Qworu/Shaun is THE kawoshin dynamic guys trust

Kinda dissapointed that evangelion unit 01 isn’t in the sexy tumblr women contest….

Just need Rei now

i honestly dont know about the Unit-01 one, i think it might be Rei at the end of EoE?

(via 新世紀エヴァンゲリオン film book(1) | Tokyo Dragon Road)

It all returns to nothing

It all comes tumbling, tumbling down, tumbling down

It all returns to nothing I just keep letting me down, letting me down, letting me down.

Found a cute figure while out thrifting and decided to turn him into Kyoya! Sure Kyoya doesn’t really smile, but he still looks absolutely adorable on my Kaji shelf! I’ll probably do some touch ups after work tomorrow. (Will eventually figure out what to do about the sunglasses. If anyone has suggestions I’m all ears)

A personally-charged decomposition of the Cloverworks Eva Trailer;

I’ve connected the dots. (You didn’t connect shit.) I’ve connected them!
It’s been about three weeks since it was announced we’d be seeing a new incarnation of Evangelion. If you haven’t seen the Cloverworks/Yoko Taro Evangelion project trailer yet, you can check it out and see some discussion here. I’ve watched this trailer quite a few times because I am very excited, and I have some baseless speculation to make about it:

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First, I want to preface this by saying that we don’t know all that much as of right now. That’s okay! By my guesses, and given that it didn’t leak, I would say that it’s probably very very early in development. A lot of what the trailer has to offer is basic information about some of the great names attached to the project; but, text-wise, there isn’t much to break down.

The few shots we get of the world we’re entering do, however, show something that I believe to be very interesting. Evangelion is a story that repeats itself. This is why the New Theatrical Edition becomes so incredibly meta; to keep it brief, Evangelion has happened so many times that every character is aware of their place in the story, and Shinji’s will keeps them there. Shinji’s subsequent rejection of this brutal cycle at the end of Shin Eva is what grants them the ending of NTE in the first place.

There’s definitely been speculation about whether the original characters of Evangelion will be involved. From my understanding, what Khara would like for the property is to ‘Gundam’ it, whereby to keep the series going, many writers will have the opportunity to write their own Evangelion continuum. (Where is Kaworu’s Counterattack!?) I think in general that this is a good way to keep the series alive, rather than endless merch, and I’m pretty excited to see how it turns out.

This being said, having seen quite a bit of Gundam, many Gundam characters appear in multiple adaptations, so despite some theorising that no original Evangelion characters will appear and the cast will be new, I think that would remove the fundamental draw of the proposed franchise model in that we get to see characters in New and Fun Situations.

As I said, Eva is always full of intention. The inclusion and highlighting of a cello, to me, is a particularly potent evidence of Shinji’s inclusion in this new incarnation. I believe that if the trailer wanted to demonstrate that the new characters had fallen to the wayside then it would not put such stock in showing the musical elements we associate with characters in good condition. It would demonstrate them as decrepit, thrown to the wayside.

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Source: Evangelion Cloverworks Trailer | Neon Genesis Evangelion Episode 15; Lies and Silence

This particular shot - I wish I was joking - made me yelp aloud when I first saw it. Shinji’s words when asked to justify why continuing to play the cello rang out in my head; 'Nobody ever told me to stop.“ I believe that this is a direct reference to this original line of Shinji’s, and that the inclusion of the cello is indicative of this being a world where Shinji 'never stopped.’

This too is backed up by the floral symbolism of the plants in the scene. Ivy often represents continuity, immortality or eternal love, and here it is entwined with the head of the cello. In the language of Evangelion, we associate the cello with Shinji already as a sign of persistence. Nature in Evangelion is associated with the world healing around them in the wake of the second and third impacts; I believe that this trailer is symbolising or trying to communicate that both Shinji and the world continue.

However, I don’t believe this is all there is to it. The language used here might be a deliberate synthesis of the existing runs of Evangelion. Shinji’s cello is primarily associated with Neon Genesis, but the theme of nature and healing is more closely associated with New Theatrical. Alongside the push at 30fes to 'return to Neon Genesis’ I believe that this symbolises that what we’ll see is a synthesis of the two that considers the implications of the cycles seen in New Theatrical alongside the characters from the original; perhaps, what happens after the third impact…?

