Written By: Holly Pulley, Staff Writer
PROLONGING: The anime adaptation of Attack on Titan comes back, yet again, without an ending.
Attack on Titan is, to the majority, one of the greatest anime of the twenty-first century. The plot, the characters, and the beautiful animation pull each viewer in, no matter how long it takes for new episode releases. It seems, though, that MAPPA (the animation company now producing AOT) is taking the admiration from fans and wringing it for all its worth, because the final arc of Attack on Titan has been ongoing for over two years now.
For those unfamiliar with the anime world, Attack on Titan is an anime adaptation of the manga Shingeki No Kyojin written by Hajime Isayama. The anime follows the manga for the most part, with the exception of placing certain scenes out of order from the OG manga layout or switching which characters are in unimportant scenes. The plot of AOT revolves around the main character Eren Yeager, his friends, and their journey to survive in a world overrun by giant man-eating monsters, or Titans. The completed manga has 139 chapters, and the anime has currently released 87 episodes, with still more coming. Here is where our problem lies.
On December 7, 2020, the first episode of AOT Final Season: Part 1 was released, and sixteen more weekly episodes followed. The section inevitably ended on a cliffhanger, leaving viewers to wonder whether one of the main characters of the series, Levi Ackerman, was alive or not, and watchers didn’t get an answer until January 10 of 2022, when the second part aired until April 4, 2022. And now, the third, yes third and fourth parts are still to come.
The first episode of part three is expected to air on March 4, 2023, with no set number of how many episodes that will be released. The entire year of simply waiting for more episodes is understandable with any show when it finishes a crucial arc, but until season four, the Attack on Titan franchise has never made this many splits in a single season. Season three was only split into two parts, and, according to fans of the show and theorists, the reason is that the prior production company running the show, WIT Studios, couldn’t take on the weight and labor the show came with. But even then, even with supposed setbacks from previous producers, episodes were made, arcs were finished accordingly, and fans were satisfied with the size of the season which was 22 episodes.
With season 3, though, only 39 chapters of the manga are covered, so it might have been easier to make a more concise and smaller season, meanwhile, AOT season 4 is covering chapters 91 to the end, which does mean pulling together animation, acting, and plot accuracy from the last 48 chapters. But, even with the sheer amount of material being shoved into a season, other anime have been able to manage the same situation and still release timely content. The anime Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, written by Hirohiko Araki, had a first season with 26 episodes ending in 2013, and a second with 48 episodes airing in 2014. Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure is another anime that is considered to be one of the best of all time by many anime watchers, with an 89% rating by Rotten Tomatoes and a Google Audience Rating of 4.7/5. Moreover, JJBA: season 1 covers 44 chapters of the manga, and JJBA: Season 2 covers 152 chapters. No matter the amount of material, it can be done.
While some AOT fans don’t mind the wait, in fact, some love the feeling of anticipation, others like myself, just want to see how MAPPA finishes the final arc. I have read the manga, and absolutely loved the ending and felt so much excitement while waiting for the TV adaptation. But, that was two years ago. Now, some fans of Attack of Titan just want to see if it will ever end, or if the anime butchers the final scenes. Most hope and have a good feeling that MAPPA will do a great job with the ending, but with such a long wait and so many parts, it makes the average AOT enjoyer question if problems really are arising with the animation, or if plans for the show ultimately go belly-up.