I wrote a fake little letter to my favorite author, here it is!
Dear Miss Arakawa,
I love your Fullmetal Alchemist series. It is my
absolute favorite book series I have ever read. I even gave it to my friends
and family to read. I've seen some of the anime, but I think reading it is
better. I can create the voices I want to create in my head.
The Fullmetal Alchemist series got me into
reading manga, which has become my favorite type of book to read. Lots of
people think that manga, graphic novels, and comics aren't real books, but I
disagree. Each of them tells a different story. Manga has always been
interesting to me because each of them has a theme. I love reading the books
backwards. It added something very unique to my reading. I also think
characters in manga are very well-developed. They are all really interesting. I
love how they each have their strengths and weaknesses.
Your books have
changed the way I read other books, too. Whenever I read something about
Nicholas Flammel, I think of Edward Elric. The books helped me understand
references in a different light. For example, I've seen and heard references
to homonculi, chimeras, and even the
Philosopher's Stone. One day, I was at a science class, and after it was done
the teacher and one of the students were talking about transmutation. Thanks to
your books, I was able to join in on the conversation.
I love every
character in your books, and even dressed up as one for Halloween. My favorite
characters are Riza Hawkeye, Greed-Ling, and Lan Fan. I love Riza because she
stands up for herself and what she believes in. She even holds her own general
at gunpoint because of his reckless actions. I think it's really important for
people to stand up for what they believe in. This is something I try to do with
my friends and family.
Another character I really enjoy is Greed-Ling.
He is really funny. I love how he makes me laugh, even if it isn't on purpose.
Also, his powers are pretty cool, especially how he can harden carbon. I also
really like Lan Fan. She will do anything to protect Ling, which is admirable They
are almost like one person. She's a great fighter and reminds me of ninjas,
which I love.
I love rereading the
Fullmetal Alchemist series over and
over again because the characters seem like my friends. I love how you made the
evil characters likable, and the good characters lovable, and for that I thank
you.
Sincerely, Maxim F.
5 comments:
I prefer books to the adaptations most of the time, too, one of those reasons being what you said. I know exactly how the characters are supposed to look and sound, so it can be distracting if the movie or TV show doesn't match that. And evil characters being sympathetic is always a fun twist.
Max, this is REALLY good. I mean REALLY good. So many good points and they're all backed up. I especially like what you had to say about Riza. She stood up to her own general? We could use some of that today, huh. It reminds me of Neville in Book 1 of Harry Potter, too. I love hearing what specifically you enjoy about these books, so thank you for sharing this. I think you should ACTUALLY send this to the author!!
I wish I knew Arakawa-san's address so you could actually send this as fan mail!
Despite the fact that I don't typically pick the protagonists as my favorite character, Ed is so human I can't help but love his character. His sense of moral dedication is very strong, as with most shonen protagonists. The height jokes are enjoyable for me because I have always been very tall and never had to deal with this problem. Not to mention that because he is the protagonist, he gets a little more character development. Finally, his actual character design and alchemical skills are what makes Edward my favorite.
When it comes to the Homunculus characters, I would agree and say that Greed-Lin is my favorite because the other Homunculi felt so one-faceted that they were less interesting; where as Greed-Lin, because he has more self-will, has more personality elements including the humor that you brought up.
I think my third favorite character is General Olivier Armstrong. She has an enormously large sense of justice and camaraderie backed by a cool-headed personality with a sharp tongue. Out of all of the Armstrongs, she is definitely my favorite.
I'm not denying that there is an entire host of well-developed supporting characters, I'm just highlighting my favorites. Something I appreciate a lot about Arakawa-san's series is that she always has many varied female characters instead of the typical "hot girl" who is usually used as the protagonist's love interest.
FMA also has a lot of very emotionally moving scenes in my opinion. I wasn't as upset as some other fans during the Sewing Life Chimera incident because I didn't feel as attached to the victimized character. One scene that I am frequently reminded of, is the apple pie scene in the hotel. I don't want to spoil the FMA series for people who haven't read it yet, but every time there is a mention of apple pie I get tears in my eyes.
I think your letter is great and highly recommend the series to anyone looking to try manga!
I agree that the apple pie scene is pretty great, very moving. Did you ever finish reading the series? I would love to hear what you thought about the final book! Also, my dad is reading it for the first time and he is really enjoying it.
Unfortunately, I have not yet finished the series. It has simply gotten away from me with my mass of school work. I'm really glad that your dad is enjoying it as well. Does he have a favorite character?
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