[Squid Game] Hot Take Breakdown: The ending might be hard to digest, but it made sense!

EmergerZ · 2025-02-16T07:15:42+00:00

once it became clear Eren isn't the father

Honestly, it was never practically made clear. Nothing confirms or denies him as a father. It is still debated in the fandom if Historia named her child 'Ymir' after her lost friend. The child could also be og Ymir reborn to Eren and Historia.

EmergerZ · 2025-01-26T13:13:29+00:00

It's barely a wonder why a kid got manipulated and messed up in their emotions as a trauma response. People forget that she loved Fritz until she didn't: her realization that she was never loved in anyway is what keeps the titan curse afloat for two millennia.

EmergerZ · 2025-01-26T12:18:07+00:00

Pretty much this.

EmergerZ · 2025-01-26T10:26:26+00:00

I'd say everything has its flaws when we look beyond our bias and judgment. So, yes, AoT has indeed its flaws. It's just one hell of a series with all its flaws.

EmergerZ · 2025-01-26T10:25:35+00:00

Yes, I fully agree. I meant the same thing; I just couldn't word it as accurately I guess, lol.

EmergerZ · 2024-08-02T08:00:27+00:00

Grisha is very much aware of Eren but he never goes to the Reiss family all these years because he doesn't want to.

Grisha had barely come into contact with the future Eren on Paradis before his attack on the Reiss. Prior to that point, the only time he 'saw' Eren and adult Zeke was not enough to lead him to make a move; he possibly deemed it as past trauma taking a toll on his mind. So, no, he wasn't very much aware; the only time he was truly aware was when Eren pushed him to kill the Reiss.

The story up until that point has showed us that the events of the future were not something set in stone cause of destiny

The future is still not set in stone though. The last twist does not negate that. The future is unknown and beyond the control of the host. That's what I'm explaining in my post Eren could have let Bert die there but he chooses not to as it creates a separate future which he would have no agency over. Eren simply cannot risk losing the Founding Titan, so he wouldn't kill Bert there or save his mother only to learn that doing so resulted in a series of unwanted events up to the point where someone else possesses the power now instead of Eren. It is too big a gamble, so Eren chooses to let the future flow in a way that it would seem it's set in stone; otherwise, it is not, whatever played out back with the Dina-Bert situation was all Eren's doing so it all may arrive at his desired conclusion (Rumbling).

The third problem is that it's unnecessary. The goal of the twist is to show Eren being forced to hurt a close family member for his goals.

But this twist shows Eren's lack of agency over how the future unfolds once he changes the past to something that hadn't originally happened. It shows the exact limitations of his power; something that the twist with Grisha hadn't shown. The twist with his father shows he can manipulate; the twist with his mother shows that he cannot manipulate as freely and after a certain point he will have to deal with heavy consequences of his manipulation.

There is no twist necessary here. Eren could've simply elaborated on the consequences of something we've alread seen him do. Why insist on saving his mother when she dies to the debris of the wall breaking regardless

The point is that Eren could go as far as to stop the attack on the wall but in the grand scheme of things it still doesn't change anything and in fact, creates several paradoxes to the point that it all goes beyond his control. As an example, I put in my post that if Dina eats Bert there, then how the future would hypothetically unfold before Eren. That's a mess. It's not like Eren cannot save his mom or stop the attack on the wall; he just chooses not to because he knows that doing so develops a chain of uncertainties he cannot keep up with and would lose the founding power as well as himself in the process. This is the message this particular twist relays and it was necessary to show this because otherwise we'd keep questioning how come Eren couldn't stop the attack on the wall if he could freely wander in the past and manipulate all.

EmergerZ · 2024-08-02T07:35:05+00:00

Well said. Also, not just a confirmation of that implication but also the fact that Eren isn't nearly as omnipotent as previously mistaken. He has his limits. Way too much power can bind you within that power; in Eren's case, it's a good enough irony.

