The final Evangelion film of the Rebuild series releases in Japan in March 8, 2021.
- Thread starter Samtemdo8
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When you have a piece of media that is very violent, or is violent in a genre that is generally not violent, people often get the wrong end of the stick and decide the violence is the point. I'm very fond of those three Gen Urobuchi series that came out at the start of the last decade (Madoka, Fate/Zero, and Psycho Pass) and they're all very different on a surface level other than being violent, but the heart of all of them is people refusing to compromise their moral core in the face of staggeringly unjust systems and shocking acts of cruelty.
While Shinji enters Eva-01, the original Rei Ayanami appears to him inside, with her hair grown very long. She apologizes to him for not being able to make it so that he wouldn't have to get into an Eva, but Shinji thanks her and says he will take care of the rest. Ritsuko and Maya are shocked to discover that Shinji, rather than having a zero percent synchro rate with Eva-01 like they previously thought, has in fact attained a previously impossible infinite synchro-rate with Eva-01.
Neon Genesis Evangelion, the original, is a severely compromised piece of work. This is a polite way of saying it's an absolute shambles. The production was an absolute nightmare, the creative direction and tone is all over the place, and then they ran out of time and money and so the last couple of episodes are slapped together experimental existential art films. Against all odds it was still hugely popular apart from the ending so Anno got to go back and make The End of Evangelion, which is a replacement ending which makes slightly more sense but is still completely insane and pretty much a non stop downer, and ends with everyone on Earth turning into a functionally inert gestalt consciousness suspended in a primordial soup except for Shinji and Asuka who are left alone and mentally broken on the blasted remains of the planet. I like The End of Evangelion very much but a lot of other people who liked the series don't. Rebuild is a way for Anno to make the version of Evangelion he wants to make with a unified creative vision from beginning to end and no messy production. This sounds good on paper but it is in itself hugely divisive because for a lot of people the absolute state of the original Evangelion is part of what makes it what it is and no amount of polish can replicate the experience of a series that was defined by its messiness. Other people hold that this is a load of dingo's kidneys and the Rebuild films are actually the best version of Eva.
Initially it was supposed to be "Evangelion for Dummies"
Because apparently, the original series and the EOE movie is too complex and psychologically deep for your average casual audience.
But at this point I just think it went to a completely direction
Okay so I just watched Rebuild of Evangelion 3.0+1.0: Thrice Upon a Time.
First of all someone had fun dreaming up that fuckin' title. Second of all, I feel like I'm somehow still two movies behind on plot developments. When the fuck did Ryoji Kai suddenly become the patron saint of selflessness to which we must all aspire? Where did this grand rivalry between Misato and Gendo Ikari come from? I mean one of the most in-character moments I can think of occurs when Gendo is confronted by Misato and Ritsuko at the end and Ritsuko just shoots him in the face five times while he and Misato are conversing like they're ancient men of honour.
And yet, in spite of those - and a few more - inconsistencies in the story, I don't think I can adequately put into words just how I felt when the movie hammered the fuck home just what a grand finale this was. If anyone here hasn't yet watched it, this is no Avengers Endgame style blow out. Its far more closely focused than that. There's still a couple of blow out fight scenes, but when the final one really gears up it kind of telegraphs that, if I may quote Eggsy 'This ain't that sort of movie, bruv'.
I will say this though, some of the visuals in the last hour or so of this movie are fucking incredible. Surreal, terrifying, beautiful, hilarious and many other things I have trouble articulating. And the middle section when Rei, Shinji and Asuka are in a village contain some of the most beautiful character moments in the whole franchise. Worth it for them alone.
So after a near decade wait, and Thrice Upon a Time pretty strongly drawing a line under the property, how do I feel? Honestly, I feel it was the best kind of ending something like this was going to get. Its hard won, not everyone makes it out alive like you expect or may want. I truly did want Shinji to get at least one scene, no qualifiers or ass biting, where he could be the hero I wanted him to grow to be. I really did want to see the series original God Machine - Evangelion Unit 01 - throw down against the apocalypse with all its power. That I didn't get either of these and still came away smiling, even crying I think means that perhaps I understood the movie better than I thought I did. And Utada Hikaru's final song, "One Last Kiss" was just the right kind of note to end.
Goodbye, Evangelion.
First of all someone had fun dreaming up that fuckin' title. Second of all, I feel like I'm somehow still two movies behind on plot developments. When the fuck did Ryoji Kai suddenly become the patron saint of selflessness to which we must all aspire? Where did this grand rivalry between Misato and Gendo Ikari come from? I mean one of the most in-character moments I can think of occurs when Gendo is confronted by Misato and Ritsuko at the end and Ritsuko just shoots him in the face five times while he and Misato are conversing like they're ancient men of honour.
And yet, in spite of those - and a few more - inconsistencies in the story, I don't think I can adequately put into words just how I felt when the movie hammered the fuck home just what a grand finale this was. If anyone here hasn't yet watched it, this is no Avengers Endgame style blow out. Its far more closely focused than that. There's still a couple of blow out fight scenes, but when the final one really gears up it kind of telegraphs that, if I may quote Eggsy 'This ain't that sort of movie, bruv'.
I will say this though, some of the visuals in the last hour or so of this movie are fucking incredible. Surreal, terrifying, beautiful, hilarious and many other things I have trouble articulating. And the middle section when Rei, Shinji and Asuka are in a village contain some of the most beautiful character moments in the whole franchise. Worth it for them alone.
So after a near decade wait, and Thrice Upon a Time pretty strongly drawing a line under the property, how do I feel? Honestly, I feel it was the best kind of ending something like this was going to get. Its hard won, not everyone makes it out alive like you expect or may want. I truly did want Shinji to get at least one scene, no qualifiers or ass biting, where he could be the hero I wanted him to grow to be. I really did want to see the series original God Machine - Evangelion Unit 01 - throw down against the apocalypse with all its power. That I didn't get either of these and still came away smiling, even crying I think means that perhaps I understood the movie better than I thought I did. And Utada Hikaru's final song, "One Last Kiss" was just the right kind of note to end.
Goodbye, Evangelion.
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