Hiromu Arakawa’s Fullmetal Alchemist is considered one of the best anime and manga due to its beautiful inclusion of several genres in a single series. Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood is also the second most loved anime series according to My Anime List.
However, after years of the series’s conclusion, a new controversy regarding the franchise has hit the anime world. According to the rumor, author Hiromu Arakawa received poor treatment at the hands of a scriptwriter during the production of the original Fullmetal Alchemist anime.
The Rumor Regarding Hiromu Arakawa’s Mistreatment During Fullmetal Alchemist‘s Production
It all began when Manpuku Jinja, an anime creator, posted on X claiming that Hiromu Arakawa had to face insults from a scriptwriter for Fullmetal Alchemist. According to Jinja, he had heard that during the anime adaptation of Fullmetal Alchemist (2003), the author was included in the script meetings.
However, during one of these meetings, a scriptwriter reportedly told the author, ‘Amateurs should keep quiet.’ That’s horrifying.
Jinja then explained that during the time, it was common for the original stories to be changed for anime adaptations. The quality of the anime was also quite good, even though another complete adaptation was created later. Fullmetal Alchemist, indeed was a good anime for its time, but the only problem was it had to include fillers as well as an anime original ending since the manga hadn’t finished at the time.
Manpuku Jinja’s tweet created a wave of anger among fans of Hiromu Arakawa. No one could believe that a scriptwriter would treat the original author of Fullmetal Alchemist with such an abhorrent attitude. This led the tweet to be noticed by staff members who had worked on the actual anime.
Debunking the Malicious Rumor
Sho Aikawa is a Japanese scriptwriter who made a major contribution to the 2003 Fullmetal Alchemist anime. He was involved in the scriptwriting procedure for 30 out of the 51 episodes. He immediately came to the rescue and denied the allegations. According to the scriptwriters, he had met Arakawa for discussions during the pre-production phase of the anime, but he believed that the author never participated in script meetings.
Although I have had prior discussions with the original author, I don’t think they’ve ever attended a script meeting. However, considering that those involved in scriptwriting and production include this information in their profiles, I can’t imagine they would broadcast such uncertain claims that could amount to defamation to the whole world. So please let me know when exactly this happened.
In response to Sho Aikawa, Jinja stated that the rumors originated from someone who was close to the production of the series. However, he soon deleted the original tweet that began the controversy. There were no updates from Jinja on the matter, and the decision to delete the post probably stemmed from their realization that it isn’t a matter to be joked around with.
Sho Aikawa put the final nail in the coffin by tweeting that he wondered if deleting the post was an apology from Manpuku Jinja. He also clarified his stance on the spreading of such false rumors: (translation from X)
From now on, you can say whatever you like when I can’t see you (at a drinking party, for example). However, if there are people involved in spreading the false information (if they are real), I may ask for their cooperation. That’s all for now.
Aikawa’s post is a clear warning to those who seek to spread malicious rumors with no source behind them. The author, Hiromu Arakawa, has not commented on the topic yet.
The Fullmetal Alchemist manga is available to read on Viz Media, and both the anime adaptations are currently streaming on Crunchyroll.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
