Full Metal Panic!

FMP Mission 04 DVD Cover showing a Model 96, a modified M6 AS used by Japan's JSDF

File:Full Metal Panic Title.png

Anime Title Screen

Full Metal Panic! (Katakana: フルメタルパニック!, often abbreviated to FMP!) is the name of an anime series which originally aired in 2002. It is based on a light novel series by author Shouji Gatou and arts illustrated by Shiki Doji. The anime was produced by GONZO Digimation.

There also exists a manga, which was serialized in Newtype. Both the anime and the manga were based on a series of novels. Different parts of the novels form the basis for the Full Metal Panic! anime and the sequels, Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu and Full Metal Panic!: The Second Raid. The manga is published in English by ADV Manga. The anime is a combination of near-futuristic combat and teen antics and relationships.

Despite the similar name, it has no relation to the anime and manga series Fullmetal Alchemist. Template:Spoiler-other

Synopsis

The series is set in a modern, parallel world where the Cold War has yet to end and the KGB and other secret governmental agencies are running rampant. It follows the events of Sousuke Sagara, an unduly disciplined member of Mithril (an anti-terrorism organization which often operates under the guise of the UN), and Kaname Chidori, the schoolgirl whom he was assigned to protect. Chidori is considered to be one of the "Whispered"; that is, she possesses a inherent understanding of advanced Black Technology. Such knowledge was implanted genetically upon birth, of which she herself initially remained unaware of and consequently which she has access to only when in a near-comatose frenzy (which is generally induced through fear of harm). The Lambda Driver is an example of Black Technology which allows pilots of select Arm Slaves (combat mecha) to manifest their desires in defensive and offensive manuveurs. Therefore, the knowledge of the "Whispered" is highly desirable to both terrorists and governmental agencies alike.

In-depth Plot

While carrying out his mission in an environment previously foreign to him, Sagara assumes the identity of a high school student at Jindai High School. His inability to "blend in with the crowd", however, is quickly made transparent by his peers (though ultimately to no consequence as they merely regard him as being a miltary obsessed otaku). Chidori had initially mistaken him to be a stalker of sorts as he was always "coincidentally" nearby. The fish-out-of-water Sagara continues to pester Chidori -- albeit with good intentions -- until she finally realizes his purposes in doing so.

Throughout the span of the anime, Sagara's battle-hardened demeanor is matched -- often accompanied by a quick blow to the head -- by Chidori's overtness of discontent towards his lack of any experience outside of military fanaticism. It is this attitude, however, which drives potential suitors away from her, appropriately rendering her "the most popular, yet dateless". As the story unfolds, their lives intertwine through a series of dramatic events, and both are able to gain insight into the other's composure and state-of-mind, as well as some facets of life which were previously incomprehensible to them.

Ultimately, the relationship between Sagara and Chidori is perpetuated by Mithril's ongoing war against terrorism, particularly the A21 faction. Chidori gets into some rather extreme situations, though she is rescued each time by the steadfast Sagara and the crew of the Tuatha de Danaan (TDD-1), a billon-dollar submarine and the pride of the Mithril fleet, first envisioned and then brought to fruition by Teletha "Tessa" Testarossa. Tessa, the Captain of the TDD-1, is similar to Chidori not only in age but in that she also possesses the "Whispered" traits, although she is much more proficient at having access to those skills. At a later point in the anime, she is revealed as being involved in the unlikely love triangle between Chidori, Sagara, and herself.

Subplots

An important subplot revolves around the rivalry between Sagara and Gauron, a diehard terrorist who happens to be highly adept at utilizing the Lambda Driver. Although he views Sousuke as a worthwhile enemy, he feels that Sousuke is a barrier to his goals and must be disposed of. For this and other purposes, he goes to such lengths as hijacking a plane and employing use of Sagara's onetime comrade-in-arms. He is ruthless and self-absorbed, quick to act and often with pensive judgement, which makes him a deadly foe. He is presumably a member of a secret faction known as Amalgam, although it is in his personality to not acknowledge any authority other than his own. Sousuke manages to overcome difficulties onset by this worthy enemy, however, having been empowered by his difficult past and having the full backing of his two fellow soldiers, Kurz Weber and Melissa Mao.

