JPT1311

[achenjpt1311]

Death Note

Death Note is certainly a very iconic anime, an anime that spans beyond those that have watched or seen this anime. More people probably recognize the death note notebook than the characters inside of the anime. It is famous because of its unique premise, and its eternal debate on morality or ethics. Light Yagami gets hold of this insane godlike power that allows him to kill anyone just by knowing their name. He himself has a very strong sense of justice, but it is also very short-sighted and stubborn. He does not consider justice to be nuanced, and only thinks about his own perception of justice. He starts off by using his power for "good" where he only targets criminals and people he deems to be "bad." Thats where the issue comes in. His mercy is merely decided by his own subjective judgement on whether or not a person deserves to die because they are not "good." However, later in the anime he is consumed by his power and also by his anxiety about being caught for what he did. In a way his extreme anxiety that he is going to be caught and brought retribution upon is him admitting that he has done something wrong. Death note highlights the everlasting question of whether or not "bad" people deserve to die. If people in a society should attempt at reforming criminals or be as harsh as possible to try to deter crime.

I feel as though the pacing of the anime is not very good, and Light also possesses a little bit too much plot armour. He fumbles immensely at the beginning by allowing L to locate somewhere down to the region of where he lives. L is shown to be very brilliant in the beginning of the anime with how fast he progresses through the mystery, but at some point it seems like the author thought the series would end too fast as a result. Instead, they nerf him down and eventually kill him before he solves the case.

[rohits-anime-blog]

Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood

The post-war setting in FMAB functions not merely as a backdrop but as the inherited condition demanding an "equivalent exchange" from the younger generation. The narrative explores the idea that growing up within a society marked by recent, profound conflict necessitates a harsh reckoning with the costs of the past. That is why we open with the new generation, the Alphonse brothers, in a world post the Ishvalen war.

The series suggests that maturity is achieved through the painful process of accepting sacrifice as the inherent price for progress and atonement, mirroring the show's central alchemical law. The Elric brothers' journey, initiated by a catastrophic attempt to defy natural order through alchemy, is set against the broader canvas of Amestris, a nation scarred by the Ishvalen Civil War, itself a massive, horrific "exchange" of lives for political ends. Their personal quest to regain what was lost becomes intrinsically linked to uncovering the nation's dark history and the true, horrifying price of the Philosopher's Stone.

Growing up, in this framework, means shedding the youthful idealism that believed anything could be obtained if the "correct" materials were offered. Instead, characters learn that the most significant exchanges involve intangible but deeply felt losses: innocence, certainty, and comfort. They must sacrifice personal vengeance, naive solutions, and even their own capabilities or desires to confront the architects of past atrocities and work towards a future burdened by the knowledge of history's brutal Equivalent Exchanges. The nuanced message is that true maturation is the conscious decision to bear the weight of these past costs and offer oneself in a complex, moral exchange for the possibility of collective healing and a more just future, an exchange far more profound than any alchemical reaction.

[achenjpt1311]

I definitely agree with your take on this anime, and I find your commentary on the Equivalent Exchange to be very interesting. It's similar to the Just World Phenomenon, where all the karma in the world supposedly balances out. It teaches people about the sacrifice required for good things to happen.

[achenjpt1311]

FMA brotherhood

Fullmetal alchemist is an incredibly popular anime and I believe it was number 1 rated anime on myanimelist for a significant period of time until recently Frieren broke its streak. Both are legendary animes in their own respective.

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood goes through many significant ethical and philosophical themes throughout the show. Also, like the name suggests, it focuses on the bonds between characters and specifically the brotherhood between Edward and Alphonse. The most interesting aspect of the plot is how the brothers tried to resurrect their mother from the dead and royally screwed up in doing so. There are many tales in mythology that tell the tale of people trying to escape death. There is the tale of Sisyphus, who escapes from death and hides from death, however, he is met with karma in the end by his eternal punishment of rolling the boulder up the hill. There is also Orpheus and Eurydice. Orpheus travels to the underworld to revive his wife and is eventually met with his fate. In Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Edward and Alphonse pay the price with their bodies. Alphonse loses his entire body, and Edward loses his arm. In the event that it is possible to revive people from the dead, what would be the moral boundary that is crossed by doing so? Why are there so many tales and stories on why the resurrection of a person is wrong? It's definitely an interesting thing to think about.

