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鋼の錬金術師 [Hagane no Renkinjutsushi] #15
Fullmetal Alchemist #15
Poco a poco, se van desvelando más detalles del genocidio de Ishval y de las repercusiones que supuso. Los homúnculos fueron los instigadores de la guerra y muchos veteranos del ejército de Amestris no se enorgullecen de su papel en el conflicto. ¿Qué sucederá cuando Edward y Alphonse conozcan el papel que tuvieron los alquimistas nacionales en Ishval?
186 pages, Paperback
First published November 22, 2006
About the author
Hiromu Arakawa
353 books2,947 followersHiromu Arakawa (author: 荒川弘) is a Japanese manga artist, best known for Fullmetal Alchemist (鋼の錬金術師 Hagane no renkinjutsushi).
Her real name is Hiromi Arakawa (荒川弘美).
Arakawa was born and raised on a dairy farm in Hokkaidō.
She thought of being a manga artist since she was little. After graduating high school, she took oil painting classes while working on her family's farm. During that time, she also created dōjinshi manga with her friends and drew yonkoma for a magazine. After eight years she moved to Tōkyō and started out as assistant writer for Hiroyuki Etō.
Her debut as manga artist is in 1999 with STRAY DOG. In 2001 she started working on her famous and award winning series Fullmetal Alchemist, that soon gets a successful anime adaptation.
Other works include Silver Spoon (銀の匙 Silver Spoon, Gin no saji Silver Spoon).
Her real name is Hiromi Arakawa (荒川弘美).
Arakawa was born and raised on a dairy farm in Hokkaidō.
She thought of being a manga artist since she was little. After graduating high school, she took oil painting classes while working on her family's farm. During that time, she also created dōjinshi manga with her friends and drew yonkoma for a magazine. After eight years she moved to Tōkyō and started out as assistant writer for Hiroyuki Etō.
Her debut as manga artist is in 1999 with STRAY DOG. In 2001 she started working on her famous and award winning series Fullmetal Alchemist, that soon gets a successful anime adaptation.
Other works include Silver Spoon (銀の匙 Silver Spoon, Gin no saji Silver Spoon).
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June 20, 2024
Here's where we learn the story of how the Ishbalan genocide was carried out, the origin story for Scar, and the backstory of Mustang's Hero of Ishbal title.
And all three are tragic. Is there a single story involving genocide that isn't heartwrenchingly tragic, though? This was no silent, long-lasting and long-planned genocide but a brutal one in just a few years, in which the victims refused to submit and fought back with whatever they had at hand. Unfortunately for them, the state had what I call "pocket atomic bombs" they could use at will to exterminate the Ishbalans: the military alchemists.
Only one of those state alchemists seems to have PTSD from being used as a tool for genocide: Roy Mustang. He despises the title of hero bestowed on him by his men, because he's aware of this war having ulterior motives, and that this has been murder on a large scale for which a truce was rejected by the higher-ups. He doesn't show enough signs of PTSD for my tastes, but it's still there, and you can see how heavily it weighs on his conscience. You can also see why he wants to become Führer President once the war is over.
Scar's backstory is more detailed here, and perhaps the more tragic arc in the volume. He is like an Ishbalan Edward who didn't want to be an Edward until he saw what happened to his Alphonse. Edward didn't save him out of the goodness of his heart that one time, but it's fitting that he did in view of this plot revelation. One is moved by vengeance and the other by healing, and yet they both have the same motive behind their resolve. Mirror arcs, you know? I like those.
Since I heard about the Ishbalans, I had a hard time trying to pinpoint the real-life basis for them. I thought of everything from the Jews in WWII to the Palestinians, because there are certain things in common and yet they're not quite it. All genocide is specific, said one Holocaust expert once, and yet there's a universality to genocide tactics. After the further details provided by this volume, I think I've finally pinpointed who the Ishbalans are: they're the Ainu, the indigenous people from northern Japan that were wiped out by . . . Japan.
Reasons to base this guess of mine on? A few:
- The author is from Hokkaido, she certainly knows about the Ainu.
- The Ishbalans were exterminated by their own country when annexed, exactly what the Japanese military did to the Ainu tribe.
And yet, the "specificity of genocide" for the Ishbalans don't quite fit the Ainu one hundred percent. Such as:
- The Ishbalans are monotheistic, the Ainu aren't. (This was what made me think they were Jews initially, they're equally stubbornly monotheistic).
- Their culture is native to a rocky and arid land. (This made me think they could be Palestinian, but Hokkaido fits too).
