[Native Jovian]

It's not that I don't enjoy more down-to-earth character-driven drama, it's just that I thought Evangelion's attempt at it was shitty. Sure, the characters had reasons for acting the way that they did, but that didn't change the fact that none of them were very likable or relatable. Yes, the non-robot-fighting part of the show was about how shoving children into giant robot fights over the fate of the world will horribly scar them psychologically, but when your three main characters are a wuss, a bitch, and a stoic, it's hard to root for them.

If you want to see teenagers breaking under the mental strain of giant robot combat, I'd recommend Gundam Seed. It's far from perfect (and let's not even mention the sequel, Gundam Seed Destiny), but it's a pretty stark look at what happens when you put the weight of the world on the shoulders of an unsuspecting teenager, minus the gratuitous religious pseduo-symbolism and general mindfuckery.

[Emperor Charlemagne]

Gundam Seed is good, but I usually gravitate towards G-Gundam because of classic mech fighting and the POWER OF LOVE.

Ear-to-ear smile every time.

[K.B.]

Originally Posted by Thin Crust

Haruhi

Originally Posted by Native Jovian

Evangelion

That settles it.

My permanent method of taking recs from this thread is going with whatever you guys dislike.



...I should get around to watching the second season of Haruhi now that I've finally tracked down a copy of the dub.

[Emperor Charlemagne]

Second season of Haruhi?

There's being contrary for the sake of contrariness, but... but steel yourself for a world of shit, K.B.

A world of shit.

[Thin Crust]

Originally Posted by K.B.

That settles it.

My permanent method of taking recs from this thread is going with whatever you guys dislike.



...I should get around to watching the second season of Haruhi now that I've finally tracked down a copy of the dub.

If that's the case, I really hate Berserk, Princess Mononoke, Blassreiter, Soul Eater, Hellsing Ultimate, Trinity Blood. Don't ever watch those.


(I kid, I kid. This is only reverse psychology.)

But in all honesty, the popular anime that I hate include Elfen Lied, Code Geass, Suzumiya Haruhi, One Piece, Evangelion, Cowboy Beebop, Eureka 7.

[Bleck]

Originally Posted by Native Jovian

It's not that I don't enjoy more down-to-earth character-driven drama, it's just that I thought Evangelion's attempt at it was shitty. Sure, the characters had reasons for acting the way that they did, but that didn't change the fact that none of them were very likable or relatable.

If you want to see teenagers breaking under the mental strain of giant robot combat, I'd recommend Gundam Seed.

So wait. You don't like Evangelion because none of the characters are likeable, so you recommend Gundam Seed?

[urdailywater]

Originally Posted by Bleck

So wait. You don't like Evangelion because none of the characters are likeable, so you recommend Gundam Seed?

I'd +1 this post if I could.

[Top Gun]

My opinion on Evangelion has flip-flopped a few times in the years since I first saw it, but I think I've finally settled on it. The thing is, I think Eva is fascinating if viewed from the standpoint of looking at what a director suffering from severe clinical depression (which Anno was at the time) can produce. On the animation/music side of things, there are some great individual scenes and sequences. But narratively...it's an utter and complete mess. It feels like Anno never settled on what sort of series he was trying to create, and the latter half of the series infamously jumps off the rails as a result. Most of the main cast aren't so much "characters" as archetypes of individual psychological disorders, which makes them nigh-impossible to relate to. (Really, the fact that there's so much Rei fandom despite her having any personality for all of two minutes in the entire series is frightening.) The constant religious symbolism is obnoxious, though I think that's mostly because so many fans read so much false meaning into it. And in the end, you're kind of left wondering if there was a point to most of what you've seen.

Was it influential in the overall anime landscape? Definitely. Is it worth watching? Probably, if for no other reason than to form your own opinion on it. Would I ever label it a "great" series in terms of actual enjoyment? Nope. Some Eva fans would probably lynch me for saying so, but if you want to see "Eva done right," try RahXephon.

Also...recommending Trinity Blood, yet bashing Bebop and Eureka seveN? What is this I don't even.

[The Derrit]

someone explain to me all the evangelion stuff past the original series? because there's a lot of it and i don't get what any of it is.

[Top Gun]

Death & Rebirth (or I guess really just the "Death" part) is largely a recap of the original TV series, albeit in a different order, and with a bit of extra footage thrown in. Some of that extra footage wound up being in the "director's cut" of several of the later TV episodes...21-24, I think. The "Rebirth" part of that movie is actually the first part of End of Evangelion, which serves as either a replacement for, or a companion to, the final two episodes of the TV series, depending on who you ask. Right now, Anno is in the process of directing a series of four movies, collectively called Rebuild of Evangelion, which are essentially a fresh take on the franchise. I haven't seen them yet, but from what I've heard, they start out fairly similar to the TV series but wind up greatly diverging from its story.

Yeah, all of this is about as much of a mess as the original series' story was. :D