Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood Forum

 He's opening his heart to you all.

See, this is what I’ve enjoyed so much about anime. I’m not totally familiar with the territory, so I honestly can’t predict everything that’s coming. In this episode, there are a lot of possibilities floating in the air. Will Mustang kill Envy? If not him, then who? If he does it, will it actually taint his leadership of Amestris? Will he even become leader, or will it be Olivier instead?  The resulting tension’s balancing on a razor’s edge, because the actions taken, from moment to moment, hinge on a whole series of intertwined possibilitie.

It also speaks to good drama that I was actually feeling such frustration over what was happening. Indeed, I was almost pulling my hair out over the whole gang stopping Mustang from finishing Envy off. Whether it was vengeance-fueled or not, the deed needed to be done by somebody and  Ed, Scar and Hawkeye have all established themselves as incapable of properly handling the homunculi. It honestly looked like they were even about to put the little worm in a jar again and leave him in another foolish little kid’s care - - since that worked so well last time.

This isn’t to take from the power of the discussion that centers this episode. I'm glad this show's long enough to accommodate a whole half an episode devoted to a moral dialog.  My attitude, incidentally,  is that the justifications of lethal force depend on the show and the world. People bring up Batman all the time, but the difference with him is that there’s at least a system for the Joker to be incarcerated into. There’s no jail for Envy to be sealed up in Amestris because these characters are at war, and Mustang seem like the only one who understands that. Revenge served on a hot dish might not make good chicken soup for the soul of a leader, but that day of promotion may never actually come unless he works himself into the kind of frenzy needed to vanquish these tremendously-dangerous monsters. 

Watch this episode, “Beyond the Inferno,” below, decide for yourself and read my comments on the previous episode here.  

Tom Pinchuk’s the writer of  HYBRID BASTARDS!  &  UNIMAGINABLE . Order them on Amazon   here  &   here .  Follow him on Twitter:  @tompinchuk

"I just bought volume 24 today. "

" I think Scar kind of shows that getting "revenge" can overpower your common sense.  Scar was killing State Alchemists who took part in the Ishval Extermination, but eventually he started to go after ones who had no part in it (like Ed).  Could the same thing have happened to Mustang?  Possibly. 

 I like the idea of Envy committing suicide.  You have Mustang's massive beatdown, then the discussion of who will actually kill Envy instead, then Ed merely trying to understand the "why" behind Envy, which in turn leads to the little creature hastening it's own inevitable end.  I don't think there was even the slightest chance of Envy surviving, it was dying one way or another, but killing itself was kind of a last chance "fuck you" to everyone there. 

" Did anyone else notice what I did? How did Olivier get her men and the parts for the tank to build under the mansion? It was that fight she had with her brother. By destroying much of the mansion. There was then a reason to have a great deal of people coming and going with large amounts of materials with the tank parts along with it. 

  Have you noticed the dramatic decrease in the amount of chibi overreaction shots? 

I was so frustrated by that end of the scene with Riza and Mustang. It had me yelling at the screen. When he started walking to her and lowering her gun. I actually yelled out, "Kiss her. Kiss her, dammit.". lol You know a series is doing a good job when you can lose yourself in them. 

" C'mon Tom. That justification for Joker vs Batman is weak. In the real world people have the right to self defense in equal force. Joker frequently attempts to take people's lives and sometimes is successful. The death penalty and self defense exist, yet so many comic book villains just get a slap on the wrist and detention. 

It's the same situation as when Luke Skywalker didn't want to strike at the emperor in anger during the battle of Endor in Return of the Jedi.  =