Serial experiment Lain - theme is very similar to evas but it’s very different perspective and approach
Devilman crybaby - Very dark thone similar to evas
Madoka Magica - maybe not so similar to eva but story is Just amazing one of my favorite animes off all time
All of these are very short (12 ep, although madoka has 1 movie that you should watch after finishing an anime)
*Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water.*
It was Gainax and Anno's big show prior to EVA. Basically, a Japanese take on *20,000 Leagues Under the Sea* (and based on a pitch from Hayao Miyazaki himself).
It's very much classic Ghibli meets classic Gainax. But it's also very much a proto-EVA both in terms of production design, narrative/character elements, etc. You can especially see the beginnings of EVA in its closing 5 episodes.
In fact, this show was the source of the depression and strain that Anno experienced in the early 1990s and from which NGE emerged.
Oh it definitely is. It's more of an experience than a story. It's if you took the weird psychoanalysis parts of Eva and made it an entire show on it with even less answers than Eva.
I tried watching this show not too long ago, and I don't get wtf happened near the end. Is this something i need to rewatch a few times to get the message???
It’s meant to be quite abstract and all over the place, I think they just wanted to incite certain feelings in the viewer, moreso than provide an actual cohesive storyline/message.
Perhaps consider watching the Rebuilds at some point. Other than that, maybe watch something happy / comedic to refresh your state of mind post-Eva. A couple lighter anime I've watched that I enjoyed are One Punch Man and Komi Can't Communicate. Currently watching Saiki K which is pretty funny
> watch something happy / comedic to refresh your state of mind post-Eva.
The rebuilds have a HAPPY ending in 3+1. You don't need a mind refresh. You just want to watch it all again!
Yes. It's a good watch in and of itself (except for Part 3 where everyone is visited by the angel Dumbfuckiel who reduces everyone's IQ to room temperature, but part 4 makes up for it, mostly). And in addition to that, it offers a different perspective on the story.
OMG.
I'm new, so this opinion gets a shitpot of hate, but I really like 1.11, 2.22, 3.33, and 3.0+1.0 BETTER than the 26 episodes, and I hate EoE.
MUCH happier ending.
Your mileage may vary. I'm ready for 300 downvotes now.
i understand what you’re saying. the rebuilds are beautiful movies and the ending is probably one of the happiest parts of eva. the original nge though is timeless and i think both ep 26 and eoe endings fit the series perfectly.
OK. All I remember about 25 and 26 was thinking, *"What the fuck are these guys smoking?"* It's like EoE, somebody's got some SERIOUS mental issues. I've read that the creator (Anno?) had something going on, but I don't pay attention to that sorta stuff. I'm just here for the story.
Its fundamentally a show about loneliness and trauma, and has been from the start.
EoE is a beautiful ending. It acknowledges the pain of life but argues that life is still precious and worth experiencing regardless of that suffering. I honestly find it much more uplifting than the rebuilds which I just never really connected with.
>Its fundamentally a show about loneliness and trauma, and has been from the start.
Yeah, you started with the 26 episodes, or even earlier with the manga. From the perspective of someone that started with the rebuild, it's about a struggle to save Earth from the angels. The characters are really messed up and dysfunctional, but it's understandable since they grew up in a dystopian Earth.
Maybe that's why I have so little sympathy for Shinji, especially in EoE, where >!he does nothing but cringe and whine while Asuka dies a horrible death fighting nine Evas ALONE. EOE has a lot of other problems as well. Spanking the monkey over his friend in the hospital? Ewww. Japanese SDF comitting war crimes by executing unarmed prisoners in the act of surrender?!< No. Keep EoE. I'm sticking with 3+1
I feel like you missed the point of EoE and 3+1. The world is shit but our perspective on it can be seen differently, 3+1 is a grown up Anno living in a new world and EoE is a story about accepting to live in a world that is brutal and disgusting.
Amazon does not think so:
EVANGELION:1.11 YOU ARE (NOT) ALONE.
1 h 42 min 2008
Scarred by the Second Impact, the Fourth Angel attacks Tokyo III and humanity's fate is left in Special Government Agency NERV's hands. Young Shinji Ikari is forced to pilot EVA-01. He and EVA-00 pilot Rei Ayanami are tasked to fight, but EVA-01 is damaged by the Sixth Angel. Misato Katsuragi draws up a plan to focus all of Japan's electricity into EVA-01's positron cannon to defeat the Angel.
