Rating: 
Summary: A conclusion to end all conclusions
Review: If you've gotten this far in the series there is no turning back. You will most likely watch this disc (particularly the last two episodes) a couple of times before everything sinks in.Episode 24 begins as Asuka had run away, depressed due to her faultering utility, and Ritsuko had gone AWOL because she had doubts of how her mother would view her actions. The mysterious fifth child (Kaoru Nagisa) is introduced to take Asuka's place piloting unit 02. And at the end of the episode the final angel makes it's presence known and takes most of Nerv by surprise. The final two episodes seem to leave the plot behind and dive directly into the psychie of the characters. You learn a lot about the characters' pasts, and ends start getting tied off as more and more is revealed. Included are some of my favorite scenes including a comedic typical day in one possible alternate life of shinji. And some bizzare views of how people interprete the world. Regardless of some opinions I've heard to the contrary, these episodes really make the series. And I'm glad they have all finally found their way to DVD. Now we just have to wait for the movie (End Of Evangelion) to be released :)
Rating:
Summary: The ending of a classic!!!
Review: Here's the ending to the ground-breaking Neon genesis Evangelion tv series, and what an ending it is. Many people were unsatisfied with it's in-mind approach, and needless to say it does not provide an ending in the traditional sense.
(...).
In episode 24, Shinji befriend's Asuka's replacement as an eva pilot, Kaoru Nagisa. This episode gains little ground in terms of plot, except for kaoru recognizing the crucified angel as Lillith, not adam. Beautiful in many ways, this episode delivers the final psychological blow to Shinji, clearing the way for eps 25 and 26.
In episode 25, Asuka, Shinji, and Misato's psychological state of being are explored in depth. Rei is also explored, but her side isn't as complex or developed. This episode is very relentless, and at times, disturbing. Unsettling issues are the most present in Asuka's case. This episode shows the mental side of the human istrumentality project { watch the movie, End of Evangelion, that will hopefully arrive July 2002, for the physical side of the process }
Episode 26 is the best episode in the series, and shows the process of Shinji realizing his self-worth. It also has the best quick-comedy segments ever made { a good breather from the tramatic tone of eps 21 through 25 }
In closing, I feel while this dvd covers the least in terms of storyline, it's the strongest in terms of character development. Evangelion is really a terrific series, better than 95 percent of other anime. But to fully enjoy this series, you have to come with an open mind, and you have to except the fact that this series is about it's characters, first and foremost.
Rating: 
Summary: Not quite what I had expected...
Review: Though of my relatively young age, I'm very interested in complicated anime such as Evangelion. During the beggining of the series, mainly episodes 1-15, it seems like your normal anime. Of course, it stands above the rest. Once you get past episode 20, however, prepare for a mindblow...you either gotta be really smart or on drugs to understand some of this. I really despised the original ending to Evangelion. Congratulations? Don't make me laugh. I'm a christian, and I felt alot of the biblical references made me understand more to the story than a non-christian would. The whole mind trip thing was presented well, but that still SHOULDNT have been the ending. Ah, thank the director for End of Evangelion. My suggestion is that you stop at episode 23, then watch EOE.
Rating:
Summary: Decent and Good ending...
Review: This DVD ends probably the most popular and basically best Anime series for a long time to come and does it rather good. First there's the episode of the last angel which I'm sure is probably one of the most popular episodes of the series and then there's the end which is still talk about today. Sure, there's the dislike from some who say that it's a bit of a cop out but even though this ending was the only way they could conclude due to troubles in the production like time and money it was done rather charmingly. Basically, we travel into the mind of the main character Shinji Ikari as he comes to grips with the pain he has experienced of hurting and being hurt by others through a lot of comtemplating. Weird at times, which isn't a surprise for this show, and does leave alot of open questions, which again isn't that surprising for this show, it ends the show on a high and positive note. Of course if you want the morbid ending which depicts the horrors occuring on the reality side you'd want to get the End Of Evangelion, which is important to watch too.
Now, if you're buying this DVD you're probably filling in the holes in your collection so you'd want to buy it anyway!
Rating:
Summary: Absoultly Amazing!
