Edward Elric

Edward Elric (エドワード・エルリック, Edowādo Erurikku?), commonly nicknamed Ed (エド, Edo?), is the main protagonist of the series. His military codename is The Fullmetal Alchemist, or simply Fullmetal.

History
Edward Elric's story begins in February 1910, when he and Alphonse Elric, his younger brother, attempt to resurrect their dead mother by a forbidden act of alchemy: human transmutation. The process requires the correct proportion of elements that constitute a human body, (according to the dialogs this includes 35 liters of water, 20 kilograms of carbon, 4 liters of ammonia, 1.5 kilograms of lime, 800 grams of phosphorus, 250 grams of sodium, 100 grams of saltpeter, 80 grams of sulfur, 7.5 grams of fluorine, 5 grams of iron, 3 grams of silicon, and trace amounts of fifteen other elements) as well as the more metaphysical element of a human soul which is rendered by Ed and Al through a drop of one another's blood, the same blood as that of Trisha Elric.

The attempt backfires, resulting in Al losing his body and Ed his left leg, as well as bringing to life an inhuman monster. In order to save Al's soul, Ed sacrifices his right arm to bind Al's soul to a nearby suit of armor using knowledge he attained from this glimpse into the Gate of Truth. Unbeknownst to Ed at the time, he also gains the rare ability to perform transmutations without a circle. In order to regain what they had lost, Ed and Al decide to search for the legendary Philosopher's Stone, which allows an alchemist to perform transmutations that violate the Law of Equivalent Exchange (which states that in order to gain, something of equal value must be lost). To gain access to the vast amount of research and information on alchemy available only to State Alchemists, Ed and Al decide to take the notoriously difficult State Alchemist entrance exam.

However, because the brothers feared that their secret (that they had performed forbidden alchemy) would be exposed during the physical phase of the exam if Al were to take it, they decided that only Ed should take the test alone. Ed easily passes, and, at the age of 12, becomes the youngest State Alchemist that the State has ever certified. Had Al not been forced to drop from the Exam due to his "condition" and passed it, he might have been the youngest State Alchemist ever certified - at age 11 - instead of his brother, Ed. He did finish the written portion of the exam, while Ed was unable to do so. After passing the alchemy exam, Edward and Alphonse set out to look for the Philosopher's Stone. Since the Stone allows the owner to bypass the laws of equivalent exchange, Ed and Al believe that locating the stone will enable them to regain what they have lost in their failed attempt to resurrect their mother. In an effort to help the Elric Brothers in this quest, Mustang (Ed's superior officer) issues orders to Edward to conduct an alchemic investigation into the Philosophers Stone, allowing Ed to use his position in the military to legitimately search for the stone without raising suspicion among other officers in the military.

Personality
Edward "Fullmetal Alchemist" Elric is a young alchemical prodigy. He has a bright mind, an unyielding willpower, and a loud mouth. He is the youngest State Alchemist to ever be recognized by the Amestris State Military, having received the title at the age of 12. Ed's primary motivation throughout the series is to return his younger brother (whom he superannuates by one year) Alphonse to his original body, which was lost in a botched human transmutation. Edward, despite his occasional bouts of immaturity, is a selfless boy that gains a reputation as a "hero of the people" throughout his youth. Notably, he doesn't seem concerned about returning his own arm and leg, instead focusing entirely on Al's suffering. He despises authority, an agnostic who enjoys nothing more than serving up Robin Hood-esque justice to people in need (and gains some fame from it).

His State Alchemist (or "second") name, "Fullmetal", was given to him by Fuhrer Bradley upon passing the State Alchemist certification at the age of 12. Bradley thought it was an appropriate title considering the irony of his automail (note at end), his artificial arm and leg. This could also be seen as a playful knock on the boy, seeing as his brother is the one that is truly 'Fullmetal', and would thus cause many cases of mistaken identity. It may also be that State Alchemists are not named for what they are, but for their outstanding achievements in Alchemy. In this case, Edward's title of Fullmetal would have been presented to him for his successful binding of his brother, Alphonse's, soul to a suit of armor. Another reason Edward may be called "Fullmetal" is because he is stubborn. "Fullmetal" is a term used to describe someone who is stubborn or headstrong.

