Fullmetal Alchemist: Fullmetal Edition, Vol. 11

by Hiromu Arakawa

Alchemy tore the Elric brothers’ bodies apart. Can their bond make them whole again?

A hardcover, deluxe collector’s edition of one of the most beloved manga and anime of all time! Fully remastered with an updated translation and completely fresh lettering, and presented with color pages on large-trim archival-quality paper, this gorgeous hardcover edition presents the timeless dark adventures of the Elric brothers as they were truly meant to be seen. Includes brand-new cover art, with color insert and behind-the-scenes character sketches from author Hiromu Arakawa!

In an alchemical ritual gone wrong, Edward Elric lost his arm and his leg, and his brother Alphonse became nothing but a soul in a suit of armor. In their quest to restore their bodies, they head to the unforgiving north, pursued by an all-too-human monster from the past.

Genres: Manga, Fantasy, Graphic Novels, Shonen, Action, Fiction, Comics

288 pages, Hardcover

First published February 22, 2012

About the author

Hiromu Arakawa (author: 荒川弘) is a Japanese manga artist, best known for Fullmetal Alchemist (鋼の錬金術師 Hagane no renkinjutsushi).
Her real name is Hiromi Arakawa (荒川弘美).

Arakawa was born and raised on a dairy farm in Hokkaidō.
She thought of being a manga artist since she was little. After graduating high school, she took oil painting classes while working on her family's farm. During that time, she also created dōjinshi manga with her friends and drew yonkoma for a magazine. After eight years she moved to Tōkyō and started out as assistant writer for Hiroyuki Etō.
Her debut as manga artist is in 1999 with STRAY DOG. In 2001 she started working on her famous and award winning series Fullmetal Alchemist, that soon gets a successful anime adaptation.
Other works include Silver Spoon (銀の匙 Silver Spoon, Gin no saji Silver Spoon).

Reviews

[Bella · Rating 5 out of 5]

this one actually had a few scenes that weren't in the anime adaptation so they were like sweet little easter eggs that i loved and treasured uwu

[Ola G · Rating 2 out of 5]

5/10 stars

Mmm, this one was just barely okay. Quite boring, and without any emotional payoff, this one is meandering and clumsily bumbling along and setting up the scene for the future more than anything else. Maybe the break I had from Fullmetal Alchemist was a tad too long and I lost some of the interest, or maybe it's just a filler volume.

Anyway, on to the next volume!

[cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Masa-masa di mana semua tokoh penting dalam manga ini berpencar dalam pencarian masing-masing. Bahkan Kolonel Mustang pun harus berusaha sendiri karena semua anak buah kepercayaannya sedang 'dibuang' ke berbagai tempat oleh sang Fuhrer.

Elric bersaudara yg berjalan jauh ke ujung utara perbatasan akhirnya bertemu Mayor Jendral Olivia Armstrong... dan tidak terduga, dengan Letnan Falman. Dan homonculus pandir.

[John Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been waiting for so long to get to the North and meet Olivier Mira Armstrong!
Some of this volume seemed repetitive because it goes over the Ishvalan Extermination. BUT I'm giving it the benefit of the doubt and assuming this is the first time it's brought up, its just mixing with all the times I've watched the show (both of them), watched videos/ reviews and my internet research lol

[Neil R. Coulter · Rating 5 out of 5]

After the extended flashback in the previous volume, now the story is moving forward again, with lots of players moving into further reaches of the map. As usual, the parts I most enjoy in this series are the quieter, reflective moments, not the action clashes. This volume has a bit of all of it, and it's all intriguing. So eager to see where this is all headed!

(Also—bring Winry back soon!)

[Dani St-Onge · Rating 3 out of 5]

For more reviews and bookish content: http://literarylion.ca/

This is one of the places I feel like the series comes to a lull. Kimblee is a fitting cover for this volume because he features prominently. Kimblee is introduced near the beginning of the series but doesn’t really feature prominently until this volume. He’s a minor villain in the series and I’ve never really cared much for the plots involving him. I feel as though Arakawa could have used his character much better. He’s an interesting gentleman villain with a unique alchemy style but it doesn’t feel like he’s allowed to do much.

Olivier Armstrong is also introduced in these chapters – a character I personally love, but again I feel like the story is just dragging here. The action feels weaker and more consequence free than previous volumes and other than the appearance of Sloth it doesn’t really feel like much has happened at all in the eleventh volume of the manga. Arakawa is starting to put the pieces in place for the final confrontation but this just feels like waiting.

