Several weeks ago, the creator of the popular manga series Attack on Titan came to New York City for the Anime NYC 2022 convention. Hajime Isayama was one of the guests of honor on a special panel dedicated to the series. He was joined by a number of voice actors and singers. The event was also a big event for the mangaka, as he made his first trip to North America.
Hajime Isayama was introduced on stage by a large crowd of fans, who gave him a standing ovation. He was then asked to talk about the ending of the series. He started by saying that he had a difficult time drawing the climax. In the end, he added eight extra pages to Volume 34.
Hajime Isayama made it a point to apologize for the series' controversial ending. He said that he had been concerned about the fan backlash, but that it had been a good experience. He also said that he was thankful to the fans for their support.
"I want to express my gratitude to all fans. I wasn't sure how to feel about the end of the story. I was having a really difficult time and I apologize. Carrying heavy feelings, I was down for a long time, until yesterday when I met fans during the signing. Fans told me the ending was great and that they loved the ending and it made me happy and coming to New York was a great experience for me. Thank you."
Hajime Isayama
After his apology and statement, the audience gave him a huge applause and positive encouragement that caused him to tear up and helped him to feel better about the end of the series. He said that he was not able to come up with the perfect ending for the series, but that he had a great time in New York.
The other big manga announcement at the convention was the fact that the series had sold more than 100 million tankobon copies in the world as of December 2019. The series has been received with praise by fans. However, there were also many skeptics and critics. Some claimed that the series would never get an ending worthy of the name. Other fans suggested that Isayama should have used more drastic measures to tell the fans that Eren wasn't the hero of the series. Regardless of the end result, Attack on Titan has become one of the most popular manga series in history.
It's no secret that the creator of the series was nervous about making his first trip to the U.S. Thankfully, he came away with a newfound appreciation for the American fans.
