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Fullmetal deja vu?




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theLostProphet



Joined: 15 Aug 2004
Posts: 54
Location: The Land of Horse and Buggy
PostPosted: Mon Nov 29, 2004 8:23 pm Reply with quote
I had the first 4 eps. of Fullmetal Alchemist TiVoed and decided to start watching the series yesterday. Some of the things they dicussed reminded me of a video game I played called Shadow of Destiny. The game's about a guy who is saved from death by a being know as the Homuculous(who is mentioned in eps. 4 of FMA). The Homuculous gives the guy the ability to go back in time and change his fate. The guy does so, but his fate seems locked as he is later murdered in a different way (kind of reminds me of that movie final destination), which sends him back to the Homuculous to try again. One of the guy's trips takes him back to the 1500s where he meets none other than an alchemist. And guess what he's looking for? Shocked Shocked - the Philospher's Stone. The game had multiple endings, but to sum it up the guy finds and gives the alchemist the Philospher's Stone, which the alchemist in turn uses to create the Homuculus. So the reason the Homucluous saved the guy was to perpetuate his own creation. Wow Rolling Eyes , what a mind f&^*.

My question is coming, be patient.

Any vampire movie today uses standards and practices found in Bram Stroker's book. Is there some similar text involving alchemist that this game and anime series are basing their plots on?

-theLostProphet
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kusanagi-sama



Joined: 22 Aug 2004
Posts: 1723
Location: Wichita Falls, TX
PostPosted: Mon Nov 29, 2004 8:56 pm Reply with quote
This trivia from FMA in the encyclopedia may help some:

animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=2960&page=22
Quote:

'Hohenheim', the name of the Elrics' father comes from Auroleus Phillipus Theostratus Bombastus von Hohenheim, AKA: Paracelsus. Paracelsus was a reknowned 16th-century alchemist who made many pioneering breakthroughs in medicine [such as the use of certain minerals and metals in treating diseases], while also dabbling in the occult. Among the accomplishments Paracelsus claimed, though it was never substantiated, was the creation of a "homunculus" - a small humanoid creature that he made by stewing hair, skin fragments, bones and semen in a pit of horse manure. The creature was said to have been loyal to its creator for a time, then ran away.

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Emerje



Joined: 10 Aug 2002
Posts: 7434
Location: Maine
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2004 4:25 am Reply with quote
theLostProphet wrote:
Any vampire movie today uses standards and practices found in Bram Stroker's book. Is there some similar text involving alchemist that this game and anime series are basing their plots on?


Kinda. Keep in mind that long ago alchemy was considered a type of science. It was fairly well documented and it's from there that you find common things like Philosopher's stones and transmutation arrays come from. Heck, the first Harry Potter book was originally called "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" in England before becoming the "Sorcerer's Stone".

Emerje
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Ohoni



Joined: 10 Jun 2003
Posts: 3421
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2004 7:12 am Reply with quote
Yeah, all those elements of FMA are rather common themes in anything dealing with Alchemy. FMA's story isn't copying any ohter (recent) works in that respect. Also, the primary story is fairly original outside those elements, so there's no reason to get too worked up about it. A Homonculus, in general terms, is an artificially created human, a clone, or a test tube baby. They are also generally regarded as being soulless, but that depends on the source.
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Arkard



Joined: 15 Oct 2003
Posts: 677
Location: Poland
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2004 9:06 am Reply with quote
Quote:
Kinda. Keep in mind that long ago alchemy was considered a type of science.

No, it wasnt a "kind of science". It was Science + The Occult (magic if you will). The alchemist gave the basis for future chemistry, metalurgy, physics and medicine. Even though they DID use "spells" during their experiments they valued science as we know it today. They studied atoms, molecules etc. Yes, they were the pioniers of modern Science.

And about FMA.
I think it takes after all the european myths about alchemists and their legendary accomplishments. The quote about the Hohenheim was really good and accurate. The term homunculus is used in some fantasy books here in Poland and there are MANY theories about its creation. I dont really know specific books but you SHOULD check out anthologies of European legends.
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sean



Joined: 24 Nov 2002
Posts: 101
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2004 11:56 am Reply with quote
This isn't exactly the right thread, but I don't want to start a new one, but did anyone else not like fullmetal alchemist just because of the last two episodes? The last two really ruined the whole series for me. Any thoughts?
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Lord Van



Joined: 15 May 2004
Posts: 70
Location: Savannah Ga
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2004 12:23 pm Reply with quote
I'm curious to find out more on alchemy and it's history.

I enjoyed the last episodes. I thought they were good because it's leading up to future events. From what I've heard, the series will get more exciting.
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king_micah



Joined: 09 Jun 2003
Posts: 994
Location: OSU
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2004 1:38 pm Reply with quote
Just wait. The back story is the true story of FMA. It goes on, and it is all intertwined. We will see Envy again. As well as some others shown but not named. Sloath Comes to mind...

And as for Paracelsius, this is the PoD in our time line. spoiler[In our world he failed to make Alchemy, and became the father of chemstry. In FMA's world, he didn't fail.]
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ANN_Bamboo
ANN Contributor


Joined: 05 Jan 2002
Posts: 3904
Location: CO
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2004 2:58 pm Reply with quote
Alchemists really were important to modern day science. Through all of their experiments, they ended up discovering a lot of things about "real" chemistry that really rocketed the field into greater depths of understanding.

But like with anything else out there, there can be a lot of romanticizing. Alchemy and the philosopher's stone have been heavily romanticized in literature and what not... just like the Freemasons and the Knights Templar. Very Happy There's a surprising amount of literature, films, etc, out there that star creatures named Homunuli. I guess I just never paid as much attention to them until FMA. Kinda cool when you take these "popular" story elements and characters and try to trace them back to their roots.
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sean



Joined: 24 Nov 2002
Posts: 101
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2004 5:37 pm Reply with quote
when I said last epsiodes I meant episodes 50-51. If they would have been more true to the time era, I may have liked it more.
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theLostProphet



Joined: 15 Aug 2004
Posts: 54
Location: The Land of Horse and Buggy
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2004 6:51 pm Reply with quote
kusanagi-sama wrote:

Quote:
'Hohenheim', the name of the Elrics' father comes from Auroleus Phillipus Theostratus Bombastus von Hohenheim, AKA: Paracelsus. Paracelsus was a reknowned 16th-century alchemist who made many pioneering breakthroughs in medicine [such as the use of certain minerals and metals in treating diseases], while also dabbling in the occult. Among the accomplishments Paracelsus claimed, though it was never substantiated, was the creation of a "homunculus" - a small humanoid creature that he made by stewing hair, skin fragments, bones and semen in a pit of horse manure. The creature was said to have been loyal to its creator for a time, then ran away.


I think it really helps a series when some storylines are based on actual events; when fiction crosses over into non-fiction. It allows the creator to skip tedious explanations and move right to the main plot. I hope the series has some more surprises...

And, like SakechanBD said, it's interesting to recognize these real world similarities. The viewer can put their own spin on an anime of this type based on their previous knowledge of its subject matter.
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DCRavenX





PostPosted: Wed Dec 01, 2004 1:14 am Reply with quote
Quote:

Kinda cool when you take these "popular" story elements and characters and try to trace them back to their roots.



That is one of the few saving graces for Reign: The Conquerer, because it caused me to do some research on the real Alexander the Great.

Similarly Ruroni Kenshin inspired me to learn about Japanese history. (except I Like Kenshin)
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