Do you think Eren deserves to get redemption/does it seem like narrative will give him a chance?

Sooo I think redemption is not about deserve, but rather whether or not it works for the characters arcs and the themes of the story that the character’s arc ties into. Redemption in a gray story like SnK looks very very different than it does in a story like, say, ATLA, where the evil and good are very clearly different sides.

So for example, Reiner. Is Reiner getting a redemption arc? I am going to argue he is, and then take this back to Eren, but it’s complex. Reiner’s redemption will not likely look like him switching sides.

Bertolt is right here. There is no way for them to make amends for all the people they killed. You can’t resurrect the dead. They cannot restore what they took. Neither, now, can Eren.

The first step in redemption arcs is usually regret. Reiner experiences that in copious amounts in the Marlay Arc, but he is still not considering switching sides really. Rather that switching sides, though, what I think redemption would look like for Reiner is saving Falco and Gabi from their fates instead of telling Falco to basically do what Marcel did and sacrifice someone else for someone he cares about (and it didn’t work out for Marcel or Porco). Reiner was always about working for Marlay, for glory, for ideals, and therefore I suspect for him it would mean choosing to save individuals (because SnK explores this choice as a theme quite in-depth).

For Annie specifically, it might look like switching sides should she ever get out of that crystal (and she better), because she was pretty clearly set up for some kind of redemption and her focus was always on wanting to save her own skin, and she hated that about herself and admired Eren and Marlowe and Armin specifically because they did not do that, because they clung to their ideals no matter what. For Annie, if she chooses to help the walled people (even with the aim of getting back to her dad), I think that would qualify.

For Eren… yes, I expect a kind of redemption. I don’t know if it will look like him doing anything good for the world. It very well may not. That may fall to Armin. But who knows. For Eren, I think it would look like reconciling with his loved ones, especially Mikasa, as the person who has been there for everything with him. I do expect things to get way, way worse before any kind of reconciling happens, and no, I’m not expecting happiness, but a moment in which he acknowledges her and how badly he’s hurt her would count as the narrative framing him redemptively for me.

eren is not a hero hes more flawed than you think thats what mikasa is realizing i do believe he has remorse for sashes death. and that fatal flaw would only have him killed one day

Yep, Eren is not a hero. Armin is: Eren’s even said so. I agree with you that that is what Mikasa is realizing, and it’s heartbreaking for her.

I love Eren as a character because he is so flawed and so messed up, and there is no happy ending for him after he killed children which Mikasa even realized and said to him. Like, Eren’s one of my favorite characters, but it’s because he’s so angry, bitter, prone to lashing out, prone to rushing ahead, and yet desperately loves his loved ones with a heart that’s bigger than his brain sometimes, and he makes terrible decisions as a result more often than not. I think that makes him a fascinating character, because most protagonists are much more like Armin or like Mikasa or even Levi. Eren is very, very different, and I appreciate that.

I agree with you Eren feels despair over Sasha’s death, and I do think he is going to die. His chances of a happy ending are nonexistent and that’s without even the titan time limit coming into play. But I think he will have a role in freeing Eldia–but it won’t be the role of hero, like he’d envisioned as a child, which is a tragedy unto itself. 😦

I’m glad we’re finally getting to see the impact Erwin’s death has had recently since we never got a funeral or anything like that. Levi’s practically stuck in the past. Armin will still obviously feel extremely burdened by the fact that he was chosen over Erwin which I hope gets dived into a little more. And Hanji’s cracking under the pressure of her new role as commander. I strongly believe there is not a single character in the series who could’ve filled Erwin’s shoes as commander.

Indeed. No one else can grow eyebrows like that.

