#Ackertalk

[lenok993]

ackertalk no ackerpat yes

[levi4mikasa]

Rivamika fandom about Rivamika

[bryhaven]

Under the Moonlight

“Don’t know if you heard, but it’s Ackerman.” Levi turns to Mikasa, “Might be a relative of yours.”

A small soft gasp of surprise escapes her at the statement. It seems she too was all confused about the possibility. Ever since learning of Kenny the Ripper’s last name, the captain has felt a certain connection… a bond that connects him to Mikasa – the gloomy brat he’s had his eyes on for some time.

He needs to know. And when he turns his full attention to her to listen, she slightly droops her head.

“I remember my parents saying that my dad’s side, the Ackermans, were persecuted when they lived in the cities…”

Her words trail on as he listens. And Levi finds himself imagining a small but happy family. She must have lived a good and peaceful life, he reckons. Before the simple fact that she had that damned last name endangered her.

What a life it would have been… for her, at least.

“But my father never told me why the Ackermans were persecuted…”

The moment the last name is mentioned again, Levi snaps back to reality. Or at least from the imagery of the more peaceful and happier Mikasa his mind had just conjured.

He needs to know. And the time to ask is now.

“Tell me this,” he starts, trying to come up with the right words, “Have you ever suddenly felt a… power awaken inside you?”

There goes her small gasp of surprise yet again. But her face lights up, and he knows he is going in the right direction.

“I have…”

Relief washes over him at her response, like a missing piece has been found to complete his puzzle. And though there are bigger puzzles to solve, he feels at ease.

As the moon shines brightly in the dark of night, accompanied by the rolling sounds of the wagon and the steady hoofbeats of horses, he stares deeply at her. A tinge of intrigue gleams in his steely blue eyes.

“This has happened for Kenny Ackerman as well. Suddenly out of nowhere, he felt an absurd amount of strength surging through him. And in that moment, he knew just what he needed to do,” he explains.

His eyes never leave her as she lifts her head to look back at him.

“And it’s happened to me too…”

[lenok993]

I think the best opportunity for them to talk and improve their relationship was ch.112/113 after Eren's harsh words that "the Ackermans are slaves". Levi's life experience and wisdom can guide Mikasa, he is Mikasa's voice of reason. He can to get through to her. He can help her find her own reason to keep moving forward, help her to accept her individuility. Thanks to Levi Mikasa can get personal insight that she can't control everything or everyone even her loved ones. Shift her focus from her statement "Eren is her meaning of life and reason to live" to "Eren is just Eren with his own life". At the same time Mikasa with her soft part can give support to Levi, praise him like the great leader and mentor. Both of them deserved to be understood. The Ackertalk is what both needed to heal their emotional scars. In my headcanon after Mikasa's breakdown and first ackertalk she get courage to apologize to Levi for her rude behaviour, when she disobeyed his orders, when she acted like his enemy in ch.84 which emphasize Mikasa's growth mindset. Levi's kindness and curiosity and Mikasa who swallow her pride and apologize is how ackermans' dilemma could be resolved and turn into something great. Levi and Mikasa were designed to be not only companions in arms but soulmates with solid bond. Sad but true.

Thank you for your poll @sonofthesaiyans

P.S. Fun fact, Mikasa apologizes only once to mass-murderer Eren (she feels sorry that she doesn't want to forget him lol) in ch. 138 such cool female character boy who sought freedom rejects her for his personal ideals and agenda and she can't accept it. True love story

Okay, the ACKERTALK.....

Mikasa and Levi Ackerman, humanity's strongest warriors. The sole survivors of a powerful bloodline that's all but extinct on Paradis.

Well the results of my most recent poll have confirmed my belief that the Ackertalk, or Ackerbond, whatever you prefer to call it is still a major point of contention among us AOT Fans.....And Ex-Fans. We all know that the Ackerman bloodline is unique in the Titanverse and that they're immune to the effects of Titanization. Still, for something that was set up to be a major plot point in solving the mystery of the Titans, it seemed to become an afterthought the longer the story dragged out. Unfortunately a pattern that is undeniably prevalent in this faux pas that's been mistaken for a masterpiece.

Mikasa and Levi, we know they're distantly related somehow, so it was natural to expect there'd be more development between the two that further clarified their unique position in this fucked up world they're trying to salvage. Yet somehow that relationship only got surface level acknowledgement, and I think we can safely say never came into full circle........Neither did really any aspect of Mikasa's heritage in regards to Hizuru and the Azumabitos (Did the Azumabitos even ONCE acknowledge Levi either in any of that btw?) Since this is the clear winner in the poll, one simple question: What did you guys hope to see from this Ackertalk had it taken place as was long anticipated? What questions were you hoping to be answered had it come to pass?

