End of Evangelion: THE HELL WAS THAT?

[Soviet Heavy]

Oookaaaay, I have watched only a few anime series all the way through, and NGE is not one of them. I really, really did not like the show, and I put it down in disgust. I've tried watching the 2.0 film reboots, and they are still full of the whinging self hatred that Mister Anno seems to have for himself, but they were paced better at least.

Still, I just watched EOE at a friend's request. Excuse me, but what in the flying fuck was that? I knew about the pile of people goo instrumentality, but seriously, what the fuck?

The ending of the movie was basically "watch shit explode in torrents of blood brought to you from the night terrors of the creator" before diving into fifteen minute long monologues against fucking bizarre imagery.

And that was just the ending. Even when there was some semblance of normality in the beginning, you still had to contend with bizarre shit like Shinji the world's most neurotic teenager jerking off over Asuka in the medical ward. And the frankly incomprehensible story did not help things. Seele wants to shut down Nerv by using their own Evas, then Gendo turns out to be wanting this, while everyone gets slaughtered or impaled on a spear before getting eaten by giant robot birds before the seizure inducing pile of goo parade.

So.... yeah. The fuck was that!?

I feel the need to add something, before you start accusing me of not getting it for not watching the series. I repeat, I didn't choose to watch this. I watched it because my friend put it on and I had nothing else to do. It was not my choice to watch this madness.

As discussion, what the hell did you think of EOE when you saw it? Were you more accepting of is going into the film as a fan of the series, or were you press ganged like me into watching it and being utterly lost?

CAPTCHA: Whoops a daisy

that doesn't begin to describe the film.

 

[[Kira Must Die]]

It's my favorite anime film.

Yeah, it's confusing, and I'm not gonna act like I understand it all, but I still love it and have seen it more times than the actual show. I'm not even sure myself. The first half is basically the characters dying in horrible ways, while the second half is just a pretty, but fucked up montage, yet I find it strangely soothing. I don't think I could come up with a good enough excuse to someone as to why I like it so much, or at least not without sounding incredibly pretentious, I just do. I guess I also like it as a "fuck you" to fans who kept complaining about the series ending, even sending death threats to the creators (which were shown in that montage)

 

[generals3]

Kind of reminds me of when i saw Inglorious Basterds. I guess it's a matter of taste, some people like bizarre fucked up movies.

 

[Vegosiux]

EoE is...bizzare. It left me having nightmares for two days. It' just that out there. It's not bad and I'm glad I saw it, but it's simply...well...fucked up. Completely fucked up. It provokes all kinds of thought and emotion.

Give it a rest, have some sleep, watch it again in a few weeks.

It will not make more sense, but it will be more tolerable.

Poor Gendo.

Shinji, you're a fucking idiot.

 

[Casual Shinji]

Well, seeing as you haven't watched the series, what in crikey fuck did you expect?

But yes, I love it. I remember watching it for the first time oh so many years ago and having my brain and heart severely lashed in the process. I went from being really confused and wanting to look behind the curtain (the series ending), to being in horrifying shock and awe when the curtain was finally lifted entirely (EoE's ending).

I love it for it's animation. I love it for being one of the few movies that depicts the end of the world. And I love it for having the balls to expose its characters down to their nitty gritty core.

It also has the most badass fight scene of any animated movie, period. Leapfrog skull crush, indeed!

 

[Terminal Blue]

To be honest, I liked the original series ending.

The thing to remember about Evangelion in general is that it's a reacton to the latent militarism in certain other "kids pilot mecha" shows where you have these kids who behave like world war 2 military officers and where every other line is some drivel about honour and duty and the need to control your emotions.

Shinji is a whiny self-hating ineffectual ***** because that's the emotional state of the average consumer of these kinds of shows. The ending of the series was taken by many as a slap in the face because it was meant to be a slap in the face, a playful slap in the face but one which was meant to sting.

..and that's why EOE sucks, because it was a specific response to fan pressure by people who didn't get it and wanted an actual resolution to the story.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

Nothing says mindfuckery like a metaphor for the act of penetration, especially of a character that may or may not be a clone of the protagnist's mother.

'Lance' of Longinus and the Holy 'Grail' indeed.

 

[Dr. Cakey]

Not gonna lie, I <33333333 End of Evangelion. It's probably the only reason I consider NGE to be my third-favorite anime.

But then, I thought the movie had a happy ending, so that shows how screwed up I am.

I've tried watching the 2.0 film reboots, and they are still full of the whinging self hatred that Mister Anno seems to have for himself, but they were paced better at least.

I thought they were more full of MONEY than self-hatred.

I enjoyed it, but I do like the series, can see why you didn't though it's a fucked up film and show really. I've only seen the film once though and it was a long time ago so I'm not too sure if it's as good as I remember, watched the show again a few years ago and enjoyed it. Really like the new Rebuild series (well 1 and 2 at least, not seen 3 yet not even sure when it's out)

Evangelion 3.0 came out in Japan in November. Based on the turnaround time for the previous movies, it'll probably be dropped worldwide in 2014.

