Evangelion Traces of Heinlein in Evangelion?

[loki-l]

I recently reread Heinlein's Puppet Masters and it occurred to me just how much the Old Man was like Gendo Ikari. Ruthless and perfectly willing to what is necessary to get the job done. He also is a master of manipulation.

One part in particular that struck was when the old man manipulated the protagonist into volunteering for possession by the alien parasite by threatening to have the female agent do it otherwise. The whole scene was eerily reminiscent of Shinjis introduction to the Evangelion.

I wonder if I am seeing things, if this might be a common trope that gets used in other works besides these two or if maybe the makers of Evangelion might have been inspired by classic Sci-Fi. I already know that they took elements from various Gerry Anderson's series and there are direct references to the works of Harlan Ellison and Cordwainer Smith, so it does not seem completely far fetched.

 

[Lord Raa]

Great science fiction writers are referenced all the time.

I might have to make a reference to Adam Shadowchild in a future story/chapter.

 

[Lord Raine]

Science fiction has a lot of in-jokes and self-references, much moreso than fantasy. I'm constantly spotting homages Heinlein, Asimov, and Clarke. If you're actually paying attention, it's hard to go ten feet through the science fiction scene without tripping over a dozen odd references, homages, Easter eggs, and it's-only-fourth-wall-breaking-if-you-get-the-joke in-references.

Certain series and settings, though, are much more infamous for this than others. While half of the exposition in Ghost in a Shell is philosophic navel gazing, the other half is pretty much nothing but oblique references, callbacks, and sometimes even near-direct quotes from other, older science fiction series. It's packed to the rafters with subtle references to I Robot and the Foundation trilogy, and there's even some classic Japanese science fiction in the form of Astro Boy and Kamen Rider. I call it subtle, because they're semi-quotes, so if you're not a huge fan, it would probably go right over your head. Most stuff in GiaS does, unless you know a token bit about philosophy and are a huge fan of science fiction.

There's definitely some Heinlein in Evangelion, though. You aren't the only one that sees it, and I'm pretty sure it's deliberate.

 

[Dartz_IRL]

Science fiction has a lot of in-jokes and self-references, much moreso than fantasy. I'm constantly spotting homages Heinlein, Asimov, and Clarke. If you're actually paying attention, it's hard to go ten feet through the science fiction scene without tripping over a dozen odd references, homages, Easter eggs, and it's-only-fourth-wall-breaking-if-you-get-the-joke in-references.

Certain series and settings, though, are much more infamous for this than others. While half of the exposition in Ghost in a Shell is philosophic navel gazing, the other half is pretty much nothing but oblique references, callbacks, and sometimes even near-direct quotes from other, older science fiction series. It's packed to the rafters with subtle references to I Robot and the Foundation trilogy, and there's even some classic Japanese science fiction in the form of Astro Boy and Kamen Rider. I call it subtle, because they're semi-quotes, so if you're not a huge fan, it would probably go right over your head. Most stuff in GiaS does, unless you know a token bit about philosophy and are a huge fan of science fiction.

There's definitely some Heinlein in Evangelion, though. You aren't the only one that sees it, and I'm pretty sure it's deliberate.

Hmmm....

Shinji Ikari will Fear no Evil?


Christ, I do overuse that trope.