You know, I’m normally pretty critical of Neon Genesis Evangelion, it has a long and storied history to live up to. But this week’s double feature lived up to that. Focusing in on Misato and Shinji, giving Gendo some much needed characterization with some good fights on the side. So without further ado, let’s jump in.
Starting off, Evangelion continues to look pretty good. We got some more of Anno’s weird longing stills in certain places. But either they worked better or I am getting used to them. Like a weird sort of Stockholm Syndrome. That said, the fights we got this week looked pretty freakin great. I will always love the fluid movements of the Eva units, making them more like living beings than machines. And the Angels lead to some pretty novel “fights”. Meanwhile, I am starting to get in to the VA work. Kotono Mitsuishi is doing some great work as Misato, and Shinji is starting to let Megumi Ogata show some more emotion. Meanwhile Asuka is also toning down the “Tsun” part of her “Dere”. The only real issue I have is Rei, who is just flat and lifeless. Sort of the point, but not pleasant when she talks.
Moving on, we have episode 11 “In the Still Darkness”. This was actually shockingly relevant for what felt initially like a filler episode. I was expecting a lot of gags with the power out and a standard Angel fight, but we got much more. Learning about the government, the world and the internal power struggles. For instance we learned about the Magi, 3 super computers that effectively run their government. Calculating all the best decisions and handing those down, though how this follows “democracy” I don’t know. Meanwhile there is a very large question of “Who shut off the power”, as Evangelion makes it clear this was an inside job. Could it perhaps be another governmental body trying to shut them down, or private interests? Maybe even some kind of weird Angel-Anarcho terrorist? Really, I don’t think it matters much, because it sends a simple message: “Humans are our enemies”.
It’s an interesting question/commentary on humanity, and the danger we pose to ourselves. Earlier on in the series, Evangelion made a clear correlation between Humans and Angels after all. How similar our DNA structures are, etc. At the time it felt like a clear set up for how the Angels are an evolved sort of humans, but I wasn’t expecting the thematic connections we got here. Connecting humans and Angels both physically with DNA and thematically as enemies. It makes me wonder just how far Evangelion wants this correlation to go. Will it eventually try and paint the Angels as sympathetic in some way, using its connection to us humans? Or is it going a more pessimistic route, with how humans are just as monstrous as the Angels? Regardless I look forward to this coming up again in the future and how Evangelion will build on it.
This episode also gave us more of Asuka, showing us the other side to her pride. Up until now we have mostly just seen her complain, whine and put others down to prop herself up. Trying and claiming to be the best of the best, so much so it almost seems desperate. But this week Evangelion showed us the positive side of that. How her desire to be and prove she is the best also coincides with her taking the toughest, most dangerous jobs. Partly to show off, but also partly because she knows she can do it better than the other two. Asuka isn’t afraid to put herself in the line of fire if she is the one best suited for the job. In fact she almost seems to prefer it, if only to show off. It’s not exactly healthy, but it is an admirable quality in some ways.
And last but not least, the bits and pieces left over. I mentioned it earlier, but we never really learn who turns off the power, how they do it or why. I hope this mystery returns later, because it would be a shame to just drop it. And it does annoy me a bit if we never get resolution to that. On the positive end of these leftovers though, we have the comedy. It was pretty stereotypical, but having our leads traverse through the shut down NERV headquarters was fun. I got some decent chuckles out of it, though the “perv” jokes wore thin quickly. Most of all though it forced all three to interact towards a common goal, which was good setup for the episodes Angel fight. All in all, it was a pretty good episode of Evangelion.
Next up we have episode 12 “The Value of Miracles”, a great follow up to 11. As this one returns to focus on Misato and Shinji, their relationship, and delve in to Gendo a bit. Throughout the episode, I loved how Evangelion treated Misato. How she paid attention to Shinji, took note of when he was comfortable and when he wasn’t. It made really good use of Evangelion’s earlier episodes where the two grew closer, rather than just abandoning it once the arc was done. I also thought her history fit well with what we had previously seen of her. How she treats her position at NERV, why she is so focused on fighting Angels, while also allowing her to bridge the Gendo/Shinji relationship. What I mean is, she had her own father issues like Shinji, yet she is dedicated to her work like Gendo. A mix really.
On Gendo, Evangelion gave us something he has been needing for awhile now, characterization. Up until now he was mostly just this stern, enigmatic figure. But with these last two episodes we see that in a new light. Showing him all but over working himself, unafraid to dive in to physical labor if necessary to see it through. The man is a terrible father, but you can sort of see why now, with what he has on his shoulders. And this dedication, him finally acknowledging Shinji, also fits in to his treatment of Rei. How he focused on and took care of her, because she had devoted herself to NERV, just like him. She was a willing asset, his champion, while Shinji was at best reticent and at worst unwilling. Yet now both we and Gendo have to acknowledge that Shinji saved that day, by his own action.
This whole thing then builds in to the conversation of “Why do we do what we do?”. We got Misato’s look, how she does it for revenge, and while we don’t have Gendo’s we can guess it. Meanwhile Asuka does it for pride and showing off, and Rei’s was explored previously. The only one left was Shinji who had no idea why. Shinji, as Misato put it, only worries about what other people think/want. Never actually stopping to think about what he wants, why he does what he does. While I am not sure I like the answer he finally came to, I am glad he came to one. It’s not a healthy one by any means, but it fits his character, his perpetual worry over what everyone else thinks. In a way, this seems like the point where Shinji will start taking it all seriously.
So, all in all, how was Neon Genesis Evangelion this week? I thought it was the best the series has been for awhile. The fights looked great, some fantastic Eva animation in there, and the story was surprisingly serious. I say this often, but it feels like we are starting to see more of the thematic elements of Evangelion. As opposed to the more 90’s “ecchi/comedy” that we got last week. Now that we are in the latter half of the series, I can only hope this becomes the main focus. Or at the very least that we continue to get these great Angel fights. Because if nothing else, I can enjoy giant robots beating the shit out of each other. Thats cool. I can do without the bath scenes though.
