Evangelion Movie 2: Ha (Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance)

Add to My List

Add to Favorites

Alternative Titles

Synonyms: Evangelion Shin Gekijouban: Ha, Rebuild of Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance, Evangelion 2.22

Japanese: ヱヴァンゲリヲン新劇場版:破

More titles

Information

Type: Movie

Episodes: 1

Status: Finished Airing

Aired: Jul 27, 2009

Producers: None found, add some

Licensors: Funimation

Studios: Khara

Source: Original

Genres: Action, Drama, Sci-Fi, Suspense

Themes: Mecha, Psychological

Duration: 1 hr. 52 min.

Rating: R+ - Mild Nudity

Statistics

Score: 8.30¹ (scored by 334,099 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #267²

² based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #407

Members: 542,952

Favorites: 3,464

Available At

Official Site

@evangelion_co

Resources

AniDB

ANN

Synopsis

When the threat of the Angel menace escalates, mankind's defense force is pushed to its limits, with NERV at the forefront of the struggle. Shinji Ikari and his partner Rei Ayanami are assisted by two new pilots: the fiery Asuka Langley Shikinami and the mysterious Mari Illustrious Makinami.

With the aid of their mechanized Evangelion units, equipped with weapons perfect for engaging their monstrous opponents, the four young souls fight desperately to protect their loved ones and prevent an impending apocalypse. But when startling secrets are brought to light, will the heroes' greatest challenge prove to be the monsters...or humanity itself?

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Edit

Background

Evangelion Movie 2: Ha won first place in the animation category of the French Lyon Asian Film Festival, narrowly beating Symphony in August in an audience vote. It also won the Award of Excellence in the animation category at the 33rd Japan Academy Awards and, consequently, nominated for Animation of the Year at the same event in 2010.

Edit

Related Anime

Alternative version:	Shinseiki Evangelion
Prequel:	Evangelion Movie 1: Jo
Sequel:	Evangelion Movie 3: Q
Other:	Beautiful World

More characters

Characters & Voice Actors

Ayanami, Rei

Main

Hayashibara, Megumi
Japanese

Ikari, Shinji

Main

Ogata, Megumi
Japanese

Katsuragi, Misato

Main

Mitsuishi, Kotono
Japanese

Souryuu, Asuka Langley

Supporting

Miyamura, Yuko
Japanese

Nagisa, Kaworu

Supporting

Ishida, Akira
Japanese

Pen Pen

Supporting

Hayashibara, Megumi
Japanese

Ikari, Gendou

Supporting

Tachiki, Fumihiko
Japanese

Makinami, Mari Illustrious

Supporting

Sakamoto, Maaya
Japanese

Kaji, Ryouji

Supporting

Yamadera, Kouichi
Japanese

Akagi, Ritsuko

Supporting

Yamaguchi, Yuriko
Japanese

More staff

Staff

Cook, Justin

Producer

Anno, Hideaki

Director, Script, Storyboard, Key Animation, Creator, Executive Producer

Tsurumaki, Kazuya

Director, Storyboard, Key Animation

Masayuki

Director, Storyboard, Key Animation

Edit

Opening Theme

No opening themes have been added to this title. Help improve our database by adding an opening theme here.

Edit

Ending Theme

"Beautiful World -PLANiTb Acoustica Mix-" by Hikaru Utada

Reviews

Nov 23, 2023

MizuhoKamui

Recommended

The second movie in the Rebuild of Evangelion series is Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance. Mari Makinami is a new character in the movie, and she provides a fresh perspective that raises questions about her role in the plot. Shinji, the main character, gets a new roommate named Asuka Langley Shikinami, who surprises him with her abilities to pilot an Eva unit and her enthusiasm for it. Shinji tries to settle into his life in Tokyo-3.

Compared to the previous movie, You Can (Not) Advance takes more liberties with the story, creating a new and exciting experience for both fans and newcomers. The plot and ... character development are the main focuses of the film, which gives it a refreshing presentation. Angels continue to appear, but the mysteries surrounding Nerv start to reveal more about the plot.

The animation quality is amazing, with stunning visual effects and eye-catching colors. The music is equally impressive, with Shiro Sagisu delivering grandiose tracks that work wonderfully with the movie's moments. The OST features memorable songs and a nice variety of musical styles.

