Attack on Titan Creator Hajime Isayama Still Stands By Its Ending

When it comes to storytelling, there are few things harder than nailing an ending. Sure, it can be tricky hooking fans into a story, but the test of one’s skill comes in landing the whole thing. Plenty of franchises have done this beautifully while others like Game of Thrones struggled. And despite the backlash, the creator of Attack on Titan still stands by how their manga closed.

The update comes fresh from creator Hajime Isayama as the artist did an interview overseas. Speaking with France Inter, Isayama admitted he felt a little bad when the manga ended, but that dissipated quickly. After all, the creator says they did their best with Attack on Titan and are “satisfied” with its finale.

Of course, Attack on Titan fans still talk about the manga’s ending regularly, and anime fans will be able to join in soon. The show is slated to drop its last few episodes this year, and Studio MAPPA has said the whole thing will pop off this spring. The last releases of season four promise to follow Eren as his quest for genocide move forward, and the only ones capable of stopping the protagonist are his old Survey Corps friends.

If you have read the manga, well – you know the final pages of Attack on Titan have a lot to unpack. The final battle with Eren is absolutely wild, and once he begins turning soldiers into Titans, our heroes start dropping like flies. However, Armin is able to break through to Eren’s mindscape, and Mikasa uses that moment to end the fight for good. With a single slice, she is able to kill Eren, and Paradis is left to deal with the fallout of their friend’s coup.

Obviously, this ending left plenty of fans upset, and Isayama knew it would be polarizing. But in the end, the story demanded Eren’s death. There is no coming back from the things Eren did, and Mikasa’s mercy kill freed her love as well as herself. So if you had any doubts, yes. The creator of Attack on Titan still stands by this ending.

What do you think about this latest update from Isayama? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB.