Difference between revisions of "Zeruel"

From EvaWiki
Jump to: navigation, search
m (No known source for Hebrew)
(36 intermediate revisions by 8 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
−
{{deconstruct}}
 
−
 
 
{{Angel Infobox
 
{{Angel Infobox
 
| name          = Zeruel
 
| name          = Zeruel
 
| katakana = ゼルエル
 
| katakana = ゼルエル
 
| image        = [[image:19_C160_zeruel.jpg|260px|Zeruel]]
 
| image        = [[image:19_C160_zeruel.jpg|260px|Zeruel]]
−
| number        = 14th
+
| number        = Series: 14th <br> Rebuild: 10th
 
| symbol = Strength
 
| symbol = Strength
−
| appearances    = [[Episode 19]]
+
| appearances    = [[Episode 19]] <br> (Manga): Stages 42~47<br> (Rebuild): [[Evangelion 2.0: You Can (Not) Advance|Evangelion 2.0]]
−
| defeated_by        = [[Evangelion Unit-01|Eva-01]]
+
| defeated_by        = [[Evangelion Unit-01]]
 +
| design        = Original: [[Yoshitoh Asari]] <br> Rebuild: Yoshitoh Asari, <br>[[Kazuya Tsurumaki]], & [[Takeshi Honda]]
 
}}
 
}}
  
−
'''Zeruel''' (Hebrew: זוריאל) is the Fourteenth Angel, and one of the most powerful, the deadliest of the Angels that focus on direct, conventional combat. It is among the three to penetrate [[Nerv Headquarters]], and the only one to do so through a direct assault.  Zeruel bears the unique distinction of providing (however unwillingly) the [[S² Engine]] that elevates [[Evangelion Unit-01|Eva-01]] to "[[god]]" status.
+
'''Zeruel''' (katakana: ゼルエル) is the Fourteenth Angel, and one of the most powerful: the deadliest of the Angels that focus on direct, conventional combat. It is among the three to penetrate [[Nerv Headquarters]], and the only one to do so through a direct assault.  Zeruel bears the unique distinction of providing (however unwillingly) the [[S² Engine]] that elevates [[Evangelion Unit-01|Eva-01]] to "[[god]]" status.
−
 
 
−
 
 
  
−
==Biology==
+
==Profile==
−
Zeruel is a vaguely humanoid entity slightly larger than an [[Evangelions|Evangelion]]. Its undefined, slab-like body is adorned with an array of exoskeletal elements, with key points of reference being a face, a large [[core]] centered lees than halfway down, stumpy legs, and -- Zeruel's trademark feature -- ribbon-like cutting arms.
+
Zeruel is a vaguely humanoid Angel slightly larger than an [[Evangelions|Evangelion]], with a large, bulky body and prominent core.
  
 
[[Image:19 C158,160 zer-arms.gif|thumb||left|Zeruel's arms being deployed (click for animation)]]
 
[[Image:19 C158,160 zer-arms.gif|thumb||left|Zeruel's arms being deployed (click for animation)]]
−
The distinctive arms hang from the "shoulders" of Zeruel's bulky "exoscapulae". When not in use, they are folded up onto themselves into small packets. Upon employment, the heavily folded arms drop (visually evoking accordions) and are promptly straightened and extended, capable of reaching lengths at least three times Zeruel's height. They function like razor-sharp ribbons, able to effortlessly slice through an Eva (armor and all). Each of Zeruel's arms possesses a "thumb" at the tip, which sometimes lays flat to provide a seamless cutting edge. Four additional "digits" are briefly apparent (when Zeruel grasps Eva-01's head to throw her), although it's unclear if these are always present, held flush together and simply undetectable, or if they must be specially formed. Zeruel is also capable of forming fists with these digits, although this ability is only depicted in [[:Image:Production zeruel digits.png|production drawings]].  Zeruel can also straighten and stiffen the ends of its ribbon-arms so that they effectively form spears for stabbing with, as seen when it attacked the depowered Eva 01's exposed core.
+
Zeruel's distinctive arms hang from its large, bony "shoulders", folding up when not used and reaching lengths at least three times the Angel's height when deployed, serving as deadly cutting weapons. Zeruel is shown to be capable of forming fists in [[:Image:Production zeruel digits.png|production drawings]], although the only time separate digits are seen in-show is when Zeruel lifts Eva-01 by the head.
  
