Empathy in Evangelion Eps. 3&4
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- čas přidán 27. 06. 2015
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The amount you like Evangelion is inversely proportionate to the amount you like yourself at the time of watching it
... That's pretty damn fucking genius
Thanks. I was in a bad place when i first watched Evangelion and it seems like most fans who are really into it felt the same. The message Evangelion puts forward really hits home and helps if you are depressed or have low self esteem.
+Brian Lung Absolutely correct.
On a side note, I hated Welcome to the NHK, I wonder if it applies there as well. When watching NHK I din't connect with that anime MC at all, I think was relatively happier in life then!
that's not true in my case. i dunno. i've been thinking of watching this again. maybe i'll like it more now? food for thought
I watched it about a week after my first breakup (a year and a half relationship I'd put way too much of my existence into if that makes any sense), it was a kinda weird choice/experience that ended with me legitamately wandering around my house aimlessly just trying to comprehend what I'd just experienced when I finished EoE but it made it one of my all time favorite shows/franchises.
Before I watched this show about two ago. I'd always heard people say "Godammit Shinji, just get in the robot" or "Stop being a bitch Shinji, you're surrounded by all these hot chicks"
When I did watch the show, I had to wonder if all those people were inhuman monsters. Because I thought Shinji was incredibly sympathetic, and the show did a great job of making you understand the horror and stress of piloting the Eva, and just how horrible Shinji's life has been up to this point. I was going through a period in my life where it was harder for me to connect with people so I did relate to him, though I don't think quite so much as you did as a teenager.
Anyway I really don't understand and kinda hate the people who hate Shinji for just being a real damaged human being, and who seemingly didn't want to take the time to think about the characters on anything deeper than the most basic a surface level, and just want all their anime to be a loud, crazy, wacky nonsensical adventure with super assertive protagonists, and really lame fanservice. Yeah I like some crazy shows that don't take themselves seriously too (though I like the one's that are smart about it like Gurren Lagann and Kill la Kill), but I also like shows that try to dig deeper and do something different.
I agree with you 100%. Shinji is a fantastic protagonist, however I wish I didn't identify with him as much as I do ( his character forces me to do some vary painful self reflection...) .
Those bastards claiming "Shinjis a pussy" wouldn't stand a chance if they were placed in his shoes and forced to fight a giant fucking alien.
Sorry about ranting there... Anyhow, I agree with you. :)
XD No man its cool. Glad someone else gets it :)
OmegaLittleBob I'm very sympathetic to Shinji, but I do admit he really frustrates me on some level, too. I suppose it's because he occasionally reveals real potential for growth only to backslide pretty hard, but that's totally realistic. So, I get frustrated with him, but I get him, too. It's a testament to Evangelion's quality that it can make someone so ambivalent towards its characters.
+OmegaLittleBob
90% of the people who call shinji a pussy, are mostly young men, who are so convinced of their masculinity. They have a total distorted view of how men are suppossed to be nowadays, and find themselves everday leaving rude comments like "nice pussy girl", "Id bang that bitch" on a video or livestream where a girl (regardless of age) can be seen.
Young men, and adult men aswell sadly, today, do have certain expectations of how men are suppossed to be, yet they are just stupid and unrealistic.
Goddamn it, Shinji is a fucking kid, hes 14.
Hes a fucking normal BOY... besides his depressions and stuff^^
Yes I total agree with ur comment^^
two... what though?
I cant tell you how many scenes I relate to in NGE, what a masterpiece.
I feel like we all relate to NGE in some way. Because it's able to conect with so many people so easily is one of the reasons i consider it to be a masterpiece.
like what may I ask
Evangelion is the godfather of subtext. Whether this is a good thing or not is left to the viewer's opinion, but no one can deny that the writing itself is brilliant.
Vengeful Spirit Isn't Lain the Godfather of subtext? (or should thay be godmother?)
tardifan I don't know, dude, Lain seemed pretty straightforward when I saw it. While there were some good instances of both subtext and foreshadowing in it, the show isn't built on it.
yee
I'm 26 years old and I still feel like I relate more to Shinji than I do to Misato. There's a lot of times when I can understand Misato's frustration, because some people aren't 'getting it'. But I'm the freakin' person that doesn't get it half the time. I still have a ton of sadness and insecurity at my age that I feel should have been outgrown a long time ago, but never was. For reasons, it's probably worsened than it's gotten any better, hence why I'm still stuck in the 'Shinji stage' of my life.
+Nerdicaful I feel like it has nothing to do with age. Shinji's situation doesn't really have to evolve into Misato's. Actually, Gendoh has the same avoidant personality disorder as shinji. This is explained in EOE, during the second impact, that he was running away from people, specially Shinji, because he didn't wan't to get hurt nor hurt anybody, which actually did hurt those around him and he beleived he didn't deserve to be loved. Which is why he only shows his emotions to Rei.
I had, and still have the same problem as Shinji, but i'm trying hard to overcome it, and i think i'm doing some progress, but i didn't do it alone.
