Commentary: Episode 07

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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby Dr. Nick » Tue Sep 26, 2017 4:07 am

Okay, it's been years since I've been even tangentially involved with this stuff, so my apologies for being rusty. It might be because of my rustiness, but I'm a little confused/concerned about this bit by ath:

View Original Postath wrote:014:
Oh, and they forgot to fix the Yebichu/Yebisu branding issue in the Video releases, so enjoy your hamster-themed beer one more time.


I mean, this comment seems to imply a somewhat different branding issue that's described here. "Yebichu" is the new status quo, is it not, and thusly the original issue with a real-life brand is now history. Is this the first time the newly re-christened Yebichu appears? If yes, I'll try to craft a comment that includes a callback to the abovementioned episode 2 cut, and perhaps there could be a line or two about what a messed-up manga and anime Oruchuban Ebichu is.


******

Comments:


030:
So, is this the most creepily human-like thing Pen Pen does?

052:
The car lady pulls a Quattro.

055:
Even this single shot of Rei is kind of meaningful since it shows her in Gendo's trademark pose.

Speaking of this so-called Gendo pose, when I was younger and more eager, I had the bright idea of trying to catalogue instances of anime characters sitting in that pose, be it a probable reference or not. Just for shits and giggles. It was not until later on that I realized it was a dumbass idea, since the pose is everywhere, from Patlabor porn parodies to Oliver Stone's W., and even in anime it's been around decades before Eva. It's the sort of generic thing that you can hunt for when playing a drinking game (a double shot for both the pose and reflecting glasses).

074:
Definite shades of early installment weirdness in this scene, even though we are already in episode 7.


******

Non-comments / meta:

035: It'd be neat to have an actual explanation for Toji's fashion statement. Anyone?

055: To build on my public comment, can we please nuke this embarrassing page? Even though it's a joke, it's essentially an unmanageable joke. It would only work if I had the resources to keep it bloating forever and ever.

072: Another wiki-related shame of mine is that I've uploaded at least some botched DVD screenshots before I understood about aspect ratio changes and other assorted complications (and I admit I still don't fully get their logic). Essentially, someone would have to go through all of my screenshot submissions with a fine-toothed comb and adjust or delete any botched uploads. At this point I have neither time nor patience for such undertaking, but I'm straight-up willing to pay for some more eager soul to do the job. Real money, Paypal transfer. If anyone's interested, please contact me.

080: In places such as this where ADV's original Evanglion release used those fancy overlay translations (?), should we include their text somewhere? As I said, I've been out of the Evangelion game for a long time, but I do remember there's some pretty interesting info there. And since the Commentary Project's whole purpose is to be incredibly OCD, shouldn't we have an easily consultable list of those overlay translation spots? They are interesting, information-dense bits.

******

Will do the second half of the episode a little later.

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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby ath » Tue Sep 26, 2017 1:25 pm

Dr. Nick wrote:I mean, this comment seems to imply a somewhat different branding issue that's described here. "Yebichu" is the new status quo, is it not, and thusly the original issue with a real-life brand is now history. Is this the first time the newly re-christened Yebichu appears? If yes, I'll try to craft a comment that includes a callback to the abovementioned episode 2 cut, and perhaps there could be a line or two about what a messed-up manga and anime Oruchuban Ebichu is.

The way I wrote that comment might not be entirely clear, but both the wiki article and the Episode 2 comment are right. The episodes that aired on TV used "Yebichu" and the hamster logo every time the brand was fully visible, and those shots were later changed to "Yebisu" for the home video releases. But this being Evangelion, the animators who reworked the episodes missed a few of the cuts they should have replaced, thus leaving the original "Yebichu" in Episode 7.

Back in the Episode 2 comment days we didn't have the 2015 release of Archives of Evangelion, which makes this job a lot easier. There are a few other small changes in the first two episodes that should be fun to add to the Commentary, should we ever reopen the older episodes...

Dr. Nick wrote:It's the sort of generic thing that you can hunt for when playing a drinking game (a double shot for both the pose and reflecting glasses).

Well, there are a few shows that call it "the Gendo pose" themselves. I'm looking at you, Robotics;Notes!

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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby Dr. Nick » Tue Sep 26, 2017 8:39 pm

You're right, ath. Looks like I went all cross-eyed about what the home video status quo is because this such a complex, silly thing, and I'm so very rusty. So let's see if I understand the progression of these name changes correctly: Yebisu (TV original) -> Yebichu (TV altered) -> Yebisu (back to the original in the home video release, but with some Yebichus remaining as continuity errors). Correct?

So the problem here is not at all with ath's comment but rather with my insufficient understanding of the situation in the first place. In light of this, my original episode 2 comment is actually quite erroneous. It has multiple issues, in fact, and I'd like to see it fixed even though the episode is currently not "open". First of all, the link to the JAE FAQ is dead, and owing to new information, it's not as trusty these days as it once was. Much worse is the fact that the supposed "trusty" FAQ actually puts forward two contradictory stories! (Read closely: who wanted the brand name changed?) And there's even a double colon typo.

