Characters

Warning: spoilers (and very long)

      && The Protagonists

      && Other supporting characters

Alphonse Elric is Ed's younger brother, and during their attempt at human
transmutation, he loses his body and is reduced to a soul bound to a suit of armor.
But despite this, Al remains optimistic, sympathetic, calm and extremely supportive
of Ed, and never hesitates to put Ed before himself, especially when it comes to getting their bodies back. In fact, he is most often the more mature of the two Elrics, and does his best to keep Ed out of trouble, especially when his temper erupts.

Still, Al is also determined to find the Philosopher's Stone and is a skilled alchemist and fighter in his own right. Of course, as much as possible he tries to avoid confrontations, only interfering when he really has to.

In Fullmetal vs. Flame: Al and Ed have a little spat about the kitten Al took in from the rain and hid in his armor, because Ed doesn't agree with the idea of lugging the kitten around wherever they go. Of course, since Ed only means well and is thinking of practicality, their argument instantly becomes a thing of the past.

Later, during the battle, Al restrains Ed when the audience ridicules him for being too short to be a State Alchemist. Then afterward the two of them decide to find a home for the cat.

Name: Riza Hawkeye
Military Rank: First Lieutenant

Riza Hawkeye is a no-nonsense officer in the military who is respected and secretly feared, for both her imposing personality and her exceptional gunslinging skills, so very akin to her name. She is Roy Mustang's right-hand woman and sometimes even his voice of reason, often chiding her superior for being too laid-back, too arrogant,
or both. Riza does have her softer, more feminine side, but many people fail to see past her tough, serious, firearm-toting exterior.

Either way, she faithfully follows Roy with true dedication which may be something deeper and more passionate than a simple superior-subordinate relationship.

In Fullmetal vs. Flame: When Kain Fuery takes in a dog from the rain, Riza does remind him of rules concerning pets in the office, but she doesn't divulge his secret to any of their superiors. In fact, in the end she volunteers to take care of the puppy - and the first thing she does is shoot several bullets around him when he urinates on the office wall and warn him that she will be a strict owner. She then christens him Black Hayate.

Besides Jean Havoc, Riza was there when Roy made his famous promise to make all women in the military wear miniskirts when he rules over Amestris - and conveniently forgot that Riza is also a woman. Of course, she's already used to such displays from the Colonel...

Name: Maes Hughes
Military Rank: Lieutenant Colonel

If you thought Roy Mustang was laid-back, then you haven't met the Flame Alchemist's best friend, Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes. A real family man with undying love and devotion for his wife and daughter, Hughes never passes up a chance to show them off to anyone he passes by, even to the point that he becomes a huge nuisance. He also loves to tie up the military phone lines just raving about his family to Roy and telling him to get a wife. Hughes is strangely carefree and optimistic for a soldier...that is, on the outside.

Hughes is rarely pushed into any real combat; most of his work in the military consists of paperwork and information, which means he's usually confined behind a desk, where he amasses lots of top secret information that he often shares with Ed or Mustang, as the case may be. He can quickly change from shoving photos of Gracia and Elysia into people's faces to whispering about real business. And when he has to fight, he is a force to be reckoned with whenever he whips out his small push knives, used for either throwing or stabbing.

In Fullmetal vs. Flame: Hughes was part of the Fuhrer's entourage when they were transferred from Central to the East. He also reminds Ed about his state alchemist assessment and even hosts the event (of course, the event would not be complete with a huge billboard of his daughter Elysia). Later on, Hughes warns Roy about the State Alchemist killer and talks to him about the situations in Lior and Central.

Name: Alex Louis Armstrong
State Alias: Strong Arm Alchemist
Military Rank: Major

Despite his intimidating outward appearance and his alchemy, which combines physical
strength with alchemic power, Major Alex Louis Armstrong is very dramatic, emotional and caring - even though he does often whip his shirt off to show off his muscles, complete with pink sparkles. He is very proud of his skills, and often emphasizes that they have been "passed down the Armstrong line for generations", and not just his alchemy. Armstrong works directly under Hughes and is very loyal to the Lieutenant Colonel, the way Roy's subordinates look up to the Flame Alchemist.

In Fullmetal vs. Flame: Armstrong makes his first appearance in this episode and doesn't do much, besides accompany the Fuhrer.

Name: King Bradley
Military Rank: Fuhrer

He is the most powerful man in Amestris - and the one Roy someday hopes to surpass.
But despite his position, Fuhrer King Bradley, a master swordsman, remains a calm,
almost friendly-to-a-fault man who is always ready to do whatever he can for his people. He gave Ed his title - the Fullmetal Alchemist. Bradley is also very enigmatic - what could he be hiding behind that facade of his? Does he have any underlying agenda?

In Fullmetal vs. Flame: Fuhrer Bradley was pressured by the upper brass of the military to transfer the central command to East HQ due to the lurking dangers in Central. He complied, of course, and gives the go signal for Roy and Ed's battle assessment as well.

Name: Jean Havoc
Military Rank: Second Lieutenant

Second Lieutenant Jean Havoc always stands by the book on military decorum - in
short, he's a rather rule-conscious soldier. Often depicted with a cigarette in his
mouth, Havoc is one of Roy's loyal allies, despite the fact that the Flame Alchemist
has a tendency to steal girls away from him. Even though he is outranked by Ed,
Havoc tells him off whenever he badmouths Roy.

