Nerv

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Nerv (German: nerve) is a paramilitary special agency nominally under the control of the United Nations. Nerv is tasked with defending humanity from the Angels through use of the Evangelions, which it constructed. Nerv is headed by Commander Gendo Ikari.

Origin and purpose

Officially, Nerv is "a private organization under the direct supervision of the UN", and under the aegis of the United Nations it is granted power to pressure local civilian and military organizations into aiding it, but in reality Nerv has very little oversight from the United Nations itself, beyond matters of funding. The effort to defeat the Angels is left almost totally at the discretion of Nerv's highest ranking personnel, without outside interference. Further, Nerv is pursuing its own agendas unknown to the UN, from sabotaging a rival defense contractor's prototype combat robot, "Jet Alone", to Nerv's ultimate clandestine goal to carry out the Human Instrumentality Project.

Originally, Nerv was known as Gehirn, but after its headquarters at Tokyo-3 and the Magi supercomputers were completed, it was renamed and reorganized into "Nerv" in 2010. Secretly, Nerv is backed by the mysterious organization Seele, a power cabal covertly controlling the United Nations.

Nerv's official purpose is to lead the defense of mankind against the Angels, to stop them from initiating a "Third Impact" after the destruction that was wrought by Adam during Second Impact in 2000.

Secretly, Nerv's true goal is to eliminate the Angels so that they can use the Eva Series to carry out Seele's scenario to initiate Third Impact and elevate humanity to the next stage of evolution. However, Gendo Ikari has his own rival plans for initiating Third Impact, and secretly plots against Seele's own clandestine machinations.

Global branches and facilities

There are several global "branch" bases of Nerv. Most of them host their own Magi supercomputer systems and have Evangelion construction and support facilities.

Nerv headquarters

Nerv headquarters (Nerv HQ) is Nerv's massive, sprawling primary base of operations built in the subterranean GeoFront cavern under Tokyo-3. It is the command center for all of Nerv's operations across the globe. The entire city of Tokyo-3 was essentially built as a fortress to support Nerv HQ and the needs of the thousands of personnel that work there. The original trio of Magi supercomputers is used to run Nerv HQ. The Evangelions were researched and developed here, and many of them were also built at Tokyo-3. The base itself is a labyrinthine complex housing multiple facilities for commanded and control, scientific research and the repair, maintenance and deployment of Evangelions. Nerv HQ is where all active Evangelions and their pilots are based, and it is from Nerv HQ that they are sortied.

For more information, see "Nerv headquarters".

Nerv-01

Nerv-01 is Nerv's first branch base, located in Massachusetts, USA. It is where Evangelion Unit-03 was created. The "Magi 04" set of supercomputers is probably located at or near Nerv-01 (possibly as part of the MIT campus).

Nerv-02

Nerv-02 is Nerv's second branch base, located in Nevada, USA (possibly at Area 51). It is where Evangelion Unit-04 was created.

During a test to install an artifical S² Engine in Eva 04, the entire second branch base mysteriously disappeared, along with thousands of personel and everything else in an 89 kilometer radius. The exact cause of the disappearance is unknown, but it was not a simple explosion. Dr. Ritsuko Akagi theorized that a Dirac Sea similar to the one used by the Angel Leliel was formed, sucking the entire base inside.

A trio of Magi supercomputers was probably also located at Nerv-02 prior to its disappearance.

Nerv-03

Nerv-03 (also known simply as "Nerv-Germany") is Nerv's third branch base, located in Germany (possibly in Berlin or Hamburg). It is where Evangelion Unit-02 was constructed. Asuka Langley Soryu apparently trained at Nerv-03 with Eva 02 for some time. Misato Katsuragi worked at Nerv-03 as well when she joined Gehirn in 2010 (soon before Gehirn was reorganized into Nerv later that year), and appears to have been Asuka's handler there fore some time. Later, Ryoji Kaji would be Asuka's handler at Nerv-03. Asuka, Kaji, and Eva Unit-02 were transported from Nerv-03 to Nerv's main headquarters in Japan via a large United Nations naval convoy with the entire Pacific fleet as escort.

