Eva 3.0 + 1.0 release and spoiler discussion

[GuyBeardmane]

I got a free Prime trial just to watch the movie and it made me ugly-cry.  It's not as confusing as Part 3, and the pre-opening recap of the first three movies was very welcome.  Mari kicking ass and using the Eiffel Tower to explode an entire army of Evas was rad af, I got sad when Ayanami got tanged, and all the batshit insane stuff about spears, Unit 13, the Imaginary Eva, and everything turned into set dressing when it boiled down to Shinji overcoming his depression.  Like, Gendo acknowledging how he failed and finally seeing how Shinji had his mother's spirit and accepting her death was heart wrenching but at the same time inspiring.  Shinji letting go of Rei and Asuka and Kaworu was just so beautiful.  I had read an article where Anno said he feels like he doesn't need to see Shinji anymore, and I get it.  Shinji made it through his darkest times and came out the other side better for it, and I love it.

Damn it's a good movie.

[The1gairon]

 

Well.

 

That was.

 

An ending.  Certainly more satisfying than Movie 3 because it's supposed to be the actual end of the whole thing, but it's just confusing to me.

Not confusing in that "I don't realize every character got closure and they defeated the latest Angel once and for all!" but confusing in the details. Like ... why did the world become better after the fight? How did they prevent the Angels from never coming back? DID they? WILL they come back one day? I also got annoyed that the third act was clearly trying to echo the last three episodes of the series with the psychological monologues, sketchy animation, unfinished animation, and lose metaphors. But the reason the episodes did that was because the staff ran out of budget. Here  they try to do it ON PURPOSE, making it seem like they're saying "hey! We meant to do it like that all along!" which is a bit cheesy. That last drone shot was INCREDIBLE, and the time skip at the every end gave us the Confident Shinji we were yearning for, and also gave Mari a more useful role in the story.

It's not a perfect movie, but it's sure as well a good way to end the story.

Edited August 14, 2021 by elfie

[GuyBeardmane]

34 minutes ago, elfie said:

  Hide contents

Well.

 

That was.

 

An ending.  Certainly more satisfying than Movie 3 because it's supposed to be the actual end of the whole thing, but it's just confusing to me.

Not confusing in that "I don't realize every character got closure and they defeated the latest Angel once and for all!" but confusing in the details. Like ... why did the world become better after the fight? How did they prevent the Angels from never coming back? DID they? WILL they come back one day? I also got annoyed that the third act was clearly trying to echo the last three episodes of the series with the psychological monologues, sketchy animation, unfinished animation, and lose metaphors. But the reason the episodes did that was because the staff ran out of budget. Here  they try to do it ON PURPOSE, making it seem like they're saying "hey! We meant to do it like that all along!" which is a bit cheesy. That last drone shot was INCREDIBLE, and the time skip at the every end gave us the Confident Shinji we were yearning for, and also gave Mari a more useful role in the story.

It's not a perfect movie, but it's sure as well a good way to end the story.

It hit different for me. 

Spoiler

Watching Gendo throw Shinji across the city and then Shinji hitting the skyline and bending it was just another symbol.  All of the stuff about spears and ships and infinite evas and the imaginary eva, all of that stopped having any meaning at that point because it was just revealed as set dressing.  The way the background kept changing during their fight up until the moment that they're sitting on the train and Gendo finally sees Yui in Shinji just hit me like the whole concept, everything, was just what Gendo had said when showing off Lilith -- it was imaginary.  The entire world was imaginary and built upon the depression and loss that both Gendo and Shinji felt.  And where Gendo fell into despair at the loss of his wife, Shinji overcame his depression with hope that things would get better.  Shinji decides the world he lives in doesn't need Evas, so that's what he winds up writing as the god of this new world that's not subject to the imagination of his father

.  At least that's my interpretation.

[Vamped]

I started one of them ... are they just recaps from the actual show? 

I kinda hate when they jam a whole season or series into a movie

[Jman]

3 minutes ago, Vamped said:

I started one of them ... are they just recaps from the actual show? 

I kinda hate when they jam a whole season or series into a movie

The first movie does, but the second movie ends up going off the rails and the two have nothing in common at the end.

[Vamped]

Just now, Jman said:

The first movie does, but the second movie ends up going off the rails and the two have nothing in common at the end.

