Falco Grice

Falco Grice is a major character in the Attack on Titan franchise. He is an Eldian boy who grew up in Marley and is a Warrior candidate for the Armored Titan. He intends to inherit the Armored Titan in order to ensure his fellow candidate, Gabi Braun, does not inherit it because it shortens one's lifespan and due to the crush he has on her. After being transformed into a Pure Titan by Zeke Yeager, the mindless Falco devours Porco Galliard, inheriting the power of the Jaw Titan. 
He is voiced by Natsuki Hanae in Japanese and by Bryson Baugus in the English version. The former also voiced Tanjiro Kamado.
==Appearance==
Falco Grice is a short boy with a small build. He has short, messy, light-brown (blond in the anime) hair and light hazel eyes. As a Warrior candidate, he wears a standard Marleyan uniform consisting of a light jacket and pants, suspender straps, a hard hat, and combat boots. As per the law, Falco is forced to wear an Eldian armband to signify that he's an Eldian.
===Pure Titan Form===
When transformed into a titan, Falco's pure titan form was very tall and lanky with a very long neck and no distinguishable lower jaw, comparable in height to Reiner Braun's Armored Titan. Its mouth was noticeably rounded, with the upper jaw connected with the base of its nose.
===Jaw Titan Form===
This form of Falco is actually a hybrid form of Beast Titan and Jaw Titan when Falco at first accidentally consumed Zeke Yeager's (who is the current Beast Titan) spinal fluid, then subsequently devoured Porco Galliard who was the owner of Jaw Titan (Porco sacrificed himself to bring Falco back to his sanity and to save Reiner). As the Jaw Titan, Falco's Titan form shrunk down to merely five meters in height and possesses a much more muscular build similar to previous Jaw Titans. 
His Titan form possesses two sets of jaws, with the outer set capable of piercing through harder objects such as Titan hardened skin. His Titan form initially takes on some avian features, with the outer jaws reminiscing a bird's beak and his legs being shaped like talons.
Upon gaining better control of his Titan form, Falco learns the ability to create two versions of his transformation. In his alternate form, he fully takes on the appearance of an avian creature, with a large set of wings and a more prominent beak.
==Personality==
Falco Grice is a rather shy individual who lacks confidence in himself. Despite this, he does not hesitate to put himself in the line of fire to protect others, as seen when Gabi is under fire during a battle, and he leaps in to to protect her. 
Falco is a very compassionate individual, having gone out of his way to rescue Gabi and even choosing to bring an enemy soldier from the battlefield into the trench in order to fix his wounds. He also comes to the aid of a war veteran in his homeland, conversing with him and even mailing his letters for him. Unlike other warrior candidates who wanted to inherit a titan in order to fight for Marley or to eliminate the "island devils", Falco only wants to inherit the Armored Titan for Gabi's sake and to make sure she doesn't shorten her lifespan.
He initially had a lack of self-confidence, but after talking with Reiner and Mr. Kruger, both of them inspire him to assert himself more and have more confidence in his abilities, which allow Falco to perform significantly better in his training. In spite of this, Falco still remains very humble, viewing the praise given to him by his fellow Warrior candidates as embarrassing and "not a big deal", instead attributing it to Mr. Kruger's advice. 
Despite his young age, Falco is actually much more emotionally intelligent and empathetic than he appears: while several other fellow Eldians and Warrior candidates view the people on Paradis Island as "devils" and being a chosen inheritor for a Titan as a reward, Falco is not blinded by this false belief and understands that being a Warrior is actually more of a curse since it shortens the user's life, and the inheritor is only used for combat and war. 
When Mr. Kruger reveals that he's actually Eren Yeager and that the letters he was sending were to Eren's allies, Falco was deeply shocked and disturbed, but upon hearing what the Warriors did to Eren's home, he understands the reasoning and takes to heart what Eren said that people are all the same. Even after his hometown Liberio is attacked and several of his friends are killed, Falco assumes that this was down out of retaliation for Marley's first attack. Because of this, he also does not hold any hatred or prejudice towards the people of Paradis Island in comparison to others of his age or his superiors.