Asuka if she gets to live to grow up will more likely become misato.
I think he opens up to rei is because she reminds him of his mother (understandable) and because she is as emotional neutral as you can get.
So we're just gonna go through analyzing every Evangelion episode now? Awesome, can't wait for the rest.
Bobby Jenkins If it's anything like his series on Serial Experiments: Lain I wholeheartedly agree. ^_^
If you want to go even deeper, you could see toji and shinji’s interactions in the episodes as fire shadowing for the series’s ultimate answer to the hedgehog’s dilemma, that being the the pricks are just as much a part of human intimacy as the warmth, and you shouldn’t let your fear of being pricked keep you from developing relationships with people
I feel like I'm currently somewhere in between Shinji's state of mind and Misato's.
I'm nowhere near as suicidal & depressed as I was when I was around Shinji's age, but I still lack confidence in myself. I've been stagnant for years and sometimes I think I won't actually get an ounce of independence until my parents finally kick the bucket. Things that once brought me joy now seem emotionally draining and I don't have any motivation to do anything with my life.
But I also have this stubborn will to survive that Misato has, and I don't let anyone get away with putting themselves down or asking dumb questions like "what's the point?" because it reminds me of my former self and it pisses me off! I mean if I haven't killed myself yet, what gives you the right to even think about it? (the metaphorical you)
I guess I'm just sort of biding my time until I can gather the resources I need to get out of this godforsaken household.
Lori P Interesting self refelection. Guess i'm right now in this sinji situation... and i'm 19 ffs.
Good luck.
Sorry but i cant say more.
As a preteen to teen girl, I tended to make up Mary Sue characters, though I fortunately became aware of what a Mary Sue is before I learned how to post things on the Internet. My self-insert OC was a girl who sympathized with Shinji, was his shoulder to cry on and gave him comforting words. Now over a decade later, your analysis of empathy had me wondering what would happen if there was someone who meant well but ended up just coddling Shinji. Is there such a thing as too much empathy?
Yes, Shinji's burden is too much to put on a teenage boy, especially someone who is already as psychologically damaged as he is. But Eva still needs to be piloted or else everyone will be killed. Would someone validating Shinji's protests lessen his motivation to fight and end up dooming humanity? Would Shinji become too comfortable with venting around this person and end up hurting them? Would Misato notice how this relationship is preventing Shinji from growing and have to sever it, sparking anger and straining her relationship with him? So many questions...
That's a good question actually. Shinji definitely strikes me as the type who might latch on to someone and possibly even become totally reliant on them if they were to give him a complete and total empathetic ear, at least after he knew them well enough to open up to them. It might have led to him becoming unable to form any sort of self-reliance or agency.
That's clearly a moot point considering Shinji did form rudimentary friendships with classmates, with peers who realise his agony, supports him, and in reverse Shinji finds in his friends the courage and necessity to defend mankind, leading to selflessness and wish to support others, as opposed to just being constantly supported by others.
But prior to that nobody gave half a sh*t to Shinji's existence other than using him as a convenient tool, so being treated as thus, with no emotional attachment to others, why the hell would he have wanted to save the assholes that never gave a damn about him?
In a way the show did something simmilar to this with the last angel in the series. The last angel came and imediatley befriended shinji and told him all the things that he wanted to here.
Which the show plays off of in an interesting way by showing that by the end of the episode that the angel could only understand shinji because he was even more depresed than shinji which and preforms his final actions in an attemp to be killed because he was suicidal.
This delivers the intresting idea that being depresed help people relate to other depresed people but at the same time it not helthy for them because of the circulating negativity
I think shinji questions his stance when he makes friends at school or if he would keep living with asuka, who would kick his butt if he tried to do that.
Justin Doesn’t he do so with Kaoru? Because Kaoru was so nice to him (sauna scene, Kaoru death scene), it seems to me that the only character other than Shinji’s mother who Shinji loves without compromise is Kaoru. Just Shinji’s luck that both of them have to die in NGE.
Fuck... I'm 20 and still relate way more to Shinji...
You lost me at "intelligent, mature adult". Never once did I get that impression from Misato, in fact, I felt exactly the opposite was the case. I found hypocrisy to define her character (along with a majority of characters in the series, but none to her degree), as she's quite judgmental towards Shinji, telling him he can't run away from his problems, and yet she's repressing her own litany of personal issues, and any time she tells him his actions are irresponsible I can't help but get incredibly pissed off since the entire act of more or less forcing a 14-year old to put his life in danger on a daily basis is pretty much the textbook definition of irresponsible. The fact that she urges Shinji to deal with his problems while never showing any initiative towards solving her own is just another reason why I can't possibly see her as having any positive influence on Shinji. I think the only adult in the series, and one of the few characters overall, who ever talked to Shinji without being patronizing or projecting their problems onto him was Kaji. He gave it to him straight and treated him like he was any other human being as opposed to treating him like some kind of basket case, and the result is that he imparted far more wisdom onto him than anyone else he interacts with did.
