The Curious Case of Misato

[@Jayfive276]

Reminder, if one is needed, that Ritsuko was supposed to be the fanservice character (oh those magnificent legs of science) and Misato the goofy comedic relief. Anno seemed surprised that the hard drinking party girl with a rocking bod and daddy issues would be popular with male fans…

[@tonyfunk]

Ironic that Anno spent all this time researching psychology and mental health only to later to realize that Eva fans would be just as messed up as the characters he made. 🙈

[@PlanetZoidstar]

@@tonyfunk It's also funny that Ritsuko was meant to be the fanservice character, because Misato acts way more overtly sexual than Ritsuko does. Hell the first time we see Misato is with a suggestive photo of her that she sent Shinji which he's holding in Episode 1. Plus she lives with him and alot of the time Shinji acts as an audience surrogate, so we see alot of Evangelion through his eyes. By comparison we see far less of Ritsuko and Shinji only interacts with her when piloting the Eva. So how Anno could miss this leading alot more of the fans to sexualise Misato (like Shinji does when he imagines her, Rei and Asuka) over Ritsuko baffles me.

[@tonyfunk]

@@PlanetZoidstar Since the series kind of evolved as it went, my guess is they eventually scrapped the idea to have Ritsuko be the hot mommy character. Just my guess tho.

[@rikustorm13]

Ritsuko is my waifu ngl so... :o

[@grpattackonanime]

​@@tonyfunkI don't think that is the case, because generally in eva, sexual content does not necessarily mean fanservice. Evangelion has this huge theme of intimacy that goes on in the show. Ritsuko character has been shown throughout the series to suffer from learned helplessness (her only desire is to be needed), this is also expressed in first few episodes where ironically, she tells misato that shinji has hedgehog's dilemma - which we can see that Ritsuko understood it because she is going through the same...

[@ArniQQ10]

Throughout the series we learn that Misato is unable to express her feelings through anything else than sex. This gets weird when she wants to show motherly love towards Shinji. The best scene that indicates this, is when they are both sitting on Shinji's bed and she tries to grab his hand . . . she finds it hard to connect with other people except through physical contact. This is also what leads to the kiss at the end.

[@tonyfunk]

Yep! Agree!

[@phrei9]

Physical contact doesn’t necessarily mean sex tho… I also connect with people through physical contact, it doesn’t mean I am the pervert, cmon ;-; I mean, you say Misato trying grabbing Shinji’s hand implies… sexual intensions??? Eh, society just got very allergic to even the word “touch”…

[@bingoose5295]

@@phrei9 arghhhh pervert

[@jackaboynaylor9273]

Am I weird for finding that relatable? I want to show my love to one of the few people I truly care about by completely giving myself up to them. Imagining being used by them for their pleasure makes me really happy. it feels freeing.

[@BrPerera]

@@jackaboynaylor9273yea bro. That’s just super weird. Im sorry.

[@JGPlunder]

If we're talking about endangering a child the whole series is about endangering children

[@tonyfunk]

You're not wrong...

[@austincde]

Neon Genesis Endangerment

[@faintfiction5389]

Neon Genesis Evandangerment

[@samsquanch1996]

At least Evangelion is an animated series....

[@davidlescano8688]

fair point

[@ley5532]

I never thought she was, it was her last attempt to motivate Shinji to fight and protect the Geofront using one of the only ways she knew how, using her sex appeal, after everything else had failed. She knows she has it, so in order to motivate him she kisses him and says they'll do the rest afterwards (if he manages to fight back the invasion). Misato was never a PDF file, she was a dying woman trying to motivate one of the few people she cared about, to not only defend the base, but themselves.

[@tonyfunk]

I agree that her "grown up kiss" was more of a hail Mary to get Shinji to act but when we look at everything that preceded that moment, we're cued in that Misato had feelings towards Shinji that she couldn't comprehend. This is evidenced in episode 25 when Kaji revealed that Misato secretly wanted Shinji to watch her. Having said that, yeah, she's not a PDF file, just someone with poor judgement and complicated parental traumas.

[@ferminangelcarhuajulcaguil1196]

Tell' that to the judge and lets see who Is right or wrong?

[@IamAlleycat]

@@ferminangelcarhuajulcaguil1196your honor my client pleads “nuh uh”

[@PeruvianPotato]

Average Evangelion fan:

[@Crazael]

​@@tonyfunk While I agree that she had feelings for Shnji she couldn't quite comprehend, I believe those feelings were that of a mother rather than a lover. She is flirty towards him at first because that's how she connects to people in general and she isn't quite emotionally mature enough to be able to realize it's not appropriate when interacting with Shinji.

[@s.gooberson]

The Misato Katsuragi Situation is crazy

[@tonyfunk]

@@s.gooberson hahahaha that was actually one of my provisional titles for the script 🙈

[@JinKee]

@@tonyfunkomg change it back

[@tonyfunk]

@@JinKee lmaoooo

[@JotheAnimator]

I never thought she was. She was in love with Kaji. She used intimacy to motivate Shinji. She had no intention of actually doing it with him because she knew she would die.

[@mviouscosplay]

AGREED

[@tonyfunk]

I agree 100% in that she had no intention of doing anything further because she knew she would die. Having said that, the scene depicts Misato's projection of what she believed Shinji would respond to. Any other adult woman would attempt to motivate Shinji in any other way BUT kissing him.

[@sumsumplays]

but guess what that is ✨grooming✨ she befriended him with the intention to use her power dynamic against him in order to benefit, which is exactly what she did.

[@tonyfunk]

@@sumsumplays 100%

[@JotheAnimator]

@@sumsumplays being friendly and recruiting the only hope of humanity is grooming lmao

[@tiredsn0w]

I really appreciate how you handled talking about personality disorders. People tend to demonize cluster B especially, and you were objective instead. Good video.

[@tonyfunk]

Thank you!!!!