Please, don't like or reblog this post unless you intend to answer. I think we all agree Isayama owes us something on this front.

I genuinely have to know, what did you guys hope for most from this? Oh yeah ,and if you happen to be a Rivamika fan, NO you can't bring that discussion here. Thank you.

[justackerman]

Had an idea about a conversation between the Ackermans. 😭

Ackertalk. Periodt.

[lostcauses-noregrets]

Hi, Lost. I recently saw a discussion about Ackermans and how Levi never mentioned to Mikasa the possibility of them being distantly relative. And it suggests that Levi doesn't actually reveal that he's an Ackerman to the others, at least, not to a lot of people. I always assumed Levi and Mikasa at least discussed this off-scene but anyway, we all know Levi definitely talked to Erwin about it. Knowing Erwin's curiosity and personality, there is no way he wasn't obsessed with the idea of a clan of, basically, titan slayers. He loves a good mystery and they would be too important for Survey Corps and Paradis in general. It's weird that this Ackerman thing was never explored other than "yeah Levi and Mikasa are OP don't question it" because I don't know about you but I would be so interested in freaking super soldiers living amongst us and I believe so was Erwin. We were robbed of that conversation, it'd give us so much Eruri material I believe :(

Hi Anon, sorry it’s taken me so long to answer your ask. You're definitely not the only one to be frustrated with the lack of information and resolution about the Ackermans. People waited years for Levi and Mikasa to have “the Ackertalk”, but when it finally came in chapter 63 it left everyone pretty disappointed. It did happen though, and Levi does suggest to Mikasa that they may be related.

There was a glimmer of hope that more would be revealed when the Ackermans were referred to as a “subproduct of Titan science” in chapter 93.  That really set the cat amongst the pigeons, but again, we got no further explanation about what that actually meant, either in the manga or in any of the supplementary materials. The only subsequent information we got about the Ackermans were Eren’s lies to Mikasa in chapter 112, where he claimed that Ackermans were slaves to their host, and Zeke revealing in chapter 130 that there’s nothing magical about the so-called Ackerbond, it’s just love. 

A lot of the additional information we have about the Ackermans comes from interviews with Isayama in the supplementary guidebooks, and it’s confusing at best and contradictory at worst.  For example, in chapter 65 Grandpa Ackerman tells Kenny that the king’s power to alter memories does not work on the Ackermans, and that this is one of the reasons they were feared and persecuted by the crown. However, later in the manga Eren was clearly able to alter Mikasa's memories, so that doesn’t add up. It's almost like Isayama was just making it up as he went along!

The lack of resolution around the Ackermans is just one of a number of threads that Isayama never tied up, which includes HIstoria’s arc and Mikasa’s relationship to the Azumabito clan.  It’s frustrating, because the Ackerman lore had so much potential, but none of it was ever developed, and at the end of the day they were a bit of a McGuffin. (Levi McGuffin doesn’t quite have the same ring to it though 😂)  Having said that, I can understand why Isayama shelved the Ackerman backstory, because it wasn’t really central to the plot. Also Levi, Mikasa and Kenny didn’t need any additional lore to make them really compelling and popular characters.  

If you're interested, I've got a post collating all the canon information about the Ackermans from the manga and the guidebooks: Ackermans Master Post.

With regards to how much Erwin knew about the Ackermans, there’s nothing in the manga, but I agree that once he discovered the connection between Levi and Kenny he would definitely have made it his business to find out more.  I wrote a tiny ficlet once about Erwin learning Levi’s name, it’s called Everything and Nothing

The words have been rattling around inside Erwin’s skull for days. Clattering against each other, discordant, disconcerting.

When they finally pass his lips one is familiar on his tongue, familiar as his own breath, the other foreign, sharp and bitter in his mouth.

“Levi.”

Levi’s head turns towards him on the pillow.

“What?”

“Ackerman.”

“Don’t.”

He turns away again.

“I always wondered…”

“I didn’t know.”

Erwin runs one finger lightly over Levi’s shoulder.

“I know, but it makes sense somehow.”

“Don’t.”

Levi is silent for a moment.

“It doesn’t change who I am. It doesn’t change anything.”

Erwin looks down at the black hair feathering over the pillow beside him. The pulse flickering in his neck; blue blood below porcelain white skin.

Ackerman.

Erwin leans down and presses his lips to Levi’s throat, to the pulse.

“Levi,” he says again.

It changes everything. And nothing.