There is also the episode that I personally wanted to mention about the girl and her dog. It is an infamous episode where a father fuses his own daughter and dog into a homunculus. It is widely regarded as one of the most disturbing parts of the anime. It definitely warns against passing the boundaries of biological science.

[niertiers]

Media Analysis: Akira

[BEGIN REPORT]

Akira left me in a confusion that makes my first watch of Neon Genesis Evangelion seem like just Saturday morning cartoons. When I read the synopsis, I couldn’t help but chuckle at the fact that, back in 1988, this is what people thought the future would look like. Many other 20th century works of science fiction feature this same misconception, built on the sense that, technology was evolving so fast, that the world in the future would look almost like a different planet. Aside from that, I really admire the movie’s animation and overall aesthetic, as, as ugly or grotesque as the scenes may look at times, it’s all quite a treat to the eyes.

Now, as for what’s actually happening in the film, your guess is as good as mine. However, I have my own interpretation, mostly based off the scene where Kei (being controlled by Kyioko) explains what exactly Akira is.

Kei implies that Akira is the energy which humans draw from in order to do all the things they do, such as creating and exploring things. This is not, however, exclusive to humans. All creatures with some sort of genealogy have it. And so, instances of humans having such magnificent power as Tetsuo are a result of a human being endowed with more power than they can handle.

What this seems to mean, to me, would be some sort of commentary on human willpower and the drive for creation and knowledge. We all know by now that humans have incredible abilities to manipulate their surroundings. However, humans around this time were no strangers to the dangers of thinking whether something could be achieved, but not whether it should be. Around this time, this was especially emphasized by the Cold War and the ever-lingering threat of nuclear war that it brought onto the Earth’s population. Therefore, I feel like this is not such a far-fetched conclusion to draw.

If anyone else has their own interpretations, I’d love to hear about it!

[END OF REPORT]

[achenjpt1311]

Yeah I definitely agree with your take. It certainly provides a statement on the certain risks with exploring too far into uncharted territories for humanity. The historical context of the Cold War helps contextualize the anime. Akira is similar to the power of a nuclear bomb, and Akira seems to serve a warning to humans to not go too far in handling power that they should not have.

[achenjpt1311]

Akira

This movie completely and utterly shatters your mind. It shatters it in a way where you keep trying to understand what is going on, yet all you can really do is try to even keep up with what is happening. It's almost impossible to understand what truly is going on when you can barely even comprehend the surface of what happens in each scene. I would argue that this movie is even more confusing than Neon Genesis Evangelion. I came into this movie thinking that this movie had to deal with biking, which it sort of does portray in the beginning. The only thing I knew about the anime was the famous bike slide that happens maybe less than 10 minutes into the movie.

At the beginning of the anime, the anime seems like a typical dystopian setting focused on something sort of like a gang war. The only thing that seems amiss is the strange looks of the child that we see. For a while, that is the only thing we are given: "Why did that child look strange?" Even in the end, the reason that the children look that way is never truly given. There are so many unanswered questions about that, and the movie seems to end during the climax of the movie. We are told that Tetsuo is in a body that is too large to handle his powers, which explains why the beings with powers had children-like bodies. Akira is supposedly an infinite source of energy, but as soon as Akira starts to become explained, it is cut short and more action occurs. It's almost as if the screen time was limited so the director decided to cut out all the explanation and only include the action. The viewer is not given really any more explanation than many characters inside of the movie, which is strange for a plot this complex

[2and2makes5]

Media Analysis: Your Name

Your Name is a stunning film visually. I was amazed by the sheer attention to detail that was put into the movie, especially in the backgrounds. From the streets of Tokyo to Tessie's room, all the little items placed about are so detailed; it's insane. Using Michael Foucault's The History of Sexuality, we can see how this romantic story includes undertones of identity and power structures that shape our desires and bodies.

The main gist of this movie is two teenagers, Mitsuha and Taki, whom body swap every other day and are connected across time and space. Mitsuha yearns to escape the countryside and wishes to be in a big city like Tokyo. She struggles with her prescribed role as a young woman in a conservative town where she is under the authority of her own father, as he is the mayor. She resists, she cuts her hair, prays to break free, wishes she was a boy in Tokyo. This resistance mirrors Foucault's view that power is present even in personal desires, and resistance arises from these very dynamics.

