I loved this weekend.
First and foremost was yet more confirmation that Barbelith has one of the highest concentrations of wonderful people I've yet come across. I felt bereft when all you guys left, my flat felt empty. So I sent an SOS text to any mates who might be free to snaffle the copious leftover booze and munchies, and ended up watching FLCL and They Live and some unexpected fireworks from my balcony with Nom who was lovely company to alleviate my post-Evathon loneliness without all of you.
So yeah, some new friends taken out of the text only medium of Barbelith and made flesh. Special mention must be made of Halo's massage and knowledge of Judeo-Christian mythology; Feverfew's gifts of Sgt. Frog, New York in a bag and sherry; Pacific State's spot on commentary on Photek and Alva Noto; Fat Lee's canny observations tying the whole of Eva together and giving it context; poor old RichT being lumbered yet again with the whole playing the cello with his cock story; Caroline having my fingers stuffed up her nose (again); and laoi decimating me in the hospitality stakes by making sushi, teriyaki and ramen.
I miss you lot already and am currently coming out of my post alcohol fuzz with some Arthur Russell. And I'm already working out the logistics of the Gunbuster/Gunbuster II/FLCL marathon in my head. More Gainax days please!
Regarding seeing the whole of Neon Genesis Evangelion in one day… I'm now one hundred percent convinced that it's the greatest television show I've ever seen, and that Hideaki Anno is the greatest writer and director for television that I've encountered. I'm of the belief that seeing Eva in one sitting is the only way to watch it and I'm so glad I had such peerless company for its bleakest, darkest moments. The thing that stood out to me most, the thing that I'll never forget from this viewing, the thing that I was unprepared for from previous viewings, was Shinji's impossible heroism against all the cruelty, manipulation and horror he endures. I never thought that I'd be able to say without any reservations whatsoever that Shinji Ikari is one of my heroes, but even throughout the insanity of End of Evangelion he remains one of the most principled, decent, honourable young men I've seen in popular fiction, a traumatised and abused teenager in impossible circumstances.
Having reached that realisation I think I've finally come to terms with Eva and everything it's done to me over the years since I first saw it. Because of my background growing up as the son of a certain kind of Christian celebrity in a Charismatic Evangelical church this show has always meant a lot to me, in that it examines and magnifies certain things I went through growing up (without necessarily setting out to do so admittedly, but sometimes it strikes very close to home). So thank you very much to everyone who came and experienced it all at the same time as I processed all of it. I may have gone a little withdrawn at some points on the Saturday, and that's a little by way of explanation.
To close, here's some photos of it all, the rest of which can be found here. I hope they make you as happy as they make me.
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