Shingeki no Kyojin Season 2

For centuries, humanity has been hunted by giant, mysterious predators known as the Titans. Three mighty walls—Wall Maria, Rose, and Sheena—provided peace and protection for humanity for over a hundred years. That peace, however, was shattered when the Colossal Titan and Armored Titan appeared and destroyed the outermost wall, Wall Maria. Forced to retreat behind Wall Rose, humanity waited with bated breath for the Titans to reappear and destroy their safe haven once more.

In Shingeki no Kyojin Season 2, Eren Yeager and others of the 104th Training Corps have just begun to become full members of the Survey Corps. As they ready themselves to face the Titans once again, their preparations are interrupted by the invasion of Wall Rose—but all is not as it seems as more mysteries are unraveled. As the Survey Corps races to save the wall, they uncover more about the invading Titans and the dark secrets of their own members.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Yeager, Eren Main

Kaji, Yuuki Japanese

Ackerman, Mikasa Main

Ishikawa, Yui Japanese

Arlert, Armin Main

Inoue, Marina Japanese

Levi Supporting

Kamiya, Hiroshi Japanese

Smith, Erwin Supporting

Ono, Daisuke Japanese

Zoë, Hange Supporting

Park, Romi Japanese

Blouse, Sasha Supporting

Kobayashi, Yuu Japanese

Braun, Reiner Supporting

Hosoya, Yoshimasa Japanese

Kirstein, Jean Supporting

Taniyama, Kishou Japanese

Leonhart, Annie Supporting

Shimamura, Yuu Japanese

Cook, Justin Producer

Wada, Jouji Producer

Maeda, Toshihiro Producer

Nakatake, Tetsuya Producer

Reviews

Jun 17, 2017

Stark700

Recommended

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past 4 years, then you’ll know that Shingeki no Kyojin (Attack on Titan) has been renewed for a second season. And with that, the show returns in full force. Remember the titans that terrorized humanity when they made their appearance from season one? Or when Eren transformed into a Titan himself and played a pivotal role to help humanity? How about the time when Eren and his friends realized that one of their comrades is also their greatest enemy? Shingeki no Kyojin wastes no time in giving the fans what they want and that’s a sequel ... to talk about for years to come.

Make no mistake. The second season jumps right into the meat of the show like a bullet train. It doesn’t rely on boring narratives to recap dialogues but instead presents them through events. The first few episodes reintroduces the main characters such as Eren, Mikasa, Armin, Reiner, Bertolt, Sasha, Hange, etc. Time hasn’t passed long either since the defeat of the Female Titan. However, we are introduced to new enemies and conflicts. One of the more noticeable fans will notice is perhaps from the trailer – a beast-like Titan covered with fur. Other conflicts in the second season includes the evolving mystery of certain characters. The secrets they hold close gets more and more complicated as the story progresses and we learn their motivations. Furthermore, the second season builds more into the character relationships outside of the main cast. To say the least, Season 2 isn’t just about the war against Titans but how certain characters’ roles can impact the entire world.

Snk Season 2 attempts to do a lot of things. At times, it feels like a fantasy war-drama while other times, it feels like a mystery story. When you mix a lot of genres together, the show can be interpreted from many angles. Mystery will no doubt be one of the key factors that keeps the story engaging for the viewers. From this season, we’ll discover revelations about certain characters and what influences them to become what they are. These are often told through flashbacks and is done effectively through insightful storytelling. It shows rather than tell about events. Furthermore, it makes us understand the characters better. Now for some fans, this could be a sign that the show will fall victim to “slow pacing”. It’s slightly true as I do wish some episodes to pick up the pace more. It can hold the show back for fans especially if it’s a character that they don’t care about. However, it’s also important since SnK doesn’t toss away characters in favor of just the main cast. Major supporting characters such as Sasha, Ymir, and Krista gets more characterization that was not seen from the previous season. In addition, the series still spends time to get viewers to understand more about the trio of our main cast – Eren, Mikasa, and Armin. Unfortunately with just 12 episodes, don’t expect the second season to give all the characters their chance to shine. If you’re a fan of Levi, then I’m afraid I got some bad news.

