Obviously, somebody out there knows something I don't.

Question 1: What is all this about San becoming a pilot? All I know of this is those two pictures of her in plug suits. If anyone knows, I'd like an explanation.

Question 2: How many variants of Angels are there? I know, I could probably find out from the In Nomine webpage, but someone here should know too! Not to be too demanding, but I'd like all their names and Celestial ranking if possible. If not, fine by me.

Question 3: Will Apotheosis Now include a bonus theater at the end of it? Yes, a stupid question, but just wondering.

Question 4: How will the End be reached? The Kabbalists obviously aren't going to be right; But without that base, which NGE couldn't stand up without, how will NXE end? By the Biblical account given in Revelation or Daniel? Or will it happen some other way?

It's just me, humble Kitsune, who wants some answers. You can give me them or not, I just needed to vent.

The First Foundation was just the beginning.

>Question 2: How many variants of Angels are there?

In In Nomine, nine, but I can't remember the order, and if I'd have to look it up, then you can look it up yourself. Our cosmology may or may not follow In Nomine's exactly.

>Question 4: How will the End be reached?

The End of what?

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor in Chief, Netadmin
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/

>Question 2: How many variants of Angels are there? I know, I could
>probably find out from the In Nomine webpage, but someone here should
>know too! Not to be too demanding, but I'd like all their names and
>Celestial ranking if possible. If not, fine by me.

Seraphim/Balseraphs
Cherubim/Djinn
Ofanim/Calabim
Elohim/Habbalah
Malakim/-
-/Lilim
Kyriotates/Shedim
Mercurians/Impudites
Grigori

That's a list of the celestial groups (Angel/Demon), grouops towards the top are 'less' human and 'more' celestial than those towards the bottom but it's not exactly a rank structure. (Malakim never become Demons; Grigori were banished from heaven well before Lucifer got kicked out; Lilim came into being afterwards and those few who fall onto Heaven's side are still Lilim.) Now if you want to know what those groups are, then you can look 'em up.

> Lilim came into being afterwards and those few who fall
>onto Heaven's side are still Lilim.

"Bright Lilim" is the term, apparently because someone in Heaven was a little short on imagination the day they named them. <grin>

And if you accept a little unofficial material from Her Nibs herself, the line editor of In Nom, there may even be a Bright Lil Archangel. (Not to mention a Grig Archangel or two that I've heard tell of, walking the earth with their fellows... and that's considerably more official.)

-- Bob
(Proud member of the Legion of Rabid Crack Weasels)
-------------------
"*yawn* YET ANOTHER post-apocalyptic, dark and moody BGC story. Why can't we get stories about, like, Priss romping through a field of flowers with a large cluster of bunnies or something?" -- An unknown fanfic reviewer

LAST EDITED ON 06-12-02 AT 04:40 AM (EDT)
 
>Obviously, somebody out there knows something I don't.
>
>Question 1: What is all this about San becoming a pilot? All I know
>of this is those two pictures of her in plug suits. If anyone knows,
>I'd like an explanation.

I've a feeling that explanation will be forthcoming in Apotheosis Now, since as best I can remember, we've seen nothing to indicate that she's a pilot to this point. Also, those two pictures were promo art for the movie I believe. Though she was wearing a plug suit when she left SEELE headquarters, so one of them might be related to that.

>Question 3: Will Apotheosis Now include a bonus theater at the end of
>it? Yes, a stupid question, but just wondering.

Well, I'm not qualified to answer that, but I think it'd rock if it did. The Bonus Theaters are one of my favorite things, especially the Sportscenter spoof one.

>Question 4: How will the End be reached? The Kabbalists obviously
>aren't going to be right; But without that base, which NGE couldn't
>stand up without, how will NXE end? By the Biblical account given in
>Revelation or Daniel? Or will it happen some other way?

Well, considering the differences between the original material and NXE to date, and the fact that Gryphon has specifically said he didn't like how NGE ended, I doubt it'll have any relation to the source material. I assume that's what you're referring to anyway, I'm not really sure. Also, we don't know for sure that NXE will end with Apotheosis Now. Personally, I hope it doesn't. Until SotS came along, NXE was my favorite EPU work by far, and I'd hate to see it end.

