Two Brothers
Eren is conscious and moving, but he’s still in a lot of pain. Zeke tries to help him up, but Galliard manages to hit him again. Reiner jumps in and holds Eren down while Zeke regains consciousness and starts to move.
Zeke is determined to have his brother, Eren, become the Beast Titan. He has a strong connection to the boy and wants to help him in any way possible. However, Colt is determined to stop Zeke from becoming the Beast Titan and he won’t let anyone else stop him.
Zeke’s Shout turns everyone into Titans. Despite his efforts, Zeke simply tells him “it’s a shame” as he uses his Shout and turns everyone into Titans. Titan Falco runs straight for Reiner, trying to bite down on the nape at the back of his neck.
Falco turns his attention away from Reiner’s neck and eats the bloodied soldier, who Porco had just killed. Gabi watches on in shock. ..
Eren charges toward Zeke, who lies on the floor in front of the skeletal remains of the Beast Titan. What Eren didn’t account for though was Gabi. With a gun pointed, she fires it at Eren, taking his head clean off.
This shocking moment opens the door for an ingeniously planted flashback. This takes us back four years, where Eren reflects with Zeke on how some of their father’s memories opened up to him. Namely that of him killing the wall’s royal family. ..
Eren Yaeger, the son of a Titan shifter, understands that his father’s savage act was necessary to save the world and the Wall. Eren intends to put an end to Titan rule for the last 2000 years and does so with Zeke by his side. ..
Eren finds Zeke, chained to the floor, and Zeke tells him this is “The Coordinate where all Paths converge.” All Founding Titans, those with Royal blood, show up. Eren is curious and asks Zeke what it is. Zeke tells him it’s a place where he can find all the answers he needs to save his people.
Zeke, who was badly injured in the explosion at the end of episode 15, has reappeared here. Ymir saved him and slowly redeveloped his body, so he was able to be saved. This confirms that normally fatal wounds can be healed and saved by Ymir, if she decides to do so. ..
Zeke wants Eren to use Ymir to put his euthanization plan into action but at the last second, he decides not to. This was all a long game to gain the power of the Founding Titan for himself. Unfortunately, Zeke himself has actually been testing him too, revealing that he’s already got the Founding powers and wants to see if Eren was actually trustworthy and onboard with his plan.
With a bright, dazzling light emanating from him, Eren is stuck in a dark and suspenseful scene. Zeke carries out his plan and touches his foreheads in order to create the same effect, but the episode ends with a mysterious ending.
The Episode Review
This week’s Attack on Titan chapter was an absolute showstopper, with new revelations and exciting action. ..
The entire 23 minutes are tense, with plenty of drama bubbling up right the way through. Gabi once again proves to be a deciding factor here, shooting Eren and taking his head clean off. That was certainly unexpected (I mean, maybe not for manga readers!) and the visceral detail and the way everything slows down to really drink in this shock, is beautifully animated.
Zeke’s touch of Eren’s severed head and meeting him in The Coordinate show where everyone’s allegiance lies. ..
The middle flashback, showing Eren’s ideology and how the brothers are both the same and yet so different, is a great inclusion to have and it breaks up the drama and shocking action really well.
The ending of Founder Ymir’s story is a big shocker, and with the fate of the world hanging in the balance, everything is left on a precarious knife edge ready for next week’s follow up.