[@nguyenhuutrung3413]

Someone: "Who would be able to resist this hot cougar ? " Shinji : " Me (for the most part). She's an immature, drunken and depressed man-child of a woman with daddy issues who is a bad partner and make for an even worse guardian figure. She's fine when shit doesn't hit the fans, but when it does ? She let both me AND Asuka down harder than when she let her daddy down. I'd have roast her into oblivion but I won't because I have mother issues and we both care about each other very much but went about it as disatrously as possible. "

[@ghfudrs93uuu]

cougar? Isn't her, like, 27?

[@nguyenhuutrung3413]

@@ghfudrs93uuu IDK, that's what some people refer to her as so I'm just going with it

[@Dosenotexist]

@@ghfudrs93uuuto shinji who is 14/15 she kinda is 😭

[@JinKee]

@@ghfudrs93uuui know it’s the end of the world, and a secret paramilitary organization in a time of war, but you don’t usually make Major as early as 27. Even if marked “promote ahead of peers” you need to serve time in grade. However she does have a birthday (Dec 8, 1986) so that makes her 31 in 2017.

[@Grizabeebles]

As far as I'm concerned, Gendo put Misato in play just so Shinji had a sexual outlet in case he needed one. Everything Shinji did to Ausuka, Misato would theoretically have just taken as part of the job.

[@zainmudassir2964]

Regarding Misato's 'Daddy issues', it's implied she was alone for years after Third impact which made her indulge in drinking and s*x with Kaji to not feel lonely. Children who are orphaned at young age can have role model like grandparents, uncles even an older friend who guide them to have healthy relationships while Misato had none.

[@solev657]

Yeah

[@regulus6936]

I agree, but even if through trial and error alone, in the end you're supposed to learn. It's not that, if don't have role models, than you have no choice but to become a deranged individual... Hard yes, but not impossible.

[@knightmare5097]

I would like to add that Misato also wanted to serve as Shinji’s mother in a way, hence her line of regret about not being able to fulfill that role. Several times in the show, we can see her try to attempt that role in different ways, yet, as Evangelion is, hurt people are not good parents/friends.

[@imfsresidentotaku9699]

And yet, she made it work. She never gave up on him, even when he did, and that's a true friend.

[@UpcycleShoesKai]

Viewed it as a hail mary to get Shinji to act. Even being shot at, Shinji would rather die

[@tonyfunk]

Truuuuuuuu tho

[@SeniorCharry]

I wasn’t a huge fan of the kissing scene, but I always thought Misato kissed Shinji because she knew they were going to die and Shinji has never kissed anyone. So she took his first kiss. I’m probably super wrong, but that was the only thing that made sense to me the first time I watched the movie. I prefer the first two of the newer movies and finishing it off with the manga. The last two movies were not good, but the manga was surprisingly good in my opinion.

[@tgould91]

Asuka had kissed Shinji earlier in the OG series, but it abysmal. So, while not technically his first, it was the first proper one

[@Dani.G_German]

Always wondered if Misato survived being turned into orange juice, those who possessed a strong will to live could return if I remember correctly

[@tonyfunk]

@@Dani.G_German I would like to think she did :)

[@Grizabeebles]

I'm pretty sure that there's a theory going around that every Evangellion "remake" is actually a step in a cycle of reincarnation. Eventually the Orange Juice becomes people again, and gets a little bit further before imploding again -- the final cycle leading to our present world.

[@ezrel6477]

@@Grizabeebles there is a time loop/alternate universe theory but it isn’t that, it has a lot to do with the rebuild lore. First things first, it’s important to establish how the universe of Eva actually works. Basically after a certain amount of time, the universe dies and in its wake a new universe is created with some different aspects compared to the old one. This explains why there is 5 Adams in Rebuild, as opposed to only 1 in the original. Additionally, there is a place known as the anti-universe that dictates the happenings of the present universe which can be entered via Impacts. Second, it’s important to understand that Kaworu… can’t exactly die. Due to his nature as a near godlike being, the only way for him to truly die is just the death of the entire universe. Knowing this, Kaworu thinks of a plan to prevent the entire Instrumentality mess and, of course, make Shinji truly happy. So, during Third Impact, he likely entered the Anti-Universe and specifically altered things in a way that would allow him to keep his memories across universe resets and guarantee he meets Shinji in every new universe. With this information, the story goes as follows: in each loop, Kaworu comes to life to try and help Shinji, but he continues to fail until Rebuild, where everything is just perfect enough so that Shinji can actually grow from his trauma

[@Operator214MerchantMarine]

i think , misato turned into orange juice in the orginal movie of evangelion ., lucky for her shes already dead when that happened ., theres a scene there that her clothes was in half (probably blown up ) and laying a puddle of orange juice - probably what left of her in pieces , again liquidfied . kinda like double dead thing ☠️

[@corywilson532]

Misato was a honey pot. There to keep the hormonal and dependent Shinji in check. She was assigned to pick him up, and all she knew about him was he was a 14 year old boy. So she sends him a flirty postcard to ensure he shows up. She then is his roommate because, like his friends say, what boy wouldn't want a "Mature Woman" as a roommate. Her starting to fall into that role can still be how the feller up there describes it. But if NERV is a Military Division, and the fate of the heckin world is at stake, it'd make sense that she'd be assigned to keep Shinji in check, by any means necessary. Would prolly explain a bit more of her drinking herself silly. On top of all the other reasons she'd do so lol.

[@diegosotomiranda4107]

I think the that doesn't negate the grooming and power dinamic she has as an adult woman with a teenage not, it only explain her context, doesn't excuse her actions (that even the series point are poor choices)

[@Ravewolf24]

From a psychology standpoint, I think most of this adds up. But from a storytelling standpoint, I think we are meant to view the infamous kiss and promise as poignant cause Misato knows she is about to die, so can say it with sincerity in the moment because she knows she will not have the opportunity to go through with anything anyway. It's like a moral freebie at the literal end of the world, and a weird sort of closure to their at times inappropriate association. Not the tsundere routine of Asuka or the fumblings of Shinji's sexual curiosity, just a plain straightforward statement for a change, but one that will convenintly never lead to anything.

[@tonyfunk]

@@Ravewolf24 I can definitely see this perspective. "The moral freebie" sort of thing. I just believe there was build up to it indicating that Misato had the potential to act predatory towards Shinji. But it's all up to everyone's personal interpretation.

