Review of Neon Genesis Evangelion

15 years after the Second Impact has annihilated half of humanity, an organization known as NERV uses man-made machines called Evangelions (or Evas) to defend what is left of civilization from alien machines, or Angels. Young children, aged 14, are necessary to pilot the Evas and soon fragile, emotionally-repressed Shinji finds himself the famed third child, pilot of Eva Unit 01. Now he will have to face his fear and hatred of his father, also the head of NERV, all while risking his life in battles against beings bent on humanity's destruction. But he won't be alone: Misato, his new guardian and boss at NERV,Rei and Asuka, fellow pilots of the Evas, and his new friends at school are all with him. Together, they will try to create a brighter future for the world.

NGE is probably the most interesting show that I've watched to date, but not for the reasons that you might think. Even as I write this, having viewed only the series and not the highly-recommended movies, I feel that I will soon read this review and shake my head in disapproval. And I'm sure that NGE fans will argue that the series goes from being good to fantastic once things are explained in the movies. But sadly, series must be reviewed as series alone, and when NGE is viewed as such it simply isn't the masterpiece that it's claimed to be. While the animation is top-notch (especially considering this was done in the mid-90s) and the voices (especially the English cast) are memorable and lively, the storyline doesn't live up to the hype in the end. There are claims that the lack of a truly conclusive ending was due to budget constraints, and that the creators made up for it with the movies. Let's hope so.

Because really, I find myself wanting to love NGE for all that is great about it. The characters are immediately lovable, well-developed, complex, troubled, and funny as hell. Battles, while predictable and at times repetitive, are generally fast-paced and interesting due to the constantly evolving nature of the Angels. And underlying it all is uncertainty: until the very end (and even after) viewers will be asking questions. But such uncertainty, when not resolved, can be a disastrous mistake. In NGE's case, the show's premise, character development, animation, and voice cast should be enough to prevent any post-series regret, but the absolute necessity of viewing the movie detracts from its value as a stand-alone series. Moreover, without the crucial details the plot seems stale, and I found many of the "twists" predictable. Still, it is my bet that the NGE story is a fascinating one which touches on religion, philosophy, and psychology in a way that few (if any) anime have ever done. Alone, however, it suffers from an ending hindered by a poor budget, haughty idealism, or both.

Animation: 7.8/10
Audio: 7.2/10
Story/Script: 7.5/10
Overall Score: 7.5/10 (Very Good)

Find a complete synopsis with review and downloadable episodes/OST at my blog, http://animefiend.blogspot.com