[onigiri-dorkk]

Every time I see posts exploring Zutara’s dynamic it makes total sense why there seems to be a lot of overlap of Rivamika and Zutara shippers 😭 Like this is so Levi and Mikasa coded!

Idc if neither pair was canon or romantic, but this creates sweet sweet tension and growth. Levi knew Mikasa hated his guts in the beginning — she was very clear about how much she disliked and disrespected him, especially their first solo interaction in the forest against female Titan. Similarly, Zuko knows well enough that Katara hates his guts too for all the reasons. The key thing to both Levi and Zuko, though, is that neither men lash out at Katara/Mikasa for their ill feelings. They don’t call them delusional for holding things against them, or get frustrated that they haven’t forgiven them. Levi was in the literal position to confront or even punish Mikasa for her disrespect. Instead they let them feel what they feel, and they work hard at reversing it. Why? Because Zuko cared about what Katara thinks of him. And even though Levi never says it, he absolutely cares about what Mikasa thinks of him — quietly over time he does things to prove she can trust him and respect him as a captain and as a person (saves her life/injured himself for her, utilizing her in his new squadron, looking to her to fight alongside him, showing he trusts her to be by his side, considering her words with attentiveness, etc). Isayama’s graph said that Levi was especially concerned about Mikasa so it makes sense he cares about what she thinks of him.

The satisfaction between Zuko and Katara is that they got their solo moments to really hash it out and find full resolve, and this led to their final battle moments against Azula which was the ultimate statement of trust — saving each others lives even if it meant sacrifice (thankfully Zuko survived that lightning!)

I think that’s what we craved for Rivamika too. Their trust and bond is implied, but I wish we had scenes that blatantly shows us this. We needed Ackertalk! We needed that soooo bad!!! It would’ve been the equivalent of when Zuko and Katara hug and she tells him she forgives him/she trusts him fully, she welcomes him by her side fully now. Something like that would’ve made Levi and Mikasa’s final battle together against Eren even more impactful.

I remember tweeting about how important it was that in the final battle, Mikasa takes the lead and she orders Levi to aid her while she takes the final kill (a direct parallel to their first interaction when Levi orders Mikasa to aid him in taking down the female Titan). It shows their growth individually — Mikasa stepping up to take down Eren, choosing the safety of the world over her personal interest, and Levi stepping down to let Mikasa take the lead because he trusts her now; he doesn’t see her as a ‘gloomy bitch’ (lol) who impulsively acts on her feelings anymore. I discussed this and there were antis who said none of that is important, that Rivamika people are just delulu lmao

I say all of that because if, again, we just had that smaaaalll Ackertalk — that Zuko/Katara forgiveness episode!! — it would have made Levi and Mikasa’s interaction in the final chapters way more obvious to the fandom. Literally we still have antis saying Levi and Mikasa don’t even interact. HELLO?

Anyway wow LOL this is a huge tangent! We love Zuko/Katara for all the same reasons we love (and love the potential of) Levi and Mikasa 😭😭😭😭 ATLA/AOT fans, where ya at?!?!

[lucyforlife]

I wanted to write the Ackertalk scene but wrote this instead. Mikasa and Levi, bonding over small things. Post-Rumbling.

[nuri148]

Clarity Chapter 10 preview!

Against all odds, I managed to finish drafting this weekend! This one will take a bit to edit as there are a couple scenes that I want to time really well. It will be tere with ch. 4 as the shortest ones -- but it's intense I tell you.

What can you look forward* to?

*(The following previews may be unaccurate and/or lack context)

What everyone was waiting for! (toe-curling smut?!)

No! (Buuuhhh!)

Ackertalk! (ok, we’ll take it)

High tech gadgets! (well, not exactly)

Mysteries revealed! (just the one, actually)

A dead body! (the author’s?)

[levi4mikasa]

I will always brag abput these Rivamika crumbs 😌 Ackertalk would have been good but they missed out on the opportunity.

Two Ackermans.

Two Yeager brothers.

The two keys to stop the Rumbling.

Two beheadings.

The last, and best, Rivamika parallel

[lenok993]

~ackerletters~

I can't believe that Mikasa broke up with everyone. It doesn't fit with her character cause she is very family-oriented person and she can't be alone too long yes she needs to take a break for rest and grieving process but in my headcanon she writes the letters to Armin every season. The same thing with famous ackertalk, Levi and Mikasa can ackertalking by this way, the letters are perfect option to communicate with each other. For them two awkward introverts it's easier to express their thoughts and emotions in writing before they will meet again

Dear Captain Levi All things shall take place in their proper time. How is your leg? Hope you're doing well. P.S. I sent your favorite tea from Mitras. Sincirely yours, undisciplined subordinate Mikasa Ackerman

[levi4mikasa]

But but, did you notice how Levi opened up about his past and actually talking about it. 😭 Im so happy for him that he is sharing his pain with others 😭😭😭😭🥰🌸

In entire aot, we only saw levi talking about his past to Mikasa. I really need Ackertalk, 3-4 chapters long ackertalk.

