I’ve always considered Mari to be a sort of stand in for what a healthy mindset and personality looks like in such a twisted world. With regards to how carefree she is, how COULDNT you be if you were ever to be happy. She was always far ahead in her knowledge and abilities, as well as emotional maturity over her fellow pilots. That, to me, connected why she left Gendo’s team after what had happened, understanding that she had to move on to find happiness. And her coming back to fight against them was her way to atone for what had happened to Yui in saving humanity.
OMG😂😂😂 im happy inlovr Mari. Shit, Asuka can't ever be nic3 and change it fucking annoying so Mari being that mid point of not a bitch but more well rounded...but still not normal. Rebuilds for me are better then the series (end of Evangelion being the exception) for hideaki only had despair due to him being in the shit. Being depressed is like sitting in a hole, while time passes you yourself becomes the hole. You can't see anything but nothing. Only WHEN you start to understand you are then able to see the hope. I was sexually abused 4 yrs, drug addiction before 12th grade. So I know how it is, and never liked the despair of the series because humans despair but we are here so we always find hope. Mari is the hope
Mari represents a different kind of strength that was needed to end the series on a positive note. Though Rei was also very strong, Mari was that, self aware, and chose to see the best of every situation unlike everyone else in the series; making her one of the most mentally stable (albeit a bit unhinged) characters out of the entire cast.
For me, she totally breaks the soul of Evangelion. She has no trauma. For me that was the whole point of Evangelion, to explain how we hurt ourselves and others, to expose the cycle of abuse, to how difficult but rewarding it is to let others inside and to show how our inner demons control our life choices. The mechas and ancient aliens were just the garnish on top that,
@@AFPinerosGyou're right as in I also think that's the point of Evangelion. but the point of the movie series is to finally put an end to that. I think Mari is a great addition because she is so contrasting and was what was needed to end this final phase of the franchise. I look at the movies as a sequel to the show, as in the show and everything in it did happen and this time(in the movies) things were different.
@@pineablesoda and porn is adults watching adults hitting each other with unrealistically large objects (which is implied in the end of the rebuild of evangelion)
It was honestly nice to see someone who actually enjoyed piloting an EVA, because even though Evangelion subverted the whole Mech pilot genre, you know there would still be at least one person in that universe that would love to pilot one of those.
@@minicle426 Well in the Gundam universe mech are simply machines of war, which was a subversion of the giant robot kid pilot genre, but even in the real war you’ve got people that would love to fly a fighter plane even though they drop bombs on people and sometimes get blown out of the sky. Eva portrayed all of it’s pilots as damaged, so it only made sense that somewhere in that world someone was piloting an EVA that enjoyed it. And with Marie we finally got to see that. That makes THIS world building seem more complete, it has nothing to do with what any other shows have done.
Theres a war veteran who recently picked up battlefield 46, he is laughing every single time he gets a crazy far snipe its great, theres people who love it@@minicle426
For me personally, I took her as an embodiment of "moving on". Evangelion as a whole, by the time of Rebuild, was pretty much confirmed as a sort of time-loop. Asuka and Rei are the girls Shinji can't move on from, and they're directly related to his trauma. Mari is someone knew, with no prior memories attached. Her attitude is fresh for Shinji, and her presence allows him to take the chance at happiness and move forward in his life--ending the time loop. Of course, I could be projecting.
Your profile picture (the Team Daigurren logo) is ironic here. Think about it, Mari would be at home in Gurren Lagann character-wise. I imagine her as what it looks like when you put someone with the Gurren Lagann philosophy of handling depression, in the life of someone with an NGE philosophy of handling depression. EDIT: They even call her an alien element in the story of EVA.
Well, at first glance it seemd to me like this too. But, in my humble opinion, in reality (universe looking like ours, that was shown in last minutes of 3.0+1.0) Mari and Shinji are totally diferent personas. No matter what story, script or scenario they had expirienced in another dimention, on this level/layer they are unrelated to former plot. Up there they were told that he was her friend's son, but that was just smoke and mirrors in another level... We should separate personalities and actions taken on different layers.
I cosidered Mari to be the opposite of Kaworu, both of them having a wierd optimistic, carefree personality in such a depresive and cruel world. I really loved how Kaworu was the only character to openly show his love for Shinji, but the more I grew and mature and rewatched the movies, manga and anime, Kaworu's smile started feel more like a mask, like he's putting an act for Shinji's sake, having living who knows how many cicles, always meeting Shinji for a short time and dying for his sake, Kaworu was always the last rock Shinji had to stand, he always has to the strong one, all his existance is to make Shinji happy and nothing more, and deep down, he may feel as sad and miserable as all the other characters. While Mari loved Yui (in the manga is shown she loved her in a romatic way) she decided to move on, she is mature enough to know she can fight for her loved ones but she has to look out for herself too, and that's what makes her so strong and smile so genuinely.
Before I watch this, I want to say bravo for attempting to explain a character that said like 20 lines of dialogue within 3 movies. It couldn't be easy.
I may be a mari simp but i really like the idea for her character Despite her script being the size of a post-it note, i feel like it's necessary. shinji couldnt and shouldnt be together with any of the pre-established characters Kaworu is literally an angel, rei's soul has closure and neednt return, and ken² is the only one who can handle asuka's bullshit Mari is a blank slate, perfect for a new beginning.... Neon genesis
As a fan of Mari, I praised this video as comprehensive facts, thoughts, and insights about Makinami Mari Illustrious. Very very interesting! Thank you for your research and effort in making this!
Mari is involved in what I reckon is the most ludicrous piece of fan-theory I ever came up with: At the final scene of 3.0+1.0 before the train station when Mari stands up with the water in her uniform that first appears in 2.0 and the outfit she's most associated with, she is no longer wearing her black thigh-highs. Now, why would they leave that out? Because thigh highs are associated with Zettai ryōiki - that gap between top of socks/stockings and hem of skirt. "Zettai ryōiki" translates to "Absolute Territory" Absolute Territory - AT Fields. Mari isn't wearing her thigh highs because there are no more Evangelions, no more angels and therefore no more AT Fields.
But Didn't we learn in End of Evangelion that every human needs this AT field to keep his body in a human form around it's core he has by the simple fact he is an offspring of Lilith ? Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love this theory. It's just gorgeous wordplay that I 100% trust Ano to implement. Also, there is another question that emerges from this point. What did shinji change with his Neon Genesis in the first place. He made a world that didn't need Eva's okay. But why? Did he simply remove Adam from the Earth ? Or did he change the way of the universe and humans are no longer liliths offspring ? Another possibility would be that he simply eradicated the moment humans found Adam in Antarctica. Do you have a sufficient theory for this to ? Edit: You are an absolute GENIUS. i knew the meanings of the word, but I didn't realize that otakus used this first after NGE came out and used the words Zettai Kyōfu Ryōiki or shortened Zettai ryōiki for this part of the female body. And Ano just went full circle on them and used the wordplay to conclude his own show. Damn I love this man. I absolutely kneel before you for bringing that up it's just so wholesome seeing everything coming together so perfectly
@@Flt.Hawkeye You do need your AT field until you get married or start a LTR. Then you wed and become one flesh. Vaush did a video today where he said that zoomers today who are living together are still playing it cool because they don't want to look like they're "simping" on their long term sexual partners which Vaush says is causing the loneliness epidemic to even impact people in couples. Vaush says we gotta stop this shit if we don't want to go crazy. Vaush says we gotta drop our AT fields, even if that is scary and you can get hurt by it. Honestly, I think it's too late for that. I'm waiting for Unit 01 to bite me in half.
@@JinKee I think the main problem is you’re taking life advice from twitch streamers. They are not experts, they are not your friends. You are their customer. You are their revenue stream.
@@Jayfive276 I said I disagreed with his points because it's too little too late. If people had decided that it was okay to drop your AT field with the person you love about 10 years ago, we could have averted the parasocial shitshow the world has become. Twitch is just church for zoomers. Don't act like you don't do some opiate for the masses too. Everyone pays for a little something to ease the pain of reality.
The problem i have with mari is simple that she is completly underdevolloped... yes you can interpret alot into the few pictures about her past, but its still just a mystery box that should replace a real backstory and that she end up with shinji felt odd because they had nearly no dialogs together... that she hast big breast is the only thing he could say about her because its the only thing he knows about her (maybe besides she is a eva pilot), there was never any chemistry between them or anything so it just felt odd and out of nowhere. It would just needed more build up. In the end she just felt to me as an added pilot to have another EVA on the field, added with a mystery box, so they dont have to write a real character with goals and history.
I vaguely felt like she was meant as the final piece of growth in Shinji’s character development and his choice of women. He was attracted to the other two women because of issues he was dealing with. First it was Rei who was not challenging him or angry at him so he felt safer, then he grew beyond that to be attracted to Asuka who would treat him poorly at times, and then Mari was him finally accepting himself and moving on to a healthier relationship. Minato was in there somewhere. Idk, probably at least a little wrong, but I think Mari was still a signal for character growth in Shinji.
I had a vague impression of who mari was after watching rebuild, but it took this video to rly consolidate those ideas. Everything seems so obvious when said out loud. Thank you 👨🍳
@@tonyfunkIt's not so strange when you consider she didn't see him for over a decade and they've always been, at least physically, about the same age. Also, it's about the same age gap as Han and Leia when they first meet. I have to assume Shinji lived his missing 14 years during the reset or him just waking up on a bench in a 28 year old body is weirder than a potential romance with an "older" woman.
@@imnoandroid4501 Nah, Kenske at least matured and got along with Asuka. They at least got along. But looking at his younger self compared to Asuka...yeah...I do understand what you mean.
I was at high school back in 1997 when my pals and I watched for the first time Evangelion, I don't know if there's a profound meaning in Mari, but I did like her and when I saw the end of 3.0+1.0 I was happy, it was like looking a classmate moving foward for a long situation into a better future. we were fans of Misato, but after that end I am very a Mari's fan today. Nice video what matters is that Shinji had got his bright future with someone lovely.
Loved the video think i understood mari Makinamis role in the evangelion series. She was a bit confusing to understand considering that she barely had any screen time and didn't understand her role in evangelion 2.0 video did well on explaining her.
