An Anime-Only's Thoughts on The Ending
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ก.ย. 2024
- Attack on Titan both hit and missed for me.
I'm sure you can tell, this was a very low-effort video. I'm reserving my time and efforts for the analysis stuff, I didn't want to sink too much into a "my initial thoughts on the Attack on Titan Finale" video because who cares about some guy's opinion?
Better stuff to come.
Edit: We found the worm.
😱
D o k o?
Trust Vinland Saga as the next anime.
what?
Looking for another anime to dig into? Watch Vinland Saga
What I need is an OVA of Eren's conversations with everyone else
DUDE, YES.
Yes!!
i hope it features 40 minutes of eren and reiner paths therapy and another 40 minutes of eren and armin paths s*x
@@blubblubblupTHATS WILD
@@blubblubblupaot deleted scenes🙏🙏🙏
As an ending stan since it got me banned from titanfolk, I absolutely respect the feeling that the Alliance was too lucky. My copium is that the ending is already rushed, and just look at how much respect Isayama gives to the deaths of Sasha and Eren -- there is not enough space in the ending for another major death, for everyone to pay their respects to Levi, not in the literal sense of pages or frames of animation, and not in the figurative sense of narrative space.
I really loved the commentary on archetypes. I felt a familiar frisson when you touched on their timelessness, a sensation I remember from the best moments of Attack-Titan-timetravel like Eren and Grisha in the basement. "After all, this is the story you started"
I think Annie should have died. Like, sacrificed herself for the team to help them and atone for her sins or something. It would have made them forgiving her look better at least.
maybe pieck instead @@veronica-mew
Levi surviving his comrades was his character’s theme though
the whole point is that all of them are sinners. u see annie as evil for what she has done but armin has done worse, he has killed more soldiers and killed more civilians than she has. all of them are the same. they committed horrible sins yet are seen as the heros because they lived on @@veronica-mew
I wonder why isayma wasted space showing sasha and Erwin squad (how many time do we need to remember they sacrificed their hart)
3:03, or perhaps, it was orchestrated by Ymir herself. Having eavesdropped on the profound exchange between Armin and Zeke, Ymir comprehended the profound significance of life. Motivated by a newfound desire to halt the cataclysmic rumbling, she assisted Armin and Zeke, otherwise, it was impossible.
Essentially, Eren, Mikasa, and Armin collectively liberated Ymir.
Eren, recognizing the weight of her oppression, granted Ymir the power to choose her own freedom. Armin, with eloquence, bestowed upon her the essence and worth of life. Meanwhile, Mikasa, with genuine affection, imparted the genuine meaning of love.
Consequently, Ymir can now rest in peace, regretting not sacrificing herself in front of the spear (symbolic of the freedom of choice). She is poised to embrace a purposeful existence alongside her beloved daughters, understanding the true value of life. Lastly, she has severed ties with the oppressive king, embracing the profound meaning of love. In this way, Ymir is now equipped to rest in peace, having attained a harmonious balance between choice, purpose, and love.
I agree with everything he said in the video, but the one thing I dislike is the logic to say, No one has ever loved like Mikasa and Eren in 2000 years and no one has made a sacrifice of love like they did.
That's a long time and a lot of eldians. It's just a but far fetched.
@@ljeans531I think it’s a matter of Mikasa eventually getting over her obsessive love and opposing Eren, even killing him, not just their love. That could have inspired Ymir to get over that Fritz jerk
@russianconservative Ik, but to say that similar scenario has hasn't existed for 2000 years is kinda crazy🤪
Like why Eren and Mikasa? Why not Steven and Jane?
@@ljeans531yes but my thinking is that before Eren gave her the choice of freedom and thinking for herself, she never cared to see/ or could not see those things. That’s the reason Eren was important to Ymir’s freedom.
@@bobsaget4465that's exactly what it is. You're absolutely right. It baffles me how so many people have to be spoonfed on literally every little detail for them to make sense of it.
Attack on Titan is the embodiment of "show, not tell". The set up is always there for whatever came in the final episode.
Personally i prefer that everyone survived the ending, mainly for my feelings but also because there would have been no time to mourn anyone who died at the end, and having any of what are the most important characters in the story die mostly for shockvalue isn’t something id like
i agree, i think with all the deaths we got there should have been some survivors
Eren should have finished the Rumbling, Isayama tried to make this hatred cycle thing but lore wise it was simple, only one side could survive, Paradis just didn't get destroyed right away because the world was recovering from the rumbling, then millennials after the events they finally finish eldian's off, the way Isayama wrote AoT instead of just having two sides that are wrong it's just about an opressed minority, Paradis was an Island lol, what bad could they do? Especially after Ymir was finally set free, there was no titans anymore, there was no reason for this to happen, and before this all happened Marley already had titans, they turned Eldians into titans to keep them isolated and even had c0ncetrati0n camps, to me it doesn't matter how much Isayama tried to humanize the rest of humanity the Eldians were in the right to use the rumbling, they needed to survive, stop the almost complete rumbling managed to buy them some peace time but it wasn't enough
@@kuugoriver you are a psycho
@@kuugoriverFinishing the rumbling would not bring peace. Human conflict always finds a way. All finishing the rumbling would do is murder more innocent children.
A cataclysmic retaliation of global proportions was not necessary to protect Eldia. It's like if Ukraine nuked the entire world cause they got sick of Russia.
@@kuugoriver So eldians would murder every other race on the planet and then live peacefully together forever and ever? That sounds like a real nazi ass ending. Hopefully I've misunderstood something of what you just said.
One thing you missed is that Eren said he sees the past, present and future all at the same time and that his head is a complete mess. I thought that was a neat edition for the psyche of Eren, to understand completely why he did what he did, why he'd go to such lengths. Solid review tho and I agree with the stakes not being there towards the end. Like I can't believe in a story where even the smallest of mistakes can cost you your life, a cripple like Levi survived that deadly battle.
tbh, that detail to me just seems like Isayama trying to make up a reason for Eren to feel "messed up". The detail never even amounted to anything either
While at first I thought the characters had plot armor at the end.. Every character has had it for the entire series.. And its a fantasy series so you've gotta cut it some slack.. Like lets be honest ODM gear would DESTROY your body and break every part of it.. So characters hitting the ground hard I can give a pass too, like Jean fell from a horse going at full speed in season 2 which would of paralized him or killed him.. but he was fine aside from being knocked out.
@@traviscue2099theres the thing we call "suspension of disbelief". We can accept things like ODM gear or falling off a horse, however fighting like 100 Warhammers and 100 Jaws wasn't enough to wipe out the entire squad is just way too much plot armor. There weren't even any casualties during the fight which is just jarring.
@@Aztr_artz Sure.. But if we go by the logic that these Titans had the "spirit" of the people they were.. None of them ever fought people using ODM gear.. So I can buy that they would of had no experience fighting like that.. And our team did improve a lot since season 1. But yeah I could of gone either way in the finale, since I was expecting half of them to die.. But I can see why they were kept alive, all the deaths leading up to now all had purpose.. randomly killing them may of felt off.
I'm curious who you would of killed off though.. Since I can see Reiner/Levi/Annie all having meaningful deaths here.
@@Aztr_artzWhat I've been thinking, I'm a manga reader and even then I couldn't fathom how a couple of (yes v strong) people fought and won against the Ymir and 100+ shifters. Levi is always the one getting obliterated. It has layers to it but still won't change my mind. Not only that, they got me with Jean, Conny and remaining eldians turning into titans...I thought that was a fitting end for them, except it didn't lol
Zeke and Armin didn't necessarily bring those Past Shifters back to life. Initially, Ymir brought all of them back to life in a mindless state to fight the Alliance, and their consciousnesses were asleep in the Paths. But Armin is then trapped in Paths by Ymir, and then he and Zeke essentially did what Eren did to Ymir, they freed the Titan Shifters of their slave-like binds, which is why they had Ymir's eyes of course. Theres a very clear parallel between the 2 scenes, with both of them including a "lend me your power" moment.
Note: Ymir could've stopped them, but I think she too was moved by Armin's speech, and wanted to see how it would play out. It's important to remember that Ymir has no personal stake in the Rumbling, she just decided to help Eren because he gave her a choice.
No
The conversation Armin and Zeke had deeply touched Ymir and resonated with her, and thus she gave Zeke access to "waking" those past Titan shifters. That's my theory on them coming back.
It was honestly very weird how Ymir as a character known as the Founder was treated. Her entire plot was teased to be something big, but was perhaps the easiest one to solve because, all she's looking for 2000 years is someone who could show her how to move on. And didn't Eren already do it since he was all about "Keep Moving Forward"?
