Don't let it deceive you, this is a brutal, cruel, raw, and gory world. Certainly not for the faint of stomach or heart. We don’t have to go outside the world for our whole lives. We can eat, sleep and survive just fine here, but isn’t that like being a caged animal?” Anyway, I hope the storyline changed to action and got some explanations to its mysteries rather than dealing with politics and such. So, yeah, some trigger warnings need to be taken into account before you start reading this fantastic series. Though certainly not a horror Isayama did not pull punches when depicting what living in a war-torn world, plagued by human-eating monsters would signify; and that is often not pretty.

One exist, another enters. The stage always needs someone in this role. When one actor leaves, another jumps in to take his place. The world will always have people like us. Break a leg.” Characters: Armin is my favorite of the three, however I think he declines towards the latter part of the series. Mikasa is also a great character with my favorite part being her interaction with Levi. How she learns and becomes a better fighter thought never a leader, a shame. Eren Is my least favorite of the three until the latter half of the series in which his role is switched. Volume is made more interesting by tossing him to the side. Been hearing about this for ages, particularly because, for some time (many moons ago), my elder was somewhat obsessed with it, and so (belatedly and for unclear reasons) I finally took the plunge. After all, if we went through so much in just the very beginning of it I can hardly imagine the kind of twists and turns we are going to get as the story progresses and develops. Yes, we might still be far away from any sort of resolution or concrete explanations, but the continued development, character-wise as well as plot-wise, makes the experience all the things that I love the most.

Small thing about the titans: They are a big threat at the moment, however as most series go on, they are gradually replaced by far more serious threats. But what makes them so dangerous in my opinion is their crazy and erratic movement. Along with their strength and speed they are very dangerous. In this one, we follow Eren on his journey to join the Survey Corps. He and his friends live in a world where humans are hunted by Titans. Humanity has been forced to hide behind walls that have kept them safe. Eren, unlike so many other people, wants to see what is beyond the walls. The only way he can do so is by joining the Survey Corps. The only problem is that the Scouts have a very high mortality rate. His family and friends don’t think that this is a good idea. This all changes the day that the Titans come through the wall and destroy everything in their path. Eren’s life is forever changed whenever he sees his mother eaten right in front of him. This moment restores his hatred of Titans and amps up his quest to join the Scouts. It is, quite honestly, impressive to see how the cast seems to continue growing and expanding, and yet we can give focus to all of them and develop them to make them distinct, interesting, compelling characters. From those that have accompanied us from volume one to those that were just introduced, there was not one character that wasn't raw, achingly human. Funnily enough, I fell absolutely in love with a couple of secondary characters but find the main trio a little bit annoying, though not really frustrating.

Volume 3 = In this volume we dive into the mystery of Eren Titan power along with the first proper dive into the Survey Corps. This volume is my least favorite of the three, however I do enjoy the cover art the most. Most of the time the volume focus on conversation while setting up the battle to come within the next volume. We do get the introduction of Levi and Pixis two major characters for the series. Pixis is one of the most interesting characters with him being one of the first ready to sacrifice so much for victory and survivor.

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Volume 15: Who the hell is Eren's father and why did he do it to Eren??? I have sooo many questions right now! On a more spoilery note, the way that Levi and Hange torture a member of the interior garrison is pretty brutal, and these are meant to be the good guys, and no one seems to question their actions. Though just the beginning, these first thirteen chapters made me fall obsessed and in love with this story already. Simple and less-polished doesn't mean bad, necessarily, and we can see a prime example of it right here. Besides, the plot highly makes up for any shortcomings the art ever had.

What do you see yourself doing tomorrow? Will you have food on your tables? Do you think you’ll get a good night’s rest in your beds? Will those around you still be there tomorrow? I never think so. And I doubt normal people think about these things on a daily basis, so that means I’m abnormal, probably because I’ve seen far too many abnormal things. But, if Wall Rose were breached tomorrow, and we faced an emergency, I’d be faster than any of you to react and to fight. I’ll fight even if I have to face that hell again tomorrow. You’ve all seen some terrible things, too, and there might very well be more waiting for you tomorrow. I want to put an end to that recurring nightmare, right now. There are those who would get in my way. But I’m fine playing the role of the lunatic who kills people like that. I have to be ready to rearrange some faces because I choose the hell of humans killing each other over the hell of being eaten. At least that way, all of humanity doesn’t have to be damned.” Excitement does not cover how I feel. To get to see the missing scenes, further characterizations, and, well, just to expend more time with this story that I adore and these characters that stole my heart is everything for me right now.Hange, in this arc, is one of those characters that shine a little brighter. While I always enjoy the energy that Hange brings to the story, the determination Hange exudes is just breathtaking. Levi, however, does not fall behind, and if I had not been completely on his side, I definitely was cheering for him by the end of this collection. With great action as well as profound emotion, these early issues shape the potential of an incredibly interesting and nuanced story that can shape to be as epic as soul-filling in a fellswoop.

Volume 1 = The short time with the 104th before Trost is this volume biggest weakness. However, I do enjoy the set up for Trost. The Colossus titan create some good mystery and is the main cause for the entire arc. Another part I like is the brief clash with Eren Squad with the titans. How even with their training they are massacred within seconds of encountering the titans. The manga builds up some hope before crushing it immediately. Eren being eaten leaving Armin as the lone survival with Mikasa looking off into the distance. Having so many personalities in such a complicated world already makes it feel real and raw. Which at the same time enriches the experience of the overall story and helps really take you in and transport you to the feelings and sensations of the moment. Though certainly not the best one I've ever seen there were some very beautiful and breathtaking pannels. And, often, when they weren't they provided a nice comic relief sequence that amused me to no end. From the beginning, we are introduced, slowly and quite cleverly, to a pretty significant cast of characters. All of them are more different than the last and bring so much personality and charisma to the story, even in their short interactions.

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As it is always important to note with mangas/comics/graphic novels the art was... an interesting experience.