The "Crimson Alchemist".
In Fullmetal Alchemist, a few are rather notorious for their charisma and genius skills:
Manga/Brotherhood[]
- Pictured above: Zolf J. Kimbley. He's known as the "Crimson Lotus Alchemist" and is a devious, cunning former Major in the Amestrian military. Ostensibly imprisoned for war crimes in Ishval after he purloined a powerful Philosopher's Stone, Kimblee showed both cruelty and compassion in the conflict, killing civilians a fellow soldier had spared before helping the soldier up and reminding him of their duty in the military. Released from jail to assist in Father's scheme, Kimblee shows ingenuity in his tactics: coercing protagonist Edward "Ed" Elric into assisting him; evading an attempt to assassinate him; and later causing the deaths Father needs by convincing an enemy nation he means to assist their attack on Amestris' Briggs fortress, only to lure them into a trap and use their blood for Father's ritual. Even after being devoured by Pride, Kimblee (or better said, his spirit) is not exactly deterred: returns when the Homunculus attempts to cowardly forego his own haughty and boastful principles to take over Ed's body, forcing Pride to meet his fate while tipping his hat to Ed, happily seeing that the victory goes to the one with the strongest convictions. Despite his psychopathic tendencies, he has a very strong (if completely alien) moral and warrior code that he follows, one that he is aware of being at odds with society (which is why he takes great lengths to mask it).
- Perhaps the earliest sign that he had tendencies toward this was during the Ishbalan massacre. Even though he delighted in the genocide, he was one of the very few soldiers present willing to acknowledge the full weight of his actions and remember those he cut down while others chose to look away.
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"Do not look away from each new death. Look straight ahead, and never forget them. Because they certainly won't." |
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- Lust, one of the first Homunculi introduced, is a reserved and devious woman who uses Father Cornello as a proxy to sow discord and win over followers. After eliminating their failed pawn, Lust has fellow Homunculus Envy masquerade as him to continue their plans in the area and she herself begins handling information gathering in Amestris while seeing to threats eliminated, going undercover as "Solaris" to seduce Jean Havoc and gain information while also framing Maria Ross for Envy's murder of the intrepid Maes Hughes. Showing herself as a vicious and capable fighter, Lust comes close to even killing Roy Mustang, using the last of her life in dignified acceptance of her defeat while promising that Mustang shall one day know suffering. Though the first of her kind to die, Lust's meticulous planning skills and charming manipulations set up a character type to stand out in each iteration she has been presented in.
- The Father of the Homunculi. He founded the country of Amestris to perform a ritual, hundreds of years later, in the window of a few minutes. When everyone brought the fight to his doorstep, he abused the Toll required of Human Transportation to teleport all of the sacrifices he needed straight to him. When he was short, he forced someone to transmute. When Hohenheim (who once was his Unwitting Pawn and now is doing hios best to stop him) tried to destroy his container, he revealed that he had evolved beyond the need for it. When Greed tried to usurp him, he revealed that he had been standing in the wrong spot, since he knew Greed would try that.
- Colonel Roy Mustang himself serves as Edward Elric's recruiter and direct superior for most of the story. He is wildly charming, always has a back up plan, carries out undercover missions, uses his charismatic playboy exterior to hide his movements from enemies and allies alike, and ambitiously plans to become the Fuhrer of Amestris early on. The "bastard" part, however, eventually fades with his Character Development.
- Major General Olivier Mira Armstrong is the commander of the Briggs Garrison, which is located in the harsh northern regions of Amestris and repeatedly fends off invasions from the country's northern neighbor of Drachma. Olivier has no tolerance for weakness, racism, or anything else that might hold her unit back, and not only stoically accepts casualties, but considers herself no less expendable than her men. Shortly after learning of the conspiracy in the military, Olivier tricks the corrupt General Raven into lowering his guard by pretending to be a fellow Immortality Seeker, then murders him. She uses the opening created by his death to infiltrate Central Command, keeping her true motives secret from her enemies and most of her allies as she joins with Roy Mustang to overthrow Fuhrer King Bradley. On the day of the coup, Olivier fearlessly faces down the Homunculus Sloth armed only with her sword and her wits. When Central soldiers arrive to execute her, she convinces them to join her side with well-chosen words, and effectively commands them against Sloth and the mannequin soldiers. Olivier's ruthlessness, intelligence, bravery and charisma earn her the absolute loyalty of her troops and her sobriquet as "The Northern Wall of Briggs."
- Roy's mentor and his companion Riza Hawkeye's grandfather General Grumman is the silly, seemingly harmless commanding officer of East City, who masks a truly ruthless ambition. Introduced congratulating Roy Mustang for finally breaking his (Grumman)'s winning streak of nearly a hundred victories in chess, Grumman later becomes Mustang's benefactor in scheming a coup against the Amestris high command, using his troops to deliver messages and even successfully disguising himself as an elderly woman to fool potential spies, hilariously shocking the heck outta Roy himself. Grumman baits Fuhrer King Bradley into a trap that incapacitates him for the coming coup, only to then leave Mustang to handle the invasion of Amestris all by himself, planning to swoop in and paint himself as a hero should Mustang fail, thereby securing his own promotion and framing Mustang as a traitor in the process. Even when Mustang pulls off the coup, Grumman's tactical genius enables him to secure the position of Fuhrer for himself for years to come, during which he keeps tabs on potential enemies while nonetheless looking forward to the exciting future to come.
