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While episodes 5-7 were among my favorite episodes from Season 3 so far, if there is an episode that I'd consider to be the highlight of this Season and a contender for one of the best episodes in this series, it's this one! The anime adapted Chapter 69 perfectly, including every little bit from it!
The episode opened with anime-only additions of the preparation of the royal coronation and Levi searching the cave rubble to find Kenny, with another SC soldier eventually informing him of Kenny's whereabouts. It's a nice little addition that give some context to why Levi showed up to meet Kenny in the first place; it's like the Survey Corps were ordered to find what remained of Kenny's squad, or Kenny at the very least, and find them.
And then we are presented with Kenny's backstory to its entirety. I loved every moment of it! Back when I read it in the manga, this was the moment Kenny was redeemed in my eyes and also when he solidified himself as one of my favorite characters in the series.
With his family, the Ackermans, facing serious persecution from the royal government for defying them and said family having it extremely rough because of it (fellow family members killed because of their family of origins, the fact the Ackermans were forced to live in the underground slums because of their persecution, and his sister becoming a prostitute because of these tough conditions), Kenny clung to the belief that he needed to achieve power to save his family from persecution. He did all he could to get power, and one of the ways he tried to do it was by killing those extremely corrupt Military Police individuals, and that would eventually lead him to attempting to take Uri Reiss, the true King of the Walls and the holder of the Founding Titan at the time.
But little did Kenny know of Uri's Titan power, and he was put into a position where Uri or Rod could've killed him. However, Uri chose not to kill him, and even told Rod to drop the gun. Instead, he released Kenny from the his Titan hand, and he bowed to Kenny. He learned Kenny was an Ackerman, and he understood why Kenny tried to kill him: revenge at the royal family for persecuting the Ackermans and also to claim power to save that same family as well. Uri asked Kenny for forgiveness, allowed Kenny to join the council, and Kenny would ultimately become his right-hand man and a personal bodyguard of sorts. With that, Kenny and his family were saved from persecution.
And why else did Uri ask Kenny forgiveness? Because Uri himself wanted to create a paradise for what was left of humanity was inside the walls. He wanted all of humanity to be as happy as possible, so for him to see Kenny wanting revenge because of the Ackermans' persecution, he realized it was time to end their suffering; he wanted them to be part of this paradise as well. Kenny began to understand Uri's motivation for me when they met for the last time shortly before Uri was to be eaten by his successor (brief note worth mentioning is that Uri looks quite aged in his final appearance compared to when he first met Kenny, even though Kenny didn't look super old in comparison). What exactly does this imply about Titan shifters? Hmmm, seems like another mystery).
When Uri passed down to the Founding Titan to Frieda, Kenny could tell Uri lived on in Frieda. He also noticed that Frieda was super kind and talked about wanting love and peace with the walls. Kenny began to wonder why Uri and Frieda acted this nice and clung to the ideal of wanting to create a utopia for humanity within the walls. He thought that perhaps their power gave them a privilege of being kind.
Thus, this is why Kenny wanted the power of the Founding Titan: he wanted to see if he too would become like Uri and Frieda in regards to becoming these ultimate figures of compassion with no desire for bloodlust. You might as well as say he wanted to see the world from Uri's perspective.
As the years went by, Kenny created and headed the Anti-Personnel Control Squad within the Interior MP, and when he met Traute Caven for the first time, he found someone who thought like him. He seemed to think the Interior MP could eventually lead him to getting this Titan power for himself, and it seemed like it'd be the case: he was appointed to kidnap Eren and Historia and protect the succession ceremony along with his squad, which finally gave him the chance to try and inherit the Founding Titan (hence why Kenny stole a box of Titan serum and a syringe from Rod's bag). That dream went out the window, however, when he listened in on Rod's words revealing how the Founding Titan's power could only be truly unlocked within a Reiss. That meant Kenny would not only be able to use that Titan's power; he'd also never be able to see from Uri's perspective either (which also means he'll never understand why Uri longed for perfect utopia). This is what angered Kenny and made him turn his back on Rod.
We also learn about how Kenny knew of Levi: he learned of his sister's whereabouts, only to notice that she's dead. He saw a young boy cowering in the corner: Levi, the son of Kuchel (as well as the son of an unnamed father that got Kuchel pregnant as part of her prostitution), malnourished and looking hopeless with his only parental figure dead. Kenny took his nephew in and become his new parental figure: after giving him food and clothes, he taught Levi how to use a knife, fight, and interact with others. Kenny ultimately gave Levi the knowledge that was necessary to survive life in the underground slums. Kenny ultimately left Levi once he saw Levi demonstrating of being able to fight back on his own; he also thought it wouldn't be right for a monster like himself to raise a son.
It's from this bit of Kenny's backstory that we learn a lot more about Levi's backstory: Levi had a very depressing life. Being the son of a prostitute, never knowing his father that left Kuchel, growing up in the dirty, underground slums, not getting enough food to eat until Kenny came along, Levi had quite a rough childhood. While not explicitly stated, it's from this backstory that you can infer why Levi is the massive clean freak that he'd become as an adult: because he was raised in a very dirty environment, and one of the causes of his mother's death could've been lack of hygiene from those poor conditions.
Flash forward to the present. Kenny is now in his final moments, and Levi finally locates him. Kenny hears Uri's voice call to him for a second, but it's Levi that called him (probably a hallucination before death of sorts). Kenny decides to give Levi the Titan serum and the syringe to go along with it. Levi rightfully questions Kenny why didn't use the serum on himself. After all, it could potentially save his life. Kenny replies that he feared he could've turned out like Rod for not injecting himself properly (along with the added reasons that Kenny realized becoming a Titan ultimately didn't matter because of the exclusive deal of the Founding Titan).