Of course I love the art style which is clean enough that the action is always clear while holding shocking detail in the automail, uniforms and weapons. I also love some of the panels we get of Edward where attentive readers will be able to see how much he’s changed and grown from the first volume. For the Fullmetal Editions this is the halfway point in the series and I really feel like it’s up and up from here.

Some of my favourite scenes are in the coming volumes, and we’re going to be seeing more of Winry and Greedling again. I don’t know if the original chapter and volume pairings working better, but in the Fullmetal Edition this volume feels subpar compared to the rest of the volumes we’ve seen so far. I think a large part of that is also that we’re focusing on other characters a lot more now, and without Edward’s humour and pretty face to break up the darker parts of the story it starts to feel a little too lifeless. Still the greatest manga ever written.

[Maé · Rating 5 out of 5]

After the arc full of emotion with the retelling of the Ishvala War, and as our characters are feeling more motivated than ever, we finally enter my favorite arc of this entire story. I always love to see Ed and Al discovering the North, and all of the new characters this region introduces to us. The plot progresses a lot as every team is trying in their own ways to find out what the Humoncoli are trying to, and I love this sense of everyone getting closer to each other AND to the big secret as the intensity goes up and up.

And what I love the most about FMA is probably that it’s still absolutely hilarious even in really action packed scenes. I can’t even count the number of times the manga made me laugh out loud (but I also can’t even count the number of times it made me cry). We always pass from stress to laughter to sadness to fear so quickly, and it’s always brought so naturally. Nothing makes me feel quite as much as FMA does.

[Kenra · Rating 5 out of 5]

MY FAVOURITE CHARACTER HAS ARRIVED. MY QUEEN. MY NORTH STAR. Major General Olivier Mira Armstrong you have my entire heart and I would very much like to be insulted by you for the rest of my life. Berate me and use me. I’m all yours. 😍

The Fort Briggs era begins and it’s the best thing that could follow after the heaviness of the last few chapters. We’ve got some of the best characters coming in - Captain Buccaneer, Major Miles - and now everyone is starting to become more aligned and unified in their efforts. The fun is about to begin and I guarantee I will be squealing through the rest of the series anytime Olivier appears. I’m so weak for the Armstrong family.

[Shin Donghae · Rating 5 out of 5]

Siip Mayjen Olivia Amstrong akhirnya!!!

Senang sekali bisa menyelam kembali ke dunia Elric bersaudara setelah sekian lama! Saya takut kurang menghargai pekerjaan Arakawa sensei dari sepuluh tahun yang lalu, tetapi sama sekali tidak: Saya masih sangat menyukainya. Dan versi yang diterbitkan ulang ini luar biasa!!!

[Elisa Tarancón · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me encanta este tomo y el anterior, con la explicación sobre Ishval y la llegada de todas las tramas a Briggs... "Mendokusai"

[Alexis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love rereading a fave

[Logan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ah yes, Kimblee, one of the most creepy villains of all time. He finds killing and destruction to be an art, and he is very dedicated to doing a thorough job. He respects those who do well at their jobs, just as he wants to do well at his.

[Michael Sorbello · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a review of the entire series.

Fullmetal Alchemist takes place in the fictional country of Amestris which is heavily based on the Industrial Revolution. Amestris is a unitary state under the rule of a parliamentary republic, run by state alchemists that serve the king utilizing the mystifying arts of alchemy. Alchemy is the power to alter the physical world utilizing its natural elements, performing magic and miracles in the form of science. Alchemy follows the law of equivalent exchange, you must sacrifice something that is of equal value to what you create. You must sacrifice a life to create a life, you must extinguish one flame to ignite another, you have to sacrifice one home to build another, etc...

After being abandoned by their father as children and subjected to watching their mother die, Edward Elric and his brother Alphonse once attempted to utilize the power of alchemy to bring their mother back from the grave, ignoring the dangers of creating a life by offering something of equal value. Edward loses an arm and a leg while Alphonse loses his entire body; his soul placed in a hollow suit of armor that can't feel the touch of others. As neither of them sacrificed their lives in their entirety, the exchange failed and the boys created an abomination in place of their dead mother.

