#specifically this was about fma brotherhood lmao

[jovialcloudqueenisnotonfire]

I've never been more ecstatic than rewatching anime after learning chinese and being able to read and understand the kanji on screen

[fullmetal-scar-simping]

seeing you mention mangahood purists liking manga/broho bc it's "pure" got me thinking: whenever i see someone shit on 03, they'll say "oh it's too 'dark', scary, depressing" (sorry having to confront/acknowledge imperialism is "dark and scary" lmao) and yet, in the same breath, i've seen several turn around and praise mangahood/broho for its "mature themes" and its handling of "dark topics" and it's like... are the mature themes in the room with us?? this is pure speculation and i'm sure i'm not saying anything new here, but i think a large part of why mangahood purists hate 03 is bc it makes them uncomfortable. 03 does not give the viewer the luxury of turning away from the atrocities amestris commits to liore/ishval; they're forced to confront it head-on throughout the show (see: ed standing among a graveyard of liorians, ishvalans getting targeted no matter where they go, etc) and there's no "the military was controlled by supernatural monsters all along!!!" to conveniently pin the blame on either. it's the military itself that's the problem and needs to be taken down. and mangahood/broho purists just don't like that i think.

The critical eye towards the military absolutely makes them uncomfortable and you're right to say it. In fact, it's 03's focus on the suffering begotten by the military and the relative centering of its racialized victims that spoils the fun for a lot of people.

[Because I have a pathological need to ramble for eternity, here's a readmore:]

Without fail most fans who hold Brotherhood and/or the fma manga up to be this dark, mature, incisive piece of entertainment will then levy the weight and severity of the topics they think mangahood adeptly tackles (lol) as a strike against the first anime adaptation. It's practically rote at this point.

They love dark stuff! Except when it's actually dark. Which is therefore too dark. And fma 2003 commits the sin of being dark in ways that the manga isn't, so it's obviously edgy fanfiction for immature sickos who rage against happiness and friendship. It's immature to like adaptations that depicts difficult topics, and genocide as a topic should be an inspiring romp with quirky pals! 😒

It's very telling too. Because the way homunculi are created and societally and personally (mis)function in this version of the world is a mixture of horror storytelling and allegory (for the most hidden and reviled classes of people). It's dark! Certainly I've seen some people complain about the gore and blood associated with the homunculi, their appearances, and their actions. But that's not the truly petrifying darkness that 03 haters gripe the most about. Sometimes they even celebrate that specific element of the 2003 adaptation! No, it's as you said: the highlighted hideousness of the military and its imperialism is what makes them balk in revulsion.

How dare a show about real topics like genocide and fascism not bury the travesties under a thick layer of positive gusto! It should be dripping in sludgey shonen bravado, perhaps even carry the cutesy-kid friendly veneer akin to an 80s GI Joe cartoon instead. Make soldiers fun again! What's with all of this death and misery? Why are people being shown as rightfully disgusted by and against the State?! How come these characters can't overcome their idiosyncrasies, ideologies, and traumas to win the day?? Wait, our military guys aren't even being lauded for feeling sad and get everything they want as a reward??? Scar is willing to sacrifice himself for liberation and we're not fed some pap that helps us despise him and feel suitably smug and comfortable in our own privileged lives while he condemns our propensity for siding with soldiers? That's not right, Scar's a villain! Soldiers are honest good guys! Hold up, there's RAPE?! In my silly anime about imperialism?!!? UM?!

Time and again I find posts ranting about how the 03 writers "had no idea what to do with Scar, so they waste his entire character". Once I get over the initial offense that this causes me (lol), I'm left sitting here wondering what the fuck they're talking about. Did they even watch this show? How can anyone even so much as think this, when he's a pivotal character? And increasingly I have come to realize it's because he doesn't have that fuck-awful ~redemption arc~ (excuse me while I throw up) that everyone looooooooves in mangahood. It's because he would sooner obliterate every single Amestrian soldier across the land than renounce liberation and buddy up to the pigs. He dies accomplishing his greatest act of love for the survivors of genocide, but since these people turned their brains off as soon as "03 diverged from the manga" (which the show does from episode 01 but don't let that get in the way of their manga-purity) they think the Liore arc is random happenstance, with no rhyme or reason, and Scar is still a """""""villain""""""" AND he dies (character deaths always means you wasted a character btw), so therefore fma 2003 is pointless darkness that spits on Arakawa personally.

Never gonna forget the posts that gripe about Scar being "disrespected" in 03 because he... dies on the ground. Guess we're throwing context and analysis to the wind and just misrepresenting scenes for cheap points. Better to make Scar feel like human garbage because he killed genociders! Now THAT'S respectful!

People don't like it when a character dies for their principles and is lauded by the narrative for it too. All of this is too much for the enlightened mangahood purist! It paints such a dire image of what the colonized have to do to push back against their colonizers! Can't we all just get along (and both-sides the invasion of Ishbal)?

Guess there aren't enough tone-annihilating chibi gags interspersed between every other shot of Ishbalans being rounded up into prison vehicles by Mustang and Riza to assuage viewers that all is well, actually. Concentration camps are total bummers. Aren't the Ishbalans supposed to be living tranquil, idyllic lives in the slums ala mangahood?

That's the other piece of the hate against 03: that it doesn't mercilessly break the melancholic, tragic, violent, and ethical/philosophical tones and quandaries with incessant jokes. The majority of the time, you are meant to stew in it, ask yourself hard questions too, while peeling away some of the mysteries presented and seeing how multiple factors play into the actions and circumstances of these characters. None of these factors absolve anything, they are merely another string in the show's web. Levity is mostly sparing. It does exist! Mostly in the earlier eps, with the odd palette cleanser in the middle of the show. But it's hardly as over the top as your average Brotherhood episode, which is incessantly brimming with jokes, gags, chibi/cartoon style shifts, quips, and buddy-buddy comradery, over and over forever. Are we even beginning to feel the tendril of despair from something that happened in Broho? Nope no worries, here's a goofy-whatever suddenly thrown at the viewer 3 seconds into any emotional state that is less than hopeful and cheery.

are the mature themes in the room with us??

