Rank the episodes!

[Xard]

So, this is thread in which we rank the 26 (27/28) NGE episodes in order of preference! It'll propably be pretty interesting to compare the lists. You can (and should) also rank End of Evangelion in there, either as whole or as eps 25' and 26'

I guess I start!

28. Ep 10

This is easily the weakest episode in the show and overall - mostly due to script - isn't terribly interesting. But all magma stuff is very good and suspenful plus I like Shinji/Asuka stuff in here. However Asuka in first half goofing with her stupid suit really fucking annoys me. So suck it Ep 10, you're weakest link. It's also interesting this ep features some storyboards by Anno, yet it lacks (nearly) all cinematographical magic he puts in his other work apart from this ep. This is something really weird that plagued some eps of Nadia too... there's no "Anno magic" in camera work that's found from Gunbuster, NGE, Kare Kano, Love&Pop and Shiki-Jitsu

Average stuff.

27. Ep 13

I really like hacker episode and the nanosized angel was somehow far more threatening than many bigger meanies. Not bad word from me concerning this ep!

26. Ep 8

Asuka's intro ep is all good fun. Bonus for debut of my favourite character and Gaghiel's great teeth. Good ep, but pretty much is there to provide groundwork for Ep 9 IMO.

25. Ep 7

This episode is commonly perceived as worst and I used to do so too - later on I recognized how brilliant this is narrativewise - check out editing in breakfast scene, repetition of that scene and how it is used, interesting camera crap etc. Too bad Jet Alone is so lame it brings this ep down few notchs. Still, good episode, partly great.

24. Ep 11

Now angel may be lame, but otherwise this is really good episode. Yeah, characters look bit weird sometimes but animation itself is great. Some great "serious" scenes and really funny humorous ones. I love the adventures of kid's trio in this. Asuka/Rei dynamics are great.

23. Ep 5

First Rei episode is great, no way around it. Character interaction is great

22. Ep 6

And second one is even better. Rei's smile is one of the more heartwarming scenes in the series, and Ramiel was so awesome. Then RoE came out and "ruined" this ep by being so fucking epic :(

21. Ep 1

First half of "pilot" is great stuff, but since all the best bits and resolutions are saved for (well duh) latter ep of pair, this ranks only this "low". Special mention: "the badly wounded Rei" part. Baww. And of course, Gendo's smirk. And cute blinking by Sachiel

20. Ep 3

Very good episode with very good screamin' in it. :P

19. Ep 14

Rei's poem. Nuff said.

18. Ep 17

Great episode. Simple as that. Special mention: Rei scenes.

17. Ep 12

Best episode of Action Arc (if we start to count it from Ep 10 instead of 8 ). Certainly has best angel and best fight sequence of that arc, but what's true highpoint is naturally Second Impact flashback scene.

16. Ep 9

Fantastic episode full of great Shinji/Asuka scenes and cool fight sequence.

15. Ep 21

Bit info dumpey, but what kind of info dump! Other than that no bad word about it and concerning series mythos most interesting/in depth one.

14. Ep 4

Early series classic; funnily most Annolike episode of early series yet the one he had least to do with! Reminds me of Ozu, which is really high honor for anime ep.

13. Ep 15
Best "drama" episode. Yet another "perfect" episode. Seeing Lilith on the cross was first time show had the "gaahh, what is this doing on my brainnn" effect on me.

12. Ep 20

Discounting EoTV episodes and EoE, this is very best, highest point of show's Avant Garde and "weeiiiird" tendencies. First episode pretty much consisting only of mindfuck.


11. Ep 2

Best episode of early series. Sachiel fight is great and character interaction, "serious" scenes etc. are just as brilliant as in, say, EoE. Way Sachiel stuff was split in half was genius move narrative wise and something RoE 1.0 sadly lacked, stealing the last punch from last "unknown ceiling" scene in movie. Check out the short yet so incredible scene where Shinji and Misato bump to Gendo in elevator. Or the whole "unknown ceiling" motif that goes through the episode. Or dinner scene. Or...

