In late February, Episode 9 of 'Neon Genesis Evangelion' aired.
This episode could be called a major turning point for the entire series.
Up until now, even though we'd seen berserk EVAs, brutal fights, and tons of gore, the male lead Shinji Ikari had only ever fought mysterious, otherworldly beings — the "Angels."
But in this episode, the Fourth Child appeared — and much of the runtime focused on Shinji's friendship with his good buddy Toji Suzuhara.
There were scenes exploring Toji's relationship with his family, too.
And sure enough, just as everyone had predicted, Toji was revealed to be the Fourth Child.
And again, as predicted, his first test with EVA Unit-03 ends in disaster. Unit-03 goes berserk.
In response, Rei Ayanami and Shinji are sent out to intercept the rampaging EVA.
And then things take a dark turn.
Shinji is unable to bring himself to attack Unit-03, knowing there's a person inside. His father, Gendo Ikari, seeing this hesitation, immediately activates the Dummy Plug system, forcibly seizing control of Unit-01.
This forces Shinji to watch helplessly from inside the cockpit as Unit-01 proceeds to tear apart Unit-03.
Blood and gore fill the screen. And in the final scene, Shinji sees what's left of his best friend Toji — brutally mangled, pulled from the wreckage.
The show's dark and oppressive tone rears its head once more.
Even the viewers, not just Shinji, found this unbearable.
It was too much.
After the episode aired, fans exploded with discussion.
"Holy crap… that was way too graphic."
"If kids watch this episode, they're gonna have nightmares."
"Jing Yu, you sick bastard. That was brutal."
"But this time, I'm on the protagonist's side. Seriously, who could kill their own best friend?!"
"Exactly! And then they cut off Shinji's control and made him watch as Unit-01 killed his best friend — what the hell is that?!"
"But... this is how military ops work. Kindness and hesitation can lead to worse consequences."
"I get that. But in this series? Who's even the good guy? Which organization does Shinji belong to? The government? Everyone has hidden agendas. Shinji, Rei, Asuka — they're all just kids being manipulated. 'Protecting humanity' is just a slogan. You saw the foreshadowing — everyone's in it for themselves. And Gendo? Two episodes ago, we saw he had a live Angel locked in the basement of the base."
"That Angel is dead, right?"
"No way. It's just nailed to a wall with a spear. I bet the second you pull it out or feed it energy, it'll be back up like nothing happened."
"Honestly, Shinji's been through hell. I've roasted him before — and I still will — but I've pretty much roasted everyone in this show. Rei just blindly worships Gendo for no reason. Anytime he and Shinji clash, she acts all smug like 'you just don't understand Commander Ikari.' That's honestly the most annoying part about her for me."
"Asuka is just a brat, but at least she's consistent. Misato, though? She's the only one who acts like a functioning adult. She's intelligent, mature, and her actions make sense. But Gendo? That guy's the worst. No sense of responsibility at all. Has a son but acts like he's raising a wild animal. The moment Shinji hesitates in battle, all he says is: 'Are you running away again?' Like — WTF man? All you do is emotionally manipulate him! If you're going to sacrifice your kid for humanity, at least show some damn emotion. But no, Gendo just uses him like a tool for his shady little goals. Can't he say even a single human sentence to his own son?"
"Okay, okay, calm down. Gendo's messed up, sure, but maybe not that dumb…"
"This show is incredible. The characters are so well written that they actually piss me off. People say Shinji is the weakest male lead Jing Yu has ever played, and I don't even disagree — but honestly, if I were in his shoes, I wouldn't do any better. Everyone in this world is messed up. No wonder he resists piloting Unit-01."
"What really makes me mad is how powerless he is to change anything. He's forced into battle, used as a pawn, then emotionally blackmailed when he wants to quit. Like, 'You're abandoning humanity!' — as if it's all on him."
"Just keep watching. Eventually, we'll find out what Gendo's shady Human Instrumentality Project really is. Whether he's good or evil depends on his end goal. But from what we've seen so far, the way he's doing things is already messed up. If his goal turns out to be twisted too, then yeah, he's the final boss of this series."
After episode 9 aired, the ratings ticked up again — by 0.13%.
This episode fully unveiled the dark heart of 'Neon Genesis Evangelion'.
Some felt the story had finally reached a realistic tone. Not every show needed a bright, happy ending where the protagonist sacrifices everything for humanity.
Most viewers were still furiously roasting Shinji online — but at the same time, they resonated deeply with his choices.
Yes, the protagonist is immature.
Yes, he's weak.
Yes, he's frustrating.
But given his circumstances, who wouldn't break down?
In contrast, every adult in this show — those so-called defenders of humanity — is a shifty, manipulative schemer, each pursuing their own agenda. You could practically smell the hypocrisy.
It's fair to say that 'Neon Genesis Evangelion' had now officially veered into unpredictable territory.
Is the story "cool"?
The fight scenes are flawless.
But the better the battles look, the heavier the story feels afterward.
Each Angel battle isn't just an action sequence — it's a reflection of Shinji's internal struggle and emotional collapse.
The next day, media outlets across Great Zhou's film and TV industry published a wave of commentary analyzing episode 9.
Many critics who previously thought 'Neon Genesis Evangelion' was just all flash and budget hype began to reconsider.
Media articles dove deep into the show's symbolism, character arcs, and psychological themes.
Meanwhile, hardcore fans on video platforms were re-watching the first eight episodes, combing through for clues and hidden foreshadowing.
Some fan theories about the plot would attract over 100,000 comments.
The influence of the show was now snowballing across the country.
As February drew to a close, March arrived.