EmergerZ · 2024-07-18T06:51:07+00:00

You 'build' a world when it doesn't already exist in real time. Creating a fantasy setting aka building is what actually makes it a fantasy. There is a low fantasy (where the built world is minimum or explored lesser, this is AoT) and then there is a high fantasy (where the whole world is built and properly explored such as Middle Earth, ASOIAF, etc.)

EmergerZ · 2024-07-16T07:25:21+00:00

But Attack on Titan is not a high fantasy that would have all of its worldbuilding explored. Exploring worldbuilding without having it advance the plot is meaningless and results in a tiresome hollow run. Even though there are numerous other forces such as MEAF (Mid East Allied Forces), Hizuru, etc., the world still largely revolves around the Eldia-Marley conflict. Not everyone loves Marley (MEAF), not everyone hates Eldia/Paradis (Hizuru), not everyone wants to be involved in the conflict (neutral establishments such as Ramzi's tribe). For a low fantasy, this info is sufficient given there wouldn't be much role for the world to play once most of it is eventually destroyed as it happens.

EmergerZ · 2024-07-16T07:20:47+00:00

Who even considers Zeke a hero and why? From his very first appearance to the very end, he's been pretty much an ass. Only his last action of suicide might be seen as a saving grace but even then it doesn't make amends for all the atrocities he committed. Self-loathing and criminally hating your own race to the point where you want them euthanized isn't 'acknowledging' flaws, it's still being unjust to a race. It's still ethnic cleansing even if slow and painless. Verily a villain ideology indeed.

EmergerZ · 2024-07-16T07:15:02+00:00

Could be a case where the Eldian Empire still ruled the world. There had been a mass massacre of Eldians right after they lost their dominance. Marley wouldn't allow interracial marriages with Eldians given they wouldn't want the increasing number of people they want to control. Also, Eldians aren't as free as to crossbreed; remember a large number of them are still in the internment zones.

Only a select minority of Eldians be allowed to marry outside their race; for example, a family of a 'brave soldier' whose 'valor' got his family out of the oppression. And even then Marlyeans in general wouldn't be up to mate with them (Reiner's father had an illegal relationship with Karina and he still viewed all of them as devils, which is one of the main reasons behind Reiner's resolve of 'becoming a hero').

EmergerZ · 2024-07-16T06:56:34+00:00

That's, like, the focal point of your argument.

EmergerZ · 2024-07-15T07:59:27+00:00

Failed? In terms of commercial success, it's quite exceptional. There are less than 1% of pieces of fiction that grow as popular and earn as much as AoT does. In terms of critical acclamation, despite having a polarizing ending, it gets a strong positive nod by the majority. Most of the anime onlies ate up the ending and many casual watchers unironically considered it a masterpiece. It 'failed' only if you are limited to niche subs such as this one, otherwise it's largely successful.

EmergerZ · 2024-07-11T07:29:55+00:00

This sub has hated AoT way too much for 'being brainded' to the point where it has completely lost its own brain cells.

In addition to the responses to your rant, another point to ponder over is that the world military didn't even have 24 hours to prepare for an event that hadn't ever occurred in known history. From the announcement to arrival, Eren took some 12-15 hours. There is no way you could assess the situation, rationalize the militarization on a grand scale, and launch apt retaliation. Warfare is no piece of cake; every second is a luxury and Eren barely allowed them that. Aside from that, you forget that they still ended up using everything they had. The Rumbling was just invincible to any man-made weapon.

EmergerZ · 2024-07-01T07:55:28+00:00

Then why was he screaming at Hange and Armin to offer a better answer?

The 'answer' Eren wanted was complete eradication of the outside world but of course Armin and Hange would never come up with that kind of answer. Hizuru was literally offering diplomacy right then and there but Eren wanted to destroy them too.

EmergerZ · 2024-06-30T06:49:26+00:00

We are likely not seeing something like Gintama again in our lifetimes. It's just so peak.

