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mystryl-shada — FMA: Dogs of the Military

Published: 2006-11-17 08:07:23 +0000 UTC; Views: 90756; Favourites: 1596; Downloads: 20581
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Description "Mustang you jerk, this is all your fault!" -Edward

And it's done! Finally! All visual reference for drawing this pic came from the manga. Colors came from the anime.

Beware, I say rather spoilish stuff in this commentary. Spoilish for the manga at least, because that's what I know and like best.

My first official and digital fanart for Full Metal Alchemist! Featuring the main military cast. There are some other military characters, but they didn't go in because they're either minor characters or they're dead (why Hughes? Why?? ) Maybe I'll do a pic for them later; I dunno.

I imagine this takes place in the manga (because it's waaay better than the anime), probably in a future time. The inspiration for this pic came when I was rereading the mangas for the upteenth time, and I realized that a lot of dooming foreshadowing was going on with Edward. People keep bringing up the subject that if a war started, all alchemists would be called to fight, including the kid. What really convinced me that something was up was the scene between Mustang and Armstrong in the bathroom in volume 9, where Armstrong asks if Mustang would put Edward in that kind of situation, to which Mustang replies "he knew the risks when he joined this organization."
With all these hints, I'm really starting to think that the series is leading up to a big war in the North, where Edward might be called to full military duty (the fact that a lot of main characters are starting to gather in the North only makes me worry more). So I picture this as the group gathering at the main door of Northern Headquarters, having one last laugh (at Edward's expense, since he'd probably be forced to wear an actual uniform once in active duty) before things get really serious. Chances are, actual events in the manga are going to go a lot differently, and the whole group may not end up there, but with all the foreshadowing I'm pretty sure that Ed at least is going to have to end up seeing some pure military action. Especially if he's still under that General Armstrong woman's thumb; she's scary.

EDIT: Oh shoot, I just remembered...poor Havoc wouldn't be in this pic if it took place later in the manga. Currently, he's retired from the military due to being paralyzed from the waist down by Lust. O_o Um...maybe he gets fixed? Not sure how to explain that off...

If you can't tell, I follow the manga as it comes out in Japan (I still buy the mangas the moment they're published in America, though). I've got several good fan scanslators that I use.
For chapters 1-59 I go to [link]
For chapters 44-current (right now it's ch. 65) (a new chapter comes out every month), I go to [link] (THIS NO LONGER WORKS; SORRY)

Background is the door to Northern Headquarters. I got a little fancy with patterns on my vectors this time, and after a whole day's goofing off I ended up with this. Let me know if it's too distracting, because I think it might be. If it ends up being a problem, I'll come up with a more abstract one. I dunno; I hardly ever am sure about the stupid backgrounds. But hey, at least I've got some pretty good looking cobblestones! ^_^

Thanks to a new book I got, I finally figured out Ed's height! He's about 164 cm (5'3" or so) if you count the antennae on his head and his elevator shoes, but without them he's only 150 cm (4'11") Geez, no WONDER he's got a Napoleon complex! I think he could look Yami Yugi (from Yu-Gi-Oh) in the eye! Don't worry Ed, you'll hit your growth spurt after you get your brother back! I know it! (In fact, the manga almost confirms it...in fact, I'm pretty sure he puts on at least a few inches throughout the manga) Knowing his actual height, I fell better about making Ed a little shorter than what I thought he was. I also saw a height chart, and yeah...he's that short in comparison to Mustang. Poor little guy; don't worry we still love ya. *runs from Ed's reaction to being called "little"*

Ed's being forced to wear a uniform now, and naturally blames Mustang because he's the one who got Ed involved in the military in the first place.
Mustang's kinda giving Ed a look that says "Yeah, and just what are you going do do about it, squirt?"
Hawkeye just wishes they'd act their age for once.
Furey's not sure what to think.
Havoc seems to be evaluating the situation to see if he can wedge his own comment in without getting attacked. I can see him saying something about how hard it would be to get a uniform in Ed's size. I also noticed while coloring that his cigarette is in his mouth backwards...but left it that way as my own personal statement that smoking poisonous fumes into your lungs is rather silly (if you're a smoker, please don't get mad at me, I don't mean that offensively).
Armstrong's proud of Ed to see him looking so grown up, but is probably secretly sad that Ed even has to wear the blue thing.
Falman's probably thinking that loitering in front of the Northern Headquarter's front door is a little unorthodox.
Breda's not even bothering to hide the fact that he finds a kid in a uniform rather funny. Even more so because Ed's so uncomfortable. Breda's kinda lost weight, due to the fact that I just couldn't draw him right.