BestWayKilla We might just have different ideas of what it means to be an adult, or to be mature. To me, it's more about being able to recognize what needs to be done and then to try to do it. She's not necessarily good at it, but she's trying her best, and she really does care. Maybe I just have pretty low expectations of people lol.
***** Fair enough. I personally didn't enjoy EVA very much, mostly because I think the plot and characterization went off a cliff about mid-way through the series, and they weren't exactly setting a new benchmark before then in my opinion. I think it's a shame, too, because the art style and animation are both very high quality, and the general premise had a lot of potential. I find it's a series that's always interesting to talk about, even if I don't have a lot of good things to say about it.
+BestWayKilla This is why I love Eva. Yes Misato is a hypocrite and judgmental but she's only human. An emotionally unstable one at that. For me personally, the fact that she has these faults strengthen the scenes where she is exceptional. Plus, these flaws makes for great character development like at the end of episode 4. This is why Kaji is my least favorite character. He is so perfect and so sure of himself he has no room to grow. He sort of acts as a plot device to move the story forward and to help Shinji's own development. Real people aren't like Kaji. Real people are like Misato.
In the end, you can dislike her all you want for her issues but it only exemplifies what makes the series great. Real people are hated for those exact reasons in the real world, and unlike Misato, some go their entire life without maturing past their issues.
Dominic Smith I think it's debatable whether or not she matured past those issues. I certainly don't think she did. I also don't agree with the notion that because characters have all sorts of flaws to their personalities. I see them as a facsimile of a real person, with overly exaggerated flaws and traits. Plenty of people have those sorts of problems, but to act like she's a realistic character is something I find absurd. She's got realistic problems, but to an unrealistic degree.
BestWayKilla It's still an anime and a character study at that, so I can forgive the exaggeration because that's kind of the point. And you have to keep in mind that all of these characters are pushed to very unrealistic limits.
Shinji Ikari is the only amine character I have love-hate feeling to. I hate how he is so like me. I love how he's so like me.
First time watching these episodes my thought was just, “Let the boy go, no one is getting help by keeping him here especially him, let him be a kid.” I took on Shinji’s view while looking at it from Misato’s role.
For me who lost most of my childhood, it was like a fantasy dream world where I could escape if only I could reach it. I thought if I had more of it I’d be better, but really I was just running away like Shinji.
I was also conflicted to tell Shinji that humanity needed him, if I was in his position my life wouldn’t matter if it was to give for others. Yet at the time I had trouble loving others as Asuka said, “Anyone would do for you, if you love everyone you love no one at all.”
And I understood, I hated myself so much that the only way to run away was to love others, anybody, as long as it wasn’t me. That just lead to everyone looking no different from anyone else I meet, everybody was just the same.
Kaworu really made me realize how alike Shinji and I are, he was the only person Shinji was capable of loving because Shinji could give him what he wanted and he was who Shinji wanted to be, a role model, his other half, the missing part from Shinji. I had my own Kaworu and just like in the anime, they died. Not by my hands, but I wished I could’ve prevented it.
I hated Asuka because she was unwarranted cruel, but as I understood her, I realized I was just like her. I hated anyone who resembled my weaknesses because it was like facing a me who I could hate and not feel bad about, but like Shinji, I could never truly hate others, as long as I existed, as long as someone worst than others existed.
Even though I wanted to blame some people for my problems like Shinji to Gendo, I could never hate them because there was an opportunity to love them as I couldn’t with myself.
Even with all that I was still like Misato, dragging myself back to keep trying because others were depending on me. In this scene, I was both Shinji and Misato.
I really enjoy your analysis of this series.
I find it interesting that to you NGE was a lot about characters interacting with each other and the effect this has on them, as well as relating to them. Because it is very much different from what I have been experiencing.
To me, NGE always was about people failing to really interact with one another. This show most of the time points out just how flawed the communication between characters is, mainly between Shinji and Gendo as well as Shinji and Asuka, but also the rest of the characters. The message is a clear: We can't 100% understand each other, it is just not possible no matter how hard we try. And even if we reach that goal, do we want to? Because at the end, Shinji decides to stay with Asuka instead of becoming LCL and after that killing her. He has accepted that people will never truly understand him and he will never truly understand them as well. it's just how things are.
Well, I guess at the end of it all, it just shows a lot about all of us as individuals. You have your interpretation based on your history and personality, I have mine based on the same.
Agreed with everything you said except I don’t think he killed her at the end. He was venting anger but it would’ve gone against the message of learning to live with one another if he killed her.
I'm actually watching Evangelion for the first time. Although there are some parts that I don't really relate to or enjoy, the anime so far has been very good. It's actually because of your first NGE analysis video that I started watching the series. So thank you.
