Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (2009)

Watchseries; Absolute perfection, at its finest.. I can't describe how it made me feel. I have been excited to watch this anime for a long time but this is amazing.

Watch it.

Now.

DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND?

I SAID WATCH IT.

Absolute perfection, at its finest.. I can't describe how it made me feel. I have been excited to watch this anime for a long time but this is amazing.

Watch it.

Now.

DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND?

I SAID WATCH IT.

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood watchseries. I love everything about this. The plot, the characters, the visuals, the humor, the soundtrack, heck even the villains. This anime explores so many important themes; science and the ethics behind it, war and how to cope with it, brotherhood and family, death, love, hope, philosophy and so much more. This is the first and only anime that made me cry over a villain. This anime hits you with so many feelings. I love the world, love the characters and the diversity in them. Unlike the original FMA 03, this explores most characters very thoroughly. And man can I say the voice acting is insanely AWESOME! And yes I'm talking about the dubbed version (I admit I'll never watch this subbed). The conclusion is, if you're an anime fan, this is a must to watch. This anime is just beyond amazing and I never get tired of this.

I have seen both versions of Fullmetal Alchemist (Brotherhood) and both are good. In the first version (Fullmetal Alchemist), the first half of the series is really good. The fight between Edward Elric & Roy Mustang and the State Alchemist test taken by Edward Elric are notable ones. In second half, the story takes lots of twists and turns and I find it's not as impressive as the first half.

The second version (Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood) is sticking to manga and has the soul of the original story. It is an all-rounded anime with tightly knit fantastic story, humorous, action packed, dark at times and entertaining. In first half, character introduction, funny moments, action sequence, ends with almost no hope situation for our heroes. In second half, the story takes it's fast pace with more action and nail biting moments.

The decisions/resolutions taken by the Elric brothers at each step of their journey are clearly justified. All characters had their importance in the series, even the cute little panda and Yogi had their importance in moving the story forward. Usually when a character is introduced in the middle of a series, it stay far too superior/inferior to rest of the characters. But I like the way Olivier Mira Armstrong and Lin Yao gang introduced in the series.

Sometimes when I think of watching something, I start with any one particular scene in this series and ended up watching till the very end of the series. I don't remember how many times I watched it.

I have seen many anime in all genre (comedy, drama, action, adventure, thriller, slice of life, bloody ones, etc.) and in my opinion, Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood is the best in overall. So I give 10 out of 10.

When people asks me to suggest something to watch, I recommend this series without blinking. Either they say Animation is for kids or series are lengthy to watch without knowing how Japanese anime differs from Western animation. I would say one thing, watch at least couple of episodes and then you will understand why I recommend this series.

Suggestion: The first episode is more of an quick introduction of main casts. The actual story starts in episode 2. So it is OK to skip episode 1. Japanese audio is better than English audio.

Other suggested Animes: Cowboy Bebop, Death Note, Code Geass, Steins Gate, Hunter X Hunter, Attack on Titans, Samurai Champloo, Great Teacher Onizuka, Parasyte, One Punch Man (season 1), Boku no Hero Academia, Ghost in the shell (both movies & series, have complex plot), Shigurui (only adults, watch only if you are OK with violence & sex)

Having been an avid fan of the first Fullmetal Alchemist series, i was highly apprehensive on hearing about this reboot, but the more i found out about the series, the more excited i became. I've always been a fan of the Manga, and the new series is being based completely of the manga storyline. This had be hooked, so i waited nervously for the first episode.

The new series features better artwork that resembles Arakawa's style more closely than the last series. There is more humour, especially Ed transmuting a spear-head into his face. There is a new soundtrack, which admittedly, at times doesn't work greatly, but with some getting used too, i'm sure it will grow on me. Overall, i feel this series is a fantastic reboot, and is verging on turning Fullmetal Alchemist into the series it should always have been.

Ill explain why this is the best series ever made and why i feel worthy of judging that.

*Note that English isn't my native tongue* I've been addicted to series for like... forever. I could probably list at least 50 full series I've seen from all kinds.

If i told myself 10 years ago or so that the best series i would ever see was an Anime i wouldn't have believed it.

This series made me laugh out loud, cry and bring up pretty much every part of human emotion possible. The characters and story are pretty much flawless and there is little to none loose ends. There isn't a "stormy" story curve as many series suffer from - where the intro - mid part or ending is to short , to long or rushed. The pace through the entire anime is good.

The series does not suffer either from things like to slow riddles-to-answers rate (Lost *cough*) or to fast story.

All characters are developed in a brilliant way through the series.

Of all movies and shows I've seen in my lifetime - if i would have to recommend one single series to someone it would be this one without hesitation.

If i had an enemy i hated in real life more than anything - even i wouldn't be so cruel as to deny that person to see this show. I could deny them food instead and it would be merciful. Thats how good this show is.

One thing that was a major concern early on was that this show would be to childish and silly. Don't be deceived, it is very mature and some elements are even horrifying.

This is one of the only shows I've ever seen, where i haven't been able to personally come up with better ideas on how to make it.

Perfection.

See it.

I also recommend original Japanese voices with English text for best experience.

Fullmetal Alchemist is, in a way, unique. It is very much a mainstream series, with the appeal of a huge cast of unique characters, action that commonly involves special powers, a fairly straight forward story with some mostly obvious symbolism, and a mix of comedy, action, drama, and even some romance. These are all common staples of long running anime series that lean towards a more commercial and public appeal. And yet, for a mainstream series, it manages to continually surprise with a very mature and serious tone. There is a great deal of tragedy and some moments are even frightening and memorable. Few series achieve such a perfect balance of mainstream entertainment and gut wrenching drama and tragedy.

Such was what I discovered when I first laid my eyes on the original FMA series. And yet, for all it's greatness, it began to flounder in it's second season. As many series do, it took on its own form and story, and it was at that point that it started to lose its charm. So, Bones did the smart thing. They remade it. For most series, this would be pointless, but for FMA, it's very much welcome. Five years after the original series ended and the manga has had time to grow, this new FMA is better looking, paced better, and follows the manga, expanding the plot in a better direction.

It's hard not to like anything about this new FMA. The action is fantastic and looks great, as it always did. We aren't subjected to single shots or poorly edited sequences. All the action is displayed and wonderfully animated. Likewise, all the charm is here as well, from the more serious scenes that fans will remember to the humor which is consistent and still funny. Bones took everything good about the original series and threw out all the bad, replacing those particulars with higher quality details. In a sense, it even feels like a new anime, and by episode 13, it has gone in a completely new direction.

A better developed story and characters, superior animation, and fantastic details. These are what make the new FMA an instant new-age classic. Like FMA was the first time around, the new FMA will be one of the top anime to watch out for in the states.