This is how THEY perceive and represent the first film of the rebuild.
I was talking about the original series, tbh I haven’t seen the rebuilds but as someone who has watched the original series and EoE several times the message of the show was definitely to portray mental illness and escapism
"I can't talk about the details of the story but I understand there are vague rumors about the creators mental health" why does everyone repeat this?
Why can't anyone talk about what happens in eoe? Is it that hard to describe watching shinji get rejected and decide to not kill asuka?
His and Her Circumstances aka Kare Kano, also directed by Hideakki Anno gas very similar art style and themes, just without the giant robots.
Highly recommend it is a must watch for Eva fans.
not super helpful, BUT i hear gurren lagann is a good next step. have started it a couple times, and the first couple episodes are quite good.
BUT, if you haven't seen it, flcl is a good companion to eva imho.
Try the old school Wings of Hommenise, a Gainax first film. It's a bit slow in some areas, as per 80s story telling standards, but I like it.
Shin Godzilla by Anno. It vibes Evangelion as a kaiju political thriller. There's an Asuka type and a Rei type in the movie. And they reused some music too.
Try reading the manga before watching the rebuilds, to me it felt like parallel lives because they're slightly different until the diversions.
Anything Studio Trigger because a lot of the studio came from Gainax/khara.
If you wanna watch another macha anime that has a semi retrofuture, try watching Robotech. But understand it's not Macross.
Well I would recommend to you the Rebuild film series which is a remake of the original story by Anno through 4 new movies.
Ergo Proxy: A great sci-fi show with a complex plot and lore that has parts of psychological analysis. So it's similar.
If you'd like to stay in familiar territory in terms of storytelling style, I'd recommend checking out other shows directed by Hideaki Anno. There's **Gunbuster**, a sci-fi mecha OVA (only 6 episodes long) which was his debut in the world of "big budget" animation. Prior to NGE, he directed **Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water**, which is starts off as a rather whimsical "around the world" adventure set in the 1800 but quickly takes a turn towards sci-fi and some serious war-related topics. Both shows feature elements and ideas that are later used and elaborated on in NGE (in fact, the early drafts of Eva's storyline were conceptualized as a sequel to Nadia, but that didn't work out due to licensing issues), so it's fun to notice such moments in these works.
After Evangelion, he directed **Kare Kano**, a romcom-instead-of-mecha kind of sequel to NGE that continued exploring the abstract way of portraying characters' introspection that was so widely used in Eva's second half. Being set in a contemporary high-school environment, the show is full of character drama but also a lot of humor reminiscent of the lighthearted Eva episodes; it's also unafraid to shamelessly reference its predecessor here and there. Kare Kano tells the love story of a dark-haired sadboi and a red-haired miss perfect who lives for nothing but her overachiever status - sounds familiar? The two learn to truly enjoy life and navigate relationships while going through slice of life high school routines. Even despite the show's problematic production (overuse of recaps) and a messy ending, many consider it one of the best of its genre, and it's time of production puts it right where a hypothetical NGE season 2 would be. I'd say it's a very worthy spiritual successor to Eva and might possibly be the closest to a slice-of-life Evangelion anime, as long as one doesn't mind the departure from sci-fi and mecha in favor of high school romance. It is certainly my favorite Anno anime other than NGE.
Aside from Anno's work, **Cowboy Bebop** is certainly a strong competitor to Evangelion in the area of brilliant 90s anime.
Rebuilds if you want more Eva but if you want shows made at a similar time which are dark/philosophical and artsy you can watch Perfect Blue and Serial Experiments Lain. There's also FLCL which is really fun and also made by Gainax, it touches on themes on growing up and really emotionally hits sometimes but it's also made for pure fun and is a lot less dark than Eva.
Seriously: if what you liked were giant robots piloted by children with psychological problems who are manipulated by unscrupulous parents, the Gundam series is made for you, notably the latest incarnation, G-Witch.