Ed is short with a somewhat stocky build. He has golden-blonde hair and gold eyes. His body is that of an experienced martial artist, with noticeable muscles and a wealth of agility. Although he lacks both his right arm and left leg, Ed's ability to fight is not impaired. His heavy automail limbs are considered by him to be the very best in Amestris. They were made by his childhood friend, Winry Rockbell, and she is constantly working on them. He is able to think quickly, even in desperate situations. These qualities, combined with his alchemical powers, and his incredible physical strength make him a formidable fighter. He is ambidextrous, but usually uses his left hand for writing. This is because it is difficult writing with his auto-mail hand.

Ed's strong personality is revealed most when others make jokes about his height. He doesn't tolerate phrases such as "pipsqueak", "half-pint", "bean sprout", "short stuff", and he becomes so enraged by such quips that he usually screams back with a highly exaggerated insult that is nowhere near the scale of the original remark. (In one episode, Archer even reaches for his sidearm as Ed yells about one such insult.) When Ed is not out on a mission for the Philosopher's Stone or just an odd job for Roy Mustang, he is a kind, laidback person. However, regardless of whether or not he is on the job, Ed can hold a grudge for an eternity, and will go to extreme lengths to get an apology. Ed is extremely idealistic--almost to a fault--and strongly believes in the theory of "Equivalent Exchange". He regards religion and superstition cynically, instead believing that alchemy and science are the true saviors of humanity. He shows little remorse in defeating the false prophet Cornello in Liore and "taking away the hope of the people", although he does show more compassion when dealing with the religious Ishbalans. It is unknown from whom Ed inherited his hot temper as neither his Father nor Mother are quite so impassioned. It is, however, speculated that some of his anger issues are from his alchemy and martial arts teacher, Izumi Curtis, who has similar terrifying facial expressions(in a flashback episode, Edward once called her "Obasan" [or "Older woman"] to which Izumi responded in a way very reminiscent to Edward's own tantrums). It maybe also come for resentment to his father, who abandoned him, his brother and mother, and letting his mother to die in vain. He seems to have feelings of repressed anger towards his father, often physically striking out at his father at sight, irritated at his very presence and is particularly scornful and hypocritical towards him, even when Hohenheim is showing signs of remorse over Trisha's death. Because of Hohenheim's gentle nature, he usually allows these behaviors.

Plot overview
Edward is born in a small town named Resembool, where he lives with his younger brother, Alphonse, and both of his parents, Trisha Elric and Hohenheim, until Hohenheim embarks on a journey and several years after, Trisha falls ill and dies, leaving the two young boys as orphans. Their neighbor, Pinako Rockbell, then begins looking after them. During that time, the brothers concentrate in studying alchemy in hopes of bringing their mother back to life and are able to train with a skilled alchemist named Izumi Curtis. When they return home from their training, they proceed to try the taboo art of Human transmutation but fail costing Edward his left leg and costs Alphonse his entire body. Edward then performs a second transmutation, sacrificing his own right arm to bind Alphonse's soul to a nearby suit of armor. Edward becomes a State Alchemist in order to find a way to recover their bodies through use of the legendary Philosopher's Stone. Winry Rockbell, his childhood friend, also outfits him with prosthetic automail limbs to replace those that he lost. It is because of these metal parts, Edward is given the title "Fullmetal Alchemist".

Although Edward has the same background and characteristics in the manga and the anime, Edward meets different people and fight against different enemies. During their search they become the target of an Ishvalan nicknamed Scar and of the Homunculi. Since traveling to Rush Valley, the manga and the anime go through different plots. Also, it should be noted that he doesn't wear his robes for the last thirteen episodes of the anime, and in the manga, he wears his hair in a ponytail much more often than in the anime (where it only happened in the movie).

