Evangelion (mecha)

In the Neon Genesis Evangelion franchise, Evangelions (also referred to as Evas or EVA–pronounced "Avangelions"/"Avas"/"AVA"), are the fictional mecha piloted by the Children chosen by the Marduk Institute (a front company of Seele). The Evas were created by Nerv. Their principal purpose is defending Tokyo-3 from the Angels. The Evas were designed by Ikuto Yamashita and series director Hideaki Anno.

Description
Although they appear to be giant humanoid robots, the Evas are actually cyborgs, integrating a mostly biological being with a substantial mechanical infrastructure and flexible polymer sheathing and armor plating. But like the Angels, their real defense is the Absolute Terror Field (AT Field for short). AT Fields are almost invulnerable to conventional weaponry, but can be neutralized by deploying an opposing AT Field, allowing the Evas to fight the Angels with greater effectiveness than the conventional army. All the Evas but one are actually derived from the first Angel, Adam (in the Book of Genesis, Eve is created from one of Adam's ribs). Unit 01 is unique in having been born from the second Angel, Lilith. With these revelations, the true purpose of their armor is also revealed - it is actually to constrain and control their movements.

Their monstrous appearance is no accident: "'There's a monster in Japan called the Oni; it has two horns sticking out of its head and the overall image of the Eva is based on that. I also wanted to give the impression that beneath this 'robot monster' image is not so much a robot, but a giant human.'"

Despite their enormous size, they are capable of superhuman movement, able to easily leap their own height and jump hundreds of meters from one spot to another. To power their massive frames through these actions, they use internal batteries, an umbilical cable, or an S² engine (for Unit 01 and the Mass Production units). Officially, their internal batteries' charge vary. Auxiliary batteries can be attached to extend an Eva's unplugged endurance.

The Evas are controlled through an empathic link to the pilot via a combination of hand controls in the entry plug and direct nerve impulses translated through the pilot's plug suit and A10 nerve clips. The pilots also receive feedback through this connection, even experiencing the pain of damage inflicted on the Evangelion. This pain is correlated with their "synchronization" ratio in the Evangelion; damage with excessively high values actually injure the pilot, as seen in the above-mentioned fight with the MP Evas where both Unit 02 and Asuka had their right arm split in two at the exact same time. Despite the usual fine control provided by direct nerve impulses, there are also many instances in the series of Evas going "berserk". In this state, the Eva moves on its own, ignoring power requirements and with capabilities surpassing those of the pilot; its behavior becomes more feral and savage as well. The pilots are shown undergoing multiple synchronization tests, which are implied to be part of their work routine. As the series progresses, it is revealed that the pilots are synchronizing with human souls bonded within the Evas during "contact experiments" conducted by Nerv and its predecessor, Gehirn, though only the souls within Units 01 and 02 are explicitly identified. These souls are needed to bridge the gap between the pilots and the Evas. The Evas can also be controlled by an autopilot system, the Dummy Plugs, which are based on the thought patterns of either Rei Ayanami or Kaworu Nagisa. It is implied that the dummy plugs also contain clones of their bodies, but this is not confirmed in the series.

The Evas are more or less permanently associated with a specific designated pilot. For example, Shinji Ikari is always the pilot of Unit 01 and Asuka Langley Soryu is always the pilot of Unit 02. (One attempt to switch the pilot of an Eva resulted in the Eva going berserk.) The Rebuild of Evangelion has shown that under certain conditions others can pilot the Evas. One example is Mari piloting Unit 02 in which she told the Eva that she would suffer with it, and earlier in Evangelion 2.22 in which Asuka was the test pilot of Unit 03.

The Evangelions are named in the format of "Unit n" starting from Unit 00 in ascending order, as translated by ADV Films, and which is used in this and other Evangelion-related articles. However, the English format used in the original Japanese version is "EVA n".

EVA pre-Unit 00
Nerv has made numerous failed attempts to create a working Eva. The remains of these failed Evas are hidden in one of the lowest levels of Nerv headquarters. They all have orange armor. Most of these failed Evas' organic structures have rotted away, leaving little more than an armored head connected to a backbone, often with an incomplete number of limbs. Many of the skeletons are badly warped. They have the word "reject" painted on their heads in large red letters. In the original version, the failed Eva prototypes were laid out on a massive empty floor, with what remained of their limbs carefully matched up with their spines and other body parts, and then circled by chalk marks. When Shinji says that it must be some type of "graveyard" for Eva units, Ritsuko says that it is actually nothing that complicated, and little more than a "dumping ground" for the wasted prototypes. The New Production Cut shows this "dumping ground" with remaining body parts of dozens of failed Evas are thrown into a series of waste pits in the ground.

