'Attack on Titan' season 2 release date, spoilers news 2016: April 2017 premiere announced

"Attack on Titan" season 2 will premiere in April next year. The news comes from the wraparound jacket band on the 21st volume of the "Attack on Titan" manga.

Funimation followed up the news on Twitter as it announced having obtained the license for the new season of the anime as well.

"Attack on Titan is one of those rare titles that has reached true cult status with anime fans," Funimation executive vice president and chief operating officer Mike DuBoise said in the official press release.

"It's been more than 3 years since the last episode of 'Attack on Titan' Season 1 and passion from its fans has not waned. We look forward to premiering it on Funimation Now," he went on to say.

Indeed, fans have been waiting for "Attack on Titan" season 2 since the first season ended in 2013. There were various reports regarding the anime, some about the plot and some about the premiere date.

The April 2017 premiere is not much of a shock since it was revealed back in July that the anime will be back in spring. Japan's network programming being a bit predictable also helped.

Shows in the country usually cover three months so Japan divides it into four seasons starting in January, April, July and October.

"Attack on Titan" season 2 was not announced for January and since it is set for spring, an April premiere was easily speculated by many.

With regard to the number of episodes, there are reports that the new season will catch up with the manga by Hajime Isayama, which has lately been unveiling major plot twists and longstanding mysteries in the story.

The first season covered the first four story arcs in 25 episodes. If they keep up the pacing, the next two story arcs will already make up 25 episodes for "Attack on Titan" season 2, unless they want to go all the way to the latest chapter of the manga. It will take more than 25 episodes to squeeze those in.