The third branch base has a more prominent presence in the series than the other branches, largely because of Asuka's past there. When the Angel Shamshel was killed with its corpse left relatively intact, the remains of its core were sent to Nerv-03 for research into reverse-engineering an artificial S² Engine for use in the Evangelions. Even after Nerv-02 disappeared, the experimental data on the S² Engine survived and was transfered to Nerv-03 for continued research into the project.

The location of Nerv-03 in Germany is not clear. It is known that there are actually two sets of Magi supercomputers in Germany, "Magi 03" in Berlin and "Magi 06" in Hamburg, thus Nerv-03 is probably located in one of these two cities.

Other facilities

  • Matsushiro secondary experiment facility - A secondary facility exists in Matsushiro, which neighbors Tokyo-2, on the site of modern-day Nagano. It possesses an independent technical staff, a standalone Magi system and support facilities for at least one Eva, but appears to be relegated largely to research and logistical support roles. The first "shakedown" synchronization attempt with Evangelion Unit-03 took place at the Matsushiro secondary testing facility, revealing the Angel Bardiel which had taken over Eva 03, resulting in an explosion which destroyed the testing facilities of the base. A set of Magi supercomputers, "Magi 02", is located in the Matsushiro base. The Matsushiro testing facility was apparently not a full "branch base" of Nerv.
  • Nerv-03 is probably located in either Berlin or Hamburg, because "Magi 03" is located in Berlin and "Magi 05" is in Hamburg. If Nerv-03 is located in one of these cities, a Nerv base of some form is probably located in the other. "Nerv-03" is often just called "Nerv-Germany" however, so its not clear if there is a second full "branch base" in Germany.
  • Although the highest-numbered "branch base" revealed was "Nerv-03", there is no indication that there weren't more "branch bases".
  • A set of Magi supercomputers, "Magi 06", is located in Beijing, China. Many of the other sets of Magi supercomputers are located in prominent Nerv bases. In Episode 07, while on a plane a Chinese agent discusses with Gendo Ikari the construction of future Eva Units, and says that his country will produce Eva Unit 08. Thus it is possible that another branch base, or at least a prominent Nerv facility, was located in Beijing.

Internal organization

Nerv globally employs many thousands of people, including scientists, technicians, paramilitary security forces, and support staff.

The standard uniform for Nerv personnel is a khaki uniform with triangular patches at the shoulders. Personnel in command positions (Gendo, Fuyutsuki, even Kaji) wear a monotone tonic. All Nerv personnel have a triangular clip over their uniform's left breast which seems to denote rank.

Tactical

The Tactical Operations branch is responsible for coordinating the Evangelions in actual combat, as well as directing Nerv's conventional security forces and defense grid in battle against the Angels.

Nerv's internal security forces are tasked with defending the organization from terrorist attacks and other small-scale conventional threats: Nerv was intended to fight the Angels, not other humans. As a result, Nerv is actually ill-equipped to repulse a frontal assault by conventional human military forces.

Security staff wear khaki uniforms like those of the operating staff, as well as red berets. They normally carry either MP5 or Uzi submachine guns.

Misato Katsuragi (a captain later promoted to major) wears an officier's uniform which consists of a red beret and red jacket (which she usually wears open except on formal occasions).

Technical

The Technical division is Nerv's science branch, responsible for the research and development of the Evangelions, as well as their maintenance and repair. It also analyzes scientific data obtained about the Angels, attempting to gain greater insight into them to aid the Technical division ind defeating the Angels.

Each Nerv facility hosts a large corps of mechanics, electricians and other staff dedicated to maintenance, repair and construction. The standard tech uniform consists of orange coveralls and a cap.

Those involved in actual research and development and Eva testing wear the standard khaki Nerv uniforms. Dr. Akagi herself wears a lab coat instead of a uniform.

