And suddenly, the future turned a bit darker... As if it had taken the wrong turn after the last stop, despite all the warning signs. Despite all the dissent. We were going to crash, and there was nothing we could do about it. He was back, and his presence would be felt.
Anyway... For the record, Shinji is among my favorite anime characters. In a sea of "badass" characters that can overcome any obstacle with a smile on their faces, he stands out as more human than the rest, yet still worthy of praise. A 14 year old, flawed and insecure as a lot of us were/are if not all, having to carry the weight of the world in his shoulders. And despite all odds, he ends up doing it, over and over again. He dares to return to that damned unreliable machine, going against who knows what. That's what courage is all about.
Don't get me wrong, I love many "badass" characters myself, but I don't want every character to be like that. It becomes cheap and tiring when done ad nauseam, specially when many times it's the character's sole shtick. And I certainly don't believe that the quality or value of a character is directly related to its strength.
And as mysteryman mentioned, his character is part of what Evangelion is all about. The "deconstruction" of the genre that the series goes for requires a flawed and unorthodox character. A character that can portray the emotional journey and existentialism that makes Evangelion noteworthy. A purely optimistic or an insensitive character would not do the job, and the rest of the cast fills those roles anyway, with their own eccentricities.
| HoloDust said: My condolences to anime fans. |
Much appreciated, thanks.
