Neon Genesis Evangelion

Story: A true masterpiece. The writing is very cohesive and understandable. This manga is great regardless if you loved or hated the anime adaptation. I actually advise that you watch the anime first, read the manga, then watch the anime again because it will all come full circle; which an anime is suppose to do regardless. I wish I picked up the manga much earlier in my life rather than recent years then I could answer confidently that this is my favorite series of all time. It's a story that successfully answers all of your questions, but leaving more questions, but not in regard to plot holes, but just out of pure curiosity. The concept of the series is very interesting and fresh. It disguises itself as just another mecha anime, but that is just the surface of the ocean you are witnessing. The story is more of a nod onto the effects of different types of upbringings; such as neglect, loss, abuse, etc. The story itself is psychological rather than mecha, so be prepared for that heading in.

Art: I'm not sure why, but the art style is very nostalgic. It's familiar, but also unique to it. The angels look both angelic and hellish. The characters also have iconic designs which is easily recognizable to everyone. New anime fans and old all recognize Asuka Langley and Rei Ayanami. Everyone recognizes the Evangelions. This manga just knew what it was doing when designing the cast.

Character: I will admit, at first, you will hate Shinji Ikari, but as time goes on, you won't. All of the characters are awesome in my opinion. Their psyche is what keeps me hooked to them. Shinji and Asuka both want to be loved, but both struggle expressing themselves and for different reasons. Shinji is timid and don't know how to understand his feelings while Asuka is just tsun af. Katsuragi struggles with knowing if what she's doing is the right thing. Rei starts to develop feelings as time goes on and struggles with undestanding them as a whole (she's a Kuudere). This manga will have you seeking and wanting to learn more of each character.

Enjoyment: I enjoyed this manga very much. The first time I read it, I mistakenly read it to fast and it was already over. A part of me which he series was longer and had kept going on, but all things must come to an end and I'm happy this series hasn't been ruined.

Overall: Definitely give this a read if you're into psychological thriller stuff. Yes, there's action, romance, and mecha stuff, but it's not the focus. The stuff there is good, but just don't have high expectations going into it in that regard.

I'm coming at this with the approach of being a huge fan of the original anime run and never seeing the Rebuilds at all, just for reference.

Long story short: The manga adaptation is just fine.

There are some elements which are done really well and I would say much better than the anime did: this includes some more character development for many of the characters that helps make their character more nuanced and easy to identify with. There also is more credence given to the many connections Shinji could have as someone who is canonically bisexual, giving the reader more opportunities to connect with Shinji in the way that Anno seems to have intended for the viewer (or in this case, reader) to engage with him.

And yet, there are some elements which are more or less bastardized here. There's a very certain relationship late in the anime which gets even more overlooked and neglected in the manga adaptation which severely disappoints me. If you like positive representation of gay romance in your manga, I wouldn't invest too heavily here because while there is more time the characters in question spend together than in the anime, it is borderline infuriating at some points seeing how Sadamoto handed their connection given the many versions of this relationship which was shelved in production due to the kind of censorship and concern which the manga was supposed to remove.

This is a problem across a lot of the manga adaptations of Evangelion: the only place it seems like it could potentially be better is in Angelic Days but I haven't read that for myself so I can neither confirm nor deny.

If this is your first rodeo with Evangelion, watch the anime first. Please.

If you're curious to see Evangelion in manga form, this will do just fine and provides a unique enough experience from the original to make it worth the read.

Neon Genesis Evangelion left a great impact upon the anime culture and to this day possesses the archetypal tropes that not only are seen in modern-day mecha anime, but also within other genres. The original anime sparked so many discussions and theories among the characters, and the depth it actually gives, while in essence, it really just comes off as pretentious.

The 1995 anime felt boring. Not the film, though, because the film wraps up the story nicely and grotesquely. The TV series had a disjointed narrative that, while good in confusing the audience on the big picture, does not give enough for the events transpiring to actually make sense at all, turning the story around into what would have been a grim and dark deconstruction of the mecha genre, to an unnecessarily disturbing clusterfuck of a plot. So there lies the question: What if Evangelion was better paced?

Yoshiyuki Sadamoto is one of the regular Gainax character designers, having helped create some of the most impactful characters for the bigshot shows the studio had to offer, particularly the cult classic OVA FLCL, and of course, Neon Genesis Evangelion. Little do people know, that while the show is thriving in Shinji x Kaworu shipping posts all over the Internet, there is actually an Evangelion manga—all drawn and plotted by him, that ran from 1994 to 2013(!). This leads us to make a proper segue into the actual review.

