FMA: BH ep 6 - Road of Hope
In this episode, Major Armstrong catches sight of a former State Alchemist, Doctor Marcoh, out of the train window. Armstrong and the Elrics stop and talk to Marcoh, then continue on to the Elrics' hometown, where Winry fixes them up.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
likeadeuce explained that the original manga was, like some tv shows, somewhat episodic in the beginning, since the author didn’t know if it would keep getting published. While I very much enjoyed episodes 2-5, they did feel somewhat blocky and disconnected—self-contained in a way that didn’t seem to make sense for this storyline. This episode, however, felt very much like a connector bit in a longer, contiguous arc, which is also disconcerting. I’m totally fine with a quieter episode, and also episodes in which not as much happens because we’re making a bigger story. That said, this episode after all the action-packed episodes felt so out of place. From what other people have said, the show establishes a better rhythm further in, which I am looking forward to.
There was more of Major Armstrong in this episode, which was both entertaining and perplexing. He is very sparkly. I am uncertain why he is so sparkly. His biggest moment was after Granny told him all about the hardships the Elrics have suffered. He’s overcome with emotion for the strength of their love and feelings and the depths of their hurt, which is great. I love big muscley men who cry all the time. However, I’m really concerned about his need to rip off his shirt to hug them. Does his heart get so big that his shirt doesn’t fit anymore? Is he like, the happy!Hulk, who gets huge and monstrous whenever he feels love, instead of anger? Where is the fic where Major Armstrong meets Bruce Banner? I ask you.
Doctor Marcoh added perspective to the Ishvalan war scenario. One would hope that at least some of the State Alchemists would object to what appears to me to be state-sanctioned genocide, but we’re (ostensibly) on Mustang’s side, and he didn’t object. Marcoh did, which helps support the idea that Bradley’s orders (and Mustang following them) is an act that should be condemned. This episode also explained Cornello’s “fake” philosopher’s stone. If I understand correctly, something approximating a philosopher’s stone can be created, but it needs more to be a “real” stone.
Edward decides not to pursue this particular philosopher’s stone. He respects what Marcoh is doing with it and doesn’t want to take it away or fight Marcoh because it might expose him. Al says they want to be restored, but not at the cost of Marcoh's identity. This choice says a lot about the Elrics. I appreciated it, but it wasn't particularly moving, which I'll get to in a second.
Major Armstrong pointed out that Edward could have taken the stone by force. Armstrong didn’t sound like he thought Edward should, and seemed to approve of the fact that Edward had other ideas. This, taken with the fact that Armstrong agreed to protect Marcoh's identity, says a lot about Armstrong.
Marcoh originally says he won't tell the Elrics anything. Later he has a change of heart. In short, this episode has everyone acting in a way that is respectful and honorable and generally praise-worthy, and I was glad to see it. However, Marcoh's change of heart seemed to lack motivation. I would also prefer the Elrics' decision to protect Marcoh be grounded more in sympathy or empathy for Marcoh and his situation, rather than stale principle that wasn't really explained. That is, I would have appreciated Marcoh getting more time to really understand the Elrics’ plight, and Edward having more time to understand Marcoh’s. It would have explained their perfect sympathy and mutual understanding a lot better. Instead, a lot of this just reads like bland heroics, which is only saved by Edward occasionally behaving like a brat even while at the same time, he’s being an incredible person. I suspect people are going to tell me it is an episode in the other series or something, which would make it make more sense.
Then we go back to the hometown. They said the name but I forgot it. They also said Granny’s name, but I forgot it. We do learn that their surname is Rockbell, which is hilarious to me. Granny makes fun of Edward’s height, which is again annoying. (She did it on purpose,likeadeuce--it’s not just Roy!)
Winry is barely wearing anything, which totally fulfilled my suspicion that she would grow up hot and be a romantic interest for Edward. I couldn’t figure out whether they were going to do anything more with that for most of the episode—there’s a lot of Edward sort of awkwardly bugging Winry about finishing his arm, but I couldn’t tell whether it was awkward because a) he wanted to talk to her and she was really short with him, b) he wanted his arm to be done and it wasn’t, c) he was just really bored. In retrospect I believe it was all three; he says later he’s super bored, so if she’d’ve spent time talking to him he’d probably have been less bored. Anyway, through most of the episode he acts just like he did when they were kids, except at the end when she’s all sleepy and she calls out bye to him, he has an obvious reaction. I assume there will be more; I'm not particularly invested in the romance, though I approve of girls-next-door-especially-if-they're-badass-mechanics. (my_daroga said, "She's Kaylee!")