[@dannyd4339]

she still kissed him. that is enough and disgusting already. nice cope though.

[@tonyfunk]

@@dannyd4339 Yup, and I said it was predatory behavior. Speculating about a flawed character's psychology isn't a "cope". That's like saying studying about Stalin makes you a mass murderer.

[@timrosswood4259]

@@dannyd4339 The way you are so excited to accuse people of being pdf files makes it seem like you're secretly confessing to be one. Be careful with those kinds of accusations and stick to what you ACTUALLY know for a fact, which is nothing.

[@MajorKatsuragi86]

Finally someone that gets

[@horriblepizza4647]

Wow I'm early for this. Another great analysis, and very educational as well. I love eva, and I'm so glad we're still able to discuss this show to this day.

[@tonyfunk]

Thanks so much! :D And yes, there's a reason I keep making videos on this old ass series. There's always something to relate to and dissect!

[@sonicmasterkeyhole93]

I don't know if I'm the only one that thinks this but I feel like the whole Misato kissing Shinji was a last ditch effort to get him to buck up because think about it, nerv was fucked, Angels where attacking, both Rei and Asuka were out of the question and I believe Misato got shot beforehand, so in a last attempt to not only protect the boy she spent most of her time with, who is right now in the worst mental state and has just as much trama, Misato uses one last thing that she thinks would get Shinji to move and it kinda works, not really but hey she was gonna die, better to die knowing you can save someone despite being a mess, but hey that just my opinion

[@MajorKatsuragi86]

What I’ve been saying all these years

[@myraccoonhands]

I'm with you. I don't think it was romantic or sexual, but more so a parting action to encourage him.

[@Grizabeebles]

Agreed, this is a trolley problem that's also a 15-vehicle pile-up.

[@Dionysius8421]

yeah this was obvious imo

[@riotbreaker3506]

I think this issue is more nuanced than people want it to be, she may not be literally attracted to Shinji, but her trauma response of purely physical expression does lead to problematic behavior around Shinji. Not to mention she is in a position of guardianship over Shinji, and I don't think it fully excuses a 30-year-old coming onto a 14 year old, even it it was just her last ditch effort to comfort him.

[@tonyfunk]

Very well said.

[@felipezamora9711]

This thank you. As much as I love Misato as she is my 2nd favorite character she did something while necessary, can't be justified

[@gordusmaximus4990]

I agree, but its a combination of that. She also wanted to motivate Shinji and because of her... Issues, sexuality was the only way she see fit to do it, after everything failed. And the "The truth is, you actually love letting Shink see you like this", showing in both series and final movie, Shinji watch after all of them being connected trough Instrumentality. Shows she clearly has bigger issues revolved around her dad in which she wanted validation and looking for her dad through other men and using sexuality as escapism and surrender to easy pleasures.

[@misterpinkandyellow74]

You are either attracted to someone or not.

[@riotbreaker3506]

@@misterpinkandyellow74 good luck with that

[@DALESKI-96]

Great video man! You can tell how much work you put into this!! Very insightful psychological breakdown.

[@DCoreB]

A vast majority of abusers were abused themselves, but that doesn't make the abuse right. Every has reasons and justifications for their actions, but right and wrong still exist.

[@Nonaggress]

Misato wasn't hypersexual lol she talked a big game but she only had one romantic relationship in the series, and indeed in her whole goddamn life.

[@tonyfunk]

So, I should've made a much more clear distinction between sex addiction and hypersexuality... They're both related and caused by a "high libido + low impulse control" the difference however, is that sex addiction results in seeking as many sexual experiences as possible and hypersexuality results in one disregarding social norms/boundaries in order to reach homeostasis. Though Misato is shown to only have one partner, the other person whom she is shown to have an Electra complex for is Shinji... Who's a child. This means that we can define her advances on him as examples of low impulse control because she herself admitted to Ritsuko, that it would be messed up to make advances on a child (as per her phone call in episode 2) So... yes. Just because she hasn't had multiple partners in the past, doesn't mean she's incapable of demonstrating hypersexual behavior.

[@Nonaggress]

@@tonyfunk Gotcha so she's hypersexual because of the way she sublimates her issues in a sexually charged way. The actual 'having sex' part is besides the point. Your point is strengthened further if we consider Misato is so emotionally stunted that her only sexual outlets are either flirting with a 14-year-old boy or having sex with a man she outright says reminds her of her father.

[@tonyfunk]

@@Nonaggress Correct my friend. 🫡

[@seeleunit2000]

Exactly. She wasn't even really all that sexual in the cannon. I've seen pretty hyper sexual characters in anime and manga, and Misato is very conservative in terms of her behaviour regarding sex

[@tonyfunk]

@@seeleunit2000 I don't care about her relationship with Kaji or any other characters on-screen or off-screen as they are not what raised red flags for hypersexual behavior... we can ignore those things. What I do care about, is that Misato is canonically attracted to Shinji according to episode 25, which indicates that her "comfort sex" proposition of episode 23 was an action of low impulse control which matches with the hypersexuality description.

[@premier1975]

A most excellent analysis. Bravo.

[@henrylo3183]

Very appreciated of this in depth analysis using the knowledge of science and psychology. It really leads to more thoughts to the story and characters. Misato's affection to Shinji is from similar father experiences. I imagine that leads to some motivations: 1) easier and stronger empathy that may lead to a more understanding love relationship. (Evangelion is about the search of understanding others and be understood. Similar experiences promote higher chance of that.) 2) a guardian figure who can give that care properly will mend her psychy/ void that the world could be different. (at the end, she found herself unable to shield Shinji from the enormous hardships and realized her inadequacy of being a guardian. In the hope of relieving grief of both Kaiji and Rei's death, she chose sexual/ romantic bonding may help.) Seeing this, all may be done in some understandable yet improper enough to create a very shaky foundation of relationship that likely will lead to disaster. I don't know if she abuses her power though. She did not force anything. And when she says "when you come back, we will do the rest..." is only a motivational speech. She is motivated by it and imagine it would work on Shinji. But she knows it won't happen, she is dying. She just wants Shinji to know there are people loving him.