Foucault argues that power is not held by a sole figure but through society, spread out in different relations. This is evident in Your Name through the town’s traditions and gendered expectations, which shape Mitsuha’s experience of her own body. Even in the urban world Taki inhabits, his behavior is shaped by the expectations of masculinity and youth—visible in how his friends perceive and react to Mitsuha’s influence when she controls his body.

The whole body swapping thing, I believe, is a metaphor for how identity can be constructed, deconstructed, and surveilled where we come to know ourselves and others through bodily experience, memory, and social expectation. Thus, this aligns with Foucault’s idea that identity is not repressed but produced and regulated within power relations.

[achenjpt1311]

Yeah your analysis is definitely very interesting. I was actually reading an excerpt earlier in a different class on the question of identity. We were looking at different views of personal identity and Derek Parfit has an interesting thought experiment on a simple teletransportation, similar to Your Name. He sort of breaks tradition by throwing the deep metaphysics out the window and simplifying the argument by proving why he believes that this issue of identity doesn't matter. It's certainly very interesting.

[achenjpt1311]

Your Name

Your Name or Kimi no na wa holds a special place in my heart. I consider it as the true start of what got me into anime as an anime watcher. I had seen episodes of popular shows before such as Tokyo Ghoul and I had watched the Pokemon anime, but I never was really "into anime." Your name would change that for me when I decided to watch it with my sisters. I would watch Your Name, Spirited Away, and later Weathering With You. After that, I was completely addicted to anime in my sophomore year of high school. I binged anime after anime, waking up earlier in the morning just to watch an episode of a show before school. Your Name being the introduction to anime for me also started my love for the less popular romance and Shoujo genres for anime compared to most people's love for Shonen anime that starts with shows like Naruto, One Piece, or Attack on Titan.

The plot and story is just exciting through and through. The unique plot of the anime also allows for such a beautiful parralel between the traditional country-side and the modern fast-paced metropolitan sides of Japan. Each of the main characters desires a lifestyle that is different than their own, and they get this desire when they swap bodies. Mitsuha gets to live in the exciting and busy Tokyo in Taki's body and Taki gets to experience the peaceful and tranquil countryside in Mitsuha's body. To start, they cannot understand each other and their wishes, due to the cliche of "the grass is always greener on the other side." However, through their unique circumstances, they are able to experience each other's perspectives, which helps them grow closer together despite never meeting in person. The references to traditional Japanese customs and folklore gives the perfect supernatural and cultural aspect to the movie.

[achenjpt1311]

Hetalia Axis Powers

This anime puts a humorous and satirical take on global politics by exemplifying each country as an anime character. I remember seeing a similar concept on webtoon a while ago where different non-human things are portrayed as fictional characters. In the webtoon I believe it involved planets that were people and had the characteristics of their respective planet.

In Hetalia Axis Powers, the anime characters are countries. In the very beginning scene in the first episode, the anime introduces them through a humorous take on each country's relations. I love this concept because of the little niche references that it makes using history. It's like testing your knowledge on history and current events globally depending on how many references you can catch on. Things such as Japan always backing America, the UK and America disagreeing with France, Russia looking to restore the Soviet Union, and Italy liking pasta. These references are funny to me and supposedly many other people. What makes it nice as well is how it strays away from becoming problematic or political. Despite the jokes being written about global relations it's generally unoffensive. I think that the episode format also plays a big role in this. The format is very short five minute shorts. This plays into the unserious tone and avoids conflict. Even if some Italians may be offended by the "pasta" shenanigans or stereotype for their country, it's hard to be offended by an anime character representation of a country. However, like humor has been used before within comedy, the unserious tone is what allows it to make commentary on topics that would otherwise be controversial given a more serious setting. Russia trying to win back Latvia, Lithuania, etc. is funny in the anime, but it could be a real world problem; for example, with the invasion of Ukraine it really shows anything is possible.

