Asuka in Air: Catatonic or Sedated?

[Bagheera]

I've always operated under the assumption that, after being collected by Section 2 in 24, Asuka was sedated until she was transferred to Unit 02 when the JSSDF began their assault on NERV. This explains the timing of her revival, and it also makes sense given a suicide attempt.

Others, however, assume she was catatonic/in a coma for some reason, apparently thinking her mind just shut down or something. I don't quite get the reasoning here; if she was going to break in that fashion I'd expect her to do it after Arael's attack, or immediately upon learning she could no longer pilot Unit 02, not after a week of wandering around and such. But anyway, reasonable or not it's a common interpretation.

Is there actual hard evidence on the matter, in commentaries, storyboards, interviews, or the like? Has one interpretation or the other been debunked at some point?

[thewayneiac]

She wasn't catatonic when security picked her up. Sedation seems much more likely, unless one wants to assume she coincidentally woke up after they put her back into her Eva. They probably knew where she was all along, and only took her into custody and sedated her when she became self-destructive.

[soul.assassin]

In the manga...

SPOILER: Show

They had to sedate her after she attacked Shinji.

[Mr. Tines]

Misato:
Where's Asuka?

Shigeru:
In sickroom 303.

(Shot of Asuka lying in bed)

Misato (off screen):
Put her into EVA-02 anyway.

Maya:
But her synchronization with Eva hasn't recovered yet.

Misato:
Yes, but she'll surely be killed if she stays there.
The best place to hide her is inside EVA-02.

Maya:
Affirmative!
(to headset) Stop medication to pilot. Prepare for launch!

And from being totally oblivious during Shinji's visit, she starts taking notice

Asuka:
...I'm alive... ?

(Shots of depth charges firing and exploding around EVA-02)

Asuka:
(Whispered at first then repeated growing louder and stronger)
I don't want to die... I don't want to die... I don't want to die...

[Bagheera]

Ah, Maya's quote was what I was looking for. Thanks!

[The Abhorrent]

Sedation certainly is a more literal interpretation (and I'm fairly sure the dub uses the term "treatment" instead of "medication", which is a bit more ambigious), though I'm more partial for the catatonic depression idea.

When she was picked up by security at the start of episode 24, she doesn't respond to them at all (onscreen at least). She does talk a bit, but only to herself. Since this scene also implies that she attempted suicide, it wouldn't be too far a stretch to suggest she became completely unresponsive during the scene; it's the last time she talks (barely at all, and to herself no less) until she's back inside Eva-02 during EoE.

Another thing of note is her very quick recovery after she is placed inside Eva-02. If she was heavily sedated (which is would be required to make her as unresponsive as she is at the start of EoE), she wouldn't recover from them fast enough to be able to fight. People don't cease to be to be drunk immediately after they stop drinking alcohol (which is a sedative). There's the possibility she was lightly sedated, but that would be mostly to keep her calm (to prevent self-destructive behaviour) and wouldn't account for her complete unresponsiveness. As such, this would point to catatonic depression.

And finally, there's the actual word "medication". It doesn't explicitly say "sedation", and as such it could actually be a number of possible medications. Considering her recent suicide attempt, some possibilities are treatment for blood loss and anti-depressants (which take some time to kick in, as in a few weeks of a regular dose). Stimulants seem unlikely (due to her unresponsiveness), though it is occassionally used to treat depression; they also act quickly, so she could have been given one when thrown into Eva-02. And before anyone says that she was given a stimulant to counteract any sedatives/depressants, the combination actually amplifes the effects of the sedative/depressant (which is why most medication says to not drink alcohol while taking them). She also seems to be aware of the fact she was in the hospital (cracking a quick joke about it just before her last fight), something which (heavy) sedation would have likely made her unaware of... then again, catatonic depression could have done the same. There's also the possibility that the medication could be for something else entirely.

Then again, there's also the possibility of artistic liscence; the events of fictions doesn't necessarily have to comply with the laws of reality.


I suppose that explains my case for the catatonic depression. Asuka was probably medicated, but that doesn't mean sedated. The change from complete unresponsiveness to battle-ready is just too quick, sedatives don't wear off anywhere near that fast. Her unresponsiveness seems moreso due to a catatonic episode as a result of her depression, which was subsequently broken by her epiphany.

[NemZ]

They probably gave her a stimulant of some sort to wake her up and prime her for battle. Not an ideal solution by any means, but better than not putting up a fight at all while they gun everyone down.

[CJD]

Sedation certainly is a more literal interpretation (and I'm fairly sure the dub uses the term "treatment" instead of "medication", which is a bit more ambigious), though I'm more partial for the catatonic depression idea.

SNIP

I'm not familiar with biology, but is it possible adrenaline could have sped up the process?