- They use terror and bombings to fight back the more powerful invading military. (I'm sure you can guess which modern people in what country this resembles, but if you're lost, here's a hint: it starts with I).
- There's human experiments performed on the Ishbalans by the military. (Hello, Unit 731, displeased to meet you here.)
- The few survivors fled to other countries, to the desert, or live in packed slums. (Yeah, you can guess what people this resembles, too).
So, all that considered, the Ishbalans looked to me like a weird mix of Jews and Palestinians, but now I can see they're the Ainu with a dash of the Chinese (hello, Nanjing, very displeased to meet you here). Yehuda Bauer was right, all genocides are alike and all genocides are specific.
Why am I zeroing in on this? Mostly because it pleases my history nerd side. But a wee bit also because Japan is, to put it mildly, deficient at acknowledging their crimes. My Cub says that at the time this manga was published, this very inclusion of the Ainu in the context of genocide, and the hints at Nanjing and Unit 731 were brave for a Japanese author to do given the potential pushback. I agree, Arakawa had ovaries.
Do I like Mustang less for having participated in this? Not really. He believes he's protecting his people, but he also hates that he's a pocket flamethrower. And at least he didn't resort to the "following orders" excuse that another battle alchemist does, to his face (Arakawa was poking the German hornets' nest here, eh?). And the PTSD he suffers seems to be more one from a guilty conscience than shell-shock, as happens with Armstrong.
Incidentally, I would've liked to see more of Hawkeye in her Lyudmila Pavlichenko phase, because we hardly see anything from her exploits in the Ishbalan war, which also seem to haunt her. I'd also would've liked to see more details of Armstrong's desertion due to shell-shock.
Other than that, it was a solid if very trauma-filled volume.
And all three are tragic. Is there a single story involving genocide that isn't heartwrenchingly tragic, though? This was no silent, long-lasting and long-planned genocide but a brutal one in just a few years, in which the victims refused to submit and fought back with whatever they had at hand. Unfortunately for them, the state had what I call "pocket atomic bombs" they could use at will to exterminate the Ishbalans: the military alchemists.
Only one of those state alchemists seems to have PTSD from being used as a tool for genocide: Roy Mustang. He despises the title of hero bestowed on him by his men, because he's aware of this war having ulterior motives, and that this has been murder on a large scale for which a truce was rejected by the higher-ups. He doesn't show enough signs of PTSD for my tastes, but it's still there, and you can see how heavily it weighs on his conscience. You can also see why he wants to become Führer President once the war is over.
Scar's backstory is more detailed here, and perhaps the more tragic arc in the volume. He is like an Ishbalan Edward who didn't want to be an Edward until he saw what happened to his Alphonse. Edward didn't save him out of the goodness of his heart that one time, but it's fitting that he did in view of this plot revelation. One is moved by vengeance and the other by healing, and yet they both have the same motive behind their resolve. Mirror arcs, you know? I like those.
Since I heard about the Ishbalans, I had a hard time trying to pinpoint the real-life basis for them. I thought of everything from the Jews in WWII to the Palestinians, because there are certain things in common and yet they're not quite it. All genocide is specific, said one Holocaust expert once, and yet there's a universality to genocide tactics. After the further details provided by this volume, I think I've finally pinpointed who the Ishbalans are: they're the Ainu, the indigenous people from northern Japan that were wiped out by . . . Japan.
Reasons to base this guess of mine on? A few:
- The author is from Hokkaido, she certainly knows about the Ainu.
- The Ishbalans were exterminated by their own country when annexed, exactly what the Japanese military did to the Ainu tribe.
And yet, the "specificity of genocide" for the Ishbalans don't quite fit the Ainu one hundred percent. Such as:
- The Ishbalans are monotheistic, the Ainu aren't. (This was what made me think they were Jews initially, they're equally stubbornly monotheistic).
- Their culture is native to a rocky and arid land. (This made me think they could be Palestinian, but Hokkaido fits too).
- They use terror and bombings to fight back the more powerful invading military. (I'm sure you can guess which modern people in what country this resembles, but if you're lost, here's a hint: it starts with I).
- There's human experiments performed on the Ishbalans by the military. (Hello, Unit 731, displeased to meet you here.)
- The few survivors fled to other countries, to the desert, or live in packed slums. (Yeah, you can guess what people this resembles, too).
So, all that considered, the Ishbalans looked to me like a weird mix of Jews and Palestinians, but now I can see they're the Ainu with a dash of the Chinese (hello, Nanjing, very displeased to meet you here). Yehuda Bauer was right, all genocides are alike and all genocides are specific.
