Alot of people thought that alot of the characters seemed ooc in this chapter. From Connie laughing at seeing Annie for the first time and Mikasa acting cold towards Louise. I disagree but what are your thoughts?
Do you think Mikasa was too harsh towards Louise?
(I hope you guys don’t mind me pairing these together; since we’re doing a bit of an inbox speedrun apparently, this seemed more efficient.)
Connie and hysteria in the face of his life going batshit is a legitimate coping mechanism and he’s had a long day of figuring out if he’s going to murder a child so he can see his mother again while the entire world is exploding into titans.
Mikasa and Louise becomes rather devastating in hindsight, if this is their final scene. They haven’t had many moments together, leaving us to fill the empty space between Mikasa’s heroic salute and Louise’s life choices with sentiment.
With the moments they’ve had being all they get... it turns very, very sad.
I’ve always liked the scene where Mikasa saves Louise. She’s powerful, yeah, but the most important part there is that she takes the time to salute the little girl looking at her in awe. She offers protection and a smile. She is a damn hero.
Then the little girl grows up to be a soldier, and goes against orders, and looks at Mikasa and Eren both with undisguised idolization. She compares her situation with Mikasa’s openly; Eren saves Mikasa, and Mikasa saves Louise.
For as utterly attached as I am to Mikasa having a bond with the girl she saves, the scenes they’ve had together have mostly involved her rejecting that bond.
Louise tells Mikasa she wants to be closer to her in 109.
Mikasa tells her to stop and keep her mouth shut.
Louise is on her deathbed, talking about being closer to Mikasa, and Mikasa walks away.
What Louise takes from her meeting with Mikasa is the strength of power. Mikasa has the power to throw a titan to the ground, even as a human, and Louise admires that with her entire being.
Louise will share her admiration at the drop of a hat. She’s not subtle, and she’s not shy.
Mikasa never reciprocates.
Looking at their time together now, I think Louise, in some ways, represents to Mikasa all the harm her bond with Eren has caused. She’s a rebel and a Yeagerist, and it all starts with Mikasa. She accepts a prison cell fighting for her beliefs because of Mikasa. She’s a soldier with shrapnel killing her because of Mikasa.
Mikasa protects her, and it leads to nothing but pain, unrequited sentiment, and distance.
I think Mikasa’s responses to Louise says something, but I’m less sure of what it is. Except that for all Louise’s enthusiasm, and for all Mikasa’s gentleness, Mikasa very clearly does not want the affection Louise has for her. It isn’t just a series of bad days and terse conversations; every bit of their dynamic is exactly this:
Louise holding on to Mikasa’s scarf while she dies, and Mikasa coming to look for it instead of her.
I don’t understand it, but I think this chapter deems it very intentional.
Thank you both for the asks!
