The End of FMA Brotherhood - It is Edward who becomes a God
January 4th 2012 02:15
If you dont watch anime, you will have no idea what Im talking about. You have been warned.
Id like to start off this post by saying that FMA Brotherhood has been the most enjoyable anime I have ever seen. Usually for me anime is visually spectacular with incredibly thought provoking concepts. FMA has indeed been that, but it also made a personal connection with me to the point where I immensely enjoyed every single second. We first came to the party only last year - We watched the first series, loosely based on the original manga, then went into coniptions at the ending of The conquerer of Shamballa as did 90% of the fans. Luckily for us, we didnt have to wait years to see the final and correct conclusion as FMA brotherhood was now released and waiting for us to discover it.
FMA is usually loosely described as a story of two brothers who attempt to bring their mother back from the dead. It seems provocative just on its own, but one glimpse at this anime and you know its going much deeper than that. Why attempt the impossible when they had a loving granny? Well, for starters, Edward just happens to be an alchemic genius, so believes it to be within his grasp, and really the reasoning behind this series is right there.
Edward Elric.
I could go on...And on...And on... But Im here to talk about the end. I hate endings I tell you, even if, as they say, its not really an ending, but a new beginning.
Our antagonist, Father, wants to be God. Why? Its not a human urge, its not driven by any of the typical human emotions, for the simple reason that Father is not human. Father wants to be on the mortal coil - he is removed from it, a being brought into life by artificial means. A science experiment. Once gaining a human form and effective immortality, the next logical step is to evolve - to God. This is the path humans follow in the great universal life cycle - dark to life, life to light. Father has no way of evolving in this way and all of his evil acts are in fact only natural to him. Father never acts maliciosly simply for the sake of it, all of his actions are driven by his goal.
In this, antagonist and protagonist are exactly the same. Edwards only goal is to restore his brother's body - he says, constantly that the goal is to 'get OUR bodies back' but its BS, watch only one episode and you can see its BS.
Edward is driven by guilt. He took the gifts he was given by nature - natural gifts and intelligence - and in his arrogance went against the flow of life. In the gate of Truth, he met his equal, he knew what he had done wrong. He knew he could not go against the flow of life. But when he was returned to his body, bleeding and dying and terrified, crushed in every way, he realized he was alone.
And in that moment, he forgot the lesson of Truth and threw everything into the ether to have his brother back. It isnt adressed directly in the anime, but I can only imagine how the next few days killed his spirit. Half his limbs gone, and his brother now locked in a hollow shell. The only thing that drives him now is guilt, to correct this action at any cost. To pay for his selfishness.
In the early episodes its clear Edward is caught up in the journey, the adventure. The immediate pain has dulled, and Ed can be a little brat again. Brattish behaviour is obviously natural to him. But as time wears on and he has to face his brother again and again, its clear Eds spirit is failing.
I think this is most obvious in the episode where Edward tells Scar to kill him. He wants to be released from this responsability, this guilt. I think when Alphonse tells him no matter what, its he that must go on, he realizes that even though all of this is completely his fault, Al still loves him, forgives him, and would choose Ed to live over his own self, if he could.
But back to the end.
Father acquires God. I can only imagine that what he has been able to absorb is only a small part, an essence of the oneness but not the complete one-ness itself. Father is then weakened by Hoenhiem's plot - the millions of newly acquired souls are pulled from him. Without power, the God essence is desperate to return to the flow. Father is determined to retain his form. There is a series of explosions and Al is immobilzed, his metal tomb of a body is wrecked. Ed is pinned, one armed, his automail destroyed. There is no one now that can stop Father as he desperately clings to life, advancing on Ed to absorb his life essence.
And Al reverses the transmutation to give Ed his arm back.
I dont believe Ive ever seen such a well animated scene. Ed has grown so much, and learnt so much, you could really believe at this point that he had let it go. Leaping into the fight with only one arm - He shows a spirit in these final moments that has grown so far from that guilty child.
But in that moment, when he sees what Al is about to do, the scream, the desperation, he cant let it be.....It was his mistake, and he has to be the one to fix it....
