Neon Genesis Evangelion: What did I just watch?

Some time back in the times of the mid 90’s, Anime was beginning to develop followings in the west with the likes of Akira and Ghost in the Shell offering deep philosophical concepts, great writing and intense action scenes. However it wasn’t until the often labelled Masterpiece that was Neon Genesis Evangelion appeared in the west that academics decided there might be something to the Japanese film industry that they hadn’t realised until now. Evangelion, as it is commonly referred to by it’s fan base, bombards the viewer with dense symbolism, high level philosophical and religious concepts and even cited works of Sigmund Freud. Surprising, considering a lot of people thought this was another Giant Robot Anime similar to that of Gundam upon first looks.

The most apparent themes are that of religion. The gigantic monsters are called Angels, taking their names from numerous characters from the Judeo Christian Lore, with the patriarchal angel named Adam, the matriarchal angel referred to as Lilith, and subsequent Angels being named after figures such as Sachiel, Ramiel, Tabris and Arael to name a few. The significance of these names isn’t immediately apparent, however in the late series it is revealed that humanity is another Angel, the entire race was born from one single seed, they are a shared collective of beings that, with some help from science, can once again become an angel by combining all life into one entity. It is also known that while the other angels at the fruit of life, giving them immortality, humans ate the fruit of knowledge, allowing them to develop free will. The fruit of knowledge can be directly compared to it’s counterpart from religious texts, it gave humanity the knowledge they needed to progress as a species, it allowed them to develop thought and understanding but it also left them feeling as if they as individuals were alone in this world.

This last point is one of the major motifs of the psychology of the series. Each of the protagonist characters has severe emotional disconnection from someone in their life, often a parental figure. Shinji Ikari feels distant from his father, Misato Katsuragi has developed an Electra complex due to the abuse her father subjected her to, Rei Ayanami feels a lack of belonging. Each of these characters seeks a close human relationship but numerous factors stand in their way. This condition, known in philosophy as the hedgehog dilemma, a condition where a person wants to become closer to someone but they don’t want to hurt them, in the same way hedgehogs wish to huddle together for warmth but their sharp quills prevent them from being able, is one of the running themes through the series. The antagonist Gendo Ikari, Shinji’s father, aims to eliminate this by forming all humanity into a single organism. In his opinion, this would allow humanity to eschew the notion that we are alone as we would all be a single entity capable of godlike potential. Of course this would completely reverse the intentions of the first humans whom took the fruit of knowledge to allow individuality and conscious freedom of will, something that Gendo places little credence in as his dreams of becoming god are before him.

Another important note is that a large number of the protagonists are in their mid-teens, a time period where they are struggling with social structures and their own transitioning into adulthood. Sexuality as described in Freud’s work is portrayed through the series as Shinji develops an Oedipus complex and Misato develops the female equivalent, called an Electra complex. Freud developed the idea that there are 5 stages of sexual development, falling in order of the Oral, Anal, Phallic, Latent and Genital erogenous zones. Accord to Freud, the Phallic stage has a consequence of the psychological fixation which can result in the Oedipus or Electra complex in females. It stands to reason that this is an apparent concept in Neon Genesis Evangelion as the idea of sexual maturity is an underlying theme since the early series.

Evangelion is dense with it’s symbolism, philosophy, psychology and religious sub text. Repeat viewings are rewarded with further semiotic understanding and a deeper insight into the very complex and layered characters in Evangelion.

Rick and Morty: An absurd look into Mental Illness.

In 2014 Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon created a new adult cartoon series about an alcoholic professor and his grand son and the adventures they go on. This is what it appeared to be on the surface anyway, however as the show progressed it delved into topics such as unplanned parenthood, uneasy marriages, depression and the frailty of life to name a few themes this series tackles.

One of the principal characters in the series is Rick Sanchez, a man of genius level intellect that has garnered the attention of some of the universes biggest threats. However Rick is often portrayed as a misanthropic and pessimistic individual, he often comments on how humanity is below him due to his mental superiority and his inflated ego. In the final episode of season 1 we discover through second hand accounts that Rick is actually a lonely individual who is feeling the effects of distancing himself from those close to him. This raises the question, is Rick every happy? We see in the final episode of season 1 that he enjoys copious recreational drug use, possibly lending to the idea that he uses them as a coping mechanism. Later in the episode 3 of the second season we are introduced to a hivemind virus named unity that Rick used to have a relationship with, during this episode we see Rick again engage in excess as he has sexual relations with an entire society of people. Towards the end of this episode we see, after Unity and Rick part ways once more, Rick attempts suicide. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, people suffering depression often have a grim outlook on life due to either developmental issues, chemical imbalances in the brain or circumstantial problems, these people will sometimes try to find a crutch that allows them to compensate for this, such as drug abuse, self-harm or sexual promiscuity. Those suffering severe cases of depression can sometimes experience suicidal thoughts that, when triggered by unfortunate circumstances in the individuals life, can lead potentially lead them into attempting suicide. Through this evidence we can speculate that Rick is suffering from depression, his excessive life style could potentially be his way of compensating with his grim outlook on life and when one of these coping mechanisms fails, further more resulting in the loss of a lover of sorts, Rick see’s the only way out is suicide, going as far as to attempt it, but failing.

Conversely, the other protagonist in Morty is shown to fear death. During episode 5 of season 1 Morty accidently destroys the world through the use of a chemical that mutates the entire population of Earth. The only solution Rick can formulate depends on finding an alternate reality where both Rick and Morty die after finding a solution to the virus. Upon arrival, Rick barely bats an eye lid after seeing an alternate reality version of himself dead, Morty on the other hand is severely traumatised to the idea that he has ‘died’, exclaiming in a later episode that “Every Morning I eat breakfast 20 feet from my own grave”. The idea that life is so fragile deeply disturbs Morty, the idea that he could die at any moment leaves a permanent mark on him as a person and leads him to be a lot more hostile towards Rick in several instances, directly defying his orders on numerous occasions and arguing with his sister summer. This could potentially be a result of Morty’s adrenalin levels being raised by the dire circumstances he’s exposed to, creating an addiction and dependency to the chemical’s released which could also explain why in later episodes Morty is less hesitant to question Rick’s motives for the adventures they go on.

In a short time we see both characters develop severe psychological conditions due to the lifestyles they live. Rick is a manic depressant who seeks something, anything to numb the pain he feels, while Morty suffers Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and seeks Adrenalin rushes to placate the dependencies he has developed. Both characters are damaged and highlight how subtle mental illness can be portrayed in fiction yet still have an impact on their lives.

Rick and Morty Season 1 Episode 6 “Rick Potion #9”. 2014. [Television] Directed by Stephen Sandoval. United States of America: Williams Street.

Rick and Morty Season 1 Episode 8 “Ricky Minutes”. 2014. [Television] Directed by Bryan Newton. United States of America: Williams Street.

Rick and Morty Season 1 Episode 11 “Ricksy Business”. 2014. [Television] Directed by Stephen Sandoval. United States of America: Williams Street.

Rick and Morty Season 2 Episode 3 “Auto Erotic Assimilation”. 2015. [Television] Directed by Bryan Newton. United States of America: Williams Street.

Rick and Morty Season 2 Episode 8 “Interdimensional Cable 2: Tempting Fate”. 2015. [Television] Directed by Juan Meza-Leon. United States of America: Williams Street.

American Psychiatric Association, 2013. DSM-5. 5 ed.  American Psychiatric Association.