Hagane no Renkinjutsushi – Fullmetal Alchemist Ep. 34
鋼の錬金術師 FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST Episode 34 review
Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood – 34

SPOILER Summary/Synopsis:

Ed is checked out by the military doctor at Briggs and told of the need for special automail for use in cold climates. Captain Buccaneer has his automail repaired and Al’s head returned to him when General Armstrong arrives and inquires about her brother. She asks Ed and Al questions and they decide not to tell her about the homunculi problem but rather their quest to return their bodies to normal and their attempts to locate Mei Chan. General Armstrong thinks Ed and Al to be fools and would like to throw them out, but she wants the Eastern alchemy secrets and so agrees to locate Mei Chan for them.

General Armstrong assigns Ed and Al to a work detail and they are escorted by Major Miles, who reveals that he is one quarter Ishvalan and tests them. After they pass his test, he tells them of how General Armstrong shielded him from the purges of Ishvalans in the military. While he officially didn’t have enough Ishvalan blood to qualify for purging, his appearance could have caused problems and she let her troops know in no uncertain terms that she had no time for racism in her command. To keep Miles, she tells him in front of the others that she needs someone like him in order to be prepared for any enemy that might come along.

Ed and Al find themselves taken down to a lower level of Briggs to remove icicles. Here, they meet Falman, who’s been promoted from Warrant Officer to Second Lieutenant. After their work is complete, Falman gives them a tour of Briggs where Ed and Al learn that Briggs contains a facility to research and build tanks. On the lowest level, a work crew discovers something is tunneling up. That something emerges from the floor and turns out to be the giant homunculus known as Sloth.

As Buccaneer and Miles report to Armstrong about Kimblee’s request for aid, the intruder alarm sounds. Ed and Al are stunned and think Father sent him after them but when they attempt to communicate with the giant, they learn Sloth knows nothing of them. Buccaneer sees them talking with the intruder and assumes they are spies. However, when the troops open fire, the bullets don’t penetrate. Sloth is confused and makes his way to a lift, which he accidentally sends up to the R&D level.

General Armstrong fires a rocket at the intruder but is stunned that the weapon had no effect. After hearing Buccaneer’s report, she orders noncombatents removed and has her R&D folks bring their new tank weapons to bear. However, those weapons have no better luck though they do cause Sloth some pain. Sloth remembers that he’s supposed to be digging and attempts to get back to that, causing equipment to fly through the air. Ed shields some troops from being hit, which is observed by Armstrong and Buccaneer. Ed tells Armstrong that Sloth can’t be killed but he won’t tell her what he knows. He does say that he will help her save the people at Briggs. With that, Ed tells her that Sloth is made up of components like a human, so Armstrong orders some tank fuel be brought up. Ed assumes she is going to set Sloth on fire and says that won’t work. She responds that based on how it survived, she knows it can’t be killed but it can be shut down.

Thoughts/Review:

So, Sloth finally shows up in more than a cameo role. I had wondered what would make General Armstrong get on board with being an ally of Col. Mustang and this would appear to be the way to accomplish that goal. I can certainly understand Ed not wanting to tell General Armstrong anything because of the threat against Winry in addition to whatever distrust he has of the military. The fact that General Armstrong kept Miles on her personal staff and made a big show of things strongly suggests she’s willing to defy King Bradley or her superiors if she feels the need. So in the end, I think Ed will let her know but we’ll see.

Back to Sloth, he’s certainly different than how the character was portrayed in the original anime. What’s ironic and amusing is how he’s Sloth, thus he has a disinclination to action or labor. Certainly, being attacked multiple times and not retaliating shows his not being interested in action. His words show he doesn’t care too much for digging, so what compels this homunculus to do any work at all? After all, one humor moment had the giant homunculus simply fall asleep on everyone.

When Sloth digs, where does all the dirt go? If he’s making a tunnel, it has to go somewhere, right?

It is good to see Falman again, even if only for a short while. I suppose he will be another link for General Armstrong’s forces to work with Mustang when the time comes.

I just thought about episode 33 and Winry’s learning that Ed and Al went north combined with her boss telling her they’ll die up there. Add to this the fact that we learn that Ed needs special automail and more in order to use his automail in this cold climate. As such, I suddenly smell a visit from Winry to check on Ed and Al. I could be wrong, but she has been away from the action for a bit and it seems this would be a way to bring her back into the story as well as give Ed upgraded automail.

As to Major Miles, I don’t really have any comments on him. His character’s chief purpose seems to be to show what kind of person General Armstrong is. That said, it says something about him and her for Miles to still be in the military after others of Ishvalan decent in the military were apparently executed.

Regarding Briggs, while it makes sense to have a massive fortification to defend your norther border against another nation whom is at odds with your nation, I do wonder about having an R&D facility in Briggs. I can see having a facility to make weapons and supplies, thus being self-contained and able to hold out against siege but an R&D facility seems like a tempting target for spies and potential enemies. No wonder Armstrong and Buccaneer were so suspicious of Ed and Al.

So, another good episode that went by rather fast. Can’t wait to see how they deal with Sloth.