Levi Ackerman

Levi Ackerman (リヴァイ・アッカーマン) is a leading soldier in the Survey Corps, and is said to be humanity's most powerful soldier. He is also the leader of the Special Operations Squad.

Appearance
Levi has short, straight black hair styled in an undercut and sharp, intimidating grey eyes. Belying his rather short stature, his physique is well-developed and heavy with muscle from extensive 3DMG usage. The slight furrow beneath his eyes are at odds with his otherwise youthful appearance. Aside from his constant frown, his expression is calm, and his unflappable demeanor oftentimes makes it difficult to guess what he is thinking.

He is most often seen in his military uniform, and wears it with the Survey Corps' green hooded cloak when embarking on extramural expeditions. When forced to take leave from his duties due to injury, Levi was seen donning a black suit, plain white shirt and dress shoes. Whether in civilian clothes or uniform, Levi is always seen sporting his trademark white cravat.

Personality
Levi is described to be a "clean-freak" by those who know him on a personal level, as he prefers his environment to be spotlessly clean. He is averse to having either his person or his equipment soiled, and has been known to wipe down his blood-smeared blades while still on the battlefield. However, he will not hesitate to touch filth if he deems it necessary. Instances of this include him rescuing a phlegm-coated Eren from the Female Titan's maw, and grabbing a subordinate's bloody hand as he comforted him during his last moments. He is always seen wearing simple white cravat, which gives him an air of being "prim and proper".

Despite this clean-cut image however, Levi has an abrasive and unapproachable personality. His manner of speaking is rarely polite, and he often makes alienating comments that are coarse or inappropriate. His dark brand of humor, always delivered in deadpan, ranges from rude to outright vulgar. He tends to phrase things in a brash and insulting manner, and is not above provoking his opponents or belittling anyone who irritates him. This often unsettles people and makes him difficult to be around.

While Levi respects order, structure and discipline, he also seems to hold a disdain for authority and the status quo. At Eren's tribunal, he insulted merchants, calling them "pigs" and noting that the Military Police were unable of taking care of Eren. It seems he also holds an open resentment for the Military Police, presumably for their constant interference and attempts to undermine the Survey Corps. At one point, he mocks them by stating that they have neither battled or even seen a single Titan, and suggests that they join the Survey Corps.

However, Levi has a soft side, though he rarely shows it. One of his most defining characteristics is the great value he places on preserving human life. He himself has stated that he hates having unnecessary casualties, and advises his subordinates to properly use their judgement to avoid blunders that may cost them their lives. When it was ultimately discovered that Titans may have once been human beings themselves, Levi appeared to be mortified by the news.

Because of his hazardous profession and personal values, he has come to care greatly for his subordinates' welfare. When ordered to make an early retreat to the wall during the 56th expedition, Levi was visibly frustrated with the fact that his soldiers had died for the sake of a fruitless mission. He was also willing to resort to violence in order to save Eren from being killed at his tribunal, though he bore no malice towards him. Levi was also shown to be greatly disturbed by the loss of his entire special squad, and risked his well-being for the sake of protecting Mikasa from the Female Titan, resulting in him sustaining an injury. He has also stated that he carries the will of his fallen comrades, and that their collective grudge against the Titans gives him the strength to continue to fight.

While Levi shows loyalty and consideration for his comrades, he shows no mercy towards the Titans, slaughtering them indiscriminately with an obvious indifference. When dealing with individuals he perceives to be enemies to mankind, Levi's behavior can become sadistic, and even vindictive. A notable example is his bullying of the Female Titan when it was captured. Levi jeered at her, remarking that he enjoyed watching her suffer, and described in chilling detail how he intended to mutilate her human body. Though Levi is aware that his battle skill is in a different league from almost any other human soldier alive, he is not particularly arrogant, as he knows through experience that no soldier can be invulnerable. Few will argue with his claims that only he can handle certain difficult tasks, simply because they know his words are far from empty. He also seems to have an independent mindset, as many of his hunts result in solo kills, with little direct cooperation with other soldiers (due to him usually assigning them to hunt other Titans in the vicinity).

History
Levi originally lived like a thug in the underground city below the capital along with his friends Isabel Magnolia and Farlan Church. They were eventually captured by Erwin Smith and joined the Survey Corps. He is stated to have been Captain Ackerman's disciple.

Story
Levi is first seen leaving Trost District with the Survey Corps in the year 850. He leads his squad into assisting Hange as she pursues a Deviant Type Titan. He saves Oluo from being eaten by said Titan, which causes the later to declare that he will follow him all his life. He then finds Ilse Langnar's notebook in the ground, which he identifies as being her report.

Battle of Trost District arc
Levi is then seen as he leaves Trost along with the Survey Corps to the 56th expedition beyond the walls, the same day the Colossal Titan attacks said District. He is seen rescuing a dying soldier from a Titan's grasp before killing other two Titans. As his subordinate dies, Erwin orders him they better return to Trost, because it's possible that the gate has been broken. After Eren seals the gate of Trost and Armin get him out of his Titan body, they find themselves surrounded by Titans and Levi comes to the rescue. Later on, after Eren wakes up in a cell, Levi insures him that the higher-ups will let him join the Survey Corps and that he will make sure Eren doesn't get out of hand.