10. Ep 25

No way around it; EoTV is in my opinion absolutely brilliant through and through. Confusing, hell yes. Dissatisfying in some ways, hell yes. Great? No doubt about it. The psychologic torture of viewers and characters never got any better than in these last, cathartic eps. This should be way higher than it is, but fight for stop spots is tough with very small differences in "betterness"...

9.Ep 18

Bardiel is just frickin awesome, Ogata's scream is just freezing and this is where shit really starts to hit the fan (both kinds of). *remembers feeling he had after first seeing the episode*

8. Ep 16

Fantastic through and through; great art direction, awesome mindfuckery. And I love Leliel's bloody death.

7. Ep 26

love it love it love it love it. Absolutely luuuvv it! Utterly unique, fantastic deconstruction of bloody everything and one of the greatest endings ever, no matter what you say! Omedetou makes my heart warm every time.

6. Ep 19

BOZO *MUNCH MUNCH MUNCH*

...c'mon, like this needs anything else? Best fight scene of series proper btw.

5. Ep 24

Really great through and through. Not weak spot at all and the whole Ode to Joy section should win oscar or something.

4. Ep 23

Well, lots of best character interaction & drama put together with most emotional fight in whole series proper, Rei's death (baww), Ritsuko going bonkers and - above all - Reiquarium which puts in one scene all the disturbing, disgusting beauty of the show.

3. Ep 22

My favourite of "episodes proper". Fantastically scripted and directed. Features the best mindrape sequence of whole show as well as many other great scenes. For one easily overlooked, minor yet truly wonderful scene check out Asuka "talking" with Eva-02 just before Arael attacks. Creepy. Or Asuka's bath scene. Best wangst evarr.

2. Ep 25'

First half of EoE is just notch below latter half (if one can dissect movie in two like that). Beeeeautiful animation, best anime fight scene evarrr, harpy creepiness, really fucking disturbing opening scene etc. all found here.

Best part: Asuka/Harpies Ritsuko/Gendo&Rei confrontations mixed together to Bach's Air... sniff

1. Ep 26'

The very finale, the mindfuck and anguished screaming half of End of Evangelion takes the cake for me. It is absolute brilliance through and through. It's very easy to overanalyze scenes and shots in NGE, but not so much EoE. Anno referred the movie as something fans should watch frame by frame, and I can't help thinking this is what he referred in particular.

In directing the single highest point of the show (and that says really fucking a lot) - cinematography, pacing, cuts (esp. eccentric ones), godardesque "machine gun" imagerape, framing and all other sorts of Anno's unique cinematic twists in the audiovisual narrative are at their peak. Anno deserves place among my greatest directors list alone for this hour (+ rest of the NGE and Shiki Jitsu...oh how I love thee SJ :wub: ) or so.

Technical merits aside, of course the plot reaches it's resolution here, performances are fantastic and animation best of the best level.

Amazing number of my all time favourite scenes are found in here, including Teh Ending, Lilith's death sequence, Komm Susser Tod sequence, strangling scene, scene where Shinji first sees Lilith, Shinji & Rei in LCL sea...

[master_lloyd]

Wow. That's very thorough! A little bit confusing for those of us who don't have an encyclopedic knowledge of which episode is which. But well remembered!

Makes me want to revisit the series for the nth time!

24 and 25' are my favourite eps, lots of action and classical music.

I disagree about ep10 though, I thought the repetition of the breakfast scene at the beginning and end was a bit gimmicky/silly.

[VoidEater]

I think 23' has always struck me for some reason - perhaps the Ritsuko/Rei-quarium scenes, I feel like this was a moment where we really see the inner seething beyond the surface of a character, and get some (relatively) clean exposition.

I loved reading the countdown.

And the nod to Kom Susser Todd, which surprises me - such a well-crafted bit of pop music magic in the midst of well, all of that, you know. I picked up the CD just to have a clean copy.

[Ornette]

The funny thing about the Reiquarium scenes is that they ONLY appear (as far as R1 releases) in the individual Director's Cuts DVDs (Resurrection). They weren't in the original OA release nor in Platinum's Director's Cut episodes.

