a high resonance in the Japanese and world media; following the conflict from the 1990s onwards, there was an increased focus on the war realism of the fighting in TV shows. Writer Dennis Redmond noted that Rei is silhouetted against a close-up of the full Moon before Yashima Operation. Writer Yumiko Yano noted that the Moon is a celestial body associated with passivity and femininity and observed an unattainable aura in Rei, comparing her to the Virgin Mary. Yano also associated her figure with the fragile and chaste women portrayed in fin de siècle art, particularly popular among the works of Symbolists painters. For Redmond, "Rei II" illustrates the Japanese national power grid via a satellite shot of Japan from outer space; he also compared the social and natural landscapes of Evangelion to that of postwar Japan. For reviewer Akio Nagatomi, Rei's attitude in the episode also reflects one of the traits of traditional Japanese society, the martyr complex, in which a person will do whatever it takes to accomplish a given task, regardless of personal consequences. Reception "Rei II" was first broadcast on November 8, 1995, and scored a 7.7% rating of audience share on Japanese TV, the highest up to that point. According to Junichi Sato, after the episode's broadcast Evangelion and Rei Ayanami enjoyed high sales in the Japanese market of fan-made comics, known as doujinshi. In 1996, the episode ranked fourth among Animage list of "Best Anime Episodes". In February 1996, Animedia magazine ranked Rei's smile scene among the most memorable anime moments of the month. TV Asahi later published a ranking of the most significant scenes in the history of animation; the scene where "Rei Ayanami smiles at Shinji for the first time" managed to reach 14th position. Rei's smile also appeared in another ranking of the broadcaster, winning 45th place. "Rei II" received a positive reception from critics and reviewers. Anime magazine Newtype praised "Rei II", describing the scene where Rei greets Shinji before the battle against the Angel Ramiel as "impressive". The Artifice's Justin Wu also praised the scene of Rei's smile, describing it as a "powerful" and "iconic moment", since it is "the first time she has deliberately shown an emotion, and one of the handful of times she has done so throughout the whole series". Merumo described it as a "touching" moment. According to writer Dennis Redmond, Rei's smile is one