−
The face, which resembles a malformed skull, is situated at the top of the body at a slight upwards angle (when Zeruel is standing straight). The face is made out of hard bone-like material, notably making sparks when Shinji ground it into the side of an Eva launch tube as they were catapulted upwards.  It appeared to be much more malleable and pliant after Eva 01 killed it, but this could just be because Eva 01 snapped its face backwards in the process of killing it, thus breaking the face-plate material. Zeruel's face is attached to a sinewy "neck" normally kept inside the body and possesses a cartilage-like consistency that gives it a limited range of movement. The two eyes hidden inside the deep "sockets" are, as with Zeruel's kin [[Sachiel]] and [[Israfel]], employed for both vision and energy projection -- however, their capabilities in the latter area are considerably more potent.  
+
The face is made capable of changing its consistency, from being hard enough to cast sparks on impact to rubbery enough to be lifted like a mask. It is attached to a sinewy "neck" normally kept inside the body and is capable of a limited degree of movement. Two eyes hidden inside the deep "sockets" are, as with Zeruel's kin [[Sachiel]] and [[Israfel]], employed for both vision and energy projection.  
  
−
Zeruel demonstrates an enhanced ability for firing the familiar crucifix-shaped energy-blasts fired by previous Angels: a single shot instantly penetrates 18 of the Geofront's 22 protective armor layers (achieving in an instant what [[Ramiel]] accomplished in hours), and, even more extraordinarily, it has the unique ability to project multiple blasts in rapid succession (at least up to four in a row). It can also fire focused energy beams directly from its eyes, a last-resort tactic saved for tight quarters, where the arms cannot be freely maneuvered. This weapon is disadvantageous, in that it takes seconds to charge and only provides a single quick burst of energy, albeit a rather powerful one.
+
Zeruel demonstrates an enhanced ability for firing the familiar cross-shaped energy blasts fired by Sachiel: a single shot breaches eighteen of the GeoFront's twenty-two protective armor layers and being capable of setting off four in rapid succession. It can also fire focused energy beams directly from its eyes, taking a few seconds to charge before releasing a powerful burst of energy.
  
−
Zeruel typically moves by (presumably [[A.T. Field]]-assisted) levitation, whether on a vertical course or, as an alternative to bipedal locomotion, slightly above ground level. The lower legs, while vestigial and lacking defined feet, do not go without use: the Angel briefly takes to all fours when it breaks into the Command Center.  
+
Zeruel moves by [[A.T. Field]]-assisted levitation, although it is capable of quadrupedal locomotion as well. Its legs, although stubby and without feet, are not vestigial, and in combination with the folded arms allow the Angel to walk on all fours.
  
−
The Angel also possesses what appear to be four orange-colored armored hard-points, evenly spaced with two in the "knee" area and two directly below the shoulder-bone plates.  Zeruel's blood is colored red.   
+
Zeruel's blood is colored red.   
  
−
The core is rather large relative to Zeruel's body, and the S² Engine within may be, accordingly, "oversized", perhaps accounting in part for the discrepancy in power between Zeruel and other, similarly sized Angels.  Zeruel possesses a protective lid-membrane capable of shielding the core when threatened, and it serves as a testament to Zeruel's incredibly tough constitution: even when an [[N² weapon|N² bomb]] is detonated in direct contact with the (protected) core, not only is the red sphere left completely unscathed -- the rest of the body is, as well.
+
The core is rather large relative to Zeruel's body, and the S² Engine within may be, accordingly, "oversized", perhaps accounting in part for the discrepancy in power between Zeruel and other, similarly sized Angels.  Zeruel possesses a protective lid-membrane capable of shielding the core when threatened, and it serves as a testament to Zeruel's incredibly tough constitution: even when an [[N² weapon|N² bomb]] is detonated in direct contact with the (protected) core, not only is the red sphere left completely unscathed, but the rest of the body is, as well.
  
