r/AnimeAnonymous

So I finally finished watching Season 3 Part 1 of Attack on Titan. Starting with the animation, the character designs felt a bit different this time, the characters look a bit older, their faces are longer, and their eyes look slightly different. The animation was great just like in the previous seasons. If I had to pick an animation highlight for this part, it would definitely be the Levi fight scene, I mean, that fight was absolutely incredible! Even though the animation was good, the use of CGI was quite apparent here too, just like in the previous season. But that's fine, it didn't really bother me last season, and it didn't bother me this season either.

​I also liked the fact that the enemies were humans this time, even if it was just for a short while. I really enjoyed all the political intrigue taking place, and it completely shifted the tone of the show. Earlier it was just a simple fight of Titans vs humans, but it’s not that simple anymore, the story is so complex. The fake King looked like such a badass at first, but then it turned out he was just acting, when the nobles told him to wake up and he regained consciousness, that scene was hilarious! Commander Zackly getting his revenge on them was pretty funny too. And I also really loved that interrogation scene! The way Levi tricked that Military Police guy by handing him a script and forced the truth out of the other one was absolute brilliance.

​Two other moments from this arc really stood out to me. First was Armin reflecting after killing that woman, he was crying while thinking about why he shot first even though she had drawn her gun earlier. That line was honestly so deep, rather than simply having him say 'I'm a killer now.' Then Levi calms him down by saying that if Armin hadn't shot her, Jean wouldn't be alive today. I appreciated that Levi didn't glorify what happened, he knew it was a dirty job, but someone had to get their hands dirty.

​I also really loved Jean's scene during the political arc when he recruits Marlo and Hitch. For a second, I was shocked thinking he might actually kill them! But then he tells Marlo that he reminds him of someone, he was probably talking about Eren or Marco. Honestly, seeing Jean step up as a leader felt so satisfying.

​Getting to see so much of Levi in this part was awesome too. His relationship with Kenny was great and very complex, if Kenny had survived, I feel like he might have eventually joined the good side. We also get to see Historia's horrific past. Earlier, she felt like nobody wanted her, which is why she always tried to act nice and please everyone just to avoid being alone, and that's why she was initially listening to her dad. But once she realized her dad was just using her as a tool, the way she slammed him was absolute perfection!

​We see Eren's character develop further as well. He now knows how to fully utilize his Titan powers, and we finally learned what his father did to him. I really liked how Historia changed his perception of his father. Eren had an internal conflict where he wanted to feel special, but was constantly made to feel useless. In this part, that feeling disappeared, and he now views himself as a weapon to fight Titans.

​However, there's another confusion in his mind when he remembers Ymir's words about a nightmare. When I heard that, I thought, Yeah, that actually makes sense. Since the lines between Titans and humans have blurred so much by now, maybe Titans aren't inherently evil, maybe they feel like they're trapped in a bad dream, which is why they eat humans.

​Erwin was even cooler this time around. He has a reason to live, a dream he wants to see fulfilled. Seeing his personal motivation was great. One thing I love about this series is that if any character has believe, a motive, they will lay down their life for it.

​There were so many revelations and callbacks in this part that it almost felt like an information overload! After several episodes, I would just sit in complete silence thinking, Okay, so what all just happened in this episode? But we did get answers to many questions, even though several remain, like where Reiner's homeland is located and why they were killing humans in the first place.

​Wait, something just clicked in my mind! In Ymir's flashback, people were turned into Titans and kicked off the top of the Wall as punishment. Then Ymir ate a Titan Shifter and turned back into a human. I know this might be a wild theory, but could it be that the people kicked off the Wall survived like Ymir and created their own separate civilization? Never mind, maybe that's nonsense!

​Another question is who is that Beast Titan guy? Is he the head of Reiner's squad, similar to Levi on our side? Could we see a fight between the two of them later on? And could Levi end up turning himself into a Titan so we get a Titan vs. Titan fight? I don't know, but the thing I'm most excited and terrified about is that post credit scene, I have no idea what happened there!

One thing is completely clear now, the author had planned everything out from the start, and his vision for what he wanted to do was crystal clear. So many things and details that initially seemed random to me are actually getting their payoff here! For instance, back in Season 1 when Eren's ODM gear belt was broken, I had assumed that maybe Annie or Reiner sabotaged it, but the real secret behind that was only revealed now.

​So yeah, those were all my thoughts. I really liked the music in this part as well, especially the opening song, it was so melancholic and emotional that I'd love to talk about it separately. I'm extremely excited for Part 2 and will give my final rating once I finish the entire season!