==History==
Falco Grice is a member of the Grice family, an Eldian family from Liberio which is forced to live as second-class citizens due to Marley's discrimination against Eldians. His uncle was a member of the Eldian Restorationists, a rebel terrorist organization that also involved War Chief Zeke Yeager's parents. Unlike the Yeagers, the Grice family could not prove its loyalty to Marley other than by having Colt join the Warrior program and serve the nation in war. As he grew up, Falco also chose to join the Warrior program to inherit one of the Nine Titans, apparently to have more chances to secure his family's innocence and status as Honorary Marleyans in case Colt failed. Despite having no interest in fighting for Marley, Falco still pushed himself to be chosen as a Warrior candidate for Gabi Braun's sake, hoping to be chosen to inherit the Armored Titan in her place so she could live a long life. Falco dreamed to marry her and make her happy by taking all the burden as a Warrior in her place, despite Gabi actually pursuing it.
Despite his bravery, Falco is not considered physically fit for war and during his years of military training and four years of war he is unable to distinguish himself in the battlefield or in sparring sessions. Gabi deems him useless in battle. However, Falco is still considered one of the best cadet child soldiers to inherit a Titan, and as a younger child he was chosen to become a Warrior candidate amid an entire large class of children competing to join the four candidates. 
Falco is first seen on the battlefield alongside his fellow soldiers and Warrior candidates fighting the war against the Mid-East Allied Forces. During the Battle of Fort Slava, Falco is wounded but is saved by his older brother, Colt, who brings him to the Marleyan trench where he is treated by his fellow younger candidates. Gabi gives him a quick debriefing about the past four years of war and the current battle's objective. As he angrily discusses the incompetence of the Marleyan navy, Udo begins to panic in fear of their military failing, causing him to wrap Falco's bandages too tightly until Gabi scolds him for it. When Falco wonders why he and the other candidates have been put on the front lines this time, Gabi explains that it is so Commander Magath can test their nerves on the battlefield and evaluate their capabilities as successors for the Armored Titan. Gabi goes on to say they need to prepare for the next war on Paradis Island in a few years and sees herself as its major player. She brags there is no one else better than her anyway, as she is already the top of her class and the best performing of all the child cadets of the military. She also sees herself as the leader of the child soldiers and the Warrior candidates. As Falco, Udo and Zofia still try to challenge her, Gabi interrupts them and explains her superiority above everyone and how she is the only one ready to carry the fate of all the Eldians in the world's internment zones. She tells them she will slaughter all the people of Paradis Island and firmly promises she will not lose. Falco then asks her about the item she is fiddling with and Gabi grins as she shows him her custom hand grenades she just made.
Gabi is smug and is even willing to break any rules and laws to get what she wants, confident that she is above punishment anyway, as her Marleyan superiors value her too much and made her accustomed to get praised for any achievement and any person she kills for the nation. When Gabi offers Commander Magath to take out the Mid-East Union's massive anti-Titan artillery entirely on her own, Falco is greatly concerned for her safety and fears she will get seriously hurt or killed. Knowing Magath actually cares for her, Gabi gives her commander attitude and acts cheeky as she sarcastically tells him she understands why she is more worth than 800 soldiers put together. When Magath finally gives in and allows her to go to the enemy trench, Falco is horrified and tries to object, but Gabi ignores him and gets undressed, whilst Falco blushes in embarassment and turns around. He begs her not to go, but she only gives him a smug grin before she heads out in her underwear without her uniform so that the enemy will not know she is a soldier. Hearing Colt and Magath discussing this is a war crime, Falco wonders why is Gabi going so far and watches her deceiving the enemy soldiers and then killing them by blowing up the armored train. When her plan succeeds, she attempts to flee but is nearly shot by a surviving gunman. This sends Falco over the edge and immediately rushes out of the trench to try and save her, but then, their ally Porco Galliard transforms into the Jaw Titan and shields them from machine gunfire while they duck into a ditch. Gabi is surprised to find herself below Falco covering for her, but does not acknowledge his behavior. 
When returning to the trench during the attack of the Marleyan infantry, with also Galliard, Pieck and her Panzer Unit joining the assault, Falco brings a wounded enemy soldier with him. He is scolded and mocked by his superior Koslow and Gabi for his actions, the latter insinuating that he is only behaving like that to outshine her by acting obedient to international law and telling him there is no way he will earn the Armored Titan like this. When Falco tells her he does not care about any of that, Gabi is perplexed by his kindness towards an enemy and calls him a weird person. He is surprised and unhappy when Udo translates for him that the enemy soldier told him to stop touching him for being an Eldian "devil". Later Falco and his comrades watch as a horde of Pure Titans, Vice Chief Reiner Braun, Zeke and Galliard eliminate the remaining Allied Forces in Fort Slava and their remaining naval fleet, but they are shocked that Reiner's armor was broken through by the anti-Titan artillery. Gabi panics as she thinks her cousin has been killed. The Marley Mid-East War ends with Marley's victory and the dispute Mid-Eastern territories are annexed as part of Marley. 