[@BrPerera]

So she was trying have sex with Shinji in Rei- III episode? I thought she was just trying to comfort him from a physical touch. That’s the way even she addresses it as I remember.

[@hagakura]

I don't know where OP got this intention of her hitting on Shinji. Nowhere in her body language or her speech hinted at anything even remotely close to her wanting to sleep with him.

[@Cthoanut]

Absolutely a banger. Great video

[@tonyfunk]

@@Cthoanut Thank you so much!!!! Glad you enjoyed it :D

[@DarthZeromus]

There's too much evidence to suggest she had romantic feelings toward Shinji, but I think a lot of people are uncomfortable with that particular dimension being a part of her character, so they instead sugarcoat her, saying, "Misato may be messed up but she isn't THAT messed up." Nah, she's pretty messed up & that, to me, is the point of her character. You're meant to feel uncomfortable along with the other cast of characters.

[@randalljolla]

Where is this evidence

[@DarthZeromus]

​@@randalljolla In the show. Watch it over again without being bias & you'll have your answer. One example, out of many, is the kiss scene & the subsequent inference of copulation in the movie which was unnecessary. She didn't have to do it, nor say she wanted to have sex with him whether it be for motivation or reward's sake. She already had him in the palm of her hand the moment she got mad at him & told him she wouldn't forgive him. By then he already conceded to pilot the eva. So, then, why did she do it? Simple. It was a deathbed confession. She knew she was going to die & thereby she also knew she wasn't going to be around to reap the consequence of her actions. She just gave him a taste of the truth that was lingering inside her, a truth that lingers inside anyone who's about to die. She wasn't trying to motivate him or reward him or coerce him. That would be redundant. No, she was trying to express what she felt for him in her last moments, leaving no room for regrets to which she expressed for & about changing the carpet. Misato isn't a whore. She's not willing to sleep with anyone even though & despite her saying "anyone would do" after her failed attempt to sex up Shinji. That's a lie. The only sex relation that woman had was with Kaji. Other than that, she was completely dedicated to her work. The implication here is pretty obvious. Deep down, she had feelings for Shinji & was willing to express those feelings with him only & not with just anyone. I could go further in depth & with more examples, but that's energy I rather spend & place in my stories than to debate endlessly online since I already know people will continue to sugarcoat the true depths of her flaws to feel more comfortable with her character. As for me, I love the fact she's that flawed & messed up of a character willing to disturb some viewers so badly that they take to disney-ifying her in order to cope. The severity of her flaws makes her multidimensional, interesting, & fantastically realistic.

[@joaquinsandoval5370]

@@DarthZeromus these characters live in a setting where there's a very real possibility of the world ending at any given time. This kind of stuff is the least of their problems.

[@tonyfunk]

Because other characters see it. Ritsuko jokes that Shinji is Misato's boyfriend at some point. Also Misato's kiss scene implies she was projecting by believing that the kiss would move Shinji emotionally enough to motivate him to fight back. She was right and it worked, but the fact that the kiss didn't seem out of character for her implies a preexisting romantic chemistry between them. Also, Episode 25 confirms that Misato had an Electra complex where Shinji was conflated with her father, thus suggesting she was (at the very least subconsciously) attracted to him romantically.

[@johnbobjoe8322]

@@DarthZeromus”There’s plenty of evidence throughout the show aside from the kids scene to suggest Misato has romantic feelings for Shinji” “What are these examples?” “There’s the kiss scene” Bro gave no examples. The kiss scene is explainable by her trying to motivate Shinji. This isn’t Disney-ifying her; it’s just the most reasonable explanation.

[@spagelsmegal]

She’s trying to be a mother to Asuka and Shinji it’s quite tragic

[@whatsweetsadnessiskilling8585]

Love the way u actually show the source

[@sevencatsinasuit]

That ending note hit hard. We're all broken in some way and trying to make the world a better place. At least I hope you all are too.

[@genuinesaucy]

I've always had a thing for older women and I 100% blame Eva for it. Misato programmed something into me, man. I shouldn't have been watching that show when I was 8.

[@Korodarn]

Meh, you were a boy. There is nothing that was wrong with you. We tend to seek out in a partner what we are missing. You look for older women because you are bit immature if I were to guess. And this is pretty normal for young men. Give yourself 20 years and you'll find the younger ones more attractive.

[@quangle-zi2oz]

It was lucky that she was a woman! If she was a 29 yo man and Shinji was a 14 yo girl. I doubt that the show would make it out side of Japan !

[@tonyfunk]

Yeah, the reaction would be a totally different story. Still wouldn't make it worse. Predatory behavior is predatory behavior regardless of who's doing it.

[@csabaszabo6859]

like imagine the same dinamic with Asuka and Kaji

[@MATAX5]

⁠@@csabaszabo6859aren’t Asuka and Kaji meant to be foils to Shinji and Misato?

[@zainmudassir2964]

​@@csabaszabo6859 funny enough Kaji does jokingly flirt with Shinji once. In the Rebuild film he does a pretend kiss causing Shinji to scream like a girl lol

[@seeleunit2000]

​@@MATAX5Kanu ? You mean Kaji, right ?

[@thesis_gaia7960]

She was like "lil bro the world will end again, you'll have to know what is a kiss"

[@tMGVfgz]

Im really early to this upload, this analysis is really good, i feel like you always manage to analyze and explain Anno's character's really well.

[@tonyfunk]

Thank you!!!! It means a lot!

[@Fer-lu7qx]

Misato sadly ended as a pdf, even if it wasnt with that purpose, her inability to connect with men just made her as a "sex" stuff, despite all the good she wanted to do

[@cruizlee214]

None of this addresses why this why Misato thinks she is responsible enough to have a pet penguin.

[@enicot]

Hurt people doing terrible things to somehow save the world might be the best description of EVA I've ever heard.

[@smackroscoe]

“Get IN the fucking robot Shinji!!” Is all that everyone else wants from him. Everyone’s a shithead in the entire series. We deserve the apocalypse!

