There was a bit of soul Alchemy you kinda forgot that being when Edward used the energy of his own soul to accelerate the healing process of a major injury he was going to bleed out from he said it would take a few years off his remaining lifespan.
@@EddyA1337 it was after he was injured while in a mine up north by which point he was helped out by a couple of Chimeras that were left for dead by Kimbly.
@@williehughes1690 he also turns himself into a philosopher's stone to invade Pride's inner being, suggesting that philosopher stones can communicate with one another on that level, though it might be similar to Father assimilating Homunculi by taking their stone or Pride consuming Gluttony.
I would love to see a “You Know NOTHING” series about each of the homunculi, as well as some of the other major characters in the show. FMAB has so much deep philosophical messages hidden in it. It’s a true gem.
@@neonicon8500 I think it would take more than one. Greed and Wrath especially had some decent development throughout the story. Also, Nick could tie in the behavior of each homunculi with their corresponding sin. Some of their behaviors were more clear than others.
@@jamisonreynolds9949 Yeah but you could not make a 15 minute video on Gluttony, Envy, or Lust. All of them are pretty straightforward with their powers , back stories , and motivation. And I just say one video because I've never known him to break up a group with videos only concerning 2-3 characters at a time. It's either one or all of them. But if he did, he could do Gluttony, Envy, Lust, and Sloth. He could make a whole video on Father by himself. And then one on Wrath, Pride, and Greed. Pride was my personal favorite. I liked Greed too. I wish he would make some more FMA videos though. That is the anime that got me started.
A little correction, Father's philosopher stone was actually inhibiting transmutation, and it wasn't until they used a giant healing circle that the alchemists were able to use the full power of the tectonic plates. Scar describes it in the anime.
Agreed, also makes sense since Father wouldn't want to use up his stone if he could help it, that's what keeps him alive and with a human body, it makes more sense that Father was instead inhibiting the power of transmutation in order to eliminate the possibility of there being a strong enough alchemist to appose him. He needed a lot of alchemists in order to get five alchemists who all opened their gate of truth all alive at the same time so he could open the planets gateway and achieve the power of that which he called god. But nothing in that plan required strong alchemists, he just needed them to be strong enough to A. give the Amestris military the edge in order to conquer the area it did so that he could keep the construction of the underground circle a secret, and B. to create 5 alchemists who all opened their gate of truth.
sort of. it's closer to say that father's stone was giving him control over amestrian alchemy. because he was spread out through the entire country, in both the form of the philosophers' stone under the ground and the shadows of pride ringing the circle under the country's border, he controlled the flow of all energy in the country. xing alkahests could sense that, which is why they all comment that the country feels weird to them. long story short, what that all means is that father could control all alchemy in the borders of amestris. he could amp it, or inhibit it, or flat out turn it off. once his control is broken by hoenheim, the alchemists are free to draw on as much power as they want straight out of the earth's mantle, which ed comments on feeling. as for why father couldn't affect alkahestry, the reason is pretty simple. they draw on surface energy, so unless father is physically coating them in his stone, he can't stop their redirection of energy. plus side, alkahesty is effectively unstoppable. downside, it's drawing on a smaller reserve of energy and can't cause as large of an effect.
@@Yal_Rathol good points, also I never thought about prides shadows that are protecting the construction of the ring, and I cannot believe I never realized that's how he stopped Ed and al from using alchemy, I always thought he was just using his hands free alchemy which is way more powerful to counter their alchemy or something, thank you 😊.
@crimson wyvern pride was mostly a guard dog for the national transumation circle, but since his shadows are powered by a philosopher's stone, he can totally do the same thing father did and control the flow of energy past the border he controls. whether he actually did or not is unclear, but he could have. and yeah, alchemy does actually draw energy from underground, that's the only reason father could control it, and it's why ed and al suddenly have juiced alchemy during the finale. father's control is broken and he's reabsorbed his stone into himself.
@@crimsonwyvern7770 But also father's circle had points on it where mass blood was shed. This why Hohenheim released portions of his stone in the the earth at points.
One thing you forgot to mention about the rebound, is that not only the toll is equal to the unbalanced weight, but also takes a part of the body (or the entire body in the case of Al), but also related to a physical representation of their deepest wish/Hope Like "Dwarf in the flask" stated, Ed lost his leg so he couldn't stand up and Moving forward like he wanted to. For Al, who wanted to feel the warmth of his mother's arms, Truth took him the possibility to ever feel again. For Izumi who deeply wanted to have a child, Truth took her internat organs so she couldn't give birth anymore. And for Roy who wanted to see the future, Truth took his eyesight. In the last case, Truth didn't took his organs, but only his eyesight, because even if it was an unbalanced transmutation, Mustang didn't wanted to and was forced to do against his will
Arakawa had a deep study of alchemy books for the series, but was more interested in the philosophical aspects, but apparently the Equivalent Exchange aspect was based more on her observations about the work her parents put in as farmers to be able to eat.
This is honestly one of my favorite power systems in anime because no one is any more powerful than anyone else. The only limit is that you can only do something if you know exactly how it works.If Armstrong wanted to start launching fireballs around, he could. If Edward wanted to make an iceberg like the first episode, he totally could. The only real exceptions are Father and Hohenheim, and even then, not really. The only real advantages they have are more time to study and more raw alchemy juice to waste so they don't actually have to think about anything. If Ed had even a small philosopher stone, he could probably do the exact same tricks as Father
@@Viroh the last part of his comment I agree but everything else is true. All alchemy uses the same process of activation. Just changing the formula. Like how all electronics use electricity but can all work differently.
