Neon Genesis Evangelion: The End of Evangelion

Writing about Neon Genesis Evangelion: Death & Rebirth in VL-9/02, I said: "After Japanese fans were disappointed with the original ending to the Neon Genesis Evangelion anime TV series, creator Hideaki Anno essentially distilled the first 24 episodes down (and added some new sequences) into an impressionistic 70 minutes called "Death" and shot an alternate version of the 25th episode entitled "Rebirth" (which also appears on The End of Evangelion, the second half of this theatrically released two-part finale). Neon Genesis Evangelion: Death & Rebirth will prove to be very tough slogging indeed for those unfamiliar with the spiritual/psychological/shoot 'em up storyline, chronicling the tortured lives of a group of adolescent orphans enlisted to pilot giant bio-engineered mecha known as Evas (Evangelion units) against a group of super-powered Angels bent on ushering in the Apocalypse. Still, with its persistent willingness to noodle over themes of separation, isolation, and spiritual longing, NGE rises above much of its alien-splattering anime brethren and should find a welcome audience among serious anime aficionados." Any hopes that The End of Evangelion, which opens with a reprisal of the final 30 minutes of Death & Rebirth, would be any less cryptic than its forerunner are dashed within the first five minutes of episode 26, "My Purest Heart for You," a mind-blowing, apocalyptic-imagery drenched downer that mixes what one of the commentators on the commentary track calls "technobabble" with lines like "the beginning of the end, the one and the same." Viewers unfamiliar with the series will be completely lost, while even hardcore fans won't be able to cross all the character "t"s and dot all the narrative "i"s, so to speak. Although minus many of the extras on Death & Rebirth, this disc also includes commentary by English language version director/actress Amanda Winn Lee and voice actors Jason Lee and Taliesin Jaffe. While unrated, the program contains strong language, brief nudity and mature situations that would make it suitable for a 16-up rating. Recommended, but only for collections with the entire Neon Genesis Evangelion series, as well as Death & Rebirth. Aud: P. (R. Pitman)