I would never lie to myself again." This week's Attack on Titan is very Ymir-centric, and was much more busy than last week's pause for breath. Here, we get a glimpse of what Ymir's life was like before she became a Titan and before her 60 years of turmoil. It's interesting to see what kind of world there is beyond the walls and to see what type of society dwells there. In fairness, it seems almost as hostile as life inside the walls. Ymir was taken in by a community of people as a child and chosen as a representative of the people, with the blood of the King inside her. This peaceful community is quickly dismembered when armed troops attack and punish those who falsely claimed relation to royalty. The most important factor, or revelation, in this episode is, of course, that punishment for this crime is to be transformed into a Titan.
The masterstroke for this episode was that in the story that Ymir tells, all the hanging threads are tied together, linking her childhood with her eventual imprisonment in a Titan body, to accidentally meeting Reiner and Bertholdt and killing their friend. After finding a way to be free of her body, which isn't exactly explained, she decides to change her life for the good, setting her on a course to join the training corps inside the walls and ultimately meeting Christa, someone whom she sees as her equal, someone who has chosen to hide her true identity and stop lying to herself. The internal struggle that she has with her own mindset helps to add the emotion as she finally decides to side with Reiner and Bertholdt, as long as they allow her to capture Christa. Elsewhere, the Scouts almost get their hands on Eren and his captors, but they are foiled when Ymir betrays their trust after taking Christa and fleeing with her new allies. Mikasa's anger is obvious, but it's Hannes final words that ring of foreboding. Even they pull off saving Eren and capturing the traitors, the whole operation seems worthless anyway, as they haven't hit a blow against this hidden enemy of theirs. If loads die in the process it could be even more hopeless. I really thought Ymir was going to remain on the good side, but perhaps she really is all about her own gain and doesn't care for anyone else. Whilst most of the episode relied on great action scenes, the opening scene was more crafty as we return to the former home of Connie and the Titan with short legs. In the process of looking through the village and identifying Connie's parents, one of the Scouts makes a unsavoury discovery after turning the portrait upside down. The trapped Titan bears a striking resemblance to his mother - a key plot point in what could be a big reveal coming soon about the true origin of these Titans and what explicit connection Humans have to their physiology. Especially now with Ymir's past life being revealed along with a village that exists outside the wall, the writers have been hinting at revealing some new information for quite a while. But, with only two episode remaining, I find it difficult to see how they will be able to answer every question. 8.5/10
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AuthorA very passionate Welsh nerd... Archives
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