Look, I love MAPPA very dearly. They animate the hell out of everything they touch, which very much includes the “Final Season” of Attack on Titan. There are images I have seen (such as a certain character’s head just … spinning) that are probably burned into my brain for good.
But they’ve donked up the messaging on the “final season” pretty bad. We were told “part 3” was starting with an hour-long special last week. Exactly what form “part 3” was going to take was unclear, but I and others assumed it would be a normal season, just split into two parts. By that logic, it’s reasonable to expect a regular-length episode to drop this week. However, that’s not the case.
The good news is that we finally know the shape of the last part of the last season of Attack on Titan. It will be two specials, not two seasons or mini-seasons. The bad news is that the next special won’t air until the fall. I’ve confirmed all this with Crunchyroll.
The final season rollout drama
Some background on all this final season messaging drama. Attack on Titan: The Final Season began in December 2020. “Oh, shit, here it comes!” we all thought, especially those of us who haven’t read the manga and had no idea where exactly the ending goal post was. It became clear, though, that the ending would not be within this twelve-episode season.
So Attack on Titan: The Final Season Part 2 began airing in January 2022. This would be the second half, the ending, many thought. Again, as the episodes unravelled, that was cast into doubt. Many fans thought the series would end by the last episode of Part 2 and seemed upset that it didn’t. Hell, it was so confusing that even though I had my serious doubts the story could possibly satisfactorily wrap up in Part 2, I covered that final episode as the potential “series finale.” So did a ton of people. It was a time of chaos.
And indeed, Part 3 was announced on the same day as Part 2′s final episode aired. You know someone, somewhere really donked up the messaging when the official Japanese subtitle was revealed to be Attack on Titan The Final Season The Final Arc. In English, the official episode turned out to be called “Attack on Titan Final Season THE FINAL CHAPTERS Special 1.” When it’s necessary to use the word “final” more than once, what have you done?
So, when it was announced this year that Part 3 would have two parts, I wanted to scream a little bit. I love Attack on Titan. It’s the series that officially tipped me over into otaku-dom. But damn, having to decipher the rollout of a three-year-long final season feels like a trial of faith. Whenever I eventually see the next episode, though, I forget all my frustrations. Attack on Titan is so damn good that it just pulls me into line as a believer.
But the actual end is truly upon us. We know the shape. We know the rollout. Why didn’t they do this as a movie, like everyone was expecting? Who knows. Now that the first final special made me cry and sit with my mouth agape for at least half an hour, all we have to do is wait for the crushing and beautiful finale.
(featured image: MAPPA)
