Ritsuko Akagi

Ritsuko Akagi
赤木 リツコ
Age	30
Birthday	November 21, 1985
Seiyū	Yuriko Yamaguchi

Ritsuko Akagi is Nerv's chief scientist, and is in command of the Technical branch of Nerv HQ, which is responsible for the research and development of the Evangelions, as well as their maintenance and repair. She is the daughter of famous Gehirn scientist Naoko Akagi, who headed the Evangelion project before her. Ritsuko met Misato Katsuragi in college at Tokyo-2, as well as Misato's boyfriend Ryoji Kaji. After graduating college, Ritsuko joined Gehirn, and worked directly under her mother Naoko at the then-unfinished Tokyo-3. In many ways, Ritsuko is living in her mother's shadow.

Profile

In the present, Ritsuko first appears to have a good friendship with Misato, occasionally teasing her about her smaller shortcomings. Yet Ritsuko also avoids speaker about the personal and emotional aspects of her life, and under stress the two women grow farther apart instead of confiding in each other, due to some ethical differences and Ritsuko knowing more about what is going on but refusing to share this information with Misato.

Younger Ritsuko with undyed hair, from Episode 21

Ritsuko was secretly involved in a sexual relationship with Gendo Ikari, who had first been with her mother. In addition to "sharing" the same man, the two Akagis both manifested destructive behaviour towards the figure of Rei Ayanami, despite a period of initial emotional control. In Ritsuko's case this was clearly because of jealousy towards Rei, and it might have also been that way with Naoko. Ritsuko’s particular attack on Rei might have been triggered when she was sent in place of Rei to Seele and put nude before them. In retaliation Ritsuko destroyed the Dummy System and with it the mindless Rei clones, insisting that what she’d really killed was Rei, her "rival".

The parallels between Gendo's relationships with both Akagi women are ironic, given that Ritsuko tries to distance herself from her mother, most obviously by dying her hair blonde to be distinct from Naoko. Flashbacks show a teenage Ritsuko with a natural hair colour that is very similar to Naoko's.

Besides this, Naoko and Ritsuko appeared to have a slightly strained relationship. Naoko apparently raised Ritsuko without what she felt was adequate supervision, which could be from where Ritsuko receives her tendency to shoulder all burdens and responsibilities in a tense situation, as she has been figuratively on her own for a long time.

Ritsuko's social difficulties, especially with romantic relationships, might also relate to this, as Naoko also blamed Ritusko’s difficulties with understanding the relationships between men and women (Ritsuko was appalled at Misato taking a week away from school with Kaji, and often comments on the perceived illogic between the interactions of men and women) on her being raised without men around. The identity of Ritsuko’s father remains unknown, and the only other family member mentioned is her grandmother (presumably from the maternal side).

Though she normally appears calm and balanced, near the end of the series Ritsuko’s normal demeanor degenerated into coldness, a breakdown which the destruction of the Dummy System was only one part of. She soon became suicidal, intending to take Gendo, Rei, and Nerv Headquarters with her in Episode 25'. But of the Magi, which Ritsuko had reprogrammed for self-destruction, Casper rejected the command, and the shocked Ritsuko saw it as Naoko choosing Gendo over her. Before he shot Ritsuko, Gendo said something to her that was never heard, but with her last words she called him a liar, her eyes filling with tears.

Though it is not seen onscreen or even named, Ritsuko has a cat which her grandmother took care of until it died. Ritsuko apparently visited her pet very seldom, and expressed a kind of numb surprise at its death. This is also suggested by Ritsuko’s grandmother telling Ritsuko to call her first next time. In addition to owning a pet cat, Ritsuko has several cat-related knickknacks decorating her desk: a pair of cat figures (one black and one white), and a coffee mug (the same cat design on the latter can be seen in Episode 26). Kaji also once gave her a small trinket that he called "a cat souvenir" (Episode 15). This affinity for cats might have a symbolic relationship to Ritsuko’s own attempted independence, as such an urge relates to the solitary traits of cats.

Though she is rarely shown smoking onscreen, Ritsuko apparently does it quite heavily, as she is often seen with ashtrays full of cigarette butts marked by her lipstick. This might be indicative of anxiety.

Notes

• Episode 01 reveals that Ritsuko's formal title at Nerv is "Chief of Project E, Dr. Ritsuko Akagi of the Bureau of Technology's First Division."
• Although Akagi is an actual Japanese surname, Ritsuko was named after the World War Two era Aircraft Carrier Akagi, which famously led the attack on Pearl Harbor, and was later sunk at the battle of Midway, along with Asuka's namesake, Aircraft Carrier Soryu (and the carriers Kaga and Hiryu). The Soryu, Kaga, and Hiryu also participated in the Pearl Harbor attack.
• Ritsuko's mole is consistently drawn under her left eye (and even correctly flopped when she looks into a mirror), with the exception of one cut in Episode 21. See here:[1]

Characters

Main characters: Shinji Ikari | Rei Ayanami | Asuka Langley Soryu

Nerv staff: Misato Katsuragi | Gendo Ikari | Ritsuko Akagi | Kozo Fuyutsuki | Ryoji Kaji | Maya Ibuki | Makoto Hyuga | Shigeru Aoba

Classmates: Toji Suzuhara | Kensuke Aida | Hikari Horaki

Other characters: Kaworu Nagisa | Yui Ikari | Naoko Akagi | Kyoko Zeppelin Soryu | Dr. Katsuragi | Mr. Langley | Keel Lorenz | Pen Pen

Rebuild of Evangelion: Asuka Shikinami Langley | Mari Makinami Illustrious | Sakura Suzuhara | Ryoji Kaji (Jr)

Miscellaneous: Minor Characters | Minor Characters (Rebuild) | Extracanonical Characters

Theory and Analysis: Name Origins (Warships) | Designs | Relationships | Profiles

Resources: 2015: The Last Year of Ryohji Kaji