The mature themes are dressed like low rent clowns who forgot their props, but I'm meant to play along like it's a mastercraft of artistic expression.

We could contrast 03's depictions of imperialism vs mangahood's, but I want to highlight a different, prime example of how paperthin Brotherhood's darkness is:

Ed and Al's human transmutation.

This moment in 03 has long lasting effects beyond what it did to the Elric brothers' bodies, with this act having created a tortured and exploited entity who can only envision escaping the pain by obtaining retribution against them. Ed lives in denial for as long as he can, until he's run up against a wall and has to dig up Trisha's grave. He has to kill his creation using a stolen piece of his mother's remains. Is this doppleganger truly his mother? Can she ever forgive him? Does he have the right to take an unlife just because he forced her into being, and abandoned her? He will grapple with that for the rest of his life, while having nearly torn his relationship to Al apart in the process. And for his own sake, he will dehumanize homunculi in order to survive his ever growing pain.

Meanwhile, in mangahood? Well, here's this heavy moment where Ed tells Pinako that he's going to face what he did and dig up the body he transmuted buried under the burned house. Things are tense. The mood is almost suffocating, the sky dark, the sound of dirt being shovelled almost sickening. Ed throws up, Pinako trying to help him persevere. He hits something. There's hair. He holds up these spare strands, looking shaken. This isn't his mother's hair? Oh thank goodness, he never harmed mom. In fact, what he transmuted was an empty fucked-up vessel that Al's soul briefly wiggled around in. Phew! Alright awesome, we're all good and all doubts have been wiped away. Mommy wasn't desecrated after all! Here's Trisha's soul later on being so super proud of her boys. Yippee!

So dark mangahood! What the hell was 03's problem tho? /s

Anti-03 posts can sometimes be fun if you're a jackass like me, because I can't help but feel like a smug dirtbag when someone admits to how hard they cried after watching the show- someone even admitted that's why they hate 03! It hurt too much. So odd to see this framed as a negative. I love the hurt. I love when a story challenges you, doesn't make it go down easy, when it has the guts to admit to the hideousness of what was intended to be taken for granted in other contemporaneous media.

I understand that having such emotional overflow and the weight of sadness can be very difficult for some folks. Sometimes you might not even be in the mood for it. But you would think that a show producing feelings of sorrow was a grand affront according to these more aggrieved critics. It's practically an insult to them! Yet when Brotherhood (somehow) renders people to tears, it's a plus. Guess Broho over-plays its saccharine assurances, so that the tears feel cathartic rather than challenging.

Although I have my opinions on the wealth of coddling stories, toothless entertainment, and all the propaganda barely hidden within so much of it; I don't necessarily look down on some people wanting more gentle or alleviating stories. Positivity is not a grievous need, nor am I immune from generally needing some form of it too. However I do think it ridiculous how desperately people in relatively powerful nations want stories about genocide that make them both feel as though they are baring witness to the darkness of the world (a reassuring pantomime to turn your brain off to), while still so sanitized and airy that it soothes their anxieties and ensures them that they shouldn't have to look in the mirror even once. If people simply liked Brotherhood because they like shonen battles or teenagers being friends or some shit, then at least it would be a more honest appraisal of what Brotherhood adequately offers.

However the repeated assertions that it's a mature story or has any aplomb to its surface-level use of challenging themes is comical. Alongside hailing Brotherhood as an anti-racist, anti-military story, but I've harped on about that hypocrisy more than enough times. We know the drill.

I just can't take this specific criticism against 03 seriously. Not because 03 is beyond critique, or that people can't be indifferent to it or dislike it, but it's a hell of a farce to boo it for the same reasons they claim to adore mangahood. They want a "brave noble soldier who solves everything" story. A fluffy copaganda battle anime with none of the ugliness of militarism from the viewpoint of its victims. That's it.

[beremy-from-trigun]

(more about the fma and trigun combination hehe.. im just gonna start tagging it as fullmetal trigun. i might do like designs or smth since thats more my strong suit than writing stuff..)

was thinking more on the roles of the deadly sins with the shift of having the characters from trigun instead and came up with a loose list (under the keep reading) of who i personally think would align best with each of the sins (with how they are portrayed in both 2003 and brotherhood!) if u have a different opinion or take lemme know :3!

firstly with the sin of pride, i struggled to place one specific person in this role as a lot of characters have the theme of pride, so i considered then instead to focus on how pride acts as a sort of leader (literally for 2003 as pride is king bradley, and then by age as pride in brotherhood is the first homunculi after father (who in this case would be knives)) which then led to me assigning legato bluesummers as the sin of pride. perhaps in this case it would less be about his own personal pride, but instead about his pride of being someone who is so close to knives to the point he is trusted with control of the gung ho guns.

for the sin of wrath, i immediately had the idea of putting elendira the crimsonnail in this role as she is a wrathful person by nature; she is repeatedly seen as being the one who punishes the gung ho guns who try to betray the order and also keeping them in line in general as the strongest gung ho gun, and similarly in her always holding her wrath in (im thinking of that one scene where she throws a glass of water at legato lmao) this would be most in line with the portrayal of wrath in brotherhood though, as that is king bradley who is portrayed as a methodical man who has anger always lingering underneath a thin veil. it would also place elendira in a similiar place bradley holds in brotherhood, as he is one that has higher status. than other homunculi.

for the sin of envy, i thought zazie the beast fit best for that role when taking into consideration the role envy plays in the story of 2003 and brotherhood. i dont really have much for this one asides from the similar powers between the two hehe.

