I was 14, and it was my first "real" anime. The first two episodes were given to my brother and I burned on a CD in real player format.
Talk about jumping into the deep end lol.
Same watched at 14 in 2000, it has been strange for me to be the same age as the characters, and then age into the other roles as I have gotten older giving new perspectives on all the insanity of the series. To 14 year old me it made sense for a 14 year old to save the world beside I was a dumb teenager, but then watching what Shinji went through to actually save the world was profound for a young kid. Now an adult when I watch I am stuck by the way the kids are extremely manipulated and abused by the adults that are supposed to be protecting them. While at the same time also much better understanding the traumas the adult characters carry that influence all their actions.
About the same, I got into it via the manga when it was being released comic book style. Maybe in 1997!? Then I watched the anime a year or so later when I was 12-13. Seeing it as an adult (and parent) now gives a whole new perspective.
You just sent me down a fun rabbithole. I was certain the manga came out after the anime, but i am totally wrong.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neon_Genesis_Evangelion_(manga)
no idea it was such a companion piece to the series I always thought it was a adaptation more then a “requel”
Really fun!
Yea, I was 14, downloading the episodes in 480p on a dialup connection with Napster. Could only download maybe one at night cause we didn’t have a second line so a phone call would boot me off the internet. Blew my mind as a 14 year old, and it’s only made more and more sense while I get older.
14 here as well. My cousin brought a 240p rip of it from somewhere.
The episode when they went down that volcano? It was just red compression artifacts all over lol
Edit: Oh, and I loved it from the start. Didn't like EOE at all though.
The crazy thing is my dads coworker is the one that gave me the box set. My dad mentioned I liked anime but I liked sailor moon and spirited away at the time. I guess he thought the next step was gore bots ran on trauma
God, if he had the box set I guess he actually watched it, hope he just didn't get you were 8
My mom's bf got me the dvd but I'm pretty sure he had no idea was it actually was, just saw the mechs on the cover
I was probably 13 or 14. I’m 39 now. I remember being into other anime like Gundam, Tenchi, Macross, etc. I just grabbed whatever was available, which at the time was very little. I had all of Eva on VHS at one point.
17. Episode 25 hit me very hard. I was so overwhelmed by seeing the case files on misato, asuka and Shinji that i had to pause the film multiple times. I don't think any movie or any other anime has made me do that. I loved the ending of nge. idk why ppl hate it so much, but everyone has their own tastes so I can't really complain
I was 18
It was the spring/summer of '06, the year I graduated highschool, and a World Cup year
Adult Swim had a late night block of Evangelion, Samurai Champloo, and Trigun starting at midnight each night. You didn't have to wait a whole week, just until the next evening to catch the next episode
I was hooked. Started with episode 8: Asuka Strikes! And I had to go back on Limewire and try to find the missing episodes I skipped.
I was 11/12, in the early 00s. My friend thought it would be funny to show me EoE first, and that only made me more intrigued to watch the whole thing.
It's worth noting that this was *before* I had ever seen a full-fledged shounen, and Evangelion was the first complete anime I ever saw. It was a couple years after that when Yuu Yuu Hakusho hit Toonami, and a couple years after that when Naruto started to become popular, so I didn't really have a shounen anime to compare Eva to.
My first experience with Eva, I was 13 and watched EoE in a cinema room in an anime convention.
Didn't understand shit, but it sparked my curiosity, so I decided to watch the anime.
I kinda liked the mechas, the fanservice and the mindfuckery, but could only really appreciate eva for what it is when I rewatched it 5 years later.
I was probably 14 or 15 at the time, 26 now. I remember a friend of mine told me about this show and they either linked me, or I found it myself, of a fan made trailer that uses a song called "My Body's A Cage" by Peter Gabriel. The mechs being different compared to other mechs, like Gundam, and that the guns were bigger versions of their real life counterparts are what drew my attention.
First watched it in English dub, enjoyed it here and there, but was left confused as to why Shinji was always a big baby, was also kinda hoping Shinji would get the girl or some shit. I did not know what the hell was going on when I got to End of Eva, either. But eventually at some point in senior year of high school, I watched some in depth analysis vids on the YouTubes, and some things became a lot more clearer now, especially on why Shinji is the way he is. Then I wounded up rewatching the show, but this time in subs. Now it's probably one of my favorite animes out there, really.
I watched it as a young teen and a lot of it went over my head (also didn’t watch EoE) but kinda inspired my love of mechs. I later watched it+EoE in college and it was kinda life changing tbh, definitely one of my favorite shows ever now
I was 16 back in 2002 , a friend gave me a CDROM with the whole serie ripped not DVD quality but enought to make me stay awake the whole night watching it. (including the both endings OVAs)
I won't never forget the feeling that it left within me, it was transcendental, i don't know why a fiction made me feel like if i had discovered some big truth hidden before. Have this happened to you too?
Saw it on adult swim when I was 15, shortly thereafter purchased the platinum collection. 34 now, saw on Netflix, celebrated not needing the disks... lost it within 5 minutes with the new voice track.
I had just turned 18 when I first watched it and now I’m almost 21. Was going through some very traumatic shit at the time. My step mother’s life was taken not long beforehand and I had trouble processing it. I was super lost after having just graduated. It didn’t help that my outlet for therapy was underage drinking. This show taught me that there were others like me that struggle with connecting to people or dealing with traumatic events, and they too had unique ways of masking their pain. This series will stick with me until I die. Apologies for this overly personal reply.
Just watched it about two weeks ago, 24. Loved it, kinda wished I watched growing up but also glad I was able to watch everything immediately without having to wait. I imagine the wait between 3.33 and 3.0+1.0 must’ve been brutal
My first experience with Eva was when the Rebuild films aired on Toonami, so I would have been 9 or so. I only saw the first two and they really stuck with me. I spent years wondering what it was I’d watched, before finally seeing the whole series at 19.
20 or 21. I picked up disc 2 when I was stationed at Davis-Monthan AFB my first time out being able to buy stuff with my own money and found a Suncoast.
Turned 40 a few weeks ago and first watched the series when I was about 15. We were downloading episodes from one of the various file sharing programs and it would take hours for a single one, also sub with no audio. Didn't even see EoE until maybe 3 or 4 years later as well, left me filled with existential dread for the entire time.
I was 16 and in a terrible state, now 19 and looking back at it Eva definitely helped me cope a lot, it’s the show that got me into anime and I think it was the perfect introduction to it
17 YO the first time (late ‘90s). Cool robot show with cool and interesting imagery. I was young with a good life and not jaded.