I tried to come up with a non-obtrusive way to fix the whole thing. How's this?

Dr. Nick: Now here's a fun detail: A few episodes from now, the beer brand magically changes into Yebichu. It's a continuity error with a suprisingly complex backstory, and back in the days of mailing-list-led discussions multiple different stories circulated about it, sometimes confusingly even within the same FAQ. For example, the JAE FAQ says:

The name of Misato's beer was changed to Yebichu when it was aired on TV and then to Yebisu for the Video release.* … Yebisu … is definitely a real beer. However, after complaints by the brewers, in episode 2 the name was changed to "Yebichu", which may also be a homage to a manga series, "Oruchuban [Ebichu]".
According to Carl Horn the brand name was retracted because the TV network which broadcast the series objected because the brewers of "Yebisu" did not advertise with them, and didn't want to give the brewers free publicity!


So what actually happened? We'll get back to that in episode 7. [link]


So, guys, would it be okay to tweak a clearly iffy episode 2 comment like this? It's a mess I caused, and I want to take responsibility.
With this tweak, Reichu's comment below it doesn't need any alterations, and all that's required is an idiot-proof explanation of the continuity issue on episode 7 cut 014. I'm sure ath can make that happen. It would also be a good place for Reichu to give a quick briefing about Oruchuban Ebichu and hamster perversions.

I also almost has a small panic attack when I realized I'd never actually created that Animation bloopers wiki page which would be really useful right about now. I promise I'll try to cobble together some kind of page skeleton for it later this week.

******

And there was a typo, as my Quattro comment was supposed to be one cut down in 053, where the screenshots really match.

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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby imprimatur13 » Tue Sep 26, 2017 9:17 pm

Ummm... huh. According to the only version of the JAE faq apparently extant online,
The name of Misato's beer was changed to Yebichu when it was aired on TV and then to Yebisu for the Video release. Boa Beer and it's brand name "Kuroshio Bussan" are references to the Boa Juice from "Sora Tobu Yurei Sen" a 1969 SF anime movie.
Information supplied by Olivier Hagué

Which would make it much more straightforward, than what was originally quoted... Unfortunately, it also cuts out all the cool fun bits about executive meddling, brewer complaints, and hamster references.

I... don't know what to do here. The faq predates me by quite a bit. Even going on to the Wayback Machine, the quote is EXACTLY the same as above.

Which raises a good question: Unless I'm not realizing something important, it looks like the quote in the FGC apparently sprang up from nowhere. Dr. Nick, might you have some other source for it?

Dr. Nick wrote:And there was a typo, as my Quattro comment was supposed to be one cut down in 053, where the screenshots really match.

At least THAT was an easy fix. ^_^
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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby Dr. Nick » Tue Sep 26, 2017 9:36 pm

View Original Postimprimatur13 wrote:Which raises a good question: Unless I'm not realizing something important, it looks like the quote in the FGC apparently sprang up from nowhere. Dr. Nick, might you have some other source for it?


Looks like it's some kind of fucky chimaira combining the JAE FAQ entry and this mailing list FAQ entry from Eva Sage's long dead site. And I have no recollection why it is like that.

So there goes what I hoped would be a fixed version of that comment down the toilet. Somebody please rewrite that shit for me.
Edit: or I guess it can still work if we simply fix the attribution: "For example, Eva Sage's mailing list FAQ says..."

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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby imprimatur13 » Wed Sep 27, 2017 12:03 am

Thanks, Dr. Nick. It is done.
(Btw, anybody know why Reichu has an asterisk before her name there? Just wondering.)
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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby Dr. Nick » Wed Sep 27, 2017 12:14 am

Thank you so much for fixing this embarrassing mess!

The asterisk is meant to mark a footnote, pointing to another asterisk that was in my original comment. So you should put the other asterisk back as well so the connection won't disappear.

******

Edit: some final comments:

080:
ADV's old home video releases of Evangelion actually used a curious method of hard-subbed overlays on top of certain text-heavy shots such as this. Perhaps owing to the less than stellar image quality of that era, some viewers didn't even realize it was an American edit and were left wondering why these Japanese kids were using English-language schoolbooks. I've seen this happen on the forums.

ADV's translation of this page reads:

Second Impact and the World Afterwards

1. Second Impact
In the final year of the 20th century on Septmeber 13. 2000 a massive meteorite fell on Mt Markham in Antarctica. More than two billion people in he southern hemisphere were immediately killed by the tsunami and rising water levels caused by the melted ice. This was the worst disaster mankind had faced in recorded History

2. Upheaval in the Northen Hemisphere
The Nations of the Northern Hemisphere also suffered severe damage from the flooding and chaos ensued. Two days after the fall of the meteorite on September 15. 2000, collisions between refugees sparked a war on the India-Pakistan border, and armed conflicts began all over the world. On September 20. an N-Bomb was dropped on Tokyo and 500 000 perople were killed. Until the Valentine Cease Fire was signed on Febuary 14. 2001, hostilities continued all over the world.

