Evangelion (mecha)

In the anime/manga series Neon Genesis Evangelion, Evangelions, or simply Evas, are the mechas piloted by Shinji Ikari, Rei Ayanami, Asuka Langley Soryu, and the other Children. The Evas were created by NERV for the purpose of defending Tokyo-3. They are all in the form of tall humanoid figures, with fearsome, animal-like masks. They are not actually simple mechanical giant robots, but are biomechanical and are mostly living parts. Their flesh is rarely seen, however, since they are always wearing full body armor.

The height of the Eva units changes from episode to episode, as one can see by comparing them to the buildings of Tokyo-3: sometime they are large enough to step over them, and other times they are far shorter. The height varies between 40 and 200 meters (130 to 650 feet). This inconsitency was used for dramatic effect by the animators, similar to the way in King Kong that Kong varies in size over the course of the movie..

Later in the series it is revealed that the Evas are actually based on the first two Angels, Adam and Lilith, and that their armor is mostly to constrain their inherited immense power. Also, Units 00, 01, 02 all contain humans souls all supposedly trapped in that particular Eva by accident. Near the end of the series, it is revealed that the Dummy Plugs used to autopilot the Evas are actually made of Rei Ayanami and Kaworu Nagisa clones.

Prototype Evangelion Units

Evangelion pre-Unit 00

Several prototype models were made, all of which failed. These can be seen in the Evangelion graveyard. They all have orange armour. Most of these Evangelions' organic structures have rotted, and are little more than armoured skeletons. All have the word "reject" painted on their heads in large red letters.

Evangelion Unit 00

Piloted by Rei Ayanami. This is the only successful ProtoType Model. It was initially orange, but that armour was destroyed by the 5th Angel's particle beam and it was rebuilt with blue armour that matched the final armour design of the Production Type models. It has one eye, in the center of its head. It has gone berserk twice, both times lashing out at enemies of Naoko Akagi, which has prompted a theory that her soul was implanted in the Eva prototype. This theory is far from universally accepted, and the true nature of the soul inside Eva-00 is still the subject of heated debate. Made in Japan.

Test Type Evangelion Units

There is only one Test Type Eva Unit. The Test Type unit is most similar to the Prototype units.

Evangelion Unit 01

Created in the Third Annex of Gehirn's Artificial Evolution Laboratory in Hakone from 2003 to 2004 and deemed a functional Eva unit in 2014. Unit 01 is piloted by Shinji Ikari (with Rei Ayanami as a backup pilot), and has the best battle record of all the Evangelions. She has been known to act independently (the so-called "berserker mode"), without the instructions of a pilot and sometimes without any apparent power source. The Eva's resident soul, Yui Ikari, appears responsible: As Shinji's mother, she will take action to protect her son -- while sometimes servicing her own interests. EVA-01 is called the "Test Type", perhaps because of the experimental way in which she was created: Although EVA-01 seems to be an Adam-derived organism like all other Evangelions, she is the sole Eva to have been born from Lilith. Upon assimilation of the S2 organ from the 14th angel, Zeruel, EVA-01 became the first physically complete Evangelion. Interestingly, the only one who can use the S2 seems to be the Eva herself; after acquiring it, she is still sent into battle with an Umbilical Cable.

The "armor" is primarily purple, additional colors being neon green, light blue, orange, and black. The helmet, with its prominent horn (functionally an antenna, it seems) and "frill", is vaguely evocative of a ceratopsian dinosaur. The layout of the pectoral plates is unique from any other Eva. The humanoid entity beneath the armor has dark brown skin, two emerald-green eyes, four small nostrils positioned preorbitally, and red blood.

Production Type Evangelion Units

All production type Eva Units have two eyes bar Unit 02, and are otherwise identical to each other.

Evangelion Unit 02

Piloted by Asuka Langley Soryu. Evangelion Unit Two was the first Evangelion built specifically for battle situations. Combining the efficient construction plans of EVA-01 with an arsenal of concealed weaponry, EVA-02 is a walking tank intended to stand against the Angels. Colored red, and has a native language mode of German. Known to contain Asuka's mother's soul. It's blood appears to be blue in color, due to the fact that it was made from the Adam embryo, just like Angels. First Production Model, made by NERV Germany.

Evangelion Unit 03

Evangelion Unit Three is one of two Units built with the Second Production Model design. It is the sister Unit of EVA-04. A few minor changes were made between the first and second Production Models. Black production model Evangelion produced by NERV-01 in Massachusetts USA. The US government was very eager to offload this Eva after the explosion of Eva-04. In transit to Japan, it was possessed by Bardiel, the 13th Angel; see that page for more information.

Evangelion Unit 04

Evangelion Unit Four is the sister Unit of EVA-03. EVA-04 is never shown in any footage, but its story is told during discussion of EVA-03's transfer to Japan. EVA-04 was built in the United States and was intended to be the first Evangelion to be equipped with an S2 organ. EVA-04's S2 organ was taken from Shamshel--the Fourth Angel. It was destroyed when its S2 Engine exploded, also wiping out NERV-02 in Nevada USA, and all things for miles around (as seen from reconnaissance satellite), while undergoing initial S2 Engine testing. One scenario predicted by the MAGI states that the S2 Engine may have opened a Dirac sea similar to the one controlled by the 12th Angel. According to Gainax material, this unit is silver in color.

Mass Production Evangelions

Evangelion Units 05 to 13, white in color, Mass production model.

These Evangelion units appear in End of Evangelion. Produced at seven different Nerv branches around the world, probably Germany (Third Branch), the United States (First Branch, Massachusetts), Japan (Matsushiro), the United Kingdom, France, Russia, and China. (Unit 05 and 06 were made in Germany; 08 was produced in China.) Seele had them produced as part of their backup plan for initiating Instrumentality, but only nine out of an envisioned twelve were completed. These Evas have no pilots; rather, they are controlled directly by Seele via Kaworu's Dummy Plug system.

Their physical build is different from previous Evas, being narrower in the chest and shoulders and wider in the hips, but the greatest difference is in the head: Rather than humanoid, it is streamlined and vaguely cetacean in appearance, and apparently covered by the same reinforced plastic that coats the arms. The long jaws (not bolted shut, like earlier Evas) have red muscular lips, metal-plated teeth, a large grey tongue, and profuse quantities of saliva. There are no apparent eyes; it seems likely that they employ a non-visual means of environmental perception.

Each Eva contains an internal S2 Organ, which grants them complete mobility (being freed from the Umbilical Cable) and no operational time limit. Although the S2 would theoretically allow them to regenerate damage they have taken (like Angels), they never display this ability, despite a common misconception to the contrary. [The misconception stems from a continuity error: After they reactivate, they are drawn for several cuts without their injuries. However, later, in "Magokoro o, kimi ni", the injuries are clearly visible in numerous cuts; no regeneration has occurred.] They are equipped with large, mechanical, avian-style wings that can be fully retracted into the back. Their primary weapons are the unwieldy Heavy Lances, which eventually transform into their true form, the ultramarine-blue replicas of the Spear of Longinus. Additionally, the Evas themselves are capable of formidable savagery -- albeit only against a fallen, helpless opponent.

The fan community fondly refers to these Evas as "harpies", after the mythological creatures.

Evangelion Unit 05

In the Alternate Universe "Girlfriend of Steel 2", Kaworu Nagisa pilots Eva Unit 05, which is otherwise the same as the Mass Production units, except that the dummy plug is an entry plug.