Some Eva rejects can also be seen in The End of Evangelion, suspended vertically by the heads. The heads themselves show variation in facial layout, with some looking almost like human skulls. Labels identifying the vertebrae (such as CV-3rd) can be seen in other shots.

Simulation bodies
Three incomplete Evangelion units are kept in the Pribnow Box in Nerv headquarters. They are unarmored, have no legs or cores, and have numerous cables exiting the neck instead of actual heads. These units are eventually infected by the eleventh Angel, Iruel.

Rebuild of Evangelion 1.0 reveals that the firing range training simulator uses a simulation body, as opposed to the anime or manga which show Unit 01 directly attached to simulation equipment. This simulation body appears to consist of portions of the skeleton and nervous system of an Evangelion, but without any means of actual movement.

EVA Unit 00
Unit 00 (零号機), is the Prototype, the first successful Evangelion, and is piloted by the First Child, Rei Ayanami. The head design is similar to that of the previous failed attempts, but with only one eye. Unit 00 is the only one of the original Evas that is never seen without its armor (Unit 02 was revealed in End of Evangelion, and Unit 01 on multiple occasions) or opening its mouth; thus the appearance of its organic body is unknown.

Unit 00 was initially colored orange like the previous prototypes, but its armor was damaged beyond repair by the Angel Ramiel's particle beam. The subsequent repairs and upgrades included blue armor plating in addition to other alterations made in order to make it more suitable for combat conditions. Shoulder "blades" are added to the Unit's armor; though similar in appearance to the ones on Units 01 and 02, they are used to hold retro-rockets, as seen in the fight with the ninth Angel, Matariel. Because it is only the prototype, Unit 00 cannot be fitted with D-type equipment. The true nature of the soul inside Unit 00 is never specified, but it is implied to be directly connected to Rei in some fashion. Unit 00 was self-destructed by Rei in order to destroy the sixteenth Angel, Armisael.

In the Rebuild of Evangelion series, Unit 00 sports more white and gray but is otherwise unchanged and does not get repainted. Remaining yellow for the entire series. In the second movie, Unit 00 was the Eva SEELE recommended be placed in storage upon the arrival of Unit 03, as the Vatican treaty states that no country can have more than three active Evangelion units at one time. Gendo Ikari chose to place Unit 02 in storage instead. Against the 10th Angel, Unit 00 was assimilated after the point blank detonation of an N2 Missile and its identification code was used by the Angel to disable Central Dogma's defences.

Note "Zerogōki" does not follow the naming system used for the succeeding Evas. Under that system Unit 00 would have been enunciated as "Reigōki" in the series, giving both mecha and pilot (Rei Ayanami) practically the same name.

EVA Unit 01
Unit 01 (初号機) was created in the Third Annex of Gehirn's Artificial Evolution Laboratory in Hakone and is piloted by Shinji Ikari (with Rei or a Rei Dummy Plug as backup pilots). It has the best battle record of all the Evangelions. It frequently acts independently, without the instructions of a pilot and without any apparent power source. The Eva will also take action to protect its pilot while sometimes servicing other interests. The Eva's resident soul, Yui Ikari (Shinji's mother), appears to be responsible for such events. Unit 01 is called the "Test Type,". Although Unit 01 seems to be an Adam-derived cybernetic organism like all other Evangelions, it is the sole Eva to have been born from Lilith (freeze-frame play of episode 23 reveals an incomplete Unit 01 being grown from Lilith's lower half in a manner reminiscent of Siamese twins ).

Upon savagely disfiguring the fourteenth angel, Zeruel, it proceeded to devour the Angel and assimilated its S² Engine, making Unit 01 the first physically complete Evangelion prior to the construction of the Mass Production units. The S² Engine seems to be used only at Unit 01's discretion; after acquiring it, the Eva is still sent into battle with an umbilical cable. Just before Unit 01 absorbed the S² Engine, it used one of Zeruel's arms to regenerate its severed left arm, demonstrating the Angelic ability of regeneration. The Mass Production models were also equipped with Nerv-developed S² Engines. However, although the Mass Production models are commonly thought to be able to regenerate, they do not have this ability.

Unit 01's armor is primarily purple; some components are colored neon green, light blue, orange, and black. The pectoral plates are different from those seen on any other Eva. The humanoid entity beneath the armor has light brown skin, two emerald-green eyes, four small nostrils positioned, and red blood.