−
==Psychology==
+
{{MontageBox
−
 
+
|float=   left
−
Most of the Angels do not seem to be truly "sentient", and Zeruel is no exception. Most, including Zeruel, seem to be functioning on mostly animalistic instinct. Further, Zeruel's attack on Nerv HQ does not use a particularly large amount of intelligence, but it simply bludgeons its way into the base using raw brute force. However, unlike some previous Angels, Zeruel actually seems to experience some basic emotions, such as anger and frustration. Case in point, Zeruel remains fairly "unemotional" as its advance through Nerv HQ (defeating Eva 00 and Eva 02 in the process) succeeds, however Eva Unit 01 then savagely attacks Zeruel, haltings its advance and nearly defeating it before Eva 01's power supply ran out. Zeruel could have simply then destroyed the inert Eva 01 with a quick strike, but it did not. Instead, Zeruel appears to act out its anger and frustration at Eva 01 by proceeding to slowly stab it repeatedly, as if sadistically trying to make Eva 01 suffer as much as possible for nearly defeating the Angel. Zeruel also shows an interest in harming the humans in the Nerv HQ command center: most Angels show no interest in humans, only attacking what they perceive to be direct threats to their single-minded advancement towards Tokyo-3 and Adam, such as the Evas. For example, after [[Bardiel]] disabled Eva 00, rather than finish Eva 00 off, once Bardiel had removed the hindrance to its advancement it simply proceeded along its way and ignored the damaged Eva 00.  Zeruel could have continued down through Nerv HQ to Terminal Dogma, or more probably the Eva holding pens where Gendo Ikari was (Adam being secretly fused to Gendo's hand).  However, Zeruel instead stopped to attack the Nerv HQ primary command center, and tried to kill the humans inside which had been coordinating the defensive effort trying to repulse the Angel.  Zeruel did this even though the humans in the command center were no longer a threat to it, almost as if it perceived that Ritsuko, Misato, and the rest of the staff were the ones responsible for the failed attempts to stop it and was exacting a primitive revenge.
+
|columns= 4
 +
|title=   Zeruel
 +
|colour= Lightblue
 +
|image1= [[Image:Zeruel-face.JPG|thumb|200px|Closeup of Zeruel's face.]]
 +
|image2= [[Image:Zer-back.JPG|thumb|200px|A view of Zeruel's bony "shoulders".]]
 +
|image3= [[Image:Facegrab-Zer-Sho.JPG|thumb|200px|Zeruel grabbing Eva-01 by the head.]]
 +
|image4= [[Image:Zer-armdetail.jpg|thumb|200px|Zeruel's arm in close detail.]]
 +
|caption=
 +
}}
 +
{{-}}
  
 
==Battle==
 
==Battle==
−
Appearing soon after the fight against the 13th Angel, [[Bardiel]], Zeruel attacked Nerv before it had time to fully recover from the previous Angel's attack.  Zeruel rapidly blasted its way straight into the GeoFront, piercing through all of the defensive armor layers almost instantly, and then descended into the GeoFront.  Because of the speed of its attack, Nerv had no time to try to engage it outside, and deployed Eva 02 inside of the GeoFront to engage it.  Asuka fired on Zeruel with a full range of guns and rocket-launchers, but Zeruel's AT Field was so strong that even this concentrated fire from Eva 02 had no effect. Zeruel then unfolded its razor-arms, and instantly amputated both of Eva 02's arms.  [[Image:19 C163 zer-arms-long.jpg|thumb|left|Zeruel slicing off Eva 02's arms]] Enraged, Asuka recklessly charged Eva 02 at the Angel.  Just as Zeruel was about to decapitate Eva 02, Misato quickly ordered Asuka's connection with her Eva severed so the shock of Eva 02's head being sliced off would not kill her.  Zeruel proceeded towards Nerv HQ, as Eva Unit 00 was deployed against it. With no time to repair Eva 00 after her fight with Bardiel, Unit 00 went into battle missing her left arm.  As a result, Rei charged Eva 00 at Zeruel with an N² bomb cradled in her remaining right arm, then jammed the N² bomb at Zeruel's core through its AT Field.  However, Zeruel covered its core with a protective membrane, and the N² bomb did not succeed in harming it, while extensively damaging Eva 00 and the GeoFront.  Zeruel then slashed at the wounded Eva 00, slicing her face in half vertically, and she too was incapacitated.
+
[[Image:19 C163 zer-arms-long.jpg|thumb|left|Zeruel slicing off Eva-02's arms]]
−
 
+
Appearing soon after the fight against the 13th Angel, [[Bardiel]], Zeruel attacked Nerv before it had time to fully recover from the previous Angel's attack.  Zeruel breached the armor layers above the [[GeoFront]] at great speed, giving Nerv no time to try to engage it on the surface. Eva-02 was deployed inside of the GeoFront to engage it, but its pallet rifle and rocket fire proved ineffective. Zeruel used its arms to cut off Eva-02's arms, and soon after, its head, taking it out of battle. Soon after, Eva-00 emerged from underground, still missing an arm from the previous battle, and charged Zeruel with an N² bomb in its remaining arm. Despite shoving through the Angel's A.T. Field and the bomb making physical contact with the Angel, Zeruel emerged unharmed while Eva-00, having lost its other arm to the resultant explosion, was also incapacitated.
−
Zeruel then crashed into the Nerv headquarters' pyramid itself, and descended to [[Central Dogma]], crashing through the wall into the command center's central display area.  Just as it was about to fire its energy-blast and kill the entire Nerv command staff, Eva 01 (piloted by Shinji) crashed through another wall and punched it away.  The pair then crashed through another wall into the Evangelion pens and continued fighting.  Zeruel blasted off Eva 01's left arm, but Eva 01 was still able to keep fighting and force it into one of the Evangelion launching catapults.  Misato then fired the catapult, to at least get the Angel out of the base, as Shinji pushed Zeruel's face against the side of the shaft, grinding it against the wall as they were fired upwards.
 
