Considered to be one of the best anime series, and, in most respects, one of the greatest television series of all time, Attack on Titan captivated audiences through its deeply complex characters, masterful storytelling, stellar pacing, and magical animation quality. Upon hitting television screens in 2013, the world became enamored with the world of Eren Yeager and the Titans. The show would go on to receive numerous accolades and became the highest-streamed anime on Funimation just one year after its release.
With the finale recently released on November 4th, 2023, many have been looking back at the series, reliving the best moments and rewatching their favorite episodes. The five-season run brought joy to the eyes of millions and became a show that would go on to help define this era of anime while also setting a huge standard for the quality of the anime released around it.
Attack On Titan
TV-MA
Adventure
Action
Anime
Fantasy
- Release Date
- September 28, 2013
- Cast
- Marina Inoue , Hiro Shimono , Takehito Koyasu , Yûki Kaji , Josh Grelle , Bryce Papenbrook
- Main Genre
- Anime
- Seasons
- 4
15 "The Dawn of Humanity" (Season 4, Episode 28)
IMDb Rating: 9.6/10
Mikasa fondly recalls traveling to Marley for the first time and interacting with her friends and refugees. However, she quickly remembers Eren's plan to follow Zeke and wishes things could have been different. Eren is also remembering how things were and the events that led him to this point. How he would use the rumbling to wipe out the rest of the world. The episode ends with Eren arriving on the shores of Marley.
A pivotal episode that goes into greater detail about Zeke's euthanasia plan and Eren's secret plan to divert and destroy the people of Marley. In the last episode before the final chapter, fans were in anticipation to see if Eren's plan would come to fruition.
14 "Savagery" (Season 4, Episode 14)
IMDb Rating: 9.6/10
Mikasa begins to believe that Eren is being manipulated after he attacks Liberio. This sends Eren into a rage, and he starts chastising his friends for being manipulated in their own way. Elsewhere, Levi tries to get Zeke to take on the role of the Beast Titan, but Zeke is reluctant.
While not the most action-packed episode, this one shows the struggle Eren is having with his position of power. He's lashing out at his friends and causing rifts between them at a vulnerable time.
13 "Attack Titan" (Season 3, Episode 21)
IMDb Rating: 9.6/10
In a flashback, Grisha Jaeger is distraught over the loss of his family. However, his friend, Eren Kruger, convinces him to take up the mantle of the Founding Titan from the king who refuses to use the power to protect the people within the walls. In the present, the team discusses becoming more secluded, that the people outside the walls do not trust the subjects of Ymir. Eren realizes he is not a descendant of loyal blood but can still control the Founding Titan. He remembers being touched by the titan form of Dina Fritz, giving him the ability to control the Founding Titan.
So much information is given about the Titans and Eren's connection to the Founding Titan in this episode, making it an important one. This episode is where the story begins to shift and fans, and Eren, are taken by surprise by learning how all paths interconnect in the story of his father. In this episode, the series starts to become more complex and branches off into a wider view of the world of Titans.
12 "Scream" (Season 2, Episode 12)
IMDb Rating: 9.7/10
The smiling titan swallowed Hannes, and Erin unleashed a scream that somehow caused the other Titans to swarm the smiling titan and tear it apart. Erin watches as the Titans devour his fellow scouts, desperately trying to use his newfound powers. Ymir leaves the scouts and retreats with the warriors into the woods.
The importance of the episode comes at the very end, as the camera pans over Shinganshina, a man wearing glasses emerges from the beast titan. It's the first time we glimpse the person who controls the Beast Titan. The episode ends on a cliffhanger with the reveal, making it one of the most exciting.
11 "Warrior" (Season 2, Episode 6)
IMDb Rating: 9.7/10
Reiner talks with Eren after the scouts regroup and confesses that he and Bertholdt are the Armored and Colossal Titans. He asks Eren to join them in retreating into the woods, but Eren is reluctant and suspicious that he is lying. Mikasa overhears them and proceeds to attack Reiner and Bertholdt, but the two turn into their Titan form and try to capture Ymir and Eren, but Eren transforms in the Attack Titan.