So I finally finished watching Season 3 Part 1 of Attack on Titan. Starting with the animation, the character designs felt a bit different this time, the characters look a bit older, their faces are longer, and their eyes look slightly different. The animation was great just like in the previous seasons. If I had to pick an animation highlight for this part, it would definitely be the Levi fight scene, I mean, that fight was absolutely incredible! Even though the animation was good, the use of CGI was quite apparent here too, just like in the previous season. But that's fine, it didn't really bother me last season, and it didn't bother me this season either.

​I also liked the fact that the enemies were humans this time, even if it was just for a short while. I really enjoyed all the political intrigue taking place, and it completely shifted the tone of the show. Earlier it was just a simple fight of Titans vs humans, but it’s not that simple anymore, the story is so complex. The fake King looked like such a badass at first, but then it turned out he was just acting, when the nobles told him to wake up and he regained consciousness, that scene was hilarious! Commander Zackly getting his revenge on them was pretty funny too. And I also really loved that interrogation scene! The way Levi tricked that Military Police guy by handing him a script and forced the truth out of the other one was absolute brilliance.

​Two other moments from this arc really stood out to me. First was Armin reflecting after killing that woman, he was crying while thinking about why he shot first even though she had drawn her gun earlier. That line was honestly so deep, rather than simply having him say 'I'm a killer now.' Then Levi calms him down by saying that if Armin hadn't shot her, Jean wouldn't be alive today. I appreciated that Levi didn't glorify what happened, he knew it was a dirty job, but someone had to get their hands dirty.

​I also really loved Jean's scene during the political arc when he recruits Marlo and Hitch. For a second, I was shocked thinking he might actually kill them! But then he tells Marlo that he reminds him of someone, he was probably talking about Eren or Marco. Honestly, seeing Jean step up as a leader felt so satisfying.

​Getting to see so much of Levi in this part was awesome too. His relationship with Kenny was great and very complex, if Kenny had survived, I feel like he might have eventually joined the good side. We also get to see Historia's horrific past. Earlier, she felt like nobody wanted her, which is why she always tried to act nice and please everyone just to avoid being alone, and that's why she was initially listening to her dad. But once she realized her dad was just using her as a tool, the way she slammed him was absolute perfection!

​We see Eren's character develop further as well. He now knows how to fully utilize his Titan powers, and we finally learned what his father did to him. I really liked how Historia changed his perception of his father. Eren had an internal conflict where he wanted to feel special, but was constantly made to feel useless. In this part, that feeling disappeared, and he now views himself as a weapon to fight Titans.

​However, there's another confusion in his mind when he remembers Ymir's words about a nightmare. When I heard that, I thought, Yeah, that actually makes sense. Since the lines between Titans and humans have blurred so much by now, maybe Titans aren't inherently evil, maybe they feel like they're trapped in a bad dream, which is why they eat humans.

​Erwin was even cooler this time around. He has a reason to live, a dream he wants to see fulfilled. Seeing his personal motivation was great. One thing I love about this series is that if any character has believe, a motive, they will lay down their life for it.

​There were so many revelations and callbacks in this part that it almost felt like an information overload! After several episodes, I would just sit in complete silence thinking, Okay, so what all just happened in this episode? But we did get answers to many questions, even though several remain, like where Reiner's homeland is located and why they were killing humans in the first place.

​Wait, something just clicked in my mind! In Ymir's flashback, people were turned into Titans and kicked off the top of the Wall as punishment. Then Ymir ate a Titan Shifter and turned back into a human. I know this might be a wild theory, but could it be that the people kicked off the Wall survived like Ymir and created their own separate civilization? Never mind, maybe that's nonsense!

​Another question is who is that Beast Titan guy? Is he the head of Reiner's squad, similar to Levi on our side? Could we see a fight between the two of them later on? And could Levi end up turning himself into a Titan so we get a Titan vs. Titan fight? I don't know, but the thing I'm most excited and terrified about is that post credit scene, I have no idea what happened there!

One thing is completely clear now, the author had planned everything out from the start, and his vision for what he wanted to do was crystal clear. So many things and details that initially seemed random to me are actually getting their payoff here! For instance, back in Season 1 when Eren's ODM gear belt was broken, I had assumed that maybe Annie or Reiner sabotaged it, but the real secret behind that was only revealed now.

​So yeah, those were all my thoughts. I really liked the music in this part as well, especially the opening song, it was so melancholic and emotional that I'd love to talk about it separately. I'm extremely excited for Part 2 and will give my final rating once I finish the entire season!