@Viroh why not? Sure, it'd take a while to get the control down, but all he's doing is turning air into pure oxygen. We've seen kimblee rip apart subatomic bonds no problem, that's probably just as hard
I absolutely love FMAB, it’s easily my favorite anime. The break down you gave answered questions I didn’t know I had lol. With your science background I was shocked you haven’t done more coverage of science like anime/manga(FMAB, Dr. Stone or Hell’s paradise)
FMA and then Brotherhood and Gintama are the animes that got me into it. FMA for the shonen jump type anime and Gintama for the comedy/slice of life type
Basically all the alchemists that was sent to the war in ishval all have trans circles on gloves, their arms or tattooed on their body somewhere. Not just mustang
Those who have seen Truth still use a circle - when they clap their hands together it makes a circle. Having seen Truth, they understand on a deeper level what the circle is, and how they are not separate from what they're doing but can directly be a part of it. The circle and the runes are within the alchemist.
I’ve been loving going through your FMAB vids. I really enjoy hearing you reference my favorite part of the show, which is some of the irony that is baked in. Such as Ed/Al losing their ability to stand on their own and feel their loved ones, and the visionary mustang losing his vision. I hope to hear you reference that each of the homunculi die in irony as well. Gluttony is consumed, envy offs himself out of jealousy. Wrath is killed by Scar, and Lust is burned to death by a shirtless Roy… some of them are a bit of a stretch but I’ve always loved the irony that’s baked into this show. Great channel!
In Roman Catholic it was stated in the bible that every single person has the image and likeness of God residing inside of them, i think this idea relates to why "truth" resides inside every living person in the world of FMAB. I love this channel you are always a great speaker
Catholic? Mysticism and even Christianity are even deeper than that. Alchemy is Judeo-Christian mysticism. Please go deeper on Rosacrucism, Martinism and Kabbalah.
More Full Metal please! Maybe about Scar perhaps? I feel like he has a lot of great character development throughout the show. Also I'm extremely biased because I have his right arm tattoo.. but still.
@@mikeblaze7424 I do yea! I changed it a little bit. I put a blue honeycomb pattern underneath it to fill the empty space but all the black line work is there! I freaking love it actually.
When you were talking about how alchemy is powered by plate tectonics it reminded me of my earth/environmental science teacher. He used to joke that if you ever get an earth science question on jeopardy, the answer is always what is plate tectonics
I love how alchemy js just a lot of skills clumped into 1, but theres not as much process to it, like Al made a radio out of parts of a broken radio, a mechanic could do that.
I feel like human transmutation is a special case when it comes to rebounds . The thing it takes is more of a representation of what the user of human transmutation values most rather than the equivalent exchange part. The best example is probably mustang. His eye sight was taken because he was a man that looked forward to an ideal future. Also Izumi Curtis lost some of her organs cause what she wanted most was a family/baby and truth took that possibility from her. My best explanation for Ed would be that he was a strong kid that always took step forwards towards what he wanted so it took his leg, and Alphonse is hard to pin down but I would say it’s probably cause he was young and wanted to grow up with his brother and stay with him(it is a bit of a stretch but my best conclusion). It could all be coincidence/situational like mustang just being an outlier but I feel like it is what the anime was hinting towards. Like I remember someone saying “I wonder what it will take from you” when talking to mustang about forcing him to do human transmutation. Anyways just a little Ted talk from a fan who has seen this series over a dozen times. Good video. 18:47
I believe it was said for Alphonse that his body was taken because he wanted to feel his mother's embrace again. Took all of him, for the ability to feel another's touch.
It's poetic equivalence, not just what they value most instead of equivalent exchange. Ed wanted his mom back - she was his major support, and he lost his leg. He wanted to hold onto Al, and his brother was his "right hand". Al was younger, and his mother was everything, so he lost his whole body. Izumi wanted her baby, and lost what could give her a baby. Mustang didn't choose to do human transmutation, but what he cared most about (as you said) would be what he might want to take from seeing Truth, his vision of the future. The soul is less concrete, more poetic, and the nature of what is taken for what is desired reflects that.
Ed lost the ability to stand on his two legs for the family he was trying to complete again. Alphonse was taken because Ed tried to bring back what he believed was the only family he had left aside from his brother. Alphonse losing his body is also a punishment for him because what he wanted was to feel his mother's warm embrace again. Then he lost the ability to feel anything
The circle represents the full cycle of the said object's energy. It starts by taking its form, dispersing it, rearranging its infrastructure, and then reassembling it in its new form, thus completing a full circle
Look into Quantum Fluctuations. Quantum mechanics go by an entirely different system than what we can observe outsideof it. Matter is created out of nothing and some of it disappears completely. There's a proclivity to new particles being created more often than they dissappear.
The fact of the matter is, if we ever want to see Korone, we’re probably gonna have someone calling out for Edward as part of that experimentation process. That’s just how things work I guess 🤣 Also, it’s always been a pet theory of mine that it SHOULD be possible to do something like bring Ed and Al’s mother back; if a soul is priceless, then to bring it back only one thing will meet the requirements of equivalent exchange: another priceless soul. If they want their mom back, they just gotta toss a living Tucker into that transmutation circle.
