#fma rewrite

[derseprinceoftbd]

Okay so here's my big FMA rewrite take:

*Pride* should have been *Sloth*. *Father* should have been *Pride*.

I think it fits; the only genuinely prideful things about Selim, who I always found underwhelming, were his extra levels of loyalty and his belief in the superiority of his species-and not only were both of those not unique among the Homunculi, Sloth would have been an interesting way to view the first.

(Sloth's removal is easy enough; Gluttony can take his place in the Briggs fight, and a military general or, heck, a *resolution* to the horde of zombies *or* chimeras (you know, those ones in like the sewers that May fought like three times) (mini sub-rant; those two should def have been combined into giving the chimera horde Philosopher's Stones, like the zombies were ugly ass MFs in a bad way) could take the place of the Armstrong-Curtis fight. I'm not even entirely talked out of my Olivier idea (that I'm too bad at mobile to link to rn, uh, search the fma tag on my blog IG), she could fight him and Izumi... I'm getting off track.)

(Look; the point is, big guy Sloth is as boring and basic as they come. Even Gluttony says something with his innocence, this guy is just blargh.)

It also fits his sedentary lifestyle, living the simple, un-troubling life of a human, as well as his fighting style and design (he stands there and lets his tentacles do the work, and the shadow seems kind of cribbed, almost lazily (this is not a criticism of the Author/his design, I'm just adding some context behind a hypothetical Selim-Sloth), from his creator).

And let's talk about the creator;

First, it always felt weird that he was called "Father" more than anything else, like he was defined by a set of relationships that he never cared for, instead of anything about him.

Second, that guy was *Prideful as balls*. His actions are like 60% Pride 20% Sloth 20% Lust. I've seen people say that he embodies all the sins, like it's a point that he only pretended to purge them, but some are *demonstrably* bigger motivators for him than others.

And I feel like, honestly, he *straddles the line of being interesting*; if you go into it viewing the story as a philosophical masterpiece, you'll like him a lot, but you can easily hate him. This may be my Menardist "you can literally apply any lens to anything as a positive constructive measure, up to and including false information, as long as you can string together an argument about why it becomes interesting in a new way with that lens" perspective talking (actually, that's easy to say for both of these guys given how their very names are lenses), but I think having that central idea would really push him over the edge and define him.

So... yeah. Selim should have been Sloth, Father should have been Pride, the big guy should have been erased, and the zombies and chimeras should both have been wrapped up at some point.

Interested to hear your thoughts; please comment and RB!

[beeqisch]

*hagarens ur timkon*

no text under cut

[evadingreallife]

I like so many of them both for the music and the visuals, tell me in the tags why you like them!! Or hate them i guess...

[wickedcriminal]

[by-nina]

Shallow Grave

AO3 | FFN Royai Week 2024 | Day 2 – Appreciate Rating: T (implied injury and violence) Genre: Hurt/Comfort/Romance Word Count: 1,065

It’s Roy who has come to her, not the Colonel, because the Colonel would not hold her closely like this, his body warm and protective over hers. The Colonel would not plead with her to stay with him, would not gasp for breath like he was dying with her, would not whisper “Lieutenant!” over and over with the tenderness of calling her by her first name. It’s Roy who is making her feel safe. It’s Roy who is making her realize, despite the haze and the numbness, that the longing she kept hidden and worked hard to forget has resurfaced.

———

There is a tense silence where Riza hears nothing but her own heartbeat. Thump… thump… thump. It is slow and forceful, and it punctuates the seconds that trickle by as her Colonel glares at the mysterious man who calls himself a doctor. It is her only reminder that she is still here with him, putting up one last fight alongside him, even though he is vulnerable and disarmed and she is unable to protect him.

The doctor says that they are running out of time, and something cuts through the air. Something bursts into a brilliant red. Something violently pulls Riza down, and her body drops heavily onto the cold stone floor. Everything around her swiftly turns cold. The sound of her heartbeat is gone—or it pauses for far too long before the next labored thump—and the screams that follow are too blurry and distorted to immediately make out.