After burning their own home down and dealing with the abomination they created, Edward and his brother enlist themselves in the military to atone for their sins and learn more about the many secrets of alchemy; potentially learning how to recover their original bodies in the process. While serving in the military, the brothers begin to realize how the wonders of alchemy can be abused for nefarious purposes. Immortal life can be gained by sacrificing hundreds of innocents souls, wars can be staged and foreign nations can be annihilated under false charges, human experimentation aided by alchemy can lead to unnatural mutations, the world of alchemy is more dark and dangerous than either of them could've bargained for.

Fullmetal Alchemist grew on me the longer I read it. When I first started reading, it seemed like it was going to be generic shounen material, but it gets deeper and darker the further it goes on. The way it handles political and religious corruption, the dangers of advanced states abusing their technology and resources at the expense of foreign nations caught in the turmoil, and the sad futility of revenge are all very well done.

The characters all bear the weight of what alchemy is capable of. Edward and Alphonse carry the burden of abusing alchemy for selfish purposes. Their master Izumi loses her womb after attempting to resurrect her dead child. Scar takes many lives after his entire country is desecrated and gets trapped in a pointless cycle of revenge. Roy and Riza endure the regret of committing brutal war crimes for the sake of protecting their own nation. Alchemy creates and destroys in equal measure and no one is free from the consequences of tipping the balance.

The fight scenes are flashy and exciting without being too over-the-top because of the dangerous limitations that alchemy involves. The law of equivalent exchange keeps the power scaling in check and adds plenty of tension to the action. The female characters are especially well done, all of them are strong and unique in their own way. The lead heroine Winry being a skilled mechanic, Riza being an honorable warrior of the military, Olivier Armstrong as cold and vicious as the snowy fortress she guards, and that's just a few of them.

The villains are an interesting parody of the seven deadly sins. Each of them represent the darkness and regrets of each of the main characters and they can only be conquered by coming to terms with their own flaws and sins. The characters having to overcome their personal demons to take on the greater demons trying to overthrow the world from the shadows made the struggles of every single person in the story feel personal. Every character, no matter how minor had their moments to shine. Everyone had a vital role to play and the camaraderie between friend and foe alike never felt cheesy or forced.

Unlike most shounen series I've read, the final arc was my favorite. A lot of long-running shounen series have a habit of being dragged out, losing touch with what made them great or breaking their own rules in messy, plot-hole-filled final arcs that leave a lot to be desired. Fullmetal Alchemist has no lose ends, all characters have complete arcs where they learn and grow from their dark pasts, the romance and comedy are handled well without relying on cheap fanservice, the action scenes are great but they don't overshadow the plot and the final chapters tie everything together beautifully. It's not my favorite manga by any means as I usually tend to favor seinen, but it's definitely one of the greatest stories to ever come out of the shounen demographic in my opinion. The ending is a tearjerker but it left me in good spirits.

***

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[Tachan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Malgré un changement de rythme évident depuis qu’on a atteint l’un des pics de la saga, l’autrice se renouvelle à merveille et nous plonge dans une histoire géopolitique toujours plus sombre et intense où le travail sur la nuance est d’une justesse rare !

Il n’est jamais facile de traiter de la guerre. On tombe trop facilement dans la caricature. Pas Hiromu Arakawa ! Elle a travaillé son sujet et elle prend le temps de le développer. En revenant longuement, de manière totalement immersive, sur la guerre contre le peuple Ishbal, ce sont les mécanismes d’un génocide qu’elle dénonce et quelle actualité ! Elle raconte avec beaucoup de doigté l’engrenage dans lequel se retrouvent pris les militaires, représentés par nos chers Mustang, Lisa, Hughes et les terribles choix qu’ils ont dû faire puis la culpabilité qu’ils portent. Ils savent qu’ils ne sont pas tout blanc et ça rend les choses d’autant plus terrible mais ils veulent payer pour leurs crimes, ce qui est tout à leur honneur et ce qu’ils font en se mettant au service du peuple n’est que le commencement.

Ils ne sont d’ailleurs pas les seules figures de cette guerre que l’autrice dépeint avec une justesse folle et poignante. Scar, qu’on nous présente depuis le début comme l’un des grands antagonistes, bénéficie d’une vraie campagne de réhabilitation depuis quelques temps. En plus d’être devenu l’ami et le protecteur de la petite Mei, l’autrice nous montre les vraie circonstances du drame qui s’est joué avec les parents de Winry et c’est terrible ! Non, Scar n’est pas la bête sanguinaire décrite, mais juste un homme blessé jusqu’aux tréfonds de sa chair et de son âme, qui a eu un moment de folie et qui a totalement vrillé, littéralement. Il a eu un blackout et commis cet acte atroce. Mais lui aussi cherche la rédemption.

