Fullmetal Alchemist Complete Box Set (Fullmetal Alchemist Boxset) Paperback – Box set, November 1, 2011

Fullmetal Alchemist is arguably one of the most well developed stories since the beginning of time. Everything about the series is perfect. This box set, though nice, is not.The boxing is perfect. It's colorful, durable, and just looks and feels awesome. It has a handle to let you pick up and carry its heavy self around. It also has a velcro cover that you can open to reveal all the books hidden inside, and seal em back in once you're done. The box is just awesome overall. The only bad side to it, is that the velcrow that holds the flap comes off fairly easy, and you'll probably have to hot glue it to the box to keep it from coming off. Now to the manga.This is the point where I became slightly disappointed in the package. The mangas are new edition prints for the most part, but Viz did not fix the few translation/other errors from previous issues. By translation issues, I mean translating some of the character names wrong (In one manga it's spelled Dr. Knox, in another other it's Dr. Knocks ect...) The prints decided to use Ishbal as the translation for Ishval too (I was hoping they'd fix this translation in the boxset because Ishval is the correct translation). Besides name inconsistencies, some names are butchered. Xerxes in the manga is a mess of a word that's something like Cselcesse now. There are a decent amount of typos in the manga too, which I can't understand how they still exist in the newest prints. Randomly words will be missing, and blank space will take their place. The words are for the most part easy to predict, so you basically know what should be there, but that's not very professional. Also, there's a time where Edward calls Alphonse Ed. Don't they read the translations before they ship em haha?Note that the more serious vocal profanities are censored. Those words are replaced with random assortments of symbols like $%&#! "Because I'm #%$&ing Greed!" is an example of when it was used. It kind of ruins the professionalism of the series, but it's in no way a deal-breaker. I must commend Viz on realizing that this boxset is solely for hardcore fans though; They no longer censored the greed on a crucifix scene. Besides an assortment of various typos/translation messups, the actual set is pretty good. The manga itself is so good, that you'll probably ignore Viz's somewhat inconsistent job.Overall, I think the boxset is worth it. Though, Viz didn't put enough time into fixing previous mistakes (I say they should have contacted Ms. Arakawa for the correct English translations like Mel Bay did with Fairy Tail), new fans won't notice much, but may get confused by some name inconsistencies in the manga. The physical quality of the set is great! Looks awesome in my room, and it's super easy to grab and put away the chapters without dust getting in!At a much cheaper price then other sites, get it at amazon!

I titled my review this because the box set is completely awesome, and it's at least $60 cheaper than the other sites I browsed (at the time of release). It's certainly cheaper than buying all 27 volumes individually!What you get, and comments about each:(If I seem to nitpick, then sorry, but I like to be extremely specific and thorough, letting you know precisely what I received.)I. All 27 Volumes of the Fullmetal Alchemist Manga in Paperback--1. These aren't new editions or anything, they're the same versions you can already purchase individually from VizMedia, but all in one set for one heck of a price! The set also includes Volume 27, which has yet to be relased by itself. (UPDATE 1/8/12: IN THE COMMENTS, SOMEONE HAS INFORMED ME THAT THE TRANSLATIONS AND IMAGES ARE A LITTLE DIFFERENT IN SOME PLACES COMPARED TO THE INDIVIDUAL COPIES YOU CAN PURCHASE FROM THE SAME PUBLISHER. I HAD NO IDEA, AND I APOLOGIZE IF THIS MISLED ANYONE!)--2. Three or four of my books had EXTREMELY tiny, extra pieces of the cover hanging off of the corners on the spines of the books. It's kind of annoying just knowing they're there, but I'm guessing it's normal for paperbacks. But believe me, it's probably not even worth mentioning.--3. The first 3 books have holographic covers, and the rest do not.--4. They're right-to-left style, to preserve the orientation of Arakawa's original artwork. I'm an American and have been reading left-to-right my entire life, but I, personally, haven't had an issue with this. I THOUGHT I would, but I simply haven't.II. A 2-Sided Poster--1. Both sides can be viewed on this product's homepage in the photo section.--2. It's folded in fourths, so there's creases. I have mine hung up though and it looks good to me. I barely-to-don't recognize the creases.--3. Approximately 10"w x 15"h.III. The Light Novel "The Ties that Bind"--1. I'm honestly not sure what this is. I did a little research and I guess it's a novelization of some of the manga chapters?... I really don't know. It IS a novel though, meaning pages full of paragraphs of words. There's only like 3 pages with actual pictures.IV. The Box Itself--1. Approximately the size of the poster, and 5 inches deep.--2. Has 2 shelves (one above the other) that house the books quite snugly. It's kinda hard to get them out sometimes.--3. Has a hinged "door" that protects the books from dust when closed, stays shut with small velcro circles on the right side, and has a handle on top making it much easier to carry around.--4. You can see the outside design of the box on this product's home page. The inside of the box is basically the same design as the back of the box.--5. My box arrived with a few small creases and dents in it, but I suppose this is practically unavoidable when shipping across country.--6. I'd have preferred a horizontally-orientated version of the box and its contents, but it's a very nice box nonetheless, I must say.Overall, this product is definitely well worth its price and worthy of being passed down the Armstrong line for generations!!!

First off, this box set is huge!!!!! I honestly didn't expect the box to be almost 2 feet high and a almost a foot deep and wide. It's incredible. I love the design on the box alone. I'm happy the box arrived intact without any noticeable dents or rips. It has a handle to carry it around, but it's not the most portable since it weighs quite a bit. I love that inside it has a book shelf design that holds all the books nicely. I'm a huge fan of Full Metal Alchemist and have seen both of the series. Since than I've wanted to get my hands on the manga set for quite some time.For those not familiar with the story and setting without spoiling too much, it's about two brothers who journey to discover the truth of alchemy and the dark secrets that lie within its philosophies. Overall it's easy to follow, heart wrenching at times, but keeps you wanting to know how it all ends. Edward Elric for his age has a great amount of resourcefulness and experience as he pushes himself prematurely into a crazy world where life and death hang in the balance while protecting his younger brother. Definitely recommend this series for those that are new to the world of anime as I found it a good introduction into the universe itself as it's not too complicated and fun to follow. Warning both the manga and anime are graphic at times and not recommended for younger audiences.In the end, I'm very happy with getting this box set for a reasonable price for all the books, plus the novel, and a poster (wish the poster was bigger, but it has a nice double sided design that makes it worth hanging up and showing it off).