Let us start with the art, since we're talking about Sadamoto. Knowing that the manga is made by the actual character designer for the show puts the mind at ease, for you don't have to worry about consistency dropping, and this holds true. For about 19 years the style of Shinji and the cast remained all the same, and everyone looks like their anime counterparts: how their facial expressions look, and how the scenery and the battle scenes are drawn are like a prelude to the Rebuild films.

There is also a remarkable and significant point to take note of: the presentation. Hideaki Anno and Yoshiyuki Sadamoto are two different people, with their two different concepts, working under the same ground. Since the show has gone and made great use of producing a cathartic effect—through disturbing and awkward imagery, it is pretty hard to follow that same format into a manga, since the series had utilized the visual medium so well. It is surprising to see that, while toned down with lesser nudity and graphic scenes, the manga retains the same core themes as the show's, albeit having a lesser degree of bringing out the most disgusting of feelings, had far more emotional inclination for the characters themselves.

The point I'm getting to is while the Evangelion series are something of merit, it has always been hard to approach it because of its obscurity—and when you do actually get close, it looks more like just an observation of an art piece, which is one thing for a TV show, but it must require more than just investment—it requires immersion. Sadamoto's art direction fills that void within the manga and gives you a sense of sympathy for the characters and their inevitable problems.

I stated before in my End of Evangelion review that I hated the characters. They had nothing to go for, Shinji is stupid, and only Asuka had the honor of being likable. The manga seemed like the character analysis side the anime never had, and while the anime DID have those analyses, being a psychological anime above others, it never felt like it was too in depth because it was grossing over Freudian and 2deepforme perspectives too much. Sure, having a Freudian analogy to everything is great, it's awesome. But it's practically useless and contains the same pretentiousness as it does with its religious symbolism. For the manga, though, it seemed more philosophical than psychological, and that may be good because we were given more time to enter the minds of the characters and sympathize with their questions about life, their motives and their principles.

The scope for the drastic changes about the characters are too wide, and so I will focus on the three main characters.

Shinji, for one, comes off as a mixture of Rebuild Shinji and TV Shinji, and is the perfect and ideal representation for a self-doubting person who must learn to amp up his confidence level not only for the sake of others but for himself as well. This is a Shinji that is more realistic than any of the two iterations—self-questioning and not entirely apathetic for most of the time, and I found myself enjoying his philosophical questions and how, for once, I felt a connection with the character.

I didn't dislike Asuka's characterizations for the most part, but it's weaker than the original Asuka. She starts off strong (her introduction is different from the anime), but she remains stagnant as the later chapters give more focus to Rei, Shinji, and the plot. Of course, like usual, she becomes the badass MVP of the game in the End of Evangelion arc, but to be honest, there was nothing new to note about her. If anything, she's less harsh...but I am unsure whether that is a bad or good thing.

Rei became one of my favorite characters in this story, and at this point I started to think that the Rebuilds might have gotten inspiration from the manga to utilize this form of character development. I don't know why, but I like female characters that were originally heartless in a sense (see: Saber, Arcueid from the Type-Moon franchise) and learn to become more and more human. One particular event in Rei's character arc hurt me far worse than the anime did. The manga has given Rei justice in becoming an important character and not a mere plot device.

The other side characters not mentioned develop better than the show, most notably Kaworu and Gendo, who became characters that you needed to care about and not the ones you just gloss over to get to the progression of the plot.

Now, while the plot is fundamentally the same as the TV show, its modifications to the minor details made the manga a notch higher in telling the story than the source material. Instead of moving ahead and confuse viewers, the manga takes its time for the readers to catch up while maintaining its sense of obscurity. Take note that the said minor details have a greater effect if you have watched the series AND the film first, and it is highly recommended to do so to get enjoyment. The manga stands alone from the anime, but to understand how complex Evangelion is you need to see it from its original form.

Also, this may be pretty subjective but listening to the song "Komm, Susser Tod" while reading the End of Evangelion arc is pretty awesome.

Regarding the ending, it isn't as controversial as the endings Evangelion has produced in the past, but even a whiny character like Shinji deserves a happy ending.

The Evangelion manga makes up for a lot of the plot holes the original Neon Genesis Evangelion anime had, and it clears up some of the confusion and may have answered of the questions about the franchise's lore. Regardless, there is one important part of the story that will make you question what you know about Evangelion once again...but that will be for a different day. It's compact, it is complete, it is wholesome, and it is Evangelion.

"You and I may closely resemble each other, but we are not the same."
—Rei Ayanami

Critic’s Log - Earthdate: June 27, 2014. Manga Review #1: Neon Genesis Evangelion.



