Source of Eva's ATF (Native Soul or Pilot?)

[AshPhoenix]

Okay. So are you supporting me or trying to disprove me here? Because I'm seeing evidence for both.
I agree that synchronization with the Eva is a large piece of this puzzle, though.

[Reichu]

Okay. So are you supporting me or trying to disprove me here? Because I'm seeing evidence for both.

What I was trying to say about "synchronization" is that, if we understood it properly, what could be interpreted as evidence for the view that you and Sik are advocating could be put in context and make sense within the framework I forwarded. That's my working hypothesis for the time being.

So, yes, I am very much trying to disprove you. :p

[Sik]

So, unless theres more discussion material, we could say that the ATF source (physically manifested) comes from the evangelion, yes? o.O

[AshPhoenix]

So, unless theres more discussion material, we could say that the ATF source (physically manifested) comes from the evangelion, yes? o.O

There's always more discussion material.
On EGF, a thread never dies. It just lies there. Dormant. Waiting for some unsuspecting newbie to respark unspeakable discussions, and unleash the fury of many generations of mods.

[nomis1242]

...On EGF, a thread never dies. It just lies there. Dormant. Waiting for some unsuspecting newbie to respark unspeakable discussions...

Such as what I'm about to do!

Just to disclose my position before I start: I am swaying towards it being the mother's AT Field (mainly because of dummy plugs creating AT Fields).

Anyways...

Though, I wonder where Rei's line from episode 23 fits into this. Why would the ATF "disappear" if she ejects from Eva-00?

Rei's line might be explained by Unit-00 having a different soul arrangement to the others. For example, if you believe the "Rei I" theory, then clearly Rei is closer linked to her Eva's soul than the other pilots so could have greater control in this case. Another example, if you believe the "no soul" theory, then once Rei deactivates her Eva, there is no soul present to generate the AT Field.

First of all, do the characters in the show really know all the specifics of the AT Field? It seems more to me that only have a general idea of what it is. Even if they do know exactly what it is, though, the quibbles of English make it so that Misato's line there could be interpreted several different ways. Eva-00 could possess the AT Field, but that doesn't mean it comes from Eva-00.

I agree, we shouldn't be taking lines about "Unit XX's AT Field" too literally. As well as your reasons, they might just be describing it that way because it's more convenient (eg in a battle, the Eva is the warship and the prog knife/pilot/AT Field are all just elements that make up the warship). Also, there is an obvious association between the AT Field and the Eva, cos you don't see Shinji running around projecting AT Fields outside of his Eva.

[Azathoth]

Rei's line might be explained by Unit-00 having a different soul arrangement to the others. For example, if you believe the "Rei I" theory, then clearly Rei is closer linked to her Eva's soul than the other pilots so could have greater control in this case.

On the contrary, the show seems to claim that the opposite is the case: Rei's control over Unit 00, at least in terms of sync ratio, is actually inferior to Shinji or Asuka's holds on their Evas - which I would say makes sense, given how fragmented and self-loathing Rei's identity appears even when it's reunified as Lilith.

As I said on the previous page, though, I still think it makes the most sense to say that the process referred to as synchronization involves the merging of the pilot's AT field with the AT field of the core soul. In this case, when Rei pilots Unit 00, the AT field being projected isn't simply that of Rei II or the remainder of Rei I*, but a hybrid AT field. But while Shinji could eject the plug partway from Unit 01 and have Yui's AT field take care of defense temporarily, Rei might not be able to so easily desynchronize. After the events of episode 14 she is at least partially conscious that her Eva is somehow also herself, and by episode 23 she is entirely aware of the "me within Eva". Shinji can pull out of Unit 01 any time he likes ( ) because he understands that Eva is distinct from himself - in fact, he has a pretty clear idea of Unit 01's identity, even if he won't admit it. Rei, on the other hand, has to deal firsthand with the paradox that her giant robot is her soul. It might be that if she desynchronizes too sharply from Unit 00, she might simply take Unit 00's soul into her body, or merge her soul into Unit 00, or whatever.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that is that Unit 00 does indeed have a different soul arrangement from others, one that may require more care for the pilot to maintain her identity, or something like that.

*I'm assuming here that Rei I's soul was split into Unit 00's core soul and Rei II's soul after her death; by "the remainder" I mean Unit 00, who despite being just as much Rei as the other three gets shafted out of a number. "Rei 0" doesn't have the same ring to it.