Why am I zeroing in on this? Mostly because it pleases my history nerd side. But a wee bit also because Japan is, to put it mildly, deficient at acknowledging their crimes. My Cub says that at the time this manga was published, this very inclusion of the Ainu in the context of genocide, and the hints at Nanjing and Unit 731 were brave for a Japanese author to do given the potential pushback. I agree, Arakawa had ovaries.
Do I like Mustang less for having participated in this? Not really. He believes he's protecting his people, but he also hates that he's a pocket flamethrower. And at least he didn't resort to the "following orders" excuse that another battle alchemist does, to his face (Arakawa was poking the German hornets' nest here, eh?). And the PTSD he suffers seems to be more one from a guilty conscience than shell-shock, as happens with Armstrong.
Incidentally, I would've liked to see more of Hawkeye in her Lyudmila Pavlichenko phase, because we hardly see anything from her exploits in the Ishbalan war, which also seem to haunt her. I'd also would've liked to see more details of Armstrong's desertion due to shell-shock.
Other than that, it was a solid if very trauma-filled volume.
January 2, 2022
"Please tell me, Major. Why are we killing citizens when we as soldiers should be responsible for protecting them ? Why is alchemy being used to kill when it’s supposed to help people ?"
Este tomo es oro. Las cinco estrellas se le quedan hasta cortas. La profundidad de los personajes en tan pocas páginas, su sufrimiento, su furia, su angustia. Todo se puede palpar en este tomo. Mi corazón en una de esta se va y no vuelvo a la vida. Tiene cada frase que no pude sino recopilarlas todas en una carpeta del ordenador.
"This war destroyed my youthful ideals. I swore to protect my country, but in reality it was all I could do to protect a handful of people. That soldier said I protected all of these soldiers…but they were just one squad just a handful of men in a sea of casualties."
Puede parecer solo a simple una vista al pasado, pero es mucho más que eso. Contiene la esencia del manga.
¿Quién diría que un manga en tan pocas páginas pueda decir tanto?
« As an individual, I am powerless. That’s why I need all of you. I will protect you. In return you will protect as many others as possible. No matter how few always look out for your subordinates. And those below you will in turn protect their subordinates. No matter what happens, stubbornly cling to your will to survice.
Live and help to change this country »
Este tomo es oro. Las cinco estrellas se le quedan hasta cortas. La profundidad de los personajes en tan pocas páginas, su sufrimiento, su furia, su angustia. Todo se puede palpar en este tomo. Mi corazón en una de esta se va y no vuelvo a la vida. Tiene cada frase que no pude sino recopilarlas todas en una carpeta del ordenador.
"This war destroyed my youthful ideals. I swore to protect my country, but in reality it was all I could do to protect a handful of people. That soldier said I protected all of these soldiers…but they were just one squad just a handful of men in a sea of casualties."
Puede parecer solo a simple una vista al pasado, pero es mucho más que eso. Contiene la esencia del manga.
¿Quién diría que un manga en tan pocas páginas pueda decir tanto?
« As an individual, I am powerless. That’s why I need all of you. I will protect you. In return you will protect as many others as possible. No matter how few always look out for your subordinates. And those below you will in turn protect their subordinates. No matter what happens, stubbornly cling to your will to survice.
Live and help to change this country »
June 7, 2014
This volume in particular focuses on some of my favorite themes from the series, so let me talk about it in full here, though I'll likely reference parts that were not from this volume or are from the anime.
The Amestrian military is full of favorite characters (certainly mine). Roy is dorky and a great leader; Riza is quiet and responsible; Maes is obnoxious and sweet; Alex is self-confident and innocent. They're lovely people that are very well-developed prior to this volume. The Ishvalan Civil War is referenced often but since the Elrics are too young to have fully understood what happened, we don't get a great explanation either. Until now.
In order to form a Crest of Blood in the East, the government declared war on the Ishvalan people as terrorists. Enough Ishvalans fought back that the citizens of Amestris began to believe what they were fed. So what started as a series of "skirmishes" became the Ishvalan War of Extermination.
The Ishvalans were peaceful people led by strong belief in a religion of non-aggression. Though Amestrians were lied to by their government, enough truth was left in to make it believable. Government-sanctioned genocide has happened in our own world and may happen again. The many-faceted reality of Fullmetal Alchemist can teach wariness of the media and of powerful organizations.