In March 12, 2012. I posted my first Anime review which was on the Anime series Cowboy Bebop. I have been posting Anime Reviews since for two years. Now that I’ve been reviewing Anime for that long, I felt it was time for me to start reviewing Manga. Let’s face it, not every Manga gets an Anime adaptation, and some Anime adaptations do deviate from the Manga they are adapting from. There are even some Mangas that are adapted from Anime series as well… This Manga series I’m about to review isn’t really an adaptation to an Anime. My first Manga review is the manga version of what happens to be my gateway anime. That being said, here’s my first Manga review which is Yoshiyuki Sadamoto’s Neon Genesis Evangelion


In 2000 A.D., a top-secret encounter between an Antarctic expedition and an entity known as an 'Angel' triggered a global catastrophe. It is the year 2015 and the Angels have returned. Shinji Ikari, a 14-year-old child of the new Earth, is summoned by his father Gendo to an underground city underneath Tokyo-3, where the United Nations research organization known as NERV is stationed. To match the fearsome power of the Angels, NERV has constructed a biomechanical weapon known as 'Evangelion',

To be technical… The art and story of The manga version to Neon Genesis Evangelion is by Yoshiyuki Sadamoto. The Manga may have started in 1994 but it did start roughly at the same time the anime was starting its production. This is why I am not calling this a manga adaptation. I strongly view it as the Manga version of Evangelion. The manga version was made to generate popularity for the upcoming anime. I am not sure what the end result was because the anime was such a huge deal back then at the time. It was popular in Japan, and it definitely was a big deal for American Anime fans. Whatever the case. The anime was a commercial success, but the manga was also a success as well. For the entire run of 14 Volumes consisting of 96 chapters. The manga version of Evangelion looks very good as its own standalone creation. It does have some hiccups and miniscule inconsistencies but it does not ruin the experience at all. Allow me to bring up the Evangelion anime. The major technical flaw in that show was it’s recycling of certain animation cels because of the show’s budget. The Manga version never has that problem. It is an advantage to the Evangelion manga, but at the same time… I understand that the technical flaw I just mentioned over the Evangelion anime were overlooked for that reason. In the long run (and I’ll say it again). It looks very good as it’s own standalone creation.

Another thing that is actually a nice breath of fresh air is how the characters are presented in the Evangelion manga. If you’ve seen the anime, Shinji may have gotten mixed reactions out of viewers and I get it. However...there are monologues that come up often in the Manga version. This allows the person that is reading the manga to understand the trials, complication, and struggle that these characters are going through. Granted, the anime does this too at times, but I notice this a lot more in the Manga. I never once found it as overkill. These monologues come in at the right time. The portrayal of Shinji is very identical to the Anime with some significant differences. Rei does develop a little more than in the anime, but not much is different. Asuka’s background is different but like Rei, not much is different from the Anime. Misato is nearly identical than the Anime with some differences with how the story is portrayed. Same with Ritsuko. Toji on the other hand was handled differently and that’s the only thing I’ll say on him. Kaji isn’t different from the anime except that he was given a backstory. Also, Remember Kaworu, who was in only one episode of the anime? Well, his timing and portrayal plays out differently than the anime. I have no complaints on this. Hell, even Gendo Ikari is played out a little different and I took a liking to that. Also, let’s not forget that penguin Pen-Pen… He’s even given a brief backstory of where he came from that led him into the series, despite his reduced appearance in the Manga, it was a little interesting to know about his past. As far as characters go, I am liking how they are portrayed in the Manga a little more than the anime.


Which leads me to the story as a whole. I could say there’s some room for argument in regards to the authorship of the Evangelion Manga, 90% of the manga is based off the anime, and it does reflect on elements that came from Hideaki Anno’s vision. Anno-san did work with Sadamoto-san on starting the manga and since I have not heard a single complaint regarding this. I guess the authorship of the Evangelion Manga isn’t really a big deal. Even though 90% of the manga is based off the anime. The direction of the manga is not really the same like the anime. There are some significant plot changes and there are even little miniscule differences which may be hard to tell unless you watch the anime and read the manga side by side. Personally, I like how the Manga plays out. It took out the filler that the anime had at a few episodes. It had more in-depth insights on characters, and the changes that Sadamoto-san made compared to the anime are welcoming because for the most part, certain events and/or developments didn’t feel forced whereas the anime did due to technical constraints. Sadmoto-san fixed some areas that are kinda broken. As much as I liked the anime, The Evangelion is my favorite version of the Evangelion franchise. God is in His Heaven, All’s Right With The World. Amen!


The manga to Neon Genesis Evangelion is available by Viz Media, the manga spinoffs “Angelic Days” and “The Shinji Ikari Raising Project” are also available by Viz Media. The Evangelion Anime was available by ADV Films until they went under, it was re-licensed by Section23 but no re-release has been made since.


