Shinji Ikari facts for kids

Shinji Ikari, a main character from Neon Genesis Evangelion

Shinji Ikari is a main character from the Japanese cartoon Neon Genesis Evangelion. He is a teenage boy who pilots a giant robot, called Evangelion Unit 01. Shinji uses this robot to fight huge monsters known as Angels.

About Shinji Ikari

Shinji Ikari (whose Japanese name is 碇シンジ) was born on June 6, 2001. During the story of Neon Genesis Evangelion, he is 14 years old. His father is Gendo Ikari and his mother was Yui Ikari.

Shinji grew up without his parents. His mother, Yui, passed away when he was very young. His father, Gendo, left Shinji to lead a special organization called NERV.

Shinji lives in a city called "Tokyo-3." This city was built after the original Tokyo was destroyed. He is a junior high school student. But his main job is piloting NERV's giant robot, Unit 01. He uses Unit 01 to protect Tokyo-3 from the attacking Angels.

Shinji is also good at playing the cello. His blood type is A.

Shinji's Personality

Shinji is often quiet and does not talk much to other people. He sometimes feels like he is not good enough, which is called low self-esteem.

He is often scared of piloting Unit 01. Because of this fear, he has left NERV a few times. However, he always comes back. He hopes that his father will be proud of him if he keeps fighting.

As the show goes on, Shinji makes some friends. He tries to help them when they have problems. He does this even if it means he might get hurt himself. Shinji also becomes braver over time.

Shinji's Friends and Family

Shinji meets many people during his adventures. Some of them become important to him.

Asuka Soryu

Asuka goes to the same school as Shinji. She also lives with Shinji and Misato. Asuka pilots another giant robot, Evangelion Unit 02. She often argues with Shinji. This is because she worries that he might be a better pilot than her.

Gendo Ikari

Gendo is Shinji's father. He is also the commander of NERV, the organization that fights the Angels. Shinji really wants his father to be proud of him. However, Gendo almost never spends time with Shinji.

Rei Ayanami

Rei also goes to Shinji's school. She pilots Evangelion Unit 00. Rei is even more lonely than Shinji. She often acts like she does not have any feelings at all. She and Shinji get along, but they do not talk very much. Shinji is very curious about her.

Misato Katsuragi

Misato is Shinji's boss at NERV. She is a commander of the fighting forces. She lets Shinji live at her apartment. Shinji sometimes thinks she has bad manners.

Famous Quote

• "I mustn't run away I mustn't run away..." – Shinji Ikari said this to himself when he first piloted the Evangelion. He was trying to be brave.

Images for kids

• 

  An early sketch of Shinji by Sadamoto, later changed for the anime.

• 

  Hideaki Anno, the creator, said Shinji "shrinks from human contact."

• 

  A taxi in Sapporo decorated with Shinji's image.

See also

In Spanish: Shinji Ikari para niños