Man, I would so not want to be in that lift just then!
I’m not sure how to feel about Jean right now. Earlier he’d
been characterized as the unlikeable jackass who looked down on everyone else
but, because he wanted to join the military police, was obviously just a
coward. But he ended up being a pretty good leader this time around.
What’s-his-name* probably has a point – he may be more of a coward than he’s
been willing to let on, but that makes him more likely to empathize with others
who are scared. And I also kept waiting for things to go ‘you’re such a great
leader, Jean!’ *yoink* *gulp!*. Which is weird, because I could’ve sworn
what’s-his-name was the one who got grabbed just before they reached the HQ?
Writing that made me feel like I should be commenting on other
characters. But, well, I’ve already done Mikasa and Armin and didn’t see anything
that would inspire additional commentary these last two episodes (which, to be
fair, could be due to lag between when I saw them and when I actually got
around to finishing this), and other than Jean, well, nobody’s really done
anything standout. Not to mention I’ve forgotten most of their names. Given the
setup, there’s obvious assumption that it’s because most of them are going to
get eaten sooner or later, but it’s still kind of unfortunate. Because it would
make their deaths more meaningful, and because it might give me something to
talk about in the ‘all the obvious stuff was commented on when the show started
and I can’t think of things to say stretch.’
Meanwhile, I had a theory that the Titan-killing Titan had
absorbed Eren’s essence or something (it did
look vaguely like him), but not that once it collapsed it would look as if
he’d been piloting it mecha-style. I say ‘look’ because the preview for the
next episode then went and tells us he became
a Titan. That…raises some interesting possibilities about the nature and
origin of the Titans as a whole.
*I’d go back and check
what his name is, but, y’know, most everyone not Mikasa, Armin, and, as of now,
Eren, being tagged as ‘expendable.’
Gargantia on the
Verdurous Planet [ep. 8, Separation]
Figures, right after I complain about Chamber’s inability to
figure out their coordinates, he figures them out. Of course, it’s still kinda
plot-convenient, since it came right as Ledo’s caught between what he’s learned
on Gargantia and what he’s been taught to believe the last sixteen years. Being
told ‘we ain’t going nowhere!’ is exactly what he’d need to hear to push
him towards the option that’ll let him cling to a shred of the only life he’s ever
known until…however long it’s been since he came out of stasis; not very long,
at any rate. Not that I think that’s a bad way to do it, per se, but it still
struck me as odd how long it took Chamber to get the results.
Also, most convenient heart attack, ever!
I guess I could’ve been wrong about Ledo being a clone,
since he thinks that kid was his little brother. But he only thinks so, and the Galactic Alliance
seem like the types to do things as efficiently as possible, and family
definitely sounds like the type of thing that would fall under ‘inefficient and
unnecessary.’ Now, Ledo had earned the right to get it on just before…whatever
it was the brought him to Earth. So it’s possible that children are still
created the old-fashioned way, even if the Alliance doesn’t do the whole
‘familial relationships’ thing.
And I suppose you could say he’s finally given a reason why
the Hideauze are this super-abhorrent, extermination-is-the-only-option menace
to humanity. And the reason is…they “oppress the domain of humanity.” Whatever
that means. Are they invaders, or, maybe, are they preventing humanity from
expanding unopposed? I don’t strictly believe the latter is exactly the case,
but I do believe the situation isn’t
as good (humanity) vs. evil (Hideauze) as Ledo’s been taught to believe, and it
does seem like one way to interpret what he said. As in, humanity believes it’s
its manifest destiny to expand and conquer the stars, and have found a way to
rationalize anything that doesn’t fit that perception as an obstacle that needs
to be removed at all costs.
Honestly, part of me believes they originated on Earth. Hey,
it’s the simplest explanation as to why they’re there. And would drive home the
idea that cooperation is always possible even more. Not that Ledo will
appreciate have to realize that.
But he’s not the only one about to get something they won’t
appreciate. Dude, yes, Amy likes you, and I get that you like her too, and
that’s why you want to do what you think is necessary to protect her. That and
you can sympathize with her affection for her little brother, something you
were denied and so don’t want her to feel the same loss. But yeah, I’m sure
committing genocide as exactly the
sort of thing to earn you gratitude from a girl who’s been raised to believe in
peaceful coexistence.
Flowers of Evil [eps.
7-8]
Well, that must have been cathartic. Which wouldn’t be
surprising, given how much Kasuga’s been trying to hide and act normal, that
he’d finally say ‘oh fuck it!’ and let loose.
And that was an unusual way to start episode 8 – literally
six minutes of Kasuga and Nakamura just walking home holding hands. It might
even have been endearing, if their relationship wasn’t fucked all to hell.
Then Saeki caught me by surprise. When she said good morning
to Kasuga I thought to myself ‘she’s not very perceptive, is she?’ since, like
multiple times before, Kasuga’s behaviour’s been slightly off – this time he
had an anxious posture and didn’t respond when she asked him a question. Well,
technically she does ask if something’s wrong, but clearly didn’t think it was
worth dwelling on since she let it pass with a ‘we’ll be late.’ Sure, some of
it, like when they were on the date, could have been interpreted as nervousness
about that, but given the number of strange things she’s seen happen to him, like
getting a bucket of water dumped on his head, or that the time she saw him with
Nakamura in the library, surely she’d start to wonder if something was up? I
guess in the absence of any explicit reason to suspect anything, it’s just a
case of not seeing what she doesn’t expect to see. But then she was the one who
put the clues together and figured out everything else. Not that it’d be hard
for her to do, since she’s the only one who’s looked at the book long enough to
remember the flower, but it was still wrong of me to assume she’s clueless. Not
to mention, seeing things that way overlooks that she was suspicious after she saw him and Nakamura in the library – that’s
why she asked him if she could trust him. So yeah, I’m the one who wasn’t very perceptive.
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