Neon Genesis Evangelion/Awesome

Original animated series
"Shinji: STOP RUNNING, YOU BASTARD!!!"
 * Gendo's Establishing Character Moment in Episode 1: When Shinji manages to move the Eva without even being inside it, and knocks an enormous piece of steel into the observation window. Gendo doesn't move, doesn't flinch, doesn't even blink as the steel rebar impacts less than a foot away from him, and just continues to stare triumphantly at Shinji.
 * Episode 2: Scary and freaky as it was, the first time Unit 01 goes berserk. At first it was a Curb Stomp Battle for the Angel, then Unit 01 gets up and not only gets back into the fight, it CHARGES at the Angel, tearing it a new one then surviving the Angel's attempted Taking You With Me.
 * Berserker! Gives me nerdchills.
 * In Episode 3, Shinji gets one when he just goes into batshit insane, Unstoppable Rage mode and fucking destroys an Angel against his orders.(Technically, he did it out of sheer terror. Doesn't make it any less awesome though.)
 * Am I the only one with love for the Jet Alone incident? It may just be a filler, but it's still one of Misato's finest moments. She climbs onto the back of basically a giant walking nuclear reactor, goes inside the heavily radiated core in nothing more than a light hazmat suit, and then when the computer fails she tries to physically push the giant control rods back into the reactor. And all without any moaning, just determination.
 * Shinji gets one in the same episode, at least for this troper. Made even better because it's said by the guy who mustn't run away.

"Asuka: "What the hell? Is my Unit-02 like.... that thing?""
 * Asuka and Shinji start with a combined one in Episode 8 of the original. Basically, Eva Unit-02 is jumping around on battleships and destroyers in order to plug itself in. Then, nearer the end of the fight with Gaghiel, Asuka's yelling at Shinji for being in her lap, calling him a pervert, etc. What does Shinji do in response? He ignores her and keeps fighting the Angel. That's right - Shinji FUCKING Ikari is the pilot who keeps his eye on the ball and his head in the game. The most cowardly pilot in the cast is the only guy who can manage to stay focused on the task at hand, and at least in this case, is able to keep his head in a crisis. Next to his earlier fights against Sachiel and Shamshel, this one makes Shinji look like a certified Badass.
 * The fight against the 6th Angel to this troper was brilliant. Both Shinji and Asuka manage to push their combined sync level to a point that never is quite revealed (but it's general consensus among fans it seems that it's the highest non-400 sync rate encountered in the TV series), forcing the mouth open and allowing two Iowa-class battleships (the Kentucky and Illinois, two ships that in reality were never finished) to blast it apart.
 * Episode 9, in which Asuka and Shinji beat Israfel with the power of dance-fighting, complete with Soundtrack Dissonance. Both Of You, Dance Like You Want To Win!
 * Reenacted in Super Robot Wars MX, but it was done to one of the Shi sisters.
 * Shinji defying the odds and whatnot when he reaches into the volcano to save Asuka from certain magma-related death in episode 10, despite the risk of him joining her.
 * The 3 EVA pilots working together (in episode 11) to defeat the Ninth Angel, Matarael, was truly awesome. They're even allowed to enjoy the victory afterwards! Asuka gets double the awesome, of course, because the plan was her idea, and she actually led the others without acting like a pompous know-it-all like she had throughout the episode.
 * Gendo also has one here, as he masterminds and participates in a method to launch the EVAs completely by hand after the base's power is shut down.
 * To be fair, Matarael is a pathetically weak angel, only capable of crying as an attack. That, and it gets killed by bullets.
 * Episode 12, where the THREE Evas put their hands up and stop an angel that is essentially commiting a small scale Colony Drop and then stabbing it in the eye.
 * Ritsuko and Maya get one in episode 13, when they defeat the Eleventh Angel by reprogramming a computer. This being Maya, Ritsuko gets excessively fangirled for her contribution.
 * How about the the battle against Leliel, the Twelfth Angel? First, Shinji FINALLY starts acting a bit Hot Blooded - but then, of course, it Goes Horribly Wrong, and we're treated to a monumental Mindscrew. Skip past that, to the part just before NERV's getting ready to drop the N2 mines, the ground suddenly starts trembling, before the streets upheave as if it's an earthquake, piercing through the "shadow" and through the cracks we see this eerie red light, as if a gate to Hell is opening, causing everyone to freak out. Then, Leliel's "body" goes all black, and Unit 01 punches through its "skin" from the inside out and leaping to the ground as the wound tears open and it starts raining blood, now prompting Asuka Langley Sohryu to freak the hell out. Terrifying for some? Perhaps. Awesome as hell? Definitely.

