What Is the Significance of the Hospital Scene in The End of Evangelion? Symbolism Explained

The End of Evangelion is a dense and complex anime film with many noteworthy scenes; even the hospital scene is important. So, here is the significance of the End of Evangelion hospital scene, explained.

For many Evangelion fans, the hospital scene featuring Shinji and Asuka is one of the most memorable moments of the film, but not exactly for a positive reason.

After all, this scene is a shocking one, especially given how unexpected and rather explicit it is compared to the anime series.

Spoiler Warning: This article includes spoilers for The End of Evangelion, so proceed with caution.

What Happened in The End of Evangelion Hospital Scene?

Credit: Gainax, Production I.G

Neon Genesis Evangelion ended with a weird final two episodes due to the production running out of budget. Thus, The End of Evangelion serves as an extended version of the final two episodes.

It begins with Shinji Ikari being distraught after having to kill Kaworu Nagisa. Soon, he visits Asuka who is comatose in a hospital.

While angrily shaking her in an attempt to wake her up, Shinji accidentally takes off her top. Shinji then masturbates in front of her, after which he becomes disgusted with himself.

Credit: Gainax, Production I.G

The Evangelion TV anime can be violent at times, but this opening part of The End of Evangelion is much more sexually explicit than anything shown in the series.

Even though some viewers think it’s a gratuitous addition made to shock the audience, one way to interpret the scene is that it establishes how the film is much darker and more disturbing than the TV anime.

Aside from this, there are also many interpretations of the symbolism of this scene, especially as Shinji and Asuka’s relationship is at the core of the film’s story.

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What Is the Significance of the Hospital Scene in The End of Evangelion?

Credit: Gainax, Production I.G

The film’s hospital scene shows that Shinji is at his lowest point. It also establishes that Shinji is attracted to Asuka, though his feelings for her manifest in an unhealthy way because of his self-loathing.

In a way, this can be seen as a microcosm of Evangelion’s main theme of how broken people who seek connections with others can’t do so because of their self-hatred.

The End of Evangelion also goes full circle in its final moments as it sees Shinji once again alongside a seemingly unconscious Asuka.

Credit: Gainax, Production I.G

This time, Shinji chokes her but stops when Asuka caresses his face. Asuka is then the one to remark that he’s disgusting.

The final scene mirrors the hospital scene and shows how complicated the relationship and feelings between Shinji and Asuka are.

Even though it’s still a bleak ending, there is some sense of hope at the end as Shinji chooses to live as himself instead of going with the Third Impact.

This is just one of the many interpretations of the infamous scene. What do you think of The End of Evangelion’s hospital moment? Sound off in the comments section below.

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