#Rei x Shinji

[autistic-ben-tennyson]

In Defense of Shinji/Rei

Out of all the pairings in the Evangelion fandom, Shinji/Rei is one of the most controversial and least popular, especially here on tumblr. It did have some popularity at one point but that has died down in favor of Kawoshin and Asurei. It’s a ship that I, and many others, feel is often mischaracterized and dismissed due to its more controversial elements but one that is honestly very emotional and deserves less hate in my opinion, as do it’s shippers who people also have a misguided view of. Fandom in general has become more moralistic and puritanical in recent years. It’s like no one learned a thing from the SU fandom discourse where people were bullied or called homophobic for liking a certain pairing over the other.

Argument 1: she’s his mother/sister

The most common criticism of the pairing is that it’s incest and that their relationship is that of a brother-sister or mother-son. First, Rei’s whole arc in the show is that she’s not just a clone or copy of Yui or Lilith. She’s her own person with her own desires which is why her loyalty to Gendo wanes as she becomes more of an individual. Her DNA also isn’t that similar to Shinji and only a small amount of Yui’s was used. The rest was affected by Lilith hence the differences in their appearance. So there is a little bit of blood relation but it’s not on the same level of say Bwen or Pinecest. Incest is terrible because it’s a betrayal of family trust and abuse but Shinji and Rei met as teens and were not raised as siblings, nor did he know of her origin until Ritsuko explained it.

I’ve also seen the argument that their bond is sibling-like or Shinji views her as a Madonna/mother figure. Anno has stated that he intended there to be a “love triangle” with the pilot trio and show’s proposal described Rei as having “learned about feelings when she fell in love”. While that info comes from Reddit and may not be reliable, it does challenge the idea that there was no intention for their dynamic to be romantic.

Next, antis really take that elevator scene out of context where Shinji was complimenting her on being like a mom while ignoring him telling her she’d make a good housewife. The rebuilds and manga make their connection more blatant but it was always there. Misato, Toji and Kensuke all tease Shinji about his crush and the two act as friends after warming up despite their icy first interactions. There may be some maternal aspects to it but it’s rather simplistic to dumb their bond down to a family connection. It seems antis argue that they’re siblings because the romantic implications are uncomfortable and antis don’t want to admit that they do have feelings for each other.

Argument 2: it’s misogynistic and queer erasure

Okay, this is a less common argument against it but one I’ve seen from popular Eva analysis writers that view Kawoshin as the only valid pairing for Shinji. I’ve seen it used against Asushin and Marishin too. This goes hand and hand with the idea that Shinji views Rei as a Madonna and is misogynistic. I have a lot of thoughts about the “Shinji is an incel misogynist and Asuka did nothing wrong” discourse but that’s for another day. He’s not a perfect uwu soft boy but fans seem to base his entire characterization off the hospital scene in rather single issue Eva analyses that cherry-pick certain scenes or dialogue.

The argument that it’s queer erasure is one I’m starting to despise. Yes, there are homophobic dudebro fans who hate Kawoshin but not everyone who prefers a “straight” pairing is anti gay. Shinji could still be bisexual and be in a m/f relationship. I’ve also seen some ship him in a polycule with Rei and Kaworu. Plus, not everyone has to interpret the show or character the same way. The writers made it so people can view Kawoshin as romantic and Shinji as queer, but never demanded that be the only possible interpretation.

This kind reminds me of something I’ve occasionally seen in the Ben 10 fandom too. A few fans, not all of them, treating the wholesome gay ship as the only good pairing because of the problematic elements in the m/f ships or because they view the male protagonist as a misogynist. The “male character is sexist or a bad boyfriend so let’s make him gay” is also a fandom trope that kind of irritates me. Not every ship has be gay or a girlboss romance either.

Argument 3: they’re kids and you can’t ship them

This is one of the least common criticisms but one that I’ve occasionally encountered. First, they’re 14 which is around the time a lot of teens start dating. Second, romance =/= sex and child/teen characters can have romantic feelings for each other. Yes, ship wars over fictional kids can escalate but there’s nothing wrong with just liking a pairing. This post about Chihiro and Haku’s bond from Spirited Away kind of applies here too.

My thoughts: why do I love this pairing?

I first fell in love with this ship because I watched the rebuilds first on Amazon Prime and didn’t know the series was on Netflix because my account, embarrassingly, still has parental controls on it. I know they’re not everyone’s cup of tea but I liked them. Shinji was a character I really connected to and so was Rei. Their relationship got me a bit emotional and the scene where Shinji attempts to save her had me on the edge of my seat, while the scene where Shinji accepts Rei Q got a tear out of me as did the apology scene in 3.0+1.0.

