Neon Genesis Evangelionis notorious, among many other things,for having multiple endings. Once, when the original TV anime came to its conclusion, time and budgetary restraints led to an ending that was abstract yet powerful. Later, a feature-length film was released, attempting to once again draw the series to a close,but creator Hideaki Anno still wasn’t satisfied with his story. Over the following 24 years, a tetralogy of movies once again broughtEvangelionto what is seemingly its final resting place.
Evangelionitself is largely a reflection of its creator, and as Anno changed,so too did the many entries in his series. However, neither the original TV anime nor the rebuild movies brought the series to a better close than 1997’sThe End of Evangelion, the installment that remains my all-time favorite anime film.
Packed to the brim with stylish action sequences and emotion, along with buttery-smooth animation and an iconic soundtrack, the film doesn’t just stand at the apex of its medium, but I also believe it to be one of the best apocalypse movies ever released. And despite how darkThe End of Evangelionis compared to the series' other finales,it had a wildly profound effect on me. Every time I return to the film, though it may be harrowing at times, I’m always glad to have done so.
The End of Evangelion Is a Happy Ending, Despite How Dark It Is
Evangelion Deals With Difficult Themes, But Is Always Hopeful
From the film’s opening scene, it is made abundantly clear to us, the viewers, thatThe End of Evangelionwill not be an easy watch. Long gone are the “congratulations” of the anime’s ending sequence, as we are brought directly back to the depths of Shinji’s despair. What follows is roughly an hour and a half of mind-bending insights into Hideaki Anno’s views and philosophies. I already lovedNeon Genesis Evangelionand its controversial ending, but as I watchedThe End of Evangelionfor the first time, my jaw was on the floor.
If you aren’t careful, the film’s brutal action scenes, heavy instrumentality sequence, and ambiguous ending might just fool you into thinking this isn’t a hopeful conclusion like its TV counterpart.It very much is, though it doesn’t pull its punches. Shinji, having given up entirely after losing his will to exist, chooses for humanity to all combine into one collective consciousness, the “Human Instrumentality” project. Partway through this process, however, he realizes that living with others is worth it, even if he’ll never understand them.
Even if Shinji makes the same mistakes and nothing changes from before, the possibility of rebirth, to begin anew at any time, is enough to warrant humanity’s existence. Near the end of the film,there is a line of dialogue that helped to permanently alter my worldview, spoken by Shinji’s mother, Yui. When speaking with her son one final time, she says, “Anywhere can be paradise, as long as you have the will to live.“The End of Evangelionis a reminder that living is worth the trouble, just for the possibility that we may be happy.
Impressionable, and yearning for guidance, hearing that line instantly instilled hope in me, despite how dark and daring the film that I had just watched was.The End of Evangelionhas become cemented as my favorite anime film ever since.
Evangelion’s Main Themes Are Strongest in The End of Evangelion
Hideaki Anno’s Vision Is at Its Clearest
One of the many popular lines fromThe End of Evangelion, and one used for some of its promotional material, reads, “the fate of destruction is also the joy of rebirth”. However, while death and rebirth is a major theme in the film, it isn’t the only one.Evangelionis famously a series that tackles a wide array of subjects, offering commentary on the human condition as a whole, and never are its themes more effectively communicated than in the 1997 film.
It was difficult to absorb everything thatThe End of Evangelionwas saying during my initial watch, though from the little I picked up, I knew what I was watching was special. The importance of loving and understanding yourself, loneliness and the need for others, despite not understanding them, and the loss of innocence: these areall themes that the film impressively manages to cram into its hour-and-a-half runtime, before returning once more to rebirth during the movie’s finale sequence.
The title card, reading “One more final: I need you”, appears on-screen following the difficult journey into Shinji’s mental state, and the scene opens with shots of the Earth having been turned into a wasteland. Shinji begins choking Asuka, who responds to his act of aggression with a gentle caressing of his cheek.In all the destruction, upon taking shape again, though slight, something has changed. Asuka displays a step taken toward kindness and understanding, proof that people can, with a better understanding of themselves, learn to understand each other.
Evangelion’s Rebuild Fails to Capture the Original Series' Tone
The Rebuild Movies Sacrifice Emotional Weight by Tying Up Loose Ends
The End of Evangelion, though wildly different in its portrayal of events, is roughly the same ending as the TV anime. And over 20 years later, the Rebuild films end very roughly in a similar place; destruction is destruction and rebirth is rebirth all the same. As long as we’re alive, the opportunity for happiness exists. When I walked away fromEvangelion 3.0+1.0, I was happy to see an ending that tied up the many loose ends of the series,but I wasn’t anywhere near as satisfied as I was withThe End of Evangelion.
The entirety ofNeon Genesis Evangelionis shoved into what amounts to a movie-and-a-half runtime, while the subsequent films attempt to expand on series lore that was already bloated and confusing enough. While Shinji’s reconciliations with the rest of the cast are cathartic and joyful,the film sacrifices some power in its message for detail-oriented happy endings. Shinji telling Asuka that he always liked her, though tear-inducing, just doesn’t hold the same weight as her muttering, “how disgusting,” in response to awakening on the beach.
Of course, which ending toEvangelionis best is largely subjective, as they all offer something similar yet different from each other. In terms of acting as a proper finale to the series, though, the rebuilds don’t offer the same emotional highs as the 1997 film, or even the daring, experimental risks of the original TV ending. I will forever be grateful toEvangelionfor giving me hope, and toThe End of Evangelionfor so wonderfully communicating it to me.
Neon Genesis Evangelion: The End of Evangelion
Cast
Neon Genesis Evangelion: The End of Evangelion serves as the cinematic conclusion to the Neon Genesis Evangelion series, comprising two alternate episodes. This film offers resolutions to the anime’s storyline while exploring additional narrative possibilities, intended to replace the original series' episodes 25 and 26.
