Kaiju No. 8 Is Too Much Like Attack on Titan (but That's a Good Thing)

Summary:

• Kaiju No. 8 resembles Attack on Titan a lot.
• Both protagonists' journeys start in a similar way.
• There are other parallels between the two series.

Even one episode of Kaiju No. 8 (Kaijuu 8-gou) is enough to make you think of Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin). We have giant monsters that terrorize humans, we have a peculiar military structure, and we have a seemingly usual protagonist.

Kafka's Journey Makes You Think of Eren

The more you think about Kaiju No. 8, the more you realize how similar to Attack on Titan it really is. And not just because of the monsters and various corps.

Both Kafka and Eren live in dangerous worlds. People are forced to deal with monsters that no regular human being is capable of defeating. That's why humanity had to do something and train soldiers to fight kaiju and titans.

Just like Eren, Kafka hates the monsters and vows to eliminate them all. The protagonists have different motivations, though. Eren wants to avenge his mother and be free, while Kafka wants to prove his worth and join the military.

And this is another thing that the two protagonists have in common. Just like Kafka is dreaming about becoming a member of the Defence Force, Eren wanted to grow up and join the Survey Corps. Both of them are striving to greatness and want to fight the monsters on the battlefield instead of staying in the shadows of their comrades.

But the main thing that will remind you of Attack on Titan is Kafka's transformation into a kaiju. A kaiju forced its way through the man's mouth and turned him into a hybrid. Eren was forced to eat a Titan Shifter and became one.

Both of them became something they hated, but not entirely. And now they have to find a way to deal with that and use their newly-found powers to fight their enemies.

There Are Other Things, Too

We won't be talking about the training and exam arcs, since it's not just a Kaiju No. 8 and Attack on Titan thing, most shounens have them. But it's still worth mentioning.

There's also a Mikasa-type character in Kaiju No. 8, Mina, and we already sense some future romantic tension between her and Kafta. Let's just hope that their story will be better than Eren and Mikasa's.

Moreover, kaiju can't usually speak, but the latest episode introduced a mysterious kaiju that could communicate with humans, and he also turned out to be a hybrid. If that doesn't remind you of Attack on Titan Season 2 and the Beast Titan, then we don't know what will.

Despite so many coincidences, it doesn't feel like Kaiju No. 8 is an Attack on Titan rip-off. It still has its own charm and its own vibe that has nothing to do with the gloomy atmosphere of Attack on Titan.