Quick Review of R2 The Complete Official Guidebook + Photos

[lijianliang.livejournal.com]

I got the Code Geass R2 official guidebook a while ago, so here's a quick photo review of it.

***This review is in progress. It will be updated with translated info throughout the day.***
If there's something in particular you'd like me to photograph or translate, please tell me.

First and foremost, unlike the euphemistic summaries from magazines and online synopses, the book repeatedly states that Lelouch is dead. The last few photos are of instances that I found in the book where it stated so.

Overall, the R2 guidebook did a better job of presenting the series and being a good guidebook than the one for season one. Instead of trying to cram detailed summaries of every episode and throwing character designs there, the publishers chose instead to give succinct synopses of each episode and devote full, uncluttered pages for more characters. The timeline chart is also a great clarification guide for those who don't follow the series closely.

The worse part of the book, like with season one's, is that it barely covers all of the details and sub-plots of Code Geass R2. The amount of information provided by the guidebook feels like a casual read for first-time viewers. Simply, Code Geass is too gigantic of a series to cover in a single, 100+ page book. It'd require at least four art books to cover every production sketch, then a few more for magazine spread, promotional material, and storyboard reprints, all of which are usually standard material for most other anime shows' guidebooks. A lot of minor characters didn't make it into the R2 guidebook, or only received a brief paragraph. Production sketches of props, outfit details, and facial expression sheets were omitted, too. This is not the book to get for cosplay reference. Magazine booklets from Newtype, Animedia, and Animage are far better in that respect.

I think the R2 guidebook should've been at least 50 pages longer and made into a 2,500 to 3,000 yen book. That way, the essence of the series could've been captured better. Despite the shortcomings, the R2 guidebook is still a good buy for fans of the series, and I'd recommend people to pick it up for the retail price (1200 yen = $13; it's worth the money, but not worth paying over $20 for).

Note: Please excuse the fact that these are photos, not scans. I'm not about to go break the spine just to scan the whole book, since it's my only one.

Cover, table of contents


Lelouch, Suzaku's character profiles


Character profiles for C.C., Jeremiah, Rolo


Character profiles for Kallen, Kaguya, Tianzi, Xingke


Character profiles for Emperor Wakamoto Charles, V.V., Marianne, Schneizel, Kanon, Gino, Anya


Character profiles for Nunnally, Milly, Rivalz, Shirley; sample page of timeline chart


Sample page of episode synopses; Knightmare Frame evolution (generation) chart


Knightmare Frame, Damocles line art


Minor character profiles; line art of selected settings


Explanations of keywords from series


Instances where I found Lelouch's death specifically mentioned


From Lelouch's character profile page:
"Lelouch, who gathered not just his sister's but the sins of all of his kin, tells Suzaku that he wants him to kill him. And, atoning for his sin of killing his father by becoming Zero and devoting himself to world peace. That is Suzaku's wish. Pierced by Suzaku's sword, Lelouch dies with a satisfied smile on his face. The curtains are lowered upon the history of one boy who performed the perfect 'evil' to the end."

From Suzaku's character profile page:
"For those two who bear the heavy sin known as killing their fathers, they share the belief that they can forgive each other by imposing the greatest punishments on themselves. Death for Lelouch who wishes for a tomorrow with his sister, life for Suzaku who wishes to atone for his sins through death. Suzaku, who accepts the weight of Zero's mask, gives his gratitude to Lelouch. For the fact that he can atone for his sins. For the results of fulfilling his own wish."

From Nunnally's character profile page:
"In the end, Nunnally isn't even allowed to bear her brother's sins. Until right before her brother dies, she seems to want to hate him for that. Upon realizing the truth behind her brother's actions, Nunnally clings to her brother's corpse and wails. And then, she succeeds her brother's will and starts walking together with Suzaku, who has become Zero, down the road as a ruler who creates peace. Because that alone is the one and only thing she can do for her brother."

From time line chart:
"Emperor Lelouch, during the parade before executing the rebels in Japan, is attacked by Zero and perishes."

From Turn 25 synopsis:
"However, Suzaku, masquerading as Zero who is thought to have died in the war before, appears and stabs Lelouch to death with a sword in front of the crowd."

***This review is in progress. It will be updated throughout the day.***

Comments

[konart.livejournal.com]

"Minor character profiles" and there I see Euphy? wtf? And the why is some sh*t like Rollo isn't there?


sad book

[hayato.livejournal.com]

Because this is for R2, when Euphie is kinda... uh.

[nayami.livejournal.com]

Rolo is in an earlier section. He's more than just a minor character.