Donnerjack
---
reality@peoplearestrange.net
BOFH of www.astralstudios.com

>Also, we don't know for sure that NXE will end with
>Apotheosis Now. Personally, I hope it doesn't. Until SotS
>came along, NXE was my favorite EPU work by far, and I'd hate to see
>it end.

Well, sorry, but... it will. Apotheosis Now will be the last Neon Exodus Evangelion story. When it's through, the story's told.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor in Chief, Netadmin
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/

>
>Well, sorry, but... it will. Apotheosis Now will be the last
>Neon Exodus Evangelion story. When it's through, the story's
>told.

Then again, you never know when a Screaming Tangent(tm), as I call
them, might seize the authors in an iron grip. ;)

-RT
put the flamethrower down, Ben

Wow. I never expected to get an answer, but thanks. At least I got some of the info I wanted.

So, to tie this into 'Why Shinji has an AT Field', does this mean Shinji could be a Bright Lil Archangel and not know it? Or am I being stupid and reading into it something that canonically couldn't happen?

The First Foundation was only the beginning.

>So, to tie this into 'Why Shinji has an AT Field', does this mean
>Shinji could be a Bright Lil Archangel and not know it? Or am I being
>stupid and reading into it something that canonically couldn't happen?

Shinji is capable of not knowing a great many obvious things. :)

That said...

1. He could only be a full-blooded angel if both of his parents were celestials.

2. As for what Choir he'd be... well, how that works is ill-defined (and will remain so). And it's difficult to pin down that sort of thing for half-breeds, anyway. It's sort of like cross-breeding dogs with wolves.

3. You can't be an Archangel unless you have a Word, and in all but the most special of cases, that has to be approved by the Seraphim Council -- not the kind of thing even Shinji is likely to forget. Even then, most Word-bound angels aren't Archangels. You have to be around a long time (or do something very, very important) to get that title.

	John Trussell Tertiary Battle Muse Eyrie Productions, Unlimited It's all just one mistake after another.

>So, to tie this into 'Why Shinji has an AT Field', does this mean
>Shinji could be a Bright Lil Archangel and not know it?

No.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor in Chief, Netadmin
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/

>>So, to tie this into 'Why Shinji has an AT Field', does this mean
>>Shinji could be a Bright Lil Archangel and not know it?
>
>No.

Especially since all Lilim (in canonical In Nomine at least, regardless of whether Gryph has decided to use them or not) are female. And Shinji, last time I checked, is definitely -not- female.

	Juniper Rampaging Karateka Crypto-Kwavu'b Contributing Editor Eyrie Productions, Unlimited Because why be ordinary in your choice of hobbies?

>Especially since all Lilim (in canonical In Nomine at least,
>regardless of whether Gryph has decided to use them or not) are
>female. And Shinji, last time I checked, is definitely -not- female.

Not to be a rules monkey, but my copy of In Nomine states that many Lilim do consider themselves male and use male vessels. The majority prefer female but not all of them.

Not that I think Shinji is a Lilim, but that wouldn't be an obstacle. And since vessels are largely personal preference on the part of the angel (the Archangels Dominic/Dominique and Gabriel/Gabrielle spring to mind)...

Hmm, my guess is that all Children of Evangelion (or a similar term coined by DJ) have the ability to manifest an AT field. Either that or just the natural ones (Asuka, DJ, Shinji). It's just that Shinji was the one who'd the oppotunity (and plot device?) to do it first.

Do NOT resurrect three months dead threads like that, especially as your first post.

>>Also, we don't know for sure that NXE will end with
>>Apotheosis Now. Personally, I hope it doesn't. Until SotS
>>came along, NXE was my favorite EPU work by far, and I'd hate to see
>>it end.
>
>Well, sorry, but... it will. Apotheosis Now will be the last
>Neon Exodus Evangelion story. When it's through, the story's
>told.

Well, we can't have it all, I was just hoping. Also, correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't that the original plan with UF? :)

Donnerjack
---
reality@peoplearestrange.net
BOFH of www.astralstudios.com

>>Apotheosis Now will be the last
>>Neon Exodus Evangelion story. When it's through, the story's
>>told.
>
>Well, we can't have it all, I was just hoping. Also, correct me if
>I'm wrong, but wasn't that the original plan with UF? :)

You overlook the difference between "nothing new planned" and "story definitively concluded".

