Anime Reviews ⇢ Neon Genesis Evangelion
Neon Genesis Evangelion
新世紀エヴァンゲリオン
Average Rating: 8 / 10

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Ratings: 1
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Content Overview
Violence: 7 / 10
Nudity: 8 / 10
Theo Theme: 8 / 10
Neg Theme: 6 / 10

Brief Description:
In the year 2015, the Angels, huge, tremendously powerful, alien war machines, appear in Tokyo for the second time. The only hope for Mankind's survival lies in the Evangelion, a humanoid fighting machine developed by NERV, a special United Nations agency. Capable of withstanding anything the Angels can dish out, the Evangelion's one drawback lies in the limited number of people able to pilot them. Only a handful of teenagers, all born fourteen years ago, nine months after the Angels first appeared, are able to interface with the Evangelion. One such teenager is Shinji Ikari, whose father heads the NERV team that developed and maintains the Evangelion. Thrust into a maelstrom of battle and events that he does not understand, Shinji is forced to plumb the depths of his own inner resources for the courage and strength to not only fight, but to survive, or risk losing everything.

Licensed by ADV Films and released in the US in 2000.

Recommended for ages 18+
User Reviews
12/31/2011: goldenspines OFFICIAL REVIEW [ Already Rated ]

This review was taken from the old reviews system and was originally submitted by Mithrandir

Main Review:
Contrary to what I've heard from other people, I felt the series progressed at a decent pace, and (despite some unforseen plot twists) was very logical in how it got from point A to point B. While it's not at first apparent what is really happening, there are enough flash backs and dream sequences that, with enough time and patience, one can piece together a pretty thorough picture of what is going on.

There is a great deal of alcohol use in the series. Some people are uneasy with this, so I thought I'd throw it in.

Music:
The music was above average for a series and served to provide mood and background at appropriate times. I'm sorry, but I can't get past the "Fly Me to the Moon" ending themes. That just hurts. ;)

Sub vs Dub:
This review covers the Japanese Language track as watched with English Subtitles.

Violence Details:
Evangelion contains a great deal of robot vs beast violence, but also contains a substantial amount of blood, explosions and the aftermath of two suicides are shown pretty graphically.

Language Details:
For the Japanese Language vesion with English Subtitles, there is a relatively small amount of language in the series. Most foul words are used at least once, but there are episodes with no cursing at all.

Nudity Details:
The nudity in Evangelion is of the "blurry" variety, however, there are LOTS of scenes where people are shown with strategically placed beer cans, chinese doors etc. There are multiple scenes where people are shown fully nude, but the details are, as stated previously, blurry.

Sexual Content Details:
There is a great deal of innuendo and outright conversation about multiple unmarried (to each other, anyway) characters who are involved in sexual relationships. There is a scene in which the camera stays focused on an ashtray of cigarettes while the voices in the background are very obviously engaged in intimate activity.

Religious Material Details:
Wow. Where to begin. Of most import, this anime borrows HEAVILY from the Christian vocabulary. The enemies that threaten to destroy the earth are referred to as 'angels.' There is quite a bit of Christian imagery in the visuals, but there really isn't anything directly "blasphemous" about the series. Many explosions are shown in the shape of a cross, and multiple times during the series an entity is shown nailed to a cross-like structure with a weapon stabbed through it. Many references are made showing obvious nihilistic post-modern thought process, and the duplicity of self as defined 1) in one's own mind and 2) through other's perception is of MAJOR import. There is also a hint of "if I believe it, it will become reality" that might disturb some people.

Added: December, 2011