3. Transferring Second Tokyo
The Temporary Government of Japan gave up on restoring the Toko that had been destroyed by the N-Bomb, and the decision was made to transfer the capital to Masumoto City in Nagano. Construction of Tokyo 2 began in 2001. Redevelopment proceeded rapidly and by early 2003, Tokyo was fufilling its functions as the capital. In 2005 a second transfer was approved by Congress. Tokyo 3 is currently being built in Fuji-Hakone.

1. First Impact
This is also called the Giant Impact, a collision between a meteorite and Earth that resulted in the creation of the Moon. It is believed to of happened 4 billion years ago

2. Fall of a Massive Meteorite
The object which fell on Antarctica was less than 4 inches in diameter, a very small meteorite. However with an enormous velocity of 95% of the speed of light, its effective mass was more than 4.52 times squared to the 10th. Fifteen minutes before its impact, it was sighted by the Mexican Astonomer Ceimoa Nan. Picture of him below
Ceimoa Nan (1971~)


104:
Right next door are located the submerged ruins of Otakuland.

112:
And now, a brief corporate satire detour.

114:
No wonder the bottles are untouched. Would anyone even reach them?

121:
Such negativity. If anything, Imagawa's Giant Robo taught me that having an onboard nuclear reactor in your robot is the greatest form of insurance to have.

131:
You know, twenty thousand starving people doesn't sound too bad in a post-2I world.

199:
If you look up the fanciest status symbols in Japanese society, golfing is pretty high up there. It was especially so during the bubble economy years.

278 (in reply to Ursus):
Well, almost. There's "all molt beer" in cut 353.

359:
As Joseki already mentioned, episode 7 is usually ranked one of Evangelion's worst episodes, at least until things get really weird and divisive at the very end. But if this is indeed the worst it gets, the overall product is remarkably solid, especially if you compare it to things like Nadia's filler episodes. This episode is a good Misato showcase, lets us see more of Nerv's shadier side, and allows Anno to flex his satirist's chops decades prior to Shin Godzilla. Storywise it is largely inconsequential, but the idea of a random civilian company butting in with their goofy robot essentially got a non-canon remake in the visual novel Girlfriend of Steel, so there's that.

******

Non-comments / meta:
080: I found the overlay translation from a very old hand-typed notepad file, so it needs to be checked for wonkiness. And of course, a screenshot of the said overlay would be nice to have.

Cuts 114 and 124 have a typo (Ritusko)
181 - 182, 333: Why is Nuclear Lunchbox's name a link?

227: "withdraw the chopper"?

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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby imprimatur13 » Thu Sep 28, 2017 1:24 am

View Original PostDr. Nick wrote:Thank you so much for fixing this embarrassing mess!

That's what we're here for. All is going according to plan... :emogendo:

Added the screenshot, and made the corrections. I was confused at first about the chopper, but then I realized they were in a plane. :tongue:

Always good to have people point out typos/other errors. Surprisingly, the editors are NOT infallible, so... if you see something, say something. Goes for all of you out there. ^_^
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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby Dr. Nick » Thu Sep 28, 2017 3:26 am

Thanks, man. Nuclear Lunchbox's name is still a link in cut 333 though.

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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby imprimatur13 » Thu Sep 28, 2017 3:29 am

Ah, so it is. Not easy, getting rid of all the nuclear links... Fixed now.
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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby ath » Tue Oct 03, 2017 1:36 pm

View Original Postthewayneiac wrote:That would be a great candidate for a supplemental page.

Well, it took longer than expected but it's finally here. Hope the DOS nerdiness won't scare away too many people. The FGC page style makes the page longer than I'd like, but we'll have to live with it.

I'd love if a native English speaker could take a look and help me clean it up a little, though.

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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby The Flying Fortress » Tue Oct 03, 2017 7:38 pm

194: When they focus the screen on Misato's mouth, they seem to be giving a credence of authority over the situation, it seems to sound like a rematch for all the embarrassment that Tokita has made and Ritsuko pass, now they are in control, Tokita is impotent.

252: Not shown, but I always found it very strange how Eva-01 ran to reach JA, disproportionately fast, compare in episode 12 when the Evas rush to stop Sahaquiel from invading the Geo-front, the way they run the much much more sense for your height and weight.

295: I do not understand much about physics, but he should not have taken his hand to plug JA's leak, do not you think? this would cause more pressure and explode faster :rolleyes:

......
Edited: Hello, I would like to be able to edit comments 194 and 252, the reason is that my opinion may not be right and I wanted to correct them, you can judge if my request is valid. Here it is:

194: The close in Misato's mouth seems to give him authority over the situation, Tokita is now in her hands.

