Inside Misato's scope. Suddenly the fighter squadron scatters away from the Angel in all directions.

Reichu: As we'll see in a moment, the squadron was apparently luring Sachiel somewhere before turning tail like the yellow bastards they are. Not that I blame them for getting the hell out of there.

BTW, the actual language used here is not "scatters in all directions", but "scatters like spiderlings". I can see that...

Misato looks through the scope from her car.
She lowers the scope in alarm.
Misato “Hold the phone… They're gonna use an N² Mine!?“

Reichu: Talk about ending up in compromising positions.

MDWigs: Is Shinji looking at Misato's bust here?

Reichu: Well, why look outside when all the scenery a young male could ask for is right in front of him?

OMF: Though it's a little ambiguous (and what isn't in this series?), I think he's staring at Misato's cross.

The mountains and hills are silent.

Reichu: Same background as 071, as if you couldn't tell.

Misato pins Shinji down and covers him with her body.
Misato “Get down!”
An intense light shines into the car.
SE <<No sound>>

tv33: Interesting camera angle…

thewayneiac: Some might think that this is a weird time for fan service… but, actually, it's always a good time for fan service!

Dr. Nick: Well, thanks to their perverse creativity, the fan service aspect in Gainax's older series is generally executed in such a manner that it doesn't make you want to stab your eyes with a fork (unlike with so many other series). The humor might be absolutely retarded, but at least it's fun, IMHO.

Reichu: In my case, it was probably a good thing there weren't any forks around last time I watched Gunbuster…

HeWhoPostsStuff: Ridiculously enough, the fourth shot down reminds me of an old episode of Ren and Stimpy, wherein a dramatic sunset rises over the “rolling hills” of Stimpy's butt, with dramatic music playing in the background. And no, I haven't watched Ren and Stimpy since.

A powerful explosion rises from beneath Sachiel's feet.

Keisuke-kun: From my viewpoint, the N² mine is only slightly less useless than the giant missile.

Reichu: Looks like “Operation Get-The-Angel-To-Step-On-The-Mine” worked. But poor Sachi! I can't help but feel sorry for the guy every time I see this. Talk about your big “Oh, crap” moments.

A giant, high-rising explosion.

felineki: The glittery stuff around the explosion always looked out of place to me.

Sharp-kun: I've always wondered if the whole reason N² weapons were created by Gainax was simply to make large explosions, without having to worry about the plot consequences of using nukes.

Dr. Nick: Here's some crap on N² weapons from the Eva Sage's ancient site. [This is a placeholder comment until we can actually confirm these details.]

Impact waves sweep across the fields. Misato's car takes a direct hit and starts tumbling.

felineki: This was nicely animated. You can really feel the force of that wave hitting the car.

Misato protects Shinji with her body as they bear the brunt of the impact.

A fireball rises to the heavens. Pan down to Misato's overturned car.

Someone: Compared to the other explosions in the series, this one look real.

Reichu: If only because it doesn't have multiple giant “haloes” and the aforementioned “glitter.” ::P I suppose the animators and the background painters had different sensibilities about rendering giant mushroom-shaped fireballs.

Misato and Shinji sticking their heads out of the car, watching in silent awe.

thewayneiac: This is a cute shot, but this is all very unrealistic; they couldn't possibly have survived that.

Reichu: Couldn't have survived being in the vicinity of a blast of nuclear proportions, tumbling around in a car, or both?

thewayneiac: Both.

Dr. Nick: This is anime™. Shut up and hoot.

Sharp-kun: Save that kind of comment for episode #19. :P

Flames are displayed on the monitor.
Officer B stands up in front of the camera.
Officer B “We did it!!”
Woman (OFF) “Of the 99 electromagnetic heat rays, 8 percent have hit the target directly.”

Sharp-kun: Cliche “idiot military celebrate before being proved useless” scene.

The officers are elated with success.
Officer A “Sorry, but it looks like you won't be getting a shot at it.”
Man (OFF) “A unidirectional temperature of 2000° observed in the hypocenter.”

