While Attack on Titan continues to become huge and throw multiple curveballs, there is one curveball that will always get a reaction. Earlier this year, there was an article focused on the gender debate of one of the wackier characters in Attack on Titan. Hange Zoe, the resident scientist of the series, has been quite the subject with regards to gender ambiguity. The spinoff comedy manga, Attack on Titan: Junior High, poked fun at Hange as it threw readers off with how to properly address the character. Hange’s development in the scope of all things Titan represents how ambiguity, despite the hate it gets, can be a blessing in disguise.

For those who aren’t aware, Hange’s gender became a hot topic when Hajime Isayama was asked about it in 2011 and said that he had no comment. In 2013, Isayama further clarified that Hange’s gender is whatever the fans want it to be. Kodansha Comics referred to Hange as “her” in Volume 5 of the manga, when she was first introduced to Eren Yeager after he joins the Survey Corps. They later got rid of it in future printings (I still have the first printing that notes Hange as a female). The anime made things more interesting as it listed Hange as a woman and she was voiced by Romi Park, who’s known for her deep voice and doing young male characters like Fullmetal Alchemist’s Edward Elric and BLEACH’s Toshiro Hitsugaya. Titan Junior High makes fun of the controversy by censoring any salutations and pronouns related to Hange. There were quotes that went from “CENSORED Hange!” to “Can you please take UP TO YOU Hange off our hands?” to “That isn’t like MR.? MS.? Hange at all.”

Hange is a sign of how much gender ambiguity continues to be a complex issue for some. If you’re a girl that loves male interests and vice versa, it confuses people. The issue gets more complicated if certain individuals have organs of the opposite sex. Those people want to live their lives without being treated as saviors/victims, but sometimes feel pressure from all sides to take one. I often wonder if the message that Isayama wants to provide with his statements about Hange is that certain types of people are still natural beings. Of course, Japan doesn’t use gender pronouns as much as other countries.

The world of Titan doesn’t give a damn about gender to begin with. If you put things in perspective, how much time is there for those kinds of debates when people are being eaten, manipulated, and killed? It’s understandable why there are fans who get worked up over an anime/manga character’s identity/role. They want to be able to relate to them as much as possible. Yes, reality isn’t always kind to fandom and sometimes people take cartoons and comics a bit too seriously. But uncertainty can be a good thing. Uncertainty teaches people preparation and patience, two things that seem to be lacking in today’s world. It can bring out the best in all people.

I want to refer to Hange’s introduction back in Volume 5. When she (let’s go with the anime interpretation of Hange for now) talks to Eren about her Titan fascination, Eren asks Hange why she “loves” the things that have ruined people’s lives. Hange explained that it started because of a Titan’s head that felt surprisingly light to her. She became confused about the weight and also talked about Eren’s Titan power. She then explained that there are probably both sides to everything. One you see on the outside, and the other hidden underneath. Life is nothing but ambiguity. When you see an important action, good or bad, being taken, it’s treated as just that. But what about the mechanics behind it? What was the motivation? We talk about taking things at face value, but the face can be a mask, just like a superhero or supervillain hiding his/her real identity and feelings.

Being a scientist (like Hange) means that you have to deal with all kinds of ambiguity. Hange must make various choices based on Titan research data that affect the human race. These choices may not be pleasant, but they are a part of processing important aspects of life. The point (and most challenging of it all) is to discover and embrace the meaning of the choices you make. Context is the key. Certain situations may call for different solutions. Perhaps what I’m trying to say is that regardless of what or who you are, you should keep exploring and learning. Go beyond what you know.

A scientist’s life is filled with uncertainties. I believe Isayama is suggesting that we should be “scientists” in our own way. By letting the reader deciding Hange’s gender for themselves, it allows the possibility of creative insight. How can someone grow if they don’t question certain ideas or thoughts? Hange may be male or female, but thinking about an issue like this teaches fans to learn about finding meaning in ideas and using it to their advantage in a good way.

In volume 6, Levi, Hange’s comrade-in-arms in the Survey Corps, once said that you never know what will come out of the choices you make. There will be a sense of ambiguity in decision-making at times. All you can do is choose the path that’s filled with less regret. No one knows everything, so why not make a fun, educated guess? You may fail, but like Hange, you become smarter from personal experience and learn how not to let certain definitions hold you back.

Ambiguity may be the enemy of accountability, but in shonen series and sometimes life, rivals can become friends to create the “world’s strongest duo” at some point, right?

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