But yeah. I think this arc (quite possibly the last) is about, in part, overcoming the past and breaking out of the cycles, or the inability to do it in some cases. Armin I do think will be most likely to break the cycle, as the hero, but I think he may have to choose at some point whether or not to repeat the choices Erwin made like sacrificing himself/others, etc.–which he may be expected to do–or make new ones. He was already saved last time he tried to sacrifice himself, so suffice to say that’s a theme in his arc (as well as in Historia’s and Erwin’s) so I expect it to come up again. The most likely thing he’ll have to sacrifice imo is his close friendship with Eren, though that doesn’t mean I think they’ll hate each other–on the contrary, I think they will always deeply love each other even if they make choices that lead them away from the other one.

Hange finally getting an arc, I’m here for this. I think they are also trying to be Erwin when really they should be thinking outside of the box/ island they’ve been trapped on (the metaphor isn’t subtle) and the old strategist are not necessarily going to benefit them now. I also think they will overcome this.

And Levi. It’s funny, because I think I wrote a year or two ago how I really wanted to see Levi fulfill his promise to Erwin by killing Zeke. But in reality, I think it’s a far more character/thematically interesting–and far more hopeful–path for Levi to take if he has to choose between killing Zeke and… something else important in terms of freeing humanity (since Erwin wanted that too) and/or saving someone he loves, since Levi is and has always been motivated by the people he cares about most. I think it’s far better if Levi has to choose to leave his revenge for a better world even if he won’t be able to survive to live in it, and I do have confidence Levi would make the right choice. I also think that would make Erwin proud.

The point is exactly that there is no one who could fulfill Erwin’s role as commander, and also that that isn’t necessarily a bad thing if Paradis truly wants freedom and to be a part of the world.

I think I remember you saying that you expect Eremika feelings to atleast be acknowledged as mutual by the end of the series. Since Eren and Jean’s dynamic is practically identical to Erwin and Nile’s I could definitely see it playing out exactly like that. I’d love a little conversation like the one they had in the carriage about Marie except with Eren and J, where Eren just like Erwin tells J that he had feelings for Mikasa himself. I think E-M-J might end up exactly like E-M-N

I do, yeah. Eremika strongly parallels the other canonically romantic relationships set up by the narrative–Yumikuri and Galco–so I would expect Eremika to get the acknowledgement at the very least that Yumikuri got, and Galco to actually be the one that ends up canon and alive by the end.

That’s a very interesting comparison to Erwin and Nile’s dynamic. I can definitely see that parallel. If Jean and Mikasa do end up together in an epilogue (like I don’t expect a declaration of love, but an epilogue is entirely possible) I really hope we get to see some of their dynamic this arc (if indeed it is the last one, or the penultimate one). I can see something like you suggest happening.

I think an overarching theme in SnK is that each generation does a little better at embracing the beauty in the world (instead of letting cruelty reign) than the last. So I really still doubt a nihilistic ending because of that. I don’t believe Erwin ever told Marie his feelings, but I think Eren will tell Mikasa his feelings like Ymir did tell Historia her feelings (even if it was too late at that time), and Falco will tell Gabi his feelings (or vice versa) but they will have the chance to actually act on them in ways the other canonically romantic couples simply did not thanks to the world’s cruelty. I think Falco and Gabi, and their relationship, are about finding a balance of beauty and cruelty in the world. While cruelty kinda has a tendency to win out and cut the beauty short in the past, I think they will be able to live in a better world, and Jean and Mikasa (since they are both strong Falco parallels as well lol) will be able to live in that world as well, whether or not they end up together. (But the fact that Jean’s crush is established means, narratively, something should come of it at some point even if it is never returned, so yeah.)

I remember you in the past talking about your fav tg moments and what you love about them. So could you do something similar with Snk and say what’s your favourite moment/scene from each arc? Even if it’s just the ones from each arc that stand out to you the most. I’d love to know!

Fall of Shiganshina: Mikasa shoving bread into Eren’s mouth being like, “live you loser.”

Battle of Trost: Annie and Mikasa saving Connie and Sasha (actually that whole plan with the shooting because the best family is all working together), also Mikasa’s declaration that the world is cruel but it is also beautiful. I love both these scenes and can’t pick.

