When you stop and think about it, the smash hit anime Attack on Titan is focused as much on eating as it is fighting. The titular Titans’ one and only ambition seems to be breaking into the walled city to eat the humans hiding within. One character is largely defined by her love of potatoes, which ties into the recurring concern about food shortages humanity faces in a world largely controlled by giant monsters.
You know what would make the whole situation less bleak? A couple of orders of fast food chain Lotteria’s 10-patty Attack on Titan hamburgers and jumbo French fry buckets to keep people nourished, plus some limited edition key chains to keep them entertained.
Yes Lotteria, the reigning king of crazy in the Japanese fast food industry, is back again, this time for a tie-up with the most popular anime in recent memory. The Attack on Titan cheeseburger comes in three different sizes, featuring five, seven, or ten patties. They’re officially referred to as five-meter, seven-meter, and ten-meter class, a reference to the measuring system for the anime’s Titans, although you could just as easily think of them as “large,” “almost certainly too large,” and “enough meat for a week.”
The limited edition burger gets placed in a special paper sleeve with a profile illustration of the Colossal Titan. In keeping with the Titans’ characteristic mix of ferocity and oddly adorable awkwardness, the end result sort of makes it look like the otherwise intimidating giant is wearing a burger-shaped hat.
All three Titan burgers are only available as part of a set, and oddly enough regardless of which size you order, the price is the same, 2,000 yen (US$19.60).
Now before your rage causes you to strip naked and run around town punching buildings, hear us out. That giant price gets you more than just the Titan burger, as you also receive your choice of one of two packages of extra goodies.
The first includes a 3-D maneuver gear key chain, plus a coupon that can be exchanged for shrimp burger on your next visit. Option B is a key chain shaped like one of the swords used by Attack on Titan’s heroes, plus a coupon for a zeppin cheeseburger, one of Lotteria’s most popular items. So while 2,000 yen may be a major outlay for a trip to a fast food restaurant, if you take the 10 patties from the largest Titan burger, buy a loaf of bread and break that into 10 individual sandwiches, plus add in the other sandwich you’ve got coming from the coupon, you get enough food for 11 meals. That’s enough to tide you over for several days, or for you to share at a soccer game with your fellow sports/anime enthusiasts.
The shrimp and cheese burger coupons present a bit of a dilemma though, as they’re decorated with an image of central characters Mikasa and Eren, respectively, making them that much harder for diehard fans to part with, even for a free meal.
Of course, where you find burgers you’ll find French fries, and where you find potatoes you’ll find Attack on Titan’s Sasha. The spud-loving soldier serves as inspiration for the Extra-Large Sasha’s Potato Girl Set, with the marque attraction being a giant bucket of five small-size orders’ worth of fries dumped into it.
Once again, the combo isn’t cheap, coming in at 1,600 yen. This time, the bonuses are a pin shaped like the crest of one of the three branches of Attack on Titan’s military, plus coupon for a zeppin cheese burger (with a picture of fan favorite Levi), shrimp burger (with no-nonsense Annie), or yet another large order of fries (featuring Sasha, naturally).
The Titan burger set goes on sale March 6, with Sasha’s bucket of fries coming on March 20. The prices may be high, but it’s nice that Lotteria is at least feeding the fans at the same time as fleecing them.
Sources: Entabe, Lotteria
Images: Lotteria