Monday, July 11, 2016

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion Part 1 Episodes 1-5


Japan has been conquered by the Holy Empire of Britannia.  Stripped of it’s pride and honor, the nation has been renamed Area 11 and it’s citizens treated as lower class 11’s.  Lelouch Lamperouge has sworn the downfall of Britannia ever since this happened and has lived in Area 11 in secret with his sister, Nunally.  When a terrorist hunt goes awry, Lelouch finds himself imbued with the power of Geass, the ability to make anyone do whatever he wants.  With this power, he becomes Zero, a terrorist hell bent on staring the uprising Japan has been waiting for. Standing in his way: his father, the Emperor of Britannia…and his childhood friend, Suzaku, who serves the Britanian military as an Honorary Britanian.  The revolution has begun.

Ok, who’s ready?  I am…more or less…wow this feels more daunting than Gundam 00.  But I made a promise and I try to keep those as best I can.  We now commence Anime Corner’s epic reviewathon of Code Geass.  Remember, this means there’ll be review postings every Monday, Wednesday and Friday until this series is donzo.  If I timed it right, that should take things right to Otakon before I take a break.  Well, that’s enough of an intro, let’s get started.

Where to even begin with this series?  Code Geass feels so grand in its setup and it’s only five episodes in.  The cast is huge, and we’re talking big numbers, and most are introduced right off the bat.  The stage on which the conflict is set is both vast and yet strikingly, scarily familiar.  Plus mecha?  Throw in some space colonies and you’ve basically got a Gundam series in the works. 

Guess we should start with our…hero (?)…anti hero (?)…revolutionary (?)…we’ll just call him our lead character.  Those of you who have heard the jokes about Lelouch being a relative to Death Note’s Light Yagami, the jokes aren’t far off from the truth.  Much like Mr. Yagami, Lelouch has similar aspirations to make the world a better place…by conquering an Empire.  With the power of his Death Note…I mean Geass, Lelouch plans to make his dream a reality.  You gotta appreciate how Lelouch is shown experimenting with his Geass and learning some if it’s rules, like playing a game without a manual (can only use it on one person once, has to make direct eye contact, etc.)  Should also note that his dream is more revenge than world peace.  We learn early on that his mother was killed, the trauma of which damaged his Professor X chair bound sister Nunally.  A deep running conspiracy will definitely make for a good mystery during the course of this series.  But back to Lelouch, man is he suave and kind of cool.  Watching him treat his predicament as a chess game in real time was pretty entertaining…even more so than the actual mecha battles.  Watching him build his inevitable revolution is going to be fun.

Then there’s our other series lead, Suzaku.  This poor kid, he may be a kick ass pilot but he spends a lot of time just getting his ass kicked.  And he still wants to keep fighting for Britannia?  I hear his “I want to change things from the inside” approach.  But I cant help but agree with Lelouch on this one.  Suzaku is being retarded.  From what we’ve seen of Britannia, they’re downright terrible.  Every bit of racist, post colonial commentary you could throw into a college seminar is present in this ruling country.  They don’t just belittle the 11’s or talk trash to them, they flat out execute them if the need calls for it.  That’s ruthless, and it shows in the violence, man is this show bloody.  And when theyre as cavalier and proud of their work and standing like over dramatic Jeremiah, changing this society from within seems like a stretch.  On top of that, you’ve got Lelouch’s student council friends who are pretty much just as oblivious to the sufferings in Area 11 as the rest of the Britannians.  The cut aways to them and their pointless antics are supposed to offer some humorous, lighthearted moments.  I more shook my head at how out of the loop they were with things.  None of them stood out, well in a good way anyway.  And in a cast of what feels like dozens, do we need to spend time on these characters?  Personal answer, no.  From a story standpoint…sadly kinda if only to keep the juxtaposition going between the 11’s and Britannians.

Couple faces did stand out in the crowd though.  Cornelia looks like she could be a fun nemesis for Lelouch (cute too).  And Euphemia, though she played the airhead for much of her intro, looks like she could offer a lot of surprises with her inner strength.  Not to draw from another Sunrise Studio property but she did remind me a bit of Lacus Clyne from Gundam Seed, right down to the pink hair.  She may not be a songstress, but Euphie could be better at this whole “change from within” schtick that Suzaku clearly wont be able to pull off for reasons besides she’s a cute girl and he’s second fiddle to Lelouch. 

For all the political and societal drama floating around, there’s a nice bit of mecha action to mix things up a little.  These roller blade sporting mecha, known as Knightmare Frames, feel like a bit of a precursor to the Survey Corp of Attack on Titan, they even have retractable cables they can shoot out as weapons.  But it allows for some fast paced action sequences, particularly when Suzaku’s Lancelot gets involved.  I just have to overlook it’s racing pose start off position and I can get behind how much ass this thing can kick, even if it feels like a Deus Ex Machina in both of it’s big appearances this set.

The character roster has some weaknesses…well a few but a strong and methodical lead character, some good mecha action and a setting that speaks more to modern day problems like intolerance, status and racism, will definitely help keep this story rolling…along with some well timed cliffhangers.  The ride that is Code Geass has begun and I am on board til the end.

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