Characters and Cast

Sousuke Sagara

(相良宗介 Sagara Sōsuke)

Seiyū: Tomokazu Seki / Chris Patton

Sousuke is the unwitting hero of the story who is a member of the Uluz regiment of the Mithril anti-terrorism force. His callsign is Uluz 7 and he holds a Sergeant rank. Having been raised as a guerilla fighter since the age of eight, he becomes involved in a lifestyle previously unknown to him(a peaceful one) when assigned to protect Kaname. His over-protectiveness will usually annoy Kaname to no end but later in the story, the both grow close to each other and possibly develop feelings for the other party. He is a highly skilled AS pilot and all around competent soldier. He is the only Mithril pilot who is capable of piloting ARX-7 Arbalest, the only AS in Mithril's armament that has the Lambda Driver.

Kaname Chidori

File:Full Metal Panic Chidori.jpeg

Chidori.

(千鳥かなめ Chidori Kaname)

Seiyū: Satsuki Yukino / Luci Christian

The main female protagonist of the story, she is often found in tight situations which require the battle sense of Sousuke to get her out of. However, more than often, she finds Sousuke's cluelessness irritating which leads to some comical events. Due to her history, she has developed a "tough-lady" attitude, probably a façade to protect herself from getting hurt again. Sousuke's appearance has made a huge impact on her life as she gets closer to him. It is also revealed later in the story that she is also a Whispered, which attracts some attention from terrorist organizations.

Kurz Weber

Seiyū: Shinichirou Miki / Vic Mignogna

An over-the-top fellow soldier, Sousuke's comrade, who makes numerous failed attempts at hitting on and/or peeking at girls. Despite his eccentricity, he is -- oddly enough -- Sagura's most trusted individual and friend. His skill in marksmanship is probably unrivalled by any member of Mithril's personnel which is why he is most often the sniper in the team. He is part of team Uluz (the callsign of their regiment), callsign Uluz 6.

Melissa Mao

Seiyū: Michiko Neya / Allison Keith

Sagara's confided-in "bigger sister" who provides him keen insight as to how to attract members of the opposite sex. She is the second-in-command of team Uluz. She is also one tough lady and will not tolerate any nonsense, especially from Kurz Weber. Her callsign is Uluz 2. She personally chose to have Kurz and Sagara assigned to her squad after seeing through Sagara's fake test scores (Sagara was purposely scoring low) and Kurz's attempt to pass himself off as a poor shot.

Teletha “Tessa” Testarossa

Seiyū: Yukana Nogami / Hillary Haag

Being the charming yet seemingly fragile Captain of the revered TDD-1 (Tuatha de Danaan) "Toy Box" submarine, she is a child prodigy who rose to such a high rank at the age of only sixteen. Her high level of mathematical and scientific adeptness is dwarfed only by her brother's, which seems to have given her a sense of inferiority. She is also fairly clumsy, but she has shown to be a very good swimmer. It is later revealed that she is also one of the Whispered. She also seems to have an interest in Sousuke, thus making a love triangle between her, Sousuke and Kaname.

Andrei Kalinin

Seiyū: Akio Otsuka / Mike Kleinhenz

Sagara's commanding officer and one of Tessa's military strategists. He is also the foster father of Sagara. He and Sousuke were once enemies, as mentioned in a two part episode by Sagara himself. The foster father status may be on the school's official papers only but Kalinin is certainly a very fatherly figure to Sagara.

Richard Mardukas

Seiyū: Tomomichi Nishimura / Andy McAvin

An overly protective aide of Tessa's who insists on guarding her with his life. He holds the rank of Commander and is in charge of Mithril's TDD-1 when the captain, Testarrosa, is not on board. Mardukas is often seen wearing a hat bearing the name of the HMS Turbulent (S87), a real British submarine.