"Shinji: "I hate myself... But, I might be able to love myself. Maybe my life could have a greater value. Yes, I am nothing but I. I am I. I wish to be me. I want to continue existing in this world! I am worth living here!""
 * For me, Shinji threatening to tear apart NERV brick by brick after  was awesome. I was thinking "Woah, Shinji, when did you get a freakin' SPINE?!"
 * Shinji’s finest moment came in episode 19, against the 14th Angel. Whatever happens with the other Angels, whether it's Yui going berserk and not him, whatever may happen in the other fights, in this one it's all him. He's brave and he's crazy and he just won't quit. And whatever you thought of him before, he demonstrates here that he's a warrior and a hero. And yes, this being Eva, the next several episodes and EoE likewise see our expectations brutally subverted. But just this once, we get to see him go out to do battle, "fangs out and hair on fire," and kicks ass like an action hero and saves the world. Not to mention performing a Dynamic Entry in a Humongous Mecha.
 * ...and then  Horrifying, yes, but awesome too.
 * When supporting character Ryoji Kaji is about to
 * This troper smiled when Misato bitch-slapped Ritsuko for saying it didn't matter if Shinji lived or died.
 * Rei gets a couple of moments late in the series, first against the 15th Angel, Arael, which she defeats by . And let's not forget the fight with the 16th Angel, Armisael, which ends with Rei   Sad as Hell, but you gotta admit it was awesome.
 * This troper would like to nominate Shinji's World of Cardboard Speech in the Gainax Ending. Not only was the final episode rather inspirational, but this is also (if memory serves) the first and ONLY instance of Shinji getting a Theme Music Power-Up. Seriously, if you're paying attention, you can hear an instrumental, piano version of Cruel Angel's Thesis in the background. Doubles as a Tear Jerker, of the good kind.


 * And then, apparently, Instrumentality shatters around him, the cast congratulates him on his newfound self-esteem, including Asuka, Rei, and even his dad, Gendo. The scene is at once heartwarming AND awesome.
 * It is also accepted as one of the most disappointingly confusing endings ever. Quite frankly, I think that they were out of ideas at this point and wanted to end the series in a way that wouldn't fuck their minds along with everyone else's.
 * Which makes it a sort of Crowning Moment of Awesome for Hideki Anno and Studio Gainax - they created an anime ending that was so damn confusing, it's still hotly debated almost FIFTEEN YEARS AFTER THE SHOW AIRED, and even became the Trope Namer and Trope Codifier for Gainax Ending, in addition to making the series so culturally pervasive and influential in the first place.
 * The entire ending of Episode 24, to the point that this troper has dubbed it "The Descent." Kaworu acting as Dissonant Serenity, Ode to Joy playing over the entire scene, some of the best animation in the series, and the truth finally being revealed about.

End of Evangelion
"Misato: "So fucking what if I'm not you!?!""
 * In End of Eva Shinji is, well... being Shinji, saying he wants to die after Misato saves him. She first tries to reason with him but when that doesn't work she tries another approach: shoving him against a cage and roaring in his face.


 * Misato gets a grand moment in End of Evangelion when she guns down several well armed JSSDF members with nothing but a pistol, without bothering to take cover, then kicks one against the wall and shoots him in the head and point blank range. Keep in mind, she is not a trained soldier by any means, at least not on the level of the several men she effortlessly killed.
 * Actually, given that she holds the rank of Major and the billet of Chief of Operations in a paramilitary organization, it is inconceivable that she had not had any training. This in no way invalidates her Moment, however, as such a move normally results in a stupid death, rather than a cool line and a win.
 * Asuka in The End of Evangelion, when she took on nine Evas, each with unlimited power and a weapon that could slice through an AT field like it wasn't there, at once, armed only with a progressive knife and three and a half minutes of battery power. And won..
 * Of course, given that
 * This troper prefers the earlier part where she takes on the JSSDF. Y'know, by tossing a NERV frigate at them. With the JSSDF's weaponry having no effect on her Eva. (After cowering at the bottom of a lake for a while, she realizes that the Eva contains her mother's spirit and snaps out of it. Then we see the frigate slowly rising from the surface...)
 * Say what you will about End of Evangelion, Rei  Whether   is heartwarming or a wall banger is up for debate.