Despite the engaging story, season 2’s mystery elements aren’t exactly difficult to decipher. It’s actually quite easy to piece certain pieces together. Every episode builds more and more into the story but some hints will be much more obvious than others. It leaves open to some predictable outcomes. However, I would also argue that season 2 succeeds at building up the suspense regardless how the outcome comes out to be. It injects psychology into the show through effective usage of narrative, dialogues, body language, and character interactions. In some of the later episodes, we can see how certain characters show their true selves in ways that will be very memorable. It’s made even more effective through the timing of certain scenes. Directing a show like Shingeki no Kyojin requires a creative mind to connect the script and I have to say, it did that pretty damn well. Finally, I am satisfied by the faithfulness of the adaptation as it adapts many manga chapters that I had anticipated. In fact, some episodes are actually adapted even better than the manga thanks to the cleverly timings of key events.

To sum up the production quality of the show, it’s pretty easy to say that Shingeki no Kyojin Season 2 is a firm example of how dark fantasy should look like. I actually had some complaints regarding the first season’s quality but those are pretty much are nonexistent in this sequel. Every episode looks fluid ranging from the intense action, character expressions, and choreography. To an extent, even the CG is done well and that’s no easy accomplishment for many shows. Character expressions highlight characters personality as it gets the fans more excited about them. Season 2 pulls that off flawlessly with characters such as Eren, Mikasa, Reiner, and Ymir. I can also safely say that the Titans in this season look just as intimidating as fans can remember, if not more.

Known for its high level production quality, season 2’s soundtrack doesn’t come far off either. Theme songs sounds familiar compared to the previous season but has more symbolism and scenes poured into showcase its story. Like most fans of the show, expectations for the OST should be high as Hiroyuki Sawano returns with his craft. It lives up to those expectations especially in some of the key moments that will leave you in awe. Finally, character voice mannerism just works wonderfully as the cast fits right into the shoes of their roles especially for characters like Reiner and Ymir. As I mentioned before, there’s a good amount of psychology that season 2 brings and some characters’ voices really brings to a level that’s larger than life.

Once again, Shingeki no Kyojin gives what the fan want ever since the first season ended in 2013. It’s been 4 years but upon watching the first few episodes, it felt like yesterday. It does its job at selling its story with its variety of genres mixed in together. With such a colorful cast of characters, it gets the fans excited to see what their roles will be. With a studio like Production IG, it’s safe to say that the quality remains in good hands. Now, I am slightly bothered by the length of the sequel. It’s half of what season 1 turned out to be and after all the waiting, it felt like a slap in the face for fans. Still, I’d say that the wait is worth it as time didn’t do its damage and it deserves a pat on the back.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Jun 17, 2017

Veronin

Mixed Feelings

Attack on Titan's first season never really sat right with me. A series more interested in cinematics (orchestrals, screaming aplenty) than it did in conveying a message or allowing its audience to care for the characters beyond whatever grisly death they inevitably succumb to. It was loud, its presence ever more so, and so I distanced myself from what seemed standard action movie cuisine.

After over three years of silence, its second season comes as something a bit more surprising. It trims away its grimy, cacophonous exterior and presents something, somewhat, more refined. The killing has found a purpose. The world the characters inhabit possesses some ... semblance of depth. There exists a story with a direction, which is exactly why it will disappoint fans who were expecting it to perpetually wander amidst blood and steel.

To be sure, Eren and crew killing (and conversely being killed) is a formula that proved moderately entertaining in the first season, if only mindlessly so. But a second season? A third? Would it still be exciting, or would people begin to tire of it? I was in the latter camp, and so I find myself glad the goalposts were changed altogether.

That's not to imply that all of AoT's flaws have been erased. The characterisation remains a sore spot for the series, with Eren continuing to scream nonsense at the top of his lungs, incapable of anything but being a hot-blooded child who is somehow the centrepiece of everything in the world. There's nothing to his character except his being angry all the time, which is why I make no intentions of defending his presence.

