Code Geass Episode 6: Discussion!

[megalomaniageek.livejournal.com]

So gods_debris is sick this week, so I'm doing the weekly post instead. I'll try to keep it fairly similar to our regularly scheduled programming (and I'll post the Weekly Points as a comment).

Episode 6: 奪われた仮面
The Stolen Mask











So we start with the Emperor, and whatever shady, mysterious "Project" thing he's up to. At this point we have no idea what it is, but I think most of us expect it to be *something.* It turns out he can talk to the dead, and strange cloaked men answer to him. I've always wondered if he and Clovis were speaking of C.C.? (spoiler in white: from what we know later, this would make a lot of sense, considering that Chuck doesn't know where C.C. is at this point)

Then at Ashford we see that Suzaku is having a bit of trouble fitting in. Some students are racist against elevens, some are suspicious that he murdered Prince Clovis, and I imagine that many are both. Nina seems very frightened of him because he's Japanese, while Shirley and Rivalz don't seem to share the same trepidation (Shirley doesn't seem to care, and Rivalz acknowledges Suzaku as an Honorary Britannian). I love Kallen's subtle reaction when a student says something along the lines of, "The school would know if a student was a terrorist!"

Lelouch gets up and as he goes out of the room he tugs on his collar. Suzaku comes to meet him on the roof and we find out that they grew up together and that that was their signal to meet on the roof/in the attic (depending on your translation). They speak of the past, and we find out that Prince Lelouch is officially dead. We also find out that Suzaku was transferred to the school - and acquitted - all thanks to Princess Euphemia's intervention.

Shortly after this we have an adorable scene where Suzaku and Nunnally are reunited after seven years. Suzaku is clearly nervous to see Nunnally again, but Lelouch assures him that it's fine. Nunnally is relieved that Suzaku escaped his ordeals alive, and everything just seems peachy-keen. C.C. is not so impressed.
We then go to Guilford telling Jeremiah that he has been demoted and that he must choose the punishment of either going to the front lines as a lower-level soldier again, or that he must run an orange farm. (Does the Britannian Military have a sense of humor?)

At the end of the evening Lelouch shows Suzaku to the door and invites him to come again. Suzaku says that he and Lelouch shouldn't be seen together at school, for the sake of protecting Lelouch and Nunnally. Lelouch gets frustrated with Suzaku's constant martyr complex and calls him out on it, finishing with the word "again." He almost slipped; I assume this is a reference to their frustrating encounter after he saved Suzaku?

The next scene is interesting, because we see that Lelouch seriously considers cutting ties with Ohgi's group, thinking they're getting too familiar. Wonder how things would have gone in that case, eh? We also see some students spray graffiti on Suzaku's gym shirt ("Go Back to your Ghetto"). Lelouch sees the latter right after the former...maybe that's why he decides to stay with the future Black Knights, at least for a bit longer?

The rest has become fairly infamous. Arthur sneaks in while C.C. is accepting a pizza, and ends up running off with Lelouch's mask, causing him to shriek girlishly. Lelouch runs off and essentially becomes Failouch for the rest of the episode.
Nunnally tells Milly and Rivalz that a cat appears to have run off with something important to Lelouch, and Milly decides to start some mischief. Milly says that whichever club catches the cat will get a higher budget, and whoever personally does it will get a kiss from a member of the student council, as long as they bring whatever the cat has to her. This causes the school to go utterly nuts, and pandemonium breaks out. The girls want to kiss Lelouch (except for the one girl who wants to kiss Milly) and the boys want to kiss Kallen. Kallen and Shirley decide to catch the cat themselves to protect their lips from perverts (and we know Kallen hasn't even had her first kiss yet) but Shirley ends up blowing it because she's scared that Kallen will want to kiss Lelouch. Rivalz is hoping this will be his chance to get a kiss from Milly. Ultimately Lelouch and Suzaku are the final ones on the cat's trail.

