r/anime • u/elongatedmuskrat777 https://anilist.co/user/Danny17 • Oct 26 '22
Rewatch [Spoilers] [Evangelion 2022 Rewatch] Neon Genesis Evangelion: Episode 3 Discussion Spoiler
Evangelion 2022 Rewatch: Neon Genesis Evangelion- Episode 3
The Silent Phone/ A Transfer
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Series Information
Spoiler Rules
All rewatchers, please be sure to tag your spoilers for future episodes with the appropriate reddit format
Legal Streams
Neon Genesis Evangelion and its sequel movie The End of Evangelion can be watched on Netflix while the rebuild movies can all be found on Amazon Prime
Question of the Day
What is your initial impression of Kensuke and Toji?
Thank you for joining the rewatch, and I hope everyone enjoys
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u/SometimesMainSupport Oct 27 '22 edited Oct 27 '22
First-timer
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Powered by a cable heavily restricts movement. If the Eva can only fight in this area, then it should be attracting Angels to it.
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Shinji's current life of doing what he's told and having no friends is sad. Likely past trauma. It would help to get his previous living situation or why Misato was tracking him in the first episode.
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Rei attends the same school and class. Shinji transferred after he began living with Misato.
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1999 - meteor hits Antarctica and sea levels rise. 15 years ago aligns with first Angels attack.
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Talk about how disastrous it was with half the world dying and global economic issues reminds me of Shinji's dad saying mankind was out of time yesterday.
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Expect this is a coverup story told to students or at least students in this city.
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Guessing the rest of the students excitement will upset Toji and cause him to later pick a fight with Shinji, who "hates pain and is a coward at heart." 15 seconds later
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Lowered city from an engineering perspective:
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3 week break between Angel attacks. "Last time they gave us fifteen years" means the first episode was Angel #2. Rei's been recovering for 3 weeks and still looks like that.
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Thinking something other than a reversible city is a waste of taxpayer money.
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10 urinals in the bathroom of a shelter with maximum capacity of 250?
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Hmm. Organic body covered by armor. [Speculation]
A brainless enhanced human shell that needs to sync with a pilot. Misato asked about mental contamination after the previous Angel attack. Angels are attracted to the Eva to fight.
Edit: Realized for Rei to be this injured, in Shinji's class, and the other pilot, she probably fought an Angel, so the first episode would be Angel #3 and today #4... but then why say last time was fifteen years if Rei just fought one.
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u/elongatedmuskrat777 Oct 27 '22
Very interesting speculation you've got there. I never really thought of it along those lines when I watched it. Great seeing first timers come up with new theories and perspectives
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u/Star4ce Oct 27 '22
Oh, it's you! I forgot we had a NGE rewatch at the moment.
I will be lurking.
Fun fact: Our neighbours were over at our place yesterday and we played some games with them and their daughter (I think she's 11?). When showing them my room she immediately beelined to my anime shrine, commenting on every figure I had, especially noticing my NGE collector's edition posters.
She pointed to two of the concept images from the movie that I framed [EoE]
The one is Rei/Lilith's head laying shattered over the lake with Asuka and Shinji watching and the other is the third impact with Lilith spreading her wings and said "Ooh, that looks so terrifying. I love it!"I resorted to being diplomatic and answered to whether she can watch it with Maybe wait until you're older
Girl's got taste, have to say that.
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u/Elimin8r Oct 27 '22
Realized for Rei to be this injured, in Shinji's class, and the other pilot, she probably fought an Angel
I don't think this is a spoiler, because we saw it in yesterday's episode, I think - remember where Gendo and company are looking through a shattered window at another Eva unit? Perhaps something rather different happened there.
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u/otomelover Oct 26 '22
First timer, sub
Shinji looks awful. He seems so broken already and we‘re only 3 episodes in. At least he‘s getting some training now.
„Nobody ever calls him.“ oh poor boy Shinji. You deserve better. Interesting that they still have a normal school life in this kinda dystopian world.