Sometime after the battle, Falco stands alongside his fellow Warrior candidates at the harbor of the town below Fort Slava, as they watch Mid-Eastern war captives and survivors being escorted by Marleyan soldiers on a ship, to be sent back to their homes. As human ingenuity is finally surpassing the power of the Titans and moving on top of the food chain, the kids, especially Udo, are worried that when Titans will no longer be the dominant military power the Eldians will also no longer be of use to Marley. As Gabi is only concerned for her elder cousin, Falco gives her reassurance and reminds her that Reiner has survived dismembered limbs and even a severed head. After they see traumatized war prisoners, Udo goes into a furious rant because he is sure they will be used by the other nations as "mascots" to further tarnish the reputation of Subjects of Ymir and pushing the petitions to finally exterminate all them in a mass genocide. Reiner then arrives, much to Gabi's joy, and Falco coldly salutes him. When Falco suggests Reiner should rest, Gabi angrily retorts that he should be the one resting. The Warrior kids and Reiner go take a tour of the town, wanting to explore it as much as they can before the day they take their train to head back to Liberio in Mainland Marley. 
Sometime later, Falco is in a train heading back to Marley's original and main territory. He watches his brother Colt getting drunk and Gabi being praised by all the Eldians for her bravery in the battle. Falco complains about the alcohol, the drunken party and Colt and Gabi easily getting carried away as they scream loudly along with the rest of the soldiers. Falco and Reiner comment how Gabi did a lot of amazing deeds in war and they are sure that at this point the Armored Titan is already hers to inherit. Falco bitterly states that Reiner now only has two years left to live, and if Gabi inherits the Armored Titan, she will only live to be twenty seven years old, going so far as to accuse Reiner of not caring about her. Reiner frightens Falco and accuses him in return of insulting the honor of being a Marley Warrior, and then threatens to report Falco's behavior as incriminatory evidence that will have Colt's candidacy for the Beast Titan removed. Reiner goes as far to say that maybe this will even result with Falco and his entire family being arrested and turned into Pure Titan weapons to be used in battle. Absolutely terrified, Falco salutes and reaffirms his loyalty to his Motherland Marley, swearing that he wants to redeem the Eldians from the blood and sins of the wicked Ymir and saying it is an honor to inherit the power of the Titans. Thinking about Gabi's safety and future and wanting to save her from war, he becomes resolved and proclaims that he'll be the one to inherit the Armored Titan. Reiner leans closer and quietly tells Falco that he must surpass Gabi if he wants to save her from this cruel world and the cursed fate of being an Intelligent Titan.
==Trivia==
*Hajime Isayama has stated that Falco was inspired by the character Jesse Pinkman from the Breaking Bad TV series.
*Falco shares the same birthday with Mikasa Ackerman.
*Falco is the second inheritor of the Jaw Titan who was originally a candidate to inherit the Armored Titan, after his predecessor, the first one being Porco Galliard. Curiously, Ymir's Pure Titan form was also originally aiming for the Armored Titan inheritor to eat, but the Jaw Titan inheritor, Marcel Galliard, put himself in her way, causing her to inherit the Jaw instead of the Armor.
*Falco is the only known character to possess the ability to choose between two forms for his Titan power, the ordinary Jaw Titan power with the Beast's traits and the second Beast Titan power with the Jaw's abilities. Eren's two final forms for his "Doomsday Titan", the bony version and the last giant body version, do not count, as they were granted by concession of the Founder Ymir as an exception, rather than being Eren's actual regular inherited abilities. Falco is also the only known person to be the Beast Titan as a Jaw hybrid, while the actual Beast Titan still exists at the same time.
*He is also the only known character to receive memories of another Titan holder without having eaten said holder. Falco inherited access to Zeke's memories, while Zeke being still alive and the holder of the Beast Titan, due to Falco being the only Titan transformed with Zeke's spinal fluid who ever became an Intelligent Titan. Ymir Fritz, Eren Kruger, Grisha and Eren Yeager only received memories of Eren's future self, who sent some of his experiences to them in the past while using the Founding Titan until his death, in order to manipulate the events of history.
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