252: This strange sprint movement of Eva-01 can be seen and compared to the sprint of episode 12, when in both he tries to reach his target quickly, the visible difference of both suggests an error of animation.
Last edited by The Flying Fortress on Fri Jun 29, 2018 6:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby Dr. Nick » Sat Oct 07, 2017 5:18 pm

View Original Postath wrote:Well, it took longer than expected but it's finally here. Hope the DOS nerdiness won't scare away too many people. The FGC page style makes the page longer than I'd like, but we'll have to live with it.


This is a thing of beauty, exactly the sort of addition that makes me feel like the Old Commentary still has some life left in it, if people like this are contributing.

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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby The Flying Fortress » Mon Oct 16, 2017 11:35 am

I have more comments:

096: Because Misato can not dress like this during the whole series ?, especially in her work, I think this would help more to highlight her professional personality of the personal personality, besides, I have a small fetish for women wearing military clothes or the like.

331: YEEEE! This guy celebrates giving little jumps, that's funny, you can not deny it.

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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby kameha » Sun Nov 19, 2017 7:33 pm

To be honest this episode was good, it showed a lot about Misto.
When I first watched the show at the age of 14 years old Misto was one of my favorite characters in Eva and I still like her but I can relate to the drinking, over all this episode shows that even though Misato is a slob and messy/lazy she's still good at her job and gets things done right, she is willing to push everything on the Evangelion's to get things done!

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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby Sailor Star Dust » Wed Feb 21, 2018 1:39 pm

Umm, hi. I finally found the time to do this :w00t: Freely add and don't add whatever you like (I'm assuming submissions are still open?)

001: Given the various scenes in Episode 08, I was under the impression that Kaji himself is in secret talks with Gendo here. Kaji being the go-between for Nerv and Seele fits this. (Skipping ahead to Episode 11, extra-canon sources like the NGE2 game confirm Kaji caused Nerv's power outage under Seele's order, too.)

011: It's no secret that I'm a huge Mitsuishi Kotono fangirl. Misato's sloppy vs cheerful nature is spot-on in this sequence, props to the voice acting!

017: It's gotta be Usagi's Sadamoto-styled hair bangs!

019: The attention to detail in this series is excellent.

038: Ahh, Excel Saga. Yet another anime with Kotono-san as the lead!

044: I love that subtle creepiness of Nerv watching the every move of their pilots. (I really like how Eva 1.0 reinforced that, with Shinji and the bridge scene.)

056: Gotta love when the script goes for the :heart: !

058: Hmm. If you wanted to stretch things, perhaps it was a stepmom?

068: I've always loved the sudden cut from 067 to here. (Funny how Shinji's finally giving that Nerv manual(??) a proper read, when you consider Episode 01...)

083: This is why the scripts feel like such a treasure trove of information! Though various things can be inferred, it's nice to see what the script flat-out says about a character's thoughts.

096: Related, I wish Misato wore her Nerv beret more often. (It's super cute on her!)

100: Heh. Just like Kaji's comments to her in Episode 15!

146: I very much think so. This nicely fits in with Cut 001, after all.

177: I almost feel bad for him, here.

179: Were there...implied casualties in this shot? I was never quite sure.

235: Episode 07 always felt somewhat underrated to me, but this exchange is so important. Shin-chan's already begun to think of Misato as family that he doesn't want to lose [again?].

264: Despite the dangerous situation, Misato's little shriek is kinda cute.

293: Maybe she did, 'off-screen' in Episode 15 or 16? (A pity if that's what it came down to, since this episode is incredibly important regarding Nerv's shady side.)

314: Props to Ogata's voice acting in this scene. You can just feel Shinji's tension throughout this entire ordeal.

331: Hey, it made me chuckle!

352B: Another scene that made me laugh. Shinji's pissy mood is comedy gold!

353: Talk about Misato's promises of fan service! Had the cut not pointed it out, I wouldn't have realized.
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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby SEELE-01 » Wed Feb 21, 2018 2:36 pm

View Original PostSailor Star Dust wrote: (Skipping ahead to Episode 11, extra-canon sources like the NGE2 game confirm Kaji caused Nerv's power outage under Seele's order, too.)

Wait... Wasn't it obvious?
I mean, he was pushing to get into Misat-I mean-into the elevator with Misato to use as an alibi...

View Original PostSailor Star Dust wrote:179: Were there...implied casualties in this shot? I was never quite sure.

Nah, I don't think so...
Everyone is way to calm... If there were injured or dead people or pieces of people around, Misato would not have been able to have the password conversation...
Now, in episode 19... :wink:
Last edited by SEELE-01 on Thu Feb 22, 2018 7:53 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby Sailor Star Dust » Wed Feb 21, 2018 9:39 pm

View Original PostSEELE-01 wrote:Wait... Wasn't it obvious?
I mean, he was pushing to get into Misat-I mean-into the elevator with Misato to use as an alibi...


I thought it was very obvious (same with Kaji on the phone in this episode), but there was lots of debate on this, back in the day.

