Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu

After watching all the FMP seasons I have to say that, without a doubt, Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu is the best one. FMP F are just spin-offs, side stories that take place right after the first Full Metal Panic! and before Second Raid season. If you are looking for a good laugh this is definitely one of the best options around. Does this anime really have a story? Almost every episode is divided into two sub-episodes parts, which equals two stories per episode. Mostly one has nothing to do with the other episodes. Now if Fumoffu doesn't have a story why is so good? Easy: Inthe first season the anime focuses, almost all the time, in the belic conflicts that "Mythril" has with different terrorist organizations. But the thing is that they've created amazing-over the top characters, characters they have to show off in another way, in a theme that accentuates more the masterwork they've done: a comedy theme, and not in the serious-storyline theme that characterized the first season. This is called fan service my friends. Now which place is the most popular for an anime to take place and to develop? The answer is simple: school. This ambiance is used now in almost all animes simply because is part of the formula, a formula that is successful. This season is made mainly because of the lack of that "school development" that the first season has. If you watch Fumoffu carefully, you'll notice that almost every single thing is school-related. In the end, no story at all, only fan service, very well done fan service. The art and design are not that different from the original Full Metal Panic! The characters keep looking good and smooth. The only thing that changes is the locations that, this time, are more detailed. In Fumoffu the school location is a lot more detailed: new sub-locations inside the school are shown (club rooms, school council room, principal's room, etc.) and new characters are introduced to complement the roles inside the school. Note that in this anime you ain't seeing Mechas (well if you can count Bonta-kun as one xD!). Regarding opening-ending and BGM's, I have to say that FMP is superior to Fumoffu. However, Fumoffu does take voice acting to new horizons. The voices of Chidori and Sagara are a lot more relaxed and funny. Also, love the Fumo!!! Fumoffu! sound that Bonta-kun does, it may seem childish but in the end, it's really one of the most hilarious stuff this anime has to offer. Nice sound but as a "sequel" it doesn't outstand its predecessor. Full Metal Panic! has always characterized by having one of the best casts of characters around. Well, Fumoffu does really make these characters look better, if possible than the original FMP. The way Sagara and Chidori go to school every day, Sagara's paranoia and Chidori's violent personality do help Fumoffu reach the pinnacle in comedy anime. I mean is obvious if you watched the first FMP that the characters are just unique in many ways. I definitely enjoyed this anime from the first minute to the last one. FMP F offers 100% guaranteed entertainment, even if you know nothing about FMP this anime is a must-watch. Fumoffu is almost at a masterpiece level, the only problem with this show is that it can be VERY random but, then again, that is what makes it funny, isn't it?

If you are not aware already, Full Metal Panic Fumoffu is a spin off of the more serious Full Metal Panic. It seems to be set in point somewhere halfway through the series. Unlike its big brother, it contains no arm slave battles and only a few hostage situations. Instead it focuses on the high school lives of Souske and Chidori and is overall very lighthearted. Full Metal Panic Fumoffu is probably the funniest anime I have ever seen. It routinely places Souske\'s vast military expertise and relatively little common sense into the spotlight. This show is filled with explosions, rubber bullets and misunderstandings. No matterwhat the problem is, it can always be solved by a combination of Chidori\'s level headed approach and Souske\'s arsenal of wacky weaponry. Speaking of wacky weaponry, this show also introduces my favorite anime character, Bunta-kun: a six foot tall, heavily modified and armed theme park entertainer. This show is way out there, very funny and a must see for any military otaku. I would recommend watching the first two or three episodes of Full Metal Panic before seeing this, but it is not necessary.

