Shinji Character Analysis (2.0/3.0)

[Squigsquasher]

I am actually predicting a semi-happy ending. EoTV had what was definitely a happy (if confusing) ending, EoE actually had a semi-happy ending when you look at it (Shinji in the end brings up the courage to prevent Instrumentality from finishing and give humanity the chance to return, even if it doesn't exactly end well for him) and Anno is a much less bitter man now than he was then.

I think whilst the ending will not be a Hollywood "America saves the day, everybody lives and all is well" happy ending, it will be at the very least positive, with a message worth thinking about, other than "screw you, my hat is too tight". Shinji will redeem himself, probably by either completely reversing Instrumentality or at the very least preventing it from getting any worse. He may or may not survive it; if he dies, he will be at the very least remembered by his friends as a good person. If he lives, he will have finally learned to live with himself and to do the right thing, and he will be accepted by his friends again.

I can see it unraveling like this:

>Shinji is dragged through the red desert by Asuka, along with ReiQ.

>Shinji is somehow required to restore the world, meaning Asuka begrudgingly keeps him along.

>Shinji, Mari, Asuka and ReiQ go on their final mission, to revert the Impacts. This will involve Unit 01 somehow.

>They almost succeed, but something goes horribly wrong, and Final Impact starts. I can see this starting with Shinji, Asuka, Rei and Mari all trying to reverse the Impact with some MacGuffin (Lances or whatever), but Asuka saying something stupid, hateful and cruel to Shinji, plunging him into complete despair to the point where his utter self-loathing seep into the MacGuffin, converting it into an enormous Anti-AT Field and accidentally starting Final Impact.

>Asuka realizes how heavily she's fouled up and tries to apologize to Shinji to coax him out of it, but by this point it's too late, as Shinji's self-hatred has, in infusing itself into the MacGuffin, become practically a separate entity in control of Shinji (who has absolutely no control over the matter in that he is quite literally screaming for oblivion at the molecular level).

>Just as it looks like Shinji is going to finally completely snap and accept Instrumentality, Rei (the original Rei, not ReiQ) appears before him.

>Rei convinces Shinji to reject Final Impact and reverse the damage he has done.

>Rei's intervention gives Shinji the inner strength to undo the damage and restore humanity.

>Rei says her final goodbye to Shinji, and normality (to some extent) is restored. The band are ejected from the Evangelion units, which petrify or otherwise terminate, granting their souls peace at last.

>Shinji either:

A: Dies in the process (reunited with Rei in the MacGuffin/Unit 01's core or something similar), with his friends (ReiQ, Asuka, Mari, Misato and his restored classmates) grieving for his loss but eternally grateful for saving them,

or B: Survives, but loses the original Rei forever, and is greeted by his thankful friends (aforementioned) who during Near-Final Impact witnessed Shinji choosing to reject Instrumentality and see that he truly is capable of doing good, and try to help him get over his loss of Rei. Shinji and co spend the rest of their lives with a fairly normal existence, with Shinji now semi-sane and no longer a self hating mess.

>Post credits, we see Kaworu waking up and walking from the sea, with a smile on his face. The last shot of the film is Kaworu looking towards the sun, saying "We will meet again...Shinji-kun".

Pure speculation on my part, of course.

[Giji Shinka]

And what proof do you have of that?

Hmmmmmm........What are the proofs that he thinks that he will have some sort of bad ending: He destroyed the world twice, it's he's fault that Kaworu died. well, he basically thinks that everything is his fault! So yeah, enough reasons for him to think that he will have not-so-happy ending?

Also:
He is incapable, (90% of the time) until someone does something for him.(Kaworu had to tell him stuff and take off DSS choker until he did something. He would have not tried to find hope/piloted Eva if Kaworu hadn't done things i just said)
Sorry if i did imply that he isn't able to move on and learn from his mistakes, (Or that he doesn't deserve to be a better person, OR that he's a waste of human being)
but as i said: people have to do deeds for him so that he will find hope, and when he finds the hope he is able to move on/become better person. (It's kinda hard to move on/become better person if you are depressed like Shinji. Plus, without hope)

[ElMariachi]

Hmmmmmm........What are the proofs that he thinks that he will have some sort of bad ending: He destroyed the world twice, it's he's fault that Kaworu died. well, he basically thinks that everything is his fault! So yeah, enough reasons for him to think that he will have not-so-happy ending?

Well, we're not even sure yet he's the responsible for N3I, too much changes happened between the end of 2.0 and what we saw in 3.0 to be only from his "submit to the palm".

