Shogo-Kun wrote:That's not to say that I don't like him. I find a lot of things in him that I hate about myself. However, unlike Shinji, I tell myself "I can acknowledge my weakness, but not let it beat me. I have to suck it up and live with it." And that's where my frustration with Shinji lies. He acknowledges his flaws but doesn't say or do anything to deal with them until it's too late. But I can't bring myself to totally hate him either
I think he does quite a bit to deal with them, actually. The problem is that every time he starts to make a little progress something really horrible happens to knock him back to where he started. So, when you say "well, I acknowledge my problems and learn to deal with them!" he says "Yeah, that's great and all, but when was the last time you were mentally invaded by an Angel? Or forced to hurt or even kill a friend? Or given the privilege of watching someone you care about disintegrate before your eyes with you helpless to stop it? Or...well, you get the point.
It's easy to note Shinji's failings, but I think people overlook the whole "supernatural entities crushing his mind on a regular basis" bit in the process. It's kinda important.