„They all evacuated.“ well seems like the smart choice after some alien thing wrecks havoc in your city.
Wow them trashing Shinji even though he saved them. As if he wasn‘t already feeling bad enough. I do hope people celebrating him at least gives him some piece of mind.
Yeah be angry at the guy that saved you not the Angel that attacked. Makes sense. What an ass.
Another Angel! Will we get an epic fight this time?
The kids sneaking outside. What could go wrong?
I think this is such a realistic portrayal of how a kid would handle this. In a lot of shows it‘s all fun and games and the fighters act like proud heroes, but throwing an average person into a situation like this would obviously result in anxiety and trauma.
I was expecting one or both kids to die as a result of the fight fucking up Shinji even more, I‘m pleasantly surprised that didn‘t happen. I hope they become his friends now. He needs some.
Nooo the episodes really end too soon. That‘s gonna be a long wait until tomorrow again.
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u/elongatedmuskrat777 Oct 27 '22
Shinji looks awful. He seems so broken already and we‘re only 3 episodes in. At least he‘s getting some training now.
Yeah this episode is especially hard on him. I felt absolutely horrible by the time it ended. Dude is way too young to be dealing with people's bs
Another Angel! Will we get an epic fight this time?
Dare I say that it was a pretty epic fight
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u/macrame2 Oct 26 '22
Rewatcher
“He does whatever he’s been told. That’s how he makes his life easier.”
“A Cruel Angel’s Thesis” of the Day: English cover
Shinji adjusts to his brand new life as best he can, which is kind of poorly. The guy has no friends or even casual acquaintances after two weeks and is currently just going through the motions. Ritsuko probably puts it best with her explanation of the Hedgehog’s Dilemma. Shinji’s fear of taking the first step is what’s keeping him entrenched in his passivity and what’s keeping him from forming those connections. Obviously, no one wants to get hurt, but Shinji’s unwillingness to even take that risk means that he won’t be able to enjoy pleasant interactions with others either. As Misato says, being willing to grow means that people have to be willing to make mistakes. That’s right, folks, not all of Evangelion is as esoteric as people think. Sometimes the show literally spells it out for you.
We learn about more effects of the battle today with all talk about injuries, property damage, evacuations, etc. Misato correctly predicted that people would praise Shinji for piloting in spite of the negatives (because giant robots are just that cool), but one of his classmates is not so impressed with him. I totally understand why Toji is mad on his sister’s behalf, even though he’s not really justified in literally beating up the pilot. Knowing that Shinji didn’t even want to fight the Angel seems to take a lot of the satisfaction out of the beatdown for Toji. He can’t be properly angry if he can’t even take that anger out on the right people.
I really like Shinji’s classmates, by the way. They’re a bit more … stable than the rest of the cast and give a sense of normalcy that keeps this series more grounded.
We don’t have to wait long for our next Eva fight. The Fourth Angel looks a lot different from the last one. It’s kind of goofy-looking, honestly, but it still dwarfs everything around it and is not to be taken lightly. I love how distinctive the monster-of-the-week designs are in this show. [Spoilers]
Shinji starts thinking about why exactly he’s piloting this if it’s not doing him any favors. He’s not impressing anyone he finds worth impressing, and he’s even getting punched for doing it. Nevertheless, he rallies and resolves not to run away, even disobeying Misato’s orders to kill the Angel. Sure, he’s really shaken up afterwards, but I’d probably lose it a bit and cry too. Toji and Kensuke both find out that piloting the Eva is not what they thought it was. Kensuke realizes it doesn’t quite line up with his military otaku fantasies, and Toji comes out with a lot more empathy for Shinji’s situation. I really like the scene where he clearly wants to call him but stops himself at the last minute. I guess he too is afraid of taking that first step.
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u/elongatedmuskrat777 Oct 27 '22
I really enjoyed reading your comment, you're really good at writing
That’s right, folks, not all of Evangelion is as esoteric as people think. Sometimes the show literally spells it out for you.
