I think there’s another layer to equation of red=pain and Asuka being red beyond what that means to Shinji: her entire personality comes from her constant, desperate pain. The fact that she’s wrapped in it (but we don’t yet know why) is a nice bit of foreshadowing.
Red is also the color of love in Japanese and Chinese culture. Red string of fate. Asuka and Shinji both lack love mainly unconditional family love which they are both desperate for and seem to want and fear it grow between them. They have been abandoned by the ones that should be there and love them.
Sorry, but I think you've got it very wrong. I don't know if in the plot they portray her as an abuse victim, but she does not have the personality type of an abuse victim. She is clearly a spoiled brat, and spoiled brats are the result of lenient permissive parenting, not pain. The fleet admiral, the 29-year-old purple haired woman, and other authority figures exhibit this lenient permissive behaviour when they don't discipline her for her insubordinate behaviour.
@@Kenjuu she was ignored by her mother, replaced by a doll, and her mother almost killed her. Her attention-seeking behavior is portrayed as directly related to the lack of attention from her mother (“Look at me” directed to mom, Kaji, and more). Being ignored and replaced made her obsessed with being irreplaceable as the best Eva pilot, and when she finds out she is replaceable (again) it destroys her. Seems like a logical through-line to me.
@@KenjuuAll abuse victims do not act the same. Asuka's behaviour is realistic for the abuse she suffered. Being a victim of abuse is often ugly. You might not immediately sympathize and find them all cute and likeable because they turned out like something you can want and pity because of their pain.
I think there’s a major connection between Asuka and Ritsuko. They both fall in love with an older man (Asuka with Kaji and Ritsuko with Gendo), have identical shots in the restroom, despise Rei, have mothers who committed suicide (note that Rei’s mom chokes Rei to death who is called a doll throughout the series and Asuka’s mom hangs a doll), they both are sexually assaulted (Ritsuko by Gendo and Asuka by Shinji), they both are told “I need you” in The End of Evangelion and both respond with saying “liar”. Also, for a fun addition, is it just me or is the last shot of the End of Evangelion very similar to the beginning shots of Asuka and Kaji in episode 22? Anyways great series!
Holy tolito, THIS was a perspective I did not expect to find, and I think you're totally right! Tons of comparisons between the two that really make you reconsider everything. I'll have to progress with this in mind. Thank you so much for sharing! Seriously!
Ritsuko was assaulted by SEELE agents as seen in the director's cut, not Gendo. That theory came from a scrapped draft that written by someone other than Anno and he rejected it. Likewise Asuka and the MPEs would be a more fitting comparison, since in the script for End of Eva they explicitly mention she's being violated by them, and both MPEs and the SEELE agents are complete strangers to them that have SEELE connections
@@falconeshield Maya's a lesbian with a crush on Ritsuko but Ritsuko never reciprocated, however Rei 3 disguised herself as Ritsuko to make Maya accept instrumentality
21:19 I find it interesting that the series shows Rei and Asuka as opposites even in the type of swimsuit they wear, Rei’s being more “closed” and Asuka’s more “open” and attention-grabbing
I always saw the three children as the three parts of the mind, Id, ego and superego. Shinji is constantly questioning what would make him happy- Id. Rei loses herself in the service of others- superego. Asuka is all ego until her confidence is chipped away and then she loses herself.
Evangelion is apparently very Freudian. I didn’t pick up on it but apparently it is. This is a cool and consistent interpretation if Freud is as common in Eva as people say.
Asuka's fight in EOE holds so much impact because the entire series she lost fights on her own. This was intentional since Hideki Anno wanted her to fail and struggle in order to go against the viewer's expectations. So finally in EOE you see her overcome her trauma, fight, then win. Yet it was all for nothing. She still couldn't truly win in the end.
Asuka means a lot to me as a character. I relate to her so much. Especially the ways in which she views relationships. Desiring to be held and loved, but too cocky and stubborn to ask anyone for it. The desire to stand out and be seen. I love it. Not to be cringe but Asuka is my "literally me" character. I'm happy to see more Asuka videos.
Love this analysis, she’s my fav character of all time. 17:55 I think Asuka, in later scenes as well, deliberately wears Misato’s tshirt when she’s alone with Shinji to show her maturity and desire to be wanted.
I didn't notice this before! I believe you're correct: what an awesome detail that adds even more depth to Asuka's character. Thank you for pointing that out!
It's impossible for me to miss just how revealing that shirt was that Asuka was wearing in the "Wall of Jericho" scene, something I don't think we see her wearing any other time: Asuka's words are telling Shinji "don't you dare breech my Wall of Jericho!" but that shirt was saying something totally different, and I think Asuka knew it! Of course she knew it: the scene where Asuka gets Kaji to take her shopping for a swimsuit, and the scene where Asuka actually wears it at the pool with Shinji when she couldn't go on vacation with Kaji, along with the "look at me!" flashback where Asuka tells Kaji she's a grown woman and loosens her shirt, pretty much make it explicit that Asuka knows what she's doing, and dresses provocatively as a way to supposedly declare her maturity and independence - even though it's pretty clearly just the opposite: a declaration of her vulnerability and desperately unfulfilled need for a very different kind of love from other people.. Weirdly, Asuka had convinced herself that what she needed was to be seen as an adult woman instead of a child, when what she really wanted deep inside was to be loved as a child instead of treated like a doll.... Interestingly, that's exactly what happened in the scene where she bought that bathing suit with Kaji: he broke his "rogue" character and talked to her in a more fatherly manner, telling her that the bathing suit wasn't really appropriate for a girl her age. I'm not sure what to make of Asuka's reaction - she tried to convince Kaji that it's what all the kids her age do - but she didn't seem upset about his reaction at all. It's yet another instance, I think, where we catch a glimpse of "what could have been" had Misato and Kaji been able to overcome their mutual "hedgehog's dilemma" and successfully married, as parental figures for Shinji and Asuka. And speaking of Misato, seems like there's a bit of an echo to Asuka's pretense at a provocative but brash womanhood, in Misato's pretense at being a wild and "dirty" woman in a complicated backlash against a futile perfection as a child as her father neglected her for his work. And for that matter, a similar echo in Kaji's pretense at being a carefree and unfaithful rogue flirting with everyone while pretty obviously still in love only with Misato after being rejected by her: all three are using these roles to virtually beg for attention, while at the same time pushing away the people they really love. Now that I think of it, the question of whether Asuka knows exactly what she's doing by dressing so provocatively in those scenes isn't as obvious or simple as it seems... consciously, sure, she absolutely knows what effect it should have on the people around her. Unconsciously, she's probably also aware that she's also pushing the people she loves away, and sending horribly mixed signals, and that's on purpose, too.. Likewise for Kaji and Misato and the mixed signals they send each other while playing their little touch-me-touch-me-not character roles....
This might not be entirely related byt there's a detail about Asuka I absolutely love. It's heavily implied she witnessed or at the very least heard her father having intimate relations with another woman when she was a child. And consequently in the show she pursues someone she likes seeking that same initimacy and tries to be much more open about her womanhood/sexuality. Her experiences warped her perception of love and intimacy, and as someone who has had very similar experiences I was amazed at the attention to detail. She's an amazing character I found myself relating to a lot
Amazing observations! Yes, Asuka's character is a detailed dive into how parental loss and sexual misconception can warp an adolescent's mind, along with numerous other aspects that help make her character compelling and, in a strange way, educating. I have a lot of respect for how she's written. Thank you for sharing, and for the feedback!
Why that sounds like of 90% of OF/TikTok/🌽🌽🌽 industry girls...🤨 But yeah you're right, Asuka embodies Daddy Issues in Anime pop culture (a big example of that is scene of her so desperetly trying to seduce Kaji)
I never noticed that detail, but what you've said makes so much sense. She chose the path of what her father chose (being a desireable woman) because she is the one who lived, versus what her father rejected (her mother) who ended up unaliving herself. For Asuka being loved and wanted and the chosen one is literally the matter of life or death, which explains A LOT.
She is one of my favorite characters of all time. Seeing the framing choices to convey her authority over most yet her conflict with Rei is one of the coolest details my brain noticed but not explicitly. This entire series is like picking up on things after a second watch but with a microscope (whithout the painful drag that would be.) Can't wait for when we get to the end where everything is deconstructed.
I'm glad you've been enjoying it! Asuka is such a brilliant character and it was a pleasure to deconstruct her introduction. I'm excited to keep analyzing and release more soon!
Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed and found it valuable. This was definitely one of my favorite videos to put together, and I'm excited to release more soon!
Asuka is one of my favorite characters in the series, and part of why I love her so much is because of how complex she is. A lot of people think Asuka is just mean, but that’s not it at all. She’s suffering from severe trauma and is afraid of being hurt more. If I had to guess, I would say that she most likely has complex PTSD. Unlike standard PTSD, complex PTSD (C-PTSD) results from prolonged, recurring trauma and stress, usually during childhood or adolescence. From what we know about Asuka’s childhood, with her father basically abandoning her and her mother, and her mother going mad before committing suicide, there is certainly a lot of trauma, likely over the course of a long time. In fact, negligent or abusive caregivers and dysfunctional family life are common risk factors for C-PTSD. And we see Asuka exhibit a lot of the symptoms of C-PTSD in the show. Negative self-perception, emotional avoidance and isolation, difficulty in regulating emotions, being on edge and emotional flashbacks. All of these are symptoms of C-PTSD, and Asuka displays all of these and more. Asuka needs help, and love. And sadly, she doesn’t get that for most of the series. So when people say “oh, she’s such a bitch,” I get angry about it. Also, if anyone reading this is going through something similar to what I talked about above, you’re not alone. You are loved, and you are worthy of it. There is help for you.
Beautifully said. Thank you so much for saying so and for sharing. I believe Asuka and characters like her have a critical role in helping others understand these conditions and opening up discussions surrounding them. Very happy to see so many others in this comment section who appreciate her for this.
@@timberw0lfstudios Thanks! Asuka is easily one of the most complex characters in the show, which is why she’s such a good character. But I feel like it’s also why a lot of people don’t like her, because they don’t care enough to actually see her true colors. Which is doing her, and the show as a whole, a massive disservice. Things are almost never black and white in Evangelion, just like in real life.
Not to disagree with you too much. While I think the cPTSD is line of thinking is valid, it’s probably more likely that she had that singular trauma of her mother and then subsequent negative interactions (but not traumas) that formed her outward behavior. It’s probably more accurate to say she has BPD and narcissistic and histrionic features as a result of her previous trauma. It’s invaded and affected her entire being.
No she is very a trash character. His trauma doesn't justify her bullshits. She wants love but she can't love anyone. It would be good if she had evolution and if she realised she is really a bad human. But no the fandom and the show always want to show Shinji like the person who is the worst in this anime.
The scene with Asuka introducing herself to Rei is a literal visualization of the term "condescending". By Asuka's lights, she's ceding her dominant position (we haven't been told, but it's pretty obvious she's been outscoring Rei for Years, while having Rei's more malleable behavior thrown back at her) as a peace offering. Of course, to outside observers, it comes off as definition number two (incredibly rude). Episode 10 (while not a favorite of the creators), is VERY important for setting the limits of Asuka's Goals. Notice how she wants to go on the trip, go diving, DO things (and what does she watch on TV? Trashy Romantic potboilers, with a classic or two mixed in). Note she is completely indifferent to succeeding at school, and pitches a little shade on the whole system. The "numerical grading system" measures all the students on a "curve" as to who would do the best at college entrance exams, which would get them into a school, which gets them into a career. Which is patently ridiculous to a child who already has a "career" and one not likely leading to a gold watch. Her attitude when things look bleak late in the episode isn't panic so much as disappointment "So this is it? Thought I'd last longer". Besides which, she's already had higher education shoved into her, but Japan is famous for "one size fits all" solutions.
I used to work at the National Security Agency and not only do they have their own post office and multiple cafeterias, they have their own library and drug store. When you're defending the nation from cyber (or angel) attack you really appreciate not having to waste time stopping on the way home to get the milk.
