Anime-Evo is proud to present our first Character of the Month (For January 2010): Ling Yao from Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood!

For those of you who have been following the Fullmetal Alchemist manga or the currently airing Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood Anime series, you know exactly who I’m referring to.  However, fans who have only seen the first series may not have any idea.  Much of this articlewill contain spoilers for those who are not familiar with Brotherhood, so if you do not wish to be spoiled, please stop reading.

For those of you who do know Ling, you will most likely understand why we picked him as the Character of the Month.  Ling is a 15-year-old Xingese from the Yao Clan deriving from the Xing Empire who has traveled west in search of the Philosopher’s stone.  The jist of his mission is that he is a prince, out of many, striving to become heir to the current Emperor of Xing who is ill.

His trials and tribulations lead him to Amestris where he crosses paths with Ed and Al and, ultimately, their enemies: the Homunculi.  Ling’s determination to find the Philosopher’s stone lands him in a tight spot where he is forced to make the decision to join the opponent or miss his chance to obtain the power he’s been searching for.  Who hasn’t been in that situation?  Laugh.  Ling decides to take on the empty shell we know as Greed and becomes the embodiment of this character with his conscious mind still awake somewhere in Greed’s new body.

The reason Ling was chosen as our awesome Character of the Month is made apparent by his unrelenting fortitude to remain a significant voice in Greed’s mind, amongst other things.  Where we, the audience, once thought that Ling had completely vanished, we learn that he is still very much present in his body.  Not only is he resolute in his mission, but, throughout the series, we come to see that he is a very kind and faithful prince by way of interaction with his bodyguards Lan Fan and her grandfather, Fu.

Let us not forget his quirky, motivated and proud stature.  As a character, Ling is quite the piece of work.  He is serious when he needs to be, but tends to act rather childish – he is 15, after all – for the most part.  It is a shame Ling was not present in the first series; however, now we can get our fill of him, for those of you who do not read the manga (which I highly suggest you do), in Brotherhood.

Our hats go off to you, Ling Yao!

~Written by Dee