A Sound Argument
Episode 10 of Attack On Titan Season 4 begins with a brief glimpse of Eren in jail, with Hange antagonizing him. It’s a glimmer of the present, as we tumble back through time for the bulk of this chapter. We then cut back 2 years ago as Eren and the others finish construction on their port and welcome Special Envoy Kiyomi Azumabito. She greets Mikasa as they both reveal a similar insignia. Mikasa’s ‘A’ marking on her wrist goes way back, over a century to be precise, as she happens to be the last descendant of Hizuru’s rule. After the Great Titan war, a child of the shogunate was left behind on the island and that child was Mikasa. Kiyomi mentions the rare resource used to make anti-Titan weaponry and proposes a trade, prompting Mikasa to furrow her brow. She realizes she’s being used as pre-text for a trade between Paradis Island and Hizuru. As the details of this trade are made clear, it includes the barbaric notion of handing down the Titans, with Historia destined to take on the Beast Titan. Eren however, is not happy and stands up, shaking, deciding against being used as livestock for Zeke’s plan. Well, there’s a bit of time jumping going on here, as we then cut forward slightly as those on Paradis Island await Hizuru’s answer. Unfortunately it’s not good news. It turns out they just wanted to monopolize Paradis Island’s resources. The narrative of them being evil and devils has stuck, unintentionally uniting the other nations against them. This defeat means they may have no choice but to sacrifice Historia for the cause. Thankfully Hange has a solution. She decides they should make a base on Marley and infiltrate them, with the sole intention of showing that actually they’re peaceful and not the devils the Marleyians have been led to believe they are. Attention inevitably turns toward Eren’s titan too, although Eren quickly shuts them all down and admits that he loves them all too much to put them through that. Back in the present, we return to our characters contemplating just what made Eren change his mind so drastically. Given he was so desperate not to hurt his own comrades, Eren’s recklessness led to Sasha’s death and other soldiers meeting an untimely demise during the battle. Even worse, Connie reminds them all that Eren’s reaction to her death was to laugh. Well, there is an alternative to all this. And that alternative comes from using the titan serum to turn someone they trust into a titan, who would then subsequently eat Eren. Will they do it?
The Episode Review
Attack On Titan slows down this week for a more subdued episode, tackling the idea of Eren’s motivations and why he’s decided to align himself with Zeke. It’s a fair question and one that sees a lot of flashbacks to show how far Eren’s character has come. It’s an intriguing juxtaposition too, seeing Eren’s transformation now compared to desperately keeping his friends alive 2 years back and I guess this is a reflection of the effect war can have on a person. Both half-brothers have the same goal really, which is to save those who are dear to them. However, it’s also clear that when Zeke’s plan has taken too long to put into fruition, Eren has taken matters into his own hands and sought a bloody resolution, resulting in numerous deaths. The ending certainly leaves the door open for more though, with the latter half of Attack On Titan primed to explode into action sooner rather than later.
