Attack on Titan is in its final phase. The final season of the show had a lot of surprises for the fans. Many of these surprises were related to the characters, and some of them did a complete 180 and they behaved differently in the final season.
A lot of the fans were unimpressed with the change in the attitude of their favorite characters. However, not all the characters in the series changed for the worse; many of them became better. We will be taking a look at the characters who changed the most throughout Attack on Titan.
Updated April 16, 2022, by Suzail Ahmad: Attack on Titan fans will have to wait for Eren's story to come to a close as the studio announced that they would be releasing another part of the Final Season. This will be the third and final part of the anime's last season, and by the end of it, the story will finally be wrapped up, bringing this epic narrative that has spanned roughly a decade to a close. Building upon its predecessor, the second part of the Final Season highlighted more changes in some of Attack on Titan's characters.
16 Connie
Connie is a member of the Survey Corps, and for the longest time, he was presented as not being the most serious of people. But, after serving in the Survey Corps, Connie changed a lot. He gradually became a lot more focused and direct, and he does not hesitate to make decisions, even ones that might seem cruel.
When Falco gained the power of one of the Nine Titans, Connie decided to capture him and use him to cure his mother. This showed how much Connie's mentality has changed since the first season as it is hard to imagine that version of the character doing anything like that.
15 Gabi
Gabi is an Eldian who was raised in Marley. She was one of the many people trying to be the next warrior candidates to make their families proud and their lives easier. Due to her upbringing, Gabi was solely focused on destroying Marley's enemies. She believed that the Eldians living on Paradis Island were monsters, who just wanted to cause more destruction and bring an end to the world.
However, Gabi was captured and taken to Paradis Island, and there she began to realize how wrong she was. After spending time on the island and having her life saved by Eldians, Gabi changed her perspective completely.
14 Grisha Jaeger
Grisha was the father of Zeke and Eren, both of whom are among the main characters in Attack on Titan. At different times, the fans held different opinions about Grisha Jaeger, and it was mainly due to his behavior being complicated and confusing at times. As the user of the Attack Titan, Grisha was able to see the future, and he decided to plan things accordingly.
Grisha entrusted Eren to save Carla, Mikasa, and the rest of Eldia. He would often show that he is a level-headed man, but his emotions would eventually take over, and he would end up making foolish decisions.
13 Flock – Turned Into An Extremist
Flock is arguably one of the most hated characters in the series. In the beginning, he was a reserved individual who did not understand how the world functioned, but things quickly changed after his first involvement in a real battle against the Titans.
As Flock learned more about the Titans, he came to resent the Marleyans more and more. In the final season, his hatred had reached such extremes that he believed that he had to exterminate all Marleyans at any cost. Flock's behavior was really alarming as he was ready to fight against his own allies if they disagreed with his way of thinking. Currently, many people from Paradis Island share the same mentality as Flock.
12 Jean – Does Not Try To Be Impressive
At the beginning of the series, Jean was an arrogant individual, who always looked to impress others around him. He was always trying to compete against Eren, and it was nothing more than a friendly rivalry. At that time, Jean's character wasn't really pleasant. His constant need to impress others often left him looking like a fool.
As the series progressed, Jean's character changed and he became a much more likable individual. Instead of causing a ruckus with his hot-headedness, Jean is able to control his temperament better than before. This allows him to judge the situation better and come up with a rational decision.
11 Hange Zoe – A Proper And Serious Commander
After Erwin's death, Hange became the commander of the Survey Corps. Before getting promoted, Hange was prone to acting foolishly in front of her soldiers. She would leave the people around her confused, but the promotion changed everything. Hange took her responsibility more seriously and she acted more like a leader. She has shown that she is a capable commander, who is willing to put her own life on the line to protect the people of Paradis Island.
Hange has become responsible and she has stopped making reckless decisions that could harm her soldiers and citizens. While some fans might not like this change in her personality, there are others who think of her highly now. It is safe to assume that her character development has been really outstanding.
10 Reiner – One of The Warriors Sent To The Paradis Island
The revelation of Reiner's real identity came as a shock to all the fans. Reiner was one of Eren's closest friends, and he taught him a lot of things. He seemed like an ordinary human and he blended in quite easily within the Survey Corps.
