Early Access - Neon Genesis Evangelion | Episode 16 "Splitting of the Breast" Reaction & Review
Added 2023-08-02 01:17:33 +0000 UTCComments
This episode also does a strangely good job at simulating the feeling of being in that competitive/student/academic/grades environment for me, at least it did when I first watched it. Not only with the pilot synch scores, but with Shinji rushing ahead only to get swallowed up and then Asuka/Rei being able to avoid the same fate. I don't know, it reminded me of imposter syndrome-like moments I had in school. It's not expanded on at all, because Shinji is unconscious when this is happening, but I remember feeling a vague sense of dread and self-doubt about Asuka being able to climb up the building to avoid the angel, as if I was emotionally in the shoes of Episode 1 Shinji viewing this moment and feeling perplexed at how other people were able to navigate such a situation while it seemed impossible for me. There are other moments like this in the show, though it has to do less with skill and more with knowledge. How do other people know so much? Why am I / Shinji expected to follow along with everything? What is different about my brain that makes me so clueless and helpless while everyone seems to be capable of so much more? These feelings, especially early on create a sense of adolescent dependency and tension that pairs well with the themes of the series.
tom
2023-08-03 05:27:11 +0000 UTCGreat episode discussion always. Evangelion has this reputation of being this deep, indecipherable anime that has lead to a kind of toxic attitude in discussing it where people who don't "get it" are accused of having a shallow understanding the story and its themes an I think this really hurts the show and its community. For me, Evangelion has always been primarily a emotional experience, so I've always been confused at takes that people that don't "get" Eva just need to read up on Freudian psychoanalysis and Christian and Jewish theology to understand it better because I think these things are only secondary to what makes the show so good. What has allowed to show to survive and stay popular almost 30 years after it's creation is the universal quality of the emotional connection people make with the characters. And I have to second your point on how good the voice acting is in this show because its something that I feel gets less recognition than it deserves. The main cast all have such fantastic performances that make their characters feel like real people, and I love seeing their VA's pop up in other anime I watch. Finally, since this post is getting so long, I'll just say that there is a better quality version of this episode that is a direct copy of what was broadcasted on Japanese television when the show aired. It' part of a DVD collection called "Archive of Evangelion" that was exclusively distributed in Japan and lacks English subtitles. While I don't condone piracy, one could hypothetically google "Archive of Evangelion" and possibly find a Internet Archive link for this full release including a higher quality version of episode 16 if they really wanted to. . .
Joseph Scrocco
2023-08-02 18:49:57 +0000 UTCThe scene of Shinji breaking out of the angel is indeed iconic. It has been referenced a number of times. One was in the Chainsaw man OP.
Ryan
2023-08-02 16:28:16 +0000 UTCgone
jace
2023-08-02 15:31:35 +0000 UTCI say, just bfore you get to the ending/End of Evangelion, make a poll on here, whether people wanna see you watch the Rebuilds or not. I, for the life of me, cannot understand anyone who would say no. You'd be depriving yourself of movies with Anno's very special direction. And of some of the best animated movies of all time in general. There's a reason the final movie won the Japanese equivalent of Best Picture at the Oscars.
Soul Nibbler
2023-08-02 15:17:39 +0000 UTCUmm , what happend to monster :( ?
م -
2023-08-02 13:50:03 +0000 UTCThe second title of this episode "Splitting of the Breast" has always intrigued me, mainly because I had no idea what it meant, so after some digging it turns out the title is referencing Melanie Klein's work on object relations theory: "It was the latter sense of the term that was predominantly adopted and exploited by Melanie Klein. After Freud, "the most important contribution has come from Melanie Klein, whose work enlightens the idea of 'splitting of the object' (Objektspaltung) (in terms of 'good/bad' objects)". In her object relations theory, Klein argues that "the earliest experiences of the infant are split between wholly good ones with 'good' objects and wholly bad experiences with 'bad' objects", as children struggle to integrate the two primary drives, love and hate, into constructive social interaction. An important step in childhood development is the gradual depolarization of these two drives. At what Klein called the paranoid-schizoid position, there is a stark separation of the things the child loves (good, gratifying objects) and the things the child hates (bad, frustrating objects), "because everything is polarised into extremes of love and hate, just like what the baby seems to experience and young children are still very close to". Klein refers to the good breast and the bad breast as split mental entities, resulting from the way "these primitive states tend to deconstruct objects into 'good' and 'bad' bits (called 'part-objects')". The child sees the breasts as opposite in nature at different times, although they actually are the same, belonging to the same mother. As the child learns that people and objects can be good and bad at the same time, he or she progresses to the next phase, the depressive position, which "entails a steady, though painful, approximation towards the reality of oneself and others": integrating the splits and "being able to balance [them] out ... are tasks that continue into early childhood and indeed are never completely finished"."
