Hi! I like to read your opinions about eruri, and I like this vast sight you have being there for years. In 2021 – at the very end of the story I started to appreciate in 2015 – I decided to re-watch it and came across a fanart of Erwin and Levi together as a couple (I've never entered the fandom "circles" before, tbh). Well, when I read the manga /watched the anime for the first time, I had an "impression" about their relationship. I never gave them much thought as I was firstly and mostly an Armin supporter and I basically followed the first three seasons because I needed to know what the fuck was going on and I needed to see Armin reach the damn ocean.
Erwin was a character I strongly appreciated given his will to sacrificing his own and his soldiers' lives, his death really touched me though I was relieved that Armin still had a chance to reach his dream.
I didn't really like Levi until the uprising arc, I didn't understand his motivation until I watched No Regrets (I watched it after finishing s3p1). When he first appeared in the story I felt strange about his and Erwin's relationship: Erwin was the Commander but Levi acted freely around him, even disrespecting him, and after a couple of episodes he was "I'll obey Sir". Levi was close with Hanji but even closer with the Commander, and Erwin only spoke "as a peer" to Pixies and Zachary (sometimes) and Levi most of the time.
The "woah" moment was after the uprising arc: Erwin planning rts and Levi begging him to stay safe home, an absurd request tbh: Not Hanji, nor any other Squad Leader proposed anything like that; the Commander had to be there, because he's trusted and more importantly because he represents the SC. So, Levi? This not only was "odd" from a (I'll say) militaristic point of view, but Levi there acted really emotionally. At this point of the story we have seen his more emotional side, we've seen him angry and concerned, but not to this extent.
Then, rts. Levi giving Erwin a reassuring speach, making the choice on his behalf, commanding him to his death. And Erwin's relieved smile, his "Thank you". This was a peak moment, it showed complete trust (we also knew that Levi trusted Erwin completely, but the other way around is truly showed here), it showed the deep comprehension Levi has about the Commander, it showed Levi's ability to sacrifice his own feelings for what's best for humanity and Erwin.
The serum-bowl was just the culmination of it. It was the "emotional" side of Levi's previous logical choice. He wants to save Erwin so badly there, and not because he is the Commander, but because he didn't want him to die in the first place (Levi's egoistic feeling). He's about to give him the serum, the choice is made, and it is the best choice for humanity, the choice Hanji and other Commanders would make, the choice that will take Erwin back (and it's so clear that this is what Levi wants). But at the very end, Levi changes his mind, not out of any logical reason, or rational thought. He decides to let his friend rest because it'd be the best choice for Erwin and Erwin alone (or at least, in Levi's understanding of him).
Last but not least, Erwin's death affected Levi terribly. I usually dislike "revenge arc", but his was so well built and motivated that I appreciated it. His promise is the only fuel left to Levi to moves forward. It's a sad and heartbreaking end, but it puts emphasis on the importance of his relationship with Erwin.
Re-watching AoT gives you the possibility to focus on its nuances; it's a complex story and for people like me (not usually interested in the romance, but in the most dynamic and action side) it's easy to miss some details.
I personally like the absence of huge romantic sub-plot. I like how the relationships between the characters are described trough little details, ways of talking to each other, choices that can be read as ambiguous at some times. Or, this is true for the "adults", the 104th are kids and mostly act like kids "repressed" by their military role and the cruel circumstances of their world.
When it comes to Hanji, Miche, Moblit, Levi, Erwin, it's different. They are soldiers and put duty beyond their personal feelings. I love how their relationships are built. And I do consider Erwin and Levi relationship one of the strongest in AoT, and one of the most healthy too. Forgetting the hcs, the theories, or even what VAs, animators etc said, I think that it's undeniable the depth of their bond, and the fact that it is - at least - platonic love. To me it's clear as the sky that Levi loved Erwin (not necessarily in a sexual way) and it's clear that he was reciprocated, in a more subtle way because Erwin is a character literally broken by his guilt, split between his selfish side and his selfless one.
The rest of it is mostly hc, though some theories really are plausible and I love the fanon exploration of them trough fics and fanarts.
This long post just because I wanted to express what to me it's a fact and not a theory, that in the complex and not so easy identification and classification of what a relationship between two humans is, that between Erwin and Levi falls in the large range of "Love". And not the love and affection one usually has for a dear friend. It's deeper, it's familiar. It's the bond you have with someone you want to become family with. (Just to mention, Mikasa's "you're family" it's so powerful to me, it's a good choice of words that Eren misunderstood imo). This is why I don't feel the need (tough I like the fun, absolutely) of searching proofs and making up scenarios of a love story that is just there. I don't need Isayama to state that Levi and Erwin would have gotten married, circumstances permitting. They already have a strong, dedicated and wholesome bond that accompanied Erwin to his last, painful years and gave him peace at the very end; and complimentary, the same bond gave Levi hope and aim when he needed it and – sadly – affected him so badly that he lived so many years in grief (maybe all his remaining years). Tell me this is not what a loving relationship/marriage looks like.
If you reached the end of my essay, thank you xD I'd like to read what you think of it. Bye!!
Thank you so much for sharing this Anon ♡ There’s honestly very little I can add to this. You’ve expressed eloquently why Erwin and Levi’s relationship is so important and so compelling. Regardless of shipping, their relationship, and the bond of trust they share, is pivotal to the story, particularly from the Uprising Arc onwards.
One of the things I’ve always loved about SnK, which you’ve touched on here, is that Isayama is actually very good at writing compelling, and compellingly complex, adult relationships. Like you said, we don’t need any other “proof” of the depth of Erwin and Levi’s relationship, it’s all there in black and white in the manga. The supplementary materials, the guidebooks, the interviews, the Smartpass stories all add colour but they don’t change the fundamental nature of their relationship. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, this to me is what a deeply committed adult relationship looks like. It needs no more elaboration.
Thank you again for sharing your essay Anon, I really appreciate reading your thoughts and I’m sure many other fans will too.
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