Code Geass Episode 1: Discussion!

[gods-debris.livejournal.com]

Sorry for posting this so early. I just know I will not have time all day on Thursday (well, technically where I am it is Thursday...). This isn't the normal for me--I'm your standard stay-at-home girlfriend at the moment--so this won't happen frequently. I'm so excited for this! I hope a lot of people participate. I'll check the comments Thursday night if I can talk my mother into letting me borrow her computer. :)

For those of you who haven't gotten the episode yet, check out the information I posted here. Anyways, onward!



Code Geass Episode 1: The Day The Evil God Was Born
We are reminded once again what happened to Japan and the power of Britannia—how they were able to invade and take over Japan with their new weapons called Knightmares, and how Japan was stripped of its culture and name; and renamed Area 11.



Once again we're thrown into the world of Code Geass with a melancholy Suzaku and a vengeful Lelouch!


How can you say no to that face?! (Lelouch's)

Lelouch always seems to carry himself in a different way from others. He's confident, charismatic and seems to know exactly what to say as far as speeches go. I feel we really get a taste for his character when Rival asks him why he moved his King first in the game of chess he had between the noble: "If the king doesn't move then his subjects won't follow."

While Rival and Lelouch are on their way back to school they're almost run over by Kallen who is part of the terrorist group against Britannia. I always somewhat felt that for a terrorist group they were awfully generous to swerve so they didn't hit them. I always imagined that a terrorist group on a mission would have no time to be merciful to those who got in the way of their plan, but it left a nice opening for Lelouch to run to the rescue and get caught up in the action.



You know, did Rival not see Lelouch climb onto the truck? Did he not see him fall into the opening on the top? Did he not see the truck drive away? If he saw all that, why does he stand around shortly after yelling for him and reminding him that they have to get back to school? C'mon, Rival. I know you're not that stupid!


There is so much win in these pictures... Anyone else happy for Spinzaku?

It's nice to see Lloyd doing what he does best which is sticking his nose into everybody's business while looking for data. I imagine him doing crazy silly things while yelling, "FOR SCIENCE!" In the end they didn't have a pilot for Lancelot... so what happened to the previous pilot they had lined up? Did I miss something?

Suzaku and Lelouch meet up again, but under interesting terms. Suzaku is now part of the Britannian army! It's nice to see that Suzaku is still putting others before him (covering Lelouch's face with his air mask when C.C.'s capsule opens up). Suzaku even ends up taking a bullet for Lelouch because he refuses to shoot him.



Also, you know, I love Shirley but there are times she can be pretty annoying. Could she have picked a better time to call? I guess it can't be expected to silence your phone when you are trying to dodge being caught. I like it because it's the human error. It makes Lelouch seem more human.



When Lelouch receives his power and uses it for the first time he seems surprised by his own actions. One of the many themes throughout this series is lies and the lies people tell. Lelouch tells us from that day on he's been lying to himself. I wonder what Lelouch is telling us this.



Lelouch, it's good to have you back.

Comments

SPOILERS

[nayami.livejournal.com]

Random observations (some of which have already been noted):

- Clovis so clearly fails at his job, but it's interesting that he talks about being disinherited for losing C.C. This is the first time, aside from Charles stripping Lelouch of his title after Suzaku brings him before him, that we have heard of this concept. And of course, Clovis, being the floof he is, panics and goes into mass slaughter mode.

- While on Clovis, Lelouch's anger toward his family is perfectly evident in the first scene of Lelouch seeing Clovis' image on the screen. I love this.

- I love how it was Tamaki's fault that the terrorist mission went badly because Tamaki messed up the plan. Ah, Tamaki, you were failing from Episode 1.

- I always note Lelouch's immediate reaction to the scores of people doing nothing after the accident because I think it shows aspects of him that gradually become more hidden under the Zero persona, so much to the point that many people only watching the series and not having access to the Drama CDs considered Lelouch a right bastard by the time S1 ended. But here, we see him infuriated that people refuse to do anything and jumping right into the fray. It's a good chance to witness the indifference of the Britannians but also how clearly Lelouch stands apart from him. It's also great contrast to his arrogance from his first scene with the chess match (I love how he predicted the time limit) and his place as a wealthy Britannian student among the oppressed Japanese. And then again, with him trying to protect C.C.

