User blog comment:Blacktitan1031/attack on titan characters/@comment-1971498-20131009215046

Favourite: Annie

Mainly because she presented what was the most interesting viewpoint right at the very start of the series. I love how she served to highlight the jarringly twisted system of the military in essentially giving a luxurious lifestyle towards those who graduate in the top 10. Not only did this change Eren's perception of the military, but it allowed him to further refine his mentality regarding his desire to join the Scouting Legion/Recon Corps. As for me, her seeming callousness of it all was really intriguing and yet her obvious indulgence in combat really interested me. I was already interested in her character from the very start and was almost worried she'd quickly get brushed aside as a stock serious character in the supporting cast, and oh boy I was wrong.

Cue in the Female Titan, and my love for her character grew exponentially. Considering her resigned mentality and direct yet honed approach as a Titan Shifter combatant, I really liked the ideas that her role represented within the story and it's implications regarding the unknown elements of SNK. What is so important to her mission that makes her kidnapping Eren in such a direct and violent manner seem so trivial in comparison? I also love the clear indication that despite being suspected as the Female Titan by the viewer already, the narrative presents her viewpoint in that she actually respects Eren a whole lot. It puts us into a position that questions where everything falls into place in terms of a moral scale. Has Annie committed evil actions? Yes, but is Annie inherently evil in her moral compass and viewpoint? I don't believe so. Her relationship with Eren is an interesting one (besides the fun of "shipping" such characters) since she's presented as a close mentor to him, and it makes for an interesting character arc for Eren when he finally needed to confront her as the Female Titan. Truly a fascinating character, and I hope to see more of her in the future.

Now it's hard for me to really "hate" or have any strong aversion towards a character as I can appreciate characters that should be "hated" as long as their designated role serves to enhance the story, and in SNK's case I don't find myself personally disliking any characters (doesn't mean I have to like them either, rather there's a level of indifference where I can't really care enough to hate them too). In that regard, I'll just mention my other favorites other than Annie instead. My second most favorite is a close tie between Eren and Mikasa with Mikasa closely getting ahead even if by a fraction. I just love Mikasa's brutal nature and strong conviction, yet her mentality's seeming foundation being mainly built around Eren isn't exactly treated as a completely positive thing, and that's something I really appreciated in presenting how she's still flawed despite her well-meaning protective nature and her depiction as a near-perfect elite soldier.

As for Eren, I really loved how he started out as a brash near-psychopathic protagonist (which in of itself is simply bizarre even for an action shounen protagonist) yet he slowly becomes more considerate and self-aware of the things around him, even revising his own mentality to suit the new things he's learned. Contrary to popular belief, I also appreciate how his supposed dream of wanting to "KILL ALL TITANS" isn't actually his true desire, as it's merely a part of what he truly wants: to simply seek and explore the outside world that humanity has been deprived of all this time. The fact that his outward motivation ("kill all titans") is merely treated as being simply an aspect of his true desire (go to the outside world) is something I appreciated as it shows how his beliefs still stems from a positive ideal as opposed to simply being all about blood and vengeance. As for my 3rd favorite, it would probably be Jean (so far anyway).