Celle-ci est définitivement le moteur de l’histoire et si le moteur est repassé en seconde, c’est pour mieux poser de nouvelles bases. Après la montée jusqu’à la découverte des Homonculus et de leur plan, on revient maintenant aux racines de l’histoire : l’alchimie et ses différentes formes. Alphonse et Edward sont sur une nouvelle piste et nous allons à nouveau voyager avec eux. Les voyages sont formateurs de jeunesse, non, après tout ! L’autrice semble aimer en tout cas faire tourner la roue et les regards pour élargir nos champs de perception.

On découvre à ses côtés une nouvelle héroïne ultra badass comme elle sait les écrire. Franchement quand on y regarde toutes les femmes (ou presque) de cette histoire son incroyablement écrite, avec une force de résilience et une force tout court folle ! Olivia, la soeur d’Amstrong que l’on rencontre n’en est qu’un autre exemple. Avec elle, c’est le grand Nord qu’on découvre et c’est un tout autre paysage, comme un tout autre fonctionnement. Parfait, car c’était bloqué à la capitale et que tout avait été explosé par le Président. On repart de zéro avec une nouvelle Commandante, de nouveaux lieutenants et un nouveau lieu et ses règles. J’ai adoré !

Pas de grande révolution dans ce tome mais une histoire qui avance solidement et traite de génocide, de racisme, de culpabilité et de rédemption avec une rare force et nuance grâce à des personnages terriblement humains, extrêmement bien campés, notamment les femmes. Ainsi même lorsqu’elle baisse de régime la série est super chouette à suivre et on se régale des nouveaux horizons qui se dégagent.

Article complet : https://lesblablasdetachan.wordpress....

[Luana · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Io non sono altro che un essere debole. Per questo motivo, ho bisogno del vostro aiuto per proteggere tutto. Proteggerò le vostre vite. E voi proteggerete le persone che stanno sotto di voi, non importa quante. Quelle persone, a loro volta, ne proteggeranno altre ancora. Non importa cosa potrà succedere, dovrete vivere e andare avanti con la vostra forza di volontà. Viviamo e cambiamo questo paese tutti insieme."

Questo undicesimo volume si apre con la parte finale del racconto della guerra di sterminio di Ishval - una storia di dolore, di morte, di senso di colpa. Scar ha perso tutta la sua famiglia e vive per la vendetta. Gli alchemisti di stato hanno giurato di usare la loro arte per il bene, ma di fatto hanno contribuito a un genocidio - anche se esiste anche l'altro lato della medaglia, con i soldati che devono le loro vite proprio a questi poteri. Come fare per espiare i crimini commessi? Per Roy, Riza e anche per il povero Hughes, la risposta è sempre stata solo una: cambiare Amestris, anche a costo di ritrovarsi davanti a una corte marziale una volta riportata la democrazia. È necessario proteggere gli altri, nei limiti delle proprie possibilità, e ispirare altre persone a fare altrettanto. Per il dottor Knox, significa smettere di scappare dal passato e recuperare la sua vocazione da medico. Per il dottor Marcoh significa aiutare Scar a far luce sulle ricerche del fratello e capire le differenze tra le tecniche alchemiche dei vari paesi.

Proprio questo interesse per le altre tecniche alchemiche, mette in movimento i fratelli Elric, spingendoli verso nord, alla fortezza di Briggs, dove incontreranno la sorella del maggiore Armstrong - una donna che non le manda a dire, che se ne frega degli atteggiamenti vuoti dei politicanti della capitale, una donna che pattuglia una zona di confine difficile e che, insieme a suoi uomini, protegge l'intero paese. Ma come detto, anche altri si stanno muovendo in quella direzione, in particolare Scar, Marcoh e la piccola May. Sulle tracce di questo gruppetto, Bradley e il resto della banda hanno mandato Kimblee, l'alchimista cremisi, l'uomo che ha causato la distruzione di Ishval e verso cui Scar ha un conto in sospeso.
Nel mentre, nella capitale, anche se privato di tutti i suoi collaboratori più fidati, Roy non ha alcuna intenzione di rimanere con le mani in mano e sta iniziando a cercare nuovi alleati nella crociata contro Bradley.

