Equivalent Exchange | A Look Back At Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

I hate the internet. Well no, not all of the internet… actually no, I hate myself. Whenever I watch WWE or a TV show these days, I inevitably spoil it for myself by looking up spoilers online. I don’t know why, I guess it’s impatience on my part, and also my personality trait of wanting to know everything.

When it came to Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, I promised myself I wouldn’t fall into the same pitfall. It was my first real foray into anime since I watched XIN back in secondary school, and I wanted to get caught up into the story. I imposed a ban on looking up spoilers, and reserved myself to not look up anything. Even if something in the series confused me or there was something I didn’t understand, well tough – I would have to bare with the series and hope all would be revealed. I didn’t want to run the risk of looking up one thing about the series, and then opening the floodgates. I guess you could say that I wanted to feel that shock value and uplifting feeling you do as a kid when you don’t expect something. I wanted a television show, anime or not, to sink my teeth into and enjoy the ride without knowing what was coming. And by God, I stuck to it, and the end result is this blog. I’m going to avoid spoiling some of the huge, major surprises of the series for those who haven’t seen it themselves, but this won’t be entirely spoiler-free – you’ve been warned.

I must admit, despite buying the entire boxset on the cheap, I had my reservations about the series. It'd been a long, long time since I'd bothered watching any kind of anime, and wasn't sure if the series (which felt quite contemporary compared to others I'd seen) was going to be strong enough to hold my interest. All I knew was that the series was set in a fictional world where characters could use powers of alchemy and... yeah, that was kind of it. A cool concept no doubt, but I doubted it could hold my interest for 60+ episodes without a compelling storyline. Luckily for yours truly, the first episode was a fantastic introduction to two of the lead characters (note I didn't say the two lead characters...), Edward Elric and his younger brother, Al. Edward seems skilled in alchemy powers, whilst Al takes the form of a huge towering body of armour, and doubts began to creep in - could I take Al seriously? What hare-brained concept were they going to come up with to explain Al being a suit of armour and nothing else?

From episode two onwards, I sat on the edge of my seat as the story of the Elric brothers unfolded before my very eyes. It was heart-wrenching, it was dramatic, the series drew you in and made you feel connected to these two characters and their ongoing quest to regain their bodies. That wasn't all though - the series did a phenomenal job setting up supporting characters too, and made all of them seem as important as the next (The episode dedicated to poor Nina had me cursing at my television!). Not one character was throwaway, even those for comic relief - every single one had their place in the story arc and made a difference in one way or another. It was so refreshing to connect not just with the lead characters, but all of the supporting cast too - every action has a consequence and furthers the narrative. It was storytelling at its finest, and in two days, I'd finished up Part One (the first 13 episodes) of the boxset.

The length of the episodes of 20 or so minutes was perfect. Nothing ever felt rushed or compromised, the pacing was fantastic. There were numerous times where an entire episode was used primarily to just set up the next, and usually that feels like a cop-out, but not with Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood - I welcomed the cliffhanger at the end of the episode, knowing I was in for one hell of a rollar-coaster ride come the next. Some episodes focused on character development, some focused on all-out fighting, some provided backstory and history, and some managed to tackle all those subjects at the same time, and yet I was never really lost following the storyline. Characters changed allegiance from time to time, and sometimes a bit more explanation could've been given to explain certain events (whilst I understood the main villain's goal established in the last few episodes, I know a few were completely dumbfounded by the revelation) - but none of this hurt the story the creators were trying to tell based on the manga.

The effect the series had on me was incredible – I found myself getting genuinely emotional at some scenes. At times I was shouting in anger, other times I was getting choked up, and a lot of the time the plot twists caught me completely off-guard and I was too stunned to even react! The world that the creators crafted and the characters that inhabit it are intertwined, and as such, you feel a connection to every aspect of the series. When a character hurts, you hurt. What a character smiles, you smile. You fight the fight with the heroes alongside them, and jeer the villains all the while understanding and emphasising with them too. The beauty of the series isn’t that there are shades of grey, as the heroes and villains are clearly defined – it’s that the series dive deep into what makes each villain tick and in doing so, you connect with them all the same. Greed is the perfect example of an anti-hero done right – he’s not a hero by any stretch of the imagination, but you find yourself rooting for him all the same. He has layers of character, explaining his thoughts, his actions, what makes him tick, and in a lot of ways, what separates him from the rest of the antagonists.

Another thing I have to praise is the soundtrack. My God, it is incredible. Sure, it is guilty of most animes in that it recycles numerous tracks, but in this instance that's more than okay, as the orchestral pieces add to many of the pivotal scenes. Pride's demise is already epic, but is made even more special by the music that accompanies it. It is possibly my favourite scene in the entire series, so I feel compelled to share it with you guys. If you haven't yet seen the series, or are in the middle of watching it and haven't reached the final few episodes, this is obviously a huge spoiler, so be warned!

That whole scene gives me goosebumps. It just feels so magical, special, so grand in scale. It shows the true power of anime to engage and captivate an audience, and I now finally realise why this has been such a popular medium for so many years. I’ve normally ignored anime stuff outright at the Comic Con conventions I’ve gone to in the past, but rest assured, I won’t anymore.

In conclusion, the series is one that I would urge everyone to watch. I wasn’t a huge believer in anime before, but this has opened my eyes. I’ve already made plans to buy the Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood movie, The Sacred Star of Milos, and also the original anime to compare the two. I’ve also put in an order for a series called Death Note, recommended by a colleague at work. In short, I’m now a believer and a fan.

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is one of the best television series’, anime or otherwise, I’ve had the pleasure of watching. I just want to honestly thank the producers of the series and those who drew and created the manga on which the series is based. You’ve created something pretty damn awesome.

Will