Anime & Manga Alright, Let’s be civil about this Full Metal Alchemist discussion.

[God6is6not6real]

I am trying to decide if I should recommend Fullmetal Alchemist OR Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood to my friend who is new to Anime. Take into consideration I am recommending the dubbed version (because it is their first anime, and it might help them ease into the genre), and that I don’t want them disappointed.

I personally watched Fullmetal Alchemist before watching brotherhood, and even though I thought it was a great decision, I am afraid that the original lacks what brotherhood has character-wise. I wouldn’t want my friend to feel bored by the original, and not feel compelled to give brotherhood a chance. However, I loved getting to know Ed and Al in the original, and it made me want to watch Brotherhood for more.

I considered having her watch Brotherhood first, but those I’ve spoken to who watched Brotherhood first before the original then found the original boring and dull compared to the Brotherhood plot-wise.

Now, here’s where you come in. If you have any points for discussion or strong opinions on which one to watch first, if it should be dubbed or subbed, or even if I should recommend Full Metal Alchemist in the first place for a first anime, please help me. I’ve watched anime since Middle school, and it has always helped me through a lot, and I know it isn’t for everyone, but I really want to give a great first impression to my friend.

Thank you for reading till the end.

 

[Shuusuke]

While I think both Fullmetal Alchemist are good, I prefer Brotherhood since the pacing is faster and the events seem more well-planned and impacting in general. But I think it's a tricky choice to have to pick one of them to be someone's first anime. You're stuck in that place where starting by one might not be as impactful, but starting with the other might make them not enjoy the one.

I've made a few friends who didn't watch anime interested by telling them to watch Steins;Gate. I know the topic is to pick one of the FMA ones but I think picking one that doesn't have two versions is safer. But if I had to choose, I'd pick Brotherhood. I think part of the impact the first had on me was because I watched it when I was younger, and in the chance that they end up not wanting to watch the other, I'd say it's better to miss the first one.

 

[Marzopup]

First of all, I haven't watched the original, so I can't recommend one over the other in terms of writing. Anecdotally it seems like whichever people watched first is the one they prefer, though.

I have seen enough of the original to say though, that if your friend is watching the dub I'm comfortable saying Brotherhood is definitely better on that particular front. It's a lot of the same voice actors, but they had a few more years of experience under their belt and I think it shows. Personally I think Travis Willingham especially really improved his performance as Mustang.

 

[Daisie]

I've watched the original and was not really impressed. I personally do not see a need to watch it; Brotherhood is a lot better. I would have been completely fine not seeing the original, in my opinion, and I don't think it's all that important. If you're gonna show a FMA, go with Brotherhood!

 

[Idea]

While I only saw the original, I think it's best to show him brotherhood. It's never fun to see something twice, or at least, it's a lot harder for it to be fun. So you should expect your friend to only see one of the versions and as I hear, brotherhood is the better one. So I recommend you show him brotherhood

 

[Dooplighost]

Seen both, Brotherhood is the way to go without question. The beginning is a bit weirdly paced for Brotherhood and the original does that a little better BUT Brotherhood does pretty much everything else better, including the pacing once the first few episodes are over.

Brotherhood’s animation is also leagues ahead of the original’s and, while that is to be expected, since this is your friend’s first anime I think it is safer just to go with Brotherhood. The quality of the original animation might put your friend off a little because it honestly hasn’t aged well in my opinion, and for someone with no attachment to anime like your friend, the animation quality will make a larger impact than it seems.

So yeah, Brotherhood.

 

[marshmarrow]

The appeal for the original is largely based in nostalgia; for many, it was the series that made them interested in anime, and one of the few "good" longer-running animes of its time.

I found Brotherhood to be much more enjoyable, the emotional and humorous moments hitting me more deeply, despite the fact I was expecting some of them. Also, a lot more bad-assery and genuinely surprising twists, I thought.

