I've always thought that even Shinji doesn't know what he is. Earlier in the show, he doesn't seem to be particularly attracted to Rei or Misato: his reactions in the trope-y scene where he falls on top of Rei in her room didn't seem to be the reactions of someone who embarrassed themselves in front of someone they liked, but merely the awkward and lonely reactions of someone who routinely finds themselves in isolating situations. Likewise, while Shinji's classmates lust after Misato and complain about not being in his situation, Shinji seems confused as to why they would be attracted to her. I think there's a line goes something like, "They just don't understand how messy she is." I think this changes later in the show, but I thought it was important to bring up because Shinji's attractions here are different from his immediate reactions to Asuka and Kaworu.
After Asuka becomes a regular in his life, Shinji does display attraction to her. He's curious about kissing her, and is unusually angry when she is quickly dismissive of him. This attraction is even more true for Kaworu: Shinji has all of the classic blushing, self-conscious behavior of someone who is in the presence of their crush. I think that his relationship with Asuka is more interesting, though. I think that in many ways, the way that Asuka and Shinji interact is the foundation upon which the show and movie's themes are built upon. But without getting too much into that, I think it's safe to say that Shinji is attracted to both Asuka and Kaworu.
What does this mean about his sexuality? I'm not 100% sure. Again, I think that Shinji is confused himself: he doesn't seem to understand the implications of romance (for instance, he doesn't get why Asuka would be upset that Misato and Kaji are out late), but at the same time, he seems to have an extreme and violent fear of being rejected by someone who he is vulnerable with. I don't think this precludes the possibility of an actual attraction to someone like Kaworu, however, and I will again point to the immediate and stereotypically bashful ways that Shiniji reacted upon meeting him.
I'm cishet, so I'm not sure if I am the best person to speak on this, but it seems to me like Shinji is closer on the spectrum to being bi or pan rather than being straight or gay. Again, there is a lot of ambiguity about this, and he himself indicates a lot of confusion, but all of the evidence points to this conclusion.
TLDR: he's a confused and traumatized teen but I think he's bi
Side note: on the topic of NGE, in my opinion, the best scene in the entire series, show or movie, is in End of Evangelion when he argues with Asuka in the kitchen, right before Komm, süsser Tod begins playing. It goes back to what I was saying before about his relationship with Asuka being the thematic bedrock of the show. I think it perfectly displays the conflict between men and women (at least, how the show envisions it) and I think it is a wholly accurate portrayal of the way that men often feel entitled to attention from women.
I've always thought that even Shinji doesn't know what he is. Earlier in the show, he doesn't seem to be particularly attracted to Rei or Misato: his reactions in the trope-y scene where he falls on top of Rei in her room didn't seem to be the reactions of someone who embarrassed themselves in front of someone they liked, but merely the awkward and lonely reactions of someone who routinely finds themselves in isolating situations. Likewise, while Shinji's classmates lust after Misato and complain about not being in his situation, Shinji seems confused as to why they would be attracted to her. I think there's a line goes something like, "They just don't understand how messy she is." I think this changes later in the show, but I thought it was important to bring up because Shinji's attractions here are different from his immediate reactions to Asuka and Kaworu.
After Asuka becomes a regular in his life, Shinji does display attraction to her. He's curious about kissing her, and is unusually angry when she is quickly dismissive of him. This attraction is even more true for Kaworu: Shinji has all of the classic blushing, self-conscious behavior of someone who is in the presence of their crush. I think that his relationship with Asuka is more interesting, though. I think that in many ways, the way that Asuka and Shinji interact is the foundation upon which the show and movie's themes are built upon. But without getting too much into that, I think it's safe to say that Shinji is attracted to both Asuka and Kaworu.
What does this mean about his sexuality? I'm not 100% sure. Again, I think that Shinji is confused himself: he doesn't seem to understand the implications of romance (for instance, he doesn't get why Asuka would be upset that Misato and Kaji are out late), but at the same time, he seems to have an extreme and violent fear of being rejected by someone who he is vulnerable with. I don't think this precludes the possibility of an actual attraction to someone like Kaworu, however, and I will again point to the immediate and stereotypically bashful ways that Shiniji reacted upon meeting him.
I'm cishet, so I'm not sure if I am the best person to speak on this, but it seems to me like Shinji is closer on the spectrum to being bi or pan rather than being straight or gay. Again, there is a lot of ambiguity about this, and he himself indicates a lot of confusion, but all of the evidence points to this conclusion.
TLDR: he's a confused and traumatized teen but I think he's bi
Side note: on the topic of NGE, in my opinion, the best scene in the entire series, show or movie, is in End of Evangelion when he argues with Asuka in the kitchen, right before Komm, süsser Tod begins playing. It goes back to what I was saying before about his relationship with Asuka being the thematic bedrock of the show. I think it perfectly displays the conflict between men and women (at least, how the show envisions it) and I think it is a wholly accurate portrayal of the way that men often feel entitled to attention from women.
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