Fullmetal February: Fullmetal Alchemist (2017 Film)

At last, we conclude Fullmetal February with a look at the most recent adaptation of Arakawa's beloved manga; the live action Fullmetal Alchemist movie! While I praise the two animated versions and the original manga, I have some mixed opinions about its transition into live action.

Like many other adaptations of Japanese anime and manga, the story is a highly condensed version of the source material's events. However, it corrects many of the mistakes Brotherhood made with its story; such as starting at the most logical point, Edward and Alphonse's first attempt at human transmutation. Comparatively, this film is the most faithful version of the Elric brothers' tale; albeit with some events receiving slight changes, switched around, or omitted entirely. As a result of the latter, major characters were also surprisingly omitted. I am not worried, since I believe some will make an appearance in the inevitable sequel. While I did not like their choice for the main antagonist, they managed to expand upon a minor character from the source material, and somehow connect them to the Homunculi.

My largest gripe with this film was the story and pacing; similar to Shyamalan's The Last Airbender, the film's director decided to severely truncate the plot in order to cram as much as possible into a two and a half hour timeframe. Consequently, this makes it difficult to connect with the characters and become engrossed with the story. I was hoping for a strong amount of character development and seeing my favorite plot points unfolding in live action. While I was treated to both to some degree, it ultimately left me wanting more and feeling disappointed as a result. The pacing was the film's biggest flaw, simply because so much is coming at you in such a short amount of time. Maybe to alleviate this, they could have split the movie into two and dedicated each film to a specific story arc from the manga.

In terms of characters, the actors portrayed each one as faithfully as possible; Edward was short-tempered and high strung, Winry was loving and always worried about the Elrics, and Alphonse was the group's voice of reason. I love how Maes Hughes was also given a larger amount of development and was upgraded to a major character in the film. He stole the show, and I was always excited to see him onscreen. While I despised Shou Tucker in the previous versions, I found him more tolerable in this one and I am thankful they left Nina's fate as ambiguous. It does beg the question, will she survive in the sequel, be killed offscreen, or be killed by a potential live action Scar?

Overall, I would say this film is a solid attempt at adapting Fullmetal Alchemist. It was not as bad as others have said, it is in desperate need of improvement. The framework for a good story is there, but the directors need to iron out the bugs in the pacing for the sequel. I am looking forward to the next installment of this series, and I am hopeful for a stronger film and the inclusion of omitted characters.

That concludes Fullmetal February, if you have suggestions for next February's anime month, feel free to email me at austinmmyers18@gmail.com and also please follow if you like my content!

Fullmetal February: Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood

(Blogger's Note: Sorry it is super late, something came up that I had to take care of before I could tend to the blog. The review of the FMA live action movie is still in the works, though.)

In the twenty-fifth volume of the Fullmetal Alchemist manga, an announcement for a new anime adaptation was made. Unlike the previous version, this one would stay as faithful to the source material as possible; adapting storylines and characters that were previously unseen in the 2003 series. It would also receive high-definition visuals and brand new animation, unlike Dragon Ball Kai which simply used remastered footage of Dragonball Z. While it did deliver upon its promise, it had quite a few shortcomings.

For starters, the events that were previously seen in the 2003 series were highly condensed. As a result, it feels like this is a version of the story purely for the fans of Fullmetal Alchemist and for fans of the previous anime. It is not as "newcomer friendly" as one would expect. While there are some moments both series share, it takes viewing the original series and Brotherhood to truly understand what is going on. One moment in particular that definitely needed some expanding is the origin of the Elric Brothers. Unfortunately, it is severely truncated into a single episode. As a result, there are moments that the 2003 version proved to be more faithful than the series that is purportedly "manga-accurate". The first episode is also one created exclusively for this series, with the manga's true start not happening until episode three. If you are debating between the two series, then I would recommend watching both; watch the original up to its equivalent point in Brotherhood, then simply watch the latter until the end (or switching back and forth between the two). Despite its shortcomings in terms of story, it is a massive improvement over both the manga and the original. For starters, the viewer is finally treated to Arakawa's original ending and villain!

The characters' personalities and designs remain faithful to the manga, capturing the look of Arakawa's original illustrations. Consequently, it makes the viewer feel like they are watching the manga being played out before them as it was originally intended. Additionally, the characters' clothes have been restored to their original colorations, such as the darker shades of red for Edward's cloak and Winry's bandanna being green (unlike the original series in which it was red). We are also introduced to characters not seen in the original, such as those hailing from the country of Xing.

Overall, while I do enjoy this version of Fullmetal Alchemist as opposed to its 2003 counterpart, it is wrought with many flaws. However, if you are looking for a condensed version of the story, (maybe to prepare for the live action movie) then this series would be perfect for you. If you are looking for something that goes into a greater amount of detail, then I would suggest going with the original anime or the manga. Brotherhood is severely abridged, but it thankfully tells the story without giving any unnecessary details.