Since NoSanninWa went to the trouble of making a new thread, I guess I'll give a full review.
Some thoughts before the nitty-gritty of my assessment:
Fullmetal Alchemist (from here on out will be referred to as FMA) was one of the first anime I watched, I believe it was on Adult Swim on Cartoon Network, when they still aired great shows like Cowboy Bebop and Cyborg 009. I watched almost religiously, and I really loved all the characters, bad guys included. Well, except Envy because he killed Maes Hughes, who was one of my favorite characters. Anyway, I watched as many episodes as I could on television, but I eventually bought the DVDs, and I never regretted the loads of money THAT cost me. When the movie Conqueror of Shamballa came out, I was ecstatic, and the fanatic in me did a Winry "SQUEEEEE" just like I'm sure a lot of you did. I thought it was a faithful continuation of the story that the anime had brought forth.
To be honest, I had never read the manga until some months after the Conqueror of Shamballa. I had just rewatched the series and the movie and ran across the FMA manga discussion on the Animesuki Forums. I had never really considered even reading the manga, but after hearing how different the two were, curiosity drove me to buy a few volumes. Boy was I in for a treat! New characters, different twists, and new plotlines drew me in and I was instantly hooked. It's a lot different than the anime, but somehow that makes me appreciate the two mediums for what they are. In any case, I will judge the anime and the anime alone. I might use manga for OCCASIONAL reference, but I will take special care to not judge the anime for what may or may not be in the anime, because I consider the two to be telling a different story.
Animation Quality: 10/10
Let's be honest, this anime was as perfect as I can think of. From beautiful and stunning openings and endings to silky smooth action sequences and great character expressions ranging from joy to despair the animators really went all out. I think the best kind of animation is the kind you never notice because it's always good, and FMA delivered on being not only beautifully animated, but being nice and consistent as well. Not very many shows can do that for an extended period of time. Whether it's transmutations or someone smiling, it's always well done. Not to mention, how many other animation directors can get a TALKING SUIT OF ARMOR to express physical emotion? That's impressive even if nothing else is.
Voice Acting: 10/10
What can I say? This is honestly one of the few anime where I can say I liked the English voice acting just as much (heck, even maybe MORE) as the Japanese seiyuu. Vic did a great job as Ed, though he wasn't the only one. I was impressed (and I still am) when I hear inflection in their voices and I could take away the animation, have sound only, and still know what the look on their faces would be. Well, except Alphonse because he facial expressions don't show unless it's an exaggerated scene (which usually means its not a very serious situation). Some people though that Nina's voice with the lisp was annoying, but I thought it made her cute.
Editing: 9/10
While for the most part it was great, occasionally I felt certain flashbacks were a bit too long. I know they were essential points for the plot, but they lasted so long and were a bit too drawn out for their actual content. I'm mostly referring to Izumi's training arc which lasted an episode or two too long in my opinion. Although I know it was an important plot point, it still bored me. Other than that, no qualms really. And another comment on editing: FMA is one of the only shows that can pull you from laughing so hard to can't breathe to crying your eyes out with the snap of a finger and then back again. It's that good.
Script: 10/10
The script was just about perfect, though the charisma of the various star voice actors could conceivably make ANYTHING sound good. The script could say "let's kill babies", but if Ed said it, I would just laugh and say "oh, that Edward...".
I suppose Scar's insistence on being a hypocrite annoyed me a lot, but that's part of his character so I can't blame the script. As I mentioned in editing, the script can go from glad to sad in nanoseconds, and both happy and sad moments are well written. From Ed and Panako's banter to Ed lamenting his own powerlessness, the script always fits. The best line in the entire series was easily Alphonse's last speech in episode 51:
"Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be lost. That is alchemy's first law of Equivalent Exchange. In those days, we really believed that to be the world's one, and only, truth. But the world isn't perfect, and the law is incomplete. Equivalent Exchange doesn't encompass everything that goes on here, but I still choose to believe in its principle, that all things do come at a price, that there's an ebb and a flow, a cycle, that the pain we went through did have a reward, and that anyone who's determined and perseveres will get something of value in return, even if it's not what they expected. I don't think of Equivalent Exchange as a law of the world anymore. I think of it as a promise, between my brother and me. A promise that, someday, we'll see each other again." *Sniff* Beautiful.
Adaption from Manga: N/A
I can't say much for this because it's such a complete departure from the manga storyline that I don't think it's fair to really compare it directly to the manga. What I will say, however, is that the SPIRIT and of the manga and anime both are roughtly the same. The tragedy and drama for both are quite powerful in their own right, as well as the funny moments, etc.
Character Development: 9/10
Ah yes, character development. This series, as far as supporting cast goes, is FREAKING HUGE. I haven't seen a cast this big since, well... ever. If I'm counting right, there have got to be somewhere around 90 characters if you include all the minor characters that we run into during the course of this series. From the military to the civilians, the FMA population is definitely big. And not only are there a lot of them, just about all of them are developed. I thought Maes Hughes' life was cut short way before his time (his death came out of nowhere for me, and really shocked me), but his character was still fully formed and lovable. Even the villians managed to pull off some kind of empathy, except for Gluttony because he doesn't have much character to begin with, and doesn't seem like the kind of character which would have it in the first place. Lust and Greed were probably my favorites, and even though they both died, in some ways they were more human than evildoers like Kimblee ever were. Scar's relationship to his brother was also fleshed out nicely, and the origin of his arm was well explained. Ed and Al need no rating, for they are the driving forces behind the whole series. Take either of them out of the picture, and the plot collapses, as well as the motivation. I won't say any more because I don't think I need to. The only complaint I have is Dante, which I will explain in the "Plot" rating section.
Plot: 8/10
Although for the most part it was indeed superb, there were a few things I really didn't like. I didn't like how Greed was nerfed. I know he was beaten in a logical manner, but for being the ultimate shield, I had expected him to at least last a little longer against Ed. I also didn't like Dante. Aside from her not being in the manga, I had always thought (even before I read the manga) that she was an incredibly flat character. She didn't have a very strong motive for doing what she was doing, other than seeking some kind of eroding immortality, of which Dante should have understood the futility. Her relationship with Hohenheim always struckk me as somewhat hollow as well, and I eventually learned why. Anyway, it was a case where they could have done so much more and didn't. I will say though that this anime's plot wraps up quite nicely with Conqueror of Shamballa, although the fact that Winry is left alone at the end and also never confronts Roy about her parent's murder always bothered me. I thought her and Roy's particular story arc was "unfinished", so to speak, and is another reason I deducted another point.
Overall: 9/10
Though better series have come and gone, and I realize some flaws that were made in FMA due to the fact they didn't follow the manga very closely after some time, it still manages to make it in my list of top ten favorite anime every time. And considering how many anime I've seen, I would say that's pretty impressive.
Well that's it. I may have missed some things, but I talked about as much as I really wanted.
Fansubber