I am very skeptical about giving 10 as a score simply because achieving perfection IS NOT POSSIBLE. The thing is, every now and then I come across something that does what it is supposed to do SO WELL that whatever minor mistakes that it have pale in comparison to the rest, and the result is truly a 10... Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu is one of those rare cases. ---------------------------------- Story ---------------------------------- This will be a bit brief, but not because there isn't any, simply because the show exists of short bursts of story development instead of a coherent big arc, this makes for a "non continuum" world but atthe same time help flash out one of the best aspects of Fumoffu, it's randomness. You never know what to expect from the next minute of the show, and when they manage to keep this feeling untouched for twelve episodes it's hard to complain about the plot or the lack of it, specially because this characteristic puts the mood on the exact pace and you are never confronted with one dull moment. On any other show, I would count this as a bad thing, but since this works so wonderfully in the context , here, it is actually one of the strongest selling points. ---------------------------------- Art & Sound ---------------------------------- Art wise it is on par with what you would expect from an anime from 2003, but don't mistake this comment as an average one because backgrounds are done beautifully and the animations are simply gorgeous! There is one particular episode where the subject is rugby when the animation really got me breathless, it's VERY good. Now, when we take into consideration the style of the show we can up the bar a couple of notches, specially on the characters. Each one of them have a special care with expressions, and when we consider each character is rich and detailed, the fact that so much attention went to portraying each one specific characteristics really shows a well rounded job. It is so good that from time to time I had to rewind a few scenes just to take a closer look on their faces, specially Sagara's ones (him jumping on the pool specially comes to my mind right now). The sound does it's job, and while I didn't like much the theme songs I can't build up a strong enough case to complain about them either, sure enough, it keep up in terms of quality with the rest of the aspects of the show but never outstands on its own. Now, one thing that the audio department does really well is the VA's. The voice in this show is unparalleled, and even with the insane amount of uniqueness the art manages to portray for each character, the voice of them is never behind and the synergy between the two is really really great. Anyway, taking detailed backgrounds with smooth animations and astonishing character expressions makes up for a near 10, and since the audio while nothing astonishing in it's own merits (aside the voice actors) manage to keep up, it's hard not to be amazed by the level of quality the show achieved on this category. ---------------------------------- Characters ---------------------------------- Fair enough, some characters might fall on stereotypes every now and then (moe) but the fact is, each one is unique and vibrant enough to be excused from these moments, specially when the other 90% of the time they are simply groundbreaking. From Sosuke with it's uneasiness caused by all the attritions between himself and his surroundings to Chidori and her love / hate affair with his actions, going all the way trough Tessa with it's cute and yet somewhat extreme attitudes toward everything (especially Sagara) all of them worth a few paragraphs of text to explain how great each one are, and how much attrition everyone goes by (without exceptions) always being thrown around contexts that doesn't suit them... it's like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole all the time, it's just priceless! Luckily since all the characters (main and support) are simply so good I can save some time and resume everyone with one word: outstanding. Even if all the other aspects of the show are top notch, the characters alone are what make Fumoffu so damn good! ...and I don't even have to take my time talking about Bonta-kun, all you need is a picture of him and you will understand why he is so freaking cool!!! ---------------------------------- Enjoyment & Value ---------------------------------- It's a show to have a blast the first time you see it, and even after a couple or runs still find amazing! Not only that, but it is so damn good, that the roughly 24 minutes of each episode are not enough, and I constantly got myself re watching scenes to take notice of small details I missed on the first way trough. Sure, it is not a serious anime, but it is probably the best and funniest fanservice anime I have ever saw, and use the term "fanservice" with caution because todays iterations of it consist nothing more then slapstick and tons of unnecessary sex... Fomoffu takes a more elegant and yet much better route while also keeping violence, sex and FUN to extreme levels. It's addicting, and not only that, but one of the rare series that you will end up watching again and again and again but never getting dull or repetitive, and still after your twelve run or so still giggle from it's jokes, still relate to the characters and still want to watch it again by the end of it!

Full Metal Panic: Fumoffu (FMP:F) improves on its bipolar predecessor by focusing only on comedy. FMP:F is essentially a collection of filler episodes that could of been taken from the FMP story line. Therefore, there is no plot or character development or AS (Arm Slaves) fights, just the antics of Sousuke and the rest. So those fans looking for a continuation of FMP are not going to find it in FMP:F instead watch Full Metal Panic: The Second Raid. A nice thing about FMP:F is that you don't have to watch the first series to enjoy this. There aren't manyreferences the first Full Metal Panic and all you need to know is Sousuke has live all his life as a solider and for the first time in his life he has to adapt to normal Japanese high school life. This time around instead of GONZO animating FMP:F Kyoto animation took the job. Most of the comedy does rely on Sousuke's inability to adapt to normal Japanese life. With this type of catalyst FMP:F runs the danger of being repetitive. Thankfully it never does as there are a variety of situations and characters. Hell some of the characters are just as crazy as Sousuke. The scenarios we encounter are pretty standard for a HS based anime. However, the FMP:F take on these scenarios are absolutely hilarious. They take seemingly normal situations and exaggerate them to the point of complete hilarity. Also, they seem to take the insanity far enough to be funny but not to the point of absurdity and stupidity. This is a very delicate balance that far too many anime titles fail to get right. One of my favorite parts was the variety of homages or parodies FMP:F has, from "Your under Arrest" to "Goldfinger." The FMP:F take on sports anime was a personal favorite. A stereotypical sports anime would be something like this. We have a group of losers that’s about to be disbanded if they don't win. Of course the team is missing a critical player. However, a coach comes and magically turns the team around and finds the missing player. I guess I'll let you use your imagination as to how FMP:F work with this idea. I guess my only real complaint is that some of the earlier episodes were a bit weaker than the later episodes. Yes they were funny but not as funny. The further development of Sousuke and Chidori relationship felt weird within the context of FMP:F. FMP:F is an episodic series with no real story or continuity. So it follows the format of, stuff happens, development, and reset. However, admittedly if FMP:F were to be taken as lost filler episodes for the first Full Metal Panic then maybe it works, but not within the context of FMP:F. There’s not much else I can say about FMP:F besides that its one of the few shows that still make me laugh after repeated viewings. Hell its one of the few shows that makes me laugh period. Sure there are a few weak episodes but what anime doesn't?