Overview

Enraged over Toji's near-death at the hands of his own Evangelion, Shinji refuses to pilot an Evangelion again and prepares to leave Tokyo-3 for good. Just as he is about to leave, an immensely destructive new Angel attacks and he is forced to reconsider his decision.

Synopsis

In the aftermath of the battle with the Angel-infected Eva-03, Shinji is enraged that his father attempted to kill Toji, who he now knows was trapped in the Entry Plug throughout the incident. Shinji refuses to leave the Eva, and even threatens to destroy Nerv Headquarters on his remaining battery power. Gendo just coldly orders the bridge personnel to knock him unconscious by increasing the LCL pressure inside the plug.

Toji wakes up in the hospital, with Shinji sleeping in the bed next to his. Toji goes back to sleep, and has a vision of Shinji and Rei in a train talking about Gendo's behavior. When he wakes up again, Shinji is gone, and Hikari is at his side instead. She tells him he has been asleep for three days after the incident. Without approaching the subject directly, Toji indicates that he is aware of her feelings for him, and asks her to tell his sister that he is okay. From the shot, it is evident that Toji's left leg has been amputated[2].

Shinji is brought in to his father's office in handcuffs, where he is charged with various offenses against Nerv: threatening, intimidation, insubordination, and use of an Eva for personal vendettas. Shinji coldly responds by saying that he will never pilot again[3] and go back to living with his teacher. Gendo tells him he is disappointed in him, but unmoved by this, Shinji replies that he doesn't care and doesn't want to see his father ever again. In response, Gendo decides to delete his files and reassign Rei as the pilot of Eva-01, with the Dummy Plug as a backup. Meanwhile, the Angel having been killed along with the Eva, the remains of Eva-03 are dissolved.

Misato drives Shinji to the train station. From the fact that Asuka has refused to show up to say goodbye, Shinji guesses that she is angry with him for quitting, and says that it is probably better that way. Misato warns him that his activities will be closely monitored from here on out. But Shinji replies that he doesn't care, he just has one question for her: why was Toji chosen as the Fourth Child? Misato tells him the truth; that all of his classmates are potential pilots and Toji's selection and what happened to him was, in a sense, just terrible circumstance. She tells him that she will leave his room and code to the headquarters as they were, but Shinji resolutely says that there is no point - he will never want to pilot an Eva again. Surprised by his conviction, Misato lets Shinji leave. However, a state of emergency is declared as soon as he reaches the train station; a new angel is approaching.

Zeruel in standing form

The Angel Zeruel approaches Tokyo-3 from the air. Missile batteries fire at Zeruel to no avail, and Zeruel responds with a weapon that destroys eighteen of the twenty-two armor layers above the Geofront. This aggressive and extremely destructive new enemy gives Nerv very little time to prepare a counterattack. Rei is sent to pilot Eva-01, but the Eva rejects her immediately. Attempts to activate it with the dummy system also fail. Meanwhile, Shinji watches as Zeruel sets off multiple cross-shaped explosions, and questions his decision not to pilot again. Zeruel finally breaks through to the Geofront, where Asuka has been stationed. She is surrounded by a wide array of weaponry that has been randomly piled around her. Eva-02 sprays Zeruel with two Pallet Rifles, but to no effect. Becoming exasperated, Asuka grabs two new weapons and fires rocket after rocket at the Angel. Again, her munitions have no effect. After the barrage, Zeruel extends its foil-like appendages and severs both of Eva-02's arms with ease. Asuka screams in pain and anger and charges Zeruel, who promptly decapitates Unit-02. Fortunately, the command center has cut Asuka's synchronization rate with her Eva; Asuka does not receive any sympathetic injuries.

The head of Eva-02 lands right in the middle of the bunker that Shinji has sought shelter in, crushing and injuring several civilians in the process, leading him and others to flee into the Geofront in panic. As the Angel moves forward toward Nerv Headquarters, Shinji watches the battle rage on from distance, when he spots a familiar face: Kaji calmly taking care of his watermelons, despite the pandemonium taking place around him.

Along with Kaji, Shinji watches the battle rage before him. Rei follows Asuka's charge with a suicide attack[4], attempting to destroy the Angel's core with an N2 bomb. The Angel covers its core with an armored membrane and survives the explosion, completely unhurt. The explosion puts Eva-00 completely out of action, but Zeruel proceeds to stab it in the head anyways.

