Neon Genesis Evangelion (Japanese: 新世紀エヴァンゲリオン | Hepburn: Shin Seiki Evangerion) is a Japanese media franchise created by Hideaki Anno and owned by Khara. Most of the franchise features an apocalyptic mecha action story, which revolves around the efforts by the paramilitary organization NERV to fight hostile beings called Angels, using giant humanoids called Evangelions (or EVAs for short) that are piloted by select teenagers. Subsequent works deviate from this theme to varying degrees, focusing more on romantic interactions between the characters, plotlines not present in the original works, and reimaginings of the conflicts from the original works. The Neon Genesis Evangelion manga debuted in Shōnen Ace in December 1994, to generate interest in the upcoming anime release. The Neon Genesis Evangelion anime was written and directed by Hideaki Anno, originally airing from October 1995 until March 1996. The general consensus is that the anime was groundbreaking; it explored religious, psychological, and philosophical themes, while initially appearing to be a standard mecha show. There was some debate over the controversial ending of the television series. In response, two films were made to provide an alternate ending for the show: Neon Genesis Evangelion: Death & Rebirth, released in March 1997, and The End of Evangelion released in July 1997. Death is a 60-minute compilation of parts from the first 24 episodes of the TV series, with some new footage added in order to prepare for Rebirth, which contains the last two episodes and also the first 30 minutes of End of Evangelion. The popularity of the show spawned numerous additional media, including video games, radio dramas, audiobooks, a light novel series, pachinko machines, and a tetralogy of films titled Rebuild of Evangelion. Other derivative works include Angelic Days, Petit Eva: Evangelion@School, and Shinji Ikari Raising Project.