Hiromu Arakawa’s manga series Fullmetal Alchemist has been adapted into an anime twice, first in 2003 and later in 2009 as Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. It also earned a live-action film adaptation in 2017. Though the film didn’t prove to be a fan-favorite, a sequel called The Avenger Scar is premiering in Japan on May 20. (Trilogy capper Final Chapter – The Last Transmutation is set to arrive in June; international releases will presumably follow.)
FMA is the tale of two brothers, Edward and Alphonse Elric. An attempt to revive their late mother ended with Ed down an arm and leg and Al’s soul trapped in a suit of armor. To restore their bodies, they search for the legendary Philosopher’s Stone. On the journey, they make many friends and foes; chief among the latter are a cabal of seven homunculi, humans created by alchemy, each one embodying one of mankind’s deadliest sins.
Fullmetal Alchemist: The Avenger Scar introduces the titular villain turned anti-hero to the live-action world. Left out of the first movie due to time constraints, Scar is one of FMA’s most complex characters and has a rich backstory. Let’s delve into his history and connection to the Ishvalan Civil War.
Fullmetal Alchemist’s setting is inspired by 1910s Europe, with the additions of alchemy and steampunk tech. The story mostly takes place in the country of Amestris, a military dictatorship prone to border skirmishes. One of the nation’s annexations was Ishval, a desert country whose brown-skinned, red-eyed inhabitants refused to practice alchemy, viewing the science of creation as an affront to their god, Ishvala. These cultural differences led to tension, which boiled over about 10 years before the story’s beginning: An Amestrian soldier shot an Ishvalan child, leading to riots and then civil war.
The Amestrian government recruits alchemists into their military, giving them special funds, privileges, and titles in exchange for service. In Ishval, the State Alchemists were deployed as human WMDs. Worse, Amestrian Fuhrer King Bradley signed Order #3066, ordering the extermination of the Ishvalans and refusing their surrender. This turned conflict into genocide.
Take your pick of which real-life conflict best parallels the Ishvalan extermination. There’s the Herero Wars of 1904-1908 when the Herero and Nama people rose up against their German occupiers. Like the Amestrians, the Germans responded with ethnic cleansing. The animated film Fullmetal Alchemist: Conqueror of Shamballa likewise draws parallels between the Ishvalans and the plight that groups like the Romani and Jews faced in 1920s Germany.
Arakawa was also reportedly inspired by the Ainu, inhabitants of islands in the Sea of Okhotsk who have been marginalized throughout Japanese history. It’s easy to imagine Arakawa being influenced by the 2003 invasion of Iraq as well. Fullmetal Alchemist manga chapters 58-61 depict flashbacks to the Ishvalan war and were published in 2006 when Iraq was still hot on the global community’s mind.
Like with many real-life atrocities, the perpetrators aren’t eager to acknowledge their crimes – with one exception. Colonel Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist, is wracked with guilt for his actions in Ishval. He seeks to become Fuhrer to prevent anything like the genocide from happening again and see those who perpetrated it, himself included, brought to justice.
But there’s someone else who seeks restitution through more violent ends: the Ishvalan with no name, Scar.