Review: These last few episodes are constantly debated among Evangelion fans, between those who think they sucked and those who think they were one of the best things they have ever seen. It really depends on what you enjoyed about the series, either the action or the deep emotional problems. Episode 24 will easily appeal to either side of the argument (they were just really cool), episode 25 and 26 is where the division arises. That's because it is nothing at all like the rest of the series. Everything becomes stream of conciousness in the last two epsiodes and serious philosophical questions are confronted head on. There is also a complete lack of action, by this time the series had pretty much run out of money so the animation is "cheap." However, the way in which the last episodes were done were amzingly artistic, Anno did a great job directing with limited recources. I personally loved the whole part about gaining freedom by adding restrictions. And there's also this lovely little alternate reality scene with Shinji, Asuka, and Rei as normal school children (it makes sense in light of what is going on in the episode and the final conclusion) I personally loved theses last 3 episodes. There is deep insight to humanity, and it leaves off with a very positive message. Yes, you heard me, a POSITIVE message, that I thought was quite uplifting. I seriously don't see how people got depressed from the end of the series. The biggest problem people seem to have is that very little plot is explained. That's a valid complaint, but the "movie" End of Evangelion, gives a whole lot more backround to what happened, a good amount is explained, just not directly (you have to think really critically). End of Evangelion is not an alternate ending to the series, but rather a more explained ending. EoE explains what happend during the human instrumentality program, and how it really came about (in the last eps of the series, scenes from EoE flash across right before everything becomes stream of conciousness). It is important to remember that although EoE is rather depressing, it still has the same message as the series did.
Rating: 
Summary: Congraulations!.... yeah right
Review: Not that this is bad in any way. I must say that this ending is not what I was hoping for in the slightest, however. Episode 24 (the true strong point of this finale) could have been the ending had they, for instance, explained the birth of NERV in further detail (more than one episode). But it would have been a happy ending, and that is not what a true otaku to this series wants. Then again, what's "The End Of Evangelion" there for? To bring you an ultra-violent gore fest, not some rubbish-filled psychological trip through our idiot heroes mind. The final 2 episodes were certainly well-done, but ended happily, which just isn't right. Shinji finally realises that he is worth living here, and so everyone gives him a round of applause and congratulates him. Great episodes, rubbish ending. Get the movie instead.
Rating:
Summary: A Blue Moon
Review: I seem to have developed a belief over the last few years. This belief has something of a basis of it takes a great filmmaker to listen to his fans and give them what they want, but it takes un unparalled creative mind to give them something even better. I have watched many a series through to its end but not a single one of them compare to what Eva held in store. It's probally important to keep in mind that this ending isn't going to please everyone, not surprising really: there isn't a market for this sort of stuff anywhere, it was totally unprecedented. Eva is many things, I cannot deny that, but all of them were ultimately secondary to the focus of 25 and 26. The catch is this, it handles most of its aspects so well that it could have survived on any single one of them alone and still held a considerable audience, heck it probally did anyway. It's all about perception though, about character, interaction and personal belief. It's not that hard to understand, really, if you let it grab you for what it is. Certainly, most people will be holding their breath in hope for it to 'return to normal' throughout most of the duration, I know I fell into this catogry. The ending isn't that hard to understand, perhaps it's just hard to actually grasp, I'm not sure, but for the themes that Eva is dealing in and the depth to which it goes they coundn't have made it much easier. I know a lot of people prefer to just sit back and let the action roll by without having to think to seriously from the plot, removed from the film after the aftertaste has worn off, and it's quite a valid preferance. It's also possible to watch a good chunk of Eva in such a manner without even noticing everything else that is building up, but these things are there and will become more prominant. I can only reccommend that if you are ever going to put a significant effort into understanding a story that you choose Eva, things do get left open, but perhaps because there is no deffinate answer for many of them. The important things (themes) do get more closure of sorts however, and if you do take it in then Eva, and this disc in particular, will become something that will likely stay with you in some form forever.
