Awesome Music / Fullmetal Alchemist

Opening & Ending Themes

• The first opening theme "again", like "Brothers", is both heart-wrenching and beautiful.
• "Hologram", the second opening, is normally really good, but being reused for the ending photo montage was possibly the best way imaginable to bring the series to a close.
• It may not be as epic as some of the other opening themes, but "Golden Time Lover", the third opening, makes up for it through sheer catchiness.
• CHEMISTRY gets music of awesome with "Period", the fourth opening. This is the best way to start an episode.
• The fifth Opening "Rain" by SID is too beautiful for words. The MIDI version is also incredibly awesome, with the MIDI doubling as Heartwarming Music, especially if you consider the meaning behind the lyrics. Special mention should probably go to the use of it in Episode 61 of Brotherhood. The episode begins with it conspicuously absent; fitting, since this is the equivalent of Chapter 104. Everyone is "dead" and Father appears to have won. It doesn't play until Hohenheim's circle activates that reverses the whole thing, returning everyone to life, and that song playing over the scene just about doubles the already-high levels of awesome and heartwarming. The use of the 5th Opening at the end of Episode 63 is incredibly satisfying as a Heartwarming Moment AND one of the biggest Tear Jerkers of all time...
• "Uso" ("Lie"), the first ending to Brotherhood is both catchy and touching.
• The second ending song of Brotherhood, "LET IT OUT", is beautiful on it own, but it's elevated further when paired with two of the most emotional episode endings of the whole series ("Backs in the Distance" and "Reunion").
• The third ending theme, "Tsunaida Te" ("Held Hands"), is uplifting and fittingly romantic, given how its lyrics reflect Ed and Winry's relationship.
• "Shunkan Sentimental", the ending theme which accompanied much of the episodes building up to the final arc. The first few chords, combined with whatever epic event ended the episode, is sure to get your blood pumping.

Others from Brotherhood

• Next Chapter. Note that the name is rather misleading; with a name like that you'd expect it to be something that plays during the end of an episode. Which it is—a couple of times out of 64 episodes, and only in part. More significantly, though, it is used when Mustang reveals his plan to fake Maria's death, and again when Wrath makes his grand re-entrance back in Central.

• Versus Homunculus, and its remake Knives and Shadows. The sound of blades clashing behind the music on the second one makes it, as does the images it conjures of the CMOA when it plays.

• Major Armstrong's theme, also known as Amestris Military March. "COURAGE INCREASED BY ONE HUNDRED FOLD! MUSCLES INCREASED TO ONE THOUSAND FOLD!"
• Requiem for the Brigadier General (referring to Hughes)
  Youtube Reviewer: "Mommy.. why... why are they putting dirt on Daddy? Daddy said he has lots of work to do!" I. BROKE.

• Battle Scherzo. Whenever this song begins, a Moment of Awesome is about to punch you in the face.
• Xing Symphony ~Overture~ does not waste any time getting to the good part. The instrumentation represents the foreign nature of the Xingese characters while still fitting right in with other battle music. The percussion in particular does not let up, maintaining a steady yet energetic beat.
• Likewise, for Crisis in the North. Either Ed's kicking ass in the snow, or Olivier and her troops are about to show you — and usually some hapless, pompous general — why no one screws with Briggs.
• And from the third-and-final OST for Brotherhood, we get some epic battle themes like "Knives and Shadows" and "The Awakening".

• "Far East Suite" from the first Brotherhood OST. It doesn't appear on the show, but a pizzicato version plays in a lot of lighthearted scenes in the early episodes. Impossible to listen to without a smile on your face.

• "Envy Revealed" is the music that appears when the villains take the upper hand, such as when Lust gets the drop on Havoc and Mustang and especially when Father opens the planet's gateway and absorbs God. (Weirdly, it doesn't play when Envy's monster form is revealed, which is instead scored by a remix of "To Be King.")

• "Let It All Out" by Miho Fukuhara. It starts playing after Winry gets close to killing Scar for murdering her parents. When Winry starts crying after Ed talks to her, the lyrics say "let it all out". This moment says so much about the series in general especially because it is a cathartic moment; so much turmoil has built up to that point where there is a good emotional release to drive the series forward.
• "Laws of Alchemy", played in the short narrative intro and many other moments throughout the show. It is an epic orchestral track that builds up like crazy. Gotta love it.

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