So who is there to defend instead? Mikasa and Armin, the two other primary characters, while less frustrating and less offensive to listen to, don't possess much that wasn't already immediately apparent. They are flat, as are the side characters, so numerous and disposable that I found myself Googling the name of one of the story's new villains because I couldn't for the life of me remember who they even were. Other characters-- Sasha-- are so devoid of character that the only thing they are defined by is the quantity of food they eat. And while the second season gives you marginally more reason to empathise with them throughout their numerous backstory scenes, it still remains difficult to care much about the fates of any of them - a significant issue in a story centred upon war. It is why I never thought much other than "ew, gross" and "wow, that sucks" when any of the characters (of which there were dozens) were chewed, dismembered, and/or squished by abhorrent-looking humanoids.

This is why I think the best way to appreciate Attack on Titan is to focus less on the pieces, and more on the board itself. Attack on Titan's setting is genuinely fascinating, and uncovering its secrets is likely to be the greatest delight for viewers unsatisfied with mere violence. While walled-off communities on the verge of extinction isn't entirely new to anime (Space Battleship Yamato went there in 1974, and Macross in 1982), the massive scale of the cities behind the walls creates ample room for an animated (yet ever so bleak) world to exist. Discovering how the world's agriculture functions, its geography, the state of politics within the Castle, the cultists' activities, and the design of the soldiers' Vertical Manoeuvring Equipment is some of the most fun I've had with an anime in this year or last. More Attack on Titan isn't exactly a proposition that gives me thrills and tingles, but books and other media focusing on its world is something I would absolutely be interested in. A rich setting it is, and with the scale of the world now extending far beyond the walls, there is almost limitless potential. Potential, I suppose, which will probably never extend into its largely mediocre story.

A mediocre story is still a step up from last season, perhaps. The violence is now more of an accessory to the plot, rather than the inverse, which allows things to follow down a more linear road instead of one winding and circling around ad infinitum. Eren and his allies, as well as his enemies, now have a mission that extends beyond survival. There are antagonists excluding the Titans mindlessly chewing every fleshy thing in sight, which creates a more interesting dynamic, certainly, as the villains are treated as human beings rather than mindless lunatics bent on world destruction, as is seemingly the case in nearly every anime that has ever existed. Some fans may be disappointed that they aren't given a villain to detest, but I've always been of the opinion that a conflict in which no true 'good' and 'bad' side exists is a more compelling tale to tell.

The second season's highlight is no doubt its halfway point, a twist so suddenly and casually revealed that it is natural to doubt one's ears, provided you hadn't already guessed one of their blatantly obvious identities well-beforehand. The ensuing fight scene is neat, as it carries a level of emotional weight so lacking in anything that existed previous. But the extent to which some people have been praising the scene, as though it is the craziest and most "epic" thing that has ever appeared in anime, is certainly without much merit.

(It also deserves to be mentioned how downright silly some scenes can be, such as when Armin and Mikasa 'emotionally' eat their rations upon the wall. Moments like this make it considerably harder to take everything else seriously.)

The production quality of Attack on Titan's second season is a minor downgrade from the first's, a fairly disappointing detail when considering the three-year wait and shorter-than-expected episode count. The aforementioned reveal doesn't hit as hard as it should when one of the villains, who is supposed to be menacing, is suddenly given the cheap CGI treatment. The fight scene fares better, with its eyes moving and monstrous fist pausing in slow-motion, but by that point the damage the first impression has created is irreversible. Mediocre animation for AoT may very well be stellar in contrast to the average seasonal anime, but standards are different here, and the ballpark much larger.

If loud orchestrals are your jam, then things have not changed all too much between 2013 and 2017. The music is still loud and climactic, and the opening, while not quite as memorable as the first two, is a solid addition to the series from both a visual and musical standpoint. But if you're a bit like me, and don't exactly enjoy noise constantly pumping into your eardrums, then Attack on Titan can be a great way to receive a headache. And this is coming from someone who listens to The Money Store on occasion.

