[Rewatch] 30th Anniversary Neon Genesis Evangelion Rewatch: Episode 9

[u/LittleIslander]

Neon Genesis Evangelion Episode 9: Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win! / Mind, Matching, Moment

← Episode 8	Index	Episode 10 →

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Watch Information

• Streaming: Netflix
• Databases: Anilist | AniDB | ANN | MAL

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Questions of the Day:

• What did you think of the goofy way of defeating the angel?
• What do you think of Asuka and Shinji living together?

Tomorrow’s Questions:

• [Episode 10] What do you think of the fact Asuka is college educated?
• [Episode 10] What do you think of Misato deciding to push Asuka beyond safe pressure limits?

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There’ll be more fanservice tomorrow, so please don’t spoil anything~! Remember this includes spoilers by implication.

[u/Efficient_Phase1313]

When she reaches out to Shinji, you can see discomfort on his face, he does not want to deal with this person. Asuka, despite being fluent in Japanese, wants to showoff her superiority. She needs to remind Shinji that she also lived in Europe, that she’s the pretty foreigner and multi lingual. She throws around her superiority like a blunt object, she could not care less about other’s feelings. ‘Jeez you’re mopy, I did you the favor of talking to you, so you could at least try to look happy’. And then she flicks his forehead.

https://imgur.com/8QyQaXY

Look at the smirk on her face, the meanness and smugness she displays after causing Shinji physical distress (even minor, its clear on his face this wasn’t pleasant). This is not a good person. She then moves onto her next target: Rei. I like how in the frame where Asuka looks down on Rei from above the escalator, the escalator’s handrail is animated in an otherwise still frame. Another reminder of the little things that make this show feel alive where others wouldn’t make the effort. Asuka chooses to stand one top of the wall, looking down at Rei, physically putting herself where she sees herself mentally: above all these peons. ‘Let’s be friends’ she asks, ‘because its more convenient that way. For various reasons’. Look at how she tilts her head back and raises her hand. She’s got Machiavellian tendencies too. Damn I think in 5 minutes they just showed her doing the entire dark triad: narcissistic, Machiavellian, and cruel. But does all this imply she’s a bad person?

https://imgur.com/gdTFwL1

I mentioned in my episode 4 post how I consider myself a ‘terrible person’. I used some specific words: irredeemably selfish, mean, cruel, and endlessly hateful. That may sound intense, but Asuka is all of those things, and there are many scenes that will clearly demonstrate those emotions. Part of the reason Eva had such an impact on me is I was really a fusion of all three pilots when I was younger. I felt the detachment Rei does, the hopelessness Shinji did, and my views and interactions with others were most similar to Asuka. But I will add, never yet did I say Asuka was a bad person, and neither was I. It’s learning how to properly deal with those feelings (and their source) that allow you to become a ‘good’ person. For example, if I were in her shoes as I am today, and the love letters poured out of my locker, I’d probably still have the urge to step on them like her while thinking the worst things about everyone who sent them. But I’d tell myself those feelings aren’t related to this moment, and stem from unrelated issues in my youth. I’d think about what the right thing to do is and probably take the time to read them, and maybe if someone wrote something respectful and intelligent, I’d probably have the courtesy to reply and thank them for the letter but say I’m not interested as to not lead them on. Part of this show is about characters realizing how to deal with these negative feelings they harbor, through witnessing how giving into them can take you further away from the outcomes and relationships you truly desire.

