Comparing Neon Genesis and Rebuild
Probably every fan of the franchise did this exercise for themselves already and there should be many discussions like that, but I still like to put my 2 cents on the topic :)
I've been hearing about Evangelion on several occasions, but always thought it was another sailor-moon-pokemon type of anime for kids - what else can you expect from a cartoon about giant robots. How wrong that was !
When I finally decided to give it a try, I found a 20-year-old series and a brand new shining CGI-ish reboot, the Rebuild. Of course, I started with Rebuild. But after watching 3 movies I had so many questions that I decided to check original series as well, and didn't regret it for a moment.
So below is my list of Rebuild/NGE pros and cons after watching Rebuild first.
1. Visuals
Rebuild simply outclasses NGE here, not much to discuss.
2. Explaining stuff
This was the main reason I decided to watch NGE. Rebuild left so many important questions (and a lot of basic ones) unanswered.
What was that 2nd impact everyone is talking about ? What is Seele ? What are those talking monoliths ? Why commander is running around with some suitcase ? What is Human Instrumentality ? What are those weird spears ? Why is Lilith so important ? etc etc
And NGE actually answers those questions. In this respect it is a WAY more viewer-friendly. And it's not about some philosophical or psychological stuff. It's basic things necessary to understand what is going on on the screen.
3. Kaworu
In NGE he is shown for like 15 mins, and yet Shinji cares much about his life/death. It was a little bit confusing for me. Rebuild, especially 3.0, gives a good background for his friendship with Shinji, so Rebuild scores another point here.
4. Commander Ikari
I liked Rebuild character more. He is even cooler, tougher, speaks even less. That's how I would imagine a man in charge of the last human line of defense against annihilation.
5. Relationship between Shinji and Asuka
NGE + EoE runs ~10 hours vs ~6 hours (including upcoming 4.0) for Rebuild. So of course, they have more time to show how relationships develop between the two. Still I think that NGE did a much better job. Rebuild had some new additions, like Rei/Asuka learning to cook for him, but overall it was flat and confusing.
6. Shinji's 2 school friends
Again, NGE gives a good background and shows how their friendship forms. Rebuild just shows how Toji punched him in the beginning, then they are inside Eva01 and voila - they are best friends. After watching Rebuild I didn't even think that Toji is more than a small supporting character.
7. Rei
This one goes to Rebuild. It gives more development to the character and much better shows her role in the series.
8. Pilot girl in the glasses (Mari, if I'm not mistaken)
Didn't get why she was introduced in Rebuild at all.
9. Plot
It's too early to judge without 4.0. I liked NGE plot very much, and Rebuild seems too tangled so far.