In 2015, half of the world's population has been wiped out by "The Second Impact" - an explosion that occurred 15 years before in Antarctica. Mankind is now begining to rebuild when a new threat emerges. This threat is in the form of giant-sized alien entity known as "Angels" - messangers from God that are here to bring the end of the world.
Shinji Ikari arrives in Tokyo-3 to be reunited with his father after three years apart. The city appears to be deserted but, before he has any time to figure things out, he finds himself caught up in the middle of a battle between UN defence forces and an "Angel". Shinji is saved by Misato Katsuragi, who was assigned to pick up Shinji when he arrived. The UN's artillery has little to no effect on the Angel; even an atomic blast isn't able to destroy the monster. Mankind's last hope now lies in the hands of the mysterious agency known as NERV. The commander of this agency is Shinji's father, Gendo Ikari. The NERV agency had been set up to combat the Angels, their main weapon used to combat these Angels are huge bio-mechanical robots known as "Evangelion". However, only three Evangelion exist and only three 14-year-old children are able to control these strange machines. One of them happens to be Shinji, who is referred to as the "Third Child".
Upon arriving at the underground NERV headquarters, Shinji's reunion with his father isn't exactly warm-hearted. He is forced by his father to pilot the Evangelion against the rampaging Angel topside. At first Shinji refuses, but changes his mind when he meets Rei Ayanami, the "First Child". Rei is the only other pilot available but, due to a previous accident, she is seriously injured and has little hope of defeating the Angel. So, with no training or preparation, Shinji is placed inside the Evangelion and sent to defeat the Angel.
Neon Genesis Evangelion is a 26-part animated series that aired on Japanese TV in 1996. It follows mankind's battle against the "Angels" along with Shinji's personal development, as a child who has to face a harsh reality.