Breaking the Walls Within: A Reflection on Attack on Titan Season 1

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at ICU (Japan) chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

When I first started watching Attack on Titan, I thought it would be just another popular action anime — full of battles, heroes, and spectacular fight scenes. Yet by the end of the first season, I realized that it was not simply about humanity fighting monsters. It was a story about fear, survival, and the complicated meaning of freedom.

The series opens in a world where humans live behind enormous walls built to protect them from terrifying, man-eating Titans. From the very first episode, the destruction of the wall and the fall of Eren Yeager’s hometown create an atmosphere of hopelessness and rage. As the story unfolds, we follow Eren and his friends Mikasa and Armin as they join the military, determined to reclaim the world beyond the walls. What starts as a quest for revenge soon becomes a journey of self-discovery, where every character must confront their beliefs and limitations.

What fascinated me most was the emotional depth hidden beneath the violence. Eren’s anger is not just about revenge; it’s about a desperate desire to understand what lies beyond the barriers that shackle him. Mikasa’s quiet strength reveals the pain of loss, while Armin’s intelligence and self-doubt show how courage is not the absence of fear, but the decision to act despite it. Each of them represents a different way of coping with the chaos and cruelty of the world — a theme that feels surprisingly relevant to our own lives.

Another striking aspect of Attack on Titan is its moral ambiguity. The story constantly challenges our sense of right and wrong. The Titans are terrifying, but as more secrets are revealed, we start to wonder: who are the real monsters? The humans inside the walls, or the creatures outside them? This question lingers long after the season ends, pushing the audience to think critically about human nature, long years of oppression, and the cost of survival.

Visually, the animation is breathtaking, and the music perfectly captures the tension and emotion of each scene. But what truly makes the series unforgettable is its message — that freedom always comes with sacrifice, and that the greatest walls are often the ones we build inside our own hearts.

Attack on Titan Season 1 left me both inspired and unsettled. It reminded me that courage is born not from strength, but from the will to keep moving forward even when the world seems impossible to change. For anyone who enjoys stories that combine thrilling action with deep philosophical questions, this anime is not just entertainment — it’s a mirror reflecting the complexity of being human.