15 years after earth was decimated by the first Angel, Shinji is selected to pilot an EVA, a giant bio-mechanical robot, to protect earth from the next wave of Angels. Widely regarded as one of the greatest anime, viewing all 26 episodes may leave one wondering why. The first 22 episodes provide an interesting story of the relationships between the teen pilots of the EVAs interspersed with some mecha vs. alien action. Achievement and worth are constantly being questioned by the pilots while viewers are given hints that the alien attacks might not be as unexpected as the public believes. However, near the end of the series, things take a drastic turn for the worse. Some questions are answered while about a million more come up regarding what actually happened and what it means, both for the characters and for the viewer. The last two episodes have almost nothing to do with the preceding 24. What is worse, it is clear that these final episodes were never actually finished; images repeat over and over, and animation will suddenly give way to storyboards complete with animation directions. An interesting series that doesn't quite deserve acclaim until it is actually finished. ( )