Misato and Asuka in Germany

[NemZ]

I've been trying to piece together just how long Misato was with Asuka before they met up again in ep8, as well as what sort of living arangements they had.

I've been able to piece together that she started in Germany sometime between 2005-10, came to Tokyo-3 in 2010 either as a visit or as a transfer, then went back to Germany again and stayed there until 2015.

So, my questions... at what point did she become Asuka's guardian? Were they roomates then too, or did she live with her father and stepmother?

[Fazmotron]

From what I gather, I would say its quite likely to assume that Asuka was roomates with Misato in germany, mainly because of Asuka's casual attitude to moving in with Misato in Japan.

Timeline and such, I've got no idea.

[JimmyWolk]

came to Tokyo-3 in 2010 either as a visit or as a transfer, then went back to Germany again and stayed there until 2015.

Who came as a visitor and went back? I don't remember anything indicating that Asuka has been to Japan before, or that Misato had only visited Tokyo-3 sometime.
If you mean Misato, I guess you base it on her just having arrived herself, but wherever she was, I doubt it has been anywhere around Asuka. Their greeting sounded more like they haven't seen each other in years and also Kaji needed to be in Germany long enough to get having Asuka all over him, but without him and Misato meeting.

[NemZ]

Ritsuko mentions in 2010 flashback of 21' that she's going out drinking with Misato in 21', who apparently just got back to Japan.

So... was it just a short visit or was she actually leaving Germany? Did she look after Asuka before that, after that, or both?

[JimmyWolk]

Ritsuko mentions in 2010 flashback of 21' that she's going out drinking with Misato in 21', who apparently just got back to Japan.

So... was it just a short visit or was she actually leaving Germany? Did she look after Asuka before that, after that, or both?

D'oh! Checked that part, but skipped that line. XD
But yeah, likely a visit then. The way they were talking makes it seem like she's already stationed in Germany.

btw on the topic, there's this line in the Evapedia in her profile that makes little sense:

Misato transfered from the Nerv Branch in Germany back to Japan in 2003.

First of all, there's no Nerv at that time, and secondly there's no mentioning that she was already in Germany that early (last we seen her in 02, she was kept on the expedition ship for some reason)

[V]

Ritsuko says to Naoko that Misato just left for Germany, and that was I believe in 2010.

Then Misato is there, but ****exactly how much she worked with Asuka is unknown.

Certainly Asuka's parents (father and step-mother) are still alive and know her (phone call) so they were at least in contact with her and possibly still living with her.

Whether Misato was actually "living" with Asuka is debate-able and I think, improbable.

More likely Misato was at most, Asuka's "handler" like Kaji was when they went to Japan, leading her around the Nerv base doing stuff at work, in much the same way that Misato treats Rei. At least, she was a Nerv officer that at least met Asuka a few times.

[Reichu]

@JimmyWolk: I took out that bit from the page. (This is why we need more editors...)

I'm with V here. My impression is that Asuka did officially station with her father and stepmother, and Misato would have served as a glorified babysitter / body guard.

Since actual script is best:

Asuka (OFF):
Man, I guess we will be in Japan by tomorrow.
And Misato said she'd come pick me up by lunch.
Oh, Misato's the person who was in Germany before you, Mr. Kaji.
I don't really like her much.
The way she lives is so affected.

Asuka (OFF):
Hello, Misato. How have you been?

Misato:
Fine. How about you? You've grown some, haven't you?

Asuka (OFF):
Yeah! I'm not just taller, my figure's filled out as well.

(Year 2010)

RITSUKO:
The three parts of you...
The only thing left is to power it up, right?
I'm going to go home early today. Misato's coming back.

AKAGI:
That's right, I didn't know she was a member of Gehirn.
I believe she's in Germany?

RITSUKO:
Yes, she's serving in Branch 3.

AKAGI:
Then I suppose it's a long-distance relationship.

RITSUKO:
I heard they broke up.

AKAGI:
Oh, and they looked so good together too.

...

RITSUKO:
Well, it's been a long time since I've gone drinking.

For whatever it's worth, Ritsuko herself is accepted into Gehirn into 2008. She and Misato were in college in 2005.

[NemZ]

Yes, so she was in Germany, she came back for some reason and some amount of time in 2010, and then most likely went back. Her comments in ep 8 (not 9) make it sound as if it was not long at all since she saw Asuka... a year at most, I'd guess... but when did she start that assignment in the first place?

