Bye FMA! I'll miss you!
It’s going to be a long one. Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood was such a great show which lasted an amazing 64 episodes, so it’s only natural. I trust regular readers won’t mind if I have a lot to say.
Background:
I was originally introduced to Fullmetal Alchemist back in 2005 when one of my friends convinced me to watch it after begging me to watch it every day. While I’ve never been a friend of shounen series I was impressed with what I saw. The characters were interesting, the alchemy was well done, and the world that the show was in was rich and detailed. Still, unlike the vast majority of people who watched this show, I thought it was merely okay. Maybe it was the low quality of the encodes that my friend gave me, or maybe it was because I watched it during exam time, but I never really got into the show that much.
I was put off by the many filler episodes that led nowhere, and was a bit disappointed that the true story was nowhere as ‘epic’ as I thought it would be. It didn’t help that alchemy was increasingly used like a super power as the show progressed. Ultimately though, it was the ending that really put me off as I was massively disappointed with it, so much so that I basically forgot about it pretty quickly.
Fast forward to early last year when I heard that Bones was remaking FMA. I wondered why they were bothering with remaking such a recent series and to be honest, I really didn’t care too much. But as more details began to trickle out I got interested again. The new series would be directed by relative unknown Yasuhiro Irie (who directed one of my favorite shows, Kurau: Phantom Memory) and I also learned that in fact the first show never actually followed the manga after it was about halfway through. Not being much of a manga reader, I was intrigued as I soon heard from all corners that the manga was much better and that the new show would follow closely along with it. Coupled with sure to be 2009-level production values I started to get pretty excited. Once the show started to air, I fell in love with it immediately. From the original OP “again” by Yui (one of my favorite singers) to the much faster pace I quickly became a fan, and so it was an easy decision to start blogging about the show 18 episodes in.
Review:
Brotherhood's world was rich and fascinating and ultimately believable
One of the most important aspects of any fantasy show is the world in which the show is set in. Simply put, unless the world is immersive and has a good internal logic, then the entire fantasy world would be garbage. Many fantasy (and sci-fi) shows fall into a trap where you wonder how this world would ever work in real life, because things were never really thought through. Only in the very best fantasy stories, do you get a completely believable world, where the novelty of having a ‘super power’ (in this case alchemy) is actually believable in the fact that it isn’t too overpowered and that effective counterweights actually exist (even in Harry Potter, you wonder why the bad guys never just vaporate into the good guy’s homes at night and just kill them all while they are sleeping, or like in Star Wars, you wonder why they never shoot a missile at the Jedi instead of shooting them with laser beams that they can reflect). It is even harder though to make a super power be something which isn’t just something that you could easily “power up” because you are more “determined”, and have that power be constrained and even have some intelligence about it. In this way Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood succeeds in every way.
In FMA, alchemy can only be learned with hard work and determination
Alchemy is presented as something which is indeed powerful, but as we soon learn, it takes heavy study to be able to do anything with it. Even though our heroes can easily decompose and recompose things, they can only make simple objects, and if they are unsure of the object’s composition (as evidenced by Ed fighting Buccaneer when they first meet) even the most brilliant alchemists can be flustered. Secondly, the principle of equivalent exchange limits the amount of power our heroes can use, Amestris alchemy being limited by the tectonic plates for instance. Finally, even the most powerful alchemists only have one or two skills that they have completely mastered, and usually there is a way to beat them (even Roy can be beat with some water).
The Gate of Truth managed to be mystical without being hokey
The entire idea of Truth and the Gate of Truth and so on, was also extremely interesting, and added quite a bit to the story. It allowed a lot of mystery to go into the show but it never did sound hockey or tacked on. The world of Amestris was also incredibly well done. From the real-world parallels of racism (Ishbal), to the presence of familiar technology, to good, bad and everything inbetween characters we have a truly functioning society which is incredibly believable and one where you could really root for.
Plot:
This scene showed how intricate the plot of FMA really was
What really separates a great show from any other is a plot which is not only engaging, but which gives the impression that a huge amount of thought went into it from the beginning as you begin to realize that elements from the beginning are actually quite important later on. It doesn’t hurt if the plot also does not rely on any deus ex machina to solve problems, and doesn’t rely too much on manufactured cliffhangers to drag you along. Thankfully Brotherhood did not fall into any of these traps, and indeed surpassed expectations.
Can't believe I was right!
What I really loved about the show was how it was actually possible to predict would could happen if you thought about it hard enough. Witness my prediction back in episode 48 about how Pride could be defeated for instance. Of course what really separates this show is that while it was possible to predict what would happen sometimes, many times there would be an even more interesting and well thought out answer that happens which actually works even better than what I could think of. I think back to how Ed managed to escape from the stomach of Gluttony, or how Hohenheim ultimately defeated Father was so well done.