Yeah, she was definitely a mystery in 2.0... and the rest of the series for that matter. But I'm glad you're able to understand her a little bit more!!! Also, THANKS FOR THE VIDEO SUGGESTION! You rock!!!!
Despite the unconnected paths, I'll still always love the symmetry of Anno and Shinju both ultimately finding the path to a better life in their own ways.
So glad u made this video. I just rewatched ur evangelion Playlist and after 3.0+1.0 I thought this was all there was gonna be about evangelion from you and we'll never get an answer for Mari. Thank you very much this video is incredible
It truly means a lot to me! Thank you sooo much!!! I'm happy to make more Eva content! Also, I have more Eva video ideas so you shouldn't worry about me not making any more Eva videos in the future!
@@tonyfunkI would love to see a video that explores Rei Ayanami's LGBTQIA+ identity. Apparently, Fuyutsuki once said that Rei is "Free of Sexual Distinction". This implies that Rei Ayanami is intersex with secondary feminine characteristics! (She doesn't have reproductive organs.) On top of that, she's probably asexual and/or aromantic.
The biggest unaswered question about Mari is her mother. Her being able to pilot an eva with no core containing her mother's soul breaks continuity from the 90's t.v. series and Manga. Thoughts? 🎉
funking finally now i funking understanded what is going on in all the ending in evangelion series now, thank you for explaining in this video without you talking about her I would still be quite confused about the ending of the movie, I have never seen this evagelion series until today i'm still confused about the whole story from the begining to the end, it still gives me a headache every time i watch all this evagelion explained video in few hours ago and after watching your explaning video i understand all the pieces in this series is connected to it and without you explained about her, I would call and buy few oxygen for my mind, and after this video i see that thanks to mari makenami in this rebuild movie, she helped shinji get out of repetitive cycle of loop in his universes and become his future guide wife.
Mari was my second fav character after Kaworu. There's something about her that i like more than trio main characters is, her cheerful mentality even in dangerous situation.
I didn't get the impression that Mari was 14. Not to say that I have any info to base this on. Just an impression. Mari seems to be a girl genius who joined the research program after Yui, based on a manga that is not exactly canon but written by one of her creators. I do think she was among the first to survive a contact experiment and this was part of how Nerv came to understand the importance of kids as EVA pilots. It's even possible that she performed her contact experiment first. Based on her design, the confirmation that her actual history parallels the one in the manga, and events that play out, Mari feels more like 16 than 14. Still trapped by the Curse of EVA. It seems Yui wasn't running a larger plan in the rebuild version of the loop. So I guess that Mari knew something from Yui. Survivor's guilt alone suggests she would have looked after Shinji. Instead, it seems she left academia and joined Nerv UK as a plant. In this iteration, the Ayanami series clones seem as if they were purpose built to pilot EVA and Gendo just hijacked that purpose a little. It feels that way because the Shikinami series clones were definitely created, trained and pruned specifically to pilot Ni-goki Mari isn't a clone, but she has the Ayanami type naming convention. That implies Nerv UK presented her to the world as if she had been. Kagi, I think, created WILLE without her. He's a great investigator and he likely knew there was reason to view Gendo as sus. I think he worked his way into Gendo's confidence and was sent to retrieve the specimen in Antarctica. Where he met Mari and they came to understand they had compatible goals. Thus both of them being uncertain if it was a good idea to involve the other in their plans. Finally, I don't think Fuyuski had any deep animosity towards Mari. I think he loved Yui, supported Gendo but didn't entirely disagree with Mari. He tells her that he did as she asked during their last meeting. He helped her. Shinj embraced death when he entered Unit One. Mari was strangely positioned to pull him out of conceptual space. But accounting for her role in research, it's very likely she understood the Dead Sea scrolls prophecy as well or better than Gendo and had, roughly, planned on being able to reach him at Evangelion Imaginary (EVA Unit i?) One way or another. Mari stayed in contact with Fuyuski to set up her final gambit. Fuyuski, for his part, I think was just looking after Gendo for the sake of the woman he loved and felt his job was done. He might have helped Mari because she convinced him Yui approved of her plan, but he didn't care whether Mari or Gendo won. As for her character... It feels a lot more intentional than they claim. Mari is the Otaku's mecha pilot dream girl. Hyper competent, emotionally unencumbered, always playing back up and just a bit too sexual toward the protagonist than realistic. Eye candy/fan service as they were, Asuka and Rei weren't meant to be just "Shinji's girls." Fandom often reduced them to that. Mari is clearly built expressly for that role. Based on the creators' word, this seems mostly an accident. But it fits so perfectly, it's my head canon. Oh, and I think Mari was well aware she was setting up 3rd impact when she made sure Shinji got to see Unit Zero get eaten. I think she knew the only way to save the world was getting to EVA Unit i and "making a wish." Mari is between 28 and 30 years old when we meet her. She's been using Nerv to execute her own plan, seemingly completely independently, for 13 years. When we next meet her, she's at least 42. It's important to keep in mind that, despite her attitude seeming carefree, she seems to be as knowledgeable, if not more so, than Gendo and the the third oldest major character. Her being more mature than basically everyone makes sense if you presume she knew, roughly, where things were going and had been actively shaping events for a decade before we meet her. She also shows close to superhuman agility as a pilot and zero fear of entering the "contamination zone" of a core, implying she's already been there, done that.
Even if it was created by Tsurumaki he might've modeled it after what he observed from Anno. 24:33 It don't matter to me or anyone tho. I am simply glad Anno healed and everyone is happy.. and that we got a beautiful end to this wonderful story.
Maybe, at a push you could argue that Mari's actions resemble Moyoco helping her hubby out of his depression between 2.0 and 3.0. Even those Gendo flashbacks seem to suggest someone trying to help people get out of their funk: "Cmon Gendo-kun, don't be boring and get that mask off. Come meet my friend Yui, she's a straight hottie!"
Yes it's 100% possible and I personally can't rule that out. Having said that, my video was meant to clear the air based on statements that are already out there instead of using my personal biases. Also... YES. I'm glad Anno got his resolve, it was a helluva ride for him.
Just to say, Anno has denied that Shinji and Mari wound up together, he describes her as a maternal figure in his life.... which almost seems to undermine the lesson in Rei. Almost.
@@tonyfunkHey Tony, just a heads up, you might need to tell them to email you. TH-cam has an algorithm that deletes comments that contain hyperlinks. This can create confusion and anguish for commenters who want to send you links but don't know how.
That was a really great video! It was gratifying to see that I was on the right track with my own theories about Mari, though I was missing some key details. Awesome video!
Great video! I've been holding off on watching anything that came after "end of eva" just so I could get a complete picture of the story as a whole and have the option to go back and reinvestigate as I needed. I guess its time for me to rejoin the Eva universe :)
This is well done. I wish to thank you for doing this. Mai was the most mysterious of the children and the only way you could figure her out was by watching all the Eva's twice. At least I did.
She really is, most positive mindset too.. even towards asuka, calling her cute nickname "princess." But to be honest, she felt more like fan service. She really just came 20 years later! Mari is light for shinji, and I don't doubt it.
I never took the end of the Rebuild movies to mean Mari and Shinji are together romantically. I took it as Shnji embracing the chaos (what Mari represents) that comes with the fact that accepting moving forward means being ok with change.
Fans: They’re just friends, Holding Hands and casually flirting. Shinji flirting means he’s gained confidence. Anno: There’s nothing more Romantic than Holding Hands.
Soooooo... Long story short, in hommage to her dead collegue, Mari naturally ended up having a relationship with said collegue's son? Japan really is something else... This video was great though, Evangelion is so good at giving information through bits and pieces and hints that picking up everything and regrouping everything is extremely valuable to finally get the big picture, and I think it was necessary for this character who was completely new.
The relationship is only inferred. After all the conversation in the final scene of "Thrice..." is basically: M: "Well hey there, lookin' good" S: "Right back at'cha hot stuff" M: "Shall we go into town?" S: "Sure" [One Last Kiss intensifies]
Yeah, it's weird. There's no way to get around that... But ultimately, they left little ambiguity as to what kind of relationship they'd have after the end, so the most likely outcome is that Mari and Shinji are an item.
AAAA! I couldnt wait for this! Your Kaworu and Rei videos are some of the best out there and Mari was clearly important (Especially in 3.0+1.01) but its hard to grasp. Only the Funk, the mast of all 4 Evas could stop this. And when the world needed him most, he appeared
Great analysis video about Mari. I agree especially with the section of partnerships between 19:15 to 19:36. Each of them had something to give to each other. And each of them had something to give Shinji as a lesson in relationships between friends and loved ones.
YESSS YOU MADE A MARI VIDEO!! I understand why Eva fans might have found her an enigma in a frustrating way over the Rebuilds; for me, her presence from the start of 2.0 signified something alien from the NGE timeline dropping into the Rebuild timeline. Although fine details about her origin and motives are still mysterious, I think what we were given in 3.0+1.0 was the perfect balance of answering questions but also giving us, as fans, creative freedom to fill in the gaps. Basically, I feel like it boils down to: If piloting the Eva is comparable to living life head-on, Mari is like the embodiment of optimistic energy, and the perfect counter-Shinji to swoop in help him find a true peace of mind.
Well said!!!! And yeah, even though I think they could have done a way better job of incorporating her into the series, I like that 3.0+1.0 didn't reveal too much about her, giving us the opportunity to infer the rest!
Depression is a liar & anxiety is a withholder. Optimism and self-confidence erase those ill groundless thoughts. Mari in Rebuild represented Anno's optimism as he wrote the Rebuild series. Pen Pen back in the original series could be perceived as Anno's way of projecting his sense of humour which kept him motivated and alive at a low time in his life. By Rebuild, Pen Pen is intentionally replaced by Mari for Anno's mental state has by now greatly improved, especially after years of support and, I believe, his total victory over depression. At least that's how I feel having underwent burnout, low self-esteem and depression in the past, before I finally uncovered optimism in my life, which has proved immensely beneficial to me. Think that hypothetical "survivor's guilt" part on Mari is important, for it implied the equally important point of moving on in pursuit of something greater. NOT to date your colleague's son of course .. but to seek out the good in the bad, and that's helped me. Hence, to me at least, Mari represents optimism & self-confidence; fuelling Rebuild & overturned a highly depressing situation. Reject depression; learn to appreciate & embrace optimism at all times.
