When it comes to anime, some series stand atop the tower as some of the most iconic and influential in the world. One of those series that comes to mind is definitely Hideaki Anno's pride and joy, Neon Genesis Evangelion, a mecha anime that manages to subvert all expectations and become something all new.

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This series came and showed anime fans everywhere that an anime can be just as deep and dark as any live-action film, changing the medium for years to come. Much like any series, Neon Genesis didn't start off this way and went through many conceptual stages. In fact, many pieces of art show that the series could have gone in many other different directions, as well as many other things that could have potentially spawned from the show.

10 Misato Concept Art

misato concept

Misato Katsuragi is one of the main characters of the franchise who has gone through a lot as the series goes on. Of course, her initial design reflects a potentially different path than her operations director position at NERV.

Misato's concept art shows her in military gear equipped with a gun of some sort. Perhaps Anno had a more on the ground job for her originally. Or maybe Evangelion would have been a more action-based show with war-like scenes as well. This would be somewhat fitting for Misato's rank of major at NERV.

9 Shinji Concept Art

shinji concept

Unlike it will be shown with just about every other characters' concept art, Shinji Ikari's original concepts actually depict a very familiar look, as it seems Shinji has always been the one everyone knows and loves.

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Funny enough, this concept art is one of the only times Shinji is truly shown smiling. Either way, it's great to be able to see Shinji in more clothes than his standard button-up he mostly wears throughout the series.

8 17-Year-Old Shinji

shinji older

In the book Neon Genesis Evangelion - Anima, concept art for a 17-year-old Shinji was shown much to the excitement of many series fans.

Here it is shown that at age 17 in some universe Shinji will still be working at NERV, albeit instead of piloting a suit, he'd be some kind of repairman as shown by his hat and what seems to be a tool of some sort.

7 17-Year-Old Asuka

asuka older

Along with 17-year-old Shinji, the Neon Genesis Evangelion concept art book, Anima, also features a conceptual design for the main character, Asuka.

Unlike Shinji, not much can be inferred about this more aged version of Asuka besides her expression showing that she could have potentially calmed down more. This design by Evangelion's mecha designer Ikuto Yamashita is yet another welcome addition to the concept art library of the series.

6 Asuka Concept Art

asuka concept art

When looking at Asuka's concept art it's easy to see that originally Anno may have wanted to go into a much different direction with the hot-headed character.

Not only is her hair a lot more modest, but the character has a much softer look to her. This Asuka looks a lot more innocent than the perfected final design, but perhaps she was the same personality-wise and her looks were meant to be even more deceiving.

5 Rei Concept Art

rei concept art

Much like in the case of Asuka, Rei's initial designs showcase a character that seems a lot different than the finalized version.

This Rei seems to have a lot more expression than the one actually used in Evangelion, giving viewers a much more normal girl at face value. Some fans have even stated that this version of Rei looks a bit too normal, with them preferring the more odd-looking Rei.

4 Eva Mark.04 Concept

eva mark .04 design

Humans aren't the only characters to have conceptual designs that greatly differed from the final product as seen with this Eva.

The Eva Mark .04 from Neon Genesis Evangelion  3.0 went through a big design change with the original being a lot more goofy-looking than the final product. This design featured four legs, giving it an admittedly hilarious parody-like look. The final design is a lot more fitting.

3 Evangelion Movie Plugsuit

evangelion movie concept

Not only is there concept art for the series itself, but for spin-offs of the serious that could have been.

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Weta Workshop came together with ADV films to do pre-production work on an Evangelion live-action film that never saw the light of day. One remnant of this film is this concept art of a live-action plugsuit fitted on a Westernized version of Asuka named "Kate Rose."

2 Evangelion Movie Mech

The mechs of the Weta Evangelion film also had conceptual artwork done of them and it actually looked great.

For better or for worse, the film never made it past conceptual stages as ADV went bankrupt in trying to make the live-action film happen.

1 Armorless Unit-01

armorless eva

There is also the concept art of the armorless Unit-01.

Due to the lack of hair, genitals, and the entry plug system being present, many fans believe this isn't a truly natural form of the Evas, but an altered one by NERV.

NEXT: Neon Genesis Evangelion: How To Watch The Franchise In Chronological Order