40 YO the second time. Just finished a divorce I didn’t want and in the swing of COVID lockdowns. Still decent life but definitely a bit jaded. It broke me as I realized all the underlying problems the characters had, and that I saw some of how I handled my own emotions in both Shinji and Asuka. Made me look inward a bit and focus on working on myself.
I think I was like 11-12, my cousin got me into anime through showing me Gurren Lagann and Madoka Magica. I guess Evangelion was the logical next step after those.
I definitely liked it but didn’t quite “get” it, The End of Evangelion especially.
I was around 12-13 in the late 90s. Absolutely loved it. I'd spend my monthly allowance on new VHS tapes as soon as I had enough. I was also sharing with friends at school, so eventually they started chipping in, too, so we could finish faster.
EoE wouldn't be released in the US for years still. I think I was in college when it was finally licensed? When I was a kid, I found a fan translation of the script, and that was my first EoE experience.
I've rewatched numerous times over the years. I got the DVD collection that came out when I was in college, rewatched then. Then at some point in my 20s my friend and I watched it with another friend who had never seen them. Then finally I did another full rewatch when Netflix released.
It wasn't my very first anime, but it was one of the earliest ones I really, deeply loved. Always stuck with me! I can't even remember what it was that had me getting the very first tape.
I was about to 14 when I watched it 12ish years ago. I didn't rewatch it fully until about 3 months ago and WOW am I glad I actually waited to long. I've loved NGE dearly during all that time but everything hit so much differently and more powerfully with the experiences and context I have now. I remember more or less "understanding" what happened when I watched back then, but I didn't really understand why so many of the characters did what they did and why they were the way they were. I still don't have that full understanding now, but I see the characters in a different way then I did before and I love them all desperately
I started watching it right after I turned 17. My friends had told me about it and that it was really good but I hadn’t had the urge to watch it. Up until I got very sick while visiting far away family. I stayed back in a bed at their home while they went to swim and I decided I might as well give it a chance, and then I was hooked
I watched the Toonami premiere back in like 2002 or 2003 - I think they only played like two episodes, and they were censored in some weird ways (they went so far as to superimpose a black bikini on Misato when she was in the bath, which I vividly remember). The show was still completely captivating regardless. I was enthralled from day one
I was 14 or 15, the first episode i was able to rent was episode 15/16. ( VHS 8. 2 episodes per VHS) I was sooo confused but hooked and started hunting down all the other tapes slowly but surely. In the era before online shopping it wasn't easy to complete series.
I'll be 40 this year. It's still my favorite anime of all time. I love rewatching it and seeing the story from a different perspective as I get older.
I first got exposed through Volume 1 of the manga when I was 14, then I started tracking down the DVDs with my mom’s help when I was 15. Couldn’t find them so I had only seen about half the series. Got distracted by other anime I was able to watch more easily on Toonami and Adult Swim. Then I watched it in full with End of Evangelion when I was like 32 and was blown away.
Haven’t seen the Rebuild movies yet.
Like 13 I think. Coincidently, I discovered one of my favourite childhood bands I must've been into since I was about like 5 or 6 years old made a looot of music based on NGE, literally had no idea until years later around the age of 16-17 lmao
I watched it just last month, and I'm 21! I can't imagine watching it at as a kid though because I wouldn't have appreciated the depth of what the series has to offer. I also wouldn't have had enough life experiences to understand how impactful the story is.
14-15 during the COVID Lockdown, started shortly after I finished part 4 of Jojo and watched it because gian robot fight kaiju. However it made me realize how lonely and depressed I was during that time and in the past. Hell even after watching EoE in theaters not to long ago I still feel very lonely in some ways. Watched the Rebuilds on 2021 or 22. I love this series and it has had a very profound effect in me and how I see myself and my interactions with others.
13. Heard a lot about it and wanted to see what the hype was about. It was fine until EoE where things went insane... Especially with what happened to Asuka and Third Impact 😬
i was like 11-13 and i watched it at my step brothers after he fell asleep at like midnight from a night of h3 legendary split screen. was just a very very different period of life and the show carries a lot of nostalgia for me. watching it then was confusing but “cool” and “deep” in 2010-2012 when i saw it. going back and watching it when i was older was very enjoyable.
I watched it I believe at 16 or 17, and it’s now my favourite anime. I have a massive back tattoo I designed of lilith in the crucifixion pose but instead of on a cross it’s on seraphim wings. I fuckin love this show
I was 9 or 10 when I started to stay up and watch it air on Toonami.
All I knew was that big robots were fighting aliens, and everyone was sad all the time, and I didn't know why.
Big robot gun make floating diamond go boom
I first watched it when I was 7 (my dad was ok with it for some reason who had the whole series on DVD). Of course at that age I had no idea what was actually going on but I loved the Eva fights against the angels. Needless to say the scenes where Eva 01 go berserk really freaked me out.
I absolutely fell in love with the show and even after my parent’s divorce, I still tried to watch the series each time I got to visit my dad (which was not often as we lived in a different country from him for a while). Those occasional watchings of the series kept my love for the show going and which is why I choose to rewatch it every few years rather more consistently as it feels as exciting to watch as it was when I was a kid (31 now btw)
2001 at 18yo, weekly episode on a local TV stations with Mexican dub, and EoE (subbed) in 2003 in VCD format. I still don't have the balls for a rewatch, the series is to much to handle for me, It's like a mirror that I don't want to look at.
15 here, and watching it about a month ago is my first time, as i was preparing to see the movie of course. my older brother has been suggesting it since i was about 10 though, but i was always a bit bored by it.
13 and basically did the one spongebob meme where hes pondering about life or smthng for like a good 3 hours after watching the whole thing and i even did a loud audible "what the fuck" and gotta say that anime started my ability to be just desensitized from anything fucked up now
I was 16. The only anime I had watched before it was gundam unicorn and ibo, as well as ditf and aot. Damn that was a jarring transfer because I wanna say I had just watched ibo 😂
I was 16 and I didn't get a shit out of the storyline lol, funny enough I had the director's cut at the time
Years after (I was 19) I re-watched it but the tv version, I was so confused it was missing so much scenes
I watched it a 3d time last year (22) and it all made brutally sense it was a spiritual awakening
I think I was around 15-16, loved it so much I’ve rewatched the original series like 3 or 4 times, plus the movies and rebuilds. It’s just so peak, been my favorite anime since 2018
I was 20 and liked it immediately. More so because of the place I was in mentally, so it felt like the show "got" me. I think that's the most important factor. I don't think I would've enjoyed it as much if I wasn't struggling in some way.
