Are you curious about Armin’s death in Attack on Titan? Does Armin die, and if he does, how did it happen? This article explores everything there is to know about this particular character!
In the world of Attack on Titan, “survival” is often one of the central themes the show repeatedly calls back to as we are shown a dark fantasy world with humans on the apparent brink of extinction. The reason behind this lies in the presence of Titans, who are human-like monsters several sizes taller than an average human with a tendency to attack and eat people.
As we learn more about the world, we are repeatedly shown instances of survival or death and fight-to-survive scenarios between humans and titans, most especially with members of the Survey Corps.
Eren, Armin, Mikasa, and several other characters are members of this division. They are usually tasked with exploring the outer boundaries of the wall to learn more about the Titans and even reclaim territory thought to be lost to them.
Out of all the members of the Survey Corps, Armin Arlert is possibly one of the most unassuming members, being lower than average in terms of combat and physical capabilities compared to the rest of his peers. His tendencies to become easily scared and act cowardly don’t help improve his stature, as he quickly gets frightened by Titans much earlier in the series.
Given his disposition and weak persona compared to strong-willed characters like Jean or Eren and even strong warriors like Mikasa Ackerman and Levi Ackerman, it isn’t hard to believe that Armin can die at any moment, especially if he’s caught off guard and surprised by the enemy. So, if you are curious about Armin’s death, that’s completely understandable. In this article, we’ll take a look at exactly that!
Does Armin Die in Attack on Titan?
Armin’s fate in Attack on Titan is certainly interesting as we find him constantly in a struggle between life and death. Armin was one of the survivors of the Fall of Wall Maria. He was saved from getting eaten by a Titan thanks to Eren, which led to the latter being eaten by a Titan and ultimately surviving after being revealed to be a Titan Shifter.
Much earlier in the series, we learn about Armin’s extremely cowardly and softer side, especially with him constantly blaming himself for Eren’s sacrifice. Despite his weak disposition, Armin is shown to be incredibly intelligent and tactile, often being the brains behind the operations of several of the Survey Corps missions.
His intelligence proved to be an indispensable tool for quickly taking down Titans, especially with the Titan Shifters that get introduced in the series, starting with the Female Titan, Annie. Armin’s incredible strategies would eventually culminate with his plan to take down the Colossal Titan after its identity was revealed to everyone in the Survey Corps.
Armin proved to be an essential part of seeing the Colossal Titan’s downfall but was unfortunately negatively impacted by it as he was burned alive while trying to see his plan come to fruition. It was shown that Armin was burned beyond recognition because the steam emanating from the Colossal Titan led to his fate as good as dead.
What Happens to Armin at the End?
Despite Armin’s severe injuries from the battle against the Colossal Titan, he found himself recovering from the encounter thanks to the power of the Titan. Armin became the inheritor of the Colossal Titan’s powers, allowing him to heal his burns and recover to normal as if everything that happened in the fight had never happened in the first place.
After this, Armin continued to serve with the Survey Corps as the main brains behind their operations, from offensive attacks to infiltrations and even negotiations and talks between the enemy.
Armin was also the main reason behind Eren’s downfall at the end of the story, as he was the one who took the lead in commanding the remaining members of the Survey Corps in trying to take Eren down and stop the Rumbling from destroying the world.
He often uses the powers of the Colossal Titan, which makes up for his disparity of combat strength and physical prowess at the very start of the story.
In the manga’s conclusion, we see that Armin and Eren were fighting with one another after having transformed into the Colossal Titan, with Eren taking on a similar appearance thanks to his access to the powers of the Founding Titan.
This fight eventually gave an opportunity to Mikasa to enter Eren’s Titan’s mouth and deal the ultimate blow, thus killing him on the spot and ending the war.
Does Armin Still Have the Colossal Titan?
Since his recovery from the battle against Bertolt, the Colossal Titan, Armin has remained the main holder of its powers. He was chosen to inherit the power after Levi made the difficult decision to save him instead of their Commander, which resulted in his complete recovery and full access to the Titan’s powers.
However, at the end of the series, he no longer has the Colossal Titan with him as it, alongside the other Titan Shifters and humans-turned Titans, all return to being ordinary people. This happened because of Eren’s death and the power of the Titans disappearing from the world.
Who Does Armin End Up With?
Romance isn’t always at the forefront of Attack on Titan’s story, as the story emphasizes the world-building and the fights the characters can get into. It has tidbits scattered around with characters such as Mikasa expressing affection towards Eren or Jean showing unrequited feelings towards Mikasa.
Armin also has his own share of moments like this towards Annie as he shows an interest in her, even after her identity as the Female Titan was revealed. The two share a similar dream, wanting to explore and see the world beyond what they are used to, but the relationship was never explored any deeper.
It’s been implied that the two were able to stay in touch with one another and share a deep level of respect and interest. Despite not seeing the fates of either character, we can roughly guess that the two were able to fall in love and marry one another at the end of the series.
Since Armin was alive after the climactic battle against Eren’s Founding Titan, it wouldn’t be wrong to assume that he lived a long life in a world where Titans didn’t exist. However, he would have a lot on his plate as he’d have to take on a more diplomatic role to make a place for the residents of Paradis Island among the world as a whole.
So, to answer the question, does Armin die in Attack on Titan? I’d say that, in a way, he did die, but he died of old age and not during the main story! Let’s hope that the anime’s finale gives a proper ending to all these characters who survive the final battle and finally gives them some kind of a happy ending!
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