for the sin of lust, i wanted to put a character who dies in the story fairly early so it has a similiar impact that lust had in the series of leaving the homunculi without their minor leader. so i was split between dominique the cyclops and midvalley the hornfreak, but ultimately i went with midvalley since he was shown to have a higher status than other gung ho guns in the 98 anime and the manga (i also think its just funny to put the man named hornfreak as the role of lust)

for the sin of sloth, i decided to then place dominique the cyclops in order to line up more with the role sloth plays in the 2003 series. sloth in that series more acts as a supporting role to king bradley, and i can see her maybe doing that for legato bluesummers (we really didnt see enough of dominique to say much about her character though.) i feel the characters in sloth and lust could be changed interchangebly though as 98 midvalley does play a supporting role for legato in the anime, but he does not play that role really in the manga. perhaps itd be fun to instead create a new character though, maybe putting a distorted version of rem in this role instead as in 2003 sloth is the aftermath of the failed revival of ed and al’s mother.

for the sin of gluttony, i decided to place livio the doublefang/razlo the tripun. i feel this one would most likely be a divergance from how fma portrays gluttony, instead dipping more into how greed is portrayed with the craving/hunger for power and strength. livio is repeatedly seen craving strength and in general power in order to escape the trauma he has been through and also to just have a place he can belong (with that being belonging in the eye of michael), with the manga having the flashback of him training to the point he is puking and passing out, and tristamp portraying it as a choice of him wanting to have the same strength as wolfwood. additionally, when considering the role gluttony places in 2003 and brotherhood, he acts as a force that isn’t necessarily for or against the protagonists, but instead he is there simply because it is where he belongs (and who has made him).

finally, this brings us to the sin of greed, which i have decided to put nicholas d wolfwood. this was my immediate thought from the beginning, as greed in brotherhood is portrayed as being a force that always ultimately betrays the order of the homunculi due to his greed. specifically, wolfwood would end up in the role that greedling plays, with chapel from ‘98 being the initial greed seen. this also plays into the role wolfwood has in the series, as it is a greedy action to take the life of another as you are depriving that other of their chance at a happy life in order keep your own life. in a way, wolfwoods final character arc is overcoming that greed/guilt by self sacrificing for livio in order to give livio that chance at a happy life instead of taking it for himself.

also, in this au, vash would be in the role of hohenheim, and knives would be in the role of father, as previously stated. i was thinking on who would be the role of ed and al, as i dont think i would neccesarily want it to be the father and sons dynamic. so instead i think it would more be the dynamic of meryl being ed and milly being al, where they find the writings about this great figure (vash) and try to find him for some reason i have not thought of (maybe for the military lmao, the insurance agency would most likely instead be the military and maybe some mishmashing would take place and the insurance agency would actually have relevancy in the plot of trigun??? who knows. i need to think more)

[bayalexison]

Dimileth for the ask game! And maybe Royai/RoyxRiza from fma?

Dimileth (Ship it!) What made you ship it?: I started seeing lots of dimileth fanart on twitter and Tumblr back in fall 2019. I got curious so I watched a Blue Lions playthrough on Youtube and their supports and instantly fell for them. I fell for them so much I brainstormed the premise of my 2022 Dimileth Big Bang, Thunder Without Rain, actually before playing the game LMAO. I eventually got my own copy of the game after Thanksgiving haha.

If talking about a specific moment where I'm like, "oh I'm defintely on board with this ship", defintely when Dimitri comforts Byleth after Jeralt's death.

What are your favorite things about the ship?: Love the development of their relationship throughout the Azure Moon campaign/run and how much they lift each other up when one of them is in a downward spiral. They have many great moments together (after saving Flayn, Dimitri comforting Byleth after Jeralt's death, war phase rain scene, their S support!). Also can't forget the hand symbolism haha. The Dimileth community is also some of the most creative and supportive folks, andhere's all sorts of flavors for everyone from fluff to angst to dark to all of the above!

(I think Psi mentions similar thoughts in a much more elqouent way haha).

Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship? Too many times, at least on Twitter, folks say dimileth is a basic heterosexual ship. Nah, an m/f ship can be queer too and I always believe both Dimitri and Byleth are bi/pan at most!

Roy/Riza (Ship it!) What made you ship it?: Oh man it's been so long I can't exactly recall the moment I shipped them. Probably Episode 19 of the Brotherhood anime, the one where Roy roasted Lust lmao. Roy's face after being exhausted while Riza sobbing oh my gosh I still remember that.

What are your favorite things about the ship?: Their undying loyalty and how much trust they have in each other. Also their background history where they acknowledged what they did during the Ishval Extermination was terrible but doing everything they can to atone for their mistakes (even if there's a possibility it'll lead them to their deaths). They sometimes have fun playful banter and also make a great battle couple haha.

Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship? So a while back there's been some debate whether Roy and Riza will have children/are the types of characters to have kids. I believe a good chunk of folks think them having children is OOC for them. I can see reasons for that (mainly focusing on their goals for a better future for Ametris), and I respect that! However, I'm a sap and think they might consider settling down with a family lol though probably not for sometime.

[makiswirl]

!!!!! i would LOVE to talk abt fma but idk a good question to ask hmmm..... uhm! tell me abt a favourite detail of yours or smth u think not enough ppl appreciate!!!! can be from 2003 or fmab :] but jsyk so far ive only seen fmab (i do plan on watching fma 2003 in the future tho!!! ^_^)

OUUGHGHH OK! :0 i'll probably avoid talking about 03 beyond the tiny filler stuff then for spoilers' sake.. here's macchi's random deets they enjoy about fma (mangahood edition):

an fma japan-equivalent is mentioned in the manga, as amestris is certain countries from europe, drachma is from russia, and xing is from china! it's mentioned as a tiny island that made a form of chess i think in one of the chapters grumman and roy play it together? too lazy to go get the chapter though someone please tell me if you know where this is

ed isn't the only one who visibly ages in brotherhood! he does it in the manga too but it's more noticeable in the anime (and he does it in 03 as well). winry gets more square and ling gets Fucking Ripped™️, and we even see al get even MORE broadened out but i'm not sure if that's age or filling out after being malnourished after so long. either way he inherited hohenheim's chad jawline in the end.

