OK guys, gotta take down some raw thoughts before I forget ;].
I was able to watch 2.0 when it was released in cinemas around the globe, but it wasn't nearly as perfect as 2.22. This short review won't spoil you anything, and I won't be going into much details regarding the plot. Just a short summary ;].
Let's start with characters and their development first. You launch with a completely new persona - Makimari Mari (or something of that sort, was never good at decyphering japanese names) in her staggering battle against one of the angels. Right from the start a new scene, new persona, new Eva (gougoki) and the same jaw-dropping cg animation, so well-known from 1.11. I died for the first time ;]. You won't be able to catch your breath before the very next battle sequence, this time performed by my beloved Asu-chan <3 '] The movie goes on with some chit-chat here and there, developing charas (this part I purpousely omit, as it's something you gotta learn by urself), Kaji is back too, and we see some more decent action of the trio 00,01 and 02. Mari also arrives in N-Tokio 3 to overhaul 02, whilst Asuka is asked to pilot...you'll see which Eva ;].
We see more of Rei x Shin scenes, getting much closer to manga, then the original TV series, some more battles, more father-son issues on the way, and the movie ends up with an all-out survival of the sickest battle against Zeruel (best fight evarr btw, much better than snipering mission from 1.11 :>). Aaaand, the end is also jaw-dropping to some extend :>.
Enough of the summary... Art/music is on the spot. I have to say, that I was impressed with what I saw during my first 1.11 watchings, but this is simply ASTONISHING! So far I haven't found anything that wouldn't fit Anno's overall vision of this movie(s) in terms of art and animation. It's just perfect! You expect beautiful, hand-drawn backgrounds, realistic real-time shadows, cell-shadding to enhance CG graphics and motion-capture like animation...? You name it! It's there, fitting and blowing your mind almost every second as you dive deeper into the movie...
As your brain gets overheated you constantly get attacked by splendid score written and composed by Sagisu Shiroh - one of the few japanese composers I still hold a candle for. The score is heartbreaking, aggressive, funny and adjusting to every second and every frame on screen. One thing I don't like is a rather poor lyric-based song performed during final battle scene. Like I said.. it's crap imho.
Value? Oh yeah, plenty of it here! I 've been able to watch the cam version of this movie several times so far and I'm thinking... why not have another 3 or 4 sessions with these splendid dvd or blu ray quality... Additionally, you get several new scenes with this release and that's definitely a bargain card here, for buying it that is.
Is it so much different from the original series? Yes, it is. Is it for worse? No. Eva needed refreshment, and this is what you get once you let Anno loose with his imagination :>. Should you watch the original TV series before watching this? You might, I'm not saying it's obligatory. You get the better picture of it all once you do so, but otherwise it's edible too.