Editor’s Note: This entry contains spoilers for Attack On Titan final chapter, read at your own caution.

About

Eren Bird refers to a fan theory that Attack On Titan main character Eren Yeager appears in the final chapter of the manga series as a bird. The mysterious bird in chapter 139 instigated an online debate, parodies and memes on social media following its release in April 2021.

Origin

The Eren Bird theory was already a topic discussed in the Attack On Titan fanbase since October 2020. As the Reddit^[4] post by Redditor TheOrangeKid04, uploaded on October 1st, 2020, explains the connections of the birds with the story of the manga series. The post (shown below) amassed roughly 47 upvotes and three comments in three years.

On April 9, 2021, the last chapter of the manga series Attack on Titan^[1] was released in Japan, titled "Final Chapter: Toward the Tree on That Hill." In one particular panel of the chapter, it is speculated the main character, Eren Yeager, reincarnated as a bird that is flying by Mikasa Ackerman (Eren’s sister), suddenly arrives in front of her, wraps her scarf around her neck (as Eren did when they first met) and continues on its way (shown below).

Spread

As soon as the chapter leaked online, memes about Eren bird appeared on Twitter / X. For instance, on April 10th, 2021, YouTube^[2] user @Ryzejin posted a video titled “ Twitter Reacts to Eren Becoming a Bird,” which shows a series of posts by fans commenting on the latest reveal of the Attack on Titan manga series, amassing over 17,000 views and 650 likes in two years. (shown below)

On November 4th, 2023, the final episode of the Attack On Titan anime premiered worldwide on Crunchyroll, which reignited the “Eren Bird” fan theories. For example, on November 5th, TikTok^[3] user asianwizardking2 posted a clip showing the Eren Bird scene in the anime (shown below), amassing roughly 4,000 plays and 253 likes in a day.

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References