Sean Senpai when you finish Neon Genesis Evangelion See also End of Evangelion from 1997 (its ending for basic serial) and Rebuild of Evangelion (new movie series) then take a break few months and watch it again Neon Genesis Evangelion with End of Evangelion+Rebuild of Evangelion ..all of them.. trust me for second time is it much better more I enjoyed it
Ramon Ruksák Thanks, I will.
Did you finish it? what did you think?
Rumour has it he's still watching Evangelion to this day.
To this day.
Out of all of the characters in Evangelion always identified with Shinji the most; never once did I think of him as a 'whiny little bitch' and to anyone that thinks Shinji is a whiny little bitch put yourself in his position, I doubt many in Shinji's position would cope through the physical and psychological torrent he endures throughout the series.
You are shaped by what you're watching, I know what you mean. Welcome to the NHK made me release that life won't be okay if I just stay forever in my room and do nothing.
I too related all too well to Shinji right around age 14. Unlike Digibro, however, I don't believe I ever grew out of it. Appropriately enough, I'm now 29 at the time of this writing, about the same age as Misato. Even now though, I still identify more with Shinji than with Misato, especially in their respective level of independence and self confidence. Despite having been very influential in my upbringing, emotionally processing my experience with Evangelion doesn't seem to provided me with the same level of maturity that it seems to have with Digibro, but I suppose that's more on me than anything else. I watch videos like this, however, I do so wish that it had. Maybe if I identified more with Misato, I'd be able to adjust better to my now adult life. Who knows? It's not like there are mecha battles going on around me, but the challenges that I now face at 29 are probably much more in-line with those that Misato faces than with Shinji.
I completely agree and I am the same as you.
I was a shy akward guy back in my teenage day. Today I am so confident my awesomeness & in my weirdness that I can barely tolerate people that have low self esteem...
Somehow, it hurts me to think that I was the same and that maybe I haven't changed as much as I want to think.
The only way to interact with these kind of people is to work on myself and to be patient.
Thankfully, we have fiction to better understand ourselves. Because nobody is ready to share personal luggage as much as fictional characters.
Digibro, do you plan to do anything on FLCL one day ? It is one of my favorite anime ever.
kunnykuni I'd love to cover it one day for sure.
Looking forward to it.
Please, keep the good work. ^^
DFME007 Well it kind of hurt seeing a part of yourself you don't like in others. Doesn't it ?
The amount you like Evangelion is inversely proportionate to the amount you like yourself at the time of watching it
Brian Lung Or rather, the amount you like it is proportional to the amount of experience you have in disliking yourself.
It just feels kinda wrong. He's been guilt-tripped, manipulated, basically coerced into piloting the EVA, then chewed out by Misato for revealing to her the true reasons behind his agreeing with it. He got dealt a rotten fucking hand.
And yet, he somehow has this amazing revelation at the end that he should stay, under the care of a woman who is basically trying to re-frame his predicament as his fault.
I don't get it. Seems unnatural and unfair to Shinji. Seems like his decision to stay is just another act of self-erasure for the sake of being recognized as 'brave', or for the sake of keeping his emotional connection with Misato. Except that connection was born of manipulation, and they both know it. It reminds me of that Family Guy episode where Meg decides to stay with her abusive family just to endure the pain so that the rest of the family doesn't have to. What a rotten message.
I think I'm going to drop the anime after ep. 4. I simply don't agree with it.
The "action" version of ending (End of Evangelion) would surprise you then, at least it would follow your thread of logic, don't want to spoil it.
The original narrative ending also makes a now-overused but fair point that while individuality separates all of us, it also renders us unique, and despite past grievances, if we do let our barriers down we can still connect to each other. Cliche, like everything else, to outgoing, content people the message is a no-brainer, but to people who were hurt and who suffered withdrawal and depression, it's easier said than done.
+Da ve yup. I have a feeling that the comparative few who liked the original ending knew profound depression, and that series and ending let us know that we weren't alone.
in so much media centered around power fantasies and escapism, it was incredibly refreshing to see a piece that managed to deliver the aforementioned, while simultaneously doing the opposite. Horror, introspection and disempowerment, defeminizing, immasculating, discomfort... all these things both temper AND contribute to "fuck-yeah robot action," fetishism, and fan-service.
*****
Usually those who do feel alone due to inadequate support networks (bullying, ignorant parents), either 1, obediently follow others to desperately gain approval and acceptance, or 2, plead for help.
1 creates dependency issues and obstructs true individual, independent development, 2 is often derided by others as "whining, weak, pathetic", paving way for even more rejection and attack.
This anime makes them feel like they're not alone, and that it acknowledges the legitimacy of their feelings and experiences, kind of like a listening-ear counsellor.
Freudian psychology claims ignored, buried problems will only be the bedrock of further distortions. Mainstream media panders to the mainstream society that belittles mental issues (especially in a country like Japan), in that sense, to throw open the very real problem of mental issues is very constructive.
Interestingly Ritsuko would be the most functional and relateble character of the series in real life. Misato could be much of a pain, because she is effectivly a functioning alcoholic, while ritrakois a workaholic, with an unhealthy relationship to her boss.
