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Episode 7: コーネリアを撃て
Attack Cornelia!
Oh man, the opening to this one...I've always been impressed with it, and thought it actually would've been a good way to start the series. I was showing Geass to some people and they weren't really interested in much before this; this was the first scene where they actually paid attention and found it moving. A big part of its brilliance is its economical storytelling; it says so much about Charles, about Lelouch, about the nobility, about what happened and what was to come, all in the span of maybe two minutes.
For the sake of completeness, I will summarize: Lelouch, at the age of nine, walks in to see his father. We hear the nobility whispering amongst themselves but see them as still, the picture of reverence. Lelouch calls out his father and asks him why he didn't protect his mother or go to see Nunnally in the hospital. Emperor Charles zi Britannia doesn't care much for that, and tells Lelouch that as long as he relies on Charles for what he needs to live then he is dead. Charles then banishes Lelouch and Nunnally to Japan.
We start into the episode itself with Cornelia promoting Suzaku because she seems to think that he may have an ulterior motive for being a part of ASEEC, and she would prefer to win without the Numbers' help. We also get a brief glimpse of her motivation through Euphie, who recalls Cornelia saying that only those who serve in the military have the right to rule.
Cecile gives Suzaku a pep talk on the value of friendship and then it's over to Ashford, where Shirley confronts Kallen about her "relationship" with Lelouch, which at this point has been entirely built up in Shirley's mind. We then see Milly being pressured into an arranged marriage by her mother.
Cornelia is planning an attack and notices that the conditions are similar to those in Shinjuku. She decides she's going to use this to lure out Zero...I think we can already tell - certainly with the whole of this episode taken into account - that she's leaps and bounds beyond Clovis strategy-wise. Then...
C.C.: Don't do it, it's a trap
Lelouch: I know, but I'll win anyway
C.C.: *gun* You're not going anywhere
Lelouch: *gun to own head* Yes I am, now move (this scene is actually a fascinating look into Lelouch's mind. We see how Charles' words and outlook have really affected Lelouch; despite rejecting the idea that the weak should be abandoned, he never challenged the idea that living a normal life is the same as being dead. Although he only thinks that way about himself, it seems...he never begrudges anybody else for living a normal life, and indeed seems to encourage that for them. Highlight for spoilers: You see it in the way he regards Kallen and her mother, how he thinks of Nunnally and Suzaku and Shirley, etc. On top of this, he even argues with C.C. in R2 15 when she tells him that simply existing/avoiding death is not the same as living...which is the whole reason she understands when Lelouch said he felt dead in the first place.)
Welp, walking right into a trap doesn't work out so well. Oh sure it was okay at the beginning but he was waaaaay too cocky about it, and Cornelia is actually competent. He never even considered that she'd have it all planned out, and he ends up badly beaten and then cornered.
Interspersed with this is our first good look at Shirley's feelings for Lelouch. After getting frustrated by the exchange with Kallen, she ends up confiding in Suzaku about how she initially thought Lelouch was a slacker and a jerk but, upon seeing him casually stand up for somebody else, she decided that she liked him and wanted to be closer to him. Suzaku offers to call Lelouch but when Shirley tries to wrest the phone away from him they topple over together. (This leads to a sort of Shirley/Suzaku-ish moment, which never goes anywhere, but is cute)
Anyway, C.C. came to the rescue, dressing up as Zero and saving Lelouch's behind. It seems to be somewhat of her own volition but (highlight for spoilers)I think we find out between the later episodes and sound episodes that Marianne plays some part in having C.C. look after Lelouch.
Lelouch asserts that the conditions were unfair (*snerk*) and C.C. points out that he should be setting the conditions, not letting his enemy do so. Lelouch thus decides that he needs an army of his own in order to compete, and vows to found one.
Final note: In the preview for the next episode, Lelouch considers Suzaku first as a potential ally in starting his army, before deciding it's impossible because Suzaku is a Britannian soldier. There's an emphasis at this point that Lelouch sees Suzaku as a friend first and not at all as an enemy...of course, this is bound to change.
Next time: 黒の騎士団
The Black Knights
Attack Cornelia!
Oh man, the opening to this one...I've always been impressed with it, and thought it actually would've been a good way to start the series. I was showing Geass to some people and they weren't really interested in much before this; this was the first scene where they actually paid attention and found it moving. A big part of its brilliance is its economical storytelling; it says so much about Charles, about Lelouch, about the nobility, about what happened and what was to come, all in the span of maybe two minutes.
For the sake of completeness, I will summarize: Lelouch, at the age of nine, walks in to see his father. We hear the nobility whispering amongst themselves but see them as still, the picture of reverence. Lelouch calls out his father and asks him why he didn't protect his mother or go to see Nunnally in the hospital. Emperor Charles zi Britannia doesn't care much for that, and tells Lelouch that as long as he relies on Charles for what he needs to live then he is dead. Charles then banishes Lelouch and Nunnally to Japan.
