Evangelion may be over, but fans can take one last trip to Tokyo-3 in a beautifully animated new video.
The new video was produced by artist The Worst Vegetable Corner, also known online as @TokeruIC. The video is animated in the pixel-art style of a classic 1980s or '90s video game and features a dazzling tour of the key locations from the original Neon Genesis Evangelion TV anime and the subsequent Rebuild of Evangelion movies, including Misato and Rei's apartments, Kaji's secret garden and the hospital room that Shinji often found himself in. The animation is set to the song "One Last Kiss" by Japanese pop star Hikaru Utada, which was also used as the theme song for the grand finale to the entire franchise, Evangelion 3.0 + 1.01: Thrice Upon A Time.
In addition to their Evangelion tribute, the animator has posted several other anime and video game themed animations on their YouTube channel. These include short works inspired by Crayon Shin-Chan and Nintendo's Kirby series.
Thrice Upon A Time was released in 2021 and ultimately went on to become the highest grossing film in Japan for that year. In addition to being the final film in the Rebuild of Evangelion series, the movie also serves as a conclusion to the story that began with 1995's Neon Genesis Evangelion TV series, which is widely celebrated as one of the most important and influential anime series of all time. The movie received an overall positive reception and was generally regarded as a return to form after the previous movie, Evangelion 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo, which inspired a more mixed reaction from critics and long-time series fans. The movie is available to be streamed from Amazon's Prime Video service.
In addition to wrapping up Shinji's story, the movie also marked the end of series creator Hideaki Anno's time with the franchise, at least for the time being. Last year, Anno hinted that more works set within Evangelion's world may be produced by different creators to fill in the gaps in the series' complex timeline. Those possible continuations will be made without Anno at the helm, however, as he has also stated that he now wants to exclusively work on live-action projects for awhile. He is currently directing Shin Kamen Rider, a new theatrical reboot of Toei's long-running tokusatsu series, which is scheduled to be released in Japan sometime in 2023.
Source: YouTube via Anime News Network
