English Dub Review: Attack on Titan “Primal Desire/Attack On Trost Part 9”

Eren is starting to come around, but will he be enough to block the hole in the wall? And what on Earth is Jean doing while this is all going on?

I think I am going to go through some repetition in this review. Bleach is normally the show that really bad with their recaps from the last episode, but this is some ridiculous shit in the first three minutes of Attack on Titan. Why do we need to have a full three minute recap from the events from the past two episodes? I think we can settle for Armin slicing into the Titan.

Luckily, we aren’t on Eren overload, because the episode starts out with Jean. His maneuvering gear is still screwed, but he finds his way to getting some gear. This is really fantastic to see, because the lesser seen characters like Jean and Connie are getting some real good screen time. But that doesn’t last too long, because we’re back to “As the Boulder Turns.” Eren is carrying the boulder to the wall. This is great and all, because it shows everyone can actually band together, and do the tasks. I am glad to see Levi back, but I am still blind as to why every fan girl creams themselves over Levi. He’s just another Sasuke in my eyes. I guess it’s the brooding look.

One thing I noticed with Eren is that he is developing conscious thought while in Titan form.  Depending on how the story goes later, this can be either a really good thing, or a really bad thing. I found it interesting that Eren can turn into a Titan, and basically act like a Titan with the exception of eating humans. I am a little confused with how they are going about this. Not a lot of what Eren has gone through makes much sense.

I am guessing one of the major points they wanted to make in “Primal Desire” was massive loss that the army had protecting Eren, even after Eren went rogue on the team. The end of the first half of “Primal Desire” was just scouts getting eaten and stomped out by the Titans in the most brutal ways possible. I went over this part a second time, and I counted no less than 10 deaths  When Eren was approaching the wall, I felt the animation took a definite step up in quality. The fluidity of Rico and Mikasa taking down the Titan in front of the hole was probably the cleanest animation I have seen yet. Check it out as soon as possible.

I may be a heartless bastard, but I think I am enjoying the aftermath of the Trost battle more than the battle itself. The show does a great job in showing what a massive tragedy does to someone’s psyche. An example of this is Jean finding what was left of Marco in the street. Another great example is Eren in the prison with Levi and Erwin. Eren is shackled, even though he saved the civilization. Erwin and Levi playing good cop / bad cop is something many detectives do in real life to figure out what a perpetrator’s true intentions are. The end of the episode really surprised me, because after all of the distrust Levi showed, he was quick to have Eren join his Scout team.

Overall, I was very impressed with the animation, and the presentation. Like I said before, Rico’s attack on that final Titan before the wall was beautiful, and that 15 seconds of fighting along side Mikasa really played out well. Also, for the first time in the series, they had actual music playing instead of the ominous orchestral music. I am glad to get something different for a change.

The one thing that brings this episode back down to normal is the direction they keep taking Eren. Well, let me rephrase that a little. The lack of direction Eren is taking is ludicrous. The guy goes from a barely capable cadet to one of the top cadets in the course of two episodes, then he decides he wants to drop from military police to the Survey Corps, to becoming a Titan, to being the Commander’s new favorite. I can keep going on, but my point is that there is no discernible direction for Eren. And now, Eren joins the Scout Corps with Levi.

I think we just need some direction now with Eren, and Attack on Titan can go back on the rails. But as of now, Eren’s plot is getting pretty silly.