The content of this piece was written during a viewing of the first episode of Full Metal Panic! on September 3, 2010. Edits have been made for spelling and grammar, but the rest is completely untouched, and un-edited from its original format.
9:26 PM: Good evening, and welcome to the Labor Day Kickoff. Tonight, I’ll be covering .@funimation’s release of Full Metal Panic!
9:27 PM: This one is due out next week, ships on September 9. It’s an ADV license rescue and, funny enough, I’ve never seen it before. ^_^;
9:27 PM: So this’ll be fun as I’m literally the last person to see this show, no doubt :P
9:28 PM: Animated by Gonzo (Last Exile, Magikano, Gankutsuou)
9:28 PM: Directed by Koichi Chigira (Last Exile, Phantom Quest Corp., Tower of Druaga: Aegis of Uruk)
9:28 PM: Opening theme: Tomorrow, closing theme: Karenai Hana – both by the awesome Mikuni Shimokawa
9:29 PM: Anyway, it’s about time, so away we go :D
9:29 PM: Well… I’ll wait til 9:30 proper :P
9:30 PM: It’s 9:30 – NOW I’ll start.
9:31 PM: Opening credits – Mikuni Shimokawa’s music rocks.
9:32 PM: Flock of Seagulls… that ran, so far away
9:32 PM: Girl talking gibberish as the camera pans over photos?
9:32 PM: …HOLY CRAP that’s a creepy alarm clock! O_o
9:32 PM: Flash to the USSR: in other news, the USSR still exists
9:33 PM: “Let me bite it or kill me ;.;” …vampire! D:
9:33 PM: …or test subject. I dunno which yet.
9:33 PM: Dead now, though. ‘-‘
9:34 PM: …or not. Or gonna be. Not sure yet
9:34 PM: Helicopter vs. Mech – GO!
9:35 PM: A Patlabor?
9:35 PM: “Arm… Slave :o” Oh. :( Disappointed!
9:35 PM: Cute guy with a suitcase and anasthetics to pick up the girl.
9:36 PM: His name? Sosuke Sagara… Say that 10 times fast!
9:37 PM: Back at home: Sosuke’s buddy is living vicariously through Sosuke… til their comrade sends him to the boss. :P
9:37 PM: Apparently, this military hires former models. ‘Kay…?
9:38 PM: O__o “You BITCH! I’ll make you claw at my back like crazy someday!” …wow.
9:39 PM: We have names: Sosuke’s buddy = Kurz Weber, the female friend = Melissa Mao
9:40 PM: Mission briefing! Protect Chidori Kaname from the KGB… or some organization
9:41 PM: Sosuke gets to go back to school… and the music sounds like something out of A-Team
9:41 PM: Hah! Lina Inverse on a magazine cover! Awesome. :D
9:41 PM: “What’s this? :O” “A condom ^_^” >___>
9:42 PM: Sosuke’s fun fact of the night: A condom can hold a liter of water… for those jungle excursions. :D THANKS, TROJAN MAN!
9:42 PM: Sosuke’s school photo = totally serial rapist
9:43 PM: Movin’ out! With more A-Team musics
9:43 PM: And eyecatch!
9:44 PM: Back to Chidori’s room… with that evil evil alarm clock ;-;
9:44 PM: “Ohayo-kana-chan :D” You scare me, alarm clock T_T WTF Japan
9:45 PM: Meanwhile, at the mobile base – Mao spies on Chidori showering.
9:45 PM: “The morning shower of a high school girl? :3” ah, perverts.
9:45 PM: Arm Slaves are totally Patlabors on crack. Still saying it.
9:47 PM: “The uniform excites me!” Oh Kurz… the world needs perverts.
9:47 PM: Chidori’s milkshake brings all the boys to her yard, apparently.
9:48 PM: “So Long and Thanks for All the Fish” …that just made me happy on so many levels.
9:48 PM: Chidori’s a Douglas Adams fan
9:48 PM: “Kaaa-naaa-chan! O-haa-yoo :3” Uhh… she’s the token annoying friend, I take it.
9:49 PM: And RAGEFACE! >:o from Chidori
9:49 PM: …at some random perv she was introduced to?
9:49 PM: hah… Sosuke tried bringing a piece onto campus… a loaded piece.
9:50 PM: “It’s loaded with splat bullets, which have high kill potential :D” … … … That doesn’t sound like a psychopath at ALL
9:50 PM: “He’s a military maniac ‘_’ ” If I were Chidori, that’d be the LEAST of my worries.
9:51 PM: “I’ll introduce a new classmate :D” “O-ta-ku… BANG!” yeah, that sounds about right, Chidori’s friend
9:52 PM: Introduction time… this better not end with “I won’t leave a single body standing” or well… shit, I’d laugh at that.
9:52 PM: “Why don’t you sing a song? :D” How ’bout #5 with a bullet?
9:53 PM: “Can you tell us where you come from? :D” “Yes! Afghanistan, Lebanon, Cambodia, Iraq, Colombia.” … sounds like a US Army wishlist. ;)
9:54 PM: “What’re you hobbies? :3” “I bet it’s model guns :D” “No. I like fishing and reading. :D” … and here I thought he’d say strangling cats.
9:55 PM: or something just as creepy. :P
9:55 PM: Welp… he just endorsed Soldier of Fortune. Close enough for me
9:56 PM: Sosuke = shit taste in music >_>
9:57 PM: Uh oh… Sosuke’s peeping. Creeeepy… Chidori’s got the right idea… Sosuke has permanent raepface
9:58 PM: And now it’s gone onto full-on seku-hara, as he tackles Chidori and pulls a Beretta
9:59 PM: Beatdown is go! :D But we don’t see it. :( I am disappoint.
9:59 PM: “I almost kicked an old man T_T” Uh, Kurz… that’s nothing to be proud of >_>
10:00 PM: Voyeurism time as Mao listens in on phone conversations… and Chidori has a hamster :D Aw~
10:01 PM: “SHATAPPU! D:” Engrish is awesome… as is Sousuke handcuffed to a folding chair for being a creepy bastard
10:02 PM: “He’s weird but… :3 he’s an interesting guy” ah, girl talk… and Sosuke getting his chops busted for it. Good times…
10:02 PM: …so THAT’S where the yellow mascot… thing comes from O_o
10:03 PM: “She was more fierce and aggressive. o_o” that happens when you peep on a girl in the changing room. #LifeLessons
10:03 PM: And end credits. Again, Mikuni Shimokawa is freaking awesome. :) Can’t say that enough
10:04 PM: Hah! :D “Next episode” segment music totally rips off the A-Team!
10:05 PM: Verdict: I am loving this show… seriously – I am really, REALLY loving this. I haven’t said this about a Gonzo show in a long time.
10:06 PM: It’s fairly serious, but silly enough to keep things from becoming a downer. And the funny segments are downright hilarious.
10:07 PM: The characters are great, and the action works really well with the Patlaberrrrr- Arm Slaves.
10:08 PM: I can’t wait to see more, and wholeheartedly recommend the series.
Full Metal Panic! is currently available through FUNimation.
The full series can be purchased on DVD and on Blu-Ray at The Right Stuf International.
