angels Neon Genesis Evangelion They are strange creatures that threaten to destroy humanity, and their powers and abilities can sometimes be quite difficult to understand. Here’s a rundown of all 17 Angels who appeared in the original series, what they can do, and when they appear.
Adam and Lilith
Adam and Lilith are the First and Second Angels, respectively. Man was discovered in Antarctica, and his discovery caused the Second Impact. Adam is the ancestor of the Angels, a being sent to Earth to fill the planet with life in its early days. Lilith is the ancestor of humanity and was discovered in Japan, where the Geofront is located. Lilith is shown with a strange mask on her face whose design matches the SEELE logo. All Evangelion units are based on Adam, with the exception of Unit 01, which is based on Lilith. Lilith debuts in episode 15 and Adam debuts in episode 8.
Sachiel
Sachiel is the Third Angel and was the first to appear after the Second Impact occurred in episode 1. Its humanoid form emerges from the Pacific Ocean and makes a beeline for Tokyo-3 and NERV HQ. Evangelion puts up a tough fight against Rei in Unit 00 and is eventually defeated by Shinji in Unit 01. Sachiel has bony prominences on his arms and can fire an intense beam of energy. It was destroyed when Sachiel self-destructed in an unsuccessful attempt to take Unit 01 with him.
samselle
Shamshel is the Fourth Angel who appears in episode 3. The Shamshel has small legs and a long body, looking a bit like a wingless dragonfly. Shamshel fought mercilessly against Evangelion Unit 01 and used a few clever tricks like cutting the power cord to gain the upper hand. Shamshel could create energy whips from Unit 01’s arm-like appendages that were small enough to burn his hands. Shamshel was destroyed when he stabbed the Shinji core in Unit 01.
ramiel
Ramiel is the Fifth Angel who appears appropriately in episode 5 of the series. Ramiel is one of the angels best known for his oddly simple appearance: just a blue octahedron, a shape with 8 triangular faces. Ramiel’s alien nature made it difficult to fight as he had a powerful AT Field and was equipped with a powerful energy beam that pierced Unit 00’s shield. Ramiel was eventually defeated by Shinji in EVA Unit 01 and fired a super-powered rifle charged with Japan’s all-electric output, but Rei was lauded for helping with that.
Gaghiel
Gaghiel is the Sixth Angel and appears in Episode 8 of Asuka’s debut. It looks like a whale-like creature and is depicted swimming in the waters around a fleet of warships. Gaghiel differs from previous angels in that most of his attacking ability is physical, regarding his shark-like fangs. This was a challenge as Evangelion Unit 02 was not equipped to fight underwater. Working together in Unit 02, Shinji and Asuka were finally destroyed when they kept their mouth open long enough to let in a few of the abandoned warships, causing them to self-destruct and shatter the Angel’s core.
Israel
Israfil is the Seventh Angel who appears in episode 9. It also has a vaguely humanoid form and came out of the ocean. Israfel’s greatest talent was that he had not one but two cores, and it wasn’t enough to destroy one core at a time. It can also divide itself into two slightly smaller stems, each with a nucleus. They initially defeated Evangelion Units 01 and 02 and were only contained while repairs were made by dropping an atomic bomb layered explosive on them. Shinji and Asuka had to train to sync their movements in order to pierce both cores at the same time and defeat him.
sandalphone
Sandalphon is the Eighth Angel who appears in episode 10. Although first discovered while still in its embryonic state, Sandalphon’s hatched form resembles a primitive deep-sea creature. NERV wanted to jump on Sandalphon, but it was brooding deep inside a volcano, which made it difficult to reach it. Using special equipment, Asuka in Unit 02 had to dive into magma to destroy it before it hatched, but was unsuccessful. Asuka can finally destroy it using a Progressive Blade from Shinji. As he is still young, it is unknown what his full abilities will be.
