Preferences and Reactions
CAUTION: SPOILERS
The way I see it, Greed is almost like three separate characters. There's "first anime" Greed, "manga" Greed, and 2nd Greed also known as Greedling, Lingreed, or, if you go by the manga translators' strange way of naming characters and places, Grin.
I decided to lurk on a Fullmetal Alchemist message board and read some character appreciation threads. Too bad a lot of those threads died before the manga was through. Of course, I HAD to read Greed's appreciation thread, though I was surprised by what I found. Some of the users liked "first anime" Greed better because he was a more developed character than "manga" Greed. Of course, this thread was one of the aforementioned dead ones which ran out of steam just around the time when 2nd Greed made his debut.
Personally, I think the only advantage "first anime" Greed had over "manga" Greed was that the first anime showed that he freed his chimera henchmen from the lab. In the manga, it was hinted at, but never explicitly stated that he freed them. Although I have not yet seen "Brotherhood" (shame on me!), I read somewhere that those hints were omitted entirely.
"First anime" Greed's shortcomings are many. The first of them is that he's been trapped in a lab for 140 years, but when he comes out, there isn't much time for him to build connections with characters before the military finds him out and Ed kills him. His henchmen are loyal enough to die for him even though they barely know each other. And no, being part dog is a lame excuse.
Then there's that Ed vs. Greed showdown. So Greed really respects Ed even though they practically just met? Come on! And then there's the whole thing with Greed not spilling vital information until Ed strikes a fatal blow. What's the point in that? Why couldn't they form some kind of epic tag team? I guess that would be too much like the manga, but Greed's sacrifice made little sense, especially since he pretty much let Ed win. And just to add insult to injury, he dies all happy-like and then his body contorts. Did they really have to add the whole contorting thing? Couldn't he just melt like everyone else? Although, re-watching that scene made me realize something: he can regenerate and activate his shield at the same time.
I guess I should also mention that I don't like his character design. I don't understand why he doesn't have the same pale skin as his fellow homunculi. And why did they have to make his nose so huge?
I mentioned before that I'm a sucker for an anti-villain. But "first anime" Greed seems more like a lesser villain rather than an anti-villain.
"Manga" Greed is a different story. For one thing, he never was imprisoned, so he most likely has history with his henchmen. They have a reason to like him. From the way they interact, one can tell that Greed isn't one to use fear and destruction as a way to establish leadership. He wants his flunkies to like him, and though he views them as his possessions, he doesn't want to lose those possessions. I think he really did care about them, though he would be the last to admit it. Just read the beginning of Volume 8 and you'll see what I mean.
Besides that, "manga" Greed has standards. He hates fighting women, and refuses to lie. I don't know how one can get away with being nearly 200 years old and not telling one single lie, but somehow he did it. Can you believe the incarnation of a deadly sin has morals?
I think the thing that really solidified his position as my favorite character in the series was (now this gets really spoiler-ific) his death scene. By that time, Greed has lost just about everything he ever gained, down to his eight wristbands and fluffy vest. He doesn't even have any mobility being chained up with four swords stuck in him. And yet he still fights. Of course, all he has to fight with are insults, but he takes full advantage of that. Once Father gives him the option of rejoining the family, Greed outright refuses, and is promptly boiled to death. Despite the physical agony he must be feeling as he dies, the last panel he appears in shows him laughing maniacally. Something truly resonated with me as I read that.
Some months later, I was discussing the manga with my brother a bit, and mentioned that Greed's appearance was all too brief. Being much further along in the storyline, my brother replied, "He comes back." Then he apologized for the spoiler. But I was excited. I truly was excited.
Then came Volume 14. Greed's reinsertion was an interesting one. His merging with was something that I did not see coming.
It was after that suspenseful scene that I became disappointed. 2nd Greed didn't act much like his previous incarnation. Once he knelt before Father, the only thought in my mind was, "You're no fun." With neither a body of his own, nor his memories, it didn't feel like this character was Greed anymore. 2nd Greed's distancing himself from the "old Greed" further enforced that.
In Volume 20, I felt slightly better when 2nd Greed regained his memory and finally accepted that he and his predecessor were one and the same. I was a bit relieved, but it still didn't feel completely right. Greed was still in Ling's body. He wasn't exactly his own person... who wasn't a person.
By Volume 27, the final volume of the series, I wondered whether Greed would actually survive in the end. After all, they couldn't kill off Ling, could they? But just as surprised as I was by their merging, I had no idea that Greed and Ling could be separated. That's when I knew it would be all over.
I found Greed's second death scene to be extremely touching. As he was being pulled out of Ling's body, he deceived Ling into letting him go. At that point, Greed threw away his principles of never lying in order to save a life.
Greed knew he was a goner, but like his first death, he wouldn't go down without a fight. He used his shielding ability in reverse to severely weaken his Father, thus giving Ed the chance for one final strike. As Greed's soul withered away his final thought was that he truly desired, more than anything, was a friend. Having found a friend in Ling, Greed felt that he needed nothing more, and died with his soul at peace.
I was touched by that. It made me smile. I was happy for Greed. But I didn't cry. It's still a mystery as to why I didn't.
