Bertolt Hoover (ベルトルト・フーバーBerutoruto Fūbā?) is a graduate of the 104th Trainees Squad and former member of the Survey Corps. He ranked 3rd, and is described by others as a weak-willed and quiet person rarely seen without Reiner Braun, his childhood friend.
Along with Reiner and Annie, he is a person that possesses the ability to transform into a Titan
and serves an as-yet unrevealed group. He comes from a mysterious
homeland outside the Walls, and was on a mission to infiltrate the
military in search of something that Reiner refers to as the
"Coordinate". After his true identity was revealed, he becomes a major
antagonist in the story.
Appearance
Human Form
Bertolt is a rather tall, slender young man. He has short, dark hair
and green eyes. In the anime adaptation, he has a slightly darker skin
tone.
As the Colossal Titan, he possesses a very distinctive appearance and
a number of unusual features. First of all, it is roughly 60 meters
tall, making it around four times the height of any other Titan seen
thus far in the series.
Bertolt's Colossal Titan form is one of the more heavily deformed
Titans seen in the series - it appears to lack skin entirely and its
jaw and facial structure seem to be heavily altered from the human form.
It is also constantly releasing jets of steam from the surface of its
body, in a manner that parallels Bertolt's frequent nervous sweating.
Its feet are also quite different to those of a human and other Titans,
as they are swollen and pillar-like in appearance. Its physiology is
modeled after the male sex, but like all Titans, it lacks sexual organs.
He appears to be the only one who doesn't leave the Titan body behind
after returning to human form, seeming to evaporate in thin air.
Personality
Bertolt is a quiet, young man, identifying himself as someone with a
weak will that follows popular opinion. Likewise, their instructor noted
him to be a person with great potential, but an utter lack of
initiative. He is further described by Eren as being taciturn, and tends
to remain in the background unless necessary. By his own admission, he
is something of a coward and is noted for his low self-esteem.
His withdrawn behavior initially lead to the impression of him as
the least emotionally compromised of the three Titan agents. He showed
little attachment or remorse over his actions, seeming to care only
about his partner, Reiner. However, when confronted by his former
comrades and questioned about their friendship, he reveals himself to be
far more conflicted and guilt-ridden than it originally appeared. His
claims of not having a choice add a further level of ambiguity to his
character, leaving many of his actions in question.
He shows great devotion to both of his fellowagents,
easily driven to action or anger when he feels either is threatened.
Initially, he shows himself to be wary of others (for good reason) and
acts as a voice of reason to Reiner, cautioning him repeatedly about
lowering his guard. His interactions with Ymir
reveal that while his actions have caused considerable suffering, he is
not a cruel person and is capable of showing genuine kindness towards
others.
History
Bertolt comes from a mysterious location simply referred to as his
hometown (or homeland), and began a mission to attack humanity in the
year 845. Little is known about his life prior to undertaking his
mission, other than the fact that Reiner and Marcel
were his childhood friends. The exact nature of their group, and their
mission is yet unknown. It is mentioned that their goal was to
exterminate humanity, and that they are searching for both the Ape Titan and a "coordinate" which they believe may be Eren Yeager or possible to locate with the assistance of Historia Reiss.
At some point prior to attacking Wall Maria, he encountered Ymir's
Titan form while traveling with Reiner and Marcel. Still in a mindless
state, she attacked the three boys and nearly killed Reiner. Marcel
ended up sacrificing his life to protect his friends, while Bertolt
appears to have fled in terror and possibly abandoned the other two in
the process.
Bertolt first appeared as the Colossal Titan in the year 845, shortly
after the history of the world and humanity's situation have been
introduced, along with Mikasa, Eren and Armin.
Its mere presence is enough to cause considerable panic amongst the
population, as it is tall enough to see completely over the wall that is
supposed to keep all Titans out. Within moments of its appearance, it
attacks, repeatedly kicking the wall gates to the point that they
rupture and open a hole large enough for other Titans to pass through.
It then disappears after causing considerable structural damage to the
wall, but does not attempt to participate in any meaningful way in the
ensuing massacre itself.[2]
Eventually, Bertolt joined the military, with aspirations of joining the Military Police and living in the safety of the inner wall. As part of the 104th, he was considered to be one of the best in regards to 3D Maneuver Gear, enough so that Eren Yeager came to him for advice when he was dealing with faulty equipment. After seeing Eren's determination and desire to join the Survey Corps,
he considered himself a coward for wanting to get far away from them.
However, Eren encouraged him, saying that after witnessing the attack on
his village, no one would blame him for his decision. Eventually, he
graduated in the top ten of his class coming in at third place, just
under his friend Reiner.
Bertolt reappears as a Titan five years later in 850, again breaking
through the walls so that its brethren can once again devour the humans
inside. It is immediately attacked by Eren Yeager, however, it first
repels and blinds him with vapor from its high temperature body before
vanishing completely from view.
