Attack on Titan is without a doubt one of the best anime the shonen genre has to offer.
The thrilling plot twists, sophisticated characters, intense fight scenes, and crisp animation easily makes it one of the most fascinating series to watch.
The second half of the fourth season was meant to be the end of the series until MAPPA studio stated otherwise.
Now fans have to wait until the premiere of part 3 of the final season to get the answer to the big question – “Does Eren Yeager die?”
Unfortunately, Eren Yeager, the series’ protagonist and antihero died during the final moment of the war. He was decapacitated by Mikasa Ackerman in chapter 138 of the manga. His death was confirmed when she kissed, mourned, and buried his lifeless head.
Not all authors are at ease murdering off their main characters, but Isayama is an eccentric breed.
In addition, we are unable to imagine another way for the series to have ended without Eren Yeager’s passing.
How Does Eren Die in The Manga?
In order to free the Eldians, save everyone he cares about, and establish a world free of Titans, Eren initiated the Rumbling and embarked on a rampage to wipe out all other life forces beyond the shores of Paradis Island.
Serving as a threat to humanity, both Eldians and Marley soldiers banded together to stop him.
Eren transformed into the founding titan and fought against the allied soldiers before Mikasa swooped in to complete the kill by severing his head.
Then, after cradling his lifeless head and saying her final goodbyes, she buried him beneath the same tree he usually napped on as a child.
Following his death, most fans began to speculate that Eren is still alive but as a bird due to some references from the manga’s final chapter.
In one of the references, we see Mikasa sitting near Eren’s grave and vocally wishing she could see him once again.
As she finishes her sentence, the scarf Eren gave her comes loose, and a bird flies up in front of her and ties it back. She grinned up at the bird and thanked it, mentioning Eren’s name.
In another reference, we see a similar bird flying past Armin and the other passengers as they journey to Paradis.
It’s also logical to conclude that Eren shares a connection with birds, as he often compared being inside the walls to living in a birdcage.
This reference to birds serves as a clear metaphor for Eren’s deepest desire: freedom.
Whether or not Eren reincarnated as a bird, he will always have a special place in the hearts of his friends and fans.
The Aftermath of Eren’s Death
Following Eren’s death, humanity is saved (even though 80% of the world population was killed), the source of titan powers dies with him which in turn returns every titan to their human form, and the people of Paradis finally earned freedom, but not for long.
The Islanders are worried about what the rest of the world might do in retaliation.
Just in case, they established an army under the Jaeger group, concentrating on strengthening its armed forces.
Armin, Jean, Connie, Reiner, Annie, and Pieck worked as peace ambassadors between Paradis and the Allied Nations to promote international peace.
We never learned if they were successful or not, but the extra manga panel hints at the latter.
The additional panel depicts a world that is once more at war and in ruins.
We assume that the Alliance may have been successful for a time, but perhaps after their deaths, no one remained to keep the peace.
Overall, the manga came to a rather unsettling conclusion.
The tree where Mikasa buried Eren’s head has grown into a huge, bizarre size similar to the tree from which Ymir derived her titans’ abilities.
Then we see a boy walking close to the base of the tree, implying that history might just repeat itself.
However, Isayama confirmed in an interview that the series won’t have a sequel. Therefore, we are unsure how to label the manga’s final panel.
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Is Eren a Hero or Villain in Attack on Titan?
Eren is many things, but evil is far from it. He’s a realist, and realistically, he had no other choice over everything he did. All he ever wanted was to free his people from the cruelty of the world and he’s willing to sacrifice anything for that goal, even his life.
Regardless, Eren has seen the future. So, everything he did till the very end was the best option for the Eldians – better than King fritz’s vow to denounce war and hide inside the walls or Zeke’s slow and painless genocide plan.
Additionally, we should be aware that good and evil are matters of perspective and should always consider the big picture.
Does Eren Loves Mikasa?
Eren loved Mikasa with all of his heart, even though he hurts her with his words and pushed her away throughout the story.
We realize this in the conversation he had with Armin inside the founding paths just before his death.
In their conversation, Eren cried out that he never wanted Mikasa to love anyone apart from him, even if he died. Eren gave up his love for Mikasa to free the people of Paradis.
Does Mikasa Move on With Her Life?
Mikasa did move on with her life as she married and gave birth, but she never stopped loving Eren.
Even after all those years, she never let go of the scarf he gave her.
She also often visits his grave, together with her child and husband who somewhat resembles Jean owing to his hairstyle. What Mikasa had for Eren was indeed beautiful.
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