Hagane no Renkinjutsushi – Fullmetal Alchemist Ep. 48
鋼の錬金術師 FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST Episode 48 review
Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood – 48

SPOILER Summary/Synopsis:

Heinkel continues to beat on Selim without much success while Lan Fan and Ling devastate Gluttony repeatedly. Fu joins Ed and Darius and reassures the worried Ed that Lan Fan will be OK as they’ve brought more than just martial arts. To that end, Lan Fan drops a couple of grenades onto Gluttony which alerts the people in the slum. Two people come up with a lantern and find Heinkel in his beast form and are afraid. Selim takes advantage of the light and knocks the lantern out of their hand, causing a fire with which his Pride form can attack Heinkel. Before Pride can kill him, Ed arrives to defend his companion, having been led there by Fu who can sense homunculi.

Pride battles Ed to no avail and can’t figure why Ed’s automail arm hasn’t been broken by now. Ed reveals that it has been reinforced thanks to his trip up north, so Pride snakes part of his body to have Ed fight Al. Ed is ready for this and has Fu use a flash grenade which causes a light so bright that Pride’s shadow self dissolves outside of Selim’s body. A second flash insures Darius gets away with Al’s body. The battered Gluttony arrives, complaining of Lan Fan’s and Ling’s ability to find him in the dark. Realizing that both of them could be defeated by the combined forces arrayed against them, Pride attacks and consumes Gluttony, acquiring his remaining lives as well as Gluttony’s abilities, whereupon he is now able to smell Hohenheim nearby.

In Central, Ed meets up with Madame Christmas, who shows her investigative skills by producing photos going twenty or more years back that show Selim still as a child, proving he’s not human. She also investigated Bradley and found him without family connections. As they talk, government agents outside receive word that Madame Christmas is in fact Chris Mustang, Roy’s foster mother. Before they can get in and make an arrest, Madame Christmas’s bar explodes. Roy and Chris are in the sewer and after some words, part company. Roy then meets with Riza, Kain, and Breda, where he tells them of Bradley’s train accident. He has one order for them — do not die.

Meanwhile, the top military brass discuss current events and the rogue Colonel Mustang with Father. Since Father doesn’t know Mustang, he asks them to think of what Mustang’s next course of action might be. The men at the conference have no answer, but Olivier says that if she were Mustang, she’d go after Bradley’s wife. Father seems to find this suggestion foolish since it would openly reveal Mustang to be a traitor. However, Roy, Riza, Kain, and Breda intercept Bradley’s wife’s car and take out the bodyguards whereupon Roy asks her to come with them.

Thoughts/Review:

I gotta say that one of the great things about this anime is how completely it manages to surprise me at times. Today’s surprise came from Pride consuming Gluttony, then gaining Gluttony’s abilities. I didn’t see that coming at all. In fact, it almost makes me wonder why Pride hasn’t done this before. I suppose that would be Father’s restraint on Pride. From Pride’s perspective, it makes tactical sense to regenerate himself with Gluttony and acquire new abilities. Thus as an opponent, he’s much more dangerous now. Further, if Pride will consume Gluttony, then what’s to stop him from consuming Greed? Greed’s protective shell would likely prevent that, but the point is that Pride could consume any other homunculus at this point.

Anyway, it will be interesting to see how the battle resolves itself. I suspect that Pride needs to get Ed, Al, and Hohenheim to Central as part of the Promised day since they seem to be key figures. It would also seem that Izumi needs to be there as well. Plus, there’s this fifth figure in the scheme of things. Father seems to be cutting it very close with his big plans for the Promised Day. If indeed all these people need to be in Central, time is running short.

I laughed when the anime revealed that Madame Christmas is in fact Chris Mustang, Roy’s foster mother. Her addressing Roy as “Roy-boy” is amusing as well. Still, there’s no denying her abilities as an intelligence gatherer. Using her hostess bar is a great cover…or rather was a great cover. I wonder if she’ll show up again now that her place is destroyed.

Assuming I understood things right, Father’s rejection of Olivier’s idea means that once she’s proven right, she suddenly stands head and shoulders above the other generals. Further, it makes her appear to be on Father’s side when she’s on her own side first and foremost. That’s puts her in a good position to act once the crap hits the fan.

So as normal, another great episode of FMA! ^_^