Any other Full Metal Panic fans here?

[Arnold]

I'm just over midway through this show, and I gotta say I'm liking it.

I like the mix of the "real robot" mecha genre with high school slice of life. Neither half, the way it's been handled so far, can stand particularly well on its own but I think together it's a nice mix. The mecha elements "ground" the series, and the comedy elements provide a nice balance.

Generally I do like my military anime to be a little more serious (love Zeta Gundam) but I dunno, on the whole this series works well, IMO.

[throughhim413]

You might be surprised to learn that both halves stand better on their own then they do together. Or at least, I was surprised to learn of it. The original series is a blend of both comedy and action as you mentioned. Fumoffu takes and runs with the comedy/school life aspect and is pretty successful. At least, more successful than the original series in my mind. And then The Second Raid came along and blew me away with its action. I thought it was the best of the three series. It still had its comedy moments, but the action was definitely a step up. Each series has a different goal, but they all accomplish their respective objectives.

In any case, if you like the first series, definitely check out the other two. They're very worth it.

[ryushe]

I've only ever seen the first season and Fumoffu and both, I personally thought, we're great. In the first season, each part that makes up the show by themselves aren't very notable, but it's like one of those the whole is greater than the sum of its parts scenario which in turn made everything blend surprisenly well together.

Fumoffu (dub) on the other hand is one of the funniest things I've ever watched, Anime or not.

[Arnold]

I just finished this finally, and I'm a little underwhelmed by how everything played out. There are SO many questions about the Whispered that went completely unanswered, and I was kind of hoping that all of that would come together at some point. I mean, earlier they mentioned in passing how the advanced weaponry may have something to do with the Whispered, but all of that was completely forgotten about. What happened to Zaide and how was it that he turned against Sousuke's guerrilla movement?

[Bradster]

The light novels this series is based on are still ongoing, with only the first three (out of ten) available in English. The events from the first FMP series cover only those first three novels, and TSR covers events from the next two. It's entirely possible more has been explained in the most recent five, or "in the cracks" of the existing five.

[Jayman]

Can you watch the Second Raid before watching Fumoffu? I have the Second Raid coming on Blu-ray but haven't seen Fumoffu yet.

[Jon]

Originally Posted by Jayman

Can you watch the Second Raid before watching Fumoffu? I have the Second Raid coming on Blu-ray but haven't seen Fumoffu yet.

Yes, you can watch TSR without missing anything. I would recommend watching FUMOFFU in the middle, but it's not required. It really does make Kaname and Souske feel much more "in love" though if you watch all of FUMOFFU, I highly suggest it.

And I just got it on Blu-ray too, looks stunning!

[Jayman]

Thanks!! Looks like I am going to bump FUMOFFU to the top of my NF Queue then. Second Raid will be my first Anime Blu-Ray experience so I am really looking forward to it!

[Red45]

I just finished this series and I loved it. I especially liked how the show was able to do goofy and serious at the same time. TSR blew my mind!

[Sora N]

Full Metal Panic! is a great series! I loved Fumoffu (one of the best comedy series out there!) The Second Raid was really good as well however I do wish there was more.

[Tonyx35]

I thought the 1st series, which was animated by Gonzo was pretty good. The High School life, Battlefields. I especially enjoyed the last set of episodes when we got to see life onboard the TDD-1 (Toybox) submarine.

FMP Fumoffu had me laughing or cracking a smile at the very least, the whole way. Kyoto Animation really did a good job ever since they took over animating FMP. I've seen a few hot springs themed episodes but this one had one of my favorites I found the mix of various scenarios very entertaining.

FMP: The Second Raid - It's so serious and they throw in the lesbian assassins, an even crazier bad guy. There's this scene that's one of my favorites, I'm talking about that haircut scene.

The FMP: TSR OVA was fun for two reasons. The opening where Tessa thinks she's still dreaming and teases Sousuke and then we get to see more of the stuff that happens at the base. It even had dancing robots.


The music composer Toshihiko Sahashi, even got this A-Team like theme in here
. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ia1HHJbhjJU
I really like his work on all three FMP series. He also worked on Gundam Seed/Destiny.

There's so much FMP material I haven't read but the Anime production have been good, if not great so far.

[Arnold]

I'm in the middle of The Second Raid right now, and I think it's very good, probably the best of the three series so far. At least Kaname is -trying- to be a bit more understanding of Sousuke, and not just being a typical hardass tsundere on him all the time.

[autsiticanime]

Second Raid is pretty good. Not just in it's drama but TESSA-CHAN FANSERVICE!

I just felt the original series was a little drawn out in it's pacing, and I wanted more of the school parts...

[Ryvius]

Pretty fun series all around, I liked all three seasons or whatever you'd want to call them. The Second Raid definitely took the serious tone up a notch and then suddenly ... it ends! I hear the novels continue but it's been years, hopefully we get some sequels someday.

[RayearthIX]

I love FMP and Fumoffu, but it seems like I'll be one of the few to say that I didn't like Second Raid as much. Part of the greatness of FMP was the attention to not just mech action, but humor too, and I felt that Second Raid was almost entirely lacking in humor. I think if I didn't see FMP and Fumoffu first I would have liked it more. I might've just had expectations that were too high.