Interesting Notes:
-A radio program playing in the background while Misato and Shinji are in the car is apparently an advice show. In it, the talk show hostess (who sounds suspiciously like Megumi Hayashibara, who voices Rei) informs a "Mr. Waaa" that he shouldn't feel so depressed over his relationship troubles because it used to be a lot worse in the early years after the Second Impact, where romantic relationships weren't really a priority over simple survival.
-This is one of the few instances where Ritsuko isn't seen wearing red lipstick for the whole episode.
-One bar on the collar is the rank of "Captain" in NERV. Two bars is the rank of "Major"
-If the Angel had succeeded, all of the Fuji lakes would have been merged into one body linked with the Pacific Ocean. The Geo-Front, even though it is underground, could never have survived such an attack. The counterattack operation had a 0.00001% chance of succeeding.
-A D-17 declaration from the government calls for the evacuation of all civilians and non-essential personnel to designated shelters.
-A will is required to be written by NERV personnel in the event of running a suicide mission.
-Rei is apparently a vegetarian. She hates meat.

Unanswered Questions:
-What exactly were the "wings of light" seen during the Second Impact?
-Why did Gendo and Fuyutsuki go to Antarctica? What could be so important to have NERV be without a Commander and Vice Commander for a few days?
-What is the Matsuhiro, and how is it a "backup" for the MAGI system?
-What is enabling the Angels to advance their own thinking and structure?

Analysis:
-This episode is another development story which fleshes out the character of Misato even more from the small peek into her in "The Human Creation". We get to hear and understand Misato's reasons for joining NERV, and her problems with her father, another parallel that is drawn between her and Shinji (this was also done in "Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win!"). We also see the actual events of the Second Impact for the first time as well. The mystery of the "light wings" is definitely something to note, though it is assume that these "wings" are coming from the Angel that the researchers encountered. The episode also shows all three Evangelion units in action once again, and it seems that they certainly work well together as a team.

-Gendo and Fuyutsuki seem to have different sorts of thinking, though they are both working under the same cause, supposedly. We've seen Fuyutsuki doubt or question Gendo's motives before ("Magma Diver", where he was unsure of Gendo's intent to capture a live Angel is one such example) but this is one of the first times we see him actually disagreeing with Gendo's philosophy. Gendo's somewhat human-centered view bothers the Vice Commander. As for their mission, a ship was seen carrying a long, slender object. Perhaps this may be a new weapon for the Evangelions or an artifact from the Angel encounter of Second Impact.

-It's still unknown what the Angels are able to do in order to learn and advance so quickly. Their forms are beginning to use unorthodox attacks that are more difficult to defeat. Whether or not the Angels are becoming more advanced on purpose is also not known.

-Shinji's desire to hear praise from his father is the reason that he says he still pilots and Evangelion. When he got praise from Ritsuko, it wasn't really much for him to celebrate over. However, he got kind words from his father, Gendo, and for someone whose father left him abandoned when he was little, that was a big step forward in Shinji's self-esteem. In that vein, it's not unlike Asuka's more self-centered approach of proving that she exists and has value. The only difference is that Shinji is trying to please one person instead of a whole planet of them.