[0:00] it's March 27th 1996 Japan is about to
[0:05] witness the last episode of the anime
[0:07] television series neon genesis
[0:09] evangelion with an ending that would
[0:11] make many people question its existence
[0:13] in the first place not only in regards
[0:15] to episode 26 but also episode 25 that
[0:18] was released a week prior these episodes
[0:21] were talked about so much regarding its
[0:23] approach its ambiguity and especially
[0:26] its lack of animation during certain
[0:28] parts to the point where a number of
[0:30] fans felt frustrated by the fact that
[0:32] many questions were left unanswered some
[0:34] apparently even sent death threats to
[0:36] the creator of the show Hideaki anno and
[0:39] graffiti gained access to do walls it's
[0:41] been claimed that the controversy was
[0:43] massive during its original release but
[0:45] there have also been reports where the
[0:47] controversy was nowhere near as big as
[0:49] it seemed to be that many fans also sent
[0:52] letters showing their appreciation of
[0:53] these last two episodes what is known is
[0:56] that a year later Anna and the studio
[0:58] Gainax would release a film titled the
[1:01] End of Evangelion which would retell the
[1:04] events of episode 25 and 26 in a
[1:07] different manner the reason why is still
[1:09] unsure but my guess is Anna was
[1:12] definitely dissatisfied with something
[1:14] either with the fans or with himself or
[1:17] most likely both whatever the truth
[1:20] actually is there is no denying that the
[1:22] last two episodes did feel frustrating
[1:24] to a lots of fans and the end of
[1:27] Evangelion is deemed by many as the
[1:29] definitive ending but I'm not here to
[1:32] talk about the film I'm here to talk
[1:35] about the original end of Evangelion and
[1:37] why I think it's a masterpiece
[1:41] [Music]
[1:42] I'm not going to talk about every aspect
[1:46] of the show and all of its underlying
[1:48] themes broader the aspect that caught my
[1:50] interest and how I believed to have
[1:52] culminated perfectly in the ending of
[1:54] the show what's my personal view
[1:56] experience and my own analysis of this
[1:59] show and it's ending our but first we
[2:03] need to talk about plot as a whole
[2:06] generally plots normally consists of a
[2:08] sequence of events that advances a story
[2:11] forward through cause-and-effect plots
[2:13] is considered to be crucial for a
[2:15] telling of a story to work and make the
[2:17] audience engaged in other words a
[2:19] narrative is constructed that forces our
[2:22] characters into a structure of events
[2:24] and then we accompany them towards a
[2:26] resolution of some kind so knowing this
[2:29] what is a violence plots and how does it
[2:32] eventually lead to its last episode the
[2:35] plot consists of a teenage boy called
[2:37] Shinji
[2:37] who was recruited by his father to work
[2:39] for your organization nerve and Pilots
[2:42] giant mecha called
[2:43] Evangelion more specifically Ava won
[2:46] this is done to fight against an alien
[2:48] species called the Angels known to have
[2:51] caused the global Cataclysm which
[2:53] happened 15 years prior called the
[2:55] second impact in other words a third
[2:58] impact is imminent and Shinji is told
[3:00] that he is the only one who can save the
[3:03] world but by the end of the show you
[3:06] don't really have that resolution in the
[3:08] simplest terms you have Shinji
[3:10] questioning himself constantly and all
[3:12] of the other characters continuously
[3:14] speak to Shinji for him to figure things
[3:16] out which means that the last two
[3:18] episodes don't really have any sort of
[3:20] plot resolution buts as I mentioned
[3:22] before I believe this to be a
[3:24] masterpiece why well let's talk about
[3:28] character arc witnessing a character
[3:30] through means of a story in its plot
[3:32] normally equals to his or her growth the
[3:35] plot constructs the sequence of events
[3:37] so that the character can go from point
[3:39] A to point B parts and character arcs
[3:42] normally work together as one and many
[3:44] people especially in regards to American
[3:46] cinema tells us this should always be
[3:48] the case but the reality is that all
[3:50] this comes down to
[3:51] perception of the audience and what each
[3:53] want from a movie and what I connect
[3:55] with the most when watching any sort of
[3:57] medium is character especially how that
[4:00] characters portrayed through the use of
[4:02] imagery and enhanced by the use of sound
[4:04] and music how all of these come into one
[4:07] to express something that holds dear to
[4:09] the person who created it where we truly
[4:11] understand his or her psyche through the
[4:14] portrayal of its main character and this
[4:16] is shown in the last two episodes of
[4:18] Evangelion a form of expression that I
[4:21] believed to be rooted in Japanese
[4:22] filmmaking and its culture which differs
[4:25] from the approach that usually happens
[4:27] in American cinema American cinema has
[4:30] the intent of having this story be the
[4:31] foundation of everything in other words
[4:34] you need to have a solid script solid
