Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi (Fullmetal Alchemist) Ep 14 - Houkai no Migite (The destructive right hand)

In the city of Rioru, the millitary is there to suppress the chaos created by the citizens who are at odds with one another due to the fake priest's words. In actual fact, the fake priest is an imposter by Envy and she had deliberately done this to create trouble in the city. The millitary had come to stop the rebels but ends up aggravating the situation...

Envy tells Lust that the serial killer of the national alchemists (Scar) has moved to East City since most of the national alchemists have moved there. Lust remarks that both Mustang and Ed will be the biggest obstacles for them to achieve their goal and they would have to beware of them.

Meanwhile, Hughes tells Mustang about Scar being the serial killer and he has killed 9 alchemists to date not counting innocent witnesses. In addition, all victims were killed as if an internal explosion had happened within their bodies. Mustang remarks that this is the main reason why the national alchemists and King Bradley had come to East City since Mustang has been stationed here from 3 years ago and that it would be unlikely for Scar to follow them to the countryside. Just then, Hughes receives a phonecall that a new victim has been found at the East City train station, signifying that Scar is somewhere nearby.

Ed and Al head to the village of Hydo after Mustang's tip-off so as to find out more on Kenja no Ishi. As they walk around the village, they hear rave reviews about Marcoh who has changed his name to Mauroh as a wonderful doctor who has helped the villagers in many ways. However, they cannot understand why he is doing this and not keeping a low profile since the millitary may find him easily. Before they meet Marcoh, they happen to see Alex Louis Armstrong and hide from him because they are convinced that they are being followed by him at the orders of the millitary.

Ed and Al finally get to meet Marcoh but he gets panicky at the sight of them and assumes that they are sent by the millitary to take him back or to seize the research date of Kenja no Ishi. Marcoh seems very afraid to see them and prepares to shoot them. Al blocks Ed from the gun and this convinces him that they do not mean any harm.

Marcoh tells Ed and Al that he had stolen the research data after he ran away during the Isbal internal war. Marcoh says that he feels guilty at causing so many deaths and is now a doctor to help the people so as to make amends. He refuses to let Ed and Al see his research data but Ed manages to find the crystallized version of the red water in Zenotime. However, Grand barges in with his men at that time and seizes the data and Marcoh with him. He refuses to let Ed and Al read the data and brings Marcoh away.

Ed decides to save Marcoh from Grand but Scar appears at this time. He kills Grand right before Ed and Marcoh and turns his attention towards them next. However, Ed does not want to wait for his death in this matter and drags Marcoh away with him. Al manages to pull Ed and Marcoh to safety but Scar soon catches up with them. Just as Ed is about to be killed, Al blocks the attack for Ed who is unable to understand why Scar is after the lives of national alchemists. Scar explains that he will kill all national alchemists who make use of this technique to disrupt nature for the millitary's selfish goals.

Armstrong comes to save Ed, Al and Marcoh in the nick of the time and they run away while Armstrong deals with Scar. Ed returns the crystal of the red water so that Marcoh can continue treating people and lets him go...

The OP and ED has been changed. Graphics-wise, I see a lot of Winry which means that she's probably going to appear a lot from now on. Anyway, the OP "Ready Steady Go" by L'arc en Ciel is quite nice especially the chorus section which is very catchy. As for the ED "Tobira no Mukou" by Yellow Generation, I think it sounds better than the previous ED by Kitase Nana.

It seems like Scar is going to remain Ed's enemy for some time given that he hates national alchemists a lot. And as we dig further into his past and the reason for his hatred, things might change since I don't think Scar is going to remain a rival for long. It seems like people like Lust, Wrath, Glutton and Greed (Suwabe Junichi's character!!) would be the more difficult and troublesome villians to deal with.

Suzuka Ep 08: Kyori (Distance)

Yamato joins the athletics team much to the surprise of Asahina, Miyamoto, Hattori and Honoka. However, Asahina does not think too highly of Yamato who is intending to take part in the 100m race.

Yamato is surprised at how tough the training is and Asahina scolds him for being a burden to the athletics team. Yamato meets Hashiba Miki who is also a sprinter and a friend of Asahina. When Yamato sees how good Asahina is, he feels more admiration for her.

Yamato is so tired that he can't even walk home. When he sees Asahina practising alone after the end of training, Miki tells Yamato about Asahina's strengths as an athlete. Yamato feels the distance between them the more he tries to get close to Asahina. Hattori and Honoka come to help Yamato home and all he could think of is how good Asahina is.

As time goes by, Yamato starts to get used to the tough training but Honoka feels sorry for him whenever she comes to see him after school. Hattori suggests that Honoka can try to join the athletics team if she wants to get close to Yamato. However, Honoka is not too good at sports and feels sad that she cannot be an athlete.

On her way home, Honoka meets Yuka who brings her to the public bath and accidentally blurts out that Yamato is in love with Asahina. Honoka is stunned but decides not to give up as she is serious about Yamato and wants to spend more time with him.

Honoka joins the athletics team as a manager in the hope of being near Yamato. At the sight of Honoka, Asahina gets irritated and ignores Yamato and Honoka. Contrary to Honoka's expectations, she has so much work to do and can't spend a lot of time with Yamato. Asahina tells Yamato to be more serious when she sees Miki trying to give Yamato a massage as he is suffering from muscle ache. Miki tells Asahina to be less harsh on Yamato as he is working hard.

