It is a known fact by now that Hajime Isayama started Attack on Titan’s serialization with its ending already prepared in his mind. No matter how compelling the story may have been, it was the ending that caught many fans off guard. The controversy it created led to an immense backlash that could not escape the mangaka either. It split the fandom from within and it was as if all that the manga had taken a decade to build seemed rudimentary in front of the ending.
What may be astonishing to learn is that Isayama changed his plans for the betterment of his fans. The original ending was much worse than the final product and it cared little about how pleased or displeased the fans would be. However, it was James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy that ended up changing his mind.
The Guardians of the Galaxy Saved Attack on Titan Fans
During an interview with Febri, Hajime Isayama discussed the fate of Attack on Titan and how things were rather different when it began as compared to how it ended up. He admitted that his ideas had been concrete and rigid, unmoving in the ways that had set a clear path for how and what would happen to the manga.
When I saw Guardians of the Galaxy, even though the story ends in a completely predictable way, when you carefully bring together the characters’ emotions and the considerable originality of the visuals, the story does a 360 and you feel like you’ve just witnessed something amazingly original and fresh.
Things took a drastic turn when the author went to watch Guardians of the Galaxy. The way the story took place wasn’t something Isayama found anything new in. It was a classic superhero story with a predictable plot. What was different was the execution.
James Gunn had taken characters that fans cared naught about and then turned them into these famous figures everyone wanted to see more of. When the story seems to be on a certain path, the sudden change completely captivates audiences and creates a sense of originality that even the predictable plot of a superhero movie can pull off.
James Gunn Changed Hajime Isayama’s Mind
Going astray from an already set path like James Gunn did inspired Hajime Isayama’s rigidity. The idea he was so adamant on seeing through was sidelined and he opened his mind to new and more interesting ways in which Attack on Titan’s story can impact the world.
So, after that, with one of my possible endings for Attack on Titan already in sight, I put aside my old values and reconstructed the conclusion.
It was no longer just about the shock value and how the fans would be left with their jaws on the floor but about how the story would impact their minds. Isayama changed his ideologies and decided to let things go as they were, creating more possibilities when at first there were none.
James Gunn’s unique form of storytelling became the trigger Isayama needed to see things from a different perspective. The very fact that predictability can lead to originality and a fresh outlook inspired the mangaka in such a way that his iconic story changed its course.
Guardians of the Galaxy is available to watch on Disney+ and Attack on Titan is available to watch on Crunchyroll.
