I hold love for only a few really good anime. Nothing new has really grabbed my attention. Nothing will ever be as magical as hearing Tank! (Cowboy Bebop), listening to Shinji say "I 'musn't run away!" over and over (Eva), or reading the words, "Hey Nana...(NANA)" for the first time. I've always loved Japan and it's music, animation, video games, etc, but I've moved away from a lot of it in favor of Irvine's little giant.
So hearing about a complete reboot of one of my favorite animes, Neon Genesis Evangelion was especially exciting. It stirred something in me, not because it was getting a nice animation update, new scenes, or insights. Evangelion is one of those animes that twists your brain in so many directions, you don't know where you're going next. I've been lucky enough to have access to many different interpretations and variations of the journey of Shinji and his fellow Nerv-lings. Everything from the anime, to the manga, to the vast amount of video games, features a "this is how it could've been" scenario. And the much anticipated movies, Rebuild of Evangelion, are no exception.
I've already seen Eva 1.01, but for the benefits of this review, I felt I needed to revisit it. The first time I ever watched it was at the very last AX I ever went to. I remember seeing it in the program, and thinking, "What is this? Some kind of documentary?" I had never heard of it in my life.
Boy was I in for a surprise. New graphics, story and character development, updated animation and great music. I couldn't keep my jaw from dropping to the floor. It was like a finely wrapped gift granted to me by the anime gods. Because they must've known something I didn't at the time; that this was the last AX I would ever attend and would be the beginning of the end of my relationship with anime.
I went on to see it not once, not twice, but all three screenings that weekend. I couldn't get enough. Not only does Rebuild of Evangelion revive the series, it makes it better. It revived my love for the show, for its characters, for where it will go.
And after watching Evangelion 2.22, I can promise you, it just keeps getting better.
Spoilers Ahoy!
Preface:
It's hard for me to review these individually by movie. Overall, the story and characters have changed, and the movies provide pieces to an overall puzzle. It took me forever to finally post this because I kept rewriting what I wanted to say. There are so many subtle differences that make such a huge impact, not only on character development and characterization, but where the story is going. Hopefully this review isn't too much of a cluster-
In the beginning, outside a phone booth (Misato and Shinji)
I had forgotten how slow the show starts out. You don't know a thing about Shinji when you meet him outside the phone booth, wondering whether he should evacuate or wait for his ride to show up. Of course, being the Shinji that he is, his indecision leads him to meet the fourth Angel. Eventually, Misato shows up, driving Shinji away just in the nick of time; well except for when the government army sends off a N2 mine, throwing Misato's car off the road. After recovering from the minor distraction, something is immediately noticeable about Shinji. Shinji always seemed offput by Misato's boisterous personality, but not this time. Probably a combination of both the re-characterization of Shinji and Misato, Shinji is shown to have a much more friendly demeanor. He thanks Misato for saving him in her car right off, with a friendly smile. When he is shown the Geofront for the first time, he shows surprise and excitement in seeing it. I don't think I've ever heard Spike (Voice actor)'s voice have that much happiness in it. Misato also seems to have grown up a bit, and although she still has her bubbly personality, there's a distinct maternal instinct about her. I think Shinji is also more comfortable around her.
Fear not though. When Shinji is faced with the decision to pilot the Eva, he reverts into his whiny, self-loathing personality. Misato is still playful, drinks way too much, and snores.
As the movies move forward, we see a more friendly side of Shinji. He seems much more normal (and likable), and although he still has weaknesses, being whiny & indecisive, you can understand how hurt he is and how damaged his father has made him. But you get the sense that, outside of piloting the Eva and being thrust into shouldering a large responsibility, that meeting the people at Nerv has bettered him.
He's found a family with Misato and Asuka, possibly love with Rei (Yes, the relationship between Shinji and Rei is far more romantic than before), and friendship with Toji and Kensuke.