About the reason why alchemists who attempt human transmutation lose body parts : I don’t think it’s a matter of mass at all . Rather it’s the fact that equivalent exchange doesn’t ONLY apply to matter and physical things , it’s an all encompassing principle . So while you’re trying to transmute iron into a spear , equivalent exchange in this case only applies to physical matter and thus only requires a similar amount of physical matter to be consumed , human transmutation ISN’T just physical , it also involves a soul which ISN’T physical and therefore CAN’T be paid for with physical matter . That’s why Roy basically doesn’t lose any mass . Equivalent exchange also applies to metaphysical things . So how would one apply equivalent exchange to something like a soul ? Naturally , alchemy can’t use the actual value of the soul of someone who passed away because that soul no longer exists . Rather the value of that soul is determined by what that soul MEANS to the person trying to transmute . That’s kind of what father alludes to in episode 59 . The clearest example of that is Izumi . That child represented her ability to have children . So in order to attempt (and fail) to recreate such a soul , it would cost her her ability to procreate . In a way it’s equivalent exchange saying « oh yeah , you want to bypass your physical human limitations via alchemy ? You want to transcend your humanity by procreating artificially rather than biologically ? OK ! Then you won’t be needing those organs anymore. » . And then that « metaphysical » loss translates to a physical loss of those organs . That’s why the body parts which are lost through human transmutation are not transformed in the same way as regular transmutation but are rather taken by the little black hands which represent everything that is more metaphysical (hence why Father gets pulled inside out by them when he dies , because he is the « abstract » concept of humanity personified and made physical so logically his demise would be to be completely « unphysicallised » and folded back into 0 dimensions). Imo that’s important because it defines what Truth actually is : not necessarily a conscious being with agency but rather a personification of equivalent exchange as it applies to you metaphysically , to your soul , your humanity . That’s why when you sacrifice a (finite) bit of your humanity you acquire a (finite) bit of omniscience (the portal) which through alchemy turns into a (finite) bit of power . That’s why Father could have never truly reached his goal . As he says , he could’ve kept going with millions , billions , trillions of humans , he would’ve only ever exchanged them for a finite amount of an infinite supply . Ed however sees the true answer : true power doesn’t reside in sacrificing an infinite amount of value in exchange for power , it doesn’t rely on trying to escape your own humanity . True power is to accept it , to embrace it and make the most of it , of your abilities as a human . And in sacrificing the infinite value contained in the portal of Truth , he achieves what Father couldn’t . TL;DR human transmutation doesn’t cause mutilation because of body mass but because alchemy applies to metaphysical value of souls (hence philosopher s stones) which is paid by losing parts of your « humanity » .
Well nick, technically oxygen is more abundant in the earth then it is in the air, it’s one of the most abundant elements in the earth, thanks to things like sand, silicon dioxide. But I do understand your point regarding transmutation
@@spencervance8484 it would have but it’s kind of cool that he had his redemption moment, though I’m sure the majority of the census did not feel as though he deserved it otherwise lol
Interstingly about Scar; his brothers arms are both parts of the proccess without the circle, using the body as the conduit. Hes inferred to be a genius due to his recreation of the formula for alchemy without the knowledge of Truth or the science itself.
Small correction. At least two others have circles on or near their hands. Kimblee (palms) and Armstrong (his gauntlets). But spot on and deeper than I could ever describe the science behind it. Love your videos man.
There's that scene in fma B where Edd is about to preform a whole magic trick. He's going to reverse entropy pretty much by putting all the material of the library back together. I'm not going to think to deeply about how much of the building wasn't there anymore before the wind blew the ash away it was probably one of the first scene which split the series apart for me. In the fma O their is that fight with scar. In order to keep his automale intact while scars trying to deconstruct it He's changing atoms from one element to another. O you had to know what you where trying to change but completely ignored providence while B stretched the limit of knowing something on the level you would need to put a book back together let alone a library of them that you've never scene before. Also in fma it is heavily implied that Alphonse in the armor was a memory construct because he didn't merge with the memories when he got his body back in conquers of Shambala. I'm pretty sure yall been debating that in the forums all this time so I'm gonna leave it at that.
I would HIGHLY suggest watching Max Derrat's videos on the meta physical concepts of the FMA series. Super interesting and thought provoking and show's some additions to your great video. Keep up the great work!
Hxh has the most balanced power system out of all anime and the one with the biggest variety as you can do literally anything if you have the potential.
A little correction, the laws of thermodynamics weren't created (or really discovered) by Newton (9:35), they were actually proposed by different scientists during the 19th century, especially Carnot, Clausius and Thompson; in reality what happens is that if you look at the laws of thermodinamics at a microscopic level, they can be explained by the laws of motion of Newton. Just that little nerdy scientific correction, great video :)
I thought Al still had to use circles. Every clip of Al used in the vid shows him using circle. And I’m the show he states that he still has to use them
In brotherhood, he eventually remembers seeing the gate, and gains the ability to do so. He lost his memory of seeing the truth until Martha’s blood hit his blood seal and triggered the memory. The iconic image of him wiggling his arms with Ed and Izumi is them talking about it
I believe in 03 he eventually is fused with a philosopher stone from scar and had his own runes formed on him and ofc was a philosopher stone so he could do it a little bit there too Much different
I believed that Edward, by using his blood was more compatible as a catalyst for soul bonding.. 20:50. Like the compatibility of organs between relatives.
Lovely video very educational. But I think the reason Ed lost an arm/leg was because he lost 1 while bringing back the mom and another while bringing Al's soul in an armor who died completely while bringing the mom. Correct me if I'm wrong.
I think he lost one limb for trying to bring back the mom and then lost the other limb to put the brother's soul in armor. Also, I'm not sure if the brother actually died. His body stayed alive and animated in the world of truth even while separated from the soul.
Hey can we get an “fmab military personnel relationships explained”? Like, how the main military characters relate to each other by chain of command and ally ties
lets say the FMA univers makes it to like, 100 years ahead of us. if they had a chip containing a very sophisticated ai in it. would that equal a soul? actually if you believe in afterlife, this doesnt work and thats very clearly a thing in FMA…. ya nvm. fun thought tho so still gunna share it lol
You got one thing wrong, Al couldn’t transmute without a circle until much later in the series (unless I’m mistaken and that’s only in the original) If I recall correctly he ended up back at the gate, saw his body, went through the gate in his suit form then returned with the ability to transmute without the circle.
18:28 its not just Truth taking parts to fill in the mass. What Truth takes is in part a judgement on the alchemist. Izumi Curtis tried to bring her child back to life, so Truth took some of her innards (including her reproductive organs) so she could never carry a child again. Roy Mustang had the eyes of a Fuhrer and a vision to lead Amestris, so Truth took his sight. Alphonse wanted to feel his moms warmth, so Truth took his body so he could never feek again. Edward's was twofold. 1) he was arrogant and tried to do things himself, so Truth took his leg so he could never stand on his own again and 2) Ed wanted to bring his mother back so he could have his family, so Truth took his brother, the only family he had left.