I loved how Winry was all big and loud and frustrated when she first saw Ed’s arm and what happened to Al, but how once she got started working she was super quiet and focused and dedicated. I also like how she and Edward have their Mechanic vs Alchemist spat. It reads as Engineer vs Scientist, which is an argument I always love (and have written fanfic about, see Tony vs Bruce in Responsible Science). That said, I do have some qualms about the characterization—she was pretty over the top, like they were trying really hard to make her cool instead of just letting her badassitude slowly be revealed. Idk, we’ll see.
The other big focus in this episode was The Epic Tragedy and Sadness of Edward. We learned that he and Al burned down their family’s house, which was yet another moment wheremy_daroga and I turned to each other with “holy shit!” faces. Later Edward’s asleep on the couch, and Al, Winry, and Granny are all sitting around talking about him—how little he is, how much weight is on his shoulders. Either Winry or Granny points out that Al is like a guardian figure for Edward.
I just don’t really get this. How is Edward the sad one, and not Al? I get that Edward has put a lot of the blame on himself, but he’s the one taking on the blame. No one else really seems to blame him, and yet the way everyone seems to be talking about it is as if this is totally all Edward’s responsibility, and none of this is Al’s.
I also get that Edward is in some ways more vulnerable, because he has a physical body that can be more easily hurt. When he mentions that it’s always painful when the nerves reconnect on his arm, my heart broke for him. Still though, Al is the one who doesn’t get to eat or sleep or feel the wind on his skin; I just don’t get why this moment is everyone sitting around feeling sorry for Edward’s epic pain. Al’s is just as epic, except Al doesn’t act like a brat all the time or seem to feel as sorry for himself.
I should clarify that I tend to be more partial to characters who act like jerks, feel sorry for themselves, and take the responsibility of the world upon their shoulders even when it’s not really theirs. I respond to characters like Edward more than characters like Al, who take things in stride and retain a sense of humor. I respond to Bruce Banner more than Steve Rogers. I respond to Angel more than Spike. I respond to Zuko more than Aang. That said, I like these character because they behave reprehensibly. I like that everyone around them tells them to get over themselves, and sometimes their response is “You can never understand my pain!” and sometimes their response is, “Yeah I totally need to get over myself, except getting over yourself is really hard.”
I’m just having trouble with everyone around Edward saying, “No, dear! You are the most special boy in the world!” Even if he is the most special boy in the world, Harry Potter still had most people around him telling him he should get over it, which made me like him better. I guess what makes it particularly unpalatable to me is Alphonse, who has it just as hard and deals with it far better. I want Edward to get reprimanded for not dealing with it better . . . I guess because I identify with how Edward deals with it, but wish I behaved like Al? I think more people should be like Al!
Anyway, speaking of special, we got a little more family history. The Elrics’ dad walked out on them, which I believe we knew before. It’s interesting that this came up on this episode, because I finally mentioned tomy_daroga the big blond man with the glasses and mustache who is in the credits sequence. We had both independently made the hypothesis that it could be the Elrics’ father, whom we assume will come into play at some point. I enjoyed learning that he was Granny’s drinking buddy, because that’s hilarious.
We also learned that Winry’s parents (Granny’s son and his wife) were doctors in the Ishvalan war. Granny didn’t seem to approve of what happened in the war either. Granny seems similar to Winry in that they’ve made her quite over the top in order for her to seem like a little spitfire who can hold her own. I like her, but am just so tired of the ‘Edward’s little’ arguments. I do think she really cares about the Elrics, and it was nice to see that.
Anyway, now that the Elrics are better and they got that info from Marcoh, I assume we'll be going back to Central to take a look at the library. I'm excited about getting to learn more about Mustang, Hawkeye, Armstrong, and the war. A bunch of expositiony stuff has happened, and I assume we know who the main characters are now, so I'm betting the plot will begin to take more shape soon.
And Lust showed up at Marcoh's; I wonder what she wants.
