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oh my god this couldnt have been worded better

Levi Ackerman

Humanities strongest soldier.

The living spirit of the Survey Corps. Last surviving veteran soldier.

Starting from A Choice With No Regrets OVA, we can already see some of Levi’s defining traits. His deep care for his friends and comrades as well as his flaws.

Notice how Levi goes completely out of control and doesn’t go for the nape on the titan once he realizes his friends were eaten by it. Instead he tears it into pieces, completely destroys it, essentially torturing it before taking out it’s nape and killing it.

It shows how much family and friendship means to him, but also demonstrates his violent behaviour. How he would do anything to protect and avenge his loved ones.

Levi Ackerman’s Friendship:

Additionally Levi only joined the Survey Corps just to kill Erwin, showing avid hate in the manga for him, but all that hatred vanishes when Erwin tells him how it wasn’t his fault that his friends died, but it was the titans.

Erwin inspires Levi in this moment, and Levi sees Erwin as someone he could follow and trust.

Erwin is the first person to respect Levi, and their close friendship is one that will stay with him for the rest of his life.

This is how their relationship ended, with Levi acting selfishly and letting Erwin rest instead of dragging him back to fight and become the devil.

Levi to Erwin ‘give up on your dreams and die.’

He said this becuase this is what Erwin needed to hear. It’s about Levi releasing Erwin from his burden. That Levi does this for Erwin, even if it hurts himself to do it, because it was the only plan Erwin gave where Levi was guaranteed to survive. He refused to use the plan Levi gave of Hange’s squad acting as bait so that Erwin could get away with Eren, and he’d sacrifice himself for Erwin.

It gives Erwin strength, as his dream was the only thing of importance at that instance, so Levi saying that to him was the push needed for him to carry out the plan. So, Levi said what needed to be said for Erwin’s sake.

When Erwin died in Shiganshina, Levi let him rest in peace instead of giving him titan serum. He didn’t want Erwin to have to lead any more soldiers to their deaths despite it meaning that he had to say goodbye to his oldest friend, and the person he loves. 

After doing so, Levi dedicated his life to avenging Erwin. He spent the majority of the final volumes trying to avenge Erwin, and the soldiers who died in the rts arc by killing Zeke.

Levi and Hange’s first interaction also occured during ACWNR.

They too show kindness to Levi, and see how Levi could be an asset to the SC. They try to form a bond with him, but their enthusiasm makes Levi almost pull a knife and kill them. They are the first of the soldiers, excluding Erwin and Mike, to show that they didn’t care that he came from the underground, and that they admire his strength and skills.

Over the years, they worked together, especially when Hange became the commander of the Survey Corps. Levi lost a lot of people throughout his life, with Hange being his last friend to die. 

And the last words he said to them were ones he repeated from Erwin. This is his way of honouring Hange, and shows that both of them miss their old friends and comrades. He said this to Hange, becuase this is what they needed to hear, their final push into acting, and sacrificing themselves.

Also, Levi saying ‘see you Hange’ foreshadows that Levi may see his comrades once again, which he does, in the smoke after killing Zeke and helping take down Eren.

It not only pays tribute to his fallen comrades, as it was the line they used when entering the Survey Corps, but it also somewhat reclaims it again after the phrase was coopted by the yaegerists.

Levi made both commanders smile in their last moments. His friendship with them is one of the strongest in AoT. It shows that Levi values his friends.

Levi let Erwin rest, with only his promise of taking down the beast titan keeping him fighting. He let Erwin go peacefully instead of dragging him back to hell like Floch wanted him to. He acted selfishly and chose Erwin over humanity in that moment.

He chose Erwin. Which is something Levi would not regret. He chose to let Erwin die, chose for him to die peacefully and die a human instead of forcing him back into this hell.

Levi doesn’t regret the decision he made of following Erwin all those years ago. Nor does he regret the choice of letting Erwin pass on. He preferred Erwin to rest peacefully rather than be dragged back to earth.

He says that Armin had the same look in his eyes as you, talking about the SC and his friends, but also means he’s talking about Erwin mostly, he saw intelligence in Armin, but he didn’t choose to use the serum on him becuase of that, it was becuase of Erwin.

Levi is comparing Armin’s eyes to the starry-eyed survey corps members’ and their dreams, and this emphasises how Levi fought for his comrades. 

“Your eyes” isn’t just about Erwin, it’s plural (in japanese). Levi carries the weight of all his dead comrades/friends, fighting for their dreams and humanity’s future so that Armin will make them come true.

But this whole arc from Levi’s perspectives is about Erwin, and fulfilling his promise to him, so the fact that it isn’t just talking about Erwin only doesn’t take away from the meaning..

What it means to be a soldier in AoT according to Levi.

He says he doesn’t mind playing the violent role, that he’d do it to save himself and others around him, so that the rest of humanity doesn’t need to take part in the violence.

This demonstrates his selfless behaviour, but highlights how he resorts to violence. That becuase of his childhood in the underground, and harsh lifestyle they live because of the constant threat titan’s are, are a huge impact on Levi’s life, and how he acts.

And of course, making choices with no regrets. All the choices he has made are one’s that he doesn’t regret, even if they may be considered ‘bad’ becuase regretting leads to more mistakes.

The cost and burden of sacrifice. He has lost so many of his comrades, all of his friends from the veterans of the SC. His mother, and Kenny who he saw as a father figure. His first two friends Furlan and Isabel, and his entire squad. He loses Erwin the man he loves, and then Hange, the last important person alive to him, excluding his new squad from the 104th.

And the true meaning of the survey corps and how it ties in with the alliance forming. The survey corps were never formed to trample over the lives of others unlike the military police pre timeskip and Eren as well as the yeagerists post timeskip. How Levi sees the Survey Corps as one fighting for them to have good lives, free from fear of titans and enemies.

Even so, Levi isn’t the flawless, perfect soldier he’s mostly presented to be. There’s been a couple of times when he miscalculated, or acted out of line. The most prominent examples are when he lashed out on Historia to push her to into the decision of becoming Queen. How everyone around him thought he was going too far, but he carried on, doing what he needed to do to ensure Erwin’s plans would work.

Basically what makes Levi’s character so appealing isn’t his “strongest soldier” exterior, it’s his inner struggle with the promise he made to Erwin which ties in with his human flaws, his experience about the world, from childhood to adulthood, and how many people he has lost, but how he keeps on fighting, and his guiding presence especially in the uprising arc. How his squad and survey corps soldiers trust him, and so does his commader. Erwin let’s him make his own decision. And Levi makes the final decision for Erwin.

Additionally, Levi is a character that shares some of the most important and story defining dynamics in the series with Erwin and Hange, as well as Eren and both his squads. He trusts them just as much as they trust him, and he fights to avenge them. 

How he never regrets a decision, nor does he let other characters regret their choices. He is a source of support and advice to many.

He sees his comrades in the smoke in the last chapter, which tells us how much friendship means to him. He sounds so done, and looks it, as he knows this is the last time he will fight, and now he can rest.

He also knows that his friends have been watching, and that he has avenged their deaths.

We see Levi cry for the first time as well, here, when he knows that his friends have been with him, and the last time he see’s them. 

Additionally, Levi was Erwin’s last thread of humanity and that the crate scene was the greatest act of love either of them could ever give one another.

I think Levi’s character is one that alot of people tend to get wrong or misundertand, or just fight over.

He is one of the most complex characters written by Isayama, and is adored by many fans. He’s one of the most popular characters in aot.

He is more than just strength, good looks and skills.