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor in Chief, Netadmin
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/

>>>Apotheosis Now will be the last
>>>Neon Exodus Evangelion story. When it's through, the story's
>>>told.
>>
>>Well, we can't have it all, I was just hoping. Also, correct me if
>>I'm wrong, but wasn't that the original plan with UF? :)
>
>You overlook the difference between "nothing new planned" and "story
>definitively concluded".

Point taken. I've just always found it funny that UF started out as a one shot and has become the largest collection of fanfic involving the same cast of characters that I know of. So I was sort of joking, as it were.

Donnerjack
---
reality@peoplearestrange.net
BOFH of www.astralstudios.com

>>You overlook the difference between "nothing new planned" and "story
>>definitively concluded".
>
>Point taken. I've just always found it funny that UF started out as a
>one shot and has become the largest collection of fanfic involving the
>same cast of characters that I know of. So I was sort of joking, as
>it were.

Consider, then, how ironic it is to me to have an IRC log with Gryph's first idle noodlings about what would become NXE, followed by him declaring that it's a silly concept and nothing will ever come of it.

	Kelly St.Clair Usual Suspect/Set Ninja Eyrie Productions, Unlimited "i love this show."

>Consider, then, how ironic it is to me to have an IRC log with Gryph's
>first idle noodlings about what would become NXE, followed by him
>declaring that it's a silly concept and nothing will ever come of it.

Heh heh. What I was noodling with at that time was a silly concept, and nothing did come of it. (See An Encounter at Shamrock House for all I'm going to say on that subject... )

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor in Chief, Netadmin
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/

>Well, we can't have it all, I was just hoping. Also, correct me if
>I'm wrong, but wasn't that the original plan with UF? :)
>
IIRC, there were no plans for a sequal, but it was left open-ended by it's very nature. In this case, the plan appears to be to close it with a very finite ending. That's the difference between not planning to continue and planning to not continue...

Either way, I'm looking forward to it...

Offsides
Unemployed netadmin seeking job... so what else is new?
EPU RCW #π
#include <stdsig.h>

Well, that answers that. A firm, resounding, "No."

Works for me. And I was referring to what source are you planning to use to end the NXE world, Gryphon-san.

Ad for the heck of it, Question 5: Where did you get all the Celestial names in NXE? I can guess for most of the main ones, but where are Reilael, Natlateth, Moloch, Grendel, and Orcus mentioned? Grendel was a dragon who fought Beowulf, wasn't he? So how can he be the name of an Eva?

The First Foundation was only the beginning.

LAST EDITED ON 06-12-02 AT 07:55 PM (EDT)
 
>Well, that answers that. A firm, resounding, "No."
>
>Works for me. And I was referring to what source are you planning to
>use to end the NXE world, Gryphon-san.

"End the world"?

As in, destroy everything and kill everybody?

Chief, if you think I'm going to do that, you really haven't been paying attention.

Oh, and stop with the suffixes. Last time I checked I wasn't Japanese. I'm gonna have to make up a fifth rule about the use of Otakunese...

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor in Chief, Netadmin
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/

>>Works for me. And I was referring to what source are you planning to
>>use to end the NXE world, Gryphon-san.
>
>"End the world"?
>
>As in, destroy everything and kill everybody?
>
>Chief, if you think I'm going to do that, you really haven't been
>paying attention.

I know you're not gonna do that, I was wondering what kind of big catastrophe or somesuch that you might be planning would be based on.

>Oh, and stop with the suffixes. Last time I checked I wasn't
>Japanese. I'm gonna have to make up a fifth rule about the use of
>Otakunese...

Sorry about that. But then what do I call you? "Gryphon" just seems too informal for a newbie like me to be calling you.

>I know you're not gonna do that, I was wondering what kind of big
>catastrophe or somesuch that you might be planning would be based on.
>
Who says it has to be based on anything at all - after all, NXE is so divergent from the original universe making assumptions based on NGE usually don't work at all. My suggestion - sit on the RCW in you and wait like the rest of us...

