*drip*

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zuggy [ANF]
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Postby zuggy [ANF] » Sat May 16, 2009 4:57 pm

In a lot of episodes of Evangelion we see the 'drip of water' with generic sound effect attached. Also remember that being in RahXephon a lot as well.

It could tie in with Rei's fask of water and the drip being a ripple in consciousness or something similar, but I dunno, seems like a lot of directors use this visual motif and I don't understand what it is suppose to represent... if anything.

Originally posted on: 20-Apr-2006, 15:58 GMT

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Postby asdfff [ANF] » Sat May 16, 2009 4:57 pm

Don't read too much into everything. In FGC (evacommentary.org), the script says that water dripping -> ripple = symbolic beginning of the universe. Everything you see a drip-ripple just think of it as someone's emotional problems being resolved, for better or for worse.

No, sorry it doesn't tie into raxephon or to any other property, anime or otherwise, unless stated as a inspiration for eva.

Originally posted on: 20-Apr-2006, 17:20 GMT

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Postby Reichu [ANF] » Sat May 16, 2009 4:58 pm

asdfff wrote:Don't read too much into everything. In FGC (evacommentary.org), the script says that water dripping -> ripple = symbolic beginning of the universe.


Where does it say "symbolic"? Image

Everything you see a drip-ripple just think of it as someone's emotional problems being resolved, for better or for worse.


I'm not sure how this ties into all occurences of the "water droplet" motif -- for example, Kaworu's disembodied head falling into the water; the "echo" of this at the beginning of #25'; the sideways drop of blood right after the harpies skewer themselves; the one corresponding to the cut in the OP, right before Yui "awakens"; etc. We probably hit most of the occurrences in the "Scavenger Hunt" thread.

Originally posted on: 20-Apr-2006, 17:29 GMT

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Postby LuigiHann [ANF] » Sat May 16, 2009 4:58 pm

It's probably just my brain being influenced by Evangelion Opus, but I tend to associate the water drop with Yui. I think I'm just confusing it with that blue rippley spirit thing that actually is associated with Yui.

Originally posted on: 20-Apr-2006, 19:46 GMT

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Postby Reichu [ANF] » Sat May 16, 2009 4:58 pm

LuigiHann wrote:It's probably just my brain being influenced by Evangelion Opus, but I tend to associate the water drop with Yui. I think I'm just confusing it with that blue rippley spirit thing that actually is associated with Yui.


Actually, it doesn't seem to be. Regarding this thing:

Image

...Eva tomo no kai comments:
The same image of the flickering light appears in episode #16 (“Shi ni itaru, soshite”) and episode #20 (“Kokoro no katachi, hito no katachi”). Both times, it is just before Shinji's return to the real world from the entry plug (= the inner universe). Perhaps it is the image seen by an embryo inside its mother's womb of the light coming in from the outside world?
Judging from the context in the show itself, I actually think that this correlation is correct. The question is, how does the image's occurence in the OP link up? And, certainly, this wouldn't be the only piece of imagery in the rather enigmatic "prelude" to turn up again...

Originally posted on: 20-Apr-2006, 21:05 GMT

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Postby LuigiHann [ANF] » Sat May 16, 2009 4:58 pm

Yeah, that's what I was thinking of. It's at least... tangentially connected to Yui. Not so much her as a character, but more to do with the "mother" motif in general.
Still, somebody needs to bring in the list of times the water drop occurs. I'll find it.

From the scavenger hunt thread:

#23: Rei after her conversation with Armisael
#26': the "drop of blood" after the last harpy kills herself
#26': right before Shinji's farewell with Yui
also in ep. #20, at 14:35, and again at 18:20. Also, the sound effect is there in the very beginning of ep. #16. Does that count?

Okay that doesn't help much at all.