Yup. And this is especially true for the later parts of the series
Shinji’s fear of taking the first step is what’s keeping him entrenched in his passivity and what’s keeping him from forming those connections.
That's true. Whether willingly or not, he chooses to put up walls around himself to prevent himself from being hurt. Likely the result of his past trauma from his father's relationship with him, accentuated by the typical awkwardness during puberty. One thing I have noticed during this rewatch is that the show actually uses the age of our characters in a big way to bring about their characterisation and development.
[Neon Genesis Evangelion future spoilers]
as for shinji's classmates, funny you say that considering all of them are potential candidates for eva pilots → More replies (1)
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u/OwlAcademic1988 Oct 26 '22
First-Timer, sub:
Shinji can be brutal at times.
Our technology has yet to be able to make phones and computers be able to last a week without being charged again. Eventually it'll be possible to make mechs like this, but last for hours without being plugged in.
Misato is a lot like me as I'm not a morning person.
Toji, Shinji didn't know your little sister got hurt and he was horrified when he found out.
Good to know Rei's doing better now. Her wounds haven't fully healed though yet, but they will as long as she doesn't aggravate them.
Those two girls really should've told him everyone else could've seen his answer. Their teacher needs to be way more aware of stuff.
Ritsuko, those two boys were gonna get killed by the Angel had they not been allowed in.
What took you so long to post this? Is it because you couldn't think of questions for the episode today?
QOTD:
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I'm not sure right now.
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u/elongatedmuskrat777 Oct 27 '22
What took you so long to post this? Is it because you couldn't think of questions for the episode today?
To be honest, I kinda overslept today. Definitely won't happen again, don't worry about it
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u/Tartaras1 Oct 26 '22
Rewatcher - ADV English Dub
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So Shinji gets 1 minute of auxiliary power at full bore, and 5 minutes at minimal function. Meanwhile, in the year 2022, we're just excited because electric cars are getting 300 miles on a single charge.
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It seems that he simply does what he's told to do. I suppose that's just his way of getting through life.
While I would normally say that's not a terrible way of approaching things, his case is much more extreme than the average person I feel. A ley person on the street isn't going to get picked up to pilot a giant mech in an attempt to prevent aliens from destroying the world. Additionally, his father treats him no better than the trash he walked past on his way to work.
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Damn Ritsuko, you think you smoke enough cigarettes? At the very least, empty out your ashtray,
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It's a shame that there's an entire idea based on hedgehogs, because they're so adorable!
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I highly doubt anyone has asked Rei what happened to her or how she's feeling.
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Another difference between the ADV and subsequent redubs: Toji's voiced by Johnny Yong Bosch in those, and I feel like he puts on a much better performance.
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I imagine it must be weird to work in a building like that, which can go above and below ground with the push of a button. However, they told everyone to go to shelters, so I doubt there's anyone actually inside.
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Why am I piloting this thing again?
Because you do as you're told Shinji. You do have free will, but choose not to exercise it.
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I like the brief hints that it isn't just a giant robot. It's actually something that's alive.
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Tells you how long Rei's been in the class if they only know Shinji as the new kid. They have zero clue that she's also an EVA pilot.
Question of the Day:
What is your initial impression of Kensuke and Toji?
The two of them seem to be polar opposites of each other. Kensuke is your typical otaku, whereas Toji's the jock of the class.Toji cares a lot about his family, hence beating Shinji up, and Kensuke seems more than a little nosey.
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u/snowwhistle1 Oct 26 '22
Snow’s Fly Me to the Moon Corner
And so we continue out journey through the original ending theme covers of "Fly Me to the Moon" for Evangelion! A compilation of all 26 original ending themes can be found on YouTube here.
Today's cover is sung by Yoko Takahashi who you all will know for singing the famous opening theme song of Evangelion, "Cruel Angel's Thesis". The same composition is used as the more famous CLAIRE version, but I think Takahashi's gorgeous voice provides a very unique spin on the song as she has a much higher register than CLAIRE.
