Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood DUB Review Episode 7: "Hidden Truths" (Adult Swim Broadcast)
Well, I was sort of right last week when I predicted Laboratory Five. Thing is, we didn't actually get to that point until near the very end of the episode. The episode until then felt like a going-through-the-motions meandering through events the anime had to cover but didn't want to, including the fan favorite character Scieska, whose role in the manga (and, thus, Brotherhood) is much smaller than in the first anime where she became an important secondary character.
We follow the Elric brothers as they arrive in Central, only to find the library housing Dr. Marcoh's documents burned to the ground. Frustrated, they also are assigned a pair of new bodyguards, replacing Major Armstrong with the less charismatic Lieutenant Ross and Sgt. Brosch. Ross and Brosch are more naive here than they were in the first series, especially Ross, who was close to a mother figure to Edward. Problem is, them losing their maturity also makes them far more generic as characters, and less military than they should be. Meanwhile, Lust and Gluttony put Scar out of commission in East City but don't kill him for good, as no body's found when the military later investigates the scene. As we progress through the story, the anime is clearly just trying to shuffle through everything as fast as possible. Edward finds Scieska, who conveniently has a photographic memory, and she transcribes Marcoh's notes for him to the word. Edward finds cryptic meaning in notes: that the Philosopher's Stone is powered by the lives of human beings. This sends him and Al to their rooms in contemplative despair, wondering if their goal is unattainable without compromising their morals and what they believe in.
Cue Armstrong's sudden return, and pwning Ross and Brosch when they try to hide the truth. "YOUR BEHAVIOR IS MOST SUSPICIOUS" will be an Internet meme, I swear. Armstrong immediately busts through the room, and after some hammy dialogue he and Edward quickly discern that the thought-closed Laboratory Five is likely still operational, using condemned prisoners from the nearby prison for alchemical research. Armstrong, in his towering, epic way, tells the Elric brothers not to investigate, but the Elrics disregard the order and sneak into the complex. Only Edward can get inside, though, through an air vent, and Alphonse is forced to stand guard outside the vent. Cue cliffhanger as Al is attacked by a crazy blade-wielding psycho with glowing red eyes that looks much like Al does, a soul bounded to a suit of armor. And that's it.
The animation was pretty terrible by FMA standards. The characters frequently looked sloppily drawn, and the one action sequence in the whole thing (Gluttony and Lust vs. Scar) did not look that smooth (and Gluttony's eyes were drawn wrong as well). It was clear the animation services went to the lowest bidder, considering how frequently the character designs were messed up (Scar looking like an old man, Major Armstrong's muscles not being drawn correctly, etc.). In a lot of ways, this was like a filler episode of Bleach. Considering how frequent red eyes were in this episode (both Gluttony and Armstrong displayed them) I think that Bleach's animation studio probably did have a hand in this episode.
The dub again felt slightly off. Scieska's voice sounded way off (more like a middle-aged woman's than a young twenty-something) during her rant/sob story about being fired from the library, but sounded much better in her more calm moments. Vic Mignogna sounded like he was going through the motions again, and Sgt. Brosch's actor couldn't be more wooden if he wanted to.
The music is reusing tunes like no tomorrow, and the dramatic Don Davis-esque track was misused AGAIN when a more subtle yet dark cue would have sufficed. I am getting sick of that cue. Yes, "Dun dun dun DUUUUN" is dramatic and forceful, but not when it has been used in all but maybe one episode so far.
In short, not Brotherhood's best episode. Hopefully episode eight will fare better. It will probably be an action-packed one considering we've had two fairly peaceful episodes in a row.
As a side note, why is AS' broadcast still using credits from episode four? It's getting annoying and fast.
2 out of 5.
We follow the Elric brothers as they arrive in Central, only to find the library housing Dr. Marcoh's documents burned to the ground. Frustrated, they also are assigned a pair of new bodyguards, replacing Major Armstrong with the less charismatic Lieutenant Ross and Sgt. Brosch. Ross and Brosch are more naive here than they were in the first series, especially Ross, who was close to a mother figure to Edward. Problem is, them losing their maturity also makes them far more generic as characters, and less military than they should be. Meanwhile, Lust and Gluttony put Scar out of commission in East City but don't kill him for good, as no body's found when the military later investigates the scene. As we progress through the story, the anime is clearly just trying to shuffle through everything as fast as possible. Edward finds Scieska, who conveniently has a photographic memory, and she transcribes Marcoh's notes for him to the word. Edward finds cryptic meaning in notes: that the Philosopher's Stone is powered by the lives of human beings. This sends him and Al to their rooms in contemplative despair, wondering if their goal is unattainable without compromising their morals and what they believe in.
Cue Armstrong's sudden return, and pwning Ross and Brosch when they try to hide the truth. "YOUR BEHAVIOR IS MOST SUSPICIOUS" will be an Internet meme, I swear. Armstrong immediately busts through the room, and after some hammy dialogue he and Edward quickly discern that the thought-closed Laboratory Five is likely still operational, using condemned prisoners from the nearby prison for alchemical research. Armstrong, in his towering, epic way, tells the Elric brothers not to investigate, but the Elrics disregard the order and sneak into the complex. Only Edward can get inside, though, through an air vent, and Alphonse is forced to stand guard outside the vent. Cue cliffhanger as Al is attacked by a crazy blade-wielding psycho with glowing red eyes that looks much like Al does, a soul bounded to a suit of armor. And that's it.
The animation was pretty terrible by FMA standards. The characters frequently looked sloppily drawn, and the one action sequence in the whole thing (Gluttony and Lust vs. Scar) did not look that smooth (and Gluttony's eyes were drawn wrong as well). It was clear the animation services went to the lowest bidder, considering how frequently the character designs were messed up (Scar looking like an old man, Major Armstrong's muscles not being drawn correctly, etc.). In a lot of ways, this was like a filler episode of Bleach. Considering how frequent red eyes were in this episode (both Gluttony and Armstrong displayed them) I think that Bleach's animation studio probably did have a hand in this episode.
The dub again felt slightly off. Scieska's voice sounded way off (more like a middle-aged woman's than a young twenty-something) during her rant/sob story about being fired from the library, but sounded much better in her more calm moments. Vic Mignogna sounded like he was going through the motions again, and Sgt. Brosch's actor couldn't be more wooden if he wanted to.
The music is reusing tunes like no tomorrow, and the dramatic Don Davis-esque track was misused AGAIN when a more subtle yet dark cue would have sufficed. I am getting sick of that cue. Yes, "Dun dun dun DUUUUN" is dramatic and forceful, but not when it has been used in all but maybe one episode so far.
In short, not Brotherhood's best episode. Hopefully episode eight will fare better. It will probably be an action-packed one considering we've had two fairly peaceful episodes in a row.
As a side note, why is AS' broadcast still using credits from episode four? It's getting annoying and fast.
2 out of 5.