Attack on Titan's Storytelling Is (Near) Perfect

Attack on Titan is a colossal storytelling achievement, and I'll show you why. I also break down act structure, including Kishotenketsu and we'll deep dive into the meaning of Attack on Titan. Part video essay, part writer's guide, all out entertaining (I hope).
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🐦Twitter: SelvirKatich
📘Facebook: narrativearcade
📱Instagram: narrativearcade
Spoilers for the following movies, shows and videogames:
Attack on Titan spoilers start at 08:11.
Tombstone (1993)
Gotham Knights (2022)
Full playlist here:
- kzbin.info/aero/PLQNt5OmHqCmtzN6mt9LdyTCNPeTSif3_f
- "Last Stop" by Karl Casey @WhiteBatAudio
Cast:
Narrator ... Selvir Katich | SelvirKatich
Reginald Cuckbottom ... Jonathan Crow | @MrJonCrow
Professor Kermit ... Jordan Peterson | @JordanBPeterson
Special thanks to @MichaelMaliceofficial and @JordanBPeterson for their content that I referenced in the video:
kzbin.info/www/bejne/r2OniniJramDfs0
kzbin.info/www/bejne/l3W1mICLpKqpmck
Icons in parts from:
www.freepik.com/
www.flaticon.com/
Thanks for watching!
Chapters:
0:00 Intro
2:51 The Designing Principle
8:08 Plot Breakdown
13:47 What Is an Act?
17:37 Kishotenketsu Explained
21:29 Eren's Character Flaw
31:31 Hell on Earth & Character Web
39:35 Professor Kermit Explains
45:10 Ending & Outro
#storytelling #attackontitan #kishotenketsu #screenwriting #anime

[@NarrativeArcade]

Hi everyone, thanks a lot for the support! This episode is performing far beyond what I expected 🙌 I'm working on the next one already. There is a content calendar in place for the whole season. I'm happy you enjoy my way of tackling stories. I'm a screenwriter by trade and it tends to get technical as a lot of story issues are just structural issues in need of fixing. But there are ways to make the technical entertaining. So... here's to much more!

[@fanmovie357]

Looking back 10 years ago, AOT was seen as a superficial story with just shocking twist and no substance. And now is in the conversation with the best of the best, I argue a big reason is because the structure was not clear for most audiences from the get go, it was not until end of S3 where most people realized how well put together the series was.

[@user-qx1id1dt8x]

I honestly don't quite agree with Ymir and historia being completely wasted and conveniences being that big of an issue, but you can certainly have some nitpicks if anything

[@NarrativeArcade]

@@user-qx1id1dt8x Wasted was a bit of a strong word on my part. I felt they separated without a satisfying conclusion. Historia's arc was basically complete after season 3 but her relation to Ymir wasn't imo. A letter was not enough for me, I actually expected them to meet again on the battlefield as enemies or something. Both with newfound purpose and duties but after the little time skip, Isayama had different plans.

[@user-qx1id1dt8x]

@@NarrativeArcade would be interesting, but I feel like both were already set up on their final goodbye, Ymir was planning to return the favour after all, so it's natural she died But yeah, I feel like the letter thing didn't have that much of an impact on historia as It could've had, but I'm overall satisfied anyway, at least she got some importance and purpose post time skip as well

[@marcschwartz549]

This is a CRIMINALLY underrated videos. Remember me, Brightstar17, before you have a million subscribers. I’m calling that shit right now.

[@LRibeiro97]

That starbucks pardoy and Peterson quote was amazing.

[@TimthemanInkster]

Dude. This video is actually incredible and its a crime that you don't have more subscribers

[@NarrativeArcade]

Hahaha, thanks but it's understandable. Channel is just three months old and I technically only made four videos so far. And I noticed it's really hard to promote outside of KZbin. Even with a decent or good thumbnail most people think I'm sharing crap and won't click on it. But it keeps growing, so it'll get there. This video alone just added the same amount of watch time as the past 2 1/2 months.

[@TimthemanInkster]

@@NarrativeArcade Even still, this video essay is on the caliber of some of the most popular ones on the platform. I think you've got real potential if you keep pumping out high effort content like this, so keep up the good work!

[@davidktogafau4473]

Ngl... your grandmother's quote "If you're not stronger, you are faster" is awesome. She's a legend for that one

[@Pheyora]

40:27 lost my absolute shit when I saw Kermit Peterson. 💀

[@artimusuno]

The tragedy is that Kermit Peterson is actually describing the view of the right while making a straw man argument about the left. Trump is the Aaron Yegar of politics, yet Kermit Peterson will never call him out.

[@Pheyora]

@@artimusuno you did not just call Trump Eren🤢🤮... Trump is a Marleyan who hates the eldians and wants to see them wiped out.., 💯

[@osyrisking5437]

I love seeing the drastic different takes people can have on the series. Summing Eren up as a school shooter is definitely a drastic take, but I can honestly see the logic and sort of agree i think we are put in a difficult spot when it comes to judging Eren bc we dont know how much control he had over events in the series with the future past memory shenanigans. Marley's actions i believe force Erens hand a bit and i definitely believe Marley needed to be dealt with, but the rest of the world didnt deserve the rumbling. But does this invalidate the Eren school shooter logic? Not at all imo

[@NarrativeArcade]

That's the beauty of a good story and why Isayama is such a good storyteller. Honestly, I viewed Eren as a boy stuck in an allegory for time as a flat circle. That perception is something I know all too well with some of my relatives. You got a choice, look up or enter a doom spiral on the flat circle. I think Isayama made the right call with his ending and there's a plethora of ways to go about it. I picked this one because it's unique and different from the usual takes.