With everything said, the Neon Genesis Evangelion manga may be 90% true to the anime but Yoshiyuki Sadamoto took some liberties with the changes that were made (notable or small) that can be seen as acceptable, reasonable, and welcoming. If you liked the Evangelion Anime. I strongly recommend you to give the Evangelion Manga a try. It will likely not disappoint. I consider it to be a Masterpiece of a Manga series.




I give Yoshiyuki Sadamoto’s Neon Genesis Evangelion a 9.6 out of 10, it is EXCELLENT!



Feel free to leave a comment, and don’t run away.

It was towards the end of summer and I had yet to ever read a manga and I had tons of time on my hands so I decided to read the manga adaptation of Neon Genesis Evangelion, as the anime before had left in a sort of confused state and I didn't totally understand what people meant when they said that Eva is deep, but that was before I read this...

Impression:
From the very get go I was pulled into the story just as episode one of the anime had done before, but this didn't feel like the Eva I previously knew, it was different as some of the events in the story were different in comparison to the anime, getting from point A to point B was a new experience though the manga does not stray to far from the story laid out by the anime however the first 3 volumes of the manga were already out before the anime had ever aired.
The best way to put it is that the manga is like a different interpretation of the same story done by the anime, the story and the characters are handled a little differently, as most of the manga was written after the anime's alleged end so the writer already had a good idea of where to go so everything seems more planned out and every event has purpose and a feeling of progression.
Now I can't say what the fans of the original series will think of this manga in whether they will like it or not but as a bit of advisory the story (as I said before) is handled differently, thats all I can say for that.
If you are a person like me who watched the anime and was not totally satisfied with it and felt like they kinda gave up and half assed it a little bit, or if you down right hated the anime for the typical reasons a lot of people hate Eva. (not gonna get into that)
Then good news, this won't make you depressed, but it's not like a generic mech anime it's still eva and the manga still keeps it's eva charm were not everything is perfect and it still keeps it's dark psycho-analysis and religious symbolic undertone and it doesn't sacrifice it's complex story either and all of the elements of eva are still present, but instead of bashing your head on the keyboard at the end of the series, you'll actually get it, or at least I got it, I can't really speak for everyone but that was pretty much my experience.
As for anyone who is arriving fresh with no prior knowledge nor experience to the franchise then you should expect to be taken for a ride.

Characters:
The characters in the manga are very well expanded on for the most part as eva is a more character driven story but even so just to get this out of the way one major con with this (and this applies to your particular taste) was probably Asuka, I didn't find anything wrong with her character in the manga but at some point of the story she was a little shoved off to the side and became more of a secondary character that only developed to a certain point though this also happens in the anime I think it is more noticeable in the manga, I don't particularly care for her character but there are other people who do so I'm just including that for their sake.
As for Shinji our lead male protagonist, he's actually not half bad in the manga, he's still angsty teenager we get to see more of his thoughts and he becomes a more understandable character where you see things from more of his prospective though at times I think he was a little more courageous in the manga I felt like I understood more on why he would do the things he did that in the anime made me completely hate his character at times, and I found that I liked him more in the manga with out it feeling like the shinji from the original series was completely replaced.
Rei was an interesting character in the manga as she seemed a little more talkative than what she was in the anime but there was also a lot more of a focus on her character in the manga, her character development happens pretty smoothly and the turns out to be a very interesting character as the manga goes more in depth with her.
Ryoji Kaji, who isn't even a major character in the story was also a very interesting character as the manga goes into his backstory which does a great job at explaining his motives for his actions in both the anime and the manga and it gives his character a whole lot of depth.
Another character who gets a lot of development was Kaworu who comes in the latter half of the story starts out seeming kinda creepy and cold but eventually begins to develop more of a personality.
most of the other characters are relatively the same as they were in the anime but the manga seems to take more time going in depth with them.

Final verdict:
I'm going to have to give this one a 10 out of 10 which I don't normally do but I can't find to many flaws with this manga, now like I said before some of the more hardcore fans of the anime might say something different but for anyone that is a little confused with eva, I highly suggest reading this manga.