Ikari and Fuyutsuki smile faintly.
Woman B (OFF) “Shockwave approaching.”

Reichu: The script doesn't lie — Gendo really IS smiling here. You can't see his mouth, but look closely at the line of his cheeks.

Misato's overturned car. The area is covered with craters and the Angel's footprints.
Misato (OFF) “Are you all right?”
Shinji (OFF) “Yeah, but my mouth is full of dirt.”
Misato (OFF) “That's alright. Now then—”

felineki: You know, by the time the series is over, the countryside around Tokyo-3 would probably be a veritable Angel version of the courtyard in front of Grauman's Chinese Theatre.

Misato “Let's go. Push!!”
Misato and Shinji attempt to push back on the car.

Misato and Shinji pushing the car.
Misato & Shinji "Uhhhh! (adlib)"

A tire hitting the ground.
Both (OFF) “There!!”

Misato claps the dust from her hands and turns to Shinji.
Misato “Thanks a bunch. You were a big help.”
Shinji “The pleasure was all mine..."

Shinji with Misato in front.
Shinji "...Katsuragi-san.”

Misato takes her sunglasses off.
Misato "Just ‘Misato’ is fine. Pleased to meet you, Shinji Ikari*."

* Ikari Shinji-kun

Reichu: Misato gets some very “bouncy” (i.e., perky) character animation in this episode. I find it a visual confirmation of the overall image Misato gives when we first meet her, as this extremely casual, upbeat woman.

HeWhoPostsStuff: Makes it all the more shocking to the viewer when we get to see her in her “natural habitat” later on…

Shinji UP (eye level with the camera).
Shinji “Yeah.”

The monitor in front of the Control Tower.
Officer A (OFF) “Current status of the target?”
Woman A (OFF) “Unable to confirm due to EMP interference.”

HeWhoPostsStuff: Perhaps everyone else knows this, but what does “EMP” stand for?

Reichu: “Electro-Magnetic Pulse”. EMP effects are apparently associated with nuclear weapons, which N² weapons obviously aren't, but they both make big frickin' explosions, so who cares? Technically, “Woman A” just says denpa, “electro-magnetic,” and not “EMP” specifically… but odds are no one cares about that, either.

The officers, full of self-confidence.
Officer B “You saw the size of that explosion. It must have been finished.”
Woman (OFF) “All magnetic field ratios have fallen by 78%.”

Incisivis: It's also interesting to see that the layout of the episode lends itself more to focus on the major characters and military personel, both of whom are removed from direct combat until EVA-01's launch at the end of the episode. As a result, a lot of the action in the middle of the episode has a very impersonal, mechanized feel. Cuts 092-099 and 127-132 are examples of this.

Aoba (OFF) “Sensors restored.”
Scan lines run across the monitor.
A response projects at the center of a crater-shaped feature.
Woman A (OFF) “We've got an energy reaction at the explosion's hypocenter!”

Officer B stands up and shouts.
Officer B “What the hell!?”

Gundampilotspaz: I love the look on his face here; he looks like he just sat on something sharp.

Aoba (OFF) “Visual image restored.”
Sachiel appears. Without thinking, the three officers lean forward.
Officers “Ohhh…”

Officer A “That was our last resort…”
Officer C “I can't believe it.”
Officer B “Goddamn demon!!”
Woman (OFF) “Observation of the target resumed.”
Man (OFF) “18% of the component material appears to have melted.”
Woman (OFF) “Surface temperature, steady at 3000 degrees.”
Man (OFF) “Sigma line detection not being recognized.”

Sachiel's leg gills pumping up and down.

Reichu: Apparently, Sachi's gills work both in and out of the water — very interesting. Considering that he's powered by a Super-Solenoid, I find it odd that he needs to actively respirate in order to regenerate — but, then, even harpies need to yawn. It's unfortunate that this shot doesn't include the top of Sachiel's pelvis; if his nostrils were included in the shot, we would've been able to see his entire respiratory process.

Keisuke-kun: See, even poor abused Sachiel is sweating in the sweltering heat that is Japan.