[@shindig9000]

​@@NarrativeArcade My problem here though is that I don't see the school shooter making sense with the ending either. There is no reason he should have been able to be stopped, and he gave up basically. The entire ending was devoid of his agency. So though I liked the vast majority of this video and found some new ideas in the shadow stuff of when he was changing perspectives, I see none of this aligning with the ending still. I personally find nothing good out of both the ending movies. 🤷‍♂️ But I'm curious if you can elaborate on what I might not be seeing here with the school shooter connection. Thank you.

[@NarrativeArcade]

@@shindig9000 Hey, sure thing. I wouldn't get too hung up on the term school shooter. That's just one outgrowth of the same archetype. That's why I added Tombstone, Ringo is just a drifting gunslinger but he ends up with the same philosophy as Eren as have countless other characters and figures in history. When you are stuck in that doom loop, life itself becomes a thing to enact revenge upon. And we can see this in Eren's actions. He could've just used the Rumbling to take out Marley military or just government infrastructure but he continued to trample over everything including children and wild life. Revenge upon the earth itself. That's why it seems like he was devoid of his agency but some people will just choose destruction for destruction's sake and there were multiple times where he could've averted catastrophe but he chose not too. I think it's not a coincidence that at the time of the Rumbling we see both Ymir and Eren as children. Symbolically, you can say he's just a child and we can't blame children but at the same time he chose to stay a child. Something I should've added, one of the first screenwriting rules for creating strong subtext is to look at what characters do, not what they say. What actions and outcomes do they produce? Yes, he brought temporary peace but he absolutely threw the baby out with the bath water (literally millions of children). That was the entire point - I think, everything is up for grabs - he did not overcome his flaw so nothing really changed as the credits scenes show. In the end Paradis Island gets obliterated too because an eye for an eye will make the whole world blind. It's a lesson for us, not Eren.

[@shindig9000]

@@NarrativeArcade I'm using it to describe the archetype as well so don't worry I'm not hung up on the word. I think I have a lot of problems here still. In terms of both actions and words there is no indication that I personally see that he's trying to enact revenge upon life itself out side of the one thing he told Zeke who he was trying to trick in the first place. There's a lot of ideas around why he let his friends try to stop him, why he was doing it in the first place and why he didn't just trampled over the island as well, and the other ideas of freedom he was trying to protect. Like don't you remember the scene of the foreign kid that couldn't understand him who he was apologizing to profusely? This kind of action alone I think demolishes this view unless we are just looking at the last two movies in themselves. So what list of other actions do you have to support this view that isn't words? Because through this perspective the fact that he basically chose to only kill 80% doesn't fit this narrative either. The outcome doesn't even match the perspective that all life needs to die. So I hope this makes sense and points out some contradictions that I think I'm seeing. I can't personally come to the conclusion that its destruction for destruction's sake. I have another thing I want to ask in relation to some of the screen writing stuff, but I'll hold on to that for now.

[@NarrativeArcade]

@@shindig9000 I can see that but I think we differ in that I don't care what a character says. He could've just been duping Zeke in that moment, yes, he can say whatever he wants but destruction was the result. And the Rumbling stopped at 80% because Armin gained the upper hand. It wasn't Eren's decision, they gained the upper hand and later Eren gives his reasoning to Armin. If they reached him earlier, the number would've been lower and I wholeheartedly believe 100% was the goal. You can't just decide to nuke the world at 80%, it's either nuking or not nuking. With this level of death, don't think there is nuance. And yes, he left Paradis Island intact. Every mass murderer in history is convinced he did evil for a righteous reason. That's how I viewed it and I think his dramatic arc supports it. Also, you can apply multiple interpretations, I tend to boil it down to what a character does with their flaw. Do they overcome it or go down with it? And this was a classic case of tragedy. I'm curious what you think? Do you think Isayama just missed the mark and the parts are just disjointed? About the screenwriting stuff, feel free to ask :) Edit: I'll give you this, why didn't he just trap all Eldians in the paths to enact his destruction without interference? Dunno, could just be a plothole.

[@josephwindle7177]

I hit the like button when you said, "We don't talk about the nines and tens on KZbin."

[@melissam7]

I'm a massive fan of AoT, analysis vids, and I'm an aspiring writer - this vid couldn't be more perfect!!! Love your insights and editing style

[@aponceraul]

One of the best videos I've seen in a long time. Not Boring. Glad you found a reason to create and post this gem. Excited for the future.

[@brlxnnx]

This was totally hilarious and very effective in making the viewer understand the structures of storytelling. Awesome job!

[@andrewd5713]

Your delivery is fantastic, man, thoroughly enjoyed it. Keep it up!

[@qaush]

Having my Origin in Kosovo the one part you put in about the guy talking about the massacre really hit the mark. Being seemingly the only person from there who doesnt hate Serbs etc, rather trying to end a cycle of hatred instead of repeating over & over again is the narrative that AOT presented to me that I have been pondering about ever since finishing the Show. Maybe, in the end, the only time peace will be found is when no one will be able to enjoy it. Thanks for the video! enjoyed it a lot

[@NarrativeArcade]

I'm from Bosnia and I feel the same. Time is truly a flat circle there. All that bickering and victim mentality ain't changing the fact that entire villages and towns are dissolving because people emigrate towards Western Europe. Or the insane corruption where you can literally break off and crumble asphalt in your hands because of how badly the streets are made. All that energy wasted on nothing but a doom loop. For me it was weird when I went to film school in Los Angeles and the Americans tell me they're tribal. It's child's play by comparison lol (though some are giving their best to equal the Balkans).

