Quote:
Originally Posted by ACGalaga
Who cares whether it's 'like Eva' in those aspects. (The main character is way less emo)
|
You missed the point of the comparison. Ignoring all the religious aspects and technobabble, the real point of Eva was "what makes a human, a human?" Is it the mind, or the body, or the emotions, or the gender, or the sense of self? When forced to make a choice between a complete merging of existence to a world of no pain or suffering, where everything and everyone is the same, Shinji rejects it. In his realization, what makes life important is that while everyone shares struggles, hopes, and fears, joys, those same things also make them who they are, and affirm their existence. Through struggle you learn, grow, and live. A life with nothing to be, do, or future isn't life - it's just existing for the sake of existing.
So when I'm comparing the Colloid, the concept of the sea of AT is basically the same, while also comparing the idea explored in Blue Gender, where the planet itself is rejecting the path humanity has taken. In this context you can extrapolate where the Colloid, a "thing" that is essentially a mutated virus, can be considered a mix of both these concepts.
What I dislike about the Colloid is that the elements of the story it is relevant to are superficial. The avatar of the Colloid, Maya, seems to me as being very manipulative. I do not believe he cares about the goals he preaches about to the characters. Instead it feels like he preys upon the emotions of humans to feed his creature. The concept of self is there, but demonstrated in simple ways - loved ones appearing, pseudo religion forming around it, the slow withering of sense of self into basic shared data.
The beginning of the manga was far more interesting because the story was tightly packed with character growth and strong plot. Once the story started expanding to include the Colloid it left the realm of "Read compelling stories of difficult struggles with morality and what it means to be human in a world at the end of its days" and went into "biological computer virus seeks to create a universe in itself while main characters are all affected by it in some way."
And yes, Shinji is damn emo.