104th Training Corps: Potato Girl.

Female Titan: When Annie decides to spare Armin despite knowing he’d figure her out, and Armin’s “good person” talk with Annie.

Clash of the Titans: my very favorite scene in the entire manga. Bertolt’s “Somebody” breakdown where he screams for someone to save him. The fact that they killed him in the end breaks me. I never understood how the Warriors were so hated after that breakdown. It’s powerful and gets at all the major themes: not being able to live the life you want, a longing for a better world, the cruelties done to children (because Bert is very much a child in that scene). I’m also partial to the Yumikuri flashbacks where Ymir calls Christa out.

The Uprising: Historia choosing not to kill Eren and her entire moment in the cave. It’s powerful.

Fall of Shiganshina: Armin’s last stand. Chills.

Marley: Mikasa showing up + Levi’s confrontation with Eren on the airship. That look he gives him in 105. That look. It’s wrenching.

Current Arc: So far, Armin confiding in Annie 😉

I really don’t like the rep attack on titan has in the broad anime community. To a lot of people it’s just nothing but shock value and meaningless death. Anime The Walking Dead (which I see as an insult tbh). Idk I know everyone’s allowed their own opinions but I wish Aot would be recognised for things like it’s female cast, protagonists and portrayal of war, etc. Instead of just being written off as mainstream trash. (Obvs this is also what it’s like with tons of much smaller series as well!)

I wasn’t aware it had that reputation I think popular things often get shit on because… it’s popular and people are grumpy lol. AoT isn’t perfect but I think it’s a very well done portrayal of war, as you say, with the best female cast I’ve ever seen in anime and very deep and poignant themes. It’s not shock value or pointless deaths–every death has a thematic reason behind it, and Isayama’s even convincing me Ymir’s has one too.

Mikasa’s Arc is Fantastic

While I get that Mikasa’s arc is very different than most female characters’ arcs, I honestly feel sad when people reduce her arc to not having developed (she’s developed as much as Armin has; they’re both still clinging to their flaws but are starting to see that they’ll have to overcome them–Armin’s flaw is not fear of battle, for the record: it’s self-hatred and a lack of confidence in his decisions, which sacrificing himself for everyone didn’t exactly fix).

But onto Mikasa’s arc. I have a bit of a pet peeve about this notion that Mikasa loves Eren out of an “Ackerbond” (which Isayama has said doesn’t exist) rather than out of a complex character trait that is both a flaw and strength. Way to diminish a female character’s choices and character arc, fandom.

Sorry, I needed to salt a little. Back to the main point. Mikasa is not fighting against a random worldbuilding element. She’s fighting against choices inflicted on her by an early childhood trauma, and her arc is deliberately set up to parallel Armin’s and Eren’s. All of the main three’s arcs are about expanding their ideals to include a complex world, not just Mikasa’s. Mikasa’s arc is literally about learning that there is more to her world than just Eren. It’s not about realizing her love for Eren is wrong (though again, I expect Eren to die 100% and Mikasa 100% to survive so I’m not expecting a happy ending for Eremika) but realizing that there is more to her world that is beautiful than just Eren. It’s about seeing cruelty and beauty coexisting, gray instead of just black and white.

Mikasa’s love for Eren is just this: beautiful and yet a flaw. She reached this realization, and then regressed. Because it’s almost as if regression in an arc is also a motif in SnK (cough Historia cough).

In some ways Mikasa’s role is literally a deconstruction of the stereotype that a female deuteragonist love interest will be able to save the main male character (please can this misogynistic trope disguised as female empowerment die). That’s pretty damn feminist imo. In fact, Isayama shows that he understands that romantic love in general cannot save you, though it can help you save yourself, even more with how Ymir cannot save Historia yet her influence can inspire Historia (and I expect it to again thanks to Porco’s memories).

