The inspiration for the enormous humanoid giants known as the Titans in Attack on Titan came from Hajime Isayama’s own backyard.
Attack on Titan Wiki (AoTWiki) posted a short clip of Isayama getting interviewed on “TV for Songs of Tokyo Segment.” While Isayama’s interview occurred in 2018, the clip is currently making rounds again on social media. In the segment, Isayama stands outside, facing an enormous rolling terrain of mountains covered in trees, akin to the walls seen in his manga. “I’ve seen this view since I was a kid,” Isayama said, a contemplative light in his gaze. “So I tend to think the whole world is within these mountains.” Similar to his protagonist Eren Yeager who yearned for the freedom to see the world beyond the walls, Isayama also “wondered what was on the other side.” He continued, “There’s a reason there are giants on the other side of the walls. It represents having to survive in the harsh world outside. It’s a world where you have to battle just to get by.”
Attack on Titan’s Character Inspirations
Isayama recently divulged the inspirations for his other characters. At the Anime NYC panel in November 2022, where the mangaka made his first appearance in the U.S., he revealed Arya from Game of Thrones inspired him in his creation of Gabi while he based Falco on Jesse from Breaking Bad. In an interview in 2017 and translated by fuku-shuu on Tumblr, Isayama said he used real-life people as references for his character, using Mikasa as an example. He said, “Mikasa was modeled after a customer whom I met while working part-time at a net café.”
Selling over 110 million tankōbon copies worldwide as of September 2022, Attack on Titan is one of the most successful manga series of all time. The manga won the Best Manga at the 2014 Anime & Manga Grand Prix, Beset American Edition of Foreign Material at the Harvey Award, Best Manga at NEO Awards and received nominations for Best Manga Series and Best Comic at the French Babelio Readers’ Awards and Seiun Awards respectively in 2022. The manga began serializing in Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine from September 2009 to April 2021. The controversial ending led to the mangaka apologizing to his fans at Anime NYC. “I still struggle on this point,” Isayama said. “I’m very sorry about that.” His apology led to many fans clapping to show that they loved him and his work.
Wit Studio produced the anime adaptation for the first three seasons before MAPPA took over production for the final season. The anime also received accolades with the adaptation winning Best Work (TV) at the 2013 Newtype Anime Awards, Yuki Kaji winning Best Lead Actor at the 2014 Seiyu Awards and Best VA Performance (Japanese) at the 2022 Crunchyroll Anime Awards for his performance as Eren Yeager. The story follows protagonist Eren Yeager who seeks to break out of the protective walls that surround his town and protect them from the carnivorous giants called the Titans. After his mother dies, Eren and his two childhood friends, Armin and Mikasa, train to become Survey Corps to defeat the Titans. However, Eren soon discovers things might not be as cut and dry as he thinks when he begins unraveling his past.
The final part of Season 4 of Attack on Titan will premiere in 2023. The first three seasons and the first two parts of Season 4 are available to stream on Crunchyroll.
Source: Twitter
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