ETA: I just realized Winry's parents having died in the war adds some dimension to Winry asking Riza about the military when Roy first recruited the Elrics as State Alchemists. Poor Winry. It also adds some nice shades to the Rockbells being so concerned about what the Elrics job in Central is like--yeah, they're concerned because the Elrics came back damaged, but considering what happened to Winry's parents, maybe they're feelings about Central command aren't exactly sanguine. I must say that I'm pretty excited about the political situation, here. I love stories with protagonists who learn throughout the plot that they actually work for the bad guys. The fist episode of ALIAS is the best one.
likeadeuce explained that the original manga was, like some tv shows, somewhat episodic in the beginning, since the author didn’t know if it would keep getting published. While I very much enjoyed episodes 2-5, they did feel somewhat blocky and disconnected—self-contained in a way that didn’t seem to make sense for this storyline. This episode, however, felt very much like a connector bit in a longer, contiguous arc, which is also disconcerting. I’m totally fine with a quieter episode, and also episodes in which not as much happens because we’re making a bigger story. That said, this episode after all the action-packed episodes felt so out of place. From what other people have said, the show establishes a better rhythm further in, which I am looking forward to.There was more of Major Armstrong in this episode, which was both entertaining and perplexing. He is very sparkly. I am uncertain why he is so sparkly. His biggest moment was after Granny told him all about the hardships the Elrics have suffered. He’s overcome with emotion for the strength of their love and feelings and the depths of their hurt, which is great. I love big muscley men who cry all the time. However, I’m really concerned about his need to rip off his shirt to hug them. Does his heart get so big that his shirt doesn’t fit anymore? Is he like, the happy!Hulk, who gets huge and monstrous whenever he feels love, instead of anger? Where is the fic where Major Armstrong meets Bruce Banner? I ask you.
Doctor Marcoh added perspective to the Ishvalan war scenario. One would hope that at least some of the State Alchemists would object to what appears to me to be state-sanctioned genocide, but we’re (ostensibly) on Mustang’s side, and he didn’t object. Marcoh did, which helps support the idea that Bradley’s orders (and Mustang following them) is an act that should be condemned. This episode also explained Cornello’s “fake” philosopher’s stone. If I understand correctly, something approximating a philosopher’s stone can be created, but it needs more to be a “real” stone.
Edward decides not to pursue this particular philosopher’s stone. He respects what Marcoh is doing with it and doesn’t want to take it away or fight Marcoh because it might expose him. Al says they want to be restored, but not at the cost of Marcoh's identity. This choice says a lot about the Elrics. I appreciated it, but it wasn't particularly moving, which I'll get to in a second.
Major Armstrong pointed out that Edward could have taken the stone by force. Armstrong didn’t sound like he thought Edward should, and seemed to approve of the fact that Edward had other ideas. This, taken with the fact that Armstrong agreed to protect Marcoh's identity, says a lot about Armstrong.
Marcoh originally says he won't tell the Elrics anything. Later he has a change of heart. In short, this episode has everyone acting in a way that is respectful and honorable and generally praise-worthy, and I was glad to see it. However, Marcoh's change of heart seemed to lack motivation. I would also prefer the Elrics' decision to protect Marcoh be grounded more in sympathy or empathy for Marcoh and his situation, rather than stale principle that wasn't really explained. That is, I would have appreciated Marcoh getting more time to really understand the Elrics’ plight, and Edward having more time to understand Marcoh’s. It would have explained their perfect sympathy and mutual understanding a lot better. Instead, a lot of this just reads like bland heroics, which is only saved by Edward occasionally behaving like a brat even while at the same time, he’s being an incredible person. I suspect people are going to tell me it is an episode in the other series or something, which would make it make more sense.
Then we go back to the hometown. They said the name but I forgot it. They also said Granny’s name, but I forgot it. We do learn that their surname is Rockbell, which is hilarious to me. Granny makes fun of Edward’s height, which is again annoying. (She did it on purpose,
likeadeuce--it’s not just Roy!) Winry is barely wearing anything, which totally fulfilled my suspicion that she would grow up hot and be a romantic interest for Edward. I couldn’t figure out whether they were going to do anything more with that for most of the episode—there’s a lot of Edward sort of awkwardly bugging Winry about finishing his arm, but I couldn’t tell whether it was awkward because a) he wanted to talk to her and she was really short with him, b) he wanted his arm to be done and it wasn’t, c) he was just really bored. In retrospect I believe it was all three; he says later he’s super bored, so if she’d’ve spent time talking to him he’d probably have been less bored. Anyway, through most of the episode he acts just like he did when they were kids, except at the end when she’s all sleepy and she calls out bye to him, he has an obvious reaction. I assume there will be more; I'm not particularly invested in the romance, though I approve of girls-next-door-especially-if-they're-badass-mechanics. (
my_daroga said, "She's Kaylee!")I loved how Winry was all big and loud and frustrated when she first saw Ed’s arm and what happened to Al, but how once she got started working she was super quiet and focused and dedicated. I also like how she and Edward have their Mechanic vs Alchemist spat. It reads as Engineer vs Scientist, which is an argument I always love (and have written fanfic about, see Tony vs Bruce in Responsible Science). That said, I do have some qualms about the characterization—she was pretty over the top, like they were trying really hard to make her cool instead of just letting her badassitude slowly be revealed. Idk, we’ll see.