[Another Asuka]

Episode 16 was fantastic. That scene where Shinji is trapped in the Eva awaiting death and starts to psychoanalyise himself was just so cool.

[Sailor Star Dust]

Leliel was doing the psychoanalyzing but yes that sequence is pretty awesome.

[Indigo Arcangel]

I would rank episode 11 as really low, simply because of what happened to the character designs in this episode - what the heck? They all looked like they were from a shoujo! Then again, fuyutsuki and Gendo in water buckets was pretty amusing.

[Mr. Tines]

They all looked like they were from a shoujo!

IIRC, Ghibli helped with the animation for that episode. The main thing that sticks in my mine about that episode is Asuka's brief zenith.

[VoidEater]

The funny thing about the Reiquarium scenes is that they ONLY appear (as far as R1 releases) in the individual Director's Cuts DVDs (Resurrection)...

I had no idea - I've been lucky (or un) in that my first viewing was DC.

For low points, I really couldn't get into 9, "Both of you, Dance like you want to win!" I was interested in the use of choreography to plan the battle, but it just seemed a little over the top. Other good stuff in the episode, but the battle itself didn't seem to make enough use of the choreography aspects in the interactions between the participants. Just me.

[Guyver Spawn]

I enjoy them all but if I had to choose then my list would be (No order):

Episode 6
Episode 11
Episode 14
Episode 17
Episode 1
Episode 16
Episode 9
Episode 21
Episode 5
Episode 19
Episode 26
Episode 20
Episode 24
Episode 12
Episode 2
Episode 23
Episode 18
Episode 15
Episode 25
Episode 7

[Another Asuka]

Leliel was doing the psychoanalyzing but yes that sequence is pretty awesome.

I never knew it was the Angel. So does that mean it was actually,in some,way his Mother trying to help him?

[Xard]

Let's not dwell too much on the complex scene in ep 16... it's more than a bit ambigious

[asukafan11]

1.) one more final
leaves things open, therefore allowing you to decide what evangelion means.

the rest are all equal.
except for 7, i just didnt find it that necessary. can someone tell me why it is?

[Evangelionfreak]

24 is the best
hands down
:)

[Eva Yojimbo]

1. EoE - Hard to rank as a part of the series since it's the glorious climax and such a phenomenal film in its own right. But what you say is true; this is just a beyond-genius pinnacle of anime as an artistic medium and can hold its own with the best of cinema.

2. 19 - If 16 and 18 made me aware of NGE's power as a dramatic work, this is where the series finally gave me a gut punch of such strength I felt as if I'd been hit by Mike Tyson in his prime. It was very literally breath-taking and all of those cliche adjectives that critics toss about to describe films - "riveting!" "Edge of your seat!" "thrill ride!" - honestly only belong to a select few works like this.

3. EoTV - Artistically daring like very little else I've ever seen. Audacious, powerful, original, unique, full of substance with a bizarre hypnotic power that's hard to shake.

4. 24 - Dense as utter hell, yet it still finds time for quiet moments. I can think of fewer 23 minutes in all of visual fiction that has more going on in such a short amount of time. And I can't say enough about crafting such a complex and equivocal character as Kaworu who only exists for a fraction of one episode.

5. 23 - If only for the iconic image that is the Reiquarium.

6. 20 - A beautiful spiritual journey. This is where NGE takes its greatest step towards great art in its melding of typical drama with something of greater substance.

7. 21 - The ending is heartbreaking, and the backstories are weaved into the narrative with such adeptness that the breadth and depth it provides is extraordinary.

8. 16 - The first time I began to suspect just how amazing this series was going to be. Yui rescuing Shinji and Sho breaking out of Leliel is still one of the series' finest dramatic moments.

9. 22 - The most disturbing episode and one I still find genuinely unpleasant; which probably accounts for my relatively low ranking amongst the brilliance of the second half. I also still can't forgive Anno for ruining Handel's Hallelujah! Chorus for me...

