Board Thread:Manga/@comment-27321453-20191208140701/@comment-24407809-20191211192804

MilesTheMorales1 wrote: Isayama has attempted to blur the lines between good and evil in this world. If Eren is the protagonist, Gabi upstaged him by nearly killing him. If Reiner is the hero, Gabi upstaged him by successfully landing a lethal blow to Eren, saving the Marleyans. Either way, she's upstaging everyone because she's awesome. The scene you are referencing is one in which Gabi lands a "killing" blow on Eren by surprise. She does not outwit him, she does not outmaneuver him, she is simply in the right place at the right time. Anyone with a firearm and proficient training (which the Warrior Cadets have) would have been able to make that shot. This is not an instance of Gabi triumphantly outshining Eren by defeating him, or Reiner by doing what Reiner cannot and defeating Eren, she is simply in an advantageous position.

MilesTheMorales1 wrote: She had no shown training of riding a horse, operating Anti-Personell Manuever Gear, nor firearms, and yet performs all three things. She also shows no prior knowlege of Titan physiology, and yet killed a titan by aiming for it's weak spot. If that's "utterly failing" at everything she attempts to do, I would be fine being a complete nuissance to society if it means I get to succeed at half the things I attempt. You are exaggerating her proficiency with 3DMG. Lobov's gear was already attached to the blimp, so all Gabi did was hit the control to retract the anchor and pull her up. She did not use it herself or show remarkable skills in flying around with the gear.

It was established in Reiner's flashbacks that marksmanship is part of the Warrior Cadets' training (Bertolt is specifically identified as being the best marksman in Reiner's batch of cadets), so we already know that as a Warrior Cadet Gabi would have received thorough training in the use of firearms. This is another skill which is properly set up (remember, a Mary Sue is a character who possesses skills with no explanation).

I think it's safe to assume that anyone who is being groomed to become a Titan someday will probably be educated on where her future weak spot will be on her Titan's body.

The horse one is true. That's one knock against her, although I think that is only an error because Isayama forgot that he previously established Gabi couldn't ride horses. I wouldn't be surprised if the anime removed that line so that the continuity error will no longer exist.

MilesTheMorales1 wrote: She didn't just board a zepplin, she killed a moving 3DMG user with pinpoint accuracy and no shown firearm training, which would be illogical to just assume she got. Then, she used the dead man's 3DMG, in which she knows nothing about, and somehow used the equipment to board the zepplin. That alone is a mary sue feat, and killing an eldian was a means to an end, not a failure. Escaping her jail cell was another mary sue feat because the plot demanded her guard's incompetence for her exit. Finding the blouse family isn't a failure, that's literally the goal of escaping her jail cell: finding refuge elsewhere. I addressed most of these point above. I will say that her guard's incompetence does not affect whether she is a Mary Sue. It is only indicative of the guard's writing quality.

Let's also not pretend that he arriving on the Blouse farm is by her own doing. It established that she is lost and has no idea what she will do next after escaping the prison. Kaya arriving is pure happenstance and has nothing to do with her own abilities.

MilesTheMorales1 wrote: Those "savings" from Mikasa, Pieck, and Falco were the result of either the situation being literally out of her hands(not something she could possibly succeed or fail at) and/or because they had found some sort of inherent value in her. Being saved in general doesn't debunk a mary sue, sometimes it actually strengthens the argument by proving that many characters find value in her because the plot demands them to. If the situation is out of her hands, meaning that she must be saved, then she's not a Mary Sue. A Mary Sue doesn't get into situations which are beyond their control because they always have a skill which will save them. I will agree with you that other character finding qualities in her worth saving could apply to a Mary Sue, but in that case Mikasa is the only one who fills that category. Part of the mission to Paradis was specifically to recover the Warrior Cadets, so Pieck's investment in her makes sense, and it is established that Falco has feelings for her, so he will naturally want to save her from life-threatening situations.