Shinji Ikari Neon Genesis Evangelion - Nendoroid

Ever since the release of Neon Genesis Evangelion in 1995, the Evangelion series has become renowned for its unique storytelling and in-depth exploration of its characters' psyche. While the minds of other characters are certainly explored as well, none other are analyzed as much as the series' protagonist, Shinji Ikari. Many fans consider Shinji to be a weakling with no confidence, he nonetheless amassed a large following with many who desire to collect merchandise of Shinji and other Evangelion characters. One such form of merchandise that fans desire includes Good Smile Company's Nendoroid figures, which are known for their variety, chibi style designs, and affordability. As such, fans were delighted with the releases of the "Nendoroid Rebuild of Evangelion Shinji Ikari" and the "Nendoroid Rebuild of Evangelion Shinji Ikari: Plugsuit Ver.".

Nendoroid Rebuild of Evangelion Shinji Ikari

This figure of Shinji features him in his middle school uniform, which consists of a black undershirt, a white, short-sleeved button-up shirt, a pair of black pants with a brown belt, and a pair of white shoes. The articulation in this figure, along with the extra accessories, let owners recreate a variety of different poses from the original series. Some of these additional parts include interchangeable arms and legs, a bag, a backpack, his portable music player, and three different face plates to swap Shinji's expression.

Manufacturer: Good Smile Company
Sculptor: Design COCO
Specifications: Painted, non-scale, articulated ABS and PVC figure set
Height (Approx.): 100 mm | 3.9"

Nendoroid Rebuild of Evangelion Shinji Ikari: Plugsuit Ver.

While the previous figure had Shinji wearing his school uniform, this figure has the protagonist in his Unit-13 plugsuit from the Rebuild film series. This skin-tight suit is primarily dark purple and black with accents of red and green. This figure also comes with several accessories, including several arms and legs, three different face plates, and a recreation of the Unit-13 Entry Plug. The face plates included in this set let owners change Shinji's standard neutral expression to bashful or furious.

Manufacturer: Good Smile Company
Sculptor: Design COCO
Specifications: Painted, non-scale, articulated ABS and PVC figure set
Height (Approx.): 100 mm | 3.9"
Set Contents:
・Back and front hair parts
・3 face plates
・Body
・Right arm part (articulated)
・4 right hand parts
・Left arm part (articulated)
・3 left hand parts
・Right leg part (articulated)
・Left leg part (articulated)
・Backpack
・Spear of Longinus
・Entry plug interior part

About Shinji Ikari

Shinji Ikari is the main protagonist of the Evangelion series and the pilot of Evangelion Unit 01.

About Shinji Ikari: Background

Shinji is the son of the Commander of NERV, Gendo Ikari, and a bio-engineer named Yui Ikari. When Shinji was still very young, Yui passed away during an experiment with Unit-01, which also resulted in Gendo abandoning Shinji. The trauma of his parents leaving him left a massive impact on him as he grew, causing him to often doubt himself and his self-worth. Around a decade after his father left him, Gendo summons him to Tokyo-3 to become the designated pilot of Unit-01. Although he is reluctant to do so at first, he agrees to do so after realizing that Rei would be forced to pilot the Eva despite being greatly injured. As a pilot, Shinji generally works well with others but is prone to outbursts and mental breakdowns, which often causes trouble for both himself and his teammates.

About Shinji Ikari: Abilities

As the designated pilot of Unit-01, Shinji has access to Unit-01 and a variety of different weapons designed for Evangelion Units. While Evangelion Units are already quite powerful due to their powerful cores and huge size, equipment like guns, knives, and other specialized tools are also used to give Shinji and the other pilots an edge against the Angels. One notable characteristic of Unit-01 that sometimes appears when Shinji pilots is the robot's tendency to go berserk and act on its own. In these times, Shinji has no control over Unit-01, though it gains an incredible amount of strength. Unit-01 also gains a very primal and animalistic behavior and will continue attacking the enemy Angel until it is completely destroyed.

Other Important Evangelion Characters

Two characters from the Evangelion series that are particularly influential to Shinji Ikari include Kaworu Nagisa and Rei Ayanami.

Kaworu Nagisa

Kaworu Nagisa is somewhat of an enigmatic individual with a history that is unknown to most characters. Although he appears as a normal human, albeit with silver hair and red eyes, Kaworu is the seventeenth and final Angel in the original Evangelion series. As an Angel, Kaworu is the perfect Eva pilot and is shown to seemingly control Evangelion Units without being in a Unit's cockpit. Furthermore, Kaworu can generate his own A.T. Field, which is also said to be the strongest one NERV had encountered at the time. Despite being an Angel, however, he shows a great deal of compassion toward his supposed enemies, particularly when it comes to Shinji.

Rei Ayanami

Rei Ayanami is a young woman with bluish hair and red eyes who acts as the designated pilot for the prototype Evangelion Unit, Unit-00. While much about her character is shrouded in mystery for much of the original series, it is eventually revealed that she is somewhat of a clone of Shinji's late mother, Yui Ikari, and the vessel for the soul of the second Angel, Lilith. Most of the time, Rei is portrayed as emotionless, soft-spoken, and excessively compliant, though she is eventually influenced by others like Shinji and shows genuine emotion.

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