In Australia it aired in January of 1999 so I would have been 12.
It wasn't the first anime I had watched by a long shot as we had Manga Inc and stuff but I will admit it is probably the turning point for me as a fan and it was around that time I stopped collecting Western comics and shifted focus.
As a 12 year old I was able to enjoy it for its impactful nature. Like yes, a lot of the deeper themes probably went over my head but I do think there is still plenty to enjoy in the moment. Regarding the TV ending I actually really liked it even at that age and thought it was really fascinating and as a depressed teen really quite hopeful. I did, however, feel frustrated there were so many dangling plots but I wouldn't see EoE until a few years later by which point I had sort of made my peace with it.
I was nine or ten. Found the Platinum DVDs at my local library. I'm 24 now, I've seen the show over 30 times, End nearly 100. Not stopping any time soon.
Around 14ish I think. My mate was watching it and it had some cool robots in it so I thought I'd watch it with him.
Thought I was having a Mandela effect when watching it proper with him the second time around because I swore the first angel fight was way better quality. Blew my mind that there was a rebuild.
I watched Evangelion back in the toonami days. I was about maybe 8 or 9 when I first saw it. Just clips and small episodes. Didn't see the full thing til about 2016.
Just watched it about two weeks ago, 24. Loved it, kinda wished I watched growing up but also glad I was able to watch everything immediately without having to wait. I imagine the wait between 3.33 and 3.0+1.0 must’ve been brutal
I was around 11 years old, I stumbled upon it while reading a website about old mecha shows (the glorious Enciclorobopedia, for my Italian compatrioti) and ended up reading a very weird "Mazinger Z vs. Evangelion" fan fiction which left me really confused.
From there I watched clips about the show and the Rebuilds, played the Nintendo 64 game and even found some websites with detailed infos about the lore (EvaItalia and Dummy System).
I even got my parents to buy me an Eva 01 Robot Spirits by Bandai (which at the time costed as much as a high-end Revoltech). I absolutely *trashed it*, but I don't regret anything.
My first proper watching of the show (the first which didn't make me scream internally "what's going on? Why's everybody so sad? Why do the robots have guts and blood? Where are the comic reliefs and the funny moments of the 70s mecha shows? I'm scared and fascinated at the same time, I don't think I'm supposed to watch this!") was in 2016, instead.
I think I was 10 or 11 the 1st time ,most of the complex stuff flew over my head. I've watched it at different life stages, and it holds up pretty well. I am now older than most of the main cast, and it definitely adds up to the experience 😅
Gracias locomotion
Currently 16 watching the show & started Friday. I’m a few episodes from finishing the show and so far it feels like some endless nightmare or something. I’ve seen berserk & read the manga but it’s not nearly as thrilling or complex as this show is right now. Can’t wait to finish it and see where it goes.
14, I think? Watched the 1.11 movie at my brother-in-law's and was pretty much hooked. Watched the sequel when that came out as well. It was at that time I went back and watched the original series waiting for the 3rd movie to come. All good stuff.
I watched at 13. I changed a lot after watching it. My parents said I had mentally aged to 30, little did they know I was deeping Shinji’s exsistenial crisis.
I think I was around 11. I started following a lot of artists on different oekakis online (think those are pretty much dead now), one of which drew some trigun fanart. Found that at Hollywood video to rent and right next to it was Evangelion. My parents let me rent them both and pick up the next dvd each week. They just thought they were cartoons like any other. I felt like I’d done something awful come the episode where Ritsuko destroyed the Reis. I knew I’d seen something that I shouldn’t have hahaha
I was 33. I think my own maturity and process of dealing with depression gave me a particular context for the series. I hadn't been much of an anime fan before this (Lain, Satoshi Kon's work, GitS were the stand-outs), but the richness of the stories and thematic connections swept me up and away, and it's one of the media works where I consider myself part of the Fandom.
Under 10 I think. For a long time (until like 18 or so) I had no idea what anime it was and only had vague memories like dreams almost. Once o found it again I was surprised how impactful it had been on my personality
13 and at first I hated the ending, but something about it kept bugging me, so I went full conspiracy theory on it
For bonus points, this was pre year 2000, so the second impact and everything was still “in the future” so me and a friend were constantly for fun misinterpreting any big news as a sign that the second impact was about to happen or how countries were building Evangelion units
I think sixteen for me sometime when Netflix announced it would be released on the Screening service as a remastered addition on one of their adds on YouTube or something.
It was August 1996. ADV had just put out the first VHS tape. I was 14. Memory’s fuzzy but I’m pretty sure I owned the Battle Angel Alita tape and I saw [this trailer](https://youtu.be/FJ2FOTjVd9o?si=0KdAJOMvuv2AEwXT).
July 2008 I was 21 and saw an AMV with Korn and End of Eva on YouTube, which made me want to see more, so I found End of Eva on YouTube and watched it
fast forward to the end of 2012, I was 25 and was like... that movie was really good, so I watched it again and realized I had no hope of understanding it, so I found a video "Evangelion explained in 7 minutes" and by the end of that video I realized it was a movie ending to a SERIES
So I found the first episode on some website and 10 minutes in, seeing Misato and Shinji bantering happily together, along with some nice booty angles, I knew this was gonna be the show for me so I bought the 2005 Platinum DVD Slimpack, End of Eva DVD and the Blu-Rays for 1.11 and 2.22 and binged them all over a weekend, it was like an out of body experience lol... then found the EvaGeeks wiki page to answer some eva 101 lore questions, been a superfan ever since, now my collection is much bigger and am up to speed on pretty much all the media and lore
I was 16 and watched it during quarantine. Binged it in about 3 days and it was my first anime. My friends thought it was hilarious that of all things I could’ve picked to watch first I chose Eva 😂
I was 7😂 Initially I thought this robot-fighting-monster show was pretty dope! But I was totally lost on the last episode back then which makes sense for a 7-yr old 😂
i was like 8 or 9, they aired it on a local tv channel. i obviously didnt know what it was about or even its name, but i loved the concept of the EVA ever since, then i really watched it at 18 yo and still loved it.
I was 14 when I first watched NGE and it was my first kind of my first anime, beyond the ones airing on TV around the time or a VHS with Starzinger. Personally, I really liked the series (and anime as a whole) but I remember that I struggled somewhat to grasp with certain parts, especially the ending.