It would be a lie to claim I didn't enjoy my time with Attack on Titan. But I am uncertain how much of that is a result of my fascination with the setting, and what, if any of my enjoyment pertains to the actual anime. To claim Attack on Titan is something of great critical merit isn't something I could do without being disingenuous. Decent? Certainly, and a noticeable step above the turgid Hollywood fare its first season was, with the introduction of new antagonists and an actual, tangible story. But for those who waited years for more Titan slaying, I do start to wonder: were they ever really giving the rest of the medium a look?

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Jun 17, 2017

Captain220

Not Recommended

Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the creator of the ends of the Earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

- Isaiah 40:28-31

The second coming of Christ hath solemnly smiled upon us and ... I am very passionate about this. The plot thickens, although not really. The series is kicked off with some pretentious monologue by Armin reminding us of what the general outline of the show looked like, probably either because the producers have little to no faith in their audience's mental capacity and just assume everyone has forgotten the plot over the span of 4 years or they just didn't have an episode's worth of material. Titan appears out of nowhere, titan eats human. Good? Good. Annie Leon-who? In case anyone does remember, last's season finale left off with a completely unnecessary cliffhanger that only put even more expectations on this season to deliver. tl;dr IT DOESNNNNNNNNNN'T

Among monkeys, loose plot threads and other things, the big focus of this season seems to be on the titan shapeshifters. A mechanic that was first introduced to the series when everyone's second favorite main character got swallowed whole (deadweight Armin at it again), before being resurrected in full, non-CGI titan glory. Fastforward 20 something episodes later, and it is a technique utilized by literally half of the 104th Trainees Squad members. Despite losing its initial charm, the colossal and armored titan have been presented since the very first episode while the series was at its peak and thus still managing to retain a candle of relevancy.

Colossal Titan : Begins breach of Shiganshina first episode, catalyst of all destruction, all-around menacing presence
Armored Titan : Unstoppable force, mows down the gate of Wall Maria causing impending doom upon thousands, exhales steam
Ymir/Ymir Titan : Dyke, ???

What a revelation, seriously. I wholeheartedly wonder if the atrocious lack of screen time and presence of her character during the entirety of the series prior to the reveal are to be attributed to the author wanting her to remain a mysterious figure or downright not giving a shit. But wait, they showed us that 12 minute flashback between her and Historia to showcase just how powerful their relationship was, talk about depth. That's another thing, as soon as there's some groundbreaking reveal it is either cut short by a flashback or even cliffhanger (which are proven to be able to last up to a grand total of 4 years). Both reveals this season start off at an alright pace before being brushed off to the side because of Muh explanations. When half of episode 5 after Ymir's big reveal proves to be a boring flashback that realistically correlates to nothing of substance regarding our current situation apart from some meager hints regarding Historia (this is Ymir's big moment, mind you), SOME VIEWERS MIGHT GET DISENGAGED. WHOOP DE FUCKING DO. Now imagine if the finale of first season's episode 5 were cut short by a cliffhanger, and rather than Eren jumping into a titan's mouth to save Armin the episode was proceeded by a whopping half an episode's worth of some "mandatory" flashback dating back to that one schooltrip they held in 5th grade. Just for brevity's sake, you know? Because who wants non-meandering content anyway.

I also love how the meeting to discuss whether Ymir's a titan and where her loyalties lie was essentially the exact same as the one in season one regarding Annie. Eren is always shoved into this role of the dumbass optimist who's like "B-but, muh friends.." while he sits in disbelief as everyone else clobbers him with facts and it's pretty funny, if nothing else. It's really just used as a tool to make certain characters like Hanji stand out as great strategists and/or intellectually-capable, when in reality it just makes Eren seem like a stupid brat who's constantly in denial even when the obvious is made obvious. But Anni--I mean Ymir's a friend, how could she?! After Ymir helps saves the lives of countless soldiers, she is then briefly treated to a life of imprisonment, just before being swallowed whole by the Colossal titan. But it's Ymir, so you don't care. Connie titan when?