I personally don't like the idea of Asuka ending up with Kensuke, it honestly feels forced, the relationship they had was definitely more of a father/daughter relationship. Same with Mari and Shinji, she felt more like an older sister, or an aunt to him. Still, great video
Thank someone that sees what I see, Mari is literally around the same age as shinji’s mother and it rubs me the wrong way if their relationship was romantic.
Yeah. It's odd that the rebuild doesn't touch on the Misato and Shinji romantic connection, which was a welcomed change since that was... uncomfortable, but at the same time it shows Shinji can't realistically date a person who is could also be a mother figure to him. But then he ends up with Mari??
Certainly my fav of the series! She's got the best mech (prov unit 5, rip wheely boi, pink's cool too though), best attitude (she's one of the few people that just straight up has Shinji's back and given poor Kawrou can't get a break it's nice to see that, not to mention actually having some fun with the giant robots), and honestly is best girl for Shinji. Kawrou wasn't a bad choice but... well... we know how that ended, Rei's still working on being a human at all even before you know, being a clone of his mom and all and Oscar just *cannot* get over herself. Ironically for being seemingly nuts she feels the most sane somehow. Honestly just the fact that she went back for Shinji makes her a fav to me. As someone who thinks eva can get a bit to into itself for it's own good I like having something a bit more straightforward.
As someone who couldn't stand Shinji at first but grew to respect his growth as a person by the end of the original series, I'm glad that, after 25 years, he finally got to be with someone that's actually good for him. Mari also seems to have elements of Misato's personality, but with healthier coping mechanisms, which makes me instantly like her, since Misato was by far my favorite character from the original series. I'm glad Mari exists within NGE.
While I can definitely appreciate the symbolism in what Mari is supposed to represent as an element of Rebuild as a whole, the main problem I have with her overall is just her implementation as a character. Mari was shoehorned in as a way to differentiate Rebuild from Neon-Genesis, and the writers really just didn't know what to do with her. She stays this comically mysterious character with only a handful of scenes throughout the films, which makes it incredibly difficult to identify with her as a viewer, so with this lack of overall presence and character relations in mind, it feels like the writers haphazardly applied this cop-out background of her relationship with Yui, Gendo and Fuyutsuki as a way of applying lore importance to her without having to commit to developing an emotional connection between her and the viewer. Is she important to the overall story of Rebuild? Of course she is, but without that emotional connection between her and the audience, her symbolic role in the films is weakened significantly. I have no problem with Shinji moving on in his life with Mari as his romantic partner, because yeah his relationships with Rei and Asuka were very unhealthy for him, but the main issue isn't what Mari represents thematically, but instead the role she plays for the viewer. The reason why people fell in love with Neon-Genesis 30 years ago was the emotionally charged upbringings of it's characters, and how their relationships with Shinji grew overtime. Shinji is supposed to act as a bridge into the world of Evangelion, so when he forms relations with the characters, so do we as viewers. Take for example the emotional impact that Kaworu had on Shinji in just a single twenty minute episode of Neon-Genesis. Shinji spends an entire episode with Kaworu building a deeply connected bond with him. We feel Shinji's connection with Kaworu because Shinji is the vessel between the viewer and the show. So after Shinji is forced to kill Kaworu at the end of the episode, it takes a massive psychological toll on his mind, after which Shinji is never the same again. It's an incredibly sad moment for both Shinji and the viewer. Kaworu works because of the deep connection he forms with Shinji in such a short amount of time. That's not to say that Kaworu is good for Shinji per se, but it's a demonstration of how impactful the writers can make a character by simply forming deep and meaningful bonds between them. Mari in comparison has almost no interaction with Shinji compared to the other characters, which makes her connection with the viewer very loose. This problem wouldn't exist if they simply gave her a more involved relationship with Shinji, which they had FOUR movies to do, yet they waited until the last few minutes of the last movie to finally draw that bond between her and Shinji. Again, it just feels like a cop-out. "Hey, we know this character barely has any emotional connection with the viewer and the protagonist, so let's have them start a new relationship at the very end of the final film to make up for it!" It's just lazy, and it completely undermines what made people fall in love with Evangelion in the first place. Overall, I won't deny the lore significance that Mari carries throughout the rebuild series, but I feel like Mari is emblematic of where some of the greatest shortcomings of Rebuild stem from, that being it's shortage of meaningful character development. Asuka loses everything that made her interesting in Neon-Genesis, Rei has very little development until the opening third of the final movie's runtime, and Mari is a shoehorned character who the writers spent four movies scrambling to add depth, meaning and purpose to. That's not to say it has no character development at all, or that all of the character development is bad, which it isn't. Shinji's character arc and conclusion are generally pretty well done, and Kaworu was made more interesting than ever in 3.0, but the point is, it should ALL be more interesting than ever, which unfortunately, it isn't. Still good movies overall, but inferior to Neon-Genesis where it matters most. Edit: I also didn't like Mari's over-sexualization throughout the Rebuild series either. The lewd moments with Asuka in Neon-Genesis for example made sense because it only happened either when she was alone and in a deep train of thought (which acted as a bridge for the viewer into her mind during an emotionally vulnerable moment) or during moments when she was demonstrating her need to feel desired by others, such as her constant prodding at Kaji and her jealousy of Misato's relationship with him, or when she was trying to peak Shinji's romantic interest in her after he saved her life, causing her to begin developing feelings for him. The lewd moments with Rei made sense as it was the show's way of demonstrating her emotional detachment and ignorance from otherwise embarrassing situations (like when Shinji walked in on her as she was exiting the shower) or the soulless clones of her sitting in stasis waiting for the living Rei's soul to transfer itself from her body into theirs. Then there's Misato's lewd moments which usually only happen around Kaji, moments that make sense given their adult romantic interests in each other. Her sexual interactions with him also act as an escape for her in a similar manner to her alcoholism, something lots of people out there can easily identify with as a coping mechanism. Now correct me if I'm wrong, but Mari on the other hand has plenty of lewd scenes which really don't seem to add much to her character or personality. It mostly seems like they just have Mari's lewd scenes not as a depiction of a carefree, spicy attitude, but instead as awkward fan service which clashes with the creator's vocal distain for the community's sexualization of the cast. It's kind of ironic how the creators are vocal about wanting people to stop sexualizing these characters, while deliberately going out of their way to needlessly sexualize the characters! I wasn't grossed out by the lewd moments in Neon-Genesis because they were done as a way of demonstrating emotionally personal moments to enrichen the relationship between the characters and the viewer, but Rebuild (Especially with Mari specifically) sort of just does away with the idea of adding nuance to the lewdness.
3:09 - of course he fukken did... Anno: Oh yeah and I'm sleeping in the animation office tonight Sadamoto: Pulling an all-nighter? I feel ya man... Anno: Nah Dawg, it's just Moyoco saw my browser history...
Mari is an anomaly, she is someone who wasn't supposed to exist in the Evangelion Universe. The war against the Angels was rigged from the beginning since SEELE first awoke the embryo Adam from Antarctica. In spite of the pilot's best efforts, SEELE and Gendo were always one step ahead, sabotaging their efforts and playing God to manipulate the outcome to their desires at the cost of the sanity of our main characters. The way I see it, the best way to fight an omnipotent secret society such as SEELE is to be a ghost, and that's what Mari is. She is from an unknown third party, known only to the director Anno himself, who even stated that there were some secrets he'd carry to his grave.
GPT-san: Yes, Evangelion 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time incorporates a nuanced theme of empowerment and breaking cycles of self-destruction, with Mari Makinami Illustrious playing a pivotal role in this. Her character embodies a unique type of resilience, independence, and optimism that stands in contrast to the often tragic and self-destructive behaviors of the male characters, especially Shinji and Gendo. Here’s how Mari’s character contributes to this theme: 1. Mari’s Role as a Symbol of Freedom and Joy Unlike the other pilots, who struggle with burdens of trauma, loneliness, or duty, Mari’s approach to piloting an Evangelion is notably playful, joyful, and untethered by the same existential anguish. She genuinely enjoys piloting, free from the psychological burdens that haunt Shinji, Asuka, and Rei. Mari’s presence serves as a counterbalance to the themes of despair and self-destruction prevalent among the male characters, especially Shinji. Her vitality and lack of emotional baggage suggest a healthier way of engaging with the self and the world around her. 2. Breaking the Cycle of Male-Created Destruction Throughout the series, men like Gendo, Seele's members, and even Shinji perpetuate cycles of destruction in pursuit of control, idealized worlds, or personal redemption. Gendo’s entire arc centers on his desire to transcend humanity and reunite with his deceased wife, Yui, even at the expense of everyone else. Mari, on the other hand, embraces the present, focusing on human connection and life as it is, without a desire to alter reality or transcend mortality. Her actions aren’t driven by a need to change the world or escape suffering but rather by an appreciation for life itself, helping Shinji realize the value of moving forward and choosing life over self-destruction. 3. Empowering Shinji to Break Free from Destructive Patterns Mari’s unique outlook indirectly influences Shinji to finally break the chain of repeating destructive cycles that defined him throughout the series. By the end of Thrice Upon a Time, her positive influence, along with that of other characters, helps Shinji realize he can reject the path of Instrumentality and instead seek a world without Evangelions-a world of human connection and normalcy. This shift marks a critical departure from Shinji’s reliance on Evangelions and traumatic patterns inherited from Gendo’s self-destructive obsession. With Mari’s help, Shinji embraces a future beyond his father’s legacy and beyond the need for Evangelions, ending the cycle. 4. Mari’s Independence from Past Evangelion Archetypes Mari is deliberately distinct from the original, tortured female archetypes in Evangelion, like Rei and Asuka. She has no connection to the tragic backstories or psychological complexities that characterize their journeys. In many ways, she represents a “new woman” archetype in Evangelion-unbound by the trauma and restrictions placed on other characters. This difference symbolizes a kind of evolution within the narrative itself, presenting a female character whose role is neither defined by tragedy nor manipulation but by autonomy, choice, and self-assuredness. Mari’s independence suggests a hopeful break from the series’ historical themes of suffering, sacrifice, and existential dread. 5. Mari as the Final Companion for Shinji in a Rebuilt World In the final moments of Thrice Upon a Time, Mari’s presence by Shinji’s side in the real-world setting underscores the series’ shift toward growth, companionship, and grounded human connection. She symbolizes a future that isn’t rooted in past traumas but is hopeful, where men and women can face life without falling into the destructive cycles that defined the series. In sum, Mari’s character does indeed reinforce a theme of empowerment and the breaking of destructive cycles. She brings a fresh, resilient perspective to the story, which contrasts sharply with the self-doubt and despair of male characters like Shinji and Gendo. Her influence helps to usher in a new path-one where the past’s destructive cycles are abandoned in favor of a brighter, more grounded future. This is a thematic shift that signals an evolved outlook for Evangelion and its characters, breaking free from the chains of their past.
