Rebuild of Evangelion/Fridge

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


  • Fridge Brilliance: While some absolutely hated the movie in general, others suddenly loved 2.0 once the finale of the movie began since it tied back to the subtitle (You Can (Not) Advance): even if you make these characters happier and better-adjusted...even if you make Shinji braver...even if you try to do everything "right"...in the end, everything and everyone is still doomed. In fact, make Shinji and Rei happy together, and the world seemingly ends faster. The only thing that prevented the end of the world was Kaworu somehow knowing exactly when to show up to prevent Unit 01 from going full Third Impact.
    • This realization only makes Kaworu's lines during the ending hit harder than ever, and make you wonder... "I'll make sure to make you happy THIS time, Shinji."
    • The same can be said of the Japanese subtitles to the first two movies: the first one (Beginning) is just a (Lighter but not softer) retelling of the first part of the series. And then there is the second one, Breaking, where everything goes Off the Rails.
    • Arguably also Asuka's injuries sustained during Unit-03's destruction by Unit-01. Along with the eyepatch, close examination of her body in the recovery room reveals that they mirror the ones she sustained in End of Evangelion.
    • Only seen in the trailer for 3.0 so far, but: Kaworu & EVA-Mark.06 descending into Terminal Dogma is done in an identical fashion to Kaworu & EVA-02 descending into Terminal Dogma in that original TV series. Subtle, but clever when you finally notice it.
    • The international titles of the films have the word "not" in brackets. This is because at the beginnings of the films, Shinji is in the state the title describes without the word "not." By the ends of the films, he reaches the state described by the title with the word "not"; i.e. At the beginning of 1.11 Shinji thinks to himself, "You Are Alone"; at the end of 1.11, "You Are [Not] Alone"; at the beginning of 2.22 Shinji thinks to the angels, "You Can Advance"; at the end of 2.22, "You Can [Not] Advance."
      • Additionally Shinji's thought pattern in the beginning of the movies relate to his resolve in the original series. But Anno has reformatted his outlook, and so Shinji is in the process of doing the same. Shinji is rebuilding his thought process by adding just one word that wasn't there before.
    • You just keep saying "End of the World" like it's a bad thing...
    • This one works for the original series as well, but think about this: when Shinji sees (and then falls on) Rei while she's naked, she isn't phased at all. But then, in 2.0, you see that Gendo talks with her while she's in the LCL tube, naked. Presumably she's been doing this since she was young, so she grew up without a sense of shame.
    • If you look closely, you can actually see a quite big hole in EVA-01's chest armor, but it's not because pieces have broken off. So apparently SEELE expected EVA-01 to eat an Angel and adopt it's S2 Engine. Also doubles as Fridge Horror.
  • In 2.0, Shinji stomps repeatedly on the Nerv Pyramid after the Eva Unit 03 incident. In End of Evangelion, he does the same thing...in his mind or something as a child (don't ask). After he, in EOE destroys his sand pyramid, he begins rebuilding it...I see what you did there Anno.
  • If you listen closely to Give Me Wings, the song that plays at the end of 2.0 as Shinji starts to initiate Third Impact, you'll notice that it has shades of Canon in D Major...just like Komm, Susser Tod, which played over Third Impact in End of Evangelion. Symbolic or no, it's a hell of a callback on the part of Shiro Sagisu.
  • Fridge Horror: Asuka playing with the doll in 2.0. If you've seen the original series, you'll appreciate why this is so messed up.
  • Kaji's joke-flirting with Shinji. Admittedly hilarious the first time you see it, but halfway towards the fridge is when you realize Kaji came on to a 14-year-old boy! Even as a joke, very Dude, Not Funny. And any judge would be inclined to agree.
    • Actually, the legal age of consent in Japan is 13. So, technically, Kaji isn't doing anything wrong.
      • People keep repeating that as a fact even though most prefectures have long since moved the age of consent to 15 or 16. But it's not like Kaji would be in trouble anyway; Shinji clearly manages to take a joke after the initial shock, and Kaji doesn't so much as touch him anyway.
  • Some further thought on the 2.0 ending: while a fairly badass moment for Shinji, he's willing to initiate Third Impact to save the girl he (arguably) loves. Here's where the horror comes in: what exactly is Gendo's overall goal again?
    • Gendo does become that much more awesome/terrifying if you view his life for the past decade as a slow motion Tranquil Fury version of Shinji's freakout.
    • Well, if it's anything like the original continuities (which, with 2 movies left...) it will involve Rei and Adam in some way initiating Instrumentality. So, really, Kaworu's Big Damn Hero moment furthers Gendo's plan (probably).
    • Gendo says flat-out in Rebuild that he's trying to PROTECT the world (this time, at least). Who knows what his plans are, other than that getting Rei and Shinji together is part of it? Note, PART of it. Not the END of it.
  • The Oceans aren't just red, they're filled with Angel Blood. Cool, Ok, we can gather this from context. But it's not just one part of the ocean. It's the ENTIRE BODY OF WATER. The Whole Thing. Just what exactly were the first three angels to cause the need for water purification for the entire Planet? Assuming this ISN'T just a second time around....