Well, I have to admit that it's the jokes which got me started on the actual Evangelion TV series. From ReDeath to AMV Hell's seemingly endless parodies, I finally resolved to see the actual series which spawned these gags in the first place.

Of course, I ruined it for myself by visiting TVTropes and looking at all the stuff on there (but then EVERY page on it will sport at least one EVA reference.)

I heard EVA's main theme "Cruel Angel'sThesis" played on the Piano by a friend. It sounded so beautifle that I couldn't rest until I could play it too.

I performed the song for a group of my friends one day. One of them happened to know EVA. He told me about it and I decided to give EVA a try.

I love this anime and think it is better than any other I've known. At first, I thought it was going to be another Gundam imitation. Then, the later episodes blew me away along with the gradually decreasing quality. After seeing EOE, I couldn't get the scenes out of my head for a week or two. EVA was getting imprinted in my head forever. I could feel with the characters and started seeing similarities between them and me. I became obssessed

EVA left me with an empty feeling inside because of the ending of the TV series and EOE. Then, Rebuild came out to save the day. I can't wait for the others to come out.

I am a very musical person and I must comment that the music featured in the anime was very well matched and made. The use of Beethoven's Ode to Joy in the last Angel Battle was a very good choice. I loved hearing familiar themes like Bach's Suite for Cello when Shinji played.
Even the composed music was amazing.

Overall, I still, and will love EVA forever.

In my Wiki! (see sig)

EVA left me with an empty feeling inside because of the ending of the TV series and EOE. Then, Rebuild came out to save the day. I can't wait for the others to come out

I think both endings were very fulfilling for me. I think the one thing that made me sad, was that it was over. I wanted to see more of "Eva", and explore different things throughout the "Eva" universe. Luckily, "Rebuild" is coming out just in time for me to discover new things about the characters, and their journey to saving both the world, and themselves from total destruction.

bioweapon680 wrote:EVA left me with an empty feeling inside because of the ending of the TV series and EOE.

I definitely felt unfulfilled when I saw episodes 25 and 26. I felt almost as if they had just stopped caring and told the artists, "Just give us some sketches; we'll add some people talking and some flashbacks and call it a day." In fact, I was willing to completely disregard the first 25 episodes as some sort of crazy dream when I saw the alternate reality sequence for the first time, simply because of how disappointed I was with those last two episodes.

Of course, then EoE came along and fixed everything up. I want to say that it left me philosophically empty, but that seems to have more of a negative connotation than I want to convey. The final scene of the movie just opened up a rush of sensations and questions that I couldn't put into words and didn't have answers for. Despite all that, it felt great, and I would love to have that sort of thing happen more often.

Apart from that, why do I like the series? I'd say it's because it feels so realistic and profound. You may hate the characters, but you don't hate how they were created or represented. You dislike THEM and THEIR actions, as though they were real people. Toss on all the religious and ethical issues that are brought up and dealt with, and you have an anime that you can relate to, while thinking about all of the deep topics that come up.

how i ran into evangelion was:

a friend and I want to watch a live carcass dvd as he couldnt get a solo pinned down. my housemates and friends are playing dragonball z for days now. i have a complete and utter freakout, because its a rubbish game and go into my housemates room to watch the dvd. he has a complicated tv/dvd combo, and anyway i cant get it open so i press play. evangelion was in there, the introjection episode. i get angry because its anime but i just sit and watch it anyway. 40 mins later, I run into the room and ask "WTF IS THAT EVANGELION ABOUT" i promptly get a smack for pronouncing it with a j, and for daring to ask someone to explain it. the next few weeks we all indulged in much caffeine and marathons. initially, i fell in love with the design of the evas. I had been working on my portfolio and decided it would be based on a piece i did on rotting machines, and thought the evas would tie in well with it. i could not get over how complicated the characters where. now it has all spiralled out of controlled and i have to get back to work.

The theme song.