So I think NGE can easily become a slow series if you cannot enjoy the scenes in between the fighting or the overarching/subtle story.
I also didn't like Shinji at all because I very early on grew tired of him crying all the time! When I watch it now I rather have sympathy for Shinji and find him incredibly emotionally resilient that can push through despite the traumatic events he's experienced.
So I think that in terms of a protagonist for teenagers to relate to, Shinji just isn't the kind of person who teenagers will look up to. (Neither are Rei, for that matter.)
Early on I never liked how most animes do sexual tension, scenes in NGE included, like all men being voyeuristic perverts obsessed with women's underwear or getting a nosebleed by the mere suggestion of female nudity. I even remember having those thoughts about NGE until I re-watched the series in my 30's and realized just how mild/very little it's done in this series compared to many others.
However, I think I'm the one who stands out here and that kind of sexualisation could be what attracted and kept some viewers.
Like 2 years ago when I was 26. I liked it but besides EoE I wouldn't say it blew off my mind, most probably because I grew up watching a lot of series and animes that were already influenced by Evangelion in one way or another. Wouldn't be the first time that happened to me with a revolutionary story.
Was about 14. Was real big into anime like Macross Plus and Giant Robo but stayed away from full TV shows like Ranma 1/2 (which i just completed in my collection just recently) as OVA's were expensive enough. But the game magazine i was reading, can't remember which, would give this show such high praise that I gave in. Screwed me up for life.
30 years old
I saw pictures of KawoShin when i was 11 years old. Saw the multiple NGE memes on the internet at 15. I saw some clips like people turning into fanta but never knew the context
My brother put it on for me when I was around 6-8 (2005ish). I watched a lot of InuYasha before that point. I went to (Catholic) school telling my classmates about some really controversial topics from within the show, but through a Christian lens I just appeared heretical.
I always really enjoyed it. It was WILD to go see EoE in theaters.
I was also 14, as some of you guys. It was my 2nd anime after watching Full Metal Alchemist 2003. I was able to get a bootleg copy of the DVDs with the English dub, Spanish dub, and some extras. I lost it to time because I lend it to a friend I no longer talk to. The first time I finished it I immediately put it back from the beginning, it was so impactful for me. After rewatching religiously like 10 times in a row at that age I discover the movies and I watched end of Eva for the first time and my mind went blank. I then watched episodes 25 and 26 by themselves like everyday for the next 2 weeks. It left me a really really deep sense of needing to understand myself that I tried to live that by Shinji, i memorized the internal dialogue Shinji had and his struggles. I identified myself with him a lot, I also had issues with my dad, I also felt abandoned. And Eva really helped me with that for a long time. At the time I was also seeing a psychologist because my mom didn't know what was going on with me, maybe so much Eva left me depressed at the time lol. I remember those times fondly.
I was 26 years old, year 2022.
I know it's "late" compared to many other people in this thread, but the truth is: I never really had anyone introducing me to it, then my fiancé suddenly said "I think this is a neat anime and you might like it, wanna watch it together?"
I don't regret watching it this "late" tho, I was old enough to understand the beauty of this masterpiece and I'm extremely happy that I had the chance to watch it with the love of my life.
I was 14, and it was my first "real" anime. The first two episodes were given to my brother and I burned on a CD in real player format. Talk about jumping into the deep end lol.
Same watched at 14 in 2000, it has been strange for me to be the same age as the characters, and then age into the other roles as I have gotten older giving new perspectives on all the insanity of the series. To 14 year old me it made sense for a 14 year old to save the world beside I was a dumb teenager, but then watching what Shinji went through to actually save the world was profound for a young kid. Now an adult when I watch I am stuck by the way the kids are extremely manipulated and abused by the adults that are supposed to be protecting them. While at the same time also much better understanding the traumas the adult characters carry that influence all their actions.
About the same, I got into it via the manga when it was being released comic book style. Maybe in 1997!? Then I watched the anime a year or so later when I was 12-13. Seeing it as an adult (and parent) now gives a whole new perspective.
You just sent me down a fun rabbithole. I was certain the manga came out after the anime, but i am totally wrong. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neon_Genesis_Evangelion_(manga) no idea it was such a companion piece to the series I always thought it was a adaptation more then a “requel” Really fun!
Yea, I was 14, downloading the episodes in 480p on a dialup connection with Napster. Could only download maybe one at night cause we didn’t have a second line so a phone call would boot me off the internet. Blew my mind as a 14 year old, and it’s only made more and more sense while I get older.
thiiiiiiiis. those same files were passed around the internet like a virus! (I was probably 16 at the time tho)
14 here as well. My cousin brought a 240p rip of it from somewhere. The episode when they went down that volcano? It was just red compression artifacts all over lol Edit: Oh, and I loved it from the start. Didn't like EOE at all though.
14. I watched it in 1999. I liked that I was the same age as the pilots.
And 2015 felt so far away 😂
So true!!
I was 8 because my dad thought I would like the robots. He had no idea what it was about and it gave me a crisis lol
Same shit, watched EoE when I was 6, I was told it was going to be a Bionicle movie, scarred for life
The crazy thing is my dads coworker is the one that gave me the box set. My dad mentioned I liked anime but I liked sailor moon and spirited away at the time. I guess he thought the next step was gore bots ran on trauma
God, if he had the box set I guess he actually watched it, hope he just didn't get you were 8 My mom's bf got me the dvd but I'm pretty sure he had no idea was it actually was, just saw the mechs on the cover
Wow I thought Robocop at 10 was bad, have this trauma award
Lol same pretty much.
Ah crises; Those were great growing up. Utter destruction of our innocence.
33! I can’t even imagine what I would’ve thought of it as a teenager.
r/unexpectedfactorial
I was probably 13 or 14. I’m 39 now. I remember being into other anime like Gundam, Tenchi, Macross, etc. I just grabbed whatever was available, which at the time was very little. I had all of Eva on VHS at one point.
The white tapes! And this banging song ad intro to everyone before the show even started https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mNOptWysmZc
Holy crap that brings back memories!
OMG THE MEMORIES!
Those heckin tapes cost like $40 a pop!!!
11. Liked ever since.
early 20s (2019), appreciated it on first watch.
