Netflix Announces 'Neon Genesis Evangelion' Premiere Date

Netflix is expanding the reach into anime distribution and licensing that it began last year, and [...]

By Nick Valdez

Netflix is expanding the reach into anime distribution and licensing that it began last year, and one of the biggest announcements has been the licensing of the prolific Neon Genesis Evangelion series. This series has been in the midst of a licensing and distribution limbo for a long time, and now fans have an easier and legal way to finally jump into the series in full.

After starting a special countdown hyping up the reveal of its premiere date, Netflix has officially confirmed Neon Genesis Evangelion will be streaming on Netflix beginning on June 21.

The original announcement for the series' acquisition revealed that not only will the 26 episode original series be available on Netflix, the films Evangelion: Death True 2 (Death & Rebirth) and The End of Evangelion will be on the service as well. These are crucial parts of the franchise experience, so it's great to see these as part of the new Netflix deal as well.

There is no currently no word on the series' English dub, which could be seeing an all new cast behind it. The original dub cast has petitioned to join the new cast of the series, but nothing has been officially confirmed or denied as of this writing. Unfortunately the all-too-brief teaser for the premiere did not reveal much beyond its date.

Neon Genesis Evangelion is a psychological drama by way of giant monster versus mech anime. The franchise debuted as a television series in 1995-1996 with two films following in 1997. Neon Genesis Evangelion: Death & Rebirth is an one-part drastically abridged retelling of the first 24 episodes of the television series, and one part new animation. The End of Evangelion, the second film, would incorporate some of Death & Rebirth's original animation and offer an alternate take on the original series' controversial final two episodes.

The series follows Shinji Ikari, who is recruited by his father to pilot the giant mech Evangelion in the fight against giant monsters known as Angels in the futuristic city of Tokyo-3. But Shinji is unwilling to bear this huge responsibility and is often conflicted about taking part in a war he was dragged into. This conflict of emotions leads to many introspective episodes that cover the range of religious, philosophical, and existential concepts.

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