But, of course, there’s still some mystery surrounding the long-delayed Eva conclusion.
Nothing ever comes easy in Evangelion, and that theme of having to struggle and sacrifice to make your aspirations come true is mirrored with Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time’s long and difficult road to release. The fourth movie in the Rebuild of Evangelion theatrical series, Thrice Upon a Time was supposed to premiere on January 23, until the coronavirus state of emergency declared for Tokyo and many other parts of Japan caused it to be delayed indefinitely.
With Thrice Upon a Time serving as the final conclusion for the now 26-year-old Evangelion anime franchise, and also as the direct follow-up to the shocking events of 2012’s Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo film, the wait has been excruciating for fans. But like they say, good things come to those who wait, and the reward for fans’ patience looks like it’s going to be the longest Evangelion movie ever.
▼ Trailer for Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time
Films that are being played theatrically in Japan have to register the work with Eirin, the country’s film classification and rating organization. According to a briefly public listing for Thrice Upon a Time, the fourth and final Rebuild installment will be two hours and 34 minutes long. That’s nearly one hour more than any of the six previous Eva movies, which had runtimes of:
● Neon Genesis Evangelion: Death & Rebirth: 1 hour 40 minutes
● The End of Evangelion: 1 hour 27 minutes
● Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone: 1 hour 38 minutes
● Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance: 1 hour 48 minutes
● Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo: 1hour 36 minutes
The Eirin listing also included an age rating of G (all ages) for Thrice Upon a Time (believe it or not, all of the Rebuild of Evangelion movies are rated G in Japan) and the following brief description:
“After causing Third Impact, Shinju Ikari was thoroughly broken…Can he start up again? This is an animated movie that continues the story that has been sealed since 2012’s Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo.”
However, while screenshots of the Eirin listing for Thrice Upon a Time, such as the one above, have been taken and posted online, the listing appears to no longer be visible on the Eirin website. Whether that’s because the specifics have changed or because the organization is simply holding back on posting them until Thrice Upon a Time has an official release date is a mystery with no clear answer at the moment, which, this being Evangelion, feels 100-percent on-brand.
Sources: AV Watch via Jin, Otakomu, IT Media, Jiji no Real Talk
Images: YouTube/株式会社カラー khara inc.official
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