The Female Titan arc
During the trial, after Eren gets out of hand with his words, he assaults Eren, much to Mikasa's anger, as he teaches him his place. This was just an act to get the people to think that Levi can keep Eren down and that the Military Police Brigade cannot, assuring them that the Survey Corps will take care of him.

After the trial, Levi hands Eren over to his Special Squad to take care of him for a month, and moves to the old Survey Corps' HQ inside Wall Rose. During their stay at the castle, Levi orders Eren to sleep in the dungeon so he may not cause problems if he transforms by accident. At one point during the month Eren stays with them, Levi comes up with a plan to recover Eren from his Titan body if he goes out of control, causing him to lose his human limbs. This enables Hange to plan her experiments with Eren's transformation, but he fails to do so. After this happens, seeing as his hands aren't healing either, they decide to postpone further experiments, until Eren accidentally generates a partial Titan body trying to pick up a spoon. This causes the Special Squad to threaten him, and Levi has to defuse the situation.

During the 57th Expedition outside the Walls, Levi and his team are placed in the safest place of the formation. As the formation is suddenly attacked by an army of Titans coming from the right flank, it deviates towards a Forest of Giant Trees and Levi's group takes the central route. . Once the Female Titan that pursues them appears, the group starts begging Levi for his orders, but he keeps on looking forward. . Eren decides to transform, but due to Petra asking him to trust his squad, he hesitates. . It's by Levi's intervention, saying that the correct choice is always unknown and whatever he chooses to do, it's better to believe that he won't regret it, that Eren finally decides to trust in his companions and keep going. . Due to this, the Female Titan is captured by the Survey Corps.

Shortly after this, Levi gets separated from his squad. He reunites with Erwin and prepares to extract the person who's controlling the Female Titan from the nape of her neck. He and Mike attack her and try to cut her hands only to discover her ability to harden her skin. After Erwin orders the cannons to be loaded with explosives to blow the Titan's wrists, Levi steps on her head and threatens her, telling her how much he wishes to face her about the deaths of countless of his soldiers. This causes the Female Titan to start roaring. After a while, Titans from all directions come seeking to devour the Female Titan, and as Erwin orders, Levi and the rest of the Survey Corps elite members try to defend her, but end up failing. Erwin orders everyone to retreat and go back to Karanese. Since the order has been issued, Erwin notes that the steam from the corpses will difficult the rest of the Survey Corps to see the signal flares. This causes him to realize the person inside the Female Titan may have escaped and orders Levi to refill his gas and blades.

After the Female Titan comes back and kills Levi's squad, he and Mikasa join forces to get Eren back. Levi tells her to distract the Titan, but avoid trying to kill her, since she's able to harden her skin. Levi then proceeds to attack the Female Titan, and after a series of successful attacks, he incapacitates her. Seeing as the Titan is now helpless, Mikasa disobeys Levi's orders and attempts to assassinate her, which leads Levi to sprain his ankle saving her from the Titan's hardened fist. Using the momentum gained from the last attack, he cuts through the Female Titan's facial muscles, causing her to open her mouth and reveal Eren inside. He proceeds to rescue him and they flee.

During the retreat to Karanese District, the remaining of Survey Corps is attacked by several Titans after one of the soldiers went out to retrieve back the body of his fallen comrade. As the Titans closes in on one of the carts, Levi, unable to fight due to his injury, orders the other soldiers to discard the dead bodies of their deceased members in order to lighten the weight of their cart and outrun the chasing Titans. After doing so, the cart was able to get some distance with the Titans.

In Karanese, while the Survey Corps is shunned by the public for their mission failure, Levi is approached by Petra's father who reveals him that she constantly wrote to her father. He tells Levi that as a father, he's worried about Petra's decision to dedicate her life to him, since she's still too young and has her whole life ahead of her. Levi keeps on walking silently without responding. A few days later, Eren is summoned to the capital for a trial to decide his fate. Levi, along with Erwin, Eren and others have a reunion in the old Survey Corps HQ prior to this, since Armin has a theory about the Female Titan's true identity. He himself, doesn't participate in the operation, though, and is only seen near Erwin during this time.

Clash of the Titans arc
Levi only appears a few times during the supposed breach of Wall Rose. He is seen accompanying Hange and the others as they head to Hermiha District while they attempt to get information from Pastor Nick. While they don't get any information from him personally, he agrees to reveal the existence of a person who's able to speak about the secrets of the Walls: Historia Reiss. Mikasa and Armin offer their help to locate her and happen to reveal the name of Ymir, much to Hange's and Levi's surprise.

Levi is briefly seen again at Trost District, still sidelined due to his injury. After the appearance of the Armored and Colossal Titans atop Wall Rose, a small detachment of soldiers from all three military branches is gathered. Some soldiers from the Military Police mention that they are quite disappointed not to see any Titans nearby, to which Levi responds that they can join the Survey Corps any day so they can go outside of the Walls to fight them.