If I had to compare them to any other pairing, which I’ve done before, it would be Hodaka/Hina from Weathering with You which also is a bit divisive and a bit of a tearjerker. Ironically, EoE is one of Makoto Shinkai’s favorites and he considers Anno an inspiration. Everything from their bond to Hodaka’s character and Hina’s arc of a blue haired girl, blackish-blue in Hina’s case, that’s lived a difficult life and who’s only purpose is to be a sacrificial lamb, learning to pray for herself is a lot like Shinji/Rei, down the ending of WWY being a lot like that of 2.22. The scene where Hodaka gives Hina a promise ring is also a little like the “smile” moment from Episode 6/1.11.

Conclusion

In short, Shinji/Rei isn’t a bad pairing and is overhated and misrepresented by many in the fandom. It’s fine to dislike it or prefer another ship but one can do so without chomping at the bit to paint its shippers as homophobes, misogynists or people with incest fetishes or Oedipal complexes. Many of us like it because it’s one of the least toxic relationships in the series and is honestly a very powerful story. Are there some questionable elements in it? Sure, but you can like a ship even if it’s not up to golden moral standards and expecting every pairing to be unproblematic is ridiculous. Real life is much more grey than what moralistic fans claim.

[araninara]

Made my previous into one post so it can be a little neater. Mostly copy pasted.

Ah. Finallh watched all of Evangelion Franchise (except NG:Death&ReBirth) and I-

I- feel so empty. Not in a depressed way, but more like "I can't finally understand now what they've been feeling and I can relate" and that's the thing that shocked me the most. I CAN relate. Especially to Asuka. And Shinji. He's actually one of my fav character of the series. And how many times did I questioned myself and others like Rei. Damn.

I want to erase my memory and re-watch it so bad. But I wish to have seen it sooner. But I regret also seeing it. I should probably sleep.

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It's been half a hour since watching it and I feel like. I don't remember anything from the series. The memories are in my mind but. I just can't process it. Either I'm to sleep deprivated (I doubt that's the case), I didn't let each part/episodes sink in, or my brain is willingly cutting it from my thought.

I should see a therapist.

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Watched analyse videos because my brain is too foggy to think and. I understand now. Thank you Evangelion, Thank you Anno.

The brain fogginess I had all this years is starting to disappear. My sadness too. I think now I know how to heal myself.

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Anyway I can't believe glasses girl is end-games. She's literally childhood friend w/ his dad man

Kawoshin is so sweet and gay but I smell possible co-dependency (idk)

Rip (toxic?) Asushin. But it was for the better T^T (at least their prob together in EoE)

Weird non-incest incest Reishin even tho strong bond

Well I think I'm finished.

Thanks for comming to my Ted Talk.

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After Re-reading I feel like I was on drug haha

I can't believe I just re-dived into escapism w/ that last one ._ .

[wiya-nagisa]

[moog-enthusiast]

asuhika (ft the three stooges & kawoshin)

[daughter-of-sapph0]

enjoy this stupid meme I made

reisuka source, kaworshin source

[happyfunf3tti]

i like them a lot

[mikokiara]

I am barely on episode 7 but like is this alright

[alpacanome]

Rei

[ambervisualartist]

Super cute official Evangelion art from the back of a pack of stickers. I scanned these because I thought others might appreciate. :]

[rolling-dumpling]

evangelion movie permanently damaged me

[autistic-ben-tennyson]

Additional Reishin Thoughts

I’ve been thinking about my OTP again and why it’s so hated by the fandom. One misconception I think a lot of people have is that it’s the “easy” ship compared to Asushin and that it would be a submissive tradwife marriage. Rei still challenges Shinji to not just run away, grow up and learn to love himself and challenges his worldview of demanding validation from others by calling him out for never trying to understand anyone else.

People who claim it’s incest ignore that in 3.33, Shinji wasn’t really upset about Rei’s origins, just that he failed to save the Rei he knew. Rei is sort of a metaphor for acceptance. Shinji accepts that Rei Q is still Rei even if she doesn’t have all her memories and him learning about her origins is less to squick people out and more a lesson about how you can’t have the good without the bad when it comes to people you care for.

I think some people are projecting their issues with traditional families onto this pairing and their feminist critiques are actually quite demeaning to Rei. Her whole arc is about breaking free and proving she’s not just Gendo’s replacement goldfish. I don’t think she’d be a submissive tradwife and is perfectly capable of holding her own. Shinji has his flaws but he respects her and wouldn’t treat her like a 50s housewife. I think a lot of people let their disgust towards this ship get in the way of understanding what it is and ignore the beauty of it.

What makes it appealing to me is that it’s the story of two lonely kids helping each other grow and face both internal and external challenges and gaining a deep emotional understanding. I respect people who prefer Asushin or Kawoshin for whatever reasons they have. I just wish that same respect could be afforded back.

[wiya-nagisa]

💘🌠

[seeds-of-life-daily]

Day 44 Sorry for pikminposting again but this was important

[lemonsandwisdom]

Some old nge art that I still really like

[happyfunf3tti]

*interest check*

would you guys be interested in buying these fellas after the other plush set? they're all going on a double date :3