  
−
Upon reaching the surface, the pair tumbled in mid-air until Zeruel landed on the ground with Eva 01 on top of it. Despite Zeruel's awesome power, and the loss of one arm, Eva 01 was still able to use her remaining arm to savagely pummel Zeruel and tear at its bony face-plate, and Eva 01 was on the verge of gaining the upper hand in the fight when her internal battery power ran out.
+
Zeruel breached Nerv headquarters and descended to [[Central Dogma]], breaking through the wall into the command center's central display area. The Angel attempted to kill the personnel inside but was stopped by Eva-01, which fought it out of the room. Zeruel blasted off Eva-01's left arm but the Eva succeeded in forcing it onto an Evangelion launching catapult, taking the fight to the surface.  Eva-01 battered Zeruel and was on the verge of ripping off the Angel's face before it ran out of power.  
  
−
Zeruel then threw Eva 01 against the hillside and blasted apart Eva 01's chest plate, revealing its own core.  Zeruel used its razor-arms to steadily stab at Eva 01's core, and the repeated shocks were on the verge of breaking the Entry Plug inside the Eva. However, Eva 01 then entered "berserker mode" as Shinji entered into a (previously thought to be totally impossible) 400% synchronization ratio with the Eva.  Eva 01 quickly pushed her hand straight through the razor-edge of Zeruel's right arm while suffering no damage, then grabbed Zeruel and pulled it right on top of herself, impaling Zeruel's eye structure with her horn. She then kicked Zeruel, sending it flying backwards onto its back while ripping the Angel's arm off.  Eva 01 then horrifically merged Zeruel's arm with the stump of her own left arm to regenerate it.  Zeruel tried to attack Eva 01 with its other razor-arm, but Eva 01 wielded its own A.T. Field like a weapon, shattering Zeruel's remaining arm, knocking its A.T. Field out of alignment and cutting huge, bloody gashes through the Angel's body. Eva 01 then advanced on Zeruel like an animal and the crippled Angel tried to fire another energy-blast at her, but Eva 01 simply snapped Zeruel's upper "jaw" backwards, crushing its head and killing it, and then immediately began to devour its body.  Horrified Nerv personnel looked on as Eva 01 ate the Angel's corpse, culminating in Eva 01 consuming Zeruel's [[S² Engine]].  This resulted in Eva 01 no longer needing any external power supply to function.
+
Zeruel destroyed the immobilized Eva's chest plate and struck repeatedly at the Eva's now-exposed core, the shocks threatening to crush the Entry Plug inside the Eva. However, Eva-01 then entered berserk  mode, blocked the Angel's attacks, ripped off the Angel's arm to regenerate its own arm and then proceeded to inflict crippling gashes on Zeruel's body using an offensive A.T. Field attack. Zeruel's face was crushed as it attempted a last-ditch attack on Eva-01. The Eva proceeded to consume the Angel's body, absorbing Zeruel's [[S² Engine]] in the process.
  
 
==Notes==
 
==Notes==
 
*Due to the way Zeruel's arms are segmented into smaller sections, along with their appearance in general, they are often likened to toilet paper by fans.
 
*Due to the way Zeruel's arms are segmented into smaller sections, along with their appearance in general, they are often likened to toilet paper by fans.
 
*The black and white color pattern on Zeruel's front vaguely resembles a human face (seen from the left) with its core as the "eye".   
 
*The black and white color pattern on Zeruel's front vaguely resembles a human face (seen from the left) with its core as the "eye".   
−
*Zeruel has a very powerful energy or projectile weapon that sets off crucifix-shaped explosions, very similar to that used by Sachiel. Zeruel appears to use the weapon out of both the mouth and the eye holes, as the first time the weapon is used the mouth seems to light up. The crucifix-blast weapon might be a projectile weapon, since Zeruel can shoot at four seperate locations at once. Hyuga is notably aghast at how Zeruel's crucifix-blast was capable of piercing 18 out of 22 armor layers above Nerv HQ with a single shot. 
 
−
**Zeruel also uses its eye sockets for a separate charge-up energy attack powerful enough to blow off Eva 01's chest armor, although the entry plug underneath seems unaffected. Sachiel's cross-blast weapon is unable to seriously harm Eva 01 with a point-blank shot after she goes berserk, and Ramiel heavily melted all the frontal armor in a few seconds and almost boiled the pilot alive but did not have the time to destroy her entirely. This makes Zeruel's optical blast the most powerful directed energy weapon used by an Angel, although Ramiel's particle beam can be sustained for an indeterminate period of time. 
 
−
*Zeruel was (along with [[Sachiel]] and [[Shamshel]]) designed by [[Yoshitoh Asari]].
 