Fresh and eager for glory, new recruits--some who hadn't properly finished training--were sent out to the field to kill any and all Ishvalans in their own homeland. The genocide ended when the Crest was ready and the state alchemists were sent in.
Few of the Amestrian soldiers were doing their jobs gladly. Most of them were terrified and horrified and everything that rightfully comes with killing innocents. What's fascinating is why they continued to do it. Groupthink is a phenomenon that comes when individuals in a group don't want to act against the majority for fear of being ostracized or getting in trouble. When Alex had his mental breakdown early in the Extermination Campaign, he was quickly sent home to prevent disruption of the ranks. Whether consciously or not, he obeyed without making a scene because the overwhelming obedience around him prevented him from wanting to break through. Alex is not a bad man; he's a very kind-hearted, good man. Yet the influence of groupthink was so powerful he didn't stand against it.
Remember the Milgram experiment? Subjects were supposed to "teach" people who were in on it by giving them "electric shocks." Many of the subjects didn't want to do it the higher the voltage and the more distress the "learner" appeared to be in, but each time they seemed ready to rebel, the administrator encouraged them to keep going. A lot of the subjects managed to turn the "shock" to a near-lethal level because they shifted the responsibility of the act onto the administrator that let them continue.
The exact thinking applies to the Ishvalan war. Thousands of good, kind people murdered innocent people in the bloodiest ways because their superior officers--puppets of the Homunculi--were the ones giving the orders. After all, the soldiers were just the grunts, right? They were only doing what they were trained to do--obey. Maes Hughes came close to seeing through what was happening, but the shock that would come after made him shake it off and continue in purposeful blindness. He said in the OVA Yet Another Man's Battlefield that he would rather do his job without seeing than accept what was happening.
Now here's where Roy Mustang and Riza Hawkeye become even greater characters. They both expressed great distress at their own actions. Roy, I believe, mentions how he joined the military to make the country safer and better, but how is slaughtering an entire race safe or good? He came very close to rebelling, but Maes talked him through it and he continued to do his "job" as a soldier. But once the war was over, he and Riza fully acknowledged that, no matter the influence of their superiors or fellow soldiers, they were completely in control of themselves. They were given orders, but they acted of their own free will.
This acceptance affected their mental and physical health for years and possibly worse than it did the soldiers that followed orders without thinking. In the 2003 version of the show (admittedly very against canon), Roy was suicidal after the war. Both show signs of depression or post-traumatic stress disorder.
They took responsibility for the evil they committed, even years later. Once they were sent back to Amestris, Roy and Riza denied themselves happiness because it would interfere with making reparations for their actions. Anything that could be a distraction from reforming the government, keeping the public safe, and healing the wounds from the war was rejected (unhealthily, but that's another topic). Ultimately, they knew what they did, they knew there was no way to fix it, but they worked to prevent it from happening again and kept moving.
The series also doesn't shy away from the reality of collateral damage. From Alex weeping over the body of a murdered Ishvalan child to the old friend of Roy's and Maes' trying to kill them and being killed by Maes. The war robbed Scar of his sanity for almost a decade. It took Winry's parents from her permanently. Many Ishvalan characters are shown to have severe burn marks or other disfigurements. The survivors became displaced refugees.
This whole thing is only a subplot of the series, but it's full of some of the most important themes in any fiction. And it's all found in an action/adventure comic series for fifteen-year-old boys.
The Amestrian military is full of favorite characters (certainly mine). Roy is dorky and a great leader; Riza is quiet and responsible; Maes is obnoxious and sweet; Alex is self-confident and innocent. They're lovely people that are very well-developed prior to this volume. The Ishvalan Civil War is referenced often but since the Elrics are too young to have fully understood what happened, we don't get a great explanation either. Until now.
In order to form a Crest of Blood in the East, the government declared war on the Ishvalan people as terrorists. Enough Ishvalans fought back that the citizens of Amestris began to believe what they were fed. So what started as a series of "skirmishes" became the Ishvalan War of Extermination.
The Ishvalans were peaceful people led by strong belief in a religion of non-aggression. Though Amestrians were lied to by their government, enough truth was left in to make it believable. Government-sanctioned genocide has happened in our own world and may happen again. The many-faceted reality of Fullmetal Alchemist can teach wariness of the media and of powerful organizations.
Fresh and eager for glory, new recruits--some who hadn't properly finished training--were sent out to the field to kill any and all Ishvalans in their own homeland. The genocide ended when the Crest was ready and the state alchemists were sent in.
