At this point I stopped reading the manga, so here too I’m just blank. And it seems that I quit at a really awesome point in the series, because this episode again was really tense as it showed some hints about why Eren managed to turn into a titan in the first place, as well as hints to how the titans could be defeated and why Eren is special: his father.
People behaving illogically. That’s difficult to do, and yet this series is full of people in panic. In the past it went a bit over the top with how it portrayed the rich guys as egotistical bastards, but in this episode it was really good: Eren indeed is the key to beating the titans. However when you just saw that giant thing turn into him, all you do is want to kill him, yeah. I’m only not sure how Eren knew that he could activate this by biting into his thumb…
And really, the artwork for Eren’s new titan form looked gorgeous. Heck, the atmosphere here was just awesome in how the second episode just kept building up the tension by showing Eren’s inner struggles, and the background music really helped with that.
Rating: 6/8 (Awesome)
And again this is a chapter of a 7+ Raiting whit a 6. Why do you like more aku hana? is really that awesome? I saw five episodes so far and it bored me to hell.
I’m total fanboy over this anime. I don’t think I’ve been enjoyed something this much since I first started watching.
As for the thumb thing, he was recalling some lost memories, but I’m not sure whether or not he reached the basement, so it’s unclear to whether he learned how to transform or not. That scene by the way, completely took me by surprise. I was giddy in my seat. Great reactions by the characters as well.
I didnt think he had been to the basement since the first titan attack, he was just remembering that his dad had told him to go to the basement for answers (and fondled the key before turning in the stomach) and that he would know when he needed to go to the basement… Turning into a Titan isnt normal for puberty so perhaps he will now be mounting an escape/expedition for answers pursued by the recon corps.
I don’t like this episode. These new guys were annoying. Especially that “Sasha 2”, wearing glasses. Showing how “fun” it is for someone to fight the titans (or how easy it is) destroys the concept completely. It makes Eren and other characters look like morons… And titans not as frightening anymore. I don’t understand the intention of author here… You kill the atmosphere, dammit! Worst Sningeki no Kyojin episode so far IMO.
Isn’t that the point though…? It’s showing that all the “skilled” people who has a chance against titans are outside the wall and NOT at Trost. Which is how they got into this nasty situation at Trost in the first place [where all the front lines died instantly].
And you’re comparing people who had years of experience killing titans to trainees who just got out of training camp.
And it wasn’t the intention of the manga author because the scene with Levi and them were actually from a later chapter. So it’s the director’s intention to put them in to introduce the characters.
That boy, who looks like Eren’s twin brother, cannot have years of experience. He’s a teenager, right?
Also they doesn’t act like veterans at all. I haven’t seen anything special about them. They use the same weapons, jumping the same way, using the same equipment, acting like teenagers. That’s not the right way to introduce skilled characters.
Besides, that girl with glasses… The way her obsession with titans is shown is completely the same as Sasha’s obsession with food. They talk the same way, they look the same way… So there is the difference between Sasha 1 and Sasha 2? There is the difference between Eren and his “twin brother”? That wasn’t shown in this episode.
(need to read the manga and compare..)
Just for your info, the mangaka said in some interview that Levi/Rivai/Revy/Rivaille/WHATEVER is actually in his thirties despite his appearance… of course this isn’t mentioned in the anime so far and I don’t think it’s even stated in the manga, but yeah there you have it, he’s not a teenager.
Furthermore I really don’t get the complaints. Them being different from the other characters was the whole point since it would be boring to see the same perspective and emotions endlessly. Plus we already knew there was this group of soldiers who were the most skilled among them all, so why is it suddenly surprising to actually see what they can do?
If he’s in his 30s – that changes a lot. I’m fine with that. Thanks for the info.
—
It is surprising because we have seen other “group of soldiers who are the most skilled” in the first episode. Their commander said that not even one of the titans was defeated yet. It really felt like they are undefeatable. But now… we have seen that there’s a girl with glasses who can kill the titans and laugh… That kind of villain can be defeated like that? They became just a random meat like in any other plain shonen series..
Levi is 5’3″ he’s just a manlet
These are soldiers that have been in the scouting legions for years, and you want trainees that just finished training to be equal to them? I don’t understand the intention of viewers such as you who just want the main characters to be god powered straight out of training when there have been previous hardened veterans out there…
I don’t want the main characters to be “god powered”… I don’t want to see other characters to be “god powered” with no apparent reason.