In Fullmetal vs. Flame: Havoc was struck off the list of potential dog owners after he made a joke about stir-fried dogs being a delicacy in the East. After the Fuhrer gave his approval for the battle assessment, he and Riza were with Roy when they left the office, and were around when Roy made his declaration to make all female officers wear tiny miniskirts if he became Fuhrer, considerably increasing Havoc's loyalty to him.

During the assessment, Havoc briefs Kain Fuery on Roy's alchemy techniques.

Name: Heymans Breda
Military Rank: Second Lieutenant

If he had to choose, Second Lieutenant Heymans Breda would rather face a rampaging enemy mob than one dog. Still, even with his fear of dogs, Breda remains an invaluable asset in Ro y's troupe, with his aptitude for strategy and logic, physical strength, and sense of humor.

In Fullmetal vs. Flame: This is the first episode Breda appears in - and just the mere sight of a puppy has made him ascend the highest cabinet in the office. Obviously, he won't be taking care of any puppies soon.

Name: Vato Falman
Military Rank: Warrant Officer

Warrant Officer Vato Falman's brain is a bank full of information and trivia that may or may not prove useful, depending on the situation. He works under Hughes in the investigations department, but helps Roy as well. Usually he is quiet, sometimes only speaking up when he has a fun fact to contribute to the conversation, and often acts very formally.

In Fullmetal vs. Flame: Falman described the puppy in more scientific terms (stressing how much like a data bank he is), even though it wasn't necessary. Because he stays in the dorms, which prohibit pets, he can't take in a homeless puppy.

Name: Kain Fuery
Military Rank: Master Sergeant

Soft-spoken and cheerful Master Sergeant Kain Fuery is the youngest and lowest-ranked in Roy's inner circle, and is very skilled with communication technology. He shows genuine compassion for anyone - and anything, most especially animals.

In Fullmetal vs. Flame: Kain makes his debut in this episode, and is the one responsible for bringing in a puppy from the rain. Unfortunately, because he stays in the dorms, he can't keep him, and must now find a new owner as he can't just keep animals in the office. And when he does find one in Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye, he is disconcerted by her strict means of discipline - the gun.

Name: Basque Grand
State Alias: Iron Blood Alchemist
Military Rank: Brigadier General

Brigadier General Basque Grand, like Roy, is also a war hero of Ishbal. Grand never hesitates to lay down his authority and never passes up a chance to impress his superiors and outdo everyone else. In fact, it is this attitude of his that makes him one of the most feared officers in the military - and add the fact that he is also a powerful State Alchemist, who is capable of transmuting the iron in his blood into a deadly arsenal of weapons. Sometimes he also sees Roy as a rival, as both of them are very ambitious.

In Fullmetal vs. Flame: Like Hughes, Grand is part of the Fuhrer's entourage and was the one who first informed Roy about taking over Eastern HQ as their temporary Central command. When he overhears Hughes and Ed talking about Marcoh, Grand tells them that Marcoh was merely a deserter from the Ishbal rebellion who ran away from the carnage.

Name: Juliet Douglas
Military Rank: Colonel/Fuhrer's Secretary

This equally-mysterious woman follows the Fuhrer dutifully and is always ready to
obey his orders. Douglas has a very hard job being the Fuhrer's secretary, but she
handles it quite well. But who is she, really? Not much is known about Douglas...so
far...

In Fullmetal vs. Flame: Juliet Douglas makes her first appearance in this episode, and doesn't do much besides accompany the Fuhrer. But when Ed sees her...there seems to be something about her that has him puzzled. Does she look familiar?

Name: Black Hayate
Species: Dog

If the military had a mascot, Black Hayate would definitely be a shoo-in for that
role, and not just because he's a literal "dog of the military". Trained under Riza
Hawkeye's watchful eye and rather harsh modes of discipline, Black Hayate is a smart and well-behaved dog...most of the time.

In Fullmetal vs. Flame: This episode pretty much explains a lot about Black Hayate's background, and he appears for the first time as well. Basically, he was a puppy taken in from the rain by Kain Fuery, and as he gradually ran out of candidates for the puppy's new owner for assorted reasons (and Fuery probably got a bit freaked out by Roy's strange fondness for dogs), Riza volunteered to take him, but when he did his business on the office wall, she disciplined him by shooting ullets all around
him and christened him Black Hayate. Thus, Black Hayate's training began.

Name: [none]
Species: Cat

Unfortunately, the cat only appears in one episode, and it's not really known whether it is a male or a female. Either way, it still lives on as one of Al's trademarks and proof of his love for cats (and maybe all things furry)

In Fullmetal vs. Flame: The cat was taken in by Al when it rained, but unfortunately Ed disagreed with keeping it, for practical reasons. For a while, Al did keep the cat and took care of it, until Ed helped him find a new home for it. At first, Ed proposed that if he won the battle assessment, Roy would take the cat, but as everything ended in a draw and Roy had given them important information, Ed believed that he would end up owing Roy too much if he also gave the colonel the cat.