Kyoko Tokiwa

(常盤恭子 Tokiwa Kyōko)

Seiyū: Ikue Kimura / Monica Rial

Chidori's camera-touting best friend. She is constantly trying to bring Chidori and Sagara together, however impossible it may have seemed given Sagara's tendency to blow things up at whim.

Shinji Kazama

Seiyū: Mamiko Noto / Greg Ayres

Sousuke's AS loving classmate. He shares the same amount of passion to AS as Sousuke and could be considered Sousuke's best school friend other than Kaname. His father is Shintaro Kazama and a secretary of Narashino's Assault Machine Troop, his love for AS was started when his dad failed to make it in as an AS pilot and wishes to know why he could not and is determine to step up where his father failed.

Ren Mikihara

Seiyū: Rie Tanaka

By first glance, one would never expect this charming schoolmate of Chidori's to be the daughter of a Yakuza boss. Nevertheless, she remains dignified and upstanding (though somewhat naive), especially when placed in comparison with Chidori.

Mizuki Inaba

Seiyū: Sayuri Yoshida / Mandy Clark

A classmate of Chidori who initially blames her for having stolen her boyfriend. She becomes one of her closer friends later on in the story.

Arm Slaves

M6

Used by the UN and other countries. Mithril owns some, too

M9 Gernsback

Used by Mithril, features ECS (Electromagnetic Camouflage System) and better mobility than the M6. Harder to operate, though.

RK92 Savage

Made by Russia and used on its army. Low manteinance. Very popular.

ARX-7 Arbalest

Prototype unit used by Mithril. Piloted by Sousuke Sagara. Features the Lambda Driver. Also comes with ECS(Electromagnetic Camouflage System)and an AI Al which is far more advanced than the usual. It can be sent by the Tuatha de Danaan to where its needed using an ICBM.

"Shadow" (Codarl-M ; Grey with a long hair-like tail attached to its head)

Mass produced version of Amalgam's Codarl series. It comes equipped with an ECS(Electromagnetic Camouflage System) and a less powerful version of the Lambda Driver. Given the codename "Shadow" by Mithril. It was designed by Leonard Testarossa.

"Venom" (Gauron's 2nd Arm Slave; Upgraded Codarl-M)

Amalgam's second AS in the Cordal series. Given the codename "Venom" by Mithril. It has a high mobility and comes with a more powerful version of the Lambda Driver. Also equipped with an ECS(Electromagnetic Camouflage System). Very few are made and tend to overheat more quickly than the Cordal-M. Also designed by Leonard Testarossa.

Behemoth

Gigantic red arm slave with Lambda Driver. Can be piloted by Takuma Kugayama because of the special drugs given to him. The unit used by the A21 terrorist group was given to them by Amalgam.

Episodes

1. That guy is a sergant?
2. I Want to Protect You.
3. Lingerie Panic
4. Kidnap
5. Whispered - The One who Whispers
6. Still Alive
7. Boy Meets Girl
8. Part-Time Steady
9. A Dangerous Safehouse
10. Run, Running, Ran
11. Behemoth Awakes
12. One-Night Stand
13. The Cat and the Kitty Cat's Rock and Roll
14. Is Narashino Burning?
15. Rising Wind in the Homeland, Part 1
16. Rising Wind in the Homeland, Middle Story
17. Rising Wind in the Homeland, Final Book
18. Ocean Party
19. Engage: Six-Seven
20. Venom's Fire
21. Deep Trap
22. Jack-in-the-Box
23. A Giant's Field
24. Into The Blue

Soundtrack

Opening

Tommorow, by Mikuni Shimokawa (下川みくに Shimokawa Mikuni)

Ending

枯れない花 (Karenai Hana), by Mikuni Shimokawa (下川みくに Shimokawa Mikuni)

