Recaps

Shinji Ikari reflected on NERV’s purpose and his sense of living in a world that was not his own before visiting Rei Ayanami in the Sixth District. He found her apartment filthy and neglected, then discovered Rei had come out of the bath wearing only a towel and told her to get dressed.

• Shinji Ikari examined his and Rei Ayanami’s NERV ID cards and considered the organization’s symbolism and hidden motives.
• Shinji Ikari visited the apartment assigned to Rei Ayanami in the Sixth District and compared his life to The Truman Show.
• Shinji Ikari entered Rei Ayanami’s unlocked apartment and found its rooms dirty, gloomy, and marked by bloodstained bandages and bedding.
• Rei Ayanami came out of the bath wearing only a towel, and Shinji Ikari told her she could have asked him to bring her clothes.
• Rei Ayanami went to the bedside and began getting dressed.

Shinji Ikari delivered Rei Ayanami her new Identity Card, helped brighten her room, and welcomed her request to call him by his surname. That night, Rei received notice that Unit-00’s reactivation test would take place the next morning.

• Shinji Ikari gave Rei Ayanami her new Identity Card and asked whether her injuries still hurt.
• Shinji Ikari opened Rei Ayanami’s curtains and balcony door, and offered to help her tidy her room.
• Rei Ayanami asked to call Shinji Ikari “Ikari,” and he agreed to call her “Ayanami.”
• Misato Katsuragi drove Shinji Ikari back to the staff dormitory, where they planned to grill meat and drink beer.
• Rei Ayanami chose not to eat the meat in her boxed meal, then received notice of Unit-00’s reactivation test at seven the next morning.

Rei Ayanami successfully reactivated Unit-00, but an Angel alarm interrupted the test. Shinji Ikari arrived at NERV Headquarters as the Angel breached the Odawara Defense Line, and Misato Katsuragi said his deployment was still undecided.

• Rei Ayanami entered Unit-00 for a synchronization test, which proceeded without abnormalities.
• Unit-00 remained stable as Rei piloted it through the prescribed movements, though her synchronization rate was low and unstable.
• An emergency alarm sounded as an Angel breached the Odawara Defense Line.
• Shinji Ikari arrived in the command room and learned that Rei's Unit-00 reactivation test had succeeded.
• Misato Katsuragi told Shinji that whether he would deploy depended on the higher-ups.

Gendo Ikari ordered Rei Ayanami to confront Ramiel in Unit-00 while keeping Shinji Ikari on standby, despite Kozo Fuyutsuki’s concerns about the risk. As Rei’s EVA rose toward the surface, Ramiel detected it and began to transform.

• Gendo Ikari ordered Unit-00 to sortie alone and kept Unit-01 on standby, surprising the command staff.
• Kozo Fuyutsuki questioned whether Rei Ayanami could handle Ramiel alone, while Gendo Ikari said they needed to take back control.
• Gendo Ikari warned Shinji Ikari that the path to godhood would be paved with bones, and Kozo Fuyutsuki sensed menace in his smile.
• Rei Ayanami rose toward the surface in Unit-00 as Misato Katsuragi and Shinji Ikari watched from the command center.
• Shigeru Aoba reported a high-energy reaction inside Ramiel, and the Angel began transforming before Unit-00 reached the surface.

Ramiel transformed and blasted Unit-00 before Rei Ayanami could move, leaving the EVA badly damaged despite its AT Field and a defensive wall. Misato Katsuragi ordered a coordinated barrage against the Angel, but Ramiel survived and fired an even stronger beam as the chapter ended.

• Ramiel transformed into its first form and fired a powerful beam at Rei Ayanami's newly emerged Unit-00.
• Rei Ayanami used Unit-00's AT Field to withstand the beam, while Misato Katsuragi ordered a defensive wall deployed; the attack still badly damaged the EVA.
• Ramiel began transforming again, and Misato Katsuragi ordered the automated guns, missile silos, and railguns to fire in support of Unit-00.
• The barrage struck Ramiel while its AT Field weakened during transformation, but Maya Ibuki reported that its high-energy reaction had not subsided.
• Ramiel fired a stronger focused particle beam through the smoke as Misato Katsuragi realized conventional weapons could not stop it.

