[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/eve-no-jikan-fon_-_Copy_4160.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''Within this establishment, there shall be no distinction between humans and robots'']]
->''"Are you enjoying the Time of Eve?"''

''Time of Eve'' (イヴの時間 -- ''Eve no Jikan'') was created by Yasuhiro Yoshiura, who previously worked on ''Anime/PaleCocoon'', and released as six web-streamed episodes over the course of 2008 and 2009.

Robots and androids have become commonplace in Japan during the [[TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture near future]]. Their prevalence have led humans to accept robots as a part of life, although some organisations run an anti-robot media campaign and a popular news item involves individuals that have abandoned normal social interactions for the company of obedient androids; being nigh-indistinguishable from their human counterparts, save the holographic status rings hovering over their heads. The events in ''Eve No Jikan'' focus on Rikuo, a young man who comes across something unusual whilst examining the debug logs of his android, Sammy. He finds that she has been making unscheduled trips to an unknown location that only leaves a cryptic note in the log reading, "Are you enjoying the time of EVE?" Heading to the coordinates in question, Rikuo and his friend, Masaki, discover an odd cafe with an odd rule, that "Within this establishment, there shall be no distinction between humans and robots."

Time of Eve was also released as a feature film (''Time of Eve: The Movie'') with a new ending and additional scenes linking the six episodes together. The six episodes are streamed on [[http://www.crunchyroll.com/time-of-eve Crunchyroll]], and the feature film is available for purchase and rental on the [[http://itunes.apple.com/us/movie/time-of-eve-the-movie/id484850375 iTunes Store]] (as of January 2012 in the US, Canada, Australia, NZ, and Japan). The film and episodes were released as a UsefulNotes/BluRay and DVD in Japan (with English subtitles). The subbed version was also put on the [[https://itunes.apple.com/us/movie/time-of-eve-the-movie/id484850375 iTunes store]] for the US, UK, and Canada.

A Website/{{Kickstarter}} [[http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/693293489/time-of-eve-the-movie-on-blu-ray?ref=live campaign]] was made to fund the release of an international version of the movie on UsefulNotes/BluRay. It made its funding goal of $ 18 000 in less than a day. The surprised campaign hastily announced a stretch goal of $ 50 000 to produce an English, and this goal was reached a few hours later.

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!!''Time of Eve'' provides examples of:

