The latest episode of Attack on Titan's final season has been postponed. The saga began life as a manga series written and illustrated by Hajime Isayama. The story was first published in Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine on September 9, 2009, with new chapters following regularly since. The manga will officially come to an end with the 139th chapter on April 9, 2021. Produced by Wit Studio, an anime adaptation premiered in 2013 with a 25-episode first season. A 12-episode sophomore outing followed in 2017. Attack on Titan season 3 was divided into two sections, with the first 12 episodes released in 2018 and the concluding 10 unveiled in 2019.
With MAPPA taking over the production, the fourth season was confirmed to be the last. It officially premiered in December 2020. Attack on Titan has been set in a world where humanity lives inside cities surrounded by enormous walls due to Titans, gigantic humanoid beings that devour humans. The story followed Eren Yaeger, Mikasa Ackerman, and Armin Arlet, whose lives were changed forever after the wall of their hometown was breached. Vowing revenge, the trio joined an elite group known as the Scout Regiment. That decision led them on a deep and complex journey that blurred the lines between heroism and villainy.
Since December, episodes have been simulcast every Sunday. Unfortunately, Attack on Titan season 4, episode 14 has been delayed. With a title translated to mean "Savagery", the episode would've been the 73rd episode overall and escalated events towards its eventual finale. The news of the delay was announced on Twitter by Crunchyroll, through which the Attack on Titan has usually released in the United States. The reasons cited were the earthquake experienced by the Wakayama prefecture in Japan. The full post can be seen below:
Fans will no doubt be disappointed by the news, especially since Attack on Titan has shifted into even darker and more complex territory. That goes double since the last episode served up further clarification of the Titans' origins and teased an on-going conspiracy in motion behind the scenes. Equally, it saw Eren reunited with Mikasa, Armin, and Gabi and offer the cliffhanger promise of a tense conversation. After all, fans' once favorite hero has since embarked on a more traitorous (borderline tyrannical) path in his world-saving quest. However, the choice to delay was entirely understandable given the circumstances.
It has since been stated by Funimation on Twitter that the delayed episode will now be released on March 21, 2021. Attack of Titan season 4, episode 15 (Episode 74 overall) will be released directly afterward, giving fans a double-bill of action and tense character interactions. As such, things should be kept on track and steadily building towards the sure-to-be-stunning final episode. Attack on Titans has looked set to conclude on March 29, 2021, with an episode titled 'Above and Below'. That being said, there are many fans that remain hopeful that Attack on Titan season 4 won't be the end after all. Latching onto the fact that it has been called the season finale - and more besides - many are anticipating a Titan-sized twist to come from production as much as from within the show itself.
Source: Crunchyroll via Twitter; Funimation via Twitter.