Most likely of why you're here is because you just finished the anime known as "Neon Genesis Evangelion" and simply want more, more beyond than what the Rebuild movies could ever provide for you! Curious ol' you now wonders, "Is it even worth reading this manga?" Granted, it is assumed you really enjoyed the anime series to even consider it. Otherwise, if you're one of the ones that didn't like Neon Genesis Evangelion to begin with (and that's okay!), you'll for the most part see exactly what you were offered in the anime and thus you might want to steer clear of this manga.
Now, for the ones that did express genuine interest in NGE, I would highly recommend this manga title, without a doubt! What you get on the surface is basically the exact same story and characters shown in the series. So why read it if it is basically the same as the anime? Is there anything different?
Well! To start off with, imagine getting to know most of the characters more in depth than you would of in NGE. Rei for instance is much more talkative, yet at the same time, she retains that secretive and quiet personality witnessed in the anime. For someone like me, this manga helped me find Rei to be a more likable character because of the fact I get to see more interaction in relation to herself and the other characters from her end! Plus, the relationship development between Rei and Shinji is much more developed throughout the manga, which gives you a glimpse beyond the obedient 'doll'. Asuka is still her feisty self, and in some regard, she's even more feisty, so if you loved Asuka already, you should have no issue loving her even more! Don't worry, her background story is still included too. Shinji is also relatively the same person as well, the self-loathing, depressed, hopeful, rebellious, and redeeming young man that makes Shinji, Shinji!
Still curious? Alright!
When it comes to the story, as mentioned before, is for the most part, untouched. But! How it comes out differently is exhibited in three ways:

1) Take for example, in the first chapter, the first Angel that Shinji lays eyes upon for the first time, is squaring it off with Rei in an Evangelion. While this was not shown in the anime, it does not hinder the expected outcome, in which case, the expected outcome is for Shinji to show up in front of the Evangelion for his first fight. That added detail helps reinforce the forthcoming situations and events to be better executed. So whenever Shinji sees Rei bandaged up and injured prior to agreeing to pilot Eva, the reader now understands why Rei is so shaken up: she was trying to fend off the Angel! In general, the outcome will be the same in the manga, but how it gets there is altered in some way, and mostly it's for the better!

2) A LOT more is explored than originally shown from the anime. Want more background information on Kaji? You got it! You want to get a glimpse into what Rei really thinks about Gendo in scenes that the anime kept hidden from you? You got it! You want to see more of the daily life Shinji had with his friends? You bet! You want to peer even more into Shinji's mind during those "events"? You guessed it! It even gives more light to Kaworu Nagisa's character and his relationship to Shinji and what his personality is like than the brief encounter that you saw in NGE or in End of Evangelion.

3) This manga assumes you have watched the series. It is evident because certain events are briefly covered as it was already something explored in the series. This happens rarely though since what is omitted (besides some of the battles of course) is overshadowed by the amount of content I mentioned in points 1 and 2. In essence, if you have seen the anime series, it shouldn't be a bother when certain events or background information is mentioned briefly.

There are few gripes I had with this manga though. Some included minor story details that I preferred in the anime series (won't mention them in this review of course) or certain parts of the story were left out. Others included such examples like Touji coming across as being a hillbilly-like character, which I don't think was a heavy trait in the series as much as the manga portrays Touji to be; the series seemed to have given Touji a more serious attitude with less immature-like qualities than what the manga offered. Of course however, these issues weren't distracting enough to hinder my overall personal enjoyment.

Overall, this manga is perfect for the NGE fan wanting to continue on with even more exploration into the story and character development that creates NGE! Feel free to drop me a line if you found this review useful or inaccurate to what you experienced~

And thus, the EVA marathon comes full-circle . We started with Neon Genesis Evangelion by Anno Hideaki, and we end it with Neon Genesis Evangelion by Sadamoto Yoshiyuki. Yes, in order to promote the show, a Manga was released, and like the Anime, it’s very much divisive in its own right. Admittedly less so as most of the opinions lean towards the positive, but the more die hard EVA fans in particular will have more conflicting feelings. Why is that? Well, that’s what we’re here to find out.

Also, for all following Manga Reviews, my usual format will be ditched, and in the case of Arc Based Mangas, I will be covering the Art as it went along. Anyhow, moving on.

This Manga is, when you get down to it, deceptively similar to the Anime. On a surface level, pretty much all major events happen and almost all notable characters appear. The plot goes through more of the same plot beats, and in general things are pretty similar on a first glance. However, like with Jurassic Park and its movie adaptation, while the overall plot remains the same, the details are altered to hell and back, ironic as most of the mechanics of the world remain the same.

In general, few scenes play out the same in both mediums. Maybe it’s something as simple as a shot being changed, the perspective being switched to another character, or in the most extreme cases, scenes are so widely different that it gets flat out ridiculous. This isn’t an inherently bad thing. Some things either don’t translate well to the new medium or are simply just as interesting in their own right, and in the end, the changes do prevent it from being more of the same like in 1.11.