This makes Yamato more determined to work hard and prove himself to Asahina who keeps convincing herself that his enthusiasm won't last. Asahina gets frustrated with him but starts to remember the happy times they have spent together...

The next episode shows Asahina and Yamato quarrelling again. Well, it's time Asahina snapped out of her irritated mood and stop treating Yamato like dirt. And it seems that we might find out who that guy in the photo is. Asahina would probably realise Yamato's importance only when he gets together with Honoka...Wouldn't that be too late? Honoka is more frank when it comes to getting what she wants as compared to Asahina and I find myself rooting for her instead as the anime progresses.

Gankutsuou Ep 4 - Haha no Himitsu (My mother's secret)

Albert introduces the Count to his parents and his mother, Mercedes is visibly shaken upon seeing the Count. Albert's father, General Montcerf warmly welcomes the Count and invites him for dinner.

However, during the meal, Mercedes realises that the Count has not been touching the food and asks if dinner is not to his liking. The Count simply attributes this as a lack of appetite but drinks the seafood soup prepared by Mercedes instead. He remarks that this is a nostalgic flavour and asks her whether she is from Marseilles. However, General Montcerf is visibly unhappy at the mention of the place and says that Mercedes has nothing to do with such a lowly place.

After dinner, the Count and Mercedes meet at the terrace and start to chat. Mercedes remarks that in the Eastern Universe, people who share bread and salt under one roof will be friends forever and remarks that she hopes they will be like that since the Count has had a meal at her place. However, the Count rebukes that this is Paris where nobody shares bread and salt. In addition, there is no such thing as forever friends which makes Mercedes stunned. Unknown to them, Beppo and Albert are looking on from afar and Beppo says that Mercedes is visibly drawn to the Count and wonders if they are having an affair. Albert tells Beppo to stop spouting nonsense and walks away.

After sending the Count off, Albert has tea with his parents. Mercedes tells him to treat the Count with respect and not associate too closely with him. Later that night, Albert sees Mercedes holding a man's photo while in a daze and Beppo's words about the fact that Mercedes is in love with someone else other than his father makes Albert very uncomfortable.

The next morning, Albert wakes up to find Eugenie at his house and thinks that she is looking for him. However, Eugenie is waiting for Mercedes to go shopping. Albert walks past Mercedes' room and sees Beppo trying on his mother's jewellery. Beppo draws Albert's attention to the locked drawer and tells him that she can be of help if he wants since she's an expert at picking locks.

Albert prepares to go to the Count's house with Franz, Maximillian and Bauchean, dressed as a pirate because Beppo said he was too plain with his original suit. The four are surprised to see the Count living in an ordinary apartment but while they are waiting for the Count at the living room, they feel the ground sinking and reach a hall which is made of gold. They finally get to see the Count and Albert is especially stunned when he sees the scenery in his mother's painting which makes him more convinced that there is something between the Count and Mercedes. The Count gives Albert a sword as his companion for his journey from now on...

Albert is simply too easily swayed by other people especially Beppo who keeps trying to fan Albert's suspicion towards Mercedes' feelings towards the Count. He should learn to be more independent and less rash when it comes to his association with people.

From the next episode's trailer, the title is "Do you love your fiancee?" Is this directed at Albert only or does this include Franz too? It's obvious that Albert doesn't seem too attracted to Eugenie unlike what he feels towards Beppo and Franz doesn't seem to be that close to Valentine too. Well, we'll see from the next episode then.

Yakitate Japan Ep 43

The semi-finals against the French team is approaching the time limit and Azuma is still nowhere in sight. Kawachi and Suwabara are getting panicky and worried over whether they would win this round in the absence of Azuma.

Kaiser's bread made from blueberries overwhelms Pierro who is full of praise. He ignores Kawachi's creation and rejects Suwabara's entry since a driver would not want to eat a bread with alcohol before a race. In addition, the shape of the bread in the form of a turtle is not a good sign when it comes to races where speed is of the essence.

Just then, Azuma finally arrives at the contest venue and shows his creation which is a black bread in the shape of a spiral. However, Pierro refuses to accept this as a valid entry since Azuma did not make the bread here and nobody can even prove whether this was done during the contest time or if this was even made by Azuma himself.

Just then, the King comes and asks Pierro to judge Azuma's entry because he was the one who caused Azuma to be late. As such, Pierro tries it and decides that Azuma's bread is superior to the Kaiser brothers'. Even the eldest brother, Grant admits that they have lost and leaves the contest venue dejectedly.

Kawachi seems to be in a sorry state. Not only was his creation being ignored and forgotten by everyone, he got his head shaved by Pierro when he got carried away after tasting the bread. He seems to be the clown and keeps getting ridiculed throughout the whole series. As for Suwabara, I was pretty concerned last week when Grant Kaiser said that his bread has a weak point and I thought it has to do with the red wine he used. True enough, it is the case but I never thought of the turtle as a bad omen for racers. ^__^

As for Azuma, he's always the hero who saves the day. That's really expected and we'll see how he works his magic in the next episode which is 2 weeks later. Well, that's the finals against the Americans and I know for sure he's going to win. The thing is whether the anime is going to continue after the Monaco Cup arc.