16:01 You changing your clothes to the workout fits is such a great detail, you slay the look. The time and effort you put into this video really shows and its greatly appreciated!
Aww thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed all the little details--they were a blast to include--and it's nice to know they aren't going unnoticed. Thank you again!
Nothing much to add to this amazing analysis, but I always found it cute how Shinji made sure to cover Asuka with a blanket before moving to the other side of the room
Aww thank you so much! I was afraid of going a little too overboard in that department, so I'm glad to know you enjoyed and that it didn't detract from the video. My goal is always to make education interesting, and I'm excited to release more soon!
There’s another story where the main character archetypically the least likely of three to be the main character but is anyway… Alexei of Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov, who is the most passive of the three brothers and acts most of the time as a messenger between others. Both stories also share that existential psychological approach to the meaning of their stories and characters.
Something I love about Eva is that you can find meaning at any level of analysis. You can go over every tiny detail and what it means or the curtains can just be blue and what you take from it can be surface level. Asuka is a character that shows an insane level of complexity from her surface down to the minute details in every iteration of Eva.
Absolutely! One of the best aspects of all well-structured stories: the ability to absorb the narrative through several layers of complexity. Thank you for bringing this up!
This was an amazing analysis. Asuka's character is very complex, and often misunderstood by the general fandom of Eva. I also loved that change of outfit that you've made. Great video!
I was looking forward to this next installment of yours so much!! Another one so well made man. Can’t wait to see you blow up - your analysis is refreshing, eloquently spoken, and incredibly engaging. And your editing is masterful. Was so surprised you didn’t have more subs the first video of yours I caught. Keep it up :)
Aww thank you so much! I'm so glad you've enjoyed the videos so far! I've really enjoyed putting them together, and while my schedule is getting progressively more chaotic, these analyses remain as a top priority for me. I'll be releasing more as soon as I can!
@@timberw0lfstudios Good for you, you are making waves: you’ll probably be able to step in this like some of the CZcams influencers who have a large and maintained following. God rest
Wow, sounds like Asuka and Shinji are coming to really like each other, especially with him saving her in the volcano and her reaction to that. I sure do hope their relationship continues to improve as the series goes on.
I dont know, i watched every part of the show multiple times and still i wish to see many many more parts of you talking about evangelion. I really admire your eye and broad focus, picking up subtle details for me/us to rediscover. I hope for many many more- til then, thank you very much :)
You're very welcome! I've loved putting this series together so far, and I genuinely believe the best is yet to come. Thank you for the kind words and support, it means the world!
I never thought about that Shinji, Asuka, and Rei could be reflected in the adult crew and how their dynamics were similar. Nice one! And subscribing 😎
@@timberw0lfstudios Neon Genesis is still one of those good conversation anime that you can analyze and interpret the meanings behind everything in it. I have a love hate relationship to the series because while I loved the story and action, the other side of it is how I can't stand Shinji as a protagonist because of his indecisiveness. Ironically his personality and nature are part of what makes it a great series, you love to hate Shinji or you hate to love him
I like your thesis of Evangelion being a story about a character doing a character study, that Shinji analyses the other characters just like we the audience do. One part of the series I always liked is how Shinji starts out as every man or a self insert protagonist but overtime, the more he observes and interacts with the other characters, his personality becomes more nuanced and distinct.
Once again, you've blown it out of the water. This consistency to perfection is absolutely incredible. This is series is gonna go down in the books for me.
Aww, thank you so much! You flatter me, honestly! I'll glad you're finding so much enjoyment and value, and I'm excited to keep producing these videos!
Yeah, hearing different dubs after getting use to one really disorients you! XD The film burns symbolizing the following explosion makes a lot of sense! I hadn't thought about it that way; thank you for the feedback!
@@timberw0lfstudios it must've been one hell of an explosion to bury the evas to their waists with their legs in the air. Btw I love your videos! You're still finding new symbolism all these years later, I'm really enjoying this series.
Very good point, and thank you so much! I'm glad to know even after all these years there are still new details to unearth and share with an incredible community.
I think a lot of this went over my head when I first viewed it. My reaction to the whole show, especially Asuka, was, “man, these people just need to learn to talk straight with each other.” Good ol’ blunt-force American intellect, lacks as much nuance as it does artistry.
My friend, you are far from alone. I missed so much of this on my first viewing, rewatching it felt like a completely different show. Don't discard that American intellect, though; sometimes blunt force and straight talk is exactly what a situation needs!
I watched this video at first just because I was bored and I wanted to see a video about my favorite charchter in television, not thinking much of what I was actually clicking on. But I didn’t expect to have a new found appreciation for evangelions directing. I didn’t really think much of directing in animation before this video. However when you were adrressiing scenes like when rei first met Auska. I was fascinated by the fact that a shot of rei sitting in front of auska who is in front of a crowd can manage to show her outlook on everyone. Or when you talked about when shinji meets Auska his development/growth is shown by a simple shot of him just being agitated instead of shying away like he would of done when we first met him. It amazes me how much thought goes into every shot of this show and I just want to thank you for showing me it. Your takes on evangelions depth and symbolism is really interesting as well which is what made me initially really like this video since that is some of my favorite aspects of screen writing which is a career I hope to pursue one day. I’m just curious though what is your favorite show and what aspects of it make you love it so much.
I'm glad you enjoyed the video! I'm so happy I was able to show you new details and perspectives and help you love it even more! Honestly, Evangelion might be my favorite TV show, for all the reasons I'm discussing in these videos. Few others come remotely close to conveying as much with so little as this one does.
I'm finishing my first view of the original evangelion serie this week. Right now, I think It might be one of the best anime I've ever seen. It's incredibly layered, profound, and humane, with incredible attention to details. I love all of of that. Each character is extremely interesting in their own way, from Shinji and his painful eagerness to cling to others, even those who hurt him, in hope of finding happiness one day, to Rei and her dark, disturbing situation and creation and her constant fight against loneliness. But the pain I felt for Asuka as a character matches no others. At first I only thought of her as a bratty child. In at least 3 episodes, I was fighting with my feelings for her, in some moments, I wanted both to feel compassionate about her childishness and to give her two good slaps across the face for how rude and insufferable she was. Then she started to fail her synchronization tests more and more each time. She felt weak and useless because she was saved both from Rei and from Shinji. And then her last battle against an angel, and the reveal about her past. Then her depression and unaliving attempt. I swear, I never wanted to hug someone more. If only they spared some money to hire some good psychiatrists for this children, If only the adults behaved like non-clinically insane people, so much of all of this suffering on 13 years old children could have being avoided. 😭
At the end of the series and in the movie it takes place during when Asuka is trying to accept herself. The reason she caresses Shinji’s face, but also calls him disgusting is symbolic to her relationship with herself. She learned to accept herself flaws and all therefore leading her to accept Shinji. Just like with herself, she to Shinji has parts of him she loves and parts of him she hates. Loving doesn’t equal accepting if you hate yourself so. They are two sides to one coin, that coin is Anno.
Lol Askuka litterally Rejects instumentality if she had to accept Shinji in anyway shape or form. She is THE WORST HUMAN far surpassing GENDO the worst dad in the world.
The book rei is reading isn't about genetics but language. It's by the founder of the first "Sprachgesellschaft" which is an association that promotes the preservation of cultivated language
Good to know! Thank you for pointing this out. As someone whose German is *not great,* I was getting my information from some Wiki pages that evidently turned out not to be true. Thank goodness for an attentive community!
@@timberw0lfstudios However, they most likely just got a Japanese person to translate it into German, inevitably getting it wrong! Especially back then...
@sminchan3732 You know, the German and English translations throughout the series are surprisingly well done, probably due to the two languages being commonly taught in Japanese schools, but nevertheless there are more than a few botched sections here and there throughout the show. Part of the charm, I suppose!
Another great video! Haha was surprised by the chainsaw man comparison. I would say another detail is that DHL is an American-founded German company, so their level of detail to Asuka and her origin is cool. Something that wasn't talked about that I found interesting on my latest rewatch, was Asuka's refusal to blend in with her Japanese peers and culture, which she expresses in several different scenes through dialogue which puts her in conflict with Misato on several occasions. For example, she gets annoyed with how the bedrooms here have sliding doors, valuing individualism over the group kind of mentality, which Misato explains is not how they do things here. I interpret this as like another example of her drive to be truly seen and acknowledged as an individual. Thanks for the effort, and excited for the next one!
Thank you very much, and great points you brought up! The extent to which Asuka's character is thought-out and established really is incredible, and every little detail throughout her introductory episodes really helps make that clear. Thank you for your feedback and support, it really means the world!
I've watched this series dozens of times over the years; first as the same age as the pilots, now the age of the adults, and I feel like I get something new with each watch!
Dam boy, that the one of the best stuff about Evangelion for a long time! I saw one Holywood shot video clips where one scriptor note that Aska and Rei is a trop from Gofman "Sandman". The main hero of his story is put in a choise between his real fiance and artificial doll which look like a real woman and he must to choose what he whants more: the realistic but painful relationships or deam life with a doll who like AI ansew him what he wants to hear. (Rei and Aska also this type delemma for main hero of Evangelion). But covering up that Aska is a sun archetype and Rei is moon - that's deep! Thank you! Keep digging the Evangelion!
Wow, for once the CZcams algorithm did me a great service! I’m so delighted I found your channel and your videos and I’m super excited to see more from you! Keep going 🥰
Lol the algorithm decided to feed nothing but 30-sec reels to me, so I'm binging this channel to nudge the algorithm by myself. There's a lot to watch here. Glad we found this channel :)
While I always preferred Rei, and was quite sad to hear that Anno literally ran out of ideas for her, I still liked Asuka quite a bit. Interesting, deep, skilled and brittle. And the breakdown in this video is just amazing. But yeah fanfic did Rei better than canon. Asuka's animation and color motifs were new to me here. I appreciate this a lot and sorry for watching late. Scheduling conflicts 2:55 What did you expect? Healthy and sane people would probs not do the thing
Yes, Rei's character takes an unfortunate downturn, but there still a lot of great development with her that I'm excited to cover! Asuka clearly became the focus, however, and her spark really turns a lot of dynamics on their head in brilliant ways. Thank you for the feedback and support! Don't worry about watching late, I completely understand; glad you found your way back!
I came here to be a contrarian and haughtily express how Asuka's character arc and relevance to the story has been done to death and ended up sitting here for 30 minutes thoroughly entertained and appreciating your analysis. Well played, sir.
This might be the greatest compliment I've yet been paid. Thank you very much! I'm glad you enjoyed and that I was able to put a refreshing spin on her character for you.
You’re rocking the synchronization outfit bro! I like how you put it. Evangelion is about humans becoming people. All the characters around Shinji help him build himself into a functioning person. They aren’t perfect though. Obviously. Everyone in this show is missing something. They only really become whole when they take the time to understand each other. I’m sure they all get to know each other and nothing bad happens for the rest of the series.
For sure: definitely not expecting anything bad to happen later in this series. Also thank you for the encouragement! Glad others are enjoying the outfit change.
Excellent as always! Would really like to see a break down of Chainsaw Man as you tentatively mused at one point during the video. The outfit change at 16:00 was mwah, chef's kiss :P
Hahaha, I'm glad you enjoyed! Chainsaw Man will almost certainly enter the pipeline after I rewatch it, and I'm glad someone caught the costume change!