Ymir would have been the biggest anime fan
@@watchamigos1232Eren never really said the keep moving forward thing to Ymir though, only that she had a choice and that she was free. The way I like to see the passing of Ymir is that similar to how Mikasa needed to see a life where she and Eren lived together to do the right thing, Ymir needed to see someone who was almost like a slave to love break- no that’s wrong. To not be held by imaginary shackles in the first place, and do what was right, because of their love.
Like Mikasa ending Eren’s suffering, her darling trapped in a cage of fate didn’t mean she threw away the red string of love they had together, Ymir didn’t need to slave over her godly powers to create monsters as a show of affection and that letting Fritz die does not equal her not loving him.
Still think Mikasa needed more actual screen time though.
@@watchamigos1232she is basically the character who was brutalise
The girl was given utmost cruelty
She doesn’t understand the meaning of love
She doesn’t know how to act without someone ordering her
She doesn’t know what is the meaning of LIFE itself which is enjoying small moments
@@AM17titan Wow, it's nice to see some comments of AOT these days lol. I still believe Ymir to be an underdeveloped character but, I've made my peace with it as well as the show 😉
cant wait for more of those analysis reddrik, once again listening to them while working on another production
I agree with Connie and Jean's "farewell" scene, it was very lackluster and it definitely needed more.
I was bawling when I read the manga, I seriously thought they were gone, but the anime didnt even give the audience time to process what was happening.
Honestly surprising because MAPPA has excelled their storytelling, beat by beat in their previous episodes...
But yeah, thanks for the video!
I think the fast pacing was perfect because the entire concept of everyone turning into titans was to raise the stakes exponentially and leave everyone occupied to force Mikasa to make up her mind and act on it, but I do think they could've rolled without their final conversation regardless, which would keep the fast pacing and feeling of a final showdown but leaving the attempt of a final send-off of Connie and Jean, leaving it to be the same as everyone else (Gabi and the rest of the eldians) who just turned into titans without saying anything
Wow it’s almost like Eren never broke down and cried and whined before the confession scene smh I absolutely agree with ur statement on this part. The fact this small part apparently just ruined it for some means they never actually watched the show in the first place
I absolutely agree with the fact that it would've been far more impactful for me if they didn't let the remaining alliance all live another day. In general I think the ending is a bit too happy, from the cheerful music, to some of the alliance having a laugh and joke about things, like I don't think the ending needed to be a sad one per-se but I think it would've left a lasting impression on me if it was far more bittersweet. It's especially annoying cause the show teased at the idea these characters may die, in the moment I was taken right back to the start of the show and in a weird sense it made me feel nostalgic, but nope all the weight of that was swooped from underneath me when it's like "yeah actually this one didn't die GOTCHA!".
Exactly! I think artists are too afraid of angering their audiences, and thus, anger their audiences. Lol
@@Reddrikthat's definitely not the case, isayama was never afraid to kill characters and always took risks, it's obviously just what he wanted to write
They did some much work from the rumbling and also not to mention the yeagarists battle so obviously there was a happy moment for them
yeah i think he wanted them to survive this time @@user-qx1id1dt8x
It was literally bittersweet af, what tf are you smoking?
Out of all the criticisms of the ending I've seen, one of the silliest I've seen going around is that "Falco's titan being able to fly came out of nowhere." Like, the dude's name is Falco, and was introduced looking up at a Hawk flying through the sky. Not to mention how birds were used as a symbol of freedom since the beginning of the series, and that we've seen that Titans can exhibit animalistic like traits, AND that titans can gain traits of other titans by consuming pieces of other titans. Felt like Falco turning into the flying titan was built up from the beginning.
I don't think you understand the issue with his titan. Yes, it was foreshadowed and many saw it coming, however, the way it's execution is horrendous. His FLYING titan does come out of nowhere with Falco just saying "I bet I could do that cuz dream". The issue is that it is entirely different from the titan he had at the port battle for no good reason. This basically tells us that shifters don't need to eat multiple titans to gain major powers, all they need is spinal fluid from a BT and now they fly. It also comes off as an asspole just to give the alliance even more plot armor.
@@sinesjoeit’s literally the same titan ?
@@sinesjoewtf are you smoking here 💀💀
Falco’s titan have claws as a jaw titan and can fly as he has the beast titan fluid
I think the consequence of the ending is that, Eren, the one who yearned for freedom the most, never got to spend the life he gave to his friends. The only thing Eren wanted to do was spend time with his friends in a peaceful time. His punishment for the rumbling was having to let them live in a time he never got to spend with them.
I personally don't mind everyone living at the end but it is a little jarring. Especially considering how we lost multiple characters (Hange, Magath, Shadis) leading upto the battle but none in the battle itself.
I don't know what you mean about living in the end when Paradis literally gets nuked into oblivion and literally centuries later another city is built on top of it. So it all becomes ancient and the pattern repeats again...until they milk this like every other franchise.
personally i wanted all of them to survive, yes it betrays the point but i think we have seen to many sacrifices already.
@@jmgonzales7701Agreed. Killing any character for shock value would have killed the pacing too. But having people with different ideologies working together finally and then having them die would have betrayed the moral message.
@@TequilaToothpick i agree they must survive
@@greasy8394 the boy who finds the worm at the end seems peaceful and nurturing bruh
i honestly really appreciate the fact that there weren’t any more major deaths in the finale except the ones we got, simply because it would destroy me emotionally. i have become so attached to the characters it would be too much for my heart
it probably would’ve drastically effected the pacing/overall effect of the ending if they did, negatively i mean. there isn’t enough time in an hour and thirty minutes to mourn a slew of deaths from characters many people have known for Years to a decade. besides, eren being the only death gives way more significance to the conclusion of his story, since he did still want to save his friends lives at the end of the day at the cost of his own
murdered 80% of humnaity to save a guy whoes gonna clap his lovers cheeks@@kara7145
@@kara7145 aot main souce is the manga thats the pacing dictator
Watching your videos on AoT after i binged it for the first time this summer REALLY helped lay symbolic/archetypal foundation for me to really appreciate this ending. Thank you!!
I too was well prepared for the shell scene thanks to this guy
I think the ending isnt bad, its an ending id expect from another regular show, but for attack on titan some parts werent executed in the way attack on titan would. I dont know if it makes sense. Some parts just didnt have that masterpiece and masterful execution that attack on titan has always had. Its a good ending but it could have been made better or great with a better execution for some of the scenes
I think it was just really rushed or at least it feels that way. The whole "love" theme feels like it was shoehorned in and wasn't executed well imo. I wish the ending had more time to breath and have more of the classic AOT feel to it.
"Regular Show"? You know who else I killed? *MY MOM! HUHEHEHEHEHE!*
@@veronica-mew i agree, the conversation between eren and armin should have been longer to have more impact, end of evangelion and 3.0 + 1.0 were good at this.
Personall, I expected the worst based on manga reaction a couple years back, so coming in with super low expectations I really loved it.
In fact, I was fine with pretty much every decision minus the fact that it should have been an extra 20 minutes for a proper epilogue and closure. Felt slightly rushed in places.
Also I would rewrite the "pathetic" dialogue between Armin and Eren, but have the same overall intent.
If the FF7 in your username denotes your fandom of Final Fantasy 7, I hope you don't feel the same way about that.
People always want complete closure on everything, even if it harms the point the ending is trying to make.
What I will say is that Attack on Titan did not have the greatest ending of all time. However it is still the Greatest Anime of All Time.
Fully agreed. I basically grew up with this show, as I started watching it when I was 12, so I'm obviously strongly emotional about it, so no matter my feelings on the ending, nothing can beat my feelings about the overall show
As someone who was irrationally seething upon reading the ending when it came out, I would actually like to thank you for your previous videos. They allowed me to appreciate the thematic undertones of the ending, especially with the addition of the final pages (the cycle repeating).
However ending ATTACK ON TITAN like a fucking Marvel movie is still almost unforgivable in my eyes. The tonal shift is just too drastic for me. Isayama was so close to penning an unironic masterpiece.
Totally agree with the sentiment, it was a pretty big gut punch. And I’m very happy to have enhanced your experience with the story!
how is it ending like a marvel movie?
@@sneeki8082they can’t comprehend the fact that pre time skip was also like a marvel movie and I mean why even tell like a marvel movie?
Just heroes coming together and fighting for the same cause when for years they have been killing each other is same like marvel? It’s bulsshit pre time skip was titans vs humans
Good vs bad
So if you tell that that is also marvel lol 💀
@@AM17titan "they can’t comprehend" lmao. I know arguing with people in yourube comments is retarded but i am retarded. Yes pre battle for battle of Shiganshina AOT was just a "really good anime/marvel film" but post time skip the tone was dark, complicated, introspective and fucking geopolitical. You cant go from that to avengers team up/get resurrected (lmao) and beat the world ending bad guy and everyone has a happy ending. Hell marvel movie endings have more sacrifices than the ending of AOT (pre the last pages). Even when AOT was mavel/anime esque actions had consequences and the story had an immersive adherence to rules it set that really sold me on the series, and were imo betrayed in the ending.