Lelouch knows that Suzaku would be the absolute worst person in the world to see the Zero mask, but Suzaku is far more athletic than Lelouch, so he speeds up the stairs much faster. Lelouch pursues him as fast as he can, and ends up almost falling off the roof. Luckily Suzaku catches him, and at the same time Arthur sheds the mask. Everybody returns to the ground safely, Lelouch having managed to somehow hide the mask during his return from the roof to the ground floor. Nunnally gives them both a kiss as a reward, and Suzaku is welcomed onto the student council to everybody's delight but Nina's.

At the end, we have a broadcast of the Emperor's speech at Prince Clovis' funeral, which everybody is required to watch while standing. The Emperor proceeds to a long tirade about his views on ethics, inequality, and evolution. He says that the death of his son is part of Britannia's tireless march toward progress. So, you know, the typical eulogy of a loving father, right?
I also like the reaction shots of the students. Rivalz seems to be rather skeptical, while Milly has a face of reserved seriousness. Kallen's reaction is surprisingly subtle, but she has a persona to maintain, after all. Suzaku seems to be steeling himself, while Lelouch just glares with hatred.


Next Time: コーネリアを撃て
Attack Cornelia!

Speaking of the next episode, should we do the discussion post next Thursday (since December 23 is not a holiday) or should we wait another week (since lots of people are traveling/away from fandom for a while)? Or should we skip the 30th? Both, or neither? I'm putting this to a vote. I can do one or both if gods_debris can't.

Comments

[megalomaniageek.livejournal.com]

I wrote this before the above post, when I originally watched the episode on Thursday.

Oh man, I adore this episode. I expect some folks to earn POINTS.

Code Geass Points
R1 Episode 6

+1 Charles, you can talk to the dead? Oh right, yeah, makes sense.
-2 Guilty until proven innocent, right kids?
-2 Dammit, Nina.
+5 Thank you, Shirley, for being one of the few non-racist Britannians
+1 Super-secret code time!
+1 I guess you could call him… *sunglasses* Roof-zaku!
-5 Sunrise, what did Suzaku mean by repaying the favor from seven years ago? Did Lelouch save Suzaku's life? ANSWER ME!
-20 Dammit, Lelouch, keeping your same first name and your mother's maiden name is hardly gonna cut it in the Witness Protection Program
+5 Euphemia, actually working the system!
+1 D'aww, adorable little Lelouch
+2 WHO NEEDS TANKS WHEN YOU HAVE MECHS
-1 hahaha they think bullets can hurt her
+5 This reunion scene is just adorable
-1 Wait, Suzaku? An engineer? I thought he was supposed to be a dumb jock. (I know it's a lie, but it's not really believable…for a seventeen-year-old to be in the engineering corps, wouldn't they have to be a genius?)
+2 hahahahaha orange farm, delicious
+10 Knowing Sayoko overhears this parting scene and thinks Suzaku and Lelouch are gay for each other
+2 Ceiling C.C. is watching you
-1 Wait, since when is Lelouch supposed to be a diligent studier?
-10 These fucking racist kids, boooo
-2 Dammit, Nina, suck it the hell up
-5 I CAN'T LIE TO NUNNALLY suuuuuuuure
-10 OH MY GOD, THE DIALOGUE D:
+5 Arthur, you are the best
+10 Infamous girly shriek
+5 C.C.'s version of the aforementioned dialogue makes it 100 times funnier
+2 Oh Milly (and Rivalz)
-2 Can't catch the cat, eh, Lelouch?
+5 FAILOUCH XD
+2 Hahaha, Lelouch's' fanclub (not that I blame them)
-2 Oh, and they're biased against gay people too?
+5 Go for it, Rivalz!
-2 Shirley, you made Kallen and you miss the cat!
+4 I love it when they make fun of Lelouch being bad at physical endeavors…it really never gets old
+1 I know Nina meant to end the sentence with "friends" but it could be interpreted otherwise (wait shit did NINA of all people just get a point?)
+2 Shirley, thank you for not being a racist dick like most of your school mates (and to a lesser extent Rivalz, and Milly)
-3 WHERE DID HE PUT THE MASK? WHERE?!
-5 Aaaaawwkwaaard (thank you Nina -_- )
-10 My son's funeral speech? Ooh, an excuse for propaganda! RAAAAACIIIIIIST TIIIIIRAAAADE!
+2 Watching Suzaku's reaction to the video is *fascinating*