18:16 he didn’t notice anything at all… until hopefully EoE :( (Asuka is also my favourite character so I wanted nothing but a happy ending for her T.T ) 18:16 also is that Misato’s top? Maybe because she envy’s Misato ability to attract and wants to have that happen between her and shinji similar to what is happening with Kaji and Misato.. they’re kinda parallels imo Misato being shinji and kaji being Asuka 23:22 I just want them togetherrr :( (Finished NGE and EoE three days ago took 2 or 3 days to fully get through and it’s all that’s been on my mind since… can’t stop listening to the ending it’s been on repeat for like 72hours) Asuka and shinji I just hope ended up a couple after the ending of EoE… they had to.. Asuka with all these hints such as the boundary wanted to be taken down, the sleep and tryna kiss him scene, when she’s alone asking shinji to hold her, the pool scene where she first gets him to look at her breasts then watch her swim, the “bored kiss” in the 9vs1 begging for shinji to help and in shinjis case the hospital scene both the part and him begging her to wake up at least one more time to call him a baka also when he finally does get up to the aftermath of the 9vs1 he sees Asuka’s mutilated Eva corpse and goes into rage mode causing the third impact for her… in the lcl Asuka sees his “jerk off fantasies” to her and he chokes her thinking she isn’t real but she kinda is it’s just they’re all one, then when they return from the lcl shinji chokes her again this time she caresses his cheek proving to shinji it’s real and showing what I feel is love towards him and then he begins to cry and she calls him disgusting idk if it’s because she remembers his hospital part or if it’s her going back to normal and somewhat hating weakness but also still loving him… the series has left me void and depressed nearly longing or wishing I was in that universe instead of here. It may seem weird of psycho but I just wish I didn’t exist here and existed there as shinji or from his perspective. I feel a longing or desire for this and I’ve done nothing the past few days but think or obsess over this anime and film God I just want Shinji and Asuka to end up together after EoE 💔
As someone who has never watched (and most likely never will watch) Evangelion, this deep-dive series has perfectly summarised, explored and comprehensively explained the different aspects of the show, these videos have deeply intrigued me with the characters, world-building and story
While I definitely encourage seeing the original series, I'm glad to know these videos have proved to be a suitable introductory to the franchise. I'm glad the analysis has intrigued you and that you're enjoying!
@timberw0lfstudios It's definitely on the may-or-may-not-watch list, but my time has been limited as of recent months, and as much as I love a good ol' tragedy (coming from someone who studies mythology and folklore), I'd rather stay clear from indulging in such stories for the foreseeable future. However, your videos are definitely more approachable in comparison to other video essays / deep dives that may be a bit intimidating, especially when symbolism is mentioned or the inclusion of other Evangalion media. Long story short, your editing , writing, and humor is absolutely a motivator to not let this show go under the radar for me
Aww, thank you for all the kind words! I know exactly what you mean with being short on time: heaven knows I haven't started a new show on my own time in months. Glad to know Evangelion remains on your watchlist, and if you do get around to it, I hope you find it just as enjoyable as my series. Trust me, my videos don't do it justice.
As an Asuka fan since day 1 I appreciate this video IMMENSELY! This made me love her even more ❤️ I feel like she just often gets dismissed as the most outright toxic character. But I just love her, flaws and all. Your point about Asuka being technically the usual protagonist material is so spot on! Made me realize why I immediately got drawn to her- she's the girl I WANT to be. She's the type I want to be friends with because I know she can infect me with her courage to just get things done. This video is a gem for me. Also, just a side note...since moving to Japan I've noticed how Asuka seems to be more popular here than Rei. I know Rei was SUPER popular when the OG Eva series first aired, but I noticed that during the height of the most recent Eva movies, Asuka merch gets sold out so much quicker. I see more people with Asuka merch too. I didn't expect that, thinking Rei has always been the more popular character. Anyhoo, my girl in red deserves all the love ❤️
Absolutely! Asuka is a fantastic character (let's be real, they all are), and it's nice to finally have a discussion around her! Her popularity has certainly seemed to skyrocket since the Rebuilds, so I suppose her prevalence shouldn't be that surprising, and yet here we are. 27 years later, the Rei vs Asuka battle rages on! Thank you so much for sharing!
I just binged all of this series so far except the first video (which I honestly just didn't notice on your channel) and the whole time I believed I was watching an effort by a CZcamsr with at least a million subs. Imagine my shock when I saw you're under 5000. This hasn't just been one of the most comprehensive and insightful analysis of Eva, it's also been one of the most cosy. Like having a chat about a mutual favourite with a good mate over drinks. Is it a delusion because there was no actual input from myself and you didn't even know I personally exist? Absolutely. Is this kind of para-social relationship substituting an actual chat with a good mate over drinks the polar opposite of the show's entire message? Probably. Nevertheless, I enjoyed it very much! EDIT: In addition this vid got me to look at Asuka a whole lot and her character design is one of my favourite of all time. She was also one of my first anime crushes. Judge me as you will. EDIT2: Also, your art is majestic and your editing is superb.
To a comment like this, I really don't know what to say except thank you. Thank you so much. How you've described the videos was everything I set to achieve when producing them. I've always wanted to join a community where everyone can be cozy, at home, and excited about discussing what we love. Seeing that exact community forming around my videos is indescribably uplifting. Thank you. For being a part of this community. For all the feedback and support. For taking the time to comment this wonderful, fulfilling encouragement. As far as I'm concerned, we are buddies, and I'll buy you a drink anytime.
@@timberw0lfstudios Well, if you're ever in vaguely Eastern Europe, hit me up! I'll let you know if I'm ever able to visit the States. Lol There are two things I regret that happened since I posted this comment. One, I forgot to actually subscribe. What an absolute dunce I am. Two, I didn't notice and correct my plural for analysis (should be analyses* xD) before you gave me a heart because editing comments takes those off. Oh well, my spelling shall forever remain disgraced. Keep up the good work, man! I'll sure be here for the ride.
Thank you again! And don't worry about misspells: somehow with all the writing I do, I still manage to misspell congrajulations frequently. *Concradulations *Congraltutations You get my point. If and when I'm in Eastern Europe (and I'm sure sooner or later I will be), I'll be sure to hit you up! Until then, I'll keep doing my best, and knowing I've got you for a supporter makes everything loads easier. Cheers, and God bless!
The german book Rei is reading is NOT about genetics... :D The text on top the left page is part of a foreword in which the translator of a french poem (Prince Ludwig I.) explains why he chose to translate the piece (Le Sage Vieillard) into german in 1643. It starts mid-sentence The next part starts below the drawings on the left page ("Personen von uraltem Geschlecht...") and continues on the right page. This is the first part of the 1669 novel "Der abenteuerteuerliche Simplicissimus" (The adventurous simpleton) and the paragraph boils down to "Some people think a bit of money makes them noblemen but their fathers are poor, their sisters are whores and their mothers are matchmakers or even witches. Their whole family is rotten" followed by some racist stuff... The stuff right of the drawing on the right page is actually the "parable of the prodigal son" but funnily enough I can't find the translation that matches the text. It's real german and seems to be a good translation but I can't find it... German dude signing off :D
Thank you for this! The Eva wiki said it was about genetics (which would be fitting for Rei), but I find conflicting sources and didn't have time to fully dig into it before. Thank you for clearing this all up! I knew my fellow German buddies would have my back on this one. XD
Breathing a sigh of relief XD The video took way longer than expected, but I wanted to ensure I released it in top tier condition. No point in living with regrets, right? Super glad you found the wait worthwhile; hopefully the next one comes out sooner!
Yay! I'm glad! This video was such a blast to put out, so I'm happy so many are finding joy in it. And I kinda love Asuka too. Don't worry, you're not alone.
Evangelion is so a good show, every time that I watch it I have a deep revealing sensation as reading a Dostoevsky novel for how much the psychological aspects are developed and the spectator can relate. You are doing an incredible job of unpacking and explaining everything. Looking forward to the next videos :)
I started the ADV dub only recently, and honestly the mark she left on the character's legacy is undisputable and remarkable in every way. An incredible performance without doubt.
On that I do have to disagree, but to each their own. I'm hoping one day they'll do a consolidated dub and cover the entire franchise with the same cast, but we'll see if that ever happens.
Good stuff, happy to see another video. I'd never really thought about all the water and diving stuff in connection with Asuka in these episodes. Now I'm thinking about her and water for other stuff in the series. Interesting where she ends up having her reboot in EoE. Also makes me think of that bathtub scene. The 90s fashion always makes me laugh...but also it looks cool af
Yes, yes, and double yes. Glad you enjoyed the video and that I could reveal more details for you! Thank you for the feedback and support, it means the world!
Very well made video. Asuka is an incredible character and one of my favorites in all of fiction. I want to say thank you for focusing on the original series, as it seems to be constantly overshadowed by the vastly inferior "Rebuild" movies.
Aww thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed the video! I can't say anything about the Rebuilds as I haven't seen them yet, but Asuka's entire arc throughout the original series is phenomenal, and I'm excited to cover more of it as things progress. Thank you again for the feedback and support!
@@timberw0lfstudios Hey no problem, thanks for the great videos! If you ask me, the Rebuild series is like a fan fiction of NGE. It betrays everything that made the series great in favor of modern tropes and action. It's almost surreal to watch, especially how the first movie almost exactly follows the show before it goes off the rails. I suppose it is worth a watch just to experience it. I actually like Rebuild Ramiel more, but it mostly just made me angry to watch lol. I recommend a CZcams video called "The Curse of Evangelion" for more on that. It's a good one.
Will definitely check out that video, thank you! I'm excited to get around to the Rebuilds eventually, but for now I'm enjoying covering just the Original series.
@@timberw0lfstudios Nice! I'll look forward to that. I'm always interested to hear other's perspectives on the Rebuild series. It's quite polarizing among the NGE community.
Looking at the colors of each plugsuit again, you can start to see more allusions to the true nature of each Eva and their pilot. We take the color of Shinji's suit almost for granted, white and blue with red on the collar is your typical "Heroic" primary colors, like seen with the original Gundam. Rei's suit is stark white with orange straps and a red collar, but she also has a red orb similar to an S2 core in her stomach with two green chevrons to the outside of it. This could serve as foreshadowing that she is born from the fusion of Angel and Human DNA as she's a clone of Yui, the orange stripes referring to the color of LCL, Lillith's blood. Asuka's suit being red with the blue collar is indicitive of the true nature of her Eva as it's the only one with blue (Angel) blood.
Fantastic points on all fronts. I think you're spot on with those interpretations on the color theory, and really just goes to show character designer Sadamoto's brilliance throughout this series.
26:54 - The series is full of figurative "Absolute Terror Fields" when you start looking for them, and here's a great example: that transparent refrigerator door between Shinji and Asuka.... she closes the door - drops the field - by the end of the scene, but of course that's just a temporary thing. The same goes for her "Wall of Jericho", another figurative incarnation of her "A.T. Field", which she's daring - indeed, begging! - anyone to penetrate, but alas, Shinji, star of the "Hedgehog's Dilemma" show himself, is absolutely the wrong person to expect to breech such a spikey wall without gentle encouragement! A word needs to be said at this point about those iconic - and ridiculous! - plug suits, and that word should probably begin with the Eva armor, which Ritsuko is forced to explain for the benefit of the Bridge Bunnies and the audience: the Evas do not wear armor for protection, the armor is as much a restraint as it is a shield. So when one of the characters - Asuka, I think - hangs a lampshade on those form-fitting plug suits at one point by pointing out how they must have been designed by "leches" as the "fan-service" that they are, and wonders why the pilots have to wear those suits, keep in mind that the plug suits are equivalent to the Evas' armor, and serve a dual function of restraint and protection - that is, they are figurative "A.T. Fields" worn by the characters. In that context, consider all the times that the pilots are NOT wearing their plug suits while in their plugs: moments where the pilots are inserted naked into the plugs to test their synch rates, for example, or moments following extremely high synch rates and consequent Ego Death! Or, interestingly, that scene in Asuka's introduction where she forces a humiliated Shinji into her own plug suit, leaving them to fight together side-by-side - quite effectively - in identical colour-coordinated plug-suit "A.T. Fields", conveniently colour-coded in our old friend, the colour Red, for shared pain, echoed later, in the Synchronized Dance, episode by an equally embarrassed Shinji and Asuka wearing identical dance costumes as they struggle to learn to work together until they are finally more comfortable with each other! Much the same sort of thing might be said for the other uniforms throughout the show, too: when you see Misato dressed up in a weirdly formal uniform buttoned up to her chin with a hem down to her knees or calves instead of her usual short-shorts or mini-skirts, I think we can take it as a visual hint that there's something more going on than Misato simply being suddenly more business-like: Misato wears such uniforms when she's about to do something she's extremely uncomfortable with! (Contrast with poor Ritsuko's degrading interrogation by SEELE, without the protection - and restraint - of her usual lab-coat uniform....) The "Absolute Terror Field" motif takes the form elsewhere in the obvious armor, and walls and doors (see Asuka's complaint about the doors in Japanese homes not being well-suited for guarding privacy, the scene where Misato first invites Shinji into her home, the scenes where first Shinji then later Shinji and Toji invite themselves into Rei's apartment), as well as less obvious metaphors such as the eye-hiding reflections of several characters' glasses (notably Gendo and Ritsuko, and Misato's sunglasses, and interestingly also the glasses of Shinji's annoying Otako friend, Aida. In Gendo's case, check out the running theme of Rei fetishizing Gendo's glasses after he rescued her from her super-heated plug, even as Gendo begins wearing tinted glasses instead, as well as any scene where we see a bright lens reflection hiding Gendo's eyes....)
oh man what a fantastic treat to watch after coming home from the bar. excellent work as always my dude. don’t worry about being late, just keep them coming. looking forward to the next one
You deserve so many more views and subscribers. Everything about your videos is top notch. From the productiuon quality and pacing right down to the added humor. 10/10 will watch again.
