Apr 23, 2017
All before watching SNK 2 I was wondering if Wit Studio could pull off an upheaval after the disastrous Koutetsu no Kabaneri (just the thought of mentioning it gives me a shudder). Given the general hype the anime left people almost four years ago, the first season of Shingeki no Kyojin delivered a widespread following that it spurred a lot of assorted media-- novelty items (like an oppai mousepad of mikasa XD), doujinshi (most of them are BL anyway), cosplay, posts, forums, movies, spinoffs, a tribute game, a cult following, a subreddit and even memes, and whatnot. It was one anime I very much anticipated
...
to the point of being a nutjob about it.
Shingeki no Kyojin starts where it ends in season 1, where yes, for those who haven't read the manga, what you've seen in the last part of the episode is true (although there was no build-up of surprise here). We are again thrown into this miserable world of titans, whose raison d'être is unclear aside from making humans unhappy by treating them as fish sticks or whatever. The first four episodes is investing in the mystery, and we are shown some of the side characters' side stories (there is no joke there). And with most of the characters not yet subjected into heavy action, they remain cardboard cutouts which demands very little of my attention, and I was wondering if there would even be an avenue for decent character build-up for them not to look like expandable, dull-edged characters.
But other than that, seeing through the first four episodes of this anime, I felt something alien pervaded the atmosphere. The first season was gruesome, gritty and somewhat spine-chilling that I have to hunch over my shoulder just so to assure myself that there isn't a titan there with me in the room. The brutality of the atmosphere made this world in SNK real, and it was grueling sympathizing with the characters as they try to salvage humanity from the hands of these giant man-eaters. But this season it felt like they are trying to be intentional with that atmosphere. Considering that the first parts of this season is a lull (ironically) to the series as if they were just stocking up before a big storm. But I cannot shake off the feeling that something is not right with the delivery. The horror here is starting to... "neutralize" that I could even watch this straight without feeling anything. There is also unwanted drama that I did not sign for, like a tawdry addition to make it seem like Wit is even trying. I can forgive when an anime delivers a low impact, but not when it gives me less than expected.
And I just wasn't into it. Actually after watching episode 2, I felt as if I wasn't interested on watching episode 3 and went on watching another anime on the Spring 2017 lineup. If this keeps up I might lose interest entirely, shame for all the anticipation I had in this. Or maybe it was just me, since on season 1 I piled the episodes so I would have a continuous feel-trip whereas I was watching this per week, but I hope they would try to keep up a decent pace since they will only be giving 12 episodes; and I really pray they don't level down to the ranks of Shokugeki no Souma Ni no Sara where everything became flat and rushed.
You might feel I was giving a lot of negatives, but this anime surely is still good enough to watch. I mean, there is a lot more to say for the next episodes, and with Wit Studio's foray to make this anime as more of a hit like the first season, I could still very much keep my butt glued to my seat for the incoming episodes.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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