TV-Series
Description
In the manga and the 2009 anime adaptation Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, the homunculus known as Wrath, or Ira, is the secret identity of Führer King Bradley, the supreme leader of the nation of Amestris. Unlike his fellow homunculi who were created directly by the ancient being known as Father, Wrath possesses a unique origin. He was originally a human, one of dozens of candidates raised from birth in a secret military program to become the perfect ruler. This process involved a lifetime of grueling physical and psychological training, culminating in the injection of a Philosopher's Stone. The stone contained Father's wrath, and nearly every candidate died as their bodies rejected it. Bradley, then known as Prospective Führer Number 12, was the sole survivor. His human will fought against the countless souls within the stone, eventually consuming all but one, which allowed him to retain his identity while gaining the powers of a homunculus. This process cost him his left eye, which he conceals behind an eyepatch, and beneath it lies the Ouroboros tattoo that marks all homunculi.
Despite embodying the sin of wrath, Bradley is ironically the most calm, composed, and charismatic of all the homunculi. He presents himself to the public as a wise, brave, and even kindhearted leader, a façade he maintains with great skill. He has a peculiar, dry sense of humor and is known for doing unorthodox things for a man of his power, such as dressing as a tourist, sneaking out of the presidential office by jumping through a window, or personally bringing melon bread as a gift to Edward Elric in the hospital. This long exposure to human society has made him more tolerant of humans than his siblings, and he seems to secretly find amusement in the chaos and unpredictable nature of their actions, which provides a break from a life that has been entirely planned and controlled by Father. However, this tolerance has a sharp limit. When his anger is truly provoked, he unleashes its full destructive force without mercy. He holds a cynical, survival-of-the-fittest worldview, scorning the idea of sacrificing one's life for others and believing that a life is only balanced by another life taken.
Wrath’s role in the story is that of the primary agent of Father’s grand plan. As the Führer, he has the power to orchestrate a decades-long military agenda, including the brutal Ishval Civil War, to create the alchemical sigils needed for a nationwide transmutation circle. He personally hunts down and captures his fellow homunculus Greed when he goes rogue, easily slaughtering Greed's chimera subordinates in the process. Throughout the series, he exerts pressure on the Elric brothers and their allies, using threats against their loved ones, such as Winry Rockbell, to keep them in line while ensuring their survival as potential human sacrifices for Father. He maintains control over the military and cleverly manipulates his subordinates, keeping those who suspect him, like Colonel Roy Mustang, in check by taking his trusted aide Riza Hawkeye as his personal secretary.
As a human-based homunculus, Wrath is unique in that he ages and is not truly immortal. His Philosopher's Stone contains only a single soul, his own, meaning he does not possess the rapid regenerative abilities of his brethren, though he still has immense superhuman strength, speed, and endurance. What makes him most terrifying in combat, however, is his superhuman swordsmanship and his Ultimate Eye. This eye, hidden behind his patch, grants him near-precognitive vision, allowing him to read the subtle muscle movements of his opponents and his environment to predict any attack with perfect clarity. Combined with a lifetime of military training, he is the most skilled swordsman in the series, capable of wielding up to five blades simultaneously and even destroying a military tank using only his sword and a grenade. The only limitations to his power are his own aging body, which is sometimes unable to keep up with the predictions of his Ultimate Eye, and any obstacle that physically blocks his vision.
Wrath’s key relationships are defined by his dual identity. He is a subservient tool to his creator, Father, but expresses his own personality more freely than the other homunculi. He has a complex relationship with his adopted human son, Selim Bradley, who is secretly Pride, the most powerful homunculus; in their civilian lives, they play the roles of a typical family. Most significantly, his marriage to Mrs. Bradley is portrayed as genuinely loving. He chose her himself, and their relationship is one of the few things in his entirely predetermined life that he actually values as his own. His primary antagonists include Scar, the Ishvalan warrior priest seeking vengeance for his people; Ling Yao, who seeks immortality for his clan; and the rogue homunculus Greed.
