Dot Pixis

Dot Pixis (ドット・ピクシス) is the commander (司令) of the Garrison, and is in charge of the defense of the southern region. He is the highest ranking administrator of the southern region, which includes Trost District. In matters of defense, he is given full authority.

Appearance
Pixis is a bald man with a structured build. He has gold eyes and a distinguished mustache, with light skin and notable wrinkles under his eyes. As a commander, he also wears a purple bolo tie, much like his fellow commanders Hange Zoë and Nile Dok. As the highest ranking Garrison officer, he is only seen wearing his Garrison uniform paired with a white button-up shirt and a red sash with gold trim.

Personality
Pixis is an eccentric man. While observing Titans breaching Wall Rose, he said he would not mind being eaten by a Titan if "it happened to be a stunning beauty." He retains a calm, and light-hearted demeanor, even in the midst of chaos, and he understands the strife and suffering of others, as he is seen allowing soldiers who wanted to leave because he understands the extreme amounts of terror and fear in those soldiers. Yet, Pixis is an effective leader, as seen when he quiets all the soldiers attempting mutiny and successfully convinces them to continue fighting to retake Trost District. He is an expert strategist and is able to gauge a situation carefully, but also knows when to take risks, which lead to his decision to trust Eren Yeager to stop the breach. However, he stated himself that he is a sore loser, and along with this, he says that the idea of giving up to the Titans makes him sick, representing his determination to attempt to defeat the Titans and save humanity. He is a man who makes smart choices, putting Ian Dietrich in charge of the elite squads protecting Eren proved to be a wise move as Rico Brzenska and Mitabi Jarnach both called that they should give up on the operation, which Ian denied, that eventually led to being a success.

Battle of Trost District arc
After it was discovered that Eren Yeager could transform into a Titan, Eren was sentenced to death. Pixis, however, happened to be nearby when Armin Arlert gave a passionate speech in defense of his friend, vouching for the strategic and tactical benefits that he could bring to turn the tide of the battle. The officer in charge, Kitz Weilman, was not swayed, but as he was about to give the kill order, Dot Pixis stopped him, believing Armin's words.

Pixis brings the three soldiers on top of Wall Rose and clears up the matter of Eren's transformation by saying he will see the proof in Eren's basement. He questions Armin about his plan to use Eren's Titan from to seal the hole in Wall Rose and is so encouraged he decides to use it. He calls up his staff officers to begin planning for the assault. However, the Garrison, already extremely low on manpower and morale after the evacuation, is in no condition to fight again and many soldiers attempt to mutiny in order to spend the little time they have left with their families. In order to give the soldiers hope, he introduces Eren as being a part of a secret government experiment to turn humans into Titans to fight them on equal footing. Unsurprisingly, Pixis is not taken seriously and soldiers turn to leave, some even fighting each other. Finally, he gives an order to pardon all deserters, which shocks higher ranking soldiers. However, he states that by leaving, they will put their families at risk and expose them to the same terror that has paralyzed themselves. This argument convinces the soldiers to reassemble their ranks and begin the operation.

Clash of the Titans arc
Pixis later appears when he is being given a report by Hannes when a member of the Survey Corps informs him and the others about Wall Rose being supposedly breached for the second time by the Titans. He later appears drinking on top of Wall Rose when Anka Rheinberger, one of his escorts, scolds him for drinking and makes it known that she does not want to take care of him, which Pixis would be fine with because he thinks she is a beauty. She gives a report that Titans have stopped appearing and only a few appeared anyway. Pixis surmises that there might be no breach in Wall Rose given the lack of Titans. Erwin Smith then appears and Pixis congratulates him on capturing the Female Titan. He hopes this will force the government to start thinking and Erwin replies that they already have, and the Military Police Brigade present with Erwin are proof of that. A Garrison member then arrives to inform him there is no breach, and that three more Titan shifters have been identified: Reiner Braun, Bertolt Hoover, and Ymir.

The Uprising arc
Pixis next appears with Levi and a convalescent Erwin, who is recovering from the loss of his right arm during the battle against Reiner, Bertolt, and Ymir. They discuss the supposed breach in Wall Rose,when Hange and Connie arrive and bring them the news that there was no breach and that the Titans were the same inhabitants of Ragako who were transformed in an unknown way. Hange shares the theory that all Titans may have been humans once, and Pixis suggests that the only difference between Titan shifters and regular Titans may be that the former have not assimilated the human inside. Hange and Levi then inform them that Eren and Historia have been sent into hiding for their protection.

He is seen again when Erwin proposes overthrowing the government. Pixis is sympathetic with Erwin and agrees that something must be done, but he also exclaims being an old soldier and how he will not lead his soldiers against each other. He agrees to help if Erwin's intention are noble but also warns that he will personally deliver Erwin to execution if he is acting wrongly. He then discusses how people have put up with the King because they all share the same fate in the Walls, and that any attempt to forcefully remove him from power would involve tremendous violence. Erwin believes that the government wants Eren in order to use his abilities to control humanity; Pixis believes that they might be able to hand Eren over since they all share the same fate. Erwin disagrees and Pixis wonders how they will carry out the revolution, to which Erwin replies that they will replace the King with Historia Reiss, a descendant of Rod Reiss, the true ruler of humanity. It is later revealed by Erwin that Pixis refused to help in the revolution.

Pixis is present at the hearing of Erwin Smith. Just as the situation looks bleak, Anka Rheinberger reveals that Wall Rose has been breached. Pixis begins to give evacuation orders for the refugees but is stopped when the capital officials decree that no refugees will be allowed to enter Wall Sheena. This shocks the small military crowd inside the room, particularly Nike Dok. Anka leaves the room and moments later, Darius appears within the room. He reveals that the breach of Wall Rose was a ruse and Pixis announces everyone's role in rooting out the corruption present within the royal government. Erwin is then released and the officials are then taken into custody for valuing their wealth over the lives of the people.

It is later revealed that Pixis stated to Erwin that he would only participate in the revolution if the King and his lackeys attempt to sacrifice half of the population in order to save themselves (and the nobles from starvation) if Wall Rose were to be breached. If the King and his nobles did not attempt to do so, then Pixis would immediately resign for treason. However, the King and the nobles attempted to lock out half of the population.

Return to Shiganshina arc
On the evening of the mission to retake Wall Maria, Dot Pixis stands among the other military leaders, saluting the Survey Corps farewell before their expedition to Shiganshina District.

As Armin Arlert explains his plan for victory against the Colossus Titan to Eren, Pixis sits with the other military leaders drinking tea and worrying if the operation to retake Wall Maria and humanity's land will be successful.

Anime and Manga Differences

 * Pixis first appears during the Invasion of Trost, playing chess with Lord Wald. A soldier appears and informs him of the situation in Trost, which required his immediate attention. Pixis decides to head over to the scene, calmly refusing the noble's request to stay and protect his property.

Trivia

 * His name can be the misspelling of "Dot Pixels". This can be considered as a joke since pixels and dots are almost the same thing.
 * The name "Pixis" may refer to the constellation "Pyxis Nautica" - Latin for "The Naval Compass".
 * In 2010, Isayama posted a blog post admitting that Dot Pixis was modeled after, a general in the Imperial Japanese Army, to whom Isayama said "I respect for leading such a simple and frugal life". This brought a large controversy and even death threats against the mangaka that lasted for years (and may still continue to this day) from sectors of the population where Yoshifuru is deeply hated.
 * In an issue of Bessatsu Magazine, Isayama revealed that Pixis is married and has children.

Navigation
Dot Pixis