Obviously, the big selling point of these 12 episodes is supposed to be Eren's grandiose throwdown versus Reiner and Bertholdt, friends who he once looked up to turned enemies, for reasons.. unbeknownst. What carries this plotpoint is the fact that Eren never needed to have a fleshed out relationship with either Reiner or especially Bertholdt for it to work, which he didn't. The mystery behind both the Colossal and Armored titans was present from the first day whilst the Attack on Titan was at its highpoint. I would've walked out a happy man, had, you know, the actual revelation not been so piss poor. The way the reveal was handled holds complete contrast over anything the show's director, Tetsuou Araki is actually good at. The whole subtle and unconventional tone I imagine Isayama was building toward missed its mark entirely and assigning it to a man who's literally built his entire career off of making overblown and adrenaline inducing scenes and series surely isn't a good starting point. So far I have encountered not a single criticism as the people who are proclaiming it to be some nonchalant masterpiece of delivery and storytelling are running rampant. It's mere misjudgment over subtlety, but I digress.

First off, the Armored Titan has an uncanny resemblance to Reiner Braun. While this idea seems to have been entirely scrapped in Berthold's case for some reason, they went to insane lengths to mimic Reiner's look to the itty bitty details in correlation to the Armored titan: the minimal contrast between white and blonde, the exact same cleancut hairstyle, a body physique that can hardly be attributed back to anyone in the show but him, and even the trademark glowy yellow eyes shared only with Pixies. The exact same problem plagued the first season in the shape of Annie; the hair length, color and eyes would already have drastically decreased the amount of possible suspects by tenfold, but the genius of Hajime Isayama even bothered drawing in her god damn crooked fucking nose. He clearly has either no faith in his audience's mental capacity or simply doesn't understand that the point of mystery is supposed to be withholding information until a given point rather than violently shoving it down the viewer's windpipe. Okay, fine. They physically resemble each other, what else? Bertholdt. While Reiner actually attempts giving off a faint sense of dread while some eerie music is playing in the background, Bertholdt just completely ruins it. Despite for once not resembling his titan counterpart, when the man is not looking constipated, he is completely sealing off any potential doubts in anyone's mind about any other possibilities about the situation. "Could Reiner possibly have lost his mind..?" Obviously not, because Bertholdt is just fucking screaming in his ear 24/7, "NO REINER DON'T TELL HIM NOOOO". Well, I guess that's cleared up. They're gonna transform now, right? Any minute now. This is kinda dragging on.. OH WAIT IS THAT MIKASA HOLY FUCK 10/10 WHAT A REVELATION.

If you thought the "Humanity is at the brink of extinction" storyline is the weak link, think again. The cast of Attack on Titan is so evidently plagued by cliches and dumb action series tropes that you could pretty much associate any major character with a single adjective if you really wanted to. Calling my assessment here redundant would almost be a fair criticism considering that a similar point can be made in regards to arguably any popular seasonal anime born and molded by hype culture in recent memory. However, what makes AoT stick out like a sore thumb and possibly make it the biggest offender of this near-archetype turd is the broad scale of characters it decides to play the story out with. Operating on such vast cast of notable proportion can oftentimes lead to success (insert pseudo-elitist LotGH shoutout), but it can also damage a series by making it loose focus on primary objective. In this specific case when deciding to roll with a huge cast, you can choose from either 2 routes:

- Put in a conscious amount of time and effort into character development and have an actual go at fleshing them out (talk about boring)

or

- Treat your entire cast as human cattle, excusing any lack of potential depth with pitiful sob stories. When midnight comes around, murder them for SHOCK FACTOR !!! (hell yeah)

I realize that the line is very blurred in this case so feel free to take your time pondering which one we've been stuck with for a consecutive 37 episodes. As you may or may not already know, the story primarily revolves around an edge-riddled brat that is fueled by teenage angst as without it he loses all self and intrinsic meaning in this world. In the second season, he makes many a guest apearences throughout half of the season that he is in. All Eren Jaeger wishes for in life is to fulfill his petty vendetta by exterminating an entire species, and if that doesn't sound like a ludicrous pipedream of an egocentric teenager, I don't know what does. You would assume that being the protagonist of the story, he would have something worth noting in regards to his character, but he really doesn't. The entire backbone of his character lies the fundamentals of being dumb, bratty and angsty coupled with a motivation that stem from the final five, and it especially shows when he's even overshadowed by lifeless ragdolls such as Mikasa. There is nothing about Eren that makes him an interesting, distinct or compelling main character in the slightest. He is an angst powered locomotive; equipped with a smidgen of brash "personality", a petty sob story that's supposed to make you sympathize with him and of course, his desire for vengeance being placed on a pedestal above all else.