Very close, the interaction of tectonic plates is where we get almost all of the mountain on earth from, there are some outliers. Think many of the islands in the south pacific, Hawai'i and even Iceland.
So I’m brotherhood, Greed does tell Ed/Al when they first meet, he can teach them how to make a homunculus, so it’s not limited to 03 around the 19:05 mark
Fullmetal early 2000s series is still probably my favorite because that's when I first found anime samurai shampoo and FMA. I do like brotherhood but I also really like the first FMA movie told you how alchemy worked it was the power of souls from oir world which I think is just fucking metal lol
Wait, hold on, no. Alchemists in Amestris have always used tectonic energy to transmute, but Father's presence across all of Amestris (facilitated by the tubes Father puts in his back) acts as a damper on the alchemic ability of alchemists practicing alchemy in Amestris. The barrier is always there, but Father can "activate" the barrier to disable alchemy. It's not totally clear why he does this as his motivation for doing so is never explained, but this is what happens and when the reverse transmutation circle is activated, the barrier is dispelled so Alchemists are no longer held back by his barrier. I have a few ideas as to why he would do that. One idea is that the barrier is meant to act as some kind of siphon and when a transmutation is attempted while the barrier is fully active, it fails and that energy is siphoned off into something, possibly himself so he can recreate the Homunculi without risk of depleting his own stone too much. This would also apply when the barrier is reduced and then only some of the energy from the transmutations is siphoned off. Another possibility is he did it exclusively to disable alchemists who might stand against him and since Hoenheim's understansing of Alchemy originally came from him, Father probably thought this circle would disable Hoenheim as well. One wonders why, if this is the case, he would do this in a way that disables alchemy at minimum in the entire city if not the entire country if he needed it when someone stood against him since he never seems to leave Central, but that's neither here nor there.
Shou tucker isnt nec bad person, but he may be amoral and he is a bad dad. he wasnt nec a bad dad up until what happened with Nina, but its also possible and i think implied he did it to his wife too... and if thats true bad guy. almost inarguable that what happened to nina makes him a bad dad. but for a moment he did have all the right ideas in mind of someone in a desperate situation and he honestly may have been helmed a hero or genius or some for doing it. Its only a product of circumstance that this ended mostly badly for him.
I mean in my opinion this second channel was made so you didn't have to limit your content. So if you want to talk about older anime I say go for it
Its not ur opinion thats why he did it
@@Ethorp 🍚
He is a beta, why he askin what he can make
Im here for it! Bebop content? Or kenshin? Hell, take us way back to the actual beginning of anime on a history lesson on anime
agreed
There was a bit of soul Alchemy you kinda forgot that being when Edward used the energy of his own soul to accelerate the healing process of a major injury he was going to bleed out from he said it would take a few years off his remaining lifespan.
I don't remember this in brotherhood at all
@@EddyA1337 it was after he was injured while in a mine up north by which point he was helped out by a couple of Chimeras that were left for dead by Kimbly.
@@williehughes1690 he also turns himself into a philosopher's stone to invade Pride's inner being, suggesting that philosopher stones can communicate with one another on that level, though it might be similar to Father assimilating Homunculi by taking their stone or Pride consuming Gluttony.
@@michaelgrey1503 nice I totally forgot about that one.
@@williehughes1690 yeah, I just finished rewatching the other day, so it's still fresh in my mind.
I would love to see a “You Know NOTHING” series about each of the homunculi, as well as some of the other major characters in the show. FMAB has so much deep philosophical messages hidden in it. It’s a true gem.
That would be sick!
Yes he could easily cover them all in one 25ish minute video if that long
@@neonicon8500 I think it would take more than one. Greed and Wrath especially had some decent development throughout the story. Also, Nick could tie in the behavior of each homunculi with their corresponding sin. Some of their behaviors were more clear than others.
Cool
@@jamisonreynolds9949 Yeah but you could not make a 15 minute video on Gluttony, Envy, or Lust. All of them are pretty straightforward with their powers , back stories , and motivation. And I just say one video because I've never known him to break up a group with videos only concerning 2-3 characters at a time. It's either one or all of them. But if he did, he could do Gluttony, Envy, Lust, and Sloth. He could make a whole video on Father by himself. And then one on Wrath, Pride, and Greed. Pride was my personal favorite. I liked Greed too. I wish he would make some more FMA videos though. That is the anime that got me started.
Father wasn’t amplifying their power, he was limiting it. Once Scar used the reverse circle it unlocked alchemy from Fathers limits and control
That makes way more sense tbh lol
A little correction, Father's philosopher stone was actually inhibiting transmutation, and it wasn't until they used a giant healing circle that the alchemists were able to use the full power of the tectonic plates. Scar describes it in the anime.
Agreed, also makes sense since Father wouldn't want to use up his stone if he could help it, that's what keeps him alive and with a human body, it makes more sense that Father was instead inhibiting the power of transmutation in order to eliminate the possibility of there being a strong enough alchemist to appose him. He needed a lot of alchemists in order to get five alchemists who all opened their gate of truth all alive at the same time so he could open the planets gateway and achieve the power of that which he called god. But nothing in that plan required strong alchemists, he just needed them to be strong enough to A. give the Amestris military the edge in order to conquer the area it did so that he could keep the construction of the underground circle a secret, and B. to create 5 alchemists who all opened their gate of truth.
sort of. it's closer to say that father's stone was giving him control over amestrian alchemy.
because he was spread out through the entire country, in both the form of the philosophers' stone under the ground and the shadows of pride ringing the circle under the country's border, he controlled the flow of all energy in the country. xing alkahests could sense that, which is why they all comment that the country feels weird to them.
long story short, what that all means is that father could control all alchemy in the borders of amestris. he could amp it, or inhibit it, or flat out turn it off. once his control is broken by hoenheim, the alchemists are free to draw on as much power as they want straight out of the earth's mantle, which ed comments on feeling.
as for why father couldn't affect alkahestry, the reason is pretty simple. they draw on surface energy, so unless father is physically coating them in his stone, he can't stop their redirection of energy. plus side, alkahesty is effectively unstoppable. downside, it's drawing on a smaller reserve of energy and can't cause as large of an effect.