Also:
He is incapable, (90% of the time) until someone does something for him.(Kaworu had to tell him stuff and take off DSS choker until he did something. He would have not tried to find hope/piloted Eva if Kaworu hadn't done things i just said)
Sorry if i did imply that he isn't able to move on and learn from his mistakes, (Or that he doesn't deserve to be a better person, OR that he's a waste of human being)
but as i said: people have to do deeds for him so that he will find hope, and when he finds the hope he is able to move on/become better person. (It's kinda hard to move/become better person if you are depressed like Shinji)

You know, after seeing the three movies again(I looooove the technology porn!), I noticed that I made a slight mistake in my analysis of Shinji's flaws, at the beginning he don't have one big flaw, but actually two :
- firstly, as Lennik sais it so masterfully, he needs to learn to not be so stubborn and actually listen to the opinions of others, that would ave prevented Kaworu's death. He's still in the process of learning that lesson(I hope Kaworu's death finally did it)
- secondly, and its tied to his stubbornness, is the fact that he needs to stop thinking that doing nothing is a way of dealing with his problems. And it's something he did profusely in 1.0 and 2.0 : when he refused to go in the fucking robot at the beginning, when he refused to fight again against Ramiel, when he refused to fight Bardiel(or do anything!) by fear of arming Asuka, by refusing to pilot again after that... and every time he had to be guilt-tripped into doing something : first time by showing an half-dead Rei, then by Misato showing him Lilith, and in 2.0 when Mari showed him what was left of the Geofront and Rei getting eaten by Zeruel... and contrary to the first flaw, he actually learned his lesson! When he witnessed Rei getting absorbed, he reached an epiphany, that not doing nothing, hoping that his problems will go on their own is false. By doing nothing, people still have to live through the consequences, and Rei just paid said consequences. That's why he came back to EVA-01 and fought with everything he had and more to save Rei, because if not the same thing that with Asuka will happen. And 3.0 is the proof that the lesson stuck, when he volunteered to pilot EVA-01 to go to help Asuka, probably to make up for the fact he kind off abandoned her against Bardiel, but also because now he understood that by doing nothing nothing good will happen. Let me repeat that : Shinji Ikari volunteered to pilot his EVA, without having to be guilt-tripped into it! Of course, 3.0's situation being what it was, his demand has been thoroughly refused...

As for when Kaworu had to convince him to pilot again(which kinda sounded like another guilt-trip by putting the DSS Choker on himself), seeing what unforeseen consequences the last time he actually acted brought on the world, it's understandable that Shinji didn't wanted to do anything ever again, furthermore when the rest of his old friends, now in WILLE, vehemently told him to do nothing.

[Giji Shinka]

Well, you brought something new about Shinji to me........Thanks! :)
(Rather: i forgot about this part...)

[pwhodges]

What are the proofs that he thinks that he will have some sort of bad ending: He destroyed the world twice, it's he's fault that Kaworu died. well, he basically thinks that everything is his fault! So yeah, enough reasons for him to think that he will have not-so-happy ending?

Maybe. But in any case, what he thinks now does not determine the future; and, even though it may influence his behaviour to some extent, there will be other influences.

[Xiel]

On the subject of Shinji's faults: I think they are the same in 3.0 than in 2.0. He tries to change the past in expense of his present because he took a bad choice as it hurts him personally. 3.0 only highlight the problem of 2.0. It's a fairly mundane flaw over-exaggerated into world destruction and the loss of fair-skinned loved ones because it's Eva and there's no better cure to depression than utter soul crushing a 14 years old child.

Joking aside, I think that Shinji might have learned his lesson. If he climbs back from his crippling depression and recovers his will to live, plus recalls the lessons Kaworu attempted to impart him before his explosive departure. Has Wille learned theirs? Asuka might have. Misato might have. Otherwise, Gendo will use them again without their knowledge for his agenda.

[Giji Shinka]

Maybe. But in any case, what he thinks now does not determine the future; and, even though it may influence his behaviour to some extent, there will be other influences.

True.

[Mt Olympus]

It looks like Shinji has the khara studio's lettering of A on the back of his new plug suit.It can be seen at the end when Asuka is dragging Shinji. And I mean the A from the opening credits.

[Xiel]

It looks like Shinji has the khara studio's lettering of A on the back of his new plug suit.It can be seen at the end when Asuka is dragging Shinji. And I mean the A from the opening credits.

Khara is a greek word.

χαρα = joy.

[Mt Olympus]

So I guess that means he is the "Alpha".

If this has been pointed out, my apologies. There are over 60 pages before me and I don't have time to sift through them all.

[Xiel]

So I guess that means he is the "Alpha".

If this has been pointed out, my apologies. There are over 60 pages before me and I don't have time to sift through them all.

Uppercase alpha = Kaworu. Lowercase alpha = Shinji. Their plugsuits are designed in a yin-yang esque way as well.

