Neon Genesis Evangelion
Created | Updated Jan 28, 2002
When I first read about NGE (in a review in SFX), it sounded like another
Japanese anime series about a large purple robot. This it turned out was wrong.
After watching about quarter of the series (and reading reviews again), it
seemed as though NGE was still about a large purple robot, but there were
another two robots and there was some kind of conspiracy at work.
Half Way
Around the half way mark it was clear that this series wasn't entirely
centered on the robots, and that there was something odd about them anyway.
The tendancy of Unit 01 to do things it shouldn't was defintitely a give
away, as well as what NERV keeps in its basement.
Three Quarters
By three quarters of the way through the series, it was perfectly clear that
only some of the characters knew what was going on, and most of them weren't
going to tell the whole truth, and that the robots weren't really robots (well, not
in the traditional sense).
One of the endings
By the technical end of the series, there had been alot of revelations, a
lot of screaming, alot of destruction, and a complete loss of money on the
part of Gainax (those scary people who produced the series). Oh and a very
strange conclusion, which while being strange and a bit tricky to
comprehend, was what was supposed to be happening (despite the money
problems).
The Other One
Then I good fortune watched the actual end of the series, End of Evangelion. It seemed to be a replacement for the final two episodes of the series, and was
much more comprehensible. Unfortunately I had been told to watch it in
the wrong order, so at first the ending didn't make a great deal of sense
(mainly because I had no idea why people were where they were). This all got
cleared up by watching the episodes in the right order. This conclusion
seems to be along the same lines as the other ending, but with more explaination of what's
happening, some vastly improved animation, and some truly bizzare visuals.
Suffice to say it finishes NGE completely, as well as explaining a huge
number of things.
Despite how it may sound above, I do really like this series. Go watch!
Chance of a sequel?
None at all.
Where do I get it?
The whole series was released in the UK (in dubbed format) a few years ago. It should technically be possible to track the tapes down (There are 13 in total). In America DVDs of the series have been released (Which are subtitled instead). But if you've seen the series and what to have a look at the amzingness that is End of Evangelion, then I'm afraid its a bit trickier. The two parts have never been released outside of Japan, so there is no official version of it available to import (unless you happen to speak Japanese). However, thanks to the internet, industrious people have subtitled the entire two episodes which are available, but are completely illegal. Which is a shame really, as its a very worthwhile end to the series.
