Description:
Neon Genesis Evangelion is the story of a
reluctant young hero, called upon to pilot an
immense robotic weapon in battle against alien
invaders in the year 2015. As the remnants of
the human race cower in subterranean cities, a
deadly war is being waged on what is left of the
planet. On one side are the mysterious beings
known as Angels; on the other, the special
agency NERV and mankind’s last hope, the
awe-inspiring Evangelions. Piloted by a special
team of teenage warriors, these giant
bio-mechanical humanoids are the only thing that
can withstand the force of the Angels’ defense
fields long enough for the pilots to tackle the
invaders themselves in hand to hand combat! With
the lives of every soul on the planet at stake,
these few youngsters must reach down deep inside
themselves to find the strength and courage
necessary to meet the Angels head on in a
desperate attempt to save mankind.
Packaging:
This re-release comes packaged in a
platinum-like slipcover featuring an image of
Shinji looking into the distance. Repeated
handling of the slipcover will result in
unsightly fingerprints, unfortunately, so it is
recommended that you handle it with care. The
case inside the slipcover has the same image,
minus the silver lining. The logo and episodes
are listed on the sides, making the DVD look
like some sort of confidential file. The reverse
sides display brief episode summaries, crew
lists and various technical info.
Menus:
The menus from this release are a big step-up
from the original versions. The five episodes
are listed in the middle, with rippling water in
the right corner, the logo in the left, and the
various selections along the bottom, all set to
the sounds of rushing water and orchestra music.
Very well done, but doesn’t truly capture the
spirit of the show at the point.
Audio/Visual:
This, my friends, is why it’s called a
“Platinum” release. Airing nearly a decade ago,
Evangelion would naturally become dated. For
this release, however, the video has been
completely remastered and re-edited. Several
lines of dialogue have been re-recorded and
background sounds and voices come through much
cleaner. The classic music, comes through
clearer than ever before and it all comes
together for a very polished release.
Extras:
Another high point to the release, it
comes with the now-standard clean OP and
ED as well as various trailers and
credits. For this special release,
commentary tracks have been added to the
first two episodes. The first is a track
for Episode 1, featuring Matt
Greenfield, the VA director for the
dubbed version. His commentary, much to
the disappointment of fans, doesn’t
reveal much about the show itself,
though it offers insight to the
voice-acting world and how an anime is
dubbed. The second has Matt returning,
along with Spike Spencer (Shinji Ikari)
to commentate on Episode 2. When I say
“commentate”, I really mean “talk about
dubbing while they watch TV”. Again, it
doesn’t offer any insight into the
story, though it’s worth pointing out
that Spike has some rather amusing parts
in the commentary. Worth a listen.
Content
(beware, contains
spoilers):
Few otaku haven’t seen the first couple of
episodes to Eva. Heck, some can recite the whole
thing from memory. The first two episodes deal
with Shinji’s arrival at NERV headquarters and
his meeting with his father, Gendo. This
culminates in his piloting of the experimental
EVA-01. Shinji is thrust into battle with the
first (as far as the viewer knows) of the
Angels. Following episodes show Shinji meeting
with the mysterious Rei Ayanami, his new
classmates at his new school and the rest of the
NERV personnel. Naturally, he gets off on the
wrong foot with two classmates, Kensuke and Toji.
They learn to accept Shinji when he has to save
them from the second Angel. The end of the disc
contains the arrival of the third Angel, which
cannot be killed by conventional means and
forces NERV to create a daring plan. The disc
ends on a cliffhanger, causing viewers to
anticipate the next disc to find out how the
operation turns out.
Conclusion:
It’s obvious that ADV took their time with this
release. The extra commentaries are somewhat
interesting, though the real treat is the fully
restored video and sound. For those who first
saw Evangelion on an old TV set in their anime
club’s basement, this is like a dream come true.
For those wanting to get in on one of the most
influential series of all time, this is without
a doubt, the way to do it.
