Marcel Galliard

Background

His parents sent him and Porco to train as Warriors, and Marcel did well enough to be chosen to inherit the Jaw Titan. Afraid for his brother's life, he secretly lobbied his Marleyan superiors to give the Armored Titan to Reiner, an underperformer at the time, rather than to Porco. When Marley began the Paradis Island Operation in the year 845, Marcel was sent with Reiner, Bertolt and Annie to slip inside the Walls and capture the Founding Titan. While the four camped on the island waiting for sunrise, he admitted to Reiner what he had done and apologised. Then the Pure Titan that Ymir had become attacked them, and Marcel pushed Reiner out of the way and was eaten, so Ymir gained the Jaw Titan from him. Masamichi Kitada voices him in Japanese and Nathan Sharp in English.

Main characters

Eren Jaeger is the main protagonist and antagonist. After witnessing his mother eaten by a Titan while escaping his hometown, he vows to eradicate them and joins the Survey Corps. He graduates fifth in his class but is swallowed by a bearded Titan on his first mission, only to reappear as a 15-meter Titan that fights other Titans. It is later revealed his father killed the Reiss family and passed the Founding Titan and Attack Titan to Eren by having him eat him.

Eren's Titan ability makes him a target for multiple factions. He joins the Special Operations Squad and learns to control his power, discovering other abilities. In the final arc, he unleashes millions of Colossal Titans in a genocidal crusade that wipes out 80% of humanity. The Survey Corps and Marleyan Warriors unite to stop him, and Mikasa kills him.

Before the battle, Eren explains to Armin in the Paths that he wanted to level everything. They hug and Armin promises they will be together in hell. Mikasa buries Eren's head under a tree in Shiganshina, which later grows to resemble the tree where the Titan organism originated. Author Hajime Isayama modeled Eren's Titan form after mixed martial artist Yushin Okami.

Eren is voiced by Yuki Kaji in Japanese and Bryce Papenbrook in English; in the live-action film he is played by Haruma Miura and Ryota Ozawa. Mikasa is Eren's childhood friend, taken in by his family after her parents were murdered by human traffickers. She feels gratitude toward them, especially Eren, who gave her his scarf. Her parents' deaths made her quiet and stoic except with friends.

She joins the Survey Corps to protect Eren, graduates top of her class, and is considered a genius. This is due to her father being a descendant of the Ackerman clan, genetically modified super soldiers. Under duress, she can access ancestors' battle experience. Her instincts awakened when Eren urged her to fight her kidnappers. She is the last known person of Asian descent in the Walls.

Survey Corps

The Survey Corps is composed of expeditionary soldiers who venture outside the Walls to discover the origins and weaknesses of Titans and how to fight them. They are integral to recapturing Wall Maria. They suffer high casualty rates; survivors are elite veterans. Their insignia is overlapping wings called the 'Wings of Freedom'.

The 13th Commander, Erwin Smith, led the last mission before Wall Maria fell. He served the government even after they murdered his father for concealing the truth of Paradis' establishment. He made difficult choices, sacrificing men for the benefit of others, and had a reputation for gambling on unorthodox strategies. He developed the Long-Range Scouting Formation, which reduced death tolls.

After learning of a mole, he concealed it while orchestrating the 57th expedition to capture Annie. When Eren was kidnapped by Bertolt and Reiner, he led a rescue and lost his right arm to a Titan. Learning the government acted only for the upper class, he staged a bloodless coup to place Historia in power. He then led an expedition to Shiganshina to seal Wall Maria, facing the Warrior Titans.

He was mortally wounded after sacrificing himself and recruits so Levi could kill the Beast Titan. Levi initially considered injecting Erwin with Titan serum but decided to let him die in peace, giving the injection to Armin. Levi has since hunted the Beast Titan Zeke to avenge Erwin. Erwin is voiced by Daisuke Ono in Japanese and J. Michael Tatum in English.

Hange is a bespectacled Survey Corps veteran and leader of 4th Squad. A scientist who studies Titans, Hange shows little fear and was ecstatic meeting Eren. Hange hated Titans until discovering Ilse Langnar's notebook, which provided insight into their nature. Hange invented weapons such as a barrel firing multiple grappling hooks to capture Titans alive and Thunder Spears, instrumental in recapturing Wall Maria.

After the battle of Shiganshina, Hange lost their left eye to shrapnel from the Colossal Titan's transformation and wore an eyepatch. Hange succeeded Erwin as the 14th commander. Following Eren's message to all Subjects of Ymir, Hange formed an alliance with remaining members.