If you loved the ending good for you man, but if you can't even acknowledge why someone else wouldn't well, you're as retarded as I am for replying
Yeah and he does regret this but also owns it. Like he is still proud he managed it.
I think if you ever meet him tell him you wherent happy with the endi g but respect that he did what he wantet to Do and ho Estland npt many can say that tbh.
Yk the ending is good when you dont have someone in your ear telling you its not
Mostly agree with this video. I wasnt satisfied with eren's explanation of why he did it all to armin. He told ramzi the honest truth more than armin.
13:40 great take on the entire show's themes. Armin's speech to zeke was word for word what you said in the video about freedom.
As for the end, i see what you mean, but i do think losing the eren that they remembered after they got the memories of their conversations back was a good sacrifice. Every character knew that the eren they had gone to known recently was not the eren they used to know. He was cold. After they remember the conversation at the end, it's like eren dies again. The monster Eren died AND THEN the eren that loved them also died. I thought that was the entrie point of the conversations.
TBF Armin wasn't all that satisfied with it either
Eren said all that to ramzi because ramzi is foreign and he can’t understand a word he is saying so eren can go full on out without being criticised or someone to tell his plan is bad
Zeke didn't bring them back Ymir did after being moved by Armin's speech but I understand what you mean because the anime didn't make it clear even though she was around that scene.
not gonna lie, i like a lot of characters, but the one I was rooting for more than anyone else(by far, not even close) was jean, so him making it and him(somewhat conclusively) being with Mikasa on Paradis, fulfilling his goal and living both the life he had to live as a hero, and then the life he wanted to live as a husband and father. So a good conclusion to his story was all I really wanted, the titan thing had potential to be good, but it felt like it wasn't played up enough, even as someone who their only major desire for the show was a good end for jean, I didn't feel that concerned when he turned. Something in me was like he is gonna be fine.
People don’t like when Eren has his emotional breakdown because they still think he’s the cool guy. I haven’t seen such delusion in the idea of heroism since Light Yagami fans.
Great take on Ymir's "love" for Fritz. People read it so surface level and sneer at the idea that Ymir loved him after everything he did to her, but they neglect that the kind of cruel system Ymir lived under was pretty common in history.
I get it, but that doesn't make it satisfying storytelling. I felt that we already had a sufficient reason for what kept her bound, her identity as a slave, that mentality of being so broken that she couldn't free herself despite having the all the power to do so. Adding the love aspect felt unnecessary.
@@WolforNuva It was both of those things. The king was the closest thing to love Ymir probably ever had after becoming a slave. And again: she lived in a time period and environment where she had no other context or examples of how life could be.
@@SaiScribbles Yeah I understand that's what it is, that's what the mangaka was going for.
What I'm saying is that the slave aspect was established clearly enough during her flashback that I never felt that we needed her to also be in love with Fritz. It was like giving an answer to a question already answered, and the new answer was (imo) less satisfactory than the original.
I'm just pissed because the Eren/Armin hug looked so much like they were going to kiss that I am suddenly shipping a ship I have never shipped before. God dammit.
Na they would never ruin a show with cringe and gay shit seen like that
@@orpheemulemo8053 aot literally has gay characters
@@siberiasian and that's why I stopped at season three and can't remember them haha besides it's not like he made them important name a successful Ip with a wide audience fild with important gay characters that people care about I'm not saying I don't care about the people that chose to be gay but I personally desegree with gay life style think it's cringe and don't like seeing it on my screen honesty
@@orpheemulemo8053🤦🏻♂️huh?
@@orpheemulemo8053 i'm just amazed how every homophobe i stumbled upon is incapable of cohesive writing
For me, the reason Eren breaking down crying was bad wasn’t because he cried and wimped like a baby, he was always like that.
It’s that he cried about Mikasa that seemed really odd and out of character for me. Not once did he show any romantic interest for her and it was clear to me he only just cared for her as a family. It just seems hard to believe that the person that values freedom above anything else would say something like I don’t want her to get over me or find another man.
Another part that pissed me off was how Armin punched Eren for talking bad to Mikasa but not for killing so many people. As if that was more important.
So yeah Eren could cry all he wanted about the decision he had to make and how he was gonna miss everyone but the sudden obsession for Mikasa was not it for me, and him being a 19 year old does not justify it for me.
@@qsdyvd Yeah well I didn’t word it correctly, I didn’t necessarily mean it in a bad way, just that he cried a lot and yes for valid reasons
thanks man
it's been such a wild and moving ride watching your stuff alongside with aot
the only thing which wasn't check marked yet was getting pissed at you and now that's done too
LOL
Im surprised this guy is a small channel😭i really like the way you formulated your opinions and id have to say i agree with everything, though i thought everyone in the end surviving was fair, i could definitely see the impact watching everyone crumbling away would have, i genuinely like that perspective
And that point also made me think that they were given a LITTLE bit of plot armor at the end, like the quick bit of "Reiner can survive the explosion " kind of left me baffled? Because wasnt this the same guy who's been broken into pieces each fight of season 4? Other than that, pretty solid end
As a manga reader, it's not Eren loving Mikasa being the problem... Well, maybe it is. But that's because he LITERALLY never showed any romantic affection towards her at all. He always treated her as an annoying sibling. He never even reciprocated any physical affection til he was literally dead. It's just out of nowhere!
It only seems like it makes sense because that's what we as viewers want for them. But realistically, if he genuinely loved her more than a friend we would've seen it long before now instead of speculating it based Mikasa's actions.
My problem is that now the love story between the 2 is the most important thing in the ending. If that was just a subplot, it would have been fine shonen are famous for lame romance, so making it the centre of the ending is meh
So I have an understanding of archetypes and mythology. I've read a lot of Nietzsche, Carl Jung, and Joseph Campbell. I watch the series with my son it is by far one of the best stories I've seen in modern times. I agree with you how well he played with the archetypes, along with the exploration of the will, freedom , various isms and political theories. Beyond anime this was a beautiful modern story! Thank you for your analysis. ✌🏼
i am right now watching the review and i love you as always but plz do the zeke character analysis video . God thats gonna be incredible
Say I wont
My biggest complaint is the fact that Reiner of all people survived 🤦♂️
Reiner is Isayamas favorite character
@@theemanuella9456nah bro, at this point I’m convinced that Reiner is his son, the dude cheated death so many times it’s actually funny.
@@theleader7032 🤣🤣
My man is preaching!
100% agree :D
I loved the ending ever since, but it had to truly manifest with time, sort of ferment for a while and letting the ideas and themes really marinade. As more time had passed since the mangas conclusion, i only came to love it more and more. So maybe it may be the same for you
... Do i hear a Zeke video coming?!
_slaps credit card on table_
Oh. F*ck. Yes! >:D
But man, congrats at the completion of this incredible story and thank you for making me so much more hyped for it with your excellent video ^^
I personally didn’t mind everyone living at the end, I actually think it was the right choice. I do understand the argument that this whole endeavor may have hit harder if you frame it as all these people sacrificed themselves to save the world, but I also believe having them all live benefits the story thematically than if some of them died. The reason why I feel this way is because of the fact that this is the first mission in which Armin is the commander of the scouts. I believe that many of the deaths you mention thematically represent sacrificing your dream for the betterment of humanity. So in all of Erwin’s missions, he sacrifices many in order to gain knowledge of the world and get closer to his dream of learning the true history of the world and proving his father right. Eventually, he has to sacrifice himself for the betterment of humanity. Hange’s death to me symbolizes her selflessness as commander, something that we haven’t seen from sadis or Erwin until the very end, however she sadly isn’t strong enough to save humanity which she grapples with throughout season 4. Armin is different than both of them, however. In season 3 eren said Armin will be the one who saves humanity, and he ultimately did. However I believe it goes deeper than that. Throughout all of the darkness and pain in the show, the one constant we have had was Armin, whose dream was simpler and purée than anyone else’s. Throughout the show he gets stronger and learns about the idea of sacrificing things in order to achieve something early on. Armin represents the good of humanity, even though he himself has killed innocent people for the sake of a mission in liberio. When hange dies and Armin is the official commander, it’s different than Erwin or hange because he himself provides a hope than none of the other commanders ever provided because he is the embodiment of what is “good” in humanity. Obviously he feels anger and even felt like killing other humans too as he said to eren, but I believe is the most pure hearted character in this show. So to me, what the “Battle of Heaven and Earth” represents is Armin’s success. This mission not only saved humanity, but it happened because Armin and mikasa had to sacrifice their best friend, and to mikasa the one she loved. And in doing so, this is the first mission in scout history to have no casualties (not counting hange since that happened under her command). Sorry for the lengthy response but it was a lot going through my mind when writing this 😅
I'd love to see a version where he did kill most of them.. But I don't think it would work for the pacing, there would be no time to grieve for them.. And it also goes against the story and the conclusion. I was sure we were going to lose Reiner/Peik/Conny/Levi and Annie.. but I was pleasently surprised!