The Colonel is screaming for her.

“Lieutenant…! LIEUTENANT…!”

All that Riza knows now is that one moment someone is dragging her across the floor, the next her own blood is quickly pooling around her, and that this must be what dying feels like. She is numb and confused and slipping away and yet inexplicably calm. Perhaps there isn’t enough blood in her anymore for her to feel anything else, but somehow she is able to find her hand and press it feebly against the cut in her throat.

She isn’t going to die, she gasps as her voice breaks. “I’m under… strict orders… not to die.”

And Riza is still fighting even though she can only move her eyes now. She can barely see the Colonel in the dark, his limbs strained from struggling to break free from his captors, his face shining with sweat and contorted in rage and desperation and terror. Maybe he can still see what she is trying to tell him. She knows that something good has come, hidden in a shadowy passage somewhere in the ceiling, but her mind cannot make the connection between what she’s glimpsed and what she does with the last of her strength.

Riza fades to black.

She is no longer in the tunnels that run through the heart of Central, no longer with the strange doctor or his puppet-like men with brute strength. She is in the Fifth Laboratory with the Colonel, collapsed on the ground with his uniform ripped open to reveal the wound that nearly killed him. The memory plays out as clear as day. Riza was the one who had screamed and flown into a blind rage thinking that her Colonel was dead, and the Colonel was weak and critically injured like she is now. She remembers her hopelessness, her fleeting but all-consuming wish to die right then and there, then the euphoric rush of hope when she heard his voice and realized that he had fought his way back to her.

But Riza also remembers something else. The spark of a feeling, a strange impulse that broke through her anxious relief over realizing that he was still alive but knowing she could still lose him if he wasn’t treated right away. Riza nearly said it then. The words hung from her lips while they waited for help to come, but she swallowed them back quickly once the medics arrived to carry him away, tearing his hand away from her trembling fingers. She buried the warm, yearning feeling away once she was certain that the Colonel was going to be all right, and she persuaded herself then that she would never find room or feel any need to consider it again.

Then, as quickly as she lost consciousness, Riza finds herself back in the tunnels, her body unresponsive and the ground slick with her blood. Her head spins with uncertainty, but she finds that she can hear a little more of what’s happening around her now than she did when she began bleeding out—fist to flesh, frantic footsteps, fingers snapping, a familiar voice yelling. She is in somebody’s arms now.

It’s Roy who has come to her, not the Colonel, because the Colonel would not hold her closely like this, his body warm and protective over hers. The Colonel would not plead with her to stay with him, would not gasp for breath like he was dying with her, would not whisper “Lieutenant!” over and over with the tenderness of calling her by her first name. It’s Roy who is making her feel safe. It’s Roy who is making her realize, despite the haze and the numbness, that the longing she kept hidden and worked hard to forget has resurfaced.

This time, it feels stronger. It’s as if it were something precious that has become more valuable for its rarity and its long absence. Riza has underestimated it, because now the words are coming back to her not with an impulse to be said, but a need. And if this is where she dies, then she is grateful that he is here now, that despite the severity of her wounds she is able to cling to dear life for one last chance to say the words:

“…”

Riza slowly opens her eyes, and Roy’s face is the first thing she sees. Everything else remains a blur; she isn’t sure she knows who saved her or how her bleeding stopped. But Riza cannot help but smile. In the flurry of emotions that wash over her, the words feel thick in her throat and heavy in her chest all at once, and all she manages to say as she looks at him is, “Colonel… I’m so sorry.”

“No, don’t speak. Just rest now.”

The words have slipped away from Riza again, further and further away as more of her surroundings and the present situation come back to her. But she knows him well enough to know that he must have heard the words in her voice, felt what she truly wanted to say without her having to tell him. Perhaps Riza isn’t imagining that she feels it in the way he looks at her now, holds her as if he is afraid he will lose her if he lets go.

