Eh the reason it has been re-released soooooooooo much is because of confusion. You watch the first release of the 26 episodes and tell me what was happening
I'll tell ya this is was my number one anime of all time (until I watched Code Geass) because each time I watch it something new reveals itself that wasn't there before. I actually just recently bought this series and watched it all the other day. Didn't get the ending movie because I am cheap
and my roommate who had never seen the series before was just hella confused about the ending and because he didn't understand the ending the rest of the series became confusing as well because he didn't know the significance of certain things. NGE is definitely one of those multiple watch series. Its unique style allows for multiple views and prevents boredom. Also, in my opinion since the series is like the Bible (everyone interprets it differently) it allows you to come up with your own "detail filler." In this sense some may prefer the original (Old Testament) as opposed to the movie (New Testament). Hell, there is even a manga spin off which I enjoyed very much (Angelic Days).
On another note, it was made the same time Gundam Wing was, which was like over a friggin decade ago XD The re-releases are "remastered" for better animation and sound quality which is always nice when you are watching a giant robot anime :) Anyway, that's my two cents. Back to defending After Story from Pidj