Call me crazy but I would have preferred the series ending after the Eren / Zeke mind game extravaganza. That felt like the finale to me. Then have a couple chapters wrapping up what's going on in Paradis. Everyone just swallows the bitter pill that is exterminating all of humanity outside the walls. After the genocide finishes, Eren can send out another message saying the work is done and humanity is destroyed and that he's removing the power of titans from this world. Then have him disappear and his fate left open. Paridis can start to send survey ships to assess the damage in the epilogue. They'll see all the destruction that Eren caused. Maybe they even find some holdouts that managed to survive in bunkers / on boats? The last pages can call back to the scene on the ocean with Eren saying "If we kill them all will we be free?" and have the main cast sit there, solemnly, saying that yes, I guess they are finally free.

Dangermousecatdog

United Kingdom7084 Posts

April 09 2021 19:10 GMT

#1662

I too would had preferred it if they just ended it with exterminating all of humanity outside the walls. And Gabi. There are so many open ends left it's kind of silly, as if the mangaka simply had no idea how to end the series. How did Ymir die? How did the power of the titans just disappear? How exactly did 80% of humanity die when the rumbling was seemingly stopped in Marley right next to Paradis island? I feel like I missed a chapter because it just makes no sense.

Legan

Finland575 Posts

April 09 2021 21:13 GMT

#1663

This series' problem was that it was ultimately action shonen. Thus it kind of had to end with big battle and not with long political drama about peace brokering. This has been pretty clear from the coup d'état. If the author planned to focus on diplomacy and politics, then aftermath of the coup would have been great opportunity, but instead he wrote short description about what happened and skipped ahead. This led to further problems as he chose to increase the size of world by introducing millions of people that lived peacefully without fear of titans. Also this was done in such way that pit protagonist against the people from the outside world. However, because series is action shonen, there need to be a lot of action even in future. Thus the fighting must continue even when the military solution should be replaced by diplomatic one. Author could have tried to introduce a diplomatic solution, but none of the characters have really been developed towards opposing the military hierarchy and advocating more democratic and peaceful approach. This would also been big shift in style and theme, that could have alienated fans that where following series because of the action.

CHEONSOYUN

565 Posts

April 09 2021 21:50 GMT

#1664

The direction of the ending I disagree with, but the way it was executed makes me very sad that something I have kept up with for years ended so poorly. If we had ended the series with 138 we would have been better off imo.

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Biggest issues:

Ymir being in love with King Fritz and Misaka's devotion/affection to Eren being somehow revelatory for her. Really minimizes the previous impact of Eren pleading with Ymir and telling her she can have her own agency.

Esoteric happy ending.

So many chapters and arcs have been devoted to realistically portraying the nature of conflict and humanities inclinations towards transgression. The rumbling happened because the story and setting showed that violence and war was inevitable (and it worked because it was portrayed as horrifying and almost tragic). Now suddenly in the final chapter we're supposed to be believe that Armin's role as Helos stopped the bloodshed immediately and be satisfied with vague hints that the world may come to peace.

Misaka's esoteric happy ending: Her character arc hit it's high in chapter 138 when she killed Eren and more importantly let him go. Now next chapter we 180 into her being portrayed as being unable to move on just as much as Ymir.

Shinokuki

United States923 Posts

April 09 2021 23:48 GMT

#1665

If Isayama had incorporated buddhist elements to the ending it would've been masterpiece of an ending. The idea that no peace can be attained from outside but from within. The characters realizing the futility of trying to achieve freedom or peace from outside and instead realizing that it just "you" that needs the fixing

Archeon

3265 Posts

April 10 2021 03:16 GMT

#1666

On April 10 2021 06:50 CHEONSOYUN wrote:
The direction of the ending I disagree with, but the way it was executed makes me very sad that something I have kept up with for years ended so poorly. If we had ended the series with 138 we would have been better off imo.

+ Show Spoiler +

+ Show Spoiler +

I agree. The last chapter was supposed to be the surprising twist boomerang, but it really lacked impact and felt rushed. 138 would have been okay as a finish.

Tbf the Mikasa thing didn't bother me as much, it's believable to me that she is griefing after burying him and in difference to Ymir she fought back when shit hit the fan. Overall I thought the character interactions were decent in the last chapter, but the surprise reveal part was really lacklustre and felt like there was a lot missing. With a better execution it would have been better than ending it at 138 imo, but there weren't really pieces falling together and Eren's heroic deed of destroying the titans wasn't explained well and falls really short in comparison to the genocide. So it lacks the aha effect which a final plot twist needs to have to be satisfying.