Attack on Titan: Episode 3 (Review)
By: EyeSpyeAlexAfter travels for the holiday weekend, I’m back to see where our group of Scouts has been traveling in the latest episode of Attack on Titan. This is an extremely intense episode, and while a lot of information was learned, I was left with more questions than answers. I have some theories about what may be happening, which are very spoiler heavy. Missed my last review? Catch it here!Titled “Southwestward”, this episode opens right where the previous episode ended. Conny and the others are surveying the damage the titans caused. Even more curious, there's no dead bodies or blood, and all the horses are still in the stables. As they prepare to leave, Conny hears the Titan lying on his destroyed house say, "Welcome home". When he asks others if they heard it, no one can confirm it.
On the other side, the western defensive line heads southwestward (cue The Office look at the camera), much to the chagrin of Ymir. She and Christa have no gear and she's worries that they will be a hindrance on the mission. Christa tells her not to worry; she's prepared to give her life.Back with the Southern division, Conny and his group are riding through the night to get to the breach. Tensions are high, and it only increases when they run into Ymir's group. The two groups ask each other where the breach is and realize the horrifying truth: there is no breach. As the group is bathed in moonlight, they find the ruins of Castle Utgard and head to investigate.
Also, heading towards the non-existent breach is Eren's group. Commander Hange is investigating a crystalline structure she brought along for the ride. When Levi asks her about it, she tells him it's a hardened fragment left behind by the female Titan (Annie). When compared to the Wall, the composition is identical. The wall is made from Titan skin. Hange is hoping Eren will transform into his Titan form and use the hardening ability to seal the wall. With this ability, the group could fix the hole in Wall Maria as well. Levi tells Eren that he has no other choice but to do it and succeed, and Eren agrees.As they approach the Ehrmich District, Brother Nick is horrified to see all the people displaced by the Titans. Levi takes him on a guilt trip, but it isn't enough to get Nick to tell the group what he knows. He tells Hange that The Order of the Walls must always adhere to the sacred will they are bound to obey. However, he is able to tell her the name of the person they were given the order to monitor, someone who joined the Scout Regiment this year. As he is about to make them, Sasha bursts in to deliver a message. Nick tells them they must find the girl who just joined the 104th Regimen, and Eren and the crew know immediately who he is talking about: Christa.
Back with Christa’s group, they find the abnormal Titans are moving around at night and rapidly advancing on their castle. As they descend upon the castle, the Beast Titan climbs up and over the nearest wall, into the city on the other side.
This episode felt a lot like a movie, so kudos to Wit Studio. The animation is incredibly fluid, and the battle scenes are amazing in the amount of detail they pack in. The cinematography and ability to jump between riders on horseback was astounding. We also are privy to some new soundtrack songs which occur as the 104th Regimen prepares for battle.We also learned a lot of information about The Order of the Wall in this episode. They obey someone, but we don’t know who. Someone who is giving them orders, that they can communicate with, but in secrecy. Who else did we learn could communicate this season? Beast Titan. Who were we just introduced to this season? Beast Titan. Could it be Beast Titan? Maybe.
On top of that, we know that the Wall is made from Titan skin. There are also Titans inside the Walls. Could there be a symbiotic relationship between those Titans and the humans who sealed them? Or could the people who built the wall have sealed in others who changed? We know Eren and Annie possess the ability to turn into Titans, but we don’t know why. This would also lend credibility to the reason there’s no breach in the wall. With more questions than answers, we’ll just have to stay tuned in to see how the chips fall.Want to come up with some of your own theories? Attack on Titan is available for streaming on Crunchyroll and Funimation.[yasr_multiset setid=11]