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REVIEW: Full Metal Panic! Blu-Ray

Whether or not the Blu-Ray version is the one to own is debatable, but its worthiness to be owned is not.

Even IF just to get to the supposedly superior sequels.

As one of the rare mecha titles which successfully crosses genre lines, it succeeds almost as well as a school-based romantic comedy as it does as a more serious, mecha-based action-adventure tale, though the dichotomy between its two principle genres typically forces it to alternate between modes rather than smoothly blend them; that is, in fact, arguably the series' biggest flaw, although it is likely more directly the product of the series being based on multiple entries in a popular lite novel series.

And for the record, this how I rank the franchise:
Fumoffu
Second Raid
Full Metal Panic (first season)

Black Technology has allowed for the existence in modern day of what once seemed like sci fi elements, most notably mecha, super-submarines, and devices like the Lambda Driver, which can convert a mecha pilot's thoughts and impulses into reality. The Whispered are special individuals who have an innate comprehension of Black Technology, which makes them highly sought-after by certain interests intent on exploiting their abilities.

That the series was first broadcast in early 2002 means that it was not made with film or high def in mind, so the Blu-Ray picture still comes in a 4:3 aspect ratio and the ability to improve the picture quality is limited; the colors in this upscale are definitely brighter in the Blu-Ray version compared to the DVD version, but that's about it.

WOW. If I recall correctly, that's more of an explanation than you actually get in the series. I spent the whole 24 episodes trying to figure out just exactly what Chidori's knowledge was, only to never get an answer. Which made the finale... strange.

I remember Full Metal Panic being one of the very first Anime series I started collecting single disc by single disc back in the day, back during Newtype USA's prime.

Damn but I wish they'd just make a fourth series of this already.

What makes the desire for this all the worse was that Second Raid had at least one running plot which served no purpose other than to set up a further seriesspoiler[Specifically Leon Testarossa and has gang of human sized mechs, all of which felt like such a random drop out of nowhere in the show that went... nowhere. Frustrating.]

Letthemeatraep wrote:

Damn but I wish they'd just make a fourth series of this already. What makes the desire for this all the worse was that Second Raid had at least one running plot which served no purpose other than to set up a further seriesspoiler[Specifically Leon Testarossa and has gang of human sized mechs, all of which felt like such a random drop out of nowhere in the show that went... nowhere. Frustrating.]

I disagree, while it is true that the purpose of introducing Leon was basically to establish him as the future antagonist, TSR has more to offer than that. TSR as whole is the first time that Sagara has any major character development. Before TSR he never really cared about his future because he spent all his life in the military, so he's always done what other people told him to do. Now in TSR, for the first time in his life he is conflicted between what he wants to do and what he is told to do. In a way, TSR is about Sagara forging an identity for himself.