Monster Ep 61 - Kioku no Tobira (The door of memories)

Nina and Dieter continue to stay in Prague so that she can regain her memories of what happened to her mother, Johan and herself when they were staying there. However, she can only see flashbacks of the past and starts to realise that something is not quite right with her memories especially the part when she saw someone looking exactly like her welcoming herself home. Dieter screams at Nina and this breaks her train of thoughts just in time before she gets overcomed by fear. He tells Nina that she doesn't have to remember the past since painful memories should be left behind. Like what Tenma told him, all he has to do is to make good memories and forget the bad ones. He tells Nina that they should return to Munich and look for Dr Reichwein instead of staying in Prague.

Meanwhile in Prague, Vardeman comes to the police station and asks to take part in the interview of the 5 people who used to attend the reading sessions by Franz Bonaparta. He is told that he can only listen and not raise questions. Surprisingly, the detective in charge of this charge is Suk and he doesn't like the fact that Vardeman keeps asking questions despite his objections. The people being interviewed seem to remember very little about their pasts and what happened in that mansion of red roses. In addition, they are not very emotional people and has the same expression even when talking about sad happenings.

Suk flares up at Vardeman and tells him to take note of what is required of him. Vardeman reveals that they both have personal agendas with regards to this case. Suk wants to clear his name after being framed for having links to the former Czechoslovakia secret police and Vardeman wants to prove whether his father was indeed involved in the brainwashing experiments conducted by Franz Bonaparta at the mansion. One of the interviewees reveal that Vardeman's father told the kids to run away from the mansion and said that there were better things at the other end of the rainbow which seems to suggest that he wasn't supportive or directly involved in those experiments.

Nina and Dieter return to Munich to stay with Dr Reichwein but she is constantly in a daze. She also refuses to talk about what happened in Prague. Dr Reichwein praises Dieter for getting Nina to return and stop trying to retrieve her memories. Karl and Lotte come to visit them which makes Nina very happy.

Dr Reichwein receives a letter from Tenma who tells him that Eva is coming to seek help from him. He also mentions that he is going to end this case soon. Nina asks Karl to find out where Tenma sent the letter from. In addition, Nina tells Dr Reichwein that it is time for her to remember the past and says that she will not regret whatever happens by then.

Dr Reichwein arranges for Dr Gillen to conduct a hynopsis on Nina so that she can remember the past. Nina warns Dr Gillen that he might hear something horrifying later and tells him to be mentally prepared. Under hynopsis, Nina reveals that her father used to be a millitary personnel with the government but was murdered according to what her mother said. However, Nina had never seen him before. In addition, Nina's mother was from the anti-government movement thus had to hide with her kids in the apartment bearing "The Three Frogs" signboard. Just at this time, Karl comes to Dr Reichwein, Dieter and Lotte and reveals that Tenma sent the letter from Frankfurt.

At this moment, Nina seems to remember everything but simply refuses to reveal who she really is. She gets violent when probed by Dr Gillen but he manages to save himself from being strangled to death in time. No doubt Nina had refused to speak during hynopsis, she has managed to remember everything after this session.

2 days later, Nina leaves Dr Reichwein's place without a word and heads to Frankfurt to look for Johan so that she can end everything and save Tenma...

What an exciting episode! However, before we can get to the bottom of things, there is a cliffhanger yet again. Nevertheless, I have some opinions on some things shown in this episode:

The person who was at the mansion of red roses might not be Johan. It seems like Nina was the one who actually went through the experience of seeing those dead bodies, being welcomed home by someone who was dressed exactly like her (most probably Johan) and ran away from the mansion through the thorny rose bushes (especially when they showed someone with long hair and a dress). I have a hunch that Nina got confused and thought that Johan was being brought to that mansion. This is also the same when she saw someone welcoming her home but all along, she kept saying that she was the one who was waiting at home for Johan to come home. And that evil looking girl waiting at home seems more like Johan to me. Or was Nina not that innocent and kind in the past? However, it doesn't seem logical in another way since Johan knew a lot about that mansion and even had a motive to burn it. If he had never been there, his familiarity with the place seems unbelievable.

So what exactly does Nina know? Who is she? These answers could prove crucial to explain why Johan is doing all these and what he is planning to achieve. Come to think of it, Nina looks more and more like Johan especially in this episode. I never noticed this so much in other episodes but since there were lots of close-up shots of her, it suddenly dawned on me how much she looks like Johan especially those scenes when she was in anguish over her recovered memories.

Another surprise was the return of Suk. I thought I would never see him again and now, he's involved in checking the case of the mansion with Vardeman. Seems like he has recovered and returned to work. However, it seems like he has changed quite a bit after that case and being deceived by the fake Anna posed by Johan. And it seems like Vardeman's dad wasn't too supportive of the experiments conducted by Franz Bonaparta when he even instigated the kids to run away. Nina/Johan could be one of those who heard his words and followed his instruction. Anyway, it seems like the duo can turn up more facts from the interviews of those who used to attend the reading sessions.

Where is Runge? After he found Franz Bonaparta's son, there should be an explanation on this. And next episode is on Tenma (he seems injured, again for the Nth time) so I doubt Runge would appear. I'm hoping for more information with regards to this subplot.

Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi (Fullmetal Alchemist) Ep 13 - Honoo vs Hagane (Fire vs Metal)

Ed and Al go to the East City to meet Mustang and to submit his report of Rioru. Al picks up a wandering cat on the streets out of sympathy and wants to keep it but Ed tells him to dump it since they do not have the time and ability to take care of it. Al remembers how Ed used to plead with Tricia to keep a dog and feels sad about their current situation.