I generally prefer subbed anime because the same 12 voice actors for most dubbed anime have become grating to my ears, although I started with dubbed. It's also easier to work on something while I'm watching if I can pick up on what's happening without looking at the screen.

My vote is for dubbed Brotherhood.

 

[Emotional Enigma]

I would do the first FMA. The story had me glued and when I watched brotherhood it kind of brought everything together and made a lot of sense. Plus, there’s some thing Brotherhood doesn’t touch on completely that the original did. I think possibly the Ishvalian war, Roy’s involvement and Greed being introduced not through Lin, are some of the things if I remember correctly. But Brotherhood kind plays off of those things so he might have a lot of questions or get confused.

 

[hologram]

I still haven't seen Brotherhood, it's been on my to watch list for years, but I'd recommend it because it's a full adaptation of the source material and a more modern production. The original FMA anime came out in that awkward early 2000s period when anime studios were still getting accustomed to digital animation and it might appear dated to a newcomer. (Personally I find that early digipaint aesthetic nostalgic as all hell but mostly because that was when I first dove into the world of fansubs.)

I know some people recommend watching the original FMA until the plot diverges from the manga and picking it up with the corresponding episode of Brotherhood that begins adapting material not covered in the first FMA in order to alleviate the issue of Brotherhood's early pacing, but that might be a bit too confusing for a first-time watcher who knows nothing about anime. I personally wouldn't recommend that approach even without knowing the specifics of Brotherhood's early pacing just because it introduces a lot of unneeded complexity, but... it's definitely an option.

In either case I'd recommend the dub because both shows have pretty solid dubs and I feel like the setting is one where it makes more sense to hear the characters speaking English rather than Japanese. I also feel like FMA is a great anime for beginners as it does show off a lot of the strengths of the medium without getting too deep into tropes which might alienate prospective fans.

 

[BloodyMary]

Ok so what I did is I watched the rginal up to episode 18, because that's where it splits plot line. Then I went to brotherhood and watched from episode 18 to the end, then I went back and finished FMA.

In that sense, I believe its the best course of action. Because , since its their first time watching anime,u don't wanna make em watch one or the other then get confused for a brief moment and come to u for assurance on what happened n explain to them what they need to do. Because I feel if that was the case, they'd lose interest in anime feeling that its going to be confusing if they keep watching anime


but then again, that approach may also be a bad decision because of how ur suddenly drastically switching between an outdated version and a modern version so the differences may throw ur friend off.

So to be honest its all up to what type of style ur friend is interested in. if they'd rather see modern animation n some comedic elements, just watch Brotherhood. Maybe just show them the first episode of FMA and the first episode of brotherhood and see what they chooses

 

[mooncake]

brotherhood hands down. it follows the story the way arakawa wrote it to be (being faithful to the manga doesn't always mean superiority, but in this case i think the author did an amazing job and the 2009 anime can't really compare, as deep as it was as well), it's better paced (besides the few first episodes in brotherhood, though they were decent in that aspect), great dub and spectacular animation + directing (. . . except that envy cgi, which i'm not getting into). i try not to be biased, but brotherhood is the way to go in order to experience fullmetal alchemist to its highest potential.

 

[AnimeGenork]

I started with the original only because it was made first. I was okay with it up until it completely deviated from the manga, which I was reading at the time. When I watched Brotherhood, I was completely surprised and was happy with how it adapted the manga. So even though Brotherhood was the one I watched second, I like it much more in terms of story and adaptation.

This may be a strange suggestion, but maybe you could have your friend start reading the manga, and then introduce them to the anime? I only say that because it's easier, for me at least, to like an anime if I have the background given by the manga. Sure, you could have the first episode's exposition, but I personally like the FMA manga, and it's really the manga that made me love the story more.

As for which anime to use, you could try the first one. It has its merits, but you might have to explain that it differs from the storyline Arakawa came up with. If they're curious about the real way the story goes, then casually slip in some Brotherhood.

I hope this was helpful