Aww thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed! Recognition is always appreciated, but so long as I'm helping others and making days just a little brighter, that's all I care about.
I think every NGE fan has rewatched Ep 8, 9, and 10 and mentally shut out the knowledge of how things end up from there. They’re such happy episodes, they almost make you feel like the show is progressing like a normal action show where things will be happy at the end
@@timberw0lfstudios also, something I just noticed, that you may think is worthwhile- in Ep 11, when they are manually prepping the Evas for launch, due to the power outage, they prep all 3 but unit 01 is the last one finished. If they were being intentional about what order they prepped them in, that meant that Gendo had them prep Rei’s and Asuka’s before Shinji’s, implying that he had the least faith in Shinji arriving in time to face the 8th Angel compared to the other two
Or it could be that they prepped all three simultaneously, but Gendo personally oversaw the preparation of Unit-01 due to his bias and faith in Shinji.@@jacobnormann6678
Very hard to say. In the very next episode he expresses pride in his son, but of course until that point he remains rather stoic. I think we can only speculate.
Asuka meeting Rei is a throwback the story of Alexander meeting Diogenes, a very famous Cynic philosopher and possible madman who by choice lived as a penniless beggar. The conquering emperor went to a field where the famous Cynic was sunning himself. He asked Diogenes if there was anything that he could do for him and Diogenese responded "you can stand out of my sunlight". The difference being that Alexander left their meeting admiring Diogenes and his reaction saying "if I were not Alexander then I would want to be Diogenes", while Asuka reacts in the far more feminine manner of becoming upset and anxious at being ignored, feeling her social status being threatened by just one person of dubious status rejecting it. I wonder if it was intentional or just a coincidence?
A wonderful comparison. Intentional or not, it's fun to see the differences in those interactions and glean more insight into those characters. Thank you for sharing!
Just found this video and at 14:23, noticing the beer can had Ebichi on it, some years before she got her own anime. Of course, the beer’s name being a pun and one of the VA’s that enjoyed reading the Ebichu mangas.
I felt Chainsaw Man had some similar vibes/themes/symbolism as Evangelion so all for you making a video comparing those two :) When I was first watching Evangelion back in the 90s, I related more to Asuka and she remains my favorite anime character. But now that I am older and rewatched in recently, I definitely feel more like Misato.
All right then, it's final: I shall do a Chainsaw Man video eventually! And yes, Asuka is fantastic, although I also empathize more with Misato on recent rewatches. They're both fantastic characters.
Absolutely! Glad you've been enjoying the series so far, because this next section is definitely what I'm most excited about. Here's hoping I can release it soon!
You've given me an incredible compliment and yet set the bar far too high: nevertheless, I will do my best not to disappoint. Thank you for the encouragement.
I couldn't understand why Asuka was so afraid of the EVA's power until the episode in which it canibalized one of its own (an Angel). If humans with power are already terrifying, imagine animals with it. Pure innocence and need...
I'm really enjoying this series. You're doing a great job of being informative, but your videos don't feel like they're adding to fill out time (there's already just SO MUCH to cover in Eva!). Thanks for cluing us in on things we might have noticed on the surface level (gee, that's a lot of red usage throughout), and sharing insight on meaning and themes.
Thank you so much! I'm glad you're enjoying the series so far; I've loved putting it together! I try not to tread ground others have already covered, so knowing the videos are landing right means a lot. Thank you so much for the feedback! Your support means the world, and I'm excited to release more soon!
I'm glad you touched on the ending credits, which is an underappreciated element of the show that helps illustrate character and thematic developments. Unfortunately, the best aspect of the credits, that being the unique arrangements of Fly Me To The Moon that evolve through the show, are at risk of being overlooked by most viewers due to all releases of Eva in the past 15 years or so replacing it with... just Rei I. It fits the general atmosphere, but having one static piece (one that's deeply tied to a specific character at a specific moment in time in the narrative) really doesn't provide as much as the original experience. In other words, netflix dub bad new box set bad Anyway, super great stuff man, I'm shocked it took this long for somebody to post a high quality analysis of Eva through a film theory lens like this. If you are looking for further insight into these characters and events, I highly recommend giving the manga adaptation of the series a read. It's a fascinating alternative.
Thank you so much! I'm glad you're enjoying the analyses so far. I've really enjoyed putting them together, and while I obviously can't cover everything, I'm excited to continue revealing new details to others. I love this series so much that I'll likely get into the manga adaptation sooner or later, and given how in-demand the Eva content has been, I'll almost assuredly do a video on it when I do. Thank you for the insight and recommendations; I super appreciate it!
Thank you so much, I'm glad you enjoyed! Yes, Asuka is such an intriguing character, and I'm so excited to keep analyzing her and others as we continue! Thank you for all the feedback and support!
As weird as it may be, I'm glad we got Shinji. Then again, having her as the protagonist could probably have been an interesting challenge to overcome.
@@JabamiLain It wouldn't feel complete now. Also, I really like the characterization contrasts between the First, Second and Third Child. Anno is a genius!
@@JabamiLain I'm sorry but have to disagree on what they represent to the narrative. From how I understand it, they each represent a form of existentialism. Which, stems from their childhood and ongoing trauma. Which also in term makes them EVA pilots suitable for high synchronisation with LCL... I think that's how it works atleast.
This might be a bit late, but the film burn cut mentioned at 12:50 might be a reference to the N2 bombing that happened after their failure to take down the angel.
Asuka standing on tbe bench makes me think of that mat proverb you brought up earlier Shinji is sitting while Asuka is standing - still on the same mat, but still not wating to align herself even though she's putting her pride aside to cooperate
Hahaha, I'm glad you enjoyed! I meant to refresh my German before recording, but ran out of time and just went with it. I know I butchered them, but it was a blast to laugh at myself and I'm glad others can laugh too.
I’m glad there’s people stil talking about her, I just watched this series for the first time two weeks ago and I just finished all the movies I absolutely love this franchise
Evangelion is the masterpiece that just keeps giving. I'm glad to hear you've recently enjoyed the franchise! Definitely a property I think everyone needs to see at least once in their life.
I think her character fitting more as protagonist kinda makes sense since originally in the planning she was supposed to be the main character along with Yui until they changed things over since they already made Gunbuster which features the same kind of female duo.
Totally! I didn't realize Asuka was the main protagonist at one point--all of my reading points to her being a supplementary character from conception. Do you have any sources on the contrary? I'd love to read up on that!
@@timberw0lfstudios I haven't found the source but kinda read some articles years ago along with the original concept arts of Eva, there's Asuka with different plugsuit and Yui, and some of older unit 01 design that looks way different than what we got. If only I could find it again.
No worries. I recently found the series proposal and read through that figuring it was the earliest draft of the show, so your allusion to other earlier drafts piqued my interest.
I think there’s another layer to equation of red=pain and Asuka being red beyond what that means to Shinji: her entire personality comes from her constant, desperate pain. The fact that she’s wrapped in it (but we don’t yet know why) is a nice bit of foreshadowing.
Another brilliant take, my friend. Stellar interpretation that fits right in with everything else; thank you for sharing!
Red is also the color of love in Japanese and Chinese culture. Red string of fate. Asuka and Shinji both lack love mainly unconditional family love which they are both desperate for and seem to want and fear it grow between them. They have been abandoned by the ones that should be there and love them.
Sorry, but I think you've got it very wrong. I don't know if in the plot they portray her as an abuse victim, but she does not have the personality type of an abuse victim. She is clearly a spoiled brat, and spoiled brats are the result of lenient permissive parenting, not pain. The fleet admiral, the 29-year-old purple haired woman, and other authority figures exhibit this lenient permissive behaviour when they don't discipline her for her insubordinate behaviour.
@@Kenjuu she was ignored by her mother, replaced by a doll, and her mother almost killed her. Her attention-seeking behavior is portrayed as directly related to the lack of attention from her mother (“Look at me” directed to mom, Kaji, and more). Being ignored and replaced made her obsessed with being irreplaceable as the best Eva pilot, and when she finds out she is replaceable (again) it destroys her. Seems like a logical through-line to me.
@@KenjuuAll abuse victims do not act the same. Asuka's behaviour is realistic for the abuse she suffered. Being a victim of abuse is often ugly. You might not immediately sympathize and find them all cute and likeable because they turned out like something you can want and pity because of their pain.
I think there’s a major connection between Asuka and Ritsuko. They both fall in love with an older man (Asuka with Kaji and Ritsuko with Gendo), have identical shots in the restroom, despise Rei, have mothers who committed suicide (note that Rei’s mom chokes Rei to death who is called a doll throughout the series and Asuka’s mom hangs a doll), they both are sexually assaulted (Ritsuko by Gendo and Asuka by Shinji), they both are told “I need you” in The End of Evangelion and both respond with saying “liar”. Also, for a fun addition, is it just me or is the last shot of the End of Evangelion very similar to the beginning shots of Asuka and Kaji in episode 22? Anyways great series!
Prank em, Shinji!
Holy tolito, THIS was a perspective I did not expect to find, and I think you're totally right! Tons of comparisons between the two that really make you reconsider everything. I'll have to progress with this in mind.
Thank you so much for sharing! Seriously!
Ritsuko was assaulted by SEELE agents as seen in the director's cut, not Gendo. That theory came from a scrapped draft that written by someone other than Anno and he rejected it. Likewise Asuka and the MPEs would be a more fitting comparison, since in the script for End of Eva they explicitly mention she's being violated by them, and both MPEs and the SEELE agents are complete strangers to them that have SEELE connections
Wait wasn't Ritsuko gay
@@falconeshield Maya's a lesbian with a crush on Ritsuko but Ritsuko never reciprocated, however Rei 3 disguised herself as Ritsuko to make Maya accept instrumentality
21:19 I find it interesting that the series shows Rei and Asuka as opposites even in the type of swimsuit they wear, Rei’s being more “closed” and Asuka’s more “open” and attention-grabbing
Yes indeed! Brilliant little detail I didn't touch on; thank you for pointing it out!
I always saw the three children as the three parts of the mind, Id, ego and superego. Shinji is constantly questioning what would make him happy- Id. Rei loses herself in the service of others- superego. Asuka is all ego until her confidence is chipped away and then she loses herself.
Evangelion is apparently very Freudian. I didn’t pick up on it but apparently it is. This is a cool and consistent interpretation if Freud is as common in Eva as people say.
Asuka's fight in EOE holds so much impact because the entire series she lost fights on her own. This was intentional since Hideki Anno wanted her to fail and struggle in order to go against the viewer's expectations. So finally in EOE you see her overcome her trauma, fight, then win. Yet it was all for nothing. She still couldn't truly win in the end.