Evangelion was my awkward teenage anime too.
I for my part thank Anno for maing me realize what some of these discussions sounded like from my parents' perspective, it made me erase several phrases from my vocabulary & realize that if I want to be understood some of the work is on me.
Another remarkable thing is that EVA commits *all of episode four* to dealing with the emotional aftermath of the first battle that Shinji consciously lived through. He's a child soldier and that isn't being swept under the rug. At all.
Though for me the character I really related to was *Rei*. Basically me in highschool, though I'm obviously not an alien clone.
Shinji is a character I deeply relate to in most aspects.. this show's themes legitimately help me to continue on in my life, and I'm very grateful to it for that. I'm looking forward to rewatching it in the future and seeing if my relationship to Shinji changes.
I don't think Misato is just mature, even tho she is surely the capable adult in the room. She is depicted as having had a sort of delayed development due to her background (it's implied that her whirwind relationship with Kenji had elements of making up for lost time, as did her earlier talkative nature when with friends) and lives like a messy co-ed who still thinks binge drinking is the way to have a good time, tho she is almost 30. Issues with maturing seems a common theme with many of the chars.
i feel quite the same, as time goes by, i fell more closer to misato, by i'll stay bounded to shinji, because it's hard to picture a human beeing without all his wonders inside him
I sympathised with Gendo the most. He was always a good guy trying to strive for the best of humanity
Please keep going all the way till the end with this series! I have been waiting 10 years for someone to do such a thorough yet clear-cut analysis of this show.
A very interesting review. Both Shinji and Misato had a lot of problems and they didn't know enough to deal with that situation. Maybe Misato is more mature (well, she's older than him) and that thing was shown at their last sequence of "The end of Evangelion".
I was saying more mature than Shinji, not fully mature. Well, on the last sequence Misato shew that we all are humans and we always make mistakes, but the most important thing is trying to go on and be able to make our own decisiones. And that's the thing that she was teaching to Shinji, she said that he had to face his own problems and not just walk away and let Seele killed him.
I share almost the same experience with Evangelion myself and likewise it helped me grow up as an adult with the years. It is still a huge influence on my way of thinking about the world and myself. I am loving these analysis videos by the way, thanks!
I relate to shynshi and Ahsuka since I am very depressed,quiet but also want to do evrything myself and can get extremely mad at the slightest details and just push when I see a problem
I'm glad I'm not the only one who relate with Shinji in those teenage years, evangelion had marked me in a way, helping me to deep think a lot more than I used to. I really enjoy your analysis and hope to see more of your great work. Salutations from Mexico :P
Great video. I'm glad that you're doing more with thematic exploration again as those have always been my personal favorites out of your work. Especially your series on SE: Lain and your comparison of the themes in KlK vs GL.
Actually, I always felt identified with the hedhedog's dilema. I'm still very uneasy to get close to people, but I'm trying my best as an adult. Heck, I'm already in Misato's age. I gotta hurry xD
What an amazing and promising series of video essays on one of the greatest works of art of the past decades.
You're helping me remember how evangelion is unique. Keep these videos coming. I can't relate 100% but i see similar moments in my life. Right now i'm not a shinji neither a misato but i still find myself thinking how some moments can bring me to realize their point of view.
This absolutely put into words how i feel about this show. Especially the last tid bit. Thank you for speaking it for us.
Yeah I do relate... I've been on a train before
It really breaks my heart when people say "Shinji is a whiny bitch." He defiantly suffers from Hedgehog dilemma & is afraid to socialize with others! This is most likely because his father left him when he was a child, most kids that grow up without a father deal with people differently because they didn't have a father figure in there life to look up too. It's worth mentioning that Shinji's mother was for the most part not around, she was around when Shinji was was much younger but she's gone. Shinji doesn't want to polite unit 01 because he sees the world as it is, he's not getting anything out of it, his father still doesn't talk to him or want to live with nor does he have a special person in his life at all! He has low self esteem issues and can't express his feelings towards anyone. One parent is dead while the other like Rei instead of Shinji. So when I hear people say " Shinji is a whiny bitch." I hope people will look deeper into Shinji, because he's been threw a lot in his life!
Hey Digibro I absolutely love NGE for everything it is especially the characters but answering the question you proposed to the viewers I personally saw myself as Shinji in many ways when I first watched it, but now re-watching the series due to your recent videos I can say my views on Shinji and myself have changed. And lastly thank you for how passionately you work on these videos it really shows how much you love NGE and I can't wait to see even more of your opinions and analysis of the show!
These are the masterclass short pieces that I discovered this channel through.
Digibro,
Watching your videos has been like looking in a mirror and regaining a voice that I've lost. That's not to say that I've finally found someone clever, enlightened and erudite as myself about anime, rather, that someone shares a passion for the medium and can articulate how the profound impact it's had on their development and how they perceive the world. I feel kindred to you and inspired to take a shot at anlaysis myself. Thank you so much for the work you put into your videos. I hope that someday you become a household name throughout the industry or famous for your own work which will certainly be excellent!
