peachymess:

What happened in Shiganshina:

Remember back during the fall of Shiganshina, when Eren and Mikasa ran off to their house while Armin ran in the opposite direction? Did you think he was a coward? Many did, you’re not alone. As with a lot of his other actions and behaviors (especially from back then), we’ve been fooled to see Armin in the same unfortunate light as he does – this moment included. As the narrator of this story – as well as a very active self-devaluater – Armin has effectively warped his role into that of the useless person he thinks he is, as that is the way we are presented the “facts”. Many are at this point aware that he is much greater than he thinks, but I fear the idea that he started out weak still has deep roots in many. I’d like to propose a different take on that aforementioned moment as perhaps a small stab at uprooting those ideas, just as it appears to me this morning. Perhaps a random thought, but I feel like mentioning it:

See, while it’s natural to expect any kid faced with that kind of horror, to act the way he did; running away – I still think we’ve been blinded by his narrative to not see the real events how they unfolded: did we not learn from Eren (and Armin’s actions subsequently proving) that Armin never just runs away?

So let’s think. There are three points to the moment back in Shiganshina that we can use to swiftly analyze what took place: 1. Armin ran. 2. Armin, as a trait, doesn’t run away from his challenges. 3. Armin told Hannes to go get Eren&Co.

By Armin’s persuasive and persistent narration, we’re taught to focus on only the first point – him running away – while I think the truth lies in the two other points.

You probably see what I’m getting at, because it’s so painfully obvious: when Eren and Mikasa ran off in the direction of danger, Armin did not simply back out from any feeling of obligation to help; rather, he realized the danger his respectively impulsive and loyal friends were running into, and so Armin bit down his fear and ran off to get someone he knew had a better chance at helping them out of it. Ultimately, he did exactly the one thing that could – and did – save them – and it was not by chance; while some think it’s a given that Armin is weak, a much stronger and truer trait of his, is his ability to come up with solutions (especially on the spot, no less). This has been his game from the very beginning. Remember what Eren said in episode 10 – before Armin’s “confidence awakening”:

In other words – if any of you actually need convincing – this is something Eren recognized in Armin way before his “development”; Armin has always been good at keeping his mindgame up even through fear.

Armin did not stumble upon Hannes while fleeing; he hurried off to get a soldier to help his friends, and then had the smarts to realize he’s done all he can for them and now would do best to join up with his family lest they die looking for him – then all he could do was hope for the best regarding his two best friends.

And as you all know,

…thanks to Armin’s own orchestration, they turned up alive.