dublith was a town with a bunch of running factories from when ed and al trained at the curtises', but we see that when they're older they've shut down (again mostly manga only)

automail only prospers as a result of the wars in amestris (again mentioned in the manga a few times), and probably heavily dies out after its government is reformed

ed and al seemingly knowing everyone in resembool! (this is specifically about the parts where ed greets the resembool train conductor in the manga and talks to a bunch of people in resembool in i Think every canon? might be only 03 though)? also in 2003 where winry begins talking about how they played with other resembool kids to al i just like knowing that the teens used to be normal

xingese being in square, rectangular bubbles instead of more circular or angled ones per-manga (+ there being 50 clans but only 43 living children in xing)

ROY ACTUALLY FUCKING UP REALLY BAD DURING THE MARIA ROSS INCIDENT NOT KNOWING ED WOULD SHOW UP AND DECKING HIM IN THE FACE OUT OF PURE PANIC AND CONFUSION LMAO

ed in the manga counting how many limbs he would have to lose to bring al's body back after realizing he's likely starving in the gate

(once again, manga only) izumi saying that ed can likely beat the truth and talking about the irony of the cost of their human transmutations before father mansplained it! i love me some foreshadowing!

ed putting things in his mouth and just letting them stay there for some reason (e.g. toothpick in rush valley, fork in manga, etc.) also just spacing out entirely when he focuses to the point he can't even hear others or keep track of time! mostly manga only though.. again. why were we so robbed :-(

03's depiction of liore being more accurate geographically (being smack dab in the desert that goes off into xing like ishval, given they're in the same sector and entirely parallel from each other on the map)

ED AND ELICIA'S B-DAY BEING THE SAME DAY IN 03... 😭😭 I LOVE THAT EPISODE SO MUCH.......

[azurelyy]

Aside from narusaku, what other ships do you like a lot ? It could be canon or even non canon ones

Hi there, Nonnie! Thank you very much for the ask!

So, I have answered a similar question here, but I am not sure if you mean Naruto specific ships or not?

To be perfectly honest with you, the only two SHIPS I have from Naruto are NaruSaku and ShikaIno. I LIKE other ships, but I don't SHIP them - ya feel me? I feel like, when I ship something, that means that I am thinking about them constantly every day. They haunt all over my what ifs, they linger within song lyrics and books I read... And I don't FEEL all those things with every pair I like in Naruto except for those two.

That being said, since your question specified ships I like a lot, then it wouldn't be a complete answer without going into detail on a few other, non-Naruto ships that are some of my OTPs. 💗

Zutara (Zuko x Katara - Avatar):

They are my all-time, number one OTP - forever and always. I will be a 70-year-old Zutara shipper, discussing the discourse and trajectory of their relationship. I will never, ever stop thinking about these two. They are seriously the couple that made be believe in parallel universes - because there is simply NO FUCKING WAY that they wrote all that development into the show for it to not go anywhere - there's definitely a universe adjacent to ours where Zutara is canon and I don't care what the stipulation of living in that universe might be, I want to go there lol.

Clerith (Cloud x Aerith - FF7):

I think you guys will see a trend in that I don't actually prefer friends to lovers as much as people might assume considering I ship NaruSaku lol. ANYWAYS, these two are fucking phenomenal and hurt me in the best ways. I think about them constantly. I rewatch videos I've made about them, rewatch videos others have made about them. I read fanfiction and consume posts about them like my life depends on it. The remake definitely reinvigorated my love for them and I think it added some much needed development that I LOVE but that also FUCKING HURTS MY SOUL. "I'm coming for you." THAT IS ALL. 😭😭😭

Dramione (Draco x Hermione - Harry Potter):

It's not a complete list of ships I like a lot without including the OG ship, one of the first I can remember having. Say whatever the fuck you want - I will sink with them. There is undeniable sexual tension here, and if "She who must not be named" had given Draco similar development to what Zuko had (he was SO CLOSE, just needed a few extra bits and bobs here and there)... I MEAAAAANNNNN... I think that's all I have to say! It also really hurts me knowing Emma Watson had a crush on Tom Felton... like ndfbsjdhfnksjd. They also had chemistry on-screen which didn't help my obsession with the pair... The punch scene? Iconic as fuck lmao.

Honorable Mentions (Ships I also love and could write whole dissertations about:

Spuffy (Spike x Buffy - Buffy)

Roy x Riza (FMA Brotherhood)

Harmony (Harry x Hermione - HP)

MiroSan (Miroku x Sango - InuYahsa)

InuKago (InuYasha x Kagome - InuYasha)

Delena (Damon x Elena - Vampire Diaries)

Klaroline (Caroline x Klaus - Vampire Diaries)

[limetameta]

I liked your rant! What is one of the things you want to say about the Kimblee Never Went To Prison AU that you feel the readers haven't picked up on? Me included. I'm kinda clueless *shy*

Howdy! I yell a lot, but don't be shy to come into my dms or my ask box lmao.

The thing I want to underline for the Crimsonverse specifically pertains to Kimblee's humanity. In canon, we don't really see him interact with many people in a friendly manner. We do in the manga mainly; he's the most human in the manga. But brotherhood writes him as a lean, mean killing machine. It doesn't take a pause and breathe some levity into him or otherwise doesn't spend any time aligning him with human beings. Which I understand! Because Kimblee in canon is an antagonist and is supposed to be seen on the side of the homunculi. They take him out of prison, they give him the ph stone, they set him on our beloved characters. They're the ones whom we expect Kimblee to be aligned to and loyal to. (which makes that last stint with Pride vs Ed such a COOL moment because you're reminded that Kimblee's human. And he doesn't like hypocrites lmao) Now when I rewatched FMAB in February and March of this year (2k22 let's go, be kinder than the previous ones) I kept thinking about how Kimblee's humanity is so unexplored in fanon. Most of the time he's this sociopath with violent tendencies, this paragon of destruction and chaos. He does have violent tendencies. He does have a penchant for destruction. But all of this is always something that he's in control of 100%. It's a calculated effort on his part. It's not something that just HAPPENS to him.

He can be incredibly polite. He can hold conversations. He's not some imbecile that makes things go boom all the time.

Kimblee in MC is a human being. He's surrounded by human beings. He has a cat. He has hobbies. He has likes and dislikes. His entire identity doesn't hinge on his being the Crimson Lotus Alchemist. On being a human weapon.

