Fullmetal Alchemist (2003 anime)

Fullmetal Alchemist is the title of the first anime based on the manga series of the same name. Adapted from the original material by the animation studio Bones, the anime was directed by Seiji Mizushima and co-produced by the Bones, Mainichi Broadcasting System and Aniplex with character designs by Yoshiyuki Ito and scripts by Sho Aikawa. The series ran on the Mainichi Broadcasting System, TBS, and Animax in Japan from October 4, 2003 to October 2, 2004, with a 6.8 percent television viewership rating. FUNimation's English dub of the Fullmetal Alchemist anime debuted on the Adult Swim block of the United States cable channel Cartoon Network in November 6, 2004. A year and a half later, Canada's YTV began airing it on March 3, 2006.

The series ran for 51 episodes and one feature-length film, and is consistent with the storyline of the manga until roughly half-way through. The second half of the anime is drastically different from the manga (which is still ongoing), due to a request by Hiromu Arakawa. During the making of the anime, Arakawa was present in meetings in order to give the staff insight into the world of Fullmetal Alchemist, though she did not actively take part in any writing for the TV series. The series has been released in a series of thirteen DVDs from December 17, 2003 to January 26, 2005 in Japan. Funimation also released an English-dubbed series of thirteen DVDs from February 8, 2005 to September 12, 2006 in the United States. MVM had released the first eight volumes in the UK; however, Funimation gave the rights over to Revelation Films.

The movie which concluded the series, Fullmetal Alchemist the Movie: Conqueror of Shamballa, was made by the same studio, and premiered in Japanese theaters on July 23, 2005. A series of five original video animations (OVAs) were also released. Most of them have little or no plot continuity, however, and are not considered canon. These OVAs include a live-action segment with Alphonse Elric traveling around a modern city. In March 2006, a DVD featuring these OVAs was released in Japan; the dubbed version of this collection, featuring the original English cast, was released by FUNimation under the title Fullmetal Alchemist: Premium OVA Collection in February 2009.

This anime series is not to be confused with Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, the second TV series based on the Fullmetal Alchemist manga, which began airing in 2009. This new anime follows the original storyline much more closely than the 2003 anime series.