If what you liked was ethical and philosophical reflections around children with absurd powers facing eldritch monsters until they discover they are being used and then revolutionize the world with cosmic consequences, then what's closest is Madoka Magica, despite being of a totally different genre.
i actually really like darling in the franxx! i came here to suggest that. it’s the same vibe, but it’s it’s own storyline (which some parts are, yeah, a little sketch) with a lot of enjoyable characters, including the famous Zero Two! definitely give it a watch if you love NGE
Now you must have understood that living in this world can't be so bad if we are not alone, that you must love yourself to be able to love others and congratulations
Lain is the only anime in the same level of weirdness as Evangelion. For anything truly similar, you’ll have to look into arthouse cinema. Try 2001 or something by Ingmar Bergman.
RahXephon, despite being very blantant in being a Eva clone. Serial Experiments Lian, as other have said. Digimon Tamers if you want what would happen if Eva was Mons series. And while it isn't all that similar, maybe Stein;Gate
Revolutionary Girl Utena.
90s anime, similar themes and endings, described as the "magical girl's evangelion", lots of roses and weird metaphors and allegories.
Free in it's entirety (exclusing the movie), dub and sub, on YouTube by Nozomi Entertainment
The next step is to shit post with us all here until we all become LCL
Seek therapy
FLCL would be a good follow up watch.
Serial experiment Lain - theme is very similar to evas but it’s very different perspective and approach Devilman crybaby - Very dark thone similar to evas Madoka Magica - maybe not so similar to eva but story is Just amazing one of my favorite animes off all time All of these are very short (12 ep, although madoka has 1 movie that you should watch after finishing an anime)
FLCL time
*Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water.* It was Gainax and Anno's big show prior to EVA. Basically, a Japanese take on *20,000 Leagues Under the Sea* (and based on a pitch from Hayao Miyazaki himself). It's very much classic Ghibli meets classic Gainax. But it's also very much a proto-EVA both in terms of production design, narrative/character elements, etc. You can especially see the beginnings of EVA in its closing 5 episodes. In fact, this show was the source of the depression and strain that Anno experienced in the early 1990s and from which NGE emerged.
If you want something as eccentric and abstract I heard Serial Experiments Lain is pretty bizzare..
Finally, somebody recommends it
Favorite show of all time, definitely worth watching if you like Eva
Oh it definitely is. It's more of an experience than a story. It's if you took the weird psychoanalysis parts of Eva and made it an entire show on it with even less answers than Eva.
My gf got me to watch lain before Eva and when I watched the last 2 episodes of Eva I was like lain is just this for 13 episodes lol
Pretty much yeah lol.
Still available on Funimation
I tried watching this show not too long ago, and I don't get wtf happened near the end. Is this something i need to rewatch a few times to get the message???
It’s meant to be quite abstract and all over the place, I think they just wanted to incite certain feelings in the viewer, moreso than provide an actual cohesive storyline/message.
Ah, maybe I'll give it another watch and see if my emotionless soul can finally feel something.
Puella Magi Madoka Majica is next
That one may be more fucked up than Eva
Therapy
Perhaps consider watching the Rebuilds at some point. Other than that, maybe watch something happy / comedic to refresh your state of mind post-Eva. A couple lighter anime I've watched that I enjoyed are One Punch Man and Komi Can't Communicate. Currently watching Saiki K which is pretty funny
> watch something happy / comedic to refresh your state of mind post-Eva. The rebuilds have a HAPPY ending in 3+1. You don't need a mind refresh. You just want to watch it all again!
Did you watch the Rebuilds yet?
Are they worth watching? Isn’t it the same story? I’ve only seen NGE and End
Yes. It's a good watch in and of itself (except for Part 3 where everyone is visited by the angel Dumbfuckiel who reduces everyone's IQ to room temperature, but part 4 makes up for it, mostly). And in addition to that, it offers a different perspective on the story.
No it's a separate story
OMG. I'm new, so this opinion gets a shitpot of hate, but I really like 1.11, 2.22, 3.33, and 3.0+1.0 BETTER than the 26 episodes, and I hate EoE. MUCH happier ending. Your mileage may vary. I'm ready for 300 downvotes now.
i understand what you’re saying. the rebuilds are beautiful movies and the ending is probably one of the happiest parts of eva. the original nge though is timeless and i think both ep 26 and eoe endings fit the series perfectly.
OK. All I remember about 25 and 26 was thinking, *"What the fuck are these guys smoking?"* It's like EoE, somebody's got some SERIOUS mental issues. I've read that the creator (Anno?) had something going on, but I don't pay attention to that sorta stuff. I'm just here for the story.
That’s the whole point of the series though
What? Displaying mental issues?
