Attack On Titan Episode #25 Anime Review

“Strike me down with all of your hatred and your journey towards the dark side will be complete.”

What They Say:
Many years ago, the last remnants of humanity were forced to retreat behind the towering walls of a fortified city to escape the massive, man-eating Titans that roamed the land outside their fortress. Only the heroic members of the Scouting Legion dared to stray beyond the safety of the walls – but even those brave warriors seldom returned alive. Those within the city clung to the illusion of a peaceful existence until the day that dream was shattered, and their slim chance at survival was reduced to one horrifying choice: kill – or be devoured!

The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Wow, where do I start?

The battle between Eren and Annie begins in much the same way as it did before in the forest. This time we get to see what’s going on inside Annie’s head through a series of vague flashbacks. It’s strongly suggested that her father originally gave her the ability to transform into a Titan. Hmm…wasn’t there someone else whose father imbued them with a mysterious power when they were younger?

Annie beats Eren into the ground without too much difficulty and runs toward the wall to make her escape. At first he seems to have lost to her again, but this time, something is different. Eren’s green eyes change to blue, and glowing red lines appear all over his body. He looks like an active volcano. His internal monologue changes from the usual violent determination to a kind of gleeful madness. A second, unfamiliar voice can be heard overlaid on his as he promises to kill every last Titan, and this time he utters those words not with anger, but amusement. He almost sounds like The Joker.

The Female Titan’s speed has been marveled at ever since she was first introduced, but the new Eren easily outruns her. He bounds toward her on all fours (despite having already lost two limbs) and tackles her before she can get to the wall. With his one remaining hand he crushes her face into a disfigured mess, but Annie still manages to push him away and climb out of his reach. Then, Mikasa sweeps in out of nowhere to deal the true finishing blow. She cuts off every one of Annie’s fingers, stands on her face, and simply tells her: “Fall.” No anger, no gloating, just the solemn recognition of an enemy’s defeat.

When Annie hits the ground, Eren pounces on her and rips her body to shreds. Annie, the human, is finally exposed at the neck of her creature’s broken husk. Tears pour out of her tightly shut eyes. Despite being nearly consumed by bloodlust, Eren hesitates; he still can’t bear to kill her. Suddenly, the two creatures begin to “fuse,” a process which seems to involve bright lights and liquefying skin. A strange red pattern appears on both Eren and Annie’s faces, and Levi is forced to cut Eren out of his Titan.

Once the dust has settled, Annie is found encased in a giant crystal. She seems to have cocooned herself in the same material that her Titan uses to harden its skin. This also appears to have put her into a coma, meaning no one can get any information out of her, which was the entire purpose of capturing her alive in the first place.

Inbetween the commercial break, there’s actually an interesting story about a miner squished into a text box that fills the screen. Basically, the miner tried for years to dig beneath the wall, but eventually found that it extended horizontally beneath the ground as well as vertically. He told his friend about it, then mysteriously vanished the next day. The authorities set up a suspiciously large-scale search expedition to find him, but he was never seen again, and his friend soon disappeared as well. This definitely sounds like the first sign of a big human conspiracy.

In the aftermath of the battle, Erwin is called to trial to answer for all the damages and civilian casualties incurred during the Stohess operation. It looks bad at first, but thanks to his impassioned speech, Erwin and the Survey Corps. are completely let off the hook. The higher-ups agree that the mission was ultimately worthwhile, and they should, because Erwin is right: this is by far the best humanity has ever done against the Titans. He pledges to seek out all the other double agents hiding within the walls, and declares that it’s finally time for humankind to stage its first counterattack.

The episode ends on a cryptic note, with the narrator telling us knowingly that “it would still take much sacrifice and time before humanity learned what it was that held them captive.” At the same time, the camera zooms in on the key to the Zhiganshina basement still hanging around Eren’s neck.

This whole episode is packed with subtle hints and foreshadowing. When Jean and Armin are walking outside after the battle, Jean questions whether or it’s right to rely on Eren’s power. So far, all of their successes against the Titans have hinged on humanity’s repeated use of its own Titan. Armin claims that, “In order to overcome a monster, you must be willing to throw aside your humanity,” but Jean has to wonder, “Would that really be a victory for humanity?”

His concern is well-founded, even if he doesn’t realize it yet. Again, Attack on Titan does a great job of switching between different conversations to express its point from multiple angles at once. Jean’s worries are confirmed by Eren himself as he privately tells Mikasa that he actually enjoyed fighting against Annie, even when he was the one getting hurt. With each transformation Eren seems to become more like the things he’s fighting against. While he’s attacking Annie, we hear her father say, “Annie… You can make the whole world your enemy…” and Eren’s next line is, “I’ll destroy the whole world.”

Usually, a season finale attempts to tie up all the show’s loose ends and deliver a satisfying conclusion to its story. This episode, in contrast, goes out of its way to start new plotlines, exposes tantalizing possibilities within existing ones, and generally refuses to resolve anything. But that’s what I like about it. This is a confident final episode. It’s a message from the creators that this is really only the beginning. Considering its popularity both in Japan and around the world, Attack on Titan seems almost guaranteed to get signed on for another season. Everyone wants to know what happens next, and the creators realize that, which is precisely why they’re dangling that information just out of our reach.

One last note: be sure to watch past the credits. Something important happens at the very last second of the first season of Attack on Titan. (And after that, go back to the part where Eren crushes Annie’s head and see if you notice anything you didn’t the first time.)

In Summary:
Eren and Annie conclude their epic battle, and the result is somewhat unexpected. Erwin and the Survey Corps. manage to escape legal prosecution, and Erwin promises to hunt down all the other Titans living inside the walls. Lots and lots of ominous foreshadowing occurs. For a season finale, this episode raises more questions than it answers. Fortunately, due to its ridiculous popularity, Attack on Titan is about the likeliest anime ever to get a season 2. Until that gets announced, I guess I’ll just have to keep rewatching episodes 6 and 21.

Grade: A-

Streamed By: Crunchyroll

Review Equipment:
Insignia 1080p TV, PS3 with Crunchyroll App; Occasionally 17” Toshiba Satellite Laptop, 2.13 GHz Core i3, 4GB RAM, Windows 7

Kyle Charizanis

Oh hi. I am what happens when you combine an English + Philosophy degree with an insatiable appetite for video games and anime. I live inside my computer, which is located in Toronto, Canada. (I also have a Twizzler)

See author's posts