haggy
2023-08-02 11:57:16 +0000 UTCAnother thing though, I'll echo what others have said in that I support your idea to not rush into the rebuilds at all. People already touting it out as essential viewing are slaves to the present and undeniably jumping the gun. The series + End of Eva has stood the test of time for 20 years, meanwhile this "new finale" just came out so there's no way to be sure how it will age. Because of your enthusiasm for this series and knowing more about Anno I think it's definitely an interesting thing to revisit much later, and even if I'm not a fan of them I wouldn't dream of pushing someone away from an experience they might love. But in my opinion it's best to see it as not only supplementary, but a sort of modern re-interpretation of the story, as an interesting stamp on time passing both overall and for Anno himself (the rebuild films took over ten years to fully complete, so it was definitely a journey). To that end I think you'd get the best value from it by letting the series sit for a while to give the revisiting via the rebuilds a weight more comparable to what it expects of its audience.
tom
2023-08-02 06:08:28 +0000 UTCSo much has been said about this episode, and even the few original things I thought I'd mention were mostly covered by you already, haha. There's so much striking art on display. The imagery, storyboarding, colors, sound design... Anno has such a strong vision and so much holistic appreciation for the different artistic elements culminating to create a unique feeling. The distorted train crossing sound, the fisheye lens effect, the burning sunset oranges, the shadows obscuring young Shinji / the angel, the sketched out effect over the shot of his mother reaching to the camera, the helicopter sounds and lights, the lingering silences after key moments, the extreme lighting highlighting the clash between Asuka and Rei, and the blood-soaked Unit-01 are all just some examples off the top of my head that are really memorable and quintessentially Evangelion to me... And aside from Anno, you have the haunting beautiful atmospheric works of Shiro Sagisu (who also produced many iconic tracks for Bleach, which was my first introduction to anime) and the guttural voice acting. All the characters are imbued with perfectly with... well, character, through the voice acting, but no one more than Shinji whose screams are so visceral and somehow satisfying. Once you've already completed multiple rewatches of the series and you know how it turns out there isn't much left to do but gush endlessly 🤣
tom
2023-08-02 05:54:44 +0000 UTCSame. Has a cozy feeling to it
tom
2023-08-02 05:38:46 +0000 UTCAnother top tier episode, I love these internal introspection/monologue type scenes. Easily some of the stand out moments of the whole show for me. The Jungian aspects are really interesting and I believe Eva is the main anime that really integrated these psychological themes to this degree and maybe inspired future anime to do something similar. Can't remember for sure if you already mentioned it or not but the young Shinji on the train is from the exact moment Gendo abandoned him, same clothes and everything. I believe this is because it's the moment when Shinji ceased his emotional and psychological development for the most part. So while he may have grown now and is a 14 year old physically, the Shinji on the inside, the one that observes himself is still the same child who want's to run away from his problems, who resents his father and wishes for his mother. Can be explained better but yea, I think you get the point. Also I like how you mentioned the train, I believe it represents escapism/running away for Shinji as well as his psyche and cyclical nature. It is also the place where Gendo abandoned him, at the train station. There's more to it but best to leave it for later on. So that's basically all I have to say, excited for next week!
Arael
2023-08-02 04:58:56 +0000 UTCYeah I second putting off the rebuilds for a good bit after and not jumping right in as if they're a continuation. I don't see them as an essential part of the experience at all, although I also wouldn't tell any fan of the series to avoid them as they have plenty to appreciate.