- I also love how well Lelouch seems to take the fall into the truck. Considering Lelouch's physique, he seriously should have broken something.

- Ah, the initial incarnation of bastard Jeremiah. I'm torn between this and Knight Jeremiah. But it's clear right off the bat that the only reason Jeremiah ever turned into a sympathetic character was the fan appeal. XD Also, the hot dynamic with Villetta makes me sad for how that turned out again. :(

- People have noted Suzaku's self-sacrificing with the mask. I personally want to know why C.C.'s chamber activated that second. Was it jostled from the various crashes? Why then? Plot convenience or did she do it herself upon closeness to both Lelouch and Suzaku. Remember, originally Suzaku was supposed to resonate with Geass as well.

- On that note, I never noticed that honorary Britannians weren't allowed weapons. I remembered they're not allowed cell phones either.

- I admit the phone call was one of the reasons I initially disliked Shirley, though I grew to love her toward the end of S1. XD

Stupid word count

[nayami.livejournal.com]

- I love the shift between horrified, innocent Lelouch at killing all the soldiers and the more jaded Lelouch that's all too happy to have a chance at his revenge. While we're at it, how did Lelouch even know that he had absolute power at this time? His contract was pretty darn vague. It just amuses me.

- Also, great insight into Cecille's perceptive abilities, which later come into play regarding Suzaku's true nature. I really wish Cecille got more screen time throughout the series. She really is awesome.

- One of my favorite things is how when Lelouch is in mortal peril, his immediate through is for his sister. She is the one thing he is afraid of leaving behind, and ultimately he has to do just that. It's rather tragic.

- Wow, I actually never knew the Ragnarok Connection was mentioned before R2. :o I'm guessing Lelouch getting the power and reawakening C.C. gave Charles confidence to began steps toward unleashing its power. Charles does spend a lot of time watching the progression of Lelouch's Geass, particularly later when Lelouch uses it to geass Euphie. Why is Lelouch's Geass potential so important to Marianne and Charles? I'll have to keep this in mind when those episodes return in R2.

- This is also the first time we get a really good view at how important Suzaku is to Lelouch, as we see that the idea that Britannia took him away from him is especially devastating and he keeps repeating it. I always felt that Lelouch's connection to Suzaku was the strong of the two, and I still do. Lelouch is arguably the second most important person in Lelouch's world just because of how much of an impact that childhood summer meant to him.

- I really miss the beauty of the Knightmares in ground combat. This episode really showcases how fluidly they move through jumps, turns and skates. I love the skating mechs. I was so disappointed to lose them in favor of the more Gundameque versions in R2, although I did have a soft spot for Lancelot's winged incarnations. But you really see how they are ideal for urban combat in a way few other mechs are ever designed to be. It gave them a uniqueness among the genre.

I think that's it for now. :|a

Re: Stupid word count

[kiraya.livejournal.com]

For Lelouch's reaction to the killing of the soldiers... I don't think he knew that he had absolute power at the time. It seemed to me that, after so many years of having no power, the fact that he had any power -- that his bitter speeches and words of discontentment were no longer empty mutterings but actually affected those who heard them -- went quite quickly to his head.

We see Lelouch as incredibly scornful of the nobility, but we have to remember that he was brought up as one of them (even if he was harassed for his mother being of commoner origin), and even having that ripped away from him and living as a commoner for all these years still doesn't mean he's lost that privileged point of view. He's got a much more egalitarian viewpoint than most Britannians (probably because of his mother's background and his experiences in Japan during the invasion), but still.

I could go on forever about the power dynamics in here, though.

[nayami.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I was wondering if it had anything to do with the power scenario in general, just his own manifestation and interpretation of Power of the King. It was just weird that his automatic take-away from this was "I'll just tell these people to kill themselves... Wait, that worked... Perfect. >D" But regardless, I like your explanation.

And yes, Lelouch still carries himself very much like a noble and is arrogant as hell.

