Plotline of Neon Genesis Evangelion

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Although it is not revealed until late in the series' run, Evangelion's story began in 2000, when an expedition of scientists in Antarctica discovered a large being of light, which they called Adam, or the first "Angel". On September 13, they experimented on the Angel; however, this caused Adam to go haywire and self-destruct (but in the process, it was also reduced to an embryonic form), resulting in a cataclysm that would later be called the "Second Impact". Antarctica was almost completely destroyed, and Earth's axis was shifted by the force of the event, altering the climate and causing widespread destruction which killed billions. Warfare over the next year claimed even more lives, eventually leading to the death of half the earth's population before peace was established. The truths behind the Second Impact are kept clandestine from the public in the form of a cover story in which a meteorite traveling at nearly the speed of light impacted in Antarctica and caused the disaster.

A history textbook shows what the public was told about the Second Impact.

The series begins in 2015, 15 years after "Second Impact". During that time, humanity has recovered from the disaster. As the series opens, Tokyo-3, a militarized civilian city located on one of the last dry sections of Japan, is attacked by the first of a series of strange monsters referred to as Angels. Conventional weapons are found to be ineffective, but the paramilitary organization NERV succeeds in developing biomechanical mecha, the Evangelions (Evas), which are capable of intercepting the Angels.

As the story progress, it is revealed that NERV is connected to three other mysterious organizations: GEHIRN, SEELE, and the Marduk Institute. NERV's primary task is to defend the Earth from the Angels, while under the control of SEELE. However, NERV has its own secret agenda, driven by its Machiavellian commander Gendo Ikari; the Human Instrumentality Project, which, according to Gendo in episode 25, is the path to unite all human minds into one global spiritual entity. The Marduk Institute, which operates through 108 ghost organizations, has the task of selecting the pilots for the Evas, the most capable being children conceived after the Second Impact (14 year olds). The institute consists of Commander Ikari, and NERV's chief scientist Ritsuko Akagi.

Each Eva has its own designated pilot, and operates by synchronizing the pilot's soul and the human soul inside the Eva. The higher a pilot's synchronization ratio, the better the pilot can control the Eva and fight more adeptly. For example, Shinji had a hard time making his Eva walk with 40% synchronization, but with higher synchronization he could perform acrobatic feats of hand-to-hand combat. 100% sync ratio brings tremendous amount of capability for the Eva, and higher ratios such as 400%, thought as impossible, can be achieved by the pilots. Unfortunately when Shinji accomplishes such a ratio he spends the next month "dissolved" in the Eva.

The main character, Shinji Ikari, is Gendo Ikari's estranged son. Prior to the beginning of the series Gendo summons Shinji to become a pilot when the pilot of Unit 00, Rei Ayanami, is injured. Not knowing why his father summoned him, Shinji arrives to Tokyo-3 just as the Third Angel attacks the city. Shinji reluctantly agrees and begins piloting Unit 01, and living with Major Misato Katsuragi. He and Rei battle angels together and are later joined by Asuka Langley Soryu, the pilot of Unit 02.

While Ritsuko does mention at the beginning of the series that the Evas do have some biological components to them, the extent to which the Evas are biological is not immediately apparent. Unit 01 is connected to Yui Ikari, Gendo's wife and Shinji's mother, since it contains her soul, as shown in episodes 16 and 20. Rei herself is a clone of Yui and is the soul of Lilith, the second Angel.^[1]

The Eva Unit 02 (piloted by Asuka Langley Sohryu) landing on the missile destroyer USS Ramage, while fighting the sixth Angel Gaghiel at sea.

It later becomes clear that the Evas are not really "robots" but rather living, biomechanical organisms. It is finally revealed, towards the end of the series, that Evas are essentially cloned Angels (Units 00, 02, 03, and 04 are made from Adam, the first Angel, and 01 is made from Lilith) onto which mechanical components are incorporated as a means of restraint and control. This control is not perfect, as both Units 00 and 01 go "berserk" over the course of the series.