Originally posted on: 20-Apr-2006, 21:13 GMT

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Postby Reichu [ANF] » Sat May 16, 2009 4:58 pm

LuigiHann wrote:Yeah, that's what I was thinking of. It's at least... tangentially connected to Yui. Not so much her as a character, but more to do with the "mother" motif in general.


The mother/water motif, when you take it all together, is massive. Then, it is a theme that's just about as ancient as you can get.

Offhand, another occurrence of the droplet is right before the bizarro sandbox scene in #26'.

It would probably take a careful analysis of the collective contexts to figure out what the heck this droplet thing is all about. (Maybe there are some clues in the materials I have, as well, for whenever opportunity knocks.) The variation involving Kaworu's head falling into the LCL, and the "recurrence" at the beginning of #25', might be a good point of reference, along with the other divergences -- #26', the sideways drop of blood during "Komm, susser Tod" and the bottom-to-top droplet that opens Yui's farewell to Shinji.

Originally posted on: 20-Apr-2006, 21:38 GMT

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Postby The Eva Monkey [ANF] » Sat May 16, 2009 4:58 pm

For the record, Shinto myth tells that Japan was created by the gods thrusting a sword into the ocean, and when it was pulled out, the drops that fell back into the ocean became the islands of Japan.

This might not be intended to convey creation, but it may just be a visual aesthetic that is culturally ingrained, included purely for aesthetics and nothing else.

Originally posted on: 20-Apr-2006, 23:11 GMT

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Postby Kadou [ANF] » Sat May 16, 2009 4:58 pm

Concerning the flickering light... correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't it also appear in episode 19 before Eva-01 goes berserk on Zeruel? I'm not entirely sure, but I believe it was before the beating sounds after Shinji stopped yelling.

Originally posted on: 21-Apr-2006, 00:33 GMT

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Postby zuggy [ANF] » Sat May 16, 2009 4:58 pm

Kadou wrote:Doesn't it also appear in episode 19 before Eva-01 goes berserk on Zeruel?

Yeah that's right, it appears just as the heartbeat sound starts. I'm guessing that is the moment when Shinji became absorbed into the core... I remember that same light-through-the-water effect when Misato opened up the entry plug in episode 16 too. Maybe that is depicting how life rose out from the oceans (or LCL in this case), been rejected from the sea/womb into a different sphere of existence.

Interesting answers for the drop of water question (drip of water sounds silly Image ), though it seems nobody is certain what it is suppose to mean.

Originally posted on: 21-Apr-2006, 16:30 GMT

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Postby LuigiHann [ANF] » Sat May 16, 2009 4:58 pm

Drip is the verb (and the onomatopoeia for the sound) and drop is the noun (although it's also a verb, but in this context it's a nound, like "drop of water"). Drip can also be a noun, like "the faucet has a drip" but it doesn't mean the same thing as drop.
Image
But yeah, I'm not sure what it means in Eva. I'm thinking now of those fountains, like the Suikinkutsu or Shishi odoshi (yes, I had to look those up, I had no idea what they're callde) that periodically drip water. Apparently the former is considered a sort of musical device, and washing your hands in it is considered to be "playing" it, and the dripping sounds are relaxing and peaceful. The latter is used to scare away deer, and the sound occurs periodically, giving a visitor a sense of the passage of time.
None of that has any real relevence, but it's interesting nonetheless. I wonder if the drip is like Eva's use of hexagons and octogons, where it doesn't have any one concrete meaning, it's just used in a variety of contexts to tie the various themes together.

Originally posted on: 21-Apr-2006, 16:46 GMT

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Postby Ornette [ANF] » Sat May 16, 2009 4:58 pm

ep16 water drip:
the sound happens here: Image
then right afterwards, Asuka is coming out of the shower: Image
This is probably just from Asuka taking a bath or something, but they use the light effect instead of a water drop.

in ep20:
Image
First is the "be one with me" sequence, then the water drip, then the scene cuts to the outside world where they start the salvage operation (didn't include screenshot), then the "hey Shinji" sequence.

also in ep20:
Image
First we see a sketch of baby and mother, dialog goes like this:
Gendo: It is a pity that this child will live after Second Impact, in this Hell.