Reichu: It does almost look like there are little sweat droplets on his gill lids… Though, as the operator-babble from 097 confirms, Sachiel's flesh has actually melted (or “fused”). Ouch.

The old face-like structure being pushed to the side as a new face emerges.

Keisuke-kun: I never understood the purpose of the extra face. The old one is just fine; why does he need a new one?

Reichu: That has puzzled me, as well… Perhaps due to the fact that his face has an ossified surface (which becomes more obvious in the next episode), he cannot heal it normally. When it becomes damaged, he has to shed it completely, and a fresh one emerges from underneath. Maybe the old face would eventually drop off and the new one's ‘beak’ would grow over time to be as long as the old's. But that's just pointless speculation.

felineki: I had never found a reason for the two-head deal, but Reichu's idea seems to work.

Reichu: Of course it does. ;;> Another interesting thing you can see in this shot is that Sachiel's “neck” osteoderms and “exo-ribs” are asymmetrical. Although three on each side, the osteoderms are not the same shapes on one side as they are on the other. And the right set of “exo-ribs” does not have a spike on the top, which production drawings suggest is not due to the mine (although animation inconsistencies might lead you to think otherwise).

Also, Sachiel seems to be bleeding a pinkish fluid here as his new face emerges — which is entirely inconsistent with what he'll be bleeding next episode.

Hexon.Arq: Perhaps the pink stuff is pus.

Reichu: Perhaps... As we'll see later, another of Sachiel's body fluids is not the color one would expect.

The car covered in a gum tape repair job.
Misato (OFF) “Yeah,

Reichu: I've seen "gum tape" translated as "packaging tape" - but I wonder if, more specifically, it's the same stuff as "gummed tape". Probably not, considering I've had no luck getting gummed tape to actually stick to anything!

don't worry about it. His safety is my top priority. So please get a car train ready, a direct one.

Right. It was my idea to meet him, so I'll take full responsibility. Bye!”

Keisuke-kun: FAN SERVICE!! Here we get a good shot of Misato's “silky thighs”.

OMF: Note that we glance at her thighs; Shinji doesn't.

Keisuke-kun: BTW, doesn't her left thigh look a bit too long?

Reichu: Probably just the perspective.

BGM START: C-2 [BAREFOOT IN THE PARK]

Misato (MONO) “This sucks! I just had my car restored and it's a total wreck already! 33 more loan payments to go, plus the cost of repairs. Even worse, my only decent clothes have been ruined.”

Hexon.Arq: Now, is it just me. or does this particular BGM sound a lot like The Man From Ipanema?

HeWhoPostsStuff: In my view, the NGE soundtrack is very “retro” in its style, and Barefoot in the Park in particular underscores that. Seriously, this track belongs in the background of a 1950's sitcom or something. Of course, Fly Me to the Moon is an even more obvious example of this sort of thing, as is Misato's theme.

Reichu: This is the sort of silly little scene that typifies the first half of the series. They peak in frequency when Asuka shows up, but they become a rare commodity as the show turns increasingly dark. With a show as complicated and profound as NGE, it's nice to know that it doesn't take itself completely seriously.

Shinji (OFF) “Um, Misato-san.”
She doesn't hear him.
Misato (MONO) “And I was in such a good mood…”
Shinji (OFF) “Um, Misato-san.”
She finally returns to reality.
Misato “W-what is it?”

Reichu: At about this point, I have to start screaming, “Get your eyes back on the road, woman!”

OMF: (100 ~ 126) This is a nice scene that contrasts Shinji's prudish nature with Misato's more carefree attitude rather well.

Shinji turns towards something with a doubting look on his face.
Shinji “Was it alright to just take those?”

thewayneiac: Shinji is being rather picky in this conversation, considering the grave situation.

HeWhoPostsStuff: Well, he's a teenager; his job is to find every possible way to take adults down a notch.

OMF: (104~105) Misato's far too occupied with important matters (like her car!) to care about the fact that she committed theft.