[@OktayKlc-up3tk]

The message isn't "Don't run away" like most people think, it's "If you hate it so much, you can run away" instead of being a doll to the system in hopes of gaining a connection to your shit dad.

[@Annatomova7]

I on,y watched a few episodes at the beginning of the series but I always assumed that misato was so emotionally stunted that maybe she would forget that shinji is a child at the moment??? I have no idea. He character is truly bizarre

[@thedreamsoldiers]

One of the best written animated characters ive ever seen

[@markbarlow3275]

Hey, Shinji....get in the robot! Never gets old!

[@DavidCowie2022]

I clicked on this video because I had forgotten the alternative meaning of .pdf file, and needed clarification. Then I saw a couple of the comments, and remembered.

[@tonyfunk]

lmaoooo

[@inisipisTV]

Misato: SHINJI! YOU COME INTO ME TONIGHT!!! Shinji: You mean ‘come with you tonight.’ Misato: I KNOW WHAT I SAID!!!

[@Theoffical_Crewmate_270]

W-what?

[@iansilva7422]

Nice reference

[@BT-jg2xv]

I cant help but laugh at that part in 20:00 😭😭😭

[@a18yearoldonyoutubeluigi]

Anno said himself, all the characters are sick, so we really shouldn’t find ourselves attached to them or find them attractive, but if I had to choose any of them, it’s Misaro

[@oscarmendez1477]

This was done majestically! You reminded me why I kept watching such a discomforting series to the end. Although in the rebuild movies, how will Misato fare? I think she is still falls under this character analysis but at the same time not only her but a lot of characters feel like new characters under their role of their characterization of the anime series. Its understandable that the rebuild movies and the anime will feel like this since there is a gap in time and a new perspective to the series. But Ritsuko and Misato were the ones that felt like this the most, while Geto, Shini, Rei, Asuka and Kaiji felt much closer to their anime counterpart.

[@tonyfunk]

Thank you!!!! I appreciate it! And yes, the rebuilds are literally another continuity with different characters that form a part of the series' multiverse. So they're part of the same overall story, but not meant to be seen as the same characters, save for Kaworu who's the same guy the whole time.

[@grr8905]

This is a very good video :)

[@JodaroKujo]

And then we got Rebuild Misato In you can (not) redo and thrice upon a time 19:01

[@DanDanger665]

I’ve never seen that (admittedly clever) euphemism in the thumbnail before, so I was wracking my brain trying to remember what PDF the video could be talking about.

[@yel6921]

evangelion is a show of multiple mental disorder

[@blackraptor1154]

I think what a lot of people overlook when they try to label Misato as a pedophile is the complexes both characters have. Both Shinji and Misato have daddy issues and both are looking for “adults” to rely on. Kaji, despite his womanizing ways and jokes, is very reliable. This is in contrast to Misato, with her carefree lifestyle and messy apartment. Shinji sees Misato as a kid like him, someone who can’t protect or be relied on. Misato also sees shinji as a kid, with his constant cowardice and desertion. Neither see the other as sexually attractive and it’s very apparent when you realize Shinji doesnt perv on Misato like Toji and Kensuke do.

[@HisokaTheClown916]

I believe she closing thing to a mother for Shinji. She wanted to use Shinji to kill all the angels for revenge for killing her father.

[@neolibertarian5492]

Considering children are sent to pilot giant mech into battle against entities called Angels, Misato’s inappropriate behavior with Shinji is the least of this world’s problem.

[@slimeinc.3822]

I read something lately about how it's more helpful to conceptualize sexual abuse (pdf file-a) as a product of abusive systems of power than as the manifestation of individual desires, & this made me think of that.. misato's sickness isn't attraction to minors, it's that she is empowered by the system to exert power over Shinji. NERV legitimizes and encourages her to coerce (!) him into piloting the EVA, so in combination with her unstable grasp on personal relationships and intimacy it makes perfect sense that she would also be predatory to him domestically

[@Kazooples]

I think she saw Shinji as a son honestly, and the kiss was because she knew she was going to die and was pretty damn sure Shinji would too, so, she kissed him, saying they could do the rest later, just as some encouragement to keep living. I don’t think it was the right thing to do, but considering she was actively dying and everything was going to shit, I think in a moment of panic she wishfully thought “this will keep him alive a bit longer”, probably not realising she got blood on him. Like c’mon, so many guys in this comment section would have stayed alive just a bit longer if a pretty lady said they could have sex once everything’s back to normal. In her mind that might have bought him just enough time to get in the Eva where he’d be safe. Ish. Safe-ish.

[@williamcase426]

I mean, if you consider the End of Evangelion to be the true ending for the series I don't think you can really say they saved the world...

[@tonyfunk]

Maybe not the world per se, but they did save humanity. It just doesn't quite have the same ring to it, yk?

[@Hyperiumon]

​@@tonyfunkI've read dozens of fanfics full of speculation on what happens after. Genrally after third impact, humanity is doomed. It's pretty well though by the community that the world is effectively over unless some crazy optimistic view is added

[@seeleunit2000]

Dude, humanity was given the ability to choose to come back if they wanted to. Sounds pretty good to me.

[@williamcase426]

@Hyperiumon yeah... I mean everyone suddenly disappearing like that for who knows how long probably wrecked most of the infrastructure on the planet and I don't know what kind of damage the giant rei crashing to earth did.

[@williamcase426]

@tonyfunk well, I guess they saved the world most of the time, they just messed up at the end. I do like that line though it does sum up what makes Eva appealing pretty well.

[@joeldoxtator9804]

I generally disagree with all of modern psychology. Describing everything as a disorder assumes that there is a natural psychological state to begin with. This can only be true if you are trying to force everyone to be carbon copies of one another. People with "issues" not only keep life exciting and dynamic, but these "issues" can also be quite useful tools in the right hands. Having "issues" or psychologically differing from your peers is all part of the human experience.

[@sumsumplays]

You actually have a fantastic point. Disorder implies we know the order which we don’t necessarily have. Psychology focuses on what we believe to be the abnormal but doesn’t necessarily look into the normal brain and compare 🤔

[@misterpinkandyellow74]

Also it looks at behavioural traits detached from environmental context too.