[rainbow-cnxn.livejournal.com]

For those two who bear the heavy sin known as killing their fathers, they share the belief that they can forgive each other by imposing the greatest punishments on themselves.
I was hoping that making it up to the world (for all the shit that they'd done) was the primary goal, rather than "bawww I need to punish myself". As it stands, at the end, Suzaku contracted a case of RESULTS from Lelouch, while Lelouch picked up Suzaku's unhealthy need to punish himself. We'd always known there was gonna be some mixing of ideals/characteristics by the end, but this is doin' it wrong. *rends hair*



Probably just reading too far into this, anyways. *sigh*

[karice67.livejournal.com]

I'm glad that they spell out the reasoning behind why Lelouch chose to die and Suzaku chose to live - there seem to have been a lot of people ranting that working to rebuild the world would have been a greater sacrifice.

Thank you for the review and the translation snippets! I'll definitely be getting a copy.

[lijianliang.livejournal.com]

I know, I thought it was some complex reasoning about achieving WORLD PEACE that I'll never comprehend, but when it comes down to it, they were still two 18-year-old boys fresh out of teenagehood who wanted to punish themselves, and peace was a fortunate by-product. >_

[rainbow-cnxn.livejournal.com]

Pretty much! So in the end, they didn't cast aside all their own desires for the good of the world; they simply got new desires and decided to execute it in a manner that benefited the world.

I am conflicted regarding how to feel about this. On the one hand, I think this final selfishness is very humanizing, while the image of a pure martyr is almost superhuman, which itself is either uncharacteristic of these boys or their natural character progression (which I dislike, so what if I'm biased shhhhh).

On the other hand, it means that they never were really able to get over themselves or their demons. Particularly Suzaku. 50 episodes of character progression to wind up where he started.

[nayami.livejournal.com]

Also while I am, and have always been a death believer, the focus on translating the scenes that mention the death seem a little... I dunno. I got nothing wrong with people interpreting things however they wish. Not everyone reads this side stuff and spelling it out word-for-word seems... counter-productive to just being able to watch something and take it as is. It's like a book author sitting next to us and telling us exactly what each scene means. It removes half the thrill of enjoying the material on its own merit. Overall, this is more me scolding the writers than the OP. If they wanted clear-cut, they should have written and shown clear-cut. They were ambiguous, and some guide book with their "true intentions" shouldn't cover for that. Sorry guys, you can't hold our hands as we watch.

[lijianliang.livejournal.com]

Sorry about that. ^^;; It's just that I run a website where I got plenty of comments and e-mails from people chiming LELOUCH IS ALIIIIIVE = CART DRIVER and it drove me nuts (I couldn't convince them otherwise), so the death translations are mainly for those people. I'll be adding more material as I get through the book.

[x-reggg.livejournal.com]

the book repeatedly states that Lelouch is dead

can't wait to get a virtual copy and pin it up in the comm T___T

[piggyhoho.livejournal.com]

*is happy about Kallen's names being mentioned repeatedly in Gino's profile*
That's all I need really. XDXD

[piggyhoho.livejournal.com]

Added: I want to agree with you that the LELOUCH = CART DRIVER ppl drives me nuts. I've managed to post translations to the CONTINUE magazine on a couple of Chinese forums and got some attention. :D (They couldn't resist the title "The Truth to Lelouch's fate: revealed in the latest talks with the creators". It felt good to have converted a good number of them. :D (hell I scanned it and put the translations, they can't say I made it up XD) But there are still those arrogant fools who are like cockroaches and just won't die. orz They kept on saying things like "say whatever you want, I still think he's alive" and that just drives me !$%@^%$#^$#...orz
But their phase of denial will past. I find with each passing day more and more people from the so called "Cart Driver Party" (they call it like it's a political party) steps out of their denial world and face facts. I think deep down they know they're wrong, it's just that they won't face it. Scary otaku love. orz

[piggyhoho.livejournal.com]

lol

I know how you feel but I would have put it more subtly and do a in-your-face without actually shoving it in the face, but more like an afterthought. XDXD Ah well, as long as the goal is achieved I guess. XDXD

And I think the whole "opened ending" concept has been mislead to. Yes you can interpret what happens if it were meant to be like that. But I think this was just clear cut to begin with. It is because everyone else screamed bloody murder about how it's not true that people (by that I mean other fans, not the creators) backtracked from concrete facts and say "interpret it as you like".

[sugarainbow.livejournal.com]

uh! I really wanna know what is written in Kanon's profile, cuz we didn't see what happens to him :o

[fisha-onigiri.livejournal.com]

On the other hand, it means that they never were really able to get over themselves or their demons. Particularly Suzaku. 50 episodes of character progression to wind up where he started.

Oh, I'm angsting over it for three months. I hate the fact that on every official art with Empelouch and Knightzaku they are apathetic or angry (esp. Suzaku) or with a sad smile (Lelouch). I've always hoped we'll get some explanation about how their reunion looked precisely (to be specific, I've hoped it was real reunion with them returning to be friends), but then something like this guidebook must had happened -_- Awww, I hate you, Sunrise ;_;

[kanami-yuuta.livejournal.com]

I'm so stealing the page with rollo on it!

the review is really nice!!! thanks for sharing! Suzaku and lelouch's profile summary reminds me how much I loved CG ending ;_;

[ookami-fuu.livejournal.com]

... the Euphie part's kinda random, since she's pretty much only mentioned in flashbacks here and there throughout the R2... did she even get any screen time? Since I can't remembet about it... and Clovis too... actually, they mentioned a lot of the minor charas that otherwise has already died...

