#snk 62

[lostcauses-noregrets]

Hey, Lost, I've seen some of your posts on the internet, but I just downloaded Tumblr and wanted to come here to take a doubt that haunts me since I became - or I discovered myself - as an Eruri shipper.

I know you've said a few times that you don't believe that the love between Erwin and Levi is one-sided, but I read somewhere an Eruri Shipper commenting that in the carriage scene, just after Erwin is acquitted of his death sentence, he looked hopeless and sad because he hadn't seen Levi in ​​a few days - maybe weeks - meaning perhaps that Levi was somehow a comfort to Erwin.

However, I was wondering if this wasn't just a result of Erwin's emotional exhaustion, and I'd like to know your opinion on that.

Hi @jimpalestrino welcome to the hellsite that is Tumblr!

So...this is a pivotal scene in the manga as it’s really from this point onwards that Erwin begins the downward spiral into the bitter depths of despair, which only Levi is able to pull him out of before the final charge during the Battle of Shiganshina.  It’s an utterly tragic scene and it’s Zackley who bears the responsibility for pushing Erwin over the edge. Of all the characters in the manga, he’s the only one who is really able to manipulate Erwin. Why Erwin is so susceptible to Zackley’s insinuations at this point in time is a valid question to ask and I don’t think there’s one simple answer.  Erwin has just led the Uprising and though ultimately it was successful, he took an enormous personal risk, gambling his own life and those of his most trusted soldiers, Levi included, in order to see it through. That has to have taken a huge emotional and mental toll on him. It’s also clear that the threat to Levi’s life had an impact on him, you can see his shock when the Military Police inform him that Levi is a fugitive. 

So in answer to your question I think all these factors have an impact on Erwin here; he’s mentally and physically exhausted, he’s been, imprisoned, tortured and threatened with execution, he’s risked Levi’s life, and the very existence of the Survey Corps, he’s been operating more or less in isolation since his arrest, without the support of his most trusted comrades, and he’s struggling with immense feelings of guilt.  It’s beyond tragic.

I hope this answers your question, now if you’ll excuse me I’m just going to go and cry in a corner.

[aot-snk-4238]

Different person, similar panel. 👀

[jaegerbroshoe]

What the fuck, I didn’t remember that Eren and Historia were carried in fucking coffins when they were kidnapped during the Uprising. They look like vampires lol.

Chapter 58 (Kenny apologizing to Eren here threw me off lmfao.)

Also, Eren’s flashback is way more graphic in the manga. Most of Grisha’s body was still there...I just wanna hug this poor boy.

Chapter 62

Lastly, I don’t know why Isayama (and others) think the Uprising was done badly. I actually think it was great, even the pacing (I did read it after it was long published so maybe not having to wait for monthly updates makes a difference). In any case, I don’t like the alterations the anime made to the pacing/content. Like, Historia’s reaction to seeing her dad was more impactful in the manga. She didn’t just start crying as soon as she saw him, which made it look like she was never angry at him.

Chapter 58

[orenjixaa]

y’all remember when Sasha slapped Mikasa?

[likeahbraus]

I miss the days of celebration and taking down the government! Plus look at me in my beautiful Mikasa’s arms! ^^

[lostcauses-noregrets]

Honestly, you know how Levi was only aware that Erwin had "selfish" motivations when he did that creepy smile? Well, Erwin himself only realized it in S3. So, Levi understood something about Erwin that even Erwin did not know about himself before Erwin. And since Erwin did not know that, he must not have shown it outwardly except for that moment. So it is a testament to how well Levi knows him that he figured it out and continued following him anyway.(1)

So any criticism that Levi put Erwin on a pedestal and did not follow him for who he was as a person is invalid, dumb and completely wrong.(2)

Do people really criticize Levi for putting Erwin on a pedestal and “not following him for who he was as a person"? That’s not an opinion I’ve come across. I can quite believe it’s a thing though, there are some incredibly bad takes about Erwin and Levi’s relationship out there.

Isayama does make the point in the Character Guide that when Levi first discovered that Erwin had “the self-interested goal of fulfilling his own dream” he was “shocked to learn that the man he saw as untouchable actually had an innocent, childish, dram-chasing side to him”. So if Levi had initially put Erwin on a pedestal, that certainly wasn’t the case latterly. Again in the Character Guide, Isayama tells us that Levi “chose to treat Erwin as a human, allowing him to die rather than reviving him.” So there’s no question that Levi valued Erwin’s humanity, in fact as I’ve said before, it’s the one thing he was unwilling to sacrifice.

I’m not sure I agree that Erwin only became aware of his “selfish” motivations in season 3. I think he was always aware of the tension between his childish desire to know the truth and atone for his father’s death, and his adult responsibilities as commander. However it is true that it’s Zackley that plants the insidious seeds of doubt in Erwin’s mind by questioning his morality and suggesting that he doesn’t care about humanity at all. That’s patently not true, but unfortunately the damage is done and from that point on Erwin increasingly doubts his actions and motivations to the point that he confesses to having considered ending it all.

What I certainly do agree with is that Levi is very perceptive and that he understands Erwin possibly even better than he understands himself. That’s why he knows exactly what he needs to say to Erwin in Shignashina in order to lift the burden of his dream from his shoulders and free him from the guilt that has plagued him for so long.