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Presents:
The
One Year Anniversary Contest!
The Contest is
now over. There were well over seventy entries in the Contest
and almost every single one of them was great! It was
a very tough call, but the winners have been decided. Thank you
for all of your entries.
First Place:
Clifton
Sawit
Essay 1 - Favorite Character Essay
Ikari Gendo, the Heartless One. Ikari Gendo, the Monster. Ikari
Gendo, the Master of Puppets.
These are the names we know him by, the names we have given him
after witnessing one despicable act committed by him after another.
Again and again we are given reason to hate him, to despise him.No
wonder, then, that most who have watched Evangelion have passed
judgement on him, this 'most wicked of men', this 'darkest of
souls'. Yet underneath all the perceived darkness and evil lies
one of the most complex characters I have ever had the privilege
to 'meet'. And this very darkness, this very complexity is what
draws me to this character.
But who is this character? Who is Ikari Gendo?
Ikari Gendo is a man driven by a fascinating corruption of his
love for his wife, Yui; driven so strongly that everything else
ceases to matter. He is the center of a web of deceit, of lies,
of broken lives and dreams; a web that he had carefully constructed
from the very beginning. He uses binding chains to subdue his
subordinates, chains like duty, like pride, like false love;
he uses these like leashes, like reins on people who carry him
onward toward his goal. Ikari Gendo, the Master of Puppets.
Ikari Gendo is a man who expects his commands to be obeyed without
question, and woe to anyone who dares to even hesitate to carry
those commands out. With a word he wrenches children from their
playgrounds and sand castles to fight for his cause; he drags
them across the shards of physical and emotional trauma and expects
- demands - them to not even flinch. Ikari Gendo forces one child,
in particular, to die, over and over again, with the full knowledge
that her life is a sham, that her life is based on someone else's,
and that she, like all the others, is expendable. He forces another
to face the trauma of losing her mother to insanity every time
he orders her to don her plug suit. He forces yet another to
fight for him in the hope that his sister may be saved, causing
his near-deadly fate. And he forces his own child to fight without
clear reason; to fight for the tiniest shreds of praise from
him; and to drive and merge with the very shell his own mother
is trapped in. All for a goal he will not even disclose.
Ikari
Gendo, the Monster.
And Ikari Gendo is a man who does all of this without apparent
remorse or regret. He throws everyone and everything into the
furnace of his driving goal, without a doubt shown on his expressionless
face. He hides any hint of emotion behind his amber-tinted shades;
he hides those emotions from anyone who would look past the granite
face. Yet I believe Ikari Gendo is a man in constant turmoil.
Always haunted by his past; always haunted by what could have
been, what should have been; always haunted by the doubt he refuses
to show on his face. And most of all he is haunted by the memory
of Yui, the wife he loved more than anything in the entire world;
he is haunted by the obsession that love had become following
her death. His followers have no idea that he does all of this
to pursue a nebulous vision of his reunion with Yui, and for
Gendo to reveal this fact is more weakness than he is prepared
to admit.
And
when this vision fails and the plan he so fanatically pursued
eludes his grasp for the final time, as the world begins to end
around him and the apparition arrives to take him away, the dam
of his restraint breaks, and his final utterance is one of weakness;
his final words are those of remorse, of apology to his son,
the same son he drove near to madness, the same son he had abandoned
so long ago: "I'm sorry..."
Ikari
Gendo, the Heartless One.
Essay 2 - Evangelion is about...
Evangelion is not about Tokyo-3.
Evangelion is not about Japan.
Evangelion is not about the number of each Angel.
Evangelion is not about the Angels.
Evangelion is not about Adam.
Evangelion is not about Eve.
Evangelion is not about Lilith.
Evangelion is not about Christianity.
Evangelion is not about Judaism..
Evangelion is not about NERV.
Evangelion is not about SEELE.
Evangelion is not about clones.
Evangelion is not about saving the Earth.
Evangelion is not about protecting humanity.
Evangelion is not about the Geofront
Evangelion is not about piloting giant mecha.
Evangelion is not about giant mecha.
Evangelion is not about the EVA's.
