Yesterday I finally accomplished a major life goal of mine. I finished watching Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. I loved the 2003 version of the anime, and was kind of upset when, several years ago, I learned that it wasn't really faithful to the original story. The existence of another, longer, better, Fullmetal Alchemist tantalized and taunted me. I never got around to it until now.
The 2003 Fullmetal Alchemist (FMA) is very different from the 2009 Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (FMAB). As a kid, I loved it. It was one of my first introductions to anime, as it was for many people my age. It was epic, magical, and edgy. It's much shorter and has an infamously unsatisfying ending. The science of alchemy is dissected by the question "where does the energy for the transmutation come from?" and the answer is... the death of people in our universe during World War II? Or something like that? In FMAB, this question is just answered simply off the cuff: the energy comes from the rotational force of the earth's mantle against its crust. At least for Amestrian alchemy. I laughed out loud when that happened, because it seemed like such a big issue in FMA.
So FMAB does a lot of things better than FMA. I don't remember the original show super well, but one vivid, core memory of every young person who watched it is the story of Nina. In both shows, the main characters Ed and Al befriend fellow alchemist Shou Tucker and his young daughter Nina. Tucker is friendly at first, but you learn that he is harboring a dark secret. He uses Nina in a horrifying experiment, fusing her body and mind with their pet dog just to prove that it's possible. It's dark and upsetting in both shows, but I think FMA does it better. This is simply because Ed and Al spend more time with Tucker and Nina feels like a more developed character we actually miss.
Overall, this feels like a strength of FMA. Ed and Al get more screen time sharing their feelings and disparaging the darkness of the world they live in. FMAB definitely uses these themes, but doesn't ruminate on them as much. This makes FMA a more character driven story where you really get to know the protagonists. On the other hand, FMAB takes a broader picture of the story of the nation, a world-shattering villain, and cosmological questions.
The image of god in FMAB is truly horrifying. What appears at the beginning of the show as some otherworldly being, some unknowable power, or some fundamental force of the universe, develops into god, the truth, or the universe. Who is, of course, all of those things. But this force is essentially the antagonist for the beginning of the show. There are worldly enemies, but the main adventure is Ed and Al trying to reclaim their bodies, which were taken from them as a price for attempting human transmutation.
This cosmological force takes a few different forms. Massive, spinning eyes in a doorway. Reaching, shadowy hands that dissolve your being. Eyeless, white silhouettes with massive grins. God is never portrayed as malicious. It only harms in accordance with the law of equivalent exchange. At the resolution of the story, Ed sacrifices his ability to perform alchemy to bring his brother back. The response of god is chilling. After tempting Ed to change his mind, it says, "you finally beat me." Of course, this decision on Ed's part is character development. He has realized that alchemy isn't the solution to all his problems and values the human connections he has. He is making a moral decision to prioritize love and humanity. Clearly, this is the choice god wants him to make, despite tempting him otherwise.
I love this theological investigation. God is real and present, but reacts only to our own actions. It is rigidly a being of order and fairness, but does not actively look out for our best interest in following these rules and exchanges. It wants humans to learn virtue, but serves also as tempter and devil depending on a human's own desires and insecurities. It is unknowable, horrifying, unopposable.
FMA focuses more on human evil, while FMAB considers cosmic evil. They're both great shows that I strongly recommend. If you haven't seen either, I'd watch FMA first, then FMAB.
Thanks for reading this blog post. Just sharing some thoughts on the show and what I've been up to lately.
Sincerely,
SunWisp