A revealing episode for both viewers and Eren. While there is no action, it sets up a conflict between Bertholdt, Reiner, Eren and Mikasa. The four eventually fight, but come to a stalemate as Bertholdt and Reiner escape.
10 "That Day" (Season 3, Episode 20)
IMDb Rating: 9.7/10
In this flashback episode, fans are treated to flashbacks that reveal the backstory of none other than Grisha Yeager, Eren's father, part of which details how he paid a heavy sacrifice for going beyond the Interment Zone for his sister. But regardless of his sacrifice, his sister's body is still found dead in a river and fuels his desire to join the Restorationists. This episode also reveals how his first wife became the titan that would eat Eren's mother and showed how Grisha would end up on Paradis Island, which provided a huge reveal to fans everywhere.
The episode was huge with its wild plot twists and reveals that showed audiences a backstory that recontextualizes the entire series. The episode's reveal of the origins of the titans brought fear and horror into the hearts of many, evoking a plethora of emotions from fans everywhere and making this an episode that was sure to be one that was remembered.
9 "From You, 2000 Years Ago" (Season 4, Episode 21)
IMDb Rating: 9.7/10
After the shocking development that Eren manipulated his father into murdering the Reiss family to capture the Founding Titan, Zeke and Eren begin to go head-to-head as they try to reach Ymir and get the power of the Founding Titan for themselves, all while seeing the horrifying backstory of Ymir sent a chill down the spine of many. The Ymir plot is shown primarily without dialogue, letting the audience just sit with the stomach-churning scenes before them.
The writers do an exemplary job of letting audiences develop sympathy for the young girl and that does an incredible job at informing understanding around her decision to join Eren and begin the rumbling to flatten the world. The fact that the writers were able to make people feel for Ymir so much that such a horrendous act like the rumbling can feel justified is an incredible achievement in and of itself.
8 "Two Brothers" (Season 4, Episode 19)
IMDb Rating: 9.7/10
Eren's Attack Titan and Zeke's Beast Titan struggle to get to each other as the rest of the world fights against them and Colt pleads with Zeke not to use his titan roar to save Falco. Zeke decides to use it anyway, transforming the soldiers of the city into titans. The pacing of this episode is done very well, consistently offering new developments that keep it moving fast and hard hitting, which makes each new development feel more impactful than the last.
The episode's pacing slows down significantly once Eren and Zeke end up with Ymir in Paths, which gives the audience breathing room after the insane sequence of events that came about in the real world. This aids the final reveal of the episode to hit the hardest, giving it a decent time to be built up.
7 "Assault" (Season 4, Episode 7)
IMDb Rating: 9.7/10
The battle between the Scouts and Marleyans rages on and this episode serves as the point in which Season 4 begins to explore its iconic message that the Scouts and Marleyans are just in their own ways, making the ongoing conflict begin to feel harder and harder to pick a side on. The writers' ability to balance good and bad moments between the two sides makes for some incredibly jarring moments as audiences get to see characters in a light they're not used to.
This results in the climax of the episode, Eren killing and taking the power of the War Hammer Titan, feeling frightening in so many ways. The man who is seen as the main character of the series is suddenly portrayed as a villain, and it changes the tone of the show exponentially moving forward.
6 "Midnight Sun" (Season 3, Episode 18)
IMDb Rating: 9.8/10
What makes Attack on Titan Season 3, Episode 18, "Midnight Sun" so wonderfully compelling is the moral dilemma posed in the episode's climax. After the borderline deaths of both the experienced veteran Commander Erwin and the bright and youthful Armin, Levi must decide which person's life to save with the titan serum. The scenes of Eren and Mikasa fighting tooth and nail to convince Levi to save their best friend are tear-jerking to say the least and do wonders in making the decision that much more difficult for both Levi and the audience. Not to mention, the voice cast truly brings their A-game for this episode.
The beauty of the episode is there's no heart-pounding action to be seen, and it focuses purely on slowing its pacing down, giving the audience time to sit with the seemingly impossible decision at play. The moment lingered on for quite some time, which is a wonderful way of building tension that makes Levi's eventual decision feel both relieving and heartbreaking.