Evangelion is not about the Red Cross Book.
Evangelion is not about the One Way.
Evangelion is not about the truth others tell you.
Evangelion is about the unknown ceiling.
Evangelion is about the hedgehog's dilemma.
Evangelion is about despair.
Evangelion is about hope.
Evangelion is about hate.
Evangelion is about love.
Evangelion is about relationships.
Evangelion is about the fear of rejection.
Evangelion is about introspection.
Evangelion is about the danger of too much introspection.
Evangelion is about grief.
Evangelion is about dealing with grief.
Evangelion is about growth.
Evangelion is about maturity.
Evangelion is about self-sacrifice.
Evangelion is about self-value.
Evangelion is about finding purpose.
Evangelion is about free will.
Evangelion is about courage.
Evangelion is about choice.
Evangelion is about the courage to choose freely.
Evangelion is about your own way.
Evangelion is about the truth you choose for yourself.
Evangelion is about life.
Life is the unknown ceiling. |
Go Back to the Top of the Page
Second Place:
Mychau
Le
1.
Even though her appearance is rather brief within the series,
I love Yui Ikari. ^_^ She is Gendou's wife, and Shinij's mother,
so she plays an important role in two of the main character's
lives. There are many aspects of her that I really admire. First
of, she's a very beautiful woman with her brown hair and her
shining smile. Its easy to see where Rei Ayanami's beauty is
inheirited from. Yui is also very intelligent. She wrote an excellent
essay, and also worked hard toward her goals. Though she had
the chance to pursue her intellectual dreams, she also had the
dream of being married, which is a dream of love - a noble thing.
Her sweetness makes her well loved, as by Fuuyutsuki and Gendou.
She was able to take the time to look within Gendou's heart rather
than judge him by his reputation. Gendou responded, which is
why he is so determined to initiate the Third Impact and merge
with Lilith. He wanted to be reunited with her. In a sense, if
she wasn't in the show, there would have been no plot because
Gendou wouldn't be trying to get her back!
Yui
was and is a good mother to Shinji. She seemed caring enough
to bring him into the lab for the testing so her "could
see how bright the future will be". Even when in the EVA,
she was able to help him synch and help him with his thoughts,
as well as fighting the angel. Lastly, I love Yui's beautiful
quotes concerning her sweet philosophy in life. Such as her quote,
"He has the will to live has the chance to make his life
Heaven" or something on the borders of that. With that line,
her shining heart and optimism shine through. Thus is why I admire
her.
(MWUAHAHAHA!!
I have a page to her greatness:
Yui
Ikari - Mother's Touch)
2. I believe Neon Genesis Evangelion is about change. The world
in which the characters have lived in have changed. After the
Second Impact, life was misrable but by trying to rebuild it,
there was renewed hope for a better world in which to live. Gendou,
Fuuyutsuki's and Shinji's lives were all changed after the dissapearance
of Yui. Gendou became inclosed in himself and cold, Fuuyustuki
missed her while Shinji was abandoned and went to live with his
teacher. But Shinji's character was able to develop when he was
called to Nerv to pilot EVA Unit 01. He was introduced to living
with Misato and Pen-Pen, which gave him a sense of having a 'real
family'. He was able to face his father, even though they do
not get along. He learned responsibilty, and how to face the
world and himself, instead of trying to be shut up and hidden
away. He learned to make friends, and to put with Asuka. (hehe)
Asuka learned that though her past is painful, she shouldn't
try to guard against with her pompous attitude. She learns to
be humble in the very end. Rei II learns she does a soul in the
end, and sacrifices herself for the same of Shinji. She is not
merely a tool for Gendou in the end and learns to be herself,
doing what she wants. Misato learns that her heart really did
love Kaji and about herself.
In a sense, all the characters in EVA were able to grow in their
mind, heart and soul. They learn to be themselves and to face
their inner fears. Their common goal is to defeat the Angel -
as well as to destroy the despair, the pain and unhappinesses
in their past and present lives.
|
Go Back to the Top of the Page
Third Place:
Nathanael
Espino
Dreams
and Glass
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
I've never remembered a time when I didn't have glasses. The
constant pressure on your nose and behind the ears every waking
moment for me feels as normal as taking a breath every six seconds.
