And to sum it up it is one of "the" best anime out there and is definitely a must watch for everybody who loves anime. But writing just that would not be doing justice to the series, so moving on...
I would say that the initial pacing was a bit rushed, which seemed like they were trying to skip over the parts that were shown in FMA. This might have been looked upon as bad move but then it seems to be justifiable since they didn't want to send a message to the viewers that the series was exactly the same as before. The only drawback this had (the initial pacing) in my opinion was the lack of emotion and attachment to certain characters in the beginning, which was there in the first anime. The story's pace became normal from episode 10 or so and it managed to tell the story with little or no confusion at all.
The plot is one of the best I've seen in a very long time with cleverly built up twists and turns everywhere. It is one of those series you could say was planned from bottom to top and unlike a lot of other anime's out there, it tied all the loose threads perfectly giving you a wonderful wholesome picture of the story at the end.
The characters were portrayed very well and with appropriate depth so that by the end of the series you may feel attached to the people in it. Everyone had a rich story on their side and motives that drive them which meant that there are very few people you would come to dislike, unless the story demands it of course. There are also plenty of new characters that provide further depth to the series. The older characters like Mustang, Scar and Wrath are even more awesome and have been portrayed much more detailed than before.
The animation and voice acting are very well done and it does justice to the scenes portrayed. The art as a matter of fact is more detailed and portrays the characters in much better shade than earlier. Action scenes are brilliantly choreographed and most if all the Opening, Ending songs are awesome. The Background Music if any are used appropriately and is not overused at all (in the sense that, it is not used to give emotions to scenes when its just not there).
Overall this is one anime tuned to perfection! And I repeat the fact that to sum it up its one of the best anime out there and everyone should definitely give it a go! 10/10