Okay. Maybe I'll give it a shot. I have the first one like 5 mins and I was like ... what the hell ...

[CaptainStarwind]

Just watched it last night and wow, I thought it was a wonderful way to end the rebuild movie series, and really Eva as a whole (spinoffs notwithstanding).

First though, a note on Eva 3.0:

Spoiler

 

I wasn't the biggest fan of Eva 3.0 when it came out.  I found it to be a bit too depressing for my taste, especially after coming off of the ending of Eva 2.0, which I really liked.  Now that I've grown up a bit and have a different perspective on things than I did 6 years ago, and especially since I watched Eva 3.0 + 1.0, I definitely have a greater appreciation for 3.0.  I feel 3.0 + 1.0 would not have been nearly as satisfying to watch if 3.0 was any lighter than it was.  Shinji needed to be broken at the end of 3.0, otherwise his mental recovery in 3.0 + 1.0 would not have held nearly as much significance.  To see everybody, particularly Misato, hate Shinji (justifiable as it was) for his actions stung hard when I first watched 3.0, but without that, we wouldn't have had the impact of them learning to (at least partially) forgive Shinji, and of Misato admitting that she isn't totally blameless herself.  Of the four Rebuild movies, I feel these two movies in particular really compliment each other, and had I viewed 3.0 and 3.0 + 1.0 back to back to start, my initial opinions on 3.0 probably would have been more positive.

 

Now on to Eva 3.0 + 1.0:

Spoiler

It was enjoyable seeing Toji, Hikari, and Kensuke appear in the first quarter of the movie.  I like how they weren't just fanservice cameos either, they really seemed to have a role in bringing Shinji out of his depressive shell and on the road to becoming a more self assured and confident person.

I think Shinji growing up mentally also deserves mention.  I think it was a given that Shinji was not going to end up the same shell of a person that strangles Asuka on the beach at the end of End of Evangelion, but I do like how he doesn't just become this macho, boisterous, confident manly man.  At his core, he remains the person he always was, but he becomes confident enough in himself to not have to seek approval from anyone, and not to fear what will happen if he tries to be the hero.  Perhaps it's stupid of me to point it out but I always think the stereotype for confidence boils down to "loud and opinionated", so it's really nice to see a confident individual not fitting the stereotype.

The exploration of Gendo here is also something I really liked.  I feel we learned a bit more about him here in this continuity than we did when the same thing was done in the series.  He's still a man who did terrible things, but, being someone who for better or worse identifies with Gendo's character, I feel the exposition makes him feel more sympathetic.  Plus, being able to see him partially redeem himself and reunite with Yui at the end of it all definitely made it worth it.

One area I thought could have been explored more was Asuka.  Now her character and psychology were done to death in the original series, but we get the revelation here (unless it was said before, it's been 6 years since I watched the last rebuild movie) that she was a clone series like Rei, created to pilot Eva.  I feel the differences in her psychology compared the original series could have been explored here a bit more.  At the same time, what we do see paints a picture not unlike the original series, so perhaps it's just as easy to fill in the gaps.  I feel it was more important to give Gendo his time here, being that he is the big bad of the series, so I'm not too distraught over Asuka's lack of focus.

Now as for the final scene, I have to admit that it came a bit out of nowhere to "pair" (sort of) Shinji off with Mari.  I did have a discussion with my friend about it though, and he put forward the idea that Shinji, as a now mentally stable and confident adult, is choosing the one girl that does not have severe self confidence issues, or is a clone of his mother.  It's just as easy to counter that everyone in the series should be in a better place mentally at this point, being that Shinji rebuilt the world and all, but I feel that such an argument has no end.  It's also entirely possible that they aren't romatically together, or that they're just going off as friends.  I think the last minute of this movie could be interpreted a lot of ways, with none of them really incorrect. 

 

[MasqueradeOverture]

Depressed Anno = Neon Genesis Evangelion.

Depressed and ANGRY Anno = End Of Evangelion, Rebuild 3.33.

Clearheaded and married Anno = Rebuild 1, 2, & 4.

 

It's come to my attention I like angry Anno the best. I should call my therapist tomorrow.

[The1gairon]

9 hours ago, CaptainStarwind said:

Just watched it last night and wow, I thought it was a wonderful way to end the rebuild movie series, and really Eva as a whole (spinoffs notwithstanding).

