“Attack On Titan: The Final Season Part 2”

Episode 5: From you, 2000 years ago

Rating: 5/5

Contains spoilers. 

Since the end of the Attack On Titan manga in April 2021, fans of the series have been waiting anxiously for the last part of the anime’s final season after it’s Part 1 release in late 2020. Part 1 started off a four-year time skip after the events of season three, where Paradis Island invaded the nation of Marley, engaging a conflict between the two nations. With Part 1 ending on a cliffhanger with Marley taking the fight to Paradis, the island of Paradis now fights off against the invading Marley force. Their goal? To kill Eren Yeager, the holder of the Founding Titan, Attack Titan, and Warhammer Titan.

The season so far has been nothing but filled with suspense, excitement, and horror. The story dives immediately into the action with Reiner and Eren battling to end the fight between Marley and Paradis once and for all.

However, episode five has shocked fans with the reveal of the origins of the titans, how they came to be, and the highly anticipated story of the first titan shifter — Ymir Fritz. It’s surprising to trail back 2,000 years to answer one of the biggest questions lingering around the whole series: where did the titans come from? However, it turns out the answer is not a joyful one. Ymir Fritz was a slave who gained the power of the titans through a mysterious creature known as the “Source of all Organic life.” After being forced to work under King Fritz until her death, Ymir gets eaten by her three daughters, Maria, Rose, and Sheena, in order to pass down her power, known as the Coordinate.

The climax of the episode doesn’t come just yet. The big reveal from episode five — where Eren changes the past through the memories of his father, Grisha — raises the question about who’s really in control of the Coordinate’s power. Is it Zeke, the inheritor of the Fritz royal blood, or our main character, Eren? 

The fight for control displayed by clashing ideals of freedom is what marks this episode important. Zeke wanted to euthanize all eldians to end the conflict, but Eren objected. Knowing the past of Ymir stresses the importance of what freedom truly means in “Attack on Titan.” It’s only at the end where we really see what the two sides really are: Eren, who tries to sympathize, and Zeke, who tries to be controlling.

Major plot twists have pushed this episode to one of my top favorites. Mysteries, some that have been around since the start of the series, have finally been answered. We get to see the start of the Rumbling, an event that has been long revealed in the manga, finally being animated. More importantly, we are now starting to reach the peak of Eren’s character development from revenge-bent young protagonist to an antagonist fighting for what he believes is “true” freedom. The character development pops out in this final season, and it’s one of the most unique takes I’ve seen on a protagonist.

For those who’ve read the manga, such as myself, it’s exciting to now see how the events of the Rumbling will now play out and how MAPPA, the studio now producing “Attack on Titan,” will animate it. MAPPA has done a great job in animating season four, capturing the emotions of each character and beautifully executing the start of the Rumbling and the transformation of Eren’s Founding Titan. 

I’m curious to see how MAPPA exactly handles the animation of the Rumbling. Currently, they use CGI to render 3D models of the titans in action. With so many colossal titans in the picture, will future episodes take more time, possibly delaying the air time? While it is a possibility, I believe they’ll start focusing on events happening around the Rumbling, such as the reactions of Maryleans and the revelation of Eren’s true plans to other characters such as Jean and Conny.

Next Sunday, hopefully we can receive the reactions of other side characters and more scenes going forward with the Rumbling.  

“Attack on Titan” airs every Sunday on Crunchyroll, Funimation, and Hulu.