[@putinsgaytwin4272]

Yes, I feel like this show perfectly captures so many wars. I'm Irish and am glad we have been able to achieve peace between the two countries. But this show was a good reminder that its extremely dumb to blame people for what their ancestors did. Like brittish people today had nothing to do with the past so I need to let that go

[@lastmanstanding7155]

It's interesting cause I came to a similar conclusion at a young ange yet still had to grow out of my desire for vengeance. Even now as a young adult man it's hard to control that thinking, and that's with pain that doesn't compare to having my entire town or country sacked and burned and more. Although, not to go down the political hole, it's why I find myself completely disgusted with people shoving their opinions about Isreal and Palestine around which usually have the logical conclusion of the death of some side. Not that I'm gonna make the retarded argument of "both sides suck" but just that, on a human level, I resent the notion that violence is the solution. Although AOT does point out that talking it out isn't always an option. Which is fine. I'm no pacifist either. I just don't think it's a very politically wild statement to be against the death of my fellow human species. In fact it's probably banal. AOT really does capture war in a very believable way. Which is funny when my friends all go "man look it's just like facism" 🤦‍♂️ like bruh. This shit is commentary on the human condition and it's using a time period where we literally call it WORLD FUCKING WAR to help convey war. But nah it's nazis bro. Media literacy man. What are schools doing?

[@LawjNutz]

Bro this video is way too good for youtube, I legit thought I was watching some actual documentary stuff.

[@NarrativeArcade]

Thanks! That means a lot! More to come!

[@LawjNutz]

@NarrativeArcade For real though, this felt like a video from someone with 100s of thousands of subscribers, not 100s. I will definitely be looking forward to watching more of your content.

[@AwesomeWholesome]

This video is near perfect. I loved the technical bits, was about to learn so much about scriptwriting. You're obviously very professional. More than anything, the second half where you did the philosophical analysis was absolutely spot on. It's exactly what I took away from Attack on Titan and what I loved the most about the show. I think (and maybe I'm grateful the author chose to do it in this way) that while the ending message was subtle, the author was hinting at what could amount to a solution to a very difficult existential question regarding survival in a cruel fallen world and confronting evil within the human condition. I think you were about to pick this out perfectly, especially if you are saying what I think you are implying about the only solution. The sprinkling of humour is great as is. Funny memes, sharp political satire, biblical morality and a beautiful accent. The usage of Dostoevsky and Peterson clips is great. I liked that you dedicated time to show them in their entirety. The balance of these elements is good. Your opinions are based. I think the ending could've been better if you once again paraphrased the ideas of Dostoevsky and Peterson, namely, Christian existentialism, after playing their clips. Felt a little lack of closure with the ending being on an audio clip. In the future, I'd like to see a bit more in-depth character analysis! Just when you began to touch upon the characters, the segment ended. I was really looking forward to that especially since the characters all represented such an important part to the moral argument. The idea of facade vs flaw helped me understand the show in a much deeper way. While I understand that character writing isn't necessarily the same as script writing, I think being able to understand script writing can drastically help understanding character writing! I loved this formula. Attack on Titan was a show that leaved a huge impression on me. Please give me recommendations for similar works if you have any. Looking forward to your future videos. Christ is born.

[@NarrativeArcade]

Hey, thanks for the positive feedback! I gotta admit, I had reservations doing this at all and I thought people will find it boring. So I shortened a few segments actually, including the character web part. But I guess I was utterly wrong. So going forward there won't be any compromise for the next big videos (45-60 mins long ones). I have one short video planned for January, after that comes the second Holy Grail of storytelling video for February. And I should be starting with the Naruto breakdown next. I'm happy to have distilled the format with a mix of technical bits, comedy and philosophy. Honestly, keeps me engaged too and that's the only way to guarantee that anything good comes out of the editing process.

[@tragicjack6815]

Awesome video and great editing man! Love seeing the people breakdown aot based on their own perception of how its supposed to be interpreted! Also, loved how you connected JP's rant with the story, absolutely hilarious!

[@GuitarHooker]

Excellent stuff, man. This was so insightful. This and your Halo video have been such a dour and impactful reminder that humanity can be a source of hope and goodness if we can manage the capacity to face and understand the darkest parts of ourselves. It's said plenty of times that the individual ought to face their shadow if they aim to be whole, but god damn, man, this video is such a poignant reminder that "facing the shadow" demands turning away from it no matter how much it attempts to convince us that its worldview is correct. Done rambling... Excellent breakdown!

[@joem5037]

Fate/Zero is a pretty strong companion piece / counterpoint, since it features a very... similar character (and heck whole host of heroic characters) who does, heroically (and conventionally) turn away from evil in the end. As well as the same shared theme that true heroes can, and will sacrifice themselves for their ideals. And that the best that a true hero could hope for - in a grimdark / fairly realistic world - is for evil to be vanquished, however impermanently - and, if you survive, to live the rest of your life out in peace, quiet, and anonymity, with the memories of all the other heroes who were lost.

[@floglas201]

That was probably one of the best videos i watched in a loooooooong time. Thank you!

[@joshuacoultrup2571]

I could not stop watching! I should be studying for my psychopathology class but I could not hit the pause button once on this video. I'm planning to write a series of 6 books and this video has helped me immensely. Very grateful to you for making this video!

