Tributes to Neon Genesis Evangelion in other Anime and Manga
As the name implies, this page is for references to Evangelion.
Sgt. Frog (aka Keroro Gunsou)
Sgt. Frog (anime and manga) has too many Evangelion references to possibly list them all, so a few will have to do.
In this sequence from Vol. Eleven of the Manga, Corporal Giroro revives like Eva-02 in EOE.
In this episode, the Keron Force tries to conquor Earth by making everyone lethargic with "May Disease", which seems to be the Japanese equivalent of Spring Fever. This somehow escalates into a Third Impact-style disaster.
Hayate no Gotoku
Hayate no Gotoku, or Hayate the Combat Butler, is a show that started in April of 2007. This show contains so many parodies and references to other anime, TV shows, and games, that it is nearly impossible to catch them all.
During an episode with an extended parody of the game "Dragon Quest", the head of Giant Rei/Lilith popped out of the enemy everyone was fighting:
Nerv logo look-alike can be seen in one of the baths:
This following sequence parodies the first launch of Evangelion Unit-01. This is a giant nursing robot that goes berserk.
Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann
Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann, an anime by Gainax that aired starting in April of 2007, in episode 6, the animators were said to have "gone crazy"[Source needed] and stuck several females from other Gainax shows in the bathhouse, all wearing bunny outfits similar to the Daicon III and IV animations. Among them, were Rei and Asuka.
Diebuster
Diebuster, or Gunbuster 2, is an OVA from 2004 by Gainax. In episode 6, the final episode, there is an overt reference to Gendo putting his hand over Rei's left breast and it going inside her body.
Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi
Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi is a 13 episode series by Gainax that aired in April of 2002. In episode 3, when Satoshi realizes what's going on in this world, you can see grey Evangelion Unit-01 floating in space in the same fashion at the very end of End of Evangelion, with flowing hair.
Also, in episode 3, during the brief flash of the "Anime Pyramid", you can see Eva-01's head in the 3rd tier.
Also, in episode 3, after Satoshi gets inside the pilot's seat, the Evangelion background music, Decisive Battle, can be heard in the background. In episode 8, Satoshi's sister is seen running down the street, toast in mouth, wearing Rei's school uniform, saying "I'm late, I'm late", taken directly from the alternate reality in Episode 26 of the Evangelion TV Series.
Fooly Cooly
Fooly Cooly, or FLCL (or Furi Kuri), is another Gainax show that was released as OVAs in 2000. In one episode, Kamon Nandaba is said to have written a book on the "Mysteries of Eva".
Great Teacher Onizuka
Great Teacher Onizuka is a show that first aired in June of 1999 and based on a manga series that started in February of 1997. In the manga, when Onizuka walks through Yoshikawa's room, you can see several posters of Rei and Asuka hanging on the walls.
Also, in the anime, Onizuka can be seen occasionally sporting a red scarf that has the 7 eyed mask, similar to Lilith's Mask. Since the 7 eyes is symbolic outside of the Evangelion series, it's possible that this is not a reference at all to Evangelion.
Genshiken
In the Genshiken manga by Shimoku Kio, which started in December of 2002, one of the short Omake strips has Ohno Kanako, an avid cosplayer, dressed up as Asuka.
Elf ban Kakyuusei
Elf ban Kakyuusei is a 4 episode OVA that was released in November of 1997 and based on a dating sim. In episode 4, during a scene in a theatre, several characters from Evangelion are clearly depicted sitting in the theatre.
Burn Up W
Burn Up W, a 4 episode OVA release starting in April of 1996. Although it was released the same year the Evangelion TV Series was aired, in episode 2, Nanvel produces a robot named "El Heggunte'" which is very obviously a reference to Evangelion Unit-01.
Seto no Hanayome
Seto no Hanayome is a series that aired in April of 2007. In episode 16, Rei and Asuka can be seen in the crowd in the school's hallway wearing the school's uniforms.
Yakitate! Japan
Yakitate! Japan (manga) by Takashi Hashiguchi and serialized starting in 2002 and getting a U.S. release starting in September of 2006, in the U.S. release volume 10, chapter 83, page 6, during Pierrot's flashback on a beach, his child self can be seen building a sandcastle, which turns out to be a pyramid and includes a frame very similar to the Sandbox Sequence in the End of Evangelion where a child Shinji builds a pyramid sandcastle. Although pyramids made of sand is not unique to Evangelion, this is a possible reference to the End of Evangelion due to the last frame on this page.
Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu
Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu, or The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, was a show by Kyoto Animation that started in April of 2006. Although the scene near the end of the show where Haruhi chokes Kyon (for apparently no reason at all) may or may not be a direct reference to the final scene in the End of Evangelion, the circumstances, the desolate surroundings, and the lighting of this scene has many fans believing it is a direct reference.
Azumanga Daioh
Azumanga Daioh, an anime that aired in 2002 and based on a 4-koma manga of the same name by Kiyohiko Azuma, in episode 3, Yukari mimics the way Misato drinks beer, slamming the empty glass down and yelling. Although it is debatable whether this was a direct reference, the similarities are clear.