Attack on Titan has perhaps one of the largest and most diverse fan base out of all anime I have consumed over the years, so it shouldn’t be surprising that the show has a wide range of interpretations thanks to all the different groups that have been viewing it. To some it’s just another interesting action-adventure storyline, to others its a well-wrought allegory about the nature of mankind. We also have shippers of every kind, blind hypers who piss of other fandoms cause of their toxic love for AoT as well as entitled crybabies that look for excuses to throw gargantuan hissy fits. All that being said, I’d like to dissect and present to you the themes of perhaps the most influential anime this decade

AoT Final Season – Beyond the Hype:
The way Attack on Titan has evolved is truly rare and astounding – take that from a person who has read his fair share of literature (both classic and contemporary) and consumed a pretty decent amount of movies and anime. The world of AoT has been turned on its head by the humungous revelations of the previous seasons. And yet somehow, weirdly enough, it all seems to fit just perfectly
Want to know why?
It isn’t just cause of the nuanced and subtle clues Isayama sprinkled throughout the show.
No.
It’s because Attack on Titan has, at least fundamentally, has always been the same.
This brand new world of World War I-esque trenches, artillery and warships is no different from the previous one in terms of how dystopian and cruel it can be. Its future is determined by the Tybur family, just like Paradis’s fate was created by the Fritz/Reiss, and it too is ruled by a government that locks away the truth “for the greater good.”
At the end of the day, regardless of how different it may feel, it’s still a show about being trapped within impenetrable walls – albeit walls that are created by the hardening of the human heart, rather than those made by the hardening of Colossal Titans.

This season humanizes the “villains” to the point that we, the audience, ask ourselves the infamous question, “Who is the enemy?”
We are treated with almost half a dozen episodes in the Liberio Eldian Internment Zone. We learn that the Warriors, whom are feared and hated in Paradis, are not only not villainous monsters, but are, shockingly, “heroes” in their own little world. “Heroes” who have families and friends they would die for. “Heroes” who have fought countless battles against the “villains” that threaten their world.

Aside from that, this season also deals with how victims of the same type of discrimination and suffering react and cope with their inner wounds, and shows us how each individual comes to a different conclusions regarding the world they live in.
Reiner seeks judgment and suffers from extreme depression and trauma and only abstains from suicide for the sake of his loved ones. Both Gabi and Flock overflow with bloodlust and crave the utter destruction of their “enemy”, while Falco, Jean, Armin and rest of the remaining Survey Corps and Warriors take on the mission to protect the things they hold dear no matter the cost. At the same time, Zeke Jaeger moves forward with his own plan: To bring on the extinction of his own race.

So amidst of this multitude of different reactions, beliefs and ideologies, what is the common ground they all share?

It’s the fact that they’re all enslaved. Enslaved to their guilt, to their loved ones, to their traumatic past or even their hatred.
“Everyone is a slave to something” was something Kenny Ackerman said in the third season, and this season not only captures the very essence of this philosophy but also handles it with utmost finesse.

My thoughts on Eren Jaeger –

Eren is quite of an enigma at this point. What are his goals, how does he want to achieve them and the secret behind his whole chad persona – all seems pretty hard to read now but I have my own little theory.
I think that the notion of a stoic, emotionless, “chad” Eren is quite misplaced. Why you ask?
Let’s see the conversation between Eren, Armin and Mikasa. Notice how Eren sounds when he says, “I am free. Everything I do is of my own free will.” Yuki Kaji (Eren’s VA) did a tremendous job throughout the season but on that particular line, he sounds hollow and insincere, as though he is trying to convince himself, rather than the others. Do you see how melancholy the guy looked, standing in that corridor, looking out the window? Why would Eren, someone who has always wanted freedom, be depressed if he has what he says he has? Let’s also not forget about Eren’s reaction when Armin says “You’re the real slave, and your master’s a piece of shit.” Eren reacts pretty oddly to this. He should’ve tossed that remark aside with little or no thought, but instead he looks very pissed off, as though Armin actually struck a nerve.
Now compare that to Eren’s conversation with Reiner. Look how sincere and somewhat relaxed he sounds. When he says, “You and I, we are the same”, if feels as though he’s genuinely found a kindred spirit. But why? Reiner is far from being free. He’s enslaved and shackled to his past, his sins and of course his love for those closest to him. By acknowledging that he and Reiner are the same, is Eren willingly making an admission that he is a slave to the very same things? Guess we shall see. Stupidly hyped for Part 2. Cant wait.