Re: Stupid word count

[ichinichinemasu.livejournal.com]

It also struck me that Lelouch was the first one to rush and help out with the crash when everyone else was looking on. I also liked the innocent reaction at first to the killings. You can totally see how these things add up into a kind of transformative moment. idk, it does make Lelouch seem a lot more...human? And then the fact that he thought of Nunnally at first, and that he couldn't die because of her, and then he lives but his life is a lie...ahhh it was all so good and foreshadowy.

I guess mostly I'm just seconding your observations XD

Re: Stupid word count

[nayami.livejournal.com]

Kitty icon! ... Wait where was I? Transformative moment is a good way to put it since it is such an abrupt change from the detached boy we see throughout most of the opening and this fully ALIVE Lelouch at the end of the episode. I think it shows what's behind Lelouch, which gets more interesting at the instant shift from the brutality of Episode 2 and the beginning of Episode 3.

Foreshadowing! We can catch all the instances this time!

Re: Stupid word count

[megalomaniageek.livejournal.com]

While we're at it, how did Lelouch even know that he had absolute power at this time? His contract was pretty darn vague. It just amuses me.

I'm guessing Geass' use is instinctive and subconscious. It is a mind power after all. (Also magic. But I generally don't like dismissing discussion with "it's magic don't worry about it.")

[nayami.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that seems to be the general consensus. It's a good explanation.

[nayami.livejournal.com]

Also, for some dumb reason, I spent 20 minutes downloading this episode only to remember I HAVE THE FREAKING DVDS. orz

[megalomaniageek.livejournal.com]

That's...kinda hilarious XD

[nayami.livejournal.com]

... old habits die hard. :(

Re: SPOILERS

[kiraya.livejournal.com]

I was intrigued by the disinheriting thing, too. It's something I hadn't noticed the first time around.

I absolutely agree on Lelouch's reaction to the accident and your assessment of it. Due to everything that happens later on, it's easy to forget that Lelouch does have those altruistic tendencies.

As far as the honorary Britannians thing... Listening to those restrictions, it really makes you wonder why they have the system in place at all, since it seems mere formality that distinguishes them from Numbers rather than any sort of benefits. On the other hand, though, that could just be because we're seeing a bunch of racists on the Britannian side who don't see a difference.

[nayami.livejournal.com]

I'm paying more attention to the disinheriting thing after reading the CG novels and learning more about the rule Euphemia was going to invoke in order to pardon Zero of all his crimes. Basically, the novel (which should be taken with a grain of salt) says a royal can absolve their crimes (or I guess the crimes of another) at the price of their title. Since, Euphie tells Lelouch in that scene in the anime that she gave up that title, it fits in rather nicely.

I think it especially stands out to me because of all of the early and long-lasting Lelouch/Light comparisons.

The Numbers system is a complicated thing that one of my friends could always explain better than me by looking at it through the Britannian side, but I sort of view it as is technically a way of setting a field where people can advance through strength amid adversity and prove their worth. They aren't worth anything beforehand and much demonstrate their right to power. Being one of the chosen has always been Charles' kick. He likes it when people FIGHT.

[kusaja.livejournal.com]

Just wanted to add that the novels aren't automatically canon, to be certain, but the author did have access to earlier drafts of the anime scripts and other background materials, so it's not much of a stretch to say his interpretations are valid as educated guesses, if nothing else.

[nayami.livejournal.com]

I enjoy them as supplements. I just... do not always agree with the interpretations (see: Stage 4: Zero) so I cherry-pick details. This is one of the many I really like.

Re: SPOILERS

[drakyndra.livejournal.com]

- Ah, the initial incarnation of bastard Jeremiah. I'm torn between this and Knight Jeremiah. But it's clear right off the bat that the only reason Jeremiah ever turned into a sympathetic character was the fan appeal.

While Jeremiah is always fun, it bothers me a little that he gets let off for his crimes in these early episodes (which he never really expresses remorse over) when a lot of other characters don't, just because he goes all LOYALTY to Lelouch.

[nayami.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it feels really off in a series that's so heavily about consequences for actions.