The characters in You Can (Not) Advance have improved from the anime series and the first movie. The cast is now more developed, and Shinji's character has gone through the most significant change. He is no longer constantly talked down to and has become more sociable and friendly. Shinji even makes food for Rei, which is a great touch for both characters.

Rei's character has also changed, and she is more emotional and open. She actively tries to help Shinji patch things up with his father, which is a significant departure from her previous stoic demeanor. Asuka's character has also developed, and she is less bratty and more troubled. Her interactions with Shinji and Rei are more nuanced, with a sense that Asuka likes Shinji and uses her attitude as a cover. Her relationship with Rei is also more dynamic than before.

Mari is a new character in the movie, and while her character is fun and interesting, she is underutilized. Her character is similar to Asuka, but without the emotional baggage, and she even replaces Asuka for a brief moment in the movie.

Kaji is introduced in the movie, but his role hasn't been fully explored yet. He does have some good interaction with Shinji, and he helps connect the dots between Shinji and Misato, revealing some insight into Misato and her desires.

Overall, You Can (Not) Advance is an excellent movie that surpasses expectations. It goes beyond being a retelling and improves on character development while keeping the big set pieces and combat scenes. The focus is not solely on action but rather on establishing the characters. It's a fantastic movie.

Open

Gift

Feb 4, 2022

chrissy_poo_too

Mixed Feelings

It's faster! It's prettier! It's sexier! It's (Not) Eva!

Ahem...

While Eva 1.0 was rather faithful to the NGE series, adding a bit here and there (but also taking out a whole butt-load of gold, GOLD I SAY), and giving the first arc a fresh coat of paint, Eva 2.0 acts as a bizzaro-world version of the second third of the show. But that's just the beginning. Let's dive into this thing.

Who's your favorite Eva character?

Is it Asuka? What did you like about her? Her plunge from confident love interest to jealous rival to fractured soul? Her eventual "redemption" cumulating in one of the greatest (and most ... heartbreaking) action scenes in animation history in End of Evangelion?

Or was it her boobs? Maybe her butt? IS IT HER FOURTEEN YEAR OLD BUTT?

Is it Ritsuko? Just kidding, it's obviously not Ritsuko. But did you like her? Did you enjoy discovering the truth behind her mysterious link to Rei and Gendo? Did her realizations concerning her love interest, her mother, and her place in NERV affect you on an emotional level? What about her unraveling friendship with Misato? Well, eh...she's in this...somewhere. You just have to look for her. You blinked? Oops! Sorry, she's gone.

Is it Misato? Misato's here, and yay! She's kinda sorta the Misato we know and love! Oh...you liked the slice of life moments she shared with Shinji? That awkward dynamic they had? Two lonely people who can't connect with one another trying their hardest and failing? Maybe her complicated romance with Ryouji? Yeesh, sorry. Check out Netflix for that stuff cause it's not here.

Wouldn't you prefer robots though? Lots and lots of robots? How about some 3D aliens? They blow things up! It's SOOO COOOOL! And guess what!? Remember Shinji? The little anime boy who couldn't? Now he can! He's just like every other anime mecha pilot! Sure, here and there you might get a glimpse of the old, whiny, sad-boy Shinji (yuck, amiright?), but don't worry! Now he's what you always wanted him to be! Get in the robot, Shinji! HAI!

That's STILL not enough for you? Not enough robots? Not enough (underaged) T&A?

HEREEEEEEEE'S MARI!

Have I...broken some sort of sarcasm meter yet? Here's the REAL review: Eva 2.0 pushes Evangelion even further toward mindless spectacle, a cynical toy commercial, a big boy anime for people who like anime, a fun summer movie for otakus. This is Disney Star Wars before Disney Star Wars. It punishes you, both for being a fan of the original series, and for not having seen the original series. It's meta; self-referential to the determent of the plot. It mistakes opaqueness for brevity, the cinematic equivalent of TLDR. It's Yoda doing flips, dwarves and elves living together, mass hysteria. It's Anno's revenge, and I hate it.

(Rei sure is cute in it though.)

Open

Gift

Apr 10, 2021

bruisedrainbow

Not Recommended

It boggles my mind that anyone who watched the original Neon Genesis Evangelion + End of Evangelion could sit through this movie and enjoy it. My stomach was in knots by the end.

I can't believe the utter disaster that this movie is. I didn't mind the animation, sound, or fight scenes - NGE never does me wrong when it comes to those aspects of the story, I'm always sitting on the edge of my seat. However, I find myself coming away from this film in all other aspects bewildered and insulted.