But Riza is certain of exactly one thing as her dazed mind turns clear: she has loved Roy long before she admitted it to herself.

She has only loved him more every day since then.

[inkandpaperqwerty]

Do you like to see Envy suffering and struggling and generally in as much despair as is humanly (and non-humanly) possible? Of course you do. Because everyone does. Since this is the case, may I humbly request you check out my Brotherhood AU where Envy survives the Promised Day but is captured by Mustang. You can find Seeing Red on AO3, fanfiction.net, and wattpad. If you do check it out, please let me know what you think!

[clearbun]

gnawing on my au why do i have to write everything that comes before the promised day before i can make people see my vision for everything afterwards I'm going to Die

[pancake-breakfast]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga, Fullmetal Alchemist (Anime 2003) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Riza Hawkeye/Roy Mustang Characters: Riza Hawkeye, Roy Mustang, Ishvalan Character(s) Additional Tags: Refugees, Poverty, Post-War, Post-War Trauma, Being a State Alchemist Sucks, Homelessness, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, yeah we're back on the angst train again choo choo, Roy Mustang Hides His Trauma Behind Flippancy, Canon Compliant, Canon Universe Series: Part 8 of Drabble December 2023 Summary:

“Colonel, the Ishvalan refugee camp...” she said, looking at the lean-tos and shanties built up along the side of the road ahead of them.

“...Is why we’re here,” said Roy. He let go of her arm and stuffed his hands into his pockets, then waved an elbow at her. “Come on. Now, we’re not here on business, so for the time being, I’m Ryan and you’re my girlfriend, Elizabeth.”

Riza scoffed, but she took his arm and leaned in close.

***

Roy has called Riza out for a date of sorts, but it's not exactly to your typical date location....

A short story for Drabble December Day 8: a rewrite of A Flicker of Hope

[millicent-dagworth]

When you're scrolling on AO3 and find a fic with your oc but you don't remember writing or posting it. But it's from an old account you don't remember having.

[hirstories]

Thirteen

Earth, March 26th, 1940 A.D — Late Morning It felt nice; the wind against the face, the way the hair swung wildly, just like golden wheat on rolling fields. Winry inhaled deeply taking in the fresh country air and smell of gasoline pumping through Betsy’s intricate engine system.  “Wow!” she cried out, overjoyed by the sheer beauty of everything. “Isn’t this great?!” she added as she looked at…

[lime-angell]

My main is crowded, but I wanted to talk about a fma oc of mine that I talked about a while ago on amino. Basically jade l fox was an alchemist originally form a country I made up called geal her and her family imigrated to amestris year's ago one thing leads to another and she joins the military at 14 she finds out about something she shouldn't leading her and her company disbanded either on the run or captured while imprisoned she undergoes chimera experiments

[music-in-my-veins14]

Oh woah Oh woah Ooh~ Yeah Ooh~ Yeah yeah yeah Ooh~ Ooh~

[homunculusalphonse]

i remember not liking ready steady go (second opening) that much, but now i think it's my favorite fma 03 op, ngl

[fma03anniversary]

Happy 20th anniversary FMA. Let's put some forgotten feathers back in your cap.

Melissa was the #1 anime theme song to wrap 2003, and peaked at #2 on the Oricon Singles Chart - Japan's music industry standard for charting CD singles. Melissa became the #34th top selling single for 2003 and was only on sale for two months of the year (Melissa went on sale Sept 26th and Oricon is tracked Dec 1 - Nov 30). Melissa ranked #66 in top Japanese singles for 2004 too. The song would be on the Oricon charts for 38 weeks! Melissa won Animage Magazine's 2004 Anime Grand Prix for Best Anime Song.

Ready Steady Go! was the 18th best selling single of 2004 and peaked at #1 on the Oricon Singles Chart, and would do so charting less than half the time of Melissa, 16 weeks.