It was a big surprise to see Reiner as the Armoured Titan, who destroyed the walls and caused the death of many humans including Eren's mother. In the final season, Reiner again looked different. He seemed conflicted and distressed about the situation.
9 Eren – Benevolent Person Turned Into The Most Malevolent Person
Eren's development as a character has been nothing short of crazy. He started as a caring person who wanted to avenge his mother's death and save the entire human race from extinction.
Over the next few seasons, Eren's character development was dramatic. He turned into a person who doesn't have any regard for his comrades. Eren became entirely focused on achieving the goal of destroying the Marley empire.
8 Levi – More Reasonable Now Than Before
Few characters had the introduction that Levi had. Levi Ackerman is one of the greatest if not the greatest characters in Attack on Titan. He is the strongest fighter in Survey Corps and has taken down many titans on his own.
Levi is known for being violent and attacking titans and people alike. This has been evident since his introduction, but over time he has learned to control his rage, which is why he didn't kill Zeke, and instead went along with his plans.
7 Erwin Smith – Acknowledged That He Couldn't Realize His Dreams
Erwin Smith was the standout character of the third season of Attack on Titan. In the early days, there was a lot that the fans didn't know about Erwin, but as the series progressed forward, more and more details about Erwin Smith's past were revealed.
Erwin's goal was to find out the secret behind the titans and the rest of the world. He was ready to make all the necessary sacrifices to ensure that he survived until he found out the secrets. In season three, Erwin changed and he realized that some things were more important than his dreams.
6 Armin – Nuked An Entire City With His Power
For the most of the series, Armin was a benevolent person who couldn't bring himself to hurt other people around him. He always tried to think of the least violent ways to solve a problem and he would never willingly agree with any methods that involved hurting other people.
In the final season, the fans came across a changed Armin. He obeyed Eren's orders without any hesitation. During the attack on Marley, Armin transformed into the Colossal Titan, which resulted in the death of hundreds of people. The fans could never expect such monstrosity from Armin.
5 Zeke – Changed From Foe To Friend
Zeke is the Beast Titan, who traveled to Paradis Island with the other warriors to get ahold of the power of the Founding Titan. He was responsible for the killing of hundreds of soldiers of the Survey Corps.
However, in the final season, he seemed to have formed an alliance with his half-brother Eren to overthrow the Marley Empire. No one was expecting Zeke to side with Eren and co.
4 Bertholdt – Infiltrated Survey Corps And Betrayed Everyone
Bertholdt was another warrior that was sent to Paradis Island to seize the power of the Founding Titan. Like Reiner, he too blended in with the normal humans. He befriended a lot of people within the Survey Corps and behaved like normal humans.
Bertholdt's dark side was revealed much later in the series. His entire personality was fake and he managed to fool all of his friends in the Survey Corps. He betrayed them and killed a lot of innocent people in his titan form.
3 Historia – Stepped Up When Others Were In Disarray
Historia's development as a character has been excellent. For the first few seasons, she came off as a very reserved individual, but her interactions with Ymir, made her realize her shortcomings.
This realization played an important role in shaping Historia as a character. She accepted the responsibility of becoming the new Queen of Paradis Island and did a rather good job. She's one of the few characters, who became better with time.
2 Ymir – From A Bully To A Caring Person
Ymir is one of the best-written characters in Attack On Titan. She started as a character that little to no regard for the well-being of others around her. Ymir's egocentric behavior caused a lot of the fans to dislike her.
As the story progressed, a completely different side of Ymir was revealed. She was nothing like the egoistical person that she originally appeared to be. In fact, Ymir was a very caring person and she was responsible for saving several members of the Survey Corps, and she also protected Historia on various occasions.
1 Mikasa – Started Caring About Everyone
Mikasa's character growth is more subtle in comparison to other characters. At the beginning of the series, Mikasa was obsessed with protecting Eren from any harm. She couldn't care less about what happened to other people.
Over time, Mikasa's behavior changed. She became friendlier towards other people and started trusting them. Mikasa also became more emotional, which was evident when she mourned Sasha's death.