Reichu wrote:Wasn't Eva-02 always a cyborg? (At least, for as long as she's been in meaningful deployment...)

Yeah... all Evangelions are Cyborgs. It's just that, from the Next Time Preview and other teasers, Eva-02 appears to have become more machine than [s]man[/s] Adam, presumably a necessity after its beastly transformation.

EvangelionFan wrote:Yeah... all Evangelions are Cyborgs. It's just that, from the Next Time Preview and other teasers, Eva-02 appears to have become more machine than [s]man[/s] Adam, presumably a necessity after its beastly transformation.

It looks like they got her body back the way it had been; it's just the head that looks wacky. I can't say that I'm certain, but it looks as though there is more "armor" on the side of the head that had been damaged. Perhaps instead of it actually being "machine" on that side, it's extra layers of protection, as if they didn't finish repairs in time for the sortie into space.

All that is so mysterious. I guess Unit-02's repairs kinda make sense, but the plug suit? They had time to fix a dismembered Eva but ran out of spare suits? So weird. Looking forward to seeing how that happened.

EDIT: Also, might Unit-02's face thingee (technical term) be related to the rifle or space surf board? Like a targeting system? To me it looks less like repairs and more like something that's added on. Could even be related to the helmet (that is, Asuka uses the helmet to see the targeting system. In the trailer, we see her rip it off after the explosion. Is she ditching the helmet because she doesn't need the rifle anymore? If so, why not just use the visor? Mari didn't in Unit-05. Cue sci-fi gobbledygook about "prototypes" and whatnot.).

I keep hearing people talk about how Mari is suppose to shake up the Eva universe a bit. Others have stated that she will simple "replace" the actions of a few characters from the original series. It is true, she does seem to have secret intentions, that will no doubt become present in 3.0 and Final. In another thread it was mentioned that she is a "Mary Sue" character and is only present to change Eva's direction. But what if she's not here to change Eva course, but rather set it back on track?

Awhile ago I posted this in another thread: http://www.comicsalliance.com/2011/01/17/alan-moore-hideaki-anno-genre/

The article makes a comparison between Hideaki Anno and renowned comic book writer Alan Moore, and how each of them failed at disassembling the genres their works were set in, (Moore exposing the flaws of superhero, Anno trying to put an end to the otaku lifestyle) and instead creating the opposite effect. It makes sense that Anno would use something like a television series to get his point across (he was in a depression prior to the shows creation.) A television series would garner larger exposure than say a book or video game series. And although he did get plenty of viewers, his ultimate goal was misinterpreted. The rebuild makes sense because he realized that even though his first attempt failed, he did get a reaction out of the fans. (Hate mail, death threats, etc.) So it wasn't that his idea was wrong, but rather the execution. So he sets out to rebuild the series, this time making his intentions more obvious. Enter Mari, a character that is deemed "attractive" to the average otaku. Fan boys immediately find her appearance comparable with other women from their favorite anime series. She seems like a character that holds many secrets, but all around, an exceptional addition to the cast. And just when it seem like nothing could go wrong, BAM! she pulls a mean left hook that baffles even the most attuned Evangelion fan. So I guess all I'm saying is that don't be surprised if Mari ends up being the character you want to murder a thousand times. Because at this point in time, she seem to be the most likely candidate to cause the whole thing to end in a downward spiral.

I've long been fascinated by the similarities between Evangelion and Watchmen (which run deeper than explained in that article) but I wouldn't call either of them failed. Trying to use metaphor and symbolism and making a deep statement about the medium and genre is difficult with a teenage audience. Neither work is a "failure" in any sense, since there are obviously many, many people who get the point. If we judge a work of depth as a success or failure by how many people get it and how many people latch onto the superficial surface elements and misinterpret them, every work of fiction ever is a failure.

I guarantee you that if Anno follows that path with Mari, there will still be lots of people buying hugging pillows and statues in her image, even if she totally ruins it for all the established characters somehow and is personally responsible for something as disturbing as EoE. That doesn't mean the statement will have failed.

