Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995)

Watchseries; Neon Genesis Evangelion is hailed as one of the greatest animes ever. As a mix of monster vs. Mecha action, character-driven psychological drama and conspiracy thriller, there's certainly plenty to delve into. Too bad the different elements never truly match with each other, and the result is possibly the grandmother of all "mixed bags".

There are very many aspects of Evangelion to like, or at least to admire. The ambition of the series is unquestionable, telling a story which starts out as fairly simple mecha action, but then turning into something far more sinister and grand. The designs of the Angels and Evas are still very imaginative and original and each battle provides a different scenario. The Angels are among one of the most genuinely alien-feeling creatures I've seen in fiction overall. The boldness it takes to put the characters into such dark places as they are in the end is very admirable, as the second season provides disturbing imagery all the way through. The characters are fairly deep with complex relationships, and the scenario of humanity trying to survive, but possibly heading double-time towards extinction is interesting. And the effort it must have taken to put together a story with so many different elements deserves a clapping.

But where to begin with the problems, which sadly far outweigh the good elements?

-The tone is very inconsistent, starting out with a mysterious feel with some heavy drama and then settling into a comfortable, fairly light-hearted monster-action period. During the second season the series plunges all the way into thorough unpleasantness before finally crapping out altogether and being left wallowing in psychedelic imagery and dialogue.

-With such a grand story to tell, Evangelion should be a series with absolutely zero filler, yet there are at least three to five episodes out of 26 which have no relevance at all in terms of the main story

-Nearly all the characters are almost completely unlikable. Despite this probably being one of the main points, as the series turns into full- fledged tragedy during the last 10 or so episodes, they seem neither to feel genuine sympathy for each other nor really care much about anything other than themselves. Character traits which are introduced as quirks or comedic elements (like Misato's drinking) later become sources of self-loathing and disgust. One particular central character and their own subplot is squandered so badly in terms of dramatic potential it's almost insulting.

-The animation quality sees a steep drop after episode 19. This was later somewhat redeemed in the director's cut versions, but the lack of budget towards the end is still painfully obvious. Many scenes feature little more than static images with voiceovers, and at times feel more like a power point presentation instead of animation.

• There are dozens of oddities and illogicalities that constantly have the viewer thinking "How did they do that?". For example, we never see how the various parts of NERV HQ are placed in relation to each other. For all we know, all the various rooms and halls could exist entirely in small pocket dimensions of their own.

Neon Genesis Evangelion is hailed as one of the greatest animes ever. As a mix of monster vs. Mecha action, character-driven psychological drama and conspiracy thriller, there's certainly plenty to delve into. Too bad the different elements never truly match with each other, and the result is possibly the grandmother of all "mixed bags".

There are very many aspects of Evangelion to like, or at least to admire. The ambition of the series is unquestionable, telling a story which starts out as fairly simple mecha action, but then turning into something far more sinister and grand. The designs of the Angels and Evas are still very imaginative and original and each battle provides a different scenario. The Angels are among one of the most genuinely alien-feeling creatures I've seen in fiction overall. The boldness it takes to put the characters into such dark places as they are in the end is very admirable, as the second season provides disturbing imagery all the way through. The characters are fairly deep with complex relationships, and the scenario of humanity trying to survive, but possibly heading double-time towards extinction is interesting. And the effort it must have taken to put together a story with so many different elements deserves a clapping.

But where to begin with the problems, which sadly far outweigh the good elements?

-The tone is very inconsistent, starting out with a mysterious feel with some heavy drama and then settling into a comfortable, fairly light-hearted monster-action period. During the second season the series plunges all the way into thorough unpleasantness before finally crapping out altogether and being left wallowing in psychedelic imagery and dialogue.

-With such a grand story to tell, Evangelion should be a series with absolutely zero filler, yet there are at least three to five episodes out of 26 which have no relevance at all in terms of the main story

-Nearly all the characters are almost completely unlikable. Despite this probably being one of the main points, as the series turns into full- fledged tragedy during the last 10 or so episodes, they seem neither to feel genuine sympathy for each other nor really care much about anything other than themselves. Character traits which are introduced as quirks or comedic elements (like Misato's drinking) later become sources of self-loathing and disgust. One particular central character and their own subplot is squandered so badly in terms of dramatic potential it's almost insulting.