Few of the Amestrian soldiers were doing their jobs gladly. Most of them were terrified and horrified and everything that rightfully comes with killing innocents. What's fascinating is why they continued to do it. Groupthink is a phenomenon that comes when individuals in a group don't want to act against the majority for fear of being ostracized or getting in trouble. When Alex had his mental breakdown early in the Extermination Campaign, he was quickly sent home to prevent disruption of the ranks. Whether consciously or not, he obeyed without making a scene because the overwhelming obedience around him prevented him from wanting to break through. Alex is not a bad man; he's a very kind-hearted, good man. Yet the influence of groupthink was so powerful he didn't stand against it.
Remember the Milgram experiment? Subjects were supposed to "teach" people who were in on it by giving them "electric shocks." Many of the subjects didn't want to do it the higher the voltage and the more distress the "learner" appeared to be in, but each time they seemed ready to rebel, the administrator encouraged them to keep going. A lot of the subjects managed to turn the "shock" to a near-lethal level because they shifted the responsibility of the act onto the administrator that let them continue.
The exact thinking applies to the Ishvalan war. Thousands of good, kind people murdered innocent people in the bloodiest ways because their superior officers--puppets of the Homunculi--were the ones giving the orders. After all, the soldiers were just the grunts, right? They were only doing what they were trained to do--obey. Maes Hughes came close to seeing through what was happening, but the shock that would come after made him shake it off and continue in purposeful blindness. He said in the OVA Yet Another Man's Battlefield that he would rather do his job without seeing than accept what was happening.
Now here's where Roy Mustang and Riza Hawkeye become even greater characters. They both expressed great distress at their own actions. Roy, I believe, mentions how he joined the military to make the country safer and better, but how is slaughtering an entire race safe or good? He came very close to rebelling, but Maes talked him through it and he continued to do his "job" as a soldier. But once the war was over, he and Riza fully acknowledged that, no matter the influence of their superiors or fellow soldiers, they were completely in control of themselves. They were given orders, but they acted of their own free will.
This acceptance affected their mental and physical health for years and possibly worse than it did the soldiers that followed orders without thinking. In the 2003 version of the show (admittedly very against canon), Roy was suicidal after the war. Both show signs of depression or post-traumatic stress disorder.
They took responsibility for the evil they committed, even years later. Once they were sent back to Amestris, Roy and Riza denied themselves happiness because it would interfere with making reparations for their actions. Anything that could be a distraction from reforming the government, keeping the public safe, and healing the wounds from the war was rejected (unhealthily, but that's another topic). Ultimately, they knew what they did, they knew there was no way to fix it, but they worked to prevent it from happening again and kept moving.
The series also doesn't shy away from the reality of collateral damage. From Alex weeping over the body of a murdered Ishvalan child to the old friend of Roy's and Maes' trying to kill them and being killed by Maes. The war robbed Scar of his sanity for almost a decade. It took Winry's parents from her permanently. Many Ishvalan characters are shown to have severe burn marks or other disfigurements. The survivors became displaced refugees.
This whole thing is only a subplot of the series, but it's full of some of the most important themes in any fiction. And it's all found in an action/adventure comic series for fifteen-year-old boys.
June 6, 2017
This volume is not only the best in this series, but in any manga series I've ever read. It's absolutely perfect. This is how you write a backstory, everyone. This is how you write war.
I keep coming back to this part of the story and it fucks me up just as bad every single time. It's so raw and gut-wrenching, painful and heartbreaking. It's so realistic.
I keep coming back to this part of the story and it fucks me up just as bad every single time. It's so raw and gut-wrenching, painful and heartbreaking. It's so realistic.
June 18, 2021
This was a great volume, we get the Ishbalan civil war story and what happened and led to it and the aftermath and from there we see how bloody it was and how it shaped characters like Roy, Hawkeye and Scar also. Its fascinating to see the first two motives and how this war shaped them on their path to becoming who they are and also Scar's origin was sad. Its one of the best volumes so far and just gives the much required backstory and changes thing in a big way. And Ed listening to it all. Also the art and face expressions are beautiful here.
July 19, 2017
AHH more backstory. This one was really emotional I swear to god I nearly cried when we saw Maes Hughes. Getting all the information about the Ishbalan war was really great. It was also super cool to see some other State Alchemists in the flashbacks because they were cool as shit. Keen to continue and see if any of them pop up again.