But I am just so damn in love with loyal knight Jeremiah. Still, absolute arrogant prick Jeremiah is AMAZING to watch in action. Those smirks. XD

[drakyndra.livejournal.com]

It just bothers me because you'll see characters get continually demonized for things they did once, while Jeremiah... doesn't. There's this weird contrast between, say, Nina - who is a racist, but until FLEIJA, one who did no actual damage - and Jeremiah who actually went around killing people because of their race.

But yes, he makes for an entertaining bastard. Geass has a lot of those, really.

[megalomaniageek.livejournal.com]

I suppose, although Nina faced basically no consequences for FLEIJA, or for trying to blow up Ashford with a nuke, or anything else.

[jjblue1.livejournal.com]

I think the whole idea is that Jeremiah killed people because he obeyed to Clovis' orders as every other soldier that day and therefore can't feel that guilty for obeying to an order. I'm not sure he would have been killed like they tried to do with Suzaku had he disobeyed but surely they wouldn't have praised him.
I take in the Britannia army isn't considered wrong to commit a massacre of Eleven/Japanese and I guess Britannians are educated to be racistics.
Some people with major sensibility realize it's wrong (Lelouch, Euphy, Milly, Lloyd just to name a few) but the rest doesn't. Even Villetta, despite falling in love with Ougi, has a hard time accepting the thing once she regains her memory.
Sure, Jeremiah obeyed to his orders with gusto. I figure in the beginning the series wanted him to be a villain and that was it but later Code Geass gave him two plausible reasons to hate Japanese.
First, he was hunting terrorists, ad terrorists killed Marianne, whom he adoured. Second, he likely assumed Marianne's children were also killed by Japanese people.
If you add this to the background of a person who had been already raised to be naturally racistic you get the fact he's a lot more enthuiast in killing people than any other normal soldier obeying to orders.
Jeremiah is the product of a rotten world, in the same way Nina is.
Nina's way to be racistic is rather interesting in the beginning because, more than feeling superior, she's terrorized by Japanese. I wonder which kind of stories she heard about them to be so scared by them. Actually for a long while I thought we would learn some Japanese had hurt her but, unless she too had been shocked by 'Marianne's children supposed death' (her grandfather worked for the Ashford who were close to Marianne and might have told her something about the '2 poor kids who died during the war' which might have scared her) there's no reason for her to be so afraid of them.
(and although possible it seems a bit hard to believe that 'Marianne's children supposed death' might have scared her so much...)

Re: SPOILERS

[kusaja.livejournal.com]

I guess you could argue this incarnation of Jeremiah received punishment when he was humiliated by Lelouch and then turned into a cyborg after almost getting killed by Kallen, but it's true that remorse for his crimes isn't actively brought up as a issue.

Re: SPOILERS

[drakyndra.livejournal.com]

I generally find that I prefer remorse than punishment in terms of characters. Remorse implies a change of mindset, which generally indicates character development which punishment lacks. That and I dislike watching characters suffer, no matter what they've done.

Re: SPOILERS

[kusaja.livejournal.com]

Personally, I can agree with you there.

Too bad that this show, while it doesn't totally overlook remorse in certain cases, does tend to focus more on punishment and/or guilt, which doesn't always lead to a change of mindset either.

Re: SPOILERS

[jjblue1.livejournal.com]

... I might remember wrong but didn't Jeremiah said something about this topic in the picture book 22.5?
I might be wrong though... and Jeremiah's virtue is more based on his loyalty to who he recognizes his master than to his humanity. He has no hesitation to turn his sword toward Britannia when he believes his duty is to serve Lelouch.
Although he shows a little humanity in sparing Anya.

Re: SPOILERS

[megalomaniageek.livejournal.com]

I love how it was Tamaki's fault that the terrorist mission went badly because Tamaki messed up the plan. Ah, Tamaki, you were failing from Episode 1.

Me too, and I only noticed it on the second-most-recent watch through (most recent being just now). Tamaki has always been the weakest link...but he remained in the Black Knights, alive and well until the end. Go figure. But yeah, I don't know if that was meant as an Easter egg for DVD watchers (which iirc is where most anime companies make their money) or just stealth foreshadowing.