When Angels Come To Earth

Neon Genesis Evangelion

by Laura Donnelly

With twenty-six episodes and two movies, Shin Seiki Evangelion (Neon Genesis Evangelion, or NGE) seems at first to be a pretty normal series. However, this series is anything but normal! It's considered to be a new classic among fans. Every otaku has at least to have heard about Evangelion, it's that popular! There are many websites on the Internet dedicated to the characters, the story, and to unlocking the secrets behind the scenes, and all of the questions left unanswered. People just want to find out the answers, and share their own theories. Even sites that aren't related to Evangelion sometimes have pictures of the beautiful and mysterious Ayanami Rei or the bold Sohryu Langley Asuka. It just goes to show how popular Shin Seiki Evangelion has become over the years.

The animation quality is a step above the average. The detailed, intricate art of the Evangelion Units in action, the landscapes . . . everything is well drawn. The music composed for the series is just as beautiful, with a unique array of different sounds which lend a strong atmosphere to certain scenes, happy or ominous. Shin Seiki Evangelion has spawned a series of manga done by Sadamoto Yoshiyuki, as well as wallscrolls, many models and figures, as well as just about anything else you can think of by way of merchandise.

The series takes place in the year 2015, with half the population wiped out from a strange incident called the 'Second Impact' over 15 years ago. Allegedly, a meteor had hit the surface of the Earth, melting one of the polar ice caps. Of course, there seems to be hinting that a meteor really wasn't the cause. NERV always has some sort of secret up their sleeve, and the Second Impact could have been anything, even an angel attack.

When we first enter the series, a boy by the name of Ikari Shinji just arrived in Tokyo-3, summoned by his father. A large being, only known as an Angel appears, and Shinji is asked to defeat this creature by piloting one of the large robots (mecha) called Evangelion. Shinji, furious by the fact his father only wanted him to come so he could work, refuses to pilot . . . That is, until they wheel in a girl on a stretcher; in critical condition, all bandaged up. Taking pity on the girl, Shinji agrees to pilot the Evangelion and defeat the angel.

Now, as one can imagine, Ikari Shinji is the star of the show. Though he's not your typical 'hero.' He's quiet, and keeps to himself. It seems as if the boy simply does not have a backbone. His mother, Ikari Yui, died in an accident with the same Evangelion Shinji pilots, and since then his father, Commander Ikari Gendo, has taken a turn for the worst. He ditched poor Shinji, abandoning him for years without even talking to him until he called Shinji to pilot the Eva. Shinji is known as the Third Child; the pilot of Evangelion Unit-01.

As we get a few more episodes into the series, we learn that Shinji isn't the only pilot, and there is more then one Evangelion. The bandaged-up girl we see in the first episode is actually Ayanami Rei, the First Child, and pilot of Evangelion Unit-00. Rei is even quieter than Shinji is; she doesn't often express emotion, she hardly talks, and she obeys every order given to her by Commander Ikari. She's pale, beautiful, and mysterious.

You may be thinking, 'First and Third? Where's the Second?' Well . . . there IS a Second Child, and to say the least, she's the exact opposite to Ayanami Rei. Her name is Sohryu Langley Asuka! As my friend put it, she's "3/4 German, 1/4 Japanese . . . and ALL attitude." Basically, Asuka is just as beautiful as Rei is, but she has a fiery temper, and can be considered a plain old bitch. Even though it may take some getting used, Asuka is a great addition to the cast! She's also the pilot of Evangelion Unit-02.

The rest of the cast are either from the class Shinji, Asuka, and Rei attend, or are the staff of NERV. The main classmates are Suzuhara Touji, Aida Kensuke, and Hikari. Touji is a 'jock' if you will; he's always seen wearing his track suit and hanging out with Aida Kensuke. He appears to be much rather like a tough-guy, and has an Osaka accent. He hates the Evangelion for what happened to his sister during the fight with Unit-03 and the Third Angel. Aida Kensuke is a nice kid, but is a bit obsessed with the army and military. He really wants to be a pilot of the Evangelion, but just never seems to get that lucky. He always carries a video recorder with him, to tape any sudden events. Hikari and Asuka become friends when Asuka comes to Shinji's class. Hikari is the head of the student council, and is actually quite a nice girl. In class, she always seems to be telling the class to quiet down. It also seems as if Hikari has a little crush on Touji.

There are quite a few members of the NERV staff who appear regularily, and interact with the Children on a regular basis. There are more members of the staff, but I'm just going to go over the ones who are most important to the plot line.

Ikari Gendo is Shinji's father; he was always a bit of a strange man, but Ikari Yui saw through that, and considered him to be a nice person. After her death, Commander Ikari became very cold, and left his son to work on the Evangelion project. He seems to have a close relationship with Ayanami Rei.

Katsuragi Misato is a really bubbly woman, and when she's off duty, she has a rather bad drinking habit. ^_^; She's very pretty, and is in charge of operations at NERV. She takes care of Shinji when he arrives, and he lives in her apartment. She becomes his legal guardian. Later on, Asuka comes to live with the two as well. PenPen, a cute little penguin also lives in the apartment, sleeping in Misato's fridge. ^_^;;

Akagi Ritsuko went to school with Misato and Kaji, and took over for her mother as the technical supervisor at NERV. She knows more about the Evangelion then she lets on . . .

Ryouji Kaji is an old friend of Misato and Ritsuko's, he travels to Japan with Asuka. To say the least, Misato wasn't very thrilled when she saw him; they were lovers back in high school.

Aside from the characters, there is much more to Shin Seiki Evangelion to compel the audience. The unanswered questions span a wide range. Who is the Second Angel? What is the Human Instrumentality Project? These are the more common questions asked by fans. There are many, many more, though for your sake, I won't go around spoiling anyone today. ^_- But there is one aspect I will go over, and that's the Evangelion and the Angels.

The Angels are large beings of unknown origin. Just where they came from is beyond man's knowledge, but what man does know is that they can't let these beings loose on Earth; they are dangerous. The angels all generate a thing called an AT field, which acts as a barrier to all weapons. In a desperate attempt to create something to fight these creatures, man came up with Evangelion.

The Evangelions are bio-mechanical weapons created by NERV. They are also equipt with AT fields, which allow them to penetrate the protective fields of the angels. There is a wide assortment of weapons for the Eva and their pilots to use in order to destroy the angels. They are mankind's last hope!

Of course, while I think Evangelion is a great and wonderful series, there are ups and downs according to the type of person you are. First, there are a lot of religions implications in the story, as you can tell right off by the angels. For example, the three computers running NERV are called the Magi, and each is named after the Magi in the bible: Malchior, Caspar, and Balthasar. So, if you're the extra religious type, then maybe this series isn't really for you.

Evangelion also has a really complicated plot. I know people who don't follow the plots of other series, so I can imagine what they'd be thinking if they sat down and watched a few episodes of this. Still, other then these two factors, and perhaps some slightly ecchi things here and there, Evangelion is really a great series for people who love intricate plot lines, beautiful art and music, as well as very cool mecha designs and fight scenes. This is definitely a series to see and remember.






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