Even though there's a common theme in the crimsonverse where OTHERS have a big problem differentiating the Crimson Lotus Alchemist/Bomber of Ishval from Solf J. Kimblee.

This story is mainly the story of human complexities. It's a favourite subject for me to write.

So, now you have Kimblee who's a human being (but doesn't have the ISOLATION that he does in canon while he's in prison) - if anything Good Guy Maes Hughes and Best Girl Gracia Hughes have made it so that unfortunately for Kimblee, he's USED TO people now. He's USED TO belonging in a little group, a social circle to call his own. Which will, down the line, be devastating for him because a human weapon works best when you're isolated. When you don't have others to rely on or others to rely on you. Kimblee in canon is an island.

MC Kimblee? He wasn't allowed to be one. And the homunculi, at the end of the day, are not and cannot be human beings. They are the monsters that built Amestris on foundation drenched in blood. They never miss an opportunity to call Kimblee a human being (derogatory). But they don't understand that, yes, Kimblee's a human being - and yes, he might have been curious about a world where the homunculi win and humanity loses (were he not PULLED into being human, not just being a weapon, but actually surrounding himself by the people he cares about and those who care about him) FMA is and always will be a story about found family. About how love changes a person, either platonic or romantic or familial.

The question has been posed in MC in regards to Kimblee's humanity by people he's not friendly with. Armstrong is a good example. He wonders if Kimblee even is human if he could do the things he's done in Ishval? Mustang doesn't think Kimblee's a person. Edward thinks he's violent. But you see all of these moments paralleled by the homunculi constantly hammering in the fact that to them Kimblee is a lowly human. Kimblee is beneath them in every way shape or form.

Objectively speaking, Kimblee is a human being through and through.

But his subjective view on the world is rather muddled at the moment. Right now it's like he's a trapeze artist thrown to walk his line while everyone around (his friends, his coworkers, people, homunculi) is watching him. He's toeing the fine line between human and weapon, and he isn't quite sure on which side he'll land.

[manias-wordcount]

are there any fandoms you’d like to write for that you haven’t yet?

good question! unfortunately you opened a can of worms and now youre getting a novella length response though. sorry

ANWYAYS there's a few series that I really really want to write for but I either can't find the time to or don't know how to execute my idea properly just yet. or im distracted by something else (*COUGH COUGH* YAE MIKO SPIKE SPIEGEL). But here are the ones I can remember at the top of my list:

MORE GHIBLI MOVIES: specifically, i wanna write some more cute, fluffy romantic stuff with people like Ashitaka from Princess Mononoke. I also would love to write some puppy-love type things for Haku from Spirited Away, Pazu from Castle in the Sky, and Seji from Whisper of the Heart.

Kakegurui: I love gambling and I love this anime but I'm scared I'll end up watering down the stakes in my writing? Like it's a weird show and I don't have to write about it being weird but I can't outright ignore it. But I really want to get to it eventually

Sword Art Online: I only watched the first season in middle school but I still have (mostly) fond memories of show. I think I might actually write something big for SAO and release it write on the day it was supposed to launch on the anime. If I remember LMAO

Fullmetal Alchemist: Never finished brotherhood but I would love to finish FMAB and start writing for it !!!!!!!!! especially bc the ending in FMA was :) not my favorite and i want to change everything :)

Arcane: I'm putting this for purely selfish reasons even though I write for league of legends (i promise you i do i just haven't in a while shhhh) but I really liked the show and I've been wanting to write vi and viktor a lot more lately. but I've been caught up in some other stuff (COUGH GENSHIN COUGH COWBOY BEBOP)

for now, that's everything i can think of! this will probably change as time goes on but sorry for rambling so much teehee :). also if you see anything on the list that you would like to request, feel free to!

[floorune]

1 2 6 8 11 for the FMA ask!!

HOLDS UR FACE HI HOON I LOVE U

this got kinda long since i talk a lot! so i’m gonna put the rest under the cut 😅

2. All time favorite character? Why?

GREED MY LITTLE MEOW MEOW MY SILLY RABBIT THE LIGHT OF MY LIFE. he is very fun and sexy what can i say!! :) specifically Greed in his original form – Greedling is fine too and very fun and important for their character growth, but OG Greed...he is just Built Different. catch a glimpse of those deltoids and i start acting unwise 😔 🤙

(my other two faves are Alphonse and Mei Chang ❤️️💕 and honorary mention to Scar!)

1. Original or Brotherhood

I think by original they mean the 2003 anime right? I like both 03 and BH for different reasons but if I gotta pick I'd have to go with Brotherhood. Mei and the rest of the Xing crew are some of my favourite characters so I like that they actually y'know, exist in BH 😂 unfortunately 03 also doesn't have Olivier, Miles, and the Briggs soldiers :(

Scar is ok in 03 but his parental/found family relationship with Mei in BH is so important to me and one of my favourite dynamics!!! 03 Greed is also less interesting to me and I find 03 Bradley family very boring..

again there's a lot of stuff I do like about 03 but ultimately many of my fave characters either just Don't Exist there or are written in a way that's no longer interesting to me V__V so Brotherhood it is!