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Source: Evangelion Cloverworks Trailer

Remember, however, that the cello is not the only instrument there, nor is it the only instrument linked with a character. Of note are several violins, a viola, a piano, and a few drums scattered around. This may remind more tenured Eva fans of the quartet from Death(True);

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Source: Evangelion Death(True)

Shinji is still associated with the cello, but it’s implied Kaworu, Rei and Asuka are playing violin and viola as a part of the quartet, several of which are scattered around the above Cloverworks trailer shot. Either way, this is another way of showing that the pilots from Neon Genesis have some connection with the trailer through music by implicitly invoking this scene from their Instrumentality.

My honest reading here is that the cello has a connection with the 'real world,’ but the violin and viola (representing Asuka and Rei) are grounded in the water like the LCL sea, as well as only being linked with Asuka and Rei during instrumentality. Linking this back to the NTE meta of characters being aware that they’re characters and continuing to cycle on Shinji’s wish, this might be a reference to where the characters stand in terms of their ability to see through the narrative itself; a narrative 'ascension.’

Shinji has the most control over the narrative, the narrative exists because of Shinji’s whim. If this narrative is an extension of Shinji never 'stopping’ this suggests to me the placement of the violins expresses Shinji’s will to include others in the story and aid in their ascension to understanding the meta-narrative (combining it with the Ivy’s symbolism of endless love and friendship.)

Then, there is the piano at the base of the mound.

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Source: Evangelion New Theatrical Edition Q | Evangelion New Theatrical Edition Shin

Kaworu is the only character we see in the string quartet who is not explicitly shown to be playing the violin, ergo, I would argue the violins do not represent his inclusion in the story. Instead, Kaworu’s 'instrument’ as deigned by NTE is the piano; the grand piano is associated at length with Shinji and Kaworu’s relationship as a whole, during both the establishment scenes in Q and the scenes reflecting on their past dynamic in Shin’s Instrumentality section.

Out of all of the instruments scattered around the scene, the closest one to the cello that represents Shinji is the piano. If the placement of the instruments suggests their power within the narrative, then this is also supported by Kaworu’s 'position’ - in Q and Shin he is shown to know more about his own position in the meta than Asuka and Rei, even if all are somewhat aware of their looping situation. Therefore in terms of ascension here, it might suggest that Kaworu is trying to aid Shinji in some manner, or at least reach Shinji. Maybe this is the spiritual return of Commander Nagisa?

Furthermore, associating Kaworu with the piano (NTE) while associating Asuka and Rei with the violins (NGE) again suggests the synthesis of the narratives from NGE and NTE and the aggregation of the existing narratives in to something new. I would argue even the staging of the trailer implies this, the instruments themselves being a pun on 'instrumentality.’

What does this mean for the show? I think it’s still deliberately vague; it’s a teaser trailer with four or five shots. I also think that this vagueness is wonderful - in our modern media landscape, stories are often spoiled for us early in trailers, rather than being teased away over time as something for us to gradually unpack. But said teaser trailer does communicate to me that it’s currently intended as an extension of the original, possibly drawing heavily from the intricate established narratives of cycling characters trying to break free of their own neuroses and predetermined paths, and maybe finding a bridge between the two existing continuities.

To conclude I want to say based on the language in the trailer, I genuinely believe that the original characters will in some way appear, and will be central to the plot. There might be new characters, but the ones we love still appear to be there and could be implied to have a measurable impact on the story. I cannot stress enough that while its only a teaser trailer and to glean an entire show just from that would be an impossible task, Evangelion has always been a series with a lot of hidden meaning and intent. I’ve hoped here to talk about what I see objectively, without resorting to wish fulfilment; I hope it was an interesting read!!!

edit: big thanks to my friend moon for pointing out to me that rei is actually playing a viola in the quartet but there is also a viola there in the trailer!!!!

This one comes up a lot! Here’s the first instance.

I just want a coupon, so every time I feel bad, someone zips my jacket up like Toji did with Shinji in nge 3.0+1.0

(Like this)

I understand that the show is like tailor made in a lab to hold my interest (aka mostly focused on the epic giant gorey robots and inflicting psychological trauma on depressed tweens while playing around with christian terminology for the #aesthetic) plus the TV ending is so incredibly glorious in its unapologetic abstraction and focus on character, BUT! I actually don’t care about any of that I want more doomed yuri

ThatPherson’s Patented Story Grid

plus a few stories and where they are situated.

judt finished shaving and something about the mechanical hum of the shaver has instilled a primordial urge to go watch more evangelion

I gasped

NGE 30th Anniversary Rewatch: Neon Genesis Evangelion 1x23 - “Rei III” (air date : March 6, 1996).

rei wip I did rn woahh

ref: