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Isayama’s Monthly Q&A on Bessatsu Shonen Magazine August Issue

Q: How many meters is the size of Kruger’s titan form? (note: this reader’s name is “Shingeki no Kruger” lol) A: 15 meters!

Nickname for 104th Squad and Survey Corps: Annie, who has extraordinary kicking skills, is: Kick Ace “Striker · Annie”

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This is really cool! I had been thinking about the connection to the myth of the Cave, but more regarding the Walldians’ perspective; now we’re moving towards the Marleyans’ point of view, and it couldn’t be more interesting! We as readers are not directly involved in the clusterfuck that is this fitcional world and are able to see things with a bit of perspective, but for the characters in the story, getting to look up at the sun and realizing what they’ve always known is wrong is a bit more complicated, hence why I don’t think these recent chapters are repetitive/a waste of time /pointless etc.

Attack On Titan Chapter 95 Thoughts

I haven’t gotten access to the Crunchyroll version this month yet, but I’ll just do my full thought post anyway.

So, this chapter is a little low on substance when it comes to talking about it: a lot of what I’d like to say would be repeating what I’ve said in my thought posts for chapters 91-94.

However, it did have a few interesting points to address, one being connected to this parallel:

…which I’ll get to a little later.

1) The plot stuff or the Tyber family mention. I have a feeling it’s supposed to be Tieber family, “Tieber” meaning “thieves” in German, which might give us a clue why they actually would be accepted by the Marleyans - perhaps they stole the power from another family and have used it to assist the Marleyans? Perhaps it’s thanks to the help of this family that the Eldian empire was taken down, but sadly only for the cycle to repeat and not end?

Whether their name actually is meant to means something is unclear, but I’m sure they’ll eventually be important somehow.

2) Pieck is fun. She’s another one of the likeable minor characters. She’s smart and an oddball in the strange Kenny/Sasha/Zeke way. She and the others of the Marleyan group are likely going to have very little focus with perhaps only getting small character arcs the minor characters of the story are known for (Hannes and the first Levi squad), but I continue to appreciate how the story is able to create these likeable dynamics and minor characters in perhaps just a few pages of screentime. (This for me also includes Gabi because she’s an reflection of Eren, as he was in the beginning of the story, Galliard for his dickishness and Zeke for actually having a family and genuinely caring for his subordinates, they all care for their people).

3) Everything else is pretty much repeating the themes set up in the previous few chapters, but in a more minor way - the center of the chapter seems to be setting the ducks in a row - this chapter mostly seemed to serve as connective tissue for getting to the next part of the story. I said it in my initial impressions, but because the new info is so minor, it is probably one of the weakest chapters in a while.

The main repeating points lie in Reiner’s father being scared of what happens to him, but also still caring for his son and the further denial of human rights to the Eldians within the walls. It’s once again shown that the Marleyan Eldians don’t see the real enemy because they just don’t *know* any better and that the enemy is simply the corrupt system everyone lives under. These ideas are great: I love the thematic and character substance in particular when it comes to this arc, but just like the first training flashback, it’s a massive pace-breaker. Looking at the volume covers for those arcs (which are above at the start of the post), the comparisons are even supposed to be delibrate.

A central idea in that flashback was understanding the flaws of the system the soldiers in training were living under. This is one thing Annie went ahead to call Eren out on and now with much more context to what’s going on, it’s a great parallel. Eren was just as clueless of the real enemy as all the Marleyan Eldians are right now. Reiner is the only one who knows better among them, but he’s only one person who is broken and almost dead and trying his best to push his feelings and perspective aside.

Just to add something new to the mix in this post (and something to think about): the very basics of philosophy come down to the idea of Plato’s cave (check out the video - it explains it in deeper detail). If people are born in a cave, what they see as shadows on the cave walls is the reality to them. If someone ventures outside the cave and starts to see the world in a different light, and then comes back inside to inform the others, they will be hostile, deny them or maybe even try to kill that person because what they’ve known so long is being challenged. This is the principle at play here in the story (and honestly, a lot of stories, it’s basics of philosophy). Isayama went into it in a new interview, too, but the current purpose for his story is to work through this process of realization. The base topic in this case is obviously war.

