Ed and Scar battle Al, Ed and Rose - drawn 'comically' Introducing Mei Mei attacking - gotta love Ed's expression

"You can't gain something without sacrificing something else of the equal value. This is the principle of the equivalent trade."

The story takes place in an alternate world from ours in the early 1900's. Two young brothers, older Edward Elric and younger Alphonse Elric, live with their mother Trisha in the small village of Resembool. Their father left home when they were still very young, but Ed and Al inherited his passion for alchemy.

1909. On a fine day, Trisha dies of an unknown illness, leaving her two sons orphans. Ed blames his father for Trisha's death and wants to find a way to bring her back to life. At this time, Ed was 10, Al 9. When Edward finds out about flesh forging in an alchemy book that belonged to his father, he engages in an intense training with Al in order to be able to perform a human transmutation.

On February 1910, the Elric brothers cross the forbidden line trying to resurrect their mom. The attempt ends in a complete failure. In the process, Ed loses his left leg and Al his whole body. In a last try full of despair, Ed uses alchemy to restore his brother's spirit putting it in a suit of mail, at the further cost of his right arm. When Al wakes up in the armour, he suddenly realizes what happened and takes his unconscious injured brother to the neighbours, the Rockbells.

After that day, the two decide to embark on a journey to find the legendary Philosopher's Stone, rumoured to create anything from nothing, in hopes of getting back their original bodies.

Story & Playability

For all you out there sighing at the sight of yet another FMA review - this one is based on the MANGA written by the wonderfully talented Hiromu Arakawa. The manga is currently at chapter 78 in Japan and is published in the Monthly Shonen Gangan.

Story
So we are all familiar with the story: two young boys talented in the art of alchemy and torn apart by their grief over their mother's death, break the forbidden taboo and try bring her back to the world of the living. It goes horribly wrong: the of the eldest brother losses an arm and leg, and the youngest loses his entire body instead his soul remains in this world tied to a suit of armor.

The two brothers, Edward and Alphonse Elric (better known as Ed & Al) are on a quest to regain that of which they had lost seeking the power of the mysterious Philosopher's stone...

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For those who have seen the anime, the storyline basically follows that of the manga until the humonculus Greed enters the story. From there, the two take two massive turning points:
- the anime focuses more on Ishbal, the Philosopher's stone and how the
woman Dante fits into the plot
- the manga expands a bit on the political side of Amestris, the land from which the
two boys come from, and the bordering nations.
In addition, the main antagonist of the manga is a man simply known as "Father" who bears a striking resemblance to Hohenheim (if you recall, the biological father of the Elrics). Little is known about Father, except that he is the creator of all the homunculi and seems to have plans in store for the Elric brothers - worthy sacrifices of his unknown plans.

Much like the anime, this story never fails capture your interest. While you still follow the brothers' quest to retrieve their bodies, the plot is decorated with 'side' stories, such as Mustang's goal to become the ruler of Amestris, Scar's vengeance against State Alchemists and of course wonder over what is the illusive Father's endgame.

Characters
Ed, Al, Winry, Roy, Riza, Izumi, the Homunculi - all those characters you've come to know and love from the anime are all there in glowing form plus the introduction of some new characters. Asides from the mysterious Father, we meet Ling - a prince from the neighboring land of Xing who is on his own quest to seek immortality and young Mei and her crazy panda who has traveled into Amestris seeking more of the mysterious alchemy of the land but has also fallen in love with a certain young, talented (and she believes to be a strikingly tall) state alchemist who goes under name 'Full Metal'. Furthermore, some familiar faces are brought back such as Yuki, Dr Marcoh and my favorite - Barry the Chopper ^.^.

One of the aspects I love about any story is the ability of the characters to be so likeable, realistic and easy to relate to -and FMA achieves this greatly. Nothing they ever achieve just magically appears out of thin air - which is a refreshing change from those characters who just happened to be blessed with the capability to wield a special power. In whatever they do, you see the cast work hard for what they've earned and deal with situations in a very realistic manner.

