May 5, 2021
As a long time anime fan, I've gotten around to the Evangelion franchise far later than one might imagine. For YEARS this show has been hyped up as "must watch anime," "game changing," and "one of the greatest of all time." Due to these lofty expectations I knew I would end up disappointed but not THAT disappointed. Each time I complete or rewatch a new part of the franchise my ratings change. Currently I have the original anime series at a 6 and End of Eva at a 7. I know Eva isn't for me, I've never truly been depressed or self-loathing so I simply
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cannot relate to Shinji or most of the messages that Eva conveys. However, I can appreciate what it did for anime as a whole. Without Eva there would be no Gurren Lagann which is truly one of the greats and one of my favorites. Therefore, I figured I would actually enjoy the Rebuild films and so far, so very good!
I was enjoying Eva, the series, quite a lot when it was an angel of the week show. I have no problem with episodic shows. So naturally I liked this first film far more than the series since it inevitably shits the bed in the last few episodes but in this film we don't have to worry about that. This serves as an introduction to the cast and characters in a more streamlined way and even improves some of the characters. Shinji is my least favorite anime protagonist of all time in the original series but found myself rooting for him far more in the film since he wasn't constantly wallowing and bitching about himself. Gendo even seems less cruel even though he's still a huge dick. All the other characters are ultimately the same so far. Well except for the voices.
At first I was not a huge fan of this Funimation dub after watching the Netflix dub. I felt some lines had wooden delivery (Shinji had more than a few) and found Misato's voice to be a bit abrasive. As the film went on however I got more and more used to it. Rei's VA was especially impressive as I couldn't tell the difference between the Funimation dub and the Netflix dub.
It is impressive how the film is able to maintain the look and feel of a 90s anime and bring it to the modern era and art style. End of Eva gets a lot of bonus points for simply being beautiful to look at and this film is even more so. I must say, I hit the nail on the head with how I'd like the Rebuild films. So far they have made Shinji a more enjoyable and relatable protag compared to the original, maintained great and even better animation thanks to being a modern film, and more hints of the overlying plot earlier in the story. I feel like the original series rushes the story all within the last few episodes while this is planting the seeds early. I am looking forward to seeing the rest of Rebuild. See you then!
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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