Ed submits his report to Mustang but leaves out what happened at Zenotime and Aquaroa. However, Mustang knows about what has happened and tells Ed to report whatever he has done. In addition, he reminds Ed to stay in the capital so as to carry out his duties as a national alchemist since the latter has spent 3 years on searching for Kenja no Ishi but to no avail.

Just at this time, Basque Grand brings King Bradley and a huge number of national alchemists to the East City with the reason that they are here for an inspection. Ed asks Hughes about Marcoh who had saved the sick babies in Zenotime but he knows nothing about it. Ed is sure that Mustang knows something about Marcoh but the latter pretends that he is unaware. Grand appears at that time and tells them that Marcoh ran away from the army 6 years away during the internal war.

Ed tries to look for information on Marcoh but there is no data on him at all. Just then, Hughes comes to inform Ed that the annual test for national alchemists will be held at the East City instead of Centora for this year. Ed comes up with an idea to get what he wants.

Ed suggests to have a pre-match with Mustang and wants the latter to take care of the cat Al picked up from the streets if he wins as well as reveal information on Marcoh. Mustang does not take Ed's challenge seriously but King Bradley gives the go-ahead for this and Mustang has no choice but to accept this.

Mustang tells Hawkeye and Havoc that he is obeying King Bradley's orders because he is aiming for the post of the president. He reveals that his ambition is to make all women in the country wear mini-skirts which Hawkeye walks away and disses his thinking.

On the day of the battle, Mustang has the advantage and is almost able to win the match. However, a flashback appears before him and he loses his concentration which gives Ed the chance to retalliate. King Bradley stops the match and declares that it's a draw but makes them clear up the mess they created.

Ed asks Mustang why he didn't use his full powers during the match and why he lost his concentration. Mustang reveals that he remembered something which he doesn't ever want to think of again i.e. a weeping woman who was holding a gun and would kill Mustang if he didn't react. Mustang says that he thinks that Marcoh is a good man and tells Ed that he should go and look for him if he wishes to look for Kenja no Ishi.

Hughes and Mustang have a chat over drinks and Hughes reveals that Rioru is in chaos because the chief priest told the people to fight against the millitary. Even though Ed mentioned in his report that Rioru's chief priest was dead, this meant that the current priest is not the same as before. Mustang thinks that it's best not to let Ed know it now since he will realise in future that his actions did not save Rioru. In addition, Hughes reveals that the reason why King Bradley, Grand and the alchemists came to East City was due to the fact that there have been a spate of murders in Centora targetting national alchemists and there are less than 5 alchemists stationed there.

At night, a man is murdered brutally and it turns out to be Scar's doing...

Mustang and Hughes are really an interesting combination. On the surface, both may seem frivolous but they are serious when it comes to the crunch. And it seems that Mustang is very much affected by what he did during his war missions as seen from that flashback which made him lose his concentration. However, when these two are cracking jokes like Hughes trying to show off his daughter and Mustang showing his lecherous side, it makes me laugh non-stop thus making the anime more enjoyable.

Scar seems bent on killing national alchemists and he would probably cross paths with Ed as enemies. I'm really interested to know why he is behaving like this and whether he would be Ed's enemy throughout the series.

By the name, I note that Suwabe Junichi-san is also involved in FMA and he's a baddie by the name of Greed. When will I get to see or rather hear him?!

Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi (Fullmetal Alchemist) Ep 12 - Sareki no Daichi Kouhen (The land of sand - Part 2)

Mugear lead his men to the laboratory where Ed, Al, Russell and Fletcher are at. Russell lies that there is nothing wrong but Mugear keeps knocking on the door. Fletcher then decides to use alchemy to create a tree and block the door in order to give the Elric brothers time to escape.

After they leave, Mugear comes into the laboratory and asks about the progress of the experiment. Russell then passes a completed crystal of the red water which makes Mugear very happy. However, Mugear turns on them by using that crystal to perform alchemy and hold the Tringun brothers in captive since he already knew right from the beginning that they were imposters. Russell then asks Mugear about the whereabouts of their father, Nash and he reveals that Nash was killed because he refused to complete the most crucial portion of the experiment i.e. making pregnant women drink the red water and using the crystallized foetus as the exchange terms to create gold.

At the same time, Ed and Al return to Belsio's place and hear from him about Nash Trigun's past. He had been to Centora for the experiment but came back alone without his family and in a sorry state. Mugear came to Nash and asked him to continue the red water experiments. Although Nash was initially resistant to the idea, he finally agreed for the sake of making Zenotime prosperous again.

However, this led to more troubles as the vapour from the red water caused the people to fall sick and many babies died during that time. As such, Nash finally stopped the experiment and disappeared. This made Zenotime go back to its poverty state where no gold could be mined.

After hearing this story, Al tells Ed that he finds the Tringun brothers quite similar to them but Ed doesn't feel this way since he's feeling sore about his name being used. However, he finally decides to go and look for Mugear again so as to save the Tringun brothers.

Mugear tries to lie to Ed and Al in order to make them do his bidding. However, he ends up being killed by falling stones when the cave containing the red water fountain collapses.

Ed and Al leave Zenotime to return to Centora and the Tringun brothers reveal that they are staying behind to do their bit for the town and to make up for what they did. Although Russell offers to divulge the composition of the red water to assist Ed in his search for Kenja no Ishi, Ed declines the offer and decides to use his own abilities to achieve his aim...

There's not much action here other than Ed creating and breaking some walls and the Tringun brothers using trees to absorb the red water which had overflowed. The next episode seems more exciting since it's a battle between Mustang and Ed. Oh, I'm looking forward to seeing Mustang and Hughes squabble again... ^__^

Suzuka Ep 07: Ketsui (Determination)

After being rejected by Asahina, Yamato is feeling very down and knows that it's hard to pretend that nothing has happened. Seeing how upset Yamato is feeling, Hattori offers to bring Yamato for a go-kon (group date) but Yamato rejects his suggestion. Even Miho realises this so she tries to liven up things by saying that she will marry Yamato if nobody wants him in the end. This makes Yamato feel even worse as he has to be comforted by his younger cousin in his relationship matters when he should have been more mature in his way of doing things.

That night, Yamato meets Asahina who has returned home from a gathering with her athletics teammates but she returns to her room without speaking to him. Yamato feels down again but lightens up when he hears someone knocking at his door. To his disappointment, he sees Yuka and Megumi who bring drinks to his room and say that they are going to comfort him for being out of love.

Yuka tells Yamato about her own experience and tells him that he should not give up so easily even though he has been rejected. Upon hearing this, Yamato makes up his mind to continue liking Asahina and even shouts at the top of his voice about his feelings which makes Asahina very embarrassed.

After some consideration, Yamato contemplates joining the athletics team at Miyamoto's suggestion and tells Hattori about it. To his surprise, Hattori tells him to give up the idea since his intention of joining the athletics team is just to get closer to Asahina. When Asahina hears about Yamato's decision and realises that he has no idea how tough the training is, she flares up and tells Yamato not to belittle the athletics team's training as a piece of cake.

Yamato had intended to join the athletics team to spend more time with Asahina but makes her angry again. He fails to find a good opportunity to apologise to her and Hattori keeps telling him not to join the team for such a reason. When Honoka hears about Yamato's intention, she dissuades him from joining since the training is tough and it will tire him out. Actually, she is saying this because she wants more time with Yamato.

Hattori decides to bring Yamato to Asahina personally and apologise for his words. However, Yamato makes up his mind and tells Miyamoto that he is joining the athletics team much to the surprise of Hattori and Asahina...

I had the urge to make Asahina come to her senses when she ignored Yamato after the rejection. Come on, you can still be friends so what's with that attitude?! And poor Yamato is so smitten with her that he even joins the athletics team just to spend more time with her. I really think he deserves someone who will appreciate him better.

Well, joining the athletics team may not turn out well too as seen in the trailer for Ep 8 when he feels the distance between him and Asahina. And Honoka finally springs into action and takes the initiative to change the situation between her and Yamato. That's good because without competition, Asahina will never realise the importance and value of Yamato.

Yakitate Japan Ep 42

Azuma and Kawachi are busy preparing for their creations in the semi-final where the latter has managed to come up with something which he is satisfied with. However, Azuma is troubled as he does not know how to improve his Ja-pan No.51 which according to him, is perfect. Just then, Suwabara returns from his stroll and shows them the masks of the Kaiser brothers which are given out for free on the streets. He warns that they would be surrounded by supporters wearing these masks and have to prepare themselves for this psychological pressure. Suwabara also encourages Azuma to think harder on how to improve his creation and is secretly happy at the chance to have a contest with Azuma again.

On the day of the semi-final, Azuma suddenly has an idea on how he wants to improve his creation and tells Kawachi that he will be late for the match since he has to go to the palace to get his ingredients. Kawachi and Suwabara are worried about Azuma not making it for the match.

Just then, the Kaiser brothers come to talk to them before the start of the match and reveal the truth on their bodies and arrangements under that huge cloak. This makes the duo more apprehensive over whether they can win the semi-final especially without Azuma's present.

During the match, Pierro tells them that it is alright for Azuma to be late provided that he can come up with his bread within the time limit. As Kawachi and Suwabara show off their creations, they are stunned to see the Kaiser brothers being levels above them...

The part about the Kaiser's brothers' body structure is simply exaggerated.Imagine a man having arms of 2.72m long! And I simply do not understand why they must be stacked together. Anyway, it seems that the Japanese team is up against a formidable opponent and where is Azuma again? He is always late but manages to save the day. I guess we can see his performance in the next episode.

Monster Ep 60 - Shirisugita Otooko (The Man Who Knew Too Much)

After meeting the mysterious man at the hotel room, Martin leaves in a daze and fails to notice Johan who has walked past him. The man had said that Martin should kill Eva since she is asking him to kill her but Martin has other plans.

Martin returns to the hotel room where Eva is at and tells her to go to Tenma for help. However, Eva says that she will be waiting for Martin at Frankurt Central Station and tells him to escape with her. Martin says that he does not plan to kill Eva since nobody wants to die out of their own accord. After that, Martin waits for his employer's men to come for him and a gunfight ensues. Although he manages to kill 4 of them, one guy who is not injured fires a shot at Martin. Subsequently, he is sent to Tenma's place by his friend.