[snowdevil-crow.livejournal.com]

-5 Sunrise, what did Suzaku mean by repaying the favor from seven years ago? Did Lelouch save Suzaku's life? ANSWER ME! I keep thinking that maybe they had something planned for this originally, but had to scrap it for some reason. Like they were going to reveal something that happened during the war on Japan or something. IDK.

Also, where are the points to Diethard for completely ignoring Charles for his new Zero!fanboying??

[fishytasty.livejournal.com]

for a seventeen-year-old to be in the engineering corps, wouldn't they have to be a genius?

Well, if he was a mechanic or something it would be possible; I mean, they have to have more people around to help build the stuff, right? Plus there's maintenance and fixing any post-battle damage...

[otakukeith.livejournal.com]

-1 Wait, Suzaku? An engineer? I thought he was supposed to be a dumb jock. (I know it's a lie, but it's not really believable…for a seventeen-year-old to be in the engineering corps, wouldn't they have to be a genius?)

Engineering units presumably need someone to fetch and carry and do heavy lifting and so forth, which would actually be a logical job for a second-class, not fully trusted citizen.

-3 WHERE DID HE PUT THE MASK? WHERE?!

Captain Jack Harkness: You don't wanna know.

Also, where are the points for the fact that Shirley doesn't want to be kissed but is OK running around the school in only her swimsuit (which, frankly, is more likely to get the boys excited)? Methinks this is a Japanese thing.

[luthik.livejournal.com]

-1 Wait, Suzaku? An engineer? I thought he was supposed to be a dumb jock. (I know it's a lie, but it's not really believable…for a seventeen-year-old to be in the engineering corps, wouldn't they have to be a genius?)

Sorry, but why do you think so, hm? Yes, he's not genius, but he's not dumb at all. He's emotionally unstable and impulsive, but that doesn't make him stupid. If you're talking about trope "smart and weak + strong and stupid", no it doesn't work here at all.

[ichinichinemasu.livejournal.com]

+2 Watching Suzaku's reaction to the video is *fascinating*

I thought so too. I so wanted to know what was going on in his head. He looked really angry...I'm thinking it's something along the lines of "this is why I want the system to change."

[snoozy.livejournal.com]

but it's not really believable…for a seventeen-year-old to be in the engineering corps, wouldn't they have to be a genius?
But Suzu /is/ a genius.

Your icon is the greatest thing

[megalomaniageek.livejournal.com]

Is he? I mean, he's not dim, but he's not unusually bright either.
Unless you mean because he can make robots spin-kick. He is most definitely a spin-kicking genius. :D

[shanejayell.livejournal.com]

I liked this episode, it's a nice change from the serious plots.

[megalomaniageek.livejournal.com]

I liked it a lot too. It introduced Lelouch being faily, not to mention giving some nice background about Lelouch (a picture of him as a prince that matches the one from the credits, talking about his name change, his past with Suzaku...).

vague, vague spoilers

[snowdevil-crow.livejournal.com]

I know Rivalz's fan nickname is Air (according to TVTropes anyway), but I actually think he's kind of interesting. Not as much as the main characters, of course, but his whole estrangement from his father (for what reason, again? Did we ever find out? I can't remember), the way he's like "Well, he's an honorary Britannian" but doesn't seem all that concerned about the racism and unacceptance of the other students (something that's very similar to how he acts at the beginning of ep 23)... IDK. I like him. He reminds me a bit of Gino, somehow.

Also ARTHURRR. The greatest to wear the mask of Zero!!

Re: vague, vague spoilers

[megalomaniageek.livejournal.com]

I'm very fond of all the Ashford regulars (except for Nina), including Rivalz. Rivalz and Milly seem the most like normal people, not really believing in the racism that's pervasive in their society but also not really feeling the need to rebel against it. (Lelouch pretends to be this way but ends up coming off more like a jerk, especially to Kallen.) Not that I don't think activism against racism is good, of course, but I feel like I really can't blame them considering the society they live in. It's already pretty progressive for them to just be not racist themselves, let alone to try and be activists about it like Lelouch and Euphemia. Shirley is similar to Rivalz and Milly in this way, although she's a bit more active in her personal rejection of racism (at the end of the episode, for example, she glances around with trepidation at all of her hesitant classmates, then immediately and almost defiantly jumps forward with a friendly greeting; same as earlier when she says, "Well he doesn't look so scary to me, I'm gonna go talk to him!").

I don't think we ever found out exactly why Rivalz was estranged from his father. I got the impression that it was basically general dickery. IIRC he took his mother's name (oh boy, Lelouch, a buddy in your Witness Protection Program!) and works tirelessly to support himself so that he doesn't have to rely on his parents' money (which makes it a bit more sympathetic that he tries to make money on gambling with Lelouch; Ashford has to be expensive!).
I wish Rivalz had gotten some relationship resolution with Milly. I felt kind of bad for the guy.

[drakyndra.livejournal.com]

I think this is about the episode where I realised that Code Geass is actually sort of ridiculous - and that's the way I like it. (If Zero's LOL FABULOUS hadn't knocked that point home, anyway.)

I agree with what's been said here about the Student Council and what they represent of Britannian society; even if you look at the school at a whole, while there is some racism towards Suzaku, it's not universal. I really liked the moments like this that proved that Britannia was a bit more complex than the sterotypical Evil Empire; people in it do have differing attitudes and levels of consensus.

Lelouch seriously considers cutting ties with Ohgi's group, thinking they're getting too familiar.

Lelouch really has enormous issues with trust and letting people in.

minor spoilers

[megalomaniageek.livejournal.com]

I remember being really amused by it, and finding that it really endeared me to the show. I also liked the way the first sub group I watched translated it...when Lelouch was chasing Arthur, he said, "I will not be undone by such a ridiculous series of events!" and when he was chasing Suzaku up the stairs he said, "Slow down you dumb jock!" But the subs I have on my hard drive now say something less funny, and I own the DVDs anyway so now I just watch those (I mostly keep the fansubs around in case I want to check on something from the original broadcast that was edited out of the DVD release...R2 episode 18's original animation in particular).

The Britannian higher-ups and royalty all suffer from a bit of Saturday-Morning-Cartoon-Villain-itis in R1 and very few of them really get more complex until R2, but from the beginning the regular Britannian citizens have all been treated as individuals with individual values and thoughts regarding other races and Zero. In fact, as of the hotel-jacking, Rivalz supports Zero (although it depends on which supplemental materials you look at; he calls Zero a tulip-headed jerk in the 4koma).

Lelouch does have issues, yeah (although considering his upbringing, it does make sense). It would be sensible for him to say something along the lines of, "I'm not really committed to the Japanese resistance and the heat is coming down on the resistance groups...I should cut ties to protect myself and/or Nunnally." But no, he says, "They're getting too familiar."

[carlenne.livejournal.com]

I remember this episode because it was the one when I finally I decided I liked Code Geass and Lelouch. He became a lot more likeable to me once we see that he's not just the heartless rebellion leader but human too.

Which is one of the reasons the Ashford episodes are a high point of Geass in general for me, because they show a different side to Lelouch. Of course, that, and they are always utterly hilarious.

[megalomaniageek.livejournal.com]

That's how I feel about it too. I like seeing Lelouch's human side in addition to his badass side.