Stolen battery packs.
Misato (OFF) “Ahhhh…”

Misato's car on the road. Ashinoko and a city of high-rise buildings can be seen in the distance.
Misato (OFF) “It's fine, it's fine. This is a time of emergency, and we need a working car now, right? And I am an international government official, after all. Everything will be O-K!”

Reichu: Our first glimpse of Tokyo-3, which is located in modern-day Hakone, its southern edge touching the top of Ashinoko (or Lake Ashi).

thewayneiac: Lake Ashi is well known to Daikaijuu fans due to the fact that Godzilla fought Biolante there.

Reichu: Misato's car is approaching the city from the south-west. The tall yellowish structures are not ordinary buildings, but Tokyo-3's light-condensing (or “mirror”) system, giant silicon-covered mirrors which are key to making the Geofront such a bright and sunny place.

HeWhoPostsStuff: That being said, I wonder if any of the blissfully unaware citizens of Tokyo-3 ever wondered what the heck those giant mirrors were for…

Reichu: Two words: Modern art.

Sharp-kun: I have to say, I would be surprised if anyone in Tokyo-3 didn't know about the Geofront and the secret weapons systems. You've got whole buildings that are missile launchers. Surely they would also have tested the retracting ceiling buildings. I doubt it could be kept secret.

Hexon.Arq: It's also a little peculiar how people don't seem very phazed beyond annoyance by “robot incidents”.

Shinji “…That doesn't seem like a very good excuse.”

Misato “Don't be so boring. It doesn't suite a cute kid like you.”

OMF: She's already exasperated by his mood.

Shin-seiki: This cut is a good place to make a point about how loose ADV's old (Collection) translation was at times.

The Literal Translation Project has Misato's line thus:

Misato: Boring kid. Your expression's blank, so unsuited to your pretty face.

Here is A2000A's Renewal fansub:

Misato: Boring boy! You look so calm, despite your pretty face.

And you can see what our own Reichu came up with to the left. I would say that all three of those seem reasonably similar takes… However, here's what ADV managed to come up with in their Collection 0:1 subtitles:

Misato: Don't get snotty. You're not as cute as I thought you were.

and dub:

Misato: You're no fun! You know, you're not as cute as I thought you were.

Am I nit-picking? Maybe, but I think that people should be aware that what they've seen or heard from ADV sometimes strayed pretty far from the the sense and meaning of the original Japanese.

Sharp-kun: There are more important errors in the subs of later eps that I'll try to point out. ADV have made me annoyed quite a few times with their loose subtitle translations. *Looks at Mazinkaiser DVDs* >_<

Shinji “--you think so?”
Misato “Oh? Did I make you angry?”

OMF: (108~109) Shinji's totally unused to what was, to Misato, a fairly innocuous comment.

Hexon.Arq: Okay, make a note of what Shinji has in his lap…

Shinji gives her a sulky, disapproving look.

Misato takes pleasure in teasing him.
Misato “Sorry, sorry. You're a boy, it's only natural. ♥”

OMF: She can't resist giving one last jab.

Reichu: More of the “bouncy” Misato animation I talked about earlier. It's also rather amazing that Misato hasn't gotten into an accident yet…

Shinji “You seem pretty childish for your age, yourself.”

Misato reacts with a twitchy sneer.

The car zigzags into the tunnel.
Shinji (OFF) “Uwaaaaaaaa!”

BGM END: C-2 [BAREFOOT IN THE PARK]

Sachiel stands directly beneath a giant helicopter.

Reichu: The aircraft here is a Reconnaissance and Data-Collecting Giant (Teisatsu Jouhou Shuushuuyou Oogata) Helicopter. (For whatever reason, special vehicles and other gizmos tend to have helluva long names in Japanese. Kind of like traditional anime episode titles.) Those black circles are actually observational equipment of various kinds.

Monitor screen. The angel has become two-faced.
Fuyutsuki (OFF)“As we predicted, it's regenerating itself.”
Woman (OFF) “The data on Casper's status is being copied to Melchior. Please hurry with the inspection operation.”

Reichu: Odd — more of the second face was exposed earlier, in C-099. And where did that thick ribbon of flesh come from?

