Asuka vs Rei

"Asuka vs Rei" refers to a rivalry between fans of Asuka Langley Soryu and Rei Ayanami, two main characters in Neon Genesis Evangelion. In the anime fandom, such rivalries are common, commonly referred to as "waifu wars."

Criticisms of Asuka Langley Soryu
A prevailing criticism of Asuka is her wantonly abrasive and unreasonable behavior, as well as her lack of personality and independence. This criticism is also made by the characters in Neon Genesis Evangelion on several occasions. Both Rei Ayanami and Shinji Ikari on several occasions save Asuka's life, often at great cost to themselves. The background for this is that Asuka was since early childhood manipulated by NERV to become an EVA-pilot. As a result, Asuka is completely dependent on identifying herself as an EVA-pilot and becomes catatonic once she is removed from the EVA-pilot program after having failed several times in completing her objectives.

Criticisms of Rei Ayanami
A notable criticism of Rei is her lack of emotion with most of her development as a character being related to her developing emotions. This criticism is also made by the characters in Neon Genesis Evangelion (namely Asuka), referring to her as a doll. Moreover, despite Rei's appearance being that of a fourteen-year-old girl, she is actually, at most, four years old. As a result, she is emotionally and socially immature. Notably, she displays no emotion after being seen naked by Shinji Ikari, not having developed a sense of modesty.

Notable Opinions

 * In an interview, Hideaki Anno stated that he has "no emotional attachment to Rei at all."