 

[Peithelo]

The series as well as the End of Evangelion were quite uncomfortable to watch and made me feel almost ill by the end of it all. Perhaps some of it was because I watched the series in its entirety over the course of only couple of days, but something about the overall presentation seemed to make me nearly detest the series as if it was somehow filthy and disturbing. At least End of Evangelion offered some kind of conclusion, however bizarre, that went relatively well with the rest of the series.

Certainly Neon Genesis Evangelion and End of Evangelion were some of the more memorable viewing experiences, quite possibly precisely because of how they proved to be such an upleasant viewing experience almost all the way through.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

Well, seeing as you haven't watched the series, what in crikey fuck did you expect?

But yes, I love it. I remember watching it for the first time oh so many years ago and having my brain and heart severely lashed in the process. I went from being really confused and wanting to look behind the curtain (the series ending), to being in horrifying shock and awe when the curtain was finally lifted entirely (EoE's ending).

I love it for it's animation. I love it for being one of the few movies that depicts the end of the world. And I love it for having the balls to expose its characters down to their nitty gritty core.

It also has the most badass fight scene of any animated movie, period. Leapfrog skull crush, indeed!

You think I wanted to watch this? Like I said, I'm not a fan of the series (in fact I think we've had this discussion before). I was aware of the human goo ending, but the means by which they come to that conclusion are..... impossible to put into words. Think screaming, pseudo symbolism and H.R Giger's japanese cousin given a blank cheque.

 

[The Abhorrent]

Oookaaaay, I have watched only a few anime series all the way through, and NGE is not one of them. I really, really did not like the show, and I put it down in disgust.

Mistake #1 -- Watching EoE having not enjoyed, nor finished, the series it's directly attached to. NGE being the heavily nuanced (and polarizing) series that it is, with copious quantities of "blink and you'll miss it" details (which are often shown far before their importance makes any sense).. yeah, it's pretty much a guarantee not to make any sense. Considering it's also an extremely harsh perspective towards fans of the series (let's just say a metaphorical middle-finger was delivered... maybe, no one knows for sure), let alone those who dislike it and/or have no idea of the context surrounding the events?

I can somewhat see how you might not of seen what was coming... but yeah, that would be quite the horrible experience.

Still, I just watched EOE at a friend's request.

Mistake #2 -- Not objecting to your friend's request when the first mistake is at play.

I feel the need to add something, before you start accusing me of not getting it for not watching the series. I repeat, I didn't choose to watch this. I watched it because my friend put it on and I had nothing else to do. It was not my choice to watch this madness.

Mistake #3 -- Not jumping out the window to escape the impending insanity you were about to be subjected to.

As discussion, what the hell did you think of EOE when you saw it? Were you more accepting of is going into the film as a fan of the series, or were you press ganged like me into watching it and being utterly lost?

It was somewhat hard to really "understand" what I felt after my first viewing of EoE, and even now I have some difficulty comprehending my emotions after watching that film; my last viewing actually left feeling rather distraught (for lack of a better term), which I immediately remedied with a dose of Blazing Saddles. "Thought-provoking" may be the most accurate description, though that's largely because I'm trying to make sense of how I feel about the events.

That being said, I am a fan of the series. It's due in no small part to how it challenges the viewer; making sense of both the events and the emotions they convey is no small task, and by no means is it something to be watched with the intent to simply be "enjoyed". It's definitely a different sort of series, and there's no point watching it unless your open to watching that type of thing; quite simply, it's not for everyone.

 

[Keoul]

I thought it was the Crraaaaazziiieesstt anime I've ever seen.
And because of this I enjoyed it immensely, but hey that doesn't mean everyone has to like it. To each his own my friend.

 

[Twilight_guy]

I never liked the series. It fails at storytelling and use of symbolism and metaphor. A good story included allegory, metaphor and symbolism in ways that reenforce the narrative and the narrative can stand on its own as an interesting story. Evangelion presents a story that is honestly one of the biggest piles of shit ever on its own. It has to destroy its surface story to present its undercurrent. If you can't use these thing properly while telling a coherent story, then don't bother trying to make it hidden and just present the thing as your main story without couching it. I don't want a shitty pointless boring story to be a pointless mask for your ideas, especially when better artists can do both.

All this assumes of course that there was some master plan and idea to it and its not just the stream of consciousness of a sick mind projected through animation. I'm not entirely convinced that's true.

 

[Worgen]

Dude, watch this, the good stuff starts at like 1:50

 

[Soviet Heavy]

snip

I don't know about Hideaki Anno planning any of NGE Twilight. The man's complete breakdown and retaliatory assault on the audience is well known even to someone like me who couldn't finish the series. I think at the end of the day, the series is almost like a form of automatism, whatever was going on in that poor man's head at the time manifested itself in the show.