Attack on Titan Reveals Dark Secret Behind Marco's Death

Many characters have died over the course of Attack on Titan, so it can be hard to remember each [...]

By Nick Valdez

Many characters have died over the course of Attack on Titan, so it can be hard to remember each death. But the latest episode of the series proves that fans should be looking at each one twice as it turns out that one of the early character deaths in the series has a dark secret behind it. Marco Bott's death during the first season was chalked up as one of the many casualties of that first gruesome battle with the Titans, but things aren't as clear cut as that.

On discovering his body, Jean remarked that he was surprised that Marco was one of the ones to die...but Marco really didn't have a choice in the matter. His cleverness turned out to be his undoing, and you can see the scene in question below. Major spoilers for Episode 52 of Attack on Titan below!

In Episode 52 of the series, it's revealed that Marco overhears a conversation between Reiner and Bertholdt about how to attack humanity next. Back when Eren's Titan form was going to be used to plug a hole in Wall Maria, Reiner and Bertholdt were wondering whether or not to interfere but Marco tried to laugh this off as a joke. He overhears them talking about their Titan powers, and quickly pieces together that Reiner and Bertholdt must be transforming into Titans like Eren was able to.

But with their secret discovered, Reiner, Bertholdt and Annie pin Marco down and take away his maneuver gear. And rather than kill him themselves, the three of them watch as Marco is slowly killed by a Titan. Each of them is stunned by what they just had to do to someone they have bonded with over the last few weeks, and it's a hint at the kind of feelings each of them had when they turn out to be traitors later in the series.

Marco actually figured out one of the series' biggest twists before it was officially revealed, and thus killed for it. While his death came and went in the series initially, this latest episode proves that Reiner and Bertholdt's plan goes far beyond the initial attack on Wall Maria that fans witnessed at the start of the series.

Attack on Titan was originally created by Hajime Isayama, and the series has since been collected into 23 volumes as of 2017. It's set in a world where the last remnants of humanity live within a walled city in order to escape the danger of the Titans, a race of giants monsters that eats humans. The lead character, Eren Yeager, ends up joining the military with his two childhood friends Mikasa and Armin after the Titans break through the wall and attack his hometown. Now Eren, Mikasa, and Armin must survive in a world where they not only have the Titans to fear, but the very humans they are trying to save. You can currently find the series streaming on Crunchyroll, Funimation, and Saturday nights on Adult Swim's Toonami block.

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