Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood - Episode 02 ENGLISH DUB Review

Episode 2, "The Day Of The Beginning"

"It's a piece of cake to bake a pretty cake..." Damn that AMV!

*****SPOILERS*****

Synopsis: On a train bound for the town of Lior, Edward reflects on the past that led him and his brother to this point. Years earlier, in the town of Risembool, Ed and Al learned alchemy to impress their mother, but she passed away, making them determined to break alchemy's greatest taboo, human transmutation. After studying as much as they can, the brothers performed the transmutation, but instead of creating their mother, they create an abomination, and the price they pay at the end is and arm and a leg from Ed and Al's entire body. Resolving to join the military to do research on how to restore their bodies, Edward is fitted with artificial "auto mail" limbs and passes an examination that results in his certification as a State Alchemist. Years later, Ed and Al near Lior.

Comments:

Okay, second episode, we get some more characters, and get to hear Ed and Al's younger selves. Let's get started.

Vic Mignogna's Edward still sounds pretty much the same as a younger kid as it does as a teen. Nice to know he's really putting in the extra effort. Maxey Whitehead's Alphonse is good when he's not in his armor form, but still too low when he is. Like I said in the previous episode, she needs to be potted up. Travis Willingham's Roy still sounds awkward as hell, and I'm not really sure whether he's intentionally trying to play Roy differently this time or he's geniunely out of practice. Either way, it sounds terrible. Ed Blaylock's Bradley still bothers me, and I've realized why. It just doesn't have that commanding presence the Japanese voice has.

Now, of note, Sonny Strait seems to have settled in to his Hughes voice again in the one scene he was in. This is good, because he was always a pretty competent Hughes, even if he isn't quite as good as Keiji Fujiwara.

Pinako Rockbell's VA from the first series returned, and I've always enjoyed her and thought she was a perfect counterpart for the Japanese VA. Unfortunately, Catlin Glass's Winry is as annoying as ever. It took me a while to get used to the new Japanese voice for Winry, but I did. I still haven't gotten used to Glass, even after fifty one episodes of the first series and the movie. She makes a character I find sort of annoying just so much less likeable.

Looks like they'll really be referring to Eastern alchemy as alkahestry. But they pronounce it "alkastry" for some reason. Why not just call it "Purification Arts" or something? In the first series, they called the Ishbalan alchemy of legend "the grand arcanum" which I thought sounded stupid, but "purification arts" sounds better than that, at least. I guess alkahestry doesn't sound too bad, though.

One thing I wondered was, why the hell in an episode that's a flashback that's going on in Ed's mind would the show flash forward to Central to something Roy and Hughes are doing? That's just stupid.

Overall Dub Score: 2.5 out of 5



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