@@Yal_Rathol good points, also I never thought about prides shadows that are protecting the construction of the ring, and I cannot believe I never realized that's how he stopped Ed and al from using alchemy, I always thought he was just using his hands free alchemy which is way more powerful to counter their alchemy or something, thank you 😊.
@crimson wyvern pride was mostly a guard dog for the national transumation circle, but since his shadows are powered by a philosopher's stone, he can totally do the same thing father did and control the flow of energy past the border he controls.
whether he actually did or not is unclear, but he could have.
and yeah, alchemy does actually draw energy from underground, that's the only reason father could control it, and it's why ed and al suddenly have juiced alchemy during the finale. father's control is broken and he's reabsorbed his stone into himself.
@@crimsonwyvern7770 But also father's circle had points on it where mass blood was shed. This why Hohenheim released portions of his stone in the the earth at points.
One thing you forgot to mention about the rebound, is that not only the toll is equal to the unbalanced weight, but also takes a part of the body (or the entire body in the case of Al), but also related to a physical representation of their deepest wish/Hope
Like "Dwarf in the flask" stated, Ed lost his leg so he couldn't stand up and Moving forward like he wanted to.
For Al, who wanted to feel the warmth of his mother's arms, Truth took him the possibility to ever feel again. For Izumi who deeply wanted to have a child, Truth took her internat organs so she couldn't give birth anymore. And for Roy who wanted to see the future, Truth took his eyesight. In the last case, Truth didn't took his organs, but only his eyesight, because even if it was an unbalanced transmutation, Mustang didn't wanted to and was forced to do against his will
Arakawa had a deep study of alchemy books for the series, but was more interested in the philosophical aspects, but apparently the Equivalent Exchange aspect was based more on her observations about the work her parents put in as farmers to be able to eat.
There’s another youtuber that goes into the spiritual side of alchemy and how it’s represented in the show and it’s amazing
@@neen2660 youtuber's name?
This is honestly one of my favorite power systems in anime because no one is any more powerful than anyone else. The only limit is that you can only do something if you know exactly how it works.If Armstrong wanted to start launching fireballs around, he could. If Edward wanted to make an iceberg like the first episode, he totally could. The only real exceptions are Father and Hohenheim, and even then, not really. The only real advantages they have are more time to study and more raw alchemy juice to waste so they don't actually have to think about anything. If Ed had even a small philosopher stone, he could probably do the exact same tricks as Father
No
@@Viroh the last part of his comment I agree but everything else is true. All alchemy uses the same process of activation. Just changing the formula. Like how all electronics use electricity but can all work differently.
No one can copy Mustang, end of conv
@Viroh why not? Sure, it'd take a while to get the control down, but all he's doing is turning air into pure oxygen. We've seen kimblee rip apart subatomic bonds no problem, that's probably just as hard
@@TheBigE9999 how is he the only fire user kid
I absolutely love FMAB, it’s easily my favorite anime. The break down you gave answered questions I didn’t know I had lol. With your science background I was shocked you haven’t done more coverage of science like anime/manga(FMAB, Dr. Stone or Hell’s paradise)
FMA and then Brotherhood and Gintama are the animes that got me into it. FMA for the shonen jump type anime and Gintama for the comedy/slice of life type
@@neonicon8500 gintama trash
Basically all the alchemists that was sent to the war in ishval all have trans circles on gloves, their arms or tattooed on their body somewhere. Not just mustang
Here's a thought. Scar's transmutation array is technically a circle, just in cylindrical form running up him arm
Those who have seen Truth still use a circle - when they clap their hands together it makes a circle. Having seen Truth, they understand on a deeper level what the circle is, and how they are not separate from what they're doing but can directly be a part of it. The circle and the runes are within the alchemist.
I’ve been loving going through your FMAB vids. I really enjoy hearing you reference my favorite part of the show, which is some of the irony that is baked in. Such as Ed/Al losing their ability to stand on their own and feel their loved ones, and the visionary mustang losing his vision. I hope to hear you reference that each of the homunculi die in irony as well. Gluttony is consumed, envy offs himself out of jealousy. Wrath is killed by Scar, and Lust is burned to death by a shirtless Roy… some of them are a bit of a stretch but I’ve always loved the irony that’s baked into this show. Great channel!
If Al's truth is his full body, and Ed's is his missing atm and leg.... how horrible would Izumi's truth be to see?
Idk, but losing an ATM full of cens is tragic
@@UA-camIsSeriouslyMessedUp😂
In Roman Catholic it was stated in the bible that every single person has the image and likeness of God residing inside of them, i think this idea relates to why "truth" resides inside every living person in the world of FMAB.
I love this channel you are always a great speaker
Catholic? Mysticism and even Christianity are even deeper than that. Alchemy is Judeo-Christian mysticism. Please go deeper on Rosacrucism, Martinism and Kabbalah.
More Full Metal please! Maybe about Scar perhaps? I feel like he has a lot of great character development throughout the show. Also I'm extremely biased because I have his right arm tattoo.. but still.
Do you really? That’s awesome
He’s badass
@@mikeblaze7424 I do yea! I changed it a little bit. I put a blue honeycomb pattern underneath it to fill the empty space but all the black line work is there! I freaking love it actually.
@@jakeschmidt6483 dude that’s so cool lol I think it’s best anime of all time
@@mikeblaze7424 agreed my man
Y'know. This dude is probably my favorite anixplainer I've seen. His cadence is on point and he does his research
Well if you enjoy his videos you'll just love mine lol
When you were talking about how alchemy is powered by plate tectonics it reminded me of my earth/environmental science teacher. He used to joke that if you ever get an earth science question on jeopardy, the answer is always what is plate tectonics
Alchemy: the art of practicing atomic chemistry without a particle accelerator.
where is the tattoo of i heart sasuke u reached 75 thousand and you cannot say to reach 100 k
It's too late it's New Years eve
@@christianlugata7485 🤣
he got 75 k before new years eve
@@zacharijoseph5035 I know I commented this in multiple videos
Yessss FMA is such a great series to cover over, so much things that I forgot or wasn’t even solved !!
