a new viewer's reactions when it all tumbles down

[MrGeekBoi]

I was speechless after this one-two punch. Wow!

***SPOILER***
When the Evangelion flips out and starts eating the Angel...WTF!!! Shinji being transmuted and incorporated into the pod's biofluid... Just the whole thing. Unbelievable. The first 15 episodes were amazing, but this is just off-the-rails insanity and I love it!

Director's Cut episodes tonight! Look forward to it!

[NemZ]

Sigh. I urge you to watch the originals first all the way to the end then double back for the DC and movie to compare, but sadly this will probably be ignored.

[Sachi]

Sigh. I urge you to watch the originals first all the way to the end then double back for the DC and movie to compare, but sadly this will probably be ignored.

Perhaps not if it's seconded!

[Reichu]

If we are going for purity of experience, we should probably say to avoid the remastered versions of the OA episodes, as they are Frankensteinian monstrosities, and go for the original dog-poop-ugly ones available on ADV's Collection DVDs and, I presume, Japan's Archive DVD Box.

Episode 19 is indeed wonderful. I was so unbelievably stoked the first time I saw it; watching it had uncanny permanent effects on my brain. The transition into episode 20 was a bit of a let-down, though. As cool as Eva-01's bandaged visage looked, there was no way I couldn't be bothered by the show's complete inability to address how the hell she got back in that cage. Then again, Sadamoto did attempt to show this event and it was an even bigger let-down, so perhaps leaving it to the audience's imagination was for the best...

[robersora]

I vividly remember feeling left completely blown away by that scene as well. Awesome moment. It's made extremely well, because the Episode keeps accelerating, while also maximizing the oppressive vibes of the latter half. Interestingly enough the team found a glaring flaw in it's construction when making Eva 2.0. I won't spoil it here, but if anybodies interested it's somewhere in the interviews for 2.0 CRC.

If we are going for purity of experience, we should probably say to avoid the remastered versions of the OA episodes, as they are Frankensteinian monstrosities, and go for the original dog-poop-ugly ones available on ADV's Collection DVDs and, I presume, Japan's Archive DVD Box.

I think the DC version are uniformly better than the original versions, if leading up to EoE. But watching it the first time round, I'd go for the original Episodes. They are more tight.

Then again, Sadamoto did attempt to show this event and it was an even bigger let-down, so perhaps leaving it to the audience's imagination was for the best...

There is?

It's Introjection, btw.

[MrGeekBoi]

"It's Introjection, btw"

Ah, sorry, misspelling on my part, I was so excited to say something about the show, LOL

Now, I'm seeing a lot of urging to watch the Original cuts of 21-24 first, but I've heard that there's things in the Director's Cuts that make the EoE make more sense. I'm torn - as a writer and wanna-be director, I want to see the artist's original vision, but I also want to take the advice of my fellow Evangelites. I just don't know what to do! LOL

[MrGeekBoi]

"Sigh. I urge you to watch the originals first all the way to the end then double back for the DC and movie to compare, but sadly this will probably be ignored."

NemZ, so are you saying to watch the Original Cuts followed by episodes 25 & 26, then watch the Director's Cuts followed by the movies?

[Reichu]

I think the DC version are uniformly better than the original versions, if leading up to EoE. But watching it the first time round, I'd go for the original Episodes. They are more tight.

I don't disagree, but my post was specifically commenting on the fact that the commonly available versions of the OA episodes are actually not the original OA episodes at all, but are (almost entirely) the DC footage with OA editing. The true OA episodes have overwhelmingly ugly artwork and bad animation, and, on top of that, have never been remastered. They definitely prepare the viewer for the EoTV trainwreck much better than the "false OAs" do.

[robersora]

I don't disagree, but my post was specifically commenting on the fact that the commonly available versions of the OA episodes are actually not the original OA episodes at all, but are (almost entirely) the DC footage with OA editing. The true OA episodes have overwhelmingly ugly artwork and bad animation, and, on top of that, have never been remastered. They definitely prepare the viewer for the EoTV trainwreck much better than the "false OAs" do.

Oh, wow. I never knew that, so the OA Episodes found on the Platinum Edition are already kind of remastered? Man, they already don't look too good, now I'm curious how bad the originals were.

[Arcadia's legacy]

Could you post comparison images?

[Reichu]

Here's episode 22. If ath made any others, I can't seem to locate them the easy way.

[pwhodges]

so are you saying to watch the Original Cuts followed by episodes 25 & 26, then watch the Director's Cuts followed by the movies?

That has always been my recommendation.

