Maya's Emotions

[Hekym [ANF]]

This is seriously not the question of if she's gay. But what do you think Maya feels towards Ritsuko, if anything? It's very obvious that she views her as being at least a cut above the other humans around her and Love's definitely not out of the question. It probably shows very well that I don't quite know what I'm talking about, but Evangelion's writer seems fond of posing psychological questions, including sexuality. I honestly don't see why not. The most interesting part is what would happen after Instrumentality, once souls are revealed to each other. It doesn't seem like a true relationship would particularly hurt Ritsuko either. Would someone please help me sort through this?

Again, I'm not trying to put forth evidence of Maya being a lesbian. Just her emotions.

*Haven't seen many episodes, read a lot on the internet, almost completely new to the series... but interested.

Originally posted on: 29-Mar-2006, 02:24 GMT

[Gboz [ANF]]

I don't really know as Maya dosen't show much of a personality in my opinion. The whole lesbian thing comes from a scene in EoE when she imagines Ritsuko hugging her.

Originally posted on: 29-Mar-2006, 02:31 GMT

[Kokuei [ANF]]

well there are a few shots of her carrying around ritsukos pillow. and in the movie she sort of squeezes it a lot for comfort. this little pink cat pillow. when all the minds and souls are being merged, maya sees ritsuko who types "i need you" into mayas console and then maya hugs her and in ecstasy begins shouting "ritsuko" or so i'm told in Japanese "sempai" which means elder. so maya certainly has a thing for ritsuko. she obviously looks up to her as a role model, but i'm not to sure about love. maybe a little...

Originally posted on: 29-Mar-2006, 02:39 GMT

[Hekym [ANF]]

All I really know about comes from EoE. Love certainly makes sense in that situation... I heard that there were other subtler hints during the progression of the episodes. I also heard it mentioned once that she might only realize Love in EoE.

Students seem to crush pretty heavily on their Sempais a lot, but I don't recall ever seeing such an emotion come to fruition.

Originally posted on: 29-Mar-2006, 02:49 GMT

[The Eva Monkey [ANF]]

This is seriously not the question of if she's gay. But what do you think Maya feels towards Ritsuko, if anything?

Hah! As if you could separate homosexuality from a discussion about Maya's feelings towards Ritsuko. I scoff at you.

Originally posted on: 29-Mar-2006, 03:15 GMT

[Kokuei [ANF]]

Students seem to crush pretty heavily on their Sempais a lot, but I don't recall ever seeing such an emotion come to fruition.

2 words, Love Hina

Originally posted on: 29-Mar-2006, 04:07 GMT

[LuigiHann [ANF]]

Okay, so lets for argument's sake rule out lesbianism, and try to formulate another interpretation.
What does psuedo-Ritsuko type when Maya's being complemented? "I need you."
One could infer that, while it isn't as noticeable for her as it is with the main characters, Maya suffers from feelings of loneliness, and questions her self-worth. In fact, if you think about it, while Maya's skills were useful during the show, throughout the entire movie she was unable to do anything to help herself or anyone else, all she could do is sit around and panic. It's extremely likely that during that time she felt completely useless and worthless. Even in the last few moments before complementation, she's staring at her computer, trying to think of something, anything that she can to do affect some outcome, to justify her presense, as well as her whole existence, which in EoE must seriously seem like her whole life was all for naught. In fact, even before the movie, there were bits in the series where, for instance, Ritsuko could do Maya's whole day's work in a few seconds (hyperbole, but that's the intended effect). So while it seems that Maya respects Ritsuko far too much to be jealous, I'd imagine she has had thoughts about the fact that, if she were to just not show up, Ritsuko (and everyone else) would do just fine without her. These feelings are magnified to extremes by the chaos and confusion caused during the military attack, Asuka's violent demise, and Third Impact, so by the end she must be feeling completely worthless.
So when Ritsuko shows up, and types "I need you," the already-extremely-emotional Maya is elated to the point of tears, as with those three words, her entire existence is justified. Ritsuko -- her role model, her idol, her sensei -- needs her. And with that, she is in ecstatic as her AT field goes down, and she is tangified.

But yeah, she's totally gay, too.

Originally posted on: 29-Mar-2006, 04:19 GMT

[Reichu [ANF]]

Technically, complementation is the "filling in the gaps to make humanity a perfect whole" crap that starts to happen later.* What happens after Maya's last "SEMPAI! <3" is just Tangification. Or, in her case, an explosive, orgasmic Tangification.

