On one side, I like that Kano was unable to handle the "experience" side of things, so this made things more dramatic and will teach her a lesson.
On the other side, Kano did not have her overpowered dual magic mallets, and did not play pinball with Kaga's body.
I prefer the novel version.
Also, Level 6 Kaworu somehow being able to withstand a Level 22 attack. Sure, she lost in the end, but still took away the entire "high level are super human" kinda of thing, and implemented some "Power boost of Friendship/Emotions". Meh.
Ah, I guess this is why Narumi mentioned they would be ready to Whack'a mole, just so that the mallets were not introduced yet, so Kano can't be overpowered, since not only that's the event that introduced the mallets, she learned how to dual wield them there, as the mallets are as heavy as her, so she had to learn how to handle the balance and everything.
Full Swing is also the attack she used with the mallets
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Wait, Kaworu saw Kano's hair, right? She should be able to recognize the hairstyle and color. Sure one could say she is too dizzy or weak to think properly, but that's a huge risk that did not happen in the novels.