A big portion of the Attack on Titan finale criticism revolves around Eren being out of character.
Eren has never been stupid, and fans are outraged by him stating otherwise in the finale.
Eren’s breakdown over Mikasa finding another man looked like a cheap fanservice strategy.
The Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin) anime finale sparked a lot of debate among fans. Some of them were just fresh takes on the old issues that were noticed by the manga readers back in 2021 when the final chapter was released. And some seem to have new developments.
Although the anime adaptation followed the manga quite closely, there still were slight alterations. For example, Armin thanks Eren for committing genocide for the sake of his friends, which fans found highly inappropriate and out of character in the manga. Anime fixes this and omits the line entirely. It’s not the only change in the adaptation, though, and others don’t seem that positive.
Is Eren just an idiot?
During his paths conversation with Armin, Eren admits that the rumbling was the only way he could think of to come to the desired result of saving his friends and breaking the titan curse. He mentions contemplating various outcomes, but everything just kept coming down to the massive genocide he committed. Eren claims that he was probably just stupid and an idiot, that’s why it was so difficult for him to come up with another idea of handling the situation. And boy, was it not what fans wanted to hear.
It was bad enough that almost each one of Armin’s “Why” are met with Eren’s “I don’t know” but straight up stating that Eren is just a stupid boy who didn’t know what to do with the titan shifter power felt like going a bit too far.
Eren’s main goal in the entire series was for him and his friends to become free and to finally live a good life without the danger of the titans. Living like slaves and cattle was what he hated, so he kept fighting and moving forward no matter what.
When he received the Titan shifter power, it took him a lot of time to get used to it and understand its full potential, but he always knew that he had to use it for humanity’s sake. Eren has never been a confused little boy. Did he have a lot to learn? Yes. Was he stupid? No!
Everything that happened after season 3 of Attack on Titan proves that Eren is a wonderful strategist. When he was younger, he had Erwin, Levi and Hange to guide him and help him make decisions and train, but not anymore. Eren started the attack on Marley by himself, he planned everything and forced his friends to help him. For the sake of his plan to infiltrate Marley, Eren had to cut off his own leg and destroy his eye. This careful pretense took a lot of effort from the character.
The plot twist with Zeke and his father alone was an incredible example of what Eren is capable of, both in the sense of his strategic abilities and cruelty. This is a type of character who fights for his ideas and goals. Not led, but a leader.
The thing that the ending does well is portraying a beautiful metaphor of Eren becoming a slave to freedom along the way. He was so eager to be free that he didn't notice the moment when he no longer had a say in his own fate. The Attack Titan was controlling Eren, and he had to comply. Stating that Eren was just a stupid pawn all the way ruins this metaphor, and erases everything he ever was.
Eren’s breakdown over Mikasa
This manga panel alone became the most talked about moment in the entire series, and that’s not without a reason.
Eren has always been extremely emotional, and his breakdowns are nothing new. He’s often frustrated with himself and deems himself not worthy of the hope put on him by humanity.
At the end of season 2, after watching Hannes die, Eren has his first major breakdown. He feels absolutely worthless and incapable of saving the ones close to him. His immense desire to be free of the titans and save the people is met with cruel reality, and he can’t take it anymore.
Eren’s season 3 breakdown once again shows how much the boy doubts himself. After being captured again and needing friends to save him, Eren doesn’t believe that he’s the savior the world needs.
Both of these breakdowns happened because Eren felt like he was failing to achieve his main goal: freedom. And he just needed someone to believe in him, and that’s exactly what he got. Mikasa (season 2) and Levi (season 3) were the people who were there for him and made him keep fighting.
This all leads us to his final breakdown in the last episode of the anime. Eren cries once again, but this time because… Mikasa might find another man? The character, whose entire life has been fighting for freedom and justice, was whining over a pretty girl not loving him anymore.
Fans that disliked the panel so much understand that the main purpose of the breakdown was to show that Eren doesn’t want to die, and this makes a lot of sense. No matter how strong and badass he is, it’s natural for a person to fear death. But the execution shifts the attention from this to a fanservice romance that has never been Eren’s priority. Even Armin calls this motivation pathetic in the manga, and a lot of fans agree.
