How did you first get into Evangelion?

[C.T.1290]

About three years ago, got mega bored and was one of them cringe 'anime gay' type of people. sisters watched plenty of anime so they pestered me to watch something. By chance I found Evangelion on Netflix, binged it, sent me into a three week depression and never looked back since. Only problem is that with such a strong start, my taste in Anime is now set a course for on par with Evangelion writing, so I cant stand most of the modern stuff people watch these days. though I can appreciate such shows as Black Lagoon.

So, how did Evangelion changed your view on things?

[Lunaex._]

I was friends with this older online friend when I was 10 and my friend would constantly talk about Evangellion. She also talked about how it messed her up when she watched it at 14. Younger me, genuinely not knowing what I was about to witness, thought I would be 'cool' if I watched said deep and messed up anime at 10. I watched the whole series, and unfortunately, I did not become 'cooler' and instead became more messed up. It totally changed my brain chemistry. I was scammed. But NGE really does has a special place in my heart now.

[Rumus]

I honestly don't remember exactly how I first discovered Evangelion, it was back in 2021-2022 when I remember discovering Evangelion in some way and was very fascinated by it but couldn't watch it, mainly because back then I had this form of "dignity" that I would never pirate shows, and the only way I could watch Evangelion without pirating was through Netflix, but I couldn't get around with my life if my parents had discovered me watching the horror (and very adult show) that is Evangelion.

Recently however Evangelion resurfaced in my mind when I was thinking of certain dilemmas (related to my writing career), and when I googled some Evangelion came up (because of the Hedghog's Dilemma of course). And now I don't have that "rule" where I don't pirate, so I went ahead and watched it. Thank God I didn't try to view it on Netflix because of their removing of Fly Me To The Moon as the outro.

[C.A.P.]

I was friends with this older online friend when I was 10 and my friend would constantly talk about Evangellion. She also talked about how it messed her up when she watched it at 14. Younger me, genuinely not knowing what I was about to witness, thought I would be 'cool' if I watched said deep and messed up anime at 10. I watched the whole series, and unfortunately, I did not become 'cooler' and instead became more messed up. It totally changed my brain chemistry. I was scammed. But NGE really does has a special place in my heart now.

This fandom should have a unwritten law that anyone below the age of the main characters should never watch the anime.

About three years ago, got mega bored and was one of them cringe 'anime gay' type of people. sisters watched plenty of anime so they pestered me to watch something. By chance I found Evangelion on Netflix, binged it, sent me into a three week depression and never looked back since. Only problem is that with such a strong start, my taste in Anime is now set a course for on par with Evangelion writing, so I cant stand most of the modern stuff people watch these days. though I can appreciate such shows as Black Lagoon.

Watch Cowboy Bebop, the first Gundam, and Legend of the Galactic Heroes. You'll be set for life.

[lookingformyintimacy]

I honestly just jumped into Eva pretty recently (last October) without any prior knowledge at all (maybe some memes and quotes and there). Before I even watched Eva, I kind of despised anime or anything related towards it honestly, always had the mindset that it was for "losers and weirdos". But, since I had more time now and I started to get super bored. While trying to find something to binge watch on Netflix, I came across Evangelion and decided to just watch it without giving much thought, and since after that, it sent me down a spiraling depression, thanks Evangelion!

Since then also, I've started to watch some other animes, but they don't come that close to Evangelion, I almost feel like I've been spoiled lol.

[chrunkle]

When i was like 13 i remember getting into anime and just going through all the 'must watch' stuff. I watched it, and honestly i didnt like it. Looking back, its probably because i didnt understand a thing that happened. some 4 years later, i decided to give it another go due to my brothers badgering, and ended up falling inlove because i could actually understand the story this time around. I've always loved lore rich stories that leave room to theorize, explore philosophy and mental illness, and have dope robots, and eva checked off every single box. The amazing characters are just an extra.

[_Swagman_]

I started watching Evangelion after I saw the end of Eva poster in my sisters room. I then watched the show (at like 12 btw)(not good) and End of Evangelion at 13 (even worse)

[Stevie.PGH]

since i was about 12 I heard all kind of stuff on social media about how good (and traumatizing) it was, and I always put off watching it because I was convinced that nothing THAT sad would be good to watch. (WRONG BTW!!!!!) About a month ago, I was on Instagram and i came across an edit of NGE that involved a lot of the religious imagery we see in the show, and at this time i so happened to be looking for media that involved depictions of Christianity or other beliefs. I gave in after more than four years, and as soon as i watched the first episode i couldn't stop.

[Kharis1212]

5 months ago I was scrolling on Google for a interesting anime.i accidently saw poster of eoe.I understood just by staring at it “That's a different shit” .

[ikarishinji.15]

It was summer before eighth grade started (I'm now at ninth grade). I only see The End of Evangelion on the Letterboxd Top 250 but was never interested before. Reading more about Neon Genesis Evangelion in summer got me interested in the series. At the age of 12, it eventually became the first anime series I have watched. The End of Evangelion became my favourite anime film of all time, and it still is.

[The Killer of Heroes]

Honestly I wasn't able to get into Evangelion. It was just too big, and I had trouble even finding the way to eject the Entry Plug enough for me to enter it. I tried asking some NERV guys about it and they were like "Who are you? How did you get inside the base? Who are you working for?". Well now I'm sending this message from a holding cell and I hope y'all can help me beat these allegations that I'm some kind of SEELE agent.

[Nacho_PlusUltra]

I got into it because of the Rei plush memes!... Yeah i'm not proud of that

[BernardoCairo]

I got into it because of the Rei plush memes!... Yeah i'm not proud of that

I mean, those are really cute!