This whole anime series is a representation of my inner struggles. Each time I watch it, I can relate to a different character or situation. It has also helped me greatly to reflect on my problems and how I may solve them.
I love your videos, Evangelion changed my life when I saw it for the first time 14 years ago.
+Kimberly Herold I saw Eva when I was in middle school and I could really relate to Shinji & Rei because I was shy and sad all the time!
eva has always been one of my favorites cuz every time i re watch it or the movie remakes that have come out recently. i always find a way to empathize with a different character every new time i run thru it. due to it having such a large cast of differing types of personalities in differing pressure filled situations.. so they are all relate-able at some point if you watch it enough times. especially throughout the changes that become of someones personality through the process of that growing up. or maybe its just me
Gosh, I think you just describe my feelings about this show. I think I liked it because the connection between Shinji's problems (his depression) and mine teenager problems. Even though I didn't quite understand, I could relate to it. That's the question I could never answer: "why I think this is such a brilliant anime". Now I can, thank you!
It's fucking amazing how I never stop finding new stuff in Eva.
I can't wait for your analysis on episode 23
sometimes a hug is what you need to comfort someone
Hey @Digibro I didn't see any comments about how you used to have depression so I figured I'd tell you that I think it's really cool that you clawed your way out of it and have self-confidence and self-worth now as an adult. I myself wasn't depressed at age 14 but I was definitely lacking friends so I know what that's like. Life is really great when you find some people to be with, so I'm happy for you! Oh and this series of videos is great too. I watch an episode of Evangelion and then come back here to watch your analysis. Keep it up man
I was also quite suicidal between the age of 14 and 17, for the same reasons as you mentioned here, and it was when I watched Evangelion for the first time. The entire story left an impact on me that made me stay away from the series for years. You could even say it traumatized me. Only years later, when I watched the anime again, I found out what it was. It was the brutality.
Everytime I saw EVA01 tearing appart an angel I would be so shocked that I couldn't look away. It wasn't the blood or the gore, but the rage behind it. I remember having a lot of anger locked up inside me for the years of bullying at school and from my own father, and seeing how that rage could end scared me, knowing that at any point, my own anger could explode and turn me into someone I'm not. Somehow, I started unconsciously putting barriers within my own mind to block any attempt to let go of my rage (in fact, it had happened before that point at least two times, and I can't remember one of them because, apparently, it was pure blind rage), which obviously made something else grow: frustration.
When I watched Evangelion again years later, around the age of 26-27, I was already on my way of healing all of this emotional trauma, so I was able to analyze it as a story rather than as something more real, and I enjoyed it!
However, this anime left a trigger within my mind anyway, which activates the fears I felt back then when I thought my rage could turn my empathy off, and make me blindly hurt people. In fact, part of that anger is still there, but is used in a more positive ways, and at the age of 31 is finally starting to fade away.
This tells how good Evangelion is at dealing with human emotions, when it can leave an impact such as this in a person.
I'm with you on the depressed teen thing - though I still felt for him, back then and even now. Although I wasn't wishing for the world to come to an end, I related to Shinji and empathized with him. He was more than just depressed - he was afraid. A 'coward' he keeps calling himself, for not facing up to all the adversities of life (and for what, the false promise of praise from his father?). I totally understand how Misato feels, and to me she seems a lot like a normal adult (at least, at this point in the series). The dissection of her character really surfaces after Kaiji enters the scene, the character who is able to break her 'hedgehog dilemma' barrier. I like your analysis of her character and I think I'm starting to relate more to her now too in much the same way - but it isn't just Misato's conviction to help Shinji. It's also her job. So her hand is really forced to play the 'foster mother' role and become closer to Shinji - which is a problem due to her hedgehog's dilemma. She cannot become the pillar of support that he needs - she cannot stand up for him to Gendou, or teach him about relationships, existence and purpose - because she's also a mess. She has none of these things. She, like Shinji, 'seeks comfortable things', as mentioned in the final 2 episodes. Shinji seeks praise whilst Misato finds comfort in alcohol and her temporary taste in men. It really is about people being all fucked up and unable to help each other, even though they all really want to.
Misato's Character and her unsatisfying conclusion fucked me up so bad, I couldn't sleep.
The last 2 minutes sum it up perfectly.
I did not realize that Misato was getting hurt at the same time as Shinji did. This video really brought even more light to this brilliant anime. Thanks.
Damn what a good video. My conclusions as well. Shinji and Misato lack perspective of the future and pursuing love and family. The closer you are and more you open up, the greater the risk if pain... But.....the risk is worth romance and kids.
Good vid, thanks.. it's interesting to hear people's similar relationship with this series.
I've watched NGE about twice now once when I was fourteen and then when I was 16, I feel like I relate to Kensuke the most out of all the characters. I remember really enjoying it at 14 because of the military aspect, Eva units, and the world around them, the characters were cool too, but I never really looked into them. coming back to it as a 16 year old, a bit more mature, I feel like I can empathize with the characters more, and I remember really liking the stories behind Misato, Toji, and Kaji.