The Sixth Angel’s attack left Rei Ayanami and Unit-00 gravely damaged, while Gendo Ikari refused to order their recovery. Shinji Ikari attacked his father, but Kozo Fuyutsuki stopped him and warned that Gendo remained too valuable to those in power for Shinji to act without consequences.

• The Sixth Angel’s enlarged particle cannon overwhelmed Unit-00’s defenses, badly injuring Rei Ayanami and driving her synchronization rate below thirty percent.
• Misato Katsuragi asked Gendo Ikari to order Unit-00’s recovery, but Gendo dismissed Rei as a replaceable doll and gave no new orders.
• Shinji Ikari reached the command platform and punched Gendo Ikari, then continued beating him while the command center focused on the Angel’s attack.
• Kozo Fuyutsuki stopped Shinji Ikari and explained that Gendo Ikari’s position and value to those at the top made him difficult to dispose of.
• Shinji Ikari questioned why Gendo mattered more than he did, and Kozo Fuyutsuki explained that Shinji could be replaced despite his importance as a pilot.

Shinji Ikari suspected NERV’s higher-ups had motives beyond humanity’s survival, while Kozo Fuyutsuki covered for him after he beat Gendo Ikari. The failed operation left Rei Ayanami critically injured and the Sixth Angel hovering without attacking as NERV prepared for its next move.

• Shinji Ikari questioned the higher-ups’ motives and wondered if Angel energy could give him an endless power supply.
• Kozo Fuyutsuki advised Shinji Ikari to endure until he could stand against the world, then declared the operation failed and ordered Unit-00 recovered.
• Shinji Ikari threw the battered Gendo Ikari off the command platform, and Kozo Fuyutsuki temporarily assumed overall command.
• Misato Katsuragi abandoned the interception plan, detonated Unit-00’s supports to shield it from the Sixth Angel’s particle beam, and ordered Rei Ayanami’s emergency recovery.
• Medical staff treated Rei Ayanami after confirming her heartbeat was weak, while the Sixth Angel returned to its crystalline form and stopped attacking.

Misato Katsuragi rejected the proposal to sacrifice NERV Headquarters and began planning another way to stop Ramiel before it reached the headquarters. Meanwhile, Rei Ayanami experienced a dreamlike train ride with a young Shinji Ikari that stirred unfamiliar feelings before the scene faded back toward the underground city.

• Misato Katsuragi learned Ramiel was drilling toward NERV Headquarters and heard that it could reach the area above headquarters by 00:06:54 the next morning.
• The staff reported that Unit-00 could not operate normally, close combat would be extremely difficult, and the N2 Air Bombs would destroy NERV Headquarters along with Ramiel.
• Misato Katsuragi dismissed the suggestion to surrender and asked Shigeru Aoba about the Self-Defense Forces Research Laboratory files.
• Misato Katsuragi asked whether the Child of God had returned as she prepared to pursue another plan.
• Rei Ayanami sat on a train opposite a young Shinji Ikari, who told her his mother was waiting for him and showed her a picture book about Angels.
• Young Shinji Ikari took Rei Ayanami's hand and told her she did not need to understand her pain, only feel it.

Rei Ayanami recovered in the hospital while Shinji Ikari comforted her and told her about the coming Operation Yashima. Meanwhile, Gendo Ikari and Kozo Fuyutsuki discussed Gendo’s confrontation with Shinji and the measures they might take to defeat the remaining Angels.