“I had already seen it, but I always looked the other way.” says Mikasa in chapter 6/episode 6. Changing someone’s perspective, especially one that’s deeply ingrained in someone, takes patience and a lot of time. So while Reiner’s mother or any of the young warrior children might seem maybe one-note or ridiculous in their loyalty (no doubt part of it being exgaggeration for the sake of a fictional story because an author chooses what part of human behaviour to put emphasis on), this kind of behaviour is also very realistic. We, as readers, see what’s wrong, just like we see “wrongs” (and sometimes things that aren’t wrong at all, just different) in cultures we are not a part of, but the characters and the people inside different cultures, don’t.

AoT makes the differences between character perspective very important, at this point probably one of the most important elements thematically. So yeah, AoT is great and super interesting in many ways.

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Serious question here: we all know why there’s no racial diversity inside the Walls, but, what about outside? Why are there only two races ouside of Paradis, white people and the East Sea clan? No one else? Isn’t it weird??

Isayama, I was waiting for more peoples and cultures to come up, but we haven’t seen them yet, and I’m like??? Where they at???

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Let’s be real, the true reason why Porco is so salty is because Reiner left looking like a potato, and then came back to Marley with a chiselled jaw and facial hair while Porco himself still looks like a pig

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Captain Levi, the Shiganshina Trio, and Jean Kirschtein by つよ丸

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tag urself im :(

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Who is Grice??

Grice was part of the Eldia revivalists. He was the one to contact Grisha in his clinic and recruited him into their group.

He seemed to be a relatively important member, as he recruited folks personally, but was seemingly still heavily involved in discussions and planning sessions. His relationship with Grisha seemed to be of positive camaraderie, maybe even friendship

However, Zeke’s betrayal hit him hard, and he blamed all their misfortune on Grisha in his final moments.

Ultimately, Sgt.Maj.Gross chose him as bait for the mindless titans, kicking him off the wall to send him running towards the walls, so that he’d lure the titans away from the beach. He’s presumed to be eaten shortly after.

Most of us had thought his story to be finished after chapter 87, but apparently Isayama had other plans up his sleeve: the brothers Falco and Colt appear to be descendants of Grice, as they have his last name.

Though people happen to share names every now and then, there definitely is a resemblance between the brothers and the revivalist. 

Isayama has set up some interesting elements and parallels here. The descendants of an Eldia revivalist now serve as Marleyan warriors (like in Grisha’s original plan), and one of them seem to be directly under the authority of Zeke, the man responsible for the old Grice’s death. Furthermore, this is the 2nd sibling-relationship introduced to SnK, and just like the Jaeger bros (my favorite thing to talk about), they are the descendants of a revivalist. In fact, they already serve with one of the Jaegers, and the other one is probably the biggest enemy to the government they serve. I don’t know yet where Isayama is planning on taking the Grice bros, but I’m ecstatic to find out about it.   

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Goooorgeous!

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My boi

Happy Birthday Jean [ 07.04.14 ]

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My babies ❤️

oh man I’m so sorry

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Agreed; the only thing I would like to add is that Reiner seems to know, now, that everything he has been told was a lie; he seems to have known for a long time. Already at the time of the reveal he admitted that he didn’t know what was right and what was wrong anymore, and was acting simply out of a sense of duty and a desire to go back home; but now we know he was already disillusioned long before that, as his reaction to his mother’s words about his father shows: he knew she was wrong in thinking tha the man she loved cared about them, but couldn’t bring himself to tell it to her. This is, in many ways, what the Marleyans want, after all: to keep the Eldians in a self-imposed state of censorship and shame, to force them never to speak the truth, lest they feel the impulse to rebel ( see Reiner, Porco, Falco, Zeke and his family, etc. )

I have a theory that Reiner struggles so much with his memories of Paradis and having different personalities because he finds it incredibly hard to come to terms with the fact he was at his happiest training with the 104th squad. He’s been told his whole life they were devils, and to blame for his situation, and must be eradicated for his and others freedom, but actually found himself accepted there in a way he had never experienced before. Nobody had a bad word to say about him in that time. He wasn’t a failure or something looked down upon, but a big brother like figure to all and seen as someone dependable and strong. 

He forgot he was a Warrior because deep down he was happy being a Soldier but he can’t bring himself to admit it because then he would have to admit everything his mum, his peers, his country etc. told him was a lie. And that comes with deep consequences. 

Turns out the biggest lie in Reiner’s life is the one he lives every day to protect himself. Whether that be by being a Soldier who has never been outside the walls. Or the Warrior who hates the Paradis people and wants to eradicate them.