Rating:
Summary: The series ended with confusion and class
Review: Neon Genesis Evangellion is for the record not the best in the field of Anime. In fact I strongly have to believe that the only reason it recived such praise is the fact that it became incredibly bizzare towards the end. Very few talk about the battles, but more on how twisted the story got. However despite all the talk on how the series really is it's time to talk about how the series ended and why the movies kill the series. In the final set of episodes (aka this DVD) there are a lot of problems going on with NErv and all of them. It starts off shortly after Shinji was forced to slay his best friend Karu, who turned out to be the final Angel. At this point Shinji is in a horrific state of depression and anger, while the ohter Characters are in their own problems. Rei is starting to realize just what she truely is, Auska is still pretty much comatose, and Nerv in General is facing not only complete shutdown, but total annihalation. But the final two episodes focus on the central character, shinji. In the final two episodes Shinji is going through some very very deep soul searching. He is trying to understand why he was forced to kill Karu, why he is introverted, why he hates his father, and basically his sexuality as well. He is in some cases lectured by mental images of Auska, Rei, Misato, and the rest of the cast as he sits in a chair in what appears to be a school auditorium. During his soul searching he even enters an alternate reality where the 2nd impact never occured. He and Auska have been friends since they were children, his mother is still alive, his father is kind and loving man, and they encounter a new student, a very open minded Rei. The way this sequence (all 10 minutes of it) plays out it reminds viewers (or at least me) a lot of the way the series started when they all met for the first time (or at least when Auska first showed up). In the end of these two episodes I got the impression that he in some small manner found what he was looking for all along. He finally started to understand who he was and as a result he was ready to take the next step in life, and start to grow up and become a man, or at least an active teenager. Overall the series had it's rough spots. There were moments that were just mind boggiling dumb or vague, and when it really turned weird is where you started to see where the creator had his mental breakdown. However despite all of that the series did end in class, and this is the ending that should be stuck with, not that piece of Garbage End of Envangellion. Watch this one and ignore the trash.
Rating:
Summary: "Rise up young boy to the heavens as a legend"
Review: With this DVD, the main stream of the Evangelion series is brought to an end. The viewer has been exposed to almost every possible variation of anime's favorite themes. We have had giant monsters, young children battling insurmountable odds, and secret agencies pursuing their own ends. On top of the extraterrestrial threat of the Angels, mysterious committees and secretive leaders plan maneuvers that have one foot in the Kabala, and another in the Dead Sea scrolls. Every one of us has thrown up our hands at one time or another to demand some explanation of events, but none of us have given up being entranced by a story that invites multiple interpretations. 'The Final Messenger' With Asuka completely disabled. NERV activates Kaworu Nagisa, the Fifth Child. Kaworu seems to bond with Shinji immediately, and his kindness and affection begin to pull the Ikari boy out of his angry shell. But peace is not to be. Kaworu is actually the Seventeenth Angel, Tabris, and Shinji must not only bear his betrayal, but must attempt to kill Tabris even as the Angel admits his love. The Instrumentality begins. With the end of episode 24, the exterior action of 'Neon Genesis Evangelion' comes to an end. The next two episodes take us to a new dimension. For the first time we see past the symbols and mysterious. Many times Hideaki Anno has hinted that the real action of this series takes place on an interior stage, and that is where we find ourselves. 'The Ending World' Episode 25 gives us a last look into the interior of all the key players. We see their feelings and needs in the light of common human experience. Kaworu's message was the need to break past the shells of our egos and experience the inner oneness of human experience. 'The Beast that Shouted "I" at the Heart of the World' Episode 26 is Shinji's. This time the focus is on his need for affection and respect, and his belief that he is worthless without them. He has allowed himself to think as a victim, and has given up his internal sense of identity. And so, as Hideaki Anno has carefully made clear from the beginning, the story isn't an apocalypse, but a tale of transfiguration. The Angels are less like villains than attempts to break down the walls of false defenses that keep us from developing beyond our childlike fears and immaturity. It is no surprise that many fans, expecting some form of tumultuous ending, were quite taken aback by the soft edge and positive message that Anno actually intended. In response to this dissatisfaction Anno went on to create the theater release with its much more spectacular conclusion. Yet the message remained the same in the end. The kingdom of Heaven is within you.
Rating:
Summary: mind blowing
Review: I fear for the mental stability of Japanese children who grew up with this anime. Volume 8 of the collection sees through the bloody and twisted conclusion to SEEL and Ikari Gendo's grand design for humanity.
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