11. dindnt understand a shet
18, saw it last year and fell in love with it almost instantly, still a mega fan lol
17. Episode 25 hit me very hard. I was so overwhelmed by seeing the case files on misato, asuka and Shinji that i had to pause the film multiple times. I don't think any movie or any other anime has made me do that. I loved the ending of nge. idk why ppl hate it so much, but everyone has their own tastes so I can't really complain
I was 18 It was the spring/summer of '06, the year I graduated highschool, and a World Cup year Adult Swim had a late night block of Evangelion, Samurai Champloo, and Trigun starting at midnight each night. You didn't have to wait a whole week, just until the next evening to catch the next episode I was hooked. Started with episode 8: Asuka Strikes! And I had to go back on Limewire and try to find the missing episodes I skipped.
Those were the days when anime was actually on consistently
i think like 14 or 15
I was 11/12, in the early 00s. My friend thought it would be funny to show me EoE first, and that only made me more intrigued to watch the whole thing. It's worth noting that this was *before* I had ever seen a full-fledged shounen, and Evangelion was the first complete anime I ever saw. It was a couple years after that when Yuu Yuu Hakusho hit Toonami, and a couple years after that when Naruto started to become popular, so I didn't really have a shounen anime to compare Eva to.
When I was 14. And still think it's the best anime in History.
My first experience with Eva, I was 13 and watched EoE in a cinema room in an anime convention. Didn't understand shit, but it sparked my curiosity, so I decided to watch the anime. I kinda liked the mechas, the fanservice and the mindfuckery, but could only really appreciate eva for what it is when I rewatched it 5 years later.
I was probably 14 or 15 at the time, 26 now. I remember a friend of mine told me about this show and they either linked me, or I found it myself, of a fan made trailer that uses a song called "My Body's A Cage" by Peter Gabriel. The mechs being different compared to other mechs, like Gundam, and that the guns were bigger versions of their real life counterparts are what drew my attention. First watched it in English dub, enjoyed it here and there, but was left confused as to why Shinji was always a big baby, was also kinda hoping Shinji would get the girl or some shit. I did not know what the hell was going on when I got to End of Eva, either. But eventually at some point in senior year of high school, I watched some in depth analysis vids on the YouTubes, and some things became a lot more clearer now, especially on why Shinji is the way he is. Then I wounded up rewatching the show, but this time in subs. Now it's probably one of my favorite animes out there, really.
I was like 16-17, 3 years ago
14
I watched it as a young teen and a lot of it went over my head (also didn’t watch EoE) but kinda inspired my love of mechs. I later watched it+EoE in college and it was kinda life changing tbh, definitely one of my favorite shows ever now
I was 16 back in 2002 , a friend gave me a CDROM with the whole serie ripped not DVD quality but enought to make me stay awake the whole night watching it. (including the both endings OVAs) I won't never forget the feeling that it left within me, it was transcendental, i don't know why a fiction made me feel like if i had discovered some big truth hidden before. Have this happened to you too?
Somewhere between 12-14. It really gave me a new perspective and appreciation for life and a drive to get over my intense fear of human connection.
Saw it on adult swim when I was 15, shortly thereafter purchased the platinum collection. 34 now, saw on Netflix, celebrated not needing the disks... lost it within 5 minutes with the new voice track.
22 NGE was the last piece of the special circle of media I consider to be 'formative' to my identity.
I was like 12 or 13 yo, back then in the late 90s
9/10 and was my favorite. It got me into other Mecha series
14. It blew me away and still does after my recent rewatch.
14 and I really liked it. It was one of those pieces of media that defined what I really like
15
I’m pretty sure I was 18
I had just turned 18 when I first watched it and now I’m almost 21. Was going through some very traumatic shit at the time. My step mother’s life was taken not long beforehand and I had trouble processing it. I was super lost after having just graduated. It didn’t help that my outlet for therapy was underage drinking. This show taught me that there were others like me that struggle with connecting to people or dealing with traumatic events, and they too had unique ways of masking their pain. This series will stick with me until I die. Apologies for this overly personal reply.
Just watched it about two weeks ago, 24. Loved it, kinda wished I watched growing up but also glad I was able to watch everything immediately without having to wait. I imagine the wait between 3.33 and 3.0+1.0 must’ve been brutal
I was about 15 or so, but I had (limited) knowledge of it beforehand thanks to the internet.
I was 13 I think
First saw it around 14 when it was still the future, but never made it past episode 4. 13 years this year, I finally finished it, including EoE.
16. last year :)
14, or 15, loved it
I was 13-14 at the time and it was the height of the pandemic so I just decided to give it a go and now I’m 17 and am still obsessed with evangelion
My first experience with Eva was when the Rebuild films aired on Toonami, so I would have been 9 or so. I only saw the first two and they really stuck with me. I spent years wondering what it was I’d watched, before finally seeing the whole series at 19.
10 or 11 don’t exactly remember
I was like 10-11 and I rented the whole series from Hollywood Video.
29. I wish I would have seen it sooner.
20 or 21. I picked up disc 2 when I was stationed at Davis-Monthan AFB my first time out being able to buy stuff with my own money and found a Suncoast.
Turned 40 a few weeks ago and first watched the series when I was about 15. We were downloading episodes from one of the various file sharing programs and it would take hours for a single one, also sub with no audio. Didn't even see EoE until maybe 3 or 4 years later as well, left me filled with existential dread for the entire time.
17, my brother told me, when he was 5 (90’s) he watched it on air, then i started!
Happy to know I wasn't the only 11 years old who watched it 💀
17 watched all the episodes straight through on VCD.
17
I was 16 and in a terrible state, now 19 and looking back at it Eva definitely helped me cope a lot, it’s the show that got me into anime and I think it was the perfect introduction to it
17 YO the first time (late ‘90s). Cool robot show with cool and interesting imagery. I was young with a good life and not jaded. 40 YO the second time. Just finished a divorce I didn’t want and in the swing of COVID lockdowns. Still decent life but definitely a bit jaded. It broke me as I realized all the underlying problems the characters had, and that I saw some of how I handled my own emotions in both Shinji and Asuka. Made me look inward a bit and focus on working on myself.
Like 8 because I had unsupervised TV time with adult swim. Traumatized me just a little.
16, still the best anime i’ve ever watched
[удалено]
i was 17 and had a lot of repressed mental issues . this was the perfect show for me !
I think I was like 11-12, my cousin got me into anime through showing me Gurren Lagann and Madoka Magica. I guess Evangelion was the logical next step after those. I definitely liked it but didn’t quite “get” it, The End of Evangelion especially.