[achenjpt1311]

Xenoblade Chronicles 2

My introduction to the Xenoblade Chronicles franchise was funnily enough through Super Smash Bros. The game first featured the main character of Xenoblade Chronicles 1, Shulk. Then, Smash added Pyra and Mythra as characters of the DLC pack later on. From there I discovered that there was quite a decent sized fanbase for the Xenoblade series. This made me interested in playing the games because I also enjoyed RPG games. On top of that, the game was on the correct console because the only console I owned was the Switch. I was really interested in the storyline and visuals of the game, but life had already gotten busy and I never ended up getting the game. Another game that I've been wanting to play, but actually own is Persona 5. Both games I've heard have really nice storylines, but I never had the time to really play them.

Xenoblade Chronicles 2 has many cliches for an anime centered storyline. The main character (usually male) gets his female companion that he forms a strong bond with. The protagonist is pure hearted and kind, (Naruto, Dragon ball Z, Hunter Hunter, the list goes on). Even more niche details are very characteristic of anime. For example, discovering the ancient being identities. One anime that is similar that comes to mind is Synduality Noir. The premise is almost the exact same. The main female companion is mysterious and has two sides that connect to some past paradise civilization. The initial side of the girl is shy and quiet vs the brazen and expressive other side that is revealed later on. In Synduality Noir the main character wants to look for Histoire, which the female companion is a relic of that paradise civilization. Sounds very similar to Xenoblade. The world tree aspect (taken from Norse mythology) is portrayed very similar to Aincrad in SAO. The term Elysium is used relatively frequently as well, Honkai Impact 3rd comes to mind for that.

[achenjpt1311]

Swampcon blog

Swampcon was definitely an interesting opportunity for me to get more involved within an anime community. I've been an avid anime consumer, watching hundreds of anime, but I have never bought any merch or art, nor have I attended any in-person event for anime such as a convention. There has always been a stigma around anime fans, which has always deterred me from getting too involved in the community. I would say that some of the stigma is definitely true, however, bonding together through shared interests outweighs the negatives that may be associated with the anime community.

First, I will detail some of my experiences. As soon as I stepped into the Reitz Union, where Swampcon took place, it was a completely different world and atmosphere than I had ever experienced. The first thing that jumped out to me was the cosplays. Countless cosplay of a large variety of characters, mostly from Genshin Impact. It was interesting to know from just a simple look at a person that I had watched the same show that they had. In my sociology class my professor coined a term called spontaneous we-ness, which refers to that spontaneous moment where you feel a connection to a person, Knowing that they did watch that anime and enjoyed it enough to do cosplay made me feel a connection to the person. In a way, it's a method of communication through appearance, not even requiring words.

Next, I decided to partake in some of the panels that were available. First I chose to do the "Guess that anime" panel; a person would play a song from a popular show and the audience would raise their hands to compete to see who would get it first. This was the experience I was the most excited for. I always felt like an outsider to the anime community because I do not conform to the more typical nature of people in the community, but with this, I felt like I could prove my own knowledge. There were so many moments that I was like "ahh" I should have known that one and somebody else got it first, but I managed to pull away with 5 stickers as prizes. I got the Sword Art Online, Your Name, Your Lie in April, Angel Beats, and Violet Evergarden songs. Funnily enough there is a very common theme among those anime. They are all romance anime and in the shoujo genre, except for SAO. I knew that anime fans were disproportionately Shonen fans, but it definitely disappointed me to see how little Shoujo and romance appreciation there was. It shows that although we may all love anime together, there are still distinctive differences between each and every person. Titans of Anime such as One Piece, Bleach, and Naruto dominated the songs list, but it was definitely fun to get my more niche interests in. It definitely felt like I was a part of a fandom for the first time. I have other interests, such as baseball and basketball, but those are more socially acceptable and applicable to talk with others. On the other hand, my anime interest was something I never was really able to truly relate to anybody else with. I'm still searching for the Shoujo enjoyers with me, specifically Clannad, the greatest anime of all time.

The last couple of panels I attended were for Kpop, which is sort of a cousin to anime. Although branding something completely different, the fandom and community of both are often regarded as cousins. This is because the way that both communities create cultural capital, fandoms, and identities is very similar. The presence of Kpop at the anime convention goes to show how similar and related these interests are, and I fall into this category of enjoying consumption of both types of media. However, there is a little bit of conflict when this passion or hobby becomes a little obsessive. Sometimes people can be hyperfixated on their own interests they become stubborn in getting what they want. In this case, one of the organizers for one of the Kpop panels brought the atmosphere down every time the course of the panel diverged even a little bit from what she envisioned. All in all, though, the experience was definitely made very enjoyable by the people there; what people wanted was a way to share their interests with each other. In my experience, the general experience was very positive and certainly new for me. I'm definitely interested in returning in the upcoming years.

