#I'm just really excited 03 is back on Netflix because every time a big FMA fan tells me they've never seen 03 I get so sad

[greed-the-dorkalicious]

A diehard Mangahood fan’s opinion on why YOU- YES, YOU- should watch FMA 2003

(Yes, those are his actual lines in this scene. These are the Netflix captions.)

2018 is off to a great start, with both FMA anime being back on Netflix! But ever since Brotherhood overtook 03 in popularity years ago, the FMA fandom has been so deeply divided on the subject of the two anime that even today, a lot of FMA fans who have never seen 03 vehemently refuse to watch it, simply because they heard from someone else that it’s bad.

As someone who’s been in the FMA fandom for about 9 years, could easily go on for hours about the endless problems with 03, and firmly believes the manga is better than both anime anyway, I think that this attitude is bullshit. While I understand that 03 is not everyone’s cup of tea for sure, I think refusing to even try it is a very narrow-minded approach that will only make you miss out. So, from one Mangahood fan to another, here’s my take on why YOU should give 03 a try now that it’s back on Netflix!

A whole 51 episodes + 1 movie worth of FMA content you haven’t seen yet! Come on, what better reason do you need? For those of you who are always craving more of those good good Elric boys and their merry band of friends, here’s a perfect opportunity to see them in all sorts of new situations, in all their fully animated and voiced glory! More fight scenes! More banter! More brotherly love! More Riza Hawkeye shooting things! More alchemy! It’s a deal you can’t miss.

Learn about the FMA fandom’s history! Ever wonder why Hohenheim seems to get so much more hate than he deserves, or why that one Ishvalan kid who got like 3 lines is sometimes called Rick? Have you ever found yourself in the deep reaches of DeviantArt or Google Images and found strange images of armor Al with tattoos, Rose with dark skin and pink bangs, an edgy-looking kid with similar clothes to Envy, or a low quality gif of Havoc crying and aggressively writing in a journal captioned with “I have all these feels”? Confused about the phrase “In those days, we believed that to be the world’s one, and only, truth”? Do you occasionally see content of the “Tringham brothers” or “Alfons Heiderich” and not understand who they are? Have you seen the “tiny miniskirts” clip on YouTube, but never been able to find it in context? Just where did the titular tumbleweed of International FMA Tumbleweed Appreciation Day come from, anyway?! All these questions and more can be answered by watching 03!

Beautiful music! A lot of great music came out of the 03 era, such as silly OST pieces like Pint-Size Alchemist or Favorite Daughter; Beautiful pieces like Equivalent Exchange or Memories; Haunting choruses like Ishbal or Dante; Fun and memorable theme songs FMA’s oldest banger, Melissa, or the Resembool Trio anthem, Hagane no Kokoro; And of course, the unforgettable masterpiece of a duet that spawned a legacy transcending years and languages, Bratja aka Brothers.

Talented voice actors! 03 had a slightly different voice cast from Brotherhood. For the dub, we’ve got the loveable and unforgettable Aaron Dismuke as Al- You might know him for his triumphant return in Brotherhood as young Hohenheim, but he was the original Alphonse Elric, when he was just 12 years old! Aside from that, we’ve got Chris Patton as Greed, Dameon Clarke as Scar, Monica Rial as Dante, and “sexy Greed” Troy Baker as Robocop himself, Frank Archer! And for the original Japanese version, there’s Nana Mizuki (Lan Fan in Brotherhood) as Wrath, Tooru Okawa as Roy, Megumi Toyoguchi as Winry, and Junichi Suwabe (perhaps best known as Victor Nikiforov and Aizawa Shouta) as Greed. And more!

Bonus content from the manga that wasn’t in Brotherhood! While Brotherhood initially rushed through the beginning of the plot under the assumption that we’ve all seen it 500 times already so let’s get to the new stuff, 03 actually took its time and included episodes based off the early stories, such as Youswell or the battle on the train. Not only that, but 03 also includes episodes based off some of the bonus chapters (Dog of the Military, the military festival, the one where Havoc went on a date with Catherine) and even some content from the light novels (The Tringham brothers, the haunted warehouse).

An interesting reimagining of FMA, with new perspectives explored, and new characters! It’s true that 03 has a very different plot and overall tone from Mangahood, and maybe it’s not for everyone, but why is the mere concept of being different seen as a bad thing? Think of it like a fanfiction, an interesting AU with its own distinct flavor. Who knows, maybe you’ll enjoy 03′s style! It features interesting (not always good, not always bad, but certainly interesting) new characters, such as Dante, the Tringham brothers, Wrath, Sloth, Frank Archer, Lujon and Lydia, and Rick and Leo. It also explores new possibilities and new directions that the manga didn’t. Ever wish Nina, Sheska, Lust, Rose, Martel, or Mason got more character development? Do you wonder what the state alchemist exam might be like? Do you think the homunculi simply being created by Father is too boring an origin story? Are your favorite superhero comic storylines the ones that involve alternate universes crossing over with each other? Ever wanted to see a cyborg shoot bullets out of his mouth? Are AMVs featuring Scar set to early 2000s emo music your niche but passionate hobby? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, 03 is the anime for you!

Also ngl, some of the fight scenes are really cool. Ed vs. Greed in particular... now THAT was some animation, woah. I love it.

In conclusion, if you’re a FMA fan and you haven’t seen 03 before, I highly recommend you check it out! After all, it can’t hurt- Either you’ll enjoy it and have a fun time with more FMA content, or you’ll learn for yourself that you don’t like it, and can simply stop watching. But you’ll never know until you try! Please, don’t listen to bitter, negative fans who only want to drive you away from something you might enjoy. (Ngl, most of them probably weren’t even around before Brotherhood came out anyway; I can tell you from experience that before Brotherhood got really popular, 03 was actually considered to be a really good anime, and had it not been so successful Brotherhood would never have even been created.) Open up to new possibilities, and give 03 a try!