ask-blue-eyed-eren:

shingeki-no-kay:

People find it very easy to criticise Eren and compare him to the likes of Mikasa and Levi

But he’s just a teenage boy with no amazing skills like Mikasa or Levi, all he has in his human form is sheer determination

He’s not naturally talented or strategically intelligent like Armin, Jean or Erwin

He’s not physically strong like Annie or Reiner

He can’t even control his damn Titan as well as the other shifters can

Not forgetting that this kid has lost limbs, had the shit beaten out of him, guns and canons aimed at him, been eaten by a Titan, almost kidnapped by a Titan, stepped on by a Titan, fucking crushed and impaled by concrete and wood

And he carries on refusing to die

Which is what makes him the perfect protagonist.

“And the biggest fucking "Thank You” to the guy that posted this. Give that man a cookie.“

This is why I love Eren!  I mean, wasn’t he like 5th in his class?  It’s a protagonist that isn’t number one.  And he knows that!  He knows Mikasa is better.  He knows that Levi is better.  He knows that.  He knows Armin is smarter, to the point of flat out telling him when the guns were aimed at them, "If you think you can talk to them I believe in you,” and he wasn’t scared at all, he was just like, “Hey you’re smart you can do this I’ll let you do this o.k.?”

All he has is determination, really.  I mean, hell, when they finally started to accept the titan thing (as in Hanji putting him in the well so he could transform), not only did he NOT transform, but he transformed from grabbing a damn spoon and had everyone flip out.  I mean… he’s trying. All he can do is try.  And what I like most about him trying is that he doesn’t always get it right.  Finally gets to face off against titans after all that training?  Gets eaten.  Turn into titan to move the rock?  Snap at Mikasa.  Turn into titan to fight the female titan?  Gets head kicked off.  I like that he isn’t perfect.  I like that he’s just… trying.  

Not all of your protagonists are going to be perfect.  In fact, I prefer it if they aren’t.  That makes them feel more human.  I liked that they trained so hard and it wasn’t like, “Hey look all that training paid off nobody died the titans are dead the end!”  It was, “Hey… we survived.  Some of us did.  And all we can do is keep trying.”  Because you don’t always get it right the first time, or the second time, or the third time.  Sometimes you have to keep trying until you get it right.