Part 2 of this Full Metal Alchemist review is about the second series entitled Brotherhood. Part 1 can be seen here. This series is equally as good as the first and, in some cases, may be better than the first. The story starts off the exact same. It also develops in a similar way but around episode six the similarities end and the show moves down a completely different path. Some characters important to the first are no longer present and new characters take their place.
Brotherhood brings back the original voice cast for each of the returning characters, accept Alphonse Elric. That voice sounds different but not sure if it is because the voice of the original actor has changed or the actor himself. The quality is just as good with him because the character still has so much depth with voice alone. The new characters were properly cast and do not disappoint. FUNimation has done good getting the voices for this new grand story.
Animation seems a touch above the first show. This may just be due to experience with drawing the characters. Artist get better at drawing their characters and the animation gets tighter over time. The animation at the end of the original series looked better at the end than it did at the beginning. Not too much could change because overly drastic changes can lose an audience if done in the middle of a series. This series allowed them to make all the minor changes that add to the quality of the show.
The reason is that this story follows the manga almost exactly from beginning to end. The original series followed to a point then diverged onto a new path, a similar one, but one more suited to pulling at the heart strings and giving the audience a sense of loss. The original is a redemption story that deals with facing the consequences of the actions you took. Brotherhood is about redeeming themselves by protecting those left alive. The mistakes are not blatantly in the characters faces to fix. Both are great stories.
Some anime diverge from their manga as the original series did in this case. It is extremely rare for an anime to be remade to follow the original series as this one has been. The result is two equally compelling stories about the same people.
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