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An Analysis of Attack on Titan’s (The Final Season) Opening “My War.”

(Author’s Note: Spoilers for anything beyond season three of the anime and for anyone not caught up with the manga.)

So, the final season of Attack on Titan has begun, it’s hard to believe that the end is already upon us. However, before the first episode aired we were treated to the opening and I’ve gotta say, this has to be one of my favorites out of all the openings. Sure, all of the openings are catchy and get the viewers pumped up for what’s going to happen in the episode. However, there something noticeably different with this new opening. It really gives us that “this is it” tone and gave me more of a feeling of dread as our protagonists will be in for the fight of their lives. Even if I wasn’t almost completely caught up with the manga, the opening would still leave me with that same feeling. Before we jump into my analysis, keep in mind that I will be analyzing the visuals and instrumentals of the opening. I won’t be analyzing the lyrics.

The opening starts with a piano and what sounds like a tambourine while the camera is panning down what looks like gray clouds. After a few seconds, the scene immediately changes to a massive explosion (a mixture of red, orange, and yellow) going off by a small building and tower with people singing in the background. Soon the viewers are shown multiple scenes of colorful explosions and war (including a figure firing a flame thrower). After the series of explosions, there’s a massive cloud of color rising up. What makes this cloud interesting, in my eyes at least, is that if you look carefully and at the right time, the cloud looks extremely similar to the colossal titan’s head and face. Immediately after this series of events, the viewers are shown a flock of birds falling from the sky with streams of colored smoke following them. In the background, you can hear a mixture of violin and drums playing, giving off the hint that not even birds can fly freely. This also could be symbolism for our protagonists, since they wear the wings of freedom. Since they’re going to new, unexplored territory, they won’t be able to fly as freely as they originally able to. Soon we hear the lyrics to the opening, as the multi-colored form and take shape. It took some close examinations, but the different clips of the clouds appear to take the shape of a hand, chin and lower jaw, and finally an open mouth. This series of clips end with the words “this is my last war.” Immediately, we see part of an army, dressed in their uniforms and carrying firearms, marching down what is possibly a street or base. Followed by this we see some birds flying next to a zeppelin with some faint rainbow-colored clouds in the background. The viewers aren’t given much time to admire this peaceful, yet threatening scenery as what might be a titan falls from the ground and shatters. This leads to multiple soldiers, a few birds, and even zeppelins shatter from the explosion. Multiple titans are falling from the sky since they’re being used like airstrike missiles. Soon the viewers are greeted once again by the colorful explosions shown at the beginning of the opening, followed by buildings exploding as a result. Afterward, the scene shifts to rain falling (with an intense piano solo), as if the world is mourning the war and the conclusion it will lead to, with the mixture of colors fading into smoke. Soon, the rain is falling on a hand, which leads to a gruesome scene where there are broken bodies in a mixture of rubble. Some arms are reaching upwards to the sky while the words “war…my war…my war” are heard. In the end, the viewers are shown a gray statue containing the nine main titans (although only about 4 or 5 can be seen the clearest) and titan Eren is reaching out for something or somewhere. The opening ends with a few zoom-in cuts to titan Eren’s face.

Attack on Titan Season 4 Debuts First Opening and Ending Themes - Flipboard
(Photo from flipboard.com)

As I stated at the beginning, this opening has quickly become one of my favorites in comparison to all the other openings for this series. Watching the opening actually led to me reading the rest of the manga (or at least to where it currently is), and I’ve got to say, there are scenes that I can’t wait to see when they’re animated. For those that only watch the anime: you’re not ready, but it’ll be worth it when it happens. But yeah, now that I’ve caught up with the manga, I’ll need to watch the rest of the anime. While I could just jump to watching the first episode of the final season, skipping the other seasons just doesn’t sit right with me. Anyways, I hope you’ve all enjoyed the first episode of the final season. I can’t wait to catch up and enjoy the party with all of you. Until then, this is CuriousCat-13/Tracy Preston: signing off.

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