What’s That Spine Thing From ‘Attack On Titan’?

Let’s be real. Nobody calls the mysterious, spine-like thing from Attack on Titan its real name. Seriously, have you heard anybody call it ‘hallucigenia’ before you ran across this article?

Maybe once or twice at most, but what is the ‘hallucigenia’ and why is it important to the story of Attack on Titan? To cut that complicated question short, hallucigenia is more popularly known as “the source of all living matter.”

This spine-like creature was found under a tall, ancient tree. Did that give you chills? It should, because it’s the same tree at the start, end, and credits of Attack on Titan. I don’t get why the most important creature on Earth would be hiding under an obscure tree, but there are several theories exploring this. Assuming that the circular nature of Attack on Titan’s world holds true, then somebody may have been buried beneath that tree, and Ymir eventually came into contact with the hallucigenia while she was being hunted.

This gave Ymir Fritz the Power of the Titans and access to The Paths. Even after her passing, Eldians were able to shift into Titans either through the consumption of other Titan Shifters or spinal fluid injection. It’s no coincidence that Eren was buried under the same tree, and a mysterious child would find the same tree and presumably come into contact with the hallucigenia to start a new cycle.

Is Attack on Titan’s Hallucigenia a Real Creature?

Don’t get scared, but the hallucigenia was a real creature. It won’t turn you into a Titan Shifter, but they look exactly like ‘the source of all living matter’ from Attack on Titan. The hallucigenia dwelled on Earth 500 million years ago during the Cambrian Explosion, and their fossilized remains are found mostly in Canada’s Burgess Shale.

Interestingly, velvet worms are the living descendants of hallucigenia. If you take a look at how Hajime Isayama draws ‘the source of all living matter’ in the manga, you’ll see that it also greatly resembles velvet worms. But please don’t make a snack of this worm in hopes that you’ll be a Titan Shifter, because they’re critically endangered species.

(featured image: MAPPA)