Who is the LEAD FEMALE of End of Evangelion?

[Reichu]

The script does say that Eva-01 "petrifies". But then, our last glimpse of Eva-01 is her drifting much further away from the Earth as Yui speaks of her chosen fate -- and she's clearly NOT petrified (though some spots on the armor are greyish-looking). So, uh, fanwank something?

[Semisubtle]

Lead female... I'd have to say Asuka, but we have to acknowledge that there would be no plot at all without Yui. So Yui's most important, but enough in the background to give the lead to Asuka.

[Sailor Star Dust]

Shinji.

Okay fine. Thinking about it, Asuka does seem to be pretty important in terms of her interactions with Shinji during the movie, but then again Rei finally gives Gendou the finger...

I have no idea. But honestly, does it matter eitherway?

[TheAyanamiOtaku]

No. It doesn't at all.

Each woman character that you guys have touched on, save Maya (lolza and you're forgetting Hikari and FEMME-KEEL LAWL), contribute greatly to the storyline.

Without Adam we wouldn't have tree of life + tree of knowledge or Angels to fight against.

Without Lilith we wouldn't have us.

Without Misato Shinji is HOME-LESS, and you wouldn't have Shinji realize that NERV is looking for him, and Shinji would've kept on moaning around in EoE until a soldier says BANGBANG...

Without Asuka, Shinji's hand and arm muscles will atrophy

Without Yui-Sama, there wouldn't really be anything to be piloted...or more importantly, there wouldn't be a Shinji.

Without Shinji, we wouldn't have anyone to make fun of.

Yessir, Anno likes his women powerful. And so, it is hard to argue which is more important than the other, b/c there really isn't. If you take one of them out you'll have yourself a big fat hole in the plot, with each of them.

So all of them were giant, pale, and naked. Just only one of them was actually giant, pale, and naked. The rest were metaphorically so. *shudders about Giant Naked Femme-Keel*

[BEsERk EVA01]

Also not to mention that if there was no Misato the fan service would be less...enjoyable.

[jenova7]

Well if I HAVE to choose, I'd say Asuka

[Xard]

Series itself itself clearly puts Shinji and Misato as main characters - but both endings concentrate rightfully on Shinji who is "main character of the main characters". Thus there really isn't female lead on EoE

Asuka = We barely see her alive apart from the fight scene. And half of that is camera screening EVA-02 anyway. In Instrumentality she is storytelling method/whatever just as much as any other character apart from Shinji. Just like in EoTV.

She gets the most kickass combat scene in the series though but that doesn't make her lead character

Misato = Only one actually to get some meaningful time during first half of the movie. When we reach EoE she is only character viewer can clinch to, kind of center of the storm. Shinji and Asuka are both gone "way beyond", Kaworu is dead, Rei isn't same as as she was, Ritsuko is locked up and Gendo is Gendo.

There's no one else for audience, someone who at least tries to act like hero.

And, well... we all know her fate. That was one of the last huge bitch slaps at the audience that began in Ep 18 I think (intentional or not).

This is why I put her as lead female. She is by far most identifiable of all the shows characters in the beginning and she serves quite big part in the fight as well. Not to mention elevator scene.

In latter half she is motif/way of storytelling foremost and character just secondarily (like everyone except Shinji).

Rei = As always Rei is icon. Storywise most important character in EoE. She gets considerable amount of time from Anno as his main attack against otakus and superflatism in first half. In second half Rei/Lilith is even more of a storytelling device than any other character

Ritsuko = secondary character from the beginning. Bites the bullet

Maya = secondary character from the begining. Vomits and screams sempai

This is why I choose Misato over others as lead female. She actually gets much and diversing screentime in first half (Nearly all of Asuka's time comes from the fight)

[mrpanda]

Ok Xard's persuaded me lol Misato for the win.

[Gendo'sPapa]

I'm gonna say that while its obvious Misato is the female lead of the series, the movie belongs to Rei.

It's when she becomes most instrumental (haha) to the plot and everything essentially has to revolve around her.