[bryhaven]

Why "Under the Tree" is actually a RivaMika song

This song is all the rave right now. And it's actually a good one that has Linkin Park vibes. But being a RivaMika shipper, I couldn't help but delve deeper to analyze the lyrics.

And what I found is interesting.

𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑎𝑡? 𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑏𝑒𝑒𝑛? 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒’𝑠 𝑛𝑜 𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑞𝑢𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛

Mikasa was wondering what happened to Levi and was unsure of the situation and where he is, so she goes to ask Floch. Sure, she also asked about Hanji. But there is a difference when a person's name comes first.

𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑑? 𝑊ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑑𝑖𝑑 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑛? 𝐸𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑖𝑓 𝐼 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢, 𝑦𝑜𝑢’𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑙𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑦 𝑓𝑎𝑟 𝑎𝑤𝑎𝑦

Ackertalk. Where was Levi headed with the conversation and what did he mean? It still remains a mystery to Mikasa how she and Levi had a certain connection through the Ackerman history, and she never got to know more about it. And even if she did try to, the circumstances surrounding them did not allow the chance.

𝐴 𝑏𝑖𝑟𝑑, 𝑎 𝑏𝑢𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑓𝑙𝑦, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑚𝑦 𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑟𝑓

Eren is the bird, the scarf is the symbol of connection. But the butterflies...

Same color, on the same side (their left), and in the same situation where the Ackerman is looking at their host. It seems the blue butterfly is linked to the multiple timelines in the story. Could it be that Levi also has the butterfly since he is the only one who could save Mikasa in every timeline she creates whenever she chases after Eren? Like he already did in the manga (main) and Junior High timelines?

𝐷𝑜𝑛'𝑡 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑎 𝑚𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑠, 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑙𝑒𝑡 𝑚𝑒 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑙 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑟𝑠

Sometimes it sounds like "We'll make a mess of memories" instead. But either way, if the cabin dream is indeed an alternate timeline, then it can go both ways. Levi called out to Mikasa, and as a result, did not mess up the manga (main) timeline. Or Levi calling her back to reality messed up her newly made cabin timeline. Both to save her and to end the war.

Besides, who are the people who experienced the same kind of scars? Both physically and emotionally? Levi and Mikasa. Therefore, they are the ones who are suited to heal each other, especially when the war is over.

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑙𝑙, 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑙𝑙-𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑔𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑛 𝑤𝑎𝑟 𝑇𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑛𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑝𝑠 𝑊𝑒’𝑟𝑒 𝑔𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑆𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑

As mentioned, Levi and Mikasa experienced the same kind of scars and trauma since childhood, fought all their lives, and carry the burden of their heritage and origins. They got entangled in the war brought about by the cycle of hate that never seems to stop. And they're getting old for this shit.

𝑊ℎ𝑦 𝑜ℎ 𝑤ℎ𝑦, 𝑤ℎ𝑦 𝑜ℎ 𝑤ℎ𝑦 𝐷𝑜𝑛’𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑤𝑎𝑛𝑛𝑎 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑦 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑚𝑒? 𝑊ℎ𝑦 𝑜ℎ 𝑤ℎ𝑦, 𝑤ℎ𝑦 𝑜ℎ 𝑤ℎ𝑦 𝐴𝑟𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑢𝑝 𝑜𝑛 𝑚𝑒?

Who else in the story mentioned the exact words, "Stay with me."?

It's obvious that Levi is calling out to Mikasa so that she won't give up on the fight to help him bring down Eren. "Are you giving up on me?" screams desperation. A little close-up here to prove the point.

𝐼’𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔, 𝑤𝑎𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑚𝑒 ℎ𝑜𝑙𝑑 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑒

Who did Mikasa actually wait for while literally being under trees?

Yes, it's Levi. She was supposed to distract the female titan so he can attack. But she was too amazed and she ended up staring dumbfoundedly while waiting for him to finish attacking. And ultimately wait for the opportunity to do an attack of her own.

And who actually held someone while being under a tree?

Honestly, I will never get tired of this scene, this moment, this screenshot.

𝑈𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑒 𝐼 𝑐𝑎𝑛’𝑡 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢

Levi can't take Mikasa because she's always chasing after Eren and he knows how devoted she is.

