Last semester, in the depths of midterms, I was introduced to the singular greatest piece of art I’ve ever seen: Attack On Titan (AOT).
Before you start wondering if binging AOT during midterm season was a wise choice, having a TV show to watch with a friend genuinely helped during the trials and tribulations of midterm season! Study breaks are amazing and wonderful and should always be encouraged.
Anyways, back to the greatness that is AOT. Quick summary for those of you who don’t know: Attack On Titan is a Japanese anime based on a manga by the same name (which I have not read so pls pls pls do not spoil it thanks).
The basic storyline is what is left of humanity lives within three walls protecting them from “titans,” large human-like creatures who eat people. The reason they do eat people is unknown. One day, these walls crumble, and the story picks up from there.
The final season is premiering now, and with the first five episodes already out, here are my favorite theories for what may happen, again, without having any knowledge of what happens in the manga.
If you are interested in watching the show, I’d highly recommend you stop reading here, as the rest of this article will contain spoilers for the entire show up through Season 4 Part 2 Episode 20.
Theory 1: Eren is possessed
Okay, admittedly, my evidence for this is in constant flux, and maybe it’s me refusing to believe the kid we see in Season 1 ends up being like THAT in Season 4. But just hear me out. There’s a lot of religious symbolism in the show, which, in my opinion, hasn’t been explored enough yet.
The religious symbols coupled with calling the Eldians in Paradis devils leads me to believe Ymir (or some other entity) is actually possessing Eren. We know Ymir is the “founder,” and is a godlike figure in their world, but we are never told explicitly that she is a good deity, leaving the door open for possession to occur.
Theory 2: Falco inherits the Attack Titan
My only real piece of evidence for this is that at the start of Season 4 Part 1, he has some sort of flashback to swinging around (presumably in ODM gear). The way his flashback is presented is very similar to how Eren receives his very first vision way back at the start of the show, before he ever became a titan. After last week’s episode, we not only know that holders of a titan retain the memories of all the previous holders of that titan, but also the Attack titan can also see into the future.
The way seeing into the future works is a bit complicated, but in short, the previous holder of the Attack titan was Eren’s father, Grisha, who would see into the future via Eren, who sent select memories back to his father from the future. The current holder of the Attack titan picks and chooses which memories the previous holder can see. If Falco receives the Attack titan after Eren, in theory, he could manipulate Eren’s decisions by selectively choosing what Eren does and does not see from the future. However, Falco received the Jaw titan, so I’m not really sure how plausible this theory is anymore, but it’s AOT, and crazier things have happened.
Theory 3: There are no more titans
This slightly contradicts theory 2, but I genuinely don’t see this show ending with titans still existing. Somehow, especially given the events of episodes 19 and 20, I think Eren will convince Ymir to end the titan lineage. In doing so, maybe all the survivors retain the memories of past events, so they do not forget their history.
One of the major revelations of the show was that everyone living on Paradis Island had had their mind wiped, meaning they had no recollection of the past and outside world. If Eren is either able to convince Ymir to end the titans and allow everyone to learn about their history or is able to use the Founding titan’s ability without being royal, then that would lead to titans no longer being a part of their world.
Theory 4: Armin is the sole survivor
When I say that Armin is the sole survivor, I mean the sole survivor of the core group. My major piece of evidence for this theory is that Armin has been narrating a majority of the show, especially in the introduction and previews. It would make sense that this show is his way of retelling the events that took place, either through a book or some other form of storytelling.
This idea goes along with theory 3. If Eren or Ymir can rid the world of titans, then I think Armin would no longer be locked into the whole 13 years left to live clause that comes with inheriting a titanl, meaning he could live a long enough life to spread their story.
Please keep in mind that these are all my 3 a.m. theories and probably won’t happen, but either way I am so excited to see how this show will end.
Header Image: The Independent
