Afterwards... [now complete]

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KingXanaduu
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Postby KingXanaduu » Sat Jan 03, 2015 3:25 am

I would like to PROFUSELY apologize to Pwhodges for my delay of this fic, as there were a lot of variables in play that prevented me from writing my review fully on his fic.

We’ve had a lot of fics these past few years after Q that have tried to give Shinji and the rest of Wille a satisfying conclusion to it’s disaster. From Reticence to the “Tempurature” series on “archieveofourown”, they’ve all had varying degrees of success and satisfaction on giving the world of Eva a satisfying send off.

Afterwards is one of the newer ones that also gives the conclusion that we least expect, something subdued, heavy with dialogue and internal questions, but nonetheless a heart-warming edition to the disaster of Eva Q.

Now, I’m only offering my own opinion on this fic, and it’s not meant to dissuade anyone from reading this fic and enjoying it, cause by all means, it’s good, VERY good in fact, as it leads a nice heart-warming conclusion to a series that we didn’t expect it to be.

Now, like a lot of Eva fics, its narrative is very introspective and mostly focuses on internal-dialogue, and like in the spirit of Rebuild, it mostly focuses on Shinji’s plight. And it does a great job on his own inner struggle of trying to determine what happened, his place in this new world, and how he can cope with all that has transpired. His thought flow is very organic, real, and very reflective, which is very good for an introspective story like this. I love how he switched back and forth in and out of the world around him to understand what was going on. That’s very much like characters who suffer from PTSD.

And even though this is Shinji’s story, we do get moments inside the other character’s heads in regards to his situation. Both Misato, Rei, Asuka, and Sakura were spot on in their characterizations, instead of just shadows of themselves being angry and hateful at Shinji for the sake of just being angry instead of authentic reasons for being pissed off. You could actually see their though process and understand their frustration with his decisions and also their sympathy for him, which is something that I know we’ll expect for Final. In fact, perhaps my favorite part of this fic is his interrogation with Misato, where it not only show’s his internal struggle, but hers as well, debating whether or not to treat him like you would any prisoner in an interrogation or see that he was just a victim all along. That was one relationships I wanted…no….NEEDED to see mended in this fic, because that relationship was one of the definitive ones of the original, and I was so glad that Misato herself wanted to try to mend it however she good. THANK YOU PWHODGES!!! XD

Now, I will admit, there were some things that I was critical of in this fic, and like any good critic, I’m just offering my opinion and not just hate for the haters, for I want to be constructive. I will admit Pwhodges, I was at first disappointed with some aspects of the fic in how Shinji ended up, such as how Shinji didn’t help fight in the Eva, how he didn’t stay with Wille to help in the relief effort, and how he didn’t end up with Asuka in the end (my shipper talking here) -o-; . I was really hoping that he would help out Wille in the end, cause despite it being painful to him, it would be the right thing to do to make amends for his sins. But, as time went on, I looked at this fic in a new light and appreciated the ending for what it was and what Shinji needed, not what I wanted.

Only recently, the series “The Legend of Korra” has just ended, and like many others (yes, I will admit it), I was at first disappointed with the ending that I saw because I felt that a lot of things were left unresolved (and a BIG part of me wearing my “shipper goggles”, I know, I’m an idiot. -o-; ).

But as the initial disappointment feigned away, I looked at the ending in a different light, and I saw how good the ending was in the long run, and how everything was better off the way it was.

That’s how it feels with this fic as well, it (at least in my opinion) deals with the idea of “wants vs. need”. I wanted the fic to have the type of swash-buckling ending that I felt Shinji “deserved”, with him conquering his demons, getting in the Eva, kicking Gendo’s ass, saving the world, and getting Asuka in the end. But the more I look at it, that’s not the ending for Shinji, at least, this understanding of Shinji. We all would like to believe that Shinji is a hero soldier who can rise above his demons and win the battle…but when you get right down to it, that’s not who Shinji is. Oh, don’t get me wrong, he displays heroic qualities and is a good person, like how he tried to help Rei Q try to find her own identity in this fic, but in the end, Shinji isn’t a hero. He’s a normal young boy, thrusted by the machinations of twisted people, such as his father, into a life never meant for him to begin with. That is why it was such a disaster to begin with in Q, cause Shinji isn’t equipped to handle such situations under pressure, and this fic shows that he now understands that when he tells Asuka that he can’t be trusted in battle anymore, cause that’s not where he belongs.

That’s what’s so eye-opening to me about this fic, because it teaches us a lesson about “wants vs. needs” for our own perspectives. We all “want” to be bigger that life and badasses in many things to get noticed, but in the end that’s not what some of us are. Some people are meant to be soldiers cause they have the drive and will to do so and some become soldiers because it’s natural to them. But, there are others who are simply not meant for that life because it’s who they are, and Shinji is that kind of person. But, this does not make his life any less valuable or less happy because he isn’t a hero. The world isn’t just made of heroes, there’s all kind of people who help it keep running, such as teachers, cooks, businessmen, laborers, etc., and they all have a place in this world and some are content and happy with their lives. And that’s what this fic gives Shinji, not an ending we “want”, but an ending HE “needs”, where he’s now in a life comfortable with himself, with people around him who care and accept him for who he is, and most of all, where he is in the mindset where he is comfortable and understanding of what he is and what he’s not.

