Attack on Titan: The Last Attack and Final Chapters Specials Differences

Attack on Titan anime ended in November 2023 with the second of two TV specials, after more than 10 years since the original premiere. The two specials would later be available in episodic version (which never became officially available in the West), complete with opening and ending theme songs, but would also be made into a theatrical version, titled The Last Attack. The Last Attack movie promised improved cuts and an all-new ending scene, so it came as no surprise that it did quite well during its screening run, both in Japan and overseas (The Numbers put the gross revenue at over $19 million).

With all this in mind, when Crunchyroll recently announced that it was streaming the Attack on Titan: The Last Attack, it became obvious that now was the perfect time to take a closer look and compare the changes to the original Attack on Titan: THE FINAL CHAPTERS Specials.

Attack on Titan: Last Attack vs. Final Chapters Specials

You are probably curious as to what story changes Attack on Titan: Last Attack made when compared to its TV counterpart, but you might be disappointed to learn there are none: all changes made were related to animation. The Crunchyroll editions of both have minor subtitling differences, but we are usually talking about a single word or differently spaced lines. However, when you compare the two, you learn that there are quite a few composition changes, coloring tweaks, but also some background retakes and a few scenes that were redone and improved.

For accessibility, we will be splitting the sections into parts that match the story. The TV version will be on the left, while the The Last Attack movie version will be on the right. For videos, the TV anime version will be on top and the movie will be on the bottom (also indicated on the video). There will be no audio, as we are only using the clips to compare the changes.

Chapter 1: The Rumbling

The changes in the first part of both the Attack on Titan FINAL CHAPTERS Specials and Attack on Titan: The Last Attack were mainly related to animation corrections, but this part also has the most timing changes. Although small, the changes are obvious when you watch the two side by side, as certain scenes tend to have different durations in the movie.

The timing changes mentioned above are present in one of the scenes showing off the effects of the rumbling, but also during conversations Annie has with Armin and later Mikasa. However, the most effective use of this is Eren's infamous freedom scene, so we chose to showcase it here:

Chapter 2: Sinners

The second chapter, titled Sinners had fewer timing corrections, and the changes were mainly related to visual aspects. For example, the scenery of the Paths went through quite a few composite changes related to the background; they'll be visible throughout the rest of the feature.

Falco's explanation of his titan powers also got a redo:

The Fort Salta area got a new background that matches the original close-up scenes shown in the TV version of the anime.

Explosion effects were also adjusted for the Attack on Titan: The Last Attack and are different from the FINAL CHAPTERS Specials:

Chapter 3: The Battle of Heaven and Earth

The majority of the third part of Attack on Titan FINAL CHAPTERS Specials and The Last Attack takes place on the back of Eren's Founding Titan. As you'll see below, there are quite a few comp changes, as well as a couple of retakes and corrections.

Onyankopon's plane crash also got some noticeable corrections and improvements:

Similarly, the fighting scenes on the back of Eren's titan went through composite changes, mainly visible in the shadowing and steam.

The scene in which Levi fights one of the Beast Titans appears to be a retake and has some new angles:

Comp changes were made for Levi's ride on the Jaw Titan; The Last Attack version gives a better impression of movement (although Levi's hair is still not moving despite the presumably high-speed wind). Slight corrections are visible on his face in the close-up scene:

Mikasa's okapi chase had a few composite changes (steam, shadows, fighting effects) along with retakes close to the end:

Chapter 4: A Long Dream

The fourth part starts with Zeke's speech describing the meaning of life. This sequence was edited, and while the timing is still the same, the colors and effects differ quite a bit.

Similarly to what we saw before, the Paths "sky" and sand also change a little:

The part where Jean begins his race to get to the front of the titan's skeleton shows off the small changes that the Last Attack movie made: more steam, shinier wires, and once again more shadowing on the titans.

The scene in which the Founding Titan is (finally) attacked with explosives was a retake with a few improvements. Definitely worth checking out:

The Last Attack overall seems to have more consistency. The backgrounds match, and the shadows make more sense, even if they don't necessarily look that much better.

Eren and Armin's conversation also got some changes: the previously flowing water was still in The Last Attack, but the areas outside of the walls looked livelier with improved visuals.

Final Chapter: Toward the Tree on That Hill

The final chapter begins with Armin and Eren's conversation. The most obvious difference is the movement of the water: the TV version manages to give off the impression of actually flowing water, while The Last Attack version kind of fumbles in that regard.

The movement is definitely still there and easier to see on the actual video, but the TV version does it better. This is somewhat unexpected, as the remainder of their trip has more detailed scenery:

The aftermath of the battle indicates quite a few composite changes, as well as drawing corrections (Hange and Erwin).

Scout Regiment's final salute went through some additional changes. The "dissolve" effect that was present in the TV version was replaced with steam:

Similarly, Ymir's final scene had the same "dissolve" effect that was replaced in a similar manner:

Epilogue

The epilogue starts with Historia preparing for her child's birthday and quite a few things are visually different. Starting from the cake, to the shot of two of them (which appears to be a retake), to the composite and background fixes:

Not all of the changes were for the better, as is evident from this scene in which Pieck and Annie's feet just... shrink.

Credits and Post-Credits Scene

The final epilogue sequence underwent quite a few changes with improved drawings, added details, new effects, and more. However, due to its duration (over two minutes), it is better to keep it off YouTube (forgive us, Production I.G).

The movie version, unfortunately, kept the epilogue alongside the credits and not as a separate full-screen version that some of us were hoping for. The differences don't add to the overall impression, but they do feel more "complete" for lack of a better word.

The very last scenes have some comp changes that make the colors look just a little bit nicer:

Attack on Titan: The Last Attack Original Ending

As you are probably aware by now, Attack on Titan: The Last Attack has a special ending which adapts the Attack on School Castes' final installment, the End Roll. The ending is cute, and even though it doesn't add much to the story, it can perhaps be a consolation to that one sobbing person in the theater.

You may be wondering if it's worth watching the Attack on Titan: Final Chapters Specials as they are, or simply going ahead with Attack on Titan: The Last Attack movie. With all these changes in mind, The Last Attack probably feels like a more complete version: some things do possibly look better in the original TV cut, but it's not like it matters that much, as the end result is still the same.

Attack on Titan anime is now streaming on Crunchyroll.
© Hajime Isayama, Kodansha/”ATTACK ON TITAN” The Final Season Production Committee

Written by: Tamara Lazic
Editing, technical assistance: Sarca