[Reichu]

It's when she becomes most instrumental (haha) to the plot and everything essentially has to revolve around her.

For no apparent reason, I initially wanted to read "instrumental" as "menstrual". Oh dear...

I see one aspect of Asuka's importance has been completely overlooked in this thread: You see, if not for Shinji's totally sucky kissing, Third Impact would never have happened.

[master_lloyd]

It's when she becomes most instrumental (haha) to the plot and everything essentially has to revolve around her.

For no apparent reason, I initially wanted to read "instrumental" as "menstrual". Oh dear...

I see one aspect of Asuka's importance has been completely overlooked in this thread: You see, if not for Shinji's totally sucky kissing, Third Impact would never have happened.

Care to elaborate?

[honsou]

It's when she becomes most instrumental (haha) to the plot and everything essentially has to revolve around her.

For no apparent reason, I initially wanted to read "instrumental" as "menstrual". Oh dear...

I see one aspect of Asuka's importance has been completely overlooked in this thread: You see, if not for Shinji's totally sucky kissing, Third Impact would never have happened.

I don't know if it was sucky kissing or if Asuka said to her self "holy crap i just kissed Shinji, i have to compensate some how!" and also a relationship between Asuka and Shinji that early would of probably ended up ugly, which would of led to a Third Impact without anyone surviving.

[CorporalChaos]

Care to elaborate?

I think I see where she's going....if Shinji were better at kissing, then there might have been the beginnings of a relationship between him and Asuka. Asuka wouldn't have collapsed mentally the way she did, and Kaworu would have had a harder time getting close the way he did to Shinji. Then Shinji and Asuka could have faced the harpies together, and beat them all, averting Third Impact.

Or, it could just be Reichu being random.

[Master Hand]

I agree with TheAyanamiOtaku.Well some things of his post.I dont think there is a lead female because all 3 females are the most popular out of the show.It wouldnt make sense to just have 1 when all 3 are clearly equally popular.But I'd have to say Misato.I dont like Asuka at all.Rei,well,I slighty like her but not that much.So,I'm going with Misato just to stay on topic.

[RandomStuff]

Also not to mention that if there was no Misato the fan service would be less...enjoyable.

It would all be jailbait, that would probably change people's reactions to the show.
I say Misato was for non-instrumentality parts.

[Reichu]

Or, it could just be Reichu being random.

I forget the exact reasoning behind "Sucky Kissing --> 3I", but it was a memorable "conclusion" that Shin-seiki arrived at, probably in the early parts of the archived ANF "Shinji & Asuka" thread. I think you're on the right general track. (Note also that the sequence of metaphysical events that lead Shinji to think MASS DEATH is a good idea involves a replay of the "kisu" scene.)

[Apathetic Piggy]

Tough to say, but the most important woman to the story is always a tough one. To Shinji's, I'd say, is Yui.

She's with him always, in one way or another, and protects him until the end. Her actions pretty much shaped the entire story, so I suppose she seems to be the lead female in my mind, even if she's not always explicitly in the lime-light.

[Evangelion217]

I use to think it was Asuka, then I thought it was Misato. Now I'm starting to think it's Yui Ikari.

[Sailor Star Dust]

You see, if not for Shinji's totally sucky kissing, Third Impact would never have happened.

QFT.

And because of that (with it's few different takes), I guess that means Asuka is the lead female of the film.

[Xard]

I don't know, Eva-01/Yui just looms in the background and is completely passive during the keymoments of the film apart from the "scaring the crap out of JSSDF mmbers and saving Shinji" part.

And I maintain Misato is more LEAD female in EoE than Asuka. This doesn't directly link to "importance" as arguably Asuka had biggest impact with getting Shinji "cross the line" in pre-Instrumentality.

But apart from Shinji only Misato plays very active role and gets "main character screentime" a lot. That and with Anno's statement regarding Misato and Shinji as main characters are my main reasons...

oh whatever, I had explained my stance far better above