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Ahahah perfect 😂

Isayama: My favorite character is Reiner

more like

My favorite character to torture is Reiner

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Bertholdt, Armin and the Colossal Titan

I was going to wait to see Armin’s Titan form properly before posting this, but that might be never, so here it is now! I’ll update if we ever do get to see it.

Shifter lore is something I hope Isayama will reveal in more detail, as there is still so much of it we don’t know. One of the most controversial moments in the story was when Armin gained the power of the Colossal Titan. Let’s see what Isayama did to set up this story event, and if it can reveal anything about the Nine, the Colossal Titan specifically.

Armin and Bertholdt are unique in that they’re thrown against each other, in a similar way to Eren and Reiner. During the Clash Arc, while the rest of the 104th try to appeal to Reiner and Bertholdt, they question why they would betray them, calling back on their times in training. Mikasa is purely antagonistic towards them, she pushes past that and is focused on getting Eren back, ignoring Bertholdt’s pleas. Armin’s antagonism towards Bertholdt is something different. He is notably the only one who doesn’t say anything in this scene, but he is the focus of a panel when Bertholdt says “Someone has to stain their hands in blood” (to that effect).

When Armin faces Bertholdt later, he takes advantage of Bertholdt’s feelings for Annie. This attack is such a deeply personal thing, beyond attacking “humanity’s enemies”. In doing so, he shattered whatever friendship they had beyond repair. No one else in the story does this with Bertholdt. Armin goes further than needing to get the job done, he toys with Bertholdt, he’s gratuitous in his words, shocking even Eren who knows Armin better than anyone. The distraction works; Bertholdt is furious. He loses his temper and tries to attack Armin. “Children of the devil”, the first time we have any indication of why the Warriors believe the people in the walls should die. This is the first time he deliberately targets Armin, but wouldn’t be the last.

The next significant confrontation they have is in the Return Arc, and the confrontation on the roof.

Bertholdt is a different character at this point, and this is a different situation to the Clash Arc. This time he has allies, they have a plan, they have the clear advantage, they’re so close to finishing their job. Bertholdt in this arc has a clear head, he’s calm, to the point of being unnerving. Armin makes the mistake of thinking he’s the same as when they last met, which ignites Bertholdt’s anger again, but he’s learnt from his mistakes and is very aware of the soldiers around him. He listens to Armin, he tells him that he will accept nothing less than handing Eren over and everyone dying. This goes against what they’ve said in previous arcs: that they would leave the walled people alone if they handed Eren over. Bertholdt also attacks Armin exactly where he needs to: he goes straight for Armin’s insecurities, something he has not been able to deal with.

“I know, as long as you’re standing there shaking, you aren’t able to do a thing.”

This hits Armin harder than I think even Armin expected, and he freezes up, going so far as to ask Jean to take over command for him. Where Armin had previously tormented Bertholdt by using his feelings for Annie, so Bertholdt uses Armin’s insecurities against him. They both use deeply intimate and personal traits against one another. 

Bertholdt transforms, and after a time Armin comes up with a plan, sacrificing everything he has to give Eren the opening to defeat Bertholdt.

The interactions between Bertholdt and Armin throughout the story have built up to this scene. Armin is horrifically burnt by the steam of the Colossal Titan, and it is through doing this that Bertholdt meets his downfall. Armin receives the serum, and Bertholdt is eaten by the very person he had tried to kill.

Connections

As we can see from previous interactions, Armin has been singled out numerous times when it comes to Bertholdt. Isayama specifically focuses on Armin when he reacts to Bertholdt eating a person during their reveal. 

Armin is focused on during Bertholdt’s “hands stained with blood” scene. The concept of descendants of the devil is introduced through the reaction that Bertholdt has to Armin’s words. 

Character wise, Bertholdt and Armin are quiet and unassuming. They don’t draw attention to themselves, they fade into the background when around their louder, more extroverted and confident friends. They both have the same mannerisms, they both are the only male characters in the series to use “boku” rather than “ore”, a reflection of their personalities and how they present themselves.