[@NarrativeArcade]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@DundG]

I think you are on point about the school shooter mentallity, but miss the humanizing or at least don't focus on the other part of it. Eren making his friends heroes to neither be killed by the survivors of the world, the yeagerists, or die due to Ymirs curse (every Titan shifter, but especially his brother figure Armin!) is his loving gift to them! This gesture is more than "I like you, don't go to school tomorow"! He is a school shooter AND someone who wants to save his friends. His hate against the Titans and later the world is due to the pain of loosing a loved one in a very gruesome way! Love can be a setup for resentment and in this story the reason Eren wants to level everything! That is the genious! Humanizing a school shooter as perpetrator and a victim of the circumstances, as a raging monster but also a loving person. Something we people want to ignore to due to the pain they caused, but many aren't 100% resentfull evil incarnation, but still hold the potential and need for love! And about Mikasa: I think it is more important HOW Mikasa "overcame" her flaw, and not that she did ! Because she never stopped to love Eren, she never discarded her love and overfixation of him. She never changed in that regard, but still managed to follow her morallity! How? Because Mikasa is the purest representation of conflicting needs coexisting in a person, without extinguising eachother. It is the cause for great pain as she never really forgot Eren, but still was able to carry on WITH her flaw! She choose life instead of destruction, the potential for new good things and love, but this decision will probably never heal all previous wounds. Just hopefully enough to let your life bloom again! That is true maturity! To know you sometimes must be better, even if it gives you suffering, as the alternative is worse! Life is pain, because you are not enough to fix the world! None is! But you can transcent to carry the burden with others and cultivate a good place with effort!

[@sreenivas6071]

He never wanted to make his friends heroes, it was just so he could stomach going through with it. You can't humanise a genocidal maniac

[@DundG]

​@@sreenivas6071 "You can't humanise a genocidal maniac" I very much hope you can, as genocidal maniacs are humans and there are more people cabable to do it than we are willing to admit, sometimes even to ourself. "He never wanted to make his friends heroes, it was just so he could stomach going through with it." Him needing to stomach it shows that he isn't 100% evil and human... But even if, he could've gone the nationalistic route to stomach it and see himself as the rescuer of his people, turn of the Titan powers of his friends, as he said himself that he is very much capable to do so, easily go 100% genocide, AND survive! He did not kill 100% of humans outside the wall. Why? He had the possibility to do the mass genocide and get away with it as the celebrated hero of Paradis if he truly wanted to. So why didn't he do it if he truly only wanted to kill everyone outside the walls?

[@drowningcrown2293]

@@sreenivas6071eren was also a slave to the attack titan that did anything for freedom. Hello. 🙄 my god. The world sat idly by allowing marley to play. So yes fuck the world to a fault. Ambassadors from around the globe came to watch the theatrics so they could go home and push propaganda. 💀 If eldians had the power to euth or control others, another option would have been viable. He stated he *could not* find another path. What does that mean to you? Could be a lot more to it. There’s a lot of countries i wouldn’t blame for retaliating against the US. Do I and many many others deserve to die in the crossfire? No. But I’d understand. Voting doesn’t work so how can diplomacy? Complacency is the worst trait to have. The good i can mourn and wish to protect. But I don’t give a single shit what happens to bad people.

[@drowningcrown2293]

@@sreenivas6071he didnt give himself the attack titan, my nigga and im quite sure he was only trynna level the root of his hell in the beginning.

[@drowningcrown2293]

@@sreenivas6071and honestttttly them mfs could have planned better for Eren going awol. Levi been said he could have taken eren out. He sat on it. Whats up? I would have liked to see Erwin survive. Mf only wanted the truth fr. Him and Levi were the dream team.

[@Joenzetie]

Genuinely one of the best videos on this series. You gained a subscribe.

[@user-ry5xk7sq4n]

Tbh, I’m fine with Armin’s monologues cause it fits his character with all his overthinking and overanalysis of every little thing.

[@NadavGang]

absolutely fantastic video, I have learned so much, thank you. amazing.

[@lazy_biscuits08]

The editing and content is so damn good, you managed to keep me hooked to each and every word throughout the video! You deserve more subs!!

[@user-gn3cu5ce2c]

Great video, love the effort and info put into it!!

[@NarrativeArcade]

More to come! Hope to expand this with a full team including additional editors so we can focus on improving storytelling across the board.

[@kostiamololkin8577]

this is awesome break down thank you

[@GameTimeNLL]

Unbelievably well done video!

[@FlyingAlfredoSaucer]

This video is up there with videos made by KZbinrs with millions of subscribers! Great video!

[@hsab5927]

perfect, thank you. subbed. also really funny.. 'Armin Armin I hear you' heheh

[@angelamengualcortinas3614]

That was a great video, sir.

[@GISLE5959]

Amazing vid. You deserve every sub, view and like you get. I hope more people find this vid, this was great

[@nogovannut9386]

Got here from Bounding Into Comics, glad to have taken the trip! Thanks for making this video and posting it. There are some ideas regarding freedom and culpability that the narrative plays with a little that I think you could have hit (Isayama mentions them in an interview about AoT), but I think you've largely done a great service highlighting the overall storytelling strengths of this great show. Careful with those Cheetos.... Great job, man! Subbed!

[@NarrativeArcade]

Awesome, welcome! Yeah, that article taught me that the internet falls into two groups. Those with reading comprehension and those with none. Some of the twitter replies where fun. "What about xyz?", *xyz answered in the first three paragraphs...* lol

[@Skiplis1]

Awesome!!

