Okay, so naturally I’m hooked. I keep on trying to think about films to watch, or comic books to read, but in my head, there’s only one thing I must know. How the hell does this show end? A longer season led to the delay in getting you guys this review, but enough!
Season 3 of ‘Attack on Titan’ essentially consists of two main arcs. The first arc sees the Survey Corps return following their battle with the Colossal Titan and the Armoured Titan. However, clearly something has shifted in the capital, and it appears that the Titans are not the only enemy to fight. A group are after both Eren and Christa, now known as Historia. Leading this group is a crazy cowboy named Kenny, who seems to have a personal connection to Levi. When Eren and Historia are captured, the Scouts must figure out who’s taken them and how to get them back before it’s too late. Naturally, many of them are reluctant to turn on their fellow humans, but it appears there’s not much choice. The second half of the season sees the Scouts attempt to find a way to plug the hole in Wall Maria and thus take back the land they had lost to the Titans. They know it’s not going to be easy, but Commander Erwin Smith is convinced that they can turn the tide against their enemies. On top of that is the hope that by taking back Shiganshina, the town that Eren, Armin and Mikasa grew up in, they will finally find out the mystery of the basement of Eren’s house. Can this dwindling group finally achieve victory? And will they ever find out who their true enemies are?
So, given that this was a longer season, it took me a bit of time to get myself into it. It’s also sometimes a bit difficult when you’re so overwhelmed with what you’ve watched, and you need time to process it. I have to say the two story arcs were quite different; the first took some time to build, and then the second half was just a rollercoaster. To be honest, after the second season, there was a part of me that wondered if the show would reach new heights, but the story is phenomenal, and I was hooked. The first two seasons deal with some pretty intense themes, including mental trauma and the class system in medieval societies. This season, however steps it up, in that after all this time fighting Titans, the Scouts realise they have enemies much closer to home. We get scenes with Conny, Jean and Sasha, contemplating their choices and how they feel about attacking their fellow humans, which is really interesting to watch. There was so much character development we saw. Levi, who for all this time has been this ridiculously mysterious and overpowered character, finally gets a bit of a backstory, and it humanises him slightly. He’s still a badass, though. One of the things that really drew me into this anime was the intricacy of the concept and how the twists and turns really make it one of the most entertaining shows I’ve ever seen, and Season 3 provides shocks by the boatload! Ha!
Finally, we returned to a juicier season. 22 episodes of this show were far more enjoyable to get through. The expansion of the lore was fantastic, and I’ve always said that world-building is second to none. The animation style was good, and there were some almost 3D effects for some of the titans, which I really enjoyed. The theme song for this season was, on the other hand, completely inappropriate. It was so soft and gentle, and I was like, are you for real right now? Overall, I think this was my favourite of the seasons that I had seen, and I was glad the trajectory from Season 2 was corrected! Ha!
Rating:
Story: ★★★★★
Character Development: ★★★★
Animation and Visual Style: ★★★★
World Building: ★★★★★
Enjoyability: ★★★★★