Abilities
Ed is short and slender, but compactly muscular. He has golden-blond hair and gold eyes. His body is that of an experienced martial artist, with noticeable muscles and a wealth of agility. Although he lacks both his right arm and left leg, Ed's ability to fight is not impaired, and is in fact improved, as he will often use alchemy to cause his arm to sprout blades, as well as give his opponents an unexpected surprise, as they often aim for his right arm. His heavy automail limbs are considered by him to be the very best in Amestris. They were made by his childhood friend, Winry Rockbell, and she is constantly working on them. He is able to think quickly, even in desperate situations, though can still be frightened into paralysis. These qualities, combined with his alchemical powers and physical strength, make him a formidable fighter.

Edward is a very powerful alchemist who, unlike most practitioners, can perform alchemy without the use of a transmutation circle, also known as an array. In the anime, he first discovered this skill when taking the state entrance exam, saving a man's life by turning a falling hot air balloon into a shower of cherry blossom petals. (He did, however, once do it by accident when Gracia was giving birth and he boiled a pot of water without a transmutation circle.) In the manga, however, Edward's first transmutation done without the use of a circle was when he just finished sparring with his brother (when he was finally able to fight with his automail) and he said that he hadn't used alchemy since the day he transmuted Al's soul. He then clapped his hands and he turned his automail into his famous blade.

Reception
Vic Mignogna, who does the voice acting for Edward in the English dub was the winner in American Anime Awards in the category "Best Actor" for voicing Edward. He has stated that performing Edward may be his biggest voice acting achievement since fans do not compare him with Romi Park, the seiyū for the character. Due to his popularity, Edward won the Twenty-sixth Annual Animage Readers' Poll in the "Favorite Male Character" category as well as his seiyū, Romi Park, in the "Favorite Seiyu" category for her acting as Edward. Several pieces of merchandise have been released in Edward's likeness, including plush toys, action figures, and key-chains.

Several publications for manga, anime, and other pop culture media have provided both praise and criticism on Edward's character. IGN praises Edward as the perfect balance between the typical clever kid and the stubborn kid persona, explaining that this allows the character to float between comical moments and underlying drama without seeming false, something they comment that most manga fail to do. Anime News Network praises Edward's facial expressions to as one of the most humorous highlights of the series, including also the moments in which he reacts quite violently to comments about his small stature. They also praise him for not being a stereotypical shōnen character as it is noted that he has very real skills, relationships, and personality. T.H.E.M. Anime Reviews comments that the interaction between the Elric brothers as they travel is interesting, since humor is quite frequent rather than the constant grimness of many series.

Manga
In the manga, the brothers went to Mustang after Ed got his automail. Mustang took them to Central, and only Ed took the test, to become a State Alchemist. He passed, and they returned to Resembool and burned their home down. The date on Ed's watch in the manga is "3 Oct 11."

However, because the brothers feared that their secret, the performance of human transmutation, would be exposed during the physical phase of the exam if Al were to take it, they decided that only Ed would take it. Ed easily passed, and, at the age of 12, became the youngest State Alchemist that the State has ever certified. His ability to transmute without an array surprised those who witnessed it, but he took it a step further by seemingly threatening President Bradley. The President, however, admires this act as one of guts and courage and passes Ed, making him an official State Alchemist.

After passing the alchemy exam, Edward and Alphonse set out to look for the Philosopher's Stone. Since the Stone allows the owner to bypass the laws of equivalent exchange, Ed and Al believe that locating the stone will enable them to regain what they have lost in their failed attempt to resurrect their mother. In an effort to help the Elric Brothers in this quest, Mustang (Ed's superior officer) issued orders to Edward to conduct an alchemical investigation into the Philosopher's Stone. This allowed Ed to use his military position to legitimately search for the stone without raising suspicion among other officers in the military.

Edward, Envy, and Ling are swallowed by Gluttony in chapter 50. Ed learns from Envy that Gluttony is a fake Gate of Truth created by Father and concludes that going through the real gate can get them out. Using Envy's stone as the passage fee, Edward transmutes himself while Envy and Ling jump in. At the Gate, Edward sees two Gates and Al's body waiting at one of them, proving his theory that his and Al's souls are somehow connected. As Edward is pulled back into the real world, he vows to someday get Al's body back from the gate.