The double take including a removal-slash-wipe-on-shirt-sleeve-slash-look
sequence with it, second nature. The constant swiveling of the
head rather than rolling the eyes to look at things on the periphery
of the field of vision is as much a part of my reaction as is
kicking in response to a tap on the knee.
And the damn things can be more entrapping than handcuffs made
of lead. No, seriously. A classmate's careless wave can knock
you back into the world of shade and shadow, as you try and find
the tool to return precision to your vision somewhere along the
floor or shelf or wherever it landed. By law, you'll never be
able to pilot a fighter plane, or a shuttlecraft. If it's really
bad, you won't be able to be a witness in a legal trial.
And oft, we bespectacled ones overcompensate for our defective
sight. Most commonly, we burrow into books, relishing in obscure
knowledge or trivial stuff. Some become, aside from being readers,
love language so that they become writers. Others become painters
and sculptors, presenting the world as they see it to the rest
of humanity. And others take it out on film, as professional
or amateur photographers and cinematographers.
Our vision limits us from seeing as much as we can about life.
So we record. We write. We memorize. We film and keep the negatives.
Built in with blinkers, we strive to achieve above the handicap.
Perhaps, then, this is why I share a kinship with one who desires
to see, and record as much of life as he can. Perpetually carrying
a camera, devoted to a subject. Bespectacled. Kensuke Aida.
Modeled Reality
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Let's give ourselves a pat on the back. We've come a long way
from where we've been.
With science, we've seen the heart of the atom. We've made it
possible for several millions to live where once mere thousands
once eked a living. We've made our own mechanical beasts of burden.
We have chickens with four legs, and sheep that produce insulin
for diabetics. We've explored the depth of the ocean and seen
the other planets.
We've
done it all. Pass me the T-shirt.
Wrong.
As far as we have come from the halcyonic heydays of garage science,
we don't know everything. Every fact, law or trivia we take as
"science" in our world is a mere minor theory of reality.
That's right, theory. As in subject to verification against reality
itself. Until now, no one can claim an all encompassing theory
of reality itself.
Let's take thermodynamics for example. All of these laws governing
heat are based on observations over the centuries. If a totally
screwy observation was duly recorded, the nice square logical
box we've marked "THERMODYNAMICS" will have to account
for it.
Up to now, we don't know it all. And maybe because, they're not
meant to be understood by us. Ever. Despite the neat boxes we've
created, labeled and duct taped shut for the world, there's a
lot that sticks out the sides, and maybe even becomes unboxable
too.
Like what makes one human? What is consciousness. Who is out
there? Is there someone out there? What gives life that spark?
What makes a seed decide to grow? Or living for that matter.
There's a lot we don't know out there. Who knows, it might just
pay us a visit one of these days. Maybe around the turn of the
century for that matter. And we'll either have to fight it for
our lives, or take it as it comes. Whenever that happens, it
will be our decision.
I, for one, look forward to seeing the unknowns out there when
they step into our sight. And then, then we can say that we've
seen it all. Or get carried kicking and screaming into oblivion
by lack of foresight.
|__|==|__|==|__|==|__|==|__|==|__|==|__|
To loving tension, no pension
To more than one dimension |
Go Back to the Top of the Page
Way to go, guys!
And thanks to everyone who entered^_^
Seeya in another
year!
Go
back to the EVA FAQs Homepage
or check
out the old rules and prizes for this contest.
And now a special thanks to our contest sponsor: AnimeNation!
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All names, images and events mentioned
on this page regarding Neon Genesis Evangelion are copyrights
of Gainax
Studios Project EVA
. NAS. (c) Gainax / Project Eva. TV Tokyo. NAS. Released in North
America by A.D.V. Films.
I do not
claim any ownership or rights to these things, so get off my
back! I'm only making this cool contest to show how
much I love Evangelion. I want others to know
about it and buy as many tapes of it as they can, so that soon
the entire world will know Shin
Seiki Evangelion!!!!
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