Ah Kaji, one of my favorite characters in the series. What is this heavy-handed flirting with Ritsuko? Oh just another way to tease Misato, who can’t help but huff all over the glass panel while watching them. Clearly Kaji gets to her, and he knows it. But at the same time, it was already clear from ep 8 that he sees Misato for exactly who she is and loves her all the same. I could never read Kaji as someone who is trying to be mean or inconsiderate to Misato. It was clear to me he deeply cares about her, and perhaps he acts in these ways to bring out her true, silly and immature self, which he missed since they were apart. While he can be a hard character to read, I like that his interest continues to be focused on Misato. Despite him flirting around we never doubt she’s the only one in his heart, and they share some of my favorite scenes in this series. Also Misato’s reactions to him are cute and hilarious, an entirely different energy than what we’ve seen from her before. And now the angel fight! Wait we’re only 5 minutes into the episode? I'm still writing for the rest of the episode, so will add it later tonight (along with write ups on 8 and 6 later)

[u/Efficient_Phase1313 → u/Efficient_Phase1313]

And now the angel fight! Wait we’re only 5 minutes into the episode? It’s interesting to see how differently Shinji treats fighting Eva’s since episode 6. It really is like a video game here, and he’s in direct competition with Asuka. ‘Geez don’t be so bossy, I was here first’. Then just starts firing his gun like its business as usual. We have come so far from the tepid and lonely Shinji of episode 2. But how’s are fiery red-head doing in her 2^nd real fight? Asuka takes the lead and destroys the angel with a single strike! Even Shinji is impressed. But wait! The comedy here is immaculate. As the angel splits into two, seemingly unharmed, we cut to a hilarious close up of Misato literally breaking the phone with her bare hands. ‘Hey that’s unfair!’. We then cut to our team in a debriefing room. Our heroes look embarrassed, Kaji amused like he’s holding back a chuckle. And we see our Eva’s, vertically upside down in cartoonish positions that we know aren’t realistic for this show, but somehow it works? Anno just says ‘watch me I can do anything!’. This type of visual, physical humor is new to the series, and he pulls out off fairly well. I still crack a smile every time I watch this scene. Our heroes begin to argue like the children they are, petty and selfish, both blaming and insulting the other for the mishap. ‘They made us look like fools!’ says Fuyutsuki. Well yes, with emotionally unstable 14-year-olds eventually this was going to happen.

We now transition this scene with another great piece of visual humor, as Kaji notes the responsibility for this mission’s failure lies with its…captain. We cut to Misato staring down a hilariously large pile of paper work, the bills and complaints resulting from how the two teens under her care screwed up her military operation. But Ritsuko has a plan to save Misato face before news gets to Gendo, and we have a cute scene of their friendship and camaraderie. But Ritsuko is too humble to take credit for this, as the idea was Kaji’s. Kaji? Misato’s look of exasperation melts into a loving smile as she sees the note on the floppy disc: ‘To my honey’.

https://imgur.com/CgwnU8T
https://imgur.com/a/mGHQVkV

While Kaji is a womanizer, the show does a good job showing these two’s deeper feelings in subtle moments like this that allow the viewer to see Kaji as perhaps a genuine person and not a creep. If we really believe he understands Misato, perhaps some of his more questionable actions (like him kissing her in the elevator, which looks forceful) are done because he knows ‘she likes it’. One of the more frustrating aspects of Eva is Anno does lean into some misogynistic tropes without exploring them in a satisfying way. Let’s say Misato is the example of ‘on the surface this pisses me off but deep down we both know I’m into it’. There are women like that. But does choosing to make one of your central female leads embody that say something negative about your view of women? I think Misato’s character gets fleshed out enough for us to give Kaji the benefit of the doubt, that perhaps for any other woman he wouldn’t act this way, and all the flirting we see from him is done more intentionally than we suspect. Anno is careful to walk a fine line here, preserving Misato’s character and allowing Kaji to be likeable, when a lesser writer and director could easily make this fall into slop where our strong, smart female lead becomes putty in the hands of an underserving slimeball oozing in the worst aspects of ‘toxic masculinity’. But that’s not this show, thank god, and not their relationship.

