Summary
With the release ofAttack on TitanThe Final Season THE FINAL CHAPTERS Special 2, the long-running anime series based on the manga by Hajime Isayama, has finally reached its conclusion after more than 10 years. The finale wasan emotional journey that gave satisfying closureto all the iconic characters.
The episode itself was filled to the brim with interesting details that are very easy to miss, especially for viewers who are not familiar with the complex lore ofAttack on Titan. And the fact that there were big gaps between each special episode’s releases didn’t help either. So here are some of them, from mind-blowing Easter eggs to fun behind-the-scenes facts.
8Linked Horizon Returned for the OP & the ED
Linked Horizonhas been synonymous withAttack on Titansince the beginning of the anime series. The Japanese musical group is responsible for some of the show’s most iconic and exciting opening songs, like"Guren no Yumiya"and"Shinzou wo Sasageyo!“But they did pass the torch to other talented bands in subsequent seasons.
Now, Linked Horizon is back for the awaited finale ofAttack on Titan,with not one but two different songs. Their epic opening references all previous OPs that the band worked on, and their beautiful ending song plays during the episode’s credits. By bringing back this band, the series ends exactly where it began.
7The Debut Of A New Voice Actor
One of the most heart-wrenching parts of the finale is when a crowd is pushed over a cliff byThe Rumbling. But when a mother manages to save her crying baby before dying, the rest of the people begin sacrificing themselves in order to keep the baby alive. It’s a poignant scene that shows humanity’s will to live against all odds.
But one thing that made this segment even more shocking were the cries of the baby, which feel surprisingly realistic. This is because the cries of an actual baby were recorded for this scene. Specifically, this wasYuki Kaji’s child (the voice actor forEren Yeager). He debuted in the same industry as his father, even before his first birthday.
6The Previous Titan Shifters
The power of theFounding Titangave Eren the ability to summon all past incarnations of the Nine Special Titans. In this incredible action segment, audiences get a glimpse of what the Titan Shifters of the past looked like, leaving them with questions about their identities and their origins. Some of them have very complex designs for fodder.
But other familiar characters appear when Armin speaks with Zeke, and manages to turn the tide of the battle. While there are some obvious ones whose names were spoken out loud, likeBertoltandPorco, others are quite easy to miss, likeTom Xaveras the Beast Titan orEren Krugeras the Attack Titan.
5Eren Died Inside a Titan’s Mouth
In the episode’s intense climax, protagonist-turned-antagonist Eren Yeager is finally killed by Mikasa Ackerman, who severs his head inside the mouth of his Colossal Titan form. The location of his death is especially interesting, since it seems to be a callback to a near-death experience that Eren had before.
Back in Season 1, Eren is eaten by a Titan. Viewers think he’s dead for a brief moment, only to discover that he can shift into the Attack Titan. What’s especially interesting is that, before the Titan swallows him, Eren fights for his life and says“I can’t die here…”And yet, in the end, he does end up dying inside a Titan’s mouth.
4Armin’s Seashell
WhenArmin Arlertunlocks his memories, he sees the final conversation he had with Eren Yeager. At one point, when they are both standing in the sea, the water suddenly turns into blood and Eren remembers all the pain he caused in the world. At that same moment, Armin picks up a seashell covered in blood.
This is a reference to the finale of Season 3 of the anime, whenthe Survey Corpsfinally reach the beach. When Armin picks up a seashell from the sea, Eren points to the horizon, andasks if he has to kill everyone who lives outside Paradis. This makes Armin drop the seashell, realizing that, while they both dream of freedom, they’ll have to achieve it in different ways. Armin picking up the seashell again in the finale represents this dichotomy.
3It Began and Ended With Mikasa
After killing the love of her life, Mikasa returns to Paradis and gives him a meaningful burial. Eren Yeager is buried underneath the very same tree where he always fell asleep. This tree is an important place for Eren, Armin, and Mikasa, but audiences may have missed the fact that this is the very first thing they ever saw in the show.
The first scene ofAttack on Titanshows Eren waking up from a dream underneath the same tree. This not only means that he ended up exactly where audiences first saw him, but that the anime started withEren looking at Mikasa, and it also finished with Eren looking at Mikasa. This is some amazing parallelism.
2Mikasa Visiting Eren’s Grave During the Credits
During the credits sequence of the episode, viewers can see what looks like an older woman and her family visiting Eren’s grave underneath the tree. The only problem is, this is shown via a small rectangle besides the credits themselves, so it’s hard to tell who these people actually are.
Manga readershave the answer, though, since they got a much closer look at this scene in the source material. That woman is Mikasa, who seems to have married another man and had a child with him. So Eren’s biggest fear didn’t come true, but she never forgot about him and eventually, she was laid to rest right beside him.
1The Titans Might Rise Again
After the credits, a young man can be seen traveling through the remains of Paradis, reaching the tree where Eren was buried, which has grown to an incredible height. This is the final scene inAttack on Titan, and it parallels a key moment in the series’ history.
DuringYmir Fritz’sflashback, audiences find out about the origin of the Titan power, when the girl reaches a huge tree and finds the being known as“the source of all living matter”inside it. Even though Eren eliminated the power of the Titans from the world, the post-credits scene implies that this kid will find the mysterious being inside the tree, and that the Titans will rise again.
