This episode discusses all of Neon Genesis Evangelion: Angelic Days (volumes 1-6) by Fumino Hayashi.

Shinji, get in the robot! Shojo & Tell host Ashley and the guy previously known as Ashley's "Cyborg 009 buddy," Josh McHugh, delve into this version of the beloved series Neon Genesis Evangelion, which is an alternate universe of the video game Neon Genesis Evangelion: Girlfriend of Steel 2nd (a PlayStation 2 game, and yes there is first Girlfriend of Steel before this entry), which is an alternate universe of the events in the final episode of the original anime. The main plot is mostly about whether Shinji will pick Rei or Asuka to be his life partner while they're all still in high school. Are you keeping up? Great!

Ashley and Josh do a sort of cultural exchange in this episode: Ashley doesn't really like Evangelion (ikr?), and Josh, like many a millennial, thinks Eva is the GOAT and is very hype to discuss the Instrumentality sequences; Ashley is over 100 episodes deep on a shojo manga podcast, while Josh hadn't read a shojo manga before this. The two talk about how, in Angelic Days, Rei is a completely different person from her beloved anime self; the shortcomings of the backstory about Shinji's parents, Gendo and Yui Ikari; what punk bands Gendo would be into; and much more. And if you're wondering: There ARE still mech fights in this, but there shouldn't have been. So on second thought: Shinji, don't get in the robot!

REFERENCES

• Neon Genesis Evangelion: Angelic Days is out of print.  You can find used copies on resale sites. It was published by ADV manga in English.
• Other anime/manga mentioned:
  • Neon Genesis Evangelion
    • Rebuild movies
    • End of Evangelion
  • Cyborg 009
  • The Vision of Escaflowne
  • Cowboy Bebop
  • Serial Experiments Lain
  • Soul Eater
  • Neo Yokio
  • Your Name
  • My Hero Academia
  • Hot Gimmick
• Punk bands named
  • Linkin Park
  • Fall Out Boy
  • Panic at the Disco
  • Yellowcard
  • Hawthorne Heights
• Misc. other mentions
  • The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness
  • xkcd
  • Red oni/blue oni
  • Manic pixie dream girls
  • Controversy over Netflix's translation of Eva
  • BattleTech /  MechWarrior
  • Three Wise Men
• Outro song: "The Streatham Hill Gods" by Danosongs

CONTACT US

• Josh wants you to check out his Soundcloud because we're both stuck in the year 2005: https://soundcloud.com/j_m_p_h
  • Listen to his Serial Experiments Lain OP a capella version in particular: https://soundcloud.com/j_m_p_h/boa-duvet-a-cappella
• Shojo & Tell on Bluesky, Tumblr, Instagram, and Twitter
• Ashley on Bluesky