Misato has grown much more as well. I've always liked the way they depicted Misato. Sometimes she's a little too much too handle, but I think overall, she has enough depth and sympathetic traits to make her likable. Misato shows more maturity throughout the movies. She seems to take more responsibility over Shinji (and the other Children) then before. When Shinji refuses to help fight the Angel in the first movie, Misato takes the initiative to talk to him. They seem to have a better understanding of each other, shown when Shinji is fighting an Angel in the second movie. Simply yelling, "Misato," causes her to react with perfect understanding, and she is able to order the correct commands to perfectly line up with his actions. This one scene really cemented their relationship to me. While usually portrayed as asexual; we can't tell if they have romantic feelings for each other or not, but their relationship goes beyond that of a normal platonic one; this scene shows that they have a strong bond, beyond commander and subordinate.
Rei is fleshed out a bit more as well, if not incredibly subtly at first. The first movie doesn't change her much at all; in fact, all her interactions are similar except for one scene. It's so subtle, that even I did not see it until I watched Eva 1.01 a couple of times. After Shinji races to check on Rei after she seemingly sacrifices herself for their mission, and starts crying, then asks her to smile, Rei looks up at Shinji, startled. She then smiles herself, and they extend hands. The subtle difference here is actually a large omission. In the anime series and the manga, when Shinji smiles, Rei has a flash of Gendo smiling at her, before she smiles as well. There is no flash of Gendo in the movie. It's interesting because the scene itself mirrors the one between Rei and Gendo during a failed testing. Could this be a hint that Rei's relationship with Gendo is much different then before?
No, not really, but it does hint at a different relationship between Rei and Shinji. Rei admits to Asuka that she feels warm when she is with Shinji, and Rei takes the steps to bring Gendo and Shinji together in hopes of making him smile and happy. It becomes clear, with these words, that Rei likes, if not loves, Shinji.
I think Rei's characterization has always been her, figuring out emotions, and while this is touched upon with her relationship with Shinji and their apparent bond throughout, it never reaches much of a personal level. Not in the blatant way it did in 2.0. Although Rei doesn't come right out and says it, multiple characters mention to others, including Rei, that she is in love with Shinji.
Shinji also fights for Rei, thus fighting for something he wants instead of what others want. This is important to the climax of 2.0, where Shinji is seen risking life and sanity for Rei, and he seamlessly succeeds (meaning no doll Rei part 3 right?). This is something I can't wait to see develop in 3.0.
Shinji is definitely sexually confused. You have him being forced to deal with boistereous Misato and Asuka, as well as deal with shy Rei. Then there's Kaworu, who just outright hits on him and expresses emotions for him in a very forthcoming way. But it seems that in the end of the anime (without spoiling it), Shinji would end up with Asuka, specifically since Rei ends up being much more than a human. In 2.0, Asuka makes her sparkly appearance. Defeating another revamped Angel, she immediately exudes the same overwhelming personality, yelling at you with the incredibly talented, yet freakn annoying voice of Tiffany Grant. The creators of Rebuild try desperately to make Asuka more likable. They even make her less social, and she tries not to get involved too much with her classmates. The dynamic between Shinji and Asuka is much more comical, and even more slapstick, with Asuka beating up Shinji more than once in the movie. Asuka even seems to exhibit real feelings for Shinji and jealousy for Rei. Yet, despite that, she is stil annoying and pretentious. Some things never change. Except with Asuka, a lot did. She is now a Captain and her last name is Shikinami. And she was chosen to pilot the doomed Eva Unit 3, a sacrifice she chose to do so that Rei could have her dinner party for Shinji. She talks to Misato like she is her older sister (another show of Misato's maturing maternal instinct). The most welcomed change was the absence of her obsession with Kaji, which is a relief because it was extremely annoying.
