Here's how Fullmetal Alchemist and Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood differ from each other. Created by Hiromu Arakawa,Fullmetal Alchemist is one of the virtually pop and successful manga series of all fourth dimension and has been developed into animation, movies and alive-activeness. While it's commonplace for a hitting manga to be given the anime adaptation treatment, information technology'south non standard practice for there to be two carve up series based on exactly the aforementioned material. This is the state of affairs fans observe themselves in withFullmetal Alchemist.

The originalFullmetal Alchemist anime began airing inside a year of the manga's publication debut. Working to different schedules, Arakawa encouraged the anime to deviate from her own story and come up upward with something original. Unfortunately, anime originals oftentimes tend to exist divisive, and so it proved withFullmetal Alchemist, leading to the product ofFullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood in 2009 which was more authentic to the manga.

Consequently, both versions of the anime begin in nearly-identical fashion. The backstory and goals of Edward and Alphonse Elric are the same, and most of the major settings and characters remain in place. Big plot points from the first act occur in both shows, and Arakawa's fictional universe works more or less by the same rules. Simply there'due south a point around the episode 30 marker where the 2003Fullmetal Alchemist anime begins to diverge from the manga and begins to spin its own yarn.Brotherhood begins animating untouched material by episode 10, which ways at that place are plenty of differences betwixt the ii versions.

The Homunculi

I of the biggest differences betweenFullmetal Alchemist andBrotherhood lies in its villains. Both versions of the story feature the Homunculi as recurring enemies for the Elric brothers, and since these characters appear early on, their basic function and overarching vii mortiferous sins theme remain consequent. However, the backstory of each Homunculus and their true nature are completely altered. In the initial 2003 anime serial, each Homunculus is the unintended upshot of an alchemist attempting human transmutation - the "sins" of alchemy returning to haunt the creator. Lust was born when Scar's brother tried to resurrect his girlfriend, Sloth was the upshot of Ed and Al trying to bring back their mother, Wrath appeared from Izumi's failed transmutation, and Greed, Envy, Pride and Gluttony were all created past the series' arch-villain. InBrotherhood, the entire Homunculus origin changes - all of the creatures are but made by the main villain, Father.

As well every bit their backstories, each Homunculus as well experiences vastly different journeys in the 2003 series andBrotherhood. Sloth is a motherly woman inFullmetal Alchemist, posing equally the secretary to King Bradley who is revealed to be Pride. InBrotherhood, Sloth is merely a tunnel-digging monster, while Pride is King Bradley's son and the Male monarch himself is Wrath. Considering of Lust's sympathetic origin story in the 2003Fullmetal Alchemist anime, she aligns with the Elric brothers, but her expiry sends Gluttony into a state of depression.Brotherhood'due south Gluttony is actually Father's failed try at creating a Gate of Truth and the Homunculus ends up beingness killed by Pride. Where Ed defeats Greed in the original anime series, the Homunculus is captured and transferred into someone else inBrotherhood. Equally a past-product of the 2003 anime's Homunculus mythology, the remains of the transmuted humans act as a weakness to their respective villains.

Envy'southward story is ane of the biggest changes. TheFullmetal Alchemist anime depicted this Homunculus as a ophidian-similar creation, who wanted to find its father through the Gate of Truth, but the concluding form ofBrotherhood's Green-eyed is a one-eyed blob who somewhen takes its own life, consumed by its ain jealousy.

Fullmetal Alchemist's Villain - Dante & Father

When the firstFullmetal Alchemist anime began to cover its own original material, the story had however to reveal its true villain, so was forced into concocting a fresh antagonist - a mysterious woman called Dante. Centuries old, Dante was the lover of the Elric brothers' father, Hohenheim. The couple managed to continuously cheat death using philosopher's stones, but after Hohenheim dumped Dante for Trisha Elric, his ex resorted to using Homunculi as her minions, promising she could restore their human forms. Later Dante'south quest for eternal life is exposed, she's killed by her own servant, Gluttony, who she previously sent on a mindless eating rampage.

Dante doesn't exist inBrotherhood or the original manga, and the principal villain is instead revealed to exist Father - the original Homunculus. Similar to the 2003 anime but without the romance angle, Edward and Alphonse's dad is much older than he seems, and was once a slave to an alchemist who created Male parent based on Hohenheim's blood. Male parent took on a life of its own and conspired to ensure that the unabridged country of Xerxes would be sacrificed to provide him with a proper physical form. Thrown into the bargain, Hohenheim himself is made immortal, although he had no knowledge of the conspiracy and later devotes his life to defeating Father.

Edward & Alphonse Elric

Every bit the main protagonists ofFullmetal Alchemist, Edward and Alphonse Elric aren't substantially altered between the two anime serial. The brothers' designs, personalities and motivations remain largely consistent, with nearly of the changes happening effectually them rather than to them. With that said, there are a few alterations to Ed and Al's personal stories and characterizations. For instance, the State Alchemist exam is a proper exam in the earlierFullmetal Alchemist anime. Ed trains for the occasion under Shou Tucker and then sits a proper test alongside other budding candidates. Ed's dissipated talent gets the better of the situation inBrotherhood -all the tiny alchemist does to attain his qualification is transmute a spear and threaten King Bradley with it.

