Evangelion, the child of Hideaki Anno and Studio Gainax, said to be the most divisive anime in history. On the one hand, you have people championing it as the greatest work of imaginative fiction in human history, and on the other hand, you have others saying it is a complete waste of time. In my review of Rebuild of Evangelion 1.11, I said that the older tv version of Eva (namely, the version I'm reviewing right now) left me somewhat impressed and somewhat unimpressed at the same time. There are things seriously wrong with this show, and yet, at the same time, there are things it gets very right. By reading this, you will come to understand why my review of Rebuild was so glowing. So, what are my thoughts on the Eva tv series? Let's not run away any further and find out.
Story: It's 2015. A disaster in 2000 called Second Impact destroyed Antarctica and killed a large portion of the human race. The ones responsible for this destruction were a race of monstrous beings known as Angels. These Angels are not cherubs, but rather, well, it's hard to explain without spoiling, but needless to say, they're really mad at humans. The only group that can fight the Angels is an organization called NERV, based in Tokyo-3. NERV is armed with huge cyborg machines called Evangelions, which can fight the Angels, however, they can only be piloted by children born after the Second Impact. The show mainly follows three of these pilots: Shinji Ikari, a reluctant, introverted boy who feels overburdened by the demand of piloting an Eva, Rei Ayanami, a mysterious, quiet, and emotionless girl who no one can seem to understand, and Asuka Langley Soryu, a brash, selfish girl with a mean streak. Together, they must combat the threat of the Angels. The show starts off as an action series, with moments of comedy and drama weaved in for good measure. Toward the end of the series, the "Evas fighting Angels" premise is largely forgotten. By the end, the series becomes a confusing, meandering, and illogical mess, filled with unanswered questions. It's a solid premise, but it doesn't follow that premise to the end.
With that said, I'm going to praise something most Eva fans seem to forget about; the action scenes. They are amazing. Each of the Angels has a unique gimmick that the pilots must work around in order to beat. Rarely is a battle ever as simple as, "There's an Angel! Shoot it in the head!" Both sides employ strategy in order to win, but also, none of the Evas ever get out of a fight unscathed. The battles are intense, and if only the whole series featured them, then I'd be more generous with the score. 7/10.
Art: "A 9? Are you serious!?" Yes. This is the oldest work of Japanese animation that I have seen that still looks really good, even by today's standards. The character designs are outstanding; some of the best I've ever seen anywhere. (No surprise then that Yoshiyuki Sadamoto is one of my favorite character artists.) The designs of the Evas and Angels are very creative. Tokyo-3 and NERV are intricately detailed, and the animation during the action sequences is outstanding, and this, in a series made before the 2000s. If I do have one complaint, it's this: there's a lot of re-used footage, especially in the later episodes. That gets tiresome after a while. 9/10.
Sound: The soundtrack is a pretty good one. It's not a favorite of mine, but it's good. You may want to kill me for this, but I don't really find "Cruel Angel's Thesis" to be anything special.
The voice-acting in Japanese is superb. I know very little Japanese, but even I can tell that it is top-notch. Each voice is distinct and suits its character well, the acting is very natural, and even when a character is on the edge, they never sound forced nor unrealistic. The English dub? Uh, I guess you could say it's better than the first season of Pokemon done by 4Kids, but it is laughable. Most of the characters either don't sound their part, are comically over-acted, or both. The only voices that are anywhere near as good as the Japanese counterparts are Asuka and Ritsuko. Even if you have a choice between the 90s dubs and the redub from the 2000s, you're better off with the subs. Take it from me; if I, an ardent supporter of dubs, tell you NOT to watch a certain anime in English, take my word for it.
Characterization: Most of Eva's characters are very complex. Some of them are downright frighteningly realistic. Shinji gets a lot of flak for being "emo" and being caught up in despair, but I like him. He does have faults, but he behaves how anyone would in his situation. My favorite character, Misato Katsuragi, is a multi-layered character, one who is fun to watch in a comedic scene, cool to watch in an action scene, and hard to watch in a dramatic scene.
However, there are some characters that are not fully explored, but are in other adaptations. Rei is little more than a girl who is unfamiliar with human emotion and only knows to do as she is told; she lacks the depth that she has in the manga adaptation and the Rebuild movies. Asuka does little more than shout, "I'm an Eva pilot and I am awesome! LOVE ME!" for most of the series, and even toward the end, when she is suffering from unholy Hell, I felt no sympathy for her. While she is still a selfish psychobitch (for lack of a better phrase) in the manga, she is much more fleshed-out, and much more relatable and likable. Her Rebuild counterpart, though not as fleshed-out (yet), is still more likable than her earlier anime counterpart. Kaworu just doesn't get enough screentime in this version to really get a good understanding of him. And even Shinji is portrayed more effectively in the Rebuild continuity. It's hard to go into further detail without spoiling, but the characterization really is better in the manga and Rebuild series. Even despite this, the cast of this version of Eva is more memorable than your typical run-of-the-mill mecha series. 8/10.
Enjoyment: At times, my enjoyment was very high. The action scenes are great, Misato is awesome, and my favorite episode in the series, #18, contains one of the most powerful scenes I've ever seen in an anime. However, at other times, it wasn't. The only part of the last two episodes I liked was when Shinji saw what life would've been like without the Evas (which made enduring the psychobabble worth the effort). There are also some scenes where nothing happens; as in literally nothing happens. The most infamous of which is the end of episode #24, a scene that will make you shout, "DO SOMETHING DAMN IT!" This is why I love Rebuild so much, because it doesn't have these issues. 7/10.
I have not seen The End of Evangelion, but I (really) don't plan to. So as it stands, the tv series version of Eva is not the best thing ever, but not a waste of my time, either. However, there is one truly outstanding thing about it; its ability to inspire. It has inspired many fanfics, some of which are beautifully written. It has inspired several published manga, one of which, the one by Sadamoto, is a terrific read, and is what turned me into an Eva fanatic. It has inspired many other anime, including my favorite anime of all time, Eureka Seven, which borrowed a few ideas from Eva. And it even inspired Anno to go back and remake Evangelion back in 2007, starting with Rebuild 1.11. If you want to watch this version of Eva, feel free to; just know that it does not live up to its full potential. And that it also sucks in English.
