Hagaren

Hagaren, or Hagane no Renkinjutsushi was something I'd been waiting to be able to watch.

I finally got an English subtitled dvd copy and it's turned out to be worth the wait.

Essentially the story's about two brothers - one missing an arm and a leg, and the other a disembodied soul bound to a giant tin can.

All Edward and his brother Alphonse want is to find a way to become normal human beings again and set out on a singleminded quest to do just that. Of course, they eventually find out that reaching their objective is more complicated than they anticipated. Their pursuit of the Philosopher's Stone, a fabled object that allows an alchemist to do things beyond the normal laws of their art, forces them into gray areas of conflict to the point of straining the bonds of their relationship and forcing into question the primary reasons for their desire to acquire it.

I found it interesting how the Law of Conservation of Mass or "The Law of equal exchange" as it is mentioned in the series, seems to become an analogy for a guiding principle for human interaction on a physical as well as a social level.

So far I've seen a couple of episodes and I can't wait for the rest - the plot definitely thickens/sickens and I'm crossing my fingerse that I won't be let down by an easy ending.