So today I finally watched Studio Ghibli's movie Ponyo! Out of all the Ghibli movies available with dubbing on Netflix, I had watched every single one except for this last one remaining.

​To be completely honest, whenever I saw images or posters for it, I used to think it would be way too childish and that I probably wouldn't enjoy it much. It also gave off a very Disney esque vibe. Even while watching the film, the opera style music playing during the opening and closing credits reinforced that Disney feeling a bit. So yeah, before watching, I expected it to feel childish, and while watching it, sure, it is meant for kids, Miyazaki did made it specifically with children in mind, yet I still enjoyed it immensely!

​Ghibli movies have a way of making kids actually feel like real kids, and that was very true here as well. The movie was super cute and deeply heartwarming. The scene where Sosuke makes paper boats for the elderly women at the care center was something I really loved. He gives a blue paper boat to the old woman who was scared when she first saw Ponyo. Plus, that old lady isn't just constantly grumpy, she genuinely cares for Sosuke too.

​Sosuke's mom was really nice as well, though in my opinion, leaving her young child alone like that wasn't entirely right, she felt a bit careless to me. When the storm hit and the officer warned them against taking that dangerous road, she didn't listen to him either, even if she didn't care about herself, she should have at least considered Sosuke's safety. But it's not like she was completely irresponsible, she clearly loves Sosuke deeply. I feel like her frustration and irritable mood stemmed from Sosuke's dad being away. (Maybe I'm overthinking this!)

​Ponyo's parents were also very interesting, especially her dad, Fujimoto, I really liked him. That's another wonderful thing about Ghibli films, there are no straightforward, pure villains.

​I read somewhere that Miyazaki wanted to develop a sequel to this, and honestly, seeing that would have been super interesting. The underwater world and the overall visuals throughout the film felt incredibly unique and stunning.

So I finally finished watching the first arc of Sword Art Online, the Aincrad arc! I initially thought I'd watch the entire first season before sharing my views, but the first arc was long enough on its own to warrant a solid discussion.

​To start with the animation, it was really good! Only the CGI used here and there felt a bit distracting, otherwise, the animation, the world, and its visuals were all quite impressive. The show's music was also great, and I really enjoyed both the opening and ending tracks.

​However, what I didn't like as much was how fast the character bonds and relationships felt. For instance, right at the start, Kirito and Klein become friends, but we hardly spent any time with them to actually feel that connection. Yet the show wanted us to feel it, because when they were parting ways, Kirito was crying, but I didn't feel anything in that moment. Similarly, Kirito and Sachi's relationship felt very rushed to me, when she died, I didn't feel bad at all, even though that was a major turning point for Kirito's character. As for the other girls Kirito met along the way, I couldn't really feel the bond between them either (though I'd say Lizbeth's episode was a bit better).

​When it comes to Asuna, her off screen character development didn't feel entirely believable to me. Just a few episodes prior, she knew almost nothing, but when Kirito meets her again, she feels like a completely different person. After that, a romance develops between the two of them, this time mutual, and to be honest, I couldn't get invested in their relationship at first. Gradually, though, I did get invested because their dynamic was actually given time to breathe, unlike the others which felt rushed. The story was initially giving character relationships only as much time as was strictly necessary to move the plot forward. It was only when things slowed down in the second half that I managed to get invested.

​I also felt Kirito's character development was somewhat rushed. His arc is good, but I think they should have executed it better. Halfway through the arc, when they started focusing heavily on Kirito and Asuna's bond, I realized Kirito's character archetype, someone carrying a heavy burden and trauma who struggles to form connections and feels destined to be alone. So it wouldn't surprise me if learning to connect and form bonds will be an essential part of his arc in the future.

​I liked what they did with Kuradeel, the episodes with Yui were nice, and I liked how the arc ended. It's a good thing they didn't play it too safe, because early on it was starting to feel very generic. But overall, yeah, it's a pretty enjoyable anime!

So, I just finished watching Season 2 of Attack on Titan. This season was titled Clash of the Titans, and wow, what an absolute clash it was.

​I really appreciated the revelation that Titans actually have a purpose, they aren't just mindless evil. I'm talking about Reiner and the other Titan Shifters, of course, putting Ymir aside for a moment, since her story was a bit different. But looking at Ymir's backstory and what happened to Connie's village, it became clear that these Titans are actually human beings, which Erwin also concludes at the end.