FMAB
I love how alchemy js just a lot of skills clumped into 1, but theres not as much process to it, like Al made a radio out of parts of a broken radio, a mechanic could do that.
I'm so glad you did a video on this masterpiece!! Please definitely do more stuff with older stories 😊
I feel like human transmutation is a special case when it comes to rebounds . The thing it takes is more of a representation of what the user of human transmutation values most rather than the equivalent exchange part. The best example is probably mustang. His eye sight was taken because he was a man that looked forward to an ideal future. Also Izumi Curtis lost some of her organs cause what she wanted most was a family/baby and truth took that possibility from her. My best explanation for Ed would be that he was a strong kid that always took step forwards towards what he wanted so it took his leg, and Alphonse is hard to pin down but I would say it’s probably cause he was young and wanted to grow up with his brother and stay with him(it is a bit of a stretch but my best conclusion). It could all be coincidence/situational like mustang just being an outlier but I feel like it is what the anime was hinting towards. Like I remember someone saying “I wonder what it will take from you” when talking to mustang about forcing him to do human transmutation. Anyways just a little Ted talk from a fan who has seen this series over a dozen times. Good video. 18:47
I believe it was said for Alphonse that his body was taken because he wanted to feel his mother's embrace again. Took all of him, for the ability to feel another's touch.
Agree 150% and just commented the same thing myself
@@NOTRIPFORTHEHIVE this series can still make me cry to a new realization a decade later
It's poetic equivalence, not just what they value most instead of equivalent exchange. Ed wanted his mom back - she was his major support, and he lost his leg. He wanted to hold onto Al, and his brother was his "right hand". Al was younger, and his mother was everything, so he lost his whole body. Izumi wanted her baby, and lost what could give her a baby. Mustang didn't choose to do human transmutation, but what he cared most about (as you said) would be what he might want to take from seeing Truth, his vision of the future.
The soul is less concrete, more poetic, and the nature of what is taken for what is desired reflects that.
Ed lost the ability to stand on his two legs for the family he was trying to complete again. Alphonse was taken because Ed tried to bring back what he believed was the only family he had left aside from his brother. Alphonse losing his body is also a punishment for him because what he wanted was to feel his mother's warm embrace again. Then he lost the ability to feel anything
"Anime's most iconic power system"
Nen: uh hello👋👋👋
There was a channel of a practicing alchemist who broke down the real world alchemy references in this show
The circle represents the full cycle of the said object's energy. It starts by taking its form, dispersing it, rearranging its infrastructure, and then reassembling it in its new form, thus completing a full circle
I appreciate this video.. I stopped watching FMAB as a kid because I got lost but now I want to rewatch it..
I think it’s the best anime def watch if you have time
I suggest it to everyone
@@mikeblaze7424 yeah it was the best to me as a kid..just didn't really know what was going on..but I'm definitely about to binge watch it
bruh ngl the anime makes no sense to m. Dont know what one I should go to 2003 or 2009?
@@Austinfdp 09. Fma brotherhood 100%
Look into Quantum Fluctuations. Quantum mechanics go by an entirely different system than what we can observe outsideof it. Matter is created out of nothing and some of it disappears completely. There's a proclivity to new particles being created more often than they dissappear.
The fact of the matter is, if we ever want to see Korone, we’re probably gonna have someone calling out for Edward as part of that experimentation process. That’s just how things work I guess 🤣
Also, it’s always been a pet theory of mine that it SHOULD be possible to do something like bring Ed and Al’s mother back; if a soul is priceless, then to bring it back only one thing will meet the requirements of equivalent exchange: another priceless soul. If they want their mom back, they just gotta toss a living Tucker into that transmutation circle.
Few anime deserve more than FMA/B to have episodes be 40-50 minutes
Tucker is the most evil man in fiction. That episode messed me up as a 8 year old
@@Roniiik31 no that was serious 😅
@@Roniiik31 why would it be sarcasm lol
He's probably a god for the furries though.
About the reason why alchemists who attempt human transmutation lose body parts : I don’t think it’s a matter of mass at all .
Rather it’s the fact that equivalent exchange doesn’t ONLY apply to matter and physical things , it’s an all encompassing principle .
So while you’re trying to transmute iron into a spear , equivalent exchange in this case only applies to physical matter and thus only requires a similar amount of physical matter to be consumed , human transmutation ISN’T just physical , it also involves a soul which ISN’T physical and therefore CAN’T be paid for with physical matter .
That’s why Roy basically doesn’t lose any mass .
Equivalent exchange also applies to metaphysical things . So how would one apply equivalent exchange to something like a soul ? Naturally , alchemy can’t use the actual value of the soul of someone who passed away because that soul no longer exists . Rather the value of that soul is determined by what that soul MEANS to the person trying to transmute . That’s kind of what father alludes to in episode 59 .
The clearest example of that is Izumi . That child represented her ability to have children . So in order to attempt (and fail) to recreate such a soul , it would cost her her ability to procreate . In a way it’s equivalent exchange saying « oh yeah , you want to bypass your physical human limitations via alchemy ? You want to transcend your humanity by procreating artificially rather than biologically ? OK ! Then you won’t be needing those organs anymore. » . And then that « metaphysical » loss translates to a physical loss of those organs . That’s why the body parts which are lost through human transmutation are not transformed in the same way as regular transmutation but are rather taken by the little black hands which represent everything that is more metaphysical (hence why Father gets pulled inside out by them when he dies , because he is the « abstract » concept of humanity personified and made physical so logically his demise would be to be completely « unphysicallised » and folded back into 0 dimensions).
