Spoiler Alert
This week’s episode of Attack on Titan played to one of its great abilities by being able to create atmosphere. By surrounding the characters in danger and putting them in impossible situations, the viewer’s pulse skyrockets as it looks like everyone may easily become a meal for the Titans. Previously this has involved waiting for Titans to move into position for counterattacks or riding on horseback at top speed, all to put the cast into situations which leave the audience concerned for their safety. Once again, the original creator of the series found a way to reproduce the same feelings by leaving characters stranded and without a way to get out.
The rookies are stuck in an old castle in the middle of nowhere. They are no weapons of their own, a horde of Titans trying to kill them, and the senior officers with equipment are soon overwhelmed by the odds. A typical day for this anime. There are a few moments of character introspective though mixed in with the suspect as Ymir teases Connie as a way to distract him so he is not worrying about his family and Reiner remembers a companion who saved him from being eaten by the Titans. By the look of it though, both of these characters seem to know more than they are letting on. At least Ymir’s secrets should be expanded upon very soon. Probably will be awhile before it’s revealed what else happened in Reiner’s past.
At the end Ymir reminds Christa of a promise they made before, which thanks to the preview will be revealed in the next episode. Not like it will be hard to get people to come back. This episode ends on an insane cliffhanger which is guaranteed to get the audience to return. Intense action, good character moments, and just the right about of horror so it’s impossible to relax makes this episode pretty satisfactory overall.
Attack on Titan: Season Two is streaming on Crunchyroll.