It was told they are cool and all… but I haven’t seen why yet..
He’s the strongest out of all the soldiers, and the 2 are the ace of the scouting legions obviously they’re gonna be stronger than the rest, if they struggle to beat weaker classes titans what hope do humanity have in any of their struggles against titans?
You say you haven’t seen them do anything special since they use same equipment… but that’s what a veteran does, uses the same equipment but to a greater level, they’ve been shown for 5 minutes how much development do you expect them to have… And really acting like teenagers? Levy calmly dispatched the titans after his comrades fell, didn’t disagree with superior orders, what part of a teenager was this?
Ok.. You’re saying he’s the strongest… The same thing was said in the anime.. But that’s just words… I don’t believe it until you show me why. There was other thing – one soldier said that Mikasa is as strong as 100 men. I don’t believe that either. Don’t you see how this anime has only “incredibly weak” and “incredibly strong”? And it never bothers to show us why.
I see why Eren is strong. They talk about his incredibly strong “sense of purpose” and you can actually see that in action. In every minute of any action scene with Eren you can feel that it’s there.. He has a purpose.
In my opinion 5 minutes is enough to introduce the character – I’m not talking about development.. Right now, there’s nothing to develop.
Levy’s behavior itself was teenager-like. He tries to look cool too much (I mean anime creators tries too hard to show him as “cool” (without explaining first why)).
As for this girl with glasses… She was out of place. I don’t know what else to say about her.. I’m really surprised you’re fine with such a character..
If you really want answers, read the manga.
Maybe it’s difficult for non-manga readers to grasp the concept of these new characters introduced, but you’ll definitely see more of them later.
And address what you’re saying…[this is going to be long so I apologise. I just want to explain/clarify things since there may be some misunderstanding or anime’s lack of explanation as of date.]
“Showing how “fun” it is for someone to fight the titans (or how easy it is) destroys the concept completely. ”
“Ok.. You’re saying he’s the strongest… The same thing was said in the anime.. But that’s just words… I don’t believe it until you show me why.”
Umm…I’m pretty sure showing Levi and Hanji killing normal titans shows how skilled they are. They are very experienced since they’ve been in the Scouting Legion for YEARS [at least 5+ years *manga source*]. So Levi ordering the rest of the group to kill off one titan, while he takes care of 2, shows how strong he really is, and he also does it with ease.
I’m not sure if they specifically said in the anime, but in the manga they said that it takes an average of 30 PEOPLE to kill 1 titan. So anyone who can handle 1 titan alone is considered very skilled. [Which you can see in the top 10 of class 104].
I’m not sure what your expectations were when they told you he was the strongest…but that’s him right there. You will see more of him later in the anime.
“It is surprising because we have seen other “group of soldiers who are the most skilled” in the first episode. Their commander said that not even one of the titans was defeated yet. It really felt like they are undefeatable. But now… we have seen that there’s a girl with glasses who can kill the titans and laugh… That kind of villain can be defeated like that? They became just a random meat like in any other plain shonen series..”
1. They’re not the “most skilled”. They’re just the Scouting legion.
2. I don’t remember the commander saying that but I’ll take your word for it. It’s been 5 years since then. They have found out the weakness of the titans are at the back of their neck, so now they could actually KILL titans. Nothing contradicting here.
3. Hanji [glasses girl] on the other hand, I can’t explain her quirk without spoiling so go read the manga or wait for anime to get up to the point to explain her obsession with titans. Also, they’re trying to SHOW that these guys are skilled. So why would you doubt that she could easily kill a titan? It’s just proving how skilled she really is.
“There was other thing – one soldier said that Mikasa is as strong as 100 men. I don’t believe that either.”
Back in whichever ep it was, you see Mikasa taking down like 3-4 titans. By herself. Now if it takes an average of 30 normal soldiers to kill one titan…Mikasa easily killing 3-4 titans herself already makes her 90-120 soldier’s worth.
“Levy’s behavior itself was teenager-like. He tries to look cool too much (I mean anime creators tries too hard to show him as “cool” (without explaining first why)).”
Uh…ok. Levi “trying to look cool”, meaning, the “character TRIES to look cool” is different from “the authors try to make him look cool”. One is author making him cool, the other is the character itself’s behaviour. Author portrayal =/= Character behaviour. Whether or not Levi is cool is your opinion. But I don’t believe Levi was “trying to be cool” in any way. He’s being himself.
