Full Metal Panic!, Volume 1: Fighting Boy Meets Girl

"Full Metal Panic! Fighting Boy Meets Girl" is the first of several light novels in a very exciting series revolving around the exploits of a young mercenary named Sousuke Sagara. This novel is an odd, but charming mix of secret warfare, science-fiction, comedy, and a dash of romance. Despite being a light novel this book contains a colorful cast of characters and intriguing scenarios described in surprisingly acute detail. Some of the author's descriptions of combat are very graphic, while in other instances he provides remarkably poignant insight into the characters' feelings. This combined with his ability to weave together several interesting plot threads makes for some very addictive reading. What really makes this book engrossing, and hard to put down, is the incredibly tense action in the latter half of the story. The author does a fantastic job of gradually escalating the tension and raising the stakes until you feel like bursting. Each page will leave you dying to find out what happens next. The series is aimed at teens and young adults, so people in a more advanced age bracket may scoff and be dismissive of it, but those who are open minded enough to give it a try may find some very enjoyable, if a bit light, reading.

note: i am a 16-year old male, named Mike Takahashi. so, obviously, this is written from a 16-year old male's perspective. not the actual account holder's (my father's) For everyone about to click that "Add to cart" button: be warned that this is NOT a manga! the book shown is the first in a series of novels, which are still being released in japan. in japan these kind of books are known as "light novels", and they are generally aimed at young adults. light novels also have manga(anime)-like illustrations scattered throughout the book. all that light novel stuff i just mentioned is simply to inform you that this is not a graphic novel. on the subject of the book however, in my opinion this is the among the best books i have ever read. speaking of book's i have read; there aren't that many i really wanted to finish. i bought this book yesterday and i can't stop reading it. i am a huge fan of the anime and manga, and this book was the inspiration to both! in fact, the third season of the anime (titled: Full Metal Panic! The second raid) only goes up to the 5th book! As of now, there have been nine novels (japan) and ten short story collections published, and a tenth (and possibly final) is in production. today, this book had me using all my willpower to restrain from laughing uncontrollibly after i finished one of my midterms. but take note that this book consists of so many more demographics than comedy, the book (and the series) have perfectly blended elements of comedy, drama, romance, action, and mecha (giant robots). what this book does, it does exceedingly well! anyone who has watched the anime or read the manga will probably think that they have no reason to read the book. i disagree with that. reading this book made me feel re-introduced to the series, and i recently just re-watched all of the episodes from all of the 3 seasons (i'm an FMP! nut, what can i say?). Very long opinion which i could delve into a whole lot further short: this book is an excellent read for anyone who loves the following categories: mecha, action, comedy, drama, and romance. anyone who likes any one of these categories will be doing themselves a favor by buying (and reading) this novel.

Shouji Gatou is an excellent story-teller. You'll be completely caught up in his narrative. I enjoyed the time spent reading this amazing book and get to know what was on the character's mind and situation's details that only this novel can provide. I recommend this book very much, for fans and non-fans, you wont regret buying this. Greetings from Brazil.

For those who have seen the show, FMP is perhaps one of the best animes that has ever been created. The plot development, video quality, sound quality, and drawing is just brilliantly done. And the manga promises no less. Filled with plenty of plot turns, and comical stories, the manga is sure to not dissapoint. Full Metal Panic manga is sort of a mix between the two seasons of Full Metal Panic; FMP original and FMP fumoffu. Sagara Souseke is assigned to protect high school girl Kaname Chidori; a pretty, all-around successful, 16 year old schoolgirl. Chidori has something terrorists want, and it's up to Sagara and his organization to stop them from taking it. This first installment of full metal panic gets the reader well acquainted with the characters of the book through a sequence of many mini stories. Through these stories you also see a budding relationship between the two main characters in the book as well glimpses of Sagara's painful and unknown past. Those of you who didn't like Love Hina due to the lack of action, you won't be disappointed with FMP. FMP blends in the perfect combination of action and romance, promising an action filled plot while continuously developing a love relationship between the two characters that you love the most. While the first book doesn't exemplify this quality, there is a small amount of action as well as suspense that leads to an action-filled second book.Drawing is a big part of manga books. Poor drawing, like Inuyasha and Ranma, which aren't aided by computer animation, tend to turn readers off to the books. But I guarantee you FMP is not the same. Gatou does a spectacular job at desiging perhaps the most well-drawn characters I have ever seen in a manga; and trust me I've read a lot. For 10 bucks? It's not even a contest.

High-school secret agent Sousuke Sagara is assigned to protect honor roll student Kaname Chidori from a large band of international terrorists! What could they want from her? "Full Metal Panic!!" is extremely funny. It is also very original, making it ten-times better. The translation is done very well, considering the fact that this is one of ADV Manga's first titles. The artwork is impressive, and very detailed. This is definitely worth a read at the price of $10.