[EVA]Parental Figures was [EVA]Jesus, Jesus Everywhere

[Rachel K. Clark]

Peter Svensson wrote:

>>:idly wonders if it's too late to resurrect that "Yui/bitch" thread:
>
> Nope. As the originator of Yui Ikari Is a Bitch, I am all for it! Even if
> I

"Even if I"...?

Hearing Yui referred to as a "bitch" makes Reichu cry. ;__; It certainly is
in alarming contrast to that "other" school of thought, wherein she is
considered the true hero (and backbone) of the story.

> *smacks head* Oh yeah, I forgot about that part. Nerv really has a thing
> for using Crosses to restrain people. <snip>

:larfs:

>>Explain. Dr. K's lone fangirl must know.
>
> He never gets a line of dialogue. Cipher probably isn't the best term,

Yes, that seems a wee bit harsh.

>He's an unknown cipher, who is only important because of the father-sized
>hole he leaves in Misato's heart.

Hey, wait, I thought you just said--

> that gets contrasted with his fatherly, yet completely emotionless, saving
> of his daughter.

I'm not certain about the "emotionless" part. One of the more subtle signs:
The drop of blood that falls onto Misato's cheek may be a "bloody tear".
Animated GIF, for convenience.

Abbreviated (418KB):
http://www.evacommentary.org/episode-12/12_C011_anim_small.gif
Full (1.12MB):
http://www.evacommentary.org/episode-12/12_C011_anim.gif

Dr. K is possibly more important than he is usually given credit for being,
but that's another matter entirely.

------

Carl wrote:

> Yes but the "Gendo that exists inside Shinji," the "Gendo that exists
> inside Misato," etc., is a prick.

Shinji suffers from the typical "love/hate" dilemma.

"I hate you, Father! But I want your love and confirmation! :cries:"
"Shinji, your dad sucks. Sorry about that."
:chomp:
"Thank you, Father. :big idiotic grin:"

> In our interactions with others, it is usually our facades that are more
> important than our so-called true selves; the facade is the "interface."

Quite true. We need to round up all of those rotten facades and shoot them.

> In the absence of an Instrumentality, it does no good to say, "He's really
> such a sweet man," when there is no evidence people can see for it.

It ultimately traces back to Gendo's underlying "handicaps" -- the
stuff he mentioned to Kozo right off the bat, only to get a ":rolleyes:" in
response. His disclaimer about the bar fight, among other things, implies a 
history of being misunderstood and prejudiced against, with his own lack of 
social graces compounding his predicament. Gendo also became sublimely 
skilled at the art of self-loathing along the way.

> Shinji would just grab his nuts at such an assertion, although he might
> come up empty-handed.
> In Ritsuko's case, it's literally the case that the Gendo that exists
> inside her is a prick.

Maya: "Fuketsu..."

>Neither cute lieutenants nor cold-faced commanders can resist her.

It's more vice versa -- she couldn't resist Gendo.

***
2010, Nerv Command Tower

Ritsuko: Hello, Commander Ikari. I'm Professor Ritsuko Akagi. I'll be
serving under you as the head of Nerv's science department.
Gendo: (stare) ... Is that so?
Ritsuko: Yes.
Gendo: (stare) ......
Ritsuko: ... Um... You're single, right?
Gendo: ......
Ritsuko: ......
Gendo: ...... If I said "get lost", would that affect your job performance
in a way counterproductive to my own convoluted goals?
Ritsuko: Probably.
Gendo: I see.
***

I actually am serious about the "Ritsuko going after Gendo" part. Another
one of those "like mother, like daughter" things.

--Reichu