TV-Series
Description
Envy is a homunculus, an artificial being, who embodies the sin of envy and serves as a major antagonist. In the narrative of the manga and the 2009 anime adaptation, Envy was created by the being known as Father, who distilled his own feelings of jealousy into a separate entity powered by a philosopher's stone. The character's origins differ in the 2003 anime adaptation, where Envy is the result of a failed human transmutation performed by Hohenheim of Light to resurrect his deceased son, making him a homunculus with a direct personal link to the Elric family.
In terms of appearance, Envy most often takes the form of an androgynous youth with a lean build, pale skin, and long, dark hair that has a greenish tint in some depictions. The homunculus typically wears dark clothing and carries the mark of the Ouroboros, a serpent eating its own tail, on the outside of its left thigh. This preferred human-like guise contrasts sharply with its true monstrous form, which is a massive, reptilian creature composed of the countless screaming souls that constitute its philosopher's stone core. When its stone is nearly depleted, Envy is reduced to a small, helpless, worm-like parasitic creature.
Envy's personality is defined by a deep-seated malice, cruelty, and a profound arrogance toward humanity, frequently mocking humans as weak, foolish, and easy to manipulate. It is a sadist who derives genuine pleasure from causing suffering, despair, and discord amongst people. Despite its bombastic and spiteful demeanor, Envy's core motivation is a twisted form of jealousy. It harbors an intense resentment for humans, not for their power, but for their resilience, their ability to form bonds, and their will to persevere despite their weaknesses. This envy is its defining trait and the source of its actions. In the 2003 anime, this jealousy is more pointed, manifesting as a bitter grudge against Hohenheim for abandoning it and a virulent hatred for his other sons, Edward and Alphonse, who received the fatherly love it was denied.
Within the story, Envy plays a critical role as an instigator of chaos and a key agent of Father's plan. Its most consequential action is sparking the genocidal Ishvalan civil war by taking the form of an Amestrian soldier and shooting a young Ishvalan child. This single act of deception leads to hundreds of thousands of deaths. Envy is also directly responsible for the murder of Colonel Maes Hughes, a beloved character, after Hughes discovered the homunculi's secret plan for the nation. Throughout the series, Envy uses its shapeshifting powers to impersonate allies and enemies alike, including the religious leader Cornello and military officers, to further the homunculi's goals and sow distrust among the protagonists.
Envy's key relationships are largely defined by disdain and utility. It serves Father, who regards the homunculi as tools, and interacts with its fellow homunculi, such as Lust, Gluttony, and Pride, as colleagues in villainy, though it often displays a callous disregard for them. Its primary antagonists are Edward and Alphonse Elric, and Roy Mustang. For Mustang, Envy is the object of a deep, burning vengeance for the murder of his best friend, Maes Hughes.
Envy undergoes significant development primarily in the final act of the manga and Brotherhood series. After being cornered and defeated by Mustang's flames, it is reduced to its vulnerable, true larval form. When Edward Elric prevents Mustang from delivering the final, vengeance-driven blow out of principle, Envy is confronted not by hatred, but by the protagonists' pity and understanding. Edward sees through its monstrous exterior and cruelty to the pathetic jealousy within, correctly stating that Envy, which claims to despise humans, is actually envious of their spirit. The humiliation of being pitied and having its deepest, most secret feeling exposed by the very humans it looked down upon is too much for Envy to bear. In a final, desperate act of pride, it tears out the philosopher's stone that serves as its core, causing its own death. This suicide is the ultimate expression of its sin, as it cannot tolerate the compassion it secretly craves.
Envy possesses several notable abilities, with shapeshifting being its primary power. It can transform its entire body into a perfect likeness of any person, animal, or object, and can also partially transform its limbs into weapons like blades or extend them as tentacles. Even in its human-like form, Envy possesses superhuman strength and durability, though it is not the most skilled combatant among the homunculi. Its ultimate form is a gigantic, multi-legged monster with immense physical power. The bodies of the thousands of souls within its stone writhe on the surface of this form, serving as a physical representation of the lives it is powered by and the envy it represents. As a homunculus, Envy is extremely difficult to kill; its body can regenerate from almost any wound as long as the philosopher's stone at its core has energy remaining. Only when that stone is exhausted can it be permanently destroyed.
