I pretty much agree with what's been said so far. I'd love to see a conversation between a drunk Riza and a sober Roy for some reason...

I do think she'd be pretty high functioning. I can see her acting just a bit drunker than she really is, letting loose and all, but then being able to snap back when she wants to. I really see her more as a glass of wine with a good book type than a party drunk, though I can imagine her drinking with Roy and the guys, too.

Roy, on the other hand... I can see him playing beer pong.

The stereotype that Riza is a 'tomboy' or 'unfeminine' stems 100% from anime 1's portrayal of her, IMO. We never saw her softer side like we did in the manga - that side that shows her calm kindness and sincere concern from others - and didn't even get to see her out of her uniform until the last minutes of the show, if I remember correctly. No wonder she got such an incorrect reputation! Plus, as strange as this may sound, I think that some of the other female characters in the FMA manga almost serve as very subtle foils to her and bring out the more feminine side as well. I mean, the anime 1 fans didn't have an Olivia Armstrong to set Riza beside, after all! The great thing about Riza is that she's tough, she's strong, and she's determined, but still feminine, which goes to show that she's doesn't have to be masculine to be strong or brave, which a lot of shounen mangas tend to say...

I completely agree with you. Yay for Riza's softer side! This is yet another example of Arakawa-San's brilliant character development. No flat personalities in FMA, and Hawkeye is no exception. Hopefully we'll get to see more of her (and Roy too of course) in the new movie!

Yeah, you're right. She can shows her kindness and her strong side at the right timing.
She's perfect as a woman .....
I think.

Well I agree with the drunk Hawkeye post(see above)!!!! But what i really wanna see is like...(and since you were talking about Riza's soft side) is her have this sudden dream where Roy gets killed and no one tells her and she doesnt see him that day at the office so she gets freaked out and goes and finds him at his house (and hes really just sick) but she stays with him and ends up crying JUST A LITTLE over it.

(Series Final Spoiler Warning! Spoilers that suggest Series Final content below!!)
Another one ive had in my mind is both of them already together after the series(manga) has ended and Roys been promoted up to Fuherer(sp. yes dont yell at me im aware of his rank at the end) And ROY has the nightmare and its like Hughes is in front of him getting shot but he cant move and then Riza is there and she trys to save Hughes but he Envy shoots her too. And in the dream Roy cant do anything so he wakes up in cold sweat and is sitting up freaking out. Well Riza slept through that so he gets up and goes down stairs (why the Fueher mansion has a downstairs idk) and is trying to calm down but he eventually keeps getting mad and is almost in a trance and he starts throwing books around. This wakes up Riza and she goes down to him and its pure fluff. I dunno those were random...

SamusTheHunter- that would be really cute! and sad at the same time Good brainstorm idea! X3

This is beautiful.
You've increased my respect for Riza Hawkeye by 110%.

She's absolutely right ^^ Riza is, probably, the best portray of "woman" in all Arakawa's work, alongside Rin Mei (from Juushin Enbu) and Henpukumaru (from Souten no Komori). They're woman who show all the great aspects to a female character: they have principles, are strong, but they're also caring, wise... Not entirely without sins, but always taking responsibility and, more than anything, always available to give support and advising, no excessive weakness or softness, but with no excessive of toughness as well.
It's no wonder Roy calls her "Queen", cause she sure acts like one. XD

Yes, she deserves it! Queen is absolutely perfect for her.

geez, a lot of things happen in manga that are not seen in anime..

Are you reading the manga, now?

Hey, I'm a newbie here and I love Royai *_*
It's like a drug or somethin'
I really hope we get to see some Royai in FMA Chronicles

More new people! Yay! Welcome SamusTheHunter, ~RizaMustang~, and Puka-chan!

~RizaMustang~--Which anime did you watch? Both apply to that statement!

And the recent Riza-as-queen statement just about killed me in the best way. Have I mentioned lately that I love this thread?