BTW, what other thread did you post that in? I'll take any opportunity to ramble about the Eva/Watchmen thing but I don't want to go off topic.

wonderluster wrote:...then there's the plug suit...

My guess is that when Asuka wakes up, she's going to be at a serious low point, and slashes up her plug suit because she feels that since Mari sort of replaced her as Eva-02's pilot, she doesn't need it any more.

Reichu wrote: Perhaps instead of it actually being "machine" on that side, it's extra layers of protection, as if they didn't finish repairs in time for the sortie into space.

It could be some sort of extra equipment, like a sort targeting system to help with shooting things whilst up in space.

@ cd603

Regarding the theory of Mari being an intentionally aggravating character. I feel she's definitely intended to shake things up in terms of fan expectations about the story. However I really do get the feeling that Anno genuinely wants to make something the fans will appreciate and enjoy this time. But maybe I'm wrong here. Maybe part of the "dark turn" in 3.0 is that she turns on everyone and shoots Ironhide in the back or whatever. It could go pretty much anywhere from where it left off, so I think if Anno is going to flip the bird at us again, it's going to be in a grander way than just having an annoying character.

driftking18594 wrote:My guess is that when Asuka wakes up, she's going to be at a serious low point, and slashes up her plug suit because she feels that since Mari sort of replaced her as Eva-02's pilot, she doesn't need it any more.

Or she could reach an all time record for going mad from being torn apart through Unit 03 and just rip it up for the sake of ripping it up.

BulletShoot wrote:It could be some sort of extra equipment, like a sort targeting system to help with shooting things whilst up in space.

I'm actually really wanted warren peace's idea to be true since I love the redesigned helmet of unit 02 in 2.22, but sadly, it looks like the headgear is integrated, awwwwwwww, no beast mode?

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I don't know if anyone has mentioned it much yet, but wouldn't Unit 02 have to have an engine upgrade (S2 or Rebuild equivalent)? I mean, obviously she's not plugged in up there. Maybe the backpack is some sort of super battery. But it seems like she wouldn't have enough time to get into orbit and do much good up there within normal Eva battery life.

^good point. I vote for an N2 based engine, I think that in Anima there was something like that.

Unit-02 must have been in the air for a while when Asuka dropped onto Clockiel. That means some kind of battery is holding a charge, right?

Warren Peace wrote:Unit-02 must have been in the air for a while when Asuka dropped onto Clockiel. That means some kind of battery is holding a charge, right?

But space operations would either require a carrier, Eva-02 was being transported before the battle against Clockiel so it could have simply stayed in stand-by during the transport, or it would require a truly revolutionary battery/alternative engine.

Plus, there's no comparison at all between the risk of 5-minute battery life on earth and the risk of 5-minute battery life in the vacuum of space. Sending an Eva on a space mission without significantly increasing its power capacity would almost certainly be a death sentence.

Well, it's all sci-fi (which in this case means "magic"), so who knows. We have no idea what was charging Unit-02 for the flight. And NERV is hardly opposed to sending pilots on suicide missions.

Maybe that big thing on her back is a solar panel, like a satellite? That would make sense for space operations.

Chuckman wrote:Maybe that big thing on her back is a solar panel, like a satellite? That would make sense for space operations.

I'm tempted to say that it could be a re-entry device of some sort, something like a waverider, it's also possible that it could act as an attitude controller in space, in theory the Eva would need something like that to move in space.
*I start imagining that Evangelion is becoming Gundam, please don't mind me*

Hyper Shinchan wrote:*I start imagining that Evangelion is becoming Gundam, please don't mind me*

Red Comet jokes are already pretty prevalent.

Let's see here. Asuka 3.0 fetish count:
Eyepatch
Neko
Bodysuit
Astronaut
Bandage
Tsundere
And if she's carrying an alien parasite we can add that too

And if she does have an angelic parasite, I'd like to hope that it's a beneficial one like the hand guy in Vampire Hunter D.

Brainman wrote:Red Comet jokes are already pretty prevalent.

That's right, I think that I'll keep imagining things for a while.

Brainman wrote:Let's see here. Asuka 3.0 fetish count:(snip)

People will just like her, everyone could find his/her own favourite fetish.