Attack on Titan: How Were Marley and The Rumbling Foreshadowed in Season 2?

Summary

• Attack on Titan uses subtle foreshadowing to create complex storytelling that immerses viewers.
• Season 2 introduces hints about Marley and the Rumbling, building tension and deepening the plot.
• The show seamlessly integrates hidden clues in visual elements to gradually reveal the larger narrative.

Since its premiere, Attack on Titan has had viewers hooked by its complex storyline, which has merged mystery, action, and psychological elements. The series has used subtle foreshadowing throughout, in a way that allows viewers to experience major reveals but feel like the pieces were always there, just waiting to be pieced together. This mastery of storytelling keeps the audience engrossed, as the answers often lie hidden in plain sight through dialogue, visuals, and even musical elements.

The brilliance of Attack on Titan lies in how it can weave such a complex tapestry of plot points while still managing to make it feel inevitable. Every titan encounter, every cryptic comment, and even the show’s opening and closing themes add to a larger picture that unfolds gradually. This approach not only immerses viewers but also rewards those who rewatch with fresh perspectives.

Overarching Themes of Foreshadowing

Watching AOT A Second Time Is A Must

Subtle Hints About Marley in Season 2 The Rumbling is teased throughout Season 2 through subtle imagery and dialogue: the survey of Titan’s movements, the recurring theme of humanity being trapped within the Walls, and the hints at a larger enemy beyond the sea build the narrative’s tension. Moreover, the layered characterization of Ymir, Reiner, and Bertholdt unravels Marley’s exploitation of the Eldians for their geopolitical goal.

Season 2 expanded on a lot of the mysteries introduced at earlier points in the series, and through key moments, the subtle foreshadowing of Marley, the outside world, and the true nature of the titans progressively became more apparent. The imagery of colossal walls crumbling and titans marching forward in the second opening theme, “Shinzou wo Sasageyo,” symbolized the looming threat of the Rumbling and humanity’s conflict beyond Paradis. One of the scenes depicted silhouettes of advancing soldiers, hinting at Marley’s eventual role as a militaristic aggressor.

Season 2’s Ending Hints

Showing King Fritz, Ymir and The Rumbling

The second season’s opening and endings are brimming with symbolic imagery. Scenes of children playing among colossal skeletal Titans reflect the origin of the Walls and hint at the Rumbling’s destructive potential. The closing sequences, which often depict historical events, subtly allude to the Eldian Empire’s fall and Marley’s rise to power.

One of the most chilling details hidden in the ending sequence of Attack on Titan Season 2 is how King Fritz forces Ymir’s three daughters to eat their mother’s remains to inherit her Titan powers. This haunting visual, though brief, foreshadows the dark origins of the Titan’s abilities and the cruel cycle of power that shaped Eldian history. It subtly suggests how King Fritz had taken advantage of Ymir’s powers even after she died, leaving a legacy of control and sacrifice. This very moment, when it is shown in later seasons, directly relates to the themes of oppression and manipulation, thus giving a full understanding to the fans of how brutal the history of the story’s world was.

Foreshadowing Of The Rumbling

We Were Told All Along

Season 2 also laid the seeds regarding the catastrophic potential of the Rumbling, a terrible event involving the colossal titans within the walls. The setup for The Rumbling is clear. Eren’s feral scream in Season 2, Episode 12 “Scream” shows his latent power over Titans, something linked with the Founding Titan and integral to the Rumbling. Likewise, the Survey Corps’ growing unease about the Titans’ origin was a harbinger of their eventual confrontation with Marley.

The ending sequence to the second season also had some very powerful imagery. It included ancient Eldian conquests, with titans destroying armies and cities-clearly parallel to Marley’s history and the future devastation of the Rumbling. Ymir Fritz’s silhouette in the ending suggested her pivotal role in titan lore and the Founding Titan’s capabilities. The discovery of a titan embedded within the wall further hinted at the island’s hidden history. This revelation tied directly to the Rumbling, as the walls’ origins were explained in later seasons, emphasizing the looming threat they represented.

The Titans’ Human Origins

Connie’s Village Incident

Season 2 furthered the mystery of the titans by releasing clues into their human origins-a staple of the connection to Marley and the overall story. The knowledge that titans had transformed from the villagers of Ragako was a foreshadowing of how Marley utilizes Eldians as mindless weapons of war. It was subtle, yet this really connected the dots regarding the real nature of the titans and the horrors of Marley’s oppression.

The Beast Titan’s First Appearance

Season 2 subtly showed that Zeke had more knowledge of titan biology than he was letting on, hinting that he was an important character from outside the walls. We then saw for the first time how he spoke to and commanded the titans-no less terrifying than it was to witness how the clueless monsters we saw so far could actually be controlled. The peculiar behavior of the Titans in targeting specific characters-for example, the Beast Titan orchestrating events from behind the scenes-subtly suggests the intelligence behind the attacks. This forebodes the coordinated efforts by Marley to retrieve the Founding Titan and shows that Titans are not simply mindless creatures but tools in a larger geopolitical conflict.