[achenjpt1311]

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind

This is definitely a very interesting film and fits the picture of a Miyazaki film. On a side note I wanted to point out the ongoing controversy of the various AI studio ghibli artstyle being created. I cannot imagine how Miyazaki feels about this, his entires life's work that takes an insane amount of effort and consistency for each frame is effortlessly recreated using AI by the most amateur of users. AI is nice in some regards, but AI art is definitely truly one of the most devastating consequences. I also know a couple of artists who are very demotivated because of this and would share their artwork online if it weren't the case with AI nowadays. AI art is at a point where it can be indistinguishable with man-made art, and now it is able to replicate one of the most remarkable and well known artstyles in history.

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind definitely includes environmental critiques within the film. Its very interesting because this also reflects the environmental critiques inside of Spirited Away. Miyazaki's brilliance extend so far. The "toxic jungle" is discovered to be a product of human industrialization. It is actually the pollution that results in the toxic jungle and not the innate nature of the jungle. An extreme example would be looking at the ecosystem of Chernobyl and then claiming the ecosystem to be toxic. It really is tragic how humans pollute the ecosystems around them and Miyazaki definitely shines a light on this issue. Right now I believe we are going through a contemporary mass extinction event simply as a result of human intervention. Miyazaki insists on illustrating that we are the problem, but with people such as Nausicaä, the damage can be fixed. Instead, more and more people in this age insist on denying the effects of climate change and pollution.

[achenjpt1311]

End of Evangelion

Although I had watched the previous Neon Genesis TV series, I had never watched this movie before. I had seen clips, however, and it certainly subverts expectations.

First of all, the voice acting is absolutely beautiful. One reason I always watch shows in Japanese rather than English is because the voice acting is incredible. End of Evangelion is a show that has its characters on the very edge of emotions, breaking points, the entire human ego. It really is hard to imitate that, because most people have never been brought to the point of trauma and distress that the characters in the show have. For example, when Asuka gets pierced in the eye by the spear. That instance is insane to me how the voice actor can scream on command like that with just pure and raw emotion. Next, is the screams of Shinij when he sees what happened to Asuka after she and her Eva is brutally mangled. Shinji is a particularly hard character to voice act because of how much stuff he goes through. The voice actor for him does a brilliant job throughout the entire series and movie as well.

End of Evangelion provides a more actual depiction of the events that happen on Earth during the third impact. Whereas the original series primarily focuses on what happens within Shinij's mind, End of Evangelion serves as a physical representation of what happened. It goes through the actual process of human instrumentality. It then ends in a strange moment between Shinji and Asuka. It's kind of lighthearted because Shinji throughout the movie begged and begged for Asuka to make fun of him like she used to and call him names. In the final moment, Asuka manages to get out a final jab at Shinji. It's a lighthearted ending for how distressed Shinji was when he was unable to pilot the Eva and help Asuka in battle.

[2and2makes5]

Media Analysis: End of Evangelion

Oh boy. Today, we are talking about none other than End of Evangelion, a movie which, upon watching again years later after analysis of the original TV series, made so much more sense. This one may be long, and I am one of the presenters for this one, so let's get into it.

One moment I'd like to focus on first is EoE's jarring abrupt shifts from animation to live action footage towards the end. As Shinji drifts through the process of Instrumentality, he witnesses not only his own psyche but the real world outside the anime. This directly supports Heasley's argument about performance and audience complicity. It is basically a way to suggest that anime, but media in general, can serve as a mirror and a mask, which allows viewers to explore themselves while also providing an escape from reality.

On the topic of escapism, Hidekai Anno, the director of Neon Genesis Evangelion and End of Evangelion, has long expressed concerns about a fandom's tendency to drift to escapism from real world struggles, which this movie directly critiques. Throughout EoE, Shinji is paralyzed by his inability to engage in a world that is oh so cruel to him. This movie is before the last two episodes of the original series, so he hasn't had his major revelation that pain is required. Yet, his ideal existence to live in a world free from pain reflects those very escapist tendencies that media consumption fosters. Instrumentality is the ULTIMATE fantasy of escape, where no one is separate, lonely, or hurt. Yet, in this sense, there is a loss of self, where nothing really matters because there's no distinction between individuals. Shinji inevitably chooses to reject instrumentality, choosing an imperfect, painful reality over an artificial, consequence-free one. This whole talk of a world with no pain parallels with Anno's message to fans: are you consuming media to understand yourself better or just using it to avoid real world struggles? There is a clear message here: You must face reality rather than retreat to fiction.