 
*Zeruel, also called Cirviel, is the Angel "set over strength", and had been sent by God to help David slay Goliath. [http://books.google.com/books?id=yp1kvsx409gC&pg=PA83&vq=zeruel&dq=dictionary+of+angels+arael&sig=yiCoU-tHZWZckzij2fc7YbzNJq0][http://books.google.com/books?id=yp1kvsx409gC&pg=PA44&vq=zeruel&dq=dictionary+of+angels+arael&sig=UTfe81MjwoksRfVuwh-B39DKYKw]The name Zeruel literally means "'''arm''' of God" -- probably no coincidence, all things considered.  
 
*Zeruel, also called Cirviel, is the Angel "set over strength", and had been sent by God to help David slay Goliath. [http://books.google.com/books?id=yp1kvsx409gC&pg=PA83&vq=zeruel&dq=dictionary+of+angels+arael&sig=yiCoU-tHZWZckzij2fc7YbzNJq0][http://books.google.com/books?id=yp1kvsx409gC&pg=PA44&vq=zeruel&dq=dictionary+of+angels+arael&sig=UTfe81MjwoksRfVuwh-B39DKYKw]The name Zeruel literally means "'''arm''' of God" -- probably no coincidence, all things considered.  
 +
 +
==In Rebuild of Evangelion==
 +
{{Rebuildcontentstart}}
 +
A heavily redesigned version of Zeruel appears in ''[[Evangelion 2.0]]'' as the 10th Angel.
 +
 +
===Profile===
 +
 +
The 10th Angel is over twice the size of an Eva, with a fleshy, arthropod-like body over which a large dark green cowl of undulating prehensile ribbons is draped. When the Angel first appears, the cowl is folded up, giving the Angel a mummy-like appearance. Two of the ribbons are much longer than the others and serve as its primary melee weapon, capable of being coiled up into piercing drills of variable circumference; the Angel also uses them to prop itself up when standing. The face -- modified slightly from the original Zeruel -- conceals two red eyes and a mouth containing a [http://www.evageeks.org/images/screens/eva2-22_C1616_anim.gif tripartite jaw] and a biting tongue-like appendage that can grow to massive size. Two sets of interlocking "teeth" flanking the core are capable of closing down to provide additional protection to the organ if needed.
 +
 +
The Angel's A.T. Field is extremely strong, capable of protecting it from multiple point-blank missile collisions with no effort. It can also extend multiple layered barriers outward, which can forcibly push foes away along with making any effort to breach the Angel's field that much more energy-intensive. The 10th Angel's other energy projection abilities are much the same as Zeruel's.
 +
 +
Upon devouring and absorbing [[Eva-00]], the 10th Angel contains the Eva's core within its own, and the Angel's intrinsic pattern is replaced by that of the Eva's. The Angel's body reconfigures into the form of a distorted human female with ghostly white flesh accented by gray markings, abnormally long and gaunt arms, and lower legs that terminate in stubs. The humanoid arms replace the primary cutting ribbons but can be instantaneously reverted as need dictates. The Angel also employs two additional ribbons when it battles the reactivated [[Eva-01]].
 +
 +
After being incapacitated by Eva-01 and undergoing a partial explosion, the humanoid extension of the Angel's body becomes a homogeneous mass of ribbons. Eva-01 forcibly extracts Eva-00's core and kills the 10th. Its body fluid reforms around Eva-00's core in the form of a giant red [[Rei Ayanami|Rei]], which then fuses into Eva-01. Thus the Angel has effectively been absorbed by Eva-01, but whether Eva-01 received a [[Fruit of Life]] out of the deal, as in NGE, is not yet known.
 +
 +
In contrast with the other Angels, the 10th is never seen deploying a [[halo]]<ref>The appearance of one was storyboarded, however, in the scene where the Angel deploys four arms.</ref>, and a [[rainbow]] appears well in advance of its death, when Eva-01 delivers the crippling blow.
 +
 +
{{MontageBox
 +
|float=  left
 +
|columns= 4
 +
|title=  10th Angel
 +
|colour= Lightblue
 +
|image1= [[Image:Eva2-22 C1406 angel.jpg|thumb|200px|10th Angel appears, in an echo of the 4th.]]
 +
|image2= [[Image:Eva2-22 C1432 face.jpg|thumb|200px|Closeup of 10th's face.]]
 +
|image3= [[Image:Eva2-22 C1550.jpg|thumb|200px|Deploying arms against Eva-02.]]
 +
|image4= [[Image:Eva2-22 C1744 4lance.jpg|thumb|200px|Four arms used against Eva-01.]]
 +
|image5= [[Image:Eva2-22 C1746 redeyes.jpg|thumb|Red eyes.]]
 +
|image6= [[Image:Eva2-22 C1749 crop poly.jpg|center|thumb|Being attacked by Eva-01's offensive use of A.T. Field.]]
 +
|image7= [[Image:Eva2-22 C1751 a crop.jpg|thumb|center|Note the gray body patches and stubby legs.]]
 +
|image8= [[Image:Eva2-22 C1809.jpg|thumb|Eva-01 plundering 10th Angel's core.]]
 +
|caption=
 +
}}
 +
{{-}}
 +
 +
===Battle===
 +
 +
The 10th Angel appears over Tokyo-3 and lays waste to the city's defenses in short time. It effortlessly breaches the Geofront, then unfolds its body and enters.
 +
 +
[[Mari Makinami Illustrious]] deploys inside Eva-02 and confronts Zeruel within the Geofront, attacking first with rifle fire and then attempting a melee attack with a Thunder Spear and the right shoulder pylon's needle gun. None make a dent in the Angel's defensive power, and as a result Mari resorts to activating Eva-02's [[Beast Mode]]. Despite this boost in strength and mobility, the Eva is still unable to breach the Angel's A.T. Field and is severely damaged by the Angel's counterattack.
 +
 +
Eva-00 attacks with a large N² missile, and, with Eva-02's aid, the Angel's field is finally penetrated. The attack is again ineffective, and Eva-00 loses both arms in the explosion. The pilot makes no attempt to resist as the Angel extends an appendage from its mouth and devours the Eva. The 10th Angel subsequently grows a humanoid body and, due to shifting its pattern to Eva-00's, gains the ability to bypass the automated self-destruct that would otherwise prevent it from reaching Lilith's chamber.
 +
 +
The Angel demolishes the Nerv pyramid and invades the main shaft, confronting and nearly annihilating the command center crew before being stopped by Shinji in Eva-01. The fight between both proceeds in much the same manner as the original series until Eva-01 runs out of power, at which point the Angel skewers the Eva and throws it against the remains of the pyramid. The Eva soon revives and quickly reaches [[Eva Pseudo-Evolution|incredible levels of power]]: reconstructing its lost arm from its A.T. Field, blocking all of the 10th Angel's overpowered attacks, and finally taking the Angel down with optical energy beams. Shinji recovers Rei from inside the Angel's body, and its blood-like remains are assimilated into Eva-01 as [[Third Impact]] is initiated.
 +
 +
===Concept===
 +
 +
Yoshitoh Asari returned to provide an abundance of new ideas for a reworked version of Zeruel, many of which were combined to provide the final design. The premise that the 10th Angel would have two forms -- one with a "vestigial" body, the other more humanoid -- seems to have been present early on. That the Angel would develop a feminine body was established later in the process, however, at Anno's insistence. The final design for the 10th's second form was prepared by Takeshi Honda, incorporating the mane-like cowl from a drawing by Kazuya Tsurumaki (which incidentally resembled the original Zeruel the most of the published concepts).
 +
 +
The 10th Angel also incorporates Armisael from the original series. ''[[Armisael#Other Continuities|See more.]]''
 +
{{Rebuildcontentend}}
 +
 +
== Notes ==
 +
{{reflist}}
  