Asuka means a lot to me as a character. I relate to her so much. Especially the ways in which she views relationships. Desiring to be held and loved, but too cocky and stubborn to ask anyone for it. The desire to stand out and be seen. I love it.
Not to be cringe but Asuka is my "literally me" character. I'm happy to see more Asuka videos.
Glad my video was a service to your comfort character! I totally understand what you mean, and I'm glad you enjoyed!
Simping hard
Pretty cringe
@@Kenjuu How is that even remotely simping.
@@JotheAnimator Playing the victim card to excuse reprehensible behaviour.
Love this analysis, she’s my fav character of all time.
17:55 I think Asuka, in later scenes as well, deliberately wears Misato’s tshirt when she’s alone with Shinji to show her maturity and desire to be wanted.
I didn't notice this before! I believe you're correct: what an awesome detail that adds even more depth to Asuka's character. Thank you for pointing that out!
It's impossible for me to miss just how revealing that shirt was that Asuka was wearing in the "Wall of Jericho" scene, something I don't think we see her wearing any other time: Asuka's words are telling Shinji "don't you dare breech my Wall of Jericho!" but that shirt was saying something totally different, and I think Asuka knew it!
Of course she knew it: the scene where Asuka gets Kaji to take her shopping for a swimsuit, and the scene where Asuka actually wears it at the pool with Shinji when she couldn't go on vacation with Kaji, along with the "look at me!" flashback where Asuka tells Kaji she's a grown woman and loosens her shirt, pretty much make it explicit that Asuka knows what she's doing, and dresses provocatively as a way to supposedly declare her maturity and independence - even though it's pretty clearly just the opposite: a declaration of her vulnerability and desperately unfulfilled need for a very different kind of love from other people.. Weirdly, Asuka had convinced herself that what she needed was to be seen as an adult woman instead of a child, when what she really wanted deep inside was to be loved as a child instead of treated like a doll....
Interestingly, that's exactly what happened in the scene where she bought that bathing suit with Kaji: he broke his "rogue" character and talked to her in a more fatherly manner, telling her that the bathing suit wasn't really appropriate for a girl her age. I'm not sure what to make of Asuka's reaction - she tried to convince Kaji that it's what all the kids her age do - but she didn't seem upset about his reaction at all.
It's yet another instance, I think, where we catch a glimpse of "what could have been" had Misato and Kaji been able to overcome their mutual "hedgehog's dilemma" and successfully married, as parental figures for Shinji and Asuka.
And speaking of Misato, seems like there's a bit of an echo to Asuka's pretense at a provocative but brash womanhood, in Misato's pretense at being a wild and "dirty" woman in a complicated backlash against a futile perfection as a child as her father neglected her for his work. And for that matter, a similar echo in Kaji's pretense at being a carefree and unfaithful rogue flirting with everyone while pretty obviously still in love only with Misato after being rejected by her: all three are using these roles to virtually beg for attention, while at the same time pushing away the people they really love.
Now that I think of it, the question of whether Asuka knows exactly what she's doing by dressing so provocatively in those scenes isn't as obvious or simple as it seems... consciously, sure, she absolutely knows what effect it should have on the people around her. Unconsciously, she's probably also aware that she's also pushing the people she loves away, and sending horribly mixed signals, and that's on purpose, too.. Likewise for Kaji and Misato and the mixed signals they send each other while playing their little touch-me-touch-me-not character roles....
@@pietrayday9915great analysis
This might not be entirely related byt there's a detail about Asuka I absolutely love. It's heavily implied she witnessed or at the very least heard her father having intimate relations with another woman when she was a child. And consequently in the show she pursues someone she likes seeking that same initimacy and tries to be much more open about her womanhood/sexuality. Her experiences warped her perception of love and intimacy, and as someone who has had very similar experiences I was amazed at the attention to detail. She's an amazing character I found myself relating to a lot
Amazing observations! Yes, Asuka's character is a detailed dive into how parental loss and sexual misconception can warp an adolescent's mind, along with numerous other aspects that help make her character compelling and, in a strange way, educating. I have a lot of respect for how she's written.
Thank you for sharing, and for the feedback!
Why that sounds like of 90% of OF/TikTok/🌽🌽🌽 industry girls...🤨
But yeah you're right, Asuka embodies Daddy Issues in Anime pop culture (a big example of that is scene of her so desperetly trying to seduce Kaji)
I never noticed that detail, but what you've said makes so much sense. She chose the path of what her father chose (being a desireable woman) because she is the one who lived, versus what her father rejected (her mother) who ended up unaliving herself. For Asuka being loved and wanted and the chosen one is literally the matter of life or death, which explains A LOT.
I thought asuka was conceived in the lab and never met her father, as he was just a donor? But maybe I am misremembering
She is one of my favorite characters of all time. Seeing the framing choices to convey her authority over most yet her conflict with Rei is one of the coolest details my brain noticed but not explicitly. This entire series is like picking up on things after a second watch but with a microscope (whithout the painful drag that would be.) Can't wait for when we get to the end where everything is deconstructed.
I'm glad you've been enjoying it! Asuka is such a brilliant character and it was a pleasure to deconstruct her introduction. I'm excited to keep analyzing and release more soon!
this video gives Evangelion and Asuka the treatment they deserve!! I'm sure all the fans are gonna love it. High quality stuff!! ❤
Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed and found it valuable. This was definitely one of my favorite videos to put together, and I'm excited to release more soon!
Asuka is one of my favorite characters in the series, and part of why I love her so much is because of how complex she is. A lot of people think Asuka is just mean, but that’s not it at all. She’s suffering from severe trauma and is afraid of being hurt more.
If I had to guess, I would say that she most likely has complex PTSD.
Unlike standard PTSD, complex PTSD (C-PTSD) results from prolonged, recurring trauma and stress, usually during childhood or adolescence. From what we know about Asuka’s childhood, with her father basically abandoning her and her mother, and her mother going mad before committing suicide, there is certainly a lot of trauma, likely over the course of a long time. In fact, negligent or abusive caregivers and dysfunctional family life are common risk factors for C-PTSD.
And we see Asuka exhibit a lot of the symptoms of C-PTSD in the show. Negative self-perception, emotional avoidance and isolation, difficulty in regulating emotions, being on edge and emotional flashbacks. All of these are symptoms of C-PTSD, and Asuka displays all of these and more.
Asuka needs help, and love. And sadly, she doesn’t get that for most of the series.
So when people say “oh, she’s such a bitch,” I get angry about it.
Also, if anyone reading this is going through something similar to what I talked about above, you’re not alone. You are loved, and you are worthy of it. There is help for you.
Beautifully said. Thank you so much for saying so and for sharing. I believe Asuka and characters like her have a critical role in helping others understand these conditions and opening up discussions surrounding them. Very happy to see so many others in this comment section who appreciate her for this.
@@timberw0lfstudios Thanks! Asuka is easily one of the most complex characters in the show, which is why she’s such a good character. But I feel like it’s also why a lot of people don’t like her, because they don’t care enough to actually see her true colors. Which is doing her, and the show as a whole, a massive disservice. Things are almost never black and white in Evangelion, just like in real life.
I think asuka exhibits symptoms of borderline personality disorder as well - as someone with bpd she hits wayyy too close to home.
Not to disagree with you too much. While I think the cPTSD is line of thinking is valid, it’s probably more likely that she had that singular trauma of her mother and then subsequent negative interactions (but not traumas) that formed her outward behavior. It’s probably more accurate to say she has BPD and narcissistic and histrionic features as a result of her previous trauma. It’s invaded and affected her entire being.
No she is very a trash character. His trauma doesn't justify her bullshits. She wants love but she can't love anyone.
It would be good if she had evolution and if she realised she is really a bad human.
But no the fandom and the show always want to show Shinji like the person who is the worst in this anime.
The scene with Asuka introducing herself to Rei is a literal visualization of the term "condescending". By Asuka's lights, she's ceding her dominant position (we haven't been told, but it's pretty obvious she's been outscoring Rei for Years, while having Rei's more malleable behavior thrown back at her) as a peace offering. Of course, to outside observers, it comes off as definition number two (incredibly rude).
Episode 10 (while not a favorite of the creators), is VERY important for setting the limits of Asuka's Goals. Notice how she wants to go on the trip, go diving, DO things (and what does she watch on TV? Trashy Romantic potboilers, with a classic or two mixed in). Note she is completely indifferent to succeeding at school, and pitches a little shade on the whole system. The "numerical grading system" measures all the students on a "curve" as to who would do the best at college entrance exams, which would get them into a school, which gets them into a career. Which is patently ridiculous to a child who already has a "career" and one not likely leading to a gold watch. Her attitude when things look bleak late in the episode isn't panic so much as disappointment "So this is it? Thought I'd last longer". Besides which, she's already had higher education shoved into her, but Japan is famous for "one size fits all" solutions.
Brilliantly said, and I don't think you could be more right on all points brought up. Thank you for sharing!
I used to work at the National Security Agency and not only do they have their own post office and multiple cafeterias, they have their own library and drug store. When you're defending the nation from cyber (or angel) attack you really appreciate not having to waste time stopping on the way home to get the milk.
Totally makes sense! Seemed strange at first from an outsider's perspective, but when you put it like that I totally get it. Thank you for sharing!
16:01 You changing your clothes to the workout fits is such a great detail, you slay the look.
The time and effort you put into this video really shows and its greatly appreciated!
Aww thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed all the little details--they were a blast to include--and it's nice to know they aren't going unnoticed. Thank you again!
I didn’t even notice!
Nothing much to add to this amazing analysis, but I always found it cute how Shinji made sure to cover Asuka with a blanket before moving to the other side of the room
Aww, I never noticed that detail! Thank you for sharing, and for the compliments! I'm glad you're enjoying the series so far!
Your subtle jokes an visual gags sprinkled all over the vid are a game of their own. I love this kind of humor
Aww thank you so much! I was afraid of going a little too overboard in that department, so I'm glad to know you enjoyed and that it didn't detract from the video. My goal is always to make education interesting, and I'm excited to release more soon!
I am literally so happy I was able to find your channel. I love these videos and appreciate them so much
Aww awesome! I'm so glad you found them valuable and enjoyable! Thank you so much!
There’s another story where the main character archetypically the least likely of three to be the main character but is anyway… Alexei of Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov, who is the most passive of the three brothers and acts most of the time as a messenger between others.
Both stories also share that existential psychological approach to the meaning of their stories and characters.
Great parallel drawn!
Something I love about Eva is that you can find meaning at any level of analysis. You can go over every tiny detail and what it means or the curtains can just be blue and what you take from it can be surface level. Asuka is a character that shows an insane level of complexity from her surface down to the minute details in every iteration of Eva.
Absolutely! One of the best aspects of all well-structured stories: the ability to absorb the narrative through several layers of complexity. Thank you for bringing this up!
This was an amazing analysis. Asuka's character is very complex, and often misunderstood by the general fandom of Eva. I also loved that change of outfit that you've made. Great video!
Thank you so much! I'm so glad you enjoyed!
I was looking forward to this next installment of yours so much!! Another one so well made man. Can’t wait to see you blow up - your analysis is refreshing, eloquently spoken, and incredibly engaging. And your editing is masterful. Was so surprised you didn’t have more subs the first video of yours I caught. Keep it up :)
Aww thank you so much! I'm so glad you've enjoyed the videos so far! I've really enjoyed putting them together, and while my schedule is getting progressively more chaotic, these analyses remain as a top priority for me. I'll be releasing more as soon as I can!
@@timberw0lfstudios Good for you, you are making waves: you’ll probably be able to step in this like some of the CZcams influencers who have a large and maintained following.
God rest
Thank you so much for the encouragement, my friend. God bless you!
Wow, sounds like Asuka and Shinji are coming to really like each other, especially with him saving her in the volcano and her reaction to that.
I sure do hope their relationship continues to improve as the series goes on.
XD
If only life were so linear!
I especially hope that neither of them does something absolutely disgusting while the other is comatose in a hospital bed!