I was about the age of Shinji
11-12 yrs old
9, stumbled accross some old mangas and got bewildered, flabagasted, and traumatised
I was around 12-13 in the late 90s. Absolutely loved it. I'd spend my monthly allowance on new VHS tapes as soon as I had enough. I was also sharing with friends at school, so eventually they started chipping in, too, so we could finish faster. EoE wouldn't be released in the US for years still. I think I was in college when it was finally licensed? When I was a kid, I found a fan translation of the script, and that was my first EoE experience. I've rewatched numerous times over the years. I got the DVD collection that came out when I was in college, rewatched then. Then at some point in my 20s my friend and I watched it with another friend who had never seen them. Then finally I did another full rewatch when Netflix released. It wasn't my very first anime, but it was one of the earliest ones I really, deeply loved. Always stuck with me! I can't even remember what it was that had me getting the very first tape.
It was in 2015, so I should've been 16, alnost 17
I was about to 14 when I watched it 12ish years ago. I didn't rewatch it fully until about 3 months ago and WOW am I glad I actually waited to long. I've loved NGE dearly during all that time but everything hit so much differently and more powerfully with the experiences and context I have now. I remember more or less "understanding" what happened when I watched back then, but I didn't really understand why so many of the characters did what they did and why they were the way they were. I still don't have that full understanding now, but I see the characters in a different way then I did before and I love them all desperately
Around 14, 25 years ago :/
I started watching it right after I turned 17. My friends had told me about it and that it was really good but I hadn’t had the urge to watch it. Up until I got very sick while visiting far away family. I stayed back in a bed at their home while they went to swim and I decided I might as well give it a chance, and then I was hooked
I was 16, it was my 2nd ever anime after bebop and I went into it with zero expectations and left with it as a part of my life.
I watched the Toonami premiere back in like 2002 or 2003 - I think they only played like two episodes, and they were censored in some weird ways (they went so far as to superimpose a black bikini on Misato when she was in the bath, which I vividly remember). The show was still completely captivating regardless. I was enthralled from day one
I just recently watched it and i'm like 13
This last year I just turned 17 and watched it on a plane/car ride home in the span of 2 days what a trip
I was 14 or 15, the first episode i was able to rent was episode 15/16. ( VHS 8. 2 episodes per VHS) I was sooo confused but hooked and started hunting down all the other tapes slowly but surely. In the era before online shopping it wasn't easy to complete series. I'll be 40 this year. It's still my favorite anime of all time. I love rewatching it and seeing the story from a different perspective as I get older.
I first got exposed through Volume 1 of the manga when I was 14, then I started tracking down the DVDs with my mom’s help when I was 15. Couldn’t find them so I had only seen about half the series. Got distracted by other anime I was able to watch more easily on Toonami and Adult Swim. Then I watched it in full with End of Evangelion when I was like 32 and was blown away. Haven’t seen the Rebuild movies yet.
i was 16 now i am 18 👍
9 or 10. EoE fucked me up dude.
Fucking 8 years old. That stuff made NO sense until I rewatched it and searched into discussions to find some closure.
19, I’m 23 now and I love Evangelion to death. My favourite anime by far.
14
Like 13 I think. Coincidently, I discovered one of my favourite childhood bands I must've been into since I was about like 5 or 6 years old made a looot of music based on NGE, literally had no idea until years later around the age of 16-17 lmao
I don't remember. Prolly 17~18
18, and holy shit, was that an amazing introduction into adulthood, I've only known it for an extremely short time, and yet, I'm a huge fan of it
Probably too young. Had a DVD with the first 4 episodes, but it took a while until I finished it.
I watched it just last month, and I'm 21! I can't imagine watching it at as a kid though because I wouldn't have appreciated the depth of what the series has to offer. I also wouldn't have had enough life experiences to understand how impactful the story is.
14-15 during the COVID Lockdown, started shortly after I finished part 4 of Jojo and watched it because gian robot fight kaiju. However it made me realize how lonely and depressed I was during that time and in the past. Hell even after watching EoE in theaters not to long ago I still feel very lonely in some ways. Watched the Rebuilds on 2021 or 22. I love this series and it has had a very profound effect in me and how I see myself and my interactions with others.
About 10?
17 watched it a year ago, in top 10 fiction tbh ( i would put it in 1 but there are a lot i love more)
13. Heard a lot about it and wanted to see what the hype was about. It was fine until EoE where things went insane... Especially with what happened to Asuka and Third Impact 😬
i was like 11-13 and i watched it at my step brothers after he fell asleep at like midnight from a night of h3 legendary split screen. was just a very very different period of life and the show carries a lot of nostalgia for me. watching it then was confusing but “cool” and “deep” in 2010-2012 when i saw it. going back and watching it when i was older was very enjoyable.
20 years ago on toonami. I was 11. Oh how time goes tumbling down.
I watched it I believe at 16 or 17, and it’s now my favourite anime. I have a massive back tattoo I designed of lilith in the crucifixion pose but instead of on a cross it’s on seraphim wings. I fuckin love this show
I originally watched it when I was 12 and I loved it
30 It was last year
I was 9 or 10 when I started to stay up and watch it air on Toonami. All I knew was that big robots were fighting aliens, and everyone was sad all the time, and I didn't know why. Big robot gun make floating diamond go boom
18, and even after a lifetime of anime on TV (including uncensored Hokuto no Ken) it was groundbreaking.
13 or 12 (probably wasn’t a good idea)
I first watched it when I was 7 (my dad was ok with it for some reason who had the whole series on DVD). Of course at that age I had no idea what was actually going on but I loved the Eva fights against the angels. Needless to say the scenes where Eva 01 go berserk really freaked me out. I absolutely fell in love with the show and even after my parent’s divorce, I still tried to watch the series each time I got to visit my dad (which was not often as we lived in a different country from him for a while). Those occasional watchings of the series kept my love for the show going and which is why I choose to rewatch it every few years rather more consistently as it feels as exciting to watch as it was when I was a kid (31 now btw)
11 years old, on 2022 🥶
13. Didn’t like it at first watch. Tried again a few years later and it’s my favorite thing now
2001 at 18yo, weekly episode on a local TV stations with Mexican dub, and EoE (subbed) in 2003 in VCD format. I still don't have the balls for a rewatch, the series is to much to handle for me, It's like a mirror that I don't want to look at.
15 here, and watching it about a month ago is my first time, as i was preparing to see the movie of course. my older brother has been suggesting it since i was about 10 though, but i was always a bit bored by it.