Hello i'm new, i love royai since 4 years ago and it's one of my favorite things to think about lol
Roy is my man, i love him <3 and Riza is THE MAN Lol!! (in a good way, if u get what i mean )
I'm Rinoascully's friend but she probably doesnt know im here haha

Nice to meet ya guys

Heck, all of the females in FMA are just so amazing. You don't find females like them in other anime/manga. ^^

But...I've been more into Royai recently...it's weird, because I've never actually listed them as one of my "top" relationships (it's always been EdWin and AlMei 8D), but I've grown a stronger liking to them just by watching the scenes portraying their relationship. It's very sweet. :3

Newb to this thread but asdaksdsf this looks like my kind of place 8D



I started out a lot like this XD I was a big EdWin fan at first when I watched the first anime, but then I watched Brotherhood and read the manga and was like "THIS" and converted my top pairing to Royai. In the first series she didn't really do nearly as much, haha.

My, so many newcomers! ^^
Welcome to one of the most infamous topics in the forum, everyone!



Yes, the are! ^^ Arakawa is very good at creating female characters, isn't she?

When I first started watching FMA 1, I was a EdWin girl, but, since Royai was a little inexistent until like half the anime, that wasn't exactly surprising. lol In fact, I only stated to really notice and enjoy both Roy and Riza at the manga, since, during the anime they were like the "cool supporting roles", but that's about it.
In the manga, on the other hand, although I do love all other cannon (and some non cannon as well) couples, Royai just seems more natural to take the role of OTP of all times OTPs because I've never seen a couple that are neither a teenager couple or a couple that act like a teenage couple in anime and it kinda got into me. XD

EdWin was always more "meh" to me because it was so obvious. I wanted them to be together, of course, but I wondered about Royai all throughout. "Are they...? Nah..." (51 episodes later...) "Wait, what?" Then I read the manga and died of sheer happiness.

Welcome Lisamustang and Pananan! So exciting to have so many newbies!

Well, I didn't start as an EdWin fan. I honestly didn't care for any pairing in FMA1(or in any anime) before since I wasn't into romance. And while I know now that the manga/brotherhood has tons of RoyAi in it and portrayed the characters better than FMA1, I don't dislike how the first anime handled RoyAi, especially in episode 51 (which made me crave for more and (maybe) indirectly told me that "you want more RoyAi? Go read the manga").

I'm not sure if anyone's gonna agree with me, but I honestly prefer the "It's going to rain today" scene in FMA1 than in Brotherhood. In the first anime, when Roy said that line, it was as if she understood it instantly, while in the brohood it took her a moment to realize what he meant. I'm not complaining though. So yeah, I don't know why I brought this up. XP

Whoaa...I watched the second anime series, even though there's a few things that isn't showed up in the anime, I think it's better, 'cause I heard that the first anime series is very different from the original ones, they changed all over the plots and even their character development..

is that true?

^Yeah, that is true...I agree with (I think it was jacksparrow589 who said this) that the façade that Roy puts across in the Manga/Brotherhood sort of becomes his personality in FMA-1. Not to mention he's very guilt ridden and suicidal; he simply isn't like that in the manga/Brotherhood --sure, there's guilt, but I think this acts more like a 'motivation' for him to get to the top, rather than something that gets him down like in anime-1.

And Riza kind of stands there looking serious most of the time. And it's probably where people get these common misconceptions of her, like being a tomboy or just generally being super serious and all that jazz.

(Someone will surely offer some better explanation later. )

Welcome to the Royai thread, Lisamustang and Pananan!

the brotherhood series

YAY more new people! Yay......i apologize if anything in my last post had spoilers in it becauze i didnt mark them and i feel bad now coz somehow they got marked MY BAD! *shame face*

Whyyyyyyyyyy are they so cuuuuuuute????!!!! Why does she like not just glomp him!? Especially after the one chapter. Where some slaying of a certain H-People happens!?

ooh, I'd never really thought of it this way :0 Maybe this was because they started production of the first anime and defined the characters before Roy had shown his true colors in the manga?

Hi everyone
ok i have a question

What, in ur opion, does an anime couple have 2 have in order to make u "SQEEE!"? I just cant put my finger on it :/ ...if it isnt 2 much trouble please let me know ur opion! (I am a writer and i want 2 make a couple that makes people "SQEEE!! OMG THEY'RE SO CUTE >w< ")

Thank U!!! >w<

--Interrupting the discussion for an important announcement--

SamusTheHunter--You're not alone--a lot of people don't read the rules at first! So, now that you know, I'd very strongly suggest that you read either A Pierrot's Aria's Newcomer's Guide to the Forum or A Newcomer's Guide to Forum Decorum, as well as our spoiler policy.