When Armin, Mikasa and Connie made it to the headquarters, with the help of the Rogue Titan,
Armin devised a plan to get rid of the Titans in the supply room.
Bertolt, part of the second group, came in from the ceiling and killed
his target in one blow. The mission a success and everyone resupplied,
he and the rest of the group leave the head quarters. On the way out, he
joins Mikasa and others on the rooftop as they watch the rogue Titan
being attacked and eaten by other Titans. Reiner suggests helping it
out, but ultimately it ends up not being necessary as the Titan fights
his way out and kills the Titan that ate Thomas.
After the Titan collapses, he is among the first people to know about
Eren's ability. Bertolt joins the Survey Corps with Mikasa, Reiner,
Eren, Connie, Sasha, Krista, Jean and a few others.
In the aftermath of the failed mission to capture the Female Titan,
Bertolt was among the recruits placed under observation at an old
mansion and suspected of being a potential spy. He was shown to have
occupied his time playing chess with Reiner, and quickly becomes
involved in the operation to investigate the Titans that appeared within
Wall Rose. Reiner requests his assistance on the Southern squad headed
for Connie Springer's village, which is later discovered to be deserted.
That evening, the Southern squad met up with a squad including Ymir and Krista and the decision was made to take refuge for the night in Castle Utgard.
At some point during the night, the castle came under attack by Titans
and the recruits were forced to defend the interior from the smaller
Titans that had invaded. After Reiner took off on his own to
investigate, Bertolt offered a strange observation of his friend's "bad
habit" of risking himself for others. When a Titan managed to break
through a stairwell door, he came to Reiner's defense with a pitchfork
and helped fight it off. The two reaffirmed their promise to survive and
return to their home together.
After a second Titan managed to enter and injure Reiner, he
helped Ymir toss it out a window. Afterwards, he begins to behave in a
withdrawn manner and responds to questions about how Reiner was in the
past with a strange comment about how Reiner had changed and was no
longer a "warrior". However, he refused to elaborate further on the
subject.
Eventually, their superiors were killed by the attacking Titans and the rookies were left defenseless. This drove Ymir
to reveal herself to be a Titan, using her powers to protect the
others. He, along with Reiner, were shocked to recognize her as the
Titan that had killed their friend, Marcel, several years earlier. The group was eventually rescued by Hange Zoë's
squad and evacuated to the wall, with the intention of regrouping with
their main forces. Injured and distressed over their ordeal, Reiner
broke down under the stress and confessed everything to Eren while
Bertolt watched in growing distress.
Having been revealed at the Colossal Titan, Bertolt was attacked
and nearly killed by Mikasa. Critically wounded and terrified, he
transformed into a partial Titan form and began to attack the soldiers
on the Wall while Reiner attempted to kidnap Eren. In the chaos, he
managed to capture Ymir and an unnamed soldier, swallowing them both
whole. Afterwards, he countered an attack by Hange's squad through
generating intense heat and steam, burning anyone that got too close. He
remained in a skeleton-like state, burning to prevent attack, until
Reiner roared to signal his distress. In response, Bertolt toppled from
the wall and landed on top of Eren and Reiner, exploding upon impact.
The resulting explosion wounds most of the Scouts, and allows
them to successfully capture Eren and flee the scene. He emerges from
his Titan form carrying Ymir and wearing the stolen gear of a soldier he
devoured, suggesting further unknown abilities possessed by his group.
Several hours later, he takes refuge with Reiner and their two captives
in the Forest of Giant Trees. However, he is mostly silent during the
following arguments and discussions, only speaking up when prompted by
Ymir or Eren.
Bertolt responds to Reiner's strange behavior with great
distress, and is shown to have known about it long before anyone else.
He is able to bring his friend back to reality by informing him that he
is not a soldier, but rather that they are both "warriors". Ymir guesses
this to have been the cause of previous tensions between them that she
had observed.
Eren later confronts him about his role in the death of Carla
Yeager, demanding to know what he thought when he learned about the
suffering he'd caused. He responds with a vague comment about having
felt sorry for him, horrifying Eren and leading him to scream at them
both. While Reiner and Eren argue further, he remains silent and
observes the efforts to sway Ymir over to their side.[3]
Though she agrees to work with them, Bertolt remains unconvinced
and warns Reiner that she cannot be trusted. He brings up the death of
their friend, who was devoured by Ymir, though Reiner reassures them
that she can be trusted since her only consideration is Krista's safety.
Bertolt worries he may be slipping into his delusions again, but is
reminded that Krista has value to them since she's a member of the Reiss
family and may be able to provide them with important clues. They
discuss their mission to find the "coordinate", which may or may not be
Eren, and Bertolt expresses his eagerness to go home and never return to
the human lands. Reiner responds by teasing him, demanding that he
confess his feelings to Annie once they make it home. Bertolt attempts
to protest, but Reiner claims his tendency to stare at her gave him
away.