• Rei Ayanami woke in the hospital, remembered her painful battle, and told Shinji Ikari that she had failed her mission.
• Shinji Ikari encouraged Rei Ayanami to eat, said she had no reason to apologize, and told her that Unit-01 and Unit-00 had to reach the Second Fortress before eight thirty that evening for Operation Yashima.
• Kozo Fuyutsuki confronted Gendo Ikari about his injuries and the malfunctioning surveillance cameras, while Gendo described Shinji’s attack as a direct, if inefficient, way to break their barrier.
• Gendo Ikari said the Dummy System was still being tested and that they would have to rely on their current pilots until it was ready.
• Gendo Ikari said Rei Ayanami might pilot Unit-01 if other measures failed, because the remaining Angels had to be defeated to set the ritual in motion.

As NERV prepared Misato Katsuragi’s plan to defeat Ramiel with a Positron Cannon, Shinji Ikari declared that he would become humanity’s savior. Shinji and Rei Ayanami set out from the Second Fortress as the operation neared its start, while NERV personnel increasingly looked to Shinji with faith.

• NERV monitored Ramiel’s approach while Japan mobilized its resources and powered up the equipment needed for the operation.
• Ritsuko Akagi explained that Rei Ayanami would fire the Positron Cannon at Ramiel’s core, with the Magi System guiding her aim and Unit-01 helping draw out the target.
• Misato Katsuragi urged Shinji Ikari to prioritize his safety, and Shinji vowed that humanity could put its faith in him as its savior.
• Shinji Ikari and Rei Ayanami changed into their combat suits and boarded the surface lift platforms as Unit-01 and Unit-00 awaited them.
• NERV personnel watched Shinji with growing reverence as the pilots prepared to enter battle.

NERV launched a coordinated attack to expose Ramiel’s core, and Rei Ayanami fired the Positron Cannon from Unit-00. The shot pierced a projected core rather than the real one, leaving Ramiel charging a devastating counterattack as Shinji was ordered to launch Unit-01.

• Ramiel destroyed NERV’s missile silos and artillery positions while Misato Katsuragi used the attacks to make him expose his core.
• Rei Ayanami fired the Positron Cannon at Ramiel from Unit-00.
• The shot penetrated one of Ramiel’s projected cores, but Ritsuko Akagi realized the real core remained intact.
• Ramiel transformed into his Sixth Form and gathered energy for a powerful attack.
• A boy’s voice ordered Unit-01 to launch.

Shinji used Unit-01’s shield and blade to withstand Ramiel’s attacks and close in, forcing the Angel to retreat and change tactics. He then exposed Ramiel’s weakness with Unit-01’s eye beams, allowing Rei’s shot to pierce its core.

• Shinji placed Unit-01 in front of Unit-00 and blocked Ramiel’s powerful energy blast with the shield.
• Shinji charged Ramiel while dodging its sweeping laser, then slashed through its prismatic body, but Ramiel’s core survived as its body rejoined.
• Ramiel fired at close range and pushed Unit-01 back, then flew upward to escape.
• Shinji moved Unit-01’s shield aside and fired purple-white rays from its eyes, shattering Ramiel’s weakened A.T. Field and piercing its glowing core.
• Rei’s electric-light shot struck Ramiel as Unit-01 watched its red-glowing core.

Rei Ayanami and the NERV team defeated Ramiel with the Positron Cannon while Shinji Ikari fought in Unit-01. Afterward, a silver-haired boy awakened at Tabgha base and expressed a wish to meet Shinji, while Gendo Ikari and Kozo Fuyutsuki discussed the victory and the Second Child’s coming arrival.

• Rei Ayanami fired the Positron Cannon, which pierced Ramiel’s AT Field and destroyed its core.
• Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi celebrated the victory as Unit-01 stood beneath the blood rain and rainbow.
• A silver-haired boy awoke at Tabgha base, spoke with the No. 1 Throne of Souls Stele, and said he wished to meet Shinji Ikari.
• Gendo Ikari and Kozo Fuyutsuki discussed Lilith, Shinji Ikari’s performance, and the Elders’ interest in him.
• Kozo Fuyutsuki explained that the Second Child was ready to appear and that the Elders wanted stronger combat forces at headquarters.