Matarael
Matarael is the Ninth Angel who appears in chapter 11. It has a small central body supported by long, spider-like legs covered with triangles with eyes resembling the Eye of Providence. Matarael attacked Tokyo-3 while the city was out of power, making it impossible to detect initially. Matarael is shown attacking with acid, which the Evangelions use to keep them from coming out of their launch tubes. Working together, Shinji was defeated by Rei and Asuka as Asuka knocked down the AT Field and Rei retrieved the missing Track Rifle for Shinji, who dealt the killing blow.
Sahakiel
Sahaquiel is the Tenth Angel who appears in episode 12. Sahaquiel has a peculiar appearance, its central body is a large eye with two oddly shaped arms/wings protruding from either side. It emerged from space and began dropping its own explosive fragments from orbit, inflicting massive damage wherever they landed. It’s also proven to be immune to atomic-layer N2 bombs, thanks to a strong AT Field. Once again, the trio working together was defeated by the Evangelion pilots, and Asuka dealt the killing blow, this time with the Progressive Knife.
Ireul
Ireul is the Eleventh Angel who appears in episode 13. Unlike others that are large creatures, Ireul is a microscopic, virus-like organism. It first appeared on the Geofront, causing a strange form of corrosion to spread on everything it touched. He tried to cause the base to self-destruct, but Ritsuko was able to thwart it using her last intact MAGI computer. Because of its size, it has never stood up to an Evangelion.
Leliel
Leliel is the Twelfth Angel and appears in episode 16. It was a being that existed in dimensions greater than 3 dimensions and manifested as a shadow on earth, seemingly shed by a floating sphere on it, but the opposite was true. It was incredibly difficult to fight as one of the strangest Angels and pulled Unit 01 into its extradimensional space. Leliel was destroyed when Unit 01 went berserk while inside and smashed his creature just before a flood of bombs fell on him.
bardiel
Bardiel is the Thirteenth Angel who appears in episode 18. Bardiel’s true form is not seen, but it is implied that he is small as he can hide in the clouds and miss Unit 03 as he passes. Bardiel grew up in Unit 03 and turned him into an angel, even though Evangelion’s pilot, Toji Suzuhara, was still inside. Unit 01 is assigned to fight him, but Shinji refuses due to Toji’s presence; Control of Unit 01 was transferred to the rogue system, which violently cracked Unit 03’s entry plug, killing Bardiel and horribly injuring Toji.
Zeruel
The Fourteenth Angel Zeruel appears in episode 19. He also has a humanoid form, but is probably less human than Sachiel or Israfel. He was extremely strong, and with his attack, he was able to strike a massive attack on the Geofront. Their “arms” are paper-thin, giving them incredible slicing power. He could soar into the air and shoot absurdly powerful energy beams from his eyes. It was eventually destroyed by Unit 01 and the “S2 Engine” within Zeruel was destroyed by Unit 01, greatly increasing the strength of the EVA.
Arael
The Fifteenth Angel Arael appears in chapter 22. Another strange angel of light with a largely disembodied body, he attacks using his AT field, establishing telepathic contact with EVA pilots and forcing them to relive traumatic memories. Like Sahaquiel, it was approaching from space, making it difficult to fight. Defeated by Rei using the Lance of Longinus launched into orbit; Lance then disappears into space.
Armisael
The Sixteenth Angel Armisael appears in chapter 23. Its body takes the form of a double helix made of light and is initially coiled so that its two ends touch and form a circle. He was also able to interact psychically with the EVA pilots and attaching himself to Rei in Unit 00, causing her to feel his pain and almost taking Unit 01 as well. Rei decides to self-destruct Unit 00 and destroys Armisael along with a large Tokyo-3 stack.
Tabriz
The Seventeenth Angel Tebris is better known. Miracle fans are featured as Kaworu Nagisa and in episode 24. Kaworu is not a “natural” angel, but rather a being created by SEELE as a vessel for Adam’s soul, making him similar to Rei in many ways. He is the Fifth Child and is sent in human form to replace Asuka as the pilot of Unit 02. Kaworu and Shinji quickly develop a close relationship, but Kaworu eventually tries to get down to Terminal Dogma and join Adam. Lilith is not Adam. Unsuccessful, Kaworu allows Shinji to kill him and dies when crushed by Unit 01’s hands.