Over time, the characters begin to learn of the second goal of NERV and SEELE, the Human Instrumentality Project. Its purpose is to force the evolution of humanity and thereby save it. To do so, they plan to break down the AT-Fields that separate individual humans, merging all human souls. When everyone comes to this state, they will no longer feel the pain or loneliness that would typically precipitate from interaction between humans.

At the end of the series, two separate factions come into conflict over whether to implement Instrumentality or not.

In the last two episodes of Neon Genesis Evangelion, Gendo and Rei initiate the Human Instrumentality Project, forcing several characters to face their doubts and fears. The series focuses primarily on Shinji, particularly in episode 26. Initially, Shinji attempts to run away from this internal confrontation, but eventually accepts himself for who he is. This ending could also stand for Hideki Anno's rejection of Otaku-ism, since Shinji rejects a rudimetary, empty and painless world for the real world.^{[citation needed]} This ending, made up of flashbacks, strange, sketchy artwork, and flashing text, left many fans confused and unsatisfied. The main plot of the series—the battle against the Angels—was never resolved, and only Shinji's personal conflicts had any kind of resolution (and this is open to interpretation). A year later, a second ending was released theatrically.

[edit] The End of Evangelion

Main article: The End of Evangelion

The film The End of Evangelion picks up shortly after the end of episode 24. SEELE commandeers the JSSDF's forces and launches an all-out attack on NERV headquarters. Asuka realizes that she has a bond with Unit 02 and is not just its master, and this bond gives her the strength to battle "mass-production" Evas created by SEELE. However, she apparently dies in battle. Misato, meanwhile, battles her way past SEELE's soldiers to get Shinji to his Eva.

Meanwhile, Gendo attempts to implement Instrumentality by merging the embryonic Adam (bonded to his right hand) with Rei. However, Rei takes over the process and reunites with Lilith, who finally regains her soul, and creates an Anti-AT Field. This causes the AT Fields of every human on Earth to break down, causing their bodies to dissolve into pools of LCL. However, they do not die; their souls merge into one being.

Rei gives control of the process to Shinji. Initially he believes the merged form would be better because no one appreciates him so "they should all just die," but he is just as unhappy in the merged form as he was in his physical form. He realizes that to be surrounded by others is to experience joy as well as pain. Lilith/Rei collapses and the Anti-AT Field ceases to be. Amidst the devastation, Asuka and Shinji lie unharmed on the ground surrounded by a sea of LCL.

The meaning of The End of Evangelion is ambiguous, and it is not clear if it is intended to expand on the events of episodes 25 and 26 of the series (meaning that those episodes reflected Shinji's point of view while inside the merged being), or completely replace them. Some believe that The End of Evangelion is an alternate ending to the series, perhaps created to please those fans who were displeased with the TV series' ending. Deputy Director Kazuya Tsurumaki said he felt the series was complete as it was.^[2]

However, there are several hints indicating that the movie portrays the physical aspects of the end of the series, while the episodes deal with the interior, or emotional aspects, and the two form a whole. In movie episode 26', when Instrumentality is finally launched, Shinji questions himself about his life and what he really wishes through Instrumentality; Shinji's lines and reflection process in this scene are almost identical to what they were in TV episode 26, however in a much more condensed form. Watching both thus allows a fuller understanding of the series. There were serious budget and schedule restraints in the later episodes of the series, and the film allowed for a more complete ending to be realized. During the TV series ending, a number of sketches from scenes that were later included in the movie are shown, hinting that the film, or something like the final production, was the intended finale all along. Indeed, the original script for episode 25 (which included, among others, a bloody fight between Asuka and the Eva Series) was abandoned due to censorship, budget and time restraints, yet the actual TV episode still featured some remnants of the first script (Misato and Ritsuko dead, Asuka inside her Eva in the water). Later, the original script was re-used for Episode 25': Air, a part of the End of Evangelion movie.^[3]

[edit] Notes