I…don’t understand why you associate being cool with being a teenager-like. So…I don’t have much to say about that.
——-
tl;dr I wrote a lot.
Not trying to argue or anything, I just want to clarify things since I think it may be because the anime hasn’t had time to explain it. [Note: I can’t be bothered proof-reading, so forgive me and my bad grammar and spelling mistakes]
I have started to read the manga, of course. And I’m not making any conclusions yet. I love the series (like 99% of it :)) and that’s why those little details bothers me so much – I don’t want to see my favorite shonen ruined by it.
What you have said here has meaning and I too want to believe that. … I’ll just wait for the next episode, while reading the manga.
Thanks for your long comment.
Glad you read my long ass comment xD Glad to know that you still like the anime too =D
But really, give the anime time to explain. They only have 24 mins for each ep, so not everything is going to be explained in one go.
@Sobakus:
The girl with glasses (Hanji) will turn out to be a really cool badass later on, mark my words & you’ll thank me for that 🙂
Well I kind of agree with you a little though…in the anime, they started out portraying her a little too clumsily (which is kind of forced & unnatural) as compared to the manga which perfectly captures her chara!
Just wait & watch for more mindblowing-ness of this series!
Exactly! That clumsiness was unnatural (and the second bad thing about it – she instantly reminds me of Sasha. Like it is one and the same character). May be the real problem here is the actress.
Ok. I’ll believe you for now. 🙂 And I’ll thank you later, if you’re right.
@Sobaku
lol it seems you’re disappointed because the pros made the titans no longer as menacing as it used to be, but that’s exactly the point. Titans alone aren’t really that dangerous because they’re stupid and win simply by numbers. The dangerous ones are the “intelligent” ones and the “real” titans. So sit back and wait for the real deal to come. That’s when the chaos really started.
You’re right. That’s that disappoints me. I want this series to be Horror and I started to watch it as a Horror series. This episode wasn’t horror anymore. Because right now the one who’s scary is Eren-titan, but not the others. Levy and Hanji are to blame for that…
Ok, I’ll wait for the “real” titans. Hope anime will have enough episodes to show them.
I think it was mentioned in some episode that the mortality rate, for Scouting Legion, is at about 50% for first encounter. But if you survive that first encounter, then the odds are fairly well. 90% still die within 4 years, but still… a 5/10 chance followed by a 2/10 chance. You can roll it with a dice, if you are lucky. If I recall Levi mentioned 30% fatality rate during that mission alone. The ones that do survive become fairly proficient, is that so strange? They learn to keep their emotions in check and how to use their gear efficiently against titans, alone or in a group. However, any small mistake can still result in death. Or bad luck. They truly are dancing on the edge of death.
you should read a bit of the manga. They are squad leaders of the elite Scouting Legion. Levi is considered the best of the Scouting Legion and Hanji is high up there as well. The Military Police are elite through rigorous aptitude testing and the Scouting Legion is elite through harsh survival of the fittest environment.
Oh trust me, never at any point in this series do the humans have it easy.
Those two characters were introduced in this manner because they are important to the plot. Their experience and survivability are related and you’ll see later on if you haven’t already been reading through the manga how much they contribute.
@Sobakus
‘In my opinion 5 minutes is enough to introduce the character – I’m not talking about development.. Right now, there’s nothing to develop.’
Now I think you’re just hating on the series because it isn’t exactly how you envisioned it. They did just that, they introduced the strongest character, they showed you him dispatching titans with ease, what else do you want him to do? If you read the manga you’ll see him do a lot more, which adds to his veteran status when it displays his calm decisions in the midst of battles when even Mikasa freaks out. If you really think they can show how hes the ‘strongest’ in 5 minutes while introducing other characters, while at the same time complaining about why hes so strong and came out of nowhere, your either a troll or just ignorant. Mikasa was also noted by their training commander to be a genius of unprecedented significance due to her quick rise of prominence and combat ability, she better be worth quite a few average soldiers considering the average soldiers get eaten by titans easily.
