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Forum - View topicREVIEW: Fullmetal Alchemist DVD 1
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darkhunter
 Posts: 2992 Location: Los Angelas |
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Like the dub more than the sub on this one having seen the dub version first. Al's voice sound like what I would imagine a kid to sound like.
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Erufu
 Posts: 191 |
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I haven't heard the original Japanese, but I really don't care for Al's voice in the English dub. Not only do I think it has a tone of maturity a boy his age would have (no matter what has happened to him), I also think it has more to do with how almost all the lines delivered sound like Al is reading them directly from a cue card. This is the only voice I don't like in the dub, however. I think the rest are excellent.
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biliano
Posts: 956 Location: Cleveland, OH |
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I'm going to reiterate my comments about Fullmetal Alchemist from the Shelf Life thread over to this review:
About a month ago, there was a thread in the General Anime forum in which the author asked what is the main thing we look for in an anime series. My answer to this thread was that I look for character connections - how the characters interact with each other, how they interact with the viewer, and most importantly, how the viewer interact with the characters. The strong bond that the Elric brothers have with each other greatly attracted me to this series, and I believe that this bond is the greatest strength of Fullmetal Alchemist. This is best displayed in Episode 3 - "Mother" - when we discovered the tragic circumstances that befell the Elric brothers. A word keeps popping into my head every time I watch FMA, and that word is "dynasty". A dynasty is a group or family that maintains its position for a long time. In today's world, we equate dynasties to great sports teams like the Packers of the 1960's, the Steelers of the 70's, the great Yankee teams of the 20's and 50's, the 49ers of the 80's, and the Patriots of today. Dynasties also exist in the anime world - the Gundam family, the films of Miyazaki, and Neon Genesis Evangelion to name a few. They continue to maintain their positions as some of the most masterful and popular franchises in the anime universe. It's too early to tell when or if FMA will reach the status of a dynasty. It's already a strong franchise in Japan, and I feel that it has the potential to be immensely successful in North America. The spiritual and intellectual direction that this series is heading, along with the unbreakable bond between the brothers, is what I love about FMA, and it is this lasting impression that makes this series a potential dynasty. Bamboo, it was a pleasure to read your review of Fullmetal Alchemist. How often do we get to experience a series that has the making of being one of anime's great dynasties?
You are aware that Al's dub voice is done by a 12-year old kid, right? I think the dub acting is excellent; one of the best tracks on any anime series that I've watched. Vic is doing an excellent job as Ed (Full Metal Panic fans will recognize him as the dub voice of Kurz Weber), and Aaron's voice is perfect for the role of Al. Kudos to Mike McFarland and Colleen Clickenbeard (Kiddy Grade's Eclair) for puting together an excellent dub cast. Last edited by biliano on Mon Mar 07, 2005 8:33 pm; edited 2 times in total |
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radicaledward
 Posts: 776 |
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As for the series itself - I watched the first disk over the weekend, and I have to agree with the author of the review: it's hard to pinpoint what makes the series so good, and odds are it's different for different people. I personally happen to like some of the ethical questions that are raised, and how they are dealt with (i.e. alchemists can transmute gold). |
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manafairy
 Posts: 113 Location: My own tweaked world.... |
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I really don't like Al's voice either. I mean, after watching the whole series subbed, I was surprised that I was able to enjoy the dub so easily, but I still thought Aaron Dismuke's acting (or lack there of) ruins several moments that would normally have a much stronger impact. I love Vic Mignogna's Ed, but Al almost caused me to switch over to the sub track (I would have if I hadn't been watching it with my younger brothers who refuse to ever watch subs). I don't care how old the actor is, if he's not capable of delivering his lines with feeling, then he shouldn't be a voice actor until he can.
