Attack on Titan is an epic Japanese Anime series based on the acclaimed manga by Hajime Isayama. Wit Studio, director Masashi Koizuka and showrunner Tetsuro Araki oversee the adaptation which returns for season three in Spring, 2018.
Attack on Titan is set in a world where humanity lives inside cities surrounded by enormous Walls that protect them from Titans, gigantic humanoid creatures who devour humans seemingly without reason. The story centers around Eren Jaeger, his adoptive sister Mikasa Ackermann, and their childhood friend Armin Arlelt, whose lives are changed forever after the appearance of a Colossal Titan which brings about the destruction of their home town and the death of their mother. Vowing revenge and to reclaim the world from the Titans, Eren, Mikasa, and Armin join the Scout Regiment, an elite group of soldiers who fight Titans outside the Walls.
Four years. It has been four years for fans who watched the first season of Attack on Titan when it originally aired in 2013… We have been craving for more and we have been craving it for too long. Season 2 is FINALLY here and it has just wrapped a brief but explosive and earth shattering second season of 12 episodes. That’s less than half than we got the first time out, but don’t worry — season 3 is expected to feature 25 again and we don’t have to wait as long because 2018 seems to be when Attack on Titan returns.
I loved Attack on Titan season 2. The fact that the series has officially become an ensemble piece in the vein of Game of Thrones really adds so much more to the mythology and world because we aren’t just focusing on Eren Jaeger and having to listen to the kid scream all the time. Instead, much of season 2 is spent with characters like Reiner, Bertoldt, Ymir and Krista. Damn near all of season 2 takes place in the battlefield too where titans are chomping down gleefully on people. If season one was setting up the war – than this season was most definitely the beginning of that war between humans and titans. Although there are some moments of downtime, they didn’t drag as much as they did in season one. That’s probably just due to the shorter season length overall though.
While some of our main characters are left to the sideline we spend most of this season with other military units as they battle Titans who are somehow breaching the walls without actually smashing through them… We discover there’s a talking Ape-like Titan and things….Well things get even stranger after that. I’d like to see some of that intro-credits stuff play out in season three please, because I was waiting on dinosaurs and shit but didn’t get that in season 2…
If you wanted answers (and you don’t read the manga — and I don’t) then you will get many of those this season. More titans’ secret identities will be revealed in stunning fashion and the season ends with yet another revelation so shocking that I’m happy we won’t be waiting another four years for more episodes. I became a huge Reiner and Ymir fan this season and once you begin to dive into these episodes you’ll discover why that is. Amazing character building.
I was surprised that most of this season focused on the relationship between Ymir and Krista too. I’ve never seen a same-sex romance play out with that much tension before throughout an entire season, but they managed to do just that. In fact – I don’t think there’s another series that can drag out plot-lines like Attack on Titan can and still keep me entertained. They will constantly keep you hanging and give no shits doing just that – but we have to sit there and take it… I was so frustrated at times because of this, but they still managed to keep me hooked with riveting action sequences and just enough mind-blowing reveals so I didn’t go completely insane. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t frustrated by this and it can’t go unmentioned in a review.
There seemed to be less awkward humour this season, but of course it will always exist in some capacity because that’s just how Anime works. Spend one minute grieving your friend’s corpse – then the next you’re eating a sandwich and laugh-flirting or something ridiculous. The tonal shifts can be jarring, but Attack on Titan season 2 seemed to have less of this for some reason.
Although it was less than half the length of season one, Attack on Titan’s return was still a glorious one at that. Ferocious action, incredible story reveals and the shift from Eren and Mikasa’s story to that of an ensemble piece were all fantastic creative decisions. Attack on Titan is the best anime series on TV today – it is the Game of Thrones for animation fanatics. Watch it on Crunchy Roll too right now if you don’t feel like waiting for Netflix. You won’t regret it.
Rating: [star rating=”4″]