Attack on Titan (Season 1)

The Scouts, the part of the military that explores beyond the walls, have returned to Shiganshina.  It is clear that they had a difficult time and many of their number are missing.  Eren Yeager, who is only 10, is eager to someday join them and becomes irate when a bystander bemoans the taxes wasted on the futile effort of going beyond the walls.  Indeed, beyond the walls - which are 50 meters tall - the titans roam the land.  Titans are anywhere from 4 meters to 15 meters tall and love nothing more than to devour humans.  These monsters first appeared just over a hundred years ago and humanity managed to hide behind a series of giant walls: Wall Maria (the outermost), Wall Rose, and Wall Sina (the innermost).  The area protected by these walls is vast and many towns and villages dot the countryside within.

Eren and his friends, Mikasa and Armen, witness what appears to be a lightning strike near the gate that leads beyond the wall.  Then a giant hand grabs the top of the wall and the skinless head of a giant peers over the wall!  Suddenly, the gate shatters and titans enter through the breech.  Panic follows and many are slain by the invading titans.

Despite looking like giant humans, titans have animal level intelligence.  Moreover, they do not have sex organs, which leads one to wonder how they reproduce.  Of course, they also have astonishing regenerative abilities, regrowing limbs or even their head.  Only a slice to the back of their neck is fatal.  Stranger still, they do not need food to survive and hunt humans for no apparent reason.  

To battle the giants, humanity has developed razor sharp blades for slicing through the giants - especially the sensitive spot on the back of their necks.  They also have a harness equipped with projectile grappling gear and gas propulsion to give them three-dimensional mobility in cityscapes and forests; the gear is not of much use in plains or fields.  Yes, the soldiers are kind of like Spider-Man with their grappling gear, swinging from building to building.

The story mostly follows Eren.  His mother was devoured in the first episode and he has sworn vengeance on all the titans.  To effect his goal, he joins the military and, upon completing his training, joins the Scouts.  However, his value to the Scouts proves to be something other than his skills as a soldier.  Eren's father was a doctor who experimented on his son; Eren is not a normal boy.

There are some typical tropes common to anime.  There is a surprising amount of weeping.  Passion is expressed through yelling.  Characters openly express their fear of the titans and many regret joining the Scouts only moments after joining.  Sigh.  Most of the characters are high strung and very bad at handling stress.  The constant crisis of conscience gets old very fast.

Generally, a good series with great action and an interesting storyline.  What initially looked like just a stupid premise that played to the Japanese fascination of Kaiju (giant monsters like Godzilla) has developed into a mystery about the origins and purpose of the titans.  Some titans show human-like intelligence.  Why do they want to wipe out humanity?

Good popcorn fun.  I am eager to watch the 2nd season.