Despite being a show that primarily follows the Amestrian military, meaning that many cast members have to wear the same uniform for their on-screen appearances, Fullmetal Alchemist circumvents this by giving the villains some of the best, most creative designs in the show. Their origins may come from the Seven Deadly Sins, but each is unique enough to feel much more fleshed-out than simply a one-note plot device. The only exception there is Brotherhood's Sloth, who doesn't do much more than dig and ask if he can rest yet, but his towering design is still intimidating and works well for him.
One of the most memorable has to be Lust, whose personality differs more than most any of the other villains between adaptations. In the original, she's struggling with her old memories and feels much more human, whereas in Brotherhood she simply comes off as a sadistic seductress. Both versions are highly loved by fans, and have spawned a great deal of phenomenal cosplay to show their appreciation for her.
10 Sharp Gaze, Sharper Edges
Lust is primarily known for toying with the feelings of humans, primarily male, before surprising them with an incredibly sharp poke right through the chest with her deadly fingernails. CaptainIrachka captures her inviting yet deadly personality perfectly, as her expression beckons unsuspecting strangers to come forward while her pointed weapons reveal her true nature. Her makeup and wig are spot-on, and the choice to have the underside of her gloves be nude to simulate Lust's real hands is an amazingly creative touch.
9 Sneak Attack
Although she prefers making herself known and taunting her opponents before watching the life drain from their eyes, Lust has a surprising capability to be stealthy. This is captured well in firecloak's shot of Lust, as she appears ready to kill behind a completely unsuspecting Spooky-Yuki as Edward. Their costumes look great, and both of their expressions portray their characters' personalities well: Edward being lost in thought while Lust looks at her next kill with cold satisfaction.
8 Deadly Gaze
Lust savors the moment of the kill, frequently making eye contact with her victims as she betrays their expectations and swiftly cuts their life short. That deadly gaze couldn't have been recreated better than in this shot of yunax15, who notes in their description that everything about their costume was handmade. Her contacts are absolutely striking, the expression conveys Lust's personality quite well, and the choice to slightly obscure her face with her nails makes for a more dynamic and interesting shot.
7 Final Moments
Lust's screen time is cut incredibly short compared to many of the other homonculi, but in her words, there were far worse fates to face than dying at the hands of someone like Roy Mustang. Both Kamiko-Zero and GraysonFin do fantastic jobs portraying Lust and Mustang, respectively, and the effects on the picture itself are a great touch.
Their costumes both look utterly fantastic, and their personalities are conveyed beautifully without any words needed. Honestly, every aspect of this shot is so well-done that it almost seems like a still from a high-quality live-action movie.
6 If Looks Could Kill
One of the most intimidating things about Lust, besides her hands that can transform into deadly weapons at will, has to be her sharp stare. They're one of the only things that betray her when she's trying to use her sweet-and-seductive persona to lure in unsuspecting victims, as they simply radiate danger, and azelleax captured that feeling expertly. They're an absolutely lovely shade for Lust, and although the arm tattoo isn't part of the actual cosplay, it fits in so well that someone unfamiliar might assume it's just part of the costume.
5 Nowhere To Run
One of the scariest aspects of Lust is just how terrifyingly good she is at manipulating human emotions, as she understands what humans lust after thanks to the sin she represents. This adds an unmistakable air of danger to shejlahn's take on her, giving the photographer the air of being an unsuspecting human who just bore witness to her true nature. The backdrop for the shot is gorgeous as well, and all of the overgrown vines make the area seem like the perfect abandoned spot for a homonculus to make their move.
4 Radiating Confidence
Lust radiates beauty and charm while also giving off an aura of intense power, both of which are brilliantly captured in this shot of kaminari_cosplay. Everything about her costume looks to be incredibly accurate and well-made, and she absolutely killed it with her makeup. The dark shades do wonders for bringing out Lust's character visually, and also help her cherry-red contacts pop even more.
3 Charred Remains
The only thing that can make a stunningly accurate cosplay even better is whenever cosplayers add special effects makeup to bring them to life even further. In Lust's case, during her fight with Roy, she's badly burned but survives for a bit with parts of her chest and face completely scorched. Irishpunchcosplay notes that it takes a full three hours to apply all of their makeup, but she looks so stunning and screen-accurate that it's incredibly worth it.
She not only nails the main injuries themselves, but her body itself is made up to look as if she's been charred all over as her skin and face are ashy from the flames. To top it all off, the details on her hand are terrifyingly accurate, and everything just comes together perfectly.
2 Power Posing
Only Lust would be able to balance looking like she's about to beckon someone closer and extending her deadly nails to strike them down on the spot, and alvautumn manages to capture her energy perfectly. Her costume looks absolutely phenomenal along with her wig and makeup, though it's a shame that fans can't see more of the costume itself from this angle, as it's surely just as well-done. The choice to shoot with a large fan in the background gives the shot a feeling of perhaps taking place in the abandoned laboratory where Ed first runs into Lust and Envy, which is a great touch as well.
1 Cutting Glare
As gotmynameinlights references in their description, Lust utterly hates losing, and that over-the-shoulder pout that they pull off as her captures this side of her personality nicely. Her costume looks lovely, and her gaze is so sharp that it feels as if it'd cut even more sharply than her razor-sharp fingernails. The choice to opt for purple lipstick is a nice original touch, and the dark tone fits Lust quite well as well as adding a nice extra splash of color.