WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Season 4, Episode 4 of Attack on Titan, "From One Hand to Another," now streaming on Crunchyroll, Funimation, Hulu and Amazon Prime.
The final season of Attack On Titan is finally airing and fans are ready to see the culmination of years' worth of Titan mystery. While the latest episode, "From One Hand To Another," doesn't feature much Titan action, it does produce a very intense exchange between two members of the family at the center of everything: the Jeagers. The content of this moment, however, may have been unclear to some viewers, especially for those that haven't read the manga.
Following the pattern of uncomfortable family reunions, Eren Yeager -- disguised on Marleyan soil -- hears his grandfather's tragic story for himself. To add to the melodrama, Mr. Jeager has no idea that he's speaking to his grandson.
The Jeager family has undergone numerous traumatic family moments, including Eren witnessing his own mother's death at the series' start. His mother was eaten by a Pure Titan that was, in fact, Grisha Yeager's first wife. Of course, Eren didn't know this at the time, but looking back that is some hefty family drama. Later on, Eren unknowingly kills Dina (Grisha's first wife) by controlling nearby Titans. Suffice to say the Jeager family doesn't know how to have a good time in any circumstance.
But the dramatic irony of the scene in Season 4's Episode 4 cements the dysfunction of this family more than any other. Eren is currently posing as a patient at a Marleyan hospital and is approached by an older gentleman who notices Eren's developing relationship with Falco Grice. The man warns him about interfering in family affairs and, in turn, breaks down and tells his own tragic family story.
Trying to hold himself together, the man confesses how the fates of his children were his fault -- his daughter, Faye, was taken away and eaten by dogs, and his son Grisha was banished after joining the Eldian Restorationists. Looking back, this man can clearly see that the sad fates of his children were ultimately his doing and it haunts him to this day.
Eventually, the man breaks down enough to draw attention and is taken away. The people who take him away refer to him as "Mr. Jeager," revealing that this man is indeed Eren's grandfather. Mr. Jeager doesn't recognize or realize that the man he was speaking with was his own grandson, though, at this point, most fans would have caught on to the truth. As previously mentioned, this reunion between Eren and Mr. Jeager is tarnished by the older man's ignorance of Eren's identity, creating an excellent, dramatic scene but one that continues to prove that no Jeager family moment will ever be a happy one.
The content of their conversation and the sad irony of it all makes this a very depressing moment for Eren. On top of hearing all the terrible things his father went through, Eren decides to keep silent and not tell Mr. Jeager who he really is. It is clear that Eren accepts that family is no longer a vital thread to his life and though the information is valuable, there is no point in revealing his identity -- especially at this point, as that kind of reveal would've led to major plot disruptions.
Time after time, each interaction between Jeager family members in Attack on Titan ends in tragedy or regret, burdening each character involved with a driving purpose for a better tomorrow -- particularly Eren. With only the remaining episodes of this season left to go, here's hoping there will be at least one redeeming Jeager family moment.