6. Favorite homunculus? Why?

ok i guess this got eclipsed by Question #2 because clearly..Greed... though as far as BH goes, I also like Wrath and Pride, then followed by Lust and Envy (damn bro i'm practically just naming all of them here). but in 03 i like Lust the best bc she got all the development and character writing plus she is sexy :]

8. Favorite all time villain? Why?

not me struggling to remember any villains other than the homunculi lmao 😩 i also haven't revisited CoS, the OVAs, or any of the video games recently so i can't include those. i think i'll go with BH Wrath and Pride in that case! i love it when villains are a lil bit emo, the complicated flavour is good. also they're scawy :) every time Wrath shows up on screen me and my friends are like:

(except for my ossan-loving friends.. they start making eyes at the screen....😭)

11. Favorite member of Team Mustang?

RIZA MY BELOVED!!!! also Black Hayate MVP <3

[marmalade-draws]

regarding fma, what are your headcanons for some of the characters your art didn't feature a ton? ling, for example--does his appetite start catching up with him? or greed, it's in the name...ooh, or when the two fuse in mangahood? love your art btw!

okay it’s like 1am and i’m up with a stomachache so im sorry if this isn’t coherent

this might be a boring/disappointing answer but i’ve actually never had many thoughts about ling in a kink context. mostly because i focus on post brotherhood timeline and we only see photos of him in that time. putting story timeline ling in kink settings is uncomfy for me because he’s like 15-17 throughout the main story. i’m as much a sucker for fat royalty as the next guy but i don’t really have any ling-specific thoughts for after he becomes emperor

og greed i see as more of a bloater/inflator instead of a stuffer/gainer. i can easily see him drinking way too much alcohol at the devil’s nest and busting his pants open because of it. i like to imagine that because he’s a homunculus, it takes way more booze than average for him to start feeling the effects so he’s gotta drink an insane amount before he even gets a buzz. by the time he actually gets shit-face drunk, his employees need to cart him to the back in a wheelbarrow because he’s so heavy and sloshy with liquid. (but as i write this im thinking of fat muscle-bear greed with his full body shield and i am feeling some things lmao)

for the non-kink stuff, i adore the xing characters! when they need to they absolutely nail the comedic relief, but they’re also such mf-ing badasses too! ling is so dedicated to helping his family and people it’s almost a character flaw that nearly gets him killed, lan fan is so resourceful and adaptable and so incredibly smart. old man fu’s death still gets me so unbelievably choked up it’s insane he cares so much for his granddaughter and the young prince 😭 mei i feel is overlooked a lot for how young and innocent/airheaded she acts but she’s wicked intelligent and brave. she helped the plan to capture envy in the snow, she showed down with father even after being (rightfully) afraid of how much power he held, she’s one of the biggest reasons the group even figured out the country-wide transmutation circle plan, and she gave up the only thing that would save her clan to heal a complete stranger

and i think also a lot of people forget that all the xing characters (aside from old man fu) are literally kids. they traversed the scorching desert alone with no guarantee they’d reach their destination or find what they were looking for if they did. they aren’t even sixteen yet and they’ve got the entire weight of their clans on their shoulders and it’s gotta put such a strain on them

brotherhood scar was right and did nothing wrong (okay he did a few things wrong but my man said acab and we support that)

also the 2003 animators really looked at scar and said “i’m turning this man into a twink”

okay so before i figured out i was a trans man i wanted to change my name to olivier no joke. as soon as i saw her she was one of my absolute favorites she’s such a badass lesbian with a sword the most iconic scene is when she rolls out of the elevator in a motherfucking tank. her subordinates are loyal and dedicated because she earned their trust. it’s the kind of bond and commitment nothing could tear apart, the briggs crew is absolutely amazing.

y’all if you haven’t watched the OVA that covers izumi’s training in the mountains and how she met sig i highly recommend it it’s so so so good. their relationship is so good and pure they would 100% die and kill for each other. my favorite scene with sig is the flashback to the failed transmutation where he’s there with izumi and has to hold her back and comfort her. he’s just a normal dude, he’s got no knowledge at all about this alchemy stuff. he could have let izumi do this by herself, but he stuck with her the whole time and made sure she knew he was there for her. it’s missing in brotherhood i think but the scene in 03 and the manga where izumi explains to a neighborhood child why she can’t bring her cat back to life is such a good character moment. she’s strong and kind and stubborn and the love she has for the elrics is immeasurable. (and they only interacted for a little bit but izumi and olivier would absolutely be best friends).

[aquaberry-sweater]

Top 5 Comfort Characters (redone)

Tagged by @askerror87! Thanks :) Picking 5 is so hard bruh, there are definitely more than this (this is in no particular order)

Max Caulfield (Life is Strange)

I tend to really enjoy introverted and introspective characters in most media, and Max fits the bill for me. Even though some of her lines of dialogue are a bit cringy (especially by 2021 standards), Max definitely had an influence on my 17-year-old self when I first played Life is Strange, influencing my music taste and even inspiring me to get my hair cut like hers at the time.

Tecna (Winx Club)

More of a childhood one, Tecna (specifically from the 4Kids dub of Winx Club) was always my favourite character in the show. As a kid I felt represented as a girl who had more "masculine" interests (by societal standards I guess) and loved to nerd about shit. As well as that, she's also quite introverted and I enjoy her having an English accent in the 4Kids dub as I'm English myself. Also, I was really drawn to female characters with short hair as a kid.

Scar (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)

A more recent one as I have only just got into the FMA/FMAB fandom, but Scar was easily my favourite character throughout the series (regardless of my crush on him lmao). His development through FMAB was great and his abilities are really cool, I always looked forward to his scenes. Also, I live for his adoptive dad vibes with Mei.

Derby Harrington (Bully)

Despite them being absolute arseholes, the preppies in Bully were always my favourite clique as a teenager, given my Tumblr name (which was the preppies' signature item of clothing). Derby being the leader fit the bill. My Instagram RP account was for this character, and his dialogue is so ridiculous and hilarious. He's essentially just a rich blond himbo. Also, his voice actor John Lavelle also makes an appearance in SPOP as Prince Peekablue.

Pidge (Voltron: Legendary Defender)

No surprise here based on my previous rambles, Pidge is the pinnacle of nerd ass introvert ass cartoon characters. Pidge is also relatable to me as a generally more masc/tomboyish woman who has struggled with gender identity in the past (I identify as female quite comfortably now, although my struggles with gender to pop up from time to time). I really just love her nerdish, tomboyish vibe. Frankly, she's by far the most engaging and consistently good character in the eventual trainwreck of a show that is VLD.