Shinji Ikari learned that the Angels sought Adam and that NERV had secretly contained the Third Angel at Bethany Base. As Ritsuko Akagi described an upcoming demonstration of Jet Alone, Maki piloted the unfinished Provisional Unit-05 into battle against the escaping Third Angel.

• Shinji Ikari discussed Unit-01’s new sword and shield with Rei Ayanami and Ritsuko Akagi, suggesting that future equipment should protect him from every direction.
• Ritsuko Akagi explained the origins of the Angels, the impacts, and NERV’s secret that Lilith was disguised as Adam.
• Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi told Shinji Ikari about the planned Jet Alone launch and the approaching arrival of the Second Child and new EVA units.
• At Bethany Base, Maki chose Japanese as her thinking language and entered combat in the unfinished Provisional Unit-05 after the Styx Defense System failed.
• A NERV inspector revealed that the Third Angel had been held at Bethany Base for research and modification, while Maki advanced through a tunnel toward the escaping Angel.

Maki fought the Third Angel with Provisional Unit-05, destroyed its core, and escaped before a preprogrammed self-destruct vaporized the machine and Bethany Base. Shinji Ikari, Misato Katsuragi, and Ritsuko Akagi then traveled by UN fighter jet to support Ritsuko as she faced trouble.

• Maki drove Provisional Unit-05 through the tunnels and pursued the Third Angel after it blasted its way out of the base.
• Maki pinned the Third Angel against a towering metal cylinder, grabbed its core with both pincers, and crushed it despite Unit-05 suffering severe damage.
• Unit-05's self-destruct countdown began without Maki's consent, so she ejected the Entry Plug and escaped as the machine and Bethany Base were destroyed.
• Aboard a distant transport plane, a little ponytail reported that the target was gone, Unit-05 had been vaporized, and Maki had escaped safely.
• Shinji Ikari asked why he and Misato Katsuragi were accompanying Ritsuko Akagi, and Misato explained that they were going to support her.
• Ritsuko showed Misato and Shinji classified documents aboard the UN fighter jet, while Misato flirted with Shinji about their evening plans.

Shinji Ikari, Ritsuko Akagi, and Misato Katsuragi attended the Jet Alone unveiling, where Ritsuko challenged the company’s claims about the robot’s built-in reactor and lost the technical debate. After the representative disparaged human will in the fight against Angels, Misato and Shinji became furious, while Ritsuko calmly burned the JA brochure.

• Shinji Ikari learned from Ritsuko Akagi that nuclear reactors were unsuitable for EVA combat and that EVAs consumed enormous amounts of energy.
• Ritsuko Akagi, Misato Katsuragi, and Shinji Ikari arrived at the JA product unveiling and noticed they had been singled out with an empty table.
• Ritsuko Akagi questioned the Japan Heavy Chemical Industries representative about JA’s internal reactor and debated its safety and combat advantages.
• Ritsuko Akagi lost the technical argument, and the representative claimed unmanned machines were superior to human will in fighting Angels.
• Misato Katsuragi angrily complained, Shinji Ikari suggested burying the representative, and Ritsuko Akagi burned the JA brochure.

Ritsuko Akagi explained that JA was secretly human-controlled as its public trial run went disastrously wrong, and she arranged for Shinji Ikari to stop it with Unit-01. Shinji headed toward the rogue machine, aware that Ritsuko wanted him to destroy it before the world could see it threaten NERV’s position.

• Misato Katsuragi asked how the Heavy Industries Community learned about AT Fields, and Ritsuko Akagi suggested the information had been leaked.
• The JA trial began, and Ritsuko told Shinji Ikari that the supposedly unmanned machine used an invasive brain-computer interface.
• JA ignored its operators’ orders, advanced on the control room, and smashed through the roof where Misato Katsuragi had just been standing.
• Ritsuko Akagi told Shinji to prepare to pilot Unit-01, and Shinji demanded that she sign something before agreeing to help.
• Hyuga Kou piloted a transport carrying Shinji and Ritsuko toward JA, which was advancing on Atsugi City; Ritsuko warned Shinji about its nuclear reactor and urged him to crush it.

