Full Metal Alchemist 1 - The Curse (Animated) > Reviews > Fullmetal Awesomeness

Author's product rating:   

Did you enjoy it?	Loved it
Story	Outstanding
Characters / Performances	Outstanding
Special Effects	Good
Soundtrack	Good

Advantages:	Very funny, emotional storyline (to the point of tear - inducing), very cool soundtrack (if you like J - Pop/Rock)
Disadvantages:	Suffers the same fatal flaw as all anime in Europe :  expensive to purchase entire season

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

It was a good friend of mine who introduced me to the joys of Full Metal Alchemist (FMA). He and I are both big fans of Japanese anime and have a hefty selection of DVDs and Manga (comic books), and it was on a bright summers day when he invited me over to watch this "cool new series that's better than any anime I've ever seen!" Obviously, I was sceptical. Best anime ever? Better than Spirited Away? Better than Naruto? SURELY not better than Akira?! But, happy to have an excuse to sit in front of the TV all day watching cartoons, I accepted his offer and I took my first step into the wacky world of FMA.

Two days later I left his house with probably the most stupid grin that has ever adorned my face, clapping my hands together and "transmuting" lampposts, the floor, my arm, anything that reminded me of the anime that had swallowed up an entire two days of my life that I most certainly DIDN'T want back. This proves two things: firstly, I am a loser who will probably end up being commited if I don't stop acting strangely in public. And secondly, Full Metal Alchemist is now officially THE BEST ANIME EVER.

The storyline for FMA, as you might expect, focuses on alchemy, the process of understanding an object's composition, breaking it down and then rebuilding it. For example, it can be used to change an object into something else, or to simply fix something that's broken. Two young alchemists by the name of Edward and Alphonse Elric attempt to perform the forbidden act of human transmutation using alchemy when they attempt to bring their deceased mother back from the dead. Unfortunately for them, the plan backfires. Ed, the elder brother, loses his right arm and left leg, whilst Al's disembodied soul is encased in a suit of armour. The series follows their attempts to get back their bodies as Ed is fitted with Auto-Mail (a metal arm and leg... Fullmetal, get it?) and joins the military in order to find the Legendary Philosopher's Stone, said to be able to amplify alchemic powers and to ignore the principle of equivilant trade (in order to gain something, something must be sacrificed).

That's it, I won't spoil the rest of the story for you because, frankly, the storyline is one of my favourite things about this series. It is simple enough not to get too confusing, yet complex enough to keep you guessing as to what happens next. It is side-splittingly at times, where at others it is powerful and emotive, and if anyone claims not to have cried after watching episodes 7 and 25 then don't believe them. They're lying.

Character-wise FMA really shines, with some truly memorable characters each with their own unique traits and quirks. You will quickly find characters that will become your favourites, not just in FMA but in all anime. And it is with this, along with the well written story and moments of sheer hilarity that makes FMA come together in such a special way. Whilst the animation isn't as good as some of the stuff that gets pumped out by Studio Ghibli (Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle etc.) it's still above-par for some of the anime that is sent our way by lazy animators (Love Hina: brilliant manga, great story, sloppy animation. Ken Akamatsu must've been gutted!). Plus I believe the animation and drawing style perfectly suits the anime as a whole.

Also of note is the soundtrack. The background music to the episodes is passable, but not really something to write home about. But the introduction and ending sequences are a different matter entirely. As is the style with a lot of anime series there are a number of different intro and ending songs. FMA is no exception. Featuring songs from well known Japanese artists such as L'Arc~en~Ciel and Asian Kung-Fu Generation the intros especially are brilliant, not only fitting in with the feeling of the anime but also well worth listening to in their own right. Definitely worth looking into if you're a J-Pop/Rock fan, and definitely worth a try even if you have never listened to foreign music before or if you "know" that you hate music of this genre.

For all it's brilliance, however, it must be pointed out that there are a couple of flaws with this series, and anime as a whole. Firstly, the dub. Since anime is made in Japan it is originally released in Japanese, not English. It seems to me that whoever makes the casting decisions for English dubs of anime is either drunk or hates anime. Whilst the dub for FMA is a lot better than some other animes I've seen (Love Hina... [shudder]) it still seems disjointed and not fitting. And I don't mean just in the lip-synching, I mean the voices themselves are too different and don't fit quite right with the character they're portraying. If you stick to the subs it's a lot better but at least you have the choice to put the dub on if you're feeling lazy.

Also a massive flaw with this anime is the price of purchasing the entire series. Again it's not FMA specific, but with 51 episodes (plus a movie) and 4 episodes per DVD it doesn't take a rocket science to figure out that's it's gonna burn a fairly significant hole in your pocket before you get the see the ending. Still, if you can afford it it's most certainly worth it.

If you don't like anime, or if you're new to it all, this is probably the one that will convince you to give it a chance. For seasoned anime fans I have one question for you. What is your favourite anime? Is it Akira? Love Hina? Bleach? FLCL? Escaflowne? Naruto? Ghost In The Shell? Spirited Away? Forget them. THIS is better than anything else out there, and is likely to be for some time. Fantastic work.