Rei Ayanami, look to your left. No, your other left...

(Note: This report was completed a few days ago, but due to health problems, I was only able to post the post today.)

Topic: "That anime related merchandise bothers me"

Merchandise of the day: Anime figure collectibles.

Character in question: Rei Ayanami

Introduction: Here's the report I mentioned in the previous post. Now, I'm quite the figure collector myself, as I have quite a large number of them in all sorts of poses, all sorts of girls, etc...And, with that said, something bothered me that normally wouldn't, because, I'm not a fan of NGE (but I do respect it). So your wondering why am I talking about Rei Ayanami, a Eva girl? Please remember to note that although I may sound serious at times, this report is not to be taken seriously and the whole point is to laugh at either me being crazy or the theories I create. Although, you will have to agree I make sense with my musings....The controversy begins....

Part 1: See the big picture. Rei Ayanami, one of the most recognizable girls in all of anime, sadly. lol. Ehem, anyways, what bothers me? Here's what bothers me:

That picture above. Yes, the one with the blue haired girl, looking at you with those cute red eyes. Looking at you in the direction of her left. Read my previous sentence again please. "Looking at you in the direction of her left". Oh, "so what?" your saying. Ok, here's what:

Stare please: or this: or what about this:

By now you probably looked at the first picture again, then stared at the next 3 with either perverted eyes or with a "holy...." look in your eyes. Yes, that's right, all 4 figures/garage kits have Rei looking towards her left. "Aw, sorry bud, I don't see the point..." is what some may say, but my points become clear...

Part 2: Gripes. We all know (or should know for some of you) that Evangelion has perhaps the widest assortment of figures for Rei and Asuka. I have yet to see someone with the complete collection, but here's where my gripes begin: what if I were to collect all the Rei Ayanami figures? What if I decided to display them museum style? That would mean a majority would be facing towards the left, in turn would make bystanders look like they're in line for something. Of course, if I set them all on a table I would end up looking at them from the far right of the table. I mean, Rei is a girl for crying out loud, I don't want to stare at her left side all day, I want to see her from the right as well!

Part 3: Theories. Perhaps the funniest part of this whole fiasco. Now, remember when I said I have a large amount of figures in my collection. I know, as a fact, that a majority of all the figures sculpted have the girls looking towards their left, as many of my figures are looking towards the left lol. But, you all know me. Somehow, someway I just have to be controversial. So I actually did research a answer to my own question and came up with this: Rei's good side is her left. Ok....your probably thinking I'm a nutjob for saying that I know a fictional character that well lol. But, that was the best answer I could laugh up. We all know how we want to take pictures, and say "get a shot of my good side". Well, quite literally a Angel managed to "get a shot" of Rei's right side. Do I have proof? Look at this:

Ah look, that's a screenshot from episode 3 of the TV series. See, even here she's looking to her left lol...now look closely. See, her right side was hurt pretty badly...ah I feel sorry for her....her right arm...her right eye...lol....ehem, as you can see she got hurt on her right side. So, what is my answer? In real life you may have heard the term "nerve compensation reaction" (at least what I think it is called). No, not "Nerv Compensation Reaction". It's when a situation arises that disables the function of a certain part of your body, causing a neighboring/opposite part to react and rise to the occasion. An example would be the eyes. Each and every one of us have a superior eye. Meaning if one is obscured, the other instantly takes control and compensate's. Snipers can probably vouch for this. So, back to Rei. In this case, the answer I found was that since her right side was damaged that badly, it caused her body to react to it and made her "showcase" her left side more frequently LOL. That's why when she posed for all these figure sculptors she looks to her left and shows her left side out of reflex! Blast you Sachiel the 3rd angel, you made Rei have a disability that makes her look to her left from time to time....lol... Theory in Layman terms: Rei's only poses in ways that showcase her left side more often than her right, due to injuries sustained while battling Sachiel the 3rd angel.

Part 4: Conflicting reasons. Ok, now some of you probably think I am officially crazy. What, you never read my episode summaries at the Animesuki Forums? lol. But, it was quite funny when I actually found an excuse for all my gripes. But, back to the conflicting reasons why my answer, if taken seriously, is flawed. lol. First of all, a majority of figure sculptors base their works on official artwok or fan art. Example for those who don't know would be my lovely paint job, Takako Kinoshita (another figure looking to her left lol):Yes, that figure was completed by me, and the winner of Hobbyfanatics Random Draw Winner 2006. Of course, there are the more rare, original-pose sculpts. So basically I just shot myself in the foot explaining the above lol...second of all, even if Rei wasn't injured by Mr. Sachiel, she'd still be posing the way she does now. Believe me, I do feel that a girl is best posed with her left side expose`. Adding to the fact that Rei is usually cast in the shadow of Asuka (the figures are usually paired up together. In this case, I didn't tell you about the gripe I had with Asuka showcasing her right side more often than Rei lol), and I don't want to get into the "Asuka and her right sided posing" topic lol...

Conclusion: I'm crazy. lol. Of course there's no conspiracy with the left facing Rei figures, coincidentaly inevitably left facing at that...It's true I admit I was a little discouraged to find more left-posed Rei figures than I thought there would be after researching all the possible creations of Rei. But I will admit that I really believed there was a reason behind all this, and the allegation that Asuka must be purchased alongside Rei to bring out the figure's true purpose of the pose. All in all I do like the Rei figures, and it was fun making up an excuse for the great question of "why Rei is looking to her left more often than her right. So, for the grand finale, the conclusion of this report?

"In the case of mangatron vs. Rei Ayanami and her left facing figures, the court finds....Sachiel, the 3rd angel to blame. Unfortunately Sachiel met it's maker not too long after handing Rei her injuries, so he is unable to attend this hearing."

Dmn you Sachiel

I'm the mangatron. RE of the controversy. I hope you enjoyed this hilarious take on the world of anime girl figures. Comments welcome, and see you again sometime....

(Special thanks to Hobbysearch Garage for the research material)
Note: The references of Sachiel lean more towards the manga version, in case some of you wonder...