The news about the Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin) adaptation being handed over to another studio for its final season got mixed reaction from the fans. Some were upset and worried due to the phenomenal work that WIT has done with the first three seasons of the anime, and some were very excited about the fact that one of the most popular studios was working on their favorite series.
Although back then no one could possibly know what to expect from this change, it was obvious that the fanbase would get divided into two teams: the ones wishing WIT would continue working on the project, and the ones preferring MAPPA's adaptation. And, of course, this is exactly what happened.
Everything was initially incredible: the first trailer got fans super excited about the season, the animation looked awesome, the level of suspense and hype it brought was skyrocketing, the music was good, the art style was an eye candy. The first episode didn't change the situation much: even though it was full of new characters and yet unknown conflicts, no one cared because of the impeccable quality.
However, things cannot be perfect forever, can they?
Fans started noticing a significant drop in the animation quality with each episode. The fact that Attack on Titan is such a huge project, that is followed by tremendous expectations, didn't help, and people started talking about the studie change more and more.
Part 1 of the final season cannot leave fans uncaring even until now. They admit that everything that came out after that was much better, but they can't forgive MAPPA for the beginning of the season. But what are the issues with the adaptation and why are fans this upset?
First of all, all the conversations about the quality include the fact that MAPPA was not given enough time for the production of AOT. No one doubts this studio's ability to produce a great adaptation, we've already seen countless examples of MAPPA's great work. Due to the series' immense popularity, no other studio was ready to take up this project, but it turns out that even the greatest titans (pun intended) of the industry just need more time sometimes. It doesn't mean we can't criticize them, though, so let's get to it.
Is CGI the biggest Attack on Titan problem?
CGI is one of the most painful issues with the Attack on Titan adaptation. It doesn't matter what studio is animating the series, it seems like fans are always unhappy with it. WIT's colossus titan always looked out of place and like he wasn't supposed to be in the scene. MAPPA is not shy when it comes to using CGI, either. Some viewers mention that this ruined every titan-led fight in the anime for them.
Fans agree, though, that MAPPA's CGI-ing titans is a bit smoother than WIT's, but they're still puzzled by the decision to use this technique while animating human walking.
Another thing mentioned by fans is the weird art style of some frames by MAPPA. The famous badass scene of Eren putting his coat on after escaping the jail got so many fans hot and horny after the trailer. But when it came to the moment for this scene to actually be in the series, things were not so positive: it looked rather awkward and some fans are even not afraid to say ugly. This goes for some other moments as well. For example, during Reiner and Eren's conversation, basically every time we see Eren's face not in a closeup, it looks hilariously bad.
The appearance of certain characters have also been criticized a lot. Mikasa is probably the one who took the biggest part of trash-talking by the fandom. People kept saying that she looked like a man over and over again, and were highly disappointed by the fact that their waifu was not so hot anymore.
There's some good news, though
Not everything is as bad as it looks: there are also moments that fans truly enjoy.
First of all, it's worth mentioning again that the main portion of criticism fell upon the first part of the final season. Everything that came out after that is considered to be better animated. Speaking about the first part of the final season, the viewers mention Sasha's death episode, though. They say it was executed beautifully, and MAPPA did great work.
If we keep talking about the good moments, fans especially point out the rumbling scenes, and say that it gave them the right amount of horror and excitement, just like the manga did before. Another great scene mentioned by the viewers is Grisha's breakdown. The camera movements, the music, the voice acting, the insanity and desperation vibe ー all of that give us chills.
The perfectly executed moments give us the idea that MAPPA is fully capable of creating something beautiful. It all comes down to the aforementioned lack of time and the pressure that the studio is working under.
Fans agree that waiting for some time would have been a much better choice than having a project with an unsatisfying quality. And while they've been waiting for the finale of Attack on Titan forever, they're happy that the studio is taking more time now, and are eager to see the final chapters of this story animated.
