Marco Bodt (Anime)

"Your skill at recognizing a situation as it unfolds, gives you a clear grasp of what needs to be done now, you know? You made the right call. It's what got me moving. It's why I'm alive now."

- Marco praises Jean's leadership

Marco Bodt (マルコ・ボット) was a cadet (訓練兵) of the 104th Cadet Corps and graduated as the seventh highest ranked cadet in his class. He was assigned to fight the Titans after the breach of Trost District and was given command of his own squad.

Appearance
Marco was of average height with a broad, muscular build. He had short, parted black hair, freckles, and light brown eyes. He wore the typical uniform of a member of the 104th Cadet Corps.

His casual attire consisted of a light green, long-sleeved shirt over a white, high-collared shirt and brown pants.

Personality
Marco was an idealistic person, valuing the good of the group above his own interests, as well as understanding and coping with his own shortcomings and limitations. The others respected him greatly and considered him to be a natural leader suited to his dreams of joining the Military Police Regiment. Unlike those who joined the Military Police Brigade for safety and privileges, his reasons for wanting to join it were genuinely faithful. He was shown to be an excellent judge of character, as he recognized Jean's potential as a leader and encouraged him to believe in himself. He was also shown to have a talent for preserving order among the other cadets, whether resolving arguments or keeping them calm during battle.

Humanity's Comeback arc
Marco is first introduced during the initiation of new recruits and is intimidated by their instructor after he expresses his desire to join the Military Police. He later attempts to maintain order when the recruits question Eren about the attack on Wall Maria, which Eren experienced firsthand. He chides the others when their questions become too upsetting for Eren.

During his time as a cadet, he befriends Jean Kirschtein and the two are often seen together. He seems to have been one of the only people to recognize Jean's potential, as well as spotting his weaknesses and how to improve them and encourages him to embrace his natural abilities as a leader. They become good friends and are rarely seen without the other.

Distress
In the year 848, two years before graduation, Marco leads a group of cadets on a wilderness hunt to sustain themselves in times of peace. Marco tries to keep the group moving at a slow pace, but finds it difficult to keep control, as Eren and Jean continually grate on each others' nerves. He also makes a habit of dictating what Armin, who has been assigned to keep a record of their mission, should and should not write, in an attempt to keep the report that Sadies will receive favorable.

During the night, the group is ambushed while they sleep. Held at gunpoint, they are unable to do anything as the thieves carry off their ODM gear and Christa Lenz. Marco suggests abandoning the mission and getting help from Sadies, but Eren convinces the group to help him chase down the thieves before they can get away. Sasha suggests using a higher vantage point to look for the kidnappers, and the group is able to successfully locate where the thieves are camping for the night.

The group devises a plan to confront the kidnappers. After Conny and Sasha successfully block off the kidnappers' route out of the forest, Marco is able to determine which of their carriages they are carrying the cadets' stolen goods in, and alerts Eren and Jean so that they can attack. When Eren and Jean are able to recover the cadets' ODM gear, but not Christa, Marco orders his team to equip their gear and use it to continue their pursuit. The group confronts the kidnappers again, but are left unable to fight when the men begin threatening Christa's life. Helpless, they are forced to hand over their gear again, only to be saved by the timely arrival of Thomas' group, who successfully ambush and capture the attackers. Once the Cadet Corps' instructors arrive, Marco delivers a report on what has happened.

Following the incident, Marco remarks to Eren that he should not have been the leader of their group, as Jean would have made a much better choice.

A Sudden Visitor: The Torturous Curse of Adolescence
In the year 849, the 104th Cadets are sent to Trost to participate in a mock defense drill. Marco and Armin attempt to ask Jean if he will be visiting his mother while in town, but drop the subject when Jean becomes angry with them.

The Struggle for Trost arc
After the Colossal Titan breaches Trost District, Marco is assigned command of the 19th Cadet Squad and is ordered to support the vanguard forces. He is eventually among the cadets stranded when the retreat order was given since he does not have enough gas to scale the Wall and escape Trost, which has become a death trap for the cadets. When Mikasa and Jean rally the others into charging headquarters, which has become surrounded by Titans, Marco is quick to join them. Inside the station, he is vital in Armin's plan to reclaim the overrun supply room and leads the main group in the operation. Armed with rifles, the recruits act as bait and lure the seven Titans that occupy the room into position. Marco maintains order in the group and keeps everyone calm until they fire and blind the attacking Titans.