Anyone else who's new--if you haven't taken a look, please do! Lots of useful stuff.

---Back to the discussion---

A Pierrot's Aria--I can believe I'd say that, but I get the feeling I wasn't the one who actually did.

Pananan--Yeah, nothing, especially not Royai, was very well-developed in the manga when the first anime came out. The lack of this amazing pairing is almost forgivable in light of that.

GhyZe--Yes, the first anime is very different, but worth watching. There isn't as much Royai as I'd like (but I'd love a whole series about them, so I digress...), but there are a few moments that just made me melt.

SamusTheHunter--Ah, yes, but if they were to be all over each other, it would kind of wreck it, in my opinion. One of the reasons I love Royai is because they're not that sort of couple. It's amazing to watch them go through what they do, and still remain able to maintain that collectedness and not give into all those feelings we're so convinced they have for each other.

("...we're so convinced..." = "we all totally know", by the way. )

@Reverine Methernlance Are you talking about anime couples on general or Royai? I'd say certain couples have different ways of making people..."squee". Like jacksparrow589 touched upon, if Roy and Riza were all over each other it would ruin the kind of relationship they have. So in terms of making people "squee" when it comes to Royai would most likely involve a way which shows their deep relationship or bond without going too over the top. I guess whatever you do you'll have to write it in a believable way that suits their type of relationship. (I hope that makes sense).

Also, I hate to be the ol' English/grammar/spelling Nazi, but could you avoid using "text/chat speak" and use "your/you're/you", "to/too" rather than "ur/u", "2". (I'm not trying to be nasty, but you'll see this type of thing in the guides jacksparrow589 kindly posted. )

@jacksparrow589 I'm almost positive it was you.

@Turdaewen Awesome new avatar and sig set!

Personally I think it's because they're so composed, the bond between them, and their horribly tragic past that just screams "star-crossed lovers." (*needs to tvtrope less*) I agree that it would be ruined if it had been intentionally made obvious or they were all over each other. What makes it Royai is that the shippers insist it's clearly there, and some people just don't understand that's it's a fact what we see, haha.

A Pierrot's Aria well...hmmm anime couples in general i suppose

Thank u everyone for ur opions! I really appreciate it >w< *bow*

Yes, you're right! I don't understand when they're thinking something bad about Riza or Roy...
I think FMA characters are well done and their personalities are so amazing...

*sigh*

I bet Roy's personality in first anime series is not like in the manga version/second anime series, and it really makes me dissapointed...

@Reverine Methernlance This thread is for Royai, not every other couple. Also, check for a PM in your inbox, please.

@GhyZe The only way you'll see the differences first hand is to watch the first anime with your own eyes, if and when you get the chance.

@Pierrot: Thank you. Then, I'll watch it.

About Roy's personality, it is! So much, in fact, that some even consider MangaRoy and FMA1Roy to be "different characters". (myself included) But you'll have to see to check if people are correct. XD

About the shippers, I guess that, many people may think Royai is NOT cannon for one main reason: many of them are accustomed with other shounen mangas/animes and don't actually are very familiar with Arakawa's work. Of course that, "we cannot state something is cannon with 100% sure unless the author or the series itself states it", BUT we also have to consider the style of the author.

In this case, Arakawa is not particularly inclined to make "obvious couples". Most of her couples (except only EdWin and, maybe, Jack and Kyuubi, from Shangai Youma Kikai. And the ones who are actually married, which is another subject) are very subtle and she has no intention of making them otherwise. Which doesn't mean that they are not intentional: she just prefers making them in a realistic sort of way. And, lets face it, 90% of the anime couples who are "cannon" in the true sense of the word are anything but realistic.

I always use a couple from Juushin Enbu as an example: The couple Ryuukyou and RinMei was believed to be just another shipper, as there were no actually 'proof' that they had anything with eachother, until, one day, RinMei simply comes to Ryuukyou stating she's pregnant (with his child, of course). We didn't have any previous warning of the nature of their relationship whatsoever. At least, nothing a Western fan usually considers to be "cannon proof": only the normal Arakawa's style things.


