Fullmetal Alchemist

Edward Elric, a young, brilliant alchemist, has lost much in his twelve-year life: when he and his brother Alphonse try to resurrect their dead mother through the forbidden act of human transmutation, Edward loses his brother as well as two of his limbs. With his supreme alchemy skills, Edward binds Alphonse's soul to a large suit of armor.

A year later, Edward, now promoted to the fullmetal alchemist of the state, embarks on a journey with his younger brother to obtain the Philosopher's Stone. The fabled mythical object is rumored to be capable of amplifying an alchemist's abilities by leaps and bounds, thus allowing them to override the fundamental law of alchemy: to gain something, an alchemist must sacrifice something of equal value. Edward hopes to draw into the military's resources to find the fabled stone and restore his and Alphonse's bodies to normal. However, the Elric brothers soon discover that there is more to the legendary stone than meets the eye, as they are led to the epicenter of a far darker battle than they could have ever imagined.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Elric, Edward Main

Park, Romi Japanese

Elric, Alphonse Main

Kugimiya, Rie Japanese

Mustang, Roy Supporting

Ookawa, Tooru Japanese

Hughes, Maes Supporting

Fujiwara, Keiji Japanese

Greed Supporting

Suwabe, Junichi Japanese

Hawkeye, Riza Supporting

Neya, Michiko Japanese

Rockbell, Winry Supporting

Toyoguchi, Megumi Japanese

Armstrong, Alex Louis Supporting

Utsumi, Kenji Japanese

Envy Supporting

Yamaguchi, Mayumi Japanese

Hohenheim, Van Supporting

Ebara, Masashi Japanese

Cook, Justin Producer

Minami, Masahiko Producer

Watson, Barry Producer

Maruyama, Hiroo Producer

Reviews

Jul 21, 2025

yasoqwes

Recommended

Overall the anime is really good. I like how they don’t overuse alchemy, it feels more realistic and balanced. The series has its own unique style which makes it stand out.

I really enjoyed the side characters as well. The theme of brotherhood between Edward and Al is very well portrayed and emotional. Their journey through hardship and loss made the story unforgettable and deeply moving.

The series tackles heavy themes like sacrifice, morality, and the meaning of humanity in a natural and thought-provoking way. The atmosphere shifts perfectly between dark and serious moments and warmer, lighter scenes, which keeps the story balanced.

The soundtrack fits the mood ... perfectly, enhancing both the intense action scenes and the heartfelt emotional moments. Even though it’s an older anime, the animation still holds up well and supports the story beautifully.

The pacing is just right to keep you hooked, blending action, drama, and character growth smoothly. Despite having a different ending from the manga, it’s definitely a series worth watching.

Reviewer’s Rating: 9

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Apr 14, 2022

Fireky2

Mixed Feelings

I've only ever seen an anime fall off this hard one other time in my life, and it was guilty crown. The story follows two brothers who have committed the crime of being children with magic who want their mom back.

Alchemy is explained surprisingly little for being the central power system. The laws around it are explained in detail the process itself is explained as "tectonic plates or something" until the last few epsiodes, which are honestly not great. Overall if it interests you the show treats alchemy like a cooking blog where they tell you the cooks life story, where each ingredient comes from, ... the warranty of the stove and at the end it tells you how to make toast with peanutbutter.

It sounds like I hate it but its a genuinely great anime with good themes, it did a good job of explaining the world (by world I mean the one country) and the frame of mind it is in. The main characters get a lot more characterization compared to brotherhood as well.

I'm going to end with an out of context spoiler that will make no sense if you haven't watched it but I figure I should warn you. Why did they send them to post world war one Germany? They know whats about to happen their right??

Watch the followup movie if you watch this it almost saves the ending

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Jun 17, 2025

JaesDBreigh

Not Recommended

Funny

Boy oh boy this was so bad I had to come out of retirement just to write a review. Outside of nostalgia… simply put, this isn’t a good anime.

I rewatched this to see if my memories were accurate. They weren’t. Which means most people’s aren’t. This… was pretty bad.

Let’s start with the basics: character development. Or rather, the lack of it. Edward and Alphonse remain emotionally immature and narratively static throughout the series. After 51 episodes of death, destruction, betrayal, and trauma, they’re still acting like they just stepped off the playground. You’d expect some genuine transformation, but instead, the story leans heavily on their ... initial guilt and refuses to evolve past it. They don’t live in the present for anything, constantly trying to fix the past….from start…to finish. For a plot this long, the character development around them and the other characters are weak; and truth be told a lot of the characters are boring as bones.

The spoiler free ending? Not even worth the build up. It tries to be emotional, but what we get is contrived separation and empty resolution. It’s a wet firecracker finish after a slow-burning fuse.

Now, the villain logic. The antagonist’s ahhh killing thousands to gain power and live a little longer…feels like rejected notes from a Saturday morning cartoon. It’s mass murder dressed up in philosophical jargon. There’s no nuance, no believable motivation, just “evil for the sake of plot.” It’s not deep, it’s lazy. All of the villains, not well written. Cheap.

The world logic also fails under scrutiny. You’re telling me no one, not citizens, soldiers, or supposed “wise” characters, noticed the military flaws or puppet works? That’s not dystopia; that’s plot convenience. Even the background characters in Attack on Titan had more awareness than this.

And let’s not ignore the bloated episode count. 51 episodes for a story that could’ve been told in 24, maybe 26. So much of the run-time is filler drama and shallow philosophical monologues. The pacing is inconsistent, and the momentum collapses every few episodes. Tight storytelling would’ve amplified the emotional beats if they had any.

Final Thoughts: Fullmetal Alchemist has become a sacred cow in the anime community, but nostalgia doesn’t equal quality. If you strip away the legacy and merchandise, what you’re left with is a slow, padded, emotionally stagnant series with weak logic and underwhelming payoff. A solid premise wasted. No merit in watching this after 2024 unless you want to view a museum exhibit, or simply mark it off on the done list.

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

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