When he sees his arm returned, he's almost completely undone. In a micro second, you can see the despair that is about to overwealm him.
And in that instant, he forgives himself. Instead of weeping, he screams in joy, "Al, You did it!" and channels his rage into the final fight. It seems in the next few moments the entire country is screaming Eds name, urging him on.
Complete emotional personal forgiveness. Loved by the masses for selfless gifts. Personal sacrifice for no gain. These are the acts of an enlightened being. No matter what happens now, this day, this man, this moment, will be known for hundreds of years. Written about, depicted in artworks and statues, spoken in hushed whispers to children as stories, and even perhaps become a part of national slang - "He was as angry as Edward Elric on the day of the Apocalypse" and dont forget for the next 10 years at least, parents will name their sons 'Edward' in honour of their saviour.
When Father is defeated, Al should be dead. When Edward returns, Al should have gone through the gate. His body only waited for his soul and now that they are complete they should have gone through - the gate has waited about 10 years after all.
But the gate and truth are one. This ether world and its sentinels exist only for us, the progression of our souls. Our evolution to light. If Al chooses to wait, who says he cant? Its his ether, his eternity.
To me it seems the ether is waiting with baited breath. Edward cant accept any toll that is offered because destiny is upon him now. Truth taunts him but knows that he cant really control him any longer. That smile of Eds as he says, "This is my portal - so I get to say how its used, isnt that right?" is a complete understanding of the ether and how it works, how emotion and choice are everything there. Truth knew he was beaten before Ed even arrived, it was only the final pieces that needed to be put on the scale, to tip the balance.
Ed has now evolved spiritually. He had to give up his right to use the ether, otherwise he would have become a monster like Father. They really were so alike. Throughout the series Ed sees this again and again - his likeness to the villian - no matter how good his intentions, he knows the drive behind his emotions will poison him.
Father gets what he wanted - at death, he doesnt return to nothing, but faces his own Truth, goes through his own portal. Congratulations, little one in the flask, you are now on the coil. One day, perhaps, you will evolve into light.
And Edward. You didnt seek it, which is how it comes, but enlightenment is upon you now, and as you live your humble earthly life you can hear the stars call your name as they wait for you to return.
Id like to start off this post by saying that FMA Brotherhood has been the most enjoyable anime I have ever seen. Usually for me anime is visually spectacular with incredibly thought provoking concepts. FMA has indeed been that, but it also made a personal connection with me to the point where I immensely enjoyed every single second. We first came to the party only last year - We watched the first series, loosely based on the original manga, then went into coniptions at the ending of The conquerer of Shamballa as did 90% of the fans. Luckily for us, we didnt have to wait years to see the final and correct conclusion as FMA brotherhood was now released and waiting for us to discover it.
FMA is usually loosely described as a story of two brothers who attempt to bring their mother back from the dead. It seems provocative just on its own, but one glimpse at this anime and you know its going much deeper than that. Why attempt the impossible when they had a loving granny? Well, for starters, Edward just happens to be an alchemic genius, so believes it to be within his grasp, and really the reasoning behind this series is right there.
Edward Elric.
I could go on...And on...And on... But Im here to talk about the end. I hate endings I tell you, even if, as they say, its not really an ending, but a new beginning.
Our antagonist, Father, wants to be God. Why? Its not a human urge, its not driven by any of the typical human emotions, for the simple reason that Father is not human. Father wants to be on the mortal coil - he is removed from it, a being brought into life by artificial means. A science experiment. Once gaining a human form and effective immortality, the next logical step is to evolve - to God. This is the path humans follow in the great universal life cycle - dark to life, life to light. Father has no way of evolving in this way and all of his evil acts are in fact only natural to him. Father never acts maliciosly simply for the sake of it, all of his actions are driven by his goal.
In this, antagonist and protagonist are exactly the same. Edwards only goal is to restore his brother's body - he says, constantly that the goal is to 'get OUR bodies back' but its BS, watch only one episode and you can see its BS.
Edward is driven by guilt. He took the gifts he was given by nature - natural gifts and intelligence - and in his arrogance went against the flow of life. In the gate of Truth, he met his equal, he knew what he had done wrong. He knew he could not go against the flow of life. But when he was returned to his body, bleeding and dying and terrified, crushed in every way, he realized he was alone.