A big portion of the Attack on Titan finale criticism revolves around Eren being out of character.
Eren has never been stupid, and fans are outraged by him stating otherwise in the finale.
Eren’s breakdown over Mikasa finding another man looked like a cheap fanservice strategy.
The Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin) anime finale sparked a lot of debate among fans. Some of them were just fresh takes on the old issues that were noticed by the manga readers back in 2021 when the final chapter was released. And some seem to have new developments.
Although the anime adaptation followed the manga quite closely, there still were slight alterations. For example, Armin thanks Eren for committing genocide for the sake of his friends, which fans found highly inappropriate and out of character in the manga. Anime fixes this and omits the line entirely. It’s not the only change in the adaptation, though, and others don’t seem that positive.
Is Eren just an idiot?
During his paths conversation with Armin, Eren admits that the rumbling was the only way he could think of to come to the desired result of saving his friends and breaking the titan curse. He mentions contemplating various outcomes, but everything just kept coming down to the massive genocide he committed. Eren claims that he was probably just stupid and an idiot, that’s why it was so difficult for him to come up with another idea of handling the situation. And boy, was it not what fans wanted to hear.
It was bad enough that almost each one of Armin’s “Why” are met with Eren’s “I don’t know” but straight up stating that Eren is just a stupid boy who didn’t know what to do with the titan shifter power felt like going a bit too far.
Eren’s main goal in the entire series was for him and his friends to become free and to finally live a good life without the danger of the titans. Living like slaves and cattle was what he hated, so he kept fighting and moving forward no matter what.
When he received the Titan shifter power, it took him a lot of time to get used to it and understand its full potential, but he always knew that he had to use it for humanity’s sake. Eren has never been a confused little boy. Did he have a lot to learn? Yes. Was he stupid? No!
Everything that happened after season 3 of Attack on Titan proves that Eren is a wonderful strategist. When he was younger, he had Erwin, Levi and Hange to guide him and help him make decisions and train, but not anymore. Eren started the attack on Marley by himself, he planned everything and forced his friends to help him. For the sake of his plan to infiltrate Marley, Eren had to cut off his own leg and destroy his eye. This careful pretense took a lot of effort from the character.
The plot twist with Zeke and his father alone was an incredible example of what Eren is capable of, both in the sense of his strategic abilities and cruelty. This is a type of character who fights for his ideas and goals. Not led, but a leader.
The thing that the ending does well is portraying a beautiful metaphor of Eren becoming a slave to freedom along the way. He was so eager to be free that he didn't notice the moment when he no longer had a say in his own fate. The Attack Titan was controlling Eren, and he had to comply. Stating that Eren was just a stupid pawn all the way ruins this metaphor, and erases everything he ever was.
Eren’s breakdown over Mikasa
This manga panel alone became the most talked about moment in the entire series, and that’s not without a reason.
Eren has always been extremely emotional, and his breakdowns are nothing new. He’s often frustrated with himself and deems himself not worthy of the hope put on him by humanity.
At the end of season 2, after watching Hannes die, Eren has his first major breakdown. He feels absolutely worthless and incapable of saving the ones close to him. His immense desire to be free of the titans and save the people is met with cruel reality, and he can’t take it anymore.
Eren’s season 3 breakdown once again shows how much the boy doubts himself. After being captured again and needing friends to save him, Eren doesn’t believe that he’s the savior the world needs.
Both of these breakdowns happened because Eren felt like he was failing to achieve his main goal: freedom. And he just needed someone to believe in him, and that’s exactly what he got. Mikasa (season 2) and Levi (season 3) were the people who were there for him and made him keep fighting.
This all leads us to his final breakdown in the last episode of the anime. Eren cries once again, but this time because… Mikasa might find another man? The character, whose entire life has been fighting for freedom and justice, was whining over a pretty girl not loving him anymore.
Fans that disliked the panel so much understand that the main purpose of the breakdown was to show that Eren doesn’t want to die, and this makes a lot of sense. No matter how strong and badass he is, it’s natural for a person to fear death. But the execution shifts the attention from this to a fanservice romance that has never been Eren’s priority. Even Armin calls this motivation pathetic in the manga, and a lot of fans agree.
