Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood - Episode 59

Fullmetal Alchemist is a franchise that loves its moral dilemmas, and we (or rather, Colonel Mustang) were certainly left with a classic one come the end of the latest episode - Does he agree to perform human transmutation to save Hawkeye but possibly condemn his country, or resist and see her die before his very eyes?

Luckily for Mustang, that's a decision which is taken out of his hands thanks to a little help from his friends - Namely, May Chang and the chimera, which allows them to snatch the crazed doctor and set to work taking down all of the Bradley wannabes. Oh, and saving Hawkeye from bleeding together... can't forget that one.


Of course, nothing in this show is ever simple, and no sooner have those troublesome foes been despatched do we find Mustang and company faced with another problem, in the form of the less savoury elements of the Bradley family, aka Wrath and Pride. Although Colonel Mustang might have avoided performing human transmutation against his will, it all stands for naught when he can still be forced to do so against his will, and thus in the end it appears that his destiny is simply unavoidable, as he's dropped before the gate of truth, forced to pay his particularly cruel dues for what has happened, and then left as the fifth sacrifice before Father's mercy.

The battle for the future of the country isn't over yet though, with May Chang (thanks to Scar and the others) fighting her way through to help the other "sacrifices", although in the meantime Alphonse faces a dilemma of his own when confronted with the choice of regaining his original, weakened, body or continuing to use his current strength to help his friends and brother. No contest really...

Seeing as every week my post about Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood involves singing its praises, let's shake things up for a moment by saying that this episode was terrible...

...and now that moment is over, let's return to reality and state that this was another superb episode, with the twists and turns that we've come to expect and love (even when they seem a tad unlikely) coupled with an almost malicious dark streak that runs through the series, robbing Mustang of his sight at a point where he seems the most likely saviour of the entire cast. Malicious or not, it adds another delicious dollop of unpredictability to this series as it enters the final straight, leaving me even more on tenterhooks for the next instalment. As always, I just can't get enough of this show.