Let's Talk Anime : Everything Fullmetal Alchemist

Ok This week I talk about Fullmetal Alchemist, an anime that creates itself a unique setting that if plagiarised would be easily caught. I like this series and the newer version Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood which is essentially same thing but closer to the manga. Well it's this weeks choice.

Fullmetal Alchemist is the story of 2 boys, Alphonse and Edward Elric who are alchemists in a world where alchemy became the 1 true science and in an attempt to resurrect their mother Alphonse lost his body and Edward lost his left leg. Edward then gave up his Right arm to bring back the soul of his brother and bind it to a suit of armor. Now the brothers Elric are on a quest to find the legendary Philosopher's Stone, the one piece of alchemic material that has no laws of equivalent exchange bounded to it so they can restore their bodies back to normal. Also Edward has new prosthetic limbs called Automail which is why he got the title Fullmetal during an exam he took to become a state certified alchemist.

The story has a whole lot of stuff going on in it and for those who want the basic story start condensed should watch FMA Brotherhood. I love this anime. Mainly because of the world in which they live intrigues me and the story is well written. Admittedly the story of the original run series is a bit of a hike to get through but it is enjoyable and the new FMA Brotherhood, while condensed during the first 10 or so episodes does have some extras to it, plus people who watched the original will notice a lot of differences. The characters in the series are enjoyable and the villains are complex while being easy to read. The series is very story driven but it does have some action in it. I like it for the story more then the action and I also liked the movie which didn't feel like it was there to squeeze money out of fans, but to finish the story in a satisfying conclusion. The OVA on the other hand was a was of money! No new content worth talking about at all. It was released to squeeze money out of fanboys and I fell for it as well. Trust me don't bother wasting money on it because the videos on it are a virtual tour of duty as an alchemist, a stupid video of an Alphonse statue in Japan, a chibi rap up part for the FMA movie and a short with 3 kids who look like kid versions of Al, Ed and Whinry going to visit Grandpa Edward Elric aged 100 and you see a bunch of look alikes of characters from the series at different ages, nothing special at all.

FMA is a great series in my opinion and FMA Brotherhood is good as well but you are forgiven if you don't want it since you own the original and movie. It's a series that targets mid teens and up and I recommend both series when FMA Brotherhood gets released. I still say avoid the OVA unless you want it for collections sake.