#people will just centre rei and asuka’s trauma around shinji and then call the show misogynistic for that like.

[proudfreakmetarusonniku]

like i see people say stuff like “rei is a deconstruction of the idea of like the perfect girl in a male gaze-y way” and and i'm ready to agree until they go “it’s because she’s creepy and weird and bad!” like no. rei's a deconstruction of misogynistic ideas of womanhood because they’re ideals forced upon her that damage her, not because she’s in any way “creepy”. like, the fact she’s a fourteen year old girl who was basically used as a substitute wife by her father bc she looked like his own dead wife is not something that is meant to make rei look bad like holy shit.

like both rei and asuka are very obviously like. showing fantasised and misogynistic ideas of an idealised woman don’t work irl yeah. shinji's misogynistic view of them is wrong. but that’s not because rei and asuka are bad people it’s because like. “fourteen year old who's flirty and seductive” and “fourteen year old who's a quiet obedient object” are major signs of abuse and trauma and anyone actually acting in those ways at that age clearly isn’t normal. asuka is desperate for attention in any way she can get it, even unhealthy and dangerous ways. rei is at the very least I has a weird pseudo-incestous enmeshment filled abusive relationship with her father, even if she's not actively being sexually abused. asuka is seeking support, rei is a grooming victim. these are not things that are flaws in their character the entire point of subverting the expectations is to show how those expectations are unhealthy to rei and asuka like. god.

#like. negative fucking media literacy. #like. rei and asuka show signs of abuse in ways very normal for teenagers #every one of the Children in Evangelion is a victim and they react in messy ways #the point of that isn’t to show that they themselves are bad. it’s to show how trauma fucks you up #like none of them are bad people! they do fucked up shit bc it’s normalised to them! #people will just centre rei and asuka’s trauma around shinji and then call the show misogynistic for that like. #woah pal. there’s issues in the show yeah but i think that’s more an issue on your end buckaroo. #like their trauma interacts with him. and his trauma interacts with them. bc the show is literally about human's influences on each other #like the human instrumentality project isn’t there to just be funny it’s a thematic conclusion??? #and also like. it’s comparing and contrasting all threes trauma to understand exactly how they got shaped the way they are. #just. think about the show you’re watching. please. #rei isn’t creepy she’s a schizophrenic abuse victim who's probably done the least screwed up shit out of the main cast #shinji isn’t a loser he's a heavily mentally ill young boy cracking under the pressure of toxic masculinity and having his boundaries erode #until he's unable to even respect the boundaries of others and recreates his trauma for a desperate attempt at control #asuka isn’t like. okay i mean she IS a bitch but literally so is every thirteen year old ok. #and it’s bc she fucking despises the vulnerability being kind shows. she despises herself and is overcompensating bc she’s scared and 13 #like. god.