[otakukeith.livejournal.com]

Assorted thoughts on this episode:

-Lelouch and Suzaku devising a secret sign language as kids seems a kinda weird thing to do until you realize that it was probably so they could discuss things/signal without Nunnally knowing. I'm not sure how I feel about that, to be honest.
-SUZAKU X NUNNALLY MOMENT D'AWWWW.
-As noted, Lelouch turns into Failouch during the comedy portion of this episode, which is an apt way to put it. I always think his physical prowess seems to fluctuate depending on the tone of a given scene; if he was as clumsy as he seems to be in some of the comedy episodes all the time, I don't see how he could make his dramatic entrances etc. work without sometimes pratfalling or the like, never mind sneak around school, the ghettos, the settlement etc. so much.
-Nunnally = King Solomon? :P

very minor spoiler

[megalomaniageek.livejournal.com]

I'd always thought of it as a way to signal behind the adults' back, but it also makes a lot of sense that it would be a way to communicate without Nunnally hearing.
Seriously, this is the most Suzaku/Nunnally episode in the show. It is adorable. He's so nervous to talk to her!

I always think his physical prowess seems to fluctuate depending on the tone of a given scene

Yeah, the last/penultimate (cannot recall which) episode would have really been hard to take seriously if Lelouch couldn't run all the way up the Damocles' stairs. Same with the scene where Lelouch *effortlessly* picks up C.C. after Mao shot her up (and that girl eats a lot of pizza!).
I don't think he's really that uncoordinated when it doesn't involve exertion, though. Based on his performance throughout the show, he appears to have excellent hand-eye coordination, so his dramatic flair shouldn't be affected. He trips over the bush because he's focusing entirely on the cat and running at top speed. But it doesn't change the fact that he is given more or less endurance for the sake of the scene's mood.

Ngl this is my Suzaku/Lelouch episode (SPOILERS)

[nayami.livejournal.com]

- This episode illustrates what has always fascinated me about the bizarre friendship between Lelouch and Suzaku: the fact that the entire loyalty/devotion/love is based on the fact that they knew each other for all of A FEW MONTHS. And that in that span of time, Suzaku became one of the most important things to Lelouch. It blows my mind. The first friend thing. You see it here play out as C.C., who is probably the first to note the unusual relationship between the two, questions Lelouch on associating with a Britannian soldier and Lelouch struggles to figure out what Suzaku is to him, finally settling on friend. Which is a big deal for Lelouch, who has shown himself to be fairly distant around most people. We get it again in how pained Lelouch is to see the Britannians harassing Suzaku and how Lelouch reacts to Suzaku telling him not to expose their friendship. I do love the obvious "So remember that time when I chastised you for the exact same thing as Zero" moment here. Lelouch, you so smart. And how Suzaku recognizes it but dismisses it quickly. (This also makes me wonder if he knew that cat had Zero's mask because he seemed pretty adamant on telling the council he didn't get a good look at it when it's clear he recognizes it. Since we know Suzaku lies to himself about Zero identity for a very long time, I enjoy these little moments.) Then, there's also Lelouch so defiantly throwing caution to the wind to support Suzaku before Ashford, boldly declaring their friendship. Yes, Suzaku saved his life. I just have always been 0_o toward the vast position that Lelouch awards to Suzaku all his life for a few simple months of tranquility.

-Continuing in this vein is the talk about how Suzaku's changed, would never follow the crowd when he was younger (Indeed, we know Suzaku was a little hellion. Too bad the anime never actually shows this and leaves it only to the picture dramas and the sound files to flesh out.), is milder and obedient (from the kid who used to punch Lelouch in the face and tackle him in tickle fights) and just wants to lie low. This is where we get how very obsessed Lelouch is with the issue of change. For a person whose entire existence is about advocating chance, it's interesting to note how much the personal change unsettles Lelouch. It's wrong to him that Suzaku has changed, even though he understands that he himself has changed.

-I did like the person who pointed out how the boys having secret visual signals to talk to each other around poor blind Nunnally is a bit "wtf guys," but you know BOYS.

