Attack on Titan: The Final Season Part 2 Episode 86

Attack on Titan: The Final Season Part 2 Episode 86

Geographic and Cultural Influences

Attack on Titan: The Final Season Part 2 Episode 86 actually gave us something I complained about not having just a week ago. In my Episode 85 review, I mentioned how I’d like to have a world map so we could visualize how the rumbling would progress.

We didn’t get an entire world map in Episode 86. But we did get a map of the continent that includes Paradis Island off to the northeast. When you see the placement of Paradis compared to the mainland, it’s easy to understand that Paradis’ relation to the rest of the world is based on Japan.

Japan is an island off the northeastern coast of mainland Asia and was culturally isolated for a very long time. Of course, the actual civilization on Paradis Island is based on Germany, though.

Continental map from the anime series Attack on Titan: The Final Season Part 2 Episode 86
Continental map

And, before anyone comments it, no, Paradis is not based on Germany they’re supposed to represent the Nazis. I’ve seen a lot of people thinking that Eren is supposed to be like Hitler, and that’s simply not the case.

Yes, there are a lot of parallels to World War II in the series. But, Marley is the country based on the Nazis. They’re the ones who keep Eldians in guarded camps and want to eradicate them. The Paradis Eldians are the oppressed and Eren is the embodiment of their negative sentiment.

Eren and his followers are those who want to seek revenge for their oppression. However, as you’ll notice if you’ve been paying attention, they’re now the antagonists of the series. The heroes don’t want to commit a vengeful genocide.

You could also view this story as having parallels to sentiments in Japan after the United States used nuclear weapons against them.

Falco’s Jaw Titan

There were a lot of exciting things that happened in Episode 86. We had Mikasa, Jean, and Connie all fighting against the Yeagerists (Twitter only cared about Mikasa). We also had Shadis and Magath giving their lives to save the world (more on that in a bit).

But, I’d say the “biggest” part of the episode was the reveal of Falco’s Jaw Titan. More people seemed to care about Mikasa doing literally anything. However, I did still see a lot of people commenting on how they liked the Jaw Titan’s design.

So, of course, I have to come in and mention how I actually dislike Falco’s Titan design. But, before you call me a hater, I do think his Jaw Titan looks cool. It’s just that I don’t think it’s a good design for his specific Titan.

Falco Grice's Jaw Titan from the anime series Attack on Titan: The Final Season Part 2 Episode 86
Falco Grice’s Jaw Titan

Perhaps you noticed that Falco’s Titan has hands and feet that look like a bird’s talons. And perhaps you also noticed that the jaw of his Jaw Titan looks a bit like a bird’s beak. His name is also Falco, which is almost the word falcon, a type of bird of prey.

Basically, Falco’s Titan design would be great if he was the Beast Titan. It has animal characteristics, albeit different ones from Zeke’s Beast Titan. But, having animal characteristics is kind of the Beast Titan’s thing. Up until now, that’s the only Titan we’ve seen like that, and its name implies that to be unique about it.

Falco’s Titan design is definitely cool and unique. I mean, most of the other Titans are pretty boring. Though, I’d still have to say that the Warhammer Titan (did you forget that one?) is still my favorite — the manga version of it, specifically.

Shadis and Magath

I’ve always liked Shadis and Magath. Well, okay, I didn’t really care about Shadis at the start of the series when he was just the commanding officer of the cadets. But, once he became a recurring character, I really enjoyed him.

Magath is a character I enjoyed right from his introduction. I liked his initial interactions with Gabi during the siege that the Final Season began with. Back then, even though Gabi was only a Warrior candidate, Magath was wary of sending her on a dangerous mission into no man’s land.

It’s hard to say if Magath felt bad about using child soldiers back then and if that’s why he was hesitant. I think it was more so that he didn’t want to lose a promising Warrior candidate, which I believe is what he told Gabi. But, we now know that Magath does regret using child soldiers and the power of the Titans in general.

Theo Magath and Keith Shadis blowing up a Marleyan cruiser from the anime series Attack on Titan: The Final Season Part 2 Episode 86
Theo Magath and Keith Shadis blowing up a Marleyan cruiser

Shadis and Magath are effectively the same character. They’re the ones who trained our heroes and villains — Eren and Zeke being the villains, and everyone else being the heroes. And yet, they never met until it was time for the two of them to give their lives.

While I do like that they opted to go out in a (literal) blaze of glory, it has to be said that Shadis probably shouldn’t have gone along with it. I understand Magath’s reasoning. He’s atoning for his sins and he has knowledge of the ship so he can destroy it.

But, there was no reason for Shadis to die other than, as he puts it, he was looking for a good place to die. Even with the Rumbling happening, Shadis still could have made a difference. He still could have helped civilians in need.

Conclusion

What do you think of Attack on Titan: The Final Season Part 2 Episode 86? Do you like Falco’s Jaw Titan design? And are you sad to see Shadis and Magath meet their ends? Let me know in the comments.

Also, I believe there’s a break next week before the final episode of this part of the season (not the end of the series).

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My review of Episode 87 is available now.

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