Tenma is unable to conduct more treatment for Martin due to lack of medical equipment but Martin refuses to be sent to a hospital. Martin tells Tenma about that man in Room 606 of Jahreszeit Hotel, his employer, the devil gaining an apprentice and the experiment at the Mansion of Red Roses still going on. In addition, he finds out that Eva is not with Tenma and realises that she is at Frankfurt Central Station. Before he breathes his last, he says that he does not want to listen to the devil and tells Tenma to look for Eva.

Tenma arrives at the train station to look for Eva and reveal that Martin has died. Eva is very upset and cries. After that, Tenma and Eva go to a coffee house to have a chat and he tells her to go to Munich. Dr Reichwein will help Eva to hide from Roberto and Martin's employer before they go to the police. Eva asks Tenma to go back with her but he says that he has to end the whole matter before more innocent people like Martin are implicated.

As Eva's train pulls away from the station, she thinks back on how she heard from Martin's employer about Johan being at an apartment in Haldecker Street and she did not tell Tenma on this info. At the same time, Tenma goes to the hotel where Martin met the mysterious man while Eva prepares to buy a gun to hunt for the devil...

It's a pity Martin died but this brought about a change in Eva as she seems to be less bitter towards Tenma when they met. In addition, seeing her cry like that, it gives the impression that she really liked Martin as a kind person who was good to her despite her treatment towards him or she felt responsible for causing him to die. And withholding that important piece of information from Tenma, Eva seems bent on killing Johan but I don't think she will succeed. If she does, the story would end prematurely. The showdown between Tenma, Nina and Johan has yet to begin so I doubt her actions will amount to anything.

As for Martin's words about the devil gaining an apprentice and the Mansion of the Roses experience, my view is that he could have made a mistake somewhere on the first part. I don't think Martin took much notice of Johan and could have misunderstood that the devil was the man in the hotel room. My view is that Johan is the devil and that man was just being brainwashed by Johan and not the other way round. However, Martin's words were kind of vague so I'm not sure what he actually thought. Well, I did assume that he was probably going to kill Eva after his past was exposed by that man but it turns out that he was logical enough to let Eva go and disobey the devil's orders. That was a clever twist to the story.

Well, for Tenma, I'm really wondering when he can meet Johan again. Maybe we'll have to wait till the final episode? And where is Nina and Dieter? I really think that when Nina, Tenma and Johan meet, that would probably be the climax of the story. Oh, where is Runge? I thought he found out who was Franz Bonaparte's son but what happened to that subplot? Lots of questions and we only have 10 plus episodes left till the end. Can everything be wrapped up by then?

Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi (Fullmetal Alchemist) Ep 11 - Sareki no Daichi Zenhen (The land of sand - Part 1)

After hearing that there is research on Kenja no Ishi at Zenotime, Ed and Al proceed to this town which is famous for its gold but realises that it has lost its lustre due to the mining of the available gold reserves. Just then, they hear cries for help as a little girl, Elisa is trapped under a cart and Ed manages to remove it using alchemy. As such, Elisa's father, Remark is very grateful for his help and brings the brothers back to his place for food.

At Elisa's place, a man by the name of Belsio comes to look for Elisa and brings her some lemons from his orchard. However, Remark seems very unhappy at the sight of Belsio and chases him away which makes the brothers puzzled over this behaviour. The locals then talk about Mugear, the local landlord who is conducting research on Kenja no Ishi to restore the town to its former prosperous state. When the locals ask the brothers about their names, they tell them truthfully but are thrown out because the locals think that they are imposters since the "Elric brothers" are already conducting research at Mugear's place. This makes Ed very interested to find out who has the audacity to use his name.

Ed and Al infiltrate into Mugear's mansion and comes into contact with the imposters, Russell and Fletcher Tringun. Russell tells them to leave the town and stop obstructing them which Ed refuses to. In the scuffle, Ed gets punched by Russell on the face and the brothers have to run away hurriedly. After this incident, Fletcher tries to convince Russell to give up the experiment but he would not hear of it.

In the meantime, Mugear and Lust are standing beside the red water stream and discussing what to do with the real Elric brothers who have come to Zenotime. Mugear promises that he will deal with them and asks Lust to give me more time to create Kenja no Ishi from the red water.

Belsio meets Ed and Al and brings them to his home for the night. The next day, Ed is out trying to find out more on the Tringun brothers and Kenja no Ishi while Belsio asks Al to get medicine for Elisa and Ed's wound at the pharmacy. However, word spreads around in town that the real Elric brothers barged into Mugear's residence and Al is thrown out of the pharmacy. Fletcher comes to Al and offers to buy the medicine for him.

Fletcher reveals to Al that his brother is bent on conducting the research which their father was halfway through even though the vapour from the red water is harmful to the human body. That is why Al notices that a lot of the locals were coughing including Elisa. However, Fletcher is unable to stop Russell at all. Al remarks that Ed is the exact opposite from Russell as he hates their father for getting too obsessed with alchemy and left their mother to suffer.

Ed and Al decide to enter the Mugear mansion again, this time via underground where they see the red water stream. Fletcher gets them to leave in the nick of time since Ed has fainted due to the vapour. Just then, Russell appears and threatens to spray the red water on Ed which Fletcher ends up getting hurt since he wants to save Ed. Fletcher tells Russell to give up the experiment so that they would not harm other people again. At this time, warning sirens sound in the mansion...