Speaking of failed attempts to make characters more likable, I move to Gendo Ikari, father of Shinji. What an asshole. There's this attempt to show his softer side, when he flashes to seeing Yui, or tells Shinji he did good. There's also Rei who convinces him to join in on a dinner party with Shinji. But then there's the usual Gendo asshole-ry. That and the fact he connives and he plots with Fuyutski about the lives of Shinji and the other children. And btw, Shinji's relationship with Rei was all part of Gendo's plan (cackle cackle). Gendo is still ruthless, as any leader should be; he is still neglectful of Shinji. All he wants is to see the fruition of his plan. Some things never change. Gendo's voice actor did. I miss Gendo's old voice actor. The new Gendo's voice is too similar to Fuyutski's new voice, and when they talk together and you don't see their faces, I had a hard time distinguishing their voices.
Mari is the brand new shiny character added. She has connections to Kaji (which changes his role too), and has so much mystery about her. She opens the second movie, then disappears for 40 minutes before being the catalyst that forces Shinji to face his fears in the final 15 minutes. She loves the smell of LCL and has the sexy libarian/geek look about her (glasses and ponytails). I can't tell you much about her; her role has be small, but holds some unknown significance.
Story changes
While 1.0 was fairly a slow build, Eva 2.22 (2.0 if you're not buying the NA Dvds), picked up the speed, the rewriting, and plot. They burned through 5 Angels by the end of the movie and introduced the rest of the cast.
The storyline is key to creating the paths for the new characterizations for the characters. From a field trip with Kaji, to Rei attempting to host a dinner party, the story adds some, if not delightful, extra scenes, that become relevant to character development.
Perhaps the most major difference is Asuka being chose to pilot Eva-03 instead of Toji, thus cementing Toji's survival, for now.
What is Rebuild?
It's small things like that, Shinji/Rei relationship development, and Toji's survival. The attempt to make Gendo and Asuka more likable that I begin to wonder what the true aim is for Rebuild. Kaworu makes a comment at the end of the second movie, that is translated differently in the dubbed version. According to websites, the direct translation of Kaworu's words are
"I'll show you happiness this time Shinji."
That coupled with Gendo's constant remarks about the plans for the children, make me wonder if these movies are a different universe where a "redo" is being instated. But of course, I won't know until the last movie, or maybe not <.< -_-
The Animations
Right off the bat, the animations look different. The design of the characters is near identical, but the overall polishing looks flawless. The Evas look downright beautiful and move with fluidity. Eva 01 looks darker and much more beastly, without seamlessly changing any of it's original look. Within 15 mins of the show, Eva 01 goes into berserk mode and you see this beast emerge, with accompanying feral sounds. He tears through the 4th Angel and we are greeted with a pool of blood.
For some reason, the animators were like TEEHEE LCL BLOOD FLOODS WOOO! Every Angel ends by dissolving into a huge ocean tidal wave of LCL blood flowing through Tokyo 3 (how do they clean up I wonder). Watching the dummy plug system rip through Eva 03 was incredibly disturbing and the aftermath was even more so. Ribs and internal organs laid strewn across Tokyo 3, all coupled with a ocean of blood. The falling Angel that the three children catch, blows up into a flood of blood that drenches the Evas in deep crimson. It's a little ridiculous.
Looking Ahead: Quickening and Finale
After the credits, Third Impact is stalled and Kaworu makes his descent. We are shown flashes of Eva 3.0, known as Q or Quickening. I think 2.0 was quick, fast paced. Burned through 5 Angels and a few storylines. The flashes really don't tell you anything. Misato's voice promises more fan service (is that Rebuild's purpose. Meet watchers expectations?)
Overall
Eva 10 and 2.0 are great. You can learn a decent amount as a newcomer, but at the same time, the movies offer tons of new content for old veterans as well. They are well made, with great animations and great voice acting, even though some of the voices are very different. I enjoyed 2.0 more then 1.0, but both were amazing to watch for the first time. I can't wait for 3.0 and more!
Evangelion 1.0: A-
Evangeltion 2.0: A
Different prominent voice actors:
Rei & Yui, Gendo Ikari, Fuyutski, Ritsuko, Kaji, Toji, Kensuke, Kaworu
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