I still will find it weird that the directors decided that Shinji should end up with her. I mean I’m glad he didn’t end up with Asuka, but still it’s weird.
@@tonyfunkthe way i see this is that, isn't that adam guy promises that he'll make an ending when shinji ends up being happy. Because we see him waking up in the moon and it looks like he too is stuck in cycle, cycle of rebirth. So unless a new variable is mixed to disrupt the cycle, all of them will still going to be stuck repeating it over and over again. That's just my take on it. And there's a TH-cam video that for me properly explained everything to everyone whether you've watched before or thinking about watching it now and it helps.
I always thought her inclusion was to show that if your depression is a vicious cycle by introducing someone from outside that depression can you break the cycle. AKA for him, his wife. In his interviews about his depression and his wife he even says as much.
16:05 Slightly off topic, but seeing any artwork of Gendo, Fuyutsuki, and Yui together as young researchers just hits hard in a way that can't be explained to people who've never seen the franchise
I think you got something Wrong. Fujuzuki doesn't love Yui he cherished her as a collegue and imop saw her as a daughter. The way That he talks when thinking about her makes me think that he just wanted her to get rest. I think he was genuinely sorry for her soul being mangled and trapped inside the Eva. That's Imop his whole motivation. Also Yui wasn't lost in the entry plug. Yui was lost in an direct contact experiment with unit 01's core. This is clearly seen in the original series. Also Also askuka didnst spend her life with Kensuke. He was a kind of Father/Teacher figure for her. But nit her entire life at lest that is what Ano said in an interview about his changes to the caracters. He stated "Kesuke is defintely not an love interest for asuka he is more like a Father figure for her to anchor herself to the real world." "After all i still think shinji is still the only person to love asuka and the other way around" Awesome video however I really love these deep dives into characters.
Hi, thank you for your comment! I appreciate you sharing your ideas!!! As far as Fuyutsuki's feelings go, whether they were romantic or platonic, his goal still overlapped with Gendo's as stated by Mari. This means he was willing to forsake humanity for Yui's sake. So even if we split hairs, it was his love for Yui, that caused him to become a villain. When I said Yui was lost in the entry plug, I'll admit it wasn't the most precise language I could've used. What I meant to say was that Yui was lost through the entry plug. Her contact experiment was stated to be similar to Shinji's near dissolution in NGE which happened while he was in the entry plug. In other words, Yui's contact experiment was done through an entry plug before she dissolved into Unit 01's biomass. Also, I had no idea about Anno's quote regarding Kensuke and Asuka's relationship! Thank you for sharing that, that was very insightful! Having said that, Asuka still found someone who'd love her in Kensuke. Even if we assume they don't become lifelong friends, Kensuke's role in Asuka's life is still thematically the same. He gave Asuka a chance to be loved and accepted for who she was. Thanks again for your comment! It means a lot!!!
@tonyfunk thanks for your answer. I know much of my statings were nothing more than splitting hair. But for me, I find it important to state out things that could be misunderstood by ppl not so deep into the lore. But still, I think you got something wrong. Yuis dissoving into Eva 01 had nothing to do with an entry plug whatsoever she was wearing this fancy suit. I think you even show it in one of your scenes of EOE. Yui was lowered directly into the core in the chest of the Eva. Yes shinji also dissolved into the LCL of the Eva while he was swallowed by the angel. But he disappeared in the LCL of the plug and later emerged from the Eva's core. Yui never sat in an entry plug in the first place
Hmmm, you know what? After much rumination, I think you're right. My understanding is that since Yui was stated to have been absorbed into Unit 01's core, I assumed her contact experiment was done via an entry plug. There's no concrete evidence for this, so ultimately I made an assumption that appears to be misguided. Good job correcting an error I made.
@tonyfunk nah i don't think it's really an error. Your essentially true Yui vanished inside Eva 01. In the series, it's never really shown how this happened. There is just this tiny scene in End of Evangelion. So it's absolutely reasonable to conclude she was in an entry plug. Edit: I just found out I was also wrong. There is a 4 or so second long scene in 3.33 were you can see yui dive into the core of Eva unit 01. It's in that time where shinji meets Fujuzuki in the Nerve HQ to play shogi with him. Also I want to state again I absolutely love your analysis of the deeper meanings of Shinjis relationship to every character in the plot. It's just stunningly good. And I also agree Mari has this slight rushed feeling to her but the Rebuild would never be able to really move on without her to find peace in the ending of something. For me Mari always was a person that simply took my hand and said it's over now. It's sad, but that's okay, and it's good that all came to an end. Let's move on. A character that could say and do something no other character in the series could. And this was just so great for me.
Well she was about 16 when she started working with Yui and Gendo - Especially if you consider that extra manga chapter where she explicitly states her age to be part of the Rebuild continuity. So if she's 16 when Gendo and Yui first meet we need to give it 2 years or so for them to date, get married and for Shinji to be born. So at 18 Mari gets hit with curse of Eva either through piloting an Eva and/or the Yui contact experment and Shinji is already born by then. She's a little taller when she is Cursed than the other pilots. Physically she is still about 18 but chronologically around 32 in 2.0 and then post-timeskip....mid-late 40s? There's a big hint that she's older than she looks right from her first appearance because she's always singing songs from the Showa era which indicates she grew up with that music - the song she sings at the start of 2.0 was released in 1968-69 for example. But it seems the reset of the Rebuild universe at the end of 3.0+1.0 means she can pick her own age so she settles on around 28 so she can be Shinji's companion/girlfriend/lover/f**kbuddy/whatever without it being weird(er).
This is kinda encouraging me to watch the Rebuild movies because I found the original series way too depressing. Which sucks since Evangelion's one of the first anime I got to watch.
I’ve always considered Mari to be a sort of stand in for what a healthy mindset and personality looks like in such a twisted world. With regards to how carefree she is, how COULDNT you be if you were ever to be happy. She was always far ahead in her knowledge and abilities, as well as emotional maturity over her fellow pilots. That, to me, connected why she left Gendo’s team after what had happened, understanding that she had to move on to find happiness. And her coming back to fight against them was her way to atone for what had happened to Yui in saving humanity.
OMG😂😂😂 im happy inlovr Mari. Shit, Asuka can't ever be nic3 and change it fucking annoying so Mari being that mid point of not a bitch but more well rounded...but still not normal. Rebuilds for me are better then the series (end of Evangelion being the exception) for hideaki only had despair due to him being in the shit. Being depressed is like sitting in a hole, while time passes you yourself becomes the hole. You can't see anything but nothing. Only WHEN you start to understand you are then able to see the hope. I was sexually abused 4 yrs, drug addiction before 12th grade. So I know how it is, and never liked the despair of the series because humans despair but we are here so we always find hope.
Mari is the hope
Mari represents a different kind of strength that was needed to end the series on a positive note. Though Rei was also very strong, Mari was that, self aware, and chose to see the best of every situation unlike everyone else in the series; making her one of the most mentally stable (albeit a bit unhinged) characters out of the entire cast.
@@tonyfunk If Rei she was just okay with any situation I mean she knows what to do and well she's fine and always okay but we're her fans sympathize
For me, she totally breaks the soul of Evangelion. She has no trauma.
For me that was the whole point of Evangelion, to explain how we hurt ourselves and others, to expose the cycle of abuse, to how difficult but rewarding it is to let others inside and to show how our inner demons control our life choices. The mechas and ancient aliens were just the garnish on top that,
@@AFPinerosGyou're right as in I also think that's the point of Evangelion. but the point of the movie series is to finally put an end to that. I think Mari is a great addition because she is so contrasting and was what was needed to end this final phase of the franchise. I look at the movies as a sequel to the show, as in the show and everything in it did happen and this time(in the movies) things were different.
"Only through him (Shinji) could she pay her debt to Yui" --> "I'm going to honor my friend by dating her son" 💀
💀💀💀
Mari is the only one in the show who knows she's in a cartoon.
LMAO. I can see that
Cartoon is something children watch with animals hitting each other with unrealistically big objects.
@@pineablesoda and porn is adults watching adults hitting each other with unrealistically large objects (which is implied in the end of the rebuild of evangelion)
@@JinKee and nobody cares.
@@Flt.Hawkeyewhy so pressed 😂
It was honestly nice to see someone who actually enjoyed piloting an EVA, because even though Evangelion subverted the whole Mech pilot genre, you know there would still be at least one person in that universe that would love to pilot one of those.
Gundam was doing that long before Eva.
@@minicle426 Well in the Gundam universe mech are simply machines of war, which was a subversion of the giant robot kid pilot genre, but even in the real war you’ve got people that would love to fly a fighter plane even though they drop bombs on people and sometimes get blown out of the sky. Eva portrayed all of it’s pilots as damaged, so it only made sense that somewhere in that world someone was piloting an EVA that enjoyed it. And with Marie we finally got to see that. That makes THIS world building seem more complete, it has nothing to do with what any other shows have done.
Asuka enjoyed piloting an Eva, though
Theres a war veteran who recently picked up battlefield 46, he is laughing every single time he gets a crazy far snipe its great, theres people who love it@@minicle426
@@truegamerkingAnd though he never got to, Kensuke is the absolute embodiment of who these comments are trying to describe.