And honestly, I do like these changes for the most part. They mostly help to either streamline the story, or to give new meaning to certain scenes. I would actually recommend reading this after watching the Anime as then it becomes a game of “Spot the difference”. For instance, the infamous elevator scene doesn’t happen, yet Asuka is still told the same line about having to open up, just under different circumstances and by a different person. Similar changes abound, with some of them even more notable (As in, character who didn’t originally die dying levels of different) and I do generally really like them.

In turn, the tone is ever so slightly lighter. Not by much, mind you, this is still a pretty damn dark Manga, but due to it being done by someone who is likely less depressed than Anno (Not that Sadamoto seems particularly stable either if his version of the Unit-03 incident is anything to go by), in general it doesn’t come across as quite as depressing as the Anime. Maybe it’s because of the increase in comedy early parts, but who knows?

Yet it’s the characters where the differences truly come to light. Shinji is the most notable example; he’s snarkier, rudder and just generally more outwardly aggressive. He’s still prone to depression, but not quite as often as his Anime counterpart. Yet in the end, he ultimately comes across of the better man here: He’s far more willing to do the right thing, and instead of rejecting affection, he actively seeks for it. The only exception is towards the end in which he willingly distances himself from Kensuke, but that’s because he knows that their friendship wouldn’t be the same after the events that had happened. This also makes his breakdown in this story’s equivalent of EOE less severe, so he recovers a tad quicker.

Rei and Asuka suffer similar changes, especially Rei. Asuka isn’t technically changed too much, it’s just that due to the changes to Shinji, she comes across as less abusive and more just snarking back at him, she also gets some changes to her backstory which just helps build up her feeling of being special. Rei however does change a lot and it doesn’t have much to do with the changes done to Shinji. If there was any way I could describe her, is that she’s the intermediary state between her Rebuild Counterpart and her OG Counterpart. Still pretty chilly overall, though she does open up to Shinji in a much more blatant manner, and like said movies, the romantic angle between the two is really played up. It’s done similarly well, though I honestly feel that movie did it slightly better, ironically enough.

Gendo and Kaworu, however, are the most different of the lot. Gendo has the few moments in which he showed any degree of affection towards Shinji removed, the story instead focusing on his mad love for his dead wife and how said death continues to influence him. Ironically, he ultimately has a more tragic and tear-jerking end than his TV counterpart (At least in terms of presentation), which does bring his character full circle. Kaworu though… you know how people sometimes evangelize (Pun not intended) him into some sort of saint? Well, when he finally appeared here, years after the show ended, Sadamoto basically said “Look guys, Kaworu was a creep”.

Needless to say, his negative qualities are even more notable than ever, and honestly he comes across as a bit of a creep. It’s so much so that even though Shinji does somewhat appreciate him for showing him affection when no one else would, he can’t help but feel weirded out by him because of how blue and orange his views on the world are. I think another reason Sadamoto did this was because ultimately his impact on Shinji’s character isn’t as notable as his TV counterpart, so he just decided to make him a more fleshed out character. It overall works, at least to me, being pretty much the definitive take on an evil Kaworu in my eyes.

Besides that, there isn’t much else that is really changed. Some stuff is added, for instance Kaji gets two whole chapters focusing on his personal history with Misato and his past, but besides that, it’s still EVA, and going into other changes would mean delving into spoilers. It’s still the same basic story, so they can’t fuck it up too much. Hell, I can finally enjoy the events of EOE since its tone is no longer in direct conflict with its themes!... Mostly. More on that later.

Sadamoto’s Art of course helps. He was the character designer for the show, so as you should expect everyone looks more or less the same. And thankfully this Manga in general looks fantastic. With no budget to worry about, every scene comes across as a visual spectacle, helped by the overall framing for the scenes and how Sadamoto knows when to use either a two-page spread or a full page spread. It’s wonderful to say the least.

Sadly, there is one problem with this Manga, and it is the one almost all EVA products seem to suffer from: The Ending! And unlike the ending of the show and EOE which I found “Good but I don’t like it”, this Ending is just plain regular bad. Not gonna dwelve into spoilers here, so all I’ll say is that the reset button is effectively hit, erasing all the character journeys our heroes went through. It’s a shame as everything leading up to it was fantastic, but the actual final chapter itself was disappointing.

Yet in the end, does a bad ending ruin a show? I’d say no. If anything I’d say it’s the opposite of Code Geass, there the Ending was good but everything leading up to it didn’t work. Here we have the opposite, and neither result is particularly pretty, but I’d much rather take this. A disappointing final chapter, to me, isn’t enough to truly break this Manga. In the end, for all its faults, I do like it, dare I say, more than the Anime. I grew attached to these characters far more than it did there, the plot twists kept me guessing, and overall, I can’t help but find it just plain better overall. Needless to say, it is highly recommended.