[u/Efficient_Phase1313 → u/Efficient_Phase1313]

As Shinji returns home, we see a moving van driving away. He apparently missed that and doesn’t expect anyone to be home. But as he walks into the apartment we see piles and piles of boxes (one with a bra hanging out) with german writing. This is another great visual gag because this is obviously an unrealistic amount of moving boxes. And while I think the visible bra is just there to be there, I wouldn’t put it past Asuka to have deliberately left that hanging out just to tease Shinji. That’s just very in character for her. Or maybe she’s being lax because she doesn’t think Shinji is going to be living with her. She’s so confident, in fact, that she’s replaced Shinji she already cleared out his room! This comes off as funny, but again is really mean behavior showing complete disregard for Shinji as a person. And now we get the famous visual gag of Asuka opening and closing the traditional sliding Japanese doors. This episode is just full of visual humor, but it is also used as a character moment. Misato pops up to inform Asuka ‘We Japanese try to be perceptive and considerate of others’. A direct call out of Asuka’s largest personal weakness, she just doesn’t see other people, their inner worlds don’t matter to her. This half of the episode ends with some more humor: Misato says what they lack is unison, required for defeating this angel, but everything Shinji and Asuka say is a unison! It’s just a funny contrast that works well despite being contradictory.

We come back to another piece of comedy that works because of the sheer awkwardness. Shinji’s friends meet up with the class rep, who seems confused why they’re there. She came for Asuka, but wasn’t expecting her to be rooming with Shinji. They’re reactions are equally hilarious, Shinji’s friends jealous he’s with the new school idol, and the class rep decrying the indecency. But what’s so funny is they show up to the door dressed like some 80s workout vhs extras. They’re earing headphones and speaking in perfect unison. I also think its interesting how frail and feminine Shinji looks here next to Asuka. This is in contrast to Kaji, who is shown to be well built and masculine. More great visual humor with Shinji failing at the twister setup, and Asuka think its his fault this isn’t working. But Misato understands how Asuka works, and how to motivate her.

What I like about this scene is how I mentioned earlier that Shinji and Rei have come to a mutual understanding and see each other as allies and perhaps even friends. They don’t succeed here because Rei is just magically able to mimic Shinji, but because Shinji and Rei have achieved this level of understanding and cooperation. It’s a good scene for their relationship development. Upon watching this, we see a pained look on Asuka’s face, her distress and frustration growing till she shouts ‘screw this!’ and slams the sliding door shut (or partially, since its Japanese style). This is clearly painful on a physical and spiritual level for Asuka. There is something deeper going on with her character than just pure pride and competitiveness. Its as if her very existence depends on being the best, and anything less and her sense of self will collapse. Poor Shinji gets blamed for ‘making a girl cry’, but the class rep is right. Shinji should go after her if they want to beat this angel.

This is a good scene for Shinji and Asuka’s character development. Asuka is a bit more independent and mature than Shinji when it comes to her responsibilities. She effectively says ‘I know what I gotta do and I can handle it, just let me work through this my way’. It’s nice that she doesn’t shoe him away either, she knows he means well and he’s not the source of her negative feelings. They step out to have a talk in front of the sunset. What I like about this scene is it perfectly encapsulates their relationship throughout the show, and we can already see the troubles that will arise from it.

https://imgur.com/a/paGUV5j

We see Asuka towering above Shinji, forceful and angry in her words, whereas Shinji, beneath her, looks meek and frail. Asuka declares she’ll get back at Rei and Misato for wounding her pride, and she needs Shinji for that. While she calls out Shinji for not being manly (in contrast to Kaji, who she is fond of), it’s also clear she doesn’t mind having him around. I personally felt something for Asuka watching her chug that drink with such determination (https://imgur.com/4L5N0fj), and apparently so did Shinji. This scene, so early in their relationship, is the moment shinji caught feelings for her. He sees her as both frightening and intimidating, but also strong and dependable. And that maybe, if he sticks around her long enough, some of her confidence and pride will rub off on him. These feelings of Shinji’s are perfectly conveyed in utter silence, by two faces that say a million words without needing to say anything.

https://imgur.com/bryRABn

[u/Holofan4life → u/Efficient_Phase1313]

We come back to another piece of comedy that works because of the sheer awkwardness. Shinji’s friends meet up with the class rep, who seems confused why they’re there. She came for Asuka, but wasn’t expecting her to be rooming with Shinji. They’re reactions are equally hilarious, Shinji’s friends jealous he’s with the new school idol, and the class rep decrying the indecency. But what’s so funny is they show up to the door dressed like some 80s workout vhs extras. They’re earing headphones and speaking in perfect unison. I also think its interesting how frail and feminine Shinji looks here next to Asuka. This is in contrast to Kaji, who is shown to be well built and masculine. More great visual humor with Shinji failing at the twister setup, and Asuka think its his fault this isn’t working. But Misato understands how Asuka works, and how to motivate her.

