Levi fires a noise round and tells the squad to keep moving forward. With more of the rearguard being killed by the Female Titan, Eren begs his squad to let him fight, but they tell him to trust Levi's decision. Eren recalls when he was unable to transform into a Titan for experimental purposes in front of Hange, Levi and his squad. During a break when he tried to pick up a teaspoon, Eren suddenly partially transformed, leading Hange to deduce that Eren is able to transform into a Titan not by solely injuring himself but also due to his desire to fulfill his goals. The squad apologized to Eren and told him they should trust each other. Remembering this, Eren decides to trust his squad's plan. It is then revealed that Levi's squad is bait to lure the Female Titan into an ambush, where Erwin and his men fire hundreds of grappling hooks to trap the Female Titan. Levi leaves his squad to meet up with Erwin to determine the identity of the Female Titan.
Tropes:
- Awesomeness by Analysis: Hange notes in the flashback that since the spoon wasn't warped by the heat or the pressure of Eren's transformation, and that previously Eren successfully transformed to 1.) Kill titans, and 2.) Block cannon fire. From this, she determines that for a Titan Shifter to transform they have to have a clear goal or objective in mind when they do so.
- Nightmare Fetishist: Played for laughs in the flashback and one of the episode's few moments of levity. Eren accidentally does a partial transformation into a titan in the flashback and while the rest of Levi's squad is freaking out and threatening him, Hange comes bursting out of the forest screeching in excitement. She breaks up the tension by pushing through Levi's squad geeking out, and begging to touch the arm, literally frothing at the mouth as she does so.
- Oh, Crap!: Twice. Eren has a brief one in the flashback upon seeing the lightning in his hand before his partial titan transformation. The female titan herself has another one at the end of the episode when she sees the trap that the scouts have laid for her.
- Power Incontinence: Eren has no understanding of his Titan powers and no way to consciously control them. Hange locks him in the well and tells him to transform, which he can't do even after engaging in several bouts of self-harm. Later on, he can't reach a spoon he knocked off the table and upon touching it, his Titan arm unwittingly explodes into existence. Eren lampshades it himself later on when he notes "I turned into a titan just to pick up a damn spoon?"
- The Reveal: The end of the episode reveals that the mission has been a ploy to capture the Female Titan when they reach the point in the forest and Erwin unleashes a surprise attack where the Scouts fire hundreds of hooks and spikes into the female titan to trap her in place.
- Toilet Humor: Levi, as per the usual.