Levy was still emotionally hurt when his close comrades die obviously he wanted to mock the titans a little if he has that much control over their fate, much like how the titans do it themselves to humans at times
Also Hanji, the glasses girl, being the same as Sasha? Are we watching the same series? The same sasha who cowered in fear against titans when faced up against them compared to one who thrives in titans presence? Because they have an obssession with something it makes them the same character archetype? Ok TIL people who seem to enjoy something are all the same, thanks Sobakus
You’re also saying there’s only ‘super weak’ and ‘super strong’, ok so Levy, Hanji, Mikasa will be super strong, the other characters that already died without killing a single titan will be super weak, what about Connie, Sasha, they are neither super strong in that they can take out multiple titans, or super weak in that they’ll get demolished by them, they’re in between.
During the first episode their 3D maneuver gear wasn’t even developed yet, so they had no known weakness, now think for a second, if you were facing an enemy that you had no idea how to defeat, or facing an enemy knowing its one weakness with gear properly equipped to do so, how would you fare? That’s the difference between their ‘unkillable’ status of the titans in the first episode and the ease of killing them by the 2 aces of the scouting legion with years of experience, as you may or may not have noticed, many years have passed since the first episode… And they never said they were the most skilled soldiers in the first episode they were just members of the scouting legion with little to no information on titans, of course they’re gonna be weak in comparison to soldiers with adequate info
Really if someone is said to be humanity’s strongest soldier, you’d hope he’d be able to handle a few random titans or humanity is royally fucked with no chance of fighting back, or would you rather have a series where no one can handle a single titan, so they’re confined in their walls the entire show because no one can kill anything despite years of anti titan development? Seems like a very exciting series to me
And yes 5 minutes was enough to introduce them, which is what they did, what you’re asking for is an explanation for everything which if you can do in 5 minutes, its gonna be shit development, and whats wrong with a titan obsessed character? There are freaks in every culture of society and you think its that unlikely that someone is obsessed over titans? I’m more surprised your arguments are this ignorant and baseless when your attacking the author for not explaining the entire backstory of 2 recently introduced characters
TL:DR
They are hardened veterans that have shown their worth through the years, and believe it or not humanity has made progress since they were attacked.
“”or would you rather have a series where no one can handle a single titan, so they’re confined in their walls the entire show because no one can kill anything despite years of anti titan development? Seems like a very exciting series to me””
I want to see that “anti titan development” first.
“”There are freaks in every culture of society and you think its that unlikely that someone is obsessed over titans?””
Then show them as freaks!
“”Also Hanji, the glasses girl, being the same as Sasha? Are we watching the same series?””
Ok they are Sasha young and Sasha slightly older. Both dull comedic characters (at least for now they look like that).
“”Now I think you’re just hating on the series because it isn’t exactly how you envisioned it.””
No. There are things that this anime does good and there are things it does bad. Introducing new characters is the second.
“”your either a troll or just ignorant””
Oh… So I’m a troll, because I have an opinion which is not exactly like yours? … Have a nice day, Anon. Thanks for your comment.
They did exactly that, show them as freaks in their brief introduction? The anti titan development was made over 10 years do you really want them to go over every little nuance on how they developed the 3D maneuvers?
Seems in your mind female comedic characters are all sasha types now because they act completely different but in your eyes they’re so same, note taken.
And introducing new characters because they didn’t explain their entire backstory and showing them dispatching titans with ease isn’t enough to show their prowess, ok I’ll just take note on which series does a character introduction that covers everything you wanted when they’re an established veteran, oh wait its not freakin possible in 5 minutes
You really wanted this to be a series where the humans are just stuck being beaten to death by titans? The show would end within 10 episodes if they can’t defeat simple titans slowly encroaching in
*Time to combine multiple posts in 1 go again yay*
“You’re right. That’s that disappoints me. I want this series to be Horror and I started to watch it as a Horror series. This episode wasn’t horror anymore. Because right now the one who’s scary is Eren-titan, but not the others. Levy and Hanji are to blame for that…”
I think your disappointment comes from expecting something that isn’t what the series is about. Shingeki no Kyojin [I had a debate with my friend who studies jap] about the meaning of the title and why it was translated as “Attack on Titan” and not “Attack of the Titans”. If it was Titan’s attacking, it would have been Kyojin NO Shingeki. But instead, it’s the other way round, implying it’s the humans who are trying to attack the Titans. [Now whether this is right or not, I don’t know, it was just our conclusion from the discussion/debate].