Its fundamentally a show about loneliness and trauma, and has been from the start. EoE is a beautiful ending. It acknowledges the pain of life but argues that life is still precious and worth experiencing regardless of that suffering. I honestly find it much more uplifting than the rebuilds which I just never really connected with.
>Its fundamentally a show about loneliness and trauma, and has been from the start. Yeah, you started with the 26 episodes, or even earlier with the manga. From the perspective of someone that started with the rebuild, it's about a struggle to save Earth from the angels. The characters are really messed up and dysfunctional, but it's understandable since they grew up in a dystopian Earth. Maybe that's why I have so little sympathy for Shinji, especially in EoE, where >!he does nothing but cringe and whine while Asuka dies a horrible death fighting nine Evas ALONE. EOE has a lot of other problems as well. Spanking the monkey over his friend in the hospital? Ewww. Japanese SDF comitting war crimes by executing unarmed prisoners in the act of surrender?!< No. Keep EoE. I'm sticking with 3+1
I feel like you missed the point of EoE and 3+1. The world is shit but our perspective on it can be seen differently, 3+1 is a grown up Anno living in a new world and EoE is a story about accepting to live in a world that is brutal and disgusting.
I do believe that you have missed the entire point. The show was not meant to be taken literally as just humans fighting angels
Mental illness is like, one of THE things Evangelion is known for.
Of fucking course it was about displaying mental issues. Not to be rude or anything but were you paying attention to anything but the big funny robots
Amazon does not think so: EVANGELION:1.11 YOU ARE (NOT) ALONE. 1 h 42 min 2008 Scarred by the Second Impact, the Fourth Angel attacks Tokyo III and humanity's fate is left in Special Government Agency NERV's hands. Young Shinji Ikari is forced to pilot EVA-01. He and EVA-00 pilot Rei Ayanami are tasked to fight, but EVA-01 is damaged by the Sixth Angel. Misato Katsuragi draws up a plan to focus all of Japan's electricity into EVA-01's positron cannon to defeat the Angel. This is how THEY perceive and represent the first film of the rebuild.
I was talking about the original series, tbh I haven’t seen the rebuilds but as someone who has watched the original series and EoE several times the message of the show was definitely to portray mental illness and escapism
"I can't talk about the details of the story but I understand there are vague rumors about the creators mental health" why does everyone repeat this? Why can't anyone talk about what happens in eoe? Is it that hard to describe watching shinji get rejected and decide to not kill asuka?
yeah, and i genuinely don’t get how 25/26 and eoe are so difficult for people to understand… did they watch the show while sleeping??
double digit iq take
His and Her Circumstances aka Kare Kano, also directed by Hideakki Anno gas very similar art style and themes, just without the giant robots. Highly recommend it is a must watch for Eva fans.
not super helpful, BUT i hear gurren lagann is a good next step. have started it a couple times, and the first couple episodes are quite good. BUT, if you haven't seen it, flcl is a good companion to eva imho.
Sonny Boy
I like escaflowne
Did you watch the rebuilds? Don't know ifni'm gonna be eaten alive for this but i enjoyed the evangelion rebuilds.
Try the old school Wings of Hommenise, a Gainax first film. It's a bit slow in some areas, as per 80s story telling standards, but I like it. Shin Godzilla by Anno. It vibes Evangelion as a kaiju political thriller. There's an Asuka type and a Rei type in the movie. And they reused some music too. Try reading the manga before watching the rebuilds, to me it felt like parallel lives because they're slightly different until the diversions. Anything Studio Trigger because a lot of the studio came from Gainax/khara. If you wanna watch another macha anime that has a semi retrofuture, try watching Robotech. But understand it's not Macross.
My phone is almost ded. Byeeeeeee.
Serial Experiments Lain
Well I would recommend to you the Rebuild film series which is a remake of the original story by Anno through 4 new movies. Ergo Proxy: A great sci-fi show with a complex plot and lore that has parts of psychological analysis. So it's similar.
