By Autumn Antonson
Rating: 3/5
On November 5th, a decade-long journey finally came to an end.
The hit anime, Attack on Titan, released its final segment, concluding what has been what I (and many other watchers) would consider to be one of the most masterful shows of all time. Based on the manga by Hajime Isayama, the anime is a dark fantasy series that takes place in a world where man-eating Titans force all of humanity to live behind three enormous walls to avoid being massacred.
If you haven’t seen the anime, this is your sign to watch it.
As a writer myself, I can say with full confidence that this show is genuinely one of the most well-thought-out and well-written pieces of media I’ve ever seen.
Truly, it is a mind-altering show. Do be warned though, that it is extremely violent and graphically depicts some traumatizing deaths. If that’s something you can handle, I would really recommend it.
Spoilers ahead!
So, after ten years of releasing the anime and twelve of releasing the manga, did the final segment live up to the hype? I think it’s important to note that the show was biggest in 2021 when it won “World’s Choice - Most In-Demand TV Show in the World 2021” at the Global TV Demand Awards. By 2023, I think a lot of the momentum had been lost. It makes sense since the animation and production of such a high-demand show takes time, but I do partially think that any love lost is because of a decrease of interest.
However, did the final hour-long special manage to live up to expectations?
I think that yes and no. On one hand, I do think Eren’s death was the only way to end the anime. A lot of people disagree with me on that, and I think it’s one of the biggest upsets with the ending. (If you didn’t like Eren’s death, I really recommend watching the YouTube video “This video will change how you see Eren” by Invaderzz… It changed my perspective a lot.)
On the other hand, I think the climactic fight scene was a bit overdone. Too much was going on, from the “resurrection” of all the old nine Titans, to Connie and Jean being transformed along with the other Eldians, to all of the main characters almost dying multiple times within half an hour. I do think it was trying to be dramatic since it was the final battle but went past the point of good.
Along with that, because so much was going on, a lot of explanation was lost. Like, what was the weird translucent centipede thing? They said it was “Life” but ????? Also, what was Ymir’s connection to Mikasa? And, how did Bertolt, Grisha, etc. regain control over themselves in order to help the Scouts? I think there should have been more time put into answering those questions rather than overdoing the action.
However, Levi was once again OP and was fantastic to watch. Also, the emotion of seeing Erwin, Hange, Sasha, and the other characters that had been killed earlier in the show almost made me cry.
Overall, I do think the ending was good. However, I would say its articulation could have been better. Also, before you say ‘Go read the manga,’ I already have, and my opinion stays the same. For how insanely well-written the rest of the show is, I think some loose ends are hard to ignore. But it is ABSOLUTELY still worth a watch.