As a result of Third Impact, at the conclusion of The End of Evangelion, Unit 01 is left floating adrift in space, fossilized and still containing the soul of Yui Ikari, where it will outlast the sun and moon, as an eternal testament that the human race existed.

In the Rebuild of Evangelion series, Unit 01 sports more neon green highlights on the head, chest, abdomen, and arms. The knife and its storage mechanism are also redesigned, but most of the armor has not changed. During its fight with Sachiel an onscreen graphic notes that Sachiel has blood type Blue 04 (since it is the fourth Angel) and Unit 01 has blood type Blue A*, likely a reference to the Eva units being derived from Angels. Shamshel and Ramiel are identified as having blood types Blue 05 and Blue 06, respectively. During its fight with Shamshel, the skin of the humanoid entity beneath the armor is revealed to a lighter color than in the series. During its fight with Zeruel, after the internal batteries die, the neon green lights glow red and it sports a Halo as well as being able to fire an energy blast similar to the angels, to devastating effect even against Zeruel's multi-layered AT Field. It also sports a reconstituted left arm (lost earlier in the fight) made out of its own AT Field. It later absorbed Zeruel, changing into a new life form that defied reason, and would have come into existence at the cost of all previous life. It would have done so had Unit 06 not thrown the Lance of Longinus and stopped Unit 01's transformation.

Production Model Evangelion Units
Production Model Eva Units have varying numbers of eyes. Unit 02 has four, Units 03 and 04 have two, and Units 05 through 13 have no visible eyes at all.

EVA Unit 02
Unit 02 (弐号機), built by Nerv Germany, is the first Production Model Eva. It is piloted by Asuka Langley Soryu and is the first Evangelion built specifically for combat. Unlike Unit 01, it only goes truly "berserk" once, just before its destruction. It has achieved an unusually high sync ratio with its pilot(s). The Eva's armor is primarily red with yellow and white on the arms and head. As a result of being constructed by Nerv Germany, and also as an accommodation for its three-quarters-German pilot, its default language setting is German. It is known to contain the maternal part of the soul of Asuka's mother. Unit 02 features a different progressive knife from earlier Eva units as well as an internal weapon rack in the right shoulder binder which fires dart-like weapons. It has brown skin and four orange eyes, first seen when the MP Evas tear it apart. These eyes are normally hidden by its head armor, with four green optical sensors handling vision. Its head armor is hinged in two places, allowing the eyes to be exposed when the Eva reaches a high synch ratio.

Unit 02 is damaged and incapacitated several times over the course of the series, and is finally destroyed in The End of Evangelion by the mass-produced Evas. Asuka was still highly synchronized with Unit 02 as it was destroyed, thus practically suffering every wound (the frames after the Lance of Longinus is plunged just above the Eva's left eye show her bleeding profusely from above her eye, as well as a rapidly spreading bloodstain on her lower torso when the Eva is literally gutted. In the manga, Kaworu Nagisa, piloted Unit 02 against Armisael since Asuka was left comatose after the battle with Arael. The weapon he used in the battle was a double-bladed chainsaw. Armisael partially merged with Unit 02 while it was still fusing with Unit 00 and Rei.

In the Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance film, it is shown that Unit 02's helmet is redesigned to have what look like oni horns, and that its shoulder pylons are equipped with a pair of bladed weapons. It also sports more white in several places on its body. Of note, the Eva is able to open its mouth in Rebuild, which was not the case with the original. However, it seems to have lost the capability to partially 'open' its helmet to expose its organic eyes. Later in the film, Unit 02 is placed into storage in accordance with The Vatican Treaty- a law stating that no nation can have more than 3 Active Evas- and with Unit 03 arriving from America Gendo decided Unit 02 would be the mothballed Unit. Mari later hijacks Unit 02 to fight Zeruel, and in desperation, activates Unit 02's Beast Mode which significantly increases its combat ability and gives it a more animalistic appearance. However, Mari is unable to defeat the Angel and Unit 02 is severely damaged, losing its left arm and part of its head.

EVA Unit 03
Unit 03 (参号機) was built in the United States by Nerv Second Branch in Massachusetts, USA, Evangelion Unit 03 is one of two Units built with the Second Production Model design. It is the brother Unit of Unit 04 (Unit 3 and Unit 4 were the only Evangelion who were addressed as males during the series). The United States government insisted on having the rights to build Unit 03 and Unit 04. A few minor changes were made between the first and second Production Models. Unit 03's color was unique, with much darker plates than any other Eva.

