Attack on Titan

Synopsis

Setting

A map of Walls and the districts therein:   Maria  Rose  Sina Attack on Titan centers on a civilization within three circular walls. According to local belief, it is the last surviving vestige of human civilization. Its inhabitants, known as Eldians, have been led to believe that, over one hundred years ago, humanity was driven to the brink of extinction by the emergence of humanoid giants called Titans, which attack and eat humans on sight. The last remnants of humanity retreated behind three concentric walls and enjoyed roughly a century of peace. Within the walls, residents are strongly discouraged from venturing outside. To combat Tita…

Production

Author Hajime Isayama Hajime Isayama created a 65-page one-shot version of Attack on Titan in 2006. Originally, he offered his work to the Weekly Shōnen Jump department at Shueisha, where the editor of the department asked him to modify a few details in the story and artwork, which Isayama refused. He then brought the manga to the Weekly Shōnen Magazine department at Kodansha. Before serialization began in 2009, he had already thought of ideas for plot twists, although they were fleshed out as the series progressed. Isayama initially based the scenery in the manga on that of his hometown of Hita, Ōita, which is surrounded by mountains. While working at an internet cafe, Isaya…

Manga

Attack on Titan is written and illustrated by Hajime Isayama. The series began in the first-ever issue of Kodansha's monthly publication Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine, released on September 9, 2009. The manga was finished after an eleven-year publication run with the release of its 139th chapter on April 9, 2021. On November 8, 2020, it was announced that the manga would receive a full color serialization. Kodansha collected its chapters in 34 tankōbon volumes, released from March 17, 2010, to June 9, 2021.

In North America, the series was published in English by Kodansha USA. The first volume was published on June 19, 2012, and the last on October 19, 2021.

Spin-offs

A chibi parody…

Anime

An anime television series based on the manga was produced by Wit Studio and directed by Tetsurō Araki. The first season aired between April 7, 2013, and September 29, 2013, originally on Mainichi Broadcasting System (MBS). The second and the third season, directed by Masashi Koizuka, first aired from April 1 to June 17, 2017, and from July 23, 2018, to July 1, 2019, respectively on MBS and NHK General TV. Upon the airing of the final episode of the third season on July 1, 2019, it was announced that the fourth and final season of the anime series was scheduled for release in Fall 2020 on NHK General. On September 23, 2020, NHK listed the final season on their broadcasting schedul…

Live-action

A live-action film was announced to be in production in October 2011. In December 2012, it was reported that Tetsuya Nakashima left his position as director. According to film distributor Toho, Nakashima had considerable creative differences on the scriptwriting and other matters. In December 2013, Shinji Higuchi was revealed to be directing, and would also be responsible with the special effects. Writer Yūsuke Watanabe and critic/subculture expert Tomohiro Machiyama were announced to be scripting the movie with series creator Isayama. In July 2014, it was revealed that two films would be released in the summer of 2015. It was also revealed that some major characters would b…

Video games

• There have been four video game adaptations of Attack on Titan developed by Nitroplus staffers in collaboration with Production I.G. Nitroplus clarified that the studio as a company was not involved in the Attack on Titan Blu-ray Disc games, while individual staffers are. The games are visual novels and were included in the first copies of the third and sixth Blu-ray Disc volumes of the anime. The games cover spin-off stories about the characters of Attack on Titan. Isayama supervised the development of the games.

• The third Blu-ray volume was released on September 18 with Seko's Lost in the Cruel World visual novel about Mikasa, and a preview of Gun Snark's No Regrets (…

Other media

Two guidebooks to the manga titled Inside and Outside were released on April 9 and September 9, 2013, featuring concept art, character profiles and interviews. They were combined into one and released in North America on September 16, 2014, by Kodansha USA. A 16-minute drama CD was created with the anime's staff and included in the January 2014 issue of Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine. An art book called Fly, bundling a booklet Attack on Titan Volume 35, which contains the one-shot manga "Bad Boy" focusing on Levi's childhood, was released on May 2, 2024.

On November 3, 2014, American writer C. B. Cebulski revealed that a crossover between Attack on Titan and Marvel Comics was in …

Reception

Sales

The manga's publisher, Kodansha, credits Attack on Titan for the company's first revenue increase in eighteen years. The Attack on Titan anime adaptation is noted to have helped in boosting the manga series' sales while Mainichi Shimbun called it a "once-in-a-decade hit". In April 2014, Oricon reported that 30 million volumes of the series have been sold. By November 2014, the manga had 45 million copies in print. By November 2018, the manga had over 86 million copies in circulation worldwide. By December 2019, the number had increased to 100 million. By September 2022, the manga had over 110 million copies in circulation. By September 2023, it had over 120 million copi…