Neon Genesis Evangelion Platinum Complete Collection - Underland Online
- Underland Online
- Mike
- 07/01/06
- click here
""Evangelion is a space opera that is truly unlike any other, often replicated by other companies, though with minimal success...""
""Gundam may have very well laid the groundwork for the modern mecha series, but Evangelion redefined it.""
Life is full of decisions that can be quite complicated at times. Way back when we originally started Underland Online, one of the things that ADV was kind enough to send over to review was the
Neon Genesis Evangelion Perfect Collection, and I?ve always loved that pure black box with the red EVA eyes glaring off the shelf.
Evangelion later was re-issued as the platinum editions, and then again in a handy, compressed ThinPak edition, and that has been something that has long plagued me; give up the
Perfect Collection in favor of saving space or keep something that has long been the pride and joy of my anime collection. With shelf space now a distant memory and the
Platinum Collection glaring at me, I?ve had to break down and finally add it into the mix.
Neon Genesis Evangelion is undoubtedly THE anime series when it comes to fandom, and it has been heralded by many as the new generation of titles that drew many a newcomer into the anime genre itself, much like films such as Akira and Ghost in the Shell have in the past.
Evangelion is a space opera that is truly unlike any other, often replicated by other companies, though with minimal success save for a few bright spots. Often, youth and mecha have been seen side by side, but
Evangelion is really the series that could be considered to have written the book on the coming of age tale when it comes to giant robots. It is the one that will be long remembered for trials and tribulations, for unexpected plot twists, and for epitomizing a whiny lead character who doesn?t want to save the world one moment, then decides he has no choice the next. Shinji Ikari is undoubtedly the template for any characters to follow that embody this same mentality.
Gundam may have very well laid the groundwork for the modern mecha series, but
Evangelion redefined it.
The
Neon Genesis Evangelion Platinum Collection comes with every episode of the series as you would expect, though in this case you will not find the original releases that graced shelves many years ago. Instead, these are the newer editions with enhanced sound as well as the director?s cut versions of episodes 21 through 24 on a final disc. The DVD?s themselves don?t actually include any special features, but this is a series that stands well enough on its own, and even the original DVD releases had a scant few bonus features, such as the case was back in the dawning of DVD.
The ThinPak edition of
Evangelion is done in a stunning and quite eye catching platinum colored foil, and though the imagery is rather simple when compared to some other anime titles that are available, it does truly capture the one thing about the series that many fans love, and that would be the ladies. Who needs Shinji? The two faces have images of Rei and Asuka, each girl alone on either side, with parts of the EVA drawn very lightly behind them. Rei of course has the more series look about her while Asuka has a much more playful demeanor. The mecha in
Evangelion certainly are a high point, but as any fan who is very into this series can tell you, some 10 years later, many of the
Evangelion related products that are found on the Japanese marketplace feature Asuka, Rei, and even Misato in a number of poses and costumes with no Shinji in sight.
Posted on Saturday, July 01, 2006 (Archive on Tuesday, August 01, 2006)