Imo that’s important because it defines what Truth actually is : not necessarily a conscious being with agency but rather a personification of equivalent exchange as it applies to you metaphysically , to your soul , your humanity . That’s why when you sacrifice a (finite) bit of your humanity you acquire a (finite) bit of omniscience (the portal) which through alchemy turns into a (finite) bit of power .
That’s why Father could have never truly reached his goal . As he says , he could’ve kept going with millions , billions , trillions of humans , he would’ve only ever exchanged them for a finite amount of an infinite supply .
Ed however sees the true answer : true power doesn’t reside in sacrificing an infinite amount of value in exchange for power , it doesn’t rely on trying to escape your own humanity . True power is to accept it , to embrace it and make the most of it , of your abilities as a human . And in sacrificing the infinite value contained in the portal of Truth , he achieves what Father couldn’t .
TL;DR human transmutation doesn’t cause mutilation because of body mass but because alchemy applies to metaphysical value of souls (hence philosopher s stones) which is paid by losing parts of your « humanity » .
Well nick, technically oxygen is more abundant in the earth then it is in the air, it’s one of the most abundant elements in the earth, thanks to things like sand, silicon dioxide. But I do understand your point regarding transmutation
"We're going to be talking a lot of science today .."
me: "Fuck yeaaaah"
Fullmetal Alchemist is THE greatest Anime/Manga of all times, so I'd absolutely like you to talk more about it.
Love the video and keep up the great work nick
I love your videos man. I always look forward to learning more about anime and fmab is one of my favorite anime series as well as bleach
Funny thing is that transmutation (in real world legends) was supposed to be changing things on a subatomic level i.e. turning lead into gold
☝🤓
You should do a video on Father! I feel like he’s the most mysterious part of the series
Kimblee, Armstrong both have transmutation circles on their hands
alot of people have their transmutation circles on their hand or on their body so that they dont have to draw one every time they use alchemy
tbh i think bending in avatar is more iconic. i still remember the arguments of which element is the best
its air btw
Finally, someone gets it. Shao Tucker was the hero we all needed.
Shao tucker was more hated than Father
@@spencervance8484 He, really was though…still is actually.
He is a hero for the furries
@@sk82rok im of the opinion shao tucker should of been killed on screen. It should be a brutal death.
@@spencervance8484 it would have but it’s kind of cool that he had his redemption moment, though I’m sure the majority of the census did not feel as though he deserved it otherwise lol
I literally can not hear 1 kilogram without thinking of Lemmy's "1 kilogram of steel is heavier than one kilogram of feathers" bit 10:43
This was a information overload lol. Sir you did your homework 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾
The hardest thing to understand in this video was that it was only about sixty-five episodes. I remember it being in the early hundreds 💀
"The only person who has transmutation circles on their hand is Mustang"
Uh, sir, Kimblee would like to know your location...
Interstingly about Scar; his brothers arms are both parts of the proccess without the circle, using the body as the conduit. Hes inferred to be a genius due to his recreation of the formula for alchemy without the knowledge of Truth or the science itself.
This video taught me one thing. That Nick was formerly a science teacher
"I know what I must do to get dog girls, but I don't think I have the strength to do it."
Small correction. At least two others have circles on or near their hands. Kimblee (palms) and Armstrong (his gauntlets). But spot on and deeper than I could ever describe the science behind it. Love your videos man.
Also any chance of covering mahnwa like tower of god, God of highschool, and omni reader? Would be cool for people to be put onto those.
Thank you for finally doing this video do more of fmab
21:00 it was confirmed multiple times, and that's why Ed was able to go back After destroying his own gate
Love your channel, could u do videos on Overlord and more on avatar?
There's that scene in fma B where Edd is about to preform a whole magic trick.
He's going to reverse entropy pretty much by putting all the material of the library back together. I'm not going to think to deeply about how much of the building wasn't there anymore before the wind blew the ash away it was probably one of the first scene which split the series apart for me.
In the fma O their is that fight with scar. In order to keep his automale intact while scars trying to deconstruct it He's changing atoms from one element to another.
O you had to know what you where trying to change but completely ignored providence while B stretched the limit of knowing something on the level you would need to put a book back together let alone a library of them that you've never scene before.
Also in fma it is heavily implied that Alphonse in the armor was a memory construct because he didn't merge with the memories when he got his body back in conquers of Shambala.
I'm pretty sure yall been debating that in the forums all this time so I'm gonna leave it at that.
Seeing you talk makes me realise being a youtuber ain't easy
Since you are so prepared and smart
I would HIGHLY suggest watching Max Derrat's videos on the meta physical concepts of the FMA series. Super interesting and thought provoking and show's some additions to your great video. Keep up the great work!
Yes yes
Hxh has the most balanced power system out of all anime and the one with the biggest variety as you can do literally anything if you have the potential.
Mustang AND kimblee had hand transmutation circle. And both ended up carving it into their hands to use them
Oh god yes, more FMAB content PLEASEEE.
How to start off 2023 right -from tokyo
Probably one of my favorite videos of yours so far but that's just because I'm a bit of a science nerd
A little correction, the laws of thermodynamics weren't created (or really discovered) by Newton (9:35), they were actually proposed by different scientists during the 19th century, especially Carnot, Clausius and Thompson; in reality what happens is that if you look at the laws of thermodinamics at a microscopic level, they can be explained by the laws of motion of Newton.
Just that little nerdy scientific correction, great video :)
I thought Al still had to use circles. Every clip of Al used in the vid shows him using circle. And I’m the show he states that he still has to use them
In brotherhood, he eventually remembers seeing the gate, and gains the ability to do so. He lost his memory of seeing the truth until Martha’s blood hit his blood seal and triggered the memory. The iconic image of him wiggling his arms with Ed and Izumi is them talking about it
I believe in 03 he eventually is fused with a philosopher stone from scar and had his own runes formed on him and ofc was a philosopher stone so he could do it a little bit there too
Much different
I believed that Edward, by using his blood was more compatible as a catalyst for soul bonding.. 20:50. Like the compatibility of organs between relatives.
