Evangelion 3.33: You Can (Not) Redo

For Shinji Ikari, the last thing he remembers is diving into a void to save his friend Rei.  And he saved her…or so he thought.  Suddenly back on Earth, Shinji discovers that 14 years have passed and the game has changed.  NERV is now the enemy and therefore, so is he.  Targeted by his former allies, Shinji finds refuge in the ruins of Tokyo 3.  Here, he befriends Kwaoru, a gentle young man with a talent for the piano and a fondness for Shinji.  Together, they undertake a mission to set things right and restore the world. 

The end of Evangelion 2.22: You Can (Not) Advance left me in a strange state.  I was rooting for Shinji to save Rei.  I was excited for all the changes our characters had gone through.  I was looking forward to one of the mothers of all cliffhangers being continued.  Kwaoru arrived and severed Third Impact.  Shinji was trapped with Rei inside Eva Unit 01.  The new additions to this take on the mythos were working and I was so hyped to see how it would all play out.

Then we got to Evangelion 3.33: You Can (Not) Redo.

In the mother of all twists, we get virtually nothing from the preview included at the end of 2.22.  Instead we get a bold move to change the world of Evangelion all together to kick off the second half of the Rebuild of Evangelion saga.  Now I would be ok with this.  This is a brand new take on the story.  And while we’ve seen many nods to the original telling (especially in 1.11) Rebuild has taken on a life of its own with new twists, new characters and (as of the end of 2.22) a whole new direction.  I’m fine with all of that.

What I’m not ok with is being thrown into this brand new world…WITH NO EXPLANATIONS WHAT SO EVER!!!  I’m serious, from the moment Shinji wakes up, it’s all scowls and “You’re the enemy now Shinji, HMPH”.  Well…why?  Last I saw, Third Impact was averted and things looked ok.  Was it restarted?  Was it paused?  Misato is a boat load of zero info, probably given the worst downgrade of the cast (besides Ritsuko and her bad haircut).  If this is the be the new status quo of the saga, I would have at least liked a bit more discussion as to why any of this is.  What’s worse?  You actually sympathize with Shinji a bit.  He has a right to complain and whine.  He has no clue what the hell is going on.  It’s not because he’s stubborn or a crybaby (at least in the beginning) it’s because he’s just as freaking lost as we are. 

What time could have been spent on world building and exploration is given to Kwaoru and Shinji.  And here is where the Yaoi fan fiction kicks itself into overdrive.  Now let me be clear: LOVE WHO YOU WANT TO LOVE.  Cant be anymore clearer than that.  But Shinji and Kwaoru’s time together induces more giggles than feels.  This is mostly because we spend a good chunk of the film watching them play piano together in an over the top, hallucinogen esque animated sequence that is more head shaking funny than probably intended.  I’d rather have more time spent on talking about how Asuka got back in the game or getting to know Mari a bit better, cause God knows she’s still just as much an enigma as she was in 2.22.

This all builds to a jumbled, action filled finale that, again, takes no time to spell out what the hell Gendo’s endgame is or what anyones stake in this confusion is.  Eva Unit 02 even turns into a four legged beast at one point to battle Rei’s sythe wielding Eva.  I think I can sum up my thoughts on Evangelion 3.33 when this sequence ends with one popular Ed Helms quote, “WHAT THE F*** IS GOING ON!!!!????”  Why is everyone at each others throats?  How did NERV get this way?  How did Mari join up and where the hell does she even come from?  What’s Gendo’s goal?  Does Shinji have a right to be a mess by the end?  The answer to that last one is “yes” by the way.

I will give credit where it is due.  This series keeps looking better and better.  Even when the animation goes wonky in the final battle with berserk Eva 02 turning into a Ralph Bashki creation, it’s still cool to look at.  The opening battle in space is FREAKING AWESOME!!!  Watching Asuka and Mari duke it out with an Angel in low orbit is way over the top but it’s a good attention grabber.  I loved having Asuka back.  Her new plug suit and eye patch suit her and it’s good to see that events haven’t dulled her bad ass temper.  Rei’s arc is a bit stale compared to 2.22.  She does at least question her orders and herself a lot faster than previous Rei’s, which I guess is progress.  And yeah, her new plug suit is pretty cool too.  For all of her mystery, with still one movie to explore that btw, Mari still gets some of the best lines and moments.  I love how chill she is around the end of the world.  She and Asuka make a pretty good team.  Lastly, is it me, or is it bizzare to see a co piloted Evangelion and a mere few months after this film came out in Japan, Pacific Rim came out with a similar piloting system for giant robots?

I’d say after such great hype built up over two movies that Evangelion 3.33 is ultimately a let down.  The world is not explored or explained enough.  The characters, for the most part, are the worst they have ever been before.  Events move so quick it’s hard to keep up, especially when matters aren’t made clear.  I feel a lot like Asuka at the end, having to drag Shinji away to find a way to make things right.  I can only hope now that Evangelion 4.44 salvages the mistakes made here and finishes this series off right.  I still have faith in the Rebuild of Evangelion series…but this chapter tested that faith quite a bit.  The title is right, you can’t redo this one…you can only move on and hope it gets better from here…pressures on though, there’s only one more film left to make this all right.

5.5/10