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With the third part of Attack on Titan's final season set to premiere in the coming months, fans are incredibly excited to finally see the anime series’ conclusion. For those who haven’t been spoiled by the manga’s ending, they hopefully anticipate whatever conclusion author and illustrator Hajime Isayama has planned for them.
However, many manga-readers are instead hoping that MAPPA Studios and the rest of the adaptation team will introduce an anime-original ending for the series. This sentiment stems from widespread discontent with how Isayama eventually ended his manga series, with harsh criticism from fans ensuing.
Disclaimer: This article contains heavy Attack on Titan manga spoilers.
Eren’s survival and 6 more things everyone expects to change in an anime-original ending for Attack on Titan
1) The Rumbling completed
In the Attack on Titan manga, fans see the Survey Corps eventually succeed in their attempts to stop The Rumbling from completely annihilating the rest of the planet besides Paradis. This was also done at the cost of Eren’s life, which Mikasa takes herself while everyone else sets her up for the kill.
Considering the rumors that this was a far cry from what Isayama’s original ending was, several fans expect this to be the first thing to change in an anime-original ending. Many will instead likely see The Rumbling fully completed, including scenes which see Eren sacrificing his friends’ lives in order to create the future he envisions.
2) Eren lives
Likewise, another major change in an anime-original ending to Attack on Titan would be that Eren lives through The Rumbling. Following its conclusion, he would likely assume leadership of the New Eldian Empire and, if history is to be repeated as it often is in the series, reconquer the world and enslave any survivors along the way.
With the cycle of violence being a constant theme throughout the series and being present even in the final moments of its extra pages, this would be a sensible way to end Eren’s story successfully. It is purely speculative, however, since nothing is ever discussed of what he will do in the aftermath of the mainline series.
3) Survey Corps dies
Similarly, most fans expect an anime-original ending to Attack on Titan to feature the Survey Corps dying. With The Rumbling’s success all but guaranteed in a hypothetical anime-original ending, fans will also most likely see the Survey Corps die in the process. While they can survive, it makes more sense to kill them for a few major reasons.
Firstly, it emphasizes the dedication Eren has to continue doing what he believes is right and completing The Rumbling. There’s also the fact that the Survey Corps members have already vehemently opposed the idea of The Rumbling and Eren’s actions, meaning it would be unlikely that they’d suddenly stop fighting against him for whatever reason.
4) Paradis survives indefinitely
While the Attack on Titan manga’s main ending was divisive for fans, something that was universally panned was the final chapter’s extra pages released with the series’ final volume.
These saw Paradis eventually bombed and razed to the ground, as well as a young boy discovering Eren’s burial ground the way Ymir once discovered the Founding Titan.
Thus, it’s confirmed that Paradis is eventually destroyed and that the cycle of hatred and violence is not broken, proving Eren’s words right. At the very least, an anime-original ending would see Paradis survive the events of The Rumbling, hopefully also establishing the cycle of hatred and violence to be broken.
5) Zeke "lives"
While he technically isn’t fully alive before being fully killed in the manga, Zeke Yeager is at least shown to have some semblance of existence and sentience in Attack on Titan’s final pages. This is proven by him voluntarily exposing himself to Levi Ackerman to be killed, rather than continuing to hide as a part of Eren’s biomass (hence, he’s not fully alive).
One change that an anime-original ending would make, by nature of having Eren successfully complete The Rumbling, is that Zeke continues to exist in this state of quasi-death. While not necessarily life, he clearly maintains some aspect of consciousness in that form, making it a philosophical upgrade from death.
6) The Eldian Empire returns
As mentioned above, an anime-original ending for Attack on Titan in which The Rumbling is successful would likely see Eren assume the role of leader of the New Eldian Empire. However, with him set to die shortly thereafter, fans wouldn’t be able to see the full life of this New Eldian Empire with him at the reins.
Fans would instead likely see brief scenes that establish Eren as the head of the Empire and what his immediate goals are before ending the story there. This leaves a tone of ambiguity to the Empire’s ultimate fate while also providing a degree of finality to Eren’s story considering his imminent death.
7) Original "you're free" panel is animated
Finally, one of the most controversial aspects of the Attack on Titan manga’s ending was the redux of what Isayama teased as his originally planned ending. Releasing a sketch of the panel as a teaser to fans, it appeared to be Grisha Yeager holding a newborn Eren and telling him that he is free. Readers assumed that this would be written in as something the latter remembers via the Founding Titan’s powers after The Rumbling is complete.
While this scene did make it into what became the series’ actual ending, it was not in the same context and style as what had originally been teased to fans. If an anime-original ending is taken, there’s no better way to treat both fans and Isayama than by adapting this panel to its original form and intended purpose.