The other big focus in this episode was The Epic Tragedy and Sadness of Edward. We learned that he and Al burned down their family’s house, which was yet another moment where
my_daroga and I turned to each other with “holy shit!” faces. Later Edward’s asleep on the couch, and Al, Winry, and Granny are all sitting around talking about him—how little he is, how much weight is on his shoulders. Either Winry or Granny points out that Al is like a guardian figure for Edward. I just don’t really get this. How is Edward the sad one, and not Al? I get that Edward has put a lot of the blame on himself, but he’s the one taking on the blame. No one else really seems to blame him, and yet the way everyone seems to be talking about it is as if this is totally all Edward’s responsibility, and none of this is Al’s.
I also get that Edward is in some ways more vulnerable, because he has a physical body that can be more easily hurt. When he mentions that it’s always painful when the nerves reconnect on his arm, my heart broke for him. Still though, Al is the one who doesn’t get to eat or sleep or feel the wind on his skin; I just don’t get why this moment is everyone sitting around feeling sorry for Edward’s epic pain. Al’s is just as epic, except Al doesn’t act like a brat all the time or seem to feel as sorry for himself.
I should clarify that I tend to be more partial to characters who act like jerks, feel sorry for themselves, and take the responsibility of the world upon their shoulders even when it’s not really theirs. I respond to characters like Edward more than characters like Al, who take things in stride and retain a sense of humor. I respond to Bruce Banner more than Steve Rogers. I respond to Angel more than Spike. I respond to Zuko more than Aang. That said, I like these character because they behave reprehensibly. I like that everyone around them tells them to get over themselves, and sometimes their response is “You can never understand my pain!” and sometimes their response is, “Yeah I totally need to get over myself, except getting over yourself is really hard.”
I’m just having trouble with everyone around Edward saying, “No, dear! You are the most special boy in the world!” Even if he is the most special boy in the world, Harry Potter still had most people around him telling him he should get over it, which made me like him better. I guess what makes it particularly unpalatable to me is Alphonse, who has it just as hard and deals with it far better. I want Edward to get reprimanded for not dealing with it better . . . I guess because I identify with how Edward deals with it, but wish I behaved like Al? I think more people should be like Al!
Anyway, speaking of special, we got a little more family history. The Elrics’ dad walked out on them, which I believe we knew before. It’s interesting that this came up on this episode, because I finally mentioned to
my_daroga the big blond man with the glasses and mustache who is in the credits sequence. We had both independently made the hypothesis that it could be the Elrics’ father, whom we assume will come into play at some point. I enjoyed learning that he was Granny’s drinking buddy, because that’s hilarious.We also learned that Winry’s parents (Granny’s son and his wife) were doctors in the Ishvalan war. Granny didn’t seem to approve of what happened in the war either. Granny seems similar to Winry in that they’ve made her quite over the top in order for her to seem like a little spitfire who can hold her own. I like her, but am just so tired of the ‘Edward’s little’ arguments. I do think she really cares about the Elrics, and it was nice to see that.
Anyway, now that the Elrics are better and they got that info from Marcoh, I assume we'll be going back to Central to take a look at the library. I'm excited about getting to learn more about Mustang, Hawkeye, Armstrong, and the war. A bunch of expositiony stuff has happened, and I assume we know who the main characters are now, so I'm betting the plot will begin to take more shape soon.
And Lust showed up at Marcoh's; I wonder what she wants.
ETA: I just realized Winry's parents having died in the war adds some dimension to Winry asking Riza about the military when Roy first recruited the Elrics as State Alchemists. Poor Winry. It also adds some nice shades to the Rockbells being so concerned about what the Elrics job in Central is like--yeah, they're concerned because the Elrics came back damaged, but considering what happened to Winry's parents, maybe they're feelings about Central command aren't exactly sanguine. I must say that I'm pretty excited about the political situation, here. I love stories with protagonists who learn throughout the plot that they actually work for the bad guys. The fist episode of ALIAS is the best one.
no subject