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View Full Version : "Evangelion Cronicle" mini review


Dan
August 1st, 2006, 03:34 AM
Ok, so I wasn't initially the least interested with the new "Evangelion Cronicle" releases, mainly because I cant see any further releases of anything having to do with Evangelion to be in the least relevant, or more of the same more liscenced products with little importance.

But I caved. There are now 3 volumes of EC out, along with its suggested binder, and having bought all 4 of these this afternoon, I'm actually not unhappy with my purchase.

So basically the EC booklets are very slim and look like excerpts from a fairly detailed fan guide (and I mean FOR fans, not BY), which is exactly what they are. Im assuming you all know the basic about these, that they're supposed to be the end-all of the official Eva encyclopedia. It looks, although I havent read them thouroughly, that they have lots of information covering every nook and cranny of the Eva world.

This is divided into 7 sections:
Characters - obvious ones, but also those in the background, vol. 1 has the section for Shinji as well as "NERV Female Operators" (not Maya)

Mechanics - Basically fold out posters of one Eva at a time so far with lots of info

Tactics - sort of hard and easy to describe at the same time, literally tactics that occured in the series, vol. 1 has Sachiel's path into Japan and what NERV/UN did.

Timeline - more fold out posters, each timeline is centered on ONE event, not an overall timeline vol. 1 is Second Impact, vol. 2 has the creation of NERV, and strangely vol 3 has a "timeline" of episode 1. I dont get the point of that one.

Installation - I kind of dont get this one, but its about the setup of where things are and how they operate.

Technology - all the gadgets and etc.

Extra - this is actually is a few sections...
i) Glossary - maybe even better than the EoE film program! Lots of idiosyncrasies to be found here, my only annoyance with this part is that its in Japanese alphabetical order... which means "R-07" (the floor our young protagonists break into while power is out in Tokyo-3), "ICC" (the parody of UCC coffee), and "Aida Kensuke" are all on the same page, under "あ". I understand why, but its still a little annoying.

ii) Planning Documents - kinda neat, info on the conception of the series

iii) Topics - currently my favorite, should be called "collectables", because so far all it is, which is what Ive been wanting to do for years. Its collected info on Eva collectables by type of item, so far CDs, LDs, and Manga. It also makes me proud when I know I own most of these :shifty:

Ok, well I hope that helped anyone considering importing these or something. I personally plan to buy the whole lot of them on ebay or something once they're all released (what, next year?) Still, pretty well done to my delight. Im sure if I ever get around to writing down what they say (and not just reading them) we may eek out a gem or two of useful info, but these are kinda more "technical otaku" stuff than earth-shattering revelations.

In case anyone has any further interest with these, I'm happy to help as much as I can.

Vaikyuko
August 1st, 2006, 07:06 AM
Just curious, but how much production lineart exists of the EVAs in them? I could probably find said art elsewhere, but if there's some unique stuff only in EC, I'd like to know, if possible. Thanks for the review too, Dan. :P

Dan
August 1st, 2006, 07:24 AM
Just curious, but how much production lineart exists of the EVAs in them? I could probably find said art elsewhere, but if there's some unique stuff only in EC, I'd like to know, if possible. Thanks for the review too, Dan. :P

Do you mean like concept sketches or settings? If its concept sketches, there are none, but each section on the Evas has typical settings for them. Also the Eva sections double as a mini poster if you really want them to. But these are really more of an encyclopedia than an artbook, so if thats what you're looking for, this unfortunately isnt the right place.

For more detailed settings, Mandarake has one of the Eva settings books for sale right now. And you probably know about the "Groundwork" books, but for anyone who doesnt, buy them now. They are amazing. Otherwise, the Newtype collection might be your best bet. Hope this helps!

Reichu
August 1st, 2006, 08:04 AM
"Eva settings books"?

Vaikyuko
August 1st, 2006, 11:52 AM
Ah, thanks for the clarification, Dan, I appreciate it. ^_^

Dan
August 2nd, 2006, 08:07 AM
I dont think this violates the TOS since this book is way out of print, so here it is in case you are interested, Treize X. This is all line art, probably right up your alley, and its pretty uncommon, so a good collectable, too.

http://ekizo.mandarake.co.jp/shop/en/search.do?action=itemInfo&selectedItemIndex=60977&dt=1154530948449

To answer """Eva settings books"?", as far as I know there are two books released with Evangelion's settings, fairly uncommon aside from probably Yahoo Japan. These, along with the storyboard books pretty much made accessible copies of Eva's technical production material, which is usually only attainable for most series through random auctions on mandarake, so they're certainly a welcome addition to the Eva library.

Reichu
August 2nd, 2006, 08:13 AM
I didn't know what you meant by "settings" (still don't, truth to tell), but I actually do have both of those. Nothing really new if you already have Newtype 100%, but printed bigger (obviously).

Dan
August 2nd, 2006, 08:16 AM
"settei" when used in terms of anime means "settings", refering to reference material line drawings.

Vaikyuko
August 2nd, 2006, 11:48 AM
Ooh, pretty. I need to get myself a job so I can pay for all this crap I make note to buy. Thanks again.