The
iconic anime “ Fullmetal
Alchemist: Brotherhood ” commemorates its fifteenth anniversary since
its first broadcast in Japan. This
widely acclaimed franchise has left an indelible mark on the anime industry,
attracting a devoted fan base around the world.
While both the
original Fullmetal Alchemist and Brotherhood anime are praised as works of
exceptional quality, many fans are surprised to discover that two completely
different series exist. How did the series end up being adapted twice
and why are they so different?
The
“Fullmetal Alchemist” manga began publishing in July 2001 and quickly gained
popularity. The
creator of the series, Hiromu Arakawa, was approached about an anime
adaptation, which was finally carried out by Bones studios. The first
anime debuted its premiere episode on October 4, 2003 and aired for 51 episodes
until its end a year later. At the time, the manga was only 28
chapters into what would be a 108-chapter run, so the end was still far off on
the horizon.
Arakawa
has mentioned that although he had the ending of the manga in mind from the
beginning, he asked the animation studio to create his own story based on what
had been published so far. In
an interview with Newtype USA in 2006, Arakawa said that he saw “ little
point in having a story in different media if everything is exactly the same in
all versions .”
The first series was
a huge success and was followed by a completely original film, " The
Conqueror of Shamballa ", in 2005. In September 2008, it was
announced that a second anime was in development. This second series,
now known as “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood,” was produced by Bones studios
once again and was intended to be a faithful adaptation of the manga.
“Brotherhood” debuted
in April 2009 and aired for 64 episodes before concluding in July 2010. Although
some fans were concerned at the time that the manga had not yet ended, Bones
studios assured that the final episodes were already in production. and that
the series would end in the same way as the manga.
“Brotherhood” was a
critical and commercial success and was popular enough to earn an original
anime film, known as “ The Sacred Star of Milos ,” which
debuted in Japan in July 2011. The reason there are two versions from
Fullmetal Alchimist is simple: it's so popular, it deserves it.
The manga
was popular enough to create an anime so early in its career that it had to
create an original ending, and then that anime was popular enough to spawn
movies of its own. It's
only natural that "Fullmetal Alchemist" would be adapted again once
the manga was (almost) finished, especially since the two had diverged so much.
Additionally, the franchise has continued to be adapted, even with a
live-action “Fullmetal Alchemist” released in Japan in 2022.
Source: ScreenRant
