Fullmetal Alchemist

I was sick last year (2005 this is '06) for three days straight. So as a result I ended up 'channel surfing' all day and all night. I didn't get ANY sleep.

Eventually I turned the channel onto Adult Swim. Mostly because I had seen the title Full Metal Alchemist and was drawn in. I remembered the myths about alchemy although vaguely mostly from random books I had read.

The episode I ended up watching was the exam episode which should've been the actual beginning to the series but is actually around the third or fourth episode.

And was hooked. I had thought that anime was a useless Japanese art form. Man was I wrong! Intriguing storyline AND amazing animation. This was an aspiring animators dream world.

I ended up spending the rest of the year watching all the episodes on Adult Swim...I'd even wake up in the morning and think Full Metal Alchemist's on tonight! And plan my day accordingly. I also ended up buying the Manga which if you have cash to burn and love the series you should do so.

The story itself is pretty straightforward at first and seems almost like Inu Yasha where there's the same premise behind every episode but that's only for a little while until you know the characters and than it starts adding to the background situations starts to show whats really going on and whats really behind their quest.

The animation in itself just adds to the story with the rich backgrounds and the amazing fights.

Overall this would be a good anime to start with if your looking for one. There's only 51 episodes, a movie -Full Metal Alchemist and the Conqueror of Shamballa- and a couple of games so it won't burn too big of a hole in your pocket.

Whilst most anime is an acquired taste, falling into the fighting (think Dragonball or Bleach) magical girl (Sailor Moon) or romantic (Chobits) genres, Fullmetal Alchemist rises above all this. As the story gradually unfolds, you are drawn ever deeper into a believable alternative world where magic replaces science and its practitioners (Alchemists) are held in high esteem. Yet, few are what they seem and you cannot trust anybody. The good are, in fact, capable of deeds of great evil, and the bad are often doing what they do for good reasons. And just when you think you're getting a handle on it, something comes along that shocks you in such a way you are left thinking about it for days to come. Whilst there are obviously anime elements (the look, fighting segments) the story and, above all, the willingness to shock the audience by hurting and killing characters we have come to know and admire, make Fullmetal Alchemist well worth your time. Of course, you will have to invest a lot of time - 51 half hour episodes and a movie means 26 hours or so of viewing. But it is time well worth spending.

I might as well just come right out and say it to start with--I have never been a fan of Anime. In general, I watch it if it happens to be on, but more as background noise than for the actual plot content. But this series changed my mind about all that.

The first few episodes I watched were on Adult Swim. I liked the idea of magic being explained in a (somewhat) scientific fashion, so I found recordings of the aired episodes online (with subtitles) with the intention of watching them whenever I was bored.

I say without shame that I, who have not watched more than a half hour of anime in a single sitting, watched all fifty-one episodes in a single sitting. And it had me sitting on the edge of my seat every time. When a few of the episodes were corrupted, I even edited the videos manually with a hex editor to get them to play properly.

I was really turned off to Anime originally because of the way the Japanese animators use frame rates. You only really need one or two frames per second to show movement--and this contrasts with the relatively constant frame rate in American cartoons. It can look rather ugly if you're not used to it. For action scenes, though, they bring out the full 30fps, and the sudden contrast between 2fps, with the character standing there, and 30fps, where the character is executing these stunning martial arts moves, is an incredible sight to see.

But I would like to say that this series is a complete series. The last episode does, in fact, contain the conclusion--no premature terminations here. Most anime contains a "Lead-out" which gives the viewer something to think about. It makes it seem more like the characters are still doing something, still living, even after the series is over. I must say that makes the end of the series even harder to bear, because believe it or not, it's like saying goodbye to a close friend.

This series has definitely had a major impact on me. It is worth the time (or money) to acquire it. I wouldn't recommend watching all fifty-one episodes together like I did. The intrigue of the plot is intended to hit the viewers like a hammer, and it keeps them coming back week after week. If you watch them all together, it begins and ends so quickly you feel like you've been hit by a truck when it finally DOES end.

Full Metal Alchemist is a prime example of excellent story writing. It'll make you laugh and maybe even make a few of you cry, but one thing it won't do is leave you disappointed.

When I had heard that Fullmetal Alchemst, one of the most popular cartoons in Japan was coming to America, I must admit, I was a bit excited.

I had heard about it many times form several of my friends who were die-hard fans of anime of any kind. I myself am not a particularly big fan of anime - I enjoy one every so often, but this absolutely blew me away.

The tragic story is of the two Elric brothers, Edward and Alphonse ("Al" for short). In a tragic accident, their mother is killed. Devastated, the boys decide to use the ancient art of Alchemy to bring her back to life - but there's one complication: The main rule of Alchemy. This rule of "Equivalent exchange" states that "Nothing can be gained without first losing something of equal value." The boys succeed in resurrecting their mother, but at a horrible cost - Edward's left leg is taken, as is Al's body. Desperate to restore his brother's life, Edward uses his own blood to inscribe an Alchemic circle in a suit of armor, binding Alphonse's soul to the metal. In doing so, he makes yet another sacrifice - his right arm is lost to the demons of the abyss.

To recap - Ed loses his right arm and right leg, and Alphonse's body is taken. Now, you'd think that would be an equivalent enough exchange - two body parts and a whole body for their mother's life. But then you'd be wrong, of course. The thing they bring back is not their mother, but an inhuman creature composed of hastily put-together body parts - something that is human and yet not human. An abomination that cannot move or think on its own. From that point on, Ed and Al set out to learn the secret of "Human Transmutation," the one Alchemic skill that would have any hope of bringing back their mother. But at a cost that they may be unwilling to accept...

Overall, the series is gripping. Well-written dialogue, intense plot, and the best voice acting I've heard in a television series in a long time. Vic Mignogna, the actor who plays Ed in the American cast is absolutely brilliant - the voice he provides is believable and emotionally charged, a task most voice actors tend to fail miserably at. Aaron Dismuke, the voice of the 14-year-old Alphonse is excellent as well - not only does the irony of an adolescent voice coming from a six-foot-tall suit of armor succeed in getting a few chuckles, but the voice represents the character well. The voice acting brings the characters to life in a way that no other anime ever has before.

Overall, it's an incredible series. I'd recommend this to anime fans, and fans of fantasy or sci-fi of any kind (unless you just can't stand Japanese cartoons). FullMetal Alchemist is definitely one of the best television series out there.

This series has one of the most amazing endings I've ever seen...ANYWHERE. Out the half dozen other people I know who've seen the entire series, not one of us was able to even come close to guessing the ending. FMA reminds me a bit of Harry Potter just in that, in both series, you have 1) child prodigies, 2) engrossing character growth and plot development, and 3) a story that individuals of all ages can appreciate and enjoy. One thing I appreciated and enjoyed very much about the series is that it's like one long fable--there's moral after moral after moral. As a side-note, it's one of the only animes that I've seen which spans several years, allowing for a lot more character growth and focus on the players in the story than is typically seen in most animes. Probably the single best anime that I've ever seen, and certainly in my Top 10 favorite stories of all time. Like Harry Potter though, it may at first appear to be a kids' story, but toward the end it's oriented more toward adults. Highly recommended.