You know, at first, i wasn’t all that interested in levi, until i started thinking about what it means that he’s one of the smartest guys around and a lowly corporal (his actual rank is debatable, but being a corporal is not really top tier) with a penniless street trash background, because that is something that matters so much.

sure, he’s got a pistol for a mouth, but no one’s ever actually listened to what he says, because what he has to say is useless to the people at the top, which, for him, is just great, because now he can talk all the shit he wants and no one notices, because when push comes to shove, he’s ice cold, he’s hyper-competent, he’s a self weaponized asshole and he can carry an entire war on his back.

because, one of the best things you can come to know is that once you fit the mold of what people expect of you, they don’t look further beneath the surface, and all they see is what you choose to give them. part of why this works so well for him is that it’s true, he is a foul-mouthed hick, but he uses that status to scam people into thinking that’s all he is and ever will be.

and he’s angry at a lot of things, he’s furious at the society that made him, he wants to burn down the structure of classism that dictates who is disposable and who isn’t, and more importantly knows the reality of the abattoir of a conflict they’re all stuck in, knows, with a deep to-the-bones conviction, that this war, as it exists now in this form, is stupid and wasteful and terrifyingly destructive. it would take a lot for it to change, because the war is always going badly, and it will continue to do so until its core tenets are changed, until it is not limited in scope to ‘whatever props up the rich noblemen and to hell with the rest’ and levi will never back off, sit down and shut up about it, couldn’t do it if you put a gun to his head. really, for all that he complains, he doesn’t want to go home, because all that’s waiting for him there are filthy streets, and his reputation as an inhumanly efficient soldier won’t save him from poverty. he’s basically fighting because he’s got nowhere else to go, and he’s laughing at everyone because after all he did, it’s still not enough for him to matter as a human being.

also, there’s a reason erwin smith likes him so much, because lbr that man doesn’t take shit from anyone, and it’s quite telling that he makes an exception for levi, even when he’s at his most viciously mutinous, because a) he probably says a lot of things that erwin’s thinking but can’t say because of the chains of command, and b) when he’s right, he’s right. like, in the beginning, can you imagine other officers dropping some condescension into their tone when they’re talking to levi, half not realizing they’re doing it and half because hey, he couldn’t be bright enough to figure it out, right? or just going out and saying to erwin “he’s doing admirably for someone of his background”, but don’t worry, it was meant as a compliment, and levi’s face would turn to stone with how hard he’s trying not to laugh at the cold, red stare erwin gives them, because this is just so rich, and by the end of the day even that guy would end up holding his belly to keep from dying of mirth.

to me, the best thing about him is that, after all that, after being stepped on for most of his life, he still can’t be ignored. he steps up his game, becomes the best there is at what he does, not even to prove a point, and now the people are terrified of him and what he can do even as they applaud him. the nobles may hate him, but it’s a hatred born of fear, because nine times out of ten he knows more than they do. he’s underground city trash and he won’t die, they just can’t get rid of him, not if so many titans couldn’t do it. you can tell he never gave a damn about his hero status, but it’s something he can use and turn into a prodding stick to taunt them with, because, superficially, ‘hero’ is an apt moniker. he’s the thing that every child is told that they can be when they grow up except it was never supposed to be him. he was never supposed to burn so bright so fast, but if there’s something he’s learned, it’s that failure is not an option in this world.

so, right now, he’s sitting on his throne laughing at the people who hate him for being, in their eyes, inherently, inarguably, inescapably lesser than them and for wearing that crown and taunting them with it, and hell there are some points i could use to argue against him, but this is not something i could ever hate him for.you know, at first, i wasn’t all that interested in levi, until i started thinking about what it means that he’s one of the smartest guys around and a lowly corporal (his actual rank is debatable, but being a corporal is not really top tier) with a penniless street trash background, because that is something that matters so much.

sure, he’s got a pistol for a mouth, but no one’s ever actually listened to what he says, because what he has to say is useless to the people at the top, which, for him, is just great, because now he can talk all the shit he wants and no one notices, because when push comes to shove, he’s ice cold, he’s hyper-competent, he’s a self weaponized asshole and he can carry an entire war on his back.

because, one of the best things you can come to know is that once you fit the mold of what people expect of you, they don’t look further beneath the surface, and all they see is what you choose to give them. part of why this works so well for him is that it’s true, he is a foul-mouthed hick, but he uses that status to scam people into thinking that’s all he is and ever will be.

and he’s angry at a lot of things, he’s furious at the society that made him, he wants to burn down the structure of classism that dictates who is disposable and who isn’t, and more importantly knows the reality of the abattoir of a conflict they’re all stuck in, knows, with a deep to-the-bones conviction, that this war, as it exists now in this form, is stupid and wasteful and terrifyingly destructive. it would take a lot for it to change, because the war is always going badly, and it will continue to do so until its core tenets are changed, until it is not limited in scope to ‘whatever props up the rich noblemen and to hell with the rest’ and levi will never back off, sit down and shut up about it, couldn’t do it if you put a gun to his head. really, for all that he complains, he doesn’t want to go home, because all that’s waiting for him there are filthy streets, and his reputation as an inhumanly efficient soldier won’t save him from poverty. he’s basically fighting because he’s got nowhere else to go, and he’s laughing at everyone because after all he did, it’s still not enough for him to matter as a human being.

also, there’s a reason erwin smith likes him so much, because lbr that man doesn’t take shit from anyone, and it’s quite telling that he makes an exception for levi, even when he’s at his most viciously mutinous, because a) he probably says a lot of things that erwin’s thinking but can’t say because of the chains of command, and b) when he’s right, he’s right. like, in the beginning, can you imagine other officers dropping some condescension into their tone when they’re talking to levi, half not realizing they’re doing it and half because hey, he couldn’t be bright enough to figure it out, right? or just going out and saying to erwin “he’s doing admirably for someone of his background”, but don’t worry, it was meant as a compliment, and levi’s face would turn to stone with how hard he’s trying not to laugh at the cold, red stare erwin gives them, because this is just so rich, and by the end of the day even that guy would end up holding his belly to keep from dying of mirth.

to me, the best thing about him is that, after all that, after being stepped on for most of his life, he still can’t be ignored. he steps up his game, becomes the best there is at what he does, not even to prove a point, and now the people are terrified of him and what he can do even as they applaud him. the nobles may hate him, but it’s a hatred born of fear, because nine times out of ten he knows more than they do. he’s underground city trash and he won’t die, they just can’t get rid of him, not if so many titans couldn’t do it. you can tell he never gave a damn about his hero status, but it’s something he can use and turn into a prodding stick to taunt them with, because, superficially, ‘hero’ is an apt moniker. he’s the thing that every child is told that they can be when they grow up except it was never supposed to be him. he was never supposed to burn so bright so fast, but if there’s something he’s learned, it’s that failure is not an option in this world.

so, right now, he’s sitting on his throne laughing at the people who hate him for being, in their eyes, inherently, inarguably, inescapably lesser than them and for wearing that crown and taunting them with it, and hell there are some points i could use to argue against him, but this is not something i could ever hate him for.