 
{{Angel List}}
 
{{Angel List}}
 
[[Category:A to Z]]
 
[[Category:A to Z]]
 
[[Category:Angels]]
 
[[Category:Angels]]
 +
[[Category:Rebuild of Evangelion]]

Revision as of 22:36, 23 July 2017

Zeruel
Zeruel
ゼルエル
Number Series: 14th
Rebuild: 10th
Symbol Strength
Appearance(s) Episode 19
(Manga): Stages 42~47
(Rebuild): Evangelion 2.0
Defeated by Evangelion Unit-01
Design Original: Yoshitoh Asari
Rebuild: Yoshitoh Asari,
Kazuya Tsurumaki, & Takeshi Honda

Zeruel (katakana: ゼルエル) is the Fourteenth Angel, and one of the most powerful: the deadliest of the Angels that focus on direct, conventional combat. It is among the three to penetrate Nerv Headquarters, and the only one to do so through a direct assault. Zeruel bears the unique distinction of providing (however unwillingly) the S² Engine that elevates Eva-01 to "god" status.

Profile

Zeruel is a vaguely humanoid Angel slightly larger than an Evangelion, with a large, bulky body and prominent core.

Zeruel's arms being deployed (click for animation)

Zeruel's distinctive arms hang from its large, bony "shoulders", folding up when not used and reaching lengths at least three times the Angel's height when deployed, serving as deadly cutting weapons. Zeruel is shown to be capable of forming fists in production drawings, although the only time separate digits are seen in-show is when Zeruel lifts Eva-01 by the head.