I think as the way my life is right now I'm either a mixture of both Shinji and Misato or a much more loving and open Gendo.
Currently it feels as though no matter how much effort I pour into something I'm 'suppose to do' and the 'gratitude I get is either a slap in the face or some sort of small divine punishment that seems as though I have no right to complain and just simply do it. I'm naturally empathetic and understanding but it seems that instead of simply exchanging the pain I feel with those that I care about I just take the pain myself as best as I can handle. In a way its better to say on the outside I'm more Misato then Shinji but I'm much more like Shinji on the inside at times when I feel at my emotional lowest.
Now the reason I say I might be like Gendo is bcause I know the moves I must make, I can plan ahead as much as I possibly can but unlike gendo I don't have that kind of rejection of those currently around me or the ability to detach myself from anyone who doesn't have anything to do with any plan I might have in the future.
This is an interesting video and the connection between the characters, their dynamics and how they both try to grow and become better while healing the pain they have when they can but also hurting the other and learning to simply hope they can understand that its not personal. Great video.
Dude I relate to every single character, it's like every single one is a either a part of myself or someone I know very closely.
These vids are awsome man
I remember watching this for the first time several years ago and being uncomfortable with how much of myself I saw in Shinji.
I watched Evangelion a few years after my own recovery. It was very interesting, being able to understand what Shinji was feeling, and understand what Misato was feeling.
All the characters have special traits and unique experiences that show their humanity in the most pure and honest way, no doubt NGE is one of the best anime of all time. I'm so grateful with the creator of the anime, through his masterful storytelling I was able to understand my feelings and how some people around me feel. Just love for this anime and it's awesome characters. They are more real than a lot of people I know. Incredible analysis, I relate with you, I felt just like shinji through my adolescence and now I feel like Misato (I'm currently 19), your analysis brings a new point of view in the anime. Greetings from Ecuador 🇪🇨
I only watched Eva recently at age 22, despite having known of it since I was around 14 and if I had to choose a character that I relate to the most, it would probably be Shinji both then and now. While I actually did like Shinji as a character and a person for the most part, I don't really like the idea of myself acting the way Shinji did at times lol. One of my favorite characters though would probably have to be Misato and also Kaworu who are probably a contrast from me which is probably why.
bro those last two minutes were deep af man
Sure was a crucial part of my teenage years. First got into it when I was in 8th grade, which was back in 2000.
I find your first two Eva videos way more interesting. Still a cool video, hope to see more!
Terriccota Pie There's more technical stuff on the way, don't worry.
Terriccota Pie I love you avatar, Kaiba is among my top 5 favorite anime C:
JulianTheeApostate You are not the first person to like my profile pic, and i have to say im glad Kaiba gets so much love.
Excellent!
I was literally Shinji during my high school years. I had maybe 2 friends, no drive to get any better or go further in life..spent alot of time alone as a result. I also had a scumbag of a father.
I watched this on tv when I was a kid (13), in the late 90's. I only saw a few episodes the first time but when I learned they were replaying it on SBS I taped the entire series. I think I still have the two LP VHS tapes I put them on. I got every episode EXCEPT the awesome one where the angel smashes into NERV and Shinji punches it and has that epic battle as it goes beserka. I caught the last bit of the fight (in my defense, they moved the show forward half an hour, so although I tuned in 5 minutes early ready to record, only to find it was almost over..!!
Anyway I didn't really relate fully to Shinji, maybe to his shyness, maybe, but otherwise I just thought he was a little sook and would have KILLED to pilot the Eva.. I was way more like his friend with the glasses.
I still hope for a live action trilogy that straight up takes the best parts of the anime and turns them into live action. Weta doing the CGI/models would be perfect. If I ever win the lottery that's what I want to spend my money on lol.
I reminded a friend of Shinji when I was a kid but empathy and duty have always been so much a part of me that I never related to him, but thinking on it, I find that I relate a lot with Misato.
I mean literally everyone in Evangelion is very much consumed by their past and bad interactions they had with one another throughout the entirety of the anime but okay sure.
awesome video
I still relate to Shinji from when I was young to now.
Miasto death hit hard for me
I used to feel like Shinji, now I connect much more with misato.
nge is really worth rewatching. ^-^
I see relating to both of them,but I see myself relating to Shinji more. Like yourself I started having depression during the time I started watching NGE. However a lot of the deeper message I did not understand more recently. I often feel like people take too much from me,and treat me like I am their therapist. While I often feel like no one has time for me.
great video
I relate alot of the characters in one way or another it is mostly in Miasto because she reminds me of my mother in almist every way
I think I'm about 2 years older than you, but experienced at this exactly the same as you, heh. I can totally relate to that.
