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Character Information
Character Name: Jean Kirschstein
Canon: Attack on Titan
Canon Point: Chapter 45
Is your character Dead, Undead or Alive: Alive
History: Wiki

Personality:

At the start of the series, Jean is introduced as a fairly blunt and unpleasant person. He immediately clashes with the main protagonist and doesn't hesitate for a moment to freely speak his mind (later he apologizes and says it's a bad habit of his). Without missing a beat, he openly scoffs at the idea of fighting and winning against the titans, the greatest threat to mankind. See, Jean describes himself as an "honest guy" and would much rather be a realist than flaunt a phony brave face. So why would someone like him join the ranks of those fighting against the titans? Simple. Jean became a soldier for one reason: to become a member of the Military Police in order to live a comfortable, titan-less life behind the safe, innermost walls.

His abrasive personality has a knack for getting him into trouble. He's often found picking fights with or insulting Eren Jaeger's idealism. The world just doesn't work that way, it's unrealistic, it's foolish and suicidal. But go ahead and call Jean selfish because at least he has his head on straight. At least he wants to survive. Though it may not seem like it, Jean isn't purposefully rude as all hell. It's just that his honesty tends to be uncivil and rough. He doesn't much care about how others think of him and everything that he does, he does for himself. He's a confident and somewhat composed person and knows his strengths as well as his limits. Though he has a tendency to brag and think highly of his abilities, he'd rather be discreet about his skills so as to not attract rivals who would compete against him. That's not to say he'd back down from competition. Jean, when challenged, takes to rigorously working hard to beat his opponent.

He's clever and his cognition is in a class all by itself. A close friend of his pointed out his leadership potential, which Jean was quick to deny. Even he isn't exempt from his blunt honesty, as Jean does point out his own shortcomings. He's a coward who only wants to look out for his own well-being, he says. He wouldn't make a good leader. But here's the thing: Jean is efficient in sorting out the strengths and weaknesses of others. He takes action only after carefully considering the outcomes and possibilities. And because he's not a perfect beacon of shining badassery, he's easy to relate to and rely on. Like many others, he's weak, normal, ordinary and this is what allows him to make the right calls. Unfortunately for him, it's not all sunshines and rainbows the first time he unofficially leads a group of cadets. His doubts over his abilities weigh heavily on his mind and cause him plenty of hesitation. And when he uses the death of a fellow cadet as a distraction and an opening, Jean suffers from the guilt and responsibility he feels even though he managed to mostly pull the mission off.

What happens next greatly affects Jean's future and worldview. While helping the other soldiers clean up bodies after the Battle for Trost, he stumbles across the body of Marco, his closest friend. He's immediately stunned and, in a daze, asks if anyone had seen his friend's last moments. It's not much later, when the bodies are burning, that a grief-stricken Jean decides he will abandon his dream of joining the comfortable life of the Military Police and enlist in the Scouting Legion instead. He chooses the incredibly dangerous Scouting Legion not because he's suicidal, but because Marco's death and the battle against the titans made him realize that he had to fight. To live an easy life behind walls while the friends he cares for ride off to fight and die in order to keep his comfort possible--That wasn't going to happen. He wasn't going to let them or himself become another forgotten body in a pile. He wasn't going to be a meaningless death.

Despite his fear, despite knowing that the chances of winning are close to zero, Jean knows what he has to do. He'll fight to his last breath, fight so that his death will mean something, and fight to protect the people he's come to respect. Jean Kirschstein is, at his very core, a brutally honest reluctant hero. His doubts and misgivings may hinder him at turns, but in the end, he'll rise to the occasion when necessary. After all the horrors he's seen and experienced, Jean, like the rest of the cadets, has grown up much too quickly. He's quieter now, a bit more stoic with an air of seriousness to him, and less prone to having childish outbursts. He still struggles to do the selfless thing, as he still fears the titans, but his heart's in the right place.

Abilities/Strengths and Weaknesses:

To start off, Jean's an average guy with zero superhuman abilities. Now physically, he isn't very strong, though he has had hand-to-hand combat training during his time as a recruit. He's also pretty gosh darn efficient with the three-dimensional maneuver gear (3DMG) which allows him to move on all three axes and requires a great deal of lower body strength, spatial awareness, and mental aptitude to keep calm and composed during its use.

Another thing, with the way that Jean is able to gauge certain situations correctly and keep the strengths and weaknesses of his fellow soldiers on his mind, he's something of a natural leader. If the moment calls for it, Jean will take up the position and lead charges. He's also quite competent when it comes to discussing or figuring out battle plans and strategies.

Weaknesses:
Ordinary human being so lots of things can hurt him/take him down.
Physically weaker than your average cadet.
Guilts and doubts himself a lot.
Most likely suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder after the Battle for Trost (and everything else).
Basically just lives in constant fear of the next titan attack.
It's easy to rile him up, especially if he doesn't agree with an opinion.
His ability to work with his fellow cadets sucked for a while (his honesty would drive people away), but then he got somewhat better.

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