The face is made capable of changing its consistency, from being hard enough to cast sparks on impact to rubbery enough to be lifted like a mask. It is attached to a sinewy "neck" normally kept inside the body and is capable of a limited degree of movement. Two eyes hidden inside the deep "sockets" are, as with Zeruel's kin Sachiel and Israfel, employed for both vision and energy projection.

Zeruel demonstrates an enhanced ability for firing the familiar cross-shaped energy blasts fired by Sachiel: a single shot breaches eighteen of the GeoFront's twenty-two protective armor layers and being capable of setting off four in rapid succession. It can also fire focused energy beams directly from its eyes, taking a few seconds to charge before releasing a powerful burst of energy.

Zeruel moves by A.T. Field-assisted levitation, although it is capable of quadrupedal locomotion as well. Its legs, although stubby and without feet, are not vestigial, and in combination with the folded arms allow the Angel to walk on all fours.

Zeruel's blood is colored red.

The core is rather large relative to Zeruel's body, and the S² Engine within may be, accordingly, "oversized", perhaps accounting in part for the discrepancy in power between Zeruel and other, similarly sized Angels. Zeruel possesses a protective lid-membrane capable of shielding the core when threatened, and it serves as a testament to Zeruel's incredibly tough constitution: even when an N² bomb is detonated in direct contact with the (protected) core, not only is the red sphere left completely unscathed, but the rest of the body is, as well.

Zeruel
Closeup of Zeruel's face.
A view of Zeruel's bony "shoulders".
Zeruel grabbing Eva-01 by the head.
Zeruel's arm in close detail.


Battle

Zeruel slicing off Eva-02's arms

Appearing soon after the fight against the 13th Angel, Bardiel, Zeruel attacked Nerv before it had time to fully recover from the previous Angel's attack. Zeruel breached the armor layers above the GeoFront at great speed, giving Nerv no time to try to engage it on the surface. Eva-02 was deployed inside of the GeoFront to engage it, but its pallet rifle and rocket fire proved ineffective. Zeruel used its arms to cut off Eva-02's arms, and soon after, its head, taking it out of battle. Soon after, Eva-00 emerged from underground, still missing an arm from the previous battle, and charged Zeruel with an N² bomb in its remaining arm. Despite shoving through the Angel's A.T. Field and the bomb making physical contact with the Angel, Zeruel emerged unharmed while Eva-00, having lost its other arm to the resultant explosion, was also incapacitated.

Zeruel breached Nerv headquarters and descended to Central Dogma, breaking through the wall into the command center's central display area. The Angel attempted to kill the personnel inside but was stopped by Eva-01, which fought it out of the room. Zeruel blasted off Eva-01's left arm but the Eva succeeded in forcing it onto an Evangelion launching catapult, taking the fight to the surface. Eva-01 battered Zeruel and was on the verge of ripping off the Angel's face before it ran out of power.

Zeruel destroyed the immobilized Eva's chest plate and struck repeatedly at the Eva's now-exposed core, the shocks threatening to crush the Entry Plug inside the Eva. However, Eva-01 then entered berserk mode, blocked the Angel's attacks, ripped off the Angel's arm to regenerate its own arm and then proceeded to inflict crippling gashes on Zeruel's body using an offensive A.T. Field attack. Zeruel's face was crushed as it attempted a last-ditch attack on Eva-01. The Eva proceeded to consume the Angel's body, absorbing Zeruel's S² Engine in the process.

Notes

  • Due to the way Zeruel's arms are segmented into smaller sections, along with their appearance in general, they are often likened to toilet paper by fans.
  • The black and white color pattern on Zeruel's front vaguely resembles a human face (seen from the left) with its core as the "eye".
  • Zeruel, also called Cirviel, is the Angel "set over strength", and had been sent by God to help David slay Goliath. [1][2]The name Zeruel literally means "arm of God" -- probably no coincidence, all things considered.

In Rebuild of Evangelion

A heavily redesigned version of Zeruel appears in Evangelion 2.0 as the 10th Angel.

Profile

The 10th Angel is over twice the size of an Eva, with a fleshy, arthropod-like body over which a large dark green cowl of undulating prehensile ribbons is draped. When the Angel first appears, the cowl is folded up, giving the Angel a mummy-like appearance. Two of the ribbons are much longer than the others and serve as its primary melee weapon, capable of being coiled up into piercing drills of variable circumference; the Angel also uses them to prop itself up when standing. The face -- modified slightly from the original Zeruel -- conceals two red eyes and a mouth containing a tripartite jaw and a biting tongue-like appendage that can grow to massive size. Two sets of interlocking "teeth" flanking the core are capable of closing down to provide additional protection to the organ if needed.

The Angel's A.T. Field is extremely strong, capable of protecting it from multiple point-blank missile collisions with no effort. It can also extend multiple layered barriers outward, which can forcibly push foes away along with making any effort to breach the Angel's field that much more energy-intensive. The 10th Angel's other energy projection abilities are much the same as Zeruel's.