[@diegosotomiranda4107]

So why the need to not call the things for it's name?

[@morepower6800]

She's absolutely lovely and how she met her end still makes me sad

[@brizzystudiosinc]

Beautiful closing statement

[@TheRedneckGamer1979]

As someone who works in IT and IT security.... Can we PLEASE find a different short hand for this particular term.... It's starting to have real world consequences with some of my younger clients who are less tech savvy (which is why you would hire an IT professional)

[@tonyfunk]

Damn, that's a good point. ...I'm considering using the word "nonce" from now on lmao

[@TheRedneckGamer1979]

@@tonyfunk Please do! I had a client two weeks ago get incredibly angry with me for saying I sent them a PDF until someone explained it to her.

[@silentfox139]

I totally misunderstood what misato intentions of episode 23 to shinji. I thought she was just being nice. Not offering herself

[@hagakura]

you didn't misunderstand anything because she was not offering herself. I don't know how anyone could read that scene any other way.

[@jhoenlylopezsantos2234]

I came here with an open mind to see a defense against misato pedophile accusations, and i left with a worst image about her. Definedly good video.

[@tonyfunk]

🙈🙈🙈🙈

[@MartianManHunter2258]

Misato 🤝Midnight (MHA) 🤝 Mei Mei 🤝Himeno Characters whose pdf actions get overlooked because they're attractive.

[@StiffyBallz]

Its quite different, now with the other three, yes. You must make a point there, yet with Misato, her actions seem out of desperation and social abate, it has a bit of redemption toward it.

[@johnboona4048]

So in short Misato is like EDP

[@MorrisJohn-vo2vn]

So, EDP could have had a lot more public defense if he was a hot anime girl. Noted.

[@hukubis]

Eva pilots are basically a defenition of child soldiers, with expectation that some of them would die during all of this, her offering Shinji adult stuff like alcohol, as well as suggesting sexual themes, basically more of her trying to both make it up to him and motivating him. Something that her collegue, friend and love-rival Ritsuko specifically asked about even. Which kinda implies that NERV knew and may possibly even suggested that route as optional to give Shinji a reason to fight. So the entire thing might be more of a case of half-officially sanctioned domestic prostitution on her part. Manipulative? Yes. Predatory? No more than the rest of the setting. If anything, them stuffing Asuka along and giving two teens enough alone time to do the deed while Misato is being non-chalant about one or the other ending up being naked is far more sus and kinda hints that Gendo did far more for his son that we give him credit for.

[@-AR0]

Honestly, Misato is the best character. But she was also giving obvious signs of affection towards Shinji, more notably in the manga

[@Grizabeebles]

I know that this probably isn't the point of the video, but the current edition of the DSM in 1995 was the DSM-3. That's probably the text Anno was working with when he composed the story.

[@myraccoonhands]

"When Misato tries to initiate sex with Shinji" Yeah, not sure if I agree with your interpretation of that scene. I genuinely think she was trying to comfort him, not have sex with him. That's a highly argued/contested POV regarding what happened there.

[@tonyfunk]

I don't know, to me it seemed pretty unambiguous especially when she wondered if Shinji was afraid of women after she left his room. If you interpreted that scene differently, that's fair yk?

[@misterpinkandyellow74]

​@@tonyfunkI have held hands and cuddled older women without being sexual with them.

[@ayaxsoul]

The point its that misato by beign a sexual active adult knew beforehand all the "pregame" moves that led to sex. She has the upper hand in that particular interaction.

[@willpoweramv]

If you really think Misato would actually go thru with her promise, you missed the entire point of her character.

[@tonyfunk]

@@willpoweramv Whether or not she would have gone through her promise isn't a premise in any of my arguments... Having said that, I'd love to know what you mean by "the point of her character".

[@willpoweramv]

@@tonyfunk tbh, I just saw the title and commented. My comment wasn't directed toward you, just to any average person.

[@tonyfunk]

@@willpoweramv ah gotcha

[@willpoweramv]

@@tonyfunk yeah I do that sometimes, sorry

[@Citizenflaba]

@@willpoweramvYou’re like a guy who opened the door to a classroom mid-lecture, ranted about a professor’s hypothesis, but aren’t even a student in the university and never attended any of the lectures. Opinion stricken from the record

[@starstudiosRPG]

Straight to jail for Misato 🗣️

[@arcticfoxairsoft1219]

Hell nah, send her to my house 😭😭😭

[@UltraGod9000]

​@@arcticfoxairsoft1219 is your house an asylum?

[@coreragestudios3430]

Now Reverse the Roles, and see the Results from people... bro i swear! 💀

[@williamcompitello2302]

Episode 25 showed me why she was slightly cringe, and I was satisfyingly disgusted. So much closure.

[@jbstarkiller4626]

Some of the conclusions made here are a little too speculative and prone to confirmation bias in my opinion, what we can definitively say is that Misato is 100% sexually attracted to Shinji. Even before meeting him or having any kind of relationship with him as shown in ep 1 with her sussy photo. She then arranges for him to live with her, and while doing so makes a "joke" to ritsuko about having sex with him. I think she definitely meant it as a joke while genuinely having those feelings, considering the context of her as a character and what we see later in the show.

[@tonyfunk]

@@jbstarkiller4626 Given that Misato is a fictional character with a finite amount of screentime, by nature any 'psychological' analysis is going to be super speculative. I tried to be fair to the best of my ability and researched the most likely pathologies based on her actions. But my take can't be taken as anything more than a fun hypothesis.

[@nth256]

It's not really fair to say she arranged to have him live with her, as though it were her personal preference. In terms of taking responsibility for Shinji and Asuka, she thought it best to 1) keep them sequestered and under a watchful eye, seeing as they were both, at once, only children, and yet also the hope of all humanity; 2) create an environment in which the children could feel safe and protected in a still-very-much-Post-Disaster-society. None of this explains nor excuses her inappropriate sexual behavior, but she didn't just see this as a convenient opportunity to groom a minor. To be clear, I don't disagree with anything you said in your comment EXCEPT for the reference to the housing arrangement. 😂

[@jbstarkiller4626]

@@nth256 Yeah, I agree that it wasn’t her only or primary reason, I probably could have made my opinion more clear tbh. But I’m saying she clearly had the thought in her head, if you disagree that’s fine too.👍🏻

[@lionheart4424]

Amazing analysis! Great job.

