Hange's experiments to have Eren try to harden end in failure. Pastor Nick, Hange's informant from the Wall Cult, is found dead and Hange suspects foul play. The Military Police orders the Survey Corps to hand over Eren and Historia; their flight to Trost District sees their body doubles (Jean and Armin) snatched by a group of thugs, who Mikasa and the 104th later rescue. Levi and several Scouts cover the movement of actual Eren and Historia, when an enigmatic group of pistol-wielding assassins closes in on them...
Tropes:
- Awesome by Analysis: After seeing Nick's corpse Hange acts goofy in order to get close to the MP's guarding the room and, after piecing together various clues (the lack of fingernails on Nicks hands, the busted skin on Djel Sannes' hands etc.) concludes that he was assassinated by the 1st Division MP's.
- Boom, Headshot!: Most of Hange's squad is assassinated this way.
- Chekhov's Gun: Eren's recollection of a conversation between Bertolt and Ymir is handed off to Hange, which will presumably come up later.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: The thugs that grabbed Jean and Armin are no match at all for Mikasa, though the other 104th memebers did cover her.
- Cryptic Conversation: A sinister conversation occurs in King Fritz's throne room, which obscures who is speaking and what they're speaking about.
- Escort Mission: Eren and Historia are the two MVP's that the Survey Corps needs to hide and move from the clutches of the Military Police.
- Explain, Explain... Oh, Crap!: Levi spends the last part of the episode wondering why the MP's would use such sloppy grunts to kidnap Eren and Historia considering how prideful they are. When he considers that his old mentor Kenny might have something to do with it he comes to the conclusion that he would use the distraction to set up a pincer move on an elevated rooftop. This gives Levi the insight to quickly duck out of the way before his head is blown off by Kenny (although Nifa wasn't so lucky).
- Five-Second Foreshadowing: Levi deduces who they're dealing with a few seconds before they show up.
- Genre Shift: The first episode of the Uprising arc marks a narrative shift in which the Survey Corps are not opposing Titans or enemy Titan Shifters, but rather elements of a government conspiracy.
- Gory Discretion Shot: We're spared the sight of Nifa's exploded head, but we see part of the goggles soldier's head after his body hits the ground.
- I Know You Know I Know: Hange tells Sannes', the MP that tortured Pastor Nick, that if they find the man who did that Hange will torture them to death in the same brutal manner before leaving the crime scene.
- I Never Said It Was Poison: Djel Sannes angrily tells Hange to get lost from the crime scene when she starts asking questions and, when she asks if Nick had anything valuable to steal, points out that as a Pastor he had precious iron that could be stolen. Hange then acts surprised by Nick's profession since, as she explains to Levi's Squad, she set Nick up under an alias and thus the MP's shouldn't have known about his true profession.
- Interservice Rivalry: Djel Sannes (the 1st MP) has open contempt toward the Survey Corps and their work.
- Move Along, Nothing to See Here: The MP's in charge of investigating Nick's death unsubtly try to cover it up as a routine robbery gone wrong. Hange doesn't buy it.
- Obfuscating Stupidity: Once Hange puts two-and-two together regarding Nick's death, she immediately plays dumb to prevent the MP's from thinking that she too is a problem to be "dealt with".
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Levi reacts with uncharacteristic horror then outright fury when Kenny shows up to kill him and his comrades. Bear in mind that he nearly always fights with stoic calmness and had at most Tranquil Fury when he lost his own squad to the Female Titan.
- Phlebotinum Breakdown: Eren's attempts to harden in Titan form end in failure, with his Titan form ended up much weaker than usual and with him nearly fused to the Titan itself.
- Police Brutality: It's heavily implied that the 1st Military Police brigade were the ones that tortured Nick to death. It's also implied that if Hange and Moblit didn't leave peacefully, they were ready to rough them up as well.
- Rank Up: The remaining members of the top 10 of the 104th (and Armin) that survived and didn't turn traitor have been appointed to be the new Squad Levi.
- Say My Name: KENNY!!!
- Speak of the Devil: Kenny the Ripper, infamous serial killer and important figure in Levi's past, shows up just as Levi suspects that he's involved.
- Unspoken Plan Guarantee: The body double operation goes off without a hitch, while the main discussed plan to move Eren and Historia is interrupted by Kenny.
- We Hardly Knew Ye: Nifa dies the same episode that she's named, having previously had some background scenes as an extra.