I dont know, i watched every part of the show multiple times and still i wish to see many many more parts of you talking about evangelion. I really admire your eye and broad focus, picking up subtle details for me/us to rediscover. I hope for many many more- til then, thank you very much :)
You're very welcome! I've loved putting this series together so far, and I genuinely believe the best is yet to come.
Thank you for the kind words and support, it means the world!
I never thought about that Shinji, Asuka, and Rei could be reflected in the adult crew and how their dynamics were similar. Nice one! And subscribing 😎
Thank you and thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed, and that I was able to reveal something new to you!
@@timberw0lfstudios Neon Genesis is still one of those good conversation anime that you can analyze and interpret the meanings behind everything in it. I have a love hate relationship to the series because while I loved the story and action, the other side of it is how I can't stand Shinji as a protagonist because of his indecisiveness. Ironically his personality and nature are part of what makes it a great series, you love to hate Shinji or you hate to love him
I like your thesis of Evangelion being a story about a character doing a character study, that Shinji analyses the other characters just like we the audience do. One part of the series I always liked is how Shinji starts out as every man or a self insert protagonist but overtime, the more he observes and interacts with the other characters, his personality becomes more nuanced and distinct.
Absolutely. The series is fantastic at being nuanced when it needs to, and Shinji's character is the highlight of that.
And thank you for watching!
Once again, you've blown it out of the water. This consistency to perfection is absolutely incredible. This is series is gonna go down in the books for me.
Aww, thank you so much! You flatter me, honestly! I'll glad you're finding so much enjoyment and value, and I'm excited to keep producing these videos!
I’ve avoided the Netflix dub this whole time so actually hearing it in this was like whiplash lol, also the film burn transition was an explosion.
Yeah, hearing different dubs after getting use to one really disorients you! XD
The film burns symbolizing the following explosion makes a lot of sense! I hadn't thought about it that way; thank you for the feedback!
@@timberw0lfstudios it must've been one hell of an explosion to bury the evas to their waists with their legs in the air. Btw I love your videos! You're still finding new symbolism all these years later, I'm really enjoying this series.
Very good point, and thank you so much! I'm glad to know even after all these years there are still new details to unearth and share with an incredible community.
I stick with the original ADV dubs. They are more authentic and never felt like a cash grab.
@@dravguitao7265 honestly, the ADV dubs are a mess, but I'm glad the cast was back for the Rebuilds
I think a lot of this went over my head when I first viewed it. My reaction to the whole show, especially Asuka, was, “man, these people just need to learn to talk straight with each other.” Good ol’ blunt-force American intellect, lacks as much nuance as it does artistry.
My friend, you are far from alone. I missed so much of this on my first viewing, rewatching it felt like a completely different show.
Don't discard that American intellect, though; sometimes blunt force and straight talk is exactly what a situation needs!
dude, your videos on eva are my absolute favorite right next to bonsai pop's. Great content im a huge fan now
Aww thank you so much, that means a ton! I'm glad you're enjoying the content thus far!
I watched this video at first just because I was bored and I wanted to see a video about my favorite charchter in television, not thinking much of what I was actually clicking on. But I didn’t expect to have a new found appreciation for evangelions directing. I didn’t really think much of directing in animation before this video. However when you were adrressiing scenes like when rei first met Auska. I was fascinated by the fact that a shot of rei sitting in front of auska who is in front of a crowd can manage to show her outlook on everyone. Or when you talked about when shinji meets Auska his development/growth is shown by a simple shot of him just being agitated instead of shying away like he would of done when we first met him. It amazes me how much thought goes into every shot of this show and I just want to thank you for showing me it. Your takes on evangelions depth and symbolism is really interesting as well which is what made me initially really like this video since that is some of my favorite aspects of screen writing which is a career I hope to pursue one day. I’m just curious though what is your favorite show and what aspects of it make you love it so much.
I'm glad you enjoyed the video! I'm so happy I was able to show you new details and perspectives and help you love it even more!
Honestly, Evangelion might be my favorite TV show, for all the reasons I'm discussing in these videos. Few others come remotely close to conveying as much with so little as this one does.
I'm finishing my first view of the original evangelion serie this week. Right now, I think It might be one of the best anime I've ever seen. It's incredibly layered, profound, and humane, with incredible attention to details. I love all of of that. Each character is extremely interesting in their own way, from Shinji and his painful eagerness to cling to others, even those who hurt him, in hope of finding happiness one day, to Rei and her dark, disturbing situation and creation and her constant fight against loneliness. But the pain I felt for Asuka as a character matches no others. At first I only thought of her as a bratty child. In at least 3 episodes, I was fighting with my feelings for her, in some moments, I wanted both to feel compassionate about her childishness and to give her two good slaps across the face for how rude and insufferable she was. Then she started to fail her synchronization tests more and more each time. She felt weak and useless because she was saved both from Rei and from Shinji. And then her last battle against an angel, and the reveal about her past. Then her depression and unaliving attempt.
I swear, I never wanted to hug someone more.
If only they spared some money to hire some good psychiatrists for this children, If only the adults behaved like non-clinically insane people, so much of all of this suffering on 13 years old children could have being avoided. 😭
At the end of the series and in the movie it takes place during when Asuka is trying to accept herself. The reason she caresses Shinji’s face, but also calls him disgusting is symbolic to her relationship with herself. She learned to accept herself flaws and all therefore leading her to accept Shinji. Just like with herself, she to Shinji has parts of him she loves and parts of him she hates. Loving doesn’t equal accepting if you hate yourself so. They are two sides to one coin, that coin is Anno.
👏 well said
Lol Askuka litterally Rejects instumentality if she had to accept Shinji in anyway shape or form. She is THE WORST HUMAN far surpassing GENDO the worst dad in the world.
Bro the analysis you're doing is sparking neurons in my head. I love this channel.
Thank you so much! I'm glad! Let the neurons spark!
The book rei is reading isn't about genetics but language. It's by the founder of the first "Sprachgesellschaft" which is an association that promotes the preservation of cultivated language
Good to know! Thank you for pointing this out. As someone whose German is *not great,* I was getting my information from some Wiki pages that evidently turned out not to be true. Thank goodness for an attentive community!
Rather than 'don't fall' that box would probably mean 'don't drop' in this context wouldn't it.
You know, one would think.
@@timberw0lfstudios this video was amazing Bro
@@timberw0lfstudios However, they most likely just got a Japanese person to translate it into German, inevitably getting it wrong! Especially back then...
Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed!
@sminchan3732 You know, the German and English translations throughout the series are surprisingly well done, probably due to the two languages being commonly taught in Japanese schools, but nevertheless there are more than a few botched sections here and there throughout the show. Part of the charm, I suppose!
Another great video! Haha was surprised by the chainsaw man comparison. I would say another detail is that DHL is an American-founded German company, so their level of detail to Asuka and her origin is cool. Something that wasn't talked about that I found interesting on my latest rewatch, was Asuka's refusal to blend in with her Japanese peers and culture, which she expresses in several different scenes through dialogue which puts her in conflict with Misato on several occasions. For example, she gets annoyed with how the bedrooms here have sliding doors, valuing individualism over the group kind of mentality, which Misato explains is not how they do things here. I interpret this as like another example of her drive to be truly seen and acknowledged as an individual. Thanks for the effort, and excited for the next one!
Thank you very much, and great points you brought up! The extent to which Asuka's character is thought-out and established really is incredible, and every little detail throughout her introductory episodes really helps make that clear.
Thank you for your feedback and support, it really means the world!
I've watched this series dozens of times over the years; first as the same age as the pilots, now the age of the adults, and I feel like I get something new with each watch!
That's awesome! The series has so much to offer. Even now I'm excited to revisit it in a few years and see what else I notice!
Part 3, let’s goooooo
Great work as always!
Thank you so much! Glad you're enjoying it!
Dam boy, that the one of the best stuff about Evangelion for a long time!
I saw one Holywood shot video clips where one scriptor note that Aska and Rei is a trop from Gofman "Sandman". The main hero of his story is put in a choise between his real fiance and artificial doll which look like a real woman and he must to choose what he whants more: the realistic but painful relationships or deam life with a doll who like AI ansew him what he wants to hear. (Rei and Aska also this type delemma for main hero of Evangelion).
But covering up that Aska is a sun archetype and Rei is moon - that's deep! Thank you! Keep digging the Evangelion!
Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed, and that I was able to reveal new details for you!
Wow, for once the CZcams algorithm did me a great service! I’m so delighted I found your channel and your videos and I’m super excited to see more from you! Keep going 🥰
Aww thank you so much! I'm so glad you found your way here and enjoyed the video, and I'm excited to release more soon!
Lol the algorithm decided to feed nothing but 30-sec reels to me, so I'm binging this channel to nudge the algorithm by myself. There's a lot to watch here. Glad we found this channel :)
While I always preferred Rei, and was quite sad to hear that Anno literally ran out of ideas for her, I still liked Asuka quite a bit. Interesting, deep, skilled and brittle. And the breakdown in this video is just amazing. But yeah fanfic did Rei better than canon. Asuka's animation and color motifs were new to me here. I appreciate this a lot and sorry for watching late. Scheduling conflicts
2:55 What did you expect? Healthy and sane people would probs not do the thing
Yes, Rei's character takes an unfortunate downturn, but there still a lot of great development with her that I'm excited to cover! Asuka clearly became the focus, however, and her spark really turns a lot of dynamics on their head in brilliant ways.
Thank you for the feedback and support! Don't worry about watching late, I completely understand; glad you found your way back!
I came here to be a contrarian and haughtily express how Asuka's character arc and relevance to the story has been done to death and ended up sitting here for 30 minutes thoroughly entertained and appreciating your analysis. Well played, sir.
This might be the greatest compliment I've yet been paid. Thank you very much! I'm glad you enjoyed and that I was able to put a refreshing spin on her character for you.
You’re rocking the synchronization outfit bro!
I like how you put it. Evangelion is about humans becoming people. All the characters around Shinji help him build himself into a functioning person. They aren’t perfect though. Obviously. Everyone in this show is missing something. They only really become whole when they take the time to understand each other. I’m sure they all get to know each other and nothing bad happens for the rest of the series.
For sure: definitely not expecting anything bad to happen later in this series.
Also thank you for the encouragement! Glad others are enjoying the outfit change.
Nicht stürzen is a sign on many german post boxes. It mostly means "do not turn it sideways". Mostly due to Fragile interior
That makes sense; thank you for that insight!
Excellent as always! Would really like to see a break down of Chainsaw Man as you tentatively mused at one point during the video. The outfit change at 16:00 was mwah, chef's kiss :P
Hahaha, I'm glad you enjoyed! Chainsaw Man will almost certainly enter the pipeline after I rewatch it, and I'm glad someone caught the costume change!
18:16 he didn’t notice anything at all… until hopefully EoE :( (Asuka is also my favourite character so I wanted nothing but a happy ending for her T.T )
18:16 also is that Misato’s top? Maybe because she envy’s Misato ability to attract and wants to have that happen between her and shinji similar to what is happening with Kaji and Misato.. they’re kinda parallels imo Misato being shinji and kaji being Asuka
23:22 I just want them togetherrr :(
(Finished NGE and EoE three days ago took 2 or 3 days to fully get through and it’s all that’s been on my mind since… can’t stop listening to the ending it’s been on repeat for like 72hours)
Asuka and shinji I just hope ended up a couple after the ending of EoE… they had to.. Asuka with all these hints such as the boundary wanted to be taken down, the sleep and tryna kiss him scene, when she’s alone asking shinji to hold her, the pool scene where she first gets him to look at her breasts then watch her swim, the “bored kiss” in the 9vs1 begging for shinji to help and in shinjis case the hospital scene both the part and him begging her to wake up at least one more time to call him a baka also when he finally does get up to the aftermath of the 9vs1 he sees Asuka’s mutilated Eva corpse and goes into rage mode causing the third impact for her… in the lcl Asuka sees his “jerk off fantasies” to her and he chokes her thinking she isn’t real but she kinda is it’s just they’re all one, then when they return from the lcl shinji chokes her again this time she caresses his cheek proving to shinji it’s real and showing what I feel is love towards him and then he begins to cry and she calls him disgusting idk if it’s because she remembers his hospital part or if it’s her going back to normal and somewhat hating weakness but also still loving him… the series has left me void and depressed nearly longing or wishing I was in that universe instead of here. It may seem weird of psycho but I just wish I didn’t exist here and existed there as shinji or from his perspective. I feel a longing or desire for this and I’ve done nothing the past few days but think or obsess over this anime and film
God I just want Shinji and Asuka to end up together after EoE 💔
such an amazingly well made video
Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed!