[4:36] plots solid character arc in order to
[4:38] have what is considered to be a solid
[4:40] film American films when they do this
[4:43] well it is utterly incredible movies
[4:46] like Once Upon a Time in the West and
[4:47] The Hustler are great examples of this
[4:49] because American cinema normally has
[4:52] characters with well-established
[4:53] identities they either know who they are
[4:56] or what they want to be and many times
[4:58] falls in the category of who is the good
[5:01] guy and who is the bad guy this isn't
[5:05] always the case because you have films
[5:06] like taxi driver and Apocalypse Now who
[5:09] raise that question especially
[5:11] considering the time it was made but
[5:13] normally American cinema makes it quite
[5:16] distinct who is on each site Japanese
[5:18] cinema doesn't quite portray this the
[5:21] search for one's identity is approached
[5:23] from a very different angle initially
[5:26] both sides of the spectrum seem to be
[5:28] quite clear but as the story goes along
[5:30] characters start to show more of who
[5:32] they are underneath how their perceived
[5:34] identities can be misleading like it
[5:37] happens with the Seven Samurai what is
[5:40] good and bad black and white starts to
[5:42] become grey this can be found in so many
[5:45] Japanese movies with the most well-known
[5:48] being Akira Kurosawa's films so if this
[5:50] is prevalent in Japanese cinema this is
[5:53] also going to translate in similar forms
[5:55] of medium which can easily be found in
[5:57] the world of anime anime is all about
[6:01] taking these ideas and developing them
[6:03] as much as
[6:04] Cybil now almost every character whether
[6:07] good or bad eventually develops them in
[6:09] a way that makes them human and almost
[6:11] all anime is like this even shown an
[6:14] anime you still have both protagonists
[6:17] and antagonists were really struggle to
[6:19] find their identity not saving the world
[6:21] is it the main goal but an excuse to
[6:24] show the flaws in human nature of these
[6:26] characters and a tormenting past they go
[6:28] through that's we can be like them
[6:32] Holly's works of Arts have an impact
[6:34] that lasts longer than just the duration
[6:36] of a movie or an episode how the
[6:38] struggle with finding their identity
[6:40] also comes with the struggle of their
[6:43] own failure this I believe to be in part
[6:46] caused by the aftermath of the Second
[6:48] World War
[6:49] how so many people suffered and lost
[6:51] their lives how the ideals and strength
[6:54] their country used to uphold so proudly
[6:56] were ultimately shaken to its core how
[6:59] that must have impacted them so much for
[7:01] so many years prevalent even to this day
[7:04] and this can be found in so many anime
[7:08] which many times deals with an enormous
[7:10] explosion caused by mankind or nature
[7:13] itself and now it's affects everyone in
[7:15] such a negative way and how that can be
[7:18] a representation of the characters
[7:20] failure making them question their
[7:22] beliefs and who they are in the first
[7:24] place which leads us back to Neon
[7:27] Genesis Evangelion having the story take
[7:30] place 15 years following the aftermath
[7:33] of the second impact which almost
[7:35] destroyed the human race currently
[7:37] trying to prevent a third one due to the
[7:40] enormous consequences of the previous
[7:42] impact and our main character Shinji is
[7:45] forced by everyone to be the savior but
[7:47] he is a character who struggles
[7:49] immensely with the notion of failure a
[7:51] character who doesn't have a clear
[7:53] distinction of what is right and wrong a
[7:56] character who was suffering a great deal
[7:58] and has no grasp of who he is and that
[8:01] is what Neon Genesis Evangelion for me
[8:05] is all about it's about how the creator
[8:07] of the show he there Keanu is able to
[8:10] convey all of this into one story but
[8:12] most of all into
[8:13] character it's not just about Shinji
[8:16] it's about a know expressing himself
[8:18] through Shinji it's known that anno
[8:21] suffered through immense depression
[8:22] throughout the making of this series to
[8:24] say he wasn't in a good place is an
[8:26] understatement and even though it's been
[8:29] said that he didn't have a clear path of
[8:31] where the story was headed especially in
[8:33] regards to the limitations and troubled
[8:35] scheduling towards the end of the show
[8:36] what is clear he never lost sight of
[8:39] what was important to him to tell in
[8:42] this story and that was Shinji and his
[8:45] progression as a character which seems
[8:47] to be a no trying to find some sorts of
[8:50] catharsis through Shinji and his
[8:52] development in very simple terms Shinji
[8:56] is someone who doesn't want to deal with
[8:58] the society he lives in early on in this
[9:00] story he tries running away from it but
[9:03] that's also makes him feel like he let
[9:05] down the people who expect more of him
[9:07] and Shinji is constantly going through
[9:09] this loop of uncertainty he tries to do
[9:12] things to make other people like him
[9:14] more but he also doesn't want to have