Fullmetal Alchemist and all characters involved are copyrighted by Hiromou Arakawa, and anyone that has the anime and manga publishing rights.
Related content
Comments: 198

mystryl-shada In reply to ??? [2006-11-21 02:00:29 +0000 UTC]

Thanks a ton! Oh good, someone thinks the background fits. I always worry about that, for some reason. Especially with this pic, since I was having a hard time figuring out what I wanted to do with it.

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The-Headless-Hannah In reply to mystryl-shada [2006-11-21 19:55:28 +0000 UTC]

*nods head* I think that it's just right - if you tried to make it a little more elaborate, it may have been too busy, but I really like it like this.

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GF-Goldenfox [2006-11-19 15:52:26 +0000 UTC]

It's rare to find the military men. And you're not alone. Me and my friend both have a problem with Mustang's hair. Nice picture! I love all the expressions.

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mystryl-shada In reply to GF-Goldenfox [2006-11-20 07:55:24 +0000 UTC]

The military men are cool. Some of them need more fanart, like Furey; he's a favorite of mine. Yeah, I don't know why, but Mustang's hair is really hard. It doesn't look it, but those are the more deceptive hairstyles.
Thanks for the comment! Glad you like it! ^_^

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GF-Goldenfox In reply to mystryl-shada [2006-11-20 14:53:59 +0000 UTC]

Your welcome . And yeah Fuery's my favourite too.

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HHB-BookMaster In reply to ??? [2006-11-19 07:41:41 +0000 UTC]

Totally, totally awsome. ^_^ As usual. Love the Ed vs. Mustang deal. Awsome background! I MUST know how you did the street stones.

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mystryl-shada In reply to HHB-BookMaster [2006-11-20 07:52:01 +0000 UTC]

Tutorial for how to do cobblestone text can be found here: [link]
I basically adjusted it for a shape and not text (which was so easy it's not really worth mentioning; you don't really do anything different), copied the layer until I had a line of cobblestones, copied the line to have an alternating pattern, and then just distornted the whole shebang.
I used the same tutorial to do the stairs and the stone lining the door, only I changed colors slightly. Beware, there's a step that's actually not really necessary, at least in photoshop 7 (the contour subheading under "Bevel and Emboss", I think it was).

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tequiladancer In reply to ??? [2006-11-19 06:10:55 +0000 UTC]

I couldn't read you commentary because I didn't want to spoil anything for myself, but I love this picture!! Especially Roy's expression.

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mystryl-shada In reply to tequiladancer [2006-11-20 07:54:16 +0000 UTC]

Yeah, the commentary is somewhat spoilerish, especially where I place this picture happening. But I'm glad the pic can be enjoyed even without the background info. ^_^ Yeah, Roy's expression was hard to get, but worth the effort.

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osyris [2006-11-18 23:11:11 +0000 UTC]

The only reason why Mustang is smiling is because Ed is royally pissed...love those two!

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mystryl-shada In reply to osyris [2006-11-20 07:53:13 +0000 UTC]

Yeah, probably. Mustang seems to totally enjoy annoying the heck outta Ed. Probably because it's so easy to do.

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wyngless-byrd In reply to ??? [2006-11-18 20:37:51 +0000 UTC]

Haha...funny...I love it. Edward is cute when he's mad...lol

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mystryl-shada In reply to wyngless-byrd [2006-11-20 07:52:42 +0000 UTC]

Yeah, that's when he's funniest too. He's so entertaining. ^_^
Thanks!

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radioactivesluglover [2006-11-18 16:08:52 +0000 UTC]

Height chart? Where'd you get that?
Anyway, I always preferred the anime to the manga myself, but they are pretty similar so...I think I like Hawkeye best; it looks the most like her. But I like everyone else too. Well done!

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mystryl-shada In reply to radioactivesluglover [2006-11-18 17:02:07 +0000 UTC]

I got it from the book, Fullmetal Alchemist Profiles (just inside the cover is a comparison for Edward, Alphosne, Mustang, Hawkeye, and Armstrong). I also got some measurements from an article on wikipedia.com
Actually, after about a third through the anime, the storylines end up COMPLETELY different. They're somewhat similar at first, but they're such different stories, sometimes I wonder how the anime happened. The homonculi are different, the main villains are different, some characters are different, the plot is WAY different, even the reasons behind Ed's shortness and why he can transmute without a circle are different. But even though I prefer the manga's story, I still like what I've seen of the anime. ^_~
Yeah, I think I got Hawkeye pretty good. At least I hope I did. Breda and Mustang were the hardest ones for me to get right, for some reason. Breda especially.
Thanks for the comment!