Final Score: 9/10

O mangá é basicamente a explicação oficial dos eventos, ou seja uma obra extremamente medíocre.

Cheio de cenas que explicam coisas obvias do anime, como uma tentativa frustrada de ""humanizar"" os personagens o que deu muito errado, tirou todo o toque sútil do anime. Algo bem comum nesse mangá é a falta de inspiração e principalmente de autoria, é quase uma fanfic nesse aspecto, é vazio e sem graça.

Admito que o final é muito bom, gostaria de ver ele em um curta dirigido pelo próprio Anno, porém é sonhar alto apenas.

Mas só vale a pena ler o mangá se você é muito fã do anime ou se assistiu sem prestar atenção, ai o mangá vai te explicar tudo, só que sem o dedo do Anno.

this manga, i found almost outclassing the anime, if it were not for the ending. I know that the anime and the movie "the end of Evangelion"'s endings have caused much discourse for the better part of nearly 30 years, but out of all the endings thus far, the manga in my opinion has the poorest.

however, there were many things I loved about this manga. firstly, the art stays at an incredible standard throughout the entirety of the run, especially during third impact, and it also kept you engaged constantly. as well as this, many of the characters are handled better due the the chance to add more scenes than the anime. many of these scenes revolve around Shinji and Rei's relationship, resulting in significant development, especially towards Rei. this makes you feel more for her character before she sacrifices herself than you did in the anime. the relationship between Gendo and shinji is also fleshed out further, resulting in Gendo becoming more humanised than he appeared in the anime, due to the reader learning the reason he doesn't want to interact with shinj is for fear of tarnishing their relationship further. this also explains why he interacts with Rei more than Shinji, as he sees her as easier to interact with due to her lack of social skills, along with her resemblance to Yui, his wife.

sadly, the ending managed to ruin the entire previous experience of reading the manga up to that point, as the ending pretty much negates the entirety of the manga. the hero is not celebrated, no congratulations, not even a memory. yes, the ending of both the movie and anime are bleak yet hopeful in retrospect, but none of them wipe the main characters memories as well as all of humanities. it renders the sacrifices of Misato, Kaji, Yui, Ritsuko Rei and numerous NERV and UN personnel to nothing, as none will remember them. even shinji's personality has changed somewhat, with him being more cheery than usual. though this is somewhat comforting seeing the horror he had previously encountered, this ruins the experience as it basically says that all the previous 95 chapters were for nothing and were pretty much a waste of time for the reader, as a reader who was unaware of the previous chapter could just skip to the end, and believe it is where it begins.

therefore, i thoroughly enjoyed the majority of this manga, yet i had to mark it down from a 9 0r even ten, just because the ending leaves such a bad taste in your mouth.

Spoiler Alert! It's recommended you do not read the following unless you have finished both Neon Genesis Evangelion (anime and manga versions), as well as the theatrical ending, Death & Rebirth. Got any questions or comments about this review? Message me. Enjoy!

"Neon Genesis Evangelion.
My god, what a journey it's been."

I've said this phrase a total of three times after seeing the anime/rebuilds, Death & Rebirth, and finally the manga. I have to say though, neither of the first two were as refreshing as the third. (In this review, I refer to both the anime and Death & Rebirth as one component of the series)

Neon Genesis Evangelion, although completed in both anime/movie form long before the manga, received critical acclaim from viewers and critics, ranging from absolute adoration to confusion or even disgust. As a viewer, I found myself stuck in the middle of this range. Sure, Evangelion had it's high points and it's low points, but what made it difficult for me to enjoy Evangelion in it's anime form was the strange, rushed characterization that often made complete one-eighties.

Before anyone rushes to the instant conclusion that I didn't like the original anime version of Evangelion, let me tell you that I truthfully did. The issue was that the characters, for the lack of a more coherent explanation, were just unable to be connected to on an emotional level to me as a viewer. This is a key part that I really loved while I was reading the manga. I can't completely explain this feeling, just how it's difficult to explain happiness or sadness, but I just felt more - there - along with Shinji, Asuka, and Rei, as well as their challenges and their search for the reason behind there existences. This was something that the anime just couldn't give me, and whether that was just me being me, or a shared opinion, I'm not too sure.

Now, what differences (as there are many), did I like and dislike pertaining to the manga version of Evangelion? Well, for starters, I couldn't be happier with the differences in Shinji. Now I know a lot of people cry about how much of a *cough*puss*cough* Shinji was during the anime. That's true, but I felt that the fault in this l lied not with Shinji's personality and his frailty, but the difficulty in pinpointing his true character. Was he an idiot? A coward? Did he just not care? Did he find no meaning in life? Or did he? I was puzzled during the entire anime about his true nature. Sure, he is a loser and a coward, but during the angel attacks, there were certain times where he manned up and dug down deep.