Sometimes people expect Arakawa will make an ultra-romantic scene for Royai (and some people state that, "If she doesn't, it means that they're not cannon"), but she won't (I sure of that). It's just not her style.But that doesn't mean she doesn't consider them to be a couple. I hope she can say something about it in the next Guide only so that people can stop wondering about it. And worrying, as well.
I guess any sort of scene to make Royai "obvious" in a sense to make the "Doubting Thomases" agree they are cannon would be out of character.
So, I guess the only way to actually convince them and not be OOC, would be if she explained it in a guide.

Even if some people don't believe in Royai... I'm still happy that they're not being acerbic asses about it. Another fandom of mine has to fight the hatred and it's not pretty (I have to admit still, that show didn't know how to handle romance AND character development properly... while I think Arakawa knows what she's doing *I love her*... if Royai had to suffer the same hatred... ugh... we would have to suffer many comments like :"Royai is meant to fail... it weakens Riza's character *I actually already met people who think Riza has no will of her own... like a friend of mine who totally prefered Olivia to her*, they should find and date other people who talk/share their feelings openly, it's a boss/subordinate relationship so it's BAADD, and blah blah blah..."... no matter the fact that they're cute, no matter the fact that they NEED each other and not some other people). So I'm glad the Royai pairing (and Riza's character) is not hated much outside this thread and forum. Actually, I think the FMA community is quite nice as a whole.

About Roy's personality... I liked both. Anime1Roy seemed more manly/mature or something (or maybe it's because of Travis's voice *I watched the whole thing in english*... and the japanese voice actor also had a smexy voice lol). MangaRoy has more substance to him... more character development too (so yeah, he's a better character... the whole Mustang Team is better anyway... not just simple comic relief characters). I just don't like the "girly Roy" crack (fans are more guilty of this... but still, it's Arakawa who made Roy's sisters dress him as a girl when he was little). And Riza.... well to be honest... I don't think she changed that much (maybe a bit less strict...)... but she's a deeper character in the manga/Brotherhood, that's for sure.


It reminds me the time we just learned that Roy had become blind and we were expecting Riza to break down when she was going to find out. In the end, their reunion wasn't tearful or even emotional... they just kept going together without complains like the badasses they are. It surprised me a bit... but we had awesome fight scenes after that... I wasn't going to complain lol.

REALLY? I've totally missed something here, apparently...when did this come to light? Was it in a guide or in the manga...a gaiden maybe? (I'm not saying you made it up, by the way, I'm genuinely intrigued by this revelation)



I thought that bit was awesome!

I'd say that that reunion was very emotionally charged--think what both of them must have been feeling! I think if you qualify "emotional" with "outwardly", then yes, I'd agree, and for good reason: it wasn't the time or the place. And I don't think either of them would have completely fallen apart even if it had been the time or the place, but it would still be very shocking.

And believe you-me, there are plenty of people who don't like Royai, and plenty of people who are ambivalent about it. We just expect members to be civil on this board, and almost 100% of the time, people comply. We've had a few posters come in and try to disrupt the peace, but that's not just a Royai Thread occurrence. Everybody has a right to their own opinion, so let's not bash the people who dislike Royai. (Not that any horrible remarks have been made yet--just heading it off before something possibly does happen.)

Turdaewen--Ahhh, the Juushin Enbu parallel! I remember that moment!

A Pierrot's Aria--I believe the thing about Roy's sisters dressing him up was in a guidebook that hasn't been released in English yet. I think...

I think that people who believe that because of Royai, Riza is weaker, didn't quite got Riza. Probably because they think Riza sticks by Roy because "she can't live without him" and not because "she decided to dedicate her life for something bigger", and that Roy is a PART of that.
For me, saying something like that it's like saying "Mulan is weak for taking her father's place at war." Giving up your life to work for someone else's dream and for the "greater good" is no weakness, its nobility, cause you have the power to choose and you choose to sacrifice and devote yourself, instead of being selfish and only thinking of your own life. (I mean, if I was a weak person, I would not join a sort of life where I would have to give up everything and, on top of that, having to jeopardy my life every week. That hardly seems like a weak move to me)

