AT TACK ON TITAN
Death To The TitansW W W.SCI FI N OW.CO.U K |^059
“I THINK THE IDEA OF KIDS
FIGHTING AGAINST LITERAL
TITANS EMBOLDENS US TO
FACE THE REAL ISSUES
WE ALL FACE DAILY”
TRINA NISHIMURAAll images ©Hajime Isayama,Kodansha/’ATTACK ON TITAN’ Production Committee. Licensed by Kodansha through Funimation® Productions, Ltd. All Rights Reserved.The clever heroes are highlighted by
anime commentator Rayna Denison, author
of the book Anime: A Genre. Many of the
characters in AOT are teenagers; Denison
highlights how Isayama was little more than
a teen when he created them. “The teenaged
characters have an anger at their situation, a
frustration with authority and a love for one
another that feels real. They’re more than
just love interests for one another.
“In AOT, stereotypes of teenagers are
de- and re-constructed to allow for real
growth over the course of the story, and
for surprising twists in characters. One of
the stand-out characters is the girl Mikasa
Ackerman, who deconstructs notions of
heroism by becoming the franchise’s most
fearsome military fi ghter.”
Mikasa’s voice-actress Nishimura says:
“When I was young, a female protagonist in
a series could be smart but not physically
capable, let alone the most adept at fi ghting.
Or on the off chance that she was, she
would be hyper-sexualised. Similarly, a
male lead would likely not be the brightest
and he’d only be considered a ‘man’ if he
had a six-pack and a physique that exuded
physical strength. In Attack On Titan, Mikasa