- Scar is an Ishbalan Warrior Monk bent on punishing the Amestrian State Alchemists who annihilated his people, mutilated him, and killed his beloved older brother in front of him. Biding his time to corner and murder thirteen of them (one of them being the Complete Monster Shou Tucker), Scar almost kills Edward Elric twice and evades Amestris and the Homunculi's attempts to take him down; in the mean time, it's revealed that he accidentally killed Edward's Patient Childhood Love Interest Winry, and does not deny it or evade his guilt when the mentally shattered girl confronts him, even all but daring her to shoot hima nd forcing Edward to talk her down. When he discovers the Homunculi orchestrated the Ishbalan civil war, Scar decides to counter their plans by finding the secret behind his Badass Bookworm brother's research, joining forces with Ed's group to free Winry from the corrupt Central, and activating the Ishval refugees' secret city-wide transmutation circle to boost the alchemist's powers. A resolved and introspective survivor, Scar ultimately gives up on his vengeful ways and accepts to join the military's efforts to rebuild the Ishbalan nation.
- Isaac McDougal is the rogue "Freezing Alchemist". Haunted by the horrific war crimes of Amnestris in Ishval and uncovering the truth of Central Command, McDougal desires to punish Central and cast down Fuhrer King Bradley. Crafting multiple transmutation circles across the city and killing any soldier who gets in his way while creating a series of distractions, McDougal is able to survive battles with Ed, his brother Alphonse, Alexander Armstrong and even Mustang before unleashing a wave of ice to converge upon Central, declaring he will judge Bradley and condemn him to a "frozen hell" for his sins. Even when he does lose to Bradley and is killed as a result, when some time later Ed deduces exactly what McDougal was trying to tell him and Al while attempting to sway the brothers to his side during their fight, he has to recognize that the Freezing Alchemist was right all along.
- The Truth, the all-knowing personification of the Law of Equivalent Exchange, gatekeeps the Gate of Truth and its power. Alchemists who perform human transmutation are taken to its realm, where it forces them through the gate, giving them massive amounts of alchemic knowledge in exchange for being physically mutilated. The Truth does this to teach lessons and, upon Edward Elric figuring out that alchemy isn't the answer to everything and sacrificing his own Gate to save his brother Alphonse, congratulates him and allows the brothers exit. Conversely, when Father absorbs the powers of God and is subsequently defeated, the Truth casts him into the Gate forever when it becomes clear that he never learned anything.
2003 Anime[]
- Scar used to live normally until his older brother performed a human transmutation to revive his girlfriend, unknowingly creating the homunculus Lust. During the Ishbalan genocide, Scar was saved by said brother, who sacrificed his arm and life to ensure his survival. Deciding to take revenge on the Amestrian State Alchemists, Scar goes to Central and mercy-kills the suffering Nina Tucker before fighting Edward Elric. Years later, Scar continues with his one-man crusade and crosses paths with the Elric brothers, constantly fighting with and sparing them—especially Alphonse—as they remind him of his past, and even working together sometimes. Discovering the real nature of his arm as an incomplete Philosopher's Stone, Scar decides to finish what his brother started and travels to the war-torn city of Reole, where he leads and protects the civilians, creates a city-wide transmutation symbol and tricks the Amestrian soldiers to their deaths with the help of Lust—who acknowledges their shared past after meeting him—while the civilians evacuate. A survivor determined to succeed, Scar uses his last moments to save Alphonse and finish the transmutation, dying while thinking about the Elric brothers, his brother and his own guilt.
- This version of the Homunculus Lust retains her devious, manipulative personality while gaining an extended, sympathetic backstory. Created when a man attempted to bring back his dead lover, Lust operates with a devotion to becoming human and strings along alchemists in the hopes one will create a Philosopher's Stone for her to do so. Nearly succeeding with hero Edward "Ed" Elric, Lust betrays Dante to assist Scar in the creation of the Stone, hoping to use it on herself. After being released from captivity by Dante to hunt down Ed, Lust betrays her master to assist the boy, using her own knowledge of alchemy to nearly kill fellow Homunculi Wrath and Sloth and even when she herself is mortally wounded, gracefully and philosophically ponders her nature before passing.
- "The Phantom Thief": The alchemist "Psiren" is a charming Classy Cat Burglar who spends her days as the kindly nurse Clara. Preemptively announcing her targets, Clara gets Ed to help her escape a trap by pretending to be using the money to save her hospital. Though lying, Clara is revealed to care for her town and brings it publicity, ending the episode by giving Ed information on the Philosopher's Stone and escaping custody.
Movie[]
- The film's version of Lust is presented as the acting leader of the Homunculi trio seen. Having Envy take the place of a priest they had been manipulating to rile up his followers, Lust also works to ensure no humans catch wind of their plans, killing a doctor and ordering a pursuer murdered to frame Roy Mustang for this purpose. Professing her disgust at her two human collaborators, Lust also shows her positive qualities in combat with the heroes, stating her care for her creator and protecting the injured Envy from Mustang.
Video Games[]
- Fullmetal Alchemist and the Broken Angel: This version of Colonel Roy Mustang is even trickier and more deviously strategic than his original counterpart. Seemingly betraying the Elric brothers to be thrown in jail by a corrupt General, Mustang uses their inevitable breakout as a diversion to outplay and arrest the General. Harsh yet fair, Mustang even fights Ed to prevent him from seeing a girl he had befriended as she passes away per her and her father's wishes.