I for one welcome more RAN FAN side stories
Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood successfully managed to weave in multiple plots into one coherent story. From the story of Ed and Al’s journey to regain their bodies, to Roy’s plan to become the Fuhrer and his brotherhood with Hughes, to the love story between Ed and Winry, to the side stories of Ling Yao, RAN FAN and May Chang, to Kimblee’s return, to the Briggs mayhem, and to the villain turned hero Scar it was brilliant how each of these stories were eventually connected to the true epic story of the show. The epic story which was revealed somewhere in the middle of the show: that of the story of Father and Hohenheim. Everything that happened revolves around the relationship between the two, from the abandonment of Ed and Al which led to them trying to transmute their mother, to Father abusing that love for his own ends, to Roy’s own ambitions being checked by the Homunculus and the death of his friend, and even to the creation of the entire country of Amestris, it all tied in neatly. It was even more brilliant when even Scar’s story was tied into it, as we realized that the entire Ishbal war was in fact manufactured to put Father’s plan into motion. It is not easy to make even one good plot, but to have so many interweaving plotlines mix together seamlessly was pretty amazing to see.
Winry did nothing for 20 episodes, but at least it ended well!
I cannot be all about praise though, as there were a few things that I didn’t like about the show. One thing is that the Winry-Ed romance was pushed out a bit compared to how much screentime Winry had in the original anime. The other was the final Father episodes (62 & 63) which just had the guy sitting around waiting to be pummeled instead of it being a bit more of a fight was a bit of a letdown. Still these were minor things overall for an overall impressive storyline.
It is a testament to the greatness of Arakawa-sensei how such a complicated and interwoven and intelligent plot could be successfully written and executed with the story remaining extremely entertaining and without too many boring “characters sitting around talking” elements that many shows seems to use these days as plot devices. Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood is truly one of the greats.
Some of the most awesome anime fight scenes ever!
Brotherhood also had some of the best and well thought out fight scenes I’ve ever seen in anime. From the sheer quickness and intelligence of the fight when Al first uses his philosopher’s stone, to Olivier’s beatdowns of his little brother and that of Sloth, to the various Wrath fights, to the first big Envy fight, to Mustang roasting Lust, to Barry’s last hurrah, this show really had some totally awesome fights. Contrast this with your typical Gundam melee, and this was really a breath of very fresh air.
Characters:
Pimp Kimblee was a fun villain
No good story is done without good characters, and FMA succeeds incredibly in this respect. Almost every character goes through major development during the long time-frame where this series takes place. No character is purely good or purely evil, and in that way it was even possible to feel bad for and cheer for the “bad guys” in many respects (I even felt a bit sorry for Father at the end). I enjoyed immensely the villains in the form of the Homunculus who each had major flaws, but were also incredibly powerful at the same time. They were all pretty complex characters (maybe except Sloth) and they were fun to watch as they developed over the course of the series. One notable villain is of course Scar. Starting from a one-dimensional Hollywood villain type guy, we learn that he is in fact a very complex individual. As the series progresses, we see incredible growth in his character as he eventually even reaches the stage to tell Mustang that revenge is not all that it’s cracked up to be. Kimblee was also an interesting villain, who while retains much of his love of destruction, actually did have some principles that he abides by in his life up to his last moments when he distracts Pride.
Hands down... best supporting character in the show
As for the good guys, there are too many to name but I’ll focus on my favorite few. Without a doubt one of the best supporting characters in this show was Olivier. From her cutthroat efficiency, to her kicking her little brother’s ass (Nooooo!!) I don’t think anyone could get enough of her. Then of course there’s the complicated man Roy Mustang. From cocky army wunderkid, to dependable general at the end, Roy goes through quite a bit with the death of his best friend and realizing his love of his comrades (and of course his lieutenant). Then of course there’s quite possibly the best character in the show… RAN FAN. She started off as awesomely gluttonous and totally awesome, but unfortunately was a bit sidelined near the end of the show. There was also a huge supporting cast of characters, from Dr. Knox to Yoki which kept the show super epic. One supporting character that I’m a bit disappointed in as previously mentioned is Winry. I really feel like there wasn’t much time dedicated to her, and because she really is so important to Ed and Al, it would have been nice if she had a bigger role. She had a pretty important role up until Ed didn’t let her shoot Scar, and then she kind of became a token character who was only important because she grounded the Elric brothers to home.
Olivier came a close second, but I like younger women!