Finally, let's talk about the ending. The ending has been up for debate for years, as it doesn't really "end". There's no clear victory, no confirmation of what happens next, and no comfort. Even Asuka's final words are up to interpretation. Her translation has multiple meanings, for example, “I feel sick” or “Disgusting". We do not know exactly who this was addressed to, reality, humanity, or Shinji himself. I personally believe it was most likely to Shinji, as the last moments they were together before she died and was rebirthed was in the hospital. That and the fact she was placed in an "Adam and Eve" situation, as they are one of the few to reject instrumentality. Possibly others rejected it as well and will soon join Asuka and Shinji, but again, up to interpretation.

There is so much more I would like to talk about, but most of it will be discussed in the presentation tomorrow. I just want to say one last thing about the ending. A lot of people probably loved it, hated it, or were just downright confused about it. I personally believe the ending encapsulates one of Neon Genesis Evangelion's core messages: life continues, whether we understand it or not.

[achenjpt1311]

I think that the choice Shinji makes is truly beautiful. Despite all that hes been through over and over again he realizes that instrumentality is not the answer and rejects it. In a way, he kind of follows his mothers plan that she had from the very beginning. By initating human instrumentality, people were connected. Shinji was able to look inside the minds and understand everybody, even if it was for a brief moment. But he realizes that it is not the answer and individuality is what makes humans truly human. It is what makes life worth living. There has to be something to lose for it to be joyful to gain something.

[2and2makes5]

Media Analysis: Neon Genesis Evangelion (Eps. 8, 16, 24, 26)

Now, we are getting to the good bit. Using the same two readings as before, Heasly and Connell, let's dive straight in.

Episode 8 introduces us to none other than the great Asuka Langley Soryu. Her introduction marks a significant tone shift as she brings new energy with her, immediately establishing herself as a confident figure. As explored before, identity is often performative, especially in the case of Evangelion as Asuka, where her aggressive, self-centered presentation as she loudly asserts herself over Shinji and everyone else covers any of her actual vulnerabilities through arrogance. This aligns with Connell's ideas of hegemonic masculinity and feminity, where Asuka adopts traditionally "masculine" traits - competitiveness, assertiveness, and emotional suppression - to maintain control over her image. It's frustrating to her when she learns that Shinji is the one whom defeated an Angel without any training, and this anger extends when she needs help fighting the Angel in the water, almost refusing to as it threatens her image. Asuka's anger isn't directed at Shinji as a person, but moreso what he represents: he contradicts the image of strength and independence that Asuka has been building her entire life.

Episode 16, another pivotal moment, starts Evangelion's great descent into its deeper psychological side. Shinji is engulfed into the Angel Leliel, where he encounters a surreal confrontation with his own subconscious, questioning his identity, purpose, and relationships. His "performance" crumbles, as he has no real audience - no father to please, no peers to compare himself to, and nowhere to run. Heasely discusses how when external validation is removed, identity becomes very fragile. In that sense, Shinji questions: Why does he pilot the Eva? Is he making his own decisions or just blindly following orders to avoid rejection? Shinji desires to be accepted but fears the vulnerability that comes with real relationships. Leliel's void is a metaphor for the erasure of identity; without others to identify him, Shinji is afraid he may not exist at all.

Episode 24 introduces us to Kaworu Nagisa, another turning point in the series to full on psychological and philosophical territory. Kaworu expresses an alternative to hegemonic masculinity. Kaworu is gentle, expressive, and unafraid to show affection, especially to Shinji. It's a different model of human connection, one that Shinji hasn't had a lot of experience with, which makes him struggle as he has spent his life believing emotional closeness is tied with pain. Kaworu doesn't demand Shinji to be obedient, useful, or strong; he sees Shinji as valuable regardless of his actions. This relationship confuses Shinji; as stated before, he is not used to this. However, once discovering Kaworu is an Angel, in fact the final Angel, it shatters his connection with Shinji, as at first he refuses to believe he is a traitor. Shinji is forced to kill Kaworu to prevent mass extinction of all life, which results in the loss of his first true bond but reinforces his belief that connection with another person inevitably leads to suffering. This betrayal stays with Shinji as the series comes to an end in the last two episodes with Shinji's complete psychological collapse.

