I view ch. 138 and 139 as one prolonged chapter. Both make up the "ending" for me. I give this conclusion a 3/5. Good enough and frankly predictable but I don´t think that the overall themes of the series are fully served by it. Isayama's struggle to write multi-layered female characters came to bite him in the ass. Mikasa sucked since the start and Historia got no favors either in the time skip section. Too much of the ending relies on being invested in them and the former is a non-character while the latter was laughably sidelined for all of the 3rd act. Ymir is another non-character and I don´t get what Isayama tried here when all was said and done. GoT S7&8 this certainly ain´t but the rot there sat in way earlier. Isayama on the other hand knew what he was doing for most of the manga and nearly all of the time skip mega-arc. I can most importantly respect that he ended the series on his own terms. Let's see what the madman´s next work is about but I hope it has fewer blatant exposition dumps. Overall a strong B+ manga.

I wouldn´t mind a bonus extra epilogue as there are a few fully unresolved main plot threads too many. Like the one Death Note got in 2008. (The 2nd one Death Note got in 2020 is its own thing and a bit shaky.) An archeologist or historian could try to make sense of it all ages after the events of the manga in a way for Isayama to show what sort of legacy was left behind by this forever war of ideologies and to clean up lore questions. Or to create even more confusion.

Last edited by residentgrigo at 5:27 pm, Apr 8

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I also read EU/US comics and am a librarian.
Manga-Masters, My ANN-Lists + Imdb

I'm extremely dissatisfied as it somehow managed to even fall way below my already lowered expectations.



Looks like a setup to an easy follow-up and if not, everything after time skip contributed nothing to the original story. I think it should have finished back when they discovered the cellar if this is the real finale. Compared to back then, I like none of the alive characters right now.

Isayama was famously inspired by Zack Snyder´s Watchmen adaptation (the director's cut is the best of the 3 versions) in making the manga. That inspiration apparently even played a role in the ending now that we have seen it. Snyder changed aspects of the comic´s ending. His operation S.Q.U.I.D. expands the death toll greatly and made it international as major cities around the world got fried instead of just NY like in the comic. International mass death to preserve a false peace? Hm. Not that the manga suggests that the end result was all that successful.

Watchmen´s film adaptation and AoT´s pilot release in 2009. but the basic idea is older and the comic itself dates back to the 80s. The closest copy of the WM ending I have seen so far in a manga is in Destroy and Revolution btw. A legit mess of an ending.

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I also read EU/US comics and am a librarian.
Manga-Masters, My ANN-Lists + Imdb

I'm quite happy with it. Also happy for its author as well, it must have been a really tough final stretch on Isayama-sensei... just the sheer amount of expectations (from outside and self-imposed), all the accumulated milleage... now the man can finally enjoy a much needed rest, while taking care of new pursuits (he's going to do a Sauna businnes from what I read in interviews).

Much of the final state of affairs is plausible and what you'd expect from that kind of post-war, almost apocalyptical situation. I must comment on the very end and the closure with Mikasa though, as I imagine that scene will probably be very criticized and meme'd. A lot of people will probably think it's dumb or stupid.

Now Eren was pretty much everything for Mikasa, and there was absolutely nothing anyone could say or do about her loss. It can happen with anyone who lost a very precious one, and sometimes solace can only be found through very personal experiences, dreams, spiritual guidance or such. The final scene felt kinda like an augury, but with a more positive and symbolic message (birds have always been symbolic in SnK and the seagul for its association with the Ocean would be quite particular to Armin, Mikasa and Eren). I got from it a message to be strong and move forward, which to be fair, is exactly one of the main messages throughout much of the series, though in this case it's more particular to Mikasa's situation. Mikasa has always striked me as a character very in-tune with her immediate surroundings, and the most fitting and reassuring message to her at that point, could only have come from the other side.

Anyway, it was a fun journey, and it'll stay as one of my favorites.

I really liked it 4/5 🙂
I did predict that he wasn't fully be in control of the titan powers (and when Annie got out ,almost everyone I know predicted a simmilar ending), but strictly speaking those last two chapters were very fulfilling. I could've lived without the bird (I would've in fact preferred a distant shot of Mikasa and the tree or her wrongly exalted /killed by an extremist mob ). If we take that out and the extremist Pardis mob (I mean he can alter their memories) those two chapters are a solid 7/10

What I liked the most was how he only went out of his way specifically to save Armin (even thought that wouldn't lead to the best outcome ) and Jeans joke on the history books (future Connie or whoever sniffed Historia's letter totally looks like a creep).

This doesn't take out that the last ark as a whole is terrible.😕
There were too many unnecessary things:



@Ultramarinus
I bet there will be even more memes comparing Eren with fascists.
XD

Last edited by lambchopsil at 6:25 am, Apr 11