However, there are a ton of slight but important differences between Fullmetal Alchemist and Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, that makes them subject to constant comparisons on which one is better.
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The Reasoning Behind Having Two Adaptations
Unlike most anime adaptations, the Fullmetal Alchemist manga was a long way from finishing when Studio Bones started the first anime series in 2003. When the first Fullmetal Alchemist anime ended in 2004, only 8 of the total 27 volumes from Hiromu Arakawa’s story had been published, so they had to freely adapt and continue the story until the end similar, for example, to the Game of Thrones HBO show. While there is nothing wrong with the liberties they took to make the show, the big contrasts with what happened later in the manga overwhelmed a lot of the franchise’s fans, some of them asking for a re-do of the anime that was more faithful to the original source.
Studios Bones, aware of the situation, decided to click the restart button in 2009 with Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, using the same style and voice actors, but with a story based on the manga and the opportunity to correct some of the most criticized aspects of the first one. Apart from the obvious differences plot-wise, Fullmetal Alchemist consisted of 51 episodes and a movie that served as the ending (a quite bizarre one at that) and Brotherhood had 64 episodes, a bit longer. A different soundtrack and an improved animation to an already high-quality one were pretty much the only technical differences. Also, it’s worth mentioning that there was a change in the director position from Seiji Mizushima to Yasuhiro Irie.
What’s Better in Brotherhood?
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood remains a classic, an all-time masterpiece, one of the shows that served as an entry point to anime for many people, and that doesn’t happen by accident. The overall impression and impact are incomparable to the one the original anime enjoyed, even though it has its good and unique things. Makes you wonder what could make such a big difference when the work was done by almost the same people a few years later.
The pacing has been one of the most compared aspects between the shows, some people prefer the slow and steady pace of Fullmetal Alchemist, that can be interpreted as more caring about the build-up to certain events, however, what prevails and succeeds time and time again in the anime industry is the frenetic action-packed pace, and that’s exactly what Brotherhood offers. Amazing fight scenes, just like the ones in Fullmetal Alchemist, that were accompanied by cliffhangers and lots of adrenaline without a moment of boredom in the entire show. It wasn’t only about being faithful to the manga, they changed the approach and made a high-pace story that had most of its fans in the edge of their seats. Although to be fair, the events that are in both of the series, namely, before Fullmetal Alchemist takes a different turn, can seem a bit rushed in Brotherhood if you have watched the other, which is the consequence of a dramatic change of pace.
Another difference that has been widely debated is how each show presents and develops the important characters, counting in that group all the ones that have some sort of relevance for the plot. Although with some specific characters the original does a better job, the overall picture gives the advantage to Brothehood. That is a direct consequence of following Arakawa’s story versus having to improvise after a while. When you can count on the original source your whole product will gain a cohesiveness and a feeling that everything was planned out from the beginning, something that is otherwise really difficult to achieve. This reflects on the characters in a major way, allowing them to gain depth and a better development only possible with a great attention to detail for the overall story, world-building, and interactions between characters.
This relates directly to the tone of the show and the ending. Fullmetal Alchemist had a much darker tone overall that tried to explore the moral consequences of transmutation which is a very interesting view of the story, nevertheless, they could have gone much deeper with that idea. Brotherhood, on the other hand, wanted a hopeful tone, something that resembled Arasakawa’s writing that always contained comical touches, but while being able to balance it with a more serious mood.
The opposition in the tone reflects on the ending, the first one struggled with putting an end to it and had to then release a movie that works as an ending with alternative dimensions, World War II and Nazi Germany. An ending that didn’t satisfy most of the fans and felt almost absurd at times. Brotherhood, managed to replicate the manga’s ending to perfection, and epic, satisfying conclusion that offered closure to the characters stories and developments with a well-round plot.
Regardless of the things that one or the other does better, both of them should be appreciated for what they are and what they have been able to accomplish. Fullmetal Alchemist was able to put together a story without the manga and created its own unique way of interpreting the world of Amestris, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood followed the traditional path and did an amazing job translating one of the best mangas of all time to one of the best animes to date.
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