>Sorry about that. But then what do I call you? "Gryphon" just seems
>too informal for a newbie like me to be calling you.
>
It's his name. What's wrong with using it?

Offsides

Unemployed netadmin seeking job... so what else is new?
EPU RCW #π
#include <stdsig.h>

>>Oh, and stop with the suffixes. Last time I checked I wasn't
>>Japanese. I'm gonna have to make up a fifth rule about the use of
>>Otakunese...
>
>Sorry about that. But then what do I call you? "Gryphon" just seems
>too informal for a newbie like me to be calling you.

Oh, formality is not too important. Darth Gryphon will suffice. ('Dread Lord Gryphon' was also suggested.) ;-)

(Or you could just follow Offside's advice and just use 'Gryphon'... Actually, that would probably be best.)

>Ad for the heck of it, Question 5: Where did you get all the Celestial
>names in NXE? I can guess for most of the main ones, but where are
>Reilael, Natlateth, Moloch, Grendel, and Orcus mentioned? Grendel was
>a dragon who fought Beowulf, wasn't he? So how can he be the name of
>an Eva?

Not being an author, I of course can't say for sure. However, a significant difference between units 02-04 (and all the other production models) and 00-01 is that units 00 and 01 *actually were* Lucifer and Moloch before their conversion (adaptation?) into giant mecha. (Though since they're mostly biological, perhaps mecha isn't the best term.) Grendel, Orcus, and Malphas, unless I'm quite mistaken or something new gets revealed in the movie, are production model EVAs, completely artificial constructs. I would guess that their biological parts are cloned from the Angels to which SEELE has access. Since they weren't independently acting Angels to begin with, they never had names of their own, and Rei, Jon, and Shinji were perfectly free to call them whatever they wanted.

Alternatively, since all three units were built by SEELE, which is controlled by a demon, it *could* be that all the production units actually have within them a demon rather than an angel. That would fit the name Grendel (since Grendel was a demon, not a dragon, who ate many Danish warriors until Beowulf killed him and his mother, and was presumed to have been a child of the devil.) On the other hand, this doesn't fit with the comment made that one of the biggest obstacles to the development of the production model EVA was the inability to synthesize an Angel's core. Because of that, I'd have to go with the theory that the production models are completely artificial and were never alive in the sense that Lucifer and Moloch were, and thus it doesn't matter what their pilots call them.

Oh, and Moloch appears in Paradise Lost. He was the demon who proposed an all-out assault on Heaven, since he was the best fighter of the Fallen but bad at anything subtle. I don't know of any Biblical references to him, and I have no idea about anything In Nomine may have said, but there is literary precedent for a demon with that name.

>Because of that, I'd have to go with the
>theory that the production models are completely artificial and were
>never alive in the sense that Lucifer and Moloch were, and thus it
>doesn't matter what their pilots call them.

Correct. They're just drawn from demons and demonic-type figures in literature.

>Oh, and Moloch appears in Paradise Lost. He was the demon who proposed
>an all-out assault on Heaven, since he was the best fighter of the
>Fallen but bad at anything subtle. I don't know of any Biblical
>references to him, and I have no idea about anything In Nomine may
>have said, but there is literary precedent for a demon with that name.

Moloch was originally an ancient god (Babylonian, maybe? I'm too lazy to dig out my Encyclopedia of Gods, Goddesses, Demigods and Demons to check) whose followers sacrificed children to him by throwing them into fire. As with many other pagan gods, Christianity co-opted him and called him a demon.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor in Chief, Netadmin
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/

>As with many other pagan gods, Christianity
>co-opted him and called him a demon.

"Christianity co-opted him?" Paradise Lost isn't Scripture, and John Milton wasn't on the Vatican's committee for maintaining dogma. Milton probably drew on the Babylonian myths to create his Moloch, as he did with other demons, but it's a bit unfair to say that because he appears in a fictionalized account of the book of Genesis, Milton's Moloch is some sort of officially recognized figure in Christendom.

(Boy, I write long sentences.)

>>As with many other pagan gods, Christianity
>>co-opted him and called him a demon.
>"Christianity co-opted him?" Paradise Lost isn't Scripture, and
>John Milton wasn't on the Vatican's committee for maintaining dogma.

