Why Yoko Taro's Neon Genesis Evangelion Series Is A Blessing And A Curse

Just when I thought Hideki Anno had finally tied a neat little bow on all things Neon Genesis Evangelion, the iconic psychological mecha anime pulled me back. It's one of the biggest franchises on the planet that continues to make millions every year for merchandising and licensing partnerships, so even I'm amazed.

But the last thing I expect to be announced at this month's 30th anniversary celebration — aside from a short film that confirms Shinji Ikari ends up with Asuka Soryu Langley in the original or remake timeline — is that a new anime series is in production. It's not even directed by Hideaki Anno, the original creator is living up to his promise that the series will grow into something that can be expanded with exciting fresh interpretations far beyond his own.

Instead, Nier: Automata and Drakengard creative director Yoko Taro is writing the story in this universe with frequent collaborator Keichii Okabe, who works on music in this universe. Rebuild's Kazuya Tsurumaki and Toko Yatabe will return to direct as Enno Studios Khara and Cloverworks help co-produce the wild new series. What exactly it is, and whether it will serve as a continuation of the original series or existing films, is unclear. But what I do know is that I'm incredibly excited.

What is the new Neon Genesis Evangelion anime series?

The announcement confirmed that it will be an entirely new series, but considering how Neon Genesis Evangelion is steeped in Neon Genesis Evangelion , I take this phrase with a generous amount of salt. A teaser released sometime later provides a more solid basis for speculation and what exactly we are dealing with.

First of all, it sounds like classic Yoko Taro and Keiichi Okabe. An ethereal yet haunting chorus accompanies stirring strings that are as unsettling as they evoke, while Japanese that I sadly can't translate properly is splashed across the screen. The visuals depict a ruined orchestra in the middle of a water-filled ruined pit (perhaps a concert hall?) that has long been left to rot by the world around it. It makes me wonder if this project will be the original series or the Rebuild films, or at least a version of Eva's world that has already been ravaged by destruction.

The collapsed concert hall from the new Neon Genesis Evangelion anime trailer.

My eyes are immediately drawn to the instruments associated with the main characters, such as the piano that Kawaru Nagisa plays repeatedly before being forced to kill Shinji, the cello played by Shinji during the OG series is barely mentioned. The fact that the rotted wooden frame of the instrument serves as the opening shot and for several seconds it feels deliberate, like a ray of sunlight standing tall above all the other instruments. This should represent the appearance of Shinji, or at least the troubled hero, and the fact that they appear in this new series.

The piano is completely destroyed and submerged while Shinji's cello high feels purposefully symbolic even with minimal wear and tear.

But the final series of shots, featuring EVA Unit 01's new look, are the most striking. It is once again more animal than machine as its purple maw reveals a mouth full of sharp, hungry teeth. It is shrouded in shadow as a strange vapor escapes from its lips, both organic and mechanical. Again, Evangelion delivers effective but short scenes that draw us in without giving anything away.

EVA Unit 01 in Yoko Taro's Neon Genesis Evangelion.

Considering how the final Rebuild film ends with Shinji Ikari saying goodbye to all the Evangelions and creating a new world where he and his fellow pilots can finally live normal lives, it almost certainly has to be some form of new or alternate universe, unless that conclusion is undone.

And I'd hate it if it did, because it felt like Hideaki Anno had finally reached a place of personal and creative growth to let these characters go and get the happy ending they always deserved, despite everything.

How final it felt, a gentle kiss on the forehead of these characters after going to hell brought me to tears a few years ago. I understand that capitalism continues the neon genesis evangelicals in new forms, but it needs to be done for the right reasons. And it turns out that Yoko Taro is one of the very few creators I trust in such a task.

Why Yoko Taro could be the perfect person to bring back the Evangelion

Neon Genesis Evangelion lead actor standing on stone walkway

Taro's work has always been heavily influenced by the work of Hideaki Anno, and especially Neon Genesis Evangelion. He is one of the few writer-directors in video games willing to offer truly harrowing and thoughtful stories that ask big questions about the nuanced nature of humanity, our world, and the place we occupy in it.

Games like Drakengard or Nier: Automata are unsettlingly beautiful experiences, but they also aren't afraid to make players feel uncomfortable or ask them to look beyond the art to consider the bigger picture. How our own world has become devoid of conflict and empathy when it often proves to be the most powerful tool we have.

Moments in Nier: Automata and Drakengard mirror the ending parts of Evangelion exactly, such as the end of Drakengard's secret ending in the middle of Tokyo to destroy humanity and appear as another world entering the events of the original Nier. Or 2B choking a highly corrupted version of 9S to death in the final moments of Automata's early ending, before releasing, the two share an unbreakable human bond, even if the world around them offers little to fight against.

Neon Genesis Evangelion compared to Drakengard

Given the influence of Evangelion that clearly permeates his body of work, if Taro's past work is anything to go by, I can trust him to take this universe into the unknown future. He is the one who gives voice and purpose to new and existing characters, even if it dares to change a resolution that once felt absolute.

At the end of the day, a story has to mean something, whether it expands on the philosophical ideas at Evangelion's core or dares to tell new stories that reflect our own world. There are a lot of parts to this property that I'm both intimately familiar with and blissfully naive about, and I'd love to see Taro get his hands on all of them.

Neon Genesis Evangelion is one of the most beloved stories in modern Japanese history, and its global influence cannot be understated. Even three decades after its debut, it stands as one of the most influential pieces of media of the modern era, animated or otherwise, so that somehow doesn't stop it from living on.

But like all great works that attract a universal level of acclaim, there is opportunity for it to be remixed and reimagined by generations of new creators. Hideaki Anno seems to have given his blessing, and all I can ask for. If you need me, I'll come in a damn robot.