::07:15:08::

::: Evangelion :::

By ~ Apollo

Many people rate this series as the one of the top of all time.  The more I look back on it, the more I realize that the series was pretty darn good.  That being said, I don't know if I can necessarily call it one of the greats.  Something that you have to understand is that people look for different things in anime.  I personally look for a lot of serious drama, as well as some pretty good action.  While the action may be a bit repetitive at times in this series, it is also pretty good and at times pretty freakin gruesome.  The drama was good as well, but some of the repetitive problems do get annoying after a while.  Something that a lot of people will not be prepared for is the perversion that is in the series.  Some of it is pretty hard to understand.  I questioned why some of it was in there.  Reflecting on it now, I think that I am beginning to understand. 

Humanity is forced to live in fear of an enemy the know as the "Angels".  These angels attack at random and the only defense we have are robotic monsters called EVA's.  These EVA's are controlled by teenagers who are specially selected.  Our main character Shinji is one of these "lucky" teenagers.  The use of the word lucky was pure sarcasm.  His father, who is a leader in the defense against the angels, totally refuses to interact with him and hasn't spoken to him in years.  He also has major confidence issues that are recurring throughout the entire series.  Those things come with all the stress of being put in life or death situations and having a large number of people depend on you.  His job of protecting humanity plus his interaction with his to female pilots Ayanami Rei and Asuka set this story up for some complex and weird events.

The show is visually solid.  It is not the high definition that you will find in more recent shows like Mobile Suit Gundam 00 or Code Geass, but its not bad.  The thing that really caught my eye visually was the amount of violence and sexuality.  In the movie that is meant to conclude this series, we actually see Shinji's siemen.  Like....WOW.  There is also a sex sequence that doesn't show the two characters, but we hear their  voices and their moaning.  This show has a got a lot of stuff going on in it.  I later realized that this stuff really does contribute to the realism of it all.  Its not just some stuff thrown in to pass the time.

The plot is not really complex, but it certainly is not simple either.  Shinji's father is basically the head of an underground base/city that can rise to the surface.  Under his command are some EVA's that include Shinji's EVA 01.  There are multiple sides trying to achieve a variety of goals.  It at first may seem like a big mess that you are trying to sort through, but things ultimately resolve themselves in a way that is not too difficult to understand.  The thing I didn't understand at first was the inclusion of the perverted material.  It wasn't abundant but it was there.  I think I understand why that is now.  Shinji is just a young teenager and is going through puberty about this time.  The inclusion of this explicit material is not really overly perverted, but actually adds to the realism of the series.  It took me a while to appreciate this and I think that it ultimately makes the show deeper than it already is.  The characters are good, although some have more emotional problems than the average weenie of the bunch on the playground.  All in all, the story was pretty attention grasping and I always wanted to find out what was going to happen next. 

Evangelion is definitely a mature anime.  It is also a very good anime.  Most people would say its great.  I say different.  Good but not great is my verdict.  Definitely worth the watch, but not one of those animes that left me amazed totally afterwards.

Grade: B