* AIIsACrapshoot: The robots develop emotions over the course of their lifespan. While those depicted have remained ThreeLawsCompliant and genuinely good-natured, the [[WellIntentionedExtremist Ethics Committee]] becomes fearful about the issues that emotional robots might raise.
* AndroidIdentifier: humanoid robots are required by law to wear a holographic ring over their head resembling a halo to distinguish them from humans. The titular cafe is a place where no distinction between humans and robots is made, therefore, robot patrons turn their halos off to blend in.
* ArtificialLimbs: Nagi's father has a mechanical arm as a result of having been involved in an anti-robot riot years previously, and [[spoiler:Nagi]] also has a mechanical arm covered in synthetic skin.
* BeneathTheMask: About half of the main characters, as robots, have to pretend to be emotionless appliances in public.
* BlandNameProduct: Pakka Coffee is one of the coffee brands found in the show.
* BlatantLies:
** Sammy casually denies visiting the cafe, despite having served Rikuo the same brand of coffee from the cafe mere moments earlier.
** Katoran follows the cafe's rule about not acting like a robot despite the fact that he is evidently a malfunctioning robot.
* BlindWithoutEm: Rikuo is near-sighted to the point where he cannot recognise Sammy from two feet away without his glasses.
* CannotTalkToWomen: Rikuo is easily flustered by girls, even when he knows they're androids.
* CannotTellALie: Robots are ThreeLawsCompliant, but an aversion exists when Masaki [[LampshadeHanging notes]] that none of the three laws forbid them from lying to humans.
* CatchPhrase: Chie is fond of declaring "I'm a cat."
* CaughtTheHeartOnHisSleeve: Attempted but averted in episode five by [[spoiler:Nagi]].
* CreativeSterility: Much of Rikuo's prejudice against robots is a consequence of his musical background. A classically trained pianist, he believes that the capacity to appreciate and comprehend music is a distinctly human trait. As such, the release of a robot capable of acting as a convincing pianist initially shakes him so hard he gives up on playing, although he later [[spoiler:overcomes his mistrust for such robots and regains his passion for music in the process]].
* CreatorProvincialism: The introduction says "probably Japan", despite clear indicators that the series has all the attributes of a Japanese setting. Moreover, all of the characters, save Sammy, have Japanese names.
* DiedInYourArmsTonight: [[spoiler:Nagi embraces Katoran in the latter's final moments]].
* EmotionlessGirl: In public, Sammy and [[spoiler:Akiko]] are stoic beings, but undergo dramatic personality changes when they're in the cafe, being considerably more forward.
* ExtremeDoormat: The robots are [[ThreeLawsCompliant programmed in this manner]], being designed to serve humans without question.
* FantasticRacism: Despite using robots as automated servants, humans nonetheless hold extreme prejudice against robots: a large number of the humans in the show, among them the protagonists, exhibit strong anti-robot sentiments. Moreover, anti-robot propaganda ads are prevalent in their society, and plenty of human owners are depicted to abuse/mistreat their robots.
* GenkiGirl: Akiko is an excitable girl who speaks with great gusto at the cafe, sharply contrasting her personality [[spoiler:as an unemotional android who is oft-abused by her owner.]]
* GratuitousEnglish: The phrase [[http://imgur.com/vgj3TYX LOGIC CIRCUIT IS ERROR]] is seen in one of the diagnostic screens.
* HumansAreBastards: Despite having created them to assist with various functions, humans treat their robots very poorly, and an Ethics Council continuously reminds its audience to be wary of robots, despite the revelation that robots are capable of human emotion.
* IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming: The TV series titles the episodes in the following manner: "[Name]: The [Blank] of Eve".
* InterspeciesRomance:
** Koji's master prefers him to human company.
** Sammy appears to have strong feelings for [[spoiler:Rikuo]].
** An in-series television commercial fielded by the [[WellIntentionedExtremist Ethics Committee]] suggests that some humans treat robots like romantic partners, and aims to drive home the point that this behaviour is unhealthy.
* {{Jerkass}}: Most humans are portrayed as being indifferent at best or hostile at worst towards their own androids. Some genuinely have issues with robots while others give in to peer pressure or risk being branded a "robo-freak".
* JitterCam: The general camera-work gives the impression of being filmed with a hand-held device, despite this being an animation.
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: [[spoiler:Katoran]] remembers ''what'' he used to do, but not ''who'' he did it for. This is a consequence of [[spoiler:the family he worked for deliberately deleting all his memories that linked him to them, so they could get rid of him without paying the disposal fee.]]
* MaleGaze: Rikuo is found staring at Rina's low-cut dress a handful of times.
* TheMole: Setoro is a quiet man who sits in the cafe's corner reading a book and appears to be secretly working for an organisation that is less hostile to androids than the Ethics Committee. He initially suspects Masaki of being a mole for the Ethics Committee, but later concludes that no one could be that obvious.
* MoodWhiplash:
** Masaki and Tex reconcile in the finale, and begin making their way to the door. The scene sets up for an emotional moment, but it turns out Tex cannot use the stairs.
** It's fun and games when Rikuo and Masaki panic about Katoran potentially exploding the whole time, but the mood becomes more subdued after [[spoiler: his backstory is revealed and he shuts down permanently]].
* MyMasterRightOrWrong: As a result of the of the [[ThreeLawsCompliant Three Laws of Robotics]], [[spoiler:TEX]] is unable to speak to Masaki.
* PickYourHumanHalf: In public, androids have holographic rings over their heads, act quite unemotional, and tend to only follow commands. The Time of Eve cafe provides the robots an environment to truly be themselves, making it impossible to differentiate between human and robot.