Wrath's character development is subtle but profound. Throughout most of the series, he functions as an almost unstoppable force of nature, embodying Father's will. However, as his body breaks down from multiple battles and with the failure of Father's plan, he begins to show a more introspective side. In his final battle against Scar, having been grievously wounded and his Ultimate Eye damaged, he stops fighting for Father and instead fights purely for the thrill of survival, stating that nothing else matters but his pure instinct to live. In his dying moments, after being defeated when the sun breaks through an eclipse and blinds him, he acknowledges that while his life was a path set for him by others, the unexpected and irrational actions of the humans he encountered made it a life worth living and even a life worth dying for. He dies not with hatred, but with a sense of completion and acceptance, recognizing even the possibility of divine justice as he succumbed to his wounds.
Despite embodying the sin of wrath, Bradley is ironically the most calm, composed, and charismatic of all the homunculi. He presents himself to the public as a wise, brave, and even kindhearted leader, a façade he maintains with great skill. He has a peculiar, dry sense of humor and is known for doing unorthodox things for a man of his power, such as dressing as a tourist, sneaking out of the presidential office by jumping through a window, or personally bringing melon bread as a gift to Edward Elric in the hospital. This long exposure to human society has made him more tolerant of humans than his siblings, and he seems to secretly find amusement in the chaos and unpredictable nature of their actions, which provides a break from a life that has been entirely planned and controlled by Father. However, this tolerance has a sharp limit. When his anger is truly provoked, he unleashes its full destructive force without mercy. He holds a cynical, survival-of-the-fittest worldview, scorning the idea of sacrificing one's life for others and believing that a life is only balanced by another life taken.
Wrath’s role in the story is that of the primary agent of Father’s grand plan. As the Führer, he has the power to orchestrate a decades-long military agenda, including the brutal Ishval Civil War, to create the alchemical sigils needed for a nationwide transmutation circle. He personally hunts down and captures his fellow homunculus Greed when he goes rogue, easily slaughtering Greed's chimera subordinates in the process. Throughout the series, he exerts pressure on the Elric brothers and their allies, using threats against their loved ones, such as Winry Rockbell, to keep them in line while ensuring their survival as potential human sacrifices for Father. He maintains control over the military and cleverly manipulates his subordinates, keeping those who suspect him, like Colonel Roy Mustang, in check by taking his trusted aide Riza Hawkeye as his personal secretary.
As a human-based homunculus, Wrath is unique in that he ages and is not truly immortal. His Philosopher's Stone contains only a single soul, his own, meaning he does not possess the rapid regenerative abilities of his brethren, though he still has immense superhuman strength, speed, and endurance. What makes him most terrifying in combat, however, is his superhuman swordsmanship and his Ultimate Eye. This eye, hidden behind his patch, grants him near-precognitive vision, allowing him to read the subtle muscle movements of his opponents and his environment to predict any attack with perfect clarity. Combined with a lifetime of military training, he is the most skilled swordsman in the series, capable of wielding up to five blades simultaneously and even destroying a military tank using only his sword and a grenade. The only limitations to his power are his own aging body, which is sometimes unable to keep up with the predictions of his Ultimate Eye, and any obstacle that physically blocks his vision.
Wrath’s key relationships are defined by his dual identity. He is a subservient tool to his creator, Father, but expresses his own personality more freely than the other homunculi. He has a complex relationship with his adopted human son, Selim Bradley, who is secretly Pride, the most powerful homunculus; in their civilian lives, they play the roles of a typical family. Most significantly, his marriage to Mrs. Bradley is portrayed as genuinely loving. He chose her himself, and their relationship is one of the few things in his entirely predetermined life that he actually values as his own. His primary antagonists include Scar, the Ishvalan warrior priest seeking vengeance for his people; Ling Yao, who seeks immortality for his clan; and the rogue homunculus Greed.
Wrath's character development is subtle but profound. Throughout most of the series, he functions as an almost unstoppable force of nature, embodying Father's will. However, as his body breaks down from multiple battles and with the failure of Father's plan, he begins to show a more introspective side. In his final battle against Scar, having been grievously wounded and his Ultimate Eye damaged, he stops fighting for Father and instead fights purely for the thrill of survival, stating that nothing else matters but his pure instinct to live. In his dying moments, after being defeated when the sun breaks through an eclipse and blinds him, he acknowledges that while his life was a path set for him by others, the unexpected and irrational actions of the humans he encountered made it a life worth living and even a life worth dying for. He dies not with hatred, but with a sense of completion and acceptance, recognizing even the possibility of divine justice as he succumbed to his wounds.