Alphonse and Edward standing in front of a fire wall in Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood
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Lewis Glazebrook
Published 15 minutes ago
Lewis is a Lead Writer for Screen Rant and has written for the site since 2022. This has allowed Lewis to explore a vast array of films, TV shows, books, comic books, and games from across the mainstream world of pop culture, reflecting his lifelong love of all media and typifying his experience in the world of fiction storytelling. To top this off, Lewis graduated from Northumbria University with First Class Honours in Film & TV Studies, truly exemplifying his experience in the medium.
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Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood may be considered a better adaptation of its source material than Fullmetal Alchemist, but there's one thing the latter did better. The original Fullmetal Alchemist anime was released in 2003 as an adaptation of the manga of the same name. Another, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, was then released in 2009, explaining why there are two Fullmetal Alchemist anime.
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is revered as one of the greatest anime in history, for several reasons. Its predecessor, however, never tends to find itself mentioned in the same breath as the best anime series. That being said, despite Brotherhood's longer-lasting impact, there is one storyline from the manga that has gone on to be darkly iconic, which Fullmetal Alchemist does better than its successor.
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood Was Better Than The OG Anime In Almost Every Way
Ed as featured on a poster for FMA: Brotherhood.
To fully explore why it is a big deal that Fullmetal Alchemist outdid Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood in one key way, it is worth explaining why the latter is regarded as a better anime than the former. Perhaps the biggest reason for this is Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood's fidelity to the original manga.
Fullmetal Alchemist began in 2003, only two years after the original manga was first released. The manga itself did not finish being published until 2010, meaning Fullmetal Alchemist eventually ran out of story material. This meant that it created its own conclusion, with some character arcs also being changed from what eventually took place in the manga.
Conversely, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood was released in 2009, meaning its creators knew how the manga would conclude. As a result, the second adaptation of the manga was much more consistent with the original story. Even beyond that, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood had aspects that saw it dubbed a superior adaptation to Fullmetal Alchemist.
For instance, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is described as much more epic in scope, matching the manga's large-scale story in comparison to Fullmetal Alchemist's more intimate tone. The former also has increased humor and a more optimistic conclusion, with naturally improved animation given the six-year difference in production. Overall, there are not many who prefer Fullmetal Alchemist to Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood.
Nina Tucker's Chimera Twist Hits Harder In Fullmetal Alchemist Than In Brotherhood
Shou Tucker hugging his daughter Nina in Fullmetal Alchemist
All that said, there is one heartbreaking moment in Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood that is actually done better in Fullmetal Alchemist: Nina Tucker's Chimera twist. In the Fullmetal Alchemist universe, a Chimera is a being that is alchemically created by fusing two living beings into a single organism.
One of the show's most iconic yet darkest storylines involves the central protagonist duo, Edward and Alphonse, visiting a man named Shou Tucker, who lives with his daughter, Nina, and their dog, Alexander. Nina's mother passed away before the events of the storyline, before it was discovered that Shou Tucker was using humans, including his wife, for alchemical experiments.
This ultimately leads Shou to do the same to his daughter, fusing Nina with Alexander to create a child-dog hybrid Chimera. This moment has haunted anime and manga fans alike for decades, and while Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood portrays the grim fate of Nina Tucker effectively, Fullmetal Alchemist's depiction of the events was worse.
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood covers Nina's story in only a single episode, meaning that, while still devastating, it doesn't quite have the impact it did in Fullmetal Alchemist. The latter show included Nina for a few more episodes before the Chimera twist, allowing viewers to get to know her better before revealing her dark fate, and making the twist much more emotionally resonant than it was in Brotherhood.
Nina's Fate In Fullmetal Alchemist Is Unsettling No Matter How You Experience It
Admittedly, though, Nina's fate is haunting no matter how it is experienced. Be it in the manga, the original 2003 anime, or the 2009 adaptation, the Chimera twist remains one of the darkest, most unsettling moments in Fullmetal Alchemist. All three stories make Nina easily likable and sympathetic as a young girl who misses her mother and finds solace in her friend and pet, Alexander.
Nina being forced to fuse with Alexander, only for them to become husks of themselves that are not in full control, is harrowing. All versions of the story imply that Nina and Alexander are somewhat aware of what is happening around them without being able to change anything, as Nina's mother was before them.
The twisted nature of this fate, as well as Shou's unwillingness to show remorse for his actions, immediately makes the storyline unsettling in a way that has stuck with audiences decades later. Beyond that, it made Shou one of the easiest anime characters to hate.
The mercy killing of Nina and Alexander is also heartwrenching. To put it simply, the entire story is a dark chapter in the manga, the 2003 adaptation, or the 2009 version of the story. Yes, Fullmetal Alchemist may have made the emotional impact of Nina's Chimera twist worse, thus making it a better adaptation, but Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood's version is still a disturbing one.
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Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Like Follow Followed Action Adventure Fantasy Sci-Fi Shonen Release Date 2009 - 2010Cast
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Maxey Whitehead
Alphonse Elric
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Vic Mignogna
Edward Elric
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