About Episode 19: http://forum.evageeks.org/thread/7184/H ... gets-dead/ :cringe:

EDIT: Huh, I just realized there's nothing in the Episode 8 Next Time Preview section:

01: Interesting to me how the preview mentions Wilhelmshaven, but the series proper doesn't go into such intensive background on Asuka. I wonder why?

02: Haha, "Shinji once again in perplexity"...Get ready for a bumpy ride, Shin-chan!
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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby DevRei17 » Wed Feb 21, 2018 10:12 pm

#008 - Amusing how Shinji and Pen Pen eat in sync. Perhaps foreshadowing? (I'm overthinking.)

#010 - You'd think Shinji would be used to Misato's beer guzzling home life by now? Surely Pen Pen should.

#011 - Kotono Mitsuishi brings Misato to life in only a way she can.
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Re: Commentary: Episode 07

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Postby Kendrix » Sun Sep 09, 2018 12:36 pm

About time that I get around to this!
Scene 1  SPOILER: Show
002A: Another example of Anno making good use of the visual medium to create atmosphere, by contrasting the mysterious conversation with

002B:
The reference to political statutes and the shots of the documents not only uses the screen to create a sense of what is being discussed like in a natural thought process but also creates a sense of richness and mystery for the setting and at least the appearance of information density, while the blackened documents alone convey the notion that NERV is hiding something and that something potentially shady or morally ambiguous is going on.
Interesting to know that it was an angel sample - So team JA was trying to build more effective countermeasures, and the sample being referenced may, in fact, be a product of Shamshel' dissection.

003: Very sinister shot accentuating the scary shiny glasses and the angles of his face

004: Because how could we have a deconstruction of the giant robot genre without deconstructing the idea of a giant robot itself?

Title 1: This episode is at an in-between point between the prologue arc where Shinji is getting used to and reaching a level of acceptance for his new role, and the action arc with the often partially-comedic, one-off plots centered around a theme of cooperation ("The characters becoming one to defeat the enemy", as I believe it was stated in one of the DVD commentaries). It sort of finishes off the process of Misato and Shinji growing into a quasi-family, but also presents a 'monster of the week' scenario for Shinji and Misato to overcome through creativity and teamwork.
Another relevant aspect about this episode is that it gives us a look at the larger world beyond Shinji's immediate circle and gives a little more time to the 'political' aspects of the setting, while also sparking Misato's suspicions about NERV and Ritsuko, something which is compounded once Kaji comes in.

005: So we get the morning sequence to establish the new 'status quo' after the events of the prologue act, in which Shinji is already relatively 'settled in' and comfortable at Misato's place. Note that Shinji already seems to have taken over the breakfast-making

008: I guess it's just supposed to show that they've gotten acclimatized to each other, as per that anecdote of pets and their owners growing more and more similar to each other over time

009: Still not a glamorous morning person

010: It's saying something that he's actually at a point where he'd express discontent (and openly complains later on) rather than being surprised he's even being tolerated

020:
So he hasn't completely given up on making her do her part yet - a battle he is not going to win.

021: Even the script notes that he hasn't been this outspoken since before they first strapped him into the EVA

022: Oooh, he hit a NERV(e). Which at this point seems like a standard joke about marriage expectations but we'll later see that there's more of a story behind it

023: He's even piling it on!

024:
And she responds with all the dignity of a pouty four-year-old.

025: But he maintains some minimum politeness, though it comes off as a snarky cherry on top in this context

026: Are those standard features in Japanese households or is the water purifier a small post-post-apocalyptic detail?

027: Misato looks a bit like a dog in the above shot XD And here comes technique of having background sounds punctuate important changes in the conversation and the very lifelike dialogue, the way it goes from lighthearted to "oh" and never lets you quite forget that this is a semi-serious show

028:
Her inner tryhard is never too far behind the cheery bluster - this is a lot how awkward moments happen IRL, I mean at first she was just saying it so he wouldn't worry that he's being a burden, but she was kind of on autopilot here and realizes only too late that it could be taken the wrong way considering their past conversations and Shinji's whole complex about wether anyone really cares about him instead of just what they can get out of him; After all, he's spent his whole life so far being looked after by people who were paid to do it and though he generally tries to keep his expectations low, some part of him must have been hoping that maybe this time it would be different - it's only natural to have an undercurrent of frustration that he of course wouldn't express in a direct way because that would necessitate a more direct assertion of what he believes he deserves which still isn't that much at this point

031: On the other hand Misato seems to have made it into "Embarassing Parent" territory lacking the enchantment of first contact (soon to be contrasted with Touji & Kensuke who still very muh see her as "that cool hot babe" because they haven't lived in close quarters with her long enough to see her messier side or grow annoyed with it if they'd have seen it as a minor tradeof at first)

033: As per her usual pattern, Misato covers her doubt about having made things awkward with her usual playful/flirty manner which at this point probably just makes Shinji think that she doesn't take his concerns too seriously



Scene 2  SPOILER: Show
035: Another part of this scene's function in highlighting the "new status quo" is to show how these days, Shinji apparently gets picked up by his new friends on a regular basis, and they generally walk to school together

036: Grated, their motives for coming to his places rather than the other way around may not have been entirely pure :P

037: At least she was considerate enough not to come out in her shorts, though she certainly seems to enjoy playing the "cool big sis" character the boys expect her to be.

