There
is nothing like partially destroying the world to cause an existential
crisis. Shinji Ikari was always a moody
kid, but he is in for the mother of all guilt trips. The franchise that rejuvenated mecha anime
returns with the third installment of Hideaki Anno’s feature anime “rebuild”
series, Evangelion 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo
(trailer
here), which
screens this Friday in New York.
If
you saw 2.0, you might be somewhat
surprised to learn the climactic battle did not turn out so well, but not as
surprised as Ikari. He will have quite a rude awakening from fourteen years of
suspended animation. His former
protector, Misato Katsuragi is now the leader of WILLE, an outfit explicitly
opposed to his father’s NERV—and she apparently hates his guts. A lot of people
do, including his former hotshot comrade-in-arms, Asuka Shikinami. Nobody will spell it out for him, but they
are all adamant he should never step inside an EVA battle bot again.
As
a result, he is more than willing to desert WILLE for NERV when offered the
chance, particularly since the getaway EVA is piloted by Rei, whom Ikari
thought he had saved at the end of 2.0. She has changed though, whereas his father is
the same old cold Machiavellian. At
least, Ikari makes a new friend in Kaworu Nagisa, with whom he plays
four-handed piano and learns the full devastating extent of the Third Impact he
inadvertently hastened.
Given
the fourteen year time jump, 3.0 ought
to be a convenient entry point to the series, but it actually feels denser than
the previous two outings. It is
definitely a middle film, ending more with a lull in the action than any sense
of closure. While he was never a barrel of laughs, Ikari’s mopiness becomes
almost insufferable. On the plus side,
Shikinami really comes into her own as an anime action role model for girls.
Listening to her tear into Ikari is good, sort of clean, cathartic anime fun.
