Edward Elric

**Edward Elric** (エドワード・エルリック, *Edowādo Erurikku*) is an Amestrian Soldier.

After losing his right arm and left leg due to a failed Human Transmutation attempt, Ed became the youngest State Alchemist in history by achieving his certification at age twelve. Three years later, Ed has become fully engrossed in his search for the legendary Philosopher's Stone, an item with which he hopes to restore his younger brother Alphonse Elric, whose whole body had been lost in the aftermath of the human transmutation.

## Description

### Appearance

Edward is small for his age, despite his attempts to appear taller, (due to the notation that he cannot stand regular milk). He wears his golden-blond hair long - usually tied in a braid that hangs down to his shoulders, but sometimes forgoing the braid for a simpler ponytail. He parts his bangs in the middle so that they frame his face on either side as they fall and, in the center of the parting, he leaves a single strand of hair sticking up like an antenna.

It is revealed that he does this intentionally, presumably to add to his height. Ed's eyes, too, are gold, signifying his Xerxesian ancestry. It is revealed that the reason why Edward wears all black is to hide any oil stains that he may obtain from his automail.

Ed receives a thin, horizontal battle scar just above his right eye, which remains because his subsequent battles cause the sensitive skin to tear open repeatedly. However, the scar appears to have healed over completely. As the series progresses, some of Edward's facial features (his nose and chin) begin to take on characteristics similar to his father's. At the end of the series, Edward is shown to have grown noticeably taller, being several inches taller than Winry and finally being at least equal in height to Alphonse.

### Personality

On the surface, Edward displays an immature sort of personality. He is decidedly stubborn and strong-willed, frequently letting his pettiness and vindictiveness get the better of him (it is this stubbornness that contributes to Führer Bradley's decision to codename him "Fullmetal," as "Hagane" (literally meaning "steel") is a term in Japanese that denotes someone of obstinate disposition.) and often has to be restrained or reprimanded by Al or whoever else is present. He is somewhat selfish and self-absorbed, generally acting more out of self-interest than any sort of philanthropy as well as taking several opportunities to stroke his own ego or flaunt the governmental power and monetary license of his military position. He is largely hostile towards figures of authority and feels little incentive to follow orders with which he disagrees, earning him the distinction of being a loose cannon of sorts.

Edward is also rather quick-tempered, resorting more often to steel-fisted violence than calm negotiation to settle disputes (even going so far as to suggest that refraining from hitting Paninya because of her gender is a sexist notion and, therefore, against his principles). He has a reputation for being foul-mouthed and is an incurably sarcastic cynic, only too happy to bluntly and harshly relieve others of their comfortable delusions regarding God, reality, or their own self-importance. Edward has also displayed a propensity towards impatience and an inability to sit still for long, which perhaps contributes to his love of travel.

However, for those few people who have made an impact on him, Ed shows his deeper nature to be one of marked selflessness, unflinching loyalty, and great compassion. As someone who has had to suffer greatly at such a young age, Edward cannot ignore the true suffering of others and becomes sympathetic upon sensing pain and resolve in people's hearts. Though his solemn advice to such people is often tempered with brusque criticism, it is only because he genuinely wishes to place them on the most direct path forward. As one who has to struggle with a maimed body, he urges those with healthy bodies to use their strong legs to move forward, and as one burdened by the mistakes of his past, he stresses the necessity of people taking responsibility for their own errors. Though he will intervene on behalf of the oppressed if he concludes that a situation has called for it, Ed tends to help only those with the will - but not the means - to help themselves, in which case his recklessness and disdain for authority often has him bending the rules to dole out a Robin Hood-esque justice in accordance with his strong belief in the concept of Equivalent Exchange, earning him notoriety and popularity as a "hero of the people."

A defining trait of Ed's shown throughout the series is his guilt complex; as far as he's concerned, his and his brother's current states are his fault, partially because it was his idea to transmute their mother in the first place and partially because Al lost his entire body as a result of the experiment, while Ed only lost an arm and a leg. He was even convinced that Al hated him for what happened to his body, and was scared to ask him about it for years. As a result of this trait, he starts off as highly standoffish, trying to accomplish everything on his own and not accepting help from anyone but Al, as well as being convinced that he can solve all of his problems through Alchemy. Over time, however, he learns to depend more on his friends and share his burdens with others. But while he may work on his guilt, it never truly goes away, as even towards the end of the series, he's still beating himself up over Nina Tucker being turned into a Chimera, despite having saved countless other lives along the way.

Of course, the most noticeable of Edward's dispositional characteristics is his Napoleonic denial of his shortness. Even in moments of relative composure, any and all references to his stature cause him to violently lose control of his emotions and lash out both verbally and physically. One of the most common reasons for these outbursts is if anything related to his size, since he has a complex about being shorter than average (his height is 165 cm). Distinctive to these outbursts is Ed's tendency to take even the most casual mention of his height as a gross insult and interpret it exaggeratedly, mistaking words as simple as "small" for phrases as contrived as "so-tiny-that-he-need-not-fear-being-crushed-by-a-boot-because-he-fits-so-easily-between-the-grooves-of-the-sole" and the like. Those unfortunate to utter the word "small" in his presence are fated to suffer one of his vindictive tantrums unless he is in the wrong and needs to be put in his place such as when Izumi Curtis calls him a runt while scolding him and Al in the manga. He also accepts Nina referring to him as "Little big brother" in the 2003 Anime. This part of his personality is presumably no longer present by the end of the series, given that he has grown to normal height by then.

Though Edward professes that he does not believe in gods, his spiritual sensibilities tend more toward the deistic than the atheistic. He does not pray but frequently acknowledges the existence of a God in his speech, whom he often blamed for the difficulty of his life. Ed's aesthetic sensibilities are also quite twisted in that he is a great fan of gothic or macabre fixtures and will usually transmute decorations filled with monstrous or demonic imagery and unnecessarily gaudy details, much to the dismay of anyone who receives a gift or service from him. He has also made it known that his trademark red coat is part of this general lack of taste, as it is what he says is: "a badass color [that] gets the blood going."

## Etymology

* Edward's name means "rich guard", derived from the Old English elements ead "wealth, fortune" and weard "guard".

## Trivia

* As a State Alchemist, Edward technically held the rank of "Major".
* Though Edward is ambidextrous in combat, he writes with his left hand, likely due to the fact that his right is artificial.
* Edward greatly dislikes milk, either for its taste, the fact that it is "an opaque, white liquid secreted by a cow" or both. He does, however, greatly enjoy stew and marvels that something comprised mainly of milk can taste so good. It is often joked that the reason he is so short is because he refuses to drink milk. Incidentally, Hiromu Arakawa grew up on a dairy farm as a child.
* In multiple episodes that show Edward eating a sandwich, the sandwiches have no crust. Implying he might not like crusts on sandwiches.