Evangelion Seventeenth Angel Tabris
Tabris is the Seventeenth and Final Angel of the Evangelion anime series named after the “Angel of Free Will”. Tabris appears in Episode 24. Unlike most of the Angels shown throughout the series, Tabris is not a Child of Adam. Rather than being created by Adam, Tabris is said to be created from Adam, in some respects. Much like Rei, Tabris is artificially created from the body of a human and the soul of an Angel. While Rei contains the soul of Lilith, Tabris has the soul of Adam. As a combination of human and Angel, it is unknown where Tabris’ core is located or if he even has a core at all.
He appears as a young teenage boy with gray hair and red eyes around the same age as Shinji and is also known as the Fifth Child and Kaworu Nagisa. As an Evangelion pilot, Kaworu is able to reach levels of synchronization thought to be physically impossible by members of NERV.
Notable Angel Abilities
Evangelion Control: As a pilot, Tabris can seemingly synchronize with any Evangelion Unit perfectly and to an extent that was thought to be physically impossible by members of NERV. This characteristic is considered strange, as Evangelion Units are essentially tuned to only be fully functional with a specific individual. However, as most Evangelion units are created from the body of Adam, it makes sense that a being with Adam’s soul would be able to control a body that was copied from Adam. This control extends past simply piloting, however. In his attempt to make his way down to Terminal Dogma, he is shown taking Evangelion Unit 02 along with him, despite there not being a pilot inside. He can seemingly control the unit freely and can have the unit move independently from himself.
A.T. Field: NERV HQ’s Magi system analyzes Tabris’ A.T. field and finds that it is the strongest one ever recorded. When attacked by Evangelion Unit 01, his A.T. field is able to block the strike entirely, even though Progressive Knives are previously shown to cut through Angels’ A.T. fields. Tabris also uses his A.T. field for flight as well and is capable of levitating both himself and Unit 02 at once. Despite it being the strongest A.T. field ever recorded by the Magi system, it is not known if Tabris is capable of using his A.T. field as a weapon like Sahaquiel.
Relationship with Shinji Ikari
Despite being an Angel and only appearing in one episode, Tabris has a profound effect on Shinji. Although Shinji is usually a timid character that prefers isolation, Tabris, who goes by Kaworu, quickly becomes a friend and a source of comfort for him. Tabris quickly gains Shinji’s trust, which makes Shinji turn bitter with anger when he realizes that Tabris was in the end an Angel, one of the enemies that has put him and his fellow pilots in danger.
Battle and Defeat
As the Fifth Child, Tabris has the freedom to roam around many of NERV’s facilities, including where the Evangelion Units are stored. Before being detected as an Angel, he finds Evangelion Unit 02 and manages to activate it, even though NERV believed that it was unable to activate without a pilot. Tabris then uses his A.T. field to levitate himself and Evangelion Unit 02 down deeper into NERV, toward where “Adam” is held. Unit 01 is sent to engage the Angel. Shinji, who felt betrayed by Tabris (Kaworu) because he kept the fact that he was an Angel a secret from him, begins his attack but is stopped by Evangelion Unit 02. Tabris only seems to want the Unit to hinder Shinji from advancing, rather than trying to incapacitate him. As Shinji is kept occupied by Unit 02, Tabris continues closer to his goal, becoming the first and only Angel to reach the final room in which “Adam” is held. In the final approach, Tabris begins talking to the white giant, pondering whether all beings created by Adam are destined to return to it, even if it results in the destruction of humanity. Shortly after, Tabris realizes that the being in front of him is not actually the First Angel Adam, but rather the Second Angel Lilith. Shinji manages to catch up to Tabris and catches him with Evangelion Unit 01’s hand. The two have a conversation where Tabris states that life and death have equal value to him and that the ability to choose death is absolute freedom. Shinji hesitates for a long period of time before finally crushing Tabris to death, resulting in the destruction of the last Angel.
Tabris in Other Media
The Seventeenth Angel Tabris, makes appearances in the majority of the films after the anime series as Kaworu Nagisa with a larger role. His first is in the first film, Rebuild of Evangelion: 1.0: You Are (Not) Alone Alone), where he is shown on NERV’s lunar base. He befriends Shinji once again and develops a friendship that matches, or possibly surpasses the level of companionship seen in the original series. Eventually the storyline leads to his death, but before this Shinji and Kaworu team up in the first double-piloted Evangelion Unit.