[tehprognoob]

not likely, as she only began to realize she was under attack a minute or so before she began to rage. She was only hysterical for a few seconds before mommy intervened.
Maybe the headshot with the depth charge woke her up?

[Viking]

After an attempted suicide, NERV probably would keep her sedated, even if she already was catatonic, just to avoid the possibility she would try to end her life again in case she "woke up".

Just my two cents.

Bye

[DanYeomans]

I think that she wandered aimlessly as her psyche slowly got crumbled, to a point that when intelligence found her, she was basically catatonic. And that she was "awoken" by 2 things: being in the eva, and the shock caused by the pain she felt when the charges exploded around Unit-02. The sudden realization she had was probably also due to these, and might have basically been having an epiphany after waking up from a coma. But that's just my take on it, and I don't know how reputable it is.

[Bagheera]

I think that she wandered aimlessly as her psyche slowly got crumbled, to a point that when intelligence found her, she was basically catatonic. And that she was "awoken" by 2 things: being in the eva, and the shock caused by the pain she felt when the charges exploded around Unit-02. The sudden realization she had was probably also due to these, and might have basically been having an epiphany after waking up from a coma. But that's just my take on it, and I don't know how reputable it is.

Whether she was catatonic or sedated, she was never in a coma. This is one of those persistent misconceptions among the fandom that really starts to grate after awhile...

Edit: also, the fluid in that IV bag looks an awful lot like LCL. Could it be that they pulled the same trick they did with Shinji in 19, hypersaturating the LCL concentration in her blood to keep her effectively sedated? That might explain why she woke up so fast.

[SaltyJoe]

Edit: also, the fluid in that IV bag looks an awful lot like LCL. Could it be that they pulled the same trick they did with Shinji in 18, hypersaturating the LCL concentration in her blood to keep her effectively sedated? That might explain why she woke up so fast.

Huh? Maybe i'm misremembering something, but i'm pretty sure Gendo just had the LCL pressure increased inside the Entry Plug to choke Shinji out, not to sedate him (an ironic echo of the Bardiel fight). And wasn't it Episode 19 when Shinji raged at Daddy?

Still, who knows what was in the IV bag? Maybe there are some production notes, though frankly, i think the liquid is orange bacuase it's a pretty striking color to contrast the generally blueish lighting of Asuka's room.

[Bagheera]

Huh? Maybe i'm misremembering something, but i'm pretty sure Gendo just had the LCL pressure increased inside the Entry Plug to choke Shinji out, not to sedate him (an ironic echo of the Bardiel fight).

Sure. But my meaning is that it might also be used to keep someone unconscious (though it's true that suffocating someone and sedating them long term are different processes).

And wasn't it Episode 19 when Shinji raged at Daddy?

It was! Fixed.

Still, who knows what was in the IV bag? Maybe there are some production notes, though frankly, i think the liquid is orange bacuase it's a pretty striking color to contrast the generally blueish lighting of Asuka's room.

No, they've used the same stuff elsewhere -- we see it with Rei back in Episode 1, and I think it shows up all along the line. It makes sense, really; it's the stuff of life, after all, so you'd expect it to be better than a saline drip.

[Reichu]

Rei's IV was more yellow than amber. Anyone hungry for a banana?

[Bagheera]

Rei's IV was more yellow than amber. Anyone hungry for a banana?

I don't think Rei was suffering from a magnesium deficiency at the time...

[Reichu]

magnesium can mitigate nerve pain and relieve muscle pain and cramps.

Would have to ask our local doctor for his opinion on the IV drip thing, to be honest.

[Bagheera]

Would have to ask our local doctor for his opinion on the IV drip thing, to be honest.

I don't think it'd be a good choice for the injuries Rei was dealing with at the time. You'd be looking at morphine or nothing there.

It doesn't look like LCL in that shot, though, I gotta admit. Still, isn't it odd that Asuka's IV is filled with fluid the same color as LCL, and that we get a couple of specific shots drawing attention to that fact?

[tehprognoob]

Or maybe it's just 1995 graphics?

[Fireand'chutes77]

Rei's IV was more yellow than amber. Anyone hungry for a banana?

Just read the Wikipedia description... And while the color doesn't make much sense for Rei, it's a brilliant detail for Asuka.

...The bags typically contain thiamine, folic acid, and 3 grams of magnesium sulfate, and are usually used to replenish nutritional deficiencies or correct a chemical imbalance in the human body.

[I'd put a picture of an emaciated Asuka from Episode 24 here to emphasize my point, but I don't have access to my video files at the moment.]

@ thread: A picture of Asuka's condition in EoE, for handy reference:



(From the Did Asuka Attempt Suicide? thread, which is at least linearly related to the "Is Asuka Catatonic?" debate.)