The chad Mari, barely getting any introduction, and just suddenly sweeping in and ending the 26 year long Shinji-bowl
Based Mari lmao
Happiness really does come from unexpected places.
For me personally, I took her as an embodiment of "moving on". Evangelion as a whole, by the time of Rebuild, was pretty much confirmed as a sort of time-loop. Asuka and Rei are the girls Shinji can't move on from, and they're directly related to his trauma. Mari is someone knew, with no prior memories attached. Her attitude is fresh for Shinji, and her presence allows him to take the chance at happiness and move forward in his life--ending the time loop.
Of course, I could be projecting.
Then that makes 2 of us, I agree with you word by word
Make it 3
Your profile picture (the Team Daigurren logo) is ironic here. Think about it, Mari would be at home in Gurren Lagann character-wise. I imagine her as what it looks like when you put someone with the Gurren Lagann philosophy of handling depression, in the life of someone with an NGE philosophy of handling depression.
EDIT: They even call her an alien element in the story of EVA.
Ohh you cooking
She's gone through great effort to groom her senior classmates son.
Well, at first glance it seemd to me like this too. But, in my humble opinion, in reality (universe looking like ours, that was shown in last minutes of 3.0+1.0) Mari and Shinji are totally diferent personas. No matter what story, script or scenario they had expirienced in another dimention, on this level/layer they are unrelated to former plot. Up there they were told that he was her friend's son, but that was just smoke and mirrors in another level... We should separate personalities and actions taken on different layers.
Misato walked so Mari could run.
@@tombombadilofficial💀
@@tombombadilofficial🗿
it should've been me!!!! NOT HIM!!!
I cosidered Mari to be the opposite of Kaworu, both of them having a wierd optimistic, carefree personality in such a depresive and cruel world.
I really loved how Kaworu was the only character to openly show his love for Shinji, but the more I grew and mature and rewatched the movies, manga and anime, Kaworu's smile started feel more like a mask, like he's putting an act for Shinji's sake, having living who knows how many cicles, always meeting Shinji for a short time and dying for his sake, Kaworu was always the last rock Shinji had to stand, he always has to the strong one, all his existance is to make Shinji happy and nothing more, and deep down, he may feel as sad and miserable as all the other characters.
While Mari loved Yui (in the manga is shown she loved her in a romatic way) she decided to move on, she is mature enough to know she can fight for her loved ones but she has to look out for herself too, and that's what makes her so strong and smile so genuinely.
Wait WHAT MARI WAS GAY
@@恩陶梁 for all we know, she is gay for Yui lmao
Before I watch this, I want to say bravo for attempting to explain a character that said like 20 lines of dialogue within 3 movies. It couldn't be easy.
I may be a mari simp but i really like the idea for her character
Despite her script being the size of a post-it note, i feel like it's necessary. shinji couldnt and shouldnt be together with any of the pre-established characters
Kaworu is literally an angel, rei's soul has closure and neednt return, and ken² is the only one who can handle asuka's bullshit
Mari is a blank slate, perfect for a new beginning.... Neon genesis
I agree!!!!
I'm the same thing bro👍
As a fan of Mari, I praised this video as comprehensive facts, thoughts, and insights about Makinami Mari Illustrious. Very very interesting! Thank you for your research and effort in making this!
Mari is involved in what I reckon is the most ludicrous piece of fan-theory I ever came up with:
At the final scene of 3.0+1.0 before the train station when Mari stands up with the water in her uniform that first appears in 2.0 and the outfit she's most associated with, she is no longer wearing her black thigh-highs. Now, why would they leave that out?
Because thigh highs are associated with Zettai ryōiki - that gap between top of socks/stockings and hem of skirt.
"Zettai ryōiki" translates to "Absolute Territory"
Absolute Territory - AT Fields.
Mari isn't wearing her thigh highs because there are no more Evangelions, no more angels and therefore no more AT Fields.
Wow!!!! That's an awesome theory! I'm sure it wasn't an accident to animate her like that on the beach!!!
But Didn't we learn in End of Evangelion that every human needs this AT field to keep his body in a human form around it's core he has by the simple fact he is an offspring of Lilith ?
Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love this theory. It's just gorgeous wordplay that I 100% trust Ano to implement.
Also, there is another question that emerges from this point. What did shinji change with his Neon Genesis in the first place. He made a world that didn't need Eva's okay. But why? Did he simply remove Adam from the Earth ? Or did he change the way of the universe and humans are no longer liliths offspring ? Another possibility would be that he simply eradicated the moment humans found Adam in Antarctica. Do you have a sufficient theory for this to ?
Edit: You are an absolute GENIUS. i knew the meanings of the word, but I didn't realize that otakus used this first after NGE came out and used the words
Zettai Kyōfu Ryōiki or shortened Zettai ryōiki for this part of the female body. And Ano just went full circle on them and used the wordplay to conclude his own show. Damn I love this man.
I absolutely kneel before you for bringing that up it's just so wholesome seeing everything coming together so perfectly
@@Flt.Hawkeye You do need your AT field until you get married or start a LTR. Then you wed and become one flesh. Vaush did a video today where he said that zoomers today who are living together are still playing it cool because they don't want to look like they're "simping" on their long term sexual partners which Vaush says is causing the loneliness epidemic to even impact people in couples. Vaush says we gotta stop this shit if we don't want to go crazy. Vaush says we gotta drop our AT fields, even if that is scary and you can get hurt by it. Honestly, I think it's too late for that. I'm waiting for Unit 01 to bite me in half.
@@JinKee I think the main problem is you’re taking life advice from twitch streamers. They are not experts, they are not your friends. You are their customer. You are their revenue stream.
@@Jayfive276 I said I disagreed with his points because it's too little too late. If people had decided that it was okay to drop your AT field with the person you love about 10 years ago, we could have averted the parasocial shitshow the world has become. Twitch is just church for zoomers. Don't act like you don't do some opiate for the masses too. Everyone pays for a little something to ease the pain of reality.
The problem i have with mari is simple that she is completly underdevolloped... yes you can interpret alot into the few pictures about her past, but its still just a mystery box that should replace a real backstory and that she end up with shinji felt odd because they had nearly no dialogs together... that she hast big breast is the only thing he could say about her because its the only thing he knows about her (maybe besides she is a eva pilot), there was never any chemistry between them or anything so it just felt odd and out of nowhere. It would just needed more build up.
In the end she just felt to me as an added pilot to have another EVA on the field, added with a mystery box, so they dont have to write a real character with goals and history.
The story is so convoluted there was no way she could fit in properly.
I vaguely felt like she was meant as the final piece of growth in Shinji’s character development and his choice of women. He was attracted to the other two women because of issues he was dealing with. First it was Rei who was not challenging him or angry at him so he felt safer, then he grew beyond that to be attracted to Asuka who would treat him poorly at times, and then Mari was him finally accepting himself and moving on to a healthier relationship. Minato was in there somewhere.
Idk, probably at least a little wrong, but I think Mari was still a signal for character growth in Shinji.
rei was mama boy issue, asuka was the toxic gf issue, minato is the adult exploit teens issue. Mari represent moving on
@@vn01208503I can't believe Shinji loved the 4th Hokage
I had a vague impression of who mari was after watching rebuild, but it took this video to rly consolidate those ideas. Everything seems so obvious when said out loud. Thank you 👨🍳
I'm really glad you were able to have a better feel for Mari!!! Is she flawed? Yes. But there's still a lot of great importance to her character!
His wife wrote sugar sugar ruin. I am a huge fan
Mari is as old as shinji's parents which means Mari groomed shinji.
Thank you! I was sooo confused about the significance of Mari and you laid it all out. Well done! 😊
I'm really happy I was able to give you a better understanding of her character. It means a lot!!!
Bro spawn-camped Shinji
HAHAHAHAHA
Welp Shinji ride with it..
So I guess it's a win chief
Yui:Mari, here's my son...Shinji!
Mari: He's cute!❤ I'm gonna marry that kid in 20 years!
Yui: HUH?
I know... not a fan of that. -_-
Still better than ending up with a half clone of your mom I suppose ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
@@tonyfunk I know...but they get each other. Besides...leave the fans with Rei. We love her! ❤
@@tonyfunkIt's not so strange when you consider she didn't see him for over a decade and they've always been, at least physically, about the same age. Also, it's about the same age gap as Han and Leia when they first meet.
I have to assume Shinji lived his missing 14 years during the reset or him just waking up on a bench in a 28 year old body is weirder than a potential romance with an "older" woman.
if shinji x mari ending up together is weird, Asuka and Kensuke is... is... beyond words
@@imnoandroid4501 Nah, Kenske at least matured and got along with Asuka. They at least got along. But looking at his younger self compared to Asuka...yeah...I do understand what you mean.
I was at high school back in 1997 when my pals and I watched for the first time Evangelion, I don't know if there's a profound meaning in Mari, but I did like her and when I saw the end of 3.0+1.0 I was happy, it was like looking a classmate moving foward for a long situation into a better future. we were fans of Misato, but after that end I am very a Mari's fan today. Nice video what matters is that Shinji had got his bright future with someone lovely.
Fantastic analysis! Despite her not being too developed and old for Shinji I liked her as she offered something a bit different to the rebuild's story
Loved the video think i understood mari Makinamis role in the evangelion series. She was a bit confusing to understand considering that she barely had any screen time and didn't understand her role in evangelion 2.0 video did well on explaining her.
Yeah, she was definitely a mystery in 2.0... and the rest of the series for that matter. But I'm glad you're able to understand her a little bit more!!!
Also, THANKS FOR THE VIDEO SUGGESTION! You rock!!!!
Just finished the video. Amazing! I agree with everything. Another Funk banger in the books
I'm really glad you enjoyed it!!! Cheers!!!
Despite the unconnected paths, I'll still always love the symmetry of Anno and Shinju both ultimately finding the path to a better life in their own ways.
So glad u made this video. I just rewatched ur evangelion Playlist and after 3.0+1.0 I thought this was all there was gonna be about evangelion from you and we'll never get an answer for Mari. Thank you very much this video is incredible
It truly means a lot to me! Thank you sooo much!!! I'm happy to make more Eva content!
