#idk this is maybe a little ranty and incompressibly written idk

[aro-attorneys]

in FMA you have all these characters who are leaders in one way or another, and those characters are all kind of an antithesis to the ideals King Bradley and the military regime portray.

like idk if this was intentional but the characters Roy and Olivier Armstrong but also Ling and Greed (maybe someone else im forgetting rn but you get it) are all leaders in their own ways with strong ideals, and they have subordinates and followers who support the ideals.

They are all driven by protecting what they think is important, but they are also the most unwilling to make sacrifices (although sometimes claiming they do). But since their ideals represent a better and stronger future, it results in many people actually willing to die or sacrifice for them (Maes Hughes putting his life on the line to help Roy, Lan Fan losing her arm and Fu dying, Devil's Nest chimera who died for Greed's protection, and the whole Briggs monolith fearless in the face of death if it means upholding Armstrong's ideals). It is sad but moving, and some who die even tell their leader in their final breath that this is OK.

And King Bradley represents almost the opposite of it. He thinks it's normal to sacrifice his people even if it achieves nothing. And it reflects so well during the coup d'etat. The soldiers from Central are afraid to die because whatever they were promised was flimsy as hell. They don't actually support the cause of Bradley and Father, but they were promised protection or eternal life. And how quickly the field soldiers changed sides once meeting Olivier in Central HQ! God I think that's just so neat.