No one likes an “I Told You So,” I know. But before the final episode of part 2 Attack on Titan‘s final season even aired, it was apparent that there was no way it could be the end of the series. There was still manga left to adapt. And, indeed, I Told You So. Ahead of the part 2 finale, Crunchyroll announced that Attack on Titan The Final Season Part 3 would release in 2023.
Even without knowing there was unresolved manga left, fans awaited episode 87 feeling uncertain of the series’ future. The penultimate episode of Part 2 saw the party of main characters set out to sea in search of one Eren Jaeger. (Apparently the internet says it’s “Yeager?!” SINCE WHEN?) There was no way they were going to get to their destination, have the series’ climactic battle, and resolve the after-effects in one episode. This is Attack on Titan, after all. A show whose first season was infamous for spending entire episodes digging through characters’ thoughts over a five-second period.
Even if it wasn’t Attack on Titan, cramming everything that needs to happen into 24 minutes would’ve made for an incredibly unsatisfying ending. We all would’ve flocked to Twitter in horror. Yet, the reactions to Crunchyroll’s announcement on Twitter err more to the “angry and surprised” side. I mean, we were partially expecting a movie here. I’m genuinely surprised that people seem surprised?
Part of that “anger and surprise” is also to do with the wait. Attack on Titan The Final Season Part 3 will air in 2023. Exactly what part of 2023 has yet to be announced. I understand it’s a bummer to wait a full year to find out what happens. Disappointment is warranted. But please also remember that the people at MAPPA who make Attack on Titan, Jujutsu Kaisen, and a ton of other incredible anime are all human beings. Human beings who animate the everliving sh*t out of our favorite series.
Still, I can’t help but feel the major problem here was one hell of a botched marketing job. The title of Part 3 in Japan is Attack on Titan Final Season Final Arc. When that feels like a clarification that genuinely needs to be made, you know something has gone awry with communication. Until the announcement, there was nothing official to clarify that The Final Season Part 2 wasn’t the end of the series. Perhaps Part 1 should have been season four by itself, and then season five could have been marketed as The Final Season in two parts?
But let’s look on the bright side: more Attack on Titan! More crushing intensity and despair! Hooray!
(Image credit: MAPPA)
