Episode 05
| Episode Information | |||||||
| Episode #05 | |||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| Written By | Akio Satsukawa, Hideaki Anno | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Directed By | Keiichi Sugiyama | ||||||
| First Aired | 11-01-1995 | ||||||
| Video Release Date | 4-5-1996 (Japan-Video/LD), 11-21-2000 (US-DVD) | ||||||
| Angel Appearances | Ramiel | ||||||
| Eva Sorties | Eva-01 | ||||||
| Episode chronology | |||||||
| ← Previous | Next → | ||||||
| "Episode 04" | "Episode 06" | ||||||
Contents
Overview
Eva-00 is finally repaired[1], and Shinji tries to get to know its enigmatic pilot, Rei Ayanami, better. However, he is confounded because she is extremely insular, has no friends at all, and the entire record of her past has been erased. In the midst of this, a very powerful Angel, the floating monolith Ramiel, attacks Tokyo-3.
Synopsis
As the episode opens, we finally get a flashback that explains how Rei got her injuries. Just days before Shinji arrived at Nerv, and it must have been immediately before Misato's arrival, Rei is piloting Eva-00 in an activation experiment, when the Evangelion suddenly goes berserk. The Eva holds her head as if she were in agony, and then tries to pound her way into the control room[2]. The power is cut off, but before Eva-00 powers down, Rei's Entry Plug is ejected and starts bouncing around the room. Gendo orders Special Bakelite pumped into the room to cushion the blow, but it's too late. When Eva-00 stops, Gendo rushes into the test room and forces open the red-hot hatch with his bare hands. His glasses fall to the floor and begin to melt from the heat. He manages to get the plug the open and finds an injured, but still conscious Rei meekly looking back at him inside. Gendo expresses relief that her injuries aren't more serious than they are, and smiles.
Some days later, Misato and Ritsuko watch as Eva-00 is being cut free from the bakelite. Ritsuko says that mental instability in the pilot is the suspected cause of the incident. Misato is incredulous, pointing out that Rei doesn't appear to be mentally unstable. Something else seems to occurs to Ritsuko, but she thinks better of saying it.
In the present day, Misato, Ritsuko, and Shinji are on-site when Nerv technicians are examining Shamshel's mostly intact remains. Although they can't analyze the stuff the Angel is made of[3], they can tell that its "inherent wave pattern" is 99.89% similar to that of humans'. Shinji looks over Ritsuko's shoulder and nods, pretending he knows what she's talking about. Shinji notices that Gendo and Fuyutsuki are examining the recovered remains of the deceased Angel's core. As Gendo has removed his gloves, Shinji catches a glance of the burns on his father's hands, and asks Ritsuko and Misato about them. Ritsuko tells Shinji about the incident with Rei and the super-heated hatch; Shinji reacts with disbelief.
Some time later at school, Toji and Kensuke notice Shinji watching Rei and tease him about it, but Shinji replies that he was just wondering why she's always alone[4]. Kensuke and Toji explains that no one really talks with Rei, because there is just something "unapproachable" about her. Kensuke asks Shinji if he shouldn't know more about her than them, seeing how they are fellow pilots. Later, back at Nerv HQ, Shinji is in for a sync test, as he notices Rei casually chatting with Gendo. He uses the Eva's camera to zoom in on their conversation, and sees both of them smiling, realizing that it is the first time he's seen either of them do so.
That evening, Ritsuko is eating dinner at Misato's place. Misato prepared the food, so it consists entirely of beer and under-diluted instant ramen. Only Misato finds it edible. Ritsuko then asks Shinji to deliver Rei's new Nerv I.D. card. When he looks embarrassed about going to a girl's home, Misato teases him. A flustered Shinji replies that he is just curious about Rei, because they are fellow pilots, and yet he knows very little about her. Ritsuko tells him that Rei is a nice girl, but also compares her a bit to Gendo, saying that they both are "clumsy at living", much to Shinji's puzzlement.
The next morning, he knocks on Rei's door and rings the bell, and receives no answer, but finds it unlocked and walks in. The place is an unspeakable mess, littered with trash and bloody bandages. He notices Gendo's glasses sitting on a dresser top and tries them on. Just then Rei emerges, presumably from the shower, naked but for a towel. She seems more concerned for the glasses than her nudity, and crosses the room and snatches them from his grasp. He trips and they fall in a heap with him on top of her, also somehow upsetting a drawer full of Rei's undergarments. After a pause of several seconds, she asks him to please move; only then does he notice that his hand is on her breast. Still seemingly unconcerned[5], she dresses, takes the glasses and leaves while Shinji is still stammering out both frantic apologies and an explanation.
