Evangelion is a violent weapon. The sinister nature and the idea of how this machine is beyond human comprehension and control were demonstrated in the very first battle in the TV series.
The battle was with Sachiel, the 3rd Angel in the TV series, and the first to appear fifteen years after the Second Impact. Its arrival at Tokyo-3 coincides with Shinji’s arrival at NERV HQ on the behest of his father, Gendo Ikari.
Shinji was compelled to pilot the machine, which he initially refused to, but agreed to after seeing how an injured Rei would have to do it if you does not. Yes. He is such a wuss even by the standards of 14-year-olds.
Obviously, being a noob in piloting this unholy weapon, things did not go well. But then, Evangelion ain’t no pushover. It has taken a life of its own and went into berserk mode.
The berserk EVA-01 gave Sachiel a brutal beat down before it self-destructed in an attempt to bring down the EVA-01 that has pretty much gone psycho but bad news for the 3rd Angel, it didn’t work. Instead, the Angel kind of destroyed itself in the process.
That was the actual event. But in this concept by renowned art director and artist Josh Nizzi, Evangelion Test Type-01 not only did destroyed Sachiel but the mecha is presented strolling down the ruins of Tokyo-3 nightscape, with the Progressive Knife in one hand and on the other, dragging the motionless body of the Sachiel. Now, that’s dark!
Josh’s concept is now turned into a sculpture/statue by Prime 1 Studio and aptly called Evangelion Test Type-01 Night Battle Ver. The Prime 1 Studio Evangelion Test Type-01 Night Battle Ver is part of the statue maker’s Ultimate Diorama Masterline series and as such, it is set against, well, a diorama.
The sculpture/statue is one of the many products the company will be offering as part of Prime 1 Studio‘s 10 year anniversary this year.
The diorama features a torn power station of Tokyo-3 and a crashed UNAF close air support VTOL – among the many details. As for the mecha, Josh’s take is more mechanical than organic – as evident from the heavy use of panel linings and exposed mechanical details. It is an entirely new take which, IMHO, is not for everyone (but I kind of dig it).
The sculpture/statue also features a brand new paint job that includes a striking dark purple hue with a little more blue tint to reflect its nightscape theme before finishing with fluorescent paint all green accents that glow gloriously when shine on blacklight (UV-A light).
The Prime 1 Studio Evangelion Test Type-01 Night Battle Ver. comes with the said Tokyo-3 themed based and two swappable heads, each featuring LED light-up eyes.
The sculpture/statue, which is mainly of polystone, measures 67.5 cm tall, 40.4 cm wide, and 48.7 cm deep, and weighs 18.1 kilograms.
Limited to just 500 pieces, the Prime 1 Studio Evangelion Test Type-01 Night Battle Ver. sculpture/statue is available to order now for a princely sum of US$1,499, with delivery in September-November 2022.
All images courtesy of Prime 1 Studio.
