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The protagonist (or antagonist depending on who you ask) of Attack on Titan is known by many names around the world. Each of these names points to a young man with incredible strength and independence, but none of them truly capture the unique essence of Eren Yeager.
The Attack Titan, Eren, Protagonist, Coordinate, Hero, Warhammer Titan, Villain, Cadet, Founding Titan, Antagonist, Scout. Each of these titles points back to the same young man who carries many names and is unlike anybody else that has come before him. In the world of Attack on Titan and the larger world of shonen anime protagonists, Eren Yeager stands out as the face of an internationally successful franchise and a truly dynamic character.
10 Eren Is More Than Willing To Kill His Foes In Order To Consume Them & Gain More Strength
Eren isn’t the first anime protagonist to consume others in order to gain more power, but he is one of the few that is willing to murder others in order to gain more abilities. Committing murder for strength is often something that an antagonist is willing to do, but it is rare to see a protagonist do it.
Even before Eren took up the role of antagonist, he was killing others in order to get stronger. First, it started in a dream, when he murdered his father and inherited the Attack Titan. Then, Eren began murdering Pure Eldian Titans in order to master his ODM gear. After this, Eren goes head over heels into Marley and commits mass murder all for the right to inherit more Titan abilities.
9 The Titan/Skin Mecha Concept Is New To The Shonen Anime Genre
The mecha anime genre is nothing new. Neon Genisis‘ popularity back in the ’90s sparked a trend of mecha anime that continues to this day. Code Geass, Gundam, and Gurren Lagann are each worth a watch, but none of them can touch the genius that is Attack on Titan.
Though many fail to see AoT as a mecha anime, it borrows a lot from this genre. Eren is unique here for piloting a skin mecha rather than a technologically produced mecha, but it is a giant piloted by a human all the same.
8 Eren Attempts To Murder Everybody On The Planet With His Power
Even amongst the shonen anime protagonists that flip sides to become the series’ antagonist, it is rare to find a character with the gall to commit omnicide.
Light Yagami is a character that is often compared to Eren because of the way he commits villainous acts as a protagonist, but Light’s genocide is nothing compared to Eren’s.
7 He Betrays His Two Best Friends
Every good shonen protagonist makes friends along their way to the top of their respective power scale. The anime trio is a common trope that sets the protagonist next to two characters with whom they develop a lifelong friendship after their initial encounter.
Naruto has Sasuke and Sakura while Eren has Armin and Mikasa. The difference between these two groups lies in Eren’s betrayal. Unlike the average anime protagonist, Eren chooses his own selfish desire to murder billions of people over his two life-long friends.
6 Eren Never Holds The Title Of The Strongest Hero In His Anime World
Not every anime protagonist begins their adventure as the strongest. This is a trope that has died down since the days of Dragon Ball and Naruto. Still, it is expected that at one point in the story, the protagonist will become the strongest hero in their respective anime.
Eren is one of the only anime protagonists that never becomes that strongest hero. During his time working as a member of the Survey Corps, both Levi and Mikasa are more skilled warriors than Eren. By the time Eren does reach the heights of AoT‘s power scale, he is a full-fledged villain and still gets outpaced by Mikasa.
5 Eren Is A Coward Who Can’t Even Face The Truest Version Of Himself
There are plenty of anime characters who are scared, but none are as cowardly as Eren Yeager. This statement may be controversial to some, but Eren has lived in fear for so long that the only solution he can come up with to create world peace is omnicide.
Fans would also be wise to remember that Eren was unable to push up to the front line until he was one of the most powerful beings on the entire planet. On the other hand, characters like Armin, Jean, and Falco were putting their lives on the line without the power of multiple Titans coursing through their veins.
4 At The End Of Attack On Titan, Eren Loses
Protagonists don’t often lose. Period. Even outside of the shonen anime genre, it is rare to see a protagonist lose. Of course, there are a number of examples where the protagonist does lose in and outside of anime, but few are defeated as robustly as Eren Yeager.
Not only is his plot foiled at the end of the Attack on Titan manga, but the young Eren that fans learned to love throughout the first three seasons of AoT also loses to his own dark urges.
3 Over The Course Of Four Seasons, Eren Changes Into The Enemy That He Swore To Destroy
The first episode of Attack on Titan is difficult to forget. After Eren’s mother is devoured by the Smiling Titan, the young man swears to go to war with all Titans. Little does he know that he himself is a Titan.
Eren’s hatred sends him on an intriguing and dynamic path that changes him in ways that no other shonen protagonist has changed before. Instead of defeating his enemy, Eren becomes the thing he swore to destroy in the first place. Shonen tropes would have some viewers convinced that their protagonists are meant to be stagnant beacons of hope and strength, but Eren is different.
2 Eren Is Both The Series’ Protagonist & Antagonist
Until the second half of the final season is animated, there is still an argument to be made for the country of Marley, rather than Eren, filling the role of Attack on Titan‘s antagonist. Up to this point in the story, Marley is the true aggressor at the center of this international conflict. Once fans see Eren’s actions at the tail end of this series, Marley will take a back seat to the Eldian influenced by both Marley and Paradis forces.
Eren is as much of an antagonist in Attack on Titan as Marley is. In fact, Eren is little more than a condensed pawn of revenge crafted by the Marleyan people to commit genocide on a scale hitherto unheard of.
1 Eren Yeager Is The Most Popular Shonen Protagonist From The Modern Era Of Anime
There are plenty of other popular shonen anime protagonists. Goku and Naruto have reached the same international shores as Eren and have the added benefit of nostalgia for many adults who no longer watch anime.
Still, the shonen anime genre has never been as popular as it is today, and Eren Yeager stands at the center of it as the most unique shonen protagonist of all time.
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