FanficRecs -a little review-
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
After power reading through all eight existing chapters, it became very clear that "-little big bang-" deserved to be mentioned on TV Tropes. Ars Poetica makes every leap and bound necessary to construct a flawed character while giving insights into said character's past with small snippets at the beginning of each chapter.
Moreover, he is an author of firsts. He is the first author to give Guiche Derflinger, the first author to have Louise pull a Puppy Dog Eyes, and the first author to have Kirche brutally raped. And they haven't even met Fouquet, yet!
Character development is present in each chapter as we observe a more, arguably, canonical version of Louise deal with an increasingly irritating Selim. His similarities to Kimblee have sparked more than one discussion and have constructed an ever-increasing mystery.
However, there are clearly certain moments where YMMV applies. There are certainly moments where Selim seems a little too good to be true, but it is the author's dispassionate and realistic cruelty to his characters that makes it work on a level rarely seen.
This Troper gives "-little big bang-" an 8.5 out of 10 and believes it is well deserving of a Trope Page, despite its youth.
FanficRecs Darker and Edgier done right
Well, first, you should know that this story is a good case of Cerebus Syndrome: as it progresses, it becomes slowly darker.
This is actually a good thing. Basically, the story's tone is that of Fullmetal Alchemist, not the other universe. There are very, VERY depressing moments. Selim Bradley is a lot more anti-heroic than Ed, some backstories like Kirche's are reinterpreted for the worse, and one villain in particular went from bad and creepy to a really frightening Complete Monster. You're warned.
But on the other hand, the Character Development for the different characters is handed very well, some ideas are very interesting, and there is still humor.
So, if you like dark but good stories, this one will captivate you.