Fullmetal February: Fullmetal Alchemist Manga

(Source: Wikipedia)

In celebration of the live action movie's Netflix release on February 19, 2018, I thought I would dedicate the month of February to reviewing other adaptations of the manga Fullmetal Alchemist. If this theme month is positively received, I may make February a theme month for other anime series such as Dragonball, Naruto, and My Hero Academia. To begin Fullmetal February, let's take a look at the source material; Hiromu Arakawa's manga, Fullmetal Alchemist.

The manga ran from July 12, 2001 to June 12, 2010 in Square Enix's Monthly Shonen Gangan, and follows the adventures of young brothers Edward and Alphonse Elric. The series takes place in a world where the concept of alchemy is as prevalent (if not more) than regular science. After a botched attempt to resurrect their mother through the forbidden use of human transmutation, Edward is left without an arm and leg and Alphonse is merely a soul fused to a suit of armor. To reverse the repercussions of their misdeed, the two brothers join the military in an attempt to seek out the mythological Philosopher's Stone. However, trouble stalks them from every turn; during their journey they are pursued by a scarred man from the nation of Ishval, as well as a group of artifical humans known as "Homunculi". As a whole, the series explores themes such as Alchemy vs. Science, the concept of human mortality, religion, and the consequences of defying nature for personal gain. Initially, this was not a series I could get invested in; and I would usually turn away after a certain point; matter of fact, the first attempts at going through this series would put me to sleep (then again, I was reading/watching this series late at night after school). However, after my concept art teacher started talking about it, I became curious and began digging into this gem once again. The manga, like its anime adaptations, is relatively short at a length of only 108 chapters across 27 volumes. Essentially, it is a pretty quick read as opposed to series such as One Piece and Naruto. The series has multiple twists, ending every chapter with the viewer desperately wanting to know what will happen next to the Elric Brothers. Will they ever get their bodies back? Will they find the Philosopher's Stone? Will they defeat the Homunculi? You will just have to read to find out; however, if you are illiterate or are too lazy to read, there are two anime adaptations as well. The first being released in 2003 and the second being released in 2009. I will not go into much detail about them since I plan to dedicate blog posts to these two versions, but they are both accurate representations of the source material! Give any of the three a look, you will definitely not regret it. My only warning is that this series is a violent one, considering one element is war.