The ritual of passing on shifter powers is shown to be as intimate as it is horrifying (I’d go as far to say it’s violating, especially considering the context of how it happened here). It’s mentioned numerous times in the narrative that the previous shifters live on in the current one, their memories alive in them. Bloodlines play a role in that memories are more easily accessible when a Titan power is inherited into the same family, but as we see with Porco in chapter 93, the memories are still very much accessible without that. That Armin and Bertholdt, two characters who are so very much alike, yet on opposite sides on the battlefield, have been placed together like this is no coincidence. We don’t know if Bertholdt’s memories will affect Armin, or if he will even receive them at all but, narratively speaking, that Armin, out of all the characters, was chosen is no coincidence at all. The sheer irony that Armin inherited the very same power that so nearly killed him

Which brings us to the Colossal Titan.

The CT is the icon of the series. Characters call it “The God of Destruction”. It’s capable of massive devastation, levelling entire battlefields during transformation alone. It was the catalyst that began our story. It was also in the possession of a shy, quiet boy. It was passed on to another shy, quiet boy, coincidentally the first of the main cast to lay eyes on it.  

This makes me wonder if the shifters are determined by fate already, before they’re born; everything already decided for the past, present and future. The Attack Titan has been inherited by people whose “eyes that could burn the world to ashes”. The Armoured Titan was inherited by Reiner, who we learn was never meant to have it. If Reiner has his way, it’ll be inherited by Falco, who would have also only received it by way of intervention. Were these people always destined to host the Titans? With Armin and Bertholdt’s antagonistic relationship all leading up to the final battle and the similarities between them,  one could almost think it was all destiny.

I believe the Titans themselves could be sentient, only “awakening” rarely. The 145th King made a deal with the Founding Titan. Eren has a dream of the Attack Titan after hardening for the first time. Armin sees the Colossal Titan looking down at him while weeping. 

Was this a vision of Bertholdt, or perhaps the Colossal Titan itself, weeping for the tragedy the Eldian people have to endure? What is it about Armin and Bertholdt that this Titan was passed on to them? Is it fate, or all just an unhappy coincidence that both the inheritors share so much?

Hopefully these questions will be answered at some point in the future.  Thanks for reading! 

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You know this happened at some point

Since I have not seen anyone do this meme, I wanted to do for myself, I hope it’s cool.

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Should I keep tagging this month’s chapter as spoiler or...

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Reiner is proud

Marcel is determined

Bertholdt is upset ( what news )

Annie doesn’t give a fuck ( WHAT NEWS )

Farewell…

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Snk 95 thoughts

Summing up my thoughts in one picture:

So, the title is “Liar”, right?

Who’s the liar here? Reiner? Marleyan military? Tiebar family? Isayama? All of them?

Hmmm.

Snk 95 is another Marley chapter—which mean we’re reading the story through the Warriors’ POV, right?

We’ve been reading the story through Walldians’ POV in the last 90 chapters. Remember the time we realized that the history of titans, humanity inside the Walls has been a lie?

What if the “facts” known by the Warriors are not true, too?

To be precise, a manipulated version of truth, so the Eldians would devote their lives to Marley for their own safety, something like

“Go our chosen warriors! Defeat the Walldians to prove the Marleyan Eldians are good Eldians and save the day! The whole world hates Eldians so fight for Marley who is going to protect you good Eldians from the dangerous outside world!!!”

Sounds familiar, huh?

“The whole world hates Eldians due to the wars and want to exterminate them.”

But BOOOOOOOOI

It is the Marleyans using Eldians as military tools against other countries who are defying Marley who is colonizing them!!!

Chapter 93

What did the Marleyan government do? They sent warrior children to destroy those rebellious countries.

Destroy a country which people speak “———”

Chapter 95

And used Eldians as weapons against another country which people speak “~~~~~~”

Chapter 92

Many years ago, I wonder which kind of Doge bag would send a group of children warriors on such a really BIG and important mission to retrieve (STEAL I mean) the Progenitor titan from Paradis.

When the Marleyans literally used six young titan shifters to crush an ENTIRE COUNTRY, now I know why.

They are really the Big Bad Marleyans and you can’t convince me otherwise.

No wonder why the other countries united together and fight against Marley.

Now, let’s talk about the Tiebar family.

Their house sigil (?) smells like fish scallop, thus really fishy.

A Marleyan version of the true power holder in Marley? Like Reiss family of the Walls? The true Marley boss? Holder of the Warhammer Titan? A Titan with a thunder-generating hammer when it transforms?

The Tiebar family are really fishy tbh and I don’t know where to begin with.

Maybe I should wait another month to see what would happen.