First though, a note on Eva 3.0:

  Reveal hidden contents

 

I wasn't the biggest fan of Eva 3.0 when it came out.  I found it to be a bit too depressing for my taste, especially after coming off of the ending of Eva 2.0, which I really liked.  Now that I've grown up a bit and have a different perspective on things than I did 6 years ago, and especially since I watched Eva 3.0 + 1.0, I definitely have a greater appreciation for 3.0.  I feel 3.0 + 1.0 would not have been nearly as satisfying to watch if 3.0 was any lighter than it was.  Shinji needed to be broken at the end of 3.0, otherwise his mental recovery in 3.0 + 1.0 would not have held nearly as much significance.  To see everybody, particularly Misato, hate Shinji (justifiable as it was) for his actions stung hard when I first watched 3.0, but without that, we wouldn't have had the impact of them learning to (at least partially) forgive Shinji, and of Misato admitting that she isn't totally blameless herself.  Of the four Rebuild movies, I feel these two movies in particular really compliment each other, and had I viewed 3.0 and 3.0 + 1.0 back to back to start, my initial opinions on 3.0 probably would have been more positive.

 

Now on to Eva 3.0 + 1.0:

  Hide contents

It was enjoyable seeing Toji, Hikari, and Kensuke appear in the first quarter of the movie.  I like how they weren't just fanservice cameos either, they really seemed to have a role in bringing Shinji out of his depressive shell and on the road to becoming a more self assured and confident person.

I think Shinji growing up mentally also deserves mention.  I think it was a given that Shinji was not going to end up the same shell of a person that strangles Asuka on the beach at the end of End of Evangelion, but I do like how he doesn't just become this macho, boisterous, confident manly man.  At his core, he remains the person he always was, but he becomes confident enough in himself to not have to seek approval from anyone, and not to fear what will happen if he tries to be the hero.  Perhaps it's stupid of me to point it out but I always think the stereotype for confidence boils down to "loud and opinionated", so it's really nice to see a confident individual not fitting the stereotype.

The exploration of Gendo here is also something I really liked.  I feel we learned a bit more about him here in this continuity than we did when the same thing was done in the series.  He's still a man who did terrible things, but, being someone who for better or worse identifies with Gendo's character, I feel the exposition makes him feel more sympathetic.  Plus, being able to see him partially redeem himself and reunite with Yui at the end of it all definitely made it worth it.

One area I thought could have been explored more was Asuka.  Now her character and psychology were done to death in the original series, but we get the revelation here (unless it was said before, it's been 6 years since I watched the last rebuild movie) that she was a clone series like Rei, created to pilot Eva.  I feel the differences in her psychology compared the original series could have been explored here a bit more.  At the same time, what we do see paints a picture not unlike the original series, so perhaps it's just as easy to fill in the gaps.  I feel it was more important to give Gendo his time here, being that he is the big bad of the series, so I'm not too distraught over Asuka's lack of focus.

Now as for the final scene, I have to admit that it came a bit out of nowhere to "pair" (sort of) Shinji off with Mari.  I did have a discussion with my friend about it though, and he put forward the idea that Shinji, as a now mentally stable and confident adult, is choosing the one girl that does not have severe self confidence issues, or is a clone of his mother.  It's just as easy to counter that everyone in the series should be in a better place mentally at this point, being that Shinji rebuilt the world and all, but I feel that such an argument has no end.  It's also entirely possible that they aren't romatically together, or that they're just going off as friends.  I think the last minute of this movie could be interpreted a lot of ways, with none of them really incorrect. 

 

Spoiler

It helps that Anno modeled Mari after his current wife, furthering the metaphor of the EVA story with his own life.

 

[CaptainStarwind]

9 hours ago, elfie said:

  Reveal hidden contents

It helps that Anno modeled Mari after his current wife, furthering the metaphor of the EVA story with his own life.

 

Spoiler

You know, I thought I heard that somewhere before but I wasn't 100% when I was typing up last night so I didn't bring it up.  But yeah it makes total sense then.  Shinji is basically Anno so it makes it kind of heartwarming that he finally gets a happy ending.

 

[Vamped]

Better ending.

I still think Shinji's a bitch though and they were all up in these kids' asses and boobs for no reason