Toy Tuesday: The Best Evangelion Toys – ITTeacherITFreelance.hk

When the grand canon of anime is finally determined, one title that will definitely make the list is Neon Genesis Evangelion. Gainax’s 1995 series took the tropes of giant robot fighting and transformed them into a mind-twisting allegory for emotional development in teenagers. It’s a visually stunning, complex work that is still finding fans a half a century after it debuted. Oh, and the mecha designs are incredibly iconic and dope and make for awesome toys. And that’s really what we’re here for, right?

Tamashii Nations EVA-01 Figure

As piloted by Shinji Ikari, the purple EVA-01 is the lead mecha of the series, an angular, predatory device that is known for acting independently beyond the control of its human partner. Born directly from the alien creature Lilith, EVA-01 eventually devours the angel Zeruel and gains the ability to regenerate its limbs. This die-cast metal figure from Bandai’s high-end Tamashii Nations line is the single best iteration of the machine we’ve seen, with an unbelievable number of articulation points and accessories. It’s solid, intricately painted and well worth the price.

Get it ($370) at Amazon.com

Rei Ayanami Plugsuit Statue

The mysterious pilot of the EVA-00, Rei Ayanami is a stoic and unknowable girl who was grown from the cellular material of the departed Yui Ikari and raised from birth to link with the systems. She’s only one of several clones, and she can transfer her consciousness between them if she perishes. This 1/6 scale statue depicts her in the iconic white plugsuit that pilots wear to control their EVA units, and it features some clever translucent material in her hair to add extra dimension.

Get it ($80) at Amazon.com

Mega Sofubi EVA-01 Test Type Figure

Sofubi is a style of Japanese figures made from durable but inflexible vinyl – we’re most familiar with them in the States from the classic LJN WWF wrestling figures of the 80s, but abroad all sorts of franchises get the sofubi treatment. Usually they’re fairly bulbous, cartoony sculpts, but Medicom’s take on Shinji’s EVA bucks that trend to deliver something truly unique. Standing a whopping twenty inches tall.

Get it ($337) at Amazon.com

Asuka Langley Sohryu PVC Figure

The third pillar of the triangle at the heart of Evangelion, Asuka Langley Sohryu is a quarter-Japanese teenager raised in Germany who has been raised to pilot giant robots from a very young age and wants to make sure everybody knows it. Her mother died tragically after an interface experiment with Unit-02, but Asuka was not deterred in her dreams. She’s a much more spirited and extroverted character than the other two leads, which is deftly communicated with this PVC statue that depicts her in her red plugsuit and school jersey. You can even remove her hat!

Get it ($181) at Amazon.com

MAFEX EVA-13 Figure

Public opinion of the Evangelion follow-ups, sequels, and the like tends to be pretty split, but there’s no denying they introduced some pretty dope mecha designs to the franchise. Rebuild Of Evangelion began in 2007 as an attempt to retell the original story using modern technology. The EVA-13 debuted in the third movie, piloted by both Shinji and Kaworu. With two sets of arms, it can wield the mighty Spears of Longinus. Medicom’s MAFEX line is famous for seriously high-end figures, and this rendition is no exception. Check out how huge those spears are!

Get it ($150) at Amazon.com

Shinji Ikari Nendoroid

If you had to mentally summon up an anime protagonist from your imagination, he’d probably look a lot like Shinji Ikari. Unlike many of the other characters, Shinji was raised away from NERV and only told of his destiny to be a pilot at eleven. A sensitive, traumatized introvert, Shinji has to cope with the pain of his past in the middle of battling angels. Good Smile’s Nendoroid version of the guy comes with the variety of accessories you’d expect, including three different faceplates for multiple expressions and an extra lower half for seated posing.

Get it ($60) at Amazon.com

Rei Ayanami Funko Pop

Every otaku’s favorite clone waifu has seen numerous incarnations across the Evangelion franchise – being a clone will do that to you. Rei’s emotional development over the course of the series as she pairs with Shinji and comes to care about her life is the beating heart of the show, and it remains one of the most compelling and believable arcs in anime history. Funko has produced Pops of most of the series’ main characters and robots, but we dig the extra detailing they put into making Rei’s posture and demeanor really communicate her inner nature.

Get it ($10) at Amazon.com

Revoltech EVA-08 Figure

Also introduced in the Rebuild tetralogy, the EVA-08 is the ride of choice of Mari Makinami Illustrious, one of the new pilots in the franchise. This powder pink death machine was acquired by the WILLE organization as part of their struggle against NERV, and is deployed to prevent any future “impacts.” Kaiyodo’s Revoltech line has released a number of EVAs onto the market, but this might be our favorite – the slightly tweaked design really lends itself well to action figure form, and the 20 points of articulation let you pose it in numerous cool ways.

Get it ($50) at Amazon.com

Pen Pen Plush

It wouldn’t be an anime series without at least one cute, merchandisable animal character. Pen Pen is Misato’s pet warm-water penguin, who lives in a freezer in her apartment and spends most of his time watching TV and otherwise not contributing to the household. Pen Pen was the subject of experimental treatments that increased his intelligence, and when he was supposed to be disposed of Misato smuggled him out of the lab. Now you can have your own freeloading water bird with this nine-inch plush rendition.

Get it ($37) at Amazon.com

Tamashii Nations Metal Build EVA-02

Back in our day, robot toys were primarily constructed out of diecast metal, with plastic only in selected spots for weight concerns. Sadly, those days are mostly gone, but a few companies are holding on to the tradition. Piloted by Asuka, the EVA-02 is the first model built by humans to combat Angels, with a bright red armor design. It was first activated to battle Gaghiel, prying open the creature’s mouth to allow a pair of battleships to detonate inside. This incredibly high-quality, heavy figure comes with numerous accessories and weapons.

Get it ($300) at Amazon.com

MAFEX EVA-00

The first operational EVA unit, the 00 was not intended for combat usage, but served as a support unit. It eventually was conscripted into battle against the Angels, piloted by Rei Ayanami. One of the more distressing parts of the series is the fact that each of the main EVA’s bodies contain the soul of a dead human, with the 00 carrying the essence of the first Rei clone. This MAFEX figure is super poseable and comes with a progressive knife, Gatling gun, and NERV rocket.

Get it ($140) at Amazon.com

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