Great analysis 👍
Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed!
Bravo for this videao. It was refreshing and helped to understand the function of asuka character.
Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed and found it valuable and insightful!
Dude your understanding of shot composition, and visual language is fantastic.
Aww thank you so much! So glad to know you're finding it insightful and enjoyable!
As someone who has never watched (and most likely never will watch) Evangelion, this deep-dive series has perfectly summarised, explored and comprehensively explained the different aspects of the show, these videos have deeply intrigued me with the characters, world-building and story
While I definitely encourage seeing the original series, I'm glad to know these videos have proved to be a suitable introductory to the franchise. I'm glad the analysis has intrigued you and that you're enjoying!
@timberw0lfstudios It's definitely on the may-or-may-not-watch list, but my time has been limited as of recent months, and as much as I love a good ol' tragedy (coming from someone who studies mythology and folklore), I'd rather stay clear from indulging in such stories for the foreseeable future.
However, your videos are definitely more approachable in comparison to other video essays / deep dives that may be a bit intimidating, especially when symbolism is mentioned or the inclusion of other Evangalion media.
Long story short, your editing , writing, and humor is absolutely a motivator to not let this show go under the radar for me
Aww, thank you for all the kind words! I know exactly what you mean with being short on time: heaven knows I haven't started a new show on my own time in months. Glad to know Evangelion remains on your watchlist, and if you do get around to it, I hope you find it just as enjoyable as my series. Trust me, my videos don't do it justice.
As an Asuka fan since day 1 I appreciate this video IMMENSELY! This made me love her even more ❤️ I feel like she just often gets dismissed as the most outright toxic character. But I just love her, flaws and all. Your point about Asuka being technically the usual protagonist material is so spot on! Made me realize why I immediately got drawn to her- she's the girl I WANT to be. She's the type I want to be friends with because I know she can infect me with her courage to just get things done. This video is a gem for me.
Also, just a side note...since moving to Japan I've noticed how Asuka seems to be more popular here than Rei. I know Rei was SUPER popular when the OG Eva series first aired, but I noticed that during the height of the most recent Eva movies, Asuka merch gets sold out so much quicker. I see more people with Asuka merch too. I didn't expect that, thinking Rei has always been the more popular character.
Anyhoo, my girl in red deserves all the love ❤️
Absolutely! Asuka is a fantastic character (let's be real, they all are), and it's nice to finally have a discussion around her! Her popularity has certainly seemed to skyrocket since the Rebuilds, so I suppose her prevalence shouldn't be that surprising, and yet here we are. 27 years later, the Rei vs Asuka battle rages on!
Thank you so much for sharing!
“There was a time I think I had a crush on you. But you stayed 14 and I grew up”
That shit HURTED
Once again. A beautiful analysis. Bravo
Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed it!
I just finished and this was so good!
I'm glad you enjoyed!
I just binged all of this series so far except the first video (which I honestly just didn't notice on your channel) and the whole time I believed I was watching an effort by a CZcamsr with at least a million subs. Imagine my shock when I saw you're under 5000. This hasn't just been one of the most comprehensive and insightful analysis of Eva, it's also been one of the most cosy. Like having a chat about a mutual favourite with a good mate over drinks.
Is it a delusion because there was no actual input from myself and you didn't even know I personally exist? Absolutely. Is this kind of para-social relationship substituting an actual chat with a good mate over drinks the polar opposite of the show's entire message? Probably. Nevertheless, I enjoyed it very much!
EDIT: In addition this vid got me to look at Asuka a whole lot and her character design is one of my favourite of all time. She was also one of my first anime crushes. Judge me as you will.
EDIT2: Also, your art is majestic and your editing is superb.
To a comment like this, I really don't know what to say except thank you. Thank you so much.
How you've described the videos was everything I set to achieve when producing them. I've always wanted to join a community where everyone can be cozy, at home, and excited about discussing what we love. Seeing that exact community forming around my videos is indescribably uplifting.
Thank you. For being a part of this community. For all the feedback and support. For taking the time to comment this wonderful, fulfilling encouragement.
As far as I'm concerned, we are buddies, and I'll buy you a drink anytime.
@@timberw0lfstudios Well, if you're ever in vaguely Eastern Europe, hit me up! I'll let you know if I'm ever able to visit the States. Lol
There are two things I regret that happened since I posted this comment. One, I forgot to actually subscribe. What an absolute dunce I am. Two, I didn't notice and correct my plural for analysis (should be analyses* xD) before you gave me a heart because editing comments takes those off. Oh well, my spelling shall forever remain disgraced.
Keep up the good work, man! I'll sure be here for the ride.
Thank you again! And don't worry about misspells: somehow with all the writing I do, I still manage to misspell congrajulations frequently.
*Concradulations
*Congraltutations
You get my point.
If and when I'm in Eastern Europe (and I'm sure sooner or later I will be), I'll be sure to hit you up! Until then, I'll keep doing my best, and knowing I've got you for a supporter makes everything loads easier.
Cheers, and God bless!
The german book Rei is reading is NOT about genetics... :D
The text on top the left page is part of a foreword in which the translator of a french poem (Prince Ludwig I.) explains why he chose to translate the piece (Le Sage Vieillard) into german in 1643. It starts mid-sentence
The next part starts below the drawings on the left page ("Personen von uraltem Geschlecht...") and continues on the right page. This is the first part of the 1669 novel "Der abenteuerteuerliche Simplicissimus" (The adventurous simpleton) and the paragraph boils down to "Some people think a bit of money makes them noblemen but their fathers are poor, their sisters are whores and their mothers are matchmakers or even witches. Their whole family is rotten" followed by some racist stuff...
The stuff right of the drawing on the right page is actually the "parable of the prodigal son" but funnily enough I can't find the translation that matches the text. It's real german and seems to be a good translation but I can't find it...
German dude signing off :D
Thank you for this! The Eva wiki said it was about genetics (which would be fitting for Rei), but I find conflicting sources and didn't have time to fully dig into it before.
Thank you for clearing this all up! I knew my fellow German buddies would have my back on this one. XD
The wait was indeed worth it.
Breathing a sigh of relief XD
The video took way longer than expected, but I wanted to ensure I released it in top tier condition. No point in living with regrets, right? Super glad you found the wait worthwhile; hopefully the next one comes out sooner!
this is kind of a little secret i kept to myself but honestly i love asuka, honestly very happy to see evangelion videos still made in 2023
Yay! I'm glad! This video was such a blast to put out, so I'm happy so many are finding joy in it.
And I kinda love Asuka too. Don't worry, you're not alone.
Love the clever edits, the story stuff (it's been a long time, bro), and the insights
I enjoyed this
Awesome, thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed!
i have seen the series multiple times, and this essay about it is filling a lot of spaces where I went... what?, I'm eager to see the next one
I'm glad you found it valuable and enjoyable! It was a lot of fun to put together, and I'm excited to release more soon!
Evangelion is so a good show, every time that I watch it I have a deep revealing sensation as reading a Dostoevsky novel for how much the psychological aspects are developed and the spectator can relate. You are doing an incredible job of unpacking and explaining everything. Looking forward to the next videos :)
Thank you so much! I'm glad to know you enjoyed and that the analyses have been up to par; I'm excited to keep covering this series!
Asuka is the best!! Also great editing, you have a great voice. Subbed
Aww thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed; thank you for the support!
Tiffany Grant nailed Asuka’s character perfectly.
I started the ADV dub only recently, and honestly the mark she left on the character's legacy is undisputable and remarkable in every way. An incredible performance without doubt.
@@timberw0lfstudios NGE shouldn’t be redubbed. The ADV dub was perfect.
On that I do have to disagree, but to each their own. I'm hoping one day they'll do a consolidated dub and cover the entire franchise with the same cast, but we'll see if that ever happens.
Good stuff, happy to see another video. I'd never really thought about all the water and diving stuff in connection with Asuka in these episodes. Now I'm thinking about her and water for other stuff in the series. Interesting where she ends up having her reboot in EoE. Also makes me think of that bathtub scene.
The 90s fashion always makes me laugh...but also it looks cool af
Yes, yes, and double yes. Glad you enjoyed the video and that I could reveal more details for you! Thank you for the feedback and support, it means the world!
Very well made video. Asuka is an incredible character and one of my favorites in all of fiction. I want to say thank you for focusing on the original series, as it seems to be constantly overshadowed by the vastly inferior "Rebuild" movies.
Aww thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed the video! I can't say anything about the Rebuilds as I haven't seen them yet, but Asuka's entire arc throughout the original series is phenomenal, and I'm excited to cover more of it as things progress. Thank you again for the feedback and support!
@@timberw0lfstudios Hey no problem, thanks for the great videos!
If you ask me, the Rebuild series is like a fan fiction of NGE. It betrays everything that made the series great in favor of modern tropes and action. It's almost surreal to watch, especially how the first movie almost exactly follows the show before it goes off the rails.
I suppose it is worth a watch just to experience it. I actually like Rebuild Ramiel more, but it mostly just made me angry to watch lol.
I recommend a CZcams video called "The Curse of Evangelion" for more on that. It's a good one.
Will definitely check out that video, thank you! I'm excited to get around to the Rebuilds eventually, but for now I'm enjoying covering just the Original series.
@@timberw0lfstudios Nice! I'll look forward to that. I'm always interested to hear other's perspectives on the Rebuild series. It's quite polarizing among the NGE community.
Looking at the colors of each plugsuit again, you can start to see more allusions to the true nature of each Eva and their pilot. We take the color of Shinji's suit almost for granted, white and blue with red on the collar is your typical "Heroic" primary colors, like seen with the original Gundam.
Rei's suit is stark white with orange straps and a red collar, but she also has a red orb similar to an S2 core in her stomach with two green chevrons to the outside of it. This could serve as foreshadowing that she is born from the fusion of Angel and Human DNA as she's a clone of Yui, the orange stripes referring to the color of LCL, Lillith's blood. Asuka's suit being red with the blue collar is indicitive of the true nature of her Eva as it's the only one with blue (Angel) blood.
Fantastic points on all fronts. I think you're spot on with those interpretations on the color theory, and really just goes to show character designer Sadamoto's brilliance throughout this series.
26:54 - The series is full of figurative "Absolute Terror Fields" when you start looking for them, and here's a great example: that transparent refrigerator door between Shinji and Asuka.... she closes the door - drops the field - by the end of the scene, but of course that's just a temporary thing. The same goes for her "Wall of Jericho", another figurative incarnation of her "A.T. Field", which she's daring - indeed, begging! - anyone to penetrate, but alas, Shinji, star of the "Hedgehog's Dilemma" show himself, is absolutely the wrong person to expect to breech such a spikey wall without gentle encouragement!
A word needs to be said at this point about those iconic - and ridiculous! - plug suits, and that word should probably begin with the Eva armor, which Ritsuko is forced to explain for the benefit of the Bridge Bunnies and the audience: the Evas do not wear armor for protection, the armor is as much a restraint as it is a shield. So when one of the characters - Asuka, I think - hangs a lampshade on those form-fitting plug suits at one point by pointing out how they must have been designed by "leches" as the "fan-service" that they are, and wonders why the pilots have to wear those suits, keep in mind that the plug suits are equivalent to the Evas' armor, and serve a dual function of restraint and protection - that is, they are figurative "A.T. Fields" worn by the characters. In that context, consider all the times that the pilots are NOT wearing their plug suits while in their plugs: moments where the pilots are inserted naked into the plugs to test their synch rates, for example, or moments following extremely high synch rates and consequent Ego Death!
