Attack on Titan: No Regrets explained

Attack on Titan: No Regrets
Ja Kanji:進撃の巨人 悔いなき選択
Ja Romaji:Shingeki no Kyojin Kui Naki Sentaku
Kui Naki Sentaku
Developer:Nitroplus
Designer:Gun Snark
Genre:Visual novel
Type:manga
Author:Gun Snark
Illustrator:Hikaru Suruga
Publisher:Kodansha
Magazine:Aria
First:September 28, 2013
Last:June 28, 2014
Volumes:2
Type:oad
Director:Tetsurō Araki
Music:Hiroyuki Sawano
Studio:Wit Studio
First:December 9, 2014
Last:April 9, 2015
Runtime:22 minutes
Episodes:2
Portal:yes

is a Japanese manga series written by Gun Snark and illustrated by Hikaru Suruga, based on a visual novel of the same name. The series is a prequel spin-off of Hajime Isayama's popular manga. The story follows the character of Levi Ackerman before he joins the Survey Corps.

The series is published by Kodansha in Japan and by Kodansha USA in the North America. A two-part original animation DVD was released in 2014 and 2015.

Plot

The story is a prequel to Attack on Titan that follows Levi during his days as a criminal in the underground city, when he was with his two best friends Isabel Magnolia and Farlan Church before Erwin Smith recruits him into the Survey Corps.

Conception and development

Before Suruga began the manga, her editor-in-chief suggested that she visit the Metropolitan Area Outer Underground Discharge Channel so she could better visualize the Underground where Levi and the others live at the beginning of the story. It was while there that Suruga was first able to picture how large an 18-meter tall Titan actually would be.

While drawing Levi, Suruga attempted to make him appear younger than he does in Attack on Titan. She noted that his lack of emotiveness made it difficult to choose which expressions to give him while drawing. With Isabel, Suruga attempted to convey a "lively, energetic" character who, while "very cute", was just as capable at fighting Titans as anyone else. Suruga had difficulty drawing Farlan's face, as she wanted to give him characteristics that would clearly distinguish him from the other two main characters. Despite that, she found it surprisingly easy to copy the character's hairstyle from Namaniku ATK's original design.

Media

Visual novel

Two visual novels written by of Nitroplus, titled and, were released with the third and sixth Blu-ray sets of the Attack on Titan anime, on September 18, 2013, and December 18, 2013, respectively.[1] The character designs were provided by Namaniku ATK, also of Nitroplus.

Manga

The series was written by Gun Snark and illustrated by . A prologue chapter was published in the November 2013 issue of Kodansha's magazine Aria on September 28, 2013.[2] [3] The prologue was republished in the December issue on October 28, 2013, after the first issue to contain it quickly sold out.[4] The series regular began in the January 2014 issue on November 28, 2013.[3] Kodansha made the decision to increase the magazine's print run 5-fold (500%) due to the series' popularity, starting with the January 2014 issue.[5] When they reprinted the issue on December 16, 2013, they increased the number of copies again, making the total print run a 10-fold (1000%) increase over the previously recorded monthly sales of 13,667 copies.[6] A special chapter was published in the May 2014 issue of Kodansha's Monthly Shōnen Sirius magazine on March 25, 2014.[7] The series ended in the August 2014 issue on June 28, 2014.[8]

After the first volume was released, the decision to reprint it came on the same day.[9] A booklet containing a set of character sketches and the prologue chapter was bundled with a special edition of the volume.[10] A complete color edition containing the entire series would be released on December 5, 2017.[11] Kodansha USA announced their license to the series at their New York Comic Con panel on October 11, 2013.[12]

Volumes

Anime

A two-episode original animation DVD adaptation was announced in the 14th volume of Attack on Titan.[13] The OADs were produced by the same staff that produced the Attack on Titan television series. The episodes were directed by Tetsurō Araki and written by Yasuko Kobayashi, with animation by Wit Studio. Character designs were provided by Kyoji Asano. The insert song is "So ist es immer" (Just Like it Always is) by Hiroyuki Sawano.[14] The OADs starred Hiroshi Kamiya as Levi, Daisuke Ono as Erwin, Kōji Yusa as Furlan, and Mariya Ise as Isabel.[15] The first episode was included with the 15th volume of Attack on Titan on December 9, 2014, and the second episode was included with the 16th volume on April 9, 2015.

