Neon Genesis Evangelion

I’ve finally gotten around to seeing what all the fuss is about regarding what must be one of the most lauded anime in history. I decided to go for the 26 episode series over the compilation movies as I’ve been burnt badly by nastily edited composites in the past.

Being a big Godzilla fan, the opening scenes of an evacuated Japanese city awaiting the imminent arrival of a giant monster to its shores immediately struck a chord with me. So upon discovering this was to be a reoccurring event I was understandably chuffed.

The bleakness of the first 6 episodes is not due to the planet earth being repeatedly brought to the edge of destruction, as one might imagine, but rather the melancholy of the malcontent characters and this pretty much sets the tone for the series. The excellently animated action is particularly visceral, often disturbingly so, at times which adds a dark edge and gravity to proceedings.

We are given a brief, and I suppose necessary, comic respite in the following episodes with the introduction of the brash Asuka Langley as her brand of arrogance clashes with the other more dour souls to some humorous effect. Thankfully it wasn’t overplayed and we are soon returned to the hard-hitting action as the character is assimilated into the line up.

It does seem at a certain point that the series is in danger of becoming a “one trick pony” (as seen with many Shonen shows) as the formula of “detect incoming monster/evacuate city/send out Evangelion(s)/battle ensues”, although entirely enjoyable, becomes obvious. However, we are drawn away from action and into the intriguing politics and history behind the attacks more and more as the series develops.

The breadcrumbs of information regarding the troubled characters and their dark pasts are also revealed miserly and expertly as the plot progresses. The efforts they make to resolve their inner turmoil and shake off their skeletons becomes a prominent theme of the show. As the psychological insights become more profound themes akin to those of Ghost in the Shell come to the fore, with the duality of mind and spirit questioned and examined repeatedly.

These philosophical aspects along with the quasi-religious symbolism and references have given rise to many claiming Evangelion to be a Christian allegory or the like. In my opinion such symbolism is merely subterfuge and an attempt to give the content a pseudo extra level of depth (which it achieves brilliantly albeit via some smoke and mirrors)

The series comes to a tense and satisfying finale, both in terms of action and character exploration, whilst never wrapping up the loose ends. The character exposition witnessed in the Director’s Cut of the later episodes goes a long way to address some of the unanswered questions and in some of the most enjoyable scenes of the series.

The final two episodes are akin to an epilogue as they delve deep inside the psyche if the lead character disappointingly never to resurface. As such they don’t suffice as a conclusion to the show and feel like a “Director’s notes DVD extra”.
However there is an alternate ending in film format (suitably titled End of Evangelion) which may offer the catharsis required but as this is a review of the series I have to highlight my disappointment.

Overall though episodes 1-24 are fantastic and deserve, most of, the praise they receive. The complexity of the intertwining conspiracies and philosophies makes for a show which is definitely in need of repeated viewings.