Arakawa as assembled a lovable crew that will have you laugh, cheer and cry alongside the characters in whatever they do. It's a wonderful blend of action, human ordeals and comedy to keep any manga lover on the edge of their seat.

A give it a 9 because it has yet to be completed (and I can't possibly give the highest rating to a series that is not finished ;) ).

Rating: 9

Graphics

While it's silly to compare it to gorgeous works such as Clamp or Green Glass, the art in FMA is still visually satisfying.

Layout
Panels flow smoothly and Arakawa has set them up well to enhance the feel of the manga. There's no distraction from the storyline in this manga (there is nothing worse than reading a manga and not knowing which panel follows on next OX).

Character design
Each character has their own unique style, conveying their personality to the reader.
Expressions, body language and position are all used to in the highest form to impress the reactions to the reader: Edward's volatile nature, Colonel Mustang's cool demeanor, Winry's care for the two brothers and yes, even Al has feelings (only Arawaka could get a suit of armor to show emotion like the rest of us X-P).

Presentation
Arakawa's art style is crisp and clean and suits the overall tone of the story quite well. When I read Arakawa's work, there's no need to have an animation sequence to convey the feeling of the action that is going on: using her well-detailed scenes, kanji characters - and a little imagination - a reader can be instantly transported to the scene of action.
Also, the use of deformed characters during some of the less serious scenarios never fails to bring a smile to my face.

10 - because the art perfectly suits FMA manga.

*Update: upon jakulito's suggestion, I've included some scans from the manga. These are taken from some fansubs I found awhile ago on the net - so credit goes to them :)

Rating: 10

Sound

I cannot read Japanese ( T_T ), so the following is based on the English translation:

It wouldn't be such a great story without great dialogue to accompany it. So there is not much more to say that I have not already said: excellent set up, conveys the story well, captivates interest: it wouldn't be such a great manga based on art alone.

On the down side - there are a few (and I mean perhaps one or two) passages in the manga which I feel come up a bit lame - whether it be cussing of characters or just a language barrier - but it overall it does not affect the story.

On an edition note: I started off buying the translations by Viz Media, but later discovered Chuang Yi (which is released by Madman). I prefer the later because not only do they keep the book similar to the Japanese releases with their retention of the dust covers and otaku on the inside covers, but the kanji remains in the text with small translations nearby. For someone who wants to learn the Japanese language, I find these little bits helpful and just add that little bit more to the reading experience ;) .

Rating: 9

Fun

Extras
Each release of a new manga volume contains fun little manga!! The novels (with the dust covers) contain covers with fun scenarios and the spines have images of the people who die in the manga ascending as angels (just a word of warning if you want to avoid spoilers ;) ) For those buying the Viz version, these panels can be found at the back of the book.

Also, often at the back there are four 4-panel skits where the author has some fun with the characters. It is these little things that increase my eagerness to purchase my next copy of FMA. Much to my delight, Volume 12 came with a little book full of these little skits.

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In the manga flap insert of Volume 12, Arakawa states the following:

A wise man once said:
"Facts will always be absorbing than mere stories"
I watch a lot of documentaries, and more often than not, I'd always end up in tears. I'd say to myself, "This beats even the good fiction any day!" However, when I brought this point up with a fellow artist he retorted: "Ah but only fiction can make unfilled dreams and desires come true."
It's an answer that stirs my creative juices every time I hear it.

Perhaps it's because many of us share that same belief that her work has gained much acclaim across the world.

Full Metal Alchemist is shonen manga containing so much and is so unique that it stands in a league of its own. Yet despite its seriousness and mature themes such as perseverance, determination and life vs death, Arkawa is able to capture a laugh or two. This is a manga that appeals to all audiences; girl or boy; young or old. I highly recommend it.

If you loved the series then definitely pick this manga up! And for those of you who were somewhat dissatisfied with the ending of the anime I recommend starting this manga to find out what really happens to the Elrics. ;) You shall not be disappointed :)

Rating: 10

Final Verdict

9.50 (excellent)

Reviewed by Kukuru, Dec 11, 2007

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