Shinji Ikari destroyed JA during its disastrous public demonstration, while the aftermath cleared the way for Rei Ayanami to move into Misato Katsuragi’s home. As Shinji and Misato went to pick Rei up, Ritsuko Akagi learned that Maya Ibuki had joined the Child of God Worship Society.

• Shinji Ikari piloted Unit-01 to disable JA and destroy its head and limbs after it ran amok in Atsugi City.
• The media reported EVA’s victory, JA’s production was halted, and Japan Heavy Chemical Industries faced bankruptcy.
• Maya Ibuki gave Shinji Ikari the approved application to transfer Rei Ayanami to Misato Katsuragi’s home.
• Shinji Ikari and Misato Katsuragi left to pick up Rei, while Shinji reminded Ritsuko Akagi about their agreement and her offering.
• Ritsuko Akagi learned that Maya Ibuki had joined the Child of God Worship Society, which Maya described as a headquarters fan club for Shinji.

Shinji Ikari brought Rei Ayanami from her damaged frontline dormitory to live with Misato Katsuragi, then joined them and Ritsuko Akagi for a private dinner. The gathering ended with Misato wondering whether Ritsuko and Rei had a strained relationship, while Shinji admitted he knew little about either of them.

• Shinji Ikari told Rei Ayanami that her move had been approved and helped her pack her belongings.
• Shinji Ikari and Misato Katsuragi drove Rei Ayanami to the senior staff dormitory, where she moved into Misato's apartment.
• Shinji Ikari, Misato Katsuragi, Ritsuko Akagi, and Rei Ayanami shared dinner, and Misato and Ritsuko bantered about their friendship and Shinji's cooking.
• Misato Katsuragi noticed that Ritsuko Akagi had gone quiet around Rei Ayanami and asked Shinji whether they disliked each other.
• Misato Katsuragi told Shinji Ikari that she had recently learned Ritsuko Akagi's mother had died.

Rei Ayanami woke feeling unusually safe in Shinji Ikari’s room, while Shinji sensed someone’s attention and learned that the Second Child would arrive the next day. Ritsuko Akagi also told Shinji and Misato Katsuragi that Mari Makinami Illustrious had destroyed the Third Angel at the cost of the Bethany Branch, leaving the story with Shinji claiming the role of humanity’s savior.

• Rei Ayanami lingered in Shinji Ikari’s bed, felt her usual unease fade, and whispered his name.
• Shinji Ikari woke beside Misato Katsuragi with a feeling that someone was watching or coveting him, then found Rei washing his blanket.
• Shinji Ikari made breakfast for himself, Misato Katsuragi, and Rei Ayanami, eating Rei’s portion of meat for her.
• Ritsuko Akagi told Shinji Ikari and Misato Katsuragi that the Second Child and Unit-02 would arrive the next day, escorted by the United Nations Pacific Fleet.
• Ritsuko Akagi explained that Mari Makinami Illustrious had destroyed the Third Angel in Provisional Unit-05, while the Bethany Branch and Unit-05 were destroyed.
• Shinji Ikari accepted Ritsuko Akagi’s praise as Headquarters’ ace and declared that a god became humanity’s savior to dispel despair.

Misato Katsuragi, Shinji Ikari, and Rei Ayanami arrived aboard a United Nations carrier to meet Asuka Langley Shikinami, the pilot of EVA Unit-02. Asuka challenged Shinji over being chosen to pilot Unit-01, and his cryptic reply revealed that he and Gendo Ikari were not close.

