Tetsuya Kinoshita, who has been a producer on the Attack on Titan anime series ever since it debuted, looked back on the series and gave his thoughts about its upcoming conclusion.
Kinoshita appeared on anime production company Pony Canyon's Anime Expo livestream and discussed his time on the series. The Attack on Titan producer has been with the anime series from the very beginning, and stayed on the staff when production of the series was transferred from WIT Studio, who produced the first two seasons of the anime, to MAPPA, which has since produced Season 3 and both parts of Season 4. Prior to his work on Attack on Titan, Kinoshita worked on the Sengoku Basara anime adaptation and was also involved in the production of the animated sequence that was featured in Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill. Kinoshita began the interview by stating how intertwined his life has become with the production of the anime, saying "I've been involved in this anime since the planning stages for over ten years, so it's now an important part of my life. I'm always thinking about Attack on Titan."
WARNING: SPOILERS FOR ATTACK ON TITAN SEASON 4, PART 1 FOLLOW.
When asked about his thoughts on the series as it approaches its end, Kinoshita admitted he initially wasn't confident that they would be able to adapt the entire manga to an anime series. "I partly said we'd make it all into an anime to motivate myself," Kinoshita said, adding, "But at the time, I didn't know for how long the manga would continue, and I wasn't sure if it was realistic to pursue animating the whole series. Now, we've come to a point where it's nearly complete, so I am going to do my best to the very end."
The final season of Attack on Titan spends a lot of time in the country of Marley, which is a very different place the island of Paradis where most of the main characters are from. "The country of Marley, which is prominent in The Final Season, has a very different culture from Paradis. From the very first episode, which begins with a war in Marley, I think people may have felt they were watching a different anime," Kinoshita said. Kinoshita revealed that the sudden change in location and time affected the staff of the show as well, saying, "This depiction of the differences is one of the highlights of The Final Season. The people in the Survey Corps are suddenly older, so everything in the design is new. It felt like we were working on a different anime."
Kinoshita showed his appreciation for the show's fans around the world, saying "We receive messages from around the world, and I read them all. They give me a lot of courage. The anime grows every time we share this time together, so thank you for your continued support."
Season 1 of Attack on Titan is available on Netflix. The first three seasons, as well as part 1 of Season 4, are available for streaming on Hulu, Crunchyroll, and Funimation. Season 4 Part 2 is scheduled to premiere sometime in 2022.
Source: Pony Canyon