I don't understand how it shows Armin's success Armin didn't plan a way for them to survive, in fact Jean and Connie did die (but they came back ,somehow)
@@Anurag_jaiswaL my interpretation is that it’s armin’s success because it was him who ultimately made the call to kill eren, without his initiative the alliance may have wavered in the decision and wasted too much time. He’s also the reason why Zeke decided to sacrifice himself, without Armin Zeke does not reveal himself and the rumbling continues until all of humanity is destroyed. Eren dying is the reason why jean, Connie, and the rest are able to turn back. Without Armin the whole mission having a chance of succeeding is impossible, just like any other scout mission with other commanders
@@traviscue2099 i think that would be an interesting thing to think about, I’m glad that didn’t happen in the main story but I think it’s
An interesting alternate reality
@@JoeWizTheBaller27 I do agree that Armin is the reason why alliance won but saying that nobody died because of Armin's successful leadership would be wrong imo.
I saw a video about how ymir was seeing armin and zeke talk. And how by hearing them reach that conclusion she decide to help them to see what would happen. It actually ended up being what helped mikasa kill eren, therefore making ymir free
The way I interpreted the scene with the dead characters coming back to help everyone is that Ymir gave them access in a similar way she did for Eren and although she has no dialogue, I think the takeaway is that Armin’s conversation with Zeke resonated with her on a personal level, especially since we know a lot of her character revolves around wanting to make meaningful connections with others.
Maybe, though gotta clarify that she does not have dialogues at all, it's not just limited
I would like to see an exploration of the scout leadership from you. Erwin, Levi and Hange and their characters. Why Levi chose Armin over Erwin and their conversation before the charge. The burden they shared until the end.
It just think it’s funny how ending lovers always say "AoT isn’t that type of story with a happy ending" when that’s exactly what happened. Nobody died. There needed to be a little bit more consequence.
A billion percent.
It wasn't really a happy ending.
It was bittersweet on grand scheme of things
It was the happiest one could ask for in a show like AOT. Even LEVI SURVIVES.
This. People want Eren to be black and white so bad. Its the same theme of trying to make someone only good; or only evil. When he was a boy, he saw the world this way. He matured, and it wasnt so clear. He’s 19 years old. People seem to forget he was a traumatized child, moving like a traumatized young adult. He couldn’t even be who he wanted to be; and was weaponized differently the instant he became a titan. This is exactly what I got from his Convo with Armin in the paths! He was a kid who couldn’t be a kid.
And the truth about the deaths is that even the alliance wasn’t invincible. If Mikasa didn’t reach Eren, all of them would’ve died.
About your final rant about how this was the first time there was no consequences from a battle in the series, what about the revolution arc in the first half of S3? Some close calls like Jean almost getting shot and Hange getting grappled in the shoulder, but overall there wasn't any major loss from the core cast in those battles. Genuinely curious because I greatly agree with your point about how every battle tore something from them, often people they knew. It really grounded the fights and made them few and impactful. The revolution arc was the only time I looked back and saw it was largely a net gain for the crew. If I'm remembering something wrong, let me know.
The titans coming back to 'life' doesn't seem weird to me since Ymir already brought them back physically, Zeke and Armin just woke them mentally. Seeing them appear after Zeke's epiphany felt like their spirits resonated with the conclusion and gave Zeke/Armin the opportunity to ask for their help. And what I like the most here is that Zeke had to ask (not order) them here, which is in contrast to how he commanded titans in the past. Or maybe I'm reading too much into that.
There were many fights with no real consequences (death fantasy "earned victory" headass), luck has always been a thing in aot, don't know what he was babbling on about, I also don't get how of all things, characters dying is the thing that makes aot different or engaging for some, especially compared to other animes, guess Akame ga kill gotta be his favourite show ever then lol.
Now that I'm already writing, I wanna say that, even though I feel what he said about Reiner or/and the eldians dying in the end which would make the end more suffered and impactful I don't see how that improves anything or makes it more earned, I really don't, it would just be making their victory overly tragic with no real substance, if what he wanted is to make Eren's decision consequential he already has him literally saying that he caused Sasha, hange and floch's death, so that's already checked, even the stakes were there too, they were going to die and this is heavily emphasized, they got saved by the past titans and falco.
I also think he spat a bunch of bs like saying this "betrays the logic of the show" like what? Since when has it been established as a rule that every conflict needs to have a main character's death? Then that shit was broken since at least season 3 part 1 and I'm pushing it.
Edit: forgot to mention one of the worst points of all: him summarizing their goal as stopping the rumbling and that there were no sacrifices made to reach that goal, like mf, Mikasa and Armin wanted to get eren back and shoulder their sins together, yet they had to give up on him, similar case with everyone else, no one wanted to just kill eren and stop the rumbling except Pieck and maybe Annie and Reiner (all of this ignoring the deaths caused to reach eren to begin with ofc)
Life’s good when the goat uploads
Overall, I feel pretty similar towards it. Not a masterpiece, but not so bad it ruins the series. My biggest issues were the lack of casualties, ymir's motivation, some of Eren's motivation, and the ending being too happy. Shouldve been much darker imo but that would have been a very different arc
Ymir was a much better character when she was just a slave with no free will, and Eren was the one who had to free her. That scene with her freeing him is just not nearly as impactful now and honestly gives me more reason to believe Isayama changed the ending, but thats a whole other discussion.
For Eren, the ending for sure made him more complex, but I dont think that was necessary. Eren felt like he was going down a totally different path than what the final chapter reveals. Mikasa says "everyone says Eren has changed, i thought the same, but maybe this is how Eren has always been" and Eren says to Zeke "Rather than someone letting me steal their freedom, I'll steal theirs first... I've always been this way since I was born". Eren was a great character because he never changed, only our perception of him did. So to see him in the end just kinda not care about his freedom and his development to pretty much disappear, I was disappointed but I really do love the approach Isayama took. idk, im still very mixed about it all.
Other than all that tho, a lot of the final chapter felt like fan service to me. "woah look at all those cool titans, this is so badass, so much action, yay Eremika is real, all my favorite characters get to live happily ever after". Also Im surprised you did not mention Eren's colossal titan form as it really didn't make any sense story wise other than cool fight between two colossal titans.
But yeah, 5-7/10
I agree with these points. It really does feel very fan-servicey, which is probably why so many people will defend it with their lives. It's fine, I guess. Just leaves so much to be desired.
Eren did care about "His" freedom till the end though.
Because Eren felt everything Ymir felt.
Therefore Ymir, through her feelings and memories, was also part of Eren.
So Eren, by moving forward to Ymir's liberation, still ultimately did it for freedom.
The ultimate memory/feeling Eren had was that of Ymir's feeling of freedom. That's what he kept moving forward to.
I was so expecting Reiner to die. It was finally time to kill the Plot Armor Titan.
15:20
Re: your final conclusion
Yeah I actually agree, I think that SnK missed some big opportunities near the end. I will never forget when I was watching the final season for the first time. I was a manga reader and I remember I stopped reading literally the chapter just before the Battle of Shiganshina begins (S3), and I didn't pick up the story again until I found out the final season had aired. I remember watching the Battle of Shiganshina, the Marleyan battle with the Middle Eastern Allies, and the Battle of Liberio.
I was pretty sure I was getting reading for a drawn out war and I was rooting for the Eldians -- even though it was hard not to see that the author had manipulated me into supporting the exact same kind of invasion of a childs hometown that we root against in Season 1.
That was when I realized that this story was never about an army entering unforeseen circumstances and trying to survive them. Sure that brought most of the people in the door. I remember very vividly that when SnK premiered in 2013 it was viewed as the anime Walking Dead. I would say that it was right up until you get to the basement, and then the story does a hidden genre change which is actually a return to its roots.
As I've said before, SnK was always.... yknow what SnK is? Its not the Walking Dead. Its anime Breaking Bad. The author goes, I'm gonna show you a person. Have them go through things to the point you would root for him through anything and then I'm gonna have him break bad to see how many of you would support genocide. Its a Stanley Milgram Test.
3:00 My interpretation was we saw Ymir create all those mindless titans out of hardening to defend Eren, but the talk-no-jitsu awakened the spirits associated with those titan and caused them to change sides.