Story Rooted in Layers

More Than Just A Story

This sense of detail in Attack on Titan, even from its earlier seasons, goes to show how well it had thought out its storytelling well in advance. How Season 2 of the show could have set up Marley and the Rumbling is proof of the balance that maintained both action-packed episodes and those with cryptic lore. Whether it’s the haunting visuals, character dialogue, or profound music themes, every second of Attack of Titan counts toward storytelling. This made the series a complete masterclass in foreshadowing, where every reveal was both shocking and inevitable-a true hallmark of great storytelling.

Episode 1: Beast Titan

This episode introduces the enigmatic Beast Titan, a key figure tied to Marley. His ability to speak shocks the characters and subtly hints at the existence of a society beyond the Walls with advanced knowledge of Titan control. This moment foreshadows not only Zeke Yeager’s role but also Marley’s deep involvement in Titan warfare​.

Episode 2: I’m Home

A visit to his village by Connie reveals the Titans positioned eerily like his family members, hinting at the use of Titan transformation by Marley. The emotional impact of this scene is compounded later when it’s revealed how Marley weaponizes the Eldians to create Titans​.

How Could Anything Be More Important Than Keeping Humanity From Being Wiped Out? – Eren Yeager

Episode 5: Historia

The subplot of Ymir’s transformation into a Titan subtly connects to Marley’s past experiments and her connection with the Founding Titan’s history. Her flashbacks to consuming Marcel, whom we later find out was a Marleyan Warrior, foreshadow Marley’s broader plans and their history of manipulating the Eldians​.

Episode 6: Warrior

The bombshell reveal of Reiner and Bertholdt as the Armored and Colossal Titans is a direct payoff for foreshadowing seeded throughout the series. Their casual discussions and cryptic comments in earlier episodes now make sense as clues to their Marleyan origins and their mission to retrieve the Founding Titan.​

Episode 12: Scream

This is where it is revealed that Eren has the ability to command Titans with a primal scream, a foreshadowing of his control over the Founding Titan. This ties directly into Marley’s plans and Eren’s eventual manipulation of the Rumbling, as his power was a focal point of their objectives all along​.

Hidden Subtle Hints Missed At First

Bertholdt’s Almost Transforming Into A Titan

In Episode 4: Soldier, when the tower falls, Bertholdt puts his hand to his mouth as if preparing to bite it, the action necessary to transform into a Titan. This scene is an indication of his true identity as the Colossal Titan.

However, he stops, likely to maintain his cover and protect the mission. For viewers who do not know his Titan form, the subtlety of this movement may be easy to miss but becomes a retroactive indicator of his desperation and struggle to keep his identity hidden.

Reiner’s Reaction To The Canned Food

The same arc in the ruined castle, Ymir identifies a can of herring as edible, reading the Marleyan language printed on it. Reiner is surprised because now he realizes that Ymir should have known it from their connection with Marley. For first-time viewers, the shock of this is minor; as a matter of fact, what it really reflects is that Reiner has grown suspicious that Ymir just links to the outside world as well as he does. It silently connects Ymir’s past as a Titan in Marley to her eventual alignment with the Titan Warriors.

Titans Inside The Walls

Season 2 kicks off by revealing that the Titans are embedded inside the Walls. It is further symbolically presented through sunlight shining on the Wall Titan, indicating that the very things considered to be the source of human security are the things they feared all this time. This imagery points to an in-depth connection between the Walls, the Titans, and Eldian history, establishing the conditions for revelations regarding the Rumbling and the origin of the Walls.

Reiner’s Split Personality

Throughout Season 2, Reiner’s behavior becomes increasingly erratic. One notable moment is his casual admission to Connie that he saved him “as a Warrior,” before he quickly covers up, downplaying what he said. This reflects Reiner’s internal conflict between his role as a Marleyan Warrior and his genuine bond with the Survey Corps. It hints at his fractured psyche, which becomes a crucial element of his character arc.

What Is A Monkey?

The World Beyond the Walls: Another subtle but important moment comes when Eren gets captured by Reiner, Bertholdt, and Ymir. While the group rests in a forest while on the run from the Survey Corps, Ymir makes a comment about how the Beast Titan looks like a monkey. This casual comment leaves Eren visibly confused, since he doesn’t know what a “monkey” is. This little interaction highlights several key narrative and world-building points within the series.

Eren’s confusion brings out the idea of how little people inside the Walls actually know. Since the humans inside the Walls have been secluded for more than a hundred years, their knowledge of animals, geography, and generally worldly concepts has shrunk away. The mention of a “monkey,” an animal Eren has neither seen nor heard of, is a subtle hint that there is a much larger world beyond the Walls, teeming with life and knowledge that the people of Paradis have never known.

You’re Not Soldiers. You’re Not Warriors. You’re Just Murderers. – Eren Yeager

This moment also reflects the contrast between Ymir and Eren. Having lived in Marley as a Titan shifter and having experienced firsthand a world beyond what Eren could possibly conceive, Ymir is well aware of things that Eren could hardly imagine. Her casual knowledge of the Beast Titan, being like a monkey, suggests her broader familiarity with Marley and their military strategies, even though she prefers to keep that knowledge hidden from Eren.

The entire Season 2 of Attack on Titan really is a masterclass on how one would foreshadow Marley’s undercover operations to the soon-accruing disaster of Rumbling, it plants the details piece by piece. Each moment carries greater context from other parts of the storyline and helps to really stitch up how the series is overall: quite well-written. For both fans and newcomers, Season 2 offers a treasure trove of revelations waiting to be discovered.