Lovely video very educational. But I think the reason Ed lost an arm/leg was because he lost 1 while bringing back the mom and another while bringing Al's soul in an armor who died completely while bringing the mom. Correct me if I'm wrong.
I think he lost one limb for trying to bring back the mom and then lost the other limb to put the brother's soul in armor.
Also, I'm not sure if the brother actually died.
His body stayed alive and animated in the world of truth even while separated from the soul.
You should do a video on the anime FAIRYTAIL explaining the story or their power system they need more love😂
Lol no too much fanservice and plot nakama BS
Thank you! That was a great turbo-charged summary! Very helpful.
Hey can we get an “fmab military personnel relationships explained”? Like, how the main military characters relate to each other by chain of command and ally ties
Scar's array is a circle. Your arm is a tube the whole thing is in a circle that encompasses his arm.
Gotta love it, people say this is the bEsT aNiMe but i never hear people talk about it nor comments on it for 6 years
FMA was something i watched in a rough patch in my life and i gotta say it got me thru that time and im forever grateful for it love that anime
Yes! More into Scar
Finally!!!
He's talking about the best anime of all time
Def the best
Overrated
lets say the FMA univers makes it to like, 100 years ahead of us. if they had a chip containing a very sophisticated ai in it. would that equal a soul? actually if you believe in afterlife, this doesnt work and thats very clearly a thing in FMA…. ya nvm. fun thought tho so still gunna share it lol
I really dig fmab more so than the 03 series mainly because of the ending but also for the new characters from xing . So good
My brain turned to mush watching this. So much information behind the sparkle sparkle explosions.
Mustang and major Armstrong circles on their hands
You got one thing wrong, Al couldn’t transmute without a circle until much later in the series (unless I’m mistaken and that’s only in the original)
If I recall correctly he ended up back at the gate, saw his body, went through the gate in his suit form then returned with the ability to transmute without the circle.
Nick teaching me anime aswell as real life science is something im here for
Literally been rewatching it the past week
Loved the video man. Can you talk more about the humonculous in the flask and alll other humonculi and the oriborous tattoo
I tell people all the time that FMAB is the most well rounded anime of all time. Truly the goat. The alchemy system and the HxH nen system is amazing
18:28 its not just Truth taking parts to fill in the mass. What Truth takes is in part a judgement on the alchemist. Izumi Curtis tried to bring her child back to life, so Truth took some of her innards (including her reproductive organs) so she could never carry a child again. Roy Mustang had the eyes of a Fuhrer and a vision to lead Amestris, so Truth took his sight. Alphonse wanted to feel his moms warmth, so Truth took his body so he could never feek again. Edward's was twofold. 1) he was arrogant and tried to do things himself, so Truth took his leg so he could never stand on his own again and 2) Ed wanted to bring his mother back so he could have his family, so Truth took his brother, the only family he had left.
I've been waiting for this
Can you do Alkahestry as well. Trying to write fanfic but damn the Alkahestry confuse me a bit
Yes please. I want that too.
Very close, the interaction of tectonic plates is where we get almost all of the mountain on earth from, there are some outliers. Think many of the islands in the south pacific, Hawai'i and even Iceland.
So I’m brotherhood, Greed does tell Ed/Al when they first meet, he can teach them how to make a homunculus, so it’s not limited to 03 around the 19:05 mark
OMG finally you covered my favorite anime I am constantly geeking out over this show I think I’ve rewatched it over 17 times it’s just so interesting
Thanks for the vid 🎉
Hot take: 2003 FMA is the best version of FMA.
Armstrong has transmutation circles on his hands too.
25:38 Maybe, but the Ctarl-Ctarl Empire has to start somewhere!
Fullmetal early 2000s series is still probably my favorite because that's when I first found anime samurai shampoo and FMA. I do like brotherhood but I also really like the first FMA movie told you how alchemy worked it was the power of souls from oir world which I think is just fucking metal lol
I just go by
Genin
Chunin
Jonin
Kage
And use terms like anbu or special jonin for special cases
also i think that because the blood used to bind al's soul was ed's, that caused the souls intermingle
Wait, hold on, no. Alchemists in Amestris have always used tectonic energy to transmute, but Father's presence across all of Amestris (facilitated by the tubes Father puts in his back) acts as a damper on the alchemic ability of alchemists practicing alchemy in Amestris. The barrier is always there, but Father can "activate" the barrier to disable alchemy. It's not totally clear why he does this as his motivation for doing so is never explained, but this is what happens and when the reverse transmutation circle is activated, the barrier is dispelled so Alchemists are no longer held back by his barrier. I have a few ideas as to why he would do that. One idea is that the barrier is meant to act as some kind of siphon and when a transmutation is attempted while the barrier is fully active, it fails and that energy is siphoned off into something, possibly himself so he can recreate the Homunculi without risk of depleting his own stone too much. This would also apply when the barrier is reduced and then only some of the energy from the transmutations is siphoned off. Another possibility is he did it exclusively to disable alchemists who might stand against him and since Hoenheim's understansing of Alchemy originally came from him, Father probably thought this circle would disable Hoenheim as well. One wonders why, if this is the case, he would do this in a way that disables alchemy at minimum in the entire city if not the entire country if he needed it when someone stood against him since he never seems to leave Central, but that's neither here nor there.
Shou tucker isnt nec bad person, but he may be amoral and he is a bad dad.
he wasnt nec a bad dad up until what happened with Nina, but its also possible and i think implied he did it to his wife too... and if thats true bad guy.
almost inarguable that what happened to nina makes him a bad dad. but for a moment he did have all the right ideas in mind of someone in a desperate situation and he honestly may have been helmed a hero or genius or some for doing it. Its only a product of circumstance that this ended mostly badly for him.
Dr. Marco also has it enscribed on his hand, not only Mustang