That's also why those spirits all stayed around Armin at point blank range when he decided to explode rather than try to save themselves. They were mechanically an outcropping of Eren's body and were going to be destroyed either way.
I don't think nobody dying takes AoT away from the masterpiece status for me, but I definitely agree someone should've died. In particular, I feel like Reiner should've bit the dust. This man has been depressed for seasons at this point, and one of the absolute highlights of the finale for me was that one scene of him absolutely TAKING ON the worm thing when it tried to reattach to Eren. I thought it was a great opportunity to kill him in the blast of the Colossal, him finally dying the hero he always dreamt of being.
Though on the other hand, he would've never been able to sniff Historia's letter. Actually nvm, it's better the way it is.
I'd prefer him to die as well (especially if he sacrificed himself), but i feel like he needed some more development towards his death. Like if he had remembered his time as a soldier and came to the realization that those were pretty great times for him and then he dies giving his life for his fellow soldiers, that would've perfect. But for him to survive, he needed a reason to live when he is still filled with so much regret and disgust with himself. That should've been his character arc in season 4 imo: going from a depressed, suicidal, regretful warrior; to a soldier sacrificing himself to actually save humanity
everyone forgetting how hange's death was BS
@@kurokur0kurO Hange's death was one of the best scenes in the show wtf are you talking about lmao
@kurokur0kurO it would've been a lot better if she had some actual good dialogue before her death + Floch should never have showed up, would've been much better if the titans just caught up to them naturally. In the AOT Ursuper version of they chapter the writers give her a fantastic conversation with Levi before she dies, giving her a much more meaningful death
@@sinesjoewhat actual good dialogue are you talking about ?😂
You said exactly what I was thinking about the finale. You even used the same analogy with the sun exploding... are you reading my mind?
I see all.
The worm didnt disappear. They showed a clip where the worm can be seen to be nullified into bits.
on members of alliance "didnt lose enough". they lost hange, magath, had to kill their comrades, had to kill eren which was many of them best friend doesnt feels "not enough"... it would made Eren clown for letting them die when he didnt have to. also if you were "team eren and floch" then you lost everything hehe
80% of people dying and the group being an enemy of Paradis is a huge consequence imo
To the part at 7:23, as a manga reader I do still feel the same way as you feel here all these years later. There's something about predetermination and an omnipotent being waiting for the thing they made happen to happen.
It's like in that Loki TV show but somehow better and worse at the same time
7:30
So it does totally feel weird and overly convoluted that the story was all a hard fought journey to get to this specific end point. I would say to you about the ending is that the end of SnK, especially as it was experienced by the manga readers, felt a lot like Lost. Idk if you watched Lost, but the ending feels like it comes out of nowhere. Like its a bizarre, hokey way to end a show that was full of real mystery and intrigue that felt like it needed to be solved.
However, if you rewatch Lost from the beginning, you start to realized that every obstacle, every character conflict... they were ultimately like externalizations of the characters internal turmoil. That ultimately Lost was about the journey and not the destination. I think this same thing inspired Isayama as he made SnK. If you take the story too literally, you miss the point that this is ultimately a story about what the struggle to survive an apocalyptic situation does to people; it makes them capable of carrying out an apocalypse on others.
So what it means for the goal of everything they did was to reach the endpoint of a woman killing than man she loves for the sake of the greater good- I would argue that every single major event of the story was just as important as the final event. It wasn't the final event that changes Ymir; its the culmination of all of them together.
So lets continue this idea to the post-credits scene. A boy and his dog happen upon the tree where Eren was resting, suggesting that the cycle could begin again. I've heard that scene called "To you 2000.... or 20,000 years from now"
SnK's opening chapter is titled that way to suggest that this story is being transmitted to us from another time. And the same way Eren's experiences both his actual experiences and memories revealed to him through the Attack Titan and Founding Titan; enabled Eren to commit an atrocity. It also led the Eldians and Marleyans to stop Eren. That ultimately Shingeki no Kyokin is a story that is painful and traumatic and it changes people; the characters within the story as well as the audience that reads it.
12:25 if you think we hated eren because he "wasn't a stone cold killer" you got it wrong. What you or anyone can't explain or give hard undeniable facts is eren would cry over not getting to smash mikasa for 10 years at least. There is no hard evidence that he even loved her it has always been a one sided romance
I don’t think the Paths brought the dead titans back to life- it is just using the founding titan’s memory of them to create simulacrums the same as it was doing before but now they help. I dont think of the Paths bring a strange afterlife but rather a database holding all those Ymir has the memories of.
i loved the ending, id rate everything about it perfect. The last point though got me thinking. I agree with you that another character death or 2 would be in line with what aot is known for. My issue is i cant think of a satisfying way to do that. There wasnt enough time to give attention to character deaths. I think the entire group living through their very last mission was the right choice.
Another thing, i genuinely think people forget that; these mfs arent even 20 yet, so Erens cringworthy reaction I THOUGHT was just the kid he was supposed to be, trapped inside a mangled mind of war and destruction 😭i was fucking baffled that they werent at least 25 by this point, my guy has had his mind on war since he was 9 or 10, i think the way Eren reacted was definitely warranted
Honestly, I don't have so much of a problem with the Alliance surviving, eventhough it would have been definitely better if some of them died without activating this mega plot armor. My biggest issues are with Eren and Ymir, so essentialy with the resolution of the story itself as they were the two most important characters.
Eren:
I don't care if "he's 19 years old", since the beginning it was never showed that he had that kind of interest for Mikasa (or pussy in general), his issues were much bigger than that and his bursts of rage and tears were always for an understandable reason, then the story goes way further developing him in a way that he went beyond space and time being able to see the past and the future, being the only one who could see that "beyond the sea" life was even worse than inside the walls, that humanity just hated them and wanted them all dead. So it feels absolutely right that he grew up more cynic and stoic, it wasn't all just a facade but a natural development of a devastated person who couldn't enjoy the sight of the sea as Armin or the others. He then took the burden of that hate and went beyond morality itself, deciding to destroy the world as it was the only way to protecting his friends, his people, his island and this cycle of racial hatred, even if he wasn't a sadistic pshycopath who enjoyed killing people and kids, indeed he was suffering for that. What an interesting character! We as audience can't take his side but we can't even totally hate him, we understand why he gets here as the story itself clearly stated multiple times that either he kill the world or the world would killed them all. But then the ending came, and you find out that he just wanted to protect his 7 friends and make them heroes, he doesn't even care about Paradis and its future generation, they can all get fucked as long as his little group of friends lived (except Sasha and Hanji), but no wait he wasn't even sure if they survived, and no he didn't have a real motive to do the rumbling, he was just an idiot with too much power, but no in reality he was a pshycopath who wanted to "see the sight" of a world with no humans left. Poor guy, let's give him a break, his head is all messed up cause he sees past present and future at the same time so he's a just a slave to destiny, he even had to retroactively kill his mother to make all this happen so now he can finally be used by Ymir to get to Mikasa. What a ridicolous way to end this brilliant character. I could go on about it but then this comment would be too much long
Ymir:
I don't know how Isayama managed to create a character who tied the origin of titans, the theme of "freedom" that this show had always emphasised and the main character all at once. He is really a genius! Unfortunely, he throwed all of that in the garbage, deciding that she was just in love with his abuser and that she just used the main character to help her getting to a side character cause she had to see the side character decapitating the main character, putting aside her love so she could hersef put aside hers. So now the theme of AoT and its final resolution all revolves around toxic love and the overcome of it, THAT was the motive for having 2000 years of hatred, violent racial conflict and the curse of the titans itself, even if we had no build up whatsover and love was just never really in the picture of this complex story full of deep philosophical messages.
I still love AoT and to me it's a 11/10, I did a rewatch after the finale and I just ate all the series in one week even if it was the third time watching it, cause it's just so masterfully crafted. I wanted to enjoy the ending but I think it's just bad, and I strongly think Isayma changed the finale cause there wasn't really any build up or foreshadowing.
Ok I'll explain a bit about the "Mikasa killing Eren to free Ymir of delusion" part because I don't think I'm on the same page as you. The future Eren saw was "locked in" because... it's the future. NOT because Ymir decided it. In AoT there's only one timeline so what Eren saw HAD to happen. Ymir did not mold or choose how things would turn out at any point (before the final episode anyway). It would kinda defeat the purpose of being changed by people's resolve when you yourself manipulated events in order to see those specific resolves... The only thing Ymir went back in the past for was to peek at Mikasa's feelings and thoughts (her headaches), and that happened after Eren freed her to chose for herself, and after Armin made her want to seek connection with others (because of his conversation with Zeke in the paths).