HeWhoPostsStuff: Maybe he borrowed some of Misato's packaging tape?

TheAtomicWaffle: I was always it was part of the Angel's regenerative process. The fact that it isn't there later might well be a blooper.

Reichu: I thought perhaps the fact that it was there in the first place might have been a blooper… After all, the new face is trying to emerge, so it wouldn't make much sense for new skin to be growing on top of it. That's how I see it, anyhow.

Note in the supplemental dialogue here the first mention of the MAGI supercomputers, which we basically don't learn anything about until episode #12.

Ikari speaks without surprise.
Ikari “If it couldn't, it wouldn't be capable as an autonomous weapon.”
Woman (OFF) “Report Balthazar's analysis results as quickly as possible. This is the highest priority.”

Sharp-kun: I find Gendo's line here interesting. The term “weapon” seems to imply that someone built and sent Sachiel.

Reichu: The term heiki (“weapon”) is used to refer to the Evangelions, as well — but we know that they were created partially for battle purposes and could thus be considered “weapons” despite being sentient entities. The Angels are a different story, though. “Autonomous” — yes. But “weapons”?

On screen, Sachiel faces the camera and releases a blast of light. The monitor fills with noise.
Man (OFF) “Turn the results each up by one stage directly. Do this at any time.”

Reichu: Ahh, the first “cross-blast” of the show. It was pretty hard to piss Sachiel off earlier, but apparently being bombed has made him a bit surly. Now he won't even stand for the UN's flying spycam taking pictures of him while he's looking his worst.

felineki: Sachi's got pretty good aim! “Stupid UN paparazzi… LEAVE ME ALONE!!!” **zap**

MDWigs: This cross-shaped blast is pretty typical, though, and I've seen it used in other shows (but I can't think of specific examples off the top of my head). It's the Christian cross-shaped blasts (with the the cross bar up from centre) that are the more telling ones, I think.

Reichu: Well, typically, this cross-shaped “eye-glow” tends to imply that a giant, fiery, Christian-type cross is soon to follow… as we'll see in Part B. But you're right. This sort of thing is referred to as a "halation", I believe.

Fuyutsuki “Impressive. It seems it can even amplify its functions.”
Ikari “And it's also getting smarter.”
Woman (OFF) “Please switch all communication circuits from 23 to 28 to private circuits. This is very urgent.”
Man (OFF) “Develop a shift from E to I at a range of 1200.”

Sharp-kun: Fuyutsuki's comment here relates to what I earlier said about Gendo's “weapons” comment. “Upgrade” (used in other translations instead of “amplify”) sounds like a term you'd use for a machine, not a creature.

Dr. Nick: Do we know whether Anno had decided what the Angels were going to be at this point? He obviously had thought the main storyline out from the start, as the image of Kaworu in the opening sequence proves, but had he already decided about “details” such as this?

Sharp-kun: I don't know. It's possible that at this point Anno still hadn't decided if anyone was sending the Angels. Perhaps he had considered them weapons used by a higher lifeform and later changed that. Of course, this is all just speculation.

Reichu: That would fit in with Gendo and Fuyutsuki's strange comments, but, otherwise, I find it problematic. Although I should probably save such rantings for later.

On a side note, zoufuku can mean, simply, “amplify,” which doesn't have quite the mechanical connotations of “upgrade.” Speaking of which — how does Fuyutsuki know that Sachiel wasn't capable of “cross-blasts” from the get-go, but simply chose not to use them until now?

Hexon.Arq: The most common speculative answer to this is that Sachiel “evolved” the blast attack as a direct result of his encounter with the N² mine. Monkey see, monkey do.

Reichu: Welll... I'm not so sure. The ability seems to run in the family, as we'll see later.

A different camera captures Sachiel and puts him on the monitor.
Fuyutsuki “It will renew its invasion any time now.”
Man (OFF) “Shift complete. No problems.”

Reichu: For an Angel, Sachiel has a rather cute butt… You can also see a “melted” look (a la C-098) on his exoskeletal parts here.