Later on in the series Ed and Al head north in search of "Rentanjutsu girl" (May Chan). They ally with Major General Armstrong and attempt to get information out of General Raven (who is later killed by Armstrong). Because of Raven's disappearance Kimbly is called in (along with Winry, who replaces his automail with one more suited for the northern climate) and tells Edward he has to do his job as a state alchemist. Ed is assigned three tasks - 1) search for scar, 2) search for Marcoh, and 3) "carve a bloody crest into Briggs". Edward chooses to look for Scar first.

In chapter 76 Edward is impaled by a metal rod after losing a fight with Kimbly and collapses (Al also blanks out in unison with Ed's wound.) Chapter 77 show him saving Kimbly's subordante Chimeras so that they can remove the rod, He then heals the wound by using his life energy, At the expence of cutting short part of his life span.Edward gets separated from Alphonse to prevent Winry to be held as a hostage. In a fight against the state alchemist Kimbly, Edward gets gravely injured. Edward uses alchemy to stop the bleeding. When the revealed homunculus Greed runs off he runs into Edward, He offers him to come join him and agrees.

In chapter 84 Ed is seen at the Rockbell house in Resemmbol hiding with Greed and the rest of his followers. Unknown to Ed (who is in Winry's room keeping watch) When she comes into her house she is shocked to find Ed in her room while she is undressing. The two scream (obviously shocked by one another) which causes everyone to believe Ed and Winry are in danger and she soon kicks everone out of her room. Shortly after she fills Ed in on where Al is and what's been happening in Lior. She finds out Ling has become Greed, and why they were hiding out in her house. Ed tells her to leave the country, but she refuses, wanting to help Ed in anyway she can. Ed soon departs and Winry stays in Resembool for the time being.

Edward Elric was born in the winter, as stated by Hiromu Arakawa, at the end of manga volume 12. She also says that it is normal for winter to last up to six months in Japan, though this could be construed as a joke by the writer since in all of the flashback scenes a true winter has been shown in succession with the other seasons. Many people think that he was born in the year 1899; it is never stated if that is true or not. Ed's parents are Hohenheim of Light, known in the manga as Van Hohenheim, and Trisha Elric. His birthday has never been specifically stated in either the manga or the anime. Hohenheim left the family while Ed was young, for reasons later revealed in the series.

When Edward and Alphonse discover that the homunculi and the Philosopher's Stone are related, they work together along Ling Yao and Roy Mustang in order to find them. However, after the Elric brothers meet the first homuculus "Father", they are forced to keep working with the military who threaten to use their friends from Resembool as hostages. Being unable to protect them, Ed and Al go to the north of the country to make a request to its guardian, Olivier Mira Armstrong(who is Major Armstrong's sister). Despite that, the State Alchemist Zolf J. Kimbly takes Winry Rockbell with him to force Ed to continue to work for the military. As they ordered to capture the Ishvalan Scar, they decide to ask him to help them to move Winry to a safe place. Edward is near-fatally wounded by Kimbly when he discovers his plan, but he is able to escape with the help from his soldiers. Once he recovers, Ed starts working with the rebelled homunculus Greed, who is in the body of Ling Yao, and finds out that "Father" plans to make a human transmutation in all the country. After discovering that, Edward goes to the Central City to defeat the homunculi.

