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This is the show that got me into anime. Sure I'd already seen all of the Animatrix and the movie Spirited Away but I hadn't really considered myself a real fan of it until I had the good fortune to catch this on TV.

I'm not in the business of doing spoiler laden plot summaries in reviews so suffice it to say that the story is about two brother Edward and Alphonse and is set in a sort of steampunk/fantasy world where Alchemy is the defining science instead of Physics as it is in our world.

The show deals mainly with what it means to be human ... and exactly what the value of human life - or more specifically the human soul is and also the strong bonds that form between family and friends. That description makes the whole thing sound heavy handed though and the show can be quite arresting at times but it never falls into the trap of being unpleasant to watch.

The show begins very dark although the tone is handled expertly throughout - shifting from horrific moral ambiguity and dark subject matter to some genuinely funny comedic moments, as opposed to the usual anime clichés of 'old man pervs over spunky girl and gets hit with a big hammer'.

In fact avoiding the clichés is one of the best things the show does - none of the characters are generic 'anime types' despite how they may initially come across. They all have their motivations and their own world view which informs their actions and never feels like someone's acted out of character.

I watched the dub for lack of another option when it was on TV and the acting really wasn't bad at all. I usually find myself turning to subtitled versions of shows because the voice actors usually seem to put the emphasis on disguising their own voice than on acting however that isn't the case with the majority of the cast on this show.

The art and animation of the show is of a very high standard - everything fits together nicely and the movements in the action sequences are really fun to see.

If you even have a passing interest in the genre (and let’s face it you're reading an anime review on the internet so you probably do) you should give this show a try.



For those of you that are too lazy and just scrolled to the end of the review without reading it...Watch FMA!