Like Ymir couldn’t save Historia by encouraging her to live her life for herself but sacrificing her own life for Historia, and like Mikasa can’t save Eren by being his sword, Falco can’t save Gabi by being stronger than she is, because even if nothing had happened and they had stayed in Marlay, Gabi’s personality is such that she will do what she wants to do, and Falco is constantly chasing her and trying to rescue her from herself like Mikasa is trying to rescue Eren from himself. Gabi is the only one who can save Gabi from herself. The story can’t make that clearer.

Historia is the only one who can save Historia, and Eren is the only one who can save Eren. Mikasa is starting to realize that, but it’s slow.

Someday I will write a full fledged meta on how Yumikuri and Eremika parallel each other and both reinforce this theme, and Galco as well (since it’s the only one of these three I expect to have a happy ending) but for now have my rant since I’m grumpy after seeing complaints about Mikasa everywhere after each episode and seeing no one saying the same thing about Ymir or about Falco when they have such deliberately parallel flaws.

**To clarify since I got a message about it, this meta is not about a specific post at all! Just the general way the fandom seems to read Mikasa. Most meta writers give her a great analysis and I didn’t mean to imply otherwise**

I was just reading someone’s comments on reddit claiming that the SC’s attack on Marley directly involved the killing of civilians for the fact they bombed the nearby buildings. I don’t think this is right because only Floch and his gang of new restortionists were igniting the buildings. We then have a peek on Jean calling them idiots as he scolds them for trying to burn the whole internment zone. Even tho, I’m still not sure if they were targeting them! Thanks in advance!

(Same anon asking about the reddit comments) I also wanted to add some believe the SC were causing the civilian deaths through the Liberio arc intentionally. Do you agree with this?

Anonymous said:Hamliet-san, do you think Hange is upset by the fact they pretty much caused a genocide within Marley? I’m wondering about most of the characters’ moralities after the timeskip.

The first two anons I think are not the same as the third, but these can be answered together! Is that post blowing up on rebbit? XD

I don’t believe Floche’s little blaze of glory was part of the initial plan. That being said, attacking a city means that the SC had to know there would be civilian casualties. It’s impossible not to. That being said, I also think it’s highly likely Hange and the higher ups wanted to minimize collateral damage because the less damage the better insofar as Paradis’s reputation with the other nations goes. That being said retrieving Eren and Zeke was the priority, and, well, Eren already blew keeping civilian casualties to a minimum. But Mikasa’s reaction to Eren’s murdering kids pretty much confirms, imo, that the Survey Corps did not deliberately target civilians. Mikasa is horrified. Jean is also furious at Floche for doing so.

So, no, I don’t believe there is anything to suggest they were deliberately targeting civilians. That being said I think they accepted civilians would get hurt.

I think it’s complicated with Hange–to be fair, she has more pressing concerns right now, like keeping Paradis alive. I do think she’s upset because obviously she knows killing civilians is not gonna help them because it’s wrong and hurts innocents, so yes, I do think she gets this, but it might be framed as “this is war and you’re putting all our necks out there, Eren.” But she still knows he did something wrong.

I hope that helps! Also, rebbit gonna rebbit.

What do you think about SnK’s OP ss3?

I adore it. It’s my favorite one visually and symbolically. It brought me to tears. Musically it’s nice but not my fave.

For my very brief, rushed analysis of it (I’m not gonna cover every shot I don’t have time but):

We open with Eren with his eyes closed.

And then Eren awake, with his eyes open, jumping into action.

The camera then pulls back, symbolic of how his world is going to open up this season with the discovery of Marley. It’s also a part of growing up and maturation, a major theme in the Uprising and Shiganshina arc: learning to expand your worldview.

They cast larger shadows, symbolizing among other things, again, groiwng up, and also what they have to overcome:

The still images are fascinating, because they are of them as children, because they can’t change their past no matter what happens in the future.

We then have adorable baby Levi stumbling around between street walls #symbolism.

Levi flipping a knife and looking at an angle that appears to match Kenny’s angle next, showing again, that Kenny is his father figure.