Honorable Mentions: Moana, Ling Yao, Ed&Alphonse, Mulan, Will & Taranee (W.I.T.C.H.), Reaver (Fable 3), Bloody Mary (The Wolf Among Us), Entrapta (She-ra), Iroh (ATLA), Soren (The Dragon Prince)

I've definitely put way too many honourable mentions but my top 5 is pretty solid

5 Tags: @novaac @elextric-sea and anyone else reading this

[snicker-snacc]

💕📝📖

❤ Thank you for the ask, lovely!!  ❤

💕

Oh god how am I supposed to pick, I consume so much media on a daily basis fidndnsksb okay I’m picking 2 best and then a list of runner ups because otherwise I'll go back and forth on it all day

1. Zuko (Avatar the Last Airbender) - The only obvious choice from the list. Most of the characters I pick are the ones who have the best written characters, and Zuko is one of the best written "sympathetic villains" I’ve seen or read. I could write a dissertation about why Zuko is so amazing but like, lets be real, we all love Zuko so that would be unnecessary.

2. Colonel Roy Mustang (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood) - There’s a reason why he's my profile image everywhere lmao. Among the host of FMA's fantastic characters, his plotline was always my favorite, specifically the Brotherhood/Manga version. I love his flaws, his dorky moments, his relationship with Riza (who was close to being in this spot tbh), his ambitions, everything. Mwah, chef kiss, beautiful.

HONORABLE MENTIONS: L (Death Note), Annabeth Chase (Percy Jackson), Reiner Braun (AoT), Armin Arlert (AoT), Vriska Serket (Hamsteak)

📝

I cheated.... again. So here’s two:

"You gave me an arm and a leg to replace the ones I've lost... Its your hands -- they weren't meant to kill, they were meant to give life." - Edward Elric, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

"Real life was something happening in her peripheral vision." - Rainbow Rowell, Fangirl

📖

The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton! That’s been my favorite book since I was a kid. There’s something about that feels timeless, especially in the commentary it provides. This one will have a special place in my heart forever. If any of you haven’t read it yet, put it on the list! Its a short book with a lot to say concerning classism, family, identity, acceptance of others, and coming of age. 

[puropoly]

top favorite animes?

yea!!

1) Mob Psycho 100 - made by the creator of the One Punch Man anime, it follows it’s natural charm and fresh comedy with also an interesting plot and (to me) a fascinating main character. The story is constantly jumping from absurd situations to adventure to deep emotional concepts and it’s really entertaining to watch. It’s my favourite anime and manga and I’ll never forget how much I enjoyed and still enjoy it. It makes me so happy

2) Hunter x Hunter - hxh is so much fun and with fun I mean you will Meet The Horror. It’s a long anime with an unifinished story (manga is still being published) ((asuming togashi will ever finish it lmao)) about what seems to be your four typical shonen protagonists in a typical shonen enviroment following a typical shonen adventure.  That is…until you realize it isn’t quite like that, actually. There’s an uncomfortable feeling that only gets stronger as the story progresses, there’s something weird going on and you feel it slowly crawling at the back of your mind: something isn’t quite there the way it should be, something about the show that isn’t quite normal: the characters aren’t as heroic and goodie as they seem to be, the world is more twisted, the characters are morally gray and once you get to the chimera ant arc you’ll understand what I mean with this. It’s an extremely emotional-investing story and I will give it the credit it deserves by saying it achieved what no other piece of media has so far, and that is to make me cry

3) FullMetal Alchemist - by this point everyone has watched FMA and agrees it’s one of the best pieces of media ever, so if you haven’t do yourself the favor and watch FMA brotherhood (2003 is fine but it’s not canon so) it’s fun and amazing.

4) Psycho Pass - PP is a jewel I found this year after watching DN. If you’re into themes like criminology and psychology (as well as humanism and phillosophy) I highly recommend this to you.It’s about a young woman who starts working as a police officer in a future where criminology levels are detected in people by a machine that controls the entire system of society and is also able to detect the potential to be a criminal in people. It’s really interesting and gets you wondering and questioning about morality and ethics. Besides, it has inmensely smart writing, the characters quote famous authors all the time, and the plot is fascinating, specially for the first season. It’s a seinen, so I feel I should clarify that it gets super dark and gorey.

5) Well, this isn’t a surprise but: Death Note, obviously. I got into detective stuff thanks to Danganronpa and Death Note only exponentially increased my passion for case-solving stories. It made me feel adrenaline rush during many episodes, specially the last ones,  and even though I knew L was going to die, episode 25 still kicked my ass (wasn’t ready for the rain scene)

Ok I knew you said only 5 but I feel the physical need to mention Steins;Gate because of the fascinating time-travelling shenanigans and narrative. The only reason I didn’t write it in the first place is because the first 7 episodes are…so boring, it leads the public to think the story is some scientific slice of life about 4 really boring cliche characters. But then episode 8 and specifically, episode 10 comes and it kicks your ass. It just does, and it keeps doing it until the final chapter. I never really cared about the characters (except the protagonist) but man the way things get twisted really made me feel sorry for them, it was so unexpected. It’s a fantastic anime honestly, I’m sorry about being fooled by those first chapters that took me 4 months to watch, because the rest of the story is SO worth it.

[moonbelt]

I don'tknow if you already answered this but do you have any anime recommandation?

i’ve never been asked for anime recommendations in my inbox before usually i just recommend some to ppl that message me or my friends irl but IM ACTUALLY REALLY EXCITED TO DO THISSS -

okay here are 15 anime i’ll recommend to you anonie :)

these are in no specific order 

1: Boku No Hero Academia - character develoment? check. Non-neglecting of side characters? check. Bomb af graphics? double check. Loveable best boy? yep yup. Great fandom that collectively hates Mineta? yesh

2: Diamond no Ace - sports anime that actually shows the struggles of different teams? yesss. epic scenes that are so great it could be a meta anime but it still retains the basic functions of baseball? huehue double yes. the mc is such a ball of energy and genuinely wants to be the Ace and has so much development as a character that you honestly start wanting him to get that number? yes yes yes yes yes

3: Nichijou - one of the greatest work anime has produced. really its so effing hilarious and it really pinpoints the things everybody does in everyday life. like flip a police officer for mistakenly confiscating your boys love manga. accidentally stabbing your thumb with a mechanical pencil, the struggles of ordering at Starbucks or even..