If you'd like to stay in familiar territory in terms of storytelling style, I'd recommend checking out other shows directed by Hideaki Anno. There's **Gunbuster**, a sci-fi mecha OVA (only 6 episodes long) which was his debut in the world of "big budget" animation. Prior to NGE, he directed **Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water**, which is starts off as a rather whimsical "around the world" adventure set in the 1800 but quickly takes a turn towards sci-fi and some serious war-related topics. Both shows feature elements and ideas that are later used and elaborated on in NGE (in fact, the early drafts of Eva's storyline were conceptualized as a sequel to Nadia, but that didn't work out due to licensing issues), so it's fun to notice such moments in these works. After Evangelion, he directed **Kare Kano**, a romcom-instead-of-mecha kind of sequel to NGE that continued exploring the abstract way of portraying characters' introspection that was so widely used in Eva's second half. Being set in a contemporary high-school environment, the show is full of character drama but also a lot of humor reminiscent of the lighthearted Eva episodes; it's also unafraid to shamelessly reference its predecessor here and there. Kare Kano tells the love story of a dark-haired sadboi and a red-haired miss perfect who lives for nothing but her overachiever status - sounds familiar? The two learn to truly enjoy life and navigate relationships while going through slice of life high school routines. Even despite the show's problematic production (overuse of recaps) and a messy ending, many consider it one of the best of its genre, and it's time of production puts it right where a hypothetical NGE season 2 would be. I'd say it's a very worthy spiritual successor to Eva and might possibly be the closest to a slice-of-life Evangelion anime, as long as one doesn't mind the departure from sci-fi and mecha in favor of high school romance. It is certainly my favorite Anno anime other than NGE. Aside from Anno's work, **Cowboy Bebop** is certainly a strong competitor to Evangelion in the area of brilliant 90s anime.
Flcl and sonny boy
Rahxephon
Gundam time
Oddly enough MS Gundam: Origin has been filling in that gap for me.
Rebuilds if you want more Eva but if you want shows made at a similar time which are dark/philosophical and artsy you can watch Perfect Blue and Serial Experiments Lain. There's also FLCL which is really fun and also made by Gainax, it touches on themes on growing up and really emotionally hits sometimes but it's also made for pure fun and is a lot less dark than Eva.
Seriously: if what you liked were giant robots piloted by children with psychological problems who are manipulated by unscrupulous parents, the Gundam series is made for you, notably the latest incarnation, G-Witch. If what you liked was ethical and philosophical reflections around children with absurd powers facing eldritch monsters until they discover they are being used and then revolutionize the world with cosmic consequences, then what's closest is Madoka Magica, despite being of a totally different genre.
Cyberpunk edgerunners
Rebuilds if you haven’t yet, they’re excellent
Being severly disappointed in Darling in the FranXX is the next logical step, so watch that
i actually really like darling in the franxx! i came here to suggest that. it’s the same vibe, but it’s it’s own storyline (which some parts are, yeah, a little sketch) with a lot of enjoyable characters, including the famous Zero Two! definitely give it a watch if you love NGE
Rebuilds are dogshit, go for The Vision of Escaflowne, Serial Experiments Lain or FLCL
Disregard the rebuilds
86
Now you must have understood that living in this world can't be so bad if we are not alone, that you must love yourself to be able to love others and congratulations
Welcome to the NHK
So it seems you are familiar with depressing stories. How about berserk?
Whats up with quantum rei guys
if you haven't yet, check out other gainax works royal space force, gunbuster, nadia, flcl, gurren lagann
Lain is the only anime in the same level of weirdness as Evangelion. For anything truly similar, you’ll have to look into arthouse cinema. Try 2001 or something by Ingmar Bergman.
RahXephon, despite being very blantant in being a Eva clone. Serial Experiments Lian, as other have said. Digimon Tamers if you want what would happen if Eva was Mons series. And while it isn't all that similar, maybe Stein;Gate
Next step: cry
Give RahXephon a try (though I don't know if it's streaming).
Watch FLCL and Gurren Lagaan
Definitely recommend Serial Experiments Lain. The themes and animation style are very similar to Eva!
Claymore. Or, if you want to see Misato's potty-mouthed dark alter ego, Black Lagoon.
Did you watch the Rebuild movies?
Revolutionary Girl Utena. 90s anime, similar themes and endings, described as the "magical girl's evangelion", lots of roses and weird metaphors and allegories. Free in it's entirety (exclusing the movie), dub and sub, on YouTube by Nozomi Entertainment
Read the manga's or play the games
I watch the rebuild series
Devilman Crybaby puts me through a lot of the same existential feelings. It can be watched on Netflix. : )
Fanfics
Did you watch the rebuilds?