Kaji explains to Shinji that if an Angel makes contact with "Adam" in Terminal Dogma below, Third Impact is going to happen and it will mean the end of humanity. Kaji says that he is powerless to do anything about it, and Shinji, as a pilot, is the only one left who can make a difference. Shinji takes in his words, and makes a decision; he determinately heads for the Eva Cage.

Completely berserk Unit-01

With both Evas defeated and Eva-01 still refusing the Dummy Plug, Nerv nearly succumbs to the dire situation it has been placed in. At the last second, Shinji barges in and demands to pilot Eva-01. Zeruel damages the top of the command pyramid and breaks into the control room, prepared to obliterate the unfortunate bridge personnel. A second before the Angel releases its charge-up attack, Eva-01 breaks through into the observation room and lands a terrific punch into Zeruel's face. Wrestling with the Angel, Shinji slams Zeruel through the opposite wall and into an Evangelion cage. In the ensuing battle, Eva-01's left arm is shot off by a beam from Zeruel; before any more serious damage can occur, Shinji forces Zeruel onto a launchpad and manually activates it. Shinji and the Angel are launched into the geofront, where Shinji proceeds to manically hammer at Zeruel's core with its remaining arm. In his rage, Shinji grabs Zeruel's mask, pulling at it so hard that the flesh holding on the Angel's face is exposed. At that moment, there is a loud, resounding beep; the Evangelion has run out of power. Zeruel wraps an arm around the Unit's head, hoisting it aloft before hurling it into HQ. Zeruel makes an initial cut into the Eva's chest armor, before blasting it with another powerful beam. The chest armor is melted off, and we see that Evangelion-01 has a core. Zeruel begins to pound on the core in an attempt to penetrate it. Shinji, inside, sees the core cracking and begs and pleads with the Eva-01 to move. Suddenly, before Zeruel can deliver the final blow, Shinji hears a heart beating in the darkness. Outside, the Eva reactivates. Maya and Ritsuko receive readings that Shinji has 400% synchronization with the Eva. But Ritusko realizes that this means that he is no longer in true control of the Eva; it has gone berserk.

Grabbing Zeruel's arm, Eva-01 yanks the Angel towards it. The unit breaths heavily for several moments before giving Zeruel a mighty kick strong enough to rip Zeruel's left arm from its body. Unit-01 uses the arm to regenerate her own, before launching her own attack on the Angel. After laying it out on the ground with an immensely powerful A.T. Field attack, Unit-01 devours the crippled Angel in order to ingest its S² Engine. The Evangelion then snaps off its bindings, roaring at the sky. A worried Ritsuko explains the implications of this, telling Misato that it means they are no longer able to stop the Eva.

Elsewhere Kaji looks on the scene from afar in grim amusement, wondering to himself how Gendo is going to explain all of this to Seele. In his office, Gendo, along with Fuyutsuki, observe the scene. Smiling triumphantly, Gendo declares that "it all begins here."

Quotes

Shinji : "Father, you're there, aren't you? Say something! Answer me!"

Gendo : "Increase the pressure of the LCL to maximum. We have no time to waste on a childish tantrum."

Shinji : "I've still got a direct control circuit... Damn! Damn! Damn..."

: "Father, you're there, aren't you? Say something! Answer me!" : "Increase the pressure of the LCL to maximum. We have no time to waste on a childish tantrum." : "I've still got a direct control circuit... Damn! Damn! Damn..." Asuka : "It might really be over. I'll bet that idiot won't recover from this."

Rei : "How is Ikari?"

Asuka : "He wasn't injured, so he ought to be okay. He's probably dreaming away."

Rei : "Dreaming?"

Asuka : "Yeah. Don't tell me you don't dream?"

: "It might really be over. I'll bet that idiot won't recover from this." : "How is Ikari?" : "He wasn't injured, so he ought to be okay. He's probably dreaming away." : "Dreaming?" : "Yeah. Don't tell me you don't dream?" Gendo : "Disobeying orders, private appropriation of an Eva, blatant intimidation... These are all criminal offenses."

Gendo : "Do you have anything to say?"

Shinji : "Yes, I don't want to pilot an Eva anymore. I don't want to stay here either."

Gendo : "Then leave."

Shinji : "Yes. I'll go back to my teacher's place."

Gendo : "So you're running away again?"

Gendo : "You disappoint me. I doubt we'll ever meet again."

Shinji : "Yes, that's my intent."

: "Disobeying orders, private appropriation of an Eva, blatant intimidation... These are all criminal offenses." : "Do you have anything to say?" : "Yes, I don't want to pilot an Eva anymore. I don't want to stay here either." : "Then leave." : "Yes. I'll go back to my teacher's place." : "So you're running away again?" : "You disappoint me. I doubt we'll ever meet again." : "Yes, that's my intent." Misato : "All the fourth-level candidates were in your class. I just found out myself recently that it was all set up."

