Starting on the 13th of February, “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood” will be showing on the Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim at 12:00 a.m. ET/PT each Saturday.

Set in a fictional world where alchemy – the transmutation of raw materials into objects – is science and the way of life, the series follows the Elric brothers, Edward and Alphonse, on their perilous journey in search of the legendary Philosopher’s Stone. They set forth in the hope that the magical artifact can restore their bodies after a failed attempt to revive their dead mother cost Edward’s left leg and right arm, as well as Alphonse’s entire body, leaving his soul affixed to a suit of armor. In “Brotherhood” the brothers will risk what remains to restore what was lost.

The series is created by the acclaimed Japanese studio Bones, and FUNimation have acquired it from Japanese producer and distributor Aniplex. The English dub of the series will be produced by Mike McFarland and directed by McFarland and Caitlin Glass, both of whom will be back to voice their roles as Winry Rockbell and Jean Havoc. Also returning will be Vic Mignogna as Edward Elric, Travis Willingham as Roy Mustang, Laura Bailey as Lust, and Sony Strait as Maes Hughes. The only noticeable difference for the hardcore fans (I imagine) will be that Maxey Whitehead is now performing the role of Alphonse Elric instead of Aaron Dismuke. But don’t despair, Aaron will appear in another role later on in the series.

If you are looking forward to the series airing but are curious to know what you’re in for, here is a little sneak peek at the first few episodes:

Episode 01 – Fullmetal Alchemist, premieres February 13

The Elric brothers adjust to military life and take part in a manhunt for the dangerous Isaac the Freezer, a former State Alchemist bent on bringing Fuhrer Bradley down.

Episode 02 – The First Day, premieres February 20

A glimpse into the past reveals the pain and desperation that drove the Elric boys to break alchemy’s greatest taboo – human transmutation – and their reasons for becoming dogs of the military.

Episode 03 – City of Heresy, premieres February 27

Science and faith collide when the Elrics confront Father Cornello. He claims to work miracles, but the brothers suspect he is abusing a Philosopher’s Stone to manipulate his flock.

And if you would rather wait until it shows up on DVD (or Blu-Ray), mark your calendars for May 25th as that is when FUNimation will bring out “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood” Part One!

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Based on the original story by Ryohgo Narita, “Baccano!” brings us a different look at New York in the early to mid 1930′s. Mafia turf wars, robbery, killing sprees and other events are what can be found throughout at least the first 4 episodes (as that is how many are contained on Volume 1). In graphic detail by the way.

It’s hard to choose one particular character in this as there are so many of them, and I have a feeling that there are many still to come in later episodes. For now, here are a few characters (and their voice actors) that we meet in this volume: the ditzy robber duo Isaac (J Michael Tatum) and Miria (Caitlin Glass), mafia identities Luck Gandor (Jason Liebrecht) and Firo Prochainezo (Todd Haberkorn), psychopathic killer Ladd Russo (Bryan Massey) and his quiet girlfriend Lua Klein (Carrie Savage)… This list goes on and continues to grow with each episode, and I’m impressed with how many familiar voice actors were involved with this project.

I’m not as impressed with the series itself however. While it was interesting at times, I found it very confusing as to what was going on and who certain characters were. The focus didn’t stay long enough on certain characters or situations to really understand what had happened or was going to happen in some instances. Hopefully with the next volume the premise will become clearer.

All I can gather from the series so far (apart from the mafia wars, killing and robbery) is that the train named “The Flying Pussyfoot” that some of these characters are on is a major scene in the story, as well as the fact that some of these characters become immortal, but how this happened is not yet known. It does have something to do with a formula though, of that I am sure. And of course there’s some nasty creature coming after the passengers on the train.

Special Features? You got it!:

• Episode 4 Commentary with Tyler Walker (Line Producer & Director), Caitlin Glass (Miria), J Michael Tatum (Isaac) and Bryan Massey (Ladd).
• Textless versions of the opening theme (Gun’s & Roses) and closing theme (Calling).
• Trailers for other Madman anime releases

This sort of anime is not generally my cup of tea, and with the amount of characters and continual back and forth with the storylines, it’s easy to see why some might get frustrated with it and scratch it off their list. However, if you find the time period as well as the events that occur interesting, you are likely to enjoy this series.

Review product was provided by Madman Entertainment, and does not affect the outcome of this review.