It’s been 25 years since the final episode of Neon Genesis Evangelion aired, and the franchise is still in excellent health. The iconic anime show has legions of dedicated fans, is constantly referenced online, recently picked up a whole new generation of viewers when it became available on Netflix, and has been remade as the Rebuild of Evangelion film series. The final installment even just hit Amazon Prime.
This December, fans will finally be able to own the definitive home release of the series on Blu-ray, courtesy of the Neon Genesis Evangelion Ultimate Edition.
This 11-disc set includes the 26-episode series, the Death and Rebirth and End of Evangelion follow-up movies, and a wealth of bonus material. Seven hours of additional features are promised, along with a 156-page art book containing an encyclopedia of the angels and EVAs in the show, 11 artboards from the Japanese LaserDisc release, a resin Sachiel paperweight, and a replica NERV lanyard.
All that will set you back $349, though if you pre-order through the GKids store you pay just $279. If you’re a die-hard fan and like what you’re hearing, you might want to get your pre-order in sooner rather than later, as the Ultimate Edition is limited to just 5,000 units.
If you don’t fancy spending that much for all the goodies, it might be worth waiting to see if a less “ultimate” release follows sometime afterward. If so much effort is being put into these Blu-rays, then it seems silly to limit them to 5,000 pressings. It only makes sense that a cheaper, disc-only release without the collector’s items could be coming at some point in 2022.
The only thing missing from this collection are the four “Rebuild” movies, though the focus here is on the original show and its promotional materials. With that project also now complete, there may be another box-set coming soon collecting those.
Either way, if you have a serious Neon Genesis Evangelion fan in your life and want to make them very happy on Christmas Day, you know what to pick up.