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The End of Fullmetal Alchemist

Fullmetal Alchemist celebrates its end in the June 2010 issue of Shonen Gangan.

A major and popular shonen manga title ended this month. All of you manga readers and Fullmetal Alchemist fans have heard or read about the ending of the hit series this week with Chapter 108 - Journey’s End. The Elric brothers’ long and tumultuous journey has finally reached an end. All I can say is that Fullmetal Alchemist is one of the most touching and emotionally powerful series I have ever read. (Massive spoilers after the break, so don’t read if you want to find out for yourself.)

To quickly sum up the ending, Edward finally got his right arm back due to Al’s sacrifice. He proceeds to beat the crap out of Father, who is quickly losing strength. Father resorts to re-absorbing Greed from Ling Yao and succeeds in doing so. Greed sacrifices himself to sabotage Father’s body, which allows Ed to deliver the final blow. Father ends up being destroyed by the “Truth” in the portal area. With Al dying, Edward decides to give up the power of alchemy to bring Al’s real body back into the real world. He succeeds in doing so and both brothers return back home to Winry, who welcomes them home. The story fast-forwards two years later, where Al is heading to Xing and Ed is heading West. Both brothers are trying to help rethink the policy of “equivalent exchange” and prevent any more alchemy-related tragedies. Winry ends up confessing her love to Edward and the story ends with what happens with all the major characters and a “thank you” message from the mangaka, Hiromu Arakawa.

The ending was just amazing. All the subplots and themes of the series were all emphasized in one, huge chapter. What really impressed me about the end was four things:

- Greed showing his humanity.
- Edward’s final interaction with “Truth”.
- Mentions of Nina Tucker.
- The flawed concept of “equivalent exchange”.

For those who read my entry on Greed, I found him interesting because he was an example of how greed is positive at times. He actually ends up sacrificing himself for his own “greed”. The allies he made and formed bonds with. The bonds were his “greed” and he wouldn’t let Father destroy any of them. Despite being treated with disrespect, Greed felt Edward & Ling as possessions of his own. Chapter 107 has Greed admit that he always wanted friends more than anything else. He was greedy to form meaningful relationships. As I pointed out in my take on Greed, greed makes the world go round sometimes.

Edward’s realization of truth was also touching. He admits that he relied far too heavily on the “truth”. As a result, he let himself be misguided by the truth and why he was willing to give up the power of alchemy. So what happens if you know the truth of human nature? What will you do with with that knowledge? Knowing “truths” can cause people to over-rationalize. Why do you think there are a lot of pessimistic people out there? They become head over heels over the reality of the world and forget matters that they should be worried about. “Truth” (the character) compliments Ed for saying that even without alchemy, he still has his friends. Just because you know what things are really like doesn’t give you the excuse to forget taking care of or treasuring your loved ones. Sure, you will have bad moments, but don’t shelter yourself to the point where you can’t live anymore because of certain realizations.

Nina Tucker’s death had a profound impact on the lives of the Elric brothers. For those who don’t remember, Nina Tucker was a young girl who was turned into a chimera by her father. She was later killed by Scar out of pity. Ed mentions her to “Truth” when he tells the being that he isn’t special because even with alchemy, he wasn’t able to save her. Al mentions Nina’s death as the reason for trying to change people’s perception of alchemy for the better. Even a possibly insignificant encounter can be a driving force for people. The brothers’ chance encounter with Nina helped to cultivate their state of minds to prepare for future goals. Knowing the circumstances behind Nina’s death, the brothers recognized what needed to be done and kept her in the back of their minds. Their memories lied in wait until the right moment & environment, which was right after the final battle. It also helped that their journey was active and filled with adventure to help stimulate their minds in preparation for what’s next. The Elric brothers’ meeting with Nina and their responses are something that readers should take notice on how to make the most out of opportunities, move forward, form new connections, and create their own luck.

I also liked Arakawa’s final point about “equivalent exchange”. Instead of 50/50, if you give me 50, I will give back more than that just for the hell of it. If more people thought like this, then maybe we wouldn’t have so many wars or conflicts over trivial things. Peace can be achieved by being more courteous than we should be.

I would like to thank Hiromu Arakawa for creating such an awesome & inspiring series. Fullmetal Alchemist really got me engrossed into the lives of Ed and Al. You had two young men who had to grow up quickly all because of one costly mistake and managed to become upstanding, mature young adults that gained the support of many. The characters were well-done and the Homunculi were an awesome set of villains. So many epic moments in the story as well. The extras at the end of each volume were HILARIOUS and poked good fun at all the characters.

Goodbye, Elric brothers! Grow tall, Ed! Don’t become too bishie, Al! May you two be revered in the eyes of manga fans forever.

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Tagged: Fullmetal Alchemist Hiromu Arakawa Shonen Gangan manga psychology equivalent exchange life lessons learned