In the manga, Shinji often steps up and puts his life on the line instead of hiding and crying during many of the parts in the anime. In fact, a lot of seemingly pointless parts of the anime don't exist in the manga. These parts include: many parts where Shinji wusses out, quite a few of the unnecessary Seele portions, and even that creepy and strange part where Shinji masturbates to a comatose Asuka (thank god). Some new parts that I didn't see in the manga which I deeply enjoyed were Asuka's false attraction to Kaji, more insight into the past of both Kaji and Misato (and their relationship), a better and more fulfilling relationship between Shinji and Asuka/Rei/Kaworu, as well as learning a lot more about Shinji's father and his mother's relationship to Rei.

One of the major pluses for the manga was the fact that it provided me with a more clear and concise personality of all the characters, especially Shinji. Even so, Shinji was a coward at times, Asuka could be stubborn and impersonal, and Rei could be an empty, emotionless husk at certain points. But what separates the manga from the anime is that, in the end, each personality ties together instead of leaving you with a handful of loose straws.

Another personality point I liked was more insight into Rei and the background of Nerv. Who is Rei? Who was Gendo? What are the Angels? The EVAs? You will, as a reader, find every one of these questions answered, and, I can grant you, in a much more fulfilling manner than the anime presented.

In both the anime and in the manga, Rei starts off as the same quiet and emotionless being she is, and ends up, for the most part, becoming a warmer and more "human" human with the assistance and influence of Shinji. The difference, though, is how each media takes it's path to that destination. In the anime, Rei meets Shinji, and has multiple encounters that changes her outlook on her own opinion of herself and others. Despite having enough encounters to seemingly change her personality, a lot of the change and reactions in Rei are left up to the viewer to comprehend and interpret. The manga, though, often assumes a first person point of view from Ayanami herself, and you can hear her thoughts and her memories. There's a lot more development between the two of the in the manga than in the anime, and it all just feels more coherent.

So what was the deciding factor for me? What was the big bombshell that finally and instantly decided which was superior? For me, that absolutely has to be the final 15 chapters. Why? Well let's just say that both the end of the anime (which ran out of funding) and Death & Rebirth left a rather strange and puzzling taste in my mouth that I wanted to try to replace with a better memory of Evangelion.

For starters, I was absolutely delighted with the chapter where Asuka fights the replica EVAs. Remember in the anime movie ending where Asuka was fighting to the death while Shinji chickened out due to indecision in the cage, which led to Asuka getting ripped apart? Haha. I laugh at that memory. Let me say it now. Not. Here. No feeling was greater for me during the entirety of the manga than when Shinji stepped up and decided to fight. And guess what? He saves her. It may have only been temporarily, but Shinji did what he promised and he protected her.

Another part of the last few chapters I loved were the differences between Death & Rebirth and the manga during the part between the fight with the replica EVAs and the ending. These parts include, but are not limited to: Ritsuko being able to shoot Gendo in the end, Misato's last memory of Kaji, Shinji's mother paying a final visit to Gendo AND Gendo's acceptance of Shinji as a symbol of their love, Rei's final encounter with Shinji, and his meeting with his mother before the end.

The final part of the manga left me with an amazing feeling. After watching Shinji strangling Asuka on the beach in Death & Rebirth, I was confused and puzzled, despite being a little bit satisfied. But the manga left a different, more conclusive final impression. Shinji, with the aid of his mother, decides that people should return to existence if they wish. In the ending scene, Shinji is riding a train to Tokyo in a world where knowledge of the angels and EVAs never existed, an alternate reality that Shinji created (although Rei and Gendo are not alive in this world). When he leaves the platform, he bumps into a happy Asuka as well as Kensuke in a chance encounter, despite neither of the three having memory of the other. When they depart on their own paths with their own futures, it is unknown whether or not they will ever meet again. As he leaves the station, Shinji decides to stand strong on his own two feet, and believes that no matter how much he goes through, the sun will always shine at the ending - a lesson that he had been learning since the moment he stepped into EVA Unit 01.

It's a bittersweet ending to me, similar to those of FMA Brotherhood, Angel Beats, Mirai Nikki, and Higurashi, but it feels alright. I tell myself, "this is how it should be". Am I right? I'm not sure. But if there's one thing I'm sure of, it's that this Shinji is happy, this Asuka is happy, and Rei made the decision she felt she should've. Will they ever meet again? I don't know. I guess they should, but this is good enough...for now.

So I guess non-pussy Shinji gets a good ending, huh?
He really deserved it.