How do I watch Evangelion?

[Sop]

This may sound pretty stupid to all you 'anime' people out there, but can someone explain Neon Genesis Evangelion to me?

I have been interested in watching Neon Genesis Evangelion for a while now, but it looks like there are many different versions of it or something? Like 3.0 or whatever it is called. I checked Wikipedia and it seems there is only the cartoon itself plus three more animated movies? What are these other 'Evangelion' series then, would someone care to explain this to me? And in what order should I watch the show/series'?

 

[FireEmblemGuy]

Originally, there was just the anime, and that's what you should watch first. The budget for the show got slashed for a number of reasons, and thanks to that the last couple episodes were disjointed hodgepodges of animation, storyboards, and even live action leading to a mostly nonsensical ending.

After that there was the End of Evangelion movie meant to act as a true ending; whether or not it's a better ending or is compatible with the original ending is up for endless debate. I think it was actually a couple smaller pieces of tie-in animations originally but regardless End of Evangelion is all you need after the end of the anime, or in place of the last couple episodes.

Years later, the creator went back and started the Rebuild of Evangelion movies - so far, this includes 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0 theatrically, and 1.11, 2.22, and 3.33 for the home media releases. While the first is more or less a summary of the first quarter or third of the anime with some animation upgrades, it starts going in a different direction in the second and by the third it's a completely new plot with the fourth and final still in the works. I wouldn't recommend watching these until you've finished the original Evangelion.

 

[GameWinner]

I knew I should have watched those movies when they premiered on Toonami...

 

[Joe88]

I knew I should have watched those movies when they premiered on Toonami...

get the blurays or "acquire" from someplace else
the toonami one was censored and a few scenes cut

 

[nryn99]

in addition to what fireemblemguy said:
Original series: Neon Genesis Evangelion with related anime below the synopsis

 

[DarkSeele]

Oh, boy! You don't know what you're getting into. You will go from being on the edge of your seat during the mecha battles to being deep in thought throughout everything else. Whether you understand it or not, every anime fan must watch Evangelion at least once.

Recommended viewing order:

1. Neon Genesis Evangelion (TV series, eps. 1 - 26)
2. Neon Genesis Evangelion: Death & Rebirth (movie, basically just a recap of the series)
3. Neon Genesis Evangelion: The End of Evangelion (movie, an alternate ending to the TV series)

Rebuild of Evangelion Evangelion - The 4 new movies. These 4 movies are a complete alternate retelling of the series. Not sequels. Only 3 of these movies have actually been released. The last one will be released in the future, but no dates have been decided yet.

1. Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone
2. Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance
3. Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo
4. Evangelion: 4.0 Final (no official title yet) Winter 2015???

There you have it.

 

[gokujr1000]

Thanks for making this thread. I've also always wanted watch this show but been confused as to how I should watch it.