Payam Sharifi
2023-08-02 04:57:00 +0000 UTCGreat, Shinji's confidence has grown since the last few episodes, first his dad acknowledges him, then his kiss with Asuka and now he's being praised for 'being number one'. What Asuka stresses so much about him being a man. Regarding the author, there are some good translations of interviews on the Evageeks site, there are some without spoilers because it is from the beginning of the series, there is also the Hideaki Anno documentary on Amazon Prime, for the first time we can see his creative process; but it contains spoilers because it is the production of the last movie, but it is really interesting. From the technical part of this episode, the original 16mm films were lost, so this episode is the one with the lowest image quality.
Luis M
2023-08-02 04:18:54 +0000 UTCOkay, I may go into a rant so let's hope I make sense haha My boy Shinji he was so happy at the start after being told he was the best and you know though it did go. to his head because he rarely gets praised and accepts it, him getting a little more confident is a good thing, he would have to find a middle ground. also that picture of little Shinji smiling just pulls at my heart strings haha. I really love the introspection scene, I actually always had the idea he was talking to himself but now, I have thoughts haha. Rei, she went from barely talking to him to being the first to show concern about him well, to speak up. To confronting Asuka, to being there when he wakes up and being happy he's doing well now, also I think this is the episode where she has the most showing of constant emotions..not subtly or anything. Asuka she is extroverted and blunt but she really doesn't know how to handle her emotions or seek others, and is having a hard time connecting and feeling worthy, since she had been the best at tests and now she isn't, she in a way could be jealous of the connection shinji and rei have, she is angry at misato and kaji, she cares for shinji but she won't show it, she doesn't want to show vulnerability. Misato and Ritsku :( it was matter of time things got heated between them and since Misato knows her best friend is keeping big secrets from her, and seeing Ritsku basically giving more importance to the Eva than Shinji well, yeah...though Ritsku did shows signs that she cared about Shinji but well, other things come first. I personally see the rebuilds as kinda their own thing, so maybe yeah after a while and -maybe some rewatches- it could be interesting if you see them, you may like them I personally don't care much about them haha but that's just me, I'm not here to sway anything or have a discussion is just me haha And! idk how but it could be fun after you watch EoE to maybe have a way for anyone interested to talk with you about the series and all because is one that after so many years there are so many ideas and how someone sees some things and as I said now I still find new things and new perspectives (also i saw a frame by frame of the opening and saw one I had never seen before lol I was amused, a little upset it took so long and also just...of course) idk if i'm explaining myself but yeah Episode 16 - #1 Second Half/Normal Orchestra - Trio Vocal Interlude Start (i had forgotten the talks and yeah haha) oh, and I think i've seen figures in amazon and I also think in the Evangelion store japan they sell models that you can paint but idk if they ship overseas and I'm sure there is spoiler merch so maybe hold the looking until the end
Olga
2023-08-02 03:52:58 +0000 UTCOh yes. It's a shame because this is such a significant not to mention iconic episode of the series.
tom
2023-08-02 03:51:04 +0000 UTCSince nobody has mentioned it yet, the reason for the drop in quality this episode is because the negative was lost some time ago. I'm not a film expert, so I'll just quote someone else: 'This version was transferred from a 35 mm internegative onto standard definition video, which was then upscaled for HD' (for the Gkids release, at least).
elkwandrider
2023-08-02 03:24:30 +0000 UTCnew schedule?
jace
2023-08-02 03:11:24 +0000 UTCBtw Gunbuster, the first anime Anno directed, literally has a character named Jung Freud lmao. But yeah this is a really special episode, I too remember getting even more excited for the rest of the series upon seeing the approach they took here. It's a shame it only exists in degraded quality, but it's still of course a beautiful one, with more incredibly iconic imagery and a really creative and compelling way to further explore Shinji's psychology. Probably my favorite of the episodes you've seen thus far. Oh and I 100% agree, the voice acting for Shinji is in general some of the most incredible voice acting I've ever heard.
Payam Sharifi
2023-08-02 03:01:34 +0000 UTCI honestly love the slideshow presentation. With so many interesting and bizzare shots in this episode, somehow it transforms the discussion into a "Silent Art". Every picture is worth looking at. Just a random thought.
Kon
2023-08-02 02:42:06 +0000 UTCYoo I knew my boy Im would immediately pick up on the Jung connections. Great reaction and discussion
Fettywop
2023-08-02 02:29:39 +0000 UTC