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radioactivesluglover In reply to mystryl-shada [2006-11-18 21:03:27 +0000 UTC]

Definitely, Mustang's a real pain. Thanks for the info- I don't have the manga, but I'll go check out the wiki.

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mystryl-shada In reply to radioactivesluglover [2006-11-20 08:01:55 +0000 UTC]

The wiki...ah, that marvelous spring of non-stop information...you can catch up on anything there. ^_^
There's also those fan-translated sites that I mentioned in the pic description, in case you did want to read up on the actual manga.
You're welcome!

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radioactivesluglover In reply to mystryl-shada [2006-11-21 01:34:40 +0000 UTC]

Okie dokie- thank you. Wikipedia was definitely the idea of a genius!

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thelastmushroom [2006-11-18 06:02:00 +0000 UTC]

wow it's drawn well, I like!

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mystryl-shada In reply to thelastmushroom [2006-11-18 16:56:25 +0000 UTC]

Thanks! ^_^

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thelastmushroom In reply to mystryl-shada [2006-11-20 06:30:31 +0000 UTC]

Heh that comment was either made by me sleepwalking or my little sis, whoever it was though I totally agree

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mystryl-shada In reply to thelastmushroom [2006-11-20 07:47:22 +0000 UTC]

Lol, that would be funny either way. If you were sleepwalking though, I compliment your subconsious on its ability to type coherently. That's more than I can say for mine. ^_~

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Macampos In reply to ??? [2006-11-18 03:57:55 +0000 UTC]

Great job! One thing though... since Armstrong, Roy, and Ed are all alchemists, shouldn't they be wearing those chains....?

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mystryl-shada In reply to Macampos [2006-11-18 05:08:16 +0000 UTC]

*faceplant* Oh good grief, I forgot the Alchemist pocketwatch chains...
Uh...they're under the skirt-things...whatever-they're-called. Yeah, that's it.

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Macampos In reply to mystryl-shada [2006-11-18 19:03:59 +0000 UTC]

Don't worry about it, lol... it's usually on the left side, so in Roy's and Armstrong's cases, it won't matter. Ed's the only one who should have one in plain view, but I'm sure not many people will mind.

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mystryl-shada In reply to Macampos [2006-11-20 07:59:41 +0000 UTC]

I'll just kinda...hope no one else notices. *crosses fingers* Thanks for the info, though. ^_^

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Fushigi-Rockna [2006-11-18 01:10:27 +0000 UTC]

Oh, I can see that you had troubles with Mustang's hair, just as you said before to me.

I likes it. X3 Also, from reading your summary, and what you think is gonna happen, I wouldn't be surprised if that was what happened. It certainly looks to be heading that way if what you say is true, and Arakawa's gonna need something really HUGE, isn't she?



Hmmm...I'm feeling inclined to ask, because I'm so desperate for people, but would you ever consider doing art for an FMA fangame of sorts? Or just colouring even?

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mystryl-shada In reply to Fushigi-Rockna [2006-11-18 02:51:36 +0000 UTC]

Yeah, Mustang's hair was hard for some reason. Still can't figure out why.

Thanks! And yeah, for a series finale, Arakawa's probably cooking up something really big. I can't wait to see it. Too bad the chapters only come out once a month; I'm dying of suspense here, especially after how the last chapter ended with Sloth about to make his first appearance.

A fangame? That would be way cool! I'd have to know the story though; I don't want to do art for something I wouldn't like. But I really do like the sound of working on a game.

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Fushigi-Rockna In reply to mystryl-shada [2006-11-19 03:08:59 +0000 UTC]

<3 Yay~ I wanted to see if you were interested first before going into details like the plot and such. :3
I put pretty much all of the info here on my livejournal: [link]
While it is a dating sim (basically because I absolutely adore dating sims XD) it's mostly a crack game. I'm going for 'piss-your-pants' funny. XD So it's not some sort of mushy thing. It's more "wtf" XD It is based off the anime tho, since that's what I'm more familiar with. (plus it's based on the OAV XD which btw, you can see on youtube and has no spoilers! XD Well...except the thing with the Fuhrer, but you already know all that anyways :3)

It's a long way away from ever being completed (partially because I'm in grade 12 right now and partially because I don't want to start any of the coding until I get my own laptop) but I thought I should start looking around for someone to do the artwork. Better to start looking now in the early stages than in the later stages and having to delay the project for more months, ya know?

