Misato Katsuragi

Name: Misato Katsuragi
Title: NERV Operations Director
Age: 29
Birthday: December 8, 1986
Sex: Female

Captain (and later Major) Misato Katsuragi is the NERV Operations Director and the caretaker of Shinji Ikari, Asuka Langley Sohryu, and Pen². While highly focused and responsible professionally, her personal life is another matter. Among her most distinguishing flaws are her abusive drinking habits (although not yet at the level of an alcoholic). In fact Misato is often seen as a caricature of the highly-independent modern career woman.

Misato's self-destructive behavior is the result of childhood trauma, most notably caused by the Second Impact. Misato's father, Dr. Katsuragi, was a respected scientist and highly devoted to his work, to the exclusion of everything else—especially his family. As a result Misato eventually developed a dislike of him, and was happy when her mother divorced him.

At the age of 14, Misato was at the South Pole in Antarctica with her father and the Katsuragi expedition when the Second Impact occurred. While the continent was being obliterated, an injured Misato was carried out by her father and placed in an escape capsule, thus becoming the only survivor of the expedition. However her father's selfless act would haunt her, and to this day she does not understand if she hates or loves him.

Following the trauma of the Second Impact, Misato retreats into herself, becoming mute for two years. When she finally snaps out of the catatonia; her personality shifts, becoming more social and extroverted. In college she befriends Ritsuko Akagi and Ryoji Kaji. She eventually develops a romantic relationship with Kaji, but breaks it off as he reminds her of her father.

Misato's motivation for joining NERV is based on her desire for revenge against the Angels, which she blames for the Second Impact and the death of her father. Although she is still unsure about how she feels about her father, revenge against the Angels is what keeps her going.

Ultimately Misato dies at the hands of Strategic Self Defense Force troops during their invasion of NERV Headquarters as seen in The End of Evangelion.

Analysis

• NERV Operations Director
  
  Misato Katsuragi's appointment as NERV's Operations Director (despite her age and relative inexperience) speaks wonders of the organization's motives. Misato may be smart and driven, but she is neither a brilliant tactician nor an inspiring commander. However her mistrust and vengeful hostility towards the Angels is exactly what NERV wants from someone in that position. While she fulfils this role for a time, Misato proves more intelligent than NERV had hoped. Towards the end of the series she begins to question NERV and its motives, and becomes increasingly protective of the Evangelion pilots.

• Origin of the name Misato Katsuragi
  
  Misato's surname originates from World War II naval vessels. Katsuragi was an Unryu-class Aircraft Carrier in the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) built during the war, but was completed too late to see any action. She served mostly as a ferry for kamikaze aircraft and later troops until she was scrapped in 1947.