[9:16] the responsibility of doing those things
[9:18] he feels like he never has a choice and
[9:21] he's always forced to do what other
[9:23] people expect him to do but then when he
[9:26] doesn't do any of it
[9:27] he feels alone and feels like he failed
[9:29] he has difficulty in dealing with the
[9:31] lack of connection he has with his
[9:33] father gender and how his hardship has
[9:35] affected him he has difficulty in
[9:37] finding someone who has cared for him
[9:39] the same way his mother had when he was
[9:41] a young boy and finds that comfort in
[9:44] other female characters especially right
[9:46] but also how his personality contrasts
[9:49] heavily with ahsoka but in reality she
[9:52] is just as fragile as he is and this at
[9:54] times they share a mutual connection
[9:56] which can be attributed to love how
[9:59] Masato even though she is the person who
[10:01] is taking care of him is only really
[10:03] able to communicate honestly through a
[10:05] sexual connection and how Kaoru is the
[10:08] only man that Shinji had a strong trust
[10:11] an emotional connection with regardless
[10:13] of our brief or manipulative it was all
[10:16] of these characters are here to show
[10:18] shinji's enormous insecurities as a man
[10:20] the lack of a mother figure the lack of
[10:23] a romantic
[10:24] action the lack of a sexual connection
[10:27] the lack of an emotional connection
[10:29] these aren't always mutually exclusive
[10:32] to these characters but all of this is
[10:34] to develop shinji's character even more
[10:37] because shinji wants any sort of
[10:39] connection but is also extremely afraid
[10:42] of it and sees it as a negative thing
[10:43] and why most of them especially the
[10:46] female characters always show up during
[10:48] his mental breakdown scenes shown in
[10:51] episode 16 and then in episode 20
[10:54] reaching the existential nature in its
[10:56] conclusion in episode 25 and 26 Shinji's
[11:00] ultimate goal as a character is reached
[11:02] in these final episodes where we leave
[11:05] the physical world and dive into the
[11:07] human instrumentality project where
[11:09] everything and everyone become one
[11:13] deconstructing right eye enemy Asuka
[11:15] Langley
[11:16] Misato Katsuragi were especially shinji
[11:19] ikari with him figuring out each
[11:21] instance of his life the world he lives
[11:23] in who he perceives himself to be what
[11:26] everyone perceives himself to be who he
[11:29] really is
[11:30] because for me Evangelion was never
[11:32] about say boy getting inside the robots
[11:35] and defeating angels
[11:36] it wasn't about saving the world it was
[11:39] about Shinji overcoming his notion of
[11:41] failure and finding his own identity and
[11:44] the culmination of this comes with the
[11:46] freedom scene this is for me one of
[11:49] those moments that will forever stick
[11:51] with me because it suddenly uses the
[11:53] arts of animation as an actual form of
[11:56] expression leading shinji into a world
[11:58] of nothingness a world of freedom the
[12:01] freedom of not having to worry about
[12:04] anything or anyone of no society of not
[12:08] having to do anything at all of being
[12:10] utterly alone which in turn creates a
[12:13] feeling of insignificance to shinji and
[12:16] thus he creates an area an existing
[12:19] dimension where he's able to stand on
[12:21] this makes him feel grounded to a sense
[12:23] of reality but removes an aspect of
[12:26] freedom he wants hats and through this
[12:29] existential moments of his with Masato
[12:31] Rea Asuka Kaoru his father and even his
[12:35] mother explained the
[12:36] exception of reality he comes to the
[12:38] following conclusion that for him to
[12:40] have a perception of himself he needs a
[12:43] world and people around him to perceive
[12:45] him as a form of existence and through
[12:47] that perception and his own the
[12:49] similarities and differences he finds in
[12:51] the many forms of himself that exist
[12:53] through him and everyone else he becomes
[12:56] who he is
[12:57] Shinji this is all shown with very
[13:00] little use of animation with a wide
[13:02] screen almost like a literal clean slate
[13:05] and a very simple drawing of Shinji and
[13:07] creating that first sense of reality the
[13:10] grounds is simply the drawing of a line
[13:13] to which he slowly starts to take the
[13:15] form of other shapes to explain more the
[13:17] perception that he has of himself once
[13:20] he realizes his conclusion the simple
[13:22] drawing of him becomes more defined and
[13:24] we see a close-up of his face speaking
[13:27] about this realization the realization
[13:29] of who he is this is just filmmaking at
[13:33] its finest regardless if Ana didn't have
[13:36] a clear path of where the story was
[13:38] headed regardless that plot elements of
[13:40] the show had been removed due to its
[13:42] similarities in regards to horrible
[13:44] events that transpired in Japan a year
[13:47] prior Ana and the animators were so able
[13:50] to create something really special how
[13:53] it engrossed me in making me ultimately
[13:55] relate with Shinji and how it made me
