Neon Genesis Evangelion Part 5 Episodes 21-24 (Plus the Director's Cut)

(Originally Written June 15, 2014)

 

 

Following Shinji’s reemergence from Eva Unit 01, the world descends further into a dark unknown future.  The fates of several key NERV members are finally determined, some the only way any of their existences could have ended.  And when a powerful Angel attack nearly cripples Asuka, another pilot is found to replace her.  Kwaoru Nagisa may be the friend Shinji has forever needed in his life…but is he also the end of the world incarnate?

In some ways, the start of the 20’s of any Anime is a time to get some last requests out of the way: some more backstory, some questions answered, some Earth shattering revelations or battles to occur.  In the case of Evangelion, all three are done in their own way…just not the way many would expect some of them.  In this set of episodes we take a look at some of the deeper workings of several cast members: what has been making them tick all this time and has it been good for them to bottle up their sorrows and not confront their feelings til now…when everything is on the verge of going to hell?

For Misato, Ritsuko and especially Asuka, the answer to that is a very big NO.  Losing Kaji pushes Misato on a more vengeful track than ever before while Ritsuko finally realizes she was just as expendable to Gendo as anyone else is…anyone else who isn’t Rei but we’ll get to her.  And then there is Asuka.  She doesn’t want to be helped, she doesn’t want to be saved, like Shinji she doesn’t know how to deal with life but she’s just more annoyingly loud and vocal about it.  What is kind of funny is that there are a couple of nice glimpses that if this show had gone another direction, Shinji and Asuka could have been better friends if not more.  But Asuka’s mental assault from an Angel pushes her over the edge and it’s more than likely she’s out for good. 

As for Rei man do we get some dizzying new hints and winks as to who she might really be.  Is she part Angel?  Is Shinji’s mother tied to her somehow?  Is this “Rei III” somehow aware of her current state of being when she tries to destroy Gendo’s glasses, an item that was so near and dear to her predecessor’s heart?  You want more questions heading into the home stretch? You got em dear viewer.  Speaking of Shinji’s Mom, we finally get to see her in some great flashbacks to the birth of NERV.  Yui Ikari is this show’s unsung hero: beautiful, intelligent, kind and loving.  It almost makes one wonder how she could ever love Gendo but Yui is so kind she no doubt looked for and found some good in him.  Though it is hard to imagine Gendo loving anyone really (the look on his face when he makes out with Ritsuko’s mother is hilarious…he’s so bored).

But really, the biggest moments of the series and some of Evangelion’s most stunning imagery (besides the End of Eva) come from Episode 24.  Kwaoru Nagisa is a fascinating character who I wish had been brought on much sooner than he had.  I would’ve loved to see him interact with Asuka and especially Rei more given his cool, calm and generally warm personality.  But sadly this is not to be as one of Evangelion’s biggest weaknesses ironically becomes on of it’s greatest strengths here.  That amazing still image of Eva Unit 01 holding Kwoaru, leaving viewers to ponder for almost a minute and a half as Ode To Joy plays in the background, will Shinji do it?  Will he kill his only true friend (someone who actually told Shinji he loved him and opened the door to an ocean of YAOI fanfiction…that’s m/m love stories mind you) to prevent the end of the world?  The answer to that might be pretty obvious but it’s crushing and effective nonetheless.

I should also note that Episodes 21-14 contain Director’s Cut versions that I was going to do as a separate entry but opted to watch them right after their original cuts.

Here’s a brief overview of what was added or extended:

Episode 21-New intro featuring the final moments in Antarctica just before the Second Impact.  Extended look at life for Fuyutsuki following Second Impact, Fuyutsuki sees Yui again before confronting Gendo, Fuyutsuki and Yui have a moment where Fuyutsuki voices his concerns for Yui’s safety-he also sees Shinji here as an infant

Episode 22-Another new intro with Asuka and Kaji the evening before their first appearance on the show, Asuka mentally berates Shinji for just moving on from his Eva imprisonment in Episode 20, Asuka has a mini breakdown in the bathroom expressing her hate for pretty much everyone including herself, Asuka’s mental attack under the Angel has extended scenes with Asuka exclaiming her arrogant and confident self is “the real me”, she also has a moment where she begs Shinji to look at her and hold her

Episode 23-Extended clash with the 16^th Angel-it begins to morph Eva 00 and merge with Eva 01 when it attacks Shinji-when he stabs it he injures Rei by accident, the 16^th Angel infected Unit 00 morphs into a giant Rei, reaching for something before it is destroyed, Gendo and Fuyutsuki observe Rei’s pod before Rei III appears indicating Fuyutsuki knows exactly what Rei is

Episode 24-Shinji tells Asuka that Kaji is dead, SEELE talks with Kwaoru about Gendo and urging him to find “Adam”, Misato attempts to spy on the meeting but Kwaoru notices her

Of the four episodes, EP21 has the most new footage, mostly focusing on Fuyutsuki and his coming into NERV as well as his close relationship with Yui.  We also get a new intro featuring the last moments in Antarctica before Second Impact occurred, chilling stuff.  Asuka gets some stronger stuff in the EP22 Director’s Cut as well, showing both her disgust for the world and her admittance (FINALLY) that she wants Shinji to love her (too bad it took an Angel Mind Rape to make her admit that in some way).  Everything else is really brief in the DC’s, EP23 has some minor moments with Rei right before her brave sacrifice and EP24 has one additional Kwaoru scene where we see him being coaxed into the final act of the episode by SEELE itself.  All in all nothing too tremendous but I get the feeling that a lot of these previously unshared story tidbits will come into play in the final episodes or even the movies.

I’ve been talking a lot of in depth about the story and characters and not the action but really those former two were at the forefront of everything here.  The Eva’s barely make an appearance themselves but are used very effectively when they do appear.  The story can be trying at times and it is frustrating listening to all of these characters who don’t know how to help themselves or reach out to others finally have the breakdown that’s been building for twenty episodes or more.  Oh and I should note that side characters Toji, Kensuke and Hikari are brushed aside as simple as a quote from Shinji saying they’ve been evacuated.  I get that it’s kind of meant to isolate Shinji further but a farewell would have been nice, especially between Shinji and Toji, who is missing an arm and a leg after his minor stint as an Eva pilot.  One minor character who does get a sad farewell is Misato’s pet penguin Pen Pen.  You know it’s serious when the show’s lovable mascot is shipped off to a safer home.

And if SEELE’s mysterious ramblings are any indication, the sad deaths of Kwaoru, Kaji, the second Rei and the departure of Pen Pen signal an ending of biblical proportions (not surprising given all of the imagery throughout this show).  Oh and that’s NOT Adam locked up in NERV’s basement but LILITH?  What does this mean?  In the span of four episodes, Evangelion has ratcheted up the questions sky high and a lot needs to be resolved in two episodes.  Is it capable of doing so?  Hard to say.  This has become a far different and darker show from when it started.  How can NERV survive the end of the world if they can’t survive each others dark secrets and lack of communication?  And the biggest question still remains…can I somehow write a decent review of the final two episodes which may contain one of the most ambiguous and confusing finales of all time?

CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!!!