Stop pining for 'Fullmetal Alchemist' — Crunchyroll’s 10/10 successor is among streaming’s big hitters

There are endless arguments over which anime truly deserves the GOAT title, but a handful rise above mere fandom squabbles. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is usually in that rare group — the sort of series everyone secretly rates top three even if they pretend otherwise. For ages, nothing has managed to threaten its throne. Now, Hiromu Arakawa (who actually wrote Fullmetal Alchemist in the first place) has thrown her hat in the ring again, with a brand-new fantasy series called Daemons of the Shadow Realm.

Let’s clear one thing up: Daemons doesn’t try to outdo Fullmetal Alchemist, and honestly, what could? But plenty of fans are calling it a spiritual successor — and it’s not just some faceless marketing claim. The new anime went straight to Crunchyroll in April, courtesy of Studio Bones (the same lot behind Brotherhood), and it’s already turned into a proper hit.

Daemons of the Shadow Realm broke into Crunchyroll's overall top 10 and has hung around there for 97 days straight, which is nearly unheard of for a new launch.

From Manga to World-Building on Screen

If you missed the manga launch, here’s the quick version. After conquering the world with Fullmetal Alchemist — no exaggeration — Arakawa started Daemons of the Shadow Realm in 2021, publishing the first chapter in Monthly Shonen Gangan (that’s Square Enix’s own magazine). Once she got enough chapters out, Studio Bones snapped up the rights and pushed out the anime adaptation in spring 2026, with fresh episodes landing every week.

The story is right in the wheelhouse for fans of classic fantasy anime, but it isn’t just a rehash of Demon Slayer (the title might trick you — it’s not that sort of show). The setup: in a world where humans can command magical creatures known as Daemons, the plot centres on Yuru and his twin Asa. The twins are supposedly ‘Children Who Sunder Day and Night’, prophesied with the power to control all Daemons. Obviously, they’re split up at birth, which sends Yuru out from his isolated mountain home searching for Asa, only to get tangled up in something much bigger — the fate of the whole world, that old chestnut.

No One Out-Brotherhoods Brotherhood

Anyone waiting for another Brotherhood-level masterpiece is probably going to be waiting another decade. But Daemons of the Shadow Realm still manages to flex some serious pedigree. Studio Bones are no strangers to slick animation, and they’re clearly not phoning this one in. The fights, character-driven arcs, and fresh worldbuilding all add up to a series that’s more than worthy of a Crunchyroll spotlight — even if the shadow of Fullmetal Alchemist looms large over everything Arakawa does.

For the record: according to MyAnimeList, only Frieren: Beyond Journey's End and Re:Zero Season 4 have come close to Brotherhood’s legend in recent years. Nobody’s expecting Daemons to top that mountain, but you can’t ignore a show that’s kept up with the biggest franchises out there for months at a stretch.

• Debuted April 2026 on Crunchyroll
• 97 days running in Crunchyroll's daily overall top 10 — longer than most sequels manage, let alone originals
• Animated by Studio Bones (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, My Hero Academia, Mob Psycho 100)
• Original manga began in 2021, Monthly Shonen Gangan
• Written by Hiromu Arakawa, the creator of Fullmetal Alchemist