It soon dawns on Kenny the reason why Uri reached out to him in kindness back then, and t's from this realization Kenny leaves one of the most inspirational words I've ever heard:
“I think I just now understood why he did that. Every last person I have seen was the same way. Whether it was booze, women or even god. Family, the king, dreams, children. They couldn’t keep going unless they were drunk on something. They were all slaves to something, even him.”
Basically, everyone has a big motivation that drives them forward in life. People attach themselves so much to his motivation, it's like they become addicted to it (hence the "drunk" part of the quote kicks in).
To put this in real-life context, an Olympic athlete can be "drunk" to their dream of winning gold to win fame and money for their family and hometown that needs it, hence why he/she trains tirelessly to get there.
In the context of a certain Fire Emblem character, Takumi was "drunk" on the notion that he needed to prove of his existence. This is why he trained tirelessly to become skilled at what he does, why he felt the need to surpass Ryoma in strength, and why he developed such an intense inferiority complex.
In the context of AoT characters, we can use Uri as an example: Uri was "addicted" to the notion humanity needed to reach utopia because he knew the world's future wasn't looking very bright (as he puts it, the world "will crumble soon"), and he just wants all of humanity to experience paradise for those final years. This is why he did all that he could to grant everyone this happy life and why he was so compassionate (though being under the control of the First King's will was another reason).
Kenny's quote really nails a certain defining aspect about people that I'm sure most of us can relate to (I now it does for me, but I don't think we need to get to personal life stories at the moment).
With his death at hand, Levi begins pressing Kenny for answers: he wants to know why the Ackermans were persecuted, who was he in relation to his mother, and why did he leave him at that time. Kenny provides the answers to those questions, and he then gives Levi the box with the syringe and the Titan serum. Shortly after, Kenny dies.
I must say, that whole scene between Kenny and Levi was very impactful. One thing that I really liked about its presentation in the anime is the lack of music. Not a single song played in Kenny's final moments: it was just the sounds of the environment. It ultimately made Kenny's death all the more sad and somber. The voice performances of both characters during this scene was also top notch and helped demonstrate their personalities and feelings at the moment (their voice work throughout this episode in general was very top notch). Even the sunset in the background also created a bittersweet feeling.
The feels that Kenny's death left for the audience are retained but on a happier note with the following scene of Historia's coronation:
I really loved the music here! It was very bittersweet, and it fit the tone of the entire scene perfectly!
All hail Queen Historia! She deserved it, and with that, her character arc has come to a close! Well done, Historia! You've become best girl of AoT!
I also loved that little scene of Historia punching Levi: she no longer lets stigmas and what other people think of her get the best of her, allowing her to freely do what she wants. In this case, she listens to her friend's suggestion of punching their squad leader and does it, even if it may not seem the right thing to do (at least in Eren's mind, seeing how he's panicking at the thought of Historia punching Levi since he himself respects so much that he doesn't want to make Levi upset in anyway).
Well why don't you look at that! Levi smiled! It's rare to see him smile! We only saw a slight smile from him in his OVAs when he was sitting with his friends from the underground slums as they stared at the night sky. Here, he has a full smile! That's wonderful to see! He really is appreciative of what his squad accomplished!
But of course, just like any other AoT episode, we are left to this chilling cliffhanger that gives us a glimpse at what the Warriors have been up to:
He's here! I've waited for so long to see him animated, and with the dawn of best arc on the horizon, we'll soon be seeing him in all of his greatness animated! I can't wait!
The fact he is also voiced by Dio's voice actor is also something to look forward to. You can even hear some of that Dio from him too in that scene!
In all this was an incredible episode! A perfect adaptation of Chapter 69 that really delved into Kenny's character and fleshed him really well. It was a chapter that was awesome for revealing Kenny and Levi's backstories! Their voice actors even did a phenomenal job voicing them in all of their scenes here! The entire coronation scene was wonderful! In fact, I actually got a bit emotional during it, something that I didn't truly feel when I read it this scene in the manga. I can thank the touching music and Historia's voice work for that!
I was surprised they moved the cliffhanger from Chapter 70 to the end of this episode though, but I think that's because next episode will include the first chapter of the next arc that the second four of Season 3 will entail, so it was probably put here to create that same feeling like it did in the manga. I still think next episode will be treated as part of the Uprising Arc though since the final chapter of the Uprising Arc will be part of it (not to mention there has been no news about the second Season 3 opening yet).
I'm looking forward to next week's episode. It's that episode that will be the epilogue to the Uprising Arc, and it'll also detail something important about Grisha going off the preview that we will learn from Keith Shadis.
I'm also looking forward to seeing that cute Erehisu moment during it. I won't be surprised if anime-onlys will start shipping the two characters together after they watch it, because it's a great scene between the two of them.
Tonight, therefore, I get to swap over to a first shift schedule. Means I'll be jet lagged all night, and crossing my fingers it doesn't persist till morning.
It's also his shield they're riding on.
My point was less that he's holding onto them and more that it looks like he's aggressively leaning into them ahaha, even moreso in motion.
Mad Goofy always is funnier to me tbh
Tonight, therefore, I get to swap over to a first shift schedule. Means I'll be jet lagged all night, and crossing my fingers it doesn't persist till morning.
Tonight, therefore, I get to swap over to a first shift schedule. Means I'll be jet lagged all night, and crossing my fingers it doesn't persist till morning.
Oh the same thing is happening to someone my family too, I just do not know when.
I could be wrong, but I heard. I have to ask if this is true.
I hope it all goes well.
FalKoopa , I think some of your tweets just kill me.
praline you icon is making me wanna find art of Erik now