[@funyarinpa336]

While I agree that episode 23 and episode 25 seem to hint at her having an unsettling attraction towards Shinji that she did not understand, the kiss at the elevator always seemed devoid of that attraction to me and likewise never really seemed like abuse. Yes, she is a character with a lot of issues and, in any other setting, should never be allowed to take care of kids or teenagers but in that moment, she simply knows she is about to die and she wants to somehow motivate Shinji to fight on for his own sake. Not only does she not have the time to get him there through a meaningful heart-to-heart or peptalk but I also seriously doubt she has the ability to do so. So the kiss always seemed more like the intent was to "shock him awake" asap and the line regarding "doing more later" was less flirting and actual intent but just a weird way of trying to make him acknowledge there can be a "later". Shinji seemed to be so apathetic he would have likely given up and waited for his death and not only is Shinji smart enough to know it's an empty promise because she is dead moments after the elevator doors close, but Misato knows him well enough to expect Shinji would realize that. Shocking him out of apathy and in some way making him think of the future felt like it was her very messy and creepy way of telling him "don't give up on the chance of there being a tomorrow for you. fight to save yourself instead of curling up in a corner and dying.". It was a incompetent and personally troubled caretaker making one last ditch effort to do what she is meant to do (protect the teenager in her care, or in this case motivating them to protect themselves) in the only way she knows to do it.

[@natese8406]

Mistato is just written as a normal women. No need to pathologize her. She isn't even a PDF she just has complicated feelings for Shinji who while a child she expects to act like a man, save the world, and selfishly fulfill her wish for vengeance.

[@MenRot]

I have seen enough, Im hiring you as my lawyer

[@tonyfunk]

Maybe not the best move... Afterall, I DID call Misato a predator 😅

[@dalegaliniak607]

One huge thing I think needs to be stressed is how normalized the high schooler-20-something yo relationship was in late 90s media, especially in anime. I'm not going to speak about the broader real world, but in media definitely, in the absence of other overt predatory behavior, statutory rape wasn't considered to be a "real" crime, similarly neither was abuse of position. This has been something that (appropriately, in my opinion) that has developed over the past 20ish years. My guess is that Anno was questioning this a bit, but he because he was also a product of the time, he wasn't really going deep into it. Having watched it Eva as it came out, my general vibe was that, having been thrust into a maternal role with Shinji and later Asuka, but having zero clue how to emotionally do that, Misato was defaulting to treating them as friends and equals. Eva dealt a lot of how this played into _her_ psychological state, but I don't think it really did with the negative effects this would have on her charges. You just didn't think about it in terms like that at the time, even if, when watching it now, it sticks out like a massively sore thumb. Similarly, when I saw Eva for the first time, Kaji's treatment of Asuka felt a little cold, treating her as a little kid when she _clearly_ was trying to be seen as an adult. Now that I'm a parent, what he did was 1000% the healthy thing to do, and I do think that was what Anno intended, though he was probably thinking more about how it was healthy for KAJI.

[@Gringoo777]

Misato and Rei are the best characters of this masterpiece.

[@utopiecwarminski6140]

non-Poles won't realize how funny it is to make a video about pedophilia and make it 21:37 long lol

[@tonyfunk]

Wait, now I'm suuuuuper curious... What does it mean????

[@aluhearriaga3955]

I'm curious too.

[@nateghast6456]

@@tonyfunk Pope John Paul II died at that minute on the 24 hour clock. It turned out he did some diddling.

[@ferretappreciator]

​@@tonyfunki guess we'll never know

[@aluhearriaga3955]

@@utopiecwarminski6140 So, after investigating for like four seconds, I came across the knowledge that one pope died at 21:37 p.m. so the numbers are used as a joke that reference this event. I think.

[@samsquanch1996]

Misato is a tragic character. It's easy to write her off as being an alcoholic weirdo, but given her past I honestly feel sorry for her.

[@Hugh_Jannis]

I mean to be fair, it's the end of the world and everyone is gonna die. One kiss between Shinji and Misato isn't that big of a deal

[@erickvonengelwalten8568]

Great Analysis, in short, Misato is so hurt and closed that she can only connect with people through physical interaction, i don't mean sex only, she gives a lots of abuse in the series, like pushing, punching, slaping, and so on... I think she really learn to love the weakness and fragility of Shinji and want to protect him. But has no idea how to do that...

[@Hyperiumon]

Great video but Do people really have to explain this to them ?. im pretty sure fans caught misatoes character reasons and motivation like.... 20 years ago. Im guessing newer fans from the latter rebuild movies and netflix release brought in twitter tourists who view everything surface level

[@tonyfunk]

@@Hyperiumon The purpose of my video isn't to explain things that could otherwise be understood with a baseline level of media literacy. The purpose instead is to speculate about the psychological concepts that were used in the creation of Misato's characterization as a way to create meaning for her controversial actions. In the same way that classical literature is studied 1000's of years after its creation, we can still always find new ways to understand media. I reckon people after me will continue to study Evangelion even 100's of years in the future and still be able to find new nuggets of conjecture and interpretation. So to answer your question, this video was made for anyone and everyone who still wants to find new ways to appreciate Eva, regardless of how long they've known the ip.

[@Hyperiumon]

@@tonyfunk i made the comment while watching the video, not after so i fumbles abit i won't lie. i know the purpose of your video, I quite enjoyed it and how in-depth you studied and complements to the chief. My comment was more in line with making fun of people who actually think she's a pdf file still to this day. I suppose I should have clarified it better, but I suck at grammar.

[@tonyfunk]

@@Hyperiumon it's all good :D glad you enjoyed it!!!!