I'm not too sure whether Kenja no Ishi exists in the first place or it has to be created from some minerals though. However, it seems that the crystalised version of the red water does help in the alchemy rituals since Russell does not need to draw a formation to use alchemy. And it seems like there is more than meets the eye with regards to the Tringun brothers' father conducting research on this dangerous substance. Well, we'll get more answers in the second part of this story. By the way, Belsio does not seem like a simple man too. There must be something about him which makes him isolated from the rest of the locals.

Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi (Fullmetal Alchemist) Ep 10 - Kaitou Siren (Strange Thief Siren)

After failing to find Kenja no Ishi, Ed and Al embark on the journey back to Centora. However, Ed is not too enthusiastic about going back to meet Mustang as he is sure that the latter will pass sarcastic remarks on this unsuccessful trip again. Thus, he makes Al alight with him at the tourist town of Aqurora so that they can go sight-seeing before going back to Centora.

At night, there is a female thief by the name of Siren who manages to escape from the police again by using alchemy...

Ed and Al are walking along the streets when a carriage passes by thus dirtying Ed's clothes. He uses alchemy to restore them back to the original state. This attracts the attention of the local police inspector who brings Ed and Al back for questioning since Siren uses alchemy. The inspector is sceptical about Ed's identity as a national alchemist but releases him after 3 hours of questioning. Just then, Ed complains of a stomach ache and Al brings him to the local hospital.

At the hospital, Ed is diagnosed to be down with food poisoning and needs a jab. However, he is scared of having a jab and tries to run away when Al forces him to stay. A pretty nurse, Clara comes to administer the injection and her smile leaves a strong impression on Al who thinks that Clara resembles his mother who is very gentle and kind to people. However, Ed does not think so and tells Al not to get obsessed with Clara.

The police inspector comes back to look for Ed and is very respectful towards him since he got confirmation from Mustang on Ed's identity. He asks for Ed's help to nab Siren. Although Ed isn't too enthusiastic at first, he decides to help after he hears that Siren uses alchemy to steal.

At night, Ed meets Siren and tries to stop her from making her escape. He sees that she has a alchemy formation drawn on her chest which is allowing her to conduct alchemy rituals. However, Siren manages to give him the slip which makes Ed very irritated.

The next day, Ed happens to bump into Clara at the hospital and realises that she is Siren. She explains that she is stealing to prevent the hospital from being torn down and Ed decides to turn a blind eye towards what she is doing. However, after being deceived by Siren/Clara for 3 times, Ed decides that Clara is just stealing for her personal gains and decides not to let her off. However, Ed and Al hear only praises for Siren from the locals as the town is slowly sinking into the sea, most of the locals are slowly moving away. However, with Siren's appearance, it has gathered interest from tourists over the country to make the town a popular tourism spot. Ed and Al are not sure whether Siren is that evil after all but Ed insists on catching Siren because she is a criminal after all.

Siren is finally caught and turned over to the police. Before she is taken away, Siren tells Ed that he can go to the Zerotime City to find out more on Kenja no Ishi.

This episode is kind of funny especially when Ed and Al discover that they have been deceived by Siren for a couple of times. I don't mind humour since the atmosphere for the past few episodes were rather heavy. However, I miss seeing Scar and hearing Okiayu-san's voice...

Gankutsuou Ep 3 - 5 gatsu 22 nichi, Arashi (May 22nd, Thunderstorms)

Albert returns to Paris after his trip in Luna and joins his fiancee, Eugenie and his friends for a drive. Franz brings his fiancee, Valentine and three other friends, Renaud, Dobrel and Bauchean also join them. During the drive, Albert gets into an argument with Eugenie as usual while Franz and Valentine seem to be quite distant. When they reach the borders, they happen to meet Maximillian who seems very attracted to Valentine. After the picnic, they head towards the tower and take a look at the two worlds separated by the border. Eugenie remarks that she feels as if they have been shut in from the rest of the world which is not as prosperous as Paris.

Albert return to his house to wait for the Count who is supposed to meet him today. The ladies return home due to the downpour while the guys sit in the living room waiting for the Count. Albert's friends have doubts on the Count's real identity and character which Albert strongly objects to and tries to defend the Count.

Meanwhile, the Count has arrived in Paris and is in his carriage while on the way to Albert's house. He tells his servant that his revenge will begin from today.

The Count finally arrives at Albert's house and meets his friends who are sceptical about the Count's real identity. Bauchean tries to take photos of the Count but he declines. During dinner, Albert is shocked to find Beppo working as a maid in his house but keeps quiet instead.

After leaving Albert's house, Bauchean says that something is not quite right with the Count since he secretly taped the conversation but the Count's voice is not recorded. In addition, photos taken of the Count simply showed a fuzzy image which makes Franz rather worried.

Albert goes to look for Beppo who tells him that she left the bandits and is now working in his house as a maid. She says that it was by coincidence that she came here to work and tells Albert that she will not reveal what happened between them in Luna.

Meanwhile, the Count's attention is taken up by a potrait of Albert's mother which Albert says that his father hates this painting thus it was put in his room. He also takes the Count around to show him other paintings.

The time finally comes for Albert to introduce the Count to his parents...

It seems like the Count is definitely not human. He wasn't hurt during the scuffle with the bandits when saving Albert and now, he can't be caught on film and his voice cannot be recorded. Is he really a vampire as speculated by Albert's friends? Anyway, it seems like he does know Albert's mother so his purpose in getting to know him is to take revenge on Albert's parents? What did they do to him?