The pair notice a signal flare and realize the rescue team has
already found them, and prepare to flee. While Reiner subdues Eren,
Bertolt confronts Ymir over the death of his friend. She states she has
no memory of having done it, but apologizes to him and asks if he hates
her. He admits he isn't certain, but he can't hold her responsible since
none of them wanted to devour humans. He asks how long she wandered as a
mindless Titan, and implies that he and Reiner may have also spent some
time trapped in their Titan forms in the past.
As the group flees, Ymir notices the signal flares and becomes
agitated. She demands that they kidnap Krista, and attacks Bertolt when
they refuse. They are forced to land in the trees, and she further
physically intimidates and threatens Bertolt until they relent. Once
Ymir returns from kidnapping Krista, he straps an unconscious Eren to
his back and both cling to the Armored Titan's back as he runs from the
pursuing troops. [4]
Realizing how close the troops have already gotten, he shouts at
Ymir about having delayed them so much. He demands to know what they've
been doing all this for, and whether she intends to abandon Krista
inside the Walls to save herself. His words get through to Ymir, and
watches the exchange between the two women intently.
A short time later, Mikasa manages to get onto the Armored
Titan's back and attacks first Ymir (and Krista) before turning on
Bertolt. To escape, he slips down onto the front of Reiner's neck and
shouts for him to protect them. In response, Reiner cups his hands
around his neck and encloses Bertolt and Eren safely against his neck.
Eren, now awake, begins to struggle and ignores all efforts to calm him
down. The other members of the 104th Trainees Squad climb onto the Armored Titan's shoulders and begin to shout at Bertolt in his hiding place.
He initially attempts to ignore them, as Jean Kirstein and Connie Springer
alternately attempt to coax him out and confront him over his betrayal.
At last, he breaks into tears and yells at them that he never wanted to
kill anyone. He confesses to having truly thought of the 104th as his
friends, stating that their time together was enjoyable. Even so, he
refuses to surrender and return Eren, stating that "someone has to do
it". [5]
Before he can elaborate any further, Hannes screams a warning to the group as Erwin Smith
leads a horde of Titans directly towards them. This forces them to
retreat for a time, while Reiner attempts to charge through the oncoming
horde in his Titan form. It ultimately proves hopeless, and the Armored
Titan is quickly overwhelmed by the large group and forced to begin
using his hands to fight. No longer protected by his partner, Bertolt is
forced to defend himself when the soldiers return in force and attack
him. Beginning to panic, he shouts to Reiner that they have to bring Eren back to their home.
He narrowly escapes another attack by Mikasa, and is confronted
by Armin, who reveals that Annie has been captured. Taunting Bertolt, he
asks if they intend to abandon their comrade and claims that Annie is
currently being tortured by the military. This drives Bertolt into a
rage, and distracts him long enough for a wounded Erwin to launch a
surprise attack and free Eren. Wounded, Bertolt can only watch in shock
as the soldiers begin their retreat. [6]
He remains perched on the Armored Titan's shoulder as it begins
to hurl Titans at the fleeing soldiers, slowly healing his injuries.
When Eren's power as the Coordinate activates, he senses it and reacts
with shock. The partners begin to pursue Eren once freed from the Titan
horde attacking them, but this freedom is short-lived. Taking advantage
of his new-found power, Eren screams at them to stay away and threatens
to kill them. Both react with shock and horror, sensing Eren's power and
realizing that it has directed the horde at them once again. Reiner
initially attempts to protect him from attackers, but they are quickly
overwhelmed and he is forced to fight on his own.
His screams draw Ymir's attention, causing her to hesitate in
fleeing with the soldiers. Just as a Titan is about to kill him, Ymir
appears and rescues him. The three Titan Shifters begin to fight
together, while the human soldiers retreat back to the Walls. The
narration notes they did not pursue, leaving his fate in the aftermath
of the battle unknown. [7] Eren later expresses the desire to catch him and make him pay for his crimes, suggesting that he believes they survived. [8]
This is confirmed in an epilogue, which reveals that he survived and fled back to the ruins of Shiganshina District.
The group, exhausted from their two-day ordeal, rest atop Wall Maria
while attempting to make sense of things. He questions Ymir about her
decision to save his life, and is shocked that her actions were
motivated by gratitude for having been saved from her "eternal
nightmare". Knowing that she faces an uncertain future when they return
with her to their homeland, Bertolt struggles to hold back his tears
while thanking her. [9]
Abilities
Bertolt graduated at 3rd position among the trainees, and was noted as the best user of the 3D Maneuver Gear among them. Due to his high level position, he is also likely to possess other military and combat skills.
