Hagane no Renkinjutsushi – Fullmetal Alchemist Ep. 25
鋼の錬金術師 FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST Episode 25 review
Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood – 25

SPOILER Summary/Synopsis:

Inside of Gluttony’s belly, Ed and Ling meet up and after verifying that the other isn’t Envy in disguise, they begin looking for a way out. Ed creates a hole and dropping a torch inside, it never hits bottom. They decide to run in a straight line past ages of materials and bodies consumed by Gluttony but there is no end. Ling has had enough and is about to give up but Ed helps him along and reminds him that Lan Fan is waiting for him. They finally make it out of the floor of blood to a platform where they can rest. They need food, so Ed sacrifices his leather shoe from his automail leg and that gets stewed.

Meanwhile, Mei Chan is depressed at the loss of Xiao Mei and recounts to Yoki (with Scar listening nearby) how Mei first encountered Xiao Mei. Mei recons that since her own clan is weak, she was drawn to the abandoned Xiao Mei and though their relationship started as one of pity, she regards their relationship as one of sisters. Mei credits Xiao Mei as being what got her across the desert to learn the secrets of immortality. Scar decides to help Mei look for Xiao Mei while the city is still quiet before dawn.

Back inside Gluttony, an annoyed Envy arrives, not happy that he too had been consumed. Ed wants to know what this place is, so Envy asks if he didn’t recognize it at all. Ed realizes that Gluttony’s open gut was almost the same as the Door of Truth. Envy says that Father attempted to recreate the Door of Truth and this is the failed result. Envy says that there is no escape and they are all doomed to die. Envy further speaks of how he started the Ishval War by impersonating a soldier and shooting a little girl. Ed gets angry and since they are doomed to die, Envy transforms into a giant, lizard-like form with multiple human bodies composing his body and the fight is on.

Outside, Gluttony frets about his actions and mentions Father being angry with him. Al decides to convince Gluttony to take him to this Father, so the two of them as well as Xiao Mei head to Central City, to Al’s amazement.

In Central City, the military brass meet while Bradley has a one-on-one with Mustang. Mustang asks why he’s still alive to which Bradley answers that it is to get Mustang to understand. When Mustang asks what Bradley’s child would say if he learned his father is a homunculus, Bradley says that Selim is not a weakness of his. However, Bradley knows that Riza is a weakness of Mustang’s. As such, Riza has been transferred to Bradley’s personal staff and the rest of Mustang’s team are split up over the whole country.

Thoughts/Review:

Again, we have more amazing revelations.

I knew that Bradley would have to do something to keep Mustang on a leash since he is a sacrifice candidate. Having Riza close by is sure to do that and disbanding Mustang’s team removes his support. Well, not 100% of it. Major Armstrong is not on Roy’s staff though they have worked together and are allied. So unless Bradley transfers Armstrong as well, he would be the lone support Roy would have in Central City. I can’t help but think that Roy’s people are loyal enough to him that Bradley’s plan may backfire on him.

I liked the story of how Mei saved Xiao Mei. It seems like a futile search since Al has Xiao Mei outside of the city, but with Al returning to the city with Gluttony and having seen the spoiler preview, it looks like Mei and Scar may encounter Al and Xiao Mei next episode.

For some reason, I wasn’t surprised at Envy revealing that he started the Ishval war. I was surprised to see Envy transform into his giant, beast form. He comes off as a chimera for some reason. I wonder if that means something since the homunculi have an interest in chimera.

Finally, the big surprise is learning that Gluttony’s gut is actually Father’s attempt to make the Gate of Truth, which Ed and Al opened when they tried to resurrect their mother. The question is, “Why attempt to make such a doorway?” A further question is, “How did Father come to know about this door in the first place? What does he hope to gain? What is his true objective?” We may get some answers if Al actually gets to meet Father.

A word about the comedy. While the humor moment between Ed and Ling happens, it is pretty much standard FMA humor with Ed going off about his stature being joked about. When Mei’s flood of tears puts out the fire in the metal box that Yoki had lit, that was a take on the old anime joke about flooding tears. However later when Yoki had started the fire again and he tried to save it from being put out by Mei’s tear flood, I felt like I was watching an old Looney Tunes cartoon from the 40’s. Good stuff.

I look forward to seeing how Ed and Ling escape and everything else besides. ^_^