Evangelion:3.0+1.11 - Thrice Upon a Time - 4K Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

Evangelion:3.0+1.11 - Thrice Upon a Time



Movie:
4K Video:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score:



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Movie
Evangelion is sort of hallowed ground among anime fanatics. The concept was originally shot as a 26 episode TV show in 1995-1996, and was widely considered one of the most influential series of the 1990s. It was heady, dark, and extremely allegorical in it’s story line and one of those shows that everyone was an anime fan HAD to see as a right of passage. Then it was followed up by two different theatrical release films in the form of Evangelion: Death and Rebirth and The End of Evangelion, which sort of re-wrote the ending and and the other a recap of the entire series in film form. Rebirth was later recut into the 21st-24th episodes for later releases of the show, and to this day is considered one of the most complicated series to watch as newbies have to wade through the waters of “what’s important, and what’s just a recap?” as they look to watch everything chronologically. (I ended up reviewing the series “HERE” when Gkids released the Blu-ray set last year). The End of Evangelion is the one gut punch to the system, as it’s considered an “alternate” retelling of the end, and to this day is considered one of the most shocking versions of the ending for those of us who watched the 25th and 26 episode of the series originally.

With all that out of the way, the series was a sort of traumatic therapy for writer Hideaki Anno, who was suffering through grief and depression during the 1990s. He basically used the framework of a giant mecha series to pour out his demons and psychological problems on screen, using the show as a form of therapy for himself. He puts pieces of his own problems and struggles into each of the 3 main children (which explains why they all seem so polar opposite of each other) and allows us to watch one of the most fascinatingly deep and heady anime shows of all time.

However, despite the fact that the series was deemed “over” by the late 90s, Anno decided to reboot the series in 2007 with 4 feature films that would rebuild the world of Evangelion for new audiences, but also rebuild and retool the entire series from the ground up so that he could make what he considered his “true ending” vision. 2007 introduced us to Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone which basically retold most of the opening parts of the original series. We are introduced to NERV and the giant Evas that are designed to fight an alien threat known as Angels. It does introduce some of the mythology a bit quicker and push the story faster than the series, but basically it was the same groundwork of the 1995 show that we all knew. (nerd moment for those looking to pick it up. The old Blu-ray is way out of pring, but Evangelion 1.0 was labeled as 1.01 for the DVD and 1.11 for the Blu-ray, so don’t get confused thinking that there is more content out there. It just depends on what format you’re looking for).

Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance came out in 2009 and immediately departed from the original lore of the show. It introduces us to a new character in the form of Mari, and deviates HEAVILY from the mythology and lore that the TV show went with, retooling old scenes by introducing new ideas and new directions for the characters to go. Shinji is not nearly as much of a mess as he was, and more capable as well, and spends a lot more with relationship between Rei and himself (who ironically, is basically a clone of his mother). And yes, Anno had to tweak things again, adding a few minor scenes and tweaking a few things for the Blu-ray release, re titling it 2.22 (isn’t this sooooooo easy to follow lol).

Evangelion 3.0: You can (Not) Advance came out 3 years later in 2012 and it COMPLETELY turns its back on the direction of the TV show and is basically brand new content from here on out. Also, it turned it’s back on the hand drawn animation as well, introducing modern day CGI to the show, which is a sharp change of pace from the standard hand drawn style of animation of the first two movies. The film introduces a new player to the board outside of NERV and SEELE in the form of WILLE, a rebel group who wants to stop BOTH of them. Mari is back and the characters from the last film have been forever altered by their experience. The 2nd film was very introspective and allowed us to connect with our EVA pilots, while 3.0 decides to take an opposite approach and hardens them and makes them back into the almost monsters that they seem to other people. Asuka has turned bitter and hateful, while Rei is once more content to just go through the motions in an almost death like trance. Shinji has basically been shattered and mentally destroyed by what’s gone on, and he almost takes a back seat in this narrative.

And now, 11 years later (or 9 years later if you consider that the film came out in Japan in 2021 during pandemic) we FINALLY get the conclusion to the series. Why so late you might ask? Well according to Anno, he was extremely burned out having spent 5 or 6 years working non stop writing, directing and producing all 3 of the first films and basically putting his entire life into the films. He was just BURNT out and wanted to take a break for a while, which he did for roughly 4 or 5 years. Then in 2016 or so he started working and formulating the grand conclusion to his series, and by 2021 we FINALLY got to see 3.0+1.0 (of course retooled as 3.01+1.11 for Blu-ray/4K home video… you didn’t expect him not to tinker with things like he did with the others did you?) at home.