Upon devouring and absorbing Eva-00, the 10th Angel contains the Eva's core within its own, and the Angel's intrinsic pattern is replaced by that of the Eva's. The Angel's body reconfigures into the form of a distorted human female with ghostly white flesh accented by gray markings, abnormally long and gaunt arms, and lower legs that terminate in stubs. The humanoid arms replace the primary cutting ribbons but can be instantaneously reverted as need dictates. The Angel also employs two additional ribbons when it battles the reactivated Eva-01.

After being incapacitated by Eva-01 and undergoing a partial explosion, the humanoid extension of the Angel's body becomes a homogeneous mass of ribbons. Eva-01 forcibly extracts Eva-00's core and kills the 10th. Its body fluid reforms around Eva-00's core in the form of a giant red Rei, which then fuses into Eva-01. Thus the Angel has effectively been absorbed by Eva-01, but whether Eva-01 received a Fruit of Life out of the deal, as in NGE, is not yet known.

In contrast with the other Angels, the 10th is never seen deploying a halo[1], and a rainbow appears well in advance of its death, when Eva-01 delivers the crippling blow.

10th Angel
10th Angel appears, in an echo of the 4th.
Closeup of 10th's face.
Deploying arms against Eva-02.
Four arms used against Eva-01.
Red eyes.
Being attacked by Eva-01's offensive use of A.T. Field.
Note the gray body patches and stubby legs.
Eva-01 plundering 10th Angel's core.


Battle

The 10th Angel appears over Tokyo-3 and lays waste to the city's defenses in short time. It effortlessly breaches the Geofront, then unfolds its body and enters.

Mari Makinami Illustrious deploys inside Eva-02 and confronts Zeruel within the Geofront, attacking first with rifle fire and then attempting a melee attack with a Thunder Spear and the right shoulder pylon's needle gun. None make a dent in the Angel's defensive power, and as a result Mari resorts to activating Eva-02's Beast Mode. Despite this boost in strength and mobility, the Eva is still unable to breach the Angel's A.T. Field and is severely damaged by the Angel's counterattack.

Eva-00 attacks with a large N² missile, and, with Eva-02's aid, the Angel's field is finally penetrated. The attack is again ineffective, and Eva-00 loses both arms in the explosion. The pilot makes no attempt to resist as the Angel extends an appendage from its mouth and devours the Eva. The 10th Angel subsequently grows a humanoid body and, due to shifting its pattern to Eva-00's, gains the ability to bypass the automated self-destruct that would otherwise prevent it from reaching Lilith's chamber.

The Angel demolishes the Nerv pyramid and invades the main shaft, confronting and nearly annihilating the command center crew before being stopped by Shinji in Eva-01. The fight between both proceeds in much the same manner as the original series until Eva-01 runs out of power, at which point the Angel skewers the Eva and throws it against the remains of the pyramid. The Eva soon revives and quickly reaches incredible levels of power: reconstructing its lost arm from its A.T. Field, blocking all of the 10th Angel's overpowered attacks, and finally taking the Angel down with optical energy beams. Shinji recovers Rei from inside the Angel's body, and its blood-like remains are assimilated into Eva-01 as Third Impact is initiated.

Concept

Yoshitoh Asari returned to provide an abundance of new ideas for a reworked version of Zeruel, many of which were combined to provide the final design. The premise that the 10th Angel would have two forms -- one with a "vestigial" body, the other more humanoid -- seems to have been present early on. That the Angel would develop a feminine body was established later in the process, however, at Anno's insistence. The final design for the 10th's second form was prepared by Takeshi Honda, incorporating the mane-like cowl from a drawing by Kazuya Tsurumaki (which incidentally resembled the original Zeruel the most of the published concepts).

The 10th Angel also incorporates Armisael from the original series. See more.

Notes

  1. ↑ The appearance of one was storyboarded, however, in the scene where the Angel deploys four arms.


Angels
Angels (general)
First and Second Angels (Seeds of Life): Adam | Lilith
Third to Seventeenth Angels (Adam's Children):
Sachiel | Shamshel | Ramiel | Gaghiel | Israfel | Sandalphon | Matarael | Sahaquiel
Ireul | Leliel | Bardiel | Zeruel | Arael | Armisael | Tabris
Eighteenth Angel: Lilin
Rebuild of Evangelion: ?Adams? | Lilith | 3rd Angel | 4th Angel | 5th Angel | 6th Angel | 7th Angel | 8th Angel | 9th Angel | 10th Angel | 11th Angel | 12th Angel | 1st/13th Angel
Other: Extracanonical Angels


Retrieved from "https://wiki.evageeks.org/index.php?title=Zeruel&oldid=99180"