alphonse elric, if you're possibly doing the the character ask thing still!
Of course! This particular character ask is something I’m always down to do! You are blessing me with my favorite cinna bun (/▽＼*)｡o○♡
How I feel about this character:
At its simplest, Al’s gentle personality is the perfect foil to Ed’s more abrasive one. He’s kindhearted, quicker to anger, and selfless, sometimes to a fault. While I personally headcanon that some of this has to do with the lost of his physical body at such a young age, I recall that in every flashback we get to their early childhood, Al was markedly calmer and more mature than his older brother. Despite his child-like innocence, it’s no argument in my book that Al is the more grown up of the Elric brothers, and the one who experiences less drastic personal growth over the course of their story. He still had a mountain to climb, but it wasn’t nearly as steep as Ed’s. I think this has a lot to do with Al’s personality type. I’ve seen much debate for the types of other characters, but fans seem to universally agree that Al’s an INFP, or an “Idealist.” (Same as me!) He tends to see, or want to see, the best in people from the get-go, whereas Ed has to overcome a persistent cynicism that settles in after their failed attempt at human transmutation. Check out this post for more details.
Going hand in hand with Al’s selflessness is an insane protective streak that’s impossible to ignore. Pushing down the hardships he faces in his armor body, Al instead embraces it’s durable nature, and uses it, time and again, to protect those he cares about from harm. I can recall several times he used his body to shield Ed from harm (see above), with Mei and Riza included. He even lets Mei inside his armor to hide her from Bradley, an arrangement he said was quite uncomfortable (at least psychologically) in the past. Hell, Al even forgoes an opportunity to regain his true body back with the reasoning that it was too physically weak to protect anyone during the Promised Day. *gross sobbing* Somebody give his boy a hug!
Let’s also not forget that Al is just as much of a snarky asshole as Ed, and enjoys roasting him on a regular basis. This sweet as sugar plums boy suggested throwing Roy to Gluttony, since the colonel was the one he was after, punched Dolcetto in the face after being told he was old enough to think for himself, and called Ed the “small alchemist” when describing him to Mei. He also had a *clutches pearls* moment when she had the audacity to say that he must look like a lot like Ed, to which he listed off multiple ways he was way handsomer and “actually a gentleman.” Get rekt Ed. Here are some other gems I didn’t mention!
Finally, I love that fma doesn’t shy away from the inner darkness of Al’s character. I truly believe that most people in his situation would break, so showing how he struggles with the limitations and flaws of his compromised existence not only show how difficult he has it, but also how strong he is to keep moving forward. Al deals with many of these troubling emotions internally, but when he expresses the exasperation, torment, and loneliness out loud, it’s both incredibly powerful and incredibly heart wrenching. While it might’ve seemed silly on the surface for him to doubt the validity of his own existence, put yourself in his situation, you probably would’ve too. He’s so good at holding himself together, that even when he speech to Ed about not wanting to spend the nights alone anymore breaks his brother’s heart, you kind of want it to. For the most part, he suffers quietly, and letting the people around him know how awful it is never feels selfish on his part, but rightful.
All the people I ship romantically with this character:
One of my four cardinal fma otps, Al and Mei are just damn adorable together. The respect and admiration between them is more than evident, and two learn a lot from each other over the course of their story. They obviously care deeply for one anther too; Mei being the one person Al trusts to distract his brother while he sacrifices himself in order to regain Ed’s arm. Even though she knows she may lose him forever, she does it, completely trusting him to have a plan in mind, if not at least being completely steadfast in his decision to give up his life to defeat father. Al also not only manages to convince Mei that he’s pretty much better than Ed in every way while still in his armor body, he goes on to pretty much prove all of his claims true. What. A. Savage. Ed ships it. I ship it. They’re adorable. End of story.
My non-romantic otp for this character:
I mean, who else were you expecting??? I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, but the relationship between these two in one of the most realistic, genuine, and complex I’ve come across in a story of any medium. While their relationship isn’t perfect, there isn’t anything these brothers wouldn’t do for each other. They’ve been through hell, and because of their strong relationship, made it out better on the other side. They may disagree, give each other crap, and lose hope from time to time, but they always look to the other to keep moving forward. There is no doubt in my mind that the two lowest and terrifying points in Ed’s life were the moments he considered an existence without his brother by his side. You can’t have one without the other. It is a fact that I love them more than life itself. Thanks for coming to my ted talk.
One thing that I wished would’ve happened in canon:
I’ve made a post about this in the past, but I think we’re missing out on what Al does in all that free time he has when the rest of the world is asleep. I headcanon that he picked up all kinds of weird skills and interesting knowledge over the years in an attempt to keep himself busy, but it would be hilarious to just have a chapter/episode on one “typical” night in the life of armor!Al. If the brothers are somewhere long enough, does he establish some kind of nightly routine? A bizarre string of errands he makes the rounds on each night? Certain people or places he visits? Maybe practicing a new skill he’s interested in? Participating in some crazy shenanigans Ed would absolutely kill him for being apart of? The sky’s the damn limit with this one guys. GIVE. IT. TO. ME.
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