​However, even after getting so many answers, even more questions have popped up. First and foremost, Why? Why is someone turning humans into Titans? From what I can gather, they turn humans into Titans and want to use Eren's power to wield them as weapons. But where did all of this begin? Do the people from Reiner's homeland also live inside walls? Probably, since near the end, the Beast Titan was shown sitting atop a wall. There are so many questions! As for the power inside Eren, as far as I reckon, it either belonged to Eren's dad or he had the formula for it, which he injected into Eren so that the enemy nation couldn't take it. Idk, it could be anything. Just when I think I've understood everything, this show throws a bunch of new questions right in my face.

​Okay, putting theories aside, I loved this season. The previous season was already near perfect, but this one went a step above. Something was revealed in almost every single episode, keeping me hooked from start to finish. The early episodes of the first season felt a bit dense and slow paced because they were introducing so many characters, helping us understand the world, and establishing various plot points. But here, every episode from beginning to end was phenomenal back to back.

​Right in the very first episode, we got such a shocking moment when that Titan spoke! My state of mind back then was exactly like Mike's. Then, the reveal about Connie's mom was mind blowing too. Next, there's Historia and her connection to the royal bloodline, which hasn't been fully revealed yet.

​Then came Reiner's reveal. I had already guessed Reiner earlier, but I completely missed the fact that his brother could also be a Titan, how crazy is that! I had correctly guessed Reiner as the Armored Titan, but as for the Colossal Titan standing next to him, I thought it was Commander pixis, I'm such an idiot!

​The fight that followed was awesome, and then came that intense chase scene. Compared to last season, we got to learn so much more about the side characters here, and every single one of them was deeply interesting. I never expected Hannes to show such bravery, and what happened to him was something I never saw coming. Honestly, if this were any other anime, Eren would have learned to control his Titan power by that moment, heck, in other anime, he would have learned it by the end of Season 1! But expectations were completely subverted here. After Hannes was gone, a totally different power awakened inside Eren, and we finally got an idea of why Reiner was after him.

​I knew Reiner's identity would eventually be revealed, but given the way he behaved and helped everyone, I kept praying on the inside that he wouldn't turn out to be purely evil, and thankfully, that was the case. That twist came, but it brought another twist along with it, Reiner developed a split personality due to stress and trauma.

​I also really liked Bertholdt. In Episode 11, tears welled up in my eyes when the Survey Corps members were trying to talk sense into Bertholdt, and then Jean mentioned his sleeping postures, that was the moment I realized how close these guys truly were.

​And yeah, Sasha! We got to learn a bit more about Sasha this season too. Even though her backstory got somewhat overshadowed by the major plotlines, the speech her father gave felt really nice and accurate. Everyone wants to protect their own family, and he also makes Sasha confront the reality that she's just afraid of meeting outsiders and facing the world. It felt deeply relatable to me, I used to be afraid of stepping out of my comfort zone too. I've struggled with social anxiety and still do sometimes, and I think most people have gone through it at some point.

And I completely forgot to talk about Eren! Ever since he fought Annie, the hatred for Titans in his heart has grown even more intense. Unlike last time when he was quite hesitant, this time he couldn't control his rage at all, it was as if his ability to think rationally had vanished.

​In Reiner, setting aside his human side, the guy who used to be such a close friend to him, Eren could now only see a Titan. He kept repeating the exact same thought over and over that all Titans deserve to die. The flashbacks also reveal just how stubborn Eren truly is, once he sets his mind on something, he becomes nearly impossible to handle. I still feel Eren is extremely impulsive, he is so full of anger and hatred that it frequently drives him completely out of control. I still feel like his arc is taking a turn toward the dark side, much like Gon's in Hunter x Hunter.

​Anyway, leaving all that aside! The animation was fantastic again this season. There was just some noticeable CGI here and there, especially during that Colossal Titan sequence, which was a bit distracting, but since it was only for a few moments, it didn't bother me too much.

​Compared to last season, I noticed a slight shift in the color grading as well. While the previous season was dominated by yellowish, barren tones, this season felt dominated by richer greens and darker tones. The pacing felt even better to me than last season, and the soundtrack was amazing, especially the opening and ending, which were even better than Season 1's. Also, the non linear storytelling structure used in the first few episodes might seem a bit confusing, but I found it very interesting and it adds to the rewatch value.

​Overall, I found this season even better than the first. I gave Season 1 a 9.5, so I'll give this season a 9.8/10.

​For Season 3, I'm expecting Levi to recover by then, for us to uncover the secrets of the royal bloodline and Eren's dad, learn more about Reiner's homeland, understand what this new power is, and above all, discover where everything started.

Season 1 Review – https://www.reddit.com/r/attackontitan/s/6ej7DpkFY5