February 25, 2021
A full-volume flashback to the Ishbalan civil war with all of its war crimes and genocide. The events herein have been pretty explicitly hinted at in previous volumes, but I suppose it's nice to have it all spelled out for us. I appreciate the extra time with Riza Hawkeye, even if the core cast is totally neglected. But it all seems to be setting up a new, one-dimensional bad guy alchemist when we already have plenty of bad guys running around. I'm looking forward to a return to the regular continuity next time.
(Running character count: 28)
(Running character count: 28)
June 4, 2020
3.5 of 5 stars
June 1, 2021
Ishbal 😭😭
Also, this Kimblee guy is a CREEPER.
Also, this Kimblee guy is a CREEPER.
September 7, 2018
Review found in Fullmetal Alchemist (3-in-1 Edition), Vol. 5
April 22, 2019
Penso sia il mio preferito della serie.
H. Arakawa ha creato un mondo estremamente complesso con riferimenti storici ben definiti.
Mi è piaciuta molto la riflessione fatta in questo volume :"Perché una scienza fatta per creare gioia è usata come arma di distruzione di massa?"." Perché i soldati invece di proteggere le persone le uccidono? "
Anche l'ideale del nostro colonnello Mustang risulta essere molto interessante :"La forza di un essere umano ha un limite. In tal caso proteggerò quello che potrò... anche se sarà poco, proteggerò ciò che ritengo importante. Così anche le altre persone faranno la stessa cosa. Per un piccolo essere umano non dovrebbe essere una cosa impossibile".
Egli arriva a questa conclusione alla fine della guerra di sterminio di Ishbar e rimprovera se stesso per non essere riuscito a proteggere tutti.
Così decide di trovare la forza necessaria per raggiungere il suo scopo :diventare Comandante Supremo e rendere Amestris un posto migliore.
Ho adorato vedere il suo rapporto con il tenente Hawkeye, li shippo troppo.
La guerra è descritta in maniera realistica e cruda, ho avuto i brividi in certi momenti.
Un volume assolutamente imperdibile.
H. Arakawa ha creato un mondo estremamente complesso con riferimenti storici ben definiti.
Mi è piaciuta molto la riflessione fatta in questo volume :"Perché una scienza fatta per creare gioia è usata come arma di distruzione di massa?"." Perché i soldati invece di proteggere le persone le uccidono? "
Anche l'ideale del nostro colonnello Mustang risulta essere molto interessante :"La forza di un essere umano ha un limite. In tal caso proteggerò quello che potrò... anche se sarà poco, proteggerò ciò che ritengo importante. Così anche le altre persone faranno la stessa cosa. Per un piccolo essere umano non dovrebbe essere una cosa impossibile".
Egli arriva a questa conclusione alla fine della guerra di sterminio di Ishbar e rimprovera se stesso per non essere riuscito a proteggere tutti.
Così decide di trovare la forza necessaria per raggiungere il suo scopo :diventare Comandante Supremo e rendere Amestris un posto migliore.
Ho adorato vedere il suo rapporto con il tenente Hawkeye, li shippo troppo.
La guerra è descritta in maniera realistica e cruda, ho avuto i brividi in certi momenti.
Un volume assolutamente imperdibile.
May 22, 2019
It takes one hell of an author to show heroes of her story commit genocide and still remain sympathetic and likeable. War is hell, nobody comes out of it better off, and Hiromu Arakawa is one of the best mangakas alive.
January 16, 2022
This is a very dark volume and deals with some heavy topics in flashback....its a very compelling read especially at this point in the series, and while it serves to flesh out the characters backstories a bit more it also doesn't drive the overal plot of the story forward
April 23, 2026
demorei de ler esse volume porque toda vez que lia eu chorava. extremamente doloroso e cruelmente brutal e verdadeiro ao retratar os horrores da "guerra", na verdade o que temos aqui é a narração de um genocídio sendo cometido por um país imperialista em cima de uma nação fragilizada, ou que foi fragilizada propositalmente. impossível não relacionar com a Palestina, com Congo,
Arakawa é muito certeira nas críticas que tece aqui, mas acho que dava pra ir mais fundo, tocar ainda mais na ferida, mas não dá esperar muito de japoneses ou de estadunidenses, ingleses, franceses, portugueses e espanhóis quando a discussão é (neo)colonialismo e genocídio de povos originários; mas dentro do possível, acho que ela fez um bom trabalho.
Arakawa é muito certeira nas críticas que tece aqui, mas acho que dava pra ir mais fundo, tocar ainda mais na ferida, mas não dá esperar muito de japoneses ou de estadunidenses, ingleses, franceses, portugueses e espanhóis quando a discussão é (neo)colonialismo e genocídio de povos originários; mas dentro do possível, acho que ela fez um bom trabalho.