What I’m saying is, the series is not about “Horror”. Horror isn’t the main element. It is actually an Action, Mystery, Fantasy, Shounen with elements of Horror in it. It’s main aim [in my opinion], is not horror. The series isn’t intended to solely scare people. It’s a story explaining the world setting along with the characters and the mystery of these Titans. It’s about humans who have been forced into the 3 walls for whatever number of years, trying to fight back against these Titans who forced them there.
So I think you would enjoy it more if you don’t think of this as a “horror” series [if that’s what you are expecting]. It’s more an action, mystery, shounen series, which I think they did show those aspects really well.
“I want to see that “anti titan development” first.”
Ep 3. Everything they learnt in military camp was Anti-Titan training. Remember in Ep 4, Eren kept sprouting out that they’re finally ready to fight again against Titans. They trained for 3 whole years just for this. But they got slammed in the face and died so easily [ok specifically referring to Eren’s group]: 1. Everyone apart from Eren in their group is not in the top 10 [aka, they’re normal soldiers]. 2. Eren and the rest has absolutely no experience in fighting against titans.
If you think about it, everyone who SURVIVED in the Scouting legion must at least have some sort of skill to survive when against titans, even before they knew about the Titan’s weakness. If they were already good at surviving, surely it’s not hard to just hone their offensive skills. [Training to slash the Titan’s neck was also shown in ep 4 I think?]
“Then show them as freaks!”
Um…I’m pretty sure everything you said about Hanji is showing her as a freak. She is massively in love with Titans and kills them with a smile, so I’m not sure how much of a freak you expect her to be.
I also agree with Anon that she’s not Sasha #2, though they share the similar trait of being obsessed with one particular thing. Sasha is quirky in the sense that she is naive, asks stupid questions, can’t read mood, clumsy and not really a thinker. She’s kind of like a wild animal that acts more on instincts instead of anything else. It just happens that she’s also massively obsessed with food because of where she was brought up.
Hanji on the other hand, is actually very smart and sharp [which you will see eventually]. She’s just very hyper and active when it comes to Titans and very passionate about her work…which is *spoilers which will be explained later*. She actually plays a very important role in Shingeki, and without her, humanity is really screwed.
I don’t deny that they have similar characteristics, but I think you should really give Levi and Hanji some time for the anime to explain their roles in the story. At the moment, the anime is just showing their existence so that the viewers won’t complain about suddenly having characters popping out of nowhere or something xD Or else people will be like “Who the F are they? Why haven’t we ever seen them before blah blah blah”. There’s no way to satisfy everyone…
“There are things that this anime does good and there are things it does bad. Introducing new characters is the second.”
I don’t disagree with this, but I don’t think it was that bad either. The appearance of Levi and Hanji [I think I said before] actually was from a later chapter. I think for the anime…it’s either complain now or complain later. Personally I think they didn’t do that bad of a job. Again, give them some time to develop. At the moment you’re basing their whole character on first impression. Not saying you can’t have a first impression, its just that we [manga readers] know that they will explain more eventually so we just want to tell you to wait for it!
TL;DR – Sorry for another long massive post! As usual, I would suggest either reading the manga or waiting for the anime to explain more. This series is really more about the mystery of the Titans, and they’re NEVER going to explain anything really early on. This is those series where you have more questions asked than answered, but patience is the key!
Right now I think was it really a good decision to show the story in chronological order? May be I wouldn’t have any complaints if they would use the same order that manga has. The characters would be introduced somehow differently..
I watched episode 10 and this old guy Pixis appeared again. This time he was good, unlike the first scene with him, there he was playing chess with some cheesy rich guy. I hope the same will apply to Levy and Hanji eventually.
___
It was interesting to read how other people see the series. So long comments are fine. When it started I immediately decided that SnK is the best Shonen series I’ve ever seen. But now.. may be my opinion will change after I’ll see the last episode of it (especially considering the fact that before the series have started my favorite was Letter Bee :)). And again it will probably end with the anime’s original ending. Or nothing will be resolved at all… Let’s wait and see.
By the way.. SnK manga is good indeed.
Titans are scary. You will get to see first hand the Scouting Legion lose 30% of their forces when they head out with Eren and the other trainees.
Good to hear. But I would prefer 50-50 balance for most of the series. And the last battle for last 5-6 episodes with complete massacre, close to 90-100. 🙂