Ormai siamo entrati nella seconda metà della storia e il senso di urgenza inizia a farsi più forte. Con Bradley che ormai tiene d'occhio tutte le minacce, i nostri protagonisti cercano un modo di raggiungere i loro obiettivi senza rimetterci la pelle. E ho come la sensazione che il peggio debba ancora venire....comunque, Roy Mustang rimane il mio idolo e nessuno può farmi cambiare idea.

[Ada · Rating 3 out of 5]

***finished on April 1***
Not all doom and gloom. Some really interesting moments in this one. BUT SO MANY QUESTIONS! I thought we were done with them! I feel bamboozled.

***Before reading***
After the last volume I could go for something more fluffy but I want to know what happens next. But seeing that smarmy dude on the cover I think that more bad stuff will happen? Pff.. If it does I will read either something totally ridiculous like Yarichin Bitch Club or something somewhat fluffy like Fruits Basket. Although from what I can remember that also gets pretty dark? But in the later volumes so I should be safe for tonight,

***Read for the 30 in 30 Manga Challenge***
Runs from Friday April 1 to Saturday April 30

The person whose announcement I saw for this challenge was Shaegeeksout on YouTube. She announced this challenge in their MANGA CHALLENGE ANNOUNCEMENT | 30 IN 30 IS BACK! video.

It's a bit embarrassing to admit but I have way too many unread manga on my shelves. I say it’s embarrassing because unlike my fiction books I feel like manga isn’t too much of a time-commitment. So having series complete, but only the first volume is read, is not okay in my bookish world.

So doing this will hopefully knock some series off my TBR shelves.

[Sinta Nisfuanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Semakin rumit saudara, apalagi tokohnya terus bertambah. Tapi, yang aku suka, setiap tokoh di dalam komik ini punya ciri khas, jadi mudah mengenali siapa saja yang muncul, meski untuk gambarnya kadang ada kemiripan satu sama lain. Bahkan, kehadiran Letjen Grumman yang ada di awal seri, dengan mudah muncul di ingatan. .

Cerita masih sepotong-sepotong; setiap alur Edward, Scar, dan Roy Mustang, masing-masing masih menyimpan kejutan dan misteri. Dan, pertemuan Roy Mustang dan Letjen Grumman berhasil membuat penasaran, apa yang bakalan mereka rencana untuk menggulingkan Fuhrer. .

Btw, Fuhrer gak muncul di seri ini, sedihnyaaaa... #penggemarantagonis

[Mykhailo Gasyuk · Rating 3 out of 5]

Трохи спогадів про минуле, щоб додати важливий для сюжету артефакт, випускання Кракена... тобто, Багряного Алхіміка із в'язниці для полювання за Шрамом та його невеликою компанією, яка чкурнула на північ. А за нею і брати Елріки, щоб додати до лору слабкість звичайної автоброні на морозі.

І щоб читач не сумував - додалася нова загадка про невразливого гомункула, що риє землю під військовою фортецею.

Не такий сильний том, як попередні. Свіженький лиходій швидко вигрібає від Шрама, Елріки швидко вписуються в нову компанію військових, особиста драма ішварця не чіпляє (хоча стає основним мотиватором).

[Andrea Ambroso · Rating 5 out of 5]

Le investigazioni e tutta l'azione si sposta al nord. I fratelli conoscono la sorella maggiore di Armstrong ma la parte migliore del volume riguarda l'incontro/scontro sul treno tra Scar e Kimblee.
Kimblee: liberato dal governo stesso e sulle tracce proprio di Scar e del dott. Marcoh, lo avevamo conosciuto nella strage di Ishval per aver ucciso la famiglia di Scar. Lo scontro è ben lontano dalla conclusione e le loro strade si rincontreranno ancora. Riuscirà Scar ad avere la sua vendetta ora che si è letteralmente trovato davanti al principale responsabile della morte della sua gente?

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ugh! Solf Kimblee, you are the worst! Hawkeye finishes her curiously omniscient exposition on the Ishvalan genocide, and the brothers Elric go back on another quest that takes them to the frigid north. Again, the tenuous allegiances between all of the various factions are a bit hard to comprehend. While the story takes another detour, the heart of it remains the Elrics’ search for recovery. The art is exceptional as always. Viz’s gorgeous Full Metal Editions are such a great presentation.