* ProstheticLimbReveal: While [[spoiler:Nagi]] places her hand on her father's obvious prosthetic arm, her own skin become translucent enough to see she has more advanced mechanical digits.
* OddNameOut: Sammy is the only character who doesn't have a Japanese name.
* RegionalBonus: The international release of the movie includes Yoshiura's previous [=OVA=]s ''Aquatic Language'' and ''Anime/PaleCocoon''. It also comes with no less than 20 subtitle tracks (ten for the movie, ten for the director's commentary).
* RidiculouslyHumanRobots: Appearing indistinguishable from humans save their holographic rings, Androids become nigh-impossible to tell apart from humans in the Time of Eve Cafe.
* RobotBuddy: Some robots, such as Tex, are manufactured to fulfil this purpose. The entire plot is driven by the question of to what extent can robots and humans may interact with one another as they become increasingly advanced and self-aware.
* RobotGirl: Sammy and [[spoiler:Akiko]] are androids modelled after females; such models are common in ''Time of Eve''.
* RoboticReveal:
** Rikuo and Masakazu see [[spoiler:Akiko]] waiting for a classmate of theirs with her halo turned on.
** [[spoiler:Rina]] has a damaged leg that twitches unnaturally and, while examining her old injury, a panel opens that reveals her internals.
** [[spoiler:Koji]] [[WhamLine admits]] that he comes to the cafe to learn how to communicate with humans so he can help his emotionally dependent master.
** Masaki finds plans for [[spoiler:Shimei]], an experimental android that hasn't been released to the public yet, online.
* RobotMaid: Despite not bearing a maid's uniform, Sammy's role as a household android sets her in this category.
* RuleNumberOne: The Time of Eve Cafe's only rule is that
-->''Within this establishment, there shall be no distinction between humans and robots''
* SceneryPorn: Throughout the anime, all of the settings are beautifully rendered, from the clean, no-nonsense public streets to the ornate and comforting environment evoked by the cafe.
* ShipTease: Akiko gets a reaction with a remark involving Rikuo with [[spoiler:[[InterspeciesRomance Sammy]] and Nagi]].
* ShoutOut: A large number of science fiction texts are mentioned, especially Asimov's ''I Robot'' series. The films ''Film/BladeRunner'' and ''Film/THX1138'' are also noted at several points.
** Episodes one and three briefly show ''Anime/PaleCocoon'' playing on a screen in the city and the family's home TV, respectively.
** Episode four features an older-model android equipped with full-color Franchise/{{Terminator}} vision. Its appearance in the cafe is met with consternation by the usual patrons.
** An older-model android is shown in episode four. Its relationship with the child it was nursemaid to is similar to the story of ''"Robbie"'', one of the first ''I Robot'' short stories written by Creator/IsaacAsimov.
** Episode six shows "VideoGame/{{Myst}}" on a display below the article showing a child's death, as well as the ages - Mechanical, Channelwood, Stoneship, Selentic.
** The original robot story, R.U.R., has shout-out in the movie, where it is listed as a type of CPU used in an android.
* ShrinkingViolet: At the cafe, Sammy illustrates that her genuine personality is a shy one.
* TheSpeechless: TEX does not speak as a consequence of [[spoiler:an order by Masaki's father]] until the [[ThreeLawsCompliant First Law]] trumps it in the finale.
* StarCrossedLovers: The cafe's resident couple act as human couples do. Despite believing the other to be human, [[spoiler:they are both robots]].
* SugarAndIcePersonality: [[spoiler:Akiko]] acts the way robots are expected to in public, but she's very sweet and friendly in the Time of Eve cafe to those familiar with her.
* ThreeLawsCompliant: Isaac Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics are discussed and scrutinised at length in the series and movie. The original laws are addressed in the same manner as presented in Asimov's ''I, Robot,'' down to the phrases being examined frequently to explain odd robot behavior. The Laws begin to reveal loopholes as the differences between humans and robots becomes smaller, resulting in some unusual situations, such as the robots interpreting the sign at the front of the cafe as an order.
* TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture: Aside from the human-like robots featuring 2.4 petabytes of RAM, holographic computer interfaces, and camera phones with gigapixel resolutions, the world remains reasonably familiar.
* UncannyValley: Human-like robots are a source of discomfort for society, given that they are similar in appearance to human beings but not of human origins and as such, are not expected to be regarded in the same manner as humans.
* UncannyValleyGirl: While Rina feels that she is the least "human" of the cafe's regulars, this is subverted, since the cafe's patrons regard her as a emotionally developed and sympathetic character.
* ViewerFriendlyInterface: All of the tables in the cafe feature a built-in holographic projector.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: Out of a concern for him, Masaki's father felt that Masaki was becoming too attached to TEX and so, [[spoiler:ordered TEX to never speak, traumatizing Masaki]].
* WhatIsThisThingYouCallLove: Koji initially entered a relationship with Rina [[spoiler:to learn how to better please his master, who enjoys his "company". He later struggles to understand his own developing feelings for Rina, who is also quite confused.]]
* WhatMeasureIsANonHuman: One of the core tenets in the series, the difference between humans and robots eventually become nigh-impossible to differentiate, leading to the Ethics Council's misconceptions and policies.
* YouDidntAsk: In the second episode, Nagi participated in a prank by Chie, holding onto Rikuo's glasses until he came to ask for them, and using this excuse verbatim.
* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: Robots are discarded with the same frequency as outdated electronics, given that [[HumansAreBastards most humans]] [[WhatMeasureIsANonHuman don't consider them living to begin with]].
* YoungerThanTheyLook: As he is an experimental android in the beta-testing stage, [[spoiler:Shimei]] is probably the youngest character at Time of Eve, [[spoiler:despite appearing to be the oldest]].
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