In other words, Ymir did not manipulate things so that she could see Mikasa kill the man she loved. If she could have done that I'm sure she wouldn't have waited 2000 years... She needed to first become free, then want to look for that. So all 3 main characters had a crucial roll in Ymir letting go and ending the titans.
It did feel very odd that nobody died in the end from the group. But after watching this video, my first impression is that Aaron made the choice that would give his friends the best chance at living so maybe that is how it was rationalized.
My problem with Eren breaking down is how extreme it is. He has been shown to have emotional moments in Season 4 like the flashback with Ramzi, but crying over killing a child (eventually) and someone you love getting with another man are on very different levels in terms of severity. And I don't agree with the explanation that he's young, characters should be shaped by pre-established information about their character rather than arbitrary justifications such as age.
Here something from my clipboardyou completely misinprate him,if you wanna make analysis recontex all the word he said and not make asumpsion by one word,armin-so do you did this for us
Eren-no
Eren-i wanted to trampled everything
Eren-i wanted to see this sight
Eren-i just wanted to do it very badly
Tell me how are you gonna explain this dialogue?this is what i hate about casual wiewer they completely didnt understand simple dialogue like this
Armin-determination?you do this by you own will and you call it determination
Armin-why this is happening,is there really no other choice
Eren-i thought i do this for protecting you guys,but sahsa,hange,floch died because of me
Eren-why?why this is the the only "possibilities and outcome that happening",
Eren-its because iam 1diot that got too much power
Eren actually have choicee,he doesnt got slaved by fate but in fact got slaved by his own will and his own egoism
,his main motive thst makes him "choose" rumbling is to satisfacting his desire of false freedom,the sight of freedom he always dream of,sure there other motives like erased titan power,protecting paradise,save his friends,but deep down he wanted to satisfacting his egoism
Understand the Ymir thing but it still suffers from lack of development.
Stockholm syndrome relies on someone seeing the abuser as human; sympathizing with them. However, Fritz is never portrayed as having humane qualities. He’s a straight up monster.
Having grown up in an abusive relationship with my parents it’s kind of insulting to see it glossed over like that.
I don’t buy the “this is a 19 year old kid about to die” argument in favor of the “confession” scene. Eren is currently committing genocide while giving that speech and just confessed to killing his mother but that was completely blown over in favor of talking about Mikasa’s feelings. It would’ve been way more satisfying to have Eren confess what he feels to Mikasa in paths that he doesn’t want to die but knows he has too and Mikasa hearing that but still willing to let him go because having Eren lie and still not be upfront with her takes power away from her decision to kill him because she’s still being influenced by Eren because he’s the one who basically said it was okay to kill him like he didn’t say that but it’s definitely implied by that “when I die” line. I get what it was trying to go for but ultimately it not only feels tone deaf but also takes power and agency away from Mikasa’s character in a way that I really disliked. I also dislike how Mikasa waited ten years to marry Jean just like Eren wanted I would’ve rather she had more agency and perhaps the whole romantic love thing between them to be scrapped and make it familial. Also regarding Ymir I think it’s much more effective to have Ymir want and long to be loved then actually being in love with Fritz I also dislike that revelation as I feel it is unnecessary and also slightly disrespectful to someone like me who has unfortunately shared some trauma with the character it just doesn’t sit right. There’s also problems with Isayama breaking his own rules either Ackermans being immune to memory manipulation only to have Mikasa have her memories erased of her goodbye with Eren and even have that paths goodbye in the first place. Zeke dying also shouldn’t have stopped the rumbling due to the order being from Ymir and not Zeke so he wasn’t even needed as the royal blood founder herself gave the order. I’d be fine with Zeke dying but I think the reason why is what kills my like for it. Also yeah some of the alliance should’ve died at least Connie like come on lol
Good point on characters dying in the end however I would be highly agaisnt Reiner dying. The Universe really likes to screw with him and to have him die as a hero really seems to "merciful' for him. The entire point of him living ahead of Marcel, Beredtolt, and Annie shows his character of survivors remorse. Out of all the characters I feel Reiner has one of the best conclusions. Especially when he has to grow old knowing Histora is married having her own family.
The problem with Alliance members dying in the final fight is that Eren would then have failed to complete one of his core goals - which is for his friends to live long, happy lives.
You might say, well, he already failed with that, Sasha and Hange died. However, he succeeded in saving five out of seven of his closest friends. He saved the vast majority of them. If he saved all of them, that would be naive and unrealistic. I think two of them dying is a good compromise.
And, despite what you say (I don't mean this disrespectfully) - Eren dying does give impact to the final fight. You say that this was the Alliance's goal, so therefore, it doesn't count. But this wasn't their goal from the start. It only became their goal after they realized that this was the only way (after Annie and Falco showed up). Before this, they wanted to avoid killing him. How could it possibly be otherwise! Eren is a dear friend to all of them, and the best friend and a love and interest to Armin and Mikasa respectively.
You say that one of the core principles of good storytelling is that a character has to lose something to achieve a goal. And they did lose something - they lost Eren. Eren is one of them. Just look at their reactions and facial expressions when they are flying on Falco in the middle of the fight when they realize that they must kill Eren.
Besides that, Hange had already died in the rumbling arc as a consequence of Wall Titans rampaging. The Alliance lost her in the process of trying to achieve a goal. It isn't necessary for someone to die in the actual fight to feel that a sacrifice was made to achieve a goal.
But aside from all of this, it doesn't really matter what the Alliance's goals were. Eren is a freaking main character. How can we possibly say that the final fight had no impact when the most important character in the series got killed?
Also, the fact no Alliance member died in the fight is easy to make sense of. Eren didn't want to kill his friends, and we can make a reasonable hypothesis that Ymir, who controlled the ancient shifters, knew this. She witnessed his convo with them in the Paths in the previous episode - she knew that they were his friends. So, they didn't die because she wasn't trying to kill them, she was only trying to prevent them from harming Eren. Although this point depends on a certain interpretation of Ymir's character which not everyone may agree upon (you may think that she didn't care about Eren's interests, but I do, and there's really no way to tell who is right because her character is very open to interpretation).
Having said all of this, I respect your opinion, and I am glad you think that the ending is good nevertheless. I don't think it's flawless either.
I had the same gripes as you and felt similarly abt the quality of the ending when I finished it. But with time I came to see the ending as nearly perfect from an emotional standpoint because scenes eren and Zeke’s convo with armin + mikasa’s decision made me feel so deeply and there was so much narrative significance to these moments. From the standpoint of how “good” it is, it’s like an 8/10 but rating it purely based off of how much I love it it’s a 10/10. I have a feeling the ending could grow on you like it did for me because when I look back on it I just remember how deeply affective those major moments were
Also you should totally read the manga because there were some frames and translations that were so incredible that weren’t perfectly replicated in the anime.
Agreed.
I think reiner sniffing historias Letter was Not creepy at alll He Always Had a crush on historia and seeing this reiner again was so funny and wholesome because all season 4 He was really depressed. For me this was reiner we know from season 1 and early s2
i guess it depends on the culture
For someone who's been watching and reading aot since 10 years (Bravo isayama) I also wasn't very happy with the way manga ended and been debating it heavily for more than 2 years now and I don't hate it now,I'd give it a 6.5,but overall aot is still a masterpiece and nothing can change it, I think most of the problems occurred because isayama wanted to make it hopeful yet a tragic ending
like everyone in scouts surviving,them going for peace treaty with Armin being narrator fitted it well, and aot itself was a very vast story covering so many different themes that it was never going to have an ending that would satisfy all of those themes perfectly
Mikasa's choice being the final straw didn't feel like aot at all, aot's plot twists feel like aot, they had weight because if a person paid attention they would be able to figure it out way before the actual reveal now even though Mikasa killing eren was foreshadowed, same can't be said about her choice freeing Ymir
And I would disagree on eren killing her mother, it was actually setup way back in Marley and also it always felt like a hole why would dina go straight for carla but the way it's done is kinda iffy, if it was done in kinda like a predestination type twist,where he says him trying to save his mother caused her death,that would've been better imo
As much as I KINDA agree some of the Alliance could have died, idk if it woulda added anything for me cuz the series was ending like if there was more story then I would agree that The Alliance should have had more casualties but since the series was ending and we really wouldn't see exactly how the dead affected our living characters in the long term, I think it's fine that they lived
(But I completely see where people are coming from when they have the opposite sentiment) Also W vid as always lol 🤣
I totally Agree as much as I love the very brutal feeling of anyone can die at any moment in aot I didn’t really think anyone else dying besides from eren would add much to the story. Honestly not having a heroic sacrifice at the end of a story filled with brutality is a breath of fresh air
@@jumbolia2716 i feel like the reason for no one being able to have a death that "adds to the story" is Isayama's fault there. Reiner couldve had a much better arc in the end where he sacrifices himself, conny shouldve actually had depth and easily could have died a meaningful, Jean could have died anytime really he had a great arc
The Alliance living without the fire that was Eren Jaeger is a form of death.