The story... it reminds me of the sardonic depiction of an alternate anime universe Shinji ... sees in episode 26 of the original anime. So much of it is bogged down by cheerful slice of life content and nonsensical love triangles (which don't even make sense unless the characters are severely warped, which they are, but I'll get to that in a bit), when that space could be better put to use exploring the characters individually the way they're supposed to be. NGE is not a cheerful story - you're not supposed to enjoy it, you're supposed to be fascinated by it, disgusted by it, and entirely enthralled by it. Why am I smiling along as these characters go on field trips and cook for each other? This fits so many franchises and series and characters, but NGE is not one of them. I seriously can't wrap my head around the choices made for this movie.

However, more than anything that happened in the story, the most disappointing and again insulting part of this movie is the watered down, weak, pathetic characterizations of Shinji, Asuka, Rei, Misato, Gendoh, and pretty much everyone else. A lot of people seemed happy that Shinji was "finally showing some backbone," but this only seems to demonstrate to me that some watchers of NGE have a fundamental misunderstanding of Shinji as a character (and Asuka, and Rei!)

Ikari Shinji is, fundamentally, pathetic. He is weak, cowardly, and all but wretched. He's a raging misogynist who views other people, especially women, as essentially things that are obligated, required, to heal and save and protect him with their love. He has no understanding of what love is, and no capability of giving it to others, and yet demands it from everyone around him to the utmost. And then, because of his ridiculously low self-esteem and ridiculously high self-hatred, even when he does receive love he doesn't believe in it and dismisses it (barring the love he receives from Kaworu) as a lie! He can't handle anything even marginally difficult and breaks down at the slam of a door. He's so incapable of both being a functioning human being with flaws and accepting the flaws/individuality of others that it takes the world literally ENDING before he's able to realize that maybe the world as it is is actually better than joining one super-conscious. And all of that is what makes him such a brilliant main character - all of his flaws and insecurities have strong ties to the death of his mother and the fact that his father abandoned him. Everything makes perfect sense. You're not supposed to like him or condone his actions, you're supposed to make the connections as to why he is the way he is and recognize the impossibility of all that he desires. He doesn't COOK for his friends, nor is he rushing to heroically Save The Girl at every opportunity. The Shinji of 2.0 is literally Just Some Guy - he has daddy issues, but it's something he just feels a little angry about, not a hugely detrimental crutch that's ruined the way he interacts with the world presumably forever. I can't BELIEVE anyone watched the original NGE and thought Shinji should be dumbed down to the most basic, boring main character stereotype ever. The fact that he's a hateful embarrassment of a character in the original anime is literally the point - whoever the jerk in 2.0 is is simply not Ikari Shinji.

Side note: I think it's ridiculous that in the original anime Shinji's mental breakdown is catapulted forwards by merely injuring Suzuhara, without even knowing that he's inside the Eva/Angel being fought, but when 2.0 Shinji knows he's fighting Asuka and pretty much makes her comatose he just... gets mad at his Dad? He's so infuriatingly calm about things that should make him lose his mind - again, this is not the right Ikari Shinji.

And then, to have the audacity to claim that Asuka or Rei could ever be in love with Shinji! It's outrageous! Asuka of the original NGE despises Shinji, full stop; she's not a tsundere, she sees all the flaws I've mentioned above and is disgusted by him because of that. At best, she uses him to quench her discomfort in situations such as when Misato and Kaji stay out late one night. She's straight up abusive to him sometimes. She is just as damaged as Shinji is and even shares some characteristics with him because of that, which repels her from him even further because his codependency upon whoever is available is, according to her and her unnecessary desire for total independence, an insult. She does not and never could love him, ever. The fact that he doesn't even have to do anything for her to get some stereotypical crush on him absolutely raises my hackles - Asuka deserves a thousand times better than this!

Rei, too, might care for Shinji in some capacity, but to make that the center of her growth is borderline grotesque. Rei wants individuality because she is literally Gendoh's doll from day one - why would she seek freedom for the sake of another man? She wants it for herself. She hates Gendoh, why should she care if he and his son are able to reconnect? It's totally ridiculous to have her original arc be so much about finding herself and knowing herself on her own terms, because she's never been allowed to have that, only to throw all of that completely under the bus for some ridiculous fanservice and a weak love plot (which, also, come on now - she shares traits with Shinji's mother nearly to a T, can we not have them be romantically interested in one another?).

