REVIEW: ‘Attack on Titan THE FINAL CHAPTERS,’ Special 1

Attack on Titan Final Season Part 3′s returns to bring the action drama series to an epic conclusion. Part 3 of Attack on Titan’s final season, titled Attack on Titan: Final Season THE FINAL CHAPTERS Special 1, is produced by MAPPA, directed by Jun Shishido and Yuichiro Hayashi. Based on the popular manga series by Hajime Isayama and published by Kodansha. The voice cast includes talents of Yuki Kaji as Eren, Yui Ishikawa as Mikasa, Marina Inoue as Armin, Romi Park as Hange, and Hiroshi Kamiya as Levi.

When we last saw Eren Jaeger, he started the Rumbling, an unstoppable march of colossal-sized titans ready to trample all humanity except the Eldians on Paradis Island. Now the few remaining members of the Scouting Regiment, alongside their former enemies, prepared to launch an attack to stop Eren without killing their friend if possible.

It was announced that Attack On Titan‘s final arc would be released as two-part extended special episodes. The second special is set to air later this Fall. In my honest opinion, Attack on Titan’s final season should have just taken a note from series like Jujutsu Kaisen and Demon Slayer and made the remaining episodes into a theatrical release. However, an extended special is the next best thing since the longer runtime helps pace the story appropriately without rushing the finale or sacrificing one moment of the story. 

MAPPA was good when animating the final arc of Attack on Titan. If there is one thing Attack on Titan will deliver, it is the gorgeous animation and intense action sequences. The most stunning graphics and animation show up about halfway through the episode. But be warned; it comes with an emotional goodbye to a longtime character. The animators and directors truly capture the fear and utter destruction of the Rumbling on both a large and small scale.

The Rumbling does not only cause direct destruction to humanity but also causes the people on the receiving end to turn into their worst selves. Scenes of looting, crying, and fighting as people trample over one another to survive, only to be squashed by the titans, are graphic moments in this episode. Attack on Titan fans may be used to a certain level of graphic violence in this series, but some scenes in Special 1 may be harder to watch than others.

At best, Eren is a very complicated character whose road from hero to villain has been full of contradictions. This episode slightly explores the contradictions in Eren’s actions and logic. For example, Eren talks about freedom and has chosen this path himself. However, in a private moment in this episode, he is shown to be remorseful and guilty about his actions. He regrets the innocent lives he knows he must kill, but he does not see any other way to achieve freedom for himself and his loved ones. 

We do not know how much his Attack Titan powers and Ymir have influenced Eren’s motivations up to this point in the series. This begs the question of whether Eren truly is as free as he believes. Eren’s final character arc in the series makes me wonder if he was always meant to be the villain of this story or if he is just a tragic victim of fate. Ultimately that distinction is not made clear in this episode, so it may be revealed when the story concludes later this year. 

In short, Attack on Titan Final Season THE FINAL CHAPTERS Special 1 pulls out all the stops for its premiere regarding animation. The extended runtime for the episode dramatically helps with the pacing. However, they could have just released both extended episodes as a movie later this year instead of dragging out this series for as long as possible. This episode left me with mixed feelings toward Eren and his path from hero to villain. I hope the next installment brings things full circle in the end. 

Attack on Titan Final Season THE FINAL CHAPTERS streams on Hulu and Crunchyroll.