hontou ni sou omou?

Continued from Vol.1, the Giant of Light appears so we can probably assume that there wasn’t any Second Impact. Apparently in Fumino’s happy happy interpretation of Eva, the rest of the world, like the characters, was spared a screwing over as well. Anyhow, the appearance of Adam, the first Angel, is hardly going to get in the way of the teenage classroom romances of the cast.

Hikari and Asuka exchange notes on getting their respective thickheaded objects of affection to realise their feelings and reciprocate (goddamit!), eventually wondering if they have to fess up first. In the meantime, Kaoru confronts Rei about her feelings for Shinji and makes it clear that he is not happy. When Rei demands to know he is friend or foe, he replies that he is a friend of Shinji’s. Latterly Shinji’s declaration of friendship to Kaoru after they make music (Shinji on cello and Kaoru on violin) also touches the latter.

There is a pretty big hint that Rei has been some kind of test subject from the time she was a toddler, lending credence to the canon depiction of her as a clone but there is no indication of what she is a clone of. Certainly not Yui I hope. She recalls the mother figure researcher who encourages her to be independent and to have the strength to pick herself up from a fall and not to need to rely on others. But back in the present, assistance is exactly what Shinji offers her and it comes with all his kindness and concern which invariably touches her heart and makes her realise how lonely she is.

Just before the Third Angel finally makes its appearance, there’s a hilarous scene where Kaoru and Rei tustle over Shinji while they make their way to the Geofront. Kaoru puts with his hand on Shinji’s right shoulder in a rather possessive way, provoking Rei to retaliate by pulling on Shinji’s left arm. The Children are shown the Evangelion robots for the first time and they’re shocked that this is what the plug tests have been preparing them for. There is considerable argument over who will pilot the first two robots. Rei readily volunteers as does Kaoru but the latter is rejected for some bs technical reason from Ritsuko, reflecting their suspicion that he might actually be the enemy. Shinji actually steps forward to help Rei who doesn’t seem to value her own life, much to Asuka’s anxiety as she worries for his safety.

In the course of the battle, Rei is hurt and giving the artist a chance to draw her with those sexy bandages. Shinji comes to the rescue and destroys the Angel, thus saving Rei but he’s terribly upset that he had to kill. Well, it does make it a bit better that Asuka is there for him. Even though she doesn’t really know what to say, at least she’s not the spiteful competitive little twat in the original series.

The story progresses with more canon Evangelion elements entering but we see how the differently predicated characters react and behave considerably at variance with the original series. Circumstance and context really are everything. The main thrust of this manga, the romance angle, doesn’t really progress much in this volume but hopefully the “new” elements of the Angels have been sufficiently developed to allow the romance to proceed in the next volume.