In other lyrics, it says "I'll come take you" instead. And who always comes to take Mikasa? Rescues her from trouble and prevents her from doing anything foolish?

Yes.

[sonofthesaiyans]

Snap Poll: What was the worst decision made in Attack on Titan by ISAYAMA before the Ocean?

Because not even the old seasons are without some major failings. As much as the fans here will attempt to deny them because......I don't know, why ARE they so gung-ho for this?

What was Isayama's worst decision before the basement reveal, before they reached the ocean?

[levi4mikasa]

Sooooo, he was talking about his past or may be a glimse of his life current life but once again, missed opportunity for ackertalk.

These panels make my heart hurt so bad. He went through so much pain and still turned put to be the best man unlike genocide looser Eren 🤮

And he look so youngggggg 😍😍🌸🌸

Crying..

My poor baby, he was so scared :((

Give him his mom back :(((

Gabi getting emotional 🥹

[onigiri-dorkk]

Hi I'm new to the fandom and not gonna lie for a long time I was confused about why would anyone ship Rivamika because it always seemed like Levi was barely aware of Mikasa and Mikasa hated Levi or disliked him. I started reading the manga last week and I'm honestly surprised by how little changes made a huge different. WIT always made it seem like Mikasa didn't care about anyone other than Ereh and I believe they are the reason why everyone makes fun of Mikasa for being obsessed. I genuinely thought "I love her but she's very ungrateful and rude sometimes, their strongest soldier hurt his ankle when they needed him the most because of her and all she cared about is Ereh" but it's not like that in the manga. She actually feels guilty and responsible which is a great panel to show how character development. A 3 seconds scene would do so much good to Mikasa's character but WIT somehow didn't want to include that scene. Even in S3 it seemed like they would like to keep them apart and don't let them interact even though there was a huge reveal about them. And I think it's not only WIT. Even Isayama himself is almost afraid to let them interact and I'm not talking about shipping here. Imagine finding out that someone experienced the same things as you did, have this weird mysterious power thing going on and that person is your Captain whom you made it clear that you trust and respect now. It's crazy to me that they don't even talk and compare their experiences etc???? Again, it's not even about shipping, it pisse me off because it feels like Mikasa isn't allowed to have anything of her own, the reason why Mikasa ships aren't popular isn't because she's not loved, it's because Isayama, WIT and even Mappa didn't let her have many meaningful interactions. Hell, even with Armin (they are supposed to be a trio) it sometimes feel like they were just hanging out for Eren. Ughhh they could at least let Mikasa have Ackermans for her own. She could interact more with Levi and even with Kenny for a sec. So disappointing :(

Wow!! Anon, welcome to the fandom and thanks for sending this! I never get asks and it’s always exciting 😂 We’re glad you’re here!

The “I didn’t get how people shipped rivamika” thing is common tbh, don’t worry! I was on that train too until I stopped to think about everything implied between the lines—most of it being in the manga, as you said. I know people say things like we ‘grasp at straws’ but there is realistically fantastic depth we can assume from their closeness as comrades alone. The magic of Rivamika as a ship is it takes more deep knowledge of the characters to understand why it WORKS so well. And when you get it, gosh, it’s amazing!

We definitely agree too, that WIT cut such crucial scenes to Mikasa’s character. I will never understand their choices… And I’ll forever grieve it 😭 That scene of self-reflection and guilt over Levi’s injury/absence is important because it’s the first time she finally thought outside of her tunnel vision of Eren. Ultimately, she learns to care about what happens to others as a result of her actions, which quite literally starts with Levi.

I also agree, it seems like Yams started the Ackerman reveal + arc but decided midway not to commit to it or develop it. It explained their strength, but that was it. It’s strange that even in the anime they chose not to explain that Ackerman’s are Titan DNA hybrids. That seems like a crucial piece but I wonder why they didn’t think it was important. Because then the whole “Ackerman’s are immune to x and x” has no narrative proof at all.

I like to think Ackertalk happened behind the scenes. I like reading everyone’s versions of it—but always a shame we never got that in canon. It’s even strange because they both lost their entire families, so finding out you’re from the same people should at least create a sense of bonding or they’d take on a slightly familial role, or SOMETHING. (Though I’m glad it didn’t go that route because people would REALLY think they’re cOuSiNs lol) But it’s just strange Yams introduced these things that ended up really having not much purpose, or none at all. (Don’t get me started on the Azumabito shit)

I still hope and manifest for some sort of Ackerman spin off that explores this. Can you imagine? Levi and Mikasa (the cash cows of AOT, we say!) venturing off post-war to discover more about the Ackerman’s? Or to retrace and find surviving Ackerman’s outside the world?