Also, I have more Eva video ideas so you shouldn't worry about me not making any more Eva videos in the future!
@@tonyfunkI would love to see a video that explores Rei Ayanami's LGBTQIA+ identity. Apparently, Fuyutsuki once said that Rei is "Free of Sexual Distinction". This implies that Rei Ayanami is intersex with secondary feminine characteristics! (She doesn't have reproductive organs.) On top of that, she's probably asexual and/or aromantic.
The biggest unaswered question about Mari is her mother. Her being able to pilot an eva with no core containing her mother's soul breaks continuity from the 90's t.v. series and Manga. Thoughts? 🎉
funking finally now i funking understanded what is going on in all the ending in evangelion series now, thank you for explaining in this video without you talking about her I would still be quite confused about the ending of the movie, I have never seen this evagelion series until today i'm still confused about the whole story from the begining to the end, it still gives me a headache every time i watch all this evagelion explained video in few hours ago and after watching your explaning video i understand all the pieces in this series is connected to it and without you explained about her, I would call and buy few oxygen for my mind, and after this video i see that thanks to mari makenami in this rebuild movie, she helped shinji get out of repetitive cycle of loop in his universes and become his future guide wife.
Oh man. I'm so glad I subscribed to you! I wanted a Mari video for so long!
Means a lot!!! I'm glad you enjoyed it :)
Mari was my second fav character after Kaworu.
There's something about her that i like more than trio main characters is, her cheerful mentality even in dangerous situation.
Mari is like 60 years old by 3 + 1 btw
I didn't get the impression that Mari was 14. Not to say that I have any info to base this on. Just an impression.
Mari seems to be a girl genius who joined the research program after Yui, based on a manga that is not exactly canon but written by one of her creators.
I do think she was among the first to survive a contact experiment and this was part of how Nerv came to understand the importance of kids as EVA pilots.
It's even possible that she performed her contact experiment first. Based on her design, the confirmation that her actual history parallels the one in the manga, and events that play out, Mari feels more like 16 than 14. Still trapped by the Curse of EVA.
It seems Yui wasn't running a larger plan in the rebuild version of the loop. So I guess that Mari knew something from Yui. Survivor's guilt alone suggests she would have looked after Shinji.
Instead, it seems she left academia and joined Nerv UK as a plant.
In this iteration, the Ayanami series clones seem as if they were purpose built to pilot EVA and Gendo just hijacked that purpose a little. It feels that way because the Shikinami series clones were definitely created, trained and pruned specifically to pilot Ni-goki
Mari isn't a clone, but she has the Ayanami type naming convention. That implies Nerv UK presented her to the world as if she had been.
Kagi, I think, created WILLE without her. He's a great investigator and he likely knew there was reason to view Gendo as sus. I think he worked his way into Gendo's confidence and was sent to retrieve the specimen in Antarctica. Where he met Mari and they came to understand they had compatible goals. Thus both of them being uncertain if it was a good idea to involve the other in their plans.
Finally, I don't think Fuyuski had any deep animosity towards Mari. I think he loved Yui, supported Gendo but didn't entirely disagree with Mari. He tells her that he did as she asked during their last meeting. He helped her.
Shinj embraced death when he entered Unit One. Mari was strangely positioned to pull him out of conceptual space. But accounting for her role in research, it's very likely she understood the Dead Sea scrolls prophecy as well or better than Gendo and had, roughly, planned on being able to reach him at Evangelion Imaginary (EVA Unit i?) One way or another.
Mari stayed in contact with Fuyuski to set up her final gambit. Fuyuski, for his part, I think was just looking after Gendo for the sake of the woman he loved and felt his job was done. He might have helped Mari because she convinced him Yui approved of her plan, but he didn't care whether Mari or Gendo won.
As for her character...
It feels a lot more intentional than they claim. Mari is the Otaku's mecha pilot dream girl. Hyper competent, emotionally unencumbered, always playing back up and just a bit too sexual toward the protagonist than realistic.
Eye candy/fan service as they were, Asuka and Rei weren't meant to be just "Shinji's girls." Fandom often reduced them to that.
Mari is clearly built expressly for that role. Based on the creators' word, this seems mostly an accident. But it fits so perfectly, it's my head canon.
Oh, and I think Mari was well aware she was setting up 3rd impact when she made sure Shinji got to see Unit Zero get eaten.
I think she knew the only way to save the world was getting to EVA Unit i and "making a wish."
Mari is between 28 and 30 years old when we meet her. She's been using Nerv to execute her own plan, seemingly completely independently, for 13 years. When we next meet her, she's at least 42.
It's important to keep in mind that, despite her attitude seeming carefree, she seems to be as knowledgeable, if not more so, than Gendo and the the third oldest major character. Her being more mature than basically everyone makes sense if you presume she knew, roughly, where things were going and had been actively shaping events for a decade before we meet her.
She also shows close to superhuman agility as a pilot and zero fear of entering the "contamination zone" of a core, implying she's already been there, done that.
Great job done! Marie is a very good image for such a positive ending.
3:41 Mari was intended to attract new audiences due to her unique.... eyeglasses. Which are up * *here* *.
LMAOOOO
So THAT is why the...glasses...can jiggle
i will definitely remember this when my mom's friend compliment me. good explanation btw
Even if it was created by Tsurumaki he might've modeled it after what he observed from Anno. 24:33
It don't matter to me or anyone tho. I am simply glad Anno healed and everyone is happy.. and that we got a beautiful end to this wonderful story.
Maybe, at a push you could argue that Mari's actions resemble Moyoco helping her hubby out of his depression between 2.0 and 3.0. Even those Gendo flashbacks seem to suggest someone trying to help people get out of their funk:
"Cmon Gendo-kun, don't be boring and get that mask off. Come meet my friend Yui, she's a straight hottie!"
Yes it's 100% possible and I personally can't rule that out. Having said that, my video was meant to clear the air based on statements that are already out there instead of using my personal biases.
Also... YES. I'm glad Anno got his resolve, it was a helluva ride for him.
Just to say, Anno has denied that Shinji and Mari wound up together, he describes her as a maternal figure in his life....
which almost seems to undermine the lesson in Rei. Almost.
I didn't know Anno made a statement regarding Mari and Shinji's relationship. Could you send me the link with the quote? That'd be awesome!
@@tonyfunkHey Tony, just a heads up, you might need to tell them to email you. TH-cam has an algorithm that deletes comments that contain hyperlinks. This can create confusion and anguish for commenters who want to send you links but don't know how.
That was a really great video! It was gratifying to see that I was on the right track with my own theories about Mari, though I was missing some key details. Awesome video!
I love Mari
She's great!
These types of In Depth Analysis of Evangelion reminds me of all those Message Boards I used to scan for Eva Lore on AOL back in the 90s. Amazing Job!
Even though I haven't seen the full series yet, I have been fascinated by this character.
I think she represents anno’s wife. And the maturity that anno has gained since creating the original show.
did you even watch the video???
That was explicitly confirmed to not be correct
@@konstantink07 That's why he said "I think"
Great video! I've been holding off on watching anything that came after "end of eva" just so I could get a complete picture of the story as a whole and have the option to go back and reinvestigate as I needed.
I guess its time for me to rejoin the Eva universe :)
This is well done. I wish to thank you for doing this. Mai was the most mysterious of the children and the only way you could figure her out was by watching all the Eva's twice. At least I did.
She really is, most positive mindset too.. even towards asuka, calling her cute nickname "princess."
But to be honest, she felt more like fan service. She really just came 20 years later!
Mari is light for shinji, and I don't doubt it.
I never took the end of the Rebuild movies to mean Mari and Shinji are together romantically. I took it as Shnji embracing the chaos (what Mari represents) that comes with the fact that accepting moving forward means being ok with change.
If you're tired and exhausted it's okay to relax and do what makes you happy!
Fans: They’re just friends, Holding Hands and casually flirting. Shinji flirting means he’s gained confidence.
Anno: There’s nothing more Romantic than Holding Hands.
Soooooo... Long story short, in hommage to her dead collegue, Mari naturally ended up having a relationship with said collegue's son? Japan really is something else...
This video was great though, Evangelion is so good at giving information through bits and pieces and hints that picking up everything and regrouping everything is extremely valuable to finally get the big picture, and I think it was necessary for this character who was completely new.
The relationship is only inferred. After all the conversation in the final scene of "Thrice..." is basically:
M: "Well hey there, lookin' good"
S: "Right back at'cha hot stuff"
M: "Shall we go into town?"
S: "Sure"
[One Last Kiss intensifies]
Is not a relationship
Yeah, it's weird. There's no way to get around that... But ultimately, they left little ambiguity as to what kind of relationship they'd have after the end, so the most likely outcome is that Mari and Shinji are an item.
mari is just pure fanservice honestly
In the wise words of shinji 'girl with glasses and big boobs' 🗿
AAAA! I couldnt wait for this! Your Kaworu and Rei videos are some of the best out there and Mari was clearly important (Especially in 3.0+1.01) but its hard to grasp. Only the Funk, the mast of all 4 Evas could stop this. And when the world needed him most, he appeared
:D
Seriously best breakdown! You exsplian evething so well!!!❤
Thanks again!!! :D You're too kind!!!
This was an amazing breakdown! Worth the wait
I'm glad you enjoyed it and that the wait was worth it. I'm gonna try not to keep y'all's waiting that long tho in the future haha
Great analysis video about Mari. I agree especially with the section of partnerships between 19:15 to 19:36. Each of them had something to give to each other. And each of them had something to give Shinji as a lesson in relationships between friends and loved ones.
This video is so well done, you've earned my subscription and a like. Well done. Loved this and always wanted to know more about Mari. Thank you.
Skeleton soldier pfp?
YESSS YOU MADE A MARI VIDEO!!
I understand why Eva fans might have found her an enigma in a frustrating way over the Rebuilds; for me, her presence from the start of 2.0 signified something alien from the NGE timeline dropping into the Rebuild timeline. Although fine details about her origin and motives are still mysterious, I think what we were given in 3.0+1.0 was the perfect balance of answering questions but also giving us, as fans, creative freedom to fill in the gaps. Basically, I feel like it boils down to: If piloting the Eva is comparable to living life head-on, Mari is like the embodiment of optimistic energy, and the perfect counter-Shinji to swoop in help him find a true peace of mind.