* Well -- that's Seele's version, anyway. The other plan seems to entail "evolution while maintaining individuality".

Originally posted on: 29-Mar-2006, 05:09 GMT

[Gboz [ANF]]

Just wondering, but where in the series is it said that the kitten pillow is Ritsuko's? I've never seen Ritsuko with it.

Originally posted on: 29-Mar-2006, 06:09 GMT

[Reichu [ANF]]

Just wondering, but where in the series is it said that the kitten pillow is Ritsuko's? I've never seen Ritsuko with it.

Nowhere, I think. It's just a cushion that Maya uses for her operator's chair. Aside from the fact that Ritsuko collects cat knick-knacks, doesn't really make much sense for the cushion to belong to anyone but Maya.

Originally posted on: 29-Mar-2006, 06:23 GMT

[Gboz [ANF]]

Nowhere, I think. It's just a cushion that Maya uses for her operator's chair. Aside from the fact that Ritsuko collects cat knick-knacks, doesn't really make much sense for the cushion to belong to anyone but Maya.

That's exactly how I feel. I hate watching those stupid ADV directors on their commentaries making up bull, the pillow is just one example.

Originally posted on: 29-Mar-2006, 20:12 GMT

[OMF [ANF]]

Of note here, is that without the EoE scene, Maya's sexual orientation would never have become half the topic it since did, especially given her scene with Kaji in episode #17.

Given how much the scene turned everyone's outlook on Maya around, one should ask onesself two questions. Was it ever the directors intent to portray Maya as such during the series? And, what do we make of her scene with Kaji in light of this?

Originally posted on: 30-Mar-2006, 08:26 GMT

[LuigiHann [ANF]]

The Kaji scene makes me giggle either way. She's just adorable in it. And even if the EoE scene suggests she's a lesbian, it seems to do so in a way that also suggests that she didn't "know" she was a lesbian until that moment... but to be honest, in my purely hypothetical argument earlier, I pretty much convinced myself that she isn't necessarily gay.

Originally posted on: 30-Mar-2006, 08:39 GMT

[Mr. Tines [ANF]]

And, what do we make of her scene with Kaji in light of this?

Well, she was clearly trying to escape from his attentions. I'd filed it alongside her very sniffy reaction to seeing him and Misato in a tangle on the lift floor, and the naive idealism of some of her dialogue with Ritsuko, and thought of her as being more inclined to seek sighing and swooning romantic love, and try not to think about the messy squelchy carnal commerce of sex.

Originally posted on: 30-Mar-2006, 08:46 GMT

[BLACKANGEL32076 [ANF]]

Are we keeping in mind the fact that Anno himself, according to MDWigs, said she was gay, or are we not even exploring that angle? In fact, wasn't their little hearts around Maya in the EoE storyboards when she went "tang!"?

Originally posted on: 29-Mar-2006, 22:25 GMT

[Treize X [ANF]]

Maya is a lesbian.

Her feelings?

She wants Ritsuko.

OMG, end of topic. There's really nothing else to discuss - that's all we actually know (that I'm aware has been discussed) about Maya's feelings. Except that, y'know, she might be bisexual instead (she wasn't exactly shoving Kaji away).

Originally posted on: 30-Mar-2006, 00:24 GMT

[Z Metalla [ANF]]

Maya is a lesbian.

Her feelings?

She wants Ritsuko.

OMG, end of topic. There's really nothing else to discuss - that's all we actually know (that I'm aware has been discussed) about Maya's feelings. Except that, y'know, she might be bisexual instead (she wasn't exactly shoving Kaji away).

Word up.

Originally posted on: 30-Mar-2006, 01:15 GMT

[sheaman [ANF]]

she also can't shoot a gun

Originally posted on: 30-Mar-2006, 01:39 GMT

[Hekym [ANF]]

Why would anyone draw a woman in classic lesbian style if that wasn't their intent?

Seriously. Plus, the show is a little more obnoxiously complicated this way.

Originally posted on: 30-Mar-2006, 01:44 GMT

[K2Grey [ANF]]

I'm pretty sure she could shoot a gun just fine, it's just that she has problems shooting the main target of guns with it.

Originally posted on: 30-Mar-2006, 03:45 GMT