Customer Reviews

The Abducted Alchemist (Fullmetal Alchemist Novel, Volume 2)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Ed and Al are forced to help Roy and co deal with terrorists who attack trains, yet don't appear to want to hurt civilians. It isn't long before Ed is mistaken for Roy's son by the terrorists and he is kidnapped!

I have to say that I prefer this one to the first novel, as it has more humour and action as well as an original storyline not in either the manga or the anime.

Definitely recommended for all FMA fans.

I really enjoyed this book. I prefer it over the first one, but mainly because this one is truly new content. If you follow the anime, you already know the plot for the first book from some of the early episodes. It's certainly an easy read, but there's nothing wrong with that. Plus, pretty much everything I've read that has been translated from Japanese reads this way. It's no less enjoyable for that. The character interactions are a bit off from my impression of the characters from the anime and manga, but not so far off as to be distracting. It's a must have if you are a fan of FMA.

This is definitely a must-have for the devoted Hagaren fan, but it can wear a little thin if you're expecting to read something above middle-school reading level. Inoue succeeded in keeping the characters true to Arakawa's descriptions, and the translator did a worthy job as well, but the language is so simple that the book can be easily read under a couple of hours.

The translator unfortunately made some errors concerning Hawkeye that would drive the anal-retentive fan (ie me) insane. We all know that Hawkeye is a First Lieutenant, yet she is regularly refferred to as "Captain". It's even worse in the second novel where she starts out being a 1st lieutenant, but is randomly promoted to Captain, and then demoted back to 1st Lieutenant. Viz could use a little work with their editing, methinks.

The Abducted Alchemist, volume 2 of the text-novels, was certainly an improvement from the first! As other reviews mentioned, The Land Of Sand was a repeat of a plot from the original FMA. The original stories started here, with story of Ed's abduction and a chain of terrorist attacks targeting the PR of the military!

I enjoyed the easiness of the reading level, it makes it a quick but enjoyable read. The story contained the well-thought out plot, quirky humor between Ed and Roy, and the ICness of a well-written fanfiction based at a young age group.

I picked up this one, and not the third, because it contained a lot more of the military in the plot, which I enjoy in FMA works. It still bothers me how the characters never even threaten someone's life in even the direst of situations, but I suppose it makes it suitable for a varying age group.

Fullmetal Alchemist: The Abducted Alchemist is the second in a series of text novels based on the wildly popular Fullmetal Alchemist anime and manga. Written by Makoto Inoue, skillfully translated from the original Japanese by Alexander O. Smith, and featuring two afterwords (one by the author, and one by Fullmetal Alchemist manga creator Hiromu Arakawa), Fullmetal Alchemist is set amid a dual terrorist crisis. a succession of train lines destroyed seemingly without victims, and a series of kidnappings targeting friends and families of the military. Colonel Roy Mustang suspects a link between these criminal acts, but it is Edward and Alphonse Elric who become embroiled in the middle of the investigation - becoming targets of the kidnappers themselves! An action-packed, enthralling adventure from cover to cover, and a "must-read" for Fullmetal Alchemist fans.

Makoto Inoue does a fine job with this one too, and I really enjoyed it. But I felt that something was missing that couldn't get me right "into" the book. I was hoping for some plot twists.
Anyway, it's very good and entertaining, recommended for FMA fans. Loved the first one much more, though.