It’s a very mature and grown-up message that a lot of people may not get at first, but has a very profound impact for people trying to understand their lives, about what they “want” vs. what they “need”, and the acceptance of such things in life.

So, I whole-heartingly recommend this fic to any Eva fan looking for a heart-warming conclusion to Rebuild. For people looking for a fic riddled with “boom-boom-bang-bang” action, Reticenece would be more your bag, but this fic is perfect for those who are looking for more of an internal look of the characters and a more mature, thought-provoking ending, THIS is the fic for you.

Excellent work Pwhodges. I can’t wait for your next addition. ;)
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Postby ElMariachi » Sat Jan 03, 2015 8:54 am

^
This is an excellent review xanderkh, especially the part about "want vs need"! :thumbsup:
I think it's a shame that there's such a lack of post-Q stories, and that most of them devolve into a bash-fest where WILLE is depicted as the SS or are never finished. "Reticence" and the "Temperature" works are nice exceptions (alongside "Afterwards" now), although it's a shame that "Temperature" didn't go beyond the two one-shots centered on Shinji and Asuka respectively (I was curious to see where the author's take on Misato and what was the thing she planned for Shinji to do to help WILLE).
Maybe there are new post-Q works on AO3? I didn't checked there in a long time since the overwhelming majority of the Eva stories here are a cuddle-fest and smut-fest of KawoShin, and that becomes very tiring very fast. (that and the fact I never was interested in that pairing to begin with and even found it toxic for Shinji)


Now back to the story, here that's just my own opinion, but I partially disagree with you, because I still think that he got it easy. As you noted, Shinji isn't a soldier (and the series and NTE stressed it enough) and hoping to see him become some super badass out of Gundam (or ANIMA!) is preposterous, since that's not who he is, yet there are other people that aren't cut for the soldier job but still took it because there was a duty toward mankind, for its protection. Here I'm talking about Sakura: the way we saw her all sympathetic and nice, she really didn't strike me as someone cut for the military life, yet she's still a medic for WILLE because they need medics sometimes you have to do things you don't like or even aren't really cut for because you have a duty.
And that's not just her: Midori and Hideki didn't strike me as cut for military duty, yet here they are, because WILLE needs people to it can protect mankind.

And meanwhile Shinji stayed the whole war "cushioned" and protected in that remote base, and when the moment of truth came, he resolved it by basically asking for Mama's help again. Of course, here that was the best thing to do seeing the immense power of EVA-01 and how it pretty much single-handedly won the war, but still I can't shake off the feeling that Shinji cheated his way out of participating in the war effort (for lack of a better term)
Same thing when he refused to participate in the reconstruction effort, again his reasoning was valid (it would be awkward for everyone involved) but again I can't shake of the feeling that he avoided an unpleasant experience just like he tended to do before.
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Postby pwhodges » Sat Jan 03, 2015 9:53 am

View Original PostElMariachi wrote:when the moment of truth came, he resolved it by basically asking for Mama's help again.

Shinji has a superpower, but has shown twice that he cannot control it, with unimaginably catastrophic effects (N3I, N4I). Before that, twice Yui stepped in and essentially won the fight for him (Sachiel, Zeruel); once he won through sheer good luck trumping his poor judgement (Shamshel); twice as part of a team (Ramiel, Sahaquiel); and once when on his own he got it catastrophically wrong (Bardiel). One aspect of maturity is admitting that there are times to step aside and let those who are more competent do the job (Misato, with power provided by Yui, in this case); or even just recognising your own immaturity (like the admittedly younger Naota at the end of FLCL). I can see that it would be nice to see Shinji learn to control his superpower so that he can use it for good - but you've already got Reticence for that version of Shinji. In my mind that's actually the easier way out in terms of story-telling; I was aiming for something realistic rather than idealistic.

But thanks, both, for your kind comments. I'm pleased to have been able to provoke a little discussion.
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Before 3.0+1.0 there was Afterwards... my post-Q Evangelion fanfic (discussion)

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Re: Afterwards... [now complete]

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Postby pwhodges » Fri Mar 11, 2016 12:11 pm

It seems that the publication, at last, of Evangelion 3.33 'Q' in English has prompted some renewed interest in my story that follows it. :)
"Being human, having your health; that's what's important." (from: Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi )
"As long as we're all living, and as long as we're all having fun, that should do it, right?" (from: The Eccentric Family )
Avatar: The end of the journey (details); Past avatars.
Before 3.0+1.0 there was Afterwards... my post-Q Evangelion fanfic (discussion)

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Re: Afterwards... [now complete]

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Postby cyharding » Fri Mar 11, 2016 11:43 pm

That's great to hear. Has this interest been coming from the other sites you have posted it on?
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Re: Afterwards... [now complete]

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Postby pwhodges » Sat Mar 12, 2016 1:22 am

Yes. Specifically AO3 (Archive of our Own) more than FFN (Fanfiction.net).
"Being human, having your health; that's what's important." (from: Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi )
"As long as we're all living, and as long as we're all having fun, that should do it, right?" (from: The Eccentric Family )
Avatar: The end of the journey (details); Past avatars.
Before 3.0+1.0 there was Afterwards... my post-Q Evangelion fanfic (discussion)


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