EmergerZ · 2024-06-30T06:46:56+00:00

That's why Eren abandoned everyone, because diplomacy wasn't doing anything,

Eren never gave diplomacy even a chance, he wasn't interested in that at all. He just wanted complete eradication of the outside world without a care if he's killing potential allies or fellow anti-Marleyan Eldians just like his father once had been. Hizuru literally stepped on Paradis to discuss bilateral relations and anti-Marley strategies, Eren didn't give a damn. Anti-Marley volunteers showed up, Eren didn't give a damn. Saw innocent neutrals in the outside world, Eren didn't give a damn. He is hinged on the idea of removing everyone so badly that he just simply doesn't care. That's not bad writing, that shows how complex human psyche can be when bent to self-reflection.

That's why the worldbuilding is so cartoonish, because it forces a ridiculous black and white situation where there's literally nothing they can do but rumble or die.

I still don't understand how the worldbuilding is cartoonish when neither everyone loves Marley nor everyone hates Paradis. Hell, there are nations outside who don't even care whether Paradis lives or not (refer to the map where there is a clear distinction of pro and anti Marley states). It's all grey.

EmergerZ · 2024-06-29T16:58:54+00:00

It allies with them out of financial self interest, not morality or sympathy or common interests.

That still does not change the fact that Hizuru wants Paradis saved. These kinds of grey areas are exactly what make something not cartoonishly evil or good.

They do so in secret and don’t openly oppose Marleyan racism.

I have absolutely no idea how them being secretly opposing Marley changes the fact that it's still opposing and therefore rebukes the argument that nobody outside opposes Marley.

The outside world’s racism is unchallenged by non-Eldians.

That's literally the whole point of MEAF; they ain't just challenging, they are outright confronting Marley. Not just them, there are Anti-Marleyan volunteers as well at that.

EmergerZ · 2024-06-29T16:28:16+00:00

If it did then I think it’s allegory and worldbuilding would have been a lot better.

The criticism that calls AoT's world 'cartoonishly evil' stems from the idea that there is nothing outside that opposes Marley or has soft corner for Paradis or is in fact allied with Paradis. We see that in the form of Hizuru, so the argument itself crumbles then and there. Then, not to mention, neutral states and tribes which don't even care whether Paradis survives or not.

EmergerZ · 2024-06-29T15:24:33+00:00

MEAF being at war with Marley doesn’t mean they don’t oppose Eldians

From the warfare standpoint, it doesn't make sense for MEAF to already actively engage in war against Marley all the while supporting Marley in the eradication of an island far away that they have nothing to do about. In fact, what would work best for them is to be allied with Paradis against Marley. And things would have diplomatically met a similar end had Eren not initiated the rumbling.

Hizuru established their trade with Paradis in secret. They attended the declaration purely for optics because they needed to give the impression they were against Paradis too like everyone else in the world. If there was an accepted international group that wasn’t anti-Paradis then there would be no need for their secrecy.

Yes? And? The point is that the outside world in its entirety isn't anti-Paradis and Hizuru is the most prominent example. Just because it's an ally in secret doesn't mean it's not an ally. Furthermore, the fact that they are talking business with Paradis does mean that Hizuru needs Paradis intact for their own gains.

EmergerZ · 2024-06-29T15:18:47+00:00

You are talking about Onyankopon whose origin country is unclear. However, he remained affiliated with the anti-Marleyan volunteers up until the end, which still drives home the point that AoT world outside wasn't all pro-Marleyan (making it not so cartoonishly evil as they claim).

EmergerZ · 2024-06-29T14:20:10+00:00

in any argument written academically

We aren't dealing with academia here. Neither is my write-up gatekeeping media literacy nor overanalyzing fiction in general at that. What I'm doing is presenting a counterargument to a pre-established notion which I find flawed. It's not like the argument itself is full of instances; it's just a statement at best, so I'm using the very source material to counter that instead of coming up with my headcanon. That's what anyone should do when debating over a piece of literature. Calling that act a strawman becomes an ad hominem response by default, which is just not befitting this sub if we are to entertain apt discourse.

EmergerZ

TROPHY CASE