038: so he's not supposed to be purely embarrassed here but also lowkey jelly, ie, Not So Different from them after all/ not actually that much more mature or enlightened, just temporarily annoyed

041: While Shinji has yet to learn this, Misato herself isn't unaware that his more honest complaining means he must be feeling more comfortable around her, which may be part of why she enjoys teasing him by acting purposely silly

042: ... and the juxtaposition with him walking to school with his friends lampshades how this hasn't only taken place at home but in general and how she's genuinely glad to see his life going better

043: Look at him being so happy about getting to have relatively normal things many take for granted

044: But As with the earlier "awkward moment", they don't let us forget for a moment that all this is taking place within the framework of this large ominous organization and that he really IS part of her job. She's still telling strangers who want to use him about his every move, something that would be considered a huge breach of trust if your real mother/sister did it, and though he's enjoying a little bit of normal schoolboy life, he's being surveilled in ways a normal schoolboy wouldn't be, they're ready to rip him out of his normal life at a moment's notice - Even in its more lighthearted moments, this show never quite lets go of the subtle background tension and the atmosphere that creates.

046 This looming sense of danger and unnormality is likewise underlined by the decomposing angel from last episode's desperate battle just chilling out in the sunny background cityscape like a regular construction project.

049: She's not trying to be inconspicuous... at all

052: Note the little musical jingle underlining the first impression, as well as the fancy earrrings

053: cool sunglasses 101

054: As if Shinji needed more unwanted sudden fame

055: Just Rei sitting here mysteriously, barely affected by the concerns of ordinary mortals.
Of course now we know that Anno felt he'd gone too far too fast with her arc in ep 6 when something like a successful communication happened somewhat too early, and then he didn't know what to do with her and got engrossed in focussing on other characters for a while - in hindsight it may have been a bit of a happy accident. As a first time viewer I was surely a tad confused by how there wasn't as much as an acknowledgement of the major bonding moment, but if anything it left me wanting for more and relishing her sparse screentime until Anno had thought of some more things to do with her by ep 11. Just goes to show that us writers can be a lot more unforgiving wit out work than the readers.

056: And again she plays right into the surface role that she sees as being expected of her.

057: I mean, though there's a lot they don't know, they got a point, leading a department of an international organization at a relatively young age is no mean feat. It's not surprising that she doesn't have a lot of time to keep order

061 Interesting bit of opinion in the script - of course, it's only later that they elaborate on what they mean here - I guess we're supposed to get that Shinji's a bit too uptight because he never used to have any friends or family to be silly with, so it's partially a new concept to him



063
Lets just appreciate the expressions here.


Scene 3  SPOILER: Show
064: And of course we go straight from comedic homeroom antics to explicitly sketching out some parts of the greater scope that have so far only been implied - That Shinji's still going on about that same train of thought suggests that he went to this experiment right after school

065: Never noticed just what the sound effects are supposed to be, I always thought it was just a generic heartbeat - so there's already a subconscious connection beginning to click after spending this much time in contact with the EVA - His expression, conveyed just through the eyes is this very effective kind of lowkey disturbed, "Whats the ground I'm even standing on", like when you ask yourself the sort of existential questions you can't tolerate for long because they would make you question the points and implications of everything you do every day.
He never quite addressed it, but he IS still processing what he saw and was subjected to back in episode 1.
That's an interesting detail, because while there's a lot that Shinji simply never finds out (contrary to how it typically goes in shonen stories where there may well be dark machinations going on, but sooner or later, the protagonist uncovers them - Shinji only kinda sorta finds out some of the big reveals by ep 23, and never comes face to face with, or even hears the name of Lorenz Kiel (if you would consider him the big bad)) - He never really sets out to find the truth the way Misato and Kaji do, presumably out of fear and a disproportionate sense of helplessness, but he's not like, say, Asuka, who doesn't seem very interested in the greater truths behind the settings - He does privately wonder in moments like these.

066: He may be used to working with the EVAs but he's still very much horrified of them... And this sense that there's something very living, even outright human about them would surely add to that.

067: Which is why this sense of calm owing to some subliminal recognition of Yui's presence must be rather paradoxical and uncanny to him, though it does fit with how he generally views the EVA as this paradoxical object that on the one hand gives him purpose and usefulness and the right to all these new friends and perks, but at the same time subjects him to suffering and is just plain wrong. When you hear this the first time it would surely strike you as unusual, reinforce the theory that the EVA "protected" him early on and make you think that there must be something up.