9. 18 - The irrevocable breakdown of Shinji/Gendo's relationship in the context of an impossible choice to sacrifice himself or kill/hurt his best friend; it's the stuff great drama is made out of.

10. 4 - The best episode of the early eps. As Xard said, reminiscent of Ozu and the classic Asian directors. Visually beautiful, and the serene quiet of its surface contrasts wonderfully with the turmoil underneath. It's a a brilliant piece of subtle and aesthetically sublime storytelling.

11. 15 - Where the series really shifts from typical fantasy, sci-fi anime to a more character driven drama. Touching and genuinely emotional.

12. 9 - I love the depiction of Asuka/Shinji's relationship here. Especially with the 'near kiss' scene.

13. 3 - The most dramatically potent of the first half, with a number of brilliant moments and perhaps the best of the early battles.

14. 1-2 - A perfect introduction to the series and characters with some of Anno's best classical compositions, editing, and transition devices.

15. 13 - I love the War Games-esque drama combined with the condensed character study of Ritsuko; this is all she needs to provide the substance behind her history which Anno will reap throughout the second half.

16. 11 - Great atmosphere and great dynamic development between the characters (especially the children).

17. 8 - One of the funnest eps., plus the introduction of Kaji.

18. 5-6 - I love the focus on Rei, but I think some of the drama is a bit clumsily handled.

19. 10 - Another great example of Anno's various techniques; especially with the pool scene and the contrast with the volcano swimming.

20. 14 - Rei's monologue is beautiful, but it's hard to excuse the rest of the ep. It's a nice "breather" episode.

21. 17 - I feel the same about this as I do 14; a breather ep. but little more.

22. 7 - Everything in this ep. is great besides the centralized story itself. But its focus on the politics and "outer world" provides a greater context for the story and the whole is enriched because of it. But, yes, JA is entirely lame.

23. 12 - I've always found this the weakest ep. Besides the insight into Misato's history I just don't like the rest of the ep. much.

[Merridian]

Since this is in order of 'preference' rather than by 'technical brilliance' or 'symbolic significance' or 'narrative significance' or anything else that can be pseudo-quantifiable, I'll try my best to do this off the top of my head. My favorite episodes are the ones that stand out; for the rest, I'll have to pull out my DVD cases real quick.

1. End of Evangelion is hands down at the top of my list. I kind of look at EoE as being the whole reason someone would watch the series to begin with.

2. Ep. 21. Three words: "Fuyutsuki Flashback Episode".

3. Ep. 25 & 26. I find it difficult to refer to one without referring to the other in the same breath, so I'm counting them as one unit. If I had to pick which one I liked more, I'd probably say 26, but only because of how 25 laid the groundwork for what they expounded upon in 26. I dunno. It's introspective philosophical stuff that touches on ontology--and I love that.

4. Ep. 22. I was never a fan of Asuka's character, but I REALLY liked the second half of the episode.

5. Ep. 20. See above.

6. Ep. 16. See above, PLUS a SEA of DIRAC! Ha! I also liked the shadowplay going on while Ritsuko & Co were trying to figure out exactly what the hell was going on, and Eva emerging from the Hyper-Ball of Yarn in the sky.

7. Ep. 23. Rei's identity crises never get old.

8. Ep. 24. Maybe this should be higher, I can't tell. I liked the complexity of Kaworu's character, even though a lot of people seem satisfied to write off his nuances as being simply "gay" in nature. Every time I watch the episode, I keep thinking that there's more to him than that.

This list is getting harder to compile than I had previously anticipated.

9. Ep. 18. "It's still better than the current pilot!" I don't know if that's ADV-dub specific or not, but I don't think it really matters. That dialogue through that whole scene is just fantastic!
On that note, I've gotten the impression that a lot of people hate the ADV-dub of the series. In some cases, I can see why, but I dunno--I guess I just don't let a few translation things get in the way of my enjoyment.

10. Ep. 15. I thought most of the dialogue in this episode was well done and added a level of believability to the universe.

