The delicately embroidered story told by Neon Genesis Evangelion is made far more impressive by its main characters and their relationships—with each other as much as with themselves. Shinji Ikari is considered to be the overall protagonist, but he shares a fair bit of the spotlight with his Eva pilot colleagues, Rei Ayanami and Asuka Langley.
Although Rei and Shinji are quite disparate individuals, their differences pale in comparison to Asuka's personality, overshadowing the former two without much effort. As the "Second Child," Asuka takes part in ongoing Angel invasions as Unit-02's pilot, displaying her skills with great pomp.
10 Asuka's Ego Comes From A Place Of Power
One of Asuka's most obvious features is her undaunted ego: a sense of pride that goes beyond most rational explanation. She is an excellent Evangelion pilot, but the way she talks about it sounds like she invented the whole program.
However, the reason that Asuka so shamelessly preens her feathers has little to do with her opinion of other people—which is almost always unflattering. In fact, Asuka wields her confidence as a shield to protect herself from perceived emotional injury, having experienced unbearable loss during her early childhood.
9 She Mistreats Shinji Out Of Pure Animosity
Shinji Ikari is not exactly blameless in the disaster that is his relationship with Asuka, although both characters lash out at each other in rather different ways.
The story offers hints as to her attraction towards him, highlighting the many vulnerabilities that prevent Asuka from expressing her feelings without restraint. Unfortunately, this means that Asuka tends to treat Shinji in an exaggeratedly cruel manner, behavior that he considers to be hurtful and confusing.
8 Asuka Doesn't Care About Anyone Other Than Herself
Asuka is not the kind of person to wear her heart on her sleeve, and she often makes declarations teeming with selfish undercurrents. And yet, it is painfully clear that she is not all about herself, regardless of how much she tries to appear so.
The Evangelion "fusion" process undergone by Asuka's mother, Kyoko Zeppelin Sohryu, leads to the latter losing touch with reality and ultimately killing herself. Kyoko's death is largely responsible for her daughter's neurotic breakdowns.
7 Her Romantic Interest In Ryoji Kaji Has Treacherous Overtones
Asuka has what looks like a schoolgirl crush on her Guardian, Ryoji Kaji, but there are scenes that vaguely suggest her feelings might be spilling over into morally slippery territory.
For instance, it can be argued that Asuka kisses Shinji not, as she claims, "to kill time," but as a temper tantrum: for not being able to obtain Kaji's affections (at the time directed at Misato). Although she attempts to act like an adult, Asuka is no more mature than any other fourteen-year-old.
6 Asuka's Headstrong Behavior Is Always Problematic
Of all the stubborn characters in Neon Genesis Evangelion, Asuka is the most inflexible. She takes everything personally, constantly reading things between the lines that don't even exist in the first place, especially if her proficiency as a pilot is called into question.
On the other hand, Asuka's impulsiveness has helped her on missions on several occasions, a fact that is indirectly confirmed when she loses her sense of self-worth after Arael's psychic assault.
5 She's A Better Eva Pilot Than Both Shinji & Rei
Asuka's boasts with respect to her Eva piloting aren't empty, even if they're unbearably grandiose. While she does falter with her synchronization post her battle with Zeruel, she is generally quite proficient and strategic when taking on the Angels.
Asuka is likely superior to Rei as well as Shinji when behind the metaphorical steering wheel of Unit-02. She does find it very difficult to cooperate in a team, though her solo work is quite impressive.
4 Asuka Is The Same Throughout The Franchise
Asuka's red plugsuit is iconic, as are her blue eyes and mane of auburn/red hair. Interestingly, this characteristic of hers is exclusive to the original anime and a few of its offshoots.
The companion manga series by Yoshiyuki Sadamoto depicts her with yellowish-gold hair, as does the light novel, Neon Genesis Evangelion: ANIMA. In the latter, Asuka is seventeen years old and considerably more buoyant than before.
3 She Is Too Consumed By Fear To Be Courageous
Asuka's experiences with Arael bring out her deepest and most cloistered memories, notably that of her mother's descent into little more than a living shell. She is so distraught that her first instinct is to flee the scene, and is later discovered, emaciated and weak, in a tiny bathroom.
Asuka believes that her inability to sync with, and, as a consequence, control her Evangelion unit means that her existence isn't worthwhile anymore. She returns to NERV for the final showdown anyway, lending weight to the philosophical notion that one cannot be brave if one is not afraid.
2 Asuka Doesn't Express Any Emotions Other Than Rage
Granted that anger plays a dominating role in Asuka's psyche, there is a range of subtle emotions that she displays depending on the situation.
She's coy and cheerful with Kaji, blunt and rude to Shinji, cold and aloof towards Rei, and so on. Asuka feels different things for different people, and these emotions also tend to change over time. It's sad that her rage is so powerful that it almost always overshadows everything else.
1 She Is German By Lineage & Nationality
Asuka comes from Germany and speaks German as her native tongue (with an incredible grasp of English as well). This is because her father is apparently from the United States, which also grants her American citizenship.
Further, Kyoko Zeppelin is half-German and half-Japanese by lineage, which makes Asuka a medley of American, German, and Japanese. As such, she can speak to Shinji and Rei in their mother tongues with relative ease.