When we heard a far-fetched rumor about the release date for the fourth Rebuild of Evangelion film, we suspected it was too good to be true. Sadly, our instincts were right, and the promised date is now long past.
If you’re a long-time Eva fan, you’re probably tapping your foot impatiently as you wait for the purportedly final installment in creator Hideaki Anno’s decades-spanning anime saga. But since there’s nothing to do but wait, that foot may as well be inside one of these stylish Evangelion heeled boots.
Back in the spring, anime fans had a chance to use their shoes to show their love for Eva with a set of colorful loafers inspired by the series. If you’re looking for something a bit more elegant and feminine, though, apparel company Super Groupies is now taking orders for footwear that takes style cues from the series’ trio of female pilots.
Up first is fiery Asuka.
It’s pretty easy to discern that Super Groupies chose red as the primary color in order to match the hue of the plug suit Asuka wears when going into battle. Eva is all about searching for deeper meanings, though, and the shoes contain a few more nods to the character, such as 02 being written on the back, a reference to the Evangelion Unit 02 that Asuka pilots.
Each pair of shoes comes with two different ankle straps, the first with a bow and the second with something unique to the character. In Asuka’s case, it’s a kitty-shaped clasp that’s a tip of the hat to the cat-eared hat she often wears.
There’s even a rationale behind the heel, the curving shape of which is a hallmark of design partner and shoemaker Chake Chake. The color was chosen to be evocative of Asuka’s brown hair.
So, following that logic, the shoes for sky blue-tressed character Rei should be…
▼ Yup.
Technically, these shoes get their motif from “Rei (assumed name),” since the most recently released Evangelion movie featured a clone of the taciturn teen.
▼ The “Rei” boots also feature the mark of her war machine, Unit 09.
Finally, these pink boots are a fitting salute to a character with enough easy confidence to pull the look off, the newest of Evangelion’s female pilots, Mari.
As with Asuka’s cat clasp, Mari’s is also based upon her most iconic accessory, the character’s glasses.
But just like you can’t roll into your local hardware store and pick up a gigantic mecha, you can’t get these Eva boots at any old shoe shop. They’re only available online from Super Groupies and the Evangelion Store. If you want the instant gratification of buying them from a brick and mortar shop, you can also purchase them at the Evangelion Store Tokyo-01 that just opened this month in Tokyo’s Ikebukuro. You might want to stop by the ATM first, since each pair sells for 19,800 yen (US $182), but hey, it’s not like you’ll be needing that cash for Evangelion movie tickets right away.
Related: Super Groupies, Evangelion Store, Evangelion Store Tokyo-01
Source, images: Super Groupies
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