Hagane no renkinjutsushi (2009– )

Stars:

Iemasa Kayumi, Vic Mignogna, Romi Pak

Cast

Series cast summary:
Iemasa Kayumi	...	Narration (62 episodes, 2009-2010)
Vic Mignogna	...	Edward Elric (61 episodes, 2009-2010)
Romi Pak	...	Edward Elric (60 episodes, 2009-2010)
Kent Williams	...	The Narrator (60 episodes, 2009-2010)
Rie Kugimiya	...	Alphonse Elric (58 episodes, 2009-2010)
Maxey Whitehead	...	Alphonse Elric (57 episodes, 2009-2010)
Shinichirô Miki	...	Roy Mustang (46 episodes, 2009-2010)
Travis Willingham	...	Roy Mustang (46 episodes, 2009-2010)
Colleen Clinkenbeard	...	Riza Hawkeye (41 episodes, 2009-2010)
Fumiko Orikasa	...	Riza Hawkeye (40 episodes, 2009-2010)
Kenta Miyake	...	Scar (37 episodes, 2009-2010)
J. Michael Tatum	...	Scar (37 episodes, 2009-2010)
Yuki Hayashi	...	Denny Brosh (36 episodes, 2009-2010)
Megumi Takamoto	...	Winry Rockbell (31 episodes, 2009-2010)
Caitlin Glass	...	Winry Rockbell (31 episodes, 2009-2010)
Monica Rial	...	May Chang (30 episodes, 2009-2010)
Mai Goto	...	May Chang (28 episodes, 2009-2010)
Hidekatsu Shibata	...	King Bradley (27 episodes, 2009-2010)
Ed Blaylock	...	Fuhrer King Bradley (26 episodes, 2009-2010)
Mamoru Miyano	...	Ling Yao (25 episodes, 2009-2010)
Kenji Utsumi	...	Louis Armstrong (25 episodes, 2009-2010)
Christopher Sabat	...	Alex Louis Armstrong (25 episodes, 2009-2010)

Storyline

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Plot Keywords:

Anime

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Genres:

Animation | Action | Adventure | Drama | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

TV-14

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

5 April 2009 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bones, Square Enix Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

24 min 24 min (64 episodes)

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The official name for this show in Japan is "Fullmetal Alchemist" which was renamed as "Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood" in the English version. The reason for the renaming was to avoid confusing it with the first series which also shared the same title.

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Connections

Referenced in Yu-Gi-Oh! The Abridged Series: Joey Wheeler Ace Attorney (2010)
Joey comes across a suit of armor searching for his brother

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Soundtracks

"Period"
Performed by CHEMISTRY
Lyrics by Kaname Kawabata
Music by Jonas Myrin, Peter Kvint and Kôtarô Egami
Arrangement by Yûsuke Itagaki
(Fourth opening theme, episodes #39-50)

User Reviews

Surpasses the original in almost every way

This review is mainly meant for anyone who watched Fullmetal Alchemist and is either considering Brotherhood, has watched a few episodes and not liked it, or has read one of the negative reviews and was put off.

When I first heard about Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, I was skeptical. Seeing as the original Fullmetal Alchemist is the first anime I have ever completely watched and is the spark that ignited my obsessive love of anime that I have today, a redo seemed unnecessary to say the least. What could possibly be improved upon a show as fantastic as Fullmetal Alchemist?

With hesitation and doubt in my heart I started watching the series... and instantly hated it. I won't lie, my first impressions were not only that the show didn't live up to the original, but that it was also an abomination that was dancing on the grave of a greater show.

I cried, I screamed, I broke things, I didn't do any of the above because I'm exaggerating and not actually crazy, but I was still quite upset. The criticisms bubbled up inside me until I was frustratingly glaring at the TV appalled at such changes as Alphonse's voice actor, or a lack of the opening starting with the classic "in those days, we really believed..." lines from Al.

With each passing episode the insults to Fullmetal Alchemist seemed to grow, episodes that were lovingly crafted in the original series were apparently being lightly brushed on. Moments in the original that got me hooked fell flat in Brotherhood, and I was fed up and ready to write the letter of complaint to end all letters of complaint. But then, my eyes began to open.

Right around episode 13 where the plot of the two animes separates I started to think that this story might actually be good. As the episodes began to fly I realized that it wasn't good, it was great. After finishing the series I knew without a doubt in my mind that what I had witnessed was my favorite anime of all time. The story of Brotherhood is better than that of the original on so many levels that the two shows truly don't compare. After having my eyes opened I was forced to drop the rating that I gave to the original to an 8 simply because now I knew how much lost potential it had.

If you enjoyed the story of Fullmetal Alchemist, stick with Brotherhood and I guarantee you that you will not regret it. Not only is the plot and storyline vastly improved upon and more satisfying, the animation, music (in my opinion at least, some disagree), characters, and overall feel is far better.

Therefore, if you are a true fan of the original series don't give up on Brotherhood after only a few episodes like I was so tempted to do, it is a show that grows into something that will go down in history as one of the greats of animation history and you shouldn't miss out.