September 8, 2018
Masterfully done. Bravo Arakawa! My favorite volume so far, this book tells about the horror and massive death during the Ishbalan war. I just couldn't find the proper words to explain how much I am moved with such a story. The whole Elric brothers plot seem so small now and almost irrelevant because of the scope of this volume in terms of story setting.
Arakawa really made sure that her manga's readers have been thoroughly informed while at the same time opening avenues for new story paths to be explored. This is masterpiece.
Arakawa really made sure that her manga's readers have been thoroughly informed while at the same time opening avenues for new story paths to be explored. This is masterpiece.
December 16, 2016
Serideki en çarpıcı sayı sanırım buydu. Yazar Ishbal soykırımını Yahudi soykırımından etkilenerek kaleme almış muhtemelen ve o sayfaları okumak-görmek çok çarpıcıydı. Manga olduğu için bolca katliam resmi görüyorsunuz ve bu okuduklarınızı daha çarpıcı hale getiriyor. İnsanın içindeki kötü potansiyelin sınırlarının zorlandığı bu sayıyı ürpererek okudum, yazar bunları çok güzel vurgulamıştı, serideki en sevdiğim ve en etkilendiğim sayı oldu.
July 30, 2016
This volume mainly focused on Ishbalian genocide and horrors of war. Unlike the other volumes, It was heavy with words and drawings thrown into panels. Still it was good to read about where all had started. Gonna apreciate Roy Mustang and Riza Hawkeye.
January 24, 2025
written in 2007 about a fictional war and yet the story line rings so true about events in the world today. my heart breaks a little
November 21, 2022
Probablement mon tome préféré jusqu'à maintenant, ou alors il est assurément dans le top 3. Dans ce tome, suite à une révélation du tome précédent, on fait un retour en arrière sur la bataille où les Ishbal ont été exterminés... C'est dur à lire, comme vous pouvez l'imaginer. Comme d'habitude, les guerres sont manigancées par l'élite secrète, les gens pensent que c'est leur voisin qui a commis un crime alors que c'était en réalité un coup monté, les humains s'entretuent alors qu'ils sont frères et soeurs, ils ne savent même pas pourquoi ils sont tués, des soldats doivent faire le sale boulot de l'élite qui les emploient - ce qui créé des traumatismes; certains arrivent à mieux le vivre que d'autres, mais de façon générale la guerre laisse des séquelles (à part si vous êtes un vilain ou un psychopathe). On a aussi le droit de rencontrer les parents de Winry et il y a des dialogues assez touchants. On oublie parfois que des gens sont capables de faire preuve d'amour, d'être droit dans leurs bottes, de sacrifier leur vie pour aider les autres. <3 Ce tome aborde aussi, encore une fois, la question de la science qui a été pervertie (bon, dans cette histoire, ça s'appelle l'alchimie)... Une alchimie censée aider le peuple, le servir, lui faciliter la vie, mais qui est en fait utilisée contre eux. Bref, what's new 🥹
August 13, 2019
Gosh, amo demasiado este manga. Es adictivo.
February 17, 2023
Best volume yet. So many things discussed at a moral, ethical and religious level. Loved it.
December 28, 2019
Well, that was dark and depressing.
January 5, 2021
9.1/10 (CAWPILE)
July 25, 2024
Questo volume è il punto di svolta della serie, tutto il senso di fma è racchiuso qui.
June 29, 2024
VALORACIÓN: 5 estrellas
Prácticamente no recordaba nada de este tomo. Y entiendo porqué. Es el más duro y cruento hasta el momento. La similitud con nuestra realidad actual es espeluznante.
Prácticamente no recordaba nada de este tomo. Y entiendo porqué. Es el más duro y cruento hasta el momento. La similitud con nuestra realidad actual es espeluznante.
May 21, 2021
"¿Por qué los soldados que deben proteger a los civiles los están matando? ¿Por qué la alquimia que debe traer felicidad a la gente, es usada para asesinarla?"
August 31, 2022
Pesadoooo
March 16, 2021
Un volumen difícil de digerir.
La guerra no es un tema que me anime mucho a explorar y es que jamás he entendido cómo alguien puede matar a un desconocido en pos de un ideal absurdo. Entiendo que muchos tengan que defenderse, pero cuando estás del lado que ataca, ¿qué excusa tienes?