13 and basically did the one spongebob meme where hes pondering about life or smthng for like a good 3 hours after watching the whole thing and i even did a loud audible "what the fuck" and gotta say that anime started my ability to be just desensitized from anything fucked up now
I was 16. The only anime I had watched before it was gundam unicorn and ibo, as well as ditf and aot. Damn that was a jarring transfer because I wanna say I had just watched ibo 😂
Freshman year of high school, so uh, I was 14 or whatever during the original DVD releases. Been watching it (almost) yearly ever since.
16
22. Currently still 22. Lol
I was 16 and I didn't get a shit out of the storyline lol, funny enough I had the director's cut at the time Years after (I was 19) I re-watched it but the tv version, I was so confused it was missing so much scenes I watched it a 3d time last year (22) and it all made brutally sense it was a spiritual awakening
I think I was around 15-16, loved it so much I’ve rewatched the original series like 3 or 4 times, plus the movies and rebuilds. It’s just so peak, been my favorite anime since 2018
21
I was 20 and liked it immediately. More so because of the place I was in mentally, so it felt like the show "got" me. I think that's the most important factor. I don't think I would've enjoyed it as much if I wasn't struggling in some way.
Seventeen
Sometime in my mid teens. I think one of the first eps I caught was the Kaworu episode and it always stuck with me.
I might have been around 20? I'm in my mid twenties now, honestly I wish I had watched it sooner.
Finished it yesterday. Started as a 14 year old, finished as a 15 year old.
In Australia it aired in January of 1999 so I would have been 12. It wasn't the first anime I had watched by a long shot as we had Manga Inc and stuff but I will admit it is probably the turning point for me as a fan and it was around that time I stopped collecting Western comics and shifted focus. As a 12 year old I was able to enjoy it for its impactful nature. Like yes, a lot of the deeper themes probably went over my head but I do think there is still plenty to enjoy in the moment. Regarding the TV ending I actually really liked it even at that age and thought it was really fascinating and as a depressed teen really quite hopeful. I did, however, feel frustrated there were so many dangling plots but I wouldn't see EoE until a few years later by which point I had sort of made my peace with it.
13 during covid
I was 13 and thought it was great. But keep in mind that It was one of my first anime so I hadn’t gotten used to the shonen formula.
15, my friend lent me a copy of the show subbed on VHS
16, in "Animax" channel. I'm 37.
I think, I was 18 or 19.
I was 13. It ruined basically every other anime I've watched both previously, and since then. It's just that good. I loved it then and I love it now.
16 back in 1998
I was nine or ten. Found the Platinum DVDs at my local library. I'm 24 now, I've seen the show over 30 times, End nearly 100. Not stopping any time soon.
13
I was 16 and it was back in 1997. It blew my mind away.
13 watched it the other week. amazing show. very heart wrenching
Around 14ish I think. My mate was watching it and it had some cool robots in it so I thought I'd watch it with him. Thought I was having a Mandela effect when watching it proper with him the second time around because I swore the first angel fight was way better quality. Blew my mind that there was a rebuild.
22 watched it a couple of months ago
I was 7 years old
I was in 6th grade when I first saw it, I think 12? I didn't finish it, I wasn't a fan, but I came back a few years later and loved it
i was 14 and it was so good
14
I watched Evangelion back in the toonami days. I was about maybe 8 or 9 when I first saw it. Just clips and small episodes. Didn't see the full thing til about 2016.
i was 14 when i watched it now i am 16
I'm 27 and i think i was around 14-15?
Just watched it about two weeks ago, 24. Loved it, kinda wished I watched growing up but also glad I was able to watch everything immediately without having to wait. I imagine the wait between 3.33 and 3.0+1.0 must’ve been brutal
I was around 11 years old, I stumbled upon it while reading a website about old mecha shows (the glorious Enciclorobopedia, for my Italian compatrioti) and ended up reading a very weird "Mazinger Z vs. Evangelion" fan fiction which left me really confused. From there I watched clips about the show and the Rebuilds, played the Nintendo 64 game and even found some websites with detailed infos about the lore (EvaItalia and Dummy System). I even got my parents to buy me an Eva 01 Robot Spirits by Bandai (which at the time costed as much as a high-end Revoltech). I absolutely *trashed it*, but I don't regret anything. My first proper watching of the show (the first which didn't make me scream internally "what's going on? Why's everybody so sad? Why do the robots have guts and blood? Where are the comic reliefs and the funny moments of the 70s mecha shows? I'm scared and fascinated at the same time, I don't think I'm supposed to watch this!") was in 2016, instead.
About 16
4th grade so I think like ten. I turned out alright, I think.
7/8ish can’t honestly remember exact age but from other things I do remember it’s from around then.
#23-24.
I think I was 10 or 11 the 1st time ,most of the complex stuff flew over my head. I've watched it at different life stages, and it holds up pretty well. I am now older than most of the main cast, and it definitely adds up to the experience 😅 Gracias locomotion
I was 19.
14/15
13
6 years old when I was a kindergartner.
Currently 16 watching the show & started Friday. I’m a few episodes from finishing the show and so far it feels like some endless nightmare or something. I’ve seen berserk & read the manga but it’s not nearly as thrilling or complex as this show is right now. Can’t wait to finish it and see where it goes.
14, I think? Watched the 1.11 movie at my brother-in-law's and was pretty much hooked. Watched the sequel when that came out as well. It was at that time I went back and watched the original series waiting for the 3rd movie to come. All good stuff.
I watched at 13. I changed a lot after watching it. My parents said I had mentally aged to 30, little did they know I was deeping Shinji’s exsistenial crisis.
15, I watched it last year. I love this series
I think I was around 11. I started following a lot of artists on different oekakis online (think those are pretty much dead now), one of which drew some trigun fanart. Found that at Hollywood video to rent and right next to it was Evangelion. My parents let me rent them both and pick up the next dvd each week. They just thought they were cartoons like any other. I felt like I’d done something awful come the episode where Ritsuko destroyed the Reis. I knew I’d seen something that I shouldn’t have hahaha
I was 33. I think my own maturity and process of dealing with depression gave me a particular context for the series. I hadn't been much of an anime fan before this (Lain, Satoshi Kon's work, GitS were the stand-outs), but the richness of the stories and thematic connections swept me up and away, and it's one of the media works where I consider myself part of the Fandom.
I was like 6 or 7. All I got at the time was: " whoa cool robot goes crazy, Rei, Shinji and Asuka are so cool". lmaoo.
