Neon Genesis Evangelion Anime Review

Written by: Enishi on 6/12/2003

Introduction

Neon Genesis Evangelion is a groundbreaking series from GAINAX and ADV. Evangelion is a 26 episode series. It has everything that anime fans will love. Action, Drama, and a great (if not a bit confusing) storyline.

Review

The animation in Evangelion is average grade. At certain points in the series the animation shines, easily as good as Cowboy Bebop (which in my opinion has the best). The best example of this would be in the episode 'With One Accord in a Flash'. But for the most part, the animation quality stays on the good side and never dips into severe choppiness. The characters are highly animated with facial expressions, and each of character is brought to life in a vibrant matter.

Evangelion revolves around Shinji Ikari, a 14-year-old boy who pilots the giant mechanoid being called Evangelion Unit-01. He is a whiny introvert in the beginning, but as the series progresses, he makes more friends and starts to come out of his shell. Opposite of him in the pilot seats are Rei Ayanami, a 14 year old albino female and Asuka Langley Soryuu, the hot-headed pilot of Unit-02 and Shinji's main female interest. Other characters that play major roles include Misato Katsuragi. She is Shinji's guardian and acts as his mother/sister/female role model. Then there is the person in charge of development of the Eva's, Dr. Ritsuko Akagi. She has many issues that are resolved as the series goes on. The last main character is Shinji's father, Gendou Ikari. He is a seemingly cold-hearted bastard that has absolutely zero interest in being a father. As the series progresses, you really learn to love or hate these characters. They are made to have highly distinctive personalities. GAINAX has done a wonderful job of fleshing out each of their personalities.

If you are purchasing the DVD's, do yourself a favor. Watch the series in subs! On the most part, listening to the series in dubbing is tolerable, but some of the voice acting is atrocious. Shinji's whiny voice will eventually get on your nerves, and Asuka, don't get me started. They have changed her classic "BAKA" lines to a horrible sounding "What are you, stupid!?!". Asuka is much more listenable in Japanese. The music strewn about the series is usually very good. The opening theme is very catchy, and some of the fight scenes have classical music thrown in as well. A+ in my book but after each episode, there is an ear-wrenching rendition of "Fly Me To The Moon". Other than that, you wont find any annoying music or sounds in the entire series.

Most everyone agrees that the story of any given anime will make or break if. Well if you can get past the numerous Religious references, the insane amount of backstabbing, and the jaw-dropping plot twists, the overall story of Evangelion will not disappoint. To avoid giving anything away, I will refrain from telling any of the story. Some episodes take deeply introspective looks into human kind, and others make us ponder our existence in the universe. All in all, a very complex story awaits those of you who have yet to see Evangelion.

Conclusion

In my opinion, Evangelion is a milestone in Japanese Animation. It brings many issues to light that have never been addressed in an anime before. If you are an avid fan of anime, you should get the series. If you are into huge mecha, you should get the series. There are no glaring flaws in this series, only shining high points.