Shingeki no Kyoujin - 5

"First Battle - Defense of Trost 1"

Yeah, this one could stand to learn a little about subtlety too, though that makes it no less entertaining.

I throw the word "ridiculous" around when talking about Valvrave every week, but I think "preposterous" is really the one to utilize when speaking about Shingeki no Kyoujin. Characters aside, this is a plot built on utter craziness, and whether or not that comes out to a positive or negative experience is just as subjective as the former series. The Titans, mysterious and hideous as they are, get no less horrifying this week, but they do grow more formidable with every passing second. As if it weren't bad enough that the things were huge and ate human beings, they regrow decapitated heads, regenerate damaged skin and flesh, and otherwise remain invincible save for the Achilles' heel located on the back of the neck. As scary a set of antagonists as that makes, one does have to wonder how humanity has staved the creatures off all this time, and how they were able to build up a defense which is so easily destroyed at the whim of the colossal Titan. And for that matter, where the hell do they come from, and why do they only hunt down humans for the sport of it?

Perhaps all of this ultimately ties into the larger scheme of things, however, and you can't deny that though the story is a touch on the insane side, it remains a gripping action flick through and through. Though the series is indisputably shounen in spirit and execution, you'd be hard pressed to find one this visceral more than once every few years. You don't need character attachment to the level of a series like Gargantia or Zetsuen no Tempest to get the raw fear and emotions through, and while Eren remains as singularly grating as the rest of the cast remains one dimensional (no one really seems to have explained motivations at the moment but Eren and Armin, do they?), it does very little to numb us from the shock factor of just how helpless they are against these creatures. One by one, they're slaughtered within seconds, and the Titans only become more frightening in their serenity and creepy facial expressions.

Of course the soldiers have no choice but to run into a suicide charge, and even Eren, the self-righteous hero, loses an arm, a leg, and is nearly effortlessly devoured by a Titan in an attempt to save Armin's life. I'm not at all fooled into thinking that this is the end for him and that Armin is in fact the true protagonist (though that would be more pleasant and an interesting narrative decision, albeit hardly an original one), and I'm positive some form of deus-ex-machina will protect him in one way or another come next week, but the fact remains that if not Eren, the rest of the squad at least is destroyed without even putting up a fight. Even with names, with connections to the main trio, these characters are not spared in the moment of truth, and more than anything I think that's what really gives Shingeki an edge; it's a brutal work that's just not interested in giving its characters or viewers a break between horror and adrenaline. It's not really about the characters; it's about style, action, and mystery, and that, at least, is a set of criteria the series is so far excelling at.