If she was, indeed, in it for Roy, she would have never pointed that gun at him and she would not have the guts to kill him (which we all know she would, if she had to). So, contrary to common thinking, she's not at all a mere "dog of Mustang's": she has elected him as her 'leader', and she did it for a reason and not because she's got no self-thinking (quite the contrary, indeed).
It's actually funny to notice Riza owns a "Shiba Inu" (if you have watched that movie "Hachiko: A Dog's Story", you'll probably get when I'm about to say, since Akitas and Shibas are quite similar), cause it's sorta like mirrors herself: Roy didn't choose Riza and he isn't "the strong one" or "her boss". It was Riza who chose Roy, because she is the one who has the power to choose and, therefore, in the end, she is the one with all the cards in her hand.
As Freud used to say: people only get on top of pedestals because someone put them there and, just as well as they putted, they can take them down, so, at the end, the choice is up to the one that 'submit' themselves. Or like my sister loves to say "The man may be the 'head of the house', but the woman... well, the woman is the neck". lol

So it's kinda like Riza to say: ok, I'll put my life in service to your dream, but you'll have to stay faithful to that ideal of yours or you'll be dead before it hits the ground.

So, that, for me, that's something that changes between Riza in FMA 1 and in the manga. And it is a HUGE difference that, basicaly, changes everything: it changes the whole relationship between Riza and Roy, changes the whole thinking/acting pattern of Riza's, why she's in the military and why she works under Mustang...

A Pierrot's Aria - And that thing about Roy... well... actually, it's not official. It seems as if it's a "fan's talk" from Japanese foruns. The only thing that actually seems to be truth is the fact that the girls who work under Madame Christmas' are considered to be "Roy's sisters". But that seems it was said by Arakawa doing an interview a couple of years back.
But there's nothing about him "being dressed up as a girl". Apparently, that has been made up.

jacksparrow589 - Yeah... I was kinda "what the h?" when that happened. XD It was something noone could have predicted and I really wanted to kick Arakawa for making such a 'out of the blue' revelation like that. lol

@Turdaewen Aaaah, thanks for that --I knew that it was mentioned that the girls were considered to be his sisters, I was just a little shocked yet amused when I read that Arakawa apparently said that they dressed him up.

(And I agree with your explanation, too! Brilliantly put!)

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@@Turdaewen I see...it could be possibly what jacksparrow589 suggested about it being in an as of yet untranslated guidebook. I do agree it seems a really strange and far-fetched thing for poor Roy to be dressed up as a girl.

Oh, there's only 4? I really don't know- I've only ever read the first guide and just found out some other things from around. Well, if anyone has definite confirmation of this strange notion, I'm sure they'll post it --otherwise I think it's safe to say it's not really true. Thank you, anyway.

Though I'm not like a 100% sure it's not true. But I haven't seen any proof that it is and it all seems a lilttle too far-fetched, since it's not stated in any Guidebook... XD

Edit: in fact, the first time Arakawa mentioned "Roy's sisters" was quite a while back... We didn't even know that Madame Christmas was his aunt/foster mother, back then. She just said that "Roy had a lot of sisters and grew up surrounded by women".


But I don't think it's on any "untranslated guide", cause I have the scans for all 4 released guides here and (the 3 perfect guidebooks and the character guide), in the third one is relatively "new". It's newer than these "rumors", at least. And neither the first, nor the second states anything about that.

There are other guides, but not from the manga: they are Anime-related. In terms of "manga information", we have 4 up until now and the "Ultimate Guide" will be released later this year... in June, if I'm not mistaken.

True, but to be fair, Roy chose that for himself as well. He gave her that power, as much as she has the power to wield it. It was his idea and he allowed himself to be in that position with her.

Of course Roy chose that for himself.
But I don't think you quite got what I mean: what I mean that "follow Roy" was RIZA's decision and Roy has no power over that whatsoever (in the sense that it was not forced upon her). So much so, he's constantly asking her if she'll keep following him. She could leave him at any time she wants and, if she doesn't, that is a conscious choice of hers and not as some sort of dependency.

All this discussion reminds me of chapter 95. You know, the one where the fan translation came into question... and so did Riza's character. I'm sure you know what I'm talking about (and if you don't, I won't spoil it for you--this amazing moment must be experienced without any spoilers).

I think Turdaewen's got it right in the above post (as does anyone who's saying the same thing): they both chose their own paths independently.

...That's really all I want to say on the subject.