If you're still interested, we'd be glad to have you on board! ^^ If you have a livejournal account, I can friend you and that will let you see the scripts posted. (although only one script is up in the journal right now)

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mystryl-shada In reply to Fushigi-Rockna [2006-11-20 07:58:40 +0000 UTC]

Hmm, that really depends. Call me close-minded or backwater or whatever, but I don't really like dealing with gay stuff. I'll have to think about it. It also depends on where I'm going with my college life too. I'd still like to work on a game though; I just have to think about the plot.

I did see that OAV, but I can't understand most the Japanese so I didn't get half of what's going on. Do you know if anyone's translated it?

I'd friend you if I HAD a livejournal account, but I don't. Maybe I should think about getting one...

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Fushigi-Rockna In reply to mystryl-shada [2006-11-20 23:29:52 +0000 UTC]

Ahhh, I can understand the not wanting to deal with gay stuff thing. The game doesn't really concentrate that much on homosexuality, I mostly just included it because I have a lot of friends who ar either gay or bi, and for a long time I thought dating sims should include the option of being such for people who really are. (plus, I felt it would add a level of difficulty to the game. Like if you were tired of doing the game the normal way, you could 'swing in the other direction' and try getting the members of the same sex, which would be harder to do, and thus open more challenges)

It probably won't be that way tho. It all depends on how easy it is to code the thing. I may drop the idea of being able to 'pick your sexuality' if it becomes too tiresome of an idea. I may also have to drop some of the available characters for that same reason. (too much scripting writing, too much coding, etc. etc.)

But it's okay. Take your time thinking about it.

As for the OAV, well I saw it in subtitltes so someone must have traslated it. XP I saw the sub titled version on youtube, so if you're willing to sit through bad quality, it should still be there. I also heard a rumor that the OAVs were on the special edition of the movie that came ot this month (or IS coming out this month...don't know if it did yet o.o; ) but I don't know if that's true or not...


And you should get a lj account, they're actually pretty cool. I held out on getting one for years, but I really like it now that I have one. The memes are fun. XD

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mystryl-shada In reply to Fushigi-Rockna [2006-11-21 00:57:00 +0000 UTC]

Oh, that's right...opening up a whole new gender to date would result in a lot of extra coding to do. That's a good point.
I'm still interested in doing the game. I just probably won't draw anything that makes me uncomfortable. But working on a game still sounds like fun.

There's a subtitled version?!? I haven't found that...I'll have to look. I hope the person I get the DVDs from has that special edition of the movie; I'm not gonna get the cash to buy this stuff myself for a long time.

We'll see about the LJ account. All depends on if I can get enough time to focus on yet another website.

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Fushigi-Rockna In reply to mystryl-shada [2006-11-29 00:20:50 +0000 UTC]

Gah, sorry it took me this long to reply. >> That shows you how often I come on dA. ><

Anyways, you wouldn't be drawing anything bad or what not. Although there's a few dirty lines in the dialogue, I want the game to actually be like Bluebird's Illusion in design (which, btw if you don't know, is a Chinese FMA fangame for the PC, and is also quite illegal. :3) Actually, this is a lovely translation of BBI complete with screenshots: [link]

When the characters appear on screen, they basically stand there as they talk, their poses and facial expressions changing accordingly. There would be some event scene images, but you would never have to draw anything inappropriate. I kinda want the game to have like a rating of T or....PG-13 or something. So the worst would be in the dialogue. ^^

If you want to get an idea, I suggest snooping around the translation of BBI...but if you do that, DON'T READ THE PRIDE ENDING! O_O You'll curse that game as much as I did (which was ALOT). Seriously, I can't imagine anyone being able to come up with something that sad and angsty. O.o


BTW, BTW, off topic of the game for a moment, and back to the manga. In the manga, isn't it the North country (Drachma?) that Amestris has a non-aggresion treaty of sorts with? (I know one of the countries it does) Well, Amestris tends to reflect Nazi-Germany, what with a leader known as the Fuhrer, and human experimentation, and all, and I just remembered something from Social Studies class...
Germany had a non-aggression treaty with Russia: the Nazi-Soviet Non-Agression pact.
Germany broke this pact and invaded Russia later.
Eep...

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mystryl-shada In reply to Fushigi-Rockna [2006-11-29 01:54:52 +0000 UTC]

I'd still be hesitant about connecting myself with even dialogue like that, but if it's not gonna be too bad, we'll see.