In terms of the principles, we have the epic confrontation between Father and Hohenheim. In many ways, they were one and the same, but yet not. Made from the blood of Slave 23, the original Homunculus is crafty and devious, and with his knowledge from beyond gives Hohenheim his name and his freedom. Like Hohenheim he urges for freedom but goes about it in the most evil ways possible. As if an anti-Hohenheim, he even mocks Hohenheim’s want of family by creating children of his own and then discarding them when their use was up. Still, Hohenheim does reflect and think back to his nemesis and companion when Father is defeated and remembers the times they had together.
Was so happy when this happened...
No character discussion would be complete without discussing our two principle players in the story: Ed and Al. Fullmetal Alchemist is a story about them growing up and learning about the world. Although Brotherhood did leave out a lot of their wonder while exploring the world (which was more prominent in the first series) and focused more closely on plot, we still get a sense of how much the two kids progressed in the show. Ed started off extremely cocky and sure that his alchemy powers could solve anything and that he could fight anyone. As the show progressed, we really see his cockiness slowly decreasing from his attempt to transmute his mother onwards. Time after time, Al realizes the limits of what power can achieve, and the horror of finding the truth about Philosopher’s Stones changes him for the better. By the end of the show, we have someone who is willing to give up his most important attribute to save his brother, something which would have been hard to imagine at the beginning (no doubt he would have tried to search for a way to do it without losing his powers). As for Al, the biggest turning point in his life is when we finally see him use a Philosopher’s Stone which was a pretty big moment as he was unwilling to do much before that. It’s after that moment that Al really comes into his own as he was always the character who cared most about others and to see him use the Philosopher’s Stone for the greater good was a huge moment.
One final note about the characters is that I was not too happy to see that not very many people died. This ended up making the cast a bit too unmanageable at the end, and you’d think in an action show about military guys more than a few people could actually die. Not that I like people dying, but c’mon!
Production:
Animation:
I really loved how every face on Envy was moving... such amazing animation!
Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood had pretty excellent production values overall. Many of the fight scenes were very well animated, and the scenes of Father’s triumph in episode 60 and 61 were a sight to behold. The backgrounds were vivid, and when it needed to be, the animation was incredibly detailed. From seeing every single moving face on Envy’s full form, to seeing the giant battles between the immortal army and our heroes it was easy to appreciate the animation done so well in a weekly series as long as this. Still near the end, the show suffered from obvious production problems. Every other episode was animated noticeably poorer as if farmed out to a separate team with little quality control. Faces were distorted and animation would be choppy at best. Overall though the show was excellent and well done, but unfortunately not quite the levels of quality seen in Gundam 00 and closer to what we saw in Macross Frontier.
Music/Sound:
Stay a while and listen...
There are two schools of thought about music. First of all some people believe that background music should be just that… background. It should set the mood for scenes, tell you when things should be exciting or dramatic but ultimately be something that you won’t overly notice. The second school of thought is that music should be loud, present and obnoxious. Most Hollywood productions are this way, and anyone who’s ever hummed the Imperial March can understand how powerful music can be.
Unlike most big-budget anime productions, FMA:B decided on the former school. I can honestly say that while the music was great while I was watching the show, I really cannot hum one tune from the show or be able to pick out the music if I heard it anywhere else. I can’t say whether this is actually good or bad, but just an observation. For what it’s worth, the music did an amazing job as background music as it always set the tone right.
As for the various OP/EDs I only really found the first OP (“again” by YUI) and the EDs #2 & #3 (Let it out” by Miho Fukuhara & “Tsunai Da Te” by Lil’B) to be memorable. The others were pretty generic, and kind of disappointing for a show of this stature.
Along with music, sounds are extremely important in any action show. Properly done sounds can really add a lot to the environment (anyone ever notice how awesome the background sounds were in True Tears, especially the waves and how it made some scenes even more melancholic?). Brotherhood succeeded massively in this department. One of the best ways to tell is… watch an episode with the sound turned down low, especially during a fight scene and then watch it with the sound on. It’s night and day. I noticed this as I usually watched episodes at 2am and had to keep it quiet but I would rewatch in the morning when I blogged.
Overall Impression:
Overall I really enjoyed Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, an anime I'll treasure for a long time to come
From the very first episode with the redone Lior scenes to the final extended epilogue, Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood has been the one show I’ve looked forward to the most in the past five seasons. A few levels up from the original anime, Brotherhood managed to follow the manga pretty closely from what I understand, and had a lot to add as well. Considering the length of the show and the amount of action in the show, it was very impressive that the quality kept up. The story really did get better and better as it went on, and built up to an incredible finale, one which I won’t be forgetting for a long while. The characters were amazing, the plot intelligently written, and the fantasy world of Amestris engrossing and well thought out.