The Uprising arc
Following the successful attempt to rescue Eren from Reiner and Bertolt after a near-suicide mission, Levi is seen with Erwin who is currently recovering after the loss of one of his right arm. They are informed by Hange about her theory on the true origins of the Titans, once being humans. Erwin's reaction shocks Levi, causing him to call it "creepy". He then notifies Erwin about some decisions he took, among which is the formation of his new Special Operations Squad for protecting both Eren and Historia.

Levi then joins his team at the location of their hiding. After briefly complaining about the place not being properly cleaned up, he brings up the matter of closing up the hole in Wall Maria. When Armin talks about the possibility of Eren using his ability to do so being not too high, Levi states that it all depends on Eren and when Eren agrees with the plan, Levi orders Hange to take care of experimenting. However, he is taken aback by Hange's reaction who then reveals the murder of Pastor Nick. Levi deduces that the culprit was probably after the location of Eren and Historia. He also guesses that Nick didn't reveal any information and even though Hange continues blaming herself, they eventually decide to go after the culprit and try to go with the initial plan, both at the same time. Levi notes that this is what Erwin would do as well.

They eventually start the experiment with Eren's powers, where Levi is also present. When Eren stops responding and Mikasa heads straight for him, Levi plays with the idea of punishing her for disobeying orders, but Armin notes that the experiment is over. After Eren wakes up and is told about the results of the experiment, being unable to use the hardening ability, Levi complains about the situation. Mikasa tries to argue with him but Levi states that he isn't blaming Eren and describes the situation inside the Walls as 'shitty'. Hange 'translates' his words and encourages everyone to keep fighting. Later, the group receives orders from Erwin and leave their location. Eventually, they arrive to Trost and as they walk through the crowd, they are approached by people who blame Levi and the Survey Corps for losing their jobs. They continue until Levi notices an incoming carriage and while he ends up restrained, the carriage seemingly kidnaps Eren and Historia. However, it is revealed that Eren and Historia are hiding while the kidnapped ones are Jean and Armin in disguise. At that time, Levi and his squad arrive, standing on top of the roof where the two are being held. Mikasa questions his injury and Levi states that his leg is moving pretty well.

3D Maneuver Gear
Levi is excellent at using the 3D Maneuver Gear, to a point that everyone says he is the best at it. He is also said to be as valuable as an entire brigade, far outweighing all of the other soldiers. He is said to have been extremely strong even before joining the Survey Corps.

He has shown the capability of incapacitating Annie Leonhart in her Titan form (A 14 meter Titan Shifter), something which whole squads and even Eren in his Titan form couldn't accomplish.

Relationships

 * Eren Yeager - As humanity's strongest soldier, Levi commands great respect from Eren. Upon encountering Eren personally, Levi treated him like an animal, wary of his Titan shifting power, though he was impressed by Eren's passion. Upon getting to know him, Levi began treating Eren as he does most others: dismissively and coldly. However, Levi also becomes a mentor of sorts to Eren, understanding the potential good the young recruit is capable of, and offering advice during Eren's moments of doubt. He later becomes more patient with Eren, forgiving his mistakes, and nurturing his growth as a soldier, and as a vanguard for humanity's hope.
 * Erwin Smith - Levi and Erwin's relationship was not initially an amicable one. After being captured and blackmailed by Erwin into joining the Survey Corps, Levi at first wanted to kill him, but would later choose to set aside his revenge. Erwin would eventually become one of the few people Levi places absolute trust in, obeying his every command and judgement. However, this does not stop Levi from speaking in his usual rude manner around him. Erwin is also one of the few people that can maintain casual conversation with Levi, able to exchange brief banter with one another on equal grounds.
 * Hange Zoë - Levi was introduced to Hange during his first expedition as part of the Survey Corps. Levi immediately snubbed Hange's attempts at getting to know him, but their relationship would eventually improve over the years. By the events of the story, Levi and Hange are on better terms, though Levi is still annoyed by her obsession with capturing Titans, and dislikes her recklessness. Levi has gradually become more familiar with Hange, able to comfortably reach out and reprimand her when she gets too carried away. After years of working side by side, the two share a strong bond of trust, and Levi does not doubt any theories she may have on the Titans, even if he may not like them.

Trivia

 * Levi ranked first in the Characters Popularity Poll, a place above the series protagonist, Eren Yeager.
 * He is attributed with the literal title of "leader of the soldiers" (兵士長) among the Survey Corps. This title is often shortened and translated as "Captain" (兵長), and it is the title that he is commonly referred to by his comrades.
 * His name is Hebrew in origin, and means "attached" or "joining".
 * "Levi" is also a diminutive of the Hungarian given name "Levente", which means "existing" and is Slavic in origin.
 * His name has been inspired by a character of the American documentary 'Jesus Camp'.
 * Levi's age is one of several mysteries Isayama has hinted about in interviews. He has stated that Levi is "surprisingly old", but has declined to give an exact answer.

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