[@__MPires__]

Dude, perfect video. Maybe aside the english version of the anime, but that's just an opinion of mine. Absolutely brilliant scripted video. Love the edits, the memes, the narrative, JP, everything. Thank you! Subscribed and waiting for more ❤

[@NarrativeArcade]

Yeah, I also only watch original dubs but for a better viewing experience, I switched to the English dub. It's ok at best 😅 Naruto breakdown drops late March!

[@fanmovie357]

Probably the best analysis Ive seen about AOT themes.

[@AngelDustMyBel0ved]

This video is incredible

[@Adelinawrites]

čevapiii (great breakdown brother, greetings from powder keg)

[@dsvdaniel9031]

Shingeki no Kyojin is a true masterpiece, just like this video is for sure

[@wildcardwinner6219]

I cannot believe you like AOT, Halo and Jordan Peterson. We’re gonna get along just fine, friend. And I’m going meet JP this year!

[@buddhapunch2486]

Algorithm for the win. Whatever feel you were going for as a channel, this is a winner for me. Subbed and looking forward to more. Best wishes, man

[@kungawombabala9314]

That Jordan Peterson last qoute is Amazing ❤😊

[@caiosanti4045]

What an awesome video

[@fourtyfingers]

dude you are criminally underrated! You deserve all the subs, including mine!!

[@michaelakinlabi7256]

Great vid. New sub!

[@Steindaemon]

Why the hell is your Chanel so small? This is such a good video

[@NarrativeArcade]

I seem to get that a lot here lol Technically, I've only produced four videos so far. So, there's much more to come and channel is growing at a good pace.

[@ryannixon4138]

Damn, this started off as a great writing guide but ended as some damn good life and moral advice. And this Kermit professor sounded familiar...

[@NarrativeArcade]

Professor Kermit is an independent channel contributor. No relation to Professor Peterson, though they get confused all the time.

[@Carolinefdq]

I just finished season 3 of AOT and will be watching season 4 pretty soon (I already know some of the things that happen in the finale before checking out this video). Thank you for your analysis of the writing in this story! That's one of the things I've been enjoying so far about it. There are a lot of complex themes in it and I understand why a lot of people didn't like the way the manga and the anime concluded. It's not a typical shounen anime 😊 anyways, I'm really excited to continue with the next season.

[@enicot]

Really nice analysis, I really liked the style of this video. If you want to watch something else that has a lot of really interesting themes (and is criminally underrated) I deeply recommend Babylon (anime).

[@matten_zero]

This is so good I watched it twice. You HAVE to break down Monster!

[@NarrativeArcade]

I'm doing my content calendar for 2024, is it Monster by Naoki Urasawa? Cause I'm seeing that one has its 20 year anniversary coming up. So would be a good time to watch it.

[@matten_zero]

@@NarrativeArcade yep that's the one! It is a bit different pace than AoT but it's a thriller and explores some interesting themes.

[@matijacajao9728]

Svaka čast prika, pozdrav iz Hercegovine :)

[@NarrativeArcade]

Puno hvala!

[@rue2838]

As i watched this, i was amazed you dont have more subscribers.

[@NarrativeArcade]

It's a new channel, just about 3 months old. But it keeps growing :) and I'm only getting started.

[@xthebluedevil]

ARMIN, STOP. I CAN SEE THAT. Anyways, thanks for sharing these insightful lessons. It will better my story.

[@enjoyer328]

W + banger + underrated

[@jungleblazers1249]

Great video. It's very educational and entertaining, and hopefully this brings you a lot of views and subs. I agree with your nitpick that the show over explains its message/theme in monologues, but seeing how many people were still arguing which side was right/wrong until the very end, maybe there could've been more monologues lol.

[@sanctum13]

the Kermit bit had me dying

[@xxMidNightHuskyxx]

dr kermit hits hard

[@Ikaris_trip]

I can't stop watching this video, it's so detailed and interesting! You gained a subscribe, keep it up! Can’t wait to see the Naruto video btw ^^

[@artimusuno]

Bravo. AOT is my favorite piece of media besides Amadeus. As i tell all people who have seen it, i would suggest watching it again. I got dopemine hits spotting its foreshadowing, yet all the while feeling future Aaron's presence throughout the journey.

[@JustinBorowski13]

Loved this video. Btw your accent made me think you called Floch a f×g lmao I double taked and almost cried laughing

[@NarrativeArcade]

Hahaha, I gotta admit his name tripped me over the most in every sentence. Because in German his name is pronounced very differently. Like the last name Fuchs 😂 so the moment I start being extra conscious, it's gonna be trippy.

[@JustinBorowski13]

@NarrativeArcade You speak quite well don't even worry about it haha. What made me laugh it was the idea that after all this sophisticated analysis, you summed him up with such a crass word. Which still turned out to work even once. I realized what you actually said, but it was somehow funnier.

[@thepieisalieofficial]

This was an incredible video! I’d love to see you do a breakdown on Avatar The Last Airbender, in the future

[@NarrativeArcade]

Oh, I love that one! It's definitely on my list. Shyamalan did an incredible job-- I'm just joking... I'll get to the real deal eventually.

[@matten_zero]

Monster or Evangelion. A must esp if you love the ending of AoT.

[@NarrativeArcade]

Noted! I'll add em to the list.

[@ladylady3818]

​@@NarrativeArcade Don't forget about Code Geass with its legendary ending

[@ahmadghanie9671]

Fullmetal alchemsit is my favourite anime. Also lelouch of the rebellion might be a good break down.