Mikasa never married and became a recluse. She went to Eren's grave constantly and stayed true to her love for him until her death.
The ambassadors look fine on the outside, but Eren's fire, his passion is missing and everyone sounds and looks stilted. Sure Connie and Jean bicker but it's not the same when Sasha and Eren were alive.
They spent the rest of their lives suing for peace when they could've retired but they didn't. Yes, there were no more Titans, but the Alliance couldn't really enjoy it the way their kids and grandkids could.
Wait for the episodic release...
Your jaw will drop to the floor.
That heroin analogy is a tad confusing, they're also shooting up because it makes them feel good in some sort of way. to the point where they cant feel good w/o it. so if we're framing Ymir's love for Fritz as an addiction, what is the high (or positive stimulus) that she gets from it that would keep her going (like a regular addict) regardless of the drawbacks?
Exactly, it's a dumbass analogy. Ymir falling in love with King Fritz made no sense at all. Its not even Stockholm Syndrome because that refers to when a captor treats their captive nicely which led to the captive falling in love with the captor.
King Fritz DOESN'T do this, he treats her like trash, even when they have 3 children together he still called her a slave. King Fritz don't make Ymir felt good in any way whatsoever, the only logical reason for Ymir going back to Fritz after gaining the Titan powers is that that's the only thing he knows to be, a slave.
Fritz took her childhood from her, and she kept being enslaved to him for 2000 years until Eren freed her. But then Yams retcons that Ymir loves Fritz and Mikasa being the one who frees Ymir inadvertently making a parallel to Eren and King Fritz when Eren was framed as an antithesis to him pre-finale
The episode said it outright: Connection. She was lonely, and then this guy laid in bed with her. He can be a downright vile human, she’s still finally connected with something.
You’ve gotta read up on your psych. Stockholm syndrome does not require kindness, and it’s been examined to happen more frequently the worse the abuse is. It is a totally self-motivated delusion brought on by the trauma of capture. None of this holds up, champ. Sorry.
Hard, hard, HARDEST disagree on the Ymir-Fritz thing. Imagine how much more tasteful the love theme could've been presented if she loved her daughters, not him. If the curse was due to her reluctance to cut ties with her progeny, with her race, instead of the pig slaver who abused and raped her for 13 years. Imagine Ymir having to set herself free from slaving away for the sake of her children, dooming them to die young while giving them godly powers and being torn about it, rather than keeping them in close contact with her in the paths, but hurting the entire Eldian race as a byproduct. Much more tragic, much more believable, and again, A LOT more tasteful than "slave girl falls in love with her abuser". It's been shown and told time and time again, throughout AoT, that blood relations are as vital as they are complex and tragic, and this could've been the culmination of it. But no, romantic love had to be the final theme. Why.
Honestly I almost entirely agree with your thoughts. Mild disagreements like not minding the kiss or disliking the Ymir loves king Fritz (I like the plot point but IMO it should've been more clearly conveyed that it wasn't actually love). But yeah my overall thoughts were loved it but wished more people died. I am okay with Reiner surviving the explosion or the curse being lifted thus lengthening life spans but IMO the people turned into titans should've died. Also the letter sniffing was gross and a little nit pick as well is Pieck saying she wished she could've talked to Eren. Like the people who'd known him like Mikasa and Armin not resenting him or even Reiner and Annie reacting how they did made sense but from Pieck's POV Eren is someone who invaded and destroyed her home and then proceeded to kill tons of her friends and destroy most of the world. She has no reason to have any sympathy for him. Also less of an ending nitpick and more of a general nitpick but I wish Historia was less side lined. Just brainstorming but it would've been awesome if she joined the plan and redonned her ODM gear to take down Eren. Obvi still have Mikasa kill him but Historia should've gotten to be active in the story after season 3. Maybe even like Historia sacrifices herself with Hange or to save Armin or something idk. Just give her something to do other than be pregnant.
This video pretty much sums up my own feelings on the ending, and Reddrik's explanation of the plot points beat-by-beat outlining the issues present throughout the finale have helped me to better understand the negative standpoint when it comes to this section of aot. I appreciate it greatly.
Note that Ymir has been dead for 2000 years. My theory is that that worm holds the paths dimension. And since titan memories can be passed down... it makes sense in the fact that ymir is basically a worm ghost, along with every dead eldian. Note how the survey corps disappear after the death of the worm. But it's just a theory. A FILM THEORY (or tv theory?)
He was powerless to protect them because of how important those deaths were in leading to the final outcome, not because he literally couldnt save anyone
Wonderful video, correct opinions - and by that I mean I agree. I'm also very impressed with your other videos! As another anime only I can FINALLY enjoy AoT youtube and your videos have been the best I've seen so far and I've delved right in haha.
Totally agree with the lack of alliance deaths being a let down, especially Jean - having the perfect opportunity to commit suicide in blowing up Eren's neck after spending the entire series calling him a suicidal maniac.
Out of interest, what did you make of the Hange afterlife stuff in the penultimate episode?
I’m also an anime only and I think the anime was satisfying but a lot of things could have been explained better and especially some things about Ymir but I have liked how the ending connects into the story.
Also the thing about them bringing them back people was not just Zeke but both Zeke and Armin(which is why Ymir and bertholdth were there I think). The best explenation in a video(link below) that I had seen was that Ymir gave them the power to bring those people back after hearing their conversation. She also did that because after hearing what Eren said after he treated like a human and understood her she started making her own decisions. This video does a much better job of putting everything about Ymir together:
th-cam.com/video/HQ3uHh9OGAw/w-d-xo.htmlsi=xVk8e6cJvc5CUjMq
i thought the ending was excellent. my problem is the music was subpar. they played different versions of call your name at least 4 times. i was waiting for vogel im kafig and you see big girl or even one of the openings could have fit great
It's funny how fans try to excuse most plot holes with their head canons and theories, just goes to show how many loose ends the actual show left.
It tried to dwell on its mysteries until the very end then spill everything out in the last second, but by that point everything was absolutely convoluted or it contradicted itself.
It's completely fine that it has people who loved the ending, but I personally read this thing monthly for years and it felt like so much wasted potential with how rushed it was. I hoped the anime would fix some of these issues at least, but at best it gave us stunning visuals while the rushed writing persisted. Not to mention some of the character assassinations...
Great video 👉✨️
the thing that makes the ending not great for me is the fate angle in it, It just felt odd to me every decision that Eren made was due to fate or was it his own dicision , why did Eren kill 80 per cent and not 100 ,was it because Eren knew he will get stopped or was it because Eren wanted his friends to become heroes more than getting the freedom for his people and himself , I wish we would have gotten more insight as to why Eren went for this 80% plan.
I'll admit, when I read the manga leaks of Armin changing Zeke's perspective by holding up a leaf, Armin and Zeke talking to past Shifters, and Zeke letting Levi kill him, it sounded cringy as hell. But in both the manga and anime, it's the perfect bow to wrap up everything with Zeke's whole story, considering everything we know about Zeke. A video analysing the whole picture of Zeke would be a golden opportunity for the channel, Reddrik!
Hundred percent agreed. Video is on the way!
Watch the ymir explanation video to understand how it was Ymir who let Zeke have his own freedom after hearing Armins argument and see Zeke convinced by it
Maan, I love ur content so much. We both had similar love and hate for the ending. The only thing is that the reason mikasa killed eren to show ymir that you can still love but kill what u love, that for me is bullshit and what made me hate the ending for so long, but I got over it eventually and I think you really captured everything wrong with the ending prefectly. Not having any casualties also ruined the ending for me a bit because that made no sense they had the biggest threat of the world to face, and they got 0 casualties, which makes no sense. Pretty awesome analysis, Reddrik. I can't wait for ur Zeke video! Thanks for the high-quality content as usual.
While I did enjoy most of the ending, there were some major hangups for me.
The reason why I didn't like the "I don't want Mikasa to be with anyone for the next 10 years" is that it was a unwarranted tone shift. By this point, Eren had already massacred 80% of humanity and still going and NOW is the time he's crying about Mikasa being with someone else? A better time would've been when he was locked up and Armin would've came in to see him. That's when he reveals to Armin the issues he's been having with seeing the future, his mind being all messed up and the possibility of him dying or his friends dying, this would've increased his resolve and instead of "looking pathetic" it would've made him seem more empathetic and it would've strengthened Armin's resolve as well.
Another reason is that we don't get any inside monologue from Eren during the rumbling besides him seeing it as Freedom. The last time we got a real look into his mind was when he talked to Reiner and made the declaration to the subjects of Ymir. So him saying what he said to Armin felt like a huge disconnect especially since he told Mikasa to forget about him earlier.