And in that moment, he forgot the lesson of Truth and threw everything into the ether to have his brother back. It isnt adressed directly in the anime, but I can only imagine how the next few days killed his spirit. Half his limbs gone, and his brother now locked in a hollow shell. The only thing that drives him now is guilt, to correct this action at any cost. To pay for his selfishness.
In the early episodes its clear Edward is caught up in the journey, the adventure. The immediate pain has dulled, and Ed can be a little brat again. Brattish behaviour is obviously natural to him. But as time wears on and he has to face his brother again and again, its clear Eds spirit is failing.
I think this is most obvious in the episode where Edward tells Scar to kill him. He wants to be released from this responsability, this guilt. I think when Alphonse tells him no matter what, its he that must go on, he realizes that even though all of this is completely his fault, Al still loves him, forgives him, and would choose Ed to live over his own self, if he could.
But back to the end.
Father acquires God. I can only imagine that what he has been able to absorb is only a small part, an essence of the oneness but not the complete one-ness itself. Father is then weakened by Hoenhiem's plot - the millions of newly acquired souls are pulled from him. Without power, the God essence is desperate to return to the flow. Father is determined to retain his form. There is a series of explosions and Al is immobilzed, his metal tomb of a body is wrecked. Ed is pinned, one armed, his automail destroyed. There is no one now that can stop Father as he desperately clings to life, advancing on Ed to absorb his life essence.
And Al reverses the transmutation to give Ed his arm back.
I dont believe Ive ever seen such a well animated scene. Ed has grown so much, and learnt so much, you could really believe at this point that he had let it go. Leaping into the fight with only one arm - He shows a spirit in these final moments that has grown so far from that guilty child.
But in that moment, when he sees what Al is about to do, the scream, the desperation, he cant let it be.....It was his mistake, and he has to be the one to fix it....
When he sees his arm returned, he's almost completely undone. In a micro second, you can see the despair that is about to overwealm him.
And in that instant, he forgives himself. Instead of weeping, he screams in joy, "Al, You did it!" and channels his rage into the final fight. It seems in the next few moments the entire country is screaming Eds name, urging him on.
Complete emotional personal forgiveness. Loved by the masses for selfless gifts. Personal sacrifice for no gain. These are the acts of an enlightened being. No matter what happens now, this day, this man, this moment, will be known for hundreds of years. Written about, depicted in artworks and statues, spoken in hushed whispers to children as stories, and even perhaps become a part of national slang - "He was as angry as Edward Elric on the day of the Apocalypse" and dont forget for the next 10 years at least, parents will name their sons 'Edward' in honour of their saviour.
When Father is defeated, Al should be dead. When Edward returns, Al should have gone through the gate. His body only waited for his soul and now that they are complete they should have gone through - the gate has waited about 10 years after all.
But the gate and truth are one. This ether world and its sentinels exist only for us, the progression of our souls. Our evolution to light. If Al chooses to wait, who says he cant? Its his ether, his eternity.
To me it seems the ether is waiting with baited breath. Edward cant accept any toll that is offered because destiny is upon him now. Truth taunts him but knows that he cant really control him any longer. That smile of Eds as he says, "This is my portal - so I get to say how its used, isnt that right?" is a complete understanding of the ether and how it works, how emotion and choice are everything there. Truth knew he was beaten before Ed even arrived, it was only the final pieces that needed to be put on the scale, to tip the balance.
Ed has now evolved spiritually. He had to give up his right to use the ether, otherwise he would have become a monster like Father. They really were so alike. Throughout the series Ed sees this again and again - his likeness to the villian - no matter how good his intentions, he knows the drive behind his emotions will poison him.
Father gets what he wanted - at death, he doesnt return to nothing, but faces his own Truth, goes through his own portal. Congratulations, little one in the flask, you are now on the coil. One day, perhaps, you will evolve into light.
And Edward. You didnt seek it, which is how it comes, but enlightenment is upon you now, and as you live your humble earthly life you can hear the stars call your name as they wait for you to return.
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