[@NarrativeArcade]

I heard great things about both, so I'll add them to the list.

[@ajeesh3485]

Why you like FMAB so much?

[@bastiencdp8794]

That's some quality content, thanks you friend, for sharing this passion of storywriting and thus exploring the humain experience with us. I'm curious about the Professor Kermit moment, can you give us the name of this speech ? I wanna find it so bad

[@NarrativeArcade]

It's Jordan Peterson, you will always see a cast list in credits or description (with links) on Narrative Arcade videos. This particular bit was spliced from multiple sources: '2017/01/22: Pt 2/3: Freedom Of Speech Jordan Peterson', and a few class room sessions of his: 'Hell is a bottomless pit' and 'Developing your inner psychopath'; if you type these in the KZbin search, you should find all clips.

[@alexthelion141]

Niko bellic narrated the greatest piece of fiction. Amazing video I subbed immediately 🔥🔥🔥

[@ThriftyFangirl]

I didn't realize how much it bothered me when people say Fritz rewarded Ymir by making her his wife until you (correctly) said "concubine" instead. It's so clear in both the dialogue and the visuals that Ymir was only given the "privilege" of bearing his children (ew). Even by old-timey standards, she was not treated with the level of respect that a wife would get, and certainly not a queen. She was made to stand behind the throne, not sit beside it, her clothes were always plain, and when the king wanted to fool around, he had other women whilst Ymir was left out

[@elijahbowers1]

Lol I love the Falcon clip. It's such blatant and bad writing. I was super meh on Falcon Winter Soldier and obviously knew the analogy they were trying to make with race and the snapped but man as soon as the do better speech happened that was the nail in the coffin that just killed it for me.

[@southoceann]

Amazing breakdown, keep it up man. Were you trained as a writer though, I wonder? How come you've acquired all these knowledge on writing and storytelling?

[@southoceann]

Nvm, found in your comment that you went to film school in LA, that explains it. And I'd love to throw in an analysis request for The Last of Us. Plus as you are extending the channel, I'd love to help with whatever I can. Not a trained writer but obsession with storytelling is my merit haha.

[@BalikTrollbane]

Lots of cool Biblical references and themes in this show. Love the analysis good sir! God bless.

[@XGoken]

What are they?

[@maxavaria]

Yo, God tier vid. You should do Full metal alchemist when you get the time to.

[@hsab5927]

will be waiting your work on Naruto and HxH

[@Skiplis1]

Damn, gonna be an emotional rollercoaster on Naruto 😉

[@andreapetro420]

On point. But sad to see most people completly missed the point of the show and still continue to take sides over which person/side is "right". I hope this video reaches out to more people.

[@jrgutierrez4594]

i have spent a long time looking for this type of content and i finally found it lol can you make one of these on akira? pls

[@NarrativeArcade]

Akira is on the list, all the classic and popular ones are. It's just a question of when 😅 Can't wait to get an editor involved. Right now, it's just me. But next video will be feature length about Naruto and Naruto Shippuden.

[@jrgutierrez4594]

@@NarrativeArcade excited for naruto, its a classic 💪🏼

[@monomono117]

I lost it with that jp bit 😂

[@Thel_09]

Can’t wait for the naruto episode

[@andrewr2728]

Thank you for making this, it puts into words what I was never able to fully articulate about this story. The number of times I've seen people misunderstand or misconstrue AoT has been infuriating. Small bit of criticism though: at 37:05, you show Eren concluding life itself is a sin. I really don't think Eren concluded that, especially given how he reacted to what Carla said about being born to this world. And the scene you show to justify this, Ereb agreeing with Zeke's perspective? He was agreeing with him to get Zeke's aid. He never actually believed that life needs to be wiped out and Eldians should be euthanized (as seen when he betrays Zeke in Paths). If anything, believing life is a sin is Zeke's flaw, one that he finally reconciles with right before his death. I love this video and what you're saying, but it's disappointing to see a somewhat disingenuous/flawed argument there!

[@caydennel1526]

I'd be really interested to listen to some of those talks that are used in the video, can you link them in the description or somewhere ? Maybe I missed them in the video

[@NarrativeArcade]

I've added now links in the description. There will always be a cast list with socials linked for every person involved. Going forward I'll link the content too right below the cast list. Thanks for watching!

[@unoriginalandrew]

That clip of Falcon was the most cringe moment of all the ones shown, for me. Just, woof. Also, AoT is my favorite series of all time. Nothing comes close other than a few shows from different genres. Best manga and anime of all time.

[@karenwang313]

It's comedy gold. I don't know how a paid professional in hollywood could unironically write that line, unless it was meant to be satire from the beginning.

