For some reason I always end up thinking "Full Metal Alchemist" when I think of this show's name... I like how they decided to turn the Roman numeral for IV (4) into an acronym although I don't really count Fumoffu as a season because, it was based on a separate light novel series comprised of light-hearted comedy short stories (still a fun show).

It's been over a decade since both the main light novel series ended and the last season "Second Raid" was aired. This season picks up from there and covers volumes 7 - 9 of the 12 volume main light novels or, volumes 4 - 11 of the 19 volume "Full Metal Panic: Sigma" Manga published by Dragon Age Comics. Obviously since it's been so long I was a bit hazy about what the show was about and this new season doesn't waste any time on recapping the prequels unlike say Code Geass that got movies for a recap. It's quite odd they chose to pick up on the series again when most fans will probably have forgotten the story already and, the light novel series was finished about 5 years after Second Raid in 2010 so that might have been a better time to pick it up again.

The story tells of a young man named Sousuke Sagara who is assigned by the secret organisation Mithril to protect a game named Kaname Chidori who is known as a "Whispered" which allows them to subconciously possess extremely advance technical intellect that can turn the tide in modern day warfare and naturally, there are organisations out there that want her just for that talent. After things looked like they were settling down again, Sousuke is reminded that it's unlikely Chidori will ever have a normal life. As if on cue, their school is suddenly under attack the next day. Not wanting anyone else to get hurt, Chidori allows herself to be taken away while Mithril is almost obliterated. However, that wasn't going to stop the highly skilled, one man army Sousuke in pursuing and finding a way to save her.

You might know the studio from their classics such as Martian Successor Nadesico, Love Hina and D.N. Angel or you might be more familiar with their more recent fan service filled shows such as Triage X and To Love-Ru. FMP has a fair bit of fan service too but I it's not quite as intrusive, just your usual extra shower scenes instead of being bombarded with awkward scenes or camera angles. Animation quality can be a bit rough at times but the art looks like its prequels. This is also probably the first short series that still had to have a recap episode even though it's only 12 episodes long which probably shows how much of a budget or time constraint the studio was on.

For fans of FMP this will be a great throwback to the series including theme songs by Mikuni Shimokawa (great lyrics and tunes). It's a fun action comedy and this season is more romance focused in my opinion. It has it's share of intense action scenes as Sousuke pushes himself to track down Chidori but, I think the main idea is to wrap-up the relationship between Chidori and Sousuke - maybe for the rest of the characters too as they are constantly caught up in secret warfare. In that sense I think it did a good job so it's definitely worth a watch for FMP fans. It's good to see the gang back again even though the scenarios themselves are harsh with little comedy. If you haven't watched the prequels, then I suggest watching them first although you can skip Fumoffu by KyoAni (unless you like a fan service filled comedy) as it's more a fan service comedy show than adding much to the main plot.

Hopefully they will finish off the series and cover the rest of the novels.