The Colossal Titan
Like all Titan Shifters, Bertolt is able to transform into a 60 meter Titan referred to as the Colossal Titan (超大型巨人 Chō ōgata Kyojin)
and is the largest Titan shown in the series so far. In this form,
Bertolt is able to look over the Walls that protect the last remnants of
mankind. He is also able to retain his intelligence when he transforms
as shown when he targets the network of cannons that line the top part
of Wall Maria first as a means to quickly cripple the Wall's defense.
The Colossal Titan form, due to its large size, is incredibly
slow which makes it easy for anyone with the 3D Maneuver Gear to move
around him. Like Eren, Bertolt is able to induce partial transformation
as he is able to manifest the upper portion of his Titan form on top of
Wall Rose to fight against the Survey Corp. His form is also noteworthy
for being able to form and dissolve almost instantly, as opposed to most
Titans. During the attack on Wall Rose, he was able to dissolve his
Titan form literally within seconds, vanishing before Eren could react.
This may be related to his ability to generate incredible heat, as he
generates a massive cloud of steam before vanishing.
Regeneration: Bertolt, like all other Titan Shifters and
Titans, has the power to automatically regenerate any wounds sustained
and even entire parts of body that were lost. This power also extends to
his human form as shown with the fight against Mikasa on top of Wall
Rose with Bertolt losing part of his arm and suffering a critical slash
to his neck. Later on, in the Forest of Giant Trees, Bertolt is seen
with his arm regenerated, and his neck fully healed.
Enhanced Strength: The Colossal Titan is physically the strongest Titan shown so far in the series due to its immense size and along with the Armored Titan,
they are the only ones who are capable of damaging and tearing down the
gates of Walls. With a single strike of his Titan foot, Bertolt was
able to breach the south gate of Wall Maria easily, damaging nearby
buildings in the Shiganshina District. A sweeping motion with one of his
arms was enough to destroy all the cannons on top of Wall Maria as well
as damage the upper portion of the Wall. Bertolt’s strikes had enough
force to similarly damage the upper portion of Wall Rose and create a
shockwave able to push back people, wounding them in the process.
Steam Generation: Since Bertolt’s Titan form is too slow
to catch more agile opponents with the 3D Maneuver Gear, he possesses a
powerful defense mechanism that involves him releasing large amounts of
extremely hot and pressurized steam from his body. The steam has enough
force to deflect any cables shot from the 3DMG and burn or repel
close-range fighters. It is shown that Bertolt can sustain the effort of
producing large quantities of steam for a timed duration as seen in the
fight on the top of Wall Rose.
Reiner Braun
- Reiner is his childhood friend, and partner in their mission against
humanity. The two are rarely apart, and Bertolt almost always follows
along with whatever he decides. However, he's shown to be greatly
bothered by Reiner's growing attachment to the others and mental
problems. Even so, he rarely speaks up or takes any action to oppose
Reiner.
Annie Leonhart
- Reiner suggests that Bertolt has a crush on her, noting his tendency
to always stare at her. In response, he blushes and offers a weak
protest. When Armin claims that she is being tortured by the military,
he flies into a rage and declares that he will kill everyone.
Ymir
- He is initially distrustful of her, warning Reiner that she once
killed their friend and is extremely dangerous. His fear of her
continues to be a major aspect of their shaky alliance, though he seems
to have changed his opinion after she saved his life. Afterwards, he
expresses his gratitude to her and is visibly distressed by her
willingness to further risk her life by returning to the Titan Shifters'
homeland.
Eren Yeager
- Though friendly, the two were not particularly close in comparison to
Eren and Reiner's friendship. Bertolt expresses admiration for Eren's
courage and the strength of his conviction to fight even after
experiencing the horror of a Titan attack. After being revealed as the
Colossal Titan, he behaves coldly towards Eren while the other becomes
hostile towards him, calling him a "lackey".
Armin Arlert
- Little interaction between the two has been shown, though his
relationship chart in the official guidebook shows that Bertolt
considers Armin a close friend. This, of course, sours once Bertolt's
true identity is revealed and he threatens to kill Armin when the other
lies and claims Annie is being tortured.
Trivia
Bertolt's character design for the animeIn
episode 2, a young Reiner and Bertolt are in the crowd when the mission
to reclaim Wall Maria is announced. This is an anime-only cameo.
The official site reveals his nickname is "Bertl".
He is the only Titan Shifter so far to be shown willingly eating a human, as he did so in order to obtain the victim's Three Dimensional Maneuver Gear.
He is also thus far the only Shifter not shown transforming multiple
times in a single day, leaving it unknown whether or not he's capable of
doing so.
Jean mentions the 104th Trainees Squad made a game of using Bertolt's odd sleeping positions to predict the weather.
His name is Old German in origin, meaning "Bright Strength".
The Colossal Titan was featured in a Subaru Commercial advertising the live-action Attack on Titan movie.[11]
Survey Corps
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