[@charismacaster2429]

This is a very good video. I am a writer and fellow studier of storytelling, and there's a lot I'd like to say about this video and the few areas where I disagree about your narrative analysis (I have a feeling we greatly disagree politically, but that is what it is). Unfortunately, I don't have time to right now, so I'll just say this until I have a chance to come back later. One of the few criticisms of this video I have is the pacing. Several of the cut in clips went on a bit too long, and I found myself actively wishing they would go faster. I would normally watch the video on 1.5x speed but had to switch to 2x speed for this reason. (Also, note, my own videos are in no way indicitive of high quality video production. It's like being able to see the flaws but not having the skillset to fix them, as I can't edit for shit but I can recognize and relay my experience as a viewer.) Aside from that, and partly in tune with it, some of the jokes didn't land for me. But it was more so the sheer number of them, especially toward the end of the first third (or act, if you will). Just felt like being bombarded with joke after joke when the content itself was enough to keep me watching. It detracted for me instead of enhancing the experience. And finally, I do have to assert that this video is in and of itself overtly political. There's just no way for it not to be. It references political issues and makes implications about them. Maybe we should allow storytelling in general to be overtly political. Maybe writing being political isn't inherently the issue, as it's been done for pretty much all of time. Perhaps, instead, the issue is nuance. You can write a good story while trying to push a specific agenda or lead the audience to a certain conclusion, but only if you take the time to understand and explore alternative perspectives and argue why they are wrong. Attack on Titan itself does this. As you said, it plays both sides, but it fundamentally also walks away condemning the mistreatment of people within its world and Eren's behavior. It chooses a side. That's all for now.

[@NarrativeArcade]

I agree, writing politically was never the issue. Our current crop of writers is just subpar. I do script doctoring on the side and I get political scripts every now and then which go against all my believes and my only note is just to not forget to keep your characters three dimensional. For example, if the Falcon and Winter Soldier episode were on my desk, I would just ask why the senator is not fighting back? Even if you think he's wrong or evil, he will get defensive about it like every human on this planet. That's what elevates the writing, politics to me are just an outgrowth of personality types. There is no point in arguing them because you're literally asking to change someone's personality, which ain't happening (at least easily). So all I can do is look for technical writing solutions. Some take them to heart, some don't; not my problem. Regarding jokes, yeah, I can see that too. It was a deliberate choice. Every bit had to hammer a point home to not rely solely on my narration like the history of Europe or modern writer bit which was based on people I had to work with in Los Angeles. It's a tough spot, I usually come in late and leave early, same as screenwriting a scene but some people preferred more and longer jokes. All I can do is make sure it's related.

[@charismacaster2429]

@@NarrativeArcade Thank you for the thoughtful reply. I still intend on coming back to this to leave more thorough thoughts, but that would require me to watch the full video again, so I'll do that when I'm feeling up to it.

[@fatpenguin0089]

basically did the 'do better senator' but for your side in this vid

[@Novelbl20]

Great video, I always recommend Mob Psycho 100, same creator as one punch man, great anime

[@jrgutierrez4594]

should i write 3 different designing principles for a story with 3 main characters or should i write 1 for all 3? ( first time writing a story and this video is incredibly helpful)

[@NarrativeArcade]

Three different designing principles with the same theme. You do this always for protagonists. If you got a buddy cop movie, you do it for both. Or in your case three characters. But before you do that you have to decide what type of characters are they? Are all three 3D or 2D or a mix of both? Then when you write a designing principle for each you should know their relation and how they'll enact change. In a buddy cop movie for example, it's usually always two 3D characters. So each has an internal flaw they need to overcome and they'll usually find it in the other. Lethal Weapon: Riggs is suicidal and nihilistic, Murtaugh is stale and domesticated. Both need a piece to overcome their flaw and they'll find it in the other. It's like yin yang, one is in pure chaos, the other is in pure order. So both need to find the right balance to be healthy. I saw your earlier comment, but definitely stay tuned for the Naruto video because I'll show how to juggle dozens of characters and unite them with one theme for subtext. Should come out end of April.

[@ajeesh3485]

where did you learn this? very interesting,

[@NarrativeArcade]

I wasted a lot of money on film school. Most of it you'd hear in like your second year when they expect you to write a few features. Though everyone has their little jargon for it, but every school talks about the same thing in essence.

[@ajeesh3485]

@@NarrativeArcade nice, atleast you started a KZbin channel with the things learnt from school, not everyone can do that, I too wasted shit load of money and half of my life at studying, 🥲

[@NarrativeArcade]

@@ajeesh3485 Oh, I'm complaining for the sake of complaining. Learned a lot from some really competent people in the field and thought it was time to put it to good use. Usually, I do freelance copywriting as I have not sold one of my screenplays yet and the copywriting is always corporate and dull. So, best to change it up.

[@Cernunn0s90]

Really good video! You should check out the 2003 version of Full Metal Alchemist, I find it much darker and heavier on themes than Brotherhood.

[@DjNaste]

Original FMA > Brotherhood

[@yelsahblah3270]

My people! I love the OG FMA anime so much. It was just a more streamlined, darker story. I enjoyed it so much more. I always get ragged on for that option but I don't care.

[@jesseg211]

Great vid man, would love see your take on cowboy bebop.

[@chengong388]

I’ve had the same opinion, a story is really a philosophical argument, where you make use of the example of what happens in the story to argue for some conclusion. The example must obey rules of logic because otherwise it’s not convincing, but you can set up the example however you want, as the settings of the story. And in the end you must have a conclusion, it can’t just be this happens and then that happens, you have to answer, so what? Why tell this story? For example, I argue that war and conflict is in human nature because good and evil is fluid depending on the perspective, because suppose there is this guy called Erin and he lives in this walled in country etc etc…. Therefore you see, we cannot say if Erin was good or evil, only that his perfectly reasonable motivations lead to great tragedies.

[@karenwang313]

Not really an anime, but you should totally give Muv Luv a shot, it's considered one of the greatest Mecha series of all time. The main character's journey in particular is a work of art, especially since most visual novel protagonists are throwaway self insert characters for the reader to date waifus through. The only reason it's not as famous as it deserves to be is because the main series hasn't had a full anime adaptation for the normies to slobber up. The games are on steam if you want to give them a try.

