History YMMV / FullmetalAlchemist2003

* VindicatedByHistory: Zig-zagged. The series initially premiered to widespread acclaim, being often cited alongside other classics such as ''Anime/CowboyBebop'' and ''Anime/GhostInTheShellStandAloneComplex'' as managing to strike the perfect mix between comedic and dramatic while also telling a compelling story with memorable characters. Upon the premiere of ''Brotherhood'', this sentiment was mostly overshadowed by the later adaptation's massive popularity combined with manga readers who preferred it solely for being more faithful to the source material. There was even a period following ''Brotherhood'''s release where general opinion regarding the original series varied from it being skippable to downright unwatchably bad. In recent years, however, there's been a steadily growing shift in the fandom where those who find the original series more appealing for its darker story, grayer morality, and deeper focus on Ed and Al's relationship have been growing more vocal and respected in the wider anime community.

* PlatonicWritingRomanticReading: There's significantly more unintentional IncestSubtext between the Elric brothers in this version than in the manga/''Brotherhood'', which is a large part of the reason why [[BrotherSisterIncest Ed/Al]] is as popular of a ship as it is (probably the second most popular slash pairing after Roy/Ed). The brothers' constant worrying about one another ends up unintentionally coming across as more romantic than familial, especially since they tend to spend more time together (while in the manga and ''Brotherhood'' they become separated from each other more often as the story progresses) and Ed gets less ShipTease with Winry.

* VindicatedByHistory: Zig-zagged. The series initially premiered to widespread acclaim, being often cited alongside other classics such as ''Anime/CowboyBebop'' and ''Anime/GhostInTheShellStandAloneComplex'' as managing to strike the perfect mix between comedic and dramatic while also telling a compelling story with memorable characters. Upon the premiere of ''Brotherhood'', this sentiment was mostly overshadowed by the later adaptation's massive popularity combined with manga readers who preferred it solely for being more faithful to the source material. There was even a period following ''Brotherhood'''s release where general opinion regarding the original series varied from it being skippable to downright unwatchably bad. In recent years, however, there's been a steadily growing shift in the fandom where ''Brotherhood'' has begun losing its SacredCow status as more detractors arise regarding its issues with BlackAndWhiteMorality along with some DeusExMachina aspects towards the climax. Inversely, as the universal love for ''Brotherhood'' decreases, those who find the original series more appealing for its darker story, grayer morality, and deeper focus on Ed and Al's relationship have been growing more vocal and respected in the wider anime community.

* VindicatedByHistory: Zig-zagged. The series initially premiered to widespread acclaim, being often cited alongside other classics such as ''Anime/CowboyBebop'' and ''Manga/GhostInTheShell'' as managing to strike the perfect mix between comedic and dramatic while also telling a compelling story with memorable characters. Upon the premiere of ''Brotherhood'', this sentiment was mostly overshadowed by the later adaptation's massive popularity combined with manga readers who preferred it solely for being more faithful to the source material. There was even a period following ''Brotherhood'''s release where general opinion regarding the original series varied from it being skippable to downright unwatchably bad. In recent years, however, there's been a steadily growing shift in the fandom where ''Brotherhood'' has begun losing its SacredCow status as more detractors arise regarding its issues with BlackAndWhiteMorality along with some DeusExMachina aspects towards the climax. Inversely, as the universal love for ''Brotherhood'' decreases, those who find the original series more appealing for its darker story, grayer morality, and deeper focus on Ed and Al's relationship have been growing more vocal and respected in the wider anime community.

* OnlyTheAuthorCanSaveThemNow: Homunculi have an unlimited HealingFactor and superhuman physical abilities that will let them outmatch any human opponent. Their [[KryptoniteFactor only weakness]] is [[spoiler: the remains of the human beings they were intended to be recreations of]]. This invokes this trope on two levels. First, while every homunculus could ''theoretically'' be the product of anyone from anywhere in the world (or at least, anywhere in the country) [[spoiler: and time or deliberate action could've reduced their human remains to ashes or dust that's no longer fit for purpose, espeically if the homunculus in question is truly ancient]], the protagonists have to be able to defeat them in the end, so all of them [[spoiler: are conveniently either closely related to or directly produced by a main character, so their remains haven't degraded into nothing over time and can be accessed by the cast]]. The only exceptions all [[AssPull use questionable writing to introduce the weakness to the scene, regardless of whether it makes sense and/or has been adequately foreshadowed]]. Speaking of, the homunculi all tend to get confronted conveniently close to their only weakness, and in some cases have even foregone opportunities to destroy it completely and remove it permanently.

* OnlyTheAuthorCanSaveThemNow: Homunculi have an unlimited HealingFactor and superhuman physical abilities that will let them outmatch any human opponent. Their [[KryptoniteFactor only weakness]] is [[spoiler: the remains of the human beings they were intended to be recreations of]]. This invokes this trope on two levels. First, while every homunculus could ''theoretically'' be the product of anyone from anywhere in the world (or at least, anywhere in the country), the protagonists have to be able to defeat them in the end, so all of them [[spoiler: are conveniently either closely related to or directly produced by a main character, so their remains haven't degraded into nothing over time and can be accessed by the cast]]. The only exceptions all [[AssPull use questionable writing to introduce the weakness to the scene, regardless of whether it makes sense and/or has been adequately foreshadowed]]. Speaking of, the homunculi all get confronted conveniently close to their only weakness, and in some cases have even foregone opportunities to destroy it completely and remove it permanently.

** The Homunculi [[spoiler:being the result of Human Transmutation]] in this version. On the one hand, this gives the Homunculi more backstory, and some feel it made them far more interesting characters than in the manga. On the other hand, the nature of their origins goes against the story's theme of AllDeathsAreFinal, especially since some of them start to regain memories of their former lives. Another point of contention is [[spoiler:the Homunculi's human remains being their KryptoniteFactor]]. Some think that it's an interesting twist, but it gets cheapened by the fact that most of the Homunculi were once people connected to the main cast, so they end up knowing whose grave to dig. Some think that it takes out a lot of the strategy it took to beat the Homunculi in the manga.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: The 2003 anime was hugely popular when it first aired, both in Japan and among English-speaking fans, though even then it had some detractors who didn't like how much it deviated from the original manga (particularly with its DarkerAndEdgier tone). When [[TruerToTheText a more faithful anime adaptation of the manga]] aired in 2009, it eventually supplanted the 2003 anime in the popular zeitgeist completely. Nowadays, it's difficult for many anime fans to see just how popular the 2003 anime was, especially those who were too young to have watched it when it first came out.

* AudienceAlienatingEnding: The 20003 anime ends with Edward dumped into the real world during World War I without his alchemy powers, leaving Alphonse alone on the other side.

* AllStarCast: Purposefully invoked for the English dub. The ADR directors, Creator/MikeMcFarland and Creator/ColleenClinkenbeard, sought out to give the series the respect they felt it deserved by going out of their way to cast as many big names as they could. Most notably, they managed to grab Creator/DameonClarke for Scar and Creator/ScottMcNeil for Hohenheim, two actors who normally only perform in either Canadian or Los Angeles-based works.