068: This resigned attitude is exactly why he never winds up finding anything out despite not lacking in reflexion or curiosity. HE's kind of dug in his heels in this helpless position - and it certainly is true that the forces meant to keep him ignorant have been conspiring since before his birth - but in a sense that's true for all of us who can't escape living within flawed systems.

069: Anno always maintains a 'mature/'cynical'' mood with these constant background discussion of technical and political concerns as they would be encountered IRL - as we've seen with cases like Global Warming and war prevention, the fact that everyone's lives are on the line doesn't necessary negate everyone's self-interest or logistical difficulties - Ritsuko, the dutiful token cynic, even takes the time to explain that view by lampshading complexities: The importance of saving the earth doesn't suddenly negate all other concerns.

There's also allusions to a larger world out there, another EVA unit being built and scheduled to arrive, repair costs, Gendo being off on his own adventures...

070: As seen here and later repeated in ep 9, Gendo's underlings see him as pretty strict and unpleasant to deal with

073: This is where Rei seems to have copied her tendency to sit next to and look out of windows all the time - if anything, Gendo's body language is even more closed off, and the indirect shots (such as announcing the other dude's arrival by showing us the hem of his jacket) helps to frame this whole look as an impersonal business conversation

074: This is probably the first hint at what would eventually become the EVA series

075: Adding to the general apocalyptic drearyness and a bit of an in-joke on the Japanese economy not having done so great back in the 90s, ("It could be you, too!"), there's this subtle running gag of the American Economy being in the toilet, with the humor partially based on how unlikely so a notion would be - then, of course, 2008 happened with the US crashing bigtime and pulling most of Europe down with it as per old tradition

076: And here we have another reinforcement on how hard it supposedly is to build EVAs and how rare compatible pilots supposedly are - little did we know that SEELE already had a backup plan cooking for how to use the EVA series despite the pilot scarcity

077: Here's what I'd likewise consider an important piece of exposition when it comes to Gendo's philosophy, which is spelled out even more directly in his segment in ep 25: Though he also has very personal motivators going on, he truly does see his actions as the only "hope" humanity has left and so he is willing to pursue it through all manner of ruthless methods, no matter the cost - even if it involves risking the very few things he remotely cares about, such as his son and "daughter".

078: This being the point where we truly get the stakes spelled out and find out what this frequently alluded-to "Second Impact" really was.

085:
I wouldn't trust Shinji if he didn't have this little ""Oh shit!" reaction here. He probably realized that giant monsters rampaging were't a good thing, but no one told him it was THIS dire. One wonders in how far it would have helped or made things worse.

090: So there's already a quite deliberate allusion to the existence of some backstory there.



Scene 4  SPOILER: Show
091: All in all this episode has 3 of these morning scenes

096: So this is a dress uniform? With a tigh slit in the skirt? It sure shows a different side to her, and that despite the superficial inappropriateness that seems more freespirited/ rather contrary to that, there exists a tendency in her to play situational roles - At this point Shinji has seen her be the workaholic military person often enough, the contrast exists more in seeing her do this and calling it to mind in the environment where you usually get Silly!Misato. As alluded to in ep 2, the silly exists probably more so that SHE can have an outlet, as a sort of compensation. They're both useful characters underneath of which she's not quite so cool or confident, and perhaps reluctant to interact without working herself into either of those "modes" (if need be with the help of booze or caffeine)

097:
PenPen, on the other and, probably sees her in silly mode 95% of the time... and Shinji's not so above it after all
098: She's toptally in-character here. I guess the clothes make the man - there's been research that people do act differently based on things like clothes, makeup, or even videogame toons or doing different poses etc. based on what ideas one connects with the outfit.

099: Silly!Misato is like an embarassing sister almost on his level. Military!Misato is his superior.,. and of course the transformation itself probably makes him a tad uncertain about what social script to follow around her, a situation Shinji was never too good with

100: Even the accessoires are on-point

101: The perspective here helps to make her a tad more 'opaque' just as Shinji thought he was kind of getting used to her



Scene 5  SPOILER: Show
107: You can tell Misato's a bit uncomfortable with coming to a ruined place that reminds her of the catastrophe. Maybe she was one of the 35 million people who used to live here before it was wiped off the maps, and the over the top professional Mask here fills something of a protective function, especially if she expected from experience that Tokita would be exactly the kind of macho slimeball that he turned out to be - You learn later in EoE that they let the place untouched for symbolic reasons (when they wanted to do the same with the remains of Neo Tokyo-3) - IDK if this type of thing happened in Japan but it reminds me of how the GDR government left several old churches in ruins after WWII, as a sort of warning for distant future generations, with many of those sites only being rebuilt after reunification.
Though it seems less intuitive to do this when most of the population doesn't know that SI was a manmade catastrophe. Maybe it was a question of piety, like people taking a long time to decide what to put on ground zero.
You could certainly speculate that the JA guys chose this place for some sort of political posturing, perhaps to allude to the insufficiency of past measures or play themselves up as the heroes who want to prevent a repeat of this

