Shinji’s face as he sits on the bench, and Rei’s silhouette through the curtain
The suit looks crumpled and out of shape
But when she presses the switch at her wrists, the suit conforms to her body with a “shuu” sound.
Rei says her lines at the end of the cut
REI:“You won't die.”
Sailor Star Dust: Am I alone in this (189-191) striking me as Yui's influence on Rei?
NemZ: I don't see how that has anything to do with it... or even how it could, honestly.
Sailor Star Dust: "You won't die, I will protect you." sounds self-explanatory to me, but... A mother's/parental instinct to protect her child no matter what (think "mama-bear" tendencies that Eva-01/Yui shows off) or at the cost of their own lives, is how it's mainly relevant in my mind. Since Rei serves as two mothers in one being (humanity's mother as Lilith and Shinji's mother as Yui) yet she's still her own unique person despite sharing Yui's DNA and possessing Lilith's soul.
Additional Commentary
NemZ: Wouldn't be the first time the commentary had a spoilered side-discussion.
Anyway, as far as mothers go Lilith seems entirely apathetic, and depending on how you look at it, she eats her young. Rei only has Yui's form, not any of her memories or emotions, and even if she did have some residual instinct I'm really not getting any sort of protective vibe here, seeing as Yui essentially abandoned her child just as much as Gendo did.
Sailor Star Dust: Not sure where you're getting "Lilith eats her young" from...And Lilith's apparent apathy COULD stem from taking an interest in her children and wanting to understand them that way.
I see it (Rei's "protective vibe:) as residual instinct, not anything like Rei having Yui's memories or emotions. Yui "abandoned" Shinji in an effort to protect him and the rest of humanity from Seele, it was a kill or be killed situation. While Rei doesn't have much regard for her own life (due to the clones and all), I still see Rei protecting Shinji (probably following orders, but still) as being literally self-less.
Trajan: It could also bee Rei's death seeker tendencies coming out again. If someone wants to die, what better way than to die saving someone else? Although it's not like she'll ever stay dead for long.
Kendrix: I think it's more Rei's initial "the orders are absolute" mentality. She is ordered to make sure he's safe, so that's what she will do.
Also, as I got it, the Death Seeking is something that stated with Rei III - No. II just didn't think she was valuable/didn't see a reason NOT to take risks... I'll elaborate once we hit eps 14 and 25 somewhere in the far future...