Hagane no Renkin Jutsushi (Fullmetal Alchemist) Ep 09 - Gun no Inu no Gin tokei (The silver watch of the army's dog)

Ed realises how vulnerable he is and makes up his mind to be the army's "dog" i.e. lackey in order to build up his strength for the sake of achieving his aim. Before Winry returns to their hometown, Ed and Al bring her around shopping but Winry can sense that Ed has something on his mind. Nevertheless, she does not probe further and buys some mechanical oil for him, saying that he should do some maintenance for his metal limbs since she's not by his side.

When Winry prepares to leave Centora for home, she asks Ed and Al to come back if they can. However, Ed says that since they had burned their house to show their determination to achieve their aim, they do not have a hometown anymore. Winry is sad to hear this but still waves them goodbye with a smile.

Mustang gives Ed his first mission as a national alchemist to investigate the situation at the eastern mining town of Uswell. Ed tells Al that he doesn't have to come with him since this is his job but Al reminds Ed that they are brothers and should be together. At the same time, Mustang's superior hints that he may be promoted soon but this is a demotion in effect since he would be stationed in the eastern region which is full of problems.

Ed and Al notice something strange with Uswell as the mining workers seem to be quite lethargic and there is a lack of activity which is usually associated with mining towns. The brothers are brought to a hotel run by Halling, one of the mining workers but he demands that they pay a big sum of money to stay for the night. As such, Ed decides to make use of alchemy to restore things for the workers and stay in the hotel. However, when the workers hear that he is from the millitary, they throw him out because they are very against the army. Since Al has not mentioned his relationship with Ed, the workers treat him kindly and even give him food to eat.

Al brings the food secretly to Ed and is upset about the treatment towards Ed. He says that he wants to be a national alchemist with Ed but the latter says that he doesn't have to endure such treatment with him.

At the same time, Yoki, the local in-charge from the army comes to Halling's place and demands that they pay up the taxes. However, the workers refuse to do so since Halling reduces their salaries and increases the taxes at the same time. Yoki gets angry and commands his maid, Lyra to teach them a lesson where Ed comes to the rescue. Ed announces his identity as a national alchemist which makes Yoki suck up to him immediately.

Ed finds out about Yoki's treatment towards the workers and the latter even has the cheek to bribe Ed. He pretends to accept Yoki's money. In the meantime, Lyra goes to destroy Halling's hotel under Yoki's orders which makes Ed come to a decision.

Ed uses the money Yoki gave him to turn coal into gold bars. He tricks Yoki into selling the rights to manage the mines and gives the deed to Halling. When Yoki realises that he has been cheated, Lyra tries to fight against Ed which she loses badly. After this incident, Ed builds up his fame as the national alchemist who thinks for the people.

It is 3 years later when Ed is 15 and Al is 14 as they head towards their goal of finding Kenja no Ishi...

This episode is much brighter than the past few which were very serious and emotional. Ed is a very observant guy who knows what is going on and turns the situation around easily. It's very funny to see him tricking Yoki and jumping on people who tease him about his height. I think the next episode continues from they left Rioru in Ep 2 which means that they are continuing their quest for Kenja no Ishi. More action is coming up as they prepare to face new enemies...

Suzuka Ep 06: Kokuhaku (Confession)

As tomorrow is the school founding anniversary, Asahina does not need to go for training. Yamato wants to ask her out for a date but is troubled over how to do it naturally. Just then, a newspaper promoter comes to his doorstep and offers to give him 2 tickets to the amusement park if he subscribes to the delivery service. As such, Yamato has a legitimate excuse to ask Asahina out on the next day and gets very excited at the possible scenarios to ask her out naturally.

However, Yamato cannot find a chance to talk to Asahina and even has his tickets torn by the cat. As such, he is feeling upset when Asahina tells him that the newspaper promoter gave her two tickets to the amusement park for free even though she did not subscribe to the service. Yamato offers to go with Asahina as a joke but she agrees to it unexpectedly.

The next day, things start off on a bad note when it rains heavily thus Asahina gets irritated at having to spend the day on indoor attractions. She grumbles at Yamato who is constantly in a daze and says that she is going home after they are done with the current ride. This makes Yamato rather unhappy but her sudden change in attitude about continuing to spend the day at the amusement park lifts Yamato's spirits.

After the rain has stopped, Yamato and Asahina go to watch the procession and fireworks where during all this while, they have been holding hands. Yamato suddenly confesses to Asahina about his feelings which make her stunned. However, she lets go of Yamato's hand and apologises for not being able to reciprocate his feelings. Yamato tries to pretend nothing is wrong as they walk home silently.

Yamato goes home to find Hattori in his room and he tells the latter about his day at the amusement park. Hattori realises what has happened even before Yamato talks about his confession and leaves behind a pack of tissues for him. After Hattori leaves, Yamato cries his heart out after being rejected by Asahina...

Somehow, I think Asahina has been leading Yamato on with her everchanging attitude. One moment, she seems so kind to him and the other, she makes Yamato quite frustrated. Why would you want to hold a guy's hand for so long if you don't feel anything for him? I don't think she is doing it deliberately but this subconscious action is making a fool out of Yamato who has eyes for her only. Now, if Honoka makes the first move, will jealousy finally make Asahina budge and take notice of her feelings? In addition, who is that guy in the photo Asahina seems to like so much? That could be the reason why Asahina is not willing to accept Yamato.