- This is also one of the first times we get the shot of Lelouch's reaction to going along with a lie that hurts him, his famous hand-shaking thing. I love this. As he tells Nunnally they must pretend not to know Suzaku in public and that they just have to let this go for now. It's also interesting that lil Suzaku was a bit of a racist while lil Lelouch was never that resentful toward other races, unlike his other siblings. He pointed out that both the Japanese and Britannians could be cruel. This trait is also seen in Nunnally and comes out more this episode as she reacts to the racism shown toward Suzaku. As people have mentioned, the council represents a nice foil for the rest of Ashford, with Rivalz and Shirley both emphasizing that Suzaku is an Honorary Britannian and not an Eleven. This is particularly intriguing because Eleven is almost viewed as an insult and they must convince themselves and others that Suzaku is a person who has PROVEN himself. It adds a whole new layer to the concept of the council being separated from the racist viewpoints. As we all know, everyone's a little bit racist. Except for maybe Milly, who is just awesome.

Part II (SPOILERS)

[nayami.livejournal.com]

- Lelouch's super-complicated mask hiding system is ridiculous, but I absolutely adore his girly scream.

- What's with Cecile and Lloyd talking about Suzaku in reference to a university? Were they trying to help him get into higher education?

- I love Euphemia giving us a glimpse of another side of Clovis. This is a bit where Clovis' development suffers. In that every positive thing we hear about him comes from the mouth of other characters and is never something we see for ourselves. That said, I love the shot of the sisters mourning their brother during Charles' speech. I also wonder if Charles talking about losing Clovis makes them remember two other lost siblings.

- It's really cool in retrospect when C.C. thinks about who Lelouch is fighting, given what we now know of her relationship to Charles and Marianne. Nice.

- And of course the boys' reactions which has been mentioned.

-CLOVIS'. This just irks me. It's not Clovis's. Grammar. :\

- I love that Kallen gave Shirley her jacket since Shirley was running around in her bathing suit. D'awww the council relationships.

- I love how much the council adores teasing Lelouch. So evil.

- I also agree with the assessment that Lelouch's strength is directly proportional to what's needed for the plot. Unable to dig a whole in episode 19 vs. burying Rolo by himself in R2. LOL

Re: Ngl this is my Suzaku/Lelouch episode (SPOILERS)

[nayami.livejournal.com]

Also:

- Love Kallen's reaction to people thinking Suzaku is a terrorist. Nice.

- What school posts Wanted pictures on their bulletin boards? THAT'S TWISTED, MAN.

Re: Ngl this is my Suzaku/Lelouch episode (SPOILERS)

[nayami.livejournal.com]

This is particularly intriguing because Eleven is almost viewed as an insult

LOL, this reads so wrong. I mean it's almost like they're trying emphasize the NOT-JAPANESE part of Suzaku. I am aware Eleven is an insult. orz typing before I think.

Re: Ngl this is my Suzaku/Lelouch episode (SPOILERS)

[ichinichinemasu.livejournal.com]

OH MY GOD when I was watching Suzaku go for Arthur in the mask scene, I was like, "Just look up oh god what are you doing WHY DON'T YOU SEE THAT" /headdesk. I like the theory that he did actually see it, but lied to himself about it. Either way I just want to shake him >>

Re: Ngl this is my Suzaku/Lelouch episode (SPOILERS)

[otakukeith.livejournal.com]

-I did like the person who pointed out how the boys having secret visual signals to talk to each other around poor blind Nunnally is a bit "wtf guys," but you know BOYS.

*waves* I can see how it might be useful if they really needed to keep something potentially upsetting from her - she was only 6-7 and severely traumatized, after all - but at the same time I hate the idea of them having whole secret "NO GIRLZ ALOUD!" conversations around her. People patronizing/talking over children, the elderly or the disabled is a massive raging berserk button of mine, admittedly.

[gothic-pegusus.livejournal.com]

Does anyone have a pic of the girl who wanted to kiss Milly?

[megalomaniageek.livejournal.com]

You can find them here:

http://animay.net/gallery3/displayimage.php?album=6&pid=21257#top_display_media
http://animay.net/gallery3/displayimage.php?album=6&pid=21258#top_display_media