Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is one of the most widely known, critically-acclaimed, and beloved anime series ever made. It's the top shounen anime of the 2000s, and perhaps even the best shounen anime of all time. With a cast of well-written characters, a developed world and magic system, and a rich story with a well-executed and satisfying ending, Brotherhood easily made the top three of countless anime fans.
Hiromu Arakawa's storytelling is nearly perfect, and one of the factors that make her writing so interesting and exciting are plot twists. Today, we're ranking the ten best Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood plot twists.
10 MUSTANG AND HAWKEYE'S PAST
From the beginning, it was clear that there’s more to Mustang and Hawkeye’s relationship than meets the eye. That became even more obvious when Hawkeye literally decided to die when Lust made her believe that Mustang was dead.
However, when the truth finally came out and we learn that it was Hawkeye who gave Mustang the power of Flame Alchemy because he was her father’s student and her father had tattooed his research on her back, we were all shocked and truthfully horrified. But, it did explain why the two were so loyal and devoted to each other. Another surprising turn was their role in the Ishvalan War and Mustang's revolutionary plans.
9 FUHRER KING BRADLEY IS A HOMUNCULUS
The seven deadly sins, aka the seven homunculi, played a major part in Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. One of the more significant players was, of course, the Fuhrer of Amestris himself, King Bradley, also known as Wrath.
In the fourteenth episode, Fuhrer Bradley heads to Dublith to deal with his brother Greed. During his battle with Greed, the eyepatch over Bradley's left eye falls off revealing an Ouroboros tattoo and exposing Bradley as a homunculus. Considering he is the leader of the country, the importance of this plot twist cannot be overstated. And it sure did take us by surprise.
8 AMESTRIS IS A TRANSMUTATION CIRCLE
For a long while, both the heroes and the audience were wondering what Father’s big plan was and why he waited as long as he did to set it into motion. Finally, in episode forty-three, in a horrifying plot twist, it is revealed that the entire country of Amestris is a transmutation circle that Father plans to use to become god.
In order for his plan to work, Father plans to sacrifice five humans who have seen the truth to activate the nationwide transmutation circle on Promised Day and drain the souls of everyone in Amestris. This reveal gave us chills, as did the subsequent activation of the nationwide transmutation circle.
7 ED SACRIFICES HIS GATE TO GET AL'S BODY BACK
Once Father was defeated, there was only one thing left to do and that is, get Al back from the Portal. While Hohenheim offered his own life in exchange for his son’s, Ed refused, opting to find a solution that won’t cost anyone their life.
In a surprising turn of events, the Fullmetal Alchemist performs his last transmutation using a human transmutation circle. He goes through the Portal once again and this time offers his Portal, i.e. his ability to perform alchemy, in exchange for his brother. Truth congratulates him and lets him take his brother home, body and soul.
6 ENVY CAUSED THE ISHVALAN WAR
The Ishvalan War is one of the most significant events in Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, as well as, the fictional country of Amestris. It triggered much of the plot of the series and affected the lives of all the characters in various degrees.
The official story was that the war started when an Amestrian soldier accidentally shot an Ishvalan child. However, in episode twenty-five, Envy confessed that he was the one who intentionally caused the war disguised as an Amestrian soldier. This revelation shocked us, but it also explained how Father and the homunculi were able to plot everything so perfectly.
5 NINA TUCKER
Episode four tells the story of Shou Tucker and his daughter Nina. The Elric brothers are introduced to the so-called Sewing-Life Alchemist by Colonel Mustang in hopes of finding a way to get their original bodies back.
The episode starts off innocent enough with the brothers spending time playing with Nina and her dog Alexander, but things take a dark turn towards the end when we find out that Shou used his daughter and his dog to transmute a talking chimera. Not only that, he’s done it before too, to his wife. This one gets the award for the most disturbing plot twist.
4 HOHENHEIM AND THE DWARF IN THE FLASK
The fortieth episode tells the backstory of Van Hohenheim and the so-called Dwarf in the Flask. Hohenheim daydreams of his life as a slave known only as Number 23 back in ancient Xerxes. There he meets the Dwarf in the Flask, who would go on to become the villain known as Father.
It is revealed that the Dwarf used Hohenheim and the King of Xerxes to get out of the flask and become a homunculus by sacrificing the entire nation of Xerxes to transmute Hohenheim into a human Philosopher’s Stone. The true nature of Hohenheim and Father was a shocking development.
3 THE TRUTH ABOUT THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE
When we first embark on the journey with the Elric brothers, they are in pursuit of the Philosopher’s Stone, a powerful transmutation amplifier, that could be the answer to getting their bodies back. However, the brothers swear not to use the stone to recover their bodies after learning the truth about it.
In episode seven, after extensive research, Ed and Al learn that the main ingredient for a Philosopher’s Stone is a live human being. This came as a shocker to both the boys and us watching the show. Plus, it fundamentally changed the brothers' perspective and plans.
2 MAES HUGHES' DEATH
Anyone who’s seen Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood undoubtedly remembers episode ten vividly. Here we lose a fan-favorite character, the guy everyone and their mother loved and cried for, Maes Hughes. Hughes was Roy’s friend from the academy and the war who paid the ultimate price for sticking his nose into Father’s business.
While episode four certainly prepared us for dark storylines, we were still shocked to see Hughes die so early into the series. No fan of the series has ever recovered from his death and we probably never will.
1 SELIM BRADLEY IS A HOMUNCULUS
When Fuhrer Bradley found out that Mustang and his men pose a threat to Father’s plans, he dispersed the members of the Mustang Unit all over Amestris, stripping Roy of his most trusted allies. Mustang’s most precious subordinate, Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye, was transferred to serve as Bradley’s own assistant.
One night, Hawkeye visits the Bradley household to drop off some paperwork and meets the Fuhrer’s son Selim. While the child instantly makes Hawkeye nervous, the real shock comes a bit later when it’s revealed that Selim Bradley is a homunculus named Pride. The revelation shocked us to our very core and made for an exciting plot twist.
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