Yui: Well. If he wants to live, anywhere becomes Heaven. Because if
he really lives, he will find the chance for happiness anywhere.

Gendo: I see. You may be right.

then a shot of Shinji's face saying, "Mother..."
then the water drop
then the water ripples with a glow in the center and a little blue dot that zips around, the dialog here goes like this:
Yui: Have you decided?

Gendo: I'll name it Shinji if it's a boy, Rei if it's a girl.

Yui: Shinji, Rei.

then Shinji kinda floating (upwards?) and says "Mother." again.
then the light effect (no dialogue). Following this, we're back in the real world and Misato is still crying and Shinji squirts out of Eva-01's core.

Originally posted on: 22-Apr-2006, 11:02 GMT

Ornette [ANF]
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Postby Ornette [ANF] » Sat May 16, 2009 4:58 pm

ep23:
Image
First, Rei is conversing with the Angel, some dialogue:
Rei: Who? Me? Me within Eva.
No, I feel someone else other than me.
Who are you? An Angel?
The being that we call an Angel?

Rei (Angel): Don't you want to be unified with me?

Rei: No.
I am I. Not you.

Rei (Angel): Hmm, but you shall.
It's too late.
I give you part of my mind.
I give you this emotion.
Pain, see, your mind has pain.

Rei: Pain? no, something different.
Loneliness.
Yes. loneliness.

Rei (Angel): Loneliness?
I don't understand.

Rei: Do you hate being alone?
We are many,
though you hate being alone.
That's called loneliness.

Rei (Angel): That's your mind. Full of sadness.
That's your own mind.

(note in the platinum dub and sub, the Angel says "become one with" instead of "unified")

Then we have the water drop,
then the real world, Rei's crying: "These are tears. It's me who is crying."


in ep26'
Image
Shinji's in the entry plug, GNR and GNK just had a convo with him (Rei: What do you wish for?), and it looks like he's turning into LCL or something, we see Asuka's boobies overlayed, then everything gets all watery.
Then, the water drip.
Then, the park sequence with Shinji as a kid building a sand pyramid.


Image
Here's the sideways drip of LCL (I think). First the last harpy stabs core, then a sideways drip, then the earth is covered with red.


Image
This is the last drip in ep26'
First, Yui-sama is floating in space with the double ended spear, relevant dialog:
Yui (voice):
As long as the Sun, the Moon and the Earth exist, everything will be all
right.

Unlike the other cuts to the drip, this one fades to black.

Then, the drip, but unlike the other ones (aside from the sideways LCL drip), this one is upside down (the drip starts at the bottom of the screen and goes up)
Then we have the farewell conversation with Yui
Yui:
So, you'll be okay now?

Shinji:
I still don't know where to find happiness...
But I'll continue to think about whether it's good to be here... whether
it was good to have been born.
But in the end, it's just realizing the obvious over and over again.
Because I am myself.


now back to the original question: What does the drips mean?

I posted the images and relevant dialog in hopes to help discussion.

One thing I noticed right away is that the drip usually seperates a "different" reality from the real world, with the sole exception of the orange sideways drip and the second drip in ep20 (the first ep20 drip I didn't add the scene in the real world of everyone working on getting Shinji out).

Oh and a sidenote: we see the light effect here also in ep26' although in a different motif

Originally posted on: 22-Apr-2006, 11:49 GMT

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Postby Shin-seiki [ANF] » Sat May 16, 2009 4:58 pm

Ornette wrote:One thing I noticed right away is that the drip usually seperates a "different" reality from the real world...
Indeed. Whatever the water drop 'means', it's function as part of the "visual vocabulary" of NGE usually is to serve as a sort of visual punctuation, representing a transition back and forth between external and internal reality.

Originally posted on: 22-Apr-2006, 12:19 GMT


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