In a pair of taut, action-packed episodes, Neon Genesis Evangelion earns its reputation as a high-stakes science fiction action show. While your hosts espouse its merits, they also take a critical look at the second Eva pilot, Rei Ayanami. She’s a fan-favorite character, but her role in the series is far from cut and dry. Joseph and Ian also unpack Evangelion’s relationship to Godzilla movies - Hideaki Anno would later direct a Godzilla film. At the same time, your hosts take a quick tour through the various failed efforts at creating an Evangelion movie in America - it’s a convoluted story that involves James Cameron, Peter Jackson’s collaborators at Studio Weta, and possibly Guillermo Del Toro, whose movie Pacific Rim bears more than a passing resemblance to these episodes of Eva.
Analysis: 13:02
Discussing Rei Ayanami: 21:28
Discussing Live Action Evangelion Adaptations: 37:53
Sources:
* 27 Live Action Weta Produced Designs for Evangelion (http://legacy.aintitcool.com/node/16790)
* Show the Monster - Guillermo del Toro’s quest to get amazing creatures onscreen (https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2011/02/07/show-the-monster)