That in mind, you sure as hell wouldn't be able to spell Eren without spelling Mikasa first, so give it up for arguably the best girl in the series by sheer process of elimination - Mikasa Ackerman. Mikasa is just the perfect recipe for success. She has the looks, the smarts, the skills. Everything. She can't grow or develop because she is already a God put upon this green earth. Most people excuse her lifelessness as compelling because she too has a sad backstory. Mommy and daddy got lynched, there goes my personality and compassion as a human being, boo fucking hoo. Despite being completely devoid of any human emotion what so ever, she still harbors a deeply-rooted love and respect for her not-so-related-by-blood brother, Eren. Although Eren admittedly arrived a bit late to the party, he made up for it by giving her some rugged old scarf. This admiration for Eren arouses a multitude of paradoxes. Can a person void of any underlying emotion really learn to love someone, if even themselves? Is it incest? The fundamental flaw of Mikasa's character is perfection and it works because people tend to drool over this type of shit all the time. Especially in the case of Attack on Titan, where it's not even far-fetched to call the show a global epidemic where people who don't even watch anime regularly tune in to see cartoons battling it out because, hype. No such person cares seeing a complex or relatable cast over unrealistic, Superman-esque characters like Mikasa kicking ass. The most the writer could've hoped to achieve with Mikasa was to use her as a tool for spreading some noble-like message such as female empowerment. Even then -- tough luck little girly, you're never going to be like Mikasa. Mikasa is God.

What happens when you're a realistic character in the Attack on Titan universe? You either get friendzoned because the girl you're into has an incestuous crush on her half-brother, or you're just a total loser who cannot accomplish anything on their own apart from cuddle up in a blanket like the deadweight that you naturally are. Enter Armin, everyone's favorite punching bag. As stated, Armin suffers from the severe deformity known only as "Realism", making him a rather niche and tough character to support in or indulge in. Rather than being portrayed like a constant beacon of light and glamour as say Mikasa, he is instead shown to be a cowardly, weak-willed and frail kid. W-wow, c-c-could it be.. an actual human being? Burn the witch!! While Armin does not represent your wildest power fantasy, he is instead a connoisseur of humanity, a drop of realism and a look at what would have been. Despite proving a much needed breath of fresh air, his character is definitely far from revolutionary. The "weak boy gradually turns strong over time" formula has been done in a multitude of ways, a lot of which proving to be superior than in the case of Armin. However, I've really got no major complaints about his character. Cliche as it may, his development is infinitely more gradual and downright sublime when compared to most everyone else in the show and is probably only hindered by sometimes being overly smart for the sake of it and a lack of screen time. In other news, we also live in a world in which a character that is solely defined for eating potatoes is more universally liked than Armin by the community. Sometimes she eats a boiled potato, sometimes she settles for raw. Bravo, writers. You've really outdone yourselves with that one.

With an increased focus on the supporting cast, you'd think there would be someone worth noting, but there really isn't. We get absolutely no concise development for any of the shapeshifters, nor do we get any clarification as to what their motivates could be. How does Ymir's story intervene with Reiner's? Is Bertholdt even a character? Lastly, this whole "Anyone can die at any given point" gimmick is so untrue and falls completely flat when you realize that not once did a main character die and legitimately stay dead at any given point in the series. It is among the most substanceless claims someone can make about this show. Sure, fodder are often killed. Should you care? No. For a show that tackles a storyline of humanity at the brink of extinction, it sure is unrealistic for none of the main characters to ever actually die. The furthest the show has been willing to go up to this point was Marco, who was in essence a mere stepping stone for Jean throughout the 5 episodes he was in. I hope this false notion of AoT not being scared to kill anyone off disappears soon, because it is easily one of the most backwards things I've ever heard someone say about the show. More on Levi : The show's rising superstar isn't so rising anymore as he is down in the dumps and doesn't seem to be getting up anytime soon. Please check in later. Fin.