• Misato Katsuragi and Shinji Ikari flew to the United Nations escort fleet, while a transport carried equipment intended to protect them from trouble.
• The United Nations officers dismissed NERV’s pilots and their equipment as children’s toys.
• Misato Katsuragi introduced Asuka Langley Shikinami to Shinji Ikari and Rei Ayanami on the carrier deck.
• Asuka Langley Shikinami took an immediate dislike to Rei Ayanami and challenged Shinji Ikari over being chosen because of his father.
• Shinji Ikari replied that God would never walk with the devil, and Misato Katsuragi explained that he meant himself and Gendo Ikari.

Misato Katsuragi argued with a Pacific Fleet major general over NERV's authority and the handling of EVA Unit-02. As Shinji Ikari and Rei Ayanami watched the sea, Asuka tried to justify her achievements to Shinji but lost her composure.

• Misato Katsuragi gave the major general EVA Unit-02's emergency power manual and asked him to sign a document, but he refused and insisted that the fleet retained authority until docking at New Yokosuka.
• Misato Katsuragi left the command room, kicked the elevator in frustration, and told Rei Ayanami that adults acted differently in public and private.
• Shinji Ikari told Rei Ayanami not to remember Misato Katsuragi's advice, while Asuka followed them across the deck and watched their closeness.
• Asuka criticized Shinji Ikari for staring at the sea, and Shinji replied that doing something meaningless was harmless.
• Asuka began listing her accomplishments to Shinji Ikari, then realized that his indifference had unsettled her and left her unable to finish.

Asuka struggled to make a good impression on Shinji, then showed him Unit-02 aboard its transport ship. Their conversation was interrupted by a massive explosion at sea, and they watched a huge shape moving beneath the waves.

• Asuka fell silent after trying to explain what made her existence worthwhile, and Shinji listened while Misato and Rei watched.
• Misato teased Shinji about Asuka, then Asuka hid on the transport ship and worried about her awkward first meeting with him.
• Shinji found Asuka, and she took him to see Unit-02, boasting that it was the first production-model Evangelion built for combat.
• An underwater shock wave shook the ship, and Shinji and Asuka ran onto the deck as a warship exploded and towering waves rose nearby.
• Shinji and Asuka watched an enormous shape flicker beneath the waves, wondering whether an Angel had appeared.

Asuka prepared to pilot Unit-02 against the Angel attacking the Pacific Fleet, while Shinji revealed his own AT Field was stirring. The fleet’s commander resisted NERV’s intervention, and the chapter ended as Unit-02 activated aboard the transport ship.

• Shinji Ikari caught Asuka as a shock wave nearly knocked her overboard, then told her the creature was an Angel and that his AT Field had begun stirring.
• Misato Katsuragi urged the Major General to deploy Unit-02, but he ordered the Pacific Fleet to attack with conventional weapons, which failed against the Angel.
• Asuka prepared to prove her worth as a pilot and gave Shinji a combat suit, but he declined to wear it.
• A ponytailed Inspection Department member watched the battle and spoke by phone with a cold-voiced man about Shinji Ikari, Unit-02, and his mission to deliver an item.
• Unit-02 activated aboard the transport ship, and Misato Katsuragi cheered as Asuka’s red EVA rose above the fleet.

Misato Katsuragi ordered Asuka to deploy Unit-02 against the Seventh Angel, and Asuka connected it to external power and confronted the creature on the aircraft carrier Beyond the Rainbow. Unit-02 wounded the Angel with its particle knife, but the carrier deck collapsed beneath it, and the Angel dragged it toward the sea in its jaws.

• Misato Katsuragi overruled the major general and ordered Asuka to deploy Unit-02, while Rei Ayanami warned that it still had Type B Equipment.
• Asuka landed Unit-02 on the Beyond the Rainbow, connected its external power supply, and drew its High-Frequency Vibrating Particle Knife.
• Shinji Ikari identified the giant ray-like creature as the Seventh Angel as it charged toward the aircraft carrier.
• Asuka met the Seventh Angel head-on and drove the particle knife into its body, but its immense weight overwhelmed Unit-02.
• The deck collapsed beneath Unit-02, and the Seventh Angel seized it in its jaws and plunged toward the red sea.