FMA Brotherhood. Now that it's over.........

Goldknight · Post by **Goldknight** » Mon Jul 05, 2010 12:36 am

What did you think overall? I'm mainly curious about the opinions of those who have seen both the original FMA and FMA brotherhood.

duotrouble · Post by **duotrouble** » Tue Jul 06, 2010 1:15 am

I'm just finished dling it. I'm so happy it's the final episode because I HATE Brotherhood. I stuck with it though because I have always been curious about the differences. I'm really glad Brotherhood didn't come out first or only otherwise I would have hated FMA. The original is the only one that exists in my brain. The manga and Brotherhood are in another universe I choose not to revisit.

glorff · Post by **glorff** » Tue Jul 06, 2010 7:56 am

I think that the manga/ second series is far superior to the fluff that was the first series. I enjoyed the original when it was running, but it lacks the complexity and conviction of a well told story.

The first series is a good example of the difference between television and a good book.

beatrush · Post by **beatrush** » Tue Jul 06, 2010 9:03 am

glorff wrote: I enjoyed the original when it was running, but it lacks the complexity and conviction of a well told story.

Im in this boat as well, I liked the first FMA but Brotherhood I felt was far superior in many ways.

It is sad to know though that the ride has come to an end. I feel there is so much more they could do with that universe and its characters.

duotrouble · Post by **duotrouble** » Tue Jul 06, 2010 4:35 pm

Now that I've watched the episode, I can give my overall impressions. I still HATE Brotherhood. It's horrible writing. It's storytelling really lacked. There is no excuse to glaze over the beginning of the anime because it's assumed everyone has seen the original FMA. That's not true as I personally know someone whose first experience is with Brotherhood. Let's not even go into the fact that the manga does this too as well as the first character Ed battles with in Brotherhood isn't even in the manga. The character development lacked severely. We were never shown the inner workings of why someone was movitatived to do something. Did I miss something when they were talking about Risa's tatoo? What did that have to do with anything?

I really disliked the way the homuculi were made. I liked the original's take on it better as it seemed more realistic. It was easier to accept that's how they came into being than some blob in a jar. The first series was more about responsibility than Brotherhood. Although, I do admit I enjoyed the reasons behind why each alchemist lost the certain part of themself that they did. I also really liked that

Ed proposed to Winry and we got to see pics of their kids. Although, I felt extremely cheated that I never got to see one little kiss between them.

So bottom line for me is that while there were certain aspects I liked in Brotherhood, overall it lacked. I would have dropped the series had it not been for shear determination to know the differences. Sloth being a workhorse just showed me that the writers didn't know the meaning behind the word sloth.

Everyone's tastes are different and I'm glad to hear that it wasn't a total waste for the company to make it since some people found enjoyment from it. I personally will not be owning ANYTHING from it.

glorff wrote:The first series is a good example of the difference between television and a good book.

This is exactly why I always tell people never to compare the two. They are different mediums with different types of restrictions. Sorry for the quick rant. This is one of my few hot button topics.

theultimatebrucelee · Post by **theultimatebrucelee** » Wed Jul 07, 2010 2:02 am

definitely loved brotherhood way more than the first one, now I don't remember too much about the first one since its been some years but from what I could remember it felt like it was just one part of the story compared to botherhood which is the much more developed full story or at least made me felt that way.

the only things I liked about first one more than brotherhood is its overall darker theme as well as the better art style.

teggacat · Post by **teggacat** » Sat Jul 10, 2010 3:03 pm

It was impossible not to compare the
original series wth the new manga based series,
however I really enjoyed them both very much.
Even if I had never seen the original FMA I think I would
have still liked the Brotherhood series.

Goldknight · Post by **Goldknight** » Sun Jul 11, 2010 12:32 am

Ok. So I guess I'll toss in my opinions now. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I enjoyed both series. At first I fought against brotherhood because the artwork was so different compared to the original. I also agree that there were some things that they assumed we already know based on the original series. Had one not seen the series then it may be difficult to follow initially. The original series was better for explaining the background of a character. The first series was darker in how the homonculus were created as well as what it would take to regain their bodies. Brotherhood of course had its' dark moments, but I did enjoy at the end that there was a happy ending. It gave me closure which is something the original did not. Only later did the original give me some closure in the second FMA movie when the boys could finally be together. Even then though the artwork had changed for the worst and the story was left open and depressing. Overall if I had to choose based on story then I would choose brotherhood though. If I chose based on artwork then it would have to be the original.

LinaLoN · Post by **LinaLoN** » Mon Nov 15, 2010 9:03 am

I liked the lighter tone of Brotherhood vs the dark tone of FMA but I think FMA developed storylines slowly and naturally so it wasn't just pushed together quickly to get onto the next step like Brotherhood. I hated what Brotherhood did to the episodes; "Mother", "The Alchem. Exam" and the second part of the 5th labortory. On the otherhand I loved the episodes which recently aired on Adult Swim. I love Winry so more airtime with her is much appreciated and I do like the relationship between Ed and Winry in Brotherhood much more. I feel like its the way things should have gone between them. Loved when Ed jumped in between her and Scar... normally it would have just been Al he'd protect like that in FMA. What made me so upset about FMA moreso the movie is the fact the Elric brothers left Winry behind in a world she didn't really fit into. Did anyone see what the point was of having Chun Lee or whatever that little martial arts girl's name is and her weird panda thing?

So I guess I'm half and half about it all

I'm the same way with Escaflowne vs Escaflowne movie. I see good and bad qualities in both FMA versions...