yeah.. ordinary life ha

4: Magi - a smol baby boy tryna bring peace to the world? check. fucking strong girl that can beat any kind of wild beast there is? heck yeah! magic? yup. loads of backstory that actually makes sense and relates to the arcs? checkity check. villiains that really arent villains and good guys that truly are the bad guys? ho boi yessss. a magical recorder? you got it. also the graphics are great

5: Mob Psycho 100 - another smol baby boy just tryna navigate middle school. blessed with amazing psychic powers but powerless in terms of popularity and friendships. truly such a great anime that teaches a lot of moral stuff and has A M A Z I N G fight scenes. our boy mob is such a freaking god and the art style is very different but so expressive 10/10 would recommend

6: Danshi Koukousei no Nichijou - [Daily Lives of High School Boys] like nichijou, this is another anime that is at the height of comedy gold. every episode is such meme worthy. the main protag really isnt the main protagonist, so many puns, great side characters, and i cant express how much of a feel good anime this is

7: Bakemono no Ko - okay this is a movie. and when i say this is such a fascinating movie, i mean it. this really smol boy gets adopted by a bear after he runs from home. this big bad bear™ is actually so pure and best dad. the uncles are great and so punny i cant. okay, they also have some really epic sword fights.. i really cant explain this movie without giving spoilers lmao but go watch it if you want, you wont regret it

8: Hunter x Hunter - young fisher-boy and young assassin-boy walk into a hunter exam together, who survives? friendship.. and the newly acquired dads they found along the way [honestly go watch it, i was skeptical at first but i never loved anything more in my life] also the arcs are so monumental, really great plot and friendship!!

9: Yuri On Ice!!! - edgy ice skating and gay couples that reaffirm what love is? check. little smol bean yurio tryna act all mighty and tough? yep. amazing soundtrack? heck yeahh! great characters that in no way hate on homosexuals? you got it. amazing graphics? best boys? well dang, you got it!

10: Shokugeki no Soma - food. food. food wars. great scenes that have food giving you orgasms? basically a sports anime but about food? great mc that really deserves all the love he gets. when they tie a bandana on their forehead, shit is about to get started. food. food. food wars.

11: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood - as i write this, i cry. this was so good and i was wary of watching it bc there was/is so much hype around it but alas IT WAS SOO GOOD I CANT. like two brothers? amazing morals? the fact that nothing is as it seems? kickass female characters. alchemy. the hype is real with this one, but its so worth it and i 10/10 would lower you down FMA hell.

12: Katekyo Hitman Reborn! - [also known as Reborn!] i found this by mistake and my life really hasnt been the same. mafia story. first few eps are just comedic and really dont tell you jack shit about the storm thats coming afterwards. holy heck, a main character that set standards for how to demolish your enemies? friendship! fight scenes that make you wanna fite anyone? so many powers that actually make sense? checkity check. friendship!!

13: Bungou Stray Dogs - hidden powers that main character doesnt know about? check. good dad dazai. another mafia story. a mafia boy tryna kill the mc because of his powers and dazai has become mc’s dad instead of his [okay i’m trolling lmao] but really this is a great mafia anime. theories. villainous characters that have been blackmailed into being bad.. really it has it all

14: Haikyuu!! - small chibi boy just wants to play volleyball in peace. “i can jump™” meets skyscraper black-haired blue-eyed god who rules the court. [trollingg] but honestly, this has to be one of the most accurate sports anime i’ve watched. spiky main and side characters that are completely adorable and its kinda hard not to get sucked in, but you will

15: Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo! - gamer dude dies [by mistake] and on his way to the afterlife, he’s given a chance by a goddess to go to another world and defeat the demon king. grants him the possibility of taking any one thing to this new world, my guy picks the goddess [fukin dead] and whoops there ya go lmaoo. but no honestly, its great and funny and the explosion/action scenes are beyond E P I C. also best girl, Megumin, is there so you should def check it out

— obviously these recommended anime are in my opinion. im not some anime god but thanks anon for giving me a reason to finally do this *finger hearts* —

[starblaster]

What is your paper on?

it’s about a specific ‘’’genre’’’ criteria (more like general plot/narrative but i like fucking around with naming a whole genre like they’re groupings on letterboxd lmao) i’ve seen in media (mostly noncanonical and subculture media like comics, manga, anime, animated tv shows, etc) where the apocalypse is stopped by a found family and, usually, the power of love and which incorperate magic/fantasy or magical sci-fi mechanics in the plot/worldbuilding.

the paper is focused on comparing and  fma (manga and brotherhood), naruto (manga and shippuden, mostly), atla, taz balance and amnesty, code lyoko, as well as some honorable mentions which i intend to use to highlight what makes these 5-6 works fit into the criteria i’m outlining and speculating about the reasons why this specific... “genre” is so common among subculture favorites across a wide-ish spectrum of public/fan attention (atla, naruto and fma having the most with online and offline fan interest/support, taz and code lyoko having & the internet’s general role in championing this specific genre/narrative. basically asking: “why the hell is this such a successful plot? what about the sum of these parts (found family + apocalypse) contributes to success and fan interest that persists over many years?”

but right now im just in a very chaotic anxious depressive state and i find myself lacking the motivation to do much at all. and thankfully this paper isn’t for a grade or anything, and i’m not getting paid for it, i just wanted to get it published in campus literary mags + was possibly going to propose its reading at one of our conferences and my mentors in my university’s english/creative writing have been rly supportive of me writing stuff in general and helping me out with suggestions and sources to consult as textual evidence lol

[rebeccacatalinas]

i live 4 your fma meta

:33333cccc thank yooouu! i rly enjoy writing it. ive actually learned more about brotherhood just from ranting about it LMAO

and like i always say, if theres any specific scene anyone wants me to talk about, im totally dowm for it. ive been rereading the manga and im probably gonna reread it again so i can remember the early scenes when the characters werent totally fleshed out yet and theyre so funny to read now cuz its like “stop being so dramatic, colonel” “dont beat up a child, colonel”