[@tylerferguson3193]

Hope you had a good day

[@seeleunit2000]

Oh, for pity sakes ! Misato isn't a pedophile. She's just as traumatized as Shinji but managed to hide it better through drinking booze. She dated Kaji and dumped him because he was a lot like her dad and then started dating him again. She's not even that hyper sexual. And that time she just Shinji in the movie, that wasn't due to being attracted to him, that was she was about to die and was giving him some motivation in the "there is no way this was or would ever happen, but I'm giving you an incentive since I'm not going to live long." Kind of messed up, but she's not R.Kelly.

[@tonyfunk]

So there's a reason why I didn't talk about her relationship with Kaji as evidence for hypersexuality... Because it seemed pretty normal to me. I describe her socially unacceptable behaviors towards Shinji (the photograph, the proposition of comfort sex in episode 23, and the kiss) as examples of hypersexuality given that these actions were representative of a low impulse control. As far as the kiss being a motivation for Shinji to get in the robot goes... I get that's what it is conceptually. A way to motivate Shinji. I have zero argument there. But. If it were any other adult female character, they would have found some other way to motivate Shinji regardless if it works or not... The point I'm making here isn't that Misato needed to motivate Shinji, it's HOW she decided to motivate Shinji that suggests she has a pathology that causes her to be attracted to him.

[@diegosotomiranda4107]

​@@tonyfunkyes, Misato wouldnt have do that with another character other than Shinji, bitnat the same Time, no other character than Misato would come with that "motivation" either...so that explain everything regardles that topic

[@zainmudassir2964]

Misato is beautiful and deserves better

[@Pilot067]

if i EVER were to refuse being a Misato, Mei Mei or Haruko victim then that would be a skinwalker for sure

[@tonyfunk]

Lmaoooooo

[@horriblepizza4647]

@Pilot067 Haruko mentioned! I think of eva and flcl as two sides of the same coin, with one being much more bleak and the other much lighter and accessible, while both tackling similar, dark themes of youth. Haruko is a very real depiction of an older punk rocker who plays with the hearts of younger punks to her own ends(i.e. a predator).

[@Matthew-r4r]

Anyone who thinks Misato wanted to kiss Shinji just because didn't watch the show or didn't pay attention. She proclaims her love for Kaji like 10 seconds later and dies. It was a last ditch effort to get Shinji to take action.

[@amurmurmur609]

I wouldn’t consider Misato as having Survivor’s Guilt. She is a Survivor. She has Guilt. But I don’t think her case fits that definition. She does not feel bad that she survived the attack while others died. She feels bad that someone she has mixed feelings about saved her life. Not really the same thing.

[@HeavySm1rK27]

While her promise is very questionable i think that the kiss wasnt bad past a superficial point

[@uusername8462]

WHAT THE FK

[@plaguedoctor_139]

Abusers are filling the world with trauma and hatred.

[@misterpinkandyellow74]

​@@plaguedoctor_139kissing an older woman causes Trauma?

[@plaguedoctor_139]

@@misterpinkandyellow74 Trauma is different to other people.

[@Grizabeebles]

20:07 -- Hang on a minute! Kanji is playing on Auska's narccisim using his experience as a pick-up artist. The guy is a good-looking rake who is constantanty flirting with every woman in the room except Auska. And at the same time he never flatly rejects her for any specific reason or brings up her age as anything other than a temporary impediment. He's positioned himself as an object of value and allowing Auska to believe she's competing for his attention against grown women and *winning.* Play their interactions over in your mind and ask yourself what would have happened fifteen minutes after Auska's 18th birthday party if Kanji *didn't* sleep with her.

[@misterpinkandyellow74]

They do not have your age of consent laws in Japan. 😂😂😂

[@Grizabeebles]

@@misterpinkandyellow74 -- After doing some googling, I stand corrected. The age of consent in Japan was raised from 13 to 16 in 2023. However, Auska is from Germany and the age of consent there has been 16 since 1872. There are some carve-outs that might make whether Auska is "East German" or "West German" relevant in *her* mind, but if Kanji wants to stay out of prison in most of the world, he's going to ignore Auska pointing out she just turned 14 and is 'technically legal' (under the 1994 laws) and keep her on a string for at least two more years. And yes, all of that is referenced by Auska in the show and its icky as all hell.

[@misterpinkandyellow74]

@@Grizabeebles your conspiracy theory is insane. It is a paranoid projection of bad intent into Kanji.

[@misterpinkandyellow74]

@@Grizabeebles you are icky as hell you got issues

[@UltraGod9000]

Say Misato, i hear you like em young...

[@gagexw]

Was not ready to be jumpscared by rezero lofi in an evangelion video

[@LUOLMO]

IT WASNT FAIR! IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN ME INSTEAD OF SHINJI!

[@spaniyell]

Why concentrate on the father issue for motivation? Second impact was a world changing event which would galvanise anybody. Personality wise, fair enough. But SO many labels for which are natural human traits of people living imperfect lives.

[@tonyfunk]

I lean towards the idea that had it not been for her parental trauma, Misato would be staying away from Nerv. Working there gave her no meaning nor satisfaction so even if it would've been the most dutiful thing to do following the second impact, I'm hard pressed to think she'd be forcing herself to work there. But yeah, that's why I focused on that aspect.

[@RecapWorldTV]

Shoutout that re zero background song though!

[@VampireA1056]

She's not a p3do, she just fulfiled Shinji's wishes

[@theapexpredator157]

Even if Shinji was an adult, it's still very wrong of her to kiss him without consent. His reaction also shows that he was not expecting it and it probably led to ptsd. If the genders were reversed, it probably would become a lot more clear that it was wrong for anyone who didn't think so. Overall, her behaviour is just deplorable in certain cases and she really ought to be ashamed of herself.

[@kc8391]

I was following you until you brought up Freud. Those theories have never been proven.

[@tonyfunk]

I didn't talk about Freud's theories because I thought they were true. I mentioned them because Hideaki Anno modeled Eva's characters with Freud's theories in mind.

[@kc8391]

@@tonyfunk i see. My bad, I thought that you talked about it because you saw similarities and thought they were true. Again, my bad. It's a great video.

[@tonyfunk]

@@kc8391 It's all good :)

[@Skibidigeep]

Misato was a good person with a lot of bad personality traits also a lot of things she did makes me think she isn’t disgusted by kids