Seriously, it’s as if nothing in the anime exists outside of it.
Summary:
- Attack on Titan’s finale was controversial, and is still discussed by many fans.
- The different opinions about the finale, as well as the genre shift, make the second part of the anime a good ground for discussion.
- Despite that, we shouldn’t forget the pre-timeskip part we fell in love with years ago.
Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin) is one of the most mentioned anime on the internet even after its finale. It became a hit the moment it aired, and not even the almost 4-year-long break between the first two seasons could kill its popularity.
Featuring one of the most insane genre shifts in all of anime, it prompted even more discussions about the characters’ choices and message of the work in the final season. The ending, however, was highly controversial — and it seems that most of the current discussion is still revolving around it.
The finale — and the entire post-timeskip part — seems to be the focus of the discussion
On the one hand, it’s understandable why people are still talking about the ending. The finale is often a dealbreaker for a highly complex and beloved series like Attack on Titan.
Here, the finale had a lot of fans, but also a lot of haters. The latter mostly criticize the illogical character actions, lack of conclusive message and the overuse of symbolism (like the infamous Eren bird scene).
It’s normal for the community to discuss the most recently released content. With Attack on Titan, the sheer severity of the reveals behind the second part of the series made it infinitely more interesting to discuss, and so, most of the talk of the series is focusing on it.
It’s not the only thing in the series
On the other hand, it’s somewhat sad to see the pre-timeskip part mostly dismissed. Yes, it’s not as complex in its morals and message, but that’s where most of us started loving the anime.
The action of the first part is still top-notch, and the amount of foreshadowing there should not be overestimated. Say what you will about Isayama’s writing in the finale, but you can’t deny that the entire picture was beautifully crafted from the beginning, with all elements being where they needed to be.
This can be noticed on a rewatch, starting from the very first episode. The start of Attack on Titan is already hinting at stuff that’ll become relevant in the final season. Even outside of that, the first episode is just a great start for the anime.
What can we change?
Despite the finale being the most discussable part of Attack on Titan, we shouldn’t really forget why we love (or, if you hate the finale, used to love) the anime in the first place. The discourse shouldn’t be just focused on it alone — perhaps for some of the fans, a rewatch of the entire anime would help