Theory and Analysis:Identity of Kaworu's Donor
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"Making something... Nurturing something is really great. You can see and learn so many things from the process." |
Kaworu's Lilin form is courtesy of an unknown "donor". Who is this person? The show doesn't really seem to care, and none of the supplemental materials do, either, so the official answer is probably, "some nameless schmoe". But since Kaworu's counterpart, Rei, has a genetic source that is known and very plot-relevant, for the sake of symmetry, many cannot help but wonder: COULD Kaworu's genetic donor be someone we know?
So, for fun if nothing else, let's take a look at the usual suspects!
#3: Everyone who wasn't there at 2I
The line "the contact experiment with the donor is scheduled for the..." is worded in Japanese in such a way that the donor is implied (if interpretation is blatantly incorrect, please let us know) to actually be present for the CE. That is, the CE wasn't just with the donation; it was between Adam and a living, breathing person who would, through the procedure, donate something (genetic material). Were this not the case, they could have simply said that the experiment was with genes, not a person.
In spite of this, speculations about the donor tend to gravitate toward people who weren't actually present for the CE, including but certainly not limited to: Gendo, Keel, Yui, and Kaji. No matter the neat thematic tie-ins one might find with some of these characters, the fundamental problem remains that they simply were not there. In fact, going by the "donor was present for experiment" criterion, only two named characters qualify as serious candidates.
#2: Misato
Misato was a 14-year-old (well, technically 13...) at the time. Her presence at the KatsExp base is unexplained and possibly suspicious. Was she being used for early pilot testing...?
Problems:
- Misato is a female. Most agree that Kaworu is not.
- Misato and Kaworu look nothing alike. (Unless gender-bender artwork is consulted.)
- Misato never gives the slightest indication that she's been subject to experimentation.
- Misato being 14 (technically 13) at the time is a tenuous link at best.
- Misato gives no concrete recognition of her ostensible connection to Kaworu, and vice versa.
- Etc.
#1: Dr. Katsuragi
The best, albeit still imperfect, candidate for donorship. What has Dr. K got going for him?
- As early as episode 01, Misato and Shinji's troubled relationships with their fathers are paralleled. (The idea is fleshed out in episode 12.)
- Misato effectively says that she is participating in the Angels' destruction to both avenge her father's death AND to sublimate the father-hatred that continues to haunt her.
- Shinji channels his father-hatred against the Angels, as well, concretely established in episode 20, where images of the "enemy" (Angels) eventually yield to Gendo, the "true target" of Eva-01's progressive knife.
- Shinji's "enemies" eventually become one, when Gendo fuses with Adam (THE Angel of Angels). (Note that this irony goes uncommented upon.)
- What would complete this mirroring? For Misato's father, too, to become one with the enemy Misato is destroying to "destroy" him. If he was the donor for Kaworu, this basically means that destroying the final Angel DOES purge Misato of her father's ghost, as she has eliminated all that remains of him. Kaworu would also represent her father's fusion with Adam, a fusion later conducted (in a different manner) by the other "hated father".
- Also, the hand motif.
- Kaji and Kaworu are strongly associated. Given Kaji's also strong connection to Dr. Katsuragi, he could be serving as a "proxy" to link Dr. K and Kaworu.
- Rei is a clone of Shinji (main child protagonist)'s mom --> Kaworu is a clone of Misato (main adult protagonist)'s father.
- The other two CEs (for Eva-01 and Eva-02) involved scientist parents of main characters Shinji and Asuka. --> Adam's CE involves scientist parent of main character Misato.
- Bonus: Misato, Shinji, and Asuka form a "family".
- What little we see of Dr. Katsuragi's face is not inappropriate for an older version of Kaworu.
Problems:
- Parallels don't mean doo-doo on their own.
- Misato and Kaworu's interaction is limited to a creepy over-the-shoulder glance from a kilometer away.
- Misato, while obsessed with Kaworu from the start and disturbed by the revelation that he is an Angel, gives no concrete indications that Kaworu has "touched her daddy spot".
- Etc.
