User Review

I'm not an anime fan. I tried this because of the reviews it gathered and after watching this I checked out other anime-titles. I couldn't have been more disappointed. No other anime even tried to approach the quality of this series. The series start off simple enough. A boy is 'chosen' to fight big monsters in a robot. However, the monsters seem to be less important than the troubles the people face fighting them. Although Shinji is no coward by any standard, he's a very troubled person. He hates himself and his father. He needs people around him but they are a constant source of pain. He's a loner, but he doesn't like it much. Not a single major character is one-dimensional. Rei is a bit of an enigma, but you could imagine how this very intelligent girl would develop into someone resembling Ritsuko. Asuka is the brass, loud and overconfident girl who's smarter than she appears. Misato seems to be an emotional shut-in but she tries to enjoy life to the fullest. Ritsuko seems perfect at first, an intelligent career woman who's reliable and self-sufficient. And definitely last is Gendo, the commander : cold and focused, dealing with the threat as well as the constant verbal attacks of the Seele-members. Any major character could be analyzed as they grow throughout the series. The first 15 episodes could be considered semi-light fare. Enjoyable and although there are several hints dropped along the way, nothing really gets out of hand too far. The series grow however, and after the 15th episode, the masks are taken off one by one, and it's not a pretty sight. By the end of it all, the series have asked immortal questions like what are we, why are we here and is life worth all the pain that goes with it. For once these questions don't sound trite as the characters have a very good reason for asking. Disturbing through the fate and behaviour of it's protagonists, stripping away all illusions about what men are and the horrors we are capable of, the series still manage to retain sympathy for it's characters and a spark of hope for mankind. The series are not perfect. There's some fan-service,corny moments and situations that don't seem logical, especially in the first part of the series. But the many layers and genuine characters more than make up for it. In this case, the endresult outweigh the sum of it's part tremendously. There are 101 reasons why the series have become how they are now. Production problems (time and money), Hidalgo's personal situation, the fans, the critics and so on. You can find socio-economic, theological and psychological analysis of this work. All very well written, interesting and equally valid. Whatever interests you, this series can make you think and hopefully feel. I've only given 3 movies a 10. This is one of them. The rating is for the series+the movie. Powerful and unique.