Anime Series
The end of the anime series is very different from the Manga. Ed finds out that a person named Dante has been controlling the homunculus. Dante had captured Al and Rose planing on using Al to transfer her soul into Rose's body. Edward arrives in an abandon city and finds Rose and Dante in a ballroom. Dante sends Ed to the other side of the gate, thinking that now he can't interfere. Ed wakes up in London, durning a WWI air raid. Hohenheim meets him there, explaining that this was the other side of the gate and that he was using the body of a person that is identical to him. Hohenheim leaves Edward to fend for himself, Ed tries to figure-out how to get by to his body when a blimp crashes on him, killing this world's Edward. Edward comes out of the gate, realizing that the person he was possessing died. Al is in the middle of a large transmutation circle and Rose is controlled by Dante. Envy and Ed fight, Envy changing his appearance to people that Edward knows. Envy's changes don't affect Ed until he shows his real identity, he is the failed attempt to resurrect Hohenheim's first son. Edward is killed by Envy, Al uses the power of the Philosopher's Stone (contained within himself) to heal Ed's body and to reattach his soul. The revival, however, uses up the all of the Stone's (Al's own body) power. Al appears briefly at the gate and then disappears. After being revived, Ed discovers that he had regained his arm and leg, but decides to risk everything to bring back his brother. He then pulled Alphonse's soul and original body out of the Gate and reassembled them in exchange for his own life if necessary. As a result, Ed ends up on the other side of the gate, which is our world. He is living in Pre World War II Munich with Hohenheim. Hohenheim appeared to have been in London for some time, despite a relatively short passage of time between his being sent there by Dante in the anime, and Edward's arrival there.

Hohenheim later offers the theory that the bonds formed in the four years the brothers spent on their quest for the stone served as the equivalent exchange in the transmutation (rather than Ed's life, as he intended). Hohenheim also said, in an earlier episode, that one way for the Elrics to reclaim what they lost is to give up what they had gained. The death of Sloth, the Homunculus born when they attempted to transmute their mother, had given back a portion of what they had gained. In Al's case, he loses all the memories he had of the time he spent in his armored form and reverted to exactly how he was, body and all, before the failed transmutation of their mother. Ed, on the other hand, could not keep his arm and leg because he gave them up in exchange for the soul of Alphonse.

Edward leaves to do research on rocket science, believing that outer space could lead him back to the Gate, since our world nullified his alchemic powers.

Fullmetal Alchemist: Conqueror of Shamballa
Two years have passed since Edward arrived in Munich, Germany. He has grown noticeably taller and for a while, he lived with Hohenheim who equipped him with prostetics based off automail technology. He later meets and lives with a young man named Alfons Heiderich, who resembles his brother Al, for research in rocket fuel. Befriending a young woman named Noa, Ed found himself embroiled in a conspiracy by the Thule Society, bent on invading his own home world. Reunited with Alphonse and Winry once again, he is equipped with new automail and with Alphonse managed to defeat the Thule society but Edward had to cross the portal again to close it from the other side, saying good bye to Al and Roy. After crossing the portal, Ed found Noa holding Alfons' dead body, now finding out that Al had managed to hide himself in a suit of armor almost identical to the one he was trapped in the anime. After Alfonse's funeral Ed and Al decide to find the atomic bomb and dismantle it.

Trivia

 * Although it is understandable that Edward loses his right arm again, as it was originally used to get Alphonse's soul back, for some unexplained reason, Edward also loses his left leg again, even though Alphonse regained his body and both where used in their attempt to resurrect their mother.
 * Although Edward is constantly considered short, he has in fact grown taller throughout the progression of the series. This is shown when he meets up with Winry, after he allied himself with Greed/Ling: he is shown to be a few inches taller then she is, where as at the beginning of the series he was the same height as her (if not a few inches shorter). Also, at the start of the series he was barely as tall as Alphonse's (armor body) waist, but later is up to his Alphonse's chest.
 * In the 2003 anime, Edward has a connection to most of the Homunculi:
 * Envy was his half-brother, the child of Dante and Van Hohenheim.
 * Wrath was the unborn child of their teacher, Izumi Curtis.
 * Pride was the Führer of the military, Edward's superior officer.
 * Sloth was in the image of his late mother, Trisha Elric.
 * In both incarnations of the series, Edward has benefitted from Greed:
 * In the 2003 Anime Greed taught him the method required to kill the Homunculi.
 * In the Manga and 2009 Anime he uses Greed's 'Ultimate Shield' on his Automail to strengthen it against Pride, and gains Greed/Ling Yao as an ally in the assualt on Central.