The final episode, episode 26, is a very famous episode that dives deep into Shinji's mind and offers a very surreal and philosophical conclusion. Instead of depicting the mysteries of NERV or the Angels, the finale of Neon Genesis Evangelion presents the ending of Shinji's internal conflict of his own identity, his worth, and his place in the world. Through the eyes of Heasley, identity is performed, rather than something inherent and, in this case, Shinji has defined himself through his relationships with all others whom have placed different expectations on him. These identities have been placed on him rather than chosen, which resulted in his alienation. Yet, we see in this episode that Shinji finally rejects these identities, realizing that his self-worth isn't determined by others and how they see him. He "breaks free" in a sense, and all the characters congratulate him. This ending has been widely debated as some don't see it as a strong ending, a moreso hollow affirmation that doesn't resolve Shinji's deep trauma. Nevertheless, this episode suggests that although pain and loneliness are parts of life we can never escape, the way one perceives them is not fixed.

Sorry for the long post; I just love talking about this series. Anyways, there are a surprising number of people who disliked this ending, which I understand. The studio behind Evangelion was struggling financially and did have to make many cuts so the ending to this series does seem rushed, especially considering all the mysteries that were being built up just to remain unsolved. That is why End of Evangelion was made as a movie to finalize the series. Yet, they did "rebuild" the series with a couple of movies after, but we are not discussing those in class.

[achenjpt1311]

I do agree that the ending of the show is a little confusing and rushed, and learning that it was due to financial struggles breaks my heart. I think its like Angel Beats or Charlotte, where beautiful and peak animes are cut off or rushed due to unfortunate reasons. However, the anime are so well made and the story is so well done that the animes are still some of the greatest all time. It makes me think about what we have missed out on. Especially since there are some anime (Rent-A-Girlfriend comes to mind) that keep getting support despite the (in my opinion) low-quality story. Asuka is definitely an interesting character. She descends into complete darkness mentally early on into the show and the viewer sort of keeps getting put on the edge expecting her growth. We as viewers are kind of conditioned to expect growth and redemption when characters take a hit, yet Asuka only ever spirals deeper into despair. Thats the general consensus on what happens in the show. You expect things to get better and they simply never do.

[achenjpt1311]

Neon Genesis Part 2

An interesting part about this show is how it is inspired by Arthur Schopenhauer. One main instance of this is the episode that is titled "Hedgehog's Dilemma." This refers to the dilemma that hedgehogs go through during the cold winter periods of the year. For example, humans would naturally cuddle together and use each other's body heat to warm up when cold. Penguins are probably the most well-known example of this due to the cold nature of Antarctica. However, hedgehogs are unable to do this because of their spines. Because of this the dilemma is that they are unable to huddle together for each other's warmth no matter how hard they try due to the spines that would hurt each other as a result.

Schopenhauer is a famous pessimist and this dilemma refers to his belief that humans are constantly trying to seek each other's relationship and bonds but only harm can be done. This is demonstrated many times during Neon Genesis. Shinji always feels incredibly alone throughout the whole series. He is unable to get closer to anyone. Anytime he gets closer to anyone he simply is hurt more. Its as though getting close to anyone will just provide an opportunity to be hurt more. Finally, when Shinji finally forms the bond with Kaworu he discovers that Kaworu isn't even a "human" and is hurt once again.

This also relates to the human instrumentality project I believe it was called. The solution to this dilemma where nobody can get close with one another, because they do not fully understand each other and what will hurt others, is to combine all humans together and their consciousnesses. Humanity all becomes "one" and together, with no way to be separated or hurt again. Essentially in order to remove harm and loneliness from humanity, you have to remove individuality.

[introtoanime0]

Neon, Genesis, Evangelion (1, 2, 4, 5)

Neon Genesis Evangelion is basically Mobile Suit Gundam but much more pleasant and human with more adult themes, one of them being the in-depth exploration of what kind of man Shinji is.