[Nuclear Lunchbox]

If Shinji is ever going to recover, it's going to be through Asuka or Misato. The rest of Wille, whether they love or hate him, do not understand him. Ritsuko doesn't care about Shinji; she seems to be rather ambivalent where his fate is concerned, except for when it comes to popping his noggin off. Asuka and Misato are the two people who he managed to form the closest relationships with, except for Rei. Who, I must note, I firmly believe is stuck inside Unit-01 and while she may come out, it will not determine if Shinji recovers since he will need to do so before that time if we want to see any sort of plot advancement.

There's plenty of time for something to happen with Asuka; I mean, the two of them are stuck in the middle of the desert. During the long trudge back to Wille or Lilim City or wherever it is that they are going, I believe that there will be some moment where the healing, for Shinji, will begin. Maybe he will collapse, and Asuka will support him. Maybe Asuka will tell him a little bi more about the timeskip. Maybe Asuka will collapse (!) and Shinji will help support her. Assuming that they get back to the Wunder and nobody kills Shinji on sight, Asuka could theoretically visit him in whatever fucked-up containment center they place him in.

Barring Asuka's actions, Misato is the next step, During the end of 3.0, we saw a different person than the one who 'welcomed' Shinji Ikari to the bridge of the Wunder or who rammed him with her massive flying battleship. She actually seems to care about him, to an extent. If he arrives, I could see herself transposing herself between Shinji and whoever is inevitably going to want to kill him. Hopefully, Misato can begin to build up some trust with Shinji again. Of course, he is going to have to overcome the problem of the Hedgehog's Dilemma; for the past two movies, he gets hurt every time that he has gotten close to somebody. Either they disappear, or their head gets blown off. It will be an important step in the development of Shinji if he is able to overcome this problem.

Of course, whether any of this will actually be realized in FINAL remains to be seen.

[Xiel]

I wish I were as optimistic as you, Nuclear Lunchbox, but I have the feeling Asuka's going to be next in the chopping block. I hope I'm wrong and I'm just paranoid over this, to avoid getting disappointed. Misato, though, I definitely see her as the one who would bring Shinji back up. His reaction (mute shock) is eerily similar to her reaction to the trauma in NGE and would be perfect to tie in her brought backstory of 2.22 into Final. Now they have something in common again enough to reinforce her role in Shinji's life.

[Bagheera]

I wish I were as optimistic as you, Nuclear Lunchbox, but I have the feeling Asuka's going to be next in the chopping block.

I would agree, if not for the fact that she's already been there. It seems unlikely that Anno would revisit the theme given that it's not her story. In NGE/EoE it was a different matter since Asuka had her own story going on, but here? Eh. Not seeing it.

My prediction is that Asuka might have a moment with Shinji toward the beginning (if the details of their trip are covered) and will ultimately just fade into having a minor supporting role for the duration. Misato might get a bit more depending on how Anno wants to shift gears into Instrumentality.

[Xiel]

I would agree, if not for the fact that she's already been there. It seems unlikely that Anno would revisit the theme given that it's not her story. In NGE/EoE it was a different matter since Asuka had her own story going on, but here? Eh. Not seeing it.

I thought Bardiel just replaced Arael to put her in a coma or dispose of her so it would be Rei's turn next. None of the children of fate were spared of their, well, fates. They seemed to divert the outcomes but they ended up the same nonetheless with slight changes (Asuka getting sullied by an angel, Rei replaced, Kaworu killed, Toji disappeared from the plot off screen) and those multiple Evas in the preview are raising my death flag paranoia.

My prediction is that Asuka might have a moment with Shinji toward the beginning (if the details of their trip are covered) and will ultimately just fade into having a minor supporting role for the duration. Misato might get a bit more depending on how Anno wants to shift gears into Instrumentality.

The further she spends away from Shinji, the higher her chances of survival will be (I still love Shinji, but I'm aware he has the touch of death). I agree on Misato's decisive role at least. It seems the most likely after how 3.33 set her up visually as the new 'father' (Gendo).

[Bagheera]

I thought Bardiel just replaced Arael to put her in a coma or dispose of her so it would be Rei's turn next. None of the children of fate were spared of their, well, fates. They seemed to divert the outcomes but they ended up the same nonetheless with slight changes (Asuka getting sullied by an angel, Rei replaced, Kaworu killed, Toji disappeared from the plot off screen) and those multiple Evas in the preview are raising my death flag paranoia.

Right, but while in NGE those outcomes were part of separate plot threads in NTE they all work to advance Shinji's story. At this point I really don't see how giving Asuka the Harpy treatment would work to do that -- it's over and done with, there's no point to targeting Asuka again. In fact, I doubt we'll see any deaths at this point, unless it's just everyone dying before Shinji finally pulls the trigger on Instrumentality. But at that point Asuka's death will have no more impact than Sakura's or Mari's or anyone else's -- it will just be a precursor to the endgame, one from which everyone will eventually recover.