-The animation quality sees a steep drop after episode 19. This was later somewhat redeemed in the director's cut versions, but the lack of budget towards the end is still painfully obvious. Many scenes feature little more than static images with voiceovers, and at times feel more like a power point presentation instead of animation.

• There are dozens of oddities and illogicalities that constantly have the viewer thinking "How did they do that?". For example, we never see how the various parts of NERV HQ are placed in relation to each other. For all we know, all the various rooms and halls could exist entirely in small pocket dimensions of their own.

Neon Genesis Evangelion watchseries. What can I say about the most perfect anime ever created? What can I say about Shinji, the most complex character ever created?

Evangelion begins like an action sci-fi anime, like Akira. It has everything: humor, drama, action, great soundtrack. Great fun! But then you watch episode 24... and WOW!

The 3 last episodes are the most perfect writen anime episodes ever. Yeah, some people don't understand it. Some people don't like it. But that's because those 3 episodes are about 1000 years ahead of our time. For the very first time you get inside a character's mind, you understand his problems and his fears. Yeah it's disturbing some times, but isn't real life disturbing?

It doesn't matter if you like animes or not, WATCH THIS! But watch from the beginning, or else you will not recieve the final message from episode 26. I'm sure that you will love Evangelion!

My Mother bought me the boxset off this that ADV released as a Christmas present last year and I must say I felt like bowing to me saying giving her a thousand thank you's.

This is the best show ever created, the characters are so lovable and their backgrounds are so depressing, this is how all anime's should be made that try to make statements that psychologicly screw you up and keep you glued to the screen, breath taken.

This show starts off on quite a light level and by the end you'll be broken down in tears, and really makes you think about life.

This is a classic in anime.

10 out of 10

The last two original episodes are art, perfectly Could be museum pieces.

This is quite possibly the best fantasy ever devised on the face of the planet. It has large unique mecca, nifty technology, emotional byplay, philosophical questions, great characters, unique music, great artwork... you name it it's got it. If you love anime watch it! If you hate anime watch it! Be warned though it looks deceptively simple at first. To get its full effect you must be willing to watch the entire series.

The Evangelion series is based on some of Sigmund Freuds non discussed theories and banned portions of the Bible that the mainstream do not know about but are well documented. The series points out what the original Bible does, shows the dualities we face in life whereas the homogenized version of the bible(new testament) would have you believe in a more monotheistic point of view. The mention of Lillith in this series which is Adams real first wife in the Bible not Eve as the newer versions of the bible would have you believe. Its hard to comprehend some portions of this Anime series without knowing a little about the unknown portions of the Bible such as the mentioning of Lillth and the Angels and Eva's. The Eva's are humankinds attempt at making the Angels which in the bible fell from heaven. The angels in this interpretation are trying to destroy mankind instead of eating them like in the original bible transcripts(Same idea). This series is a great interpretation of a lot of unknown aspects of the Bible and throwing in a little Freud and some elements of B.F. Skinners take on behaviours(such as the Absolute Terror Field which is created by children without a strong Female in their life,usually males Frued states abused children can create an AT barrier to keep others away)(Hypotheticaly but in this series it visually appears as a shield or as an attack weapon as in the knife). On the outside this is a great animated movie by studio Gainax/ studio I.G. but when your dwelve into the actual plot of is so beautifully orchestrated chaos. The game Xenogears was loosely based off this anime although more on the Psych aspect. This series has yet to be matched by any anime. I caught wind of this anime since I'm a big fan of MacrossPlus. I've been an anime fan since my pops went to Japan in the early 80s and always had awesome Mecha toys when he came back. This is a series you cannot passup. Rent them or buy them but take an entire day because you'll want to just watch the entire series all the way thru, its that good.