Full Metal Panic OST 1

1. Tommorow
2. Arashi No Mae
3. Subtitle
4. Sasayaki
5. Check List
6. Tatakau M9
7. Conspiracy
8. Kokonotsu No Ryu
9. No Mercy
10. Black Operation
11. Eye Catch
12. Plan 1056
13. Torio No Shokutaku
14. Wareraga Manabiya
15. Shisseki To Benkai
16. Cool Running
17. Kaname No Kitchen
18. Kaname No Pajama
19. Kakumo Heiwana Yoru
20. Jojireru Mondai
21. Komeko No Sanpo
22. Kadokawa Gorou To Suppin Girls Desu
23. Tokkou Yoraou
24. Karanai Hana

Full Metal Panic OST 2

1. The Man Who Came In From The Cold
2. Scoundrels
3. Under the Surface
4. A Picture
5. The overture of a reckless run
6. Attending School
7. Safehouse
8. Let's go home together...
9. The captain is 16 years old!
10. Tuatha De Danaan
11. Exective Orders
12. Lady Chapel
13. Passing each other
14. Sad Little Bird
15. Warmth
16. The empire of darkness
17. Monster film
18. Creeping
19. The savage beast presses
20. Run silent, run deep
21. Pursuit
22. Counterattack
23. Fire at will
24. Direct action
25. Hit & Run
26. Hate is exceeded
27. The end of the fight
28. Epilogue
29. Take me out Marina trench
30. Eye catch

Curiousities

• Full Metal Panic! was to premiere shortly after the 9/11 terror attacks, however it was delayed due to a terrorist plane hijacking being an integral part of the first major plot arc.
• The employers of Gauron's services has been changed to a fictional country in the anime, while the employer is North Korea in the manga. This is probably to avoid political issues.

Tuatha De Danaan SRT Team name

File:Full Metal Panic Uluz Arbalest.jpg

Arbalest's Screen with Sousuke's name, callsign "Uluz-7" and ID number.

File:Full Metal Panic Uruz Email.jpg

E-mail from The Second Raid, with Sousuke's callsign "Uruz-7" and ID number.

The correct spelling of the TDD-1 SRT team name in this series is "Uluz". This can be seen in episode 6: "Still Alive" when Sousuke activates the Arbalest for the first time after it was sent by the TDD-1 inside an ICBM. The Arbalest's screen identified him as "Uluz-7". However, in episode 6, "Edge of Heaven" of Full Metal Panic!: The Second Raid, an E-mail sent to Sousuke identifies him as "Uruz-7". Both forms of the name are correct.

This confusion and consequent double transliteration is caused by the fact that the Japanese language doesn't distinguish between R and L. Also, because Japanese speakers tend to add vocal sounds at the end of Rōmaji words, in the anime it is pronounced as "Uluzu" (or "Uruzu". Both sound the same in the Japanese language).

In the DVDs released by ADV Films the term used in the english subtitles is "Urzu", which can be argued that when read in english it sounds the closest to the original Japanese sound. This term is used by some fansub groups for Full Metal Panic!: The Second Raid. A similar transliteration problem caused by Romanization can be seen in the name of the character Alucard, from Hellsing.

Non-Japanese Releases

• North America: The anime series was licensed by ADV Films, and has been released by its total of 7 volumes of videos on DVD.

Sequels and Side Stories

In 2003, a side-story to FMP! was released. Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu, also known as FMP? Fumoffu, focuses (almost entirely) on the high school life of Sagara and Chidori. Although it does include more slapstick humor and randomness, it is not a complete spinoff of the series as its events develop the relationship between the two main characters.

The series continued in July 2005 with Full Metal Panic!: The Second Raid, which continues the events of the original. It is an adaptation of the two "Full Metal Panic! End of Day By Day" novels.

External links

• ADV's Official Website
• Review at THEM Anime
• Comprehesive overview of FMP on animesuki