I'm not here to harsh on the Rebuild series as a whole - I liked 1.0 okay and I'm still looking forward to 3.0 and 3.0+1.0. Nevertheless, it's really disheartening to see this film made by the original creators of the first NGE series and movies. I don't know why this is what they want an updated version of NGE to look like - this film is, at best, a weak, fanservice-packed action anime movie for people who want to numb their brain for a couple hours. It does not carry any of the weight, charm, nor impact of the original series. If you really want to watch this Rebuild series, I would recommend skipping this movie from it entirely.

Open

Gift

More stacks

Interest Stacks

Super Robot Wars: 2000's Part 2

by AcidTyphoon

18 Entries · 13 Restacks

Best of Mecha Anime

by ren999999

50 Entries · 4 Restacks

Old or surreal anime that feels like a dream

by Neo_Randomz

22 Entries · 5 Restacks

More recommendations

Recommendations

More news

Recent News

Toonami to Feature 'Evangelion: 2.22 You Can (Not) Advance'

According to Toonami's tumblr, Evangelion: 2.22 You Can (Not) Advance will air on August 31st. Apart from this, there's also a "special little goodie" that viewers w...read more

Aug 2, 2013 6:09 AM by Brand | Discuss (48 comments)

Hakone Town Introduces a Public Wrapped Car of Ayanami Rei

According to Town News, the town office of Hakone has introduced an official electric vehicle with Ayanami Rei's picture printed on it. Hakone is the model town...read more

Jan 28, 2011 6:42 AM by dtshyk | Discuss (30 comments)

More discussions

Recent Forum Discussion

Poll: Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) dtshyk - Jun 27, 2009	563 replies	by Ten »» Apr 7, 4:15 PM
Stop after this movie if you dont want to be disappointed CickNipolla - Oct 12, 2022	40 replies	by Zero00phantom »» Apr 2, 4:44 PM
Mari being an insert for Hideaki’s wife hanekawastiddi - Sep 3, 2023	6 replies	by certainmiracle »» Sep 4, 2023 12:00 PM
Why They've shown Rei Nippels but didn't show Asuka Nippels? LoliSenpai0x - Aug 6, 2020	9 replies	by Jun_Rei »» Feb 28, 2023 1:38 PM
Shinji is gigachad samthestan - Nov 26, 2021	6 replies	by JohnLivelyMan »» Apr 12, 2022 10:56 PM

Recent Featured Articles

Evangelion Galore - Swords, Artworks, and More

Evangelion and the Japanese Sword Exhibition + Evangelion Art Work Selection was held in Japan. A famous swordsmith made “Longinus spear” and the original swords inspired by Nerv, Rei, Asuka kaworu and more characters.

by MAL_editing_team

14,630 views

Top 30 Best Anime Movies of All Time

You think you know anime movies? Have you seen all 30 of these movies on our best anime movie list? Our writer sets themselves a only-one-movie-per-director rule and comes up with 30 movies every anime fan must see.

by 5camp

748,551 views

Collection

Evangelion Movie 2: Ha

Alternative Titles

Information

Statistics

Available At

Resources

Synopsis

Background

Visit MALxJapan
MALxJapan -More than just anime-

Related Anime

Characters & Voice Actors

Ayanami, Rei

Ikari, Shinji

Katsuragi, Misato

Souryuu, Asuka Langley

Nagisa, Kaworu

Pen Pen

Ikari, Gendou

Makinami, Mari Illustrious

Kaji, Ryouji

Akagi, Ritsuko

Staff

Opening Theme

Ending Theme

Reviews

Interest Stacks

Recommendations

Recent News

Recent Forum Discussion

Recent Featured Articles

MoreTop Anime

MoreTop Airing Anime

MoreMost Popular Characters

Evangelion Movie 2: Ha

Alternative Titles

Information

Statistics

Available At

Resources

Synopsis

Background

Visit MALxJapan MALxJapan -More than just anime-

Related Anime

Characters & Voice Actors

Staff

Opening Theme

Ending Theme

Reviews

Interest Stacks

Recommendations

Recent News

Recent Forum Discussion

Recent Featured Articles

MoreTop Anime

MoreTop Airing Anime

MoreMost Popular Characters

Visit MALxJapan
MALxJapan -More than just anime-