COLOSSAL ARMIN?! YES PLEASE!... THIS SHOW IS BRILLIANT! AOT #55

YUP! :-)

Spaz Boys Comedy

We’ve talked about how hard some of the deaths are to watch, but idk something about watching Bertholdt beg just like Marco had to feels really good

Willrkjr

I really like that we got the question Erwin asked as a kid at the end. And a very important question, especially seeing that the titans are humans.

Miklar Sihn

Yea, the extreme tragedy in a lot of these deaths is brutal!

Spaz Boys Comedy

its just sad Erwin fought so hard for his Dream(the basement) and had to die just so the people he led could reach his dream for him

Spookie Dookie

And there was that creepy dude touching Armin all over and being surprised that historia is somewhat muscular

astherphoenixxx96

And can you believe.....it just gets better from here

Jord

I just saw the blonde teacher again.. so familiar.. *Erwin raises hand* *Flash blonde teacher/dad* "Teacher! How do we know there are not more humans beyond the wall?" All roads pointed to Armin.

Redemption

This is has been so far the best storytelling in AOT so far. AOT: Hold my basement

Wishmaker007

Knowing Erwin, thats the first place he'd take you xD

Lewd Angel

You know what's even more unbelievable than this storytelling? The abs on that sweet cinnamon roll we call Armin.

Miasimon

Still rather have Erwin. Would follow that man to hell itself!

Preet

This episodes always breaks my heart...and I teared up again :'( Watch Erwin die without having to fulfilled his dream...having come so close to the basement :( Also wanted to point out that Erwin did not really make the choice, as he was unconscious. His hand moved similar to when he raised his hand to ask a question...he was having a dream :'(

Nuptup

Everything after this changes EVERYTHING

After the previous episode I was thinking "If only there was a way to regenerate... of wait." and also "but isn't Armin alive later??" so I put 1+1 together and also read the wiki a bit (which was error, because of spoiling myself)

V_VMat

I think it was his way of desperately trying to justify the actions that got his father killed. If he found out that he was right then he would be proven right and that would ease his conscience but we know that it really wouldn't. It was just a way of trying to live with his foolishness and there's no way that guilt would have been cleared from him.

MemeL0rd420

I don't think anyone could argue that Erwin is not a capable leader and would have been valuable if brought back but we must remember that it was really his choice. He didn't want to be thrown back into this hell and you could see that Levi finally freed him from his responsibilities and the weight on his shoulders when he told him to give up on his dream. He was told to go an die and give up his dreams and his response was to smile and thank Levi, someone else wouldn't respond that way but he did because it's what he wanted. To finally be free. I'm sure you can draw the lines between that and the ongoing themes of freedom and what it means to be free.

MemeL0rd420

Curtis what episode are you currently on or have you finished the series?

grimmjow

I disagree with the majority here. Seeing the basement is simply part of getting to know the truth. Even after he got there, I don't think things would just stop there for him or the scouts as there would still be more to be learned and more to be fought. And erwin would be able to lead the fight I'm sure. I love Armin but Erwin's capability as a leader is undeniable. Without someone such as Erwin, the scouts would have already been shut down most likely years ago due to loss of resources and lack of men. He is able to inspire worthy people to enlist and give their hearts,whixh I believe is more important as a whole to humanity. He is a symbol for the humanity within the walls and the scouts

astherphoenixxx96

:-D

Spaz Boys Comedy

Now you know why Reiner is called the Armored Titan. It's not because of his Titan Powers. It's because of his incredible plot armor.

Erwin's role was to help humanity survive. Armin's role is to help humanity live. I think they made the right choice, given the circumstances.

DevilJynx

Very well thought-out!

Spaz Boys Comedy

One thing to note is that Bertholdt even at the end still thought of everyone as comrades. He didn't hate any of the scouts. Which is what makes his cries for help all the more tragic. Also Erwin didn't make the decision, when he slapped the vile away he was actually just hallucinating being in his dad's classroom again but it helped Levi to think it through. Armin is still the better choice. He's the only one of the two of them that's actually trying to save everyone where as Erwin would let the whole world burn if it meant he could see the basement (other than his sacrifice at the end though, the first time he actually risked his life for something other than that goal)

Ruben

What I would do is I would hook them up to ODM gear, hit whatever full throttle is while their latched to a roof, and see who gets flung the farthest. Whoever wins gets the serum.

Gigamac24

I'd thought long ad hard ever since this chapter (yes, I read the manga) had come out, and I'd decided a while ago that, yes, Armin had been the right choice. Most obviously, beneath all the composure and the cold facade, Erwin was mentally broken, damn-near suicidal with only the dream of finding out what's in the basement keeping him going. After he found out what was inside, then what? He'd have had no motivation for anything else, and all that would be left was a profound guilt and self-loathing and no sense of purpose. He possibly would've killed himself, and even if he hadn't, he wouldn't have been nearly as effective as he's been thus far. It's easy to think 'he just needs to get over it' but he's had this state of mind and being since he was a child and well into adulthood, at least 20 years. Sorry to say but there was no coming back from that. There's also practical reasons. Erwin is certainly charismatic and intelligent, but too many of his strategies are gambles and even if they are successful, they lead to a huge loss of soldiers and resources. Armin, on the other hand, has the creativity and ingenuity to minimize risks and casualties while getting the job done, as we've seen with his latest tactic fo Bertolt, among others. Erwin's style simply wouldn't have lasted them, since they only have so many resources and bodies. Technically, the Scouts' numbers, at the start of the show, should've already been below 40 or 30 if you take into account that AT LEAST 30% die in each expedition and that expeditions happened about 7-10 times a year (every month and a half or so). Of course, the story couldn't have Erwin's methods be THAT inefficient, him needing to be a great leader and all, so Isayama deliberately made a logistical error, making it so that even after losing dozens of Scouts in the 57th (Female Titan arc), most of them not rookies, they still had a few dozen of a 'veteran contingent'. The point is, Erwin was good for immediate, convenient solutions, but not good for long-term, strategically-wise, overall best solutions. The only thing Erwin had over Armin was charisma and experience, both of which would be lost with his destroyed motivations post-basement.

M9M5

Certainly not a choice I would ever want to make.

Tyler

He literally only commanded everyone to die. Armins the only one who's decisions have saved lives. Erwins entire strategy was to make everyone kill themselves to get the beast titan and not only did it not work it backfired cause it allowed zeke to rescue Reiner

Ruben

armin is amazing, but personally I would use it on erwin. He not only had the mind of a master strategist like armin (perhaps a little less so), but he also had the qualities of a leader. The power to motivate people.

Duke