108: It might certainly be considered ostentatious to put a big, attention-grabbing display complex in a place like this

109: Though around Ritsuko, who is more of a peer, she seems to sublimate it more as a blase, pouty annoyance - the following sequence certainly showcases the subtly different ways that they deal with anger and/or humiliation.
Another thing showcased here is this rivalry between NERV and the conventional military - Ritsuko & Misato know things they don't and seem to see them as more of a nuisance that still acts important and doesn't realize they're ill-equipped to solve modern day problems, something that, despite our lack of giant monster attacks, might be seen as having parallels in our world with cyberwarfare and non-government terrorism and how interventionism has rarely yielded decent results
- on the other hand, the conventionals kind of have a point when they point out how NERV seems to be acting outside the law and relying on rickety methods even they don't follow understand - a dynamic that will of course be further expounded upon in the next episode

(in a weird case of cultural parallels, all the cynical political jokes in EVA have a tendency to be very hilarious to German audiences. I remember that time they showed the Rebuilds at our university cinema program, lines like "politics only breeds problems", "the americas must've gotten scared" had the whole room lol-ing, and you could tell the dub crew had a lot of fun with the general from episode 8)

114: So it would seem that quite a few of the other guest were aware of who they are - Tokita was certainly prepared for them. Despite being formally secret, NERV probably couldn't avoid acquiring something of a reputation. This also showcases the "political side" of saving the world in which Misato and Ritsuko are forced to attend dinners like this.

116 - Ritsuko - ever professional - is of course prepared as well, and trying to direct the conversation. Alas, she is a scientist, not a PR person; It tends to require people with nearly opposite personalities.

117 So she has a reputation and perhaps had something of an academic career before being recruited into NERV, perhaps with some ambiguity as to what role her mother's own reputation played in that.

120 She tries a logical objection, but he immediately tries spinning it into a positive, and just generally baits her into a "Yes!" "No!" type argument knowing that it would make her look illegitimate.

124 Interestingly, here our"silly" Misato seems cooler because she doesn't have her "adult" ego to protect, at least not in this situation. In a situation where she's put her reputation as a scientist of the playing field, it's important that she keep being taken seriously and appearing reasonable, which ironically leads her to be goaded into the exact opposite - whereas controlling a conversation is often about playing to the reptile brain and merely cultivating the "appearance" of winning

125 - he was probably trying to maneuver her into a situation like that where he could play his trump card - the information they probably didn't know he has

127 Despite obviously being very insulting, the functions of such comments is often to be a sort of bonding moment from which some people are, of course, except due to being the but of the joke - in a room full of military and heavy industry dudes, Tokita can probably count on the room being on his side. It's a deliberate strategy to make her objections seem silly - of course as professionals who might in the past have struggled with being taken seriously in their fields and having their work and purpose with all their personal reasons and convictions thoroughly dismissed, this would also be likely to hit a nerve and lead them to embarrass themselves- which doesn't mean that it's all planned or that he doesn't really believe it, a lot of people with a "slimey" personality just figure out that this works to get them their way and thus keep doing it.
It's often a self-fulfilling prophecy - You deliberately say things that would trigger someone's emotions, and then accuse them of being emotional as if it weren't a universal human reaction

129 There is no dignified answer to that question

131 Now comes the dirty trick, given that he would be LCL sludge twice over if it wasn't for Misato and Ritsuko. You can always score points by oversimplifying complex matters and make the informed, intelligent person who actually bothers to explain those complexities look like they're just making up excuses

132 The visual metaphors are certainly on-point

135 Again he wins the audiences' support by basically arranging things so he looks like the more honest one - at the same time, he's the one vagueing here more than Ritsuko is, because the aT field is actually a super crucial part - but no one apart from her might really know that

136 OUGH. Poor Ritsuko, she probably realizes that he got her. She basically got her own insistence on professionalism used against her. At first I thought he was just a slimeball saying obviously "bad" things like the misogynist line but now that I'm older I can appreciate more of the game being played here

138 Now, of course, the former gets contrasted with their more "human" reactions in private where they're not really mantaining a facade

140 In Misato's case she's overtly and unfilteredly angry in a way she wouldn't let him see earlier, she didn't want him to see that he "got" her emotionally while Ritsuko didn't want to stand there without an answer

141 And of course here's a lampshade of how the tables turned

142 Not that Ritsuko's own 'private' reaction isn't just as telling - She has this cold, detached, methodical anger than in a way seems more frightening and 'deeper' than Misato's more transient "hot" anger

143 Though of course telling yourself that the ones insulting you are "beneath" you is also a protective mechanism

145 Again the dialogue adds a lot of flavor here, they're used to dealing with "information leaks" and the like

146 Well, apparently they meant to deal with their rivals in a different way



Cutting it off here for fear of the post becoming too long
I wanted to try harvesting the rice

I wanted to hold Tsubame more

I wanted to stay together forever with the boy I like


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