In terms of appearance, Envy most often takes the form of an androgynous youth with a lean build, pale skin, and long, dark hair that has a greenish tint in some depictions. The homunculus typically wears dark clothing and carries the mark of the Ouroboros, a serpent eating its own tail, on the outside of its left thigh. This preferred human-like guise contrasts sharply with its true monstrous form, which is a massive, reptilian creature composed of the countless screaming souls that constitute its philosopher's stone core. When its stone is nearly depleted, Envy is reduced to a small, helpless, worm-like parasitic creature.
Envy's personality is defined by a deep-seated malice, cruelty, and a profound arrogance toward humanity, frequently mocking humans as weak, foolish, and easy to manipulate. It is a sadist who derives genuine pleasure from causing suffering, despair, and discord amongst people. Despite its bombastic and spiteful demeanor, Envy's core motivation is a twisted form of jealousy. It harbors an intense resentment for humans, not for their power, but for their resilience, their ability to form bonds, and their will to persevere despite their weaknesses. This envy is its defining trait and the source of its actions. In the 2003 anime, this jealousy is more pointed, manifesting as a bitter grudge against Hohenheim for abandoning it and a virulent hatred for his other sons, Edward and Alphonse, who received the fatherly love it was denied.
Within the story, Envy plays a critical role as an instigator of chaos and a key agent of Father's plan. Its most consequential action is sparking the genocidal Ishvalan civil war by taking the form of an Amestrian soldier and shooting a young Ishvalan child. This single act of deception leads to hundreds of thousands of deaths. Envy is also directly responsible for the murder of Colonel Maes Hughes, a beloved character, after Hughes discovered the homunculi's secret plan for the nation. Throughout the series, Envy uses its shapeshifting powers to impersonate allies and enemies alike, including the religious leader Cornello and military officers, to further the homunculi's goals and sow distrust among the protagonists.
Envy's key relationships are largely defined by disdain and utility. It serves Father, who regards the homunculi as tools, and interacts with its fellow homunculi, such as Lust, Gluttony, and Pride, as colleagues in villainy, though it often displays a callous disregard for them. Its primary antagonists are Edward and Alphonse Elric, and Roy Mustang. For Mustang, Envy is the object of a deep, burning vengeance for the murder of his best friend, Maes Hughes.
Envy undergoes significant development primarily in the final act of the manga and Brotherhood series. After being cornered and defeated by Mustang's flames, it is reduced to its vulnerable, true larval form. When Edward Elric prevents Mustang from delivering the final, vengeance-driven blow out of principle, Envy is confronted not by hatred, but by the protagonists' pity and understanding. Edward sees through its monstrous exterior and cruelty to the pathetic jealousy within, correctly stating that Envy, which claims to despise humans, is actually envious of their spirit. The humiliation of being pitied and having its deepest, most secret feeling exposed by the very humans it looked down upon is too much for Envy to bear. In a final, desperate act of pride, it tears out the philosopher's stone that serves as its core, causing its own death. This suicide is the ultimate expression of its sin, as it cannot tolerate the compassion it secretly craves.
Envy possesses several notable abilities, with shapeshifting being its primary power. It can transform its entire body into a perfect likeness of any person, animal, or object, and can also partially transform its limbs into weapons like blades or extend them as tentacles. Even in its human-like form, Envy possesses superhuman strength and durability, though it is not the most skilled combatant among the homunculi. Its ultimate form is a gigantic, multi-legged monster with immense physical power. The bodies of the thousands of souls within its stone writhe on the surface of this form, serving as a physical representation of the lives it is powered by and the envy it represents. As a homunculus, Envy is extremely difficult to kill; its body can regenerate from almost any wound as long as the philosopher's stone at its core has energy remaining. Only when that stone is exhausted can it be permanently destroyed.