[Nacho_PlusUltra]

I got into it because of the Rei plush memes!... Yeah i'm not proud of that

I mean, those are really cute!

Fr... I need one of them so bad but they don't sell her in my country ;-;

[Darth Plato]

I must be older than the majority of active posters. As a kid I loved Star Blazers (the US version of Space Battleship Yamato) and ROBOTECH (the US version of Macross, with two other animes tacked on) and was familiar with Battle of the Planets (US version of Science Ninja Team Gatchaman) so in short anime was always a thing for me.

I was a young adult in the 90s when Evangelion dropped. This was around the time I saw the Battle Angel anime, which also became a new favorite. Before the show came to America, Evangelion-related images began appearing all over the internet, which at that time was a new toy for nerds. For those too young to remember, most people shunned or ignored the internet until the end of the nineties. It was pretty much just for researchers and nerds.

Anyway. I had a certain fascination and interest, but knew next to nothing about the show. I knew it was linked to the song "Fly Me to the Moon" and liked that aspect, but I thought it took place mainly in outer space. For some reason a friend of mine eventually had me watch EoE with him and it made next to no sense whatsoever. My friend and his gf tried to explain things to me but it was little use. I wanted to figure out the theological and spiritual implications, and it wasn't at all clear. Over time I only remembered it only in bits and pieces and themes. Fortunately most of that only came back when I got around to really watching the series.

Seeing the covers around the video store did catch my attention, but I didn't watch any more until a girl I lived with rented it and I watched an episode or two with her. For some reason, it didn't capture my interest immediately--maybe in part due to real life stuff going on, I am not sure I fully remember. But I think the main thing was that the show wasn't really what I had expected. So I didn't get around to it really until I got deeper into anime a few years ago. I went back and watched the whole original versions of shows I had loved and watched the original Mobile Suit Gundam. I read the whole GUNNM manga (Battle Angel) and other things.

Eventually I got around to Neon Genesis Evangelion. The first viewing was OK, but I felt it didn't all fit together clearly despite being a good emotional ride. What really got me was my second viewing (recently) and that is how it fit together more clearly and I appreciated it more. I feel much more confident about considering it a classic and appreciating it as one of my favorites.

I came here hoping to find some discussion with other fans, and possibly more clarity about things I don't know or don't have a head canon for yet. I have never seen the Rebuilds and am considering watching them... please do not spoil any of that for me.

Sorry for the long introduction but I am old. Some of us old people tend to ramble. I don't think EVA is perfect, but I think it has a very important role in the history of science fiction anime, and for all of its flaws I think its high standing is deserved. I definitely plan to watch it again and again over the years.

[shunnedguyikari]

Watched it as a kid and was captivated ever since.

It is one of the best and worst things that I've experienced, introducing me to crippling depression but also the positives in understanding it.

It IS the best show ever and i'm so glad I got to experience it back then but also now, in all of its forms.

When I die, I hope that someone plays Komm, susser tod at my funeral

[Baron]

my year five teacher recommended it to me because I liked godzilla. I was 10, but sure.

[Nicpicname]

I have seen Eva around for a long time, and I felt that soon I must see it for myself.

[Nicpicname]

since i was about 12 I heard all kind of stuff on social media about how good (and traumatizing) it was, and I always put off watching it because I was convinced that nothing THAT sad would be good to watch. (WRONG BTW!!!!!) About a month ago, I was on Instagram and i came across an edit of NGE that involved a lot of the religious imagery we see in the show, and at this time i so happened to be looking for media that involved depictions of Christianity or other beliefs. I gave in after more than four years, and as soon as i watched the first episode i couldn't stop.

Damn

[katie5000]

Hi, I signed up recently. Anyway, it's storytime.

How did I first get in? Well, it all started back at the very end of the 90s. I had this friend I'd met in a therapy group who'd gotten really into the series because her parents were going through a messy divorce at the time and she and her dad were estranged (looking back on it, I think she felt that she could relate to Shinji quite a bit). I started going over to her house regularly and she started showing me the series according to the VHS tapes she had. I didn't really know what to make of it at first, but I did think it was interesting (though not something I really got hooked on). She tried explaining the plot to me, as well as all the convoluted relationships everyone had, but as I didn't get to watch the whole series, I didn't really get to see how all of it played out or fit together.

A short while later, my family moved to another state and she and I lost touch. I kind of forgot about Evangelion as other things took priority in my 20s and 30s, but it was always in the back of my mind as that "one weird anime" I saw as a kid. Fast forward to the end of last year, when a game I'd gotten into called Granblue Fantasy did a collaboration/crossover event with Evangelion. My initial response was "Whaaaaat? That old anime??" But it also made me feel nostalgic - I suddenly wanted to go back and give it a proper, complete re-watch, since I was well aware that I never actually had.

I tried to look it up on Crunchyroll, but to my surprise they didn't have it. I had to use Google to find out the TV series was on Netflix - huh, okay. I began to watch it on Netflix and figured out it had been re-dubbed at some point - the tipoff for me was when Shinji said, "Don't run away" instead of "I mustn't run away," which is what I remembered him saying from my teenage years. Anyway, I watched the whole TV series + EoE, and I have to say I was thoroughly impressed. It was neat to see how everything ultimately played out (and all that stuff my friend told me 25 years ago finally made sense, yay). But I have to say, this has to be one of the most philosophical shows I've ever seen, yikes. There is certainly a LOT to unpack, though reading the wiki's been enlightening. I don't currently plan on watching the reboots - I think the TV show is enough for me. I would like to find and read the manga, though.

Anyway, thanks for listening (reading?).