On January 15, 2016, Kodansha Comics announced that they would release the two episodes with the special editions of the 18th and 19th English volumes of the manga,[16] on April 5, 2016[17] and August 2, 2016, respectively.[18] On December 15, 2021, it was announced that Attack on Titan's OADs would be released subtitled by Funimation and Crunchyroll on December 19, with the dubbed release following in 2022.[19] On May 2, 2022, it was announced that the dub will be released weekly starting on May 8, 2022.[20] The No Regrets OADs were released from May 29 to June 5.

Episode list

Reception

The manga has over 1.5 million copies in print in Japan.[21] The first volume of the manga had 500,000 copies in print by April 2014, having sold 140,186 copies within the first five days of its release. The volume was also the 57th best-selling manga volume in Japan in 2014.[22] The first volume of the English translation appeared on the New York Times Manga Best Sellers list for 18 nonconsecutive weeks,[23] while the second volume was on the list for 12 weeks.[24]

Reviewing the first volume for The Fandom Post, Kate O’Neil gave it a grade of B. Noting Levi's status as a fan-favorite character, she wrote: "I often wonder at how much of the backstory in these spin-offs was the result of the original author's notes or the spin-off writer responding to the desires of the fanbase." She also commented that the art is "handled by someone other than the author, which means that characters are actually well proportioned and the perspective is solid."[25]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Loo. Egan. Attack on Titan Blu-rays Add Visual Novels by Nitro+ Staff. May 18, 2013. Anime News Network. March 11, 2016. June 7, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130607044235/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2013-05-18/attack-on-titan-blu-rays-add-visual-novels-by-nitro+. live.
  2. Web site: Hodgkins. Crystalyn. Attack on Titan Spinoff Manga to Run in Aria Shōjo Magazine. August 27, 2013. Anime News Network. March 10, 2016. August 29, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130829223927/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2013-08-27/attack-on-titan-spinoff-manga-to-run-in-aria-shojo-magazine. live.
  3. Web site: Loveridge. Lyenzee. K: Days of Blue Spinoff Manga Launches Next Month. October 2, 2013. Anime News Network. March 10, 2016. May 22, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190522204959/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2013-10-02/k/days-of-blue-spinoff-manga-launches-next-month. live.
  4. Web site: Nelkin. Sarah. Aria Reprints Attack on Titan Shōjo Prologue After It Sells Out. October 8, 2013. Anime News Network. March 10, 2016. May 20, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190520002733/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2013-10-08/aria-reprints-attack-on-titan-shojo-prologue-after-it-sells-out. live.
  5. Web site: Loo. Egan. Attack on Titan Spinoff Causes Magazine's Print Run to Jump 500%. November 11, 2013. Anime News Network. March 11, 2016. May 6, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190506071811/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2013-11-11/attack-on-titan-spinoff-causes-magazine-print-run-to-jump-500-percent. live.
  6. Web site: Loo. Egan. Attack on Titan Spinoff Causes Magazine's Print Run to Increase 10-Fold. December 10, 2013. Anime News Network. March 11, 2016. May 20, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190520005329/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2013-12-10/attack-on-titan-spinoff-causes-magazine-print-run-to-increase-10-fold. live.
  7. Web site: Nelkin. Sarah. 3 Attack on Titan Spin-Off Manga Series Get Special Chapters in Sirius. February 26, 2014. Anime News Network. March 11, 2016. December 11, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20151211221450/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-02-26/3-attack-on-titan-spin-off-manga-series-get-special-chapters-in-sirius. live.
  8. Web site: Hodgkins. Crystalyn. Attack on Titan: No Regrets Manga to End Next Month. May 27, 2014. Anime News Network. March 11, 2016. May 23, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190523013358/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-05-27/attack-on-titan-no-regrets-manga-to-end-next-month/.74967. live.
  9. Web site: Loo. Egan. Attack on Titan: No Regrets #1 Has 500,000 Copies in Print. April 20, 2014. Anime News Network. March 11, 2016. May 20, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190520015659/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-04-20/attack-on-titan/no-regrets-no.1-has-500000-copies-in-print. live.