Shinji, still haven't handed over the card, tries to follow Rei, but she seemingly doesn't pay him any mind at all. When they arrive at HQ and her old card doesn't work, he finally manages to hand her the new one. While riding the escalator, Shinji again tries apologizing for what happened in the apartment, but Rei doesn't appear to understand what he is apologizing for. He tries changing the subject, and asks her if she isn't frightened of her impending re-activation experiment in Eva-00, considering what happened last time. When she asks doesn't he have faith in his father, Shinji bitterly denounces him, getting his face slapped for his troubles. Once again, Rei will show some emotion when Gendo is concerned. Rei takes Gendo's glasses aboard the Eva as a good luck talisman, and the Re-activation is successful[6].
Just then, Ramiel, the 5th Angel attacks. Knowing that Rei isn't ready to fight, Gendo sends out Shinji in Eva-01. As soon as he surfaces from underground, Ramiel blasts the Eva with a devastating particle beam. Shinji begins to be boiled alive, and Misato withdraws him with mere moments left for the Evangelion and its pilot. End of episode.
Quotes
- (asking about what caused Eva-00 to go berserk during an activation test)
Misato: "So, what caused the accident during the last experiment?"
Ritsuko: "We still don't know. However, we believe that mental instability on the part of the pilot was a primary cause."
Misato: "Mental instability? In Rei?"
Ritsuko: "Yes, her mind became much more disturbed than we had anticipated."
Misato: "So what happened?"
Ritsuko: "I don't know. But it could be..."
Misato: "Did something occur to you?"
Ritsuko: (to herself) "No...that can't be it..." - (Shinji is staring at Rei in the distance, who is wearing a bathing suit)
Toji: "Hey, chief! What are you lookin' at so intently?"
Shinji: "Nothing!"
Kensuke: "Was it Ayanami? Am I right?"
Shinji: "No!"
Kensuke: "Oh, come on! That's suspicious."
Toji: "Ayanami's boobs, Ayanami's thighs, Ayanami's...
Kensuke and Toji (in unison): "calves!" - Misato: (Very drunk but sounding profound) "Never underestimate the ability of the human animal to adapt to its environment"
- (Shinji accidentally falls on top of the naked Rei, his hand directly on her breast, and Shinji freezes in shock)
Rei: (in an extremely calm voice) "Do you mind moving?"
Shinji: (Jumps to his feet) "I-I-I..." ( Rei gets up and walks to the other side of the room, slowly and completely naked) "...uh, uh, uh..."
Rei: (slides a pair of panties on; in a calm, almost confused voice) "...what?" - (Shinji and Rei have arrived at Nerv HQ and are on the escalator)
Shinji: "You have a re-activation experiment today, don't you? Wouldn't it be great if it were successful this time? Say, aren't you afraid of getting in Unit-00 again?"
Rei: "Why"
Shinji: "I heard that you were hurt pretty badly in an earlier experiment, so I was wondering if you were okay about it."
Rei: "Aren't you commander Ikari's son?"
Shinji: "Yeah."
Rei: "Don't you have faith in your own father's work?"
Shinji: "Of course not! How could I trust him?"
(Rei angrily turns to face Shinji.)
Shinji: "What?"
(Rei slaps Shinji.)
References
- ↑ Evangelion Unit-00, only briefly glimpsed before now, is given a full introduction in this episode.
- ↑ When Eva-00 goes berserk, after Rei is already ejected, it attacks a window that Gendo Ikari is standing behind. See Theory and Analysis:Eva-00's Soul for details on what this says about the identity of Unit-00's soul.
- ↑ "601" is the Nerv computer systems' code number for "cannot be analyzed". This is a direct reference to the movie The Andromeda Strain, where a medical computer displays "601" when overloaded with data. Go here for more.
- ↑ Toji and Kensuke say that they first met Rei when she joined their school about a year ago (they are in 8th grade, she joined in 7th grade).
- Toji actually specifically says Rei joined their class in "first year", but that's just the terminology the Japanese school system uses, in which 7th grade is the "first year" of junior high school, 8th grade is "second year", etc.
- ↑ Just as she seems unconcerned about Shinji's nudity in the hospital scene in Episode 06. The implication seems to be that she has little or no social training.
- ↑ A small reference to Madeleine L'Engle's book A Wind in the Door is visible just before the reactivation.
| Episodes & Films | |
| Television Series | Episode 01 | Episode 02 | Episode 03 | Episode 04 | Episode 05 | Episode 06 Episode 07 | Episode 08 | Episode 09 | Episode 10 | Episode 11 | Episode 12 | Episode 13 |
| Movies | Death | Rebirth |
| Rebuild of Evangelion | Evangelion 1.0 | Evangelion 2.0 | Evangelion 3.0 | Evangelion: 3.0 + 1.0 |
