Neon Genesis Evangelion is one of the most iconic anime series that turned the industry of Japanese Animation onto its head. The show exploded with a 26 episode series, theatrical films, directors cuts, games, remakes, and manga that have been consumed and dissected by countless fans around the world. Even a casual glance at the series reveals that in many ways, Evangelion is its own type of deep but rewarding monster of a series.
But while most praise and analysis is thrust on the show's troubled protagonists, symbolic imagery, or weighty psychological themes, it almost feels like the EVA Units. The giant piloted cyborgs are forced to sit in the sidecar. Yet a closer look at the EVA Units' strange anatomy reveals some fascinating and disturbing facts that truly place these fearsome creatures in a league of their own.
10 EVA Bodies Are Humanoid
The lanky EVA Unit's elongated limbs and torso are similar to the body structure of a human. Although admittedly, the EVA's limbs and torso are way more exaggerated when it comes to its proportions, their bodies closely resemble a human's more so than your standard giant mech or kaiju.
The similarities are to the point wherein the anime series, it's revealed that EVA Units not only have toes but fingernails underneath under all that armor plating. There isn't a tactical reason for the addition of toes and fingernails or their lanky reach, but it does reinforce just how organic EVA Units truly are.
9 EVAs Make Other Mechs Look Tiny
Exploring more on their lanky form, EVAs could easily gain dollar sign eyes from NBA team owners if they weren't built for destroying Angels or occasionally going berserk. Often, their height has varied in show episodes, sometimes reaching 200 meters.
However, according to the Evangelion 1.0 Complete Records, the units actually measure at 75 meters. Clearly, that's not 200, but it's also nothing to sneeze at as other giant popular mechs don't even come close. For reference, Mazinger Z measures at a measly 18 meters. And the real-life Gundam in Yokohama, Japan, only clocks in also at 18 meters.
8 EVAs Have A Variety Of Eyes
While the faceplates on top of the Evangelions give the impression that their eyes are robotic, that's not the case. Not only do EVAs have real eyes, but they also seem to differ in number and color depending on the Unit. Most of the Evas, including Rei's Unit-00 and the mass produced units, have two organic eyes, although fans never get the chance to see them beyond screen readouts in the show officially.
Shinji's Unit-01 also has two organic eyes, but they're also revealed to be green. Asuka's Unit-02 differs the most, as her unit has four orange eyes. But in the end, it's the failed Eva Prototypes from Gehirn that win the eye count contest, as their EVA Units had five eyes.
7 EVAs Have Different Blood Types
The Evangelions may be powerful, but they can also be wounded. Throughout the original series and films, the units take damage. In other shows, this would be presented as an explosion of metal and oil, instead of the units actually bleed geysers from their wounds like a 90's martial arts film.
But what's unique is that almost all of the Eva Units bleed crimson except Asuka's Eva-02 unit. Its blood is blue or purple. There isn't an official reason given for the difference of color. However, it could be due to Asuka's unit being the first successful Production Model EVA.
6 EVAs Have Skin Under Their Armor
While Evangelions might look like humongous heavy metal harbingers of destruction, the piloted creatures are actually just giant humanoids wearing armor. That's right; breaking apart some of the armor platings for these units will reveal that these units are just trying to protect their epidermis.
Or at least NERV is also using the armor to control the units better and keep them from going into a frenzy. Most of the non-mass production EVA Units have brown skin. However, just as with its eyes and blood, Asuka's Eva-02 differs in this regard with its blue-gray skin.
5 EVAs Have Organs
Their organic anatomy isn't just skin deep. There may be cybernetic enhancements within EVA Units, but they also have organs. Fans get a chance to learn of this when peering through the display monitors present for the EVA pilots. But fans got a gruesome introduction to that fact at the End Of Evangelion film.
More of its internal body is revealed during the aftermath of Asuka's last stand against a series of Mass Production Evangelions from SEELE. As Eva-02's power runs out and a replica Spear of Longinus strikes it, the Mass Production model violently tear apart at the unit. Eva-02 is destroyed in a gory fashion that seems more in tune with a Mortal Kombat game.
4 EVA Skull Shapes Differ
Peering into their skulls' structure, it appears that Evangelions continue to serve as a visual link between living organic creatures and something else entirely. EVA skull shapes vary between each unit, but they seem to fall under two major types.
Most of the active Eva-Units, including the Mass Production models, have a skull shape that resembles more of an ocean mammal like a whale of dolphins. Generally, the skulls give off an alien vibe. However, the failed Eva Prototypes from Gehirn has a skull shape similar to humans, which provides another creepy link between EVAs, Angels, and humanity.
3 EVAs Are Made Of Particle Wave Matter
Evangelions get most of their inhuman features, thanks to being composed of the same matter as Angels. This matter is called Particle Wave and is unique in its subatomic structure as it contains properties of both wave and a particle. In the series, Ritsuko Akagi says that both wave and particle properties are similar to light.
However, in addition to this, while the EVA and Angel matter properties are different from human matter properties, the way those properties are genetically structured is almost 99 percent similar to how human DNA structures itself. EVA's have this type of matter thanks to being created from the remains of the Seeds of Life. Because of this link, EVAs share the same matter as the Angels they are built to fight.
2 Pilots Sit In The Central Nervous System
For all this information that paints just how organic Evangelions are, it's almost hard to forget that they are still generally controlled by humans via pilot synch through an EVA's central nervous system. The central nervous system consists of the brain and spine for humans and is where bodily functions are controlled.
EVA Pilots are placed in an entry plug that goes within an EVA's spine and attempts to synch and control from there. Given how similar EVAs are to humans, it makes sense that it would have to be in its actual central hub of control for a pilot to control these creatures. It's another notable parallel to the human body.
1 EVAs Have Regenerative Abilities
Evangelions take a lot of gruesome damage throughout the series, and what's worse is pilots can feel their unit's pain. However, EVAs can heal and recover from some of the worst wounds better than the X-Men's Wolverine.
This is thanks to an S2 engine, which is actually less of an engine and more of an organ. It's located within the core of Angels and can provide limitless energy. Shinji's Eva-01 obtains an S2 engine by eating it from the Angel Zeruel. And SEELE's Mass Production Evangelions come built with artificial S2 engines that help the units regenerate during their battle with Asuka in End Of Evangelion.