I had heard a clip of it in another setting, and felt compelled to hear it in it's entirety. One quick trip to You-tube later, I was sufficiently interested in what seemed like a simple mecha anime to give the first episode a try. Needless to say, it turned out to be anything but, driving me to multiple re-viewings and a lot of questions at the end....

Mindfuckery and giant robots is a win combination everytime for me .

Funnily enough, it was an Evangelion T-shirt that my grandmother bought me (she probably didn't know what the hell Evangelion meant). Curiosity led me onto the Internet, and since then it's been working its way into my life...

I discovered Eva when I was looking up some anime shows on the internet, and I stumbled onto it's Wikipedia page, and I was like, "Oh, I remember that show from when I was younger!". My older brother used to watch it too, so he partially helped get me into it.

I also agree with the person who said the theme song... has to be the /BEST/ anime theme song out there. ;D

I also agree with the person who said the theme song... has to be the /BEST/ anime theme song out there. ;D

The theme song is great, but it doesn't compare to the theme song of "Cowboy Bebop", or "Ergo Proxy." Atleast not in my opinion.

Guess I'll have to have a listen to those ones then.

It was the last two episodes. No, seriously.

It was 2000 (so the US release of EoE was still, unfortunately, years away) and I had just been introduced to anime. At that point, the only thing I'd seen was Tenchi (which still fits towards the back of my top 10 list), and liked what I saw; unlike every american show I'd seen, it had an overall story to tell, and ended when it was finished. So I started to look around for other series to watch, and a friend of mine recommended Evangelion. I borrowed his tapes, got together with another friend of mine who hadn't seen Evangelion, and watched it all in one shot.

Beyond the fact that it solidified my newfound love for anime, it was not a life changing experience in and of itself. Life changing experiences very rarely occur all in one moment; events like Asuka finding her mother are the exception, not the rule. Still, I loved it, ending and all, and have watched it periodically (usually once a year or so) since then, picking up something new each time.

I was trying to go somewhere, but it's hard for me to simply write out how I feel about it. Maybe I'll try again later. But I must say, that the ending, both in EoTV and EoE is brilliant. You do have a great deal of effect on your happiness based on how you choose to see things. Being around other people is inherently painful, though some people feel this pain more keenly than others. And when most of us run away and escape into something nicer (say, TV), the biggest problem is we don't exist there. Bleh, what was supposed to be a description of what makes it so great to me has become a massive brainfart. So for now at least, I'll finish that Neon Genesis Evangelion earns it's title, "Gospel of the New Beginning".

Rei.

Also, existentialist themes.

Also, i'm screwed up enough to be able to identify with Shinji.

Also, i'm screwed up enough to be able to identify with Shinji.

So are several other members here (*cough* Me! *cough* ).

I can identify with Shinji as well as a certain somebody. *Pushes glasses up nose*

So are several other members here (*cough* Me! *cough* ).

And me!

I became a fan of Eva because my friends were watching it, and I felt like a third wheel. I also wanted to expand my anime/manga horizons. I heard about it even before I watched it. I really do love it now; I even have it on my iPod. I also have some music from it on my iPod.
I even reccomend it to friends. "You have my approval!"

bioweapon680 wrote:.
Overall, I still, and will love EVA forever.

Me too!

I'm a really childish viewer, what made
me a fan of Eva was the designs of the Angels.

A few members here complain about the action
arc with its monster-of-the-week formula, but
I liked all that.

One week, the monster pours acid on you;
another week, the monster swallows you into its shadow;
then another week, the monster slices you up with
its toilet-paper arms.

Awesome.

fly-me-to-the-moon wrote:I became a fan of Eva because my friends were watching it, and I felt like a third wheel. I also wanted to expand my anime/manga horizons. I heard about it even before I watched it. I really do love it now; I even have it on my iPod. I also have some music from it on my iPod.
I even reccomend it to friends. "You have my approval!"

bioweapon680 wrote:.
Overall, I still, and will love EVA forever.

Me too!

hehe. kbai and kfan dragged you in didn't they? heh heh.
Now your mind will be changed forever like both of the previous victims of EVA.

Cheers!