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ANN_Bamboo
ANN Contributor
 Posts: 3904 Location: CO |
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Hmm, my understanding was that he did the spirt bind with just one arm. I remember seeing him reach for Al, only to get his limbs torn off, and I think they make reference later to how impressive the spirit bind was, considering he only had one arm, but I could have misinterpreted that. |
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biliano
Posts: 956 Location: Cleveland, OH |
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OUCH!  Way to hurt young Aaron's feelings, my friend. The young man's only 12; he's doing his best. I think he's doing a wonderful job voicing Al. He displays that youthful innocence that only a kid his age can deliver. Young master Dismuke definitely has a future in voice acting, and he's only going to get better once he gains more experience. I think this is a perfect role for him; it's his first crack at voicing a major character. Sorry, but I agree with Bamboo on the quality of Dismuke's performance:
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Tempest
 I Run this place.ANN Publisher  Posts: 10468 Location: Do not message me for support. |
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I don't think a consumer should be expected to lower their expectations for a 12 year-old actor. His age does however go a good distance towards invalidating Erufu's comment about having too much maturity.
In the end, that's all that counts, regardless of the actor's age. -t |
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Godaistudios
Posts: 2075 Location: Albuquerque, NM (the land of entrapment) |
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You got it right Bamboo... he lost his leg in order to bind Al's soul to the armor. 
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wolfcry
ANN Past Staff
 Posts: 81 |
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Voice actors are not much different from live action actors. Or for that matter, anyone pursuing a profession of any type. With time comes experience, and the only way to get experience is to get in the thick of things, the earlier the better. I have nothing to complain about for Al's voice actor.
But I will agree with you on one thing. I was surprised, about a week ago, to turn on CN to find that the FMA dub was actually not painful to listen to/watch. As always, I prefer the sub, but I think they did a really good job hiring voice talent, keeping the original soundtrack (which is just gorgeous), and keeping the mistakes lost in translation to a minimum. |
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Tenchi
 Posts: 4555 Location: Ottawa... now I'm an ex-Anglo Montrealer. |
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I saw a couple of episodes from towards the end of the series over the weekend, which was the first time I've ever seen the show since it's not shown on television in Canada. I've read plenty of spoilers, though, so I knew roughly what was going on. I guess it was good for what it was, but I only found it "s'alright". Seemed a little bit of a letdown after all the Internet hype I'd read.
Maybe it's something you'd really need to see from the beginning to appreciate, or maybe it's just that I'm 30 and shounen isn't really my bag anymore. If YTV ever gets it, I'll give it a four or five episode chance before I give up on it. |
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Godaistudios
Posts: 2075 Location: Albuquerque, NM (the land of entrapment) |
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I know what you mean... I don't care for most of the shounen genre anymore myself - I don't know if it's because I'm just shy of being 30 or if it's because I've been so inundated with it that I just feel I can't take much more. (then again, I've almost always preferred shoujo.  ) I will say that FMA should be watched from the beginning though. It's been one of the few that I've enjoyed thoroughly in the past few years. I will also warn you that it does take a little while for it to pick up steam though, so I recommend giving it at least ten episodes before you make your decision.
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Tenchi
Posts: 4555 Location: Ottawa... now I'm an ex-Anglo Montrealer. |
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I know that it takes a while to get going, since I've read all the spoilers.
Just, usually, if I don't care for a series by about the fifth episode, I never will, no matter how much "better" it gets, since the first five episode should always be a good indicator of what's to come in terms of being able to tell whether or not a series is your bag, even if the intensity isn't as high as it is for later episodes. |
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xanbcoo
 Posts: 245 Location: Houston/Austin Tx |
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I've watched FMA from episode 1 on CN. Although it wasn't immediately a favorite, there was something (as said by bamboo) that just attracted me to it. I couldn't tell, but I just really liked it. I have since watched it every week - and I can say already that this is one of my favorite series. I especially liked this week's episode. (the one where they go back home to get Ed's arm and leg fixed)
I haven't heard Al's Japanese voice, but I'd have to agree that his voice in english fits him soooo well. It hasn't sounded to me like he's reading a que card or anything. I feel the voice actor really works as Al. |
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Haiseikoh 1973
 Posts: 1590 Location: Waiting for the Japanese 1000 Gunieas. |
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If you want to remove the stickers, don't use Goo Gone. The stuff discolors the tin.
(I didn't do it, something i've seen at a bookstore. Don't ask.) |
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