The latest episode of Attack on Titan has fans rearranging their theories about how Eren Jaeger might have picked up his Titan ability.
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Warning! Spoilers and speculation lie ahead!
Season 3, episode 5 titled, “Reply,” was a dialogue-heavy, political thriller-style story. It centered mostly around Commander Erwin’s trial and the subsequent military coup d’etat, with a little less than half of the episode dedicated to Hange and the Levi squad on the outside. However, after the heart-stopping trial, we did jump back with those scouts and receive a lot of information all at once — some of which changes everything.
To start with, Hange briefs the rest of the scouts on some Reiss family history, offering insight on why Lord Reiss is so fixated on his illegitimate daughter, Historia. As she reveals, Reiss had a whole flock of legitimate children as heirs to his title. One daughter in particular, Frieda, was particularly beloved by the locals, and we catch a glimpse of her in a flashback.
The Reiss brood died in a mysterious attack on their family chapel that raises lots of questions. While Reiss claimed it was an assault by bandits, the scene looked more like a Titan attack to witnesses. After that, Reiss sought out Historia and set her on the path that put her in the 104th Training Corps.
Meanwhile, this week’s “information for public disclosure” centers around a legendary underground chapel.
“A sacred location where the royal family’s power has been passed down for generations,” it reads. “The walls are composed of a naturally luminescent ore which is thought to have been created by some form of Titan power.”
It is worth noting that the “royal family” is actually the Reiss bloodline, as we learned earlier this season. After glimpsing that slide, the episode shifts perspective to Eren. As he wakes up, we see a brief flicker of a dream or memory he is experiencing — a dark-haired girl brushing her hair out in front of a mirror. As many pointed out online, she looks suspiciously like Frieda Reiss from the earlier flashback.
Finally, Eren awakens chained up in the center of a room, which looks exactly like the drawing the underground chapel on the earlier slide. Just before the credits roll, Historia approaches him. The preview for next week’s episode shows Rod Reiss in the underground chapel as well, and offers this tease in voiceover.
“To save Eren, Mikasa and the others head for the Reiss chapel. However, the captured Eren finds out his father Grisha’s unforgivable sin,” the voiceover says.
Fans are reeling over these tidbits, and frantically trying to fit them into existing theories. For one thing, many are now revisiting Eren’s flashback to his father in season 1, episode 9.
“Their memories will guide you,” Grisha said at the time. Fans are now wondering if “their” might have referred to the Reiss children that died in their family chapel — including Frieda. One way or another, it seems Eren will soon have to grapple with the truth of who he ate to attain his Titan form.
Attack on Titan is having its most exciting season yet, as series creator Hajime Isayama has altered the story to speed up the pace. The show simulcasts on Hulu and Crunchyroll in Japanese with English subtitles every week. New episodes are available on Mondays at 2 p.m. ET in the U.S.