Así que, a lo largo de los capítulos vemos las terribles acciones que el Ejército tuvo que cometer pues de no seguir esas órdenes, perderían la vida y peor aún, la de sus seres queridos. Se nota el claro arrepentimiento y trauma de muchos y es curioso cómo la mangaka utiliza el recurso de que sus personajes no sean intrínsecamente malos, solo que fueron forjados por las circunstancias a su alrededor.
No tengo mucho qué agregar más que fue interesante ver un poco del pasado de Hawkeye y Mustang, al igual que Armstrong (quién sigue siendo de mis psjs favoritos).
Este volumen incluye los capítulos 58 – 61.
REVIEWS ANTERIORES:
Volumen 1 | Volumen 2 | Volumen 3 | Volumen 4 | Volumen 5 | Volumen 6 | Volumen 7 | Volumen 8 | Volumen 9 | Volumen 10 | Volumen 11 | Volumen 12 | Volumen 13 | Volumen 14
La guerra no es un tema que me anime mucho a explorar y es que jamás he entendido cómo alguien puede matar a un desconocido en pos de un ideal absurdo. Entiendo que muchos tengan que defenderse, pero cuando estás del lado que ataca, ¿qué excusa tienes?
Así que, a lo largo de los capítulos vemos las terribles acciones que el Ejército tuvo que cometer pues de no seguir esas órdenes, perderían la vida y peor aún, la de sus seres queridos. Se nota el claro arrepentimiento y trauma de muchos y es curioso cómo la mangaka utiliza el recurso de que sus personajes no sean intrínsecamente malos, solo que fueron forjados por las circunstancias a su alrededor.
No tengo mucho qué agregar más que fue interesante ver un poco del pasado de Hawkeye y Mustang, al igual que Armstrong (quién sigue siendo de mis psjs favoritos).
Este volumen incluye los capítulos 58 – 61.
REVIEWS ANTERIORES:
Volumen 1 | Volumen 2 | Volumen 3 | Volumen 4 | Volumen 5 | Volumen 6 | Volumen 7 | Volumen 8 | Volumen 9 | Volumen 10 | Volumen 11 | Volumen 12 | Volumen 13 | Volumen 14
October 13, 2016
This in my opinion is one of the best volume in the series. It reveals the past stories of all the characters involved in Ishval civil war. How it changed young idealist soldiers view of war-field. The politics involved, the power struggle, the greed of fame, the lust for destruction - all the corruption of the Alchemists stripped bare. Fighting the demon within, self pity and anguish of blood stained hands, the weight of all the curse from the innocent victims, the goal to change the country for good and overtake the corrupted ruler - those were real feelings from Roy Mustang and his allies. The doctors question themselves, if they are supposed to save people then why are they letting them die in this war. Racism, human experimentation, belief in god, defying god's will and many more heavy issues were addressed in this volume. Also we get to know the relationship between Roy Mustang and Liza Hawkeye. How they got to know each other, how they started to depend on each other and the mutual trust and respect for one another developed. Scar and his brother's story was revealed here. I really liked the motivation behind Scar's brother's will to research Alchemy, his will to turn the world a better place by changing the negative feelings into positive wills.
July 24, 2022
What a heavy and heart-hitting volume.
Its hard to talk about this one because we really see a lot of the pain and struggle some of our "older" characters had during the war. My heart really went out to each of them, though especially Alex Louis Armstrong. Seeing his struggle was SO hard!
While we see the backstory of some of the characters in the military (and learn about Riza's tattoo we saw at the end of the previous volume!!), I was happy but terribly sad to hear Scar's backstory. So much pain!
This truly was a hard volume and feel very solemn after reading it. I'm glad that Edward is asking the hard questions and appreciate seeing his vulnerability at the beginning, but it was still hard getting those answers. (Though goodness me how I am SO thankful to see Hughes again! I love his character so much!)
Its hard to talk about this one because we really see a lot of the pain and struggle some of our "older" characters had during the war. My heart really went out to each of them, though especially Alex Louis Armstrong. Seeing his struggle was SO hard!
While we see the backstory of some of the characters in the military (and learn about Riza's tattoo we saw at the end of the previous volume!!), I was happy but terribly sad to hear Scar's backstory. So much pain!
This truly was a hard volume and feel very solemn after reading it. I'm glad that Edward is asking the hard questions and appreciate seeing his vulnerability at the beginning, but it was still hard getting those answers. (Though goodness me how I am SO thankful to see Hughes again! I love his character so much!)
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