Well said!!!! And yeah, even though I think they could have done a way better job of incorporating her into the series, I like that 3.0+1.0 didn't reveal too much about her, giving us the opportunity to infer the rest!
Depression is a liar & anxiety is a withholder. Optimism and self-confidence erase those ill groundless thoughts. Mari in Rebuild represented Anno's optimism as he wrote the Rebuild series. Pen Pen back in the original series could be perceived as Anno's way of projecting his sense of humour which kept him motivated and alive at a low time in his life. By Rebuild, Pen Pen is intentionally replaced by Mari for Anno's mental state has by now greatly improved, especially after years of support and, I believe, his total victory over depression.
At least that's how I feel having underwent burnout, low self-esteem and depression in the past, before I finally uncovered optimism in my life, which has proved immensely beneficial to me.
Think that hypothetical "survivor's guilt" part on Mari is important, for it implied the equally important point of moving on in pursuit of something greater. NOT to date your colleague's son of course .. but to seek out the good in the bad, and that's helped me.
Hence, to me at least, Mari represents optimism & self-confidence; fuelling Rebuild & overturned a highly depressing situation.
Reject depression; learn to appreciate & embrace optimism at all times.
I personally don't like the idea of Asuka ending up with Kensuke, it honestly feels forced, the relationship they had was definitely more of a father/daughter relationship. Same with Mari and Shinji, she felt more like an older sister, or an aunt to him. Still, great video
Thank someone that sees what I see, Mari is literally around the same age as shinji’s mother and it rubs me the wrong way if their relationship was romantic.
OH, yeah!! About that.. Asuka should've been alone.. best option for that. It really does feel very forced!
Yeah. It's odd that the rebuild doesn't touch on the Misato and Shinji romantic connection, which was a welcomed change since that was... uncomfortable, but at the same time it shows Shinji can't realistically date a person who is could also be a mother figure to him.
But then he ends up with Mari??
damn, another great video! Keep up the quality content 😊
Thank you soooo much!!!! It truly means a lot :)
Thanks for this! You're a genius, for real.
Certainly my fav of the series! She's got the best mech (prov unit 5, rip wheely boi, pink's cool too though), best attitude (she's one of the few people that just straight up has Shinji's back and given poor Kawrou can't get a break it's nice to see that, not to mention actually having some fun with the giant robots), and honestly is best girl for Shinji. Kawrou wasn't a bad choice but... well... we know how that ended, Rei's still working on being a human at all even before you know, being a clone of his mom and all and Oscar just *cannot* get over herself. Ironically for being seemingly nuts she feels the most sane somehow. Honestly just the fact that she went back for Shinji makes her a fav to me. As someone who thinks eva can get a bit to into itself for it's own good I like having something a bit more straightforward.
Damn dude, you are the boss. thanks for the vid.
As someone who couldn't stand Shinji at first but grew to respect his growth as a person by the end of the original series, I'm glad that, after 25 years, he finally got to be with someone that's actually good for him.
Mari also seems to have elements of Misato's personality, but with healthier coping mechanisms, which makes me instantly like her, since Misato was by far my favorite character from the original series.
I'm glad Mari exists within NGE.
I'd never heard the thing with the lessons that each eva pilot was teaching shinji before. so glad i heard it now
I honestly don't understand why she is hated I flipping love her
While I can definitely appreciate the symbolism in what Mari is supposed to represent as an element of Rebuild as a whole, the main problem I have with her overall is just her implementation as a character.
Mari was shoehorned in as a way to differentiate Rebuild from Neon-Genesis, and the writers really just didn't know what to do with her. She stays this comically mysterious character with only a handful of scenes throughout the films, which makes it incredibly difficult to identify with her as a viewer, so with this lack of overall presence and character relations in mind, it feels like the writers haphazardly applied this cop-out background of her relationship with Yui, Gendo and Fuyutsuki as a way of applying lore importance to her without having to commit to developing an emotional connection between her and the viewer.
Is she important to the overall story of Rebuild? Of course she is, but without that emotional connection between her and the audience, her symbolic role in the films is weakened significantly.
I have no problem with Shinji moving on in his life with Mari as his romantic partner, because yeah his relationships with Rei and Asuka were very unhealthy for him, but the main issue isn't what Mari represents thematically, but instead the role she plays for the viewer. The reason why people fell in love with Neon-Genesis 30 years ago was the emotionally charged upbringings of it's characters, and how their relationships with Shinji grew overtime. Shinji is supposed to act as a bridge into the world of Evangelion, so when he forms relations with the characters, so do we as viewers.
Take for example the emotional impact that Kaworu had on Shinji in just a single twenty minute episode of Neon-Genesis. Shinji spends an entire episode with Kaworu building a deeply connected bond with him. We feel Shinji's connection with Kaworu because Shinji is the vessel between the viewer and the show. So after Shinji is forced to kill Kaworu at the end of the episode, it takes a massive psychological toll on his mind, after which Shinji is never the same again. It's an incredibly sad moment for both Shinji and the viewer. Kaworu works because of the deep connection he forms with Shinji in such a short amount of time. That's not to say that Kaworu is good for Shinji per se, but it's a demonstration of how impactful the writers can make a character by simply forming deep and meaningful bonds between them.
Mari in comparison has almost no interaction with Shinji compared to the other characters, which makes her connection with the viewer very loose. This problem wouldn't exist if they simply gave her a more involved relationship with Shinji, which they had FOUR movies to do, yet they waited until the last few minutes of the last movie to finally draw that bond between her and Shinji. Again, it just feels like a cop-out.
"Hey, we know this character barely has any emotional connection with the viewer and the protagonist, so let's have them start a new relationship at the very end of the final film to make up for it!" It's just lazy, and it completely undermines what made people fall in love with Evangelion in the first place.
Overall, I won't deny the lore significance that Mari carries throughout the rebuild series, but I feel like Mari is emblematic of where some of the greatest shortcomings of Rebuild stem from, that being it's shortage of meaningful character development. Asuka loses everything that made her interesting in Neon-Genesis, Rei has very little development until the opening third of the final movie's runtime, and Mari is a shoehorned character who the writers spent four movies scrambling to add depth, meaning and purpose to.
That's not to say it has no character development at all, or that all of the character development is bad, which it isn't. Shinji's character arc and conclusion are generally pretty well done, and Kaworu was made more interesting than ever in 3.0, but the point is, it should ALL be more interesting than ever, which unfortunately, it isn't. Still good movies overall, but inferior to Neon-Genesis where it matters most.
Edit: I also didn't like Mari's over-sexualization throughout the Rebuild series either.
The lewd moments with Asuka in Neon-Genesis for example made sense because it only happened either when she was alone and in a deep train of thought (which acted as a bridge for the viewer into her mind during an emotionally vulnerable moment) or during moments when she was demonstrating her need to feel desired by others, such as her constant prodding at Kaji and her jealousy of Misato's relationship with him, or when she was trying to peak Shinji's romantic interest in her after he saved her life, causing her to begin developing feelings for him.
The lewd moments with Rei made sense as it was the show's way of demonstrating her emotional detachment and ignorance from otherwise embarrassing situations (like when Shinji walked in on her as she was exiting the shower) or the soulless clones of her sitting in stasis waiting for the living Rei's soul to transfer itself from her body into theirs.
Then there's Misato's lewd moments which usually only happen around Kaji, moments that make sense given their adult romantic interests in each other. Her sexual interactions with him also act as an escape for her in a similar manner to her alcoholism, something lots of people out there can easily identify with as a coping mechanism.
Now correct me if I'm wrong, but Mari on the other hand has plenty of lewd scenes which really don't seem to add much to her character or personality. It mostly seems like they just have Mari's lewd scenes not as a depiction of a carefree, spicy attitude, but instead as awkward fan service which clashes with the creator's vocal distain for the community's sexualization of the cast. It's kind of ironic how the creators are vocal about wanting people to stop sexualizing these characters, while deliberately going out of their way to needlessly sexualize the characters!
I wasn't grossed out by the lewd moments in Neon-Genesis because they were done as a way of demonstrating emotionally personal moments to enrichen the relationship between the characters and the viewer, but Rebuild (Especially with Mari specifically) sort of just does away with the idea of adding nuance to the lewdness.
This was amazing
Really well thought out.
Beautifully written ❤
Thank you for this video!!!!!
Analysis on misato next maybe? 👀
Might be a lil while, but I'll add it to the list!
Very well made ❤ Good Job!
the part about people representing a lesson for Shinji❤
*I CAN NOW FINALLY UNDERSTAND REBUILD*
Great video
i would TOTALY watch a stand alone movie just focused on mari's story. or series.
3:09 - of course he fukken did...
Anno: Oh yeah and I'm sleeping in the animation office tonight
Sadamoto: Pulling an all-nighter? I feel ya man...
Anno: Nah Dawg, it's just Moyoco saw my browser history...
Oooof that must've been an awkward conversation...
Mari is an anomaly, she is someone who wasn't supposed to exist in the Evangelion Universe. The war against the Angels was rigged from the beginning since SEELE first awoke the embryo Adam from Antarctica. In spite of the pilot's best efforts, SEELE and Gendo were always one step ahead, sabotaging their efforts and playing God to manipulate the outcome to their desires at the cost of the sanity of our main characters.
The way I see it, the best way to fight an omnipotent secret society such as SEELE is to be a ghost, and that's what Mari is. She is from an unknown third party, known only to the director Anno himself, who even stated that there were some secrets he'd carry to his grave.
Amazing analysis! I will have to watch this two or three times in order to gather all the facts that went over my head! 😅 I blame my neurodivergence!
Towards the end when talking about the photo of Yui and Shinji - isn't the woman to the right meant to be Kiyoko, Asuka's mother?