[13:58] understand better what's a person like
[14:00] ana might have gone through in his life
[14:02] how it made me question myself and my
[14:05] existence through this conversation
[14:06] between these characters I never saw
[14:09] Shinji as a wimp or a crybaby
[14:12] I saw a boy who had difficulty in
[14:14] realizing his own existence how hard it
[14:16] was for him to deal with it throughout
[14:18] his life how he faced failure and
[14:21] overcame it in the end by realizing that
[14:24] he has the power to look at things it's
[14:26] people at the world but especially
[14:27] himself in a different slights as
[14:30] explained to him even something positive
[14:33] can be experienced on rainy days and how
[14:36] everyone in one of the most ridiculous
[14:38] but also satisfying conclusions
[14:40] congratulate him in the last scene
[14:43] ending this show on a smile at the end
[14:46] of the day when we talk about plots in
[14:49] my eyes it should never be seen as the
[14:51] end goal of making a film or a show but
[14:54] rather as a means almost as an excuse to
[14:56] dive deeper into themes that open our
[14:58] eyes to subject matters that are
[15:00] important for us to think about that
[15:02] cinema isn't just about telling a story
[15:05] it's about expressing emotions it's
[15:08] about expressing one's fears their flaws
[15:11] and their minds and realize better
[15:14] what's our emotions are what our fears
[15:16] are our flaws and especially how this
[15:20] shapes our deepest thoughts and
[15:21] insecurities cinema has the benefit of
[15:24] having endless possibilities to showcase
[15:26] anything through its visuals through its
[15:29] sound its music and acting and how this
[15:32] can come all together with the use of
[15:34] editing which Neon Genesis Evangelion
[15:36] excels at constantly showing at times
[15:40] really long shots that culminate on
[15:42] extremely difficult choices that our
[15:44] characters have to make but also
[15:46] contrasting beautifully with certain
[15:49] fast paced cuts to make us understand
[15:51] better the psyche of these characters
[15:53] the show uses so many tools in so many
[15:56] different ways to express something that
[15:59] can be really powerful which
[16:00] encapsulates perfectly the last two
[16:03] episodes of this show and in a twisted
[16:05] turn of events realizing who shinji is
[16:08] helps us identify ourselves even more
[16:11] the humanity shown in shinji is
[16:13] terrifying and depressing it maybe gives
[16:16] us insight to what people can go through
[16:18] mentally including even ourselves all
[16:21] expressed in a way I had never seen
[16:24] before this is why I believe the
[16:26] original ending to be a masterpiece I
[16:30] can't deny that watching this show 20
[16:33] years later didn't benefit me it did
[16:36] because I had the opportunity to watch
[16:38] the director's cut versions of episode
[16:40] 21 to 24 which not only deepen the
[16:43] events in episodes 25 and 26 but also
[16:46] tie in perfectly with the film the end
[16:48] of evangelion how to film parallels
[16:50] perfectly with the existential nature
[16:52] found in episodes
[16:54] five and 26 and how we see the events of
[16:57] the third impact and fold throughout and
[16:59] how our characters Asuka Rey and shinji
[17:02] are involved in this how the plot and
[17:04] character arcs do eventually intertwine
[17:07] and come to an end
[17:08] presenting us with the ambiguous scene
[17:10] between Shinji and Asaka where we see
[17:13] Shinji reacting aggressively towards a
[17:15] Sakai which results in her caressing his
[17:17] face how Shinji then breaks down
[17:19] emotionally until the moment ends with a
[17:22] saccas line how disgusting how there are
[17:25] million ways to try and explain what
[17:27] happens in this moment especially if we
[17:29] consider the scenes between them
[17:31] throughout the film but I do believe it
[17:33] to be more positive especially when we
[17:36] realize the original ending of episode
[17:37] 26 because in the midst of such a
[17:40] terrifying moment there was a sign of
[17:42] hopefulness how ahsoka acknowledges
[17:45] changes existence and what he needed at
[17:48] that time which episode 26 teaches us
[17:51] that even on rainy days we can
[17:53] experience something good from it how
[17:56] both the original episodes and the film
[17:58] are complementary to each other and are
[18:00] needed to fully comprehend everything
[18:03] that happens even if it takes multiple
[18:05] viewings to form our own opinions and
[18:07] analysis and what they mean to each of
[18:09] us both psychologically and emotionally
[18:11] I didn't have to wait a year to witness
[18:14] all of this or even weeks I watched all
[18:17] of it in one week and I was in all of
[18:19] its brilliance but nothing can ever take
[18:22] away the moments I witnessed the freedom
[18:24] seen in episode 26 that's for me is a
[18:28] true nature of everything that makes
[18:29] Neon Genesis Evangelion one of the best
[18:32] shows I've ever seen but most of all one
[18:35] of the best character studies of all
[18:38] time
[18:40] you