5 "Memories of the Future" (Season 4, Episode 20)
IMDb Rating: 9.8/10
In hopes to show him he's been brainwashed, Zeke takes Eren through their father, Grisha's memories. This episode takes the cake for being one of the most intelligently written episodes of the entire series, with the big twist of the episode revealing that Eren was in Grisha's head manipulating him into killing the Reiss family and taking the Founding Titan.
The reveal of the episode caused fans to take the internet by storm and sparked trends and memes that only uplifted the episode even more in many people's eyes. The big twist of the episode ties the entire series together in a tight knot that genuinely enhances the writing of the past seasons looking back, as the creator of the series, Hajime Isayama, had the series planned out from the very beginning. This aided in making the journey of watching the series up until now and rewatching feel so much more rewarding.
4 "Perfect Game" (Season 3, Episode 16)
IMDb Rating: 9.8/10
One of the highlights of Attack on Titan for many is how profound and powerful its writing and messaging can be. The climax of Attack on Titan Season 3, Episode 16, "Perfect Game", is a borderline perfect example of that kind of writing and messaging. With the Scouts in a tough spot, Commander Erwin makes a tough call to take down the Beast Titan, but it will kill him and the Scouts in the process.
The writing in Erwin's speech is so moving and profound that it's stuck with viewers even to this day, going as far as the dub iteration becoming a viral sound on the popular app, TikTok. The intense and heartfelt words of Erwin combined with the masterfully composed score and breathtaking animation caps off the episode in a very bittersweet manner that still remains one of the greatest moments in the series.
3 "The War Hammer Titan" (Season 4, Episode 6)
IMDb Rating: 9.8/10
Taking place directly after the terrifying attack on Marley from Eren's Attack Titan, the Marleyans regroup to attempt to stop Eren before he can kill and take the power of the War Hammer Titan. What makes this episode so exciting is the eventual reveal of the Scouts after not seeing the main cast for six whole episodes and Eren being totally outnumbered before their arrival. The lack of the Scouts in the previous episodes aids this moment, feeling incredibly rewarding and exciting.
Fans also note the fight between Eren's Attack Titan and the War Hammer Titan contains some breathtaking animation quality. The War Hammer's unique ability adds a whole new style of battle choreography to the action sequences that serve up a battle unlike any that have come before in the series. This, combined with the Scouts finally making their long awaited Season 4 reveal, leaves viewers of the series ending the episode on an incredibly high note.
2 "Declaration of War" (Season 4, Episode 5)
IMDb Rating: 9.8/10
Similarly to Attack on TitanSeason 4, Episode 6, "The War Hammer Titan", this episode would feature the first Season 4 reveal of none other than Eren Yeager himself. After spending the first four episodes with Zeke and Reiner while introducing us to the new cast in Marely, Eren's reappearance comes as a shock to both the audience and Reiner.
The climactic conversation between Eren and Reiner spells out the parallel between the two. Eren informs Reiner that he finally understands why he broke down the walls in the first place and states, "Over the sea... inside the walls... we are all the same." The moment does wonders in showing the audience how equivocal the world of Attack on Titan has become and leaves fans with a deep consideration of whether Eren is truly doing the right thing.
1 "Hero" (Season 3, Episode 17)
IMDb Rating: 9.8/10
Being considered one of the best television episodes of all time both within the fanbase and for its IMDb rating, Attack on Titan Season 3, Episode 17, "Hero" is one that will go down in history. After Erwin's powerful words in the previous episodes to buy time for Levi, the fan favorite captain gets his chance at vengance against the Beast Titan while Armin makes a sacrifice play that changes everything.
There may simply be too much good to say about this episode to contain in one paragraph. Whether it be the astronomical animation quality as Levi takes down the Beast Titan all by himself or Armin sacrificing himself to give his comrades a chance at victory against the Colossal Titan, this episode will make viewers sit back in awe and leave them sitting with heartbreak. Both with compelling emotion and unbelievable action, this episode's ranking is more than warranted.
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