The pilot assigned to it was Toji Suzuhara, but in transit to Japan, it was possessed by the thirteenth Angel, Bardiel, which appeared as a cloud. As Bardiel, it was savagely torn apart by Unit 01, after the control of Unit 01 was switched from Shinji to the Dummy Plug system, designed to simulate Rei Ayanami as the pilot. Toji, the pilot, is severely injured in the anime, but in the manga he dies.

Unit-03 is also shown in the movie Evangelion 2.0: You Can (Not) Advance, with Asuka Langley Shikinami as the test pilot. She was put into quarantine due to possible contact with Bardiel and was confirmed to have been placed in a medically induced coma due to her injuries when the entry plug was crushed. In the teaser trailer for Evangelion 3.0 attached at the end of the 2nd Rebuild film, she is shown awoken from her coma with an eye patch covering her left eye.

Unit 03 sports a predominately black color scheme with white and red highlights and during its fight with Unit 01, it grows a separate pair of arms out of the top of its shoulders to help strangle Unit 01. Both the original and the Rebuild version of the Eva have grey eyes, as evidenced by freeze-frame play of their destruction.

EVA Unit 04
While EVA Unit 04 (四号機) never actually appears in the series, it still serves a function in the story. Unit 04 was constructed at the Second Branch of Nerv, a desert site in Nevada, USA, acting primarily as a test subject for S² Engine (provided by the Third Branch of Germany) experimentation. Unit 04 was destroyed along with the entire Second Branch and all facilities within an 89 km radius. The cause of the accident remains unknown. Nerv determined that the incident occurred when the S² Engine was being installed in the unit, and that there were numerous factors that could have led to the accident. The very nature of the destruction itself is unknown as well. One theory behind Unit 04's destruction, suggested by Ritsuko Akagi, is that the S² Engine had opened up a Dirac sea similar to the one that was believed to comprise the twelfth Angel, Leliel. Unit 04's design is virtually identical to that of Unit 03. According to Gainax material, this unit is silver in color, with black and red detail. While Unit 04 does not appear on-screen in the series, it does make appearances in the continuities of various Evangelion spin-offs and games. The pilot of Eva 04 is never specified in the series. In some spin-offs, Unit 04 is piloted by Kensuke Aida.


 * In an official Evangelion pachinko machine in Japan (based specifically on the 2008 film "Evangelion 1.0: You Are (Not) Alone"), once you reach a certain level, there is a short animation featuring Unit-04.  The scene shows the 6th Angel Ramiel during an attack on Tokyo-3 (the footage is spliced in from the film). When it destroys some missile launching sites, Unit-04 suddenly appears floating over a hill, with Kaworu Nagisa controlling it by floating in front of its head. Ramiel fires, but Kaworu's AT Field protects Unit-04. The EVA then charges forward with the Lance of Longinus. Ramiel reshapes itself and fires again, but Unit-04 blocks the attack with a scaled-up riot shield (previously seen only in merchandise, never-onscreen because of its impracticality in favor of AT Fields). After Ramiel stops its attack, Unit-04 hurls the Lance of Longinus at the Angel, which penetrates its own Field, and destroys it in this single shot. Kaworu and Unit-04 are seen casually standing on top of a lake at the end of the video.
 * This video seems to be the only known officially-licensed appearance of Evangelion Unit-04, but does confirm, in a way, that its appearance is based on Evangelion Unit-03, and that its coloring is silver with black and red. (This video also establishes Unit-04 in the coloring scheme of the Rebuild films, and shares similar decorations.)

Other production units
According to Misato, Unit 05 and Unit 06 were originally planned to be more or less a continuation of the production model design used for Units 02-04. However, when Seele began construction of the mass production model Eva Units 05-13, these plans were scrapped. The unfinished original Units 05 and 06 were scrapped for spare parts used to repair Units 00 and 02 after their fight with the Angel Zeruel.

Mass Production Evangelions (MP Units 05-13)
These Evas appear in The End of Evangelion and were produced at seven different Nerv branches around the world, probably Germany (Third Branch), the United States (First Branch, Massachusetts), Japan (Matsushiro), the United Kingdom, France, Russia, and China. Units 05 and 06 were made in Germany; Unit 08 was produced in China. Seele had them produced as part of their backup plan for initiating Instrumentality, but only nine out of an envisioned twelve were completed. They are controlled directly by Seele via Dummy Plugs based on Kaworu Nagisa. In dialogue, they are referred to as the Eva Series (エヴァシリーズ).