[ElMariachi]

I would agree, if not for the fact that she's already been there. It seems unlikely that Anno would revisit the theme given that it's not her story. In NGE/EoE it was a different matter since Asuka had her own story going on, but here? Eh. Not seeing it.

My prediction is that Asuka might have a moment with Shinji toward the beginning (if the details of their trip are covered) and will ultimately just fade into having a minor supporting role for the duration. Misato might get a bit more depending on how Anno wants to shift gears into Instrumentality.

Well for me on the contrary I think that FINAL will greatly focuses on Asuka : each of the first three movies was centered around a second character and Shinji's interactions with them. Said second character always got more screentime than any other, to the point we could says that it becomes the "deuteragonist" of the movie : in 1.0 it was Misato, in 2.0 that was Rei, and in 3.0 we got Kaworu.
Each one these three are characters that were really important for Shinji during NGE, and the only important for Shinji character left that didn't have its role as deuteragonist is Asuka(even through her prominent screentime during the first and last scenes could rises her to the rank of "tritagonist"). Besides the last scene of 3.0 where she's taking care of Shinji(meaning essentially saving his life) and as they are(with Rei) up for a obviously very long walk across the desert, can't really picture Anno missing such an opportunity for some character development on a character whom we don't know that much about(Asuka) by dropping a time skip where they already reached the "place where the Lilin can pick them up"(or at least without later flashbacks of any important event that happened during the trip), or by having Asuka dragging Shinji fuming and not saying a word and Shinji staying catatonic(and ReiQ being ReiQ) for the whole duration of the trip!

[Giji Shinka]

Right, but while in NGE those outcomes were part of separate plot threads in NTE they all work to advance Shinji's story. At this point I really don't see how giving Asuka the Harpy treatment would work to do that -- it's over and done with, there's no point to targeting Asuka again. In fact, I doubt we'll see any deaths at this point, unless it's just everyone dying before Shinji finally pulls the trigger on Instrumentality. But at that point Asuka's death will have no more impact than Sakura's or Mari's or anyone else's -- it will just be a precursor to the endgame, one from which everyone will eventually recover.

This. 100% agreed.

[Xiel]

Bagheera, you're giving me hope. I just pray that Khara won't ruthlessly shatter it.

Well for me on the contrary I think that FINAL will greatly focuses on Asuka : each of the first three movies was centered around a second character and Shinji's interactions with them. Said second character always got more screentime than any other, to the point we could says that it becomes the "deuteragonist" of the movie : in 1.0 it was Misato, in 2.0 that was Rei, and in 3.0 we got Kaworu.
Each one these three are characters that were really important for Shinji during NGE, and the only important for Shinji character left that didn't have its role as deuteragonist is Asuka(even through her prominent screentime during the first and last scenes could rises her to the rank of "tritagonist").

I never saw it that way? Other than Kaworu in 3.0 which was understandable because he was sharing the title with Shinji on the official poster which never happened for other character before and his exposure was limited in previous movies. Misato, Toji and Rei both had a lot of primary cast exposure in 1.0; Asuka, Misato and Rei had the same amount of importance in 2.0. None of them stood up to me as a secondary protagonist. Their screentime seemed evenly divided.

You're saying "important characters for Shinji in NGE", but one thing, though... Asuka's not supposed to be the same Asuka, which is my only hope she'll escape from being MPEva chewtoy. She's not Souryuu Asuka Langley.

What I did perceive is that Shinji's relationship focus is somewhat always connected to his father. Misato gets a spotlight due to shared daddy issues. Rei gets attention because of Gendo (and his invisible hand into the scheme) both bond continue on in 2.0. What could Asuka and Shinji bond over and Asuka get her Dramatic Plot Important Moment in 2.0? Gendo and Shinji. All about their reconciliation help, his longing, then his conflict with him (Asuka forgotten). Gendo paid close attention to Kaworu in 2.0? Well, you know what 3.0 is going to be about. It's not only about Shinji, it's about the character linked to Gendo in some manner to move the plot in some way. I fear that Asuka is the least relevant on this side of things in 3.0 (but perhaps this might save her neck from the chopping block so I'm not complaining): Misato and Mari are more likely candidates.

[pwhodges]

I'm rather inclining towards Mari being the crucial character for Shinji in Final. She has so many times been indicated to know more than we see; she has on several occasions spoken to Shinji in a rather personal way (more than would be expected at the time, at least); she has even indicated the link with Gendou suggested above by calling him Gendou-kun; she has not yet done anything else sufficiently important to the plot to justify her existence in a film series about Shinji. But what her actual background is, and how it will play in helping to sort Shinji out, I have no idea - I am not a writer, and can't write stories for myself, let alone suggest what someone else might write!