FMA sweeps Animage Magazine's 26th Annual Anime Grand Prix held in June 2004 - winning best series, best male character (Ed), best female character (Riza), best voice performance (Romi Park), best song (Melissa @ #1, Kesenai Tsumi @ #2), and best episode (7).

FMA is on the cover of all 3 major Japanese animation magazines for July 2004 - Newtype, Animage, and Animedia.

July 31, 2004 L'arc~en~Ciel make their North American debut at Otakon. Prior to their concert held at the 1st Mariner Place (now CFG Bank Arena) in Baltimore, to a crowd of 12,000 the first episode of the upcoming FMA English dub is premiered.

Rewrite peaks at #4 on the Oricon charts and becomes the 63rd best selling single of 2004. Rewrite won Best Anime Theme Song at the American Anime Awards at New York City Comicon in 2007.

FMA gets the rare honour of going to reruns in Japan.

FMA debuts on Adult Swim and is on the cover of all 3 major North American anime magazines for November 2004 - Newtype USA, Anime Insider, and Animerica.

FMA pulls in a ton of new viewers to Adult Swim for December 2004.

TV Asahi ranks FMA the most popular animated TV series in Japan in fall 2005, a year after it finished airing.

FMA is the best selling anime series on DVD for 2005 in North America. Individual DVD volume sales are so strong they rank alongside anime movies.

Anime News Network crowns FMA the best series of 2005.

Link is the #4 anime song for 2005 and peaks at #2 on the Oricon chart.

Conqueror of Shamballa is the #7 anime movie and #47 movie overall in Japan for 2005.

Anime Expo 2006 celebrates FMA. AX teams up with FUNimation to premiere Conqueror of Shamballa at the convention, hosted by guests of honour: Seiji Mizushima (Series Director), Mike McFarland (EN Director), Masahiko Minami (President of Studio Bones), Romi Park (who unfortunately had to cancel last minute), and Vic Mignogna.

Conqueror of Shamballa set to screen in 40 North American theatres. In !!2006!!

In the first ever event to honour voice acting, direction, production, etc of English anime in North America, the American Anime Awards were held at New York City Comic Con in 2007, handing out awards for the Best Of 2006. Online fan voting selected the finalists and FMA led the nominations with 5. The series would lose Best Feature (CoS) to FFVII Advent Children, but win Best Long Series, Best DVD Packaging, Best Cast, and Best Theme Song (Rewrite). Source (1), (2), (3)

Over five years after its Japanese debut and four years after it's North American start, as Brotherhood begins airing in Japan FMA still ranks #7 for best selling anime series on DVD in North America for spring 2009!

[roseillith]

fma 2003 op 4 ‘rewrite’

[pikahlua]

Hi there Pika, I know that you have covered AFO goal in some posts but I still don't get it, also what did he want from Yoichi? acknowledgement? submission? Since he doesn't seems to care for him at all, he didn't regret killing him and he didn't care he was gone. From the latest chapter I got vibes that AFO just wants to scream to the world that he was born before the luminescent baby. LOL

If this ending is about to be as similar to FMA's ending as it so far has been, we're likely to get a little more insight into AFO before he disappears for good.

And you're not wrong in your assessment lol. I think AFO seems to be a person who has many reasons (nature AND nurture) to refuse to see others as human beings/equals to him. He views the world in terms of "things that belong to him" and "things that do not yet belong to him." Yoichi represents AFO's "first belonging," and Yoichi's rebellion against him threatens what AFO sees as his ideal natural order. AFO despises the way the world is, despises the general narrative of the world, and wishes to rewrite that narrative to suit his own desires. It's an assertion of power and control. He wants everyone to give him everything, which was a trait from the Demon King in the Captain Hero comics that he found much more desirable than being the lone, forgotten hero.

In many ways, he is a character who breaks the fourth wall with his desire to control the narrative (which makes him easily compared and contrasted with other fourth wall-breaking characters like Izuku Midoriya and especially Katsuki Bakugou). You have to understand the duality of his in-universe desires for global domination and his meta desires for narrative control to get the most out of him, in my opinion.