Or, interestingly, that scene in Asuka's introduction where she forces a humiliated Shinji into her own plug suit, leaving them to fight together side-by-side - quite effectively - in identical colour-coordinated plug-suit "A.T. Fields", conveniently colour-coded in our old friend, the colour Red, for shared pain, echoed later, in the Synchronized Dance, episode by an equally embarrassed Shinji and Asuka wearing identical dance costumes as they struggle to learn to work together until they are finally more comfortable with each other!
Much the same sort of thing might be said for the other uniforms throughout the show, too: when you see Misato dressed up in a weirdly formal uniform buttoned up to her chin with a hem down to her knees or calves instead of her usual short-shorts or mini-skirts, I think we can take it as a visual hint that there's something more going on than Misato simply being suddenly more business-like: Misato wears such uniforms when she's about to do something she's extremely uncomfortable with! (Contrast with poor Ritsuko's degrading interrogation by SEELE, without the protection - and restraint - of her usual lab-coat uniform....)
The "Absolute Terror Field" motif takes the form elsewhere in the obvious armor, and walls and doors (see Asuka's complaint about the doors in Japanese homes not being well-suited for guarding privacy, the scene where Misato first invites Shinji into her home, the scenes where first Shinji then later Shinji and Toji invite themselves into Rei's apartment), as well as less obvious metaphors such as the eye-hiding reflections of several characters' glasses (notably Gendo and Ritsuko, and Misato's sunglasses, and interestingly also the glasses of Shinji's annoying Otako friend, Aida. In Gendo's case, check out the running theme of Rei fetishizing Gendo's glasses after he rescued her from her super-heated plug, even as Gendo begins wearing tinted glasses instead, as well as any scene where we see a bright lens reflection hiding Gendo's eyes....)
oh man what a fantastic treat to watch after coming home from the bar. excellent work as always my dude. don’t worry about being late, just keep them coming. looking forward to the next one
Aww, thank you so much! It's much appreciated! I'm glad you enjoyed it so much, and I'll keep doing my best with future content!
You deserve so many more views and subscribers. Everything about your videos is top notch. From the productiuon quality and pacing right down to the added humor. 10/10 will watch again.
Aww, thank you so much! That means the world, honestly. I'm glad you enjoyed, and I'm excited to release more soon!
Wonderful, these break downs are truly special. Thanks for all the hard work.
Thank YOU for appreciating them! I'm so glad you're enjoying them so far; I'm excited to release more soon!
I'm enjoying this series very much. I liked that subtle quick edit of you sitting on the iconic chair Shinji does in the last episode
Wonderful! I'm so glad you're enjoying the series so far! I'm excited to release more soon!
You NEED more recognition, this is great!
Aww thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed! Recognition is always appreciated, but so long as I'm helping others and making days just a little brighter, that's all I care about.
I think every NGE fan has rewatched Ep 8, 9, and 10 and mentally shut out the knowledge of how things end up from there. They’re such happy episodes, they almost make you feel like the show is progressing like a normal action show where things will be happy at the end
The calm before the storm
@@timberw0lfstudios also, something I just noticed, that you may think is worthwhile- in Ep 11, when they are manually prepping the Evas for launch, due to the power outage, they prep all 3 but unit 01 is the last one finished. If they were being intentional about what order they prepped them in, that meant that Gendo had them prep Rei’s and Asuka’s before Shinji’s, implying that he had the least faith in Shinji arriving in time to face the 8th Angel compared to the other two
Or it could be that they prepped all three simultaneously, but Gendo personally oversaw the preparation of Unit-01 due to his bias and faith in Shinji.@@jacobnormann6678
@@timberw0lfstudios that’s a fair answer- but let’s be honest, here, do we think that Gendo had the most, or the least, faith in his son?
Very hard to say. In the very next episode he expresses pride in his son, but of course until that point he remains rather stoic. I think we can only speculate.
Asuka meeting Rei is a throwback the story of Alexander meeting Diogenes, a very famous Cynic philosopher and possible madman who by choice lived as a penniless beggar. The conquering emperor went to a field where the famous Cynic was sunning himself. He asked Diogenes if there was anything that he could do for him and Diogenese responded "you can stand out of my sunlight". The difference being that Alexander left their meeting admiring Diogenes and his reaction saying "if I were not Alexander then I would want to be Diogenes", while Asuka reacts in the far more feminine manner of becoming upset and anxious at being ignored, feeling her social status being threatened by just one person of dubious status rejecting it.
I wonder if it was intentional or just a coincidence?
A wonderful comparison. Intentional or not, it's fun to see the differences in those interactions and glean more insight into those characters. Thank you for sharing!
Just found this video and at 14:23, noticing the beer can had Ebichi on it, some years before she got her own anime. Of course, the beer’s name being a pun and one of the VA’s that enjoyed reading the Ebichu mangas.
I felt Chainsaw Man had some similar vibes/themes/symbolism as Evangelion so all for you making a video comparing those two :)
When I was first watching Evangelion back in the 90s, I related more to Asuka and she remains my favorite anime character. But now that I am older and rewatched in recently, I definitely feel more like Misato.
All right then, it's final: I shall do a Chainsaw Man video eventually!
And yes, Asuka is fantastic, although I also empathize more with Misato on recent rewatches. They're both fantastic characters.
Another brilliant video featuring the one and only Asuka! Keep these up!
Thank you so much! I'll keep doing my best!
Man, these are fantastic videos. Really enjoying them.
Aww thank you so much! I'm glad you're enjoying them!
Yo, that’s one of my favorite cartoon characters of all time and I thoroughly appreciate how you feature her here.
Awesome! Thank you so much; I'm glad you appreciated the analysis!
Im loving this series!!! I have only watched the rebuilds so this is just amazing to watch. Good job and I'm really excited for the next episodes.
Thank you so much! I'm glad you're enjoying the series so far; I'm excited to release more soon!
Cant wait to see the next video in the series. You'll finally get to cover my favorite act. episode 11 to 19 are peak.
Absolutely! Glad you've been enjoying the series so far, because this next section is definitely what I'm most excited about. Here's hoping I can release it soon!
0:12 I’m sure asuka would be very grateful to know that you have that weapon in the background while u speak about her ;P
I would certainly hope so; thank you for the encouragement XD
@@timberw0lfstudios XP
@@timberw0lfstudios all jokes aside though the poor kid definitely didn’t deserve what happened to her
lol I think its funny cause the DHL truck sort of sets up Asuka's moving in, because all her stuff is packed with the same DHL company boxes.
youtube has been feeding me so much eva content since i just finished my rewatch of the rebuild movies. i'm so glad to have found this channel.
Yay! We're glad you're here! Grab a chair and join us at the table, friend.
I really appreciate your feedback and support!
When this whole series is wrapped up, it will be, without a doubt, the best analysis of NGE as a whole
You've given me an incredible compliment and yet set the bar far too high: nevertheless, I will do my best not to disappoint.
Thank you for the encouragement.
I couldn't understand why Asuka was so afraid of the EVA's power until the episode in which it canibalized one of its own (an Angel).
If humans with power are already terrifying, imagine animals with it. Pure innocence and need...
Wonderful video. I'm proud of the channel's growth.
Thank you so much! It's all thanks to your support!
I'm really enjoying this series. You're doing a great job of being informative, but your videos don't feel like they're adding to fill out time (there's already just SO MUCH to cover in Eva!).
Thanks for cluing us in on things we might have noticed on the surface level (gee, that's a lot of red usage throughout), and sharing insight on meaning and themes.
Thank you so much! I'm glad you're enjoying the series so far; I've loved putting it together!
I try not to tread ground others have already covered, so knowing the videos are landing right means a lot. Thank you so much for the feedback! Your support means the world, and I'm excited to release more soon!
I'm glad you touched on the ending credits, which is an underappreciated element of the show that helps illustrate character and thematic developments.
Unfortunately, the best aspect of the credits, that being the unique arrangements of Fly Me To The Moon that evolve through the show, are at risk of being overlooked by most viewers due to all releases of Eva in the past 15 years or so replacing it with... just Rei I.
It fits the general atmosphere, but having one static piece (one that's deeply tied to a specific character at a specific moment in time in the narrative) really doesn't provide as much as the original experience.
In other words, netflix dub bad new box set bad
Anyway, super great stuff man, I'm shocked it took this long for somebody to post a high quality analysis of Eva through a film theory lens like this.
If you are looking for further insight into these characters and events, I highly recommend giving the manga adaptation of the series a read. It's a fascinating alternative.
Thank you so much! I'm glad you're enjoying the analyses so far. I've really enjoyed putting them together, and while I obviously can't cover everything, I'm excited to continue revealing new details to others.
I love this series so much that I'll likely get into the manga adaptation sooner or later, and given how in-demand the Eva content has been, I'll almost assuredly do a video on it when I do. Thank you for the insight and recommendations; I super appreciate it!
we understand your despair.... you even have longinus to prove it
19:31 End of Evangelion: "Allow me to introduce myself"
Very different moves in a very different game
I love these Eva videos! Seriously some of the best essays on Eva I’ve ever seen! Keep em coming!
Aww thank you so much! I'm so glad you're enjoying them; I'll keep doing my best!
@@timberw0lfstudios thank you for your hard work!
She was originally gonna be the main character, and I've also read somewhere she is Anno's self insert.
anyway great video showing the contrast
Thank you so much, I'm glad you enjoyed!
Yes, Asuka is such an intriguing character, and I'm so excited to keep analyzing her and others as we continue!
Thank you for all the feedback and support!
As weird as it may be, I'm glad we got Shinji.
Then again, having her as the protagonist could probably have been an interesting challenge to overcome.
@@JabamiLain It wouldn't feel complete now. Also, I really like the characterization contrasts between the First, Second and Third Child.
Anno is a genius!
@@thurstonaxel8505 true. Each represents a part of the human mind, making all three essential for the narrative.
@@JabamiLain I'm sorry but have to disagree on what they represent to the narrative. From how I understand it, they each represent a form of existentialism.
Which, stems from their childhood and ongoing trauma. Which also in term makes them EVA pilots suitable for high synchronisation with LCL... I think that's how it works atleast.
This might be a bit late, but the film burn cut mentioned at 12:50 might be a reference to the N2 bombing that happened after their failure to take down the angel.
Ooooh! I love that interpretation!
Asuka standing on tbe bench makes me think of that mat proverb you brought up earlier
Shinji is sitting while Asuka is standing - still on the same mat, but still not wating to align herself even though she's putting her pride aside to cooperate
Great point!
I love how you pronounced these difficult German words. Don't get me wrong, they are really hard. But they were just delightfully off.
Hahaha, I'm glad you enjoyed! I meant to refresh my German before recording, but ran out of time and just went with it. I know I butchered them, but it was a blast to laugh at myself and I'm glad others can laugh too.
I’m glad there’s people stil talking about her, I just watched this series for the first time two weeks ago and I just finished all the movies I absolutely love this franchise
Evangelion is the masterpiece that just keeps giving. I'm glad to hear you've recently enjoyed the franchise! Definitely a property I think everyone needs to see at least once in their life.
I think her character fitting more as protagonist kinda makes sense since originally in the planning she was supposed to be the main character along with Yui until they changed things over since they already made Gunbuster which features the same kind of female duo.
Totally! I didn't realize Asuka was the main protagonist at one point--all of my reading points to her being a supplementary character from conception. Do you have any sources on the contrary? I'd love to read up on that!
@@timberw0lfstudios I haven't found the source but kinda read some articles years ago along with the original concept arts of Eva, there's Asuka with different plugsuit and Yui, and some of older unit 01 design that looks way different than what we got. If only I could find it again.
No worries. I recently found the series proposal and read through that figuring it was the earliest draft of the show, so your allusion to other earlier drafts piqued my interest.
Love the deep analysis AND the most fabulous quick costume change EVER!! 👏👏👏
Hahaha, thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed them both!