Rebuild of Evangelion

 * In the original version of the show when Shinji's facing down Shamshel it's clear that he rushes it out of fear. In Rebuild however it's shown that he just taps into his inner Determinator and charges it on with a knife, this time with a roar of anger and not panic.
 * Ramiel. Just...Ramiel. It deserves an award for the simple fact that until Shinji shoots it, it's absolutely blowing through anything and everything without effort. It predicts Unit-01's arrival and shoots it in the chest. When a shield comes up, it simply shifts over to another, even more powerful beam, and blasts the shield apart effortlessly. In an odd way, it almost seems to have a twisted sense of humor with its action. Until it gets shot, snaps, and proceeds to melt his way through a God-damn mountain  to get at Shinji.
 * The particle cannon he was shot with deserves a mention too. It's a weapon that focuses the power output of an entire nation into a coherent beam of energy, that blasts through an AT field that's powerful enough to bend visible light in a single hit! In the original NGE it also one-shots Ramiel. In Rebuild he took two hits, which again warrants another Crowning Moment of Awesome. He gets hit with the power output of an entire nation and lived! Course then it gets subverted and the second hit kills him.
 * Shinji: He gets one at the end of the movie, where Misato's speech of confidence (to Gendo) also deserves a mention.
 * And Rei gets a Crowning Moment when she jumps in front of one of Ramiel's blasts to protect Shinji, using a fricking space shuttle as a shield. Which leads to a Crowning Moment of Heartwarming when Shinji rescues her from the smoldering wreckage of Unit-00.
 * Let's just face it, the entire Ramiel battle (both original and Rebuild versions) is Made of Win.
 * Rebuild is the gift that keeps on giving. In Rebuild 2.0, Mari Illustrious Makinami's VA was an entire Crowning Moment of Awesome for this troper, the fact that she almost casually destroys the 5th Angel while singing a little tune, (About finding your own Happiness no less), is shown having a phone conversation in Surprisingly Good English and was able to go from creepy to cool without missing a beat was so awesome that it made me shed Manly Tears.
 * Mari never fought the Fifth Angel, I presume you're talking about her debut fight against the Third. They changed around the order a bit, taking a lot of 'em out while adding a couple more. But yes, Mari is truly amazing in both of her fights. Total shame that Interim Unit-05 . That thing was damn cool, even for an Eva.
 * Asuka's entrance and brief fight with "Clockiel". After harpoon shots are blocked by the Angel's AT Field, her Eva performs a kick, complete with her trademark battle cry, using the harpoons to break through the AT Field and pierce clean through the Angel's head, spearing the core in the process.
 * The fight against Sahaquiel in Rebuild of Evangelion: you get to feel the power of the Evangelions when you see them destroying highways by simply running over it and jumping over two power lines in a single leap. And just when you thought this couldn't get better, the Angel changes course and Eva-01 has to use some kind of elevated bend just to change direction. By now, the whole scene and music reduced you to tears. And then Shinji willpowers his Eva into running faster than Mach 1.
 * Remember when Shinji threatened to attack NERV headquarters, after the whole thing with Toji and Unit 03/the thirteenth Angel? In Rebuild Shinji takes this to it's logical conclusion by actually attempting to tear down the headquarters when Asuka is the one stuck in Unit 03 while he's being forced to "Murder" her. Holy Shit Quotient be damned.
 * Not only that, he actually would've succeeded, if not for Gendo ordering that the plug pressure be ramped up until Shinji passed out.
 * Early in the battle with Zeruel, Mari Makinami, in command of Unit  (it's a long story) and gets it to go into its berserker state (Which strongly resembles Spiderman's Carnage, by the way) first smashing the multiple AT-Fields of her opponent with appalling ease then to tear down the same with her Eva's maw to let Rei get a shot at it with a nuke. Of course, as in the original series, it doesn't work, but it's still pretty awesome to watch, and is practically a CMOA for the animation team as well. She then goes on to give Shinji the Rousing Speech leading to his-and (at of this writing) arguably Rebuild’s greatest Crowning Moment.
 * Say it with me: [
 * Shinji/Unit 01 versus Zeruel, which has consumed Rei/Unit 00 and can now access Terminal Dogma without triggering the self-destruction of the base. Shinji saves Misato and everyone else at HQ with a punch to Zeruel. Fights inside NERV HQ and out despite losing an arm. Fights until his EVA loses power, as it did in the original. And then, instead of the Eva going berserk and fighting on its own a la 400% synch rate, manages to start the Eva up again with the power of his own will, and controls it the whole time.
 * Three very terse words: "Give Ayanami back!". Cue a beatdown of divine proportions and a "Take My Hand" scene that is as badass as it is touching.
 * He. Became. GOD. I don't really think I need to extrapolate on this, but... words just can't do it justice. It's... His halo (Did I mention the halo of raw energy? Because there's a halo of raw energy.)turns into a tear in the fabric of reality. This scene is epic in every sense of the word. It's really a testament to a series when we can look at the protagonist and go from "Well, at least the world isn't -technically- dead" to " I can see forever in his EYES!".
 * It has been neglected to mention that Shinji and 01, in Rebuild 2.0, basically Rocket Punches Zeruel (with an energy arm, no less). As the Rocket Punch-esque attack starts up, Zeruel almost looks like it's in shock that the puny imitation-angel, that it had nearly fatally wounded seconds ago, is now doing things only Angels could do, such as having the power to become either a God or a Devil.
 * IT has also been neglected to mention that, in Rebuild, Unit-01's A.T. Field takes a full-powered blast from Zeruel's optic blast at point-blank range, and makes it look like a kiddie light show. Then, after the aforementioned Rocket Punch, Shinji and Unit-01 let loose with an Eye Beam of their own, which completely trashes Zeruel's A.T. Field instantly, and nearly slices said Angel in two.
 * And then Shinji decides to tear out Rei's soul while simultaneously delivering a One-Hit Kill to finish his opponent off.
 * To put it simply, this is Shinji normally. THIS is Shinji on spiral power.
 * Heck, just watch the damn thing.
 * Hell, this time around Shinji's not as much of a wuss and kind of Badass. That's a Crowning Moment of Awesome on the part of Gainax Khara. Truly a Crowning Moment of Awesome that will be forever etched in this Troper's mind.

