Attack on Titan The Final Season Special Event held on Nov 14, 2021, unveiled some behind the scene thoughts from the franchise’s staff on the episodes of Season 4A. One of such revelations stated that during the recording of episode 64 titled ” Declaration of War”, animation director Teruyuki Omine was certain that voice actor Yuki Kaji was possessed by his character Eren Yeager.

“… [Yuki] Kaji was scary during the recording session because he looked like he was possessed by Eren. Hosoya is a good voice actor, and I personally grew to love Reiner,” said Omine.

In fact, Kaji himself once claimed that he has never been so invested in delivering Eren’s role until recently. He revealed that he almost lost his voice during recording for the show’s 80th episode.

“This is the episode I couldn’t imagine how to do. This is the episode where I didn’t know what to do. This is the episode in which I could not see how things would turn out. This is also the episode I lost my voice more so than any other where I’ve played Eren.”

Director Omine further revealed that even though he knew how to mold the scene during Willy Tybur’s speech, he “struggled to reflect the tension” between Eren and Reiner in episode 64.

“Willy’s speech takes up a large part of the episode, and I think Kazuhiko Inoue did a great job of engaging the audience. The conversation in the basement was wonderfully acted by Kaji and Hosoya, but I struggled to reflect the tension. This episode and the other episodes I directed (episodes 70 and 75), there were many two-sided scenes with Lights and shadows, and I felt I could create impressive scenes that increased the tension.”

Speaking of issues, not only did the directors deal with technical difficulties, but they also had to deal with emotional damages during the creation of some heartbreaking scenes of the season.

Director Hiroko Komatsu recalls that he was so heartbroken that he teared up while drawing episode 73 when Eren told Mikasa he hates her, and the bubble of their happy childhood burst suddenly.

He made sure to leave the episode on a happy note by sketching a smiling face for the illustration after it was broadcast.

“In episode 73, the scene where Eren tells Mikasa ‘he hates her’ is very impressive. I tried to draw it as carefully and heartfelt as possible since it’s a very important scene in the story. When I drew this scene, I remembered the three of them in their childhood. And the words they exchanged in front of me looked like a lie, and naturally I felt tears welling up in my eyes. Since I was in charge of drawing this heartbreaking scene, I made a point of drawing a smiling face for the illustration after it was broadcast (laughs).”

Based on the manga by Hajime Iseyama, Attack on Titan is now in its fourth and final season, continuing to shock viewers with its incredible twists. The final season resumed on Jan 9, 2022.

Source: Attack On Fans