“Neon Genesis Evangelion”, a popular manga and anime series and also animated film series has captivated fans worldwide.
And when it comes to trains, one of the most famous collaborations was the 500 Type Eva Project (2016-2017) with the 500series Shinkansen receiving the purple/white/green/orange Evangelion colors (to be specific, the colors of the Evangelion Unit-01) piloted by Ikari Shinji and houses the soul of his mother, Ikari Yui.
The next collaboration would be the Tenryu Hamanako Railway Type TH2100 which began on November 17, 2021. The promotional campaign was for the Evangelion rebuild animated film release.
And the train received the purple, green, orange colors as well!
The Tenryu Hamanako Line (Tenhama Line for short), a Japanese railway line in Shizuoka Prfecture and happens to be the only railway line of Tenryu Hamanako Railroad. And on that railroad is the Tenryu Hamanako Railway TH2000 type diesel car introduced in 2001.
The TH2100 type diesel car is an extra car with a changed safety brake (it doubled the brakes) of the TH2000 and 11 cars were manufactured by Niigata Ironworks for Tenryu Hamanako Railway from 2002-2005.
The train goes from Kakegawa Station in Kakegawa City, Shizuoka Prefecture to Tenryu Futamata Station in Tenryu Ward, Hamamatsu City, to Shinjohara Station in Kosai City
To encourage tourism, the interior was changed and Tenryu Hamanko Railway has done collaborations with many anime/manga series or other collaborations with companies by showcasing special wrapping on their trains which has gained a lot of attention.
And as TOMIX has done one for “Yurukyan” (Yuru Camp), they did the same for the Evangelion train.
The train features one side with Shinji and his Type-01 Unit Evangelion. While the other side features Evangelion 13 which was introduced in “Evangelion:3.0 You Can (Not) Redo” and simultaneously piloted by Ikari Shinji and Nagisa Kawaoru. And on the doorway is an image of NERV Commander, Ikarii Gendo.
But the train features a wonderful reproduction of the original TH2100, including the wrapping on some of the side windows.
The car number and company crest are printed, the front display is not lit but a destination sticker is included. The station name plate sticker for island platform (local type) (Futamata Station and other destination stickers) are included.
The train features head and tail lights when on a powered track.
The train also features a flywheel, silver wheels, pre-installed TN coupler and also an M-13 motor.
I have tested the TOMIX 8610 Tenryu Hamanako Railway Type TH2100 (TH2111) – Evangelion Wrapping Train on both TOMIX and KATO tracks and it runs just fine!
It’s one of those trains you don’t have to fuss with. It runs perfectly and in someways, it has become one of my favorite trains (and my testing trains) because I know I can rely on it without derailing at faster speeds on any track.
But for the most part, this is a solid train. The detail is very good when you look below the train and see the details, especially it’s catchy wrapping is fantastic!
May you be an Eva fan or a Tenryu Hamanako Railway Type TH2100 fan, then definitely give the TOMIX 8610 Tenryu Hamanako Railway Type TH2100 (TH2111) – Evangelion Wrapping Train a try! You won’t be disappointed.
