NGE rips off all the best ideas of
Ideon and presents them as new. If you squint hard enough, you can pretend that it was even a competent production, as opposed to the budgetless exercise in bare-bones-showing anime that also doubles as Philosophy 101.
Yes, it has Misato and Asuka, but even the worst show has something going for it. No wait.... Speed Grapher had nothing going for it. Forget what I just said. NGE blows despite having Misato and Asuka. Just ask Gainax, who won't let Anno anywhere near a director's seat....