I’m ready to talk about this beast of an episode. After last week’s shocking revelation that Reiner is the Armored Titan and Bertolt is the Colossal Titan, this episode picks up literally right where “Warrior” left off – with Eren (Titan Form) throwing a punch at the Armored Titan. This episode is the best I’ve seen so far this season. “Historia” came pretty close to perfection, but this is even better. So let’s discuss Episode 7 of AoT: Season 2 – “Close Combat”.

The episode opens with a montage of flashbacks. Each snippet of events was caused by the Colossal and Armored Titans, and I could really feel the pain Eren was feeling once Reiner and Bertolt revealed themselves. I noticed him crying before he transformed at the end of the episode, and now I know why. Seeing his mother get ripped in half (again) really sealed the deal here. Many people died thanks to the acts of these two.

I want to express why I think this is the best episode the show has produced this season, and why I think nothing can top it at this point. There are quite a few reasons. For one, “Close Combat” may or may not have the tensest action sequence the series has ever produced in its run-time. I’m including Season One here, too.

While there’s no doubt that the first season provided some really cool action scenes, nothing can top this week’s simply because this is the first time the group has known who is under the Titan shell while they are duking it out. It proves to be effective while Eren is fighting his former ally, the former flashing back to his training with Annie, who was revealed to be the formidable Female Titan at the end of Season One. It’s a really interesting concept: up until now, there have been five group members who are Titan shifters – Eren, Annie, Ymir, Reiner, and Bertolt. I’m starting to wonder how many others like them are out there, waiting for the perfect chance. It’s a thought.

As much as it is tense, the battle between Eren and Reiner was just flat-out awesome, too. Another reason I really thought this episode was the best so far was because Eren remembered a technique Annie had taught him, and was able to use it against Reiner in the episode, causing the latter’s arm to rip off (and of course, spurt a whole lot o’ blood). Unfortunately, Reiner called upon Bertolt/Colossal Titan while Eren had him pinned, causing the seemingly indestructible Titan to fall. That’s where the episode ended. Based on the preview for the next episode, Mikasa is injured by the Colossal Titan’s fall.

Fortunately, the subtitle issue that occurred in the previous episode was fixed, so that is a win also. It really got on my nerves last week and I’m glad whoever works on the subtitles fixed it.

I really enjoyed the characters and writing in “Close Combat”, in addition to everything else. Mikasa has always been my favorite character, thanks to her subtlety and complete badassery, but she really shined in this episode, relying on what she knows to injure the Armored Titan and help Eren. Seeing Annie again was a nice addition, even if the flashback has been seen before in Season 1.

THE VERDICT

“Close Combat” was the greatest episode yet. This season just keeps getting better and better. I am really hyped to see what happens in weeks to come. The episode gets a 9.5/10.

Stay tuned for next week’s recap. Episode 8 – “The Hunters”.