Shinji is a quiet male character. By most conventional standards, he isn’t masculine. He dresses like a boy, uses he/him pronouns, and doesn’t express confusion about being a boy but his behavior, his voice, his passivity make him masculine in terms of hegemonic portrayal of masculinity. It’s the way he reacts instead of acts, how he cries, freezes, questions things instead of pushing forward. In episode 1, when Misato picks him up, he’s shown as awkward and withdrawn. The first thing he does when asked to pilot the Eva is refuse. "Behave manly" isn’t said explicitly, but it’s implied in the silence that follows, in the expectation that he should step up because he’s a boy. Masculinity here is defined not by identity but by function and how he is supposed to handle fear, duty, pain.

The show contains Freudian elements. The absent mother is never brought up, but the present father, Gendo, is more like a symbol than a person. He doesn’t even talk to Shinji directly until the situation becomes dire in the Eva hangar. When he finally does, it’s cold. “Get in the robot.” There’s no warmth, no understanding, just expectation. Gendo is the masculine ideal in this world- calm, logical, sacrificing, powerful, willing to put the fate of the world over the wellbeing of his own son. Shinji sees that and feels small. He doesn’t even have the tools to argue.

Rei feels more masculine than Shinji in the show's internal logic. She’s silent, stoic, doesn't complain, follows orders without hesitation. She's ambiguous in every way- almost genderless and empty in her emotions, which reads as strength here. Shinji, in contrast, spends most of these early episodes caught in a self-centered view of the world. He’s constantly focused on how everything makes him feel. He doesn’t want to fight, doesn’t want to hurt anyone, doesn’t want to be hurt, which makes him appear weak.

The essential question in this reading is: what makes a person masculine in this world? Or what role does masculinity even play? The show is not saying Shinji is not a boy, but it is saying he is not a man, in the way men are expected to be. Gendo sacrifices everything. Rei follows orders and takes pain without question. Shinji complains. Cries. Walks away. Questions. And in that, he starts to look like a queer figure- not in a sexual way, but in how he doesn’t perform masculinity in a way this world rewards. That’s the conflict. He’s a boy in a world that demands men.

[achenjpt1311]

I think it is unfair from my standpoint given that I've already watched the entire show, but I find it interesting Neon Genesis comes off as a more pleasant version of Mobile Suit Gundam. Mobile Suit Gundam is clearly an anime that is made to promote the figurines. On the other hand, Neon Genesis is a much darker and deeper themed anime, particularly when you learn what the EVAs actually are. I definitely think that Shinji is very Kafka-isc in a way with his relationship with his father, struggling mental health, and trauma after trauma.

[achenjpt1311]

Neon Genesis Part 1

I love Neon Genesis Evangelion. This anime is simply just beautifully made and to this day there is nothing that is even comparable in being able to achieve what Neon Genesis is able to achieve. I would love to talk about the philosophy inside of the anime that I remember learning about, but right now its focusing on the masculinity of Shinji.

Obviously, Shinji lacks traditional masculinity. He is quiet, timid, weak, frail, and anyone could go on and on about it. Neon Genesis is funny because it completely disregards the traditional tropes and plotlines of all sorts of media. Usually, when there are lacking characteristics or traumatic pasts in a show, you expect that the there will be some sort of development arc or redemption arc. Neon Genesis has almost 30 episodes, yet you keep waiting and waiting on when these characters get that plot point, yet they never do. For Shinji, you expect him to grow up and gain confidence and "become a man." Instead, throughout the show he simply strays further and further down the hole of mental instability and fragility. He becomes more and more nervous the longer the show goes on. He has times where he seems to grow simply out of necessity to survive, but he quickly is hit with another round of traumatic events. Most likely a lot of his issues stem from the lack of a parent present for him, especially his father. His relationship with his father is worse than nonexistent and the lack of a father figure to guide him really shows in his mental health.

There is the sort of filler/funny episode where Shinji and Asuna do a rhythmic dance together and Shinji wears women's clothing, which is notable. Finally, his relationship with Kaworu is technically male and male which can demonstrate how Shinji is queer. However, I believe that people who interpret the message as that are completely missing the point of Kaworu's character. Kaworu's character has much more to deal with the vulnerable parts of human nature and longing for acceptance from another person rather than fixating on gender.