And also Kenny’s original shot of him with his face covered and then flipping his hat up so we see his face: a literal unmasking.

If this Erwin shot of him watching his father and his child self does not break your heart I don’t know if you have one. Erwin’s face is also resolute, signifying how he was driven by his childhood trauma to the very end.

Baby Historia, initially appearing alone, only then to be revealed to be with Frieda, opening her hands and releasing into the wider world.

Eren appears and then we see his hand reaching for himself, but he can’t grab hold. He also then reaches for Mikasa, who stares away from him up at the sky, clutching her scarf (a symbol of something that saved her during her moment of trauma, and of her love for Eren that anchors her).

The hand then reaches for Armin, looking down, and Armin vanishes and hte hand is left with blood, and if you’ve read the manga you’ll know what this is referring to. It’s also interesting that Eren, Mikasa, and Armin are all looking in different directions, which is again symbolic of growing up and forming your own individual place in the world.

More still images of Carla and Grisha and baby Eren, and then we see Shiganshina again, the childhood home, and Eren then gets to his feet to look out at the larger world, but with his back turned towards the audience. I don’t want to speculate too much but you can clearly see this as a reference to what’s going on in the manga right now, with Eren going rogue from everyone who cares about him, and not even listening to his child self who keeps trying to get his attention before giving up. This is my favorite part, and I cry.

Then we see them running as kids, but not the destination. We see the Warrior babies trying to find their way through a dark, confusing forest with a lamp, looking lost.

Historia at the fence, refusing to looking out and away, rocking as if she can’t decide whether to step forward or not, Erwin and Levi passing each other and Levi watching Erwin.

The Shinganshina trio are running and they lose a shoe, and it’s left behind, the key and then a still shot of them laughing together. The key of course is the thing that will unlock the larger world they’re a part of, a world that they all need to find their way in, and they have to keep running forward, keep fighting for that beauty in the middle of a cruel world. It doesn’t lessen the beauty of the relationships they’ve shared, but it does make it impossible for them to go back to those days. Their love for each other will never lessen, that I believe, but they won’t be able to return to the simplicity of those childhood days, and their dreams will be realized but with a cost.

What do you think of the change in plot/structure in SNK season 3?

The Uprising is definitely my second favorite arc in SnK, though I know that isn’t a popular opinion (when have I ever had a popular opinion help), so seeing it adapted well really, really matters to me. Historia’s character is one of my favorites, and her journey is deeply meaningful for me.

Suffice to say, I do not have a problem with what the anime is doing so far. It seemed like they’re just rearranging things, which is fine because I will admit Isayama’s story while a fantastic story has some really… iffy pacing. The Uprising (like the Marlay arc) works as a whole in the story, but if I were to read it monthly I can see there being issues in the pacing. I don’t think the changes are much different than what the anime has been doing so far: in season 1, it rearranged the 104 training arc to fit better with the pacing, and in season 2 we got more of Ymir’s backstory when it was actually relevant instead of showing up five hours late with a letter.

So far, every season seems to be correcting little parts of the pacing, but the issues are simply more prominent in the arc being adapted right now: hence, there are going to be more changes. My guess is the Marlay stuff is also going to be heavily altered pacing wise, and I’m okay with that (who wants to bet we get some of Reiner’s memories of Bertolt this season before Shiganshina? I’d bet a lot on them doing a significant set up for season 4′s switch to Marlay, and I think it’s clear we’re heading to at least chapter 90 + possible beyond that insofar as the Reiner memory chapters go.)

The first episode was fast, but not to the point where it felt rushed yet, depending on how the rest of the season goes. It felt like it was setting the stones for things it plans to elaborate on later, but in a different order than we were expecting. It adapted the important parts, and framed Armin’s molestation as horrifying and not for gratuitous lols which was something I was very worried about after that interview. The OP is actually my favorite OP for SnK visually/symbolically. I’m excited to see my three favorite characters shine (Eren, Armin, Historia) or really burn up in flames but hey.