He is later seen among the regrouped forces and attempts to once again keep order when people like Daz are giving into their fear, as Dot Pyxis has announced that he will need the soldiers in an operation to retake Trost District, which Marco himself will participate in. Marco does his best to comfort them and keep morale high, even when they are ordered to return to Trost. He joins the other recruits up on the Wall and acts as bait to distract the Titans from the main operation involving Eren. Later, he is among the recruits that go into the city to battle the Titans. There, he helps to rescue Jean when his equipment malfunctioned and eventually joins the others in battling the Titans while Eren is close to sealing the breach in Wall Rose.

At some point during the battle, Marco is ambushed and captured by Annie Leonhart, Bertholdt Hoover, and Reiner. He is restrained, and Annie forcefully removes his ODM gear while he pleads with them to stop. Left completely helpless, Marco is soon devoured by a Titan, as the three watch on, in tears.

He is later found dead after the Battle of Trost, discovered and identified by Jean, who wonders how he died. Jean realizes he had not seen him around recently and does not believe out of all the cadets, Marco was one of the deceased. Jean reveals the news to Eren, who is horribly shocked, and Eren briefly reminisces his time with his former friend. Along with the other causalities of the battle, Marco's body is cremated on a communal funeral pyre.

Eve of the Counterattack arc
After Marco's death, Jean is inspired to abandon his selfish ways and join the Scout Regiment, claiming that he does not want to meet a "disappointing end with someone burning his bones without knowing who they belonged to," referencing how Marco "died alone" and went unnoticed for days. Marco's death continues to motivate Jean to continue fighting despite the death and disarray surrounding humanity.

Wall Sina, Goodbye: Part One
Annie would continue to have nightmares about Marco's death, and her hand in it, after joining the Military Police Regiment.

While questioning citizens of Stohess District about a missing girl, Annie once again had a flashback to Marco's death.

Assault on Stohess arc
Later, during the attempted capture of Annie Leonhart in the Stohess District, Marco's omni-directional mobility gear is found to have been taken by Annie, as Armin remembered the little tweaks it had as he and Marco performed their equipment maintenance together. Though she admits she "found it," she fails to elaborate. This leaves the implication that his death may have involved foul play of some kind.

Clash of the Titans arc
While recovering their strength in the Forest of Giant Trees, Bertholdt reminds Reiner that they are both Warriors and not soldiers of the Walls. This causes Reiner to remember when he restrained Marco, which led to him being devoured by a Titan as Annie and Bertholdt watched.

Relationships

 * Jean Kirschtein - Marco and Jean were close friends, despite being vastly different in personalities, and he often served as a confidant and voice of reason. He was the one who recognized Jean's potential as a leader and encouraged him to believe in himself. When Jean found Marco's body, he went into a partially catatonic state. Marco's death had a significant impact on Jean and he made the decision to honor his memory by joining the Scouts.
 * Daz - During the battle of Trost, Marco actively encouraged and comforted Daz. They struggled briefly when Daz considered trying to kill himself and was later shown giving him encouragement when Daz decided to continue fighting.
 * Armin Arlelt - Marco and Armin appeared to be friends. During the battle of Trost as Armin devised a plan to clear the supply room of Titans, Marco expressed his faith that it would work when Armin expressed doubt if it would. After his death, Armin mentioned that they usually performed equipment maintenance together. This became important, as it allowed Armin to recognize Marco's stolen equipment when Annie presented it as her own.
 * Eren Jaeger - Eren and Marco were shown to be friends. When Conny asked Eren about the Colossal Titan after learning he was from Shiganshina District, Marco tried to stop him so Eren would not have relive the horror he went through. Marco was quite saddened to learn of Eren's apparent death. After Marco's death Eren was greatly affected, even briefly disbelieving it to be true, and when he obtained his Scout Regiment uniform he had a brief vision of Marco also wearing the uniform standing alongside him.
 * Reiner Braun - For reasons unclear during the battle of Trost Reiner restrained Marco and left him to be eaten alive by a Titan. In his dissociative state Reiner would be shown to be haunted by this action.

Trivia

 * His name means, roughly, "Messenger from the God of War", perhaps a nod towards his role in illustrating the cruel reality facing the recruits.
 * He is the only soldier from the 104th Cadet Corps Top 10 that is currently deceased.