I’m not going to spoil TOO much being that Evangelion is always best watched and experienced rather than simply told, but 3.0+1.11 is the culmination of Anno’s life work at retooling the ending of Evangelion to what he’s truly wanted over the years. The series rushes to headlong end with NERV and SEELE still trying to manipulate the human experiment of life, with WILLE working pell mell to try and stop both organizations before they tear everything apart. However, just as it has always been, the entire world hinges upon the broken psyche of one young boy. Shinji, who is still trying to figure out how to change from a boy into a man, and take responsibility for the MASSIVE weight that has been thrust upon his shoulders.

Personally, I actually like this more than I do the 1990s series. Anno has literally poured his entire LIFE into this retooling of his most prolific show, and it shows. The series is great for the time period, but the new 4 film set feels deeper and more intense than the show ever did. It’s a full breakdown of all the years of stress, depression and trauma that Anno himself went through, and the ending is SUPERB and feels actually complete for once. I can’t predict the future as everything Evangelion feels written in jello, but this seems like the END for Anno and his world.




Not Rated By the MPAA




4K Video: Video:

The discs for Evangelion:3.0+1.11 – Thrice Upon a Time appear to be identical copies of the Japanese disc release a year or so ago. Meaning that it sports an SDR 2160p encode (no HDR10 or Dolby Vision) and uses the same Japanese 5.1 audio mix, plus the U.S. done English Dub that was made for streaming. While the nerd in me would naturally like HDR included, the purist side in me was kind of happy because it was animated and mastered in SDR in Japan, and it still looks AMAZING on 4K. The colors are absolutely stunning, with brightly lit arenas and amazing color saturation throughout. Honestly, I didn’t miss the HDR or Dolby Vision one bit, because it just looks that good in motion. The textures and character design really stand out with intricate detailing, and the CGI used throughout (while a bit awkward for some of the fast motion shots) looks way better than it did a decade ago.

The included Blu-ray looks almost as good, but it suffers a bit from compression issues, as well as banding and a limited bitrate. Not shocking, but the 4K UHD disc blows it out of the water and looks the best by a good margin. The only weird thing that I noticed was that whenever I fast forwarded, or skipped a chapter, the screen would go black for a moment while the player tried to track with the image, then came back. I’m guessing it had something to do with matching frame rates, but I’ve only ever seen that happen when you LOAD a disc, not in the middle. Either way, it doesn’t distract any from the amazing looking disc, but rather just something to notice when you play it and it stands out as odd.








Audio:

The 5.1 DTS-HD MA mixes in both English and Japanese are pretty much identical, except for the English dialog stem being mixed in. Both tracks are superb, with explosive use of surrounds and LFE for when the Angels and Eva’s are engaged in combat, but also a rather laid back and front heavy mix the rest of the time. The film is heavily introspective with long portions of nothing but dialog and philosophical arguments, which leads to a softer front end, but also some very nicely nuanced uses of the surround channels for ambient noise. LFE is punishing when necessary, but also soft and quiet when used to accentuate the score in the quieter bits. Dialog is exceptional throughout, and for once I didn’t loathe the dub. I still prefer the Japanese track, but the English dub for this (created for Amazon I believe) is actually quite pleasant.






Extras:

• EVANGELION:3.0(-46h)
• EVANGELION:3.0(-120min.)
• Rebuild of EVANGELION:3.0+1.11
• [Current EVANGELION]
• Message for Kinro
• Message for ANN
• Stage Greetings
• Promotional Reels
• Trailers & TV Spots
• Book
• Art Cards

Final Score:
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It took me a while to get caught up and re introduce myself to the world of Evangelion after over a decade in between films, but the catch up was worth the wait. This is a spectacular ending for a well done re imagining of Evangelion in film form. Plus the Gkids 4K UHD release is packed to the gills with special features, physical swag for collectors, and a gorgeous looking/sounding 4K UHD disc to enjoy. Highly recommended for all Eva fans.Also, as a heads up. The first 3 films were released by Funimation studios, and have been out of print for several years. BUUUUT, I've been hearing through the grape vine that Gkids is going to be getting the rights, which means we could easily see a re-release under the Shout banner if that does happen.


Technical Specifications:

Starring: Magumi Ogata, Megumi Hayashibara, Yuko Miyamura, Fumihiko Tachiki
Directed by: Mahiro Maeda, Katsuichi Nakayama, Kazuya Tsurumaki
Written by: Hideaki Anno
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 HEVC
Audio: English: DTS-HD MA 5.1, Japanese DTS-HD MA 5.1
Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish
Studio: Shout Studios
Rated: NR
Runtime: 154 minutes
Blu-Ray Release October 17th, 2023

Recommendation: Great Buy

 

[tripplej]

Thanks for the review. Yes, this is a great series and must watch.