Good old MAPPA criticism.
The news about the Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin) adaptation being handed over to another studio for its final season got mixed reaction from the fans. Some were upset and worried due to the phenomenal work that WIT has done with the first three seasons of the anime, and some were very excited about the fact that one of the most popular studios was working on their favorite series.
Although back then no one could possibly know what to expect from this change, it was obvious that the fanbase would get divided into two teams: the ones wishing WIT would continue working on the project, and the ones preferring MAPPA's adaptation. And, of course, this is exactly what happened.
Everything was initially incredible: the first trailer got fans super excited about the season, the animation looked awesome, the level of suspense and hype it brought was skyrocketing, the music was good, the art style was an eye candy. The first episode didn't change the situation much: even though it was full of new characters and yet unknown conflicts, no one cared because of the impeccable quality.
However, things cannot be perfect forever, can they?
Fans started noticing a significant drop in the animation quality with each episode. The fact that Attack on Titan is such a huge project, that is followed by tremendous expectations, didn't help, and people started talking about the studie change more and more.
Part 1 of the final season cannot leave fans uncaring even until now. They admit that everything that came out after that was much better, but they can't forgive MAPPA for the beginning of the season. But what are the issues with the adaptation and why are fans this upset?
First of all, all the conversations about the quality include the fact that MAPPA was not given enough time for the production of AOT. No one doubts this studio's ability to produce a great adaptation, we've already seen countless examples of MAPPA's great work. Due to the series' immense popularity, no other studio was ready to take up this project, but it turns out that even the greatest titans (pun intended) of the industry just need more time sometimes. It doesn't mean we can't criticize them, though, so let's get to it.
Is CGI the biggest Attack on Titan problem?
CGI is one of the most painful issues with the Attack on Titan adaptation. It doesn't matter what studio is animating the series, it seems like fans are always unhappy with it. WIT's colossus titan always looked out of place and like he wasn't supposed to be in the scene. MAPPA is not shy when it comes to using CGI, either. Some viewers mention that this ruined every titan-led fight in the anime for them.
Fans agree, though, that MAPPA's CGI-ing titans is a bit smoother than WIT's, but they're still puzzled by the decision to use this technique while animating human walking.
Another thing mentioned by fans is the weird art style of some frames by MAPPA. The famous badass scene of Eren putting his coat on after escaping the jail got so many fans hot and horny after the trailer. But when it came to the moment for this scene to actually be in the series, things were not so positive: it looked rather awkward and some fans are even not afraid to say ugly. This goes for some other moments as well. For example, during Reiner and Eren's conversation, basically every time we see Eren's face not in a closeup, it looks hilariously bad.
The appearance of certain characters have also been criticized a lot. Mikasa is probably the one who took the biggest part of trash-talking by the fandom. People kept saying that she looked like a man over and over again, and were highly disappointed by the fact that their waifu was not so hot anymore.
There's some good news, though
Not everything is as bad as it looks: there are also moments that fans truly enjoy.
First of all, it's worth mentioning again that the main portion of criticism fell upon the first part of the final season. Everything that came out after that is considered to be better animated. Speaking about the first part of the final season, the viewers mention Sasha's death episode, though. They say it was executed beautifully, and MAPPA did great work.
If we keep talking about the good moments, fans especially point out the rumbling scenes, and say that it gave them the right amount of horror and excitement, just like the manga did before. Another great scene mentioned by the viewers is Grisha's breakdown. The camera movements, the music, the voice acting, the insanity and desperation vibe ー all of that give us chills.
The perfectly executed moments give us the idea that MAPPA is fully capable of creating something beautiful. It all comes down to the aforementioned lack of time and the pressure that the studio is working under.
Fans agree that waiting for some time would have been a much better choice than having a project with an unsatisfying quality. And while they've been waiting for the finale of Attack on Titan forever, they're happy that the studio is taking more time now, and are eager to see the final chapters of this story animated.