Their physical build is different from previous Evas, being narrower in the chest and shoulders and wider in the hips, and apparently covered by the same reinforced plastic that coats the arms. The long jaws have red muscular lips, metal-plated teeth, a large grey tongue, and produce large quantities of saliva. They have no apparent eyes. They are equipped with large, mechanical, avian-style wings that enable them to fly, and which can be fully retracted into the back. They also lack the shoulder-mounted armor "blades" which were characteristic of previous Evas. Their primary weapons are the double-bladed Heavy Lances, which eventually transform into their true form, dark gray replicas of the Lance of Longinus. Additionally, the MP Evas consistently behave in an animal-like manner; they show formidable savagery, and circle the fallen Unit 02 in the air in a manner similar to vultures before descending to tear the Eva apart.

Each MP Eva contains an internal S² Engine, which grants them complete mobility (being freed from the umbilical cable) and no operational time limit. Although two Evangelions were maimed by Unit 02, one severed in two at the waist and another with a severed leg, were not drawn this way for the rest of the movie, generating similar confusion as to the ability of regeneration in the MP EVAs.

In the alternate universe game Girlfriend of Steel 2, Kaworu Nagisa pilots Eva Unit 05, which is otherwise the same as the Mass Production units, except that the Dummy Plug is replaced by a standard entry plug.

EVA Provisional Unit 05
The EVA Provisional Unit 05 (仮説５号機), piloted by Mari Illustrious Makinami, features in the opening of the second film in the Rebuild of Evangelion tetralogy and is held at the joint U.S./Russian Nerv Bethany Base. Unit 05 is less humanoid than the previous Eva with a design that includes having shorter arms that end in a pincer and a lance respectively, and instead of legs has four limbs that end in wheel like mechanisms. The Eva's torso is predominantly white with orange and grey areas; its limbs are a shade of green. Because of the inhuman design of the Eva the pilot requires special tubes to help aid in movement. Rocket boosters and drills also feature in the design to help aid this speedy Eva once in action. It appears to lack an umbilical cord and gathers its energy from pantograph-like wires atop the shoulder pylons, which connected to the roofs of the various tunnels of Bethany Base in Evangelion 2.0. The odd build is most likely due to its provisional status as moving on various terrains might be difficult. The Eva is solely sent into action against the previously captured Third Angel which attempts to escape. The melee results in the utter destruction of both the Third Angel and Evangelion Unit 05. Its designation as "Provisional" may be a reference to the EVA being launched despite Bethany base still waiting on several components for installation.

Evangelion Mark.06
In the first trailer for Evangelion 2.0, Mark.06 (マークシックス) briefly appears. It is blue in color, and has a glowing red visor covering its eyes. Its head design is similar to Unit 01, with an upward-curving horn and projections from the side as well. Out of the new Evas introduced in the Rebuild series, this is the first (and so far only) one revealed without its armor: it has dark gray skin fluted on the torso and a seven-eyed purple mask, not unlike Lilith's original design; in the second film, the mask is partially covered by a gray/red apparatus which appears to be an integral part of the visor, engraved with "Project Evangelion". In the 1.01 DVD release, Mark.06 has a glowing white halo. The narration states that it and its pilot "come down from the Moon." (The conclusion of Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone shows Kaworu Nagisa and SEELE meeting upon the Moon) Mark.06 appears to be have the capabilities for flight. In Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance it is revealed that this Eva is of SEELE's design who describe it as "the true Evangelion"; Gendo and Fuyutsuki had no hand in its creation. The unit's coloration is dark blue with gold highlights. Its eyes are hidden behind a glowing red visor when it is armored. Kaworu Nagisa is the pilot.

Evangelion Unit 08
In the teaser trailer for Evangelion 3.0 attached at the end of the 2nd Rebuild film, Evangelion Unit 08 (ロク号機) was shown and its pilot taking part in the film although only its upper body is shown. The Unit seems similar to previous units, but the pylons are slightly different, and it appears to have thrusters on it. The head design is similar to the helmet of a suit of armor, with a protruding horn.

Other
Various different EVA units have originated in spin-off games and other various media.

In Battle Orchestra game two new EVA units are introduced. EVA Unit-Alpha (甲号機) is a green colored EVA with distance-controlled gun barrels mounted on its shoulders (possibly inspired by the Psycommu System from the Gundam franchise). EVA Unit-Beta (乙号機), piloted by Kaworu Nagisa, is gold in color with wings and a katana. EVA Unit 04 appears as well, painted a different shade of silver and piloted by Kensuke Aida.