Manga
"Shinji: "I will... protect... Asuka! NEVER AGAIN... SHALL ANYONE... DIE!!!""
 * The manga version has Shinji several moments where he shows honest signs of Badass. The most epic moment being after  which Gendo forced Shinji to do by using the dummy plug to take over Unit 01. He later faces his father and asks him if he has anything to say about it. When Gendo says no, Shinji tries to punch him in the face and is only stopped by Kaji when his fist is literally an inch away from Gendo's face. The moment is so unexpected that Gendo Ikari is thrown off guard and has a look of complete shock on his face.
 * Rei basically gets to deliver a Shut UP, Hannibal to Armisael, who had been trying to convince her that she is evil at heart and her existence is worth nothing.
 * Asuka's first appearance, featuring her beating the crap of a bunch of thugs outside of an arcade, in her civilain dress attire no less!
 * Misato in Chapter 84 of the manga version.
 * In such stark contrast to "End of Evangelion", where he sat and moped, Shinji in the manga takes Misato's urging him on to heart and actually is heading to help Asuka in battle. And instead of sitting and whining when he finds his Eva rendered immobile by bakelite, he says "I have to keep my promise to Misato and help Asuka. Mother....Move. MOTHER! MOOOOVE!" And the Eva comes to life. Damn.
 * And Fridge Brilliance makes it better- Shinji has just saved, oh, maybe two, three minutes of moping around. Two, three minutes in which, in the actual timeline  Do I smell an AU?
 * A scan of the newest manga chapter. OH YEAH. May be a Big Damn Heroes moment, but this is definitely a Crowning Moment of Awesome for Shinji. Yup, definitely an AU by the looks of it.


 * When Gendo shot Ritsuko in "End of Evangelion", that was the end of that. In the manga?
 * This really deserves some elaboration on why this is so freakin' awesome. Throughout the manga, Gendo has been a borderline psychotic monster who  Damn is a freakin understatement!