Over do to get my digi fix. Thank you.
interistng you know i never really thought about it very much just using shinji as a poor projector for myself into the series (and he never made my choice so i often ended up frustrated and irritated by him even as i recognized his shit hand in life) but the person i most identify with and who seems the most similar to me in this show is acctually kenske. it would work even beter if you fused him and toji together (i really feel his older brother feels and that apology is very me) but kenske is acctually very familiar to me both in his actions and role in the series compared to my role in any group i hang out in. huh
thanks digibro been forever scince i seriously considered this series at all (im 23 last watched it at 18 first watched at 14 so this series is a great trip down memory lane and irronically is teaching me much about how i formed my identity today
I often times see myself and my situation as hopeless, as I don't have a job or any particular talents. I don't have a whole lot of friends and struggle to keep the few that I have. I'm like you, except I'm _not_ confident or anything in particular. When I feel really low, I always want to reach out for help, but don't have many viable outlets. I could go on and on about how utterly depressed I am at any given moment. If I do, I tend to feel bad. Even typing this comment, even though you asked for it, I feel like shit and like I'm going to be seen as fishing for attention.
At the same time, I have spurts of confidence (and I have this video to thank for the confidence to at least post this comment) and feel like I'm on top of the world; and then my perspective sinks in and I go back to feeling like shit. As a result, I use drugs. Probably not the best solution, but it's kept me going.
Thanks for these I just recently did a rewatch of the whole series, and I could never articulate all the stuff you do in the show. It makes it super frustrating when I'm trying to argue the show to others.
Why I like Neon Genesis Evangelion ? It was the first show that fckd my mind
+Rekhyt same here but I can relate to some characters here in EVa
I can, to some extent, relate to almost every single character on this show.
I've always looked at Misato as someone who's suffering deep down with a lot of scars, further evidence of this is exposed sometime in the finale with the line "your true self is always crying, isn't she?" but still finds the motivation to parade around day to day with a sunny disposition whenever she has an important role to uphold or just wants to stand out among the crowd, She discusses to Ritsuko about how Shinji never really interacts with anyone, and hides in his own little comfort zone, Suffering from Depression for a number of years I constantly switch between those two behaviours as I am sure a lot of us do.
5:14 heavely. Evangelion helps me to apriciete myself.
Definitely relate to Shinji
The one thing I can say that I like about Shinji is that he makes me actually care and feel sympathy for him, whether it was piloting the EVA, dealing with his father and Misato, or his interactions with Rei and Asuka. To me, out of the countless hundreds of animes, he sits on a small list of being the most "relatable" , well-developed, and influential male protagonists. Not like most of the bullshit that gets churned out these days.
I know neither of them do crossover reviews, but I would love to hear Digibro debate over NGE with Bennett the Sage.
While Bennett did say that he liked first few episodes, he loathes this series with a passion. I would love to see these 2 defend their own points against each other
LaviArray I'm not really interested in arguing for or against the overall quality of this series. I'm more interested in just peeling back the layers and sucking out everything that I can find to enjoy about it.
Oh god. This fucking Brodie Smith advertisement never fucking ends.
I don't think I necessarily "related" to Misato and Shinji, but I certainly *understood* what was going through their heads, particularly Shinji's (right up until End of Evangelion, that is...). Then again, the first time I watched this anime was when I was 18, so maybe I missed out on a connection with Shinji because I wasn't young enough at the time.
wait a minute. the camping scenes with the nerd kid. Were they really in episodes 3-4?! Bc for some reason I remember them to be way later. As far as I can remember the episodes were like: Shinji goes to school, gets beaten by Toji, gets in evangelion to fight angel #2 where toji and the nerd enter the eva and shinji disobeys misato's orders. Misato yells at Shinji and Shinji decides to quit, gets taken to the train station, on the way meets Tıji & the nerd where he punches Toji and becomes friends with him and finally he doesn't board the train and gets into a silient understanding with Misato. I thoght that camping scene was at least after Shinji's friendship with hin was well established
Well say mate!
I was completely the opposite. When I first saw Evangelion (also as a teenager), I couldn't understand Shinji's actions at all, and it took me years to really get it.
I think Misato and Shinji are the same person. Its just that Misato has the drive, optomism, and confidence that Shinji doesnt yet have in the series. My whole life I was a Misato but at one point in recent history, I became like shinji(lost, confused, alone, hopeless). I now returned to a Misato like stage where I am not the most disciplined person I could be and sometimes I do get super lazy. I also have gotten into a habit of using girls to try and fill in a space in my heart that has been empty for quite some times when it left after a bad relationship. When she and Kaji are talking and says "Im just an underhanded woman that clings onto men when it suits me" that really got hold of my attention and then further analyzing her, I feel as if we are very similar people. I want to be the good guy overall when my life is at its end and I put a lot of blind faith into people that I consider friends/family. But I also still have my practical and objective side that nags at me for the blind friendship and effort I give people.
Kensuke currently devolving into a Shinji.
Damn bro its like you described my entire perception of a huge part of my childhood in five minutes. How do you do it? haha