11. Ep. 19. Unit-02's disembodied head.

12. Ep. 11. The humor was the best part of the episode. In fact, the angel really detracted from the plot. I also liked how the tech crew got their special 15 seconds of fame and importance--elevated up from "just those guys down there that shout stuff".

13. Ep. 13. Made Ritsuko a little more likeable as a character. And that's not mentioning the technobabble in this episode--man!

14. Ep. 05. Rei.

15. Ep. 06. Ditto. Also "You just got fried, but we're throwing you out there again. At least this time you'll have an enormous gun!"

16. Ep. 12. Because I didn't know where else to put this episode. The 2nd Impact depiction was awesome, but I think I liked it better in Death . The angel was pretty dumb, though.

17. Ep. 04. The storyboarding, cutting & editing were all great. Shinji... not so much.

18. Ep. 17. What happened to the animation for this episode? It looked like the character models were thrown all out of wack. The best part was the very end--that basketball hoop sequence.

19. Ep. 02. That eye!

20. Ep. 14. Because even the recap episode was better than the rest of what's left. Well, more importantly, because it sheds a little more light on the whole Unit-00 business.

21. Ep. 09. Synchronized dancing? The almost-kiss thing was well played, and the characters were able to play off each other (when I could stand their overcompensating whining/angst), but as a whole, it didn't do much for me.

22. Ep. 08. Kaji was the best part of the whole episode.

23. Ep. 01. I know, maybe it's blasphemy putting the pilot all the way down here. I liked the very beginning, but after that it's just... I can't get into it.

24. Ep. 03. Probably deserves to be higher. I know I like it more, but I don't know how much more.

25. Ep. 07. Gigantor would have made better competition than the Jet Alone robot. In fact, MegaZord would have made better competition than that strangely-designed robot thingamajig. The episode would probably be a lot more likeable if they didn't have so many (or ANY) shots of the robot just... running.

26. Ep. 10. The volcano episode. When I first I tried watching this on my laptop with the Platinum collection, I could barely see anything inside the volcano. Not to mention that it's development of the whole Asuka/Shinji gig is better done in Ep. 09, and the Asuka/Rei dichotomy is expounded upon much better later on in the series anyhow. I just don't like it.

[schismatics]

1 - Splitting of the Breast (16) This was the first episode that made me go Everything up until that point was pretty good in my opinion, but this was phenomenal.

2 - The End of Evangelion (25/26) What can I say?? The biggest collosal mindfuck I've ever seen in anime or almost any other medium for that matter.

3 - The Beginning and the End, or Knockin' On Heaven's Door (24) I can watch this episode again and again after watching the entire series. Everytime I see it, I pick up just a little more about the episode. The giant hold with the music playing over it is AMAZING.

I really don't feel going over the rest of the episodes...but these ones are the best in opinion.

[The Eva Monkey]

Best episode: 19 / A Man's Fight / Introjection
If you disgree, you're a fucking nitwit. Seriously. This episode has it all. It has action. It has the melon patch scene. It has the best piece of music, THANATOS. It was the culmination of Shinji's development as a character where he accepts his destiny and chooses to be a pilot. It also has the beginning of Asuka's descent arc. This episode is the point of no return that pushes the series into the major ZOMGWTF that is both endings.

Worst Episode: 10 / Magma Diver
FUCK THIS EPISODE. It's worse than Jet Alone. At least Jet Alone had some development by showing what the world thought of Nerv, not to mention reference to the Eva series. This episode has nothing but bad boob jokes and FAT Asuka.

[Eva Yojimbo]

The only thing I find redeemable about 10 is the establishing of Anno's overall duality motif at the pool that's later development at the volcano. That's a rather brilliant use of economic symbolic association, done rather subtly. The rest is really meh.

[HENRCAST]

I can't decide which Evangelion episode is my favorite, nor can I decide the one I like the least. If End of Evangelion counts, it's probably my favorite "episode" (which is weird, since when I watched EoE for the first time I downright hated it). If it doesn't, then I'm between episodes 16, 22 and 23. Now for the worst episodes... I can't decide which one it is: 7, 10 or 11.