Moloch was demonized long before Milton wrote.

-- Bob
(Proud member of the Legion of Rabid Crack Weasels)
-------------------
"*yawn* YET ANOTHER post-apocalyptic, dark and moody BGC story. Why can't we get stories about, like, Priss romping through a field of flowers with a large cluster of bunnies or something?" -- An unknown fanfic reviewer

LAST EDITED ON 06-12-02 AT 11:27 PM (EDT)
 
>Ad for the heck of it, Question 5: Where did you get all the Celestial
>names in NXE?

I made them up or drew them from literature. "Natlateth" is just a demonic-sounding name based on the original character, Jacqueline Natla, who was the bizarre villainous type in the original Tomb Raider. "Reilael" ought to be pretty obvious; it's "Rei" plus one of the standard angel-name suffixes. (Turns out it actually does mean something in Hebrew - "Companion of God" or some such.) Orcus is one of the demon princes mentioned in, of all things, the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (first edition) Monster Manual; he's a Prince of the Abyss. Presumably the AD&D writers took him from some literary or mythological source with which I'm not familiar. Grendel is a demonic monster who terrorized medieval Europe before being slain by Beowulf, who rips his arm off (appropriate, no?). Malphas (EVA-04) is one of the princes of Hell in In Nomine; the EVA which bears his name is not him, and indeed he may not exist as such in the NXE universe.

The names of the various Angels who attack Worcester-3 are the same as the names in the original series, so for their derivation you'll have to consult one of the innumerable NGE pages out on the Web.

Is that everybody? I think that's everybody...

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor in Chief, Netadmin
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/

>Orcus is one
>of the demon princes mentioned in, of all things, the Advanced
>Dungeons & Dragons (first edition) Monster Manual; he's a
>Prince of the Abyss. Presumably the AD&D writers took him from
>some literary or mythological source with which I'm not familiar.

"Orcus" was an alternate name or epithet given by the Romans for Hades, according to the sources I can find. (http://www.magicdragon.com/UltimateSF/authorsO.html , for one.) Virgil refers to the three-headed dog Cerberus as "Orcus' warder".

Orcus is specifically cited as a demon in "The Life of Eligius", written sometime in the early seventh century of the Christian Era. The specific passage is found in "Eligius, Book II", in the section numbered 16: "No Christian should presume to invoke the name of a demon, not Neptune or Orcus or Diana or Minerva or Geniscus or believe in these inept beings in any way." (Of course this is standard Christian demonization of pagan deities.)

-- Bob
(Proud member of the Legion of Rabid Crack Weasels)
-------------------
"*yawn* YET ANOTHER post-apocalyptic, dark and moody BGC story. Why can't we get stories about, like, Priss romping through a field of flowers with a large cluster of bunnies or something?" -- An unknown fanfic reviewer

>"No Christian should presume to invoke the name of a
>demon, not Neptune or Orcus or Diana or Minerva or Geniscus or believe
>in these inept beings in any way."

Hee hee hee hee... linguistic drift provides for great amusement. The phrase "these inept beings" gives me the image of a bunch of fumble-fingered pagan gods and devils, pratfalling their way through their attempts to seduce mortals into evil like some sort of infernal Chevy Chase routine...

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor in Chief, Netadmin
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/

>Hee hee hee hee... linguistic drift provides for great amusement. The
>phrase "these inept beings" gives me the image of a bunch of
>fumble-fingered pagan gods and devils, pratfalling their way through
>their attempts to seduce mortals into evil like some sort of infernal
>Chevy Chase routine...

Actually, that pretty much sums up the Medieval view of the Devil. The near-Manichean Evil Deity capable of holding off God one-handed is pretty much a modern invention (last century or so, as I recall). During the Middle Ages, the Devil was seen as a clumsy trickster who could be outsmarted by any reasonably clever person, if they really wanted to.