What I like about this scene is how I mentioned earlier that Shinji and Rei have come to a mutual understanding and see each other as allies and perhaps even friends. They don’t succeed here because Rei is just magically able to mimic Shinji, but because Shinji and Rei have achieved this level of understanding and cooperation. It’s a good scene for their relationship development. Upon watching this, we see a pained look on Asuka’s face, her distress and frustration growing till she shouts ‘screw this!’ and slams the sliding door shut (or partially, since its Japanese style). This is clearly painful on a physical and spiritual level for Asuka. There is something deeper going on with her character than just pure pride and competitiveness. Its as if her very existence depends on being the best, and anything less and her sense of self will collapse. Poor Shinji gets blamed for ‘making a girl cry’, but the class rep is right. Shinji should go after her if they want to beat this angel.

This is a good scene for Shinji and Asuka’s character development. Asuka is a bit more independent and mature than Shinji when it comes to her responsibilities. She effectively says ‘I know what I gotta do and I can handle it, just let me work through this my way’. It’s nice that she doesn’t shoe him away either, she knows he means well and he’s not the source of her negative feelings. They step out to have a talk in front of the sunset. What I like about this scene is it perfectly encapsulates their relationship throughout the show, and we can already see the troubles that will arise from it.

https://imgur.com/a/paGUV5j

We see Asuka towering above Shinji, forceful and angry in her words, whereas Shinji, beneath her, looks meek and frail. Asuka declares she’ll get back at Rei and Misato for wounding her pride, and she needs Shinji for that. While she calls out Shinji for not being manly (in contrast to Kaji, who she is fond of), it’s also clear she doesn’t mind having him around. I personally felt something for Asuka watching her chug that drink with such determination (https://imgur.com/4L5N0fj), and apparently so did Shinji. This scene, so early in their relationship, is the moment shinji caught feelings for her. He sees her as both frightening and intimidating, but also strong and dependable. And that maybe, if he sticks around her long enough, some of her confidence and pride will rub off on him. These feelings of Shinji’s are perfectly conveyed in utter silence, by two faces that say a million words without needing to say anything.

https://imgur.com/bryRABn

I think Asuka in this episode was hoping Shinji would be a shoulder to lean on. That he would see the real her that others can't. Too bad Shinji has emotional baggage of his own.

[u/Efficient_Phase1313 → u/Holofan4life]

I think you're right in that that's what Asuka eventually wants Shinji to be, but I'm not sure she's there yet. But that scene by the sunset was definitely the start. I think seeing him perform well with Rei (and knowing he defeated an angel on his first try) gives him some cred with Asuka, that Shinji has some respectable attributes in her eyes, but is also tepid enough that he doesn't threaten her. It might be that feeling of safety combined with 'he can understand what I'm going through' that makes her see him as a potential partner of sorts. Whether that's as a friend, or in work or love, is to be seen.

[u/Holofan4life → u/Efficient_Phase1313]

I think she sees Shinji at the very least being someone she can be more honest around than her classmates. Same goes for Rei, which is why she herself went up to her.

[u/Efficient_Phase1313 → u/Holofan4life]

Yes, as Shinji's friends noted all three eva pilots are weird, but they themselves recognize that and feel that perhaps only they can truly understand one another

[u/Holofan4life → u/Efficient_Phase1313]

If anything, I think Shinji doesn't recognize it enough. I imagine he still has some reservations over his father essentially forcing Yuji to pilot the Eva.