Is it agreed upon or disagreed upon that they were possibly together the whole time and just hide it really well (or very poorly haha)? I always wondered that. "Advance of the Fool" just came out on Adult Swim in Eng. Dub and the faces they made to eachother as well as the way they talked. Her expression and the emotion she had when she said "It's too late for regrets" alluded (spelling) to lots of caring..

did that make sense? *confused face*

It really just depends on who you're talking to. Arakawa's never said anything explicitly one way or the other (as far as I know, at least), so unless there's goodies for us in FMA Chronicles, we may never know. Sorry I can't be more helpful.

Yeah... but there's a possibility that they ARE already a couple and noone knows about it. Or even that they were a couple or had a romance sometime in the past... There's even the possibility that they had feelings for eachother all along but never really committed to it.
Since Arakawa never really said anything about it, there's all those possibilities.
But she did joke about it during the Envy episode... lol

Let's just pray and hope she'll let us some light about it at the Chronicles... (maybe a timeline to the future with a wedding date?? that would be a pleasant surprise) XD

I almost fear any sort of answer because I'd rather be left to speculate than told, "oh, btws, they weren't canon all along - what Riza said to Envy in chapter 94 was true" 0_0 Though I almost doubt Arakawa would come out and say that because she must know how fanatical people are about the pairing, having a holiday for it and all...

@ Turdaewen - Excellent explanation of Riza's character. That is exactly how I feel about her, and I'm glad you were able to put it into words like that. Now, if only we could find some way to send that explanation out to everyone beyond this thread who has horribly misunderstood her....... XD

EDIT: And I'm dying for some of these guidebooks to be translated to English!! Only one has been translated so far, and it's all basic knowledge like "Winry Rockbell is an automail mechanic who lives in Resembool...etc" so I never bought that one, but I would definitely buy the later ones! I'm glad the artbooks are translated, but I'm still dying to know what's in the guidebooks, especially some of the untranslated pages that were posted before about Roy and Riza.

This is a little bit random, considering the conversation that's going on lol

But I just thought I'd let everyone know that I found the whole "Romeo and Juliet" scene from Daughter of the Dusk. It's pretty hilarious. I dunno if it's ever been posted here before, but for those of you who haven't seen it, here it is: http://www.nicozon.net/watch/sm9278372

The first half of the clip is Riza's play. It's this whole princess warrior thing lol. The second half is Roy's play, which is Romeo and Juliet.

I don't think Arakawa would say something like that, more than just because she wouldn't want to disappoint so many fans, but, moreover, because she would NOT have put scenes like the ones in your sig over nothing ^^ She does WANT us to think they have something, even if they don't actually have it.
And I really doubt she would say "there's nothing to it". Royai is a reality in FMA whether people wish it or not and it's fundamental for the building of the characters (both Roy and Riza), so, even if they're not "out there" with it, noone can say there's nothing more between them than just "caring": I mean, noone who "just cares" about something snaps like Riza did and noone who "just cares" hugs a person like Roy did Riza.
And, on top of that, we have to remember that Arakawa is not "Western", she's Japanese. And being so, she lives in a society were people don't have the habit of touching eachother for ANYTHING but the strictly necessary unless they have strong reasons to do so (like family, etc). People could say anime is "fantasy" and has lots of influences from western culture and, many times, that's true, but do we actually see ANYONE in FMA touching someone like in "western culture"?? I know I haven't.

So, of course, like I've said before, the only way to be 100% sure would be to ask Arakawa herself, but, given the circumstances, I think we can say that Royai is cannon, at least in a tacit knowledge. XD

@Dark-Winds - Thanks for the links!! ^^ I really wanted that! XD

kyaaaaaaa~
thank you so much! I was searching for this so long.
Winry is such a fangirl and Roy was so cute x3

i agree with riza's personality definition
I always say... Riza's the man, but not because she's manly, i say it because she gets everything under control and she's like... the boss of the situations and she's strong, really strong, she doesnt break in front of any situation (except the one we all love), so for me, is RizaxRoy, not RoyxRiza.

Changing the subject i found this... a few... years ago xDDD
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MRbYuhWrQw watch it from 3:20 more or less ahead.
First time i saw that i just loved it and understood a little bit xD so i talked with my japanese friend and he told me what they said in the video