-- Bob
(Proud member of the Legion of Rabid Crack Weasels)
-------------------
"*yawn* YET ANOTHER post-apocalyptic, dark and moody BGC story. Why can't we get stories about, like, Priss romping through a field of flowers with a large cluster of bunnies or something?" -- An unknown fanfic reviewer

>Actually, that pretty much sums up the Medieval view of the Devil.
>The near-Manichean Evil Deity capable of holding off God one-handed is
>pretty much a modern invention (last century or so, as I recall).
>During the Middle Ages, the Devil was seen as a clumsy trickster who
>could be outsmarted by any reasonably clever person, if they really
>wanted to.

Presumably this shift in doctrine was a Church reaction to lots of clever folks (and those who thought they were) starting to believe they could handle the Devil without the Church's help. Besides, thinking you can beat the Dark One at his own game certainly smacks of Pride, no?

>"*yawn* YET ANOTHER post-apocalyptic, dark and moody BGC story. Why
>can't we get stories about, like, Priss romping through a field of
>flowers with a large cluster of bunnies or something?" -- An unknown
>fanfic reviewer

"BUNny BUNny BUNny BUNny!"
-- the Powerpuff Girls

>Presumably this shift in doctrine was a Church reaction to lots of
>clever folks (and those who thought they were) starting to believe
>they could handle the Devil without the Church's help. Besides,
>thinking you can beat the Dark One at his own game certainly smacks of
>Pride, no?

Good points, but I think the shift is more because of the waning power of the Church in the everyday life of J. Random Person after the Enlightenment period. (Not to mention the rise of the Evangelical movement in the USA in the late 19th century.) No longer having as great a stranglehold on the minds of the people as it did in earlier centuries, the Church had to inflate its bogeyman to a level where the average believer was forced to run to the Church for protection. After all, you can't have believers flock to you for your guidance and protection if you don't have something really big to scare them with, right?

Just another aspect of the Church -- no matter its form or denomination -- struggling to hold on to its old imperial power with whatever means necessary.

>>"*yawn* YET ANOTHER post-apocalyptic, dark and moody BGC story. Why
>>can't we get stories about, like, Priss romping through a field of
>>flowers with a large cluster of bunnies or something?" -- An unknown
>>fanfic reviewer
>"BUNny BUNny BUNny BUNny!"
>-- the Powerpuff Girls

<chuckle> Ever since I snagged that quote from a review years ago, I have been sorely tempted to actually write that scene into a story -- but I haven't found the right plot hook to hang it on yet.

In the mean time, to route this back onto something vaguely like the topic for this forum, I've been toying with an evil little NGE spamfic idea based around a rather atrocious pun. Basically, the concept follows the opening of NGE, up until the point Misato and Ritsuko lead Shinji into the EVA bay. However, instead of seeing the Eva in the LCL, he instead sees a monstrous cardboard box. Gendo appears overhead and intones, "In that box is humanity's last defense, broken down and packaged flat for storage and shipping. It comes complete with an allen wrench for easy assembly..." And at around this point, we discover that Shinji is the son of Gendo Ikea...

-- Bob
(Proud member of the Legion of Rabid Crack Weasels)
-------------------
"*yawn* YET ANOTHER post-apocalyptic, dark and moody BGC story. Why can't we get stories about, like, Priss romping through a field of flowers with a large cluster of bunnies or something?" -- An unknown fanfic reviewer

>In the mean time, to route this back onto something vaguely like the
>topic for this forum, I've been toying with an evil little NGE spamfic
>idea based around a rather atrocious pun. Basically, the concept
>follows the opening of NGE, up until the point Misato and Ritsuko lead
>Shinji into the EVA bay. However, instead of seeing the Eva in the
>LCL, he instead sees a monstrous cardboard box. Gendo appears
>overhead and intones, "In that box is humanity's last defense, broken
>down and packaged flat for storage and shipping. It comes complete
>with an allen wrench for easy assembly..." And at around this point,
>we discover that Shinji is the son of Gendo Ikea...

*Nnrrrgghh* Sir, I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask to see your license to carry concealed puns. If you aren't carrying one, I'm going to call the police. Given recent events, as you well know, the police have a zero tolerance policy for crimes involving puns. You know what they say, "Use a pun, go to jail."

Ebony the Black Dragon
aka Draco Draconis Ebenium
known to the NPA as Aaron F. Johnson,
Senior Editor, Living Room Games
http://www.lrgames.com