As to living arrangements, I can easily envision Asuka wanting to be station on base rather than with her father and his new family. Perhaps she still stays in touch but as she says it is a mostly hollow relationship, an appearance only. Her comments about Misato's living habits also indicate to me that she knows her outside of work, which leads me to suspect that they were in fact roommates earlier.

[Sailor Star Dust]

Old thread I know, but it's the only one I can think of that seems relevant to my question: Are there any supplement materials that tell us WHAT was Misato's profession in Germany?

A thread on another forum (RPG.net--it was mentioned in an EGF discussion about Concurrency) seems to think that Misato was a Lab Technician in Germany (Fanon based on some fic? Or just something without SAUCE?), but given Misato's skills in EoE with taking the soldiers down and her usual logic/intelligence with battle plans (either for the Evas throughout the series or staff, like in EoE--remember, the episode 09 plan was Kaji's, not hers ;) )I doubt she'd have something that simple.

If we just don't know, that's fine too.

[soul.assassin]

^
I tried to answer in my fic that unsaid portion of Misato's life by theorizing that she took to military training (perhaps in the belief that in one way or another she would try to avenge her father's death) after college, and then later recruited into NERV as an officer.

[The Eva Monkey]

Given one of Sadamoto's concept illustrations of Misato in military uniform, her typical pseudo-military uniform, her prowess with firearms, as well as her role in commanding the Evas in battle that she has an actual military background. I would hazard a guess that everyone in Nerv with a rank has an actual military background.

[NemZ]

It seems likely she was one of Asuka's trainer/handlers, probably just one in a long line of experts brought in to work with her for a few months/years. I'd guess her job was to teach her about small arms and/or infantry tactics.

[Azathoth]

Asuka's line "Misato is the person who was with me before [Kaji]" implies that Misato had a similar if not indistinguishable role: Nerv-employed "liaison officer"/handler with whom she is expected to form some kind of working relationship. As to what else Misato did, if anything, we can't be sure - but given her hax I wouldn't be surprised if she, like Kaji, was an intelligence officer of some kind originally.

[NemZ]

Well then if she was the one directly before Kaji and she only recently moved to Tokyo-3 at the start of the series, that means she may well have been with Asuka for several years.

Wow, how much more then does it suck for Asuka to see that Misato clearly likes Shinji better?

[Azathoth]

God does not love Asuka.

[Warren Peace]

And All's Right With The World

[Bagheera]

Old thread I know, but it's the only one I can think of that seems relevant to my question: Are there any supplement materials that tell us WHAT was Misato's profession in Germany?

A thread on another forum (RPG.net--it was mentioned in an EGF discussion about Concurrency) seems to think that Misato was a Lab Technician in Germany (Fanon based on some fic? Or just something without SAUCE?), but given Misato's skills in EoE with taking the soldiers down and her usual logic/intelligence with battle plans (either for the Evas throughout the series or staff, like in EoE--remember, the episode 09 plan was Kaji's, not hers ;) )I doubt she'd have something that simple.

If we just don't know, that's fine too.

Note that Shadowjack indicated he didn't buy that story, for exactly the reasons you indicate here. I don't know where he heard about it; he seemed to think it was a cover story, but I've never seen mention of it in the show.

I think it's fair to say she was trained military either before or when she joined NERV. Her depiction in the proposal art makes this pretty clear. How that ties in with her deployment to Germany, however, is anything but -- if she's a soldier, why the heck is she babysitting an Eva pilot? It doesn't make a lot of sense from a command viewpoint. Perhaps it was an accidental sort of thing, much like her adoption of Shinji (i.e., Asuka's parents pretty much ignored her, and no one else knew what to do with her, so Misato wound up filling the void by default).

Well then if she was the one directly before Kaji and she only recently moved to Tokyo-3 at the start of the series, that means she may well have been with Asuka for several years.

Wow, how much more then does it suck for Asuka to see that Misato clearly likes Shinji better?

I've always wondered about the truth of this. Does she really like Shinji better, or does she just know how to deal with him because he's a) a guy and b) passive? It's hard for me to tell because the show doesn't make her feelings toward the pilots all that clear; we know she cares, and that she fucked up royally, but past that the info's thin on the ground. Everything else we get about her deals with her thirst for vengeance (that we never really see in practice, curious) and her role as a slut (something we also never see substantiated).