Shinji : "All of them? All of my classmates..."

Misato : "What happened with Suzuhara was a mistake that can't be mended with words alone. But, Shinji, to be honest, I was projecting all of my dreams, hopes and purpose onto you. I also know that it's been a huge burden for you. But we, everyone at Nerv, had no choice except to entrust our future to you. I want you to remember that one thing."

: "All the fourth-level candidates were in your class. I just found out myself recently that it was all set up." : "All of them? All of my classmates..." : "What happened with Suzuhara was a mistake that can't be mended with words alone. But, Shinji, to be honest, I was projecting all of my dreams, hopes and purpose onto you. I also know that it's been a huge burden for you. But we, everyone at Nerv, had no choice except to entrust our future to you. I want you to remember that one thing." Gendo : "Yes, it's rejecting me. Abort activation. Sortie Rei in Unit 00. Re-activate Unit 01 with the dummy plug."

Misato : "But Unit 00 isn't..."

Rei : "It doesn't matter. I'll go."

Misato : "Rei?"

Rei : "Even if I die, I can be replaced."

: "Yes, it's rejecting me. Abort activation. Sortie Rei in Unit 00. Re-activate Unit 01 with the dummy plug." : "But Unit 00 isn't..." : "It doesn't matter. I'll go." : "Rei?" : "Even if I die, I can be replaced." Kaji : "Well, since my moonlighting came out into the open, I'm not welcome on the combat roster. So, here I am, watering the plants."

Shinji : "At a time like this?"

Kaji : "It's because it's a time like this. Between Katsuragi's breasts is nice too, but in the end, I want to be here when I die."

Shinji : "Die?"

Kaji : "That's right. It's said if an Angel makes contact with Adam, who lies below here, humanity will be eradicated in the Third Impact. The only thing that can stop it is the one thing with power equal to an Angel's, the Evangelion."

Kaji : "Shinji, the only thing I can do is stand here and water. But you, you have something that you can do. That only you can do. Nobody is forcing you. Think for yourself, and make the decision by yourself. Think about what you ought to do now. You know, so you don't have any regrets."

: "Well, since my moonlighting came out into the open, I'm not welcome on the combat roster. So, here I am, watering the plants." : "At a time like this?" : "It's because it's a time like this. Between Katsuragi's breasts is nice too, but in the end, I want to be here when I die." : "Die?" : "That's right. It's said if an Angel makes contact with Adam, who lies below here, humanity will be eradicated in the Third Impact. The only thing that can stop it is the one thing with power equal to an Angel's, the Evangelion." : "Shinji, the only thing I can do is stand here and water. But you, you have something that you can do. That only you can do. Nobody is forcing you. Think for yourself, and make the decision by yourself. Think about what you ought to do now. You know, so you don't have any regrets." Ritsuko: "That's right. That's not armor plating. Those are restraints that allow us to suppress the Eva's true power. And now those bindings are being undone by the Eva's own might. We can no longer stop the Eva."

Kaji: "Unit 01's been awakened and set free. Seele won't stay quiet for this. Was this also part of your script, Commander Ikari?"

References

↑ The episode's English title, like the previous episode, comes from psychoanalytical theory. Introjection is a state in which a person incorporates behaviors, attitudes or characteristics of the surrounding world or other people into himself or herself, normally being a psychological defense mechanism in which the attributes of a missing person of great significance are incorporated. At the end of the episode, Shinji is absorbed into Eva-01, in effect being internalized by his own mother. See here for more details. ↑ Toji's left leg has been amputated, although whether or not he lost his left arm as well is not clear from the shot, although his left arm is visible when he is hauled out of the entry plug. Production sketches for End of Evangelion include a scene where Toji and Kensuke are playing wheelchair basketball, confirming that Toji has both his arms. ↑ Shinji is more aggressive and decisive during the beginning of this episode than ever seen previously, showing that his concern for others is indeed much stronger than it appears. Ironically, Toji is the one to point it out in Episode 17, while cleaning out Rei's apartment. ↑ Gendo and even Ritsuko are aghast at Rei's suicide attack on Zeruel. Her words, "If I die, I can be replaced." might imply that she is aware of her clone copies. Ritsuko's concern is interesting - she hates Rei for being close to Gendo, and knows the truth about Rei. As she sees Rei as a threat to her personal life, it is puzzling why she seems upset at Rei's suicidal actions.











