Evangelion: Innocence

Evangelion:Innocence.

Ritsuko Akagi

"A woman with a mole like a tear on her cheek is destined to a life of heartache and sorrow." - Ryoji Kaji

Dr. Ritsuko Akagi is one of the most tragic characters in Evangelion. She is the Chairperson of Project E, and the head of the Technology Development Department of NERV. She is a very well respected scientist, and is the daughter of the infamous Dr. Naoko Akagi, who created the Magi Supercomputer. Although Ritsuko maintains a cool, calm and professional attitude throughout the series, she is obviously as human as all the other characters. This is evident in her breakdown towards the end of the series.

There are many things people do not know about Ritsuko. We are taught never to jugde by appearances. But can we? Ritsuko can be read like a book, whether she wants to or not. First of all, she dyes her hair blonde to separate her appearance from that of her mother. This is an indication of their not-so-great relationship. As she tells Misato, "I'm not the sort of woman to have children of my own, so I will never understand her as a Mother. As a Scientist, I respected her. But as a Woman, I hated her." Ritsuko witnessed her mother commit adultery with Gendo Ikari. She had also tampered with Yui's synchronisation experiment with Unit-01, as revealed in her letters to Ritsuko. Finally, her mother strangled a young Rei Ayanami to death in a jealous rage before committing suicide. No doubt, Ritsuko tried desperately not to follow in her mother's footsteps. Unfortunately, her efforts were in vain.

The second thing, as pointed out by Kaji, Ritsuko's mole on her left cheek marks a 'pathway of tears'. Kaji guesses that she is enduring an unrequited love, which is true. Like her mother, Ritsuko fell in love with Gendo Ikari.. (Now what was that again about workplace relationships?)
"I fear no insults on my own self when I have him in my mind, but to know that he considers these empty vessels more important than me -- is the ultimate insult."
She is, of course, referring to Gendo's preference of Rei over her. Ritsuko destroys the clones of Rei in front of Misato and Shinji. She is taken into solitary confinement within Central Dogma, until she is released to help defend NERV HQ in the movie. She then opposes Ikari, attempting to self-destruct Terminal Dogma to cease his implementation of Instrumentality. But Caspar, the Woman aspect of the Magi, rejected the command. Gendo shot her fatally with a revolver.

Ritsuko had always believed in science and logic. Her occupation as a distinguished scientist reaffirms this belief. Everything in her world had an logical and rational explanation; everything except for human relationships, especially those between men and women. This was her ultimate downfall.

By medea_s@yahoo.com. Please do not copy without permission!

[Akagi Ritsuko]

A scientist belonging to the first section of the Techology Bureau of the Technology Development Department in NERV HQ. She is responsible for the E Project and is the daughter of Dr.Akagi Naoko, who built the basic system of MAGI. Usually in white coat, she consumes lots of coffee and tobacco when she works. She is also a friend of Katsuragi Misato since college years. Although like her mother she engaged in adultery with Ikari Gendou, she rebelled against him at the final stage of the Complementation Plan. As an act of taking revenge on him, she destroyed all the copies of Ayanami Rei. As a result, she was placed under solitary confinement within NERV HQ. However, since she is needed for the self defence of MAGI, she is released.

Birthday is November 21. Bloodtype B. Age 30.