Yeah, I've heard about Bluebird's Illusion. I did read all about it and the various endings. The artwork's gorgeous in the game, but I thought all the endings stank. Heck, the story itself wasn't that well thought out. Why on earth would Edward be hired on as the Fuhrer's secretary? Also, his dad was never the one behind the Homonculous; that was just someone who looked like him. There really was no satisfactory ending too; the whole thing was written by and for people who thrive off constant angst. I'm more a funny and optimistic person myself, which is probably why I like the manga way more (I've now seen through episode 48 of the anime). The concept of Ed becoming a homonculus was the most original thing I'd heard about it, but I didn't like how the game ended up pulling it off. Just more random angst. If there'd been even one good ending, I might have had more hope for the game.
So basically, if you're gonna do another fan game, go for the funny! ^_^ I don't mind a few angsty endings, but when all of them stink, the game's no fun at all.

Yeah, funny how that parallelism works. ^_~ The manga world doesn't have a connection/door to our WWII world like the anime, but there's still some interesting coorelation. Since everything's coming down to a border despute with Drachma, I'm not gonna be suprised if Amestris breaks the border treaty...especially after seeing how the last chapter that came out in Japan ended.

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Fushigi-Rockna In reply to mystryl-shada [2006-11-29 02:54:16 +0000 UTC]

Funny is exactly what I'm going for. ;3 Which is why there's a few dirty lines: those lines are perverted humour. And really, the one saying these lines 99% of the time, is Gate-chan. XP

I.e. in the beginning when you're at the Gate, Gate-chan inquires as to who you have a crush on or anything (doesn't affect anything in the game) and if you choose Kimbley he goes "Want some boom-boom in the bed I take it?"
Although Kimbley isn't an available character. He's just on the list for the people who like him XP
And if you choose Hughes, Gate-chan straight out calls you a homewrecking whore.

So other than comments like that, the only other dirty thing thus far is that the Gate Babies steal the player's panties in the beginning (although you don't see this - you just hear the warning from Gate-chan, the Gate Babies squeal with glee, and after the first scene in the alchemic world, the player confirms that they're gone, although you rarely ever see 'yourself' in the game, so of course, the checking isn't shown either XP) and the first time you open up the 'crack door' a gatebaby is wearing them on his head. O.o

Once again, I'm looking at a Teen/PG-13 rating.

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Jkuo [2006-11-18 01:09:34 +0000 UTC]

this is great! i find group pictures hard to do, you did a good job i like ed's expression

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mystryl-shada In reply to Jkuo [2006-11-18 02:52:52 +0000 UTC]

Groups are tricky, but I'm starting to get better at them. Ed's not Ed unless he has a priceless expression, lol. ^_~

Thanks for the comment!

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Krazy-Kupo [2006-11-17 17:33:04 +0000 UTC]

Finding .. it ..hard to ... breath so ... awesome *faints from the awesomeness*.

Aww no Hughes, but on the plus side Edward looks really cool in an army uniform!

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mystryl-shada In reply to Krazy-Kupo [2006-11-17 19:38:32 +0000 UTC]

Glad Ed in a uniform could make up for the Hughes-lessness of the pic. ^_~ Thanks for the comment! I'm glad you enjoy the pic so much!

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The-Love-Monk [2006-11-17 14:16:43 +0000 UTC]

T_T no Hughes? But Hughes ish my favorite. *whimper*
... it's still really good though. ^^ *fave*

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mystryl-shada In reply to The-Love-Monk [2006-11-17 19:37:45 +0000 UTC]

Yeah, no Hughes. He's my favorite too, but he didn't fit in the timeline here. I'll probably do a pic just for him though, because he's that cool and he needs a tribute.

Thanks for the comment! I'm glad you like!

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Malicious-Ninja [2006-11-17 13:10:42 +0000 UTC]

Awsome job

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mystryl-shada In reply to Malicious-Ninja [2006-11-17 19:37:03 +0000 UTC]

Thanks a ton!

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JacobX In reply to ??? [2006-11-17 08:48:28 +0000 UTC]

Looks awesome
(says the guy who hasn't seen FMA yet x.x)

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mystryl-shada In reply to JacobX [2006-11-17 19:36:52 +0000 UTC]

Thanks! I'm glad it looks good even to those who haven't seen the series.

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Riri-Sama In reply to ??? [2006-11-17 08:28:52 +0000 UTC]

Wooh first one to comment ^^

neways, it looks great *thumbs up*

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mystryl-shada In reply to Riri-Sama [2006-11-17 19:36:30 +0000 UTC]

Thanks! ^_^

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