Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (Japanese: 鋼の錬金術師 FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST, Hepburn: Hagane no Renkinjutsushi) is a Japanese anime television series, serving as the second adaptation of the Fullmetal Alchemist manga series by Hiromu Arakawa, after the 2003 series. Produced by Bones, the series was directed by Yasuhiro Irie, written by Hiroshi Ōnogi and composed by Akira Senju. It was conceived in order to create a faithful adaptation that directly followed the entire storyline of the original manga, as the original series strayed away from it to form its own conclusion after running out of published manga material to adapt. Production for Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood began in 2008. The series was broadcast for 64 episodes on MBS–TBS from April 2009 to July 2010. It was first licensed in North America by Funimation and was broadcast English-dubbed on Adult Swim from February 2010 to September 2011. In 2016, Funimation lost the rights to the series and it was transferred to Aniplex of America. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood has received critical acclaim and is widely considered to be one of the greatest anime series of all time. Reviewers noted and praised its faithfulness to the manga and its introduction of characters and plot details that were not present in the 2003 anime; the climactic episodes were also lauded for both their action scenes and moral messages.