I wish they'd give coverage over the whole Knight of Rounds though... since it'd be kinda nice if we know all of the 12 knights, and not just some random knight in between...

[lijianliang.livejournal.com]

It was written somewhere (I want to say a Geass novelization) that not all seats of the Round are necessarily filled, despite the numbering. The number title each knight has is not an indication of his/her power level compared to the other knights, beyond the authority of the Knight of One getting his own area. So maybe the named Knights of the Round are the only currently active ones.

[nayami.livejournal.com]

It is true that the directors were surprised people didn't understand their ending and that they believed it was clear-cut, but if you don't make something understandable, you don't make something understandable. This strikes me as the same issue with the ending of Pan's Labyrinth. People still ask whether or not the fantasy world was actually real in that because it was so ambiguous. I just don't think certain questions should be answered by directors. I'm a fan who hates having things spelled out to me by the creators because I live for interpretations. Direct answers make things less fun, and Geass has ever been a case of few direct answers. If they want to answer this question, they can answer a few questions about the geass while they're at it. Also what Suzaku and Lelouch talked about after the World of C. What about that part where C.C. told Lelouch to come back and make her smile? What happened then? I think those questions are just as important as the death one. But honestly, I DON'T WANT THE ANSWERS from the directors; I want a scene/novel writing or something that is otherwise storyline-related.

[rainbow-cnxn.livejournal.com]

Heh, same. I was caught a bit off-guard when director/writer interviews told us that Lelouch and Suzaku truly became close friends at the end because in the series proper, they seemed more like accomplices than anything in the ZR arc. GEE, IT SURE WOULD'VE BEEN NICE IF YOU HAD ACTUALLY SHOWN THIS FRIENDSHIP, SUNRISE. -_-

They can't just leave it alone. They can't. They can't relegate this much protagonist/antagonist character progression offscreen. I want my OVAs, Sunrise.

[rainbow-cnxn.livejournal.com]

It's entirely possible that there are more KoR that we don't know of. After all, we had poor Dorothea suddenly show up and get owned.

[nayami.livejournal.com]

I think the two sides can mesh together (the friendship and the death pact). The acknowledgment of the one was needed to allow for them to accept the other. I do think they're friends; they're just torn because of all that's happened to them so they can't let themselves accept that without knowing that amends have been set in place. I think Suzaku's questioning toward the end and Lelouch's general gentleness toward him speaks to this. Like you, I would have preferred more. But I do think the two aren't mutually exclusive. Also, I don't think Suzaku is apathetic so much as resolved and probably pretty damn sad. Lelouch, too, is resolved but he's more at peace with the decision. Lelouch has always been the more mature one. But as the directors have also said, Suzaku agreed to ZR because it was Lelouch asking him. He did it for his sins, the world, ect... but he also did it for Lelouch. I think their final scene does show they are friends.

[chiapetzukamori.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much for posting this review, I've always been curious about what is in these books lol
Is there promo art in this and the first season guide book that isn't available in illustrations:rebels and illustrations:relations? (*is a sucker for show-related art*)

ummm on a side note...I see people mentioning in the comments about interviews with the directors etc after the season finale. Are these from magazine articles and such? Is there a place where I could read translations or summations? Somehow I've missed them lol (gah I need to learn Japanese faster)

[fisha-onigiri.livejournal.com]

Heh, same. I was caught a bit off-guard when director/writer interviews told us that Lelouch and Suzaku truly became close friends
Once I read on /cm/ that director said "they became friends to the degree that they would change each other's underwear". That sounds pretty... strange for me (to be honest,I think this comparison is just... well... They've wanted to please the fangirls or something? -_-). But then again, it's 4chan and I don't know if I should believe it.

They can't relegate this much protagonist/antagonist character progression offscreen. I want my OVAs, Sunrise.
Same here. Well, even a picture drama or sound episode will do. But it seems they've got more interesting things to show, like gags -_-

[lijianliang.livejournal.com]

I think I already wrote this but didn't make it clear enough, but no, there's basically no new art in the guidebook. It's fairly disappointing that it isn't as in-depth as other guidebooks/fanbooks I've read. It doesn't even have any magazine spread reprints or a poster pull-out. Pretty much everything is character design sketches or screen shots from episodes.

There were multiple interviews done at the end of the series and they were published in Newtype, Animage, Animedia, Pash, Continue, to name the ones I know off the top of my head. Try searching this community through the tag list or forums for translations.