But. the biggest problem to me is when Armin asked why he did this and he said I don't know...WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T KNOW? We've seen from Season 1 to this point a multitude of reasons why I character like Eren would do what he did let alone the declaration of War, Marley sending his own people to come and kill them off multiple times and the rest of the world wanting to kill them, but no, his answer is "I dont know..." That answer would be scary if he was a random villain that just wants to be evil like the Joker but he's the MC that we've been with for 10+ yrs...
So, while I did enjoy the ending, and I absolutely love the anime in general, that main conversation between Eren and Armin just didn't hit at all especially when we spend more time on Eren and Mikasa than the realization that Eren killed his own mom.
I think if anyone dies it will be narratively wrong.
Conny had to see his mother and live as a legacy to sasha .
Jean always wanted a comfy life ,with a family. Even if not comfy he will be mentally sound with working as a peace keeper.
Levi went through alot no doubt and deserved all the peace he could get.
Armin and mikasa me not explaining cause I hope everyone is capable enough to understand y that doesn't make sense.
Yelena and onnyankapon death won't matter to the story or narrative or express something meaningful enough from the audience or the character.
Who else?
And technically they all died .
Great vid as always. Big fan of your work, but curious for your take on this point: how did eren have a Paths talk w Mikasa and Levi when ackermanns are immune to the founder??
Hold up... You're right...!
How can he erase an Ackerman's memory, when the whole point of their prosecution was that the king was afraid of them for having the potential to remember xD
It was my belief he had his paths talk with Mikasa just before she killed him! It was what gave her the strength to do what she had to do, remember? I don’t think he made her forget anything, I think he had the talk with her immediately before his death. What we saw wasn’t her remembering the talk, I thought it was happening in real time. And did he even have a talk with Levi? Is that ever mentioned? I’m not sure. At least that’s how I thought it happened. You may be right!
While I respect the idea that there should have been deaths in the Alliance, I strongly disagree. The fact that they are alive means they must cope and atone for the countless sins they've committed, especially for characters like Armin and Reiner. And I think that's beautiful, in a morbid way.
I totally agree with you, the ending is pretty good but definitely not perfect, and my biggest issue with it is Ymir's motivation ( Her needing to see Mikasa kill Eren in order to be free). It does devalue the story a bit as you said, for me at least. And I do agree that having no casulaties/consequences is greatly disappointing, but for me Ymir's issue is even bigger.
Other minor problems I had with it are : - Colossal titans stopping rather than acting like mindless titans - Colossal titan Eren - The Hallucigenia.
Still if you disregard Ymir's motivation, the ending is a solid 9/10 overall in my opinion.
I agree, her character was much better when she was simply a slave with no free will. Her loving Fritz makes sense, but it should not have added to her character's motivation + it really ruins the Eren freeing her scene. Thats was my top 3 scenes in the series for me but now its just not nearly as impactful.
Also about the colossal titans, from what I and others have figured is that they are strictly only meant for the rumbling by royal blood and possibly some condition. I do wish when Eren wiped away titans entirely that the colossals would have reverted back to humans
@@sinesjoe Yeah I just imagine like 10 million random eldians turning back to humans from their colossal titan forms in which they have been for 111 years and being confused about everything lol
Its good to see an anime only who doesn't act like a cultist and actually points out the flaws of the finale instead of just calling others illiterate just because they know better than them
Also I don’t think Ymir truely loved fritz I think she wanted fritz to love her so she tried to love him
“How did no one die during this” - solid vid up until this point, and as someone who studies psychology, love all your other works too, but are you actually serious with this statement💀, everyone who died up until this point died! you have to understand that the final episode isn’t a separate section from the rest of the final arc, all the characters who died, before this point in the other special were a part of this “stopping the rumbling” gig, if you ask me, in the pursuit to stop the rumbling, Hange, Daz and Samuel, Shadis and Magath, all died, along with any others I forgot, and 80% OF THE GLOBAL POPULATION. Also, by the end, there really isn’t any more to learn or gain from anyone dying, Armin and Mikasa can’t die because of the plot and the endings message, and considering the rest of the characters arcs are already concluded, they’re deaths would do nothing but do what? Make the remaining survivors more sad? They’ve already lost so much, making them lose more would do nothing to the plot but make me feel disappointed personally
Also just to clarify, personally I think that AoT is not an anime where some characters have any more plot armour than others, and I also don’t think really that it’s that dark or particularly ruthless with people dying, at least not when it comes to major characters. EVERY SINGLE person who dies in the show dies to convey a particular message that only their deaths could (marco), to cause growth in another character or advance the plot (marcel), or because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time and saving them would make no sense (like pixis). I just don’t think there is anything that any main characters dying could’ve been useful for other than sad points (which, in my opinion, no other character has ever actually died for other than side characters in seasons one and two)
There was a scene of the worn shriveled up. It wasn’t in motion but it was shown when everyone reverted back to human
Oh damn, I must’ve missed it.
Just an FYI, you do see the worm thing burning up dying in the background.
Another question: Where did all the wall titans go?
Did they turn back into humans? Must suck to wake up naked, in the middle of nowhere of some random ass country where you don't speak the language of. Where the natives almost just got wiped out and probably hate you. Heck, their only motivation for not immediately killing you is probably: "We need to re-plant all of our fields and rebuild all of our infrastructure and need the labor."
The last time you were human was over 100 years ago. If you were conscious during the time the vast majority of it was spent motionless inside the walls.
Love your videos man. I have another opinion on your biggest issue with the end of show.
I very much sat on it like you said and Honestly i mostly agree it would hit different/be what aot is if reiner died or jean or connie or any others... It is weird all of them besides levi suffered heavyish damage(not counting shifters) i agree with ya that it is off not AoT like. But Ive always looked at it all like Nobody has been safe or fully capable of saving eachother . Like how Eren said in 2nd season your still worthless brat nothing has change etc all of that. I feel like why all that is for the most part gone from this last episode is because Eren finally was able to do something to help hes comrades in the form of getting rid of the titans or atleats having a role in it all. Almost as something he always wished for and as we saw in the show and was always searching for. The part where everyone turns into titans and how fast pace it is even though we just "lost jean and Connie" I feel like its another classic aot troup were cinematicly and music wise its not acting like another terrible lose.. The characters are but not anything else.
And we and the characters are left sinking into another sorta hell another old levi squad got wiped out moment another ewrin and enlisted death.... But that gets quickly flipped upside down completely 180.
Ive always viewed it or felt it as erens most positive wishes amd goals and wants for life and more importantly hes friends and just hes attempt to do something and thats the something he did or was a part of. So that part of the show has always felt good for me personally especially when you look at the certain ways the shows presents itself as a media(camera shot,music, ya know the ways to capture everything thats going on or gonna happen completely) Cuz thats what the show is always on the nose about. So thats why i didn't feel off put from that part
Honestly i can see reiner dying thag be pretty dope ending for sure no lie.. But i do like seeing him get that redemption / moment with mom
Different time lines frlol
And it is lik weird that like bird falco can dodge everything but then i was just thinkimg literaly first episode falco already talking about flying in the sky and shit so idk lol
Man, your last and biggest point was hard to stomach, but it's true and it's an issue I have been ignoring bcs I knew it'd destroy me if anyone from the alliance died.
Great video. I loved the ending, and didn't mind that all my favorite characters survived, but I understand why people l
wanted it to be more lethal, and you're justified for feeling that way. Below are some of my thoughts if you're intetested.
For me, I just can't really pick a character that I'd rather have die than live. Pieck is the one we have the least emotional attachment to, so there's not really a point. Jean & Connie are only one step removed. We're attached to them, but they're (relatively) expendable, so killing them may have been too obvious (though that didn't stop Isayama from going for the fakeout). You can't kill Gabi or Falco since they represent the hope for the future. Mikasa and Armin obviously can't die. Annie came back into the story just not too long ago, I think it would be weird to have her die. Reiner's whole thing was finding the will to live again, so I'd want his resolution to be him being able to live a happy live. I guess maybe Levi could die? Show him joining the other dead scouts or something? But I love the idea of him carrying their legacy into the world without titans as the last living member of the Old Guard, though...
Actually, maybe I take back what I said about Jean. His whole arc was about him giving up everything he could ever want to do the right thing. So why not extend that to his life?
...But I still really like Jean, so I want him to live. After Hange died, can't at least one of my two faves survive? Lol.
I understand not liking the lack of alliance casualties. I don’t mind it myself because to me there doesn’t need to be a sacrifice to stop the rumbling. 80% of the world was already wiped out, so the damage was really done already. No named characters besides eren died but 80% of the world is a heavy cost.