The extent of the Elric brothers' abilities is besides slightly altered betwixt anime series. In the 2003 iteration, Ed is capable of performing abracadabra without the demand to describe a transmutation circumvolve, making him ane of the about talented in his field. Alphonse, on the other hand, still needs to draw regular transmutation circles, at least until he obtains the ability of a philosopher'southward rock. InBrotherhood, withal, both Elric brothers can perform circle-less alchemy cheers to their dabbling in human transmutation.

Altered Fullmetal Alchemist Characters

Although Ed and Al don't change significantly, plenty of otherFullmetal Alchemist characters exercise. Generally speaking,Brotherhood moves at a faster step, despite having a college episode count, which means that the 2003 anime series takes more time to explore certain figures. Edward and Alphonse'due south mother Trisha is a prime instance, with far greater color to her character in the 2003 edition. InBrotherhood, Trisha is more of a plot device to get theFullmetal Alchemist story rolling.In the same vein, the Elric brothers develop stronger bonds with Maes Hughes and his family than they do inAlliance, and even assistance deliver the man'southward child. After appearing early on in the story, Rose is more important in the original anime, as Dante plans to use the girl as a make new vessel.

Conversely, someFullmetal Alchemist characters relish more significant roles inBrotherhood, most notably Riza, whose connection to Mustang is explored in more than detail, and Tim Marcoh, who is killed by Gluttony in the start anime, but enjoys a much bigger role inBrotherhood.

Rather than beingness more prominent in i series than the other, some characters' stories are every bit vital but markedly different. The man responsible for killing Winry's parents is revealed to be Roy Mustang in the 2003Fullmetal Alchemist anime, simply Scar committed the crime inBrotherhood. Meanwhile,Brotherhood sees Mustang go blind as a effect of inbound the Gate of Truth and a completely revamped story in invented for Scar. This shady graphic symbol'south beginning anime backstory involves an unnamed alchemist brother who replaces Scar's arm with a philosopher's stone. Redeeming himself somewhat, Scar dies to protect Alphonse.Brotherhood changes this, and Scar'south powers instead come from combining abracadabra with alkahestry. Scar also survives until the finish of the story, helping overcome the Homunculi, and his personality is generally more focused.

Further contradistinct characters include Shou Tucker, who becomes a chimera in the 2003 anime and tries to bring dorsum his girl Nina, who he previously merged with the family domestic dog. Scar puts paid to any such redemption story inAlliance by redecorating the room with Tucker's innards.

Missing Characters & Places

Considering theFullmetal Alchemistmanga was still ongoing when the offset anime aired, in that location are many additions to Arakawa's story that wouldn't make information technology into the 2003 series and vice versa. The TV-original material adds the Tringham brothers to the mix - a couple of young alchemists posing as Edward and Alphonse to access state resources and finish their father's research. Although this sub-plot doesn't characteristic inBrotherhood, it does derive from a spin-off novel. The first anime series also replaces Hughes with the decidedly less friendly Frank Archer. Elements of Arakawa's manga that featured solely inAlliance include the Briggs soldiers and the land of Drachma, as well as the Xing country and everyone associated with it. The ice alchemist Isaac McDougal is also sectional toBrotherhood, simply isn't from the original manga.

The Ending & The Existent World

Given that the 2Fullmetal Alchemist anime series take such contrasting paths, information technology's no surprise that they conclude in entirely unlike ways. For the first anime series, the Gate of Truth is revealed to exist a portal to the "existent" earth, and abracadabra is explained every bit energy created by deceased souls that pass through the gate. Edward enters the gate, submits his own life as equivalent exchange payment and restores his brother's body, trapping himself in 20th century Earth while Al and Winry remain on the other side. This tragic ending is expanded upon in theConquistador of Shambala film, in which Alphonse manages to reunite with his blood brother on Earth shortly before the outbreak of World State of war Two. Not peachy timing.

None of this happens in Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood . In a much happier catastrophe, Ed merely has to pay for the render of Al's body with his power to perform abracadabra, and this procedure also restores his own missing arm. Despite no longer being able to practice alchemy, Ed settles down and starts a family with Winry, living a peaceful life without being dragged through a portal and forced to worry about the looming shadow of Adolf Hitler.

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About The Author

Craig Elvy (3899 Articles Published)

Craig first began contributing to Screen Bluster in 2016, several years later on graduating higher, and has been ranting ever since, mostly to himself in a darkened room. Having previously written for various sports and music outlets, Craig's interest soon turned to Telly and picture, where a steady upbringing of science fiction and comic books finally came into its own. Craig has previously been published on sites such as Den of Geek, and afterwards many java-drenched hours hunched over a laptop, part-time evening piece of work eventually turned into a total-time career roofing everything from the zombie apocalypse to the Starship Enterprise via the TARDIS. Since joining the Screen Rant fold, Craig has been involved in breaking news stories and mildly controversial ranking lists, but now works predominantly as a features writer. Jim Carrey is Craig'due south peak acting selection and favorite topics include superheroes, anime and the unrecognized genius of the High Schoolhouse Musical trilogy.

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