Attack on Titan - Episode 24

As their plans to capture Annie go rather awry, this penultimate episode of Attack on Titan rewinds a little to see the formation of this plan, together with the flimsy but undeniable evidence provided by Armin which leads to its inception.  It's an inconvenient truth that Armin really doesn't want to believe, which proves to be an issue further down the line...

Having successfully morphed into her Titan form, Annie is now all-but unstoppable as she gambles on being able to kidnap Eren once again in this form.  It's a bet she seems willing to place no matter how low the odds, as she even goes so far as to collapse sections of the underground tunnel where Eren and company are hiding regardless of the risk that he may be crushed and killed under the falling debris.  Trapped and with no escape, it seems as if only Eren's own Titan form will get them out of this tight spot...

...except Eren finds himself unable to transform once again, for reasons that Mikasa soon pinpoints as relating to his refusal to believe that Annie might be working against him and what he stands for.  This leaves Mikasa and Armin to figure out a plan to keep Annie away from Eren, while chaos ensues amongst the populace and military as you might expect when a Titan suddenly materialises in their midst.  It's the Survey Corps who take the lead with other plans already in place to take down Annie - a task which is easier said than done.  Despite ending up trapped under a pile of rubble however, perhaps Eren is finally regaining the determination that he needs to fight as the insanity around him unfolds.

Having skillfully kept its cards pretty close to its chest in last week's episode before revealing all deliciously at the end, this week's instalment of Attack on Titan shifts effortlessly back into more action-oriented territory.  It probably goes without saying that this remains one of the show's strong points, with its dizzying aerial combat against ridiculously over-sized (and over-powered, in Annie's case) opponents, but there's also enough tension and a feeling of critical importance to ensure that the action isn't just shoe-horned in for the sake of looking cool.  Roll on next week's finale, in the hope that it at least brings us a decent stopping off point rather than leaving us hanging for the inevitable second season.