GPT-san:
Yes, Evangelion 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time incorporates a nuanced theme of empowerment and breaking cycles of self-destruction, with Mari Makinami Illustrious playing a pivotal role in this. Her character embodies a unique type of resilience, independence, and optimism that stands in contrast to the often tragic and self-destructive behaviors of the male characters, especially Shinji and Gendo. Here’s how Mari’s character contributes to this theme:
1. Mari’s Role as a Symbol of Freedom and Joy
Unlike the other pilots, who struggle with burdens of trauma, loneliness, or duty, Mari’s approach to piloting an Evangelion is notably playful, joyful, and untethered by the same existential anguish. She genuinely enjoys piloting, free from the psychological burdens that haunt Shinji, Asuka, and Rei.
Mari’s presence serves as a counterbalance to the themes of despair and self-destruction prevalent among the male characters, especially Shinji. Her vitality and lack of emotional baggage suggest a healthier way of engaging with the self and the world around her.
2. Breaking the Cycle of Male-Created Destruction
Throughout the series, men like Gendo, Seele's members, and even Shinji perpetuate cycles of destruction in pursuit of control, idealized worlds, or personal redemption. Gendo’s entire arc centers on his desire to transcend humanity and reunite with his deceased wife, Yui, even at the expense of everyone else.
Mari, on the other hand, embraces the present, focusing on human connection and life as it is, without a desire to alter reality or transcend mortality. Her actions aren’t driven by a need to change the world or escape suffering but rather by an appreciation for life itself, helping Shinji realize the value of moving forward and choosing life over self-destruction.
3. Empowering Shinji to Break Free from Destructive Patterns
Mari’s unique outlook indirectly influences Shinji to finally break the chain of repeating destructive cycles that defined him throughout the series. By the end of Thrice Upon a Time, her positive influence, along with that of other characters, helps Shinji realize he can reject the path of Instrumentality and instead seek a world without Evangelions-a world of human connection and normalcy.
This shift marks a critical departure from Shinji’s reliance on Evangelions and traumatic patterns inherited from Gendo’s self-destructive obsession. With Mari’s help, Shinji embraces a future beyond his father’s legacy and beyond the need for Evangelions, ending the cycle.
4. Mari’s Independence from Past Evangelion Archetypes
Mari is deliberately distinct from the original, tortured female archetypes in Evangelion, like Rei and Asuka. She has no connection to the tragic backstories or psychological complexities that characterize their journeys. In many ways, she represents a “new woman” archetype in Evangelion-unbound by the trauma and restrictions placed on other characters.
This difference symbolizes a kind of evolution within the narrative itself, presenting a female character whose role is neither defined by tragedy nor manipulation but by autonomy, choice, and self-assuredness. Mari’s independence suggests a hopeful break from the series’ historical themes of suffering, sacrifice, and existential dread.
5. Mari as the Final Companion for Shinji in a Rebuilt World
In the final moments of Thrice Upon a Time, Mari’s presence by Shinji’s side in the real-world setting underscores the series’ shift toward growth, companionship, and grounded human connection. She symbolizes a future that isn’t rooted in past traumas but is hopeful, where men and women can face life without falling into the destructive cycles that defined the series.
In sum, Mari’s character does indeed reinforce a theme of empowerment and the breaking of destructive cycles. She brings a fresh, resilient perspective to the story, which contrasts sharply with the self-doubt and despair of male characters like Shinji and Gendo. Her influence helps to usher in a new path-one where the past’s destructive cycles are abandoned in favor of a brighter, more grounded future. This is a thematic shift that signals an evolved outlook for Evangelion and its characters, breaking free from the chains of their past.
I was looking forward to your commentary about this character this was great! thanks a lot!
You bet! Glad you enjoyed it!
Marbie
Arguably she (was) 28 years his senior, but in this they get a Barbie and Ken ending. wild.
Yeah, that age difference will never not be weird. But, personality wise, she's great for Shinji. Marbie and Kenji it is.
Fun, ZeroTwo from 'Darling in the Franxx' Looks to be there too, Look at the red hat near 12 to 14 min.
I still will find it weird that the directors decided that Shinji should end up with her. I mean I’m glad he didn’t end up with Asuka, but still it’s weird.
I agree. It is weird, rushed, and kind of creepy considering the age difference... But it's largely implied that's how it happened.
@@tonyfunkthe way i see this is that, isn't that adam guy promises that he'll make an ending when shinji ends up being happy. Because we see him waking up in the moon and it looks like he too is stuck in cycle, cycle of rebirth. So unless a new variable is mixed to disrupt the cycle, all of them will still going to be stuck repeating it over and over again.
That's just my take on it. And there's a TH-cam video that for me properly explained everything to everyone whether you've watched before or thinking about watching it now and it helps.
I always thought her inclusion was to show that if your depression is a vicious cycle by introducing someone from outside that depression can you break the cycle. AKA for him, his wife. In his interviews about his depression and his wife he even says as much.
Man, I’ll take as many Eva vids from you as I can get lol
16:05 Slightly off topic, but seeing any artwork of Gendo, Fuyutsuki, and Yui together as young researchers just hits hard in a way that can't be explained to people who've never seen the franchise
I think you got something Wrong. Fujuzuki doesn't love Yui he cherished her as a collegue and imop saw her as a daughter. The way That he talks when thinking about her makes me think that he just wanted her to get rest. I think he was genuinely sorry for her soul being mangled and trapped inside the Eva. That's Imop his whole motivation. Also Yui wasn't lost in the entry plug. Yui was lost in an direct contact experiment with unit 01's core. This is clearly seen in the original series. Also Also askuka didnst spend her life with Kensuke. He was a kind of Father/Teacher figure for her. But nit her entire life at lest that is what Ano said in an interview about his changes to the caracters. He stated "Kesuke is defintely not an love interest for asuka he is more like a Father figure for her to anchor herself to the real world." "After all i still think shinji is still the only person to love asuka and the other way around"
Awesome video however I really love these deep dives into characters.
Hi, thank you for your comment! I appreciate you sharing your ideas!!!
As far as Fuyutsuki's feelings go, whether they were romantic or platonic, his goal still overlapped with Gendo's as stated by Mari. This means he was willing to forsake humanity for Yui's sake. So even if we split hairs, it was his love for Yui, that caused him to become a villain.
When I said Yui was lost in the entry plug, I'll admit it wasn't the most precise language I could've used. What I meant to say was that Yui was lost through the entry plug. Her contact experiment was stated to be similar to Shinji's near dissolution in NGE which happened while he was in the entry plug. In other words, Yui's contact experiment was done through an entry plug before she dissolved into Unit 01's biomass.
Also, I had no idea about Anno's quote regarding Kensuke and Asuka's relationship! Thank you for sharing that, that was very insightful! Having said that, Asuka still found someone who'd love her in Kensuke. Even if we assume they don't become lifelong friends, Kensuke's role in Asuka's life is still thematically the same. He gave Asuka a chance to be loved and accepted for who she was.
Thanks again for your comment! It means a lot!!!
@tonyfunk thanks for your answer. I know much of my statings were nothing more than splitting hair. But for me, I find it important to state out things that could be misunderstood by ppl not so deep into the lore. But still, I think you got something wrong. Yuis dissoving into Eva 01 had nothing to do with an entry plug whatsoever she was wearing this fancy suit. I think you even show it in one of your scenes of EOE. Yui was lowered directly into the core in the chest of the Eva. Yes shinji also dissolved into the LCL of the Eva while he was swallowed by the angel. But he disappeared in the LCL of the plug and later emerged from the Eva's core. Yui never sat in an entry plug in the first place
Hmmm, you know what? After much rumination, I think you're right.
My understanding is that since Yui was stated to have been absorbed into Unit 01's core, I assumed her contact experiment was done via an entry plug. There's no concrete evidence for this, so ultimately I made an assumption that appears to be misguided.
Good job correcting an error I made.
@tonyfunk nah i don't think it's really an error. Your essentially true Yui vanished inside Eva 01. In the series, it's never really shown how this happened. There is just this tiny scene in End of Evangelion. So it's absolutely reasonable to conclude she was in an entry plug. Edit: I just found out I was also wrong. There is a 4 or so second long scene in 3.33 were you can see yui dive into the core of Eva unit 01. It's in that time where shinji meets Fujuzuki in the Nerve HQ to play shogi with him.
Also I want to state again I absolutely love your analysis of the deeper meanings of Shinjis relationship to every character in the plot. It's just stunningly good. And I also agree Mari has this slight rushed feeling to her but the Rebuild would never be able to really move on without her to find peace in the ending of something.
For me Mari always was a person that simply took my hand and said it's over now. It's sad, but that's okay, and it's good that all came to an end. Let's move on.
A character that could say and do something no other character in the series could. And this was just so great for me.
i clicked on this video expecting a overwatch Dva montage.
Pretty sure her surname isn't "Makinami", it's "Suu".
💅
"Many a small bird, drive away a hawk."
anyone know the background music from the beginning. Also very good video and analysis, thanks :)
I just associate the two different series as one about avoiding escapism and one just saying eff it lets give them a reason to escape.
My brother told me that someone compared her to Poochie. I'm sticking with that comparison.
Shinji, get in the Eva!!!
Mari, get out of the Eva!!!
A colleague of Shinji's parents? How old is Mari again?
Well she was about 16 when she started working with Yui and Gendo - Especially if you consider that extra manga chapter where she explicitly states her age to be part of the Rebuild continuity.
So if she's 16 when Gendo and Yui first meet we need to give it 2 years or so for them to date, get married and for Shinji to be born. So at 18 Mari gets hit with curse of Eva either through piloting an Eva and/or the Yui contact experment and Shinji is already born by then. She's a little taller when she is Cursed than the other pilots.
Physically she is still about 18 but chronologically around 32 in 2.0 and then post-timeskip....mid-late 40s? There's a big hint that she's older than she looks right from her first appearance because she's always singing songs from the Showa era which indicates she grew up with that music - the song she sings at the start of 2.0 was released in 1968-69 for example.
But it seems the reset of the Rebuild universe at the end of 3.0+1.0 means she can pick her own age so she settles on around 28 so she can be Shinji's companion/girlfriend/lover/f**kbuddy/whatever without it being weird(er).
Takes some real balls to say "this is what the rebuilds should have done".
nice video
This is kinda encouraging me to watch the Rebuild movies because I found the original series way too depressing. Which sucks since Evangelion's one of the first anime I got to watch.