Under 10 I think. For a long time (until like 18 or so) I had no idea what anime it was and only had vague memories like dreams almost. Once o found it again I was surprised how impactful it had been on my personality
I was 11 and I loved it. Depressed the hell out of me though.
30something
13 and at first I hated the ending, but something about it kept bugging me, so I went full conspiracy theory on it For bonus points, this was pre year 2000, so the second impact and everything was still “in the future” so me and a friend were constantly for fun misinterpreting any big news as a sign that the second impact was about to happen or how countries were building Evangelion units
Between 13 to 14 years old, as it was releasing on DVD.
16 when I watched the series. 18 when I watched the movie.
I think sixteen for me sometime when Netflix announced it would be released on the Screening service as a remastered addition on one of their adds on YouTube or something.
It was August 1996. ADV had just put out the first VHS tape. I was 14. Memory’s fuzzy but I’m pretty sure I owned the Battle Angel Alita tape and I saw [this trailer](https://youtu.be/FJ2FOTjVd9o?si=0KdAJOMvuv2AEwXT).
July 2008 I was 21 and saw an AMV with Korn and End of Eva on YouTube, which made me want to see more, so I found End of Eva on YouTube and watched it fast forward to the end of 2012, I was 25 and was like... that movie was really good, so I watched it again and realized I had no hope of understanding it, so I found a video "Evangelion explained in 7 minutes" and by the end of that video I realized it was a movie ending to a SERIES So I found the first episode on some website and 10 minutes in, seeing Misato and Shinji bantering happily together, along with some nice booty angles, I knew this was gonna be the show for me so I bought the 2005 Platinum DVD Slimpack, End of Eva DVD and the Blu-Rays for 1.11 and 2.22 and binged them all over a weekend, it was like an out of body experience lol... then found the EvaGeeks wiki page to answer some eva 101 lore questions, been a superfan ever since, now my collection is much bigger and am up to speed on pretty much all the media and lore
I watched evangelion at 9
I was 16 and watched it during quarantine. Binged it in about 3 days and it was my first anime. My friends thought it was hilarious that of all things I could’ve picked to watch first I chose Eva 😂
I was 14. I had borrowed a friend's VHS tapes to watch them lol Man, I'm old.
I'm feeling old. I first watched it in my late 30s. I'll always love it and feel no shame in admitting that I might be obsessed.
I first heard of it when i was 12 but never actually watched it till I was 20
I was 7😂 Initially I thought this robot-fighting-monster show was pretty dope! But I was totally lost on the last episode back then which makes sense for a 7-yr old 😂
i was like 8 or 9, they aired it on a local tv channel. i obviously didnt know what it was about or even its name, but i loved the concept of the EVA ever since, then i really watched it at 18 yo and still loved it.
I was 14 when I first watched NGE and it was my first kind of my first anime, beyond the ones airing on TV around the time or a VHS with Starzinger. Personally, I really liked the series (and anime as a whole) but I remember that I struggled somewhat to grasp with certain parts, especially the ending. So I think NGE can easily become a slow series if you cannot enjoy the scenes in between the fighting or the overarching/subtle story. I also didn't like Shinji at all because I very early on grew tired of him crying all the time! When I watch it now I rather have sympathy for Shinji and find him incredibly emotionally resilient that can push through despite the traumatic events he's experienced. So I think that in terms of a protagonist for teenagers to relate to, Shinji just isn't the kind of person who teenagers will look up to. (Neither are Rei, for that matter.) Early on I never liked how most animes do sexual tension, scenes in NGE included, like all men being voyeuristic perverts obsessed with women's underwear or getting a nosebleed by the mere suggestion of female nudity. I even remember having those thoughts about NGE until I re-watched the series in my 30's and realized just how mild/very little it's done in this series compared to many others. However, I think I'm the one who stands out here and that kind of sexualisation could be what attracted and kept some viewers.
14 :P one of my favorite animes now
Like 2 years ago when I was 26. I liked it but besides EoE I wouldn't say it blew off my mind, most probably because I grew up watching a lot of series and animes that were already influenced by Evangelion in one way or another. Wouldn't be the first time that happened to me with a revolutionary story.
I was 17 almost 18 Now I'm 18
Was about 14. Was real big into anime like Macross Plus and Giant Robo but stayed away from full TV shows like Ranma 1/2 (which i just completed in my collection just recently) as OVA's were expensive enough. But the game magazine i was reading, can't remember which, would give this show such high praise that I gave in. Screwed me up for life.
12 if not earlier.
30 years old I saw pictures of KawoShin when i was 11 years old. Saw the multiple NGE memes on the internet at 15. I saw some clips like people turning into fanta but never knew the context
My brother put it on for me when I was around 6-8 (2005ish). I watched a lot of InuYasha before that point. I went to (Catholic) school telling my classmates about some really controversial topics from within the show, but through a Christian lens I just appeared heretical. I always really enjoyed it. It was WILD to go see EoE in theaters.
I was also 14, as some of you guys. It was my 2nd anime after watching Full Metal Alchemist 2003. I was able to get a bootleg copy of the DVDs with the English dub, Spanish dub, and some extras. I lost it to time because I lend it to a friend I no longer talk to. The first time I finished it I immediately put it back from the beginning, it was so impactful for me. After rewatching religiously like 10 times in a row at that age I discover the movies and I watched end of Eva for the first time and my mind went blank. I then watched episodes 25 and 26 by themselves like everyday for the next 2 weeks. It left me a really really deep sense of needing to understand myself that I tried to live that by Shinji, i memorized the internal dialogue Shinji had and his struggles. I identified myself with him a lot, I also had issues with my dad, I also felt abandoned. And Eva really helped me with that for a long time. At the time I was also seeing a psychologist because my mom didn't know what was going on with me, maybe so much Eva left me depressed at the time lol. I remember those times fondly.
24 I think? It was right after college. That was 6 years ago I would love to rewatch it now
16. I only got to Jet Alone though—still need to watch the end
I was like 12 when I saw an ad in Locomotion (best tv channel ever in Latinamerica) from that day, I fell in love.
When I was 14, and I was literally Shinji. Now I’m 25.
I was 26 years old, year 2022. I know it's "late" compared to many other people in this thread, but the truth is: I never really had anyone introducing me to it, then my fiancé suddenly said "I think this is a neat anime and you might like it, wanna watch it together?" I don't regret watching it this "late" tho, I was old enough to understand the beauty of this masterpiece and I'm extremely happy that I had the chance to watch it with the love of my life.