which ok, first off, this might be a tad cheating it, as this is essentially a compilation of evangelion:death(true)² (the final version of evangelion:death, which is essentially a recap of the first 24 episodes of the neon genesis evangelion tv series) as well as the theatrical versions of air+magokoro wo kimi ni (which comprises of the entirety of the end of evangelion), with simply a countdown intermission to bridge them. however, as this was an officially titled and released thing in both japanese theaters as well as japanese home video releases, I'm gonna say it counts
now as for why it's my favorite? well, now that I've gotten the technicalities of it out of the way, I think it's best to now treat the death portion and end of evangelion portion as separate entities, as they each differ in the why
death admittedly is pretty straightforward as to why: it is just a damn well edited and put together recap film. with the using of the backdrop of the children all tuning their instruments in preparation for a performance during the end credits being a clever method to segue into a focus on each character's overall arc in the series up to now
really, the only fault I can give it is that it can be very confusing to new viewers and leave them possibly with a different impression about the order of events vs the order that actually happens. though the film was clearly never meant to be a starting point, and instead acted as it is: a recap film for viewers who had already seen most/all of nge tv and simply wanted a refresher. overall though, as I've mentioned, it's simply just a well done recap. so much so, that I actually use it as a basis when judging other recap films
now end of eva? hoo boy, here's a film which jumps from 1 to 99 almost instantly and just keeps climbing throughout. even the film's ending credits, which actually happen halfway through the film offer very little respite from this fact. essentially, imagine a thing where you're basically denied an emotional break from the start to finish, and you have the end of eva. I'm still not quite sure I can describe my own mental state any time I sit down to watch it by the end. serene? empty? a whole bunch of emotions all at once that have built up throughout the film and hadn't been able to deal with, so they just all end up cancelling each other out? regardless, it is quite the experience and so far the only film I've had this sort of thing happen
but that itself wouldn't make it a favorite. it's a unique experience unlike anything else, for sure, but that alone wouldn't be enough justification. no, I think what actually makes it my favorite is how the core message of the film is purely optimistic, despite all that happens during it. which it might seem weird to describe a film that goes from a military raid genocide escalating all the way to the literal every living being dies end of the world as the film's climax, all set to the most bizarrely juxtaposed song in probably film history as 'optimistic', but the core message of the film is simply to not run from life or reality. it may be painful and seemingly unrewarding, and you'll both hurt others and be hurt in the process, but running from it all would just lead to a result more hollow than death. also, it looks a bit like a school of fish, for some reason. "I'm sure there were only painful things there. so I thought it was alright to run away. but there was nothing good in the place I escaped to either. because I didn't exist there and so no one existed". optimistic doesn't have to mean happy, in the same way that pessimistic doesn't have to mean sad. in fact, I'd argue that the overall admittedly extremely depressing and distressing backdrop of the film actually helps to further its optimism, as opposed to if the film stayed on more of a high note throughout. which could then leave the core message as feeling rather souless and empty, even as it becomes more generally palatable.
which also strikes at the crux of evangelion as a whole. for all of its weird sci-fi mecha-esque elements, it's the humanity of its cast, both ugly and pure, which drives and is the real strength of the series. the rest is simply backdrop to drive the plot
also, it's worth noting that the film has some amazingly good performances by the japanese cast too. misato's voice audibly breaking as she scolds shinji a final time to try to push him to try to keep on living, asuka's blood chilling scream and following desperation as she's pierced through her eye moments before her death, and lilith-rei's absolutely terrifying breathing as just a few things that come to mind, but I know I could find plenty of other examples throughout. for what was seemingly going to be their final major time as these characters, all the cast put their all and well and beyond more into this project, and it very clearly shows
the animation is also top notch, and actually even has probably my favorite fight scene in animation history. I would link it, but for the sake of not possibility breaking forum rules (it is very graphic) I will have to forego this. still, it should be clearly obvious which fight I'm talking about, once you have seen it
and as an aside, have I mentioned how it's also my favorite film score? this is simply a preference thing, but I honestly consider the soundtrack to be perfect. both as an accompaniment to the film and as standalone listening thing
really, the long and short of it is that revival of evangelion is just a film that does everything phenomenally, both within its production and its presentation. as mentioned earlier, it's technically just a compilation release of 2 separate films bridged by an intermission, but at this point, I can't imagine separating them. it's quite the time commitment to watch it all in one sitting, as the entire thing clocks in at just under 2h40m, but I've seen it like this so many times it just feels wrong not to by now. though sadly, for as far as I'm aware, this exact version of eva has never been present on any english home video releases, so aside from piracy, the only means to see eva in this way is through japanese home media imports. which of that note, fun (predictable) fact: it wasn't until the japanese neon genesis evangelion blu-ray box set release that revival of evangelion was compiled as a seamless release outside of its obvious theatrical run from 1998. before that, the dvd releases of this split the death(true)²+intermission and air+magokoro wo kimi ni portions into separate discs. since you know, dvd disc storage is far more limited compared to blu-ray disc storage
now before I start trailing off into a disorganized rant about how much I enjoy revival, I will close with one final quote from the film that I believe most encapsulates both the core message of the film as well as the message of the series as a whole, which I feel is a message that is very worthwhile even and especially at the present time. what with all the real world events that have been going on the past several years: "anywhere can be heaven, as long as you have the will to live. after all, you are alive, so you will always have the chance to be happy"
(side note: I have still not seen 3.0+1.0 and have been avoiding spoilers for it best I can until whenever the japanese blu-ray release happens and I can import it to watch. so I of course can't offer any opinion on it)
Last edited:
A message has been included on the Pinwheel and and for the people who placed 2nd and 3rd, I put it on one of the collectables, the rest are blank. Enjoy them! 
I loved learning a bit more about all of you. Thank you for hosting a super generous giveaway Fish! 
