Attack on Titan – Episode 28 – “Southwestward”

After a rough couple of weeks on my end, dealing with mental health issues and a flooded bathroom, I’m ready to get back into the swing of things on here. Do pardon my absence, these things take time for me to get back into. So let’s kick back and enjoy another shot of WHAT IS EVEN HAPPENING, aka Attack on Titan, for all the newcomers out there.

So, you know that big Titan that fell in Conny’s hometown? Looks like there were nobody to be found, perhaps by way of mass evacuation. Well, that’s certainly a bit of good news, right? So why not make it all the freakier to have that giant Titan slowly say “welcome home” to Conny? Or was it just a hallucination in his head? Freaky, ain’t it? War will do that to you.

Several hours later, we cut to Krista and Ymir and their team, all on horseback patrol, having a little talk about their place within the military. I’ve always enjoyed their dynamic with each other, Krista’s the softer side of the coin to Ymir’s rougher edge, but there’s a present sense of codependency between the two. In a way, they both are in a bit of need of one another, to keep the other in check, be it on the battlefield or away in the barracks. But enough of that, as we go right back into some Titan killing and horseback patrol among more of the squads, with Reiner and Conny’s team finding Krista and Ymir’s team amidst the darkened nighttime surroundings. That was a bit too verbose, my apologies – I’m sounding like a J. Michael Tatum dub script here. Meanwhile, Levi and Hange and Eren and the rest are still traversing down the forest paths, still doing whatever it is they’re doing and talking about Annie and how she works as a Titan and how they’ll plug the hole in Wall Rose and yada yada, you know. Whole lotta exposition about how they’ll do what they’re setting out to do. And, as per usual, the responsibility lies with Eren to plug the wall, one more time.

Our new setting, in the second half of this episode, is the Ehrmich District, and I have to say, the way the nighttime scenery is used in the establishing shots, it gives off a great aura of foreboding danger, combined with all of the refugees seeking shelter and the priest able to do nothing but look at all the people he abandoned and left for dead. Hey, for once, Levi and I agree on something, it’s a miracle. A moment later, the priest informs Hange and the rest about a certain person of interest that he and his clergy were instructed to monitor, someone who joined the Scout Regiment recently. And JUST BEFORE we hear the name, we get the old “I’m here, guys!” fake-out with Sasha coming in and entering the scene, message in hand for Hange. And she was rewarded with, what else, a hot potato. This person sure sounds important, though, whoever she – yes, it’s a she – may be. I can only wonder who it might—it’s Krista. Big surprise, I know. No time to ponder, though, more Titans are ready to attack, including the Bigfoot from the season opener. And they’re all headed for that big wall on the horizon. A few of the senior officers decide to lead the charge against the Titans, including one such that I have dubbed the “Bundy Titan” because of the striking similarity this beast has with one Al Bundy. Now that I think about it, do Titans have day jobs where they sell women’s shoes? Eh, moving back on track, that big Bigfoot managed to climb the wall in record time, so now it’s up to our entire squadron to lay these beasts to waste.

Okay, GREAT setup episode to a bigger fight brewing in the next one. It needed more Sasha, though; how are you gonna treat my homegirl like an afterthought, after that awesome episode where she went into BAMF mode? Ah well, this is still a great run of episodes, in spite of my kvetching. You’ll have to pardon the tardiness of this, as well as the lack of dub thoughts present here. It’ll be in the next review, so I’ll see you all on Wednesday for the next one, folks.

Attack on Titan is licensed by FUNimation Entertainment and is simulcast subtitled Saturdays at 10:30am EDT on Crunchyroll and FUNimationNow, with an English simuldub on Saturdays at 12:30am EDT on Adult Swim and Sundays at 10:00pm EDT on FUNimationNow.

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