Yes, it's a golden oldy!

Had to read the paragraph about series and movies a couple times, but I think I got it. So, if I watch episodes 1-26 and then watch End of Evangelion, that covers everything - right?

Up to episode 12 now.

Rei is a puzzling character. Just saw first flashback to get sense of history regarding angels, first and second impacts.

As a hypothesis for genesis of angels, I'm going with the idea of self perpetuating, self designed cyborgs that regard humans as viral infection - but I have nothing to base that on. Aliens is too obvious. That idea would go well with episode 11 where HQ power failure seemed to have been caused by internal agent - Magi maybe?

OK - don't tell me - just speculating.

I don't think I've ever watched anything more than 3 or 4 times - Fifth Element (Milla Jovovich is just so adorable - a little cutsie, but even so . . . ), Blade Runner, Finding Nemo. Can't think of anything recent. Oh, I have seen Rocky Horror Picture Show about 10 times, but that's more of a social event. Wonder if it's still in theaters anywhere.

I've been paying very close attention to the dialog. Starting with episode 21 I think, you start getting double and triple subtitles from simultaneous conversations. I've been pausing and restarting - at times, every few seconds. It's exhausting. But I guess I won't know if I've missed anything until the end.

I had a bit of a problem with Shinji being reconstituted after being absorbed by Unit 01 but other than that, the scientific foundations are reasonably credible. The mystery surrounding Rei is really intensifying. I have to say she's my favorite character.

I did miss what happened regarding Shinji's mother's death. I couldn't tell if she'd been murdered, committed suicide or what that was about. Of course this was toward the end of the section where they're jumping back and forth between non-chronological flashbacks.

Think I'm on episode 22 now, but it's slow going so might not finish till tomorrow sometime.

I finally finished episodes 25 and 26 of Evangelion. It was rough going with the subtitles and pausing/restarting. I even started thinking in Japanese - not the language, but Japanese sounding gibberish. Which I guess would imply my thoughts are gibberish, but that's a topic for another day.

I don't think NGE was ever meant to be understood. I think it was supposed to be a dream within a dream. Just like a dream, it made enough sense to weave the parts together, but not enough to distract from the impression that was being created. The series is meant, IMHO, to be more like a painting than a story. It's meant to evoke but not resolve.

I think the center of the story is the Human Complement Project. The idea that we find meaning through others but at the same time can create our own internal reality. Changing how you view a scene can make the difference between seeing something and not. Someone who does you a favor - do they do it out of pity or out of respect or concern? The reality is partly determined by their actions and partly by your perceptions.

I know this seems like a facile way out of the problem, and it may be just that. Maybe Anno changed his mind part way through and wanted to convey a metaphysical message rather than whatever he had in mind at the start. It seems that way because you don't get any hint of the series being dreamlike until toward the end - can't remember when Shinji was first seen on the red train. I would like to give Anno the benefit of the doubt though and assume that the finale episodes were his intended conclusion.

The recurring theme of motherhood would coincide with this interpretation since as one of the episodes points out, the mother is the first contact with the world - you could say the first "human complement".

A lot the elements, just as with a painting, can have a variety of interpretations - Angels, Adam, Lance of Longinus - and I'm not sure I remember everything well enough to try any of them out here.

Agreed! I was never more aware of that need than when watching Miyazaki's "Spirited Away". I was sure each of the various gods and creatures portrayed had a rich cultural subtext that Japanese viewers would be aware of, but which I was missing out on completely.
Heh, but then, the Japanese have the same problem with our culture. Ever visit Engrish.com ?