But it really depends how purist you want to be. The first broadcast went to 25/26 without DC versions; some of the new DC material was then put into the first film (Death) which came before EoE, and the DC episodes were produced last, along with a version of Death with less of those bits in. So you could watch the original of everything, then the original Death and EoE, saving the DC episodes for a rewatch of the whole series, possibly going straight from 24 to EoE. So many ways!

[NemZ]

NemZ, so are you saying to watch the Original Cuts followed by episodes 25 & 26, then watch the Director's Cuts followed by the movies?

That is my suggestion, yes. Watching the DC/EoE stuff first will necessarily change the experience if you go back later, as the extra scenes can't be unseen.

And come on Reichu, surely you can admit there is a big difference between between aesthetic improvements and changes in scenes, dialogs, etc.

[Reichu]

And come on Reichu, surely you can admit there is a big difference between between aesthetic improvements and changes in scenes, dialogs, etc.

All of those aesthetic improvements are after the fact. They're not part of the original work. They come from the same place as everything else, the desire to revisit and alter the material in order to clarify the story and vision. If you say the improved art is okay but everything else isn't, you're invoking slippery slope and being a filthy hypocrite. ORIGINAL VERSION ONLY!

[pwhodges]

Then obviously you will not be getting cleaned and sharpened DVD or BD copies of anything, and prefer to watch the original only on VHS (or LD at a pinch?). We're not all that hardcore, I'm afraid.

[Reichu]

I already said the original ugly versions were available on DVD, didn't I? The only "hardcore" required here is to track down one of the sources. The "Collection" DVDs are worth even less than styrofoam peanuts these days, so this isn't particularly difficult undertaking.

It occurs to me that we're not really talking about episodes 19 and 20 in this thread.

[Mr. Tines]

The first 15 episodes were amazing, but this is just off-the-rails insanity and I love it!

That's the point at which it all starts to come tumbling down, and the story goes beyond being giant robots vs the Fungi from Outer Space with a little bit of conspiracy in the background. It's what has given the series its staying power after two decades -- there may be other series from 1995 (like Gundam Wing) that still get the occasional mention, but those tend to be nostalgia coated, rather than with NGE's immediacy.

Also, OA 21-26 first.

[MugwumpHasNoLiver]

I was speechless after this one-two punch. Wow!

There's something magical about that moment when Zeruel comes smashing through the screen in the control center--cavernous eye sockets luminous with laser fire, seconds from incinerating the entire supporting cast and the Magi. It's as if the very integrity of the fiction is on the verge of imminent collapse. That he's almost immediately repelled by Shinji and Misato in this almost ballet-like motion, by the machinery of Nerv which he sought to destroy, leaving Gendo drenched in blood, looking on with a resignation too melancholy to approach panic--nothing I say can do it justice. It never ceases to thrill.

Watching the DC/EoE stuff first will necessarily change the experience if you go back later, as the extra scenes can't be unseen.

While I tend to pride myself in dissent against the prevailing wisdom, I am forced to agree. The original AO versions of 21-16 have a charming, improvisational quality uniquely their own. They're rough, almost child-like, and have a purity of intent that could have only come from the moment of their creation: working under harsh deadlines, with cut funding, comprised details and depression in resurgence. The stability of the narrative has become irreversibly wobbly and, at times, it has the tragic, madcap quality of a man on with his head in noose trying to keep balls in the air while stopping the stool from falling out beneath him. The narrative speeds up, compacts, and abstracts. It's a different final movement to Eva, but a no less vital one.

In comparison, the DC re-releases of 21'-24', to become the overture to EoE they needed to become, have a slightly off-kilter, biomechanical nightmare quality to them. Reichu's Frankenstein comparison for the edited AO versions is more then apt here. These are the original episodes dragged from the grave, torn open and fitted with mechanical parts. The new scenes have a different animation style which is frequently jarring. There are echoes from EoE (chronologically flash-forwards) inserted with surgical precision. Tiny details I find saddening and disturbing for reasons which hover barely out of awareness. To put it succinctly, there's less a breaking down than a building up. It's colder, more baroque, and absolutely fascinating.

You really should see the differences for yourself. There's no need to be stingy. Not every masterpiece is generous enough to offer two endings.

[Bagheera]

Then obviously you will not be getting cleaned and sharpened DVD or BD copies of anything, and prefer to watch the original only on VHS (or LD at a pinch?). We're not all that hardcore, I'm afraid.

If you wanna be a real purist the only option is to invent a time machine and go back to 1995 to watch the episodes week by week as they aired. You may copy them on VHS (or Betamax if you're leet!) for later perusal, of course.

[Dima]

Nice to see that you are enjoying Eva MrGeekBoi. Looking forward to your impressions for the rest of the show and the Rebuild movies.

SPOILER: Show

i just love to hear impressions and thoughts from first time Eva viewers