No worries! I take asks on SnK too!

I like Erwin a lot, and now I think he’s pretty lauded in the fandom–like to the point where I think he’s one of the most universally liked characters.

I really, really enjoy Erwin’s character and find him highly complex. In general, the vets are not my favorites though I think they’re cool, but I do love him. I think his character is extremely well done. He’s sympathetic and understandable when you learn about his past with his father, and his determination is admirable in many ways. Of course, he did lead many to their deaths… but he suffered for it. He was not happy about it, he was not content with it. The guilt was shredding him inside, and in Shiganshina you could really feel it in every scene he was in.

Erwin was a mentor figure, and mentor figures in shonen stories with SNK’s themes don’t tend to make it out alive. The moment he was introduced I figure he was going to die and tried to keep myself from becoming attached. And yet I did become attached, and I cried at his death. That’s a credit to his character. And I think his regret is a part of what makes him relatable. Who hasn’t felt weighed down by so much? In the end Erwin could not forgive himself, and that was the ultimate tragedy, and it hurt.

His friendship with Levi was also powerful. Levi truly respected him and even loved him (I think platonically, but it’s fine to interpret it romantically) and in the end Levi chose to let Erwin go because he did not want his friend to suffer any more, and I found that poignant as it fits with SnK’s themes.