While the first season of Attack on Titan had many a gems like "Reluctant Heroes", "Vogel im Käfig" and the Armored Titan theme, this season has.. a remixed version of Vogel im Käfig? I'm gonna be blunt and say that the OST is underwhelming at best and a complete and utter rehash of its predecessor. Not once did I hear a song play and go "Woah! That's a really good song that I just cannot wait to illegally download, awesome!!" like with the first season. I saw the fine folk over at Reddit praising it so maybe I'm just dead wrong, who knows. For argument's sake let's assume that I am 100% in the right and the OST sucks dick and is the most overrated thing since Rem. Anyone with differing opinions may be burned at the stake. DAT VOGEL IM KAFIG REMIX THOOO. I was sold on every performance apart from Kamiya Hiroshi's Levi, because God damn, that man just has no range at all. Good thing he got barely any screentime this time around because honestly, no one wants to hear a brooding Araragi. Coincidentally, I would also argue for this being Yuki Kaji's best performance to date by a longshot, so good on him. Too bad the guy is like the arbiter of bad roles which becomes painfully noticeable once you realize Koichi was the probably the best he's ever been involved in. The ending is quite nice but the opening is very visually questionable, seeing as you have like dinosaurs running around and stuff. If they're so keen on regurgitating songs, maybe they should've just stuck with Guren no Yumiya.

As disappointing as the music is, it completely flails in comparison to the animation. The last thing I would've expected AoT not to deliver on is the production value, but alas, here we are. After an upheaval of 4 years, Wit Studio has repeatedly been milking the saggy tit of this shriveled old cow, and shamelessly so. Even Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress who many, including myself had considered to be Attack on Titan's proudly retarded brother, still proved to be a commercial success within Japan. However, due to the low salary and therefore shortage of animators as well as a scary deadline or some stupid shit, we are left with no one to turn to but CGI. 𝘊𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘴

Now, this wouldn't have been so bad if it had been reduced to merely a couple of horses running about, but the Colossal titan? The biggest titan known to man looking like he came straight out of a Playstation game? They try covering it up pretty desperately by some cool 3D maneuver gear stunts, but whenever that giant red thing just pops up in the frame it takes me out of the moment entirely whilst completely ruining any immersion that might have previously been had, simultaneously leaving me mesmerized and ashamed to be part of the human race. Lowkey hyperbole aside, it was quite nice to see not as many individual still shots just placed randomly throughout like last season, which is pretty much the only improvement I can name. The titan designs still look as.. "original" as ever, ranging all the way from borderline creepy to mildly autistic, with few and far between.

Attack on Titan used to and still does hold a very special place in a lot of people's hearts for being that one big gateway show. Having watched it right after it finished airing, I still vivdly remember the passion and excitement I once felt towards it oozing out of every single pore of my body. Despite the numerous impressive feats it has managed to accumulate within the industry in terms of both financial value and Westernized viewership, the fact still remains that it is easily one of, if not the single most overrated anime of the past decade. Content-wise it is an absolute shitstain that treats itself way too seriously for its' own good when in reality is nothing more than an inconsistently entertaining dumb turd of an action series. The story is plagued by the author's raging boner for mysteries and unsolved plotpoints combined with annoying and overused distasteful flashbacks and especially cliffhangers that occur every single episode for the majority of the latter half of the season and exist solely to spray perfume over said previously aforementioned smelly turd in hopes of making an abundantly lackluster product seem a bit more refined. A cast of caricatures that by merely existing take a big gnarly dump all over the very concept of character development, with the typical consumer's reaction being, "Man, did you see that? Levi just took out a QUADRILLION titans in the span of 5 seconds, I'm favoriting that man right this very instant !!! Oh, why is Armin scared?" It's a failed rehash of the first season in every way imaginable and doesn't even compare to it in terms of hype or shock factor, the elements that initially gave the series limbs to stand on. Reiner is armored titen cuz he big and Bert is colossal cuz he tall, hurr durr. All in all, disappointing, but not unexpected. Fingers crossed that 2021 will be a better year for anime!

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

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