Review: Attack on Titan, Episode 408: “Assassin’s Bullet”

Attack on Titan follows up last week’s show-stopping battle with a big character death, and brings home the severity of the ongoing conflict.

Recap

“Assassin’s Bullet” raises the stakes for the ongoing conflict between Paradis Island and Marley, which makes for another thrilling episode.

At the start of the episode, the focus is still on Reiner and Eren, but it quickly becomes clear that we’re not going to get a battle. Whether it’s because of his complete lack of will to keep going or the fact that he’s been crushed by rubble, Reiner’s Armored Titan is in pretty bad shape. Spent, Eren and Mikasa decide to board the airship and leave Liberio rather than kill him.

While this Braun may not have his heart in it, Gabi is still angry about all the death and destruction she’s witnessed thanks to Eren’s invasion. As the Scouts board the airship to leave, Gabi grabs a gun and runs after them, with the ever-loyal Falco right behind her.

Aboard the airship, the Scouts reunite, although it’s not as warm and fuzzy as some fans would hope. Eren’s friends and comrades may have come to save him, but Levi and Armin sure don’t seem thrilled to see him again. (Levi lands a pretty satisfying kick to the face to pay Eren back for dragging them into this mess of a war.)

In another compartment of the airship, the rest of the Scouts celebrate their victory. Floch and the nameless Survey Corps members seem as bloodthirsty as Eren, although not as cold. Jean, Sasha, and Conny, however, are pretty subdued after the attack. Jean especially appears to have a problem with killing and losing soldiers, but Conny lightens the mood by admitting how glad he is that the three of them made it out alive again.

Conny comes to eat those words as Gabi makes her way toward the airship and manages to shoot Lobov, who’s still dangling from the bottom, and steal his ODM gear. As much as Falco tries to convince her that her plan is reckless, Gabi successfully pulls her way up to the airship and boards it. She fires her rifle, hitting Sasha right in her torso. She nearly hits Jean with her next shot, but the Scouts manage to disarm her and Falco before they can do more damage.

Luckily for the two kids, Jean refuses to go along with the Scouts’ plan to toss the pair out of the airship, still disturbed by the lengths they’ll have to go to win this war. Instead, he drags Gabi and Falco before the characters in the other compartment…where Zeke is also waiting. It seems Eren’s brother has had a change of heart about working with the Survey Corps, and although the animosity between him and Levi is still present, they’ve chosen to put it aside to work toward “Eldia’s freedom.”

The remainder of the episode sees the characters mourning Sasha, Paradis Island’s first major casualty of season 4. She’s true to character to her very last breath — her last word is “meat” — and it’s clear the series is going to be very different without her.

Review

“Assassin’s Bullet” may not have the same amount of action as last week’s episode, but it more than makes up for it in emotion. Sasha’s death is obviously the biggest talking point of this week, and the anime does it justice, delivering a punch that’s sure to have even manga readers who know what’s coming tearing up a little.

The characters’ reactions are heartbreaking, and the fact that even Eren appears to be emotional over the loss is jarring. As ridiculous as Sasha’s last words are, they’re also very on brand for her character, and they give viewers even more reason to grieve her loss. Sasha’s comic energy will be sorely missed as the anime continues.

As much as viewers may be tempted to hate Gabi in this moment, this episode also promises an interesting journey for her and Falco. Falco already seems to be opening his eyes to the fact that everything he’s been brainwashed to believe might not be true. Whether Gabi will come to the same conclusion now that she’s stuck with the group from Paradis Island remains to be seen. (Her words to Jean sure aren’t promising, but it’s hard to fault her for her anger over the invasion.)

Apart from Sasha’s death, Zeke’s betrayal is the other major moment from “Assassin’s Bullet,” and last week’s episode foreshadowed it stunningly. From Levi’s smirk when the Beast Titan arrives on the scene to Zeke’s layered taunt that the Scouts are “running out of time” (as Levi checks his watch, mind you), the anime set this reveal up perfectly. Of course, it’s yet to fully explain why Zeke would suddenly work alongside his brother, or what his and Eren’s endgame is, but the plot is getting more and more interesting.

Now that the fighting has died down, hopefully Attack on Titan will slow down again and offer some insight into what the Survey Corps have been up to over the past four years. We could certainly benefit from the anime filling in the blanks. Fingers crossed.

Episode Grade: A

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