Other divisions

  • Intelligence: Information collection and analysis are handled by the black-suited agents of the Nerv Department of Security Intelligence, as are the surveillance and protection of key personnel.
  • Public Relations: Nerv has its own PR subsection, which handles propaganda and media blackouts directed towards the general public to control information about the Angels and Evangelions. For example, in Episode 03 the official information they release to public news outlets is that no one was hurt in Eva 01's battle against Sachiel, when in reality at the least Toji Suzuhara's little sister was badly injured.

Rank structure

The command structure of Nerv does not appear to exactly follow the established pattern of any single current national military or organization.

A definitive ranking list was never provided. The observed Nerv rank structure includes (in descending order):

Certain persons, such as Ryoji Kaji, appear to have great freedom inside Nerv facilities despite not fitting into the established ranks. Kaji does not appear to have a specific rank, nominally working for Nerv's internal affairs division, where he is in fact a triple agent (as Misato points out, he doesn't actually have a "real" job at Nerv; Kaji is there to secretly perform tasks for Gendo, while in turn secretly investigating Gendo). Dr. Ritsuko Akagi herself, a very high ranking member in the Nerv command hierarchy and head of the entire Technical division, is never listed as having a formal rank. Ritsuko's full title at Nerv is "Chief of Project E, Dr. Ritsuko Akagi of the Bureau of Technology's First Division."

In terms of the chain of command, control of Nerv HQ actually falls to Misato Katsuragi if both Gendo Ikari and Fuyutsuki are not present. This happened only once (pointed out as being an unprecedented occurrence) in Episode 12, soon after Misato was promoted to Major (thus it is not entirely clear if she was at this position in the chain of command when she was still a captain, but there's nothing to suggest that she wasn't). Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi, as the department heads of the Tactical and Technical divisions, respectively, seem to hold a more or less equivalent position in the Nerv hierarchy. The exact rank relationship between Misato and Ritsuko is a bit murky, as several times throughout the series they give countermanding orders: ultimately it appears that Misato overrules Ritsuko on Tactical matters, involving actual combat and military deployment of Evas, while Ritsuko overrules Misato on Technical matters, such as if an Eva has become so badly damaged in a fight that the pilot cannot remain inside. This of course leads Misato and Ritsuko into conflict multiple times during the series, as Misato prioritizes the lives of the Eva pilots and will favor ejecting a pilot that is in danger, while Ritsuko prioritizes the survival of the Evangelion Units and considers the pilots to be ultimately replaceable compared to them. In terms of Nerv's actual, secret agenda, Misato is "out of the loop" on many matters known only to Gendo Ikari, Fuyutsuki, and Ritsuko. This ultimately puts Ritsuko in the position of de facto third-in-command for Nerv's secret agendas, of which Misato knows nothing.

Major is denoted by two lines on rank insignia.

Notes

  • "Nerv" is named after the German word "nerve", following the scheme that Nerv's predecessor organization "Gehirn" is named after the German word for "brain", and Seele after the German word for "soul". The proper pronunciation is something along the lines of "nairf", and it is phonetically approximated into Japanese as nerufu. The casts of the English dubs by ADV Films and Manga Entertainment do not provide as accurate a rendition: they simply say "nerv" exactly like the English word "nerve".
"Nerv" spelled with lowercase letters
  • "Nerv" is often spelled using all-capital letters in the series, however it is apparently not an acronym. Further, it is not spelled with all-capital letters on the "Welcome to Nerv" pamphlet that Shinji is given in Episode 01. "NERV" is just how the word is often romanized by the Japanese production team: other words like "Adam" or "Second Impact" are spelled as "ADAM" or "SECOND IMPACT" at times in the series. This is merely a quirk of translation.
  • Nerv's formal title is "Special Duty Organization Nerv", in its capacity as technically a subdivision of the United Nations. However, in practice, it is a totally independent organization which the UN is subserviant to, so this title is rarely used.
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