[@duckcluck123]

You're English is perfect. It's pretty much native level, except for the accent I'm impressed

[@Cucuy]

I know this is a long shot but maybe the clone wars tv series would be a great video

[@fanmovie357]

I would reccomend Legend of the galactic heroes, the 90s series since the remake is not finished ( and personally not as good so far ) Another one keeping with anime would be FMA both versions, but since there is already so much FMA already here I would love more Legend of the galactic heroes analysis

[@stoffelstrange5215]

could do without the jordan peterson but thanks for the ride

[@angeldoe1229]

Yep

[@dirty1994]

Floch was the soul survivor of a suicide run. He believed in Eren and Put everything aside for his country. He wasn't a punk

[@porqpine53]

You should do Mob Pyscho 100

[@hennyvanpatten6026]

Amazing video! Do Neon Genesis Evangelion next

[@josesosa3337]

In regards to attack on titan, I think studio mappa is overrated in understanding and mimmicking isayama's art style. I love the work of studio wit and with the switch to mappa, it feels like something was lost.

[@RoseRose-jh3bo]

Who are the 9/10 10/10 most traumatized protagonists? 😟

[@joem5037]

Other excellent anime worth a narrative breakdown / analysis / deconstruction of: Gen Urobuchi's "trilogy" of *Madoka*, *Fate/Zero*, and *Psycho Pass* (season 1) *Made in Abyss* *Frieren* (incomplete / in progress, but with significant, and decently closed off narrative development and character growth throughout S1. Excellent example of Japanese storytelling not being strictly about conflict. Frieren is full of armed conflict, but none of that has anything (or barely anything) to do with the actual narrative and its character development) *Dungeon Meshi* (when / if complete in a full ~50+ episodes - or just read the manga. Despite the S1 verneer - and being a goofy episodic story mostly about cooking - this is a true, classic fantasy epic, with major twists and inversions and a very well developed, large cast with competing ideologies and objectives) *Sonny Boy* (12 episodes, pretty classic coming of age story in a very unusual / out-there setting and dreamworld-esque time scale) *Shinsekai Yori* (also a coming of age story, and a very well done, DEEP dive into evil and the human condition. Also one of the very few anime that was adapted not from a manga or LN, but from a real japanese science fiction novel. The series overall is both noticeably low-budget, and ~50% longer than it maybe strictly needed to be, but is well worth it for its climax, resolution, and general commentary about humanity and our social and ethical systems (and utopian / deeply dystopian what-ifs) at the end of its 24 episodes) *Monster* (74 episodes - and honestly for the life of me I can't remember WHY this series needed to be 74 episodes, but this list wouldn't be complete without including it) And maybe Baccano, for something completely different (and arguably a masterwork within its genre) A sort of running theme here is that Japanese writers - or rather the best of them / at their very best - do not shy away from deeply, and seriously, discussing society, ethics, philosophy, and the human condition. They're also all bottom up, self-made market successes, in stark contrast to - as I think you stated in another video - comparatively untested and studio-restricted writers who are simply given huge / existing audiences and franchises that they were not just given, but also forced to work with. Japanese animation, to its credit, has a completely different content creation pipeline and market structure than hollywood does. There is a massive market for audience tested / audience selected original (and derivative) stories in comics / manga and literature (light novel / web novel, and the rare actual novel), with comparatively low bars for entry and a huge amount of competition. Critically this is all commercial market capitalism + bottom-up entrepreneurship, since there's still an active, large market for paid print media in these formats in japan. This isn't in itself unique to Japan - of course we also have real novels, and commercial graphic novels in the west - but the way that they're (if ever) adapted into films and television is completely different. Also worth noting that Japan has a commercial market for fan fiction and fan art. And a very direct continuum - and pathway - from that into real / original storytelling. By far the biggest difference is that Japan has a significant market - and govt market subsidies! - for Japanese animation, that *isn't* (or at least isn't exclusively) franchise based. Furthermore the entire Japanese animation industry mostly creates adaptations - and which are basically commercials / marketing - for their parallel creative industries. With an often symbiotic relationship between anime - which gets more eyeballs, and employs an entire industry of animators, VAs, producers, and animation-specific screenwriters - and manga and LNs, which generate sales. Within that there is no re-interpretation of the source material, just *interpretation* and enhancement of the original work. See Attack on Titan, 86, and Frieren as excellent adaptations that all elevated and enhanced the original work. The west certainly can do this as well, but much more rarely - see the SyFy -> Amazon adaptation of The Expanse, and the TV show's relationship with the books (which often feels like a 2nd draft / further fleshing out of characters and narrative, albeit with television-specific things like added drama and reduced character competence / idiot ball for dramatic effect), for instance. Because of this Japanese original authors and writers often don't, with notable exceptions, work within the animation industry, they instead work within the industries that feed into animation, and succeed or die there. That said important caveat for anime originals, which is its own whole other can of worms.

[@dumbloser666]

"what in gods name is going on?" is a very accurate depiction of watching AOT for the first time

[@Atomic_Aegis45]

Can we just talk about how they don't give the grieving mother the patch from his uniform and instead hads her A FUCKING SEVERED ARM. Like what the hell guys.

[@lm93tah41]

Yo Michael malice

[@NarrativeArcade]

I tried sharing this with him on twitter but I'm too much of a nobody to make a dent lol

[@JGrimm52]

Imo the Japanese are the worlds best story tellers, the only Western Story that brings the emotions to me that Anime/Manga does is LOTR. I was unaware of their special story structure. Much makes sense now.