Saturday, July 4, 2020

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Re;surrection


Two Years Later.  The peace that Lelouch Vi Britannia died to bring about is thriving.  That is until a sneak attack by an unknown group in the county of Zilkhistan results in the kidnapping of Represenetive Nunnally Vi Britannia and her protector, Zero, secretly Suzaku Kururugi.  The world is desperate for answers to this attack, unaware that the leaders of Zilkhistan have their own plans for its domination.  In their time of greatest need, those who have believed in Lelouch pray for a miracle…and that miracle has come.  Lelouch Vi Britannia returns once more to rescue his beloved sister.  But is even his brilliant mind enough to deal with a threat so powerful it can predict his plans down to the smallest detail?  The Resurrection has come at last.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion has one of the greatest Anime Series Finales of all time.  It’s brilliant, it makes sense and it still hits the right spots every time I watch it.  It’s an ending worthy of applause, especially given the rough road to get there with Code Geass R2.  It was fine when it ended and it didn’t need more.  We did get more in the form of the occasional spin off Manga or OVA (most notably 2012’s Akito the Exiled).  But an actual sequel?  Nope, we didn’t need it.  But someone apparently wanted it.  For reasons I still don’t understand, three compilation films were commissioned to get viewers back up to speed which not only retold the series --story but made some changes to the plot as well, including changing the tragic fate of Lelouch love interest Shirley.  Which FINALLY brings us to Code Geass: Lelouch of the Re;surrection.  Love it or hate it, we have it, so how was it?

It’s…not bad, not excellent but not bad.  I thing Re;surrection is ultimately an unnecessary victory lap and the changes made in the compilation movies didn’t really matter in the end.  But I still find it hard to say I absolutely hated the movie.  I think the movie works best when we’re seeing just how everyones gotten along in the year following the Zero Requiem.  At one point, Suzaku shows Lelouch a video of Oghi and Villeta’s wedding reception and everyone: friends, family and enemies now friends, is having an absolute blast.  “This is the world you saved,” Suzaku says.  We’re basically watching an extended happy ending sequence for characters who had worked hard to get to it and see how Lelouch reacts to the world he helped make happen.  I cant help but feel happy I did get to see that.  It goes further in the movie itself seeing characters like Jeremiah, Cornelia, Oghi and Lloyd amongst many others working together again (anyone who survived the end of the compilation trilogy gets a second of screen time at minimum).  We even get to see Kallen and Suzaku riding in their sweet custom Knightmare Frames against some pretty powerful foes.  Basically, this is a fans wish list come true.

And that definitely goes for the epic return of Lelouch.  Ignoring how he survived his own demise, his return doesn’t feel less than it should and I wont lie, I got shivers when he started talking like his old self again and doing just what he always does when he first gets his powers back.  Thankfully, unlike restoring him in R2, Lelouch is actually a changed man for a couple of reasons.    This Lelouch is plenty exhausted from everything he’s been through but is ok with jumping back into the role of mastermind to save his sister.  He’s a bit more open to everyone around him and content to slip back into the shadows of history.  Plus, as mentioned above, he gets to see the world he literally died to create…I’d say Lelouch has earned that more than anyone.  It’s good to have you back buddy.

But for all the grandeur of Lelouch coming back and seeing the new world society, Lelouch of the Re;surrection overall feels like a movie with a Shonen Jump villain of the week/movie plot rather than anything truly substantial that would require Lelouch coming back.  Sinister siblings Shamna and Shalio are ok villains but hardly on the same level as Schnizel or Charles Vi Britannia.  Shalio’s craziness and wishes to become as good as Suzaku are “meh”.  At least Shamna gave Lelouch a bit of a run for his money with her own secret abilities that did make me wonder how the last hour of the movie was going to go.  And yet…I don’t know the whole “Nunally must be saved” event didn’t feel as grand or epic as The Black Rebellion or the Battle of the Damocles.  Even the country that was good at war being lost in a world of permanent peace felt like it was lifted from Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz.  And, ive got to gripe about this, for all the importance of keeping her alive again, SHIRLEY DOESN’T DO SQUAT!!!  Nope, nothing.  It’s said she plays an important role off screen prior to the movie but what she does is a job that could have gone to anyone else.  Was making sure she made it through a new story just a way to show her getting the same happy ending everyone else does in the new era?  It feels cheap and a waste of precious time for the project that led into this movie.  Also, I could forgive the Compilation Trilogy keeping much of the TV animation intact.  But the fact that Re;surrection looks like an extended episode OVA more than an actual movie, I’m not ok with that.  That’s a gripe I have with most Anime films based off of a TV Series: they should look different and upgraded while feeling like their TV Counterparts. 

Critical analysis of flaws aside, I really didn’t hate this movie like I thought I would.  Code Geass: Lelouch of the Re;surrection doesn’t reach the heights of the TV Series by a long shot and at times feels more like an extended TV Series epilogue rather than a movie level event, complete with the same animation style that makes me wonder why they didn’t just make a full on Season 3.  That said, it’s still a fun epilogue with familiar faces and great action to boot.  It’s good to see Lelouch and the gang again and see them fighting together one more time for a common goal.  Best of all, Re;ssurection gifts to fans the ability to see that for all the hell Lelouch went through as Zero to fulfill his dream…it was all worth it…and ultimately Lelouch gets to join in on the fun too.

8/10

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