New Medium Article: How Attack on Titan Nails the Battle Sequences
Hello everyone! I just posted a new article over on my Medium page. Below is the link to the article, as well as a sneak peek.
Article Link: https://alysonserenastone.medium.com/...
Sneak Peek:
Author’s Note: This article contains spoilers for both Attack on Titan manga and anime.
Attack on Titan is one of the most popular manga ever written. With its complex world and characters, this series never fails to disappoint. Despite all of these things though, what makes the series stand out the most for me is its battle sequences. It only makes sense for Attack on Titan to have epic battle sequences. After all, this is a world at war with the Titans and death is the only winner.
Attack on Titan delivers on high stakes. What I mean by this is that there is never the sense that everything is going to be okay and that our favourite characters are going to make it out in one piece. Hajime Isayama is not afraid to put his characters in danger and even kill them off. Time and time again, we are shown that no one is safe, no matter how powerful they are.
In the battle with the Female Titan, we see the Scouts withered with losses. Some of them are characters who were just there for the sake of filling up the panels and giving us a larger cast. However, these are not the deaths that I am talking about. Eren is a member of the Levi Squad, which is composed of the strongest warriors ever. These people are not supposed to die and are supposed to be able to stand up against anything. They have the highest kill records. However, they are no match for the Female Titan. You can see in the artwork how badly things are going through both the characters’ actions and expressions. They still give it their all and launch a highly coordinated attack. If this had been a different Titan, the attack would have worked. It does not. The Female Titan kills them all, but Levi. This shows us that even the strongest of the strongest is not safe. The death of the Levi Squad rattles the rest of the characters. This squad was supposed to be unkillable and, in the blink of an eye, is gone.
The loss of the Levi Squad changes the course of the series. First off, again, this makes the manga stand out from others. The strongest of the strong is not unbreakable. Even the most perfect of attacks can go wrong. The attack that killed the Levi Squad should have worked, as this attack style has worked time and time again. The Female Titan, though, is not a normal foe and, therefore, the Survey Corps are going to have to change how they fight. The enemy is always changing. To face this new foe, tactics are going to have to change. This is not the only thing that has to change. The Survey Corps still needs an elite squad and now has to rebuild this squad. Rather than turning to more experienced members, they turn their attention to the recruits.
The idea of using people so inexperienced in battle is something that should not sit well with people. However, they have been handpicked by Levi, who is considered to be one of the strongest soldiers of the time. People put their trust in him. He is known for picking people who can act quickly and make difficult decisions in the face of grave danger. This brings up back to the original idea of picking such inexperienced fighters. While all of the new members have been in combat, they are just that, they are still new to the game. However, it all comes back to one thing. The Scouts are still trying to push Eren. Putting Eren’s friends on the front lines is a work of genius. Putting them in such danger is going to force Eren to reach his full potential or this is the hope anyway. However, if you examine each of their strengths, you could also argue that they do have something to add to the squad. Armin is a genius and Sasha is an amazing tracker, just to name a few examples. Another thing to keep in mind is that they were all in the top ten of their class, which means that they are all skilled. It also can be said that because they are such great friends they will go to extremes to keep each other safe and alive. This goal will allow them to focus on what they are supposed to be doing, which is killing Titans.
With this new squad, we see the intensity of the battles increase. This comes back to us being familiar with the characters on the front lines. This makes every injury, every death, every victory, and every loss all that much more painful. Because we know these characters and have formed these bonds with them, we feel it all. As the manga has already shown, even the strongest of the strong is not safe. We know that not everyone is going to be okay. This idea puts fear into the hearts and minds of the reader. Whenever the reader believes that not everyone will be okay, it makes everything feel all that much more.
Article Link: https://alysonserenastone.medium.com/...
Sneak Peek:
Author’s Note: This article contains spoilers for both Attack on Titan manga and anime.
Attack on Titan is one of the most popular manga ever written. With its complex world and characters, this series never fails to disappoint. Despite all of these things though, what makes the series stand out the most for me is its battle sequences. It only makes sense for Attack on Titan to have epic battle sequences. After all, this is a world at war with the Titans and death is the only winner.
Attack on Titan delivers on high stakes. What I mean by this is that there is never the sense that everything is going to be okay and that our favourite characters are going to make it out in one piece. Hajime Isayama is not afraid to put his characters in danger and even kill them off. Time and time again, we are shown that no one is safe, no matter how powerful they are.
In the battle with the Female Titan, we see the Scouts withered with losses. Some of them are characters who were just there for the sake of filling up the panels and giving us a larger cast. However, these are not the deaths that I am talking about. Eren is a member of the Levi Squad, which is composed of the strongest warriors ever. These people are not supposed to die and are supposed to be able to stand up against anything. They have the highest kill records. However, they are no match for the Female Titan. You can see in the artwork how badly things are going through both the characters’ actions and expressions. They still give it their all and launch a highly coordinated attack. If this had been a different Titan, the attack would have worked. It does not. The Female Titan kills them all, but Levi. This shows us that even the strongest of the strongest is not safe. The death of the Levi Squad rattles the rest of the characters. This squad was supposed to be unkillable and, in the blink of an eye, is gone.
The loss of the Levi Squad changes the course of the series. First off, again, this makes the manga stand out from others. The strongest of the strong is not unbreakable. Even the most perfect of attacks can go wrong. The attack that killed the Levi Squad should have worked, as this attack style has worked time and time again. The Female Titan, though, is not a normal foe and, therefore, the Survey Corps are going to have to change how they fight. The enemy is always changing. To face this new foe, tactics are going to have to change. This is not the only thing that has to change. The Survey Corps still needs an elite squad and now has to rebuild this squad. Rather than turning to more experienced members, they turn their attention to the recruits.
The idea of using people so inexperienced in battle is something that should not sit well with people. However, they have been handpicked by Levi, who is considered to be one of the strongest soldiers of the time. People put their trust in him. He is known for picking people who can act quickly and make difficult decisions in the face of grave danger. This brings up back to the original idea of picking such inexperienced fighters. While all of the new members have been in combat, they are just that, they are still new to the game. However, it all comes back to one thing. The Scouts are still trying to push Eren. Putting Eren’s friends on the front lines is a work of genius. Putting them in such danger is going to force Eren to reach his full potential or this is the hope anyway. However, if you examine each of their strengths, you could also argue that they do have something to add to the squad. Armin is a genius and Sasha is an amazing tracker, just to name a few examples. Another thing to keep in mind is that they were all in the top ten of their class, which means that they are all skilled. It also can be said that because they are such great friends they will go to extremes to keep each other safe and alive. This goal will allow them to focus on what they are supposed to be doing, which is killing Titans.
With this new squad, we see the intensity of the battles increase. This comes back to us being familiar with the characters on the front lines. This makes every injury, every death, every victory, and every loss all that much more painful. Because we know these characters and have formed these bonds with them, we feel it all. As the manga has already shown, even the strongest of the strong is not safe. We know that not everyone is going to be okay. This idea puts fear into the hearts and minds of the reader. Whenever the reader believes that not everyone will be okay, it makes everything feel all that much more.
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