FullMetal Alchemist {FMA for short} is a franchise that follows two young brothers in an alternate European universe, shortly after industrialization, in which Alchemy is a common practice, and was weaponized for a country at war. There are some rules to alchemy; you can’t create something out of nothing, in order to create, something of equal value must be lost, and human transmutation is strictly forbidden. The aforementioned brothers lose their mother to sickness sometime after their father had left. Grief-stricken, the brothers Edward and Alphonse attempt to re-create their mother’s body and bring her soul back from the dead. The cost? Literally and arm and a leg, plus Al’s entire body. And thus begins the story of FullMetal Alchemist...
The franchise started out as a manga, then spawned an Anime simply called FullMetal Alchemist, which only loosely followed the manga. With a movie, two games, some light novels and drama CDs in between, a second re-adaption of the story titled FullMetal Alchemist: Brotherhood was created, following the manga almost verbatim.
Story: 10/10
The plot, to this day, is still very original. It’s not every day you hear about brothers wanting to get their bodies back, Alchemy also isn’t a very widespread theme in anime. The author obviously went to great lengths to do her research on the subjects of the anime, and utilized her vast imagination to create supernatural themes and plot twists. The story is very well written, very thought out, and portrayed very well. It progresses nicely throughout the anime, with next to no fillers.
With an episode count of 64, it would seem that the anime elongates the story, but not so. The concepts of FullMetal Alchemist could be a little difficult to understand without the proper explanations. No, I’m not saying there’s episodes full of lecture, I’m saying that most of the explanations are portrayed by example an realizations. That is a HUGE plus for me. I don’t think there’s anything more irritating than the characters explaining the obvious, or voicing what they’re figuring out all the time, as if the audience is stupid. The only minor gripe I have is that it pulls a bit of a Dragon Ball Z towards the end. And by that I mean, fights take episodes to conclude. It’s very minor, though, and understandable as the battles become more difficult and the length of them is nowhere near comparable to DBZ or even Naruto, so I hope it wouldn’t be an issue enough to cause someone to not finish this great anime.
Animation: 10/10
FMA is animated beautifully. There are differences in the facial features of the characters. Child characters look young in the face as well. One of my favorite animation features is that as the characters developed, you could see it in their physical stature. Also, the artist is good at portraying emotions in the eyes, which couldn’t be more useful in this emotionally charged anime. The backgrounds were drawn and painted beautifully, they almost looked 3D. What really perfected this score is the all the opening and ending credits being animated so beautifully and creatively. All with a cherry on top.
Sound: 9/10
All of the opening and ending songs were pretty unique and captured the tone of the manga during specific seasons perfectly. The music was composed nicely, and went with the current emotions of the anime at the perfect times. However, the same segments of the same songs were used over and over and over again, and it got a little annoying after a while.
Characters: 10/10
Each and every character is unique, with their own little trademarks. The characters meshed well together, even the antagonists. If the characters weren’t how they are, then I don’t think FMA would be half as good as it is. Plot progressed because of character’s motives and resolve, they weren’t just pawns to utilize to get an idea across. They were far from dry, and I found myself getting attached to each and every one of them. If you’ve read any of my reviews before, then you should know that I’m quite fond of character development, and that’s quite abundant in this anime. And as I’ve stated previously; changes in the character’s physical appearance correlated with the change in the character’s character.
Overall: 9.8/10
But why not a perfect 10, Melodux? It’s such a good anime! It is, but if you had read my review up to this point, then you would know that it’s not a perfect anime. I am fully aware that some people are much more critical of anime than I, and would get QUITE annoyed with the minor gripes I had made, and stop watching it. What makes it a good anime? Its originality and the way everything is tied together so well. Story and characters work in harmony, the animation make the portrayal of the story easy on the eyes, and the music adds finishing touches to make it all complete.
Melodux’s Musings – Why you should watch this version as well as the original: First off, I count the first animated edition of FullMetal Alchemist the “original,” because it came out before Brotherhood. Brotherhood was a good idea to keep the franchise going, and if you’re looking to skip out on reading the lengthy manga, watching Brotherhood is a good way to do it. I bet you’re thinking “OK, so if I watch this, then I have the gist of everything, right? Why would I want to watch the original?” or “I’ve watched Brotherhood, and it’s amazing, nothing will compare, I won’t even look at the original!” BOTH STORIES ARE EQUALLY AS GOOD: the original follows the manga until about the middle of the story and is an equally interesting re-telling of the story. Consider it an “alternate ending” of sorts. If you like the characters and themes in Brotherhood, then the original will be just as good. Conversely, if you enjoyed the characters and themes in the original, then prepare for a more detailed, enhanced animated version of the story while watching Brotherhood.
