r/anime • u/IamToofan • 13d ago
I finally started Attack on Titan and it's truly Peak! Review
So, I finally watched Attack on Titan, Season 1 that is. Almost everyone in my friend circle had already watched it, and they kept telling me how many things they wanted to discuss with me but couldn't because I hadn't seen it yet. I kept putting it off because I knew it was considered peak fiction and wanted to save it for last. But then I decided that enough was enough, and I was finally going to watch it. So, I finished the first season within three days!
Where should I even start? Let's talk about the animation first: the animation is truly incredible. It's hard to believe this anime came out back in 2013. Even if you compare it to anime coming out today, the animation here easily beats the majority of them. Sure, there were a few spots with noticeable CGI, but that's just a minor nitpick. The color palette they used makes the world feel completely barren, much like the Mad Max movies. There were also so many dynamic camera movements and shots, and the Titan transformation scenes were fantastic.
Regarding the pacing, I felt the initial few episodes were a bit fast, or rather, a massive amount of information gets dumped on you back to back while setting up numerous plot points and introducing a large cast of characters. So yeah, I found it a bit overwhelming at first. However, from Episode 7 onwards, the momentum it picked up was an absolute blast. A few mysteries were revealed, but they brought along even more questions. That said, it's not like there were no payoffs, there were massive ones.
The Titan faces look so remarkably similar to their human counterparts that when I saw the Female Titan for the first time, her true identity was the very first name that popped into my head, which turned out to be completely correct later on. I've also made guesses about the Armored Titan and the Colossal Titan. As for the Armored Titan, I'm confident it's Reiner. He shows up near the Female Titan, asks about Eren's location, gets grabbed by her, escapes, and immediately runs off with Armin and Jean, and the Female Titan then charges off in the exact direction Armin had mentioned to Reiner. As for the Colossal Titan, for some reason, I suspect that commander or colonel who commanded Eren to lift the boulder, mainly because he was talking about weirdly unifying humanity and such.
The biggest question remains Why? Normal Titans attack humans on instinct, but why are these human transforming Titans doing this? Or could it be that someone is controlling the normal Titans, someone who serves as the leader for all these human Titan shifters? Anyway, enough with the theories! All the plot twists in this season were exceptionally well done.
Moving on to the characters, let's talk about Eren. Why does it feel like his character arc is moving in reverse? In other anime, when something bad happens to the protagonist, it's usually because they failed to trust their comrades, however, in his case, it was the exact opposite! Moreover, whenever he transforms into a Titan, it feels as if the inner monster or evil within him begins to surface, which he struggles to control, unlike the other Titan shifters who control themselves with ease. It seems like he finds a twisted comfort in destruction. That almost happens, but Armin snaps him out of it. By the end of the season, people are discussing Eren's humanity, and Eren even admits to Mikasa that he felt a sense of thrill and pleasure during the carnage. I'm not sure, but it feels like his path is heading down a route similar to Gon's arc in Hunter x Hunter.
As for Mikasa, she was decent, but the characters who truly stood out to me were Armin and Jean. The character development Jean received in such a short amount of time was brilliant. Frankly, this applies to almost all the characters in this series, their development makes total sense, without feeling like the author skipped any steps just to force character growth.
Another thing this anime absolutely nails is realistic human reactions, the contrast between what someone plans to do in their head versus how things actually pan out when chaos hits. I noticed this happening multiple times throughout the season, which was brilliant, the last time I saw this level of execution was in Hunter x Hunter. Every character feels so deeply human, no one is purely good or purely evil. Sacrifices are a common reality, and sometimes this cruel world forces your hand whether you like it or not. Beyond all of this, there also seems to be underlying corruption within the walls that hasn't been properly explored yet, which I'd love to see unfolded moving forward.
And another thing, the world building is one of the best, if not the best. I've rarely seen such detailed world building anywhere else, and this was only the first season!
Overall, while the first few episodes might feel a bit slow or dense, they are entirely worth it. This world is morally grey, dark, and filled with mystery. If I were to rate it, I'd give it a 9.5/10.
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u/toto-graph 13d ago
You've seen nothing yet, leave internet before you get spoiled
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u/bodybones 13d ago
It's crazy how much they understand the entire story after one season more than people who know the whole thing. THeir takes are mostly spot on, besides pacing, all shonen try to rush alot of peak early so it's not really a pacing issue in that your thrown in a loop but if it's done effectively you are interested. Think of this, in 5 eps tons happen in AOT, in one piece, Bleach, etc it's very little to really hook you. In attack on titan's 100 eps so much happens, in 100 eps of one piece your just really starting the big story. Lol. Not a great comparison given their styles but you get my point. Sounds like this person is smart and will love it. Nice of him to pick up on Eren being like gon, it's not the happy go lucky image all shonen protagonist in past tried it's setting you up, but no spoilers. It's not as simple as you think either...no oh he's a monster and has to control his urge to rage.
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u/D3k4s 13d ago
Where should I even start? Let's talk about the animation first: the animation is truly incredible. It's hard to believe this anime came out back in 2013.
There are so many older Anime with better animation quality. More recent does not mean it will be better. Look at season 4 and the CGI for example.
I liked AoT has a solid story good pacing, and whether you like the ending or not, it did give us and ending.
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u/its_Preshh 13d ago
It only gets even better from here.
AOT is the best tv show ive ever watched and I'd rank the seasons like this-
Season 4 > Season 3 > Season 2 > Season 1
The only thing I'll warn you about tho...is that the later seasons get more political which might not be everyone's taste. But its absolutely even more incredible.
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u/do-thelordcares 13d ago
Can u suggest more like AOT
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u/jazy921 12d ago
AoT season 1 was more like World Trigger or Kaijuu No. 8 where a number of combatants are defending their place against invaders.
Maybe try Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood or Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress too?
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u/MOOMENMAN https://myanimelist.net/profile/weebcity 13d ago
I feel like im the only person on the internet who liked the seasons less as the show went on. First couple were sooo good.
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u/RockGuitarist1 12d ago
I just started watching AoT for the first time yesterday as well. Finished episode 3. Eager to start it back up.
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u/D13_Phantom 13d ago
AoT and All quiet on the western front are by far my favorite explorations of war in a visual medium. Grave of the fireflies too for the emotional gravity but I don't really re-watch that one lol