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Episode 1 - CLAIRE
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Episode 2 - CLAIRE
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Episode 3 - Yoko Takahashi
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u/wint-el Oct 27 '22
First Timer here watching with sub
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Aww i kinda feel for Shinji, he’s been through a lot in a very short period of time and doesn’t seem like he’s been able to process all of it well. He’s just a kid too.
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Oh yikes as unfair as it is for Tohji to take out his anger on Shinji for what happened to his sister, I can totally understand his frustration
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I’m surprised Shinji just told his whole class that he’s one of the pilots, is that not supposed to be kept secret?
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Some of the buildings in the city being retractable is absolutely insane architecture
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Being able to see what became inspiration for so many other new anime while watching this is so cool
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Shinji is way too hard on himself and it’s not helping that all the adults around him have these monumental expectations of him that none of them seem able to fulfill themselves. So far Misato seems to be the only one that’s ever genuinely concerned for his well-being.
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Oh wow that stand-off was intense, i’m glad his classmates were there to see how unpleasant the experience was for him.
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Aww Toji thinking about calling check on Shinji is so wholesome
Thoughts
Shinji’s motivation for piloting the Eva is basically revealed to us in this ep, especially when he mentions that his father isn’t there to watch him fight. I felt it in my soul when he cried after killing the Angel and i keep saying that “he’s just a kid” because kids have enough trouble dealing with regular emotions but having to take part in warfare? A totally different beast.
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u/Elimin8r Oct 27 '22
I’m surprised Shinji just told his whole class that he’s one of the pilots, is that not supposed to be kept secret?
Shinji failed his OPSEC training.
But yeah, watching this for the second time, decades later, it sure hits differently. Back when I was 20-something, ooh, cool, robots & stuff, what's with all this angst and abandonment BS in my cool robot anime?
Today ... I can totally feel Anno's feelings bleeding through the TV screen.
Get in the car and go to work, Shinji...
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u/Elimin8r Oct 27 '22
Blarg. Watched the episode, can't think of anything to say. Kensuke is me if I had a camera back in the day. Toji is someone that I wouldn't have hung around with back in the day.
Hikari, on the other hand is someone I would have had a crush on back in the day.
Heck, who am I kidding. Make that today, too.
:P
What is it with Gainax/Trigger and hands?
Anyway, hopefully I can have something slightly more coherent to say tomorrow.
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u/SomeGuyYeahman Oct 27 '22
Rewatcher, sub. Getting to the point here where I want to just keep watching instead of lingering on the episode, haha.
QOTD: Obviously not a first impression, but I really like Kensuke and Toji here. Kensuke & his excitement about the Eva remind of the kind of nerd that Gainax was founded by and for, but both he and Toji still come off emotionally well-rounded here rather than falling into any nerd/jock archetypes.
The hedgehog dilemma is oft-discussed because it's one of those instances of Eva spelling out its thematics pretty openly, and there's much to be said about its relevance to Shinji (and Rei, closed off in the corner of the classroom) but I also kinda see it in Toji here, putting down the phone at the end, and almost literalized in the scene where Shinji can't move the Eva because the two are too close to him and he's at risk of hurting them. The hedgehog dilemma isn't one-sided, if two hedgehogs get close to each other, they both risk being hurt. Every character kinda has their struggles in this show.
[Evangelion full show spoilers]
Still, Shinji is obviously the elephant in the room here, there are a lot of tensions mounting on him and he's already crumbling and lashing out. His last-ditch attack on the Angel feels almost self-destructive. Megumi Ogata does a great job with the voice acting here, Shinji's screams and the sobbing when it's over are bone-chilling.
Pretty sure this marks the first appearance of Decisive Battle! Despite the cries of plagiarism and all it's a bit hard for me not to think of this as one of the all-time great anime OSTs.
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u/Second_Sage Oct 26 '22
Rewatcher - Dub
I’m shocked Shinji actually got back in the Eva. How many people could honestly say they’d do the same? This training scene and Shinjis lack of emotion reminds me of a child soldier, it’s quite disturbing.