  10. Web site: http://natalie.mu/comic/news/114092. ja:進撃の巨人リヴァイ外伝1巻本日発売、小冊子付き特装版も. Attack on Titan Levi side story volume 1 released today, includes special edition with booklet. April 9, 2014. Natalie. April 20, 2016. September 12, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150912075312/http://natalie.mu/comic/news/114092. live.
  11. Web site: Attack on Titan: No Regrets Complete Color Edition. Penguin Random House. April 15, 2021. July 19, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240719094925/https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/562104/attack-on-titan-no-regrets-complete-color-edition-by-original-concept-by-hajime-isayama-story-by-gun-snark-art-by-hikaru-suruga/. live.
  12. Web site: Hodgkins. Crystalyn. Kodansha Comics Adds Attack on Titan: Before the Fall, No Regrets Spinoff Manga. October 11, 2016. Anime News Network. March 10, 2016. October 13, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131013123435/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2013-10-11/kodansha-comics-adds-attack-on-titan/before-the-fall-a-choice-with-no-regrets-spinoff-manga. live.
  13. Web site: Loo. Egan. Attack on Titan: No Regrets Spinoff Gets Anime DVDs. August 5, 2014. Anime News Network. March 11, 2016. August 6, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140806222612/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-08-05/attack-on-titan-no-regrets-spinoff-gets-anime-dvds/.77306. live.
  14. Web site: Nelkin. Sarah. Hiroyuki Sawano Performs Attack on Titan Film's Ending Theme 'YAMANAIAME'. October 31, 2014. Anime News Network. March 11, 2016. May 8, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190508203714/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-10-31/hiroyuki-sawano-performs-attack-on-titan-film-ending-theme-yamanaiame/.80531. live.
  15. Web site: Nelkin. Sarah. Attack on Titan: No Regrets Anime's Promo Previews 1st Episode. September 12, 2014. Anime News Network. March 11, 2016. October 14, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171014030437/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-09-12/attack-on-titan-no-regrets-anime-promo-previews-1st-episode/.78702. live.
  16. Web site: Ressler. Karen. Kodansha USA to Release Attack on Titan: No Regrets Anime DVD With Manga. January 15, 2016. Anime News Network. March 11, 2016. July 19, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240719094913/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2016-01-15/kodansha-usa-to-release-attack-on-titan-no-regrets-anime-dvd-with-manga/.97613. live.
  17. Web site: Attack on Titan 18 Special Edition w/DVD. Penguin Random House. March 11, 2016. April 7, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160407215550/http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/545126/attack-on-titan-18-special-edition-wdvd-by-hajime-isayama/. live.
  18. Web site: Attack on Titan 19 Special Edition w/DVD. Penguin Random House. March 11, 2016.
  19. Web site: Mateo. Alex. December 15, 2021. Funimation, Crunchyroll Stream 8 Attack on Titan OADs. November 5, 2023. Anime News Network. July 19, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240719094923/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2021-12-15/funimation-crunchyroll-stream-8-attack-on-titan-oads/.180642. live.
  20. Web site: Dempsey. Liam. Crunchyroll to Launch Attack on Titan OAD English Dub Starting May 8. Crunchyroll. May 2, 2022. June 6, 2022. July 19, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240719094912/https://www.crunchyroll.com/news/latest/2022/5/2/crunchyroll-to-launch-attack-on-titan-oad-english-dub-starting-may-8. live.
  21. Web site: Full Color Edition of "Attack on Titan" Spin-Off Manga "No Regrets" to be Released in June. Mikikazu. Komatsu. Crunchyroll. April 8, 2017. December 19, 2021. July 19, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240719095430/https://www.crunchyroll.com/news/latest/2017/4/8/full-color-edition-of-attack-on-titan-spin-off-manga-no-regrets-to-be-released-in-june. live.
  22. Web site: Loo. Egan. Top-Selling Manga in Japan by Volume: 2014. January 2, 2015. Anime News Network. March 11, 2016. July 19, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240719095345/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2015-01-02/top-selling-manga-in-japan-by-volume-2014/.82827. live.
  23. Web site: Best Sellers – Manga. April 19, 2015. The New York Times. March 11, 2016. March 9, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160309233355/http://www.nytimes.com/best-sellers-books/2015-04-19/manga/list.html. live.
  24. Web site: Best Sellers – Manga. February 8, 2015. The New York Times. March 11, 2016. May 5, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160505231405/http://www.nytimes.com/best-sellers-books/2015-02-08/manga/list.html. live.
  25. Web site: Attack On Titan: No Regrets Vol. #01 Manga Review. O’Neil. Kate. June 17, 2014. The Fandom Post. March 11, 2016.