. To most that would be a good cause for the wrong reasons, but Greed just sees it as it is. Of course, he is still kind of a jerk.
I love the Winry fanservice, mostly because I love fanservice, but also because it elicited a great reaction from Ed, who was just trying to enjoy his food.
Far as I'm concerned, if a story isn't getting you to wonder and ask questions. It's not a very good story. The best question at the heart of the matter almost always is basically a stand in for "what's going to happen next?". It tells you that your readers are interested and are anxious for more. The thing about manga and anime is that you are far more often going to get some kind of answer eventually.
It's also one of my biggest critiques against standard comics from the larger publishers such as Marvel or DC. Constantly they get readers to ask questions that never get answered, because another writer just comes along and hasn't even considered any of those unanswered questions. It's that, or they just make an event that is eventually undone and treated as if it never happened. So much potential wasted on shoddy story telling. I'm sick of asking questions about stories that never get answered. So, I stopped caring.
The more Indy published comics are much more interesting.
When did that happen? Everybody was talking about it, but it wasn't nearly as obvious as the one in GURREN LAGANN was.
You're just dirty, admit it. Ha ha ha...
Yeah, like I said, I like how he's a rogue for the Homunculi. He's almost like Scorpion!
That'd be pushing it too far.
I wholeheartedly agree. And I can think of two indy comics that are much more interesting than the rest...
Well the diffrence between those two are that FMA:B only had a couple of months time-skip while Gurren Lagann had a couple of years. Well it might be more obvious in the manga
and here's how tall everyone were when the manga started
The time skip? In the beginning it mentions how it is spring. It has been a few months, somewhere between 3-6 I'm guessing, since episode 45.
She played along when the guy tried to get her to join the conspiracy for like...20 minutes of show time, or something. She knows how to play it cool when the situation dictates, she just hates it! lol.
Yeah that is a lot clearer. Come to think of it, he did seem to have broader shoulders too.
Ahhhh... I guess that makes sense of some small inconsistencies I was wondering about.
Though, what the hell? Ed and the beastmen were just walking around four months?
Here's hoping for more live burials...
Oh, I knew you would take that opportunity for some self promotion lol
I'm completely serious about the idea that Indy publishers have stories that are far stronger than anything you can find in standard comics. My disdain for what became If Spider-man is well known on Comic Vine. An issue that has become a source If tension between G-Man and myself as of late. More recently in comics the talk has moved toward removing the beautiful scene of Batman confessing his love for Selina through yet another mind wipe. Why oh why do publishers treat such character driven moments as a burden rather than an asset?
They always seem to want to keep the blood but never the beauty. The term may be cliche, but it really is all sound and fury that signifies nothing.
Don't forget Greed was with them also. They were probably trying their best to stay out of the military's eye, while still preparing for the big day. Scar and Marcoh were out doing stuff, Al and Hohenheim were discussing things, so I'm guessing Ed and his group were probably researching and training.
Can't we just say that they were chilling out?
I want to imagine they were getting into all sorts of zany adventures.
Yeah... the only problem is that might have to dampen some of the appeal by softening her or making her lose some times.
Sounds good to me.
I hate that in most shonen shows the main character wins all the time because of "determination" and "love for friends" or just "powering up to the next level". Oliver is smart, bold, strong, and determined, and that is what should matter. Seeing Olivier mature as a character in spite of her flaws would make me like her even more (as long as they aren't exaggerated) .
The reason why FMA is appealing to me is because the characters have to resort to strategy rather than brute strength. There are only 3-4 times in the entire 60 something episode run of FMA that I thought the battle was won due to luck or something implausible.