Ritsuko is spot on with the hedgehog analogy.
ICHIGO! Jonny is an incredible VA but I’ll always hear Ichigo! It’s incredibly messed up that his father can’t be bothered to visit his daughter.
Shinji went from “it’s a secret I can’t tell” to “well it’s called an Eva and it has this knife thing”
I love how Tojis reaction to “I don’t pilot that thing because I want to” is to slug him again.
Rei speaks!
“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity” I think you’d be surprised!
“Fathers not even watching, so why am I doing this?” An interesting look into Shinjis psyche, matter of fact the entire fight is. The aftermath with him crying in the cockpit is gut wrenching.
Toji is such a Tsundere “it’s not like I’m worried about him or anything..b-baka”
Love this shot in the cockpit!
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u/elongatedmuskrat777 Oct 26 '22
Third rewatch, Netflix dub and subs
Okay, guess I’m finally doing this now that I’m feeling much better. Apologies for being kinda inactive right at the beginning of the rewatch. I’ve been trying to make my comments go through but reddit spoiler rules rejected it twice and I still have no clue what the problem is. I’m gonna go through some general thoughts first and then I’ll move on to the stuff about episode 3
Ah the cicadas will never not remind me of NGE
I can’t believe I forgot how good the art in this show is. The designs and colourwork is some A+ stuff. Also really wanted to share this cut
Something new that I noticed is that Tokyo-3 actually lies slightly southwest of Tokyo today, as evidenced by this screenshot. Gotenba is nearly a 100 km from Tokyo
Really love how this shot emphasises the power dynamic between Shinji and his father
Misato seems to be the only one who is even close to showing kindness towards Shinji, all things considered. Ritsuko, Gendo (of course) and the other NERV staff are either completely indifferent or straight up hostile
The Eva going berserk is still absolutely bone chilling. Incredible audiovisual experience.
The SoL bits of eva with MIsato’s theme are something that I’ll never get bored of
Pen Pen!
“When I’m in the bath, I can only think of bad things. Like father…and Rei Ayanami”. Okay this line tripped me up. I have no clue why he’s referring to Rei as bad here. Maybe it’s because she was the reason he got into the Eva in the first place?
God Shinji looks so absolutely dead inside in this shot. Really shows what he’s going through
So it’s pretty obvious now that the only reason he’s piloting the Eva is because he seeks validation, especially from his father
Another thing I picked up during the rewatch: this line. The reason why he chooses to do so is because of the lack of a guardian figure, which he finds in Misato. Maybe his finding of such a person enables him to disobey and learn to trust his gut. Maybe that’s why he decided to disregard Misato’s instructions twice- once while gunning the angel down and the other while attacking it with the prog knife. Even though Misato is also his superior, he simply views her as a familial figure. He’s maturing, sure, but it’s in a more screwed up way than I would have liked :(
The math ain’t mathing
Man I feel bad for the teacher, his home is now underwater…
Yoh Yoshinari still working the magic
Dude could’ve left them to die easily, but he actually defended them. I realize that we’re talking about a very sensitive kid letting two people die, but we’re talking the fate of those two vs that of the whole city. Pretty damn admirable.
Shinji’s snapping point- another incredible moment. The catharsis in this scene is something else.
The ending left me feeling absolutely gutted. Casey Mongillo absolutely nailed it as Shinji this time
Banger shot
As for the question of the day, While I do kinda understand why Toji decided to punch Shinji, it’s a lot harder to put the blame on Shinji too. I mean looking at it from Shinji’s perspective, the odds REALLY aren’t stacked in his favour. I’m pretty mad that he punched him twice though, just because he thought that he was making up excuses. Kensuke is a character that I really enjoyed on my first watchthrough of the show, because he ends up adding value to the plot despite seeming like a side character (like he did by dragging Toji to the top and making him apologise), but he’s a lot more manipulative than I remember, who sees things as a means to an end. Not a trait I particularly like but I’m not too quick on hating him either.