One of the ideas I had for a fanfic (part of a larger project) involves her forging connections with Asuka and being a major force in the Second Child's rehabilitation. The idea being, of course, that, with the pressure of imminent annihilation no longer present, she'll be able to give the Children the attention they need and deserve, or to find people who can do it in her stead if she's not up to the task. And, more importantly, her efforts to do so would no longer be blocked by the upper echelons of her chain of command. I really need to write that out one of these days.

On a side note, it occurs to me that Misato wears more masks than anyone else in the show. She's a professional soldier (oh wait she's a total slob), she pretends to be a slut (but we never see it), she claims to be on a revenge kick (though it never compromises her judgement), she's friends with Ritsuko (but fights with her more than with anyone else, friend or enemy), she hates her father (but dedicated her life to defeating the Angels for his sake), she teases Shinji (but seems as creeped out by it as he is), etc. I have to wonder if we can take anything about her at face value.

[Chuckman]

If Shinji were less passive Misato would have had a much more difficult time with him. If he'd clumsily attempted to reciprocate her sexual teasing, the resulting conflict would have been serious. Given how she handled Asuka falling apart, she probably would have just started ignoring him too.

As for the slut thing, what's more important is that she thinks of herself as dirty and slutty. She has a severe self esteem issue that sometimes manifests itself as throwing herself at people sexually and then hating herself for it.

[Bagheera]

If Shinji were less passive Misato would have had a much more difficult time with him. If he'd clumsily attempted to reciprocate her sexual teasing, the resulting conflict would have been serious. Given how she handled Asuka falling apart, she probably would have just started ignoring him too.

As for the slut thing, what's more important is that she thinks of herself as dirty and slutty. She has a severe self esteem issue that sometimes manifests itself as throwing herself at people sexually and then hating herself for it.

Agreed on both counts. Shinji's an easy target, and a safe one at that. Asuka, not so much.

And I've mentioned it before, but I'm not convinced in the least that Misato has slept with anyone other than Kaji. Look at her Instrumentality scene for proof: her choir is telling her that she uses men, and she's denying it vehemently. She does use them, but she doesn't sleep with them -- she tries very hard to be a good girl, at least on the job. That's an important part of her character, I think, and one that's easy to miss.

This is part of the reason I think she and Asuka might have a lot in common -- both appear to be outgoing and progressive, but IMO both also have a prudish streak a mile wide. It'd be interesting to explore that (particularly when Asuka's trying to start something up with Shinji post-3I).

[Chuckman]

This is a little tenuous, but it intrigues me that there are at least three dynamics in the series with two female and one male character. There's Asuka-Shinji-Rei, Misato-Kaji-Ritsuko, and Naoko-Gendo-Yui. I have a vague impression that the adult trios represent possible developments for the children had they survived. Shinji might have grown into a figure more like Gendo or more like Kaji, either learning to come to terms with his oddness or create an illusory outgoing and flirtatious personality. Asuka might have developed into an outwardly fun loving wannabe slut or a covetous ambitious bitch with a fixation on taking what others have for herself.

There's also similarities between Asuka and Ritsuko; both basically utterly ruin their lives trying to make some sort of a point to a dead mother figure. The parents pass their problems on to their children, etc. I'm getting a bit off of my point here, though.

Misato's development has aspects of both Asuka and Rei; the childhood trauama, and the silence. I read the alternate reality scene as hinting that had Rei not been so monstrously abused her inner nature would have led to her being a chatterbox, i.e. Misato.

Misato definetely has a complex about sexuality. Her relationship with Kaji has a definite feeling of teenaged rebellion against a father figure, i.e. screw you Daddy, I'm going to bang my new boyfriend nonstop for a week! followed by terrible remorse for what she'd done. Her ability to process relationships is fundamentally stunted, and having been burned on flinging herself at a target that might actually take her up on it, she punishes herself by teasing Shinji and to a lesser extent Hyuga.

We know she knows about Asuka's past, but we know this because Asuka asks her that in the hot springs. If they were particularly close, that would have come up already. Misato probably approached her with playing the big sis in mind and when she realized the similarities between them, she was subconsciously terrified and pulled back.