We start into the episode itself with Cornelia promoting Suzaku because she seems to think that he may have an ulterior motive for being a part of ASEEC, and she would prefer to win without the Numbers' help. We also get a brief glimpse of her motivation through Euphie, who recalls Cornelia saying that only those who serve in the military have the right to rule.
Cecile gives Suzaku a pep talk on the value of friendship and then it's over to Ashford, where Shirley confronts Kallen about her "relationship" with Lelouch, which at this point has been entirely built up in Shirley's mind. We then see Milly being pressured into an arranged marriage by her mother.
Cornelia is planning an attack and notices that the conditions are similar to those in Shinjuku. She decides she's going to use this to lure out Zero...I think we can already tell - certainly with the whole of this episode taken into account - that she's leaps and bounds beyond Clovis strategy-wise. Then...
C.C.: Don't do it, it's a trap
Lelouch: I know, but I'll win anyway
C.C.: *gun* You're not going anywhere
Lelouch: *gun to own head* Yes I am, now move (this scene is actually a fascinating look into Lelouch's mind. We see how Charles' words and outlook have really affected Lelouch; despite rejecting the idea that the weak should be abandoned, he never challenged the idea that living a normal life is the same as being dead. Although he only thinks that way about himself, it seems...he never begrudges anybody else for living a normal life, and indeed seems to encourage that for them. Highlight for spoilers: You see it in the way he regards Kallen and her mother, how he thinks of Nunnally and Suzaku and Shirley, etc. On top of this, he even argues with C.C. in R2 15 when she tells him that simply existing/avoiding death is not the same as living...which is the whole reason she understands when Lelouch said he felt dead in the first place.)
Welp, walking right into a trap doesn't work out so well. Oh sure it was okay at the beginning but he was waaaaay too cocky about it, and Cornelia is actually competent. He never even considered that she'd have it all planned out, and he ends up badly beaten and then cornered.
Interspersed with this is our first good look at Shirley's feelings for Lelouch. After getting frustrated by the exchange with Kallen, she ends up confiding in Suzaku about how she initially thought Lelouch was a slacker and a jerk but, upon seeing him casually stand up for somebody else, she decided that she liked him and wanted to be closer to him. Suzaku offers to call Lelouch but when Shirley tries to wrest the phone away from him they topple over together. (This leads to a sort of Shirley/Suzaku-ish moment, which never goes anywhere, but is cute)
Anyway, C.C. came to the rescue, dressing up as Zero and saving Lelouch's behind. It seems to be somewhat of her own volition but (highlight for spoilers)I think we find out between the later episodes and sound episodes that Marianne plays some part in having C.C. look after Lelouch.
Lelouch asserts that the conditions were unfair (*snerk*) and C.C. points out that he should be setting the conditions, not letting his enemy do so. Lelouch thus decides that he needs an army of his own in order to compete, and vows to found one.
Final note: In the preview for the next episode, Lelouch considers Suzaku first as a potential ally in starting his army, before deciding it's impossible because Suzaku is a Britannian soldier. There's an emphasis at this point that Lelouch sees Suzaku as a friend first and not at all as an enemy...of course, this is bound to change.
Next time: 黒の騎士団
The Black Knights
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R1 Episode 7
+5 Li'l Lelouch is SO CUTE
-5 Charles, you a dick
+1 Lulu has a point
+3 Lelouch doesn't think the throne is worth this bullshit
-6 Seriously, Charles, you a dick
-3 Cornelia's not as racist as some of her siblings but she definitely still is
+1 Hey, good English
-2 Man, Suzaku never got to go to school? Poor guy.
-1 Cecille's awful food
+3 lol Lloyd
-10 THAT DAMN PURSE KNIFE seriously Kallen you really need to think that through
+3 Shirley, you are cute
+2 Her imagination has run away with her
-4 NOOO don't make Milly sad, how can you even do that?!
-4 Ninaaaa, noooooo
+5 Cornelia, you're pretty sharp
+2 C.C. with your pizza points
+1 Diethard gets what's going on
+8 That...is a perfect and succinct description of Zero, yes
+2 C.C. is right
-4 LISTEN TO HER YOU COCKY BASTARD
-7 Oh my god nobody in this show actually understands evolution
-3 ...or anatomy...seriously, shooting somebody in the leg can easily kill them, you have some big arteries in there
-2 sigh, Lulu, you have issues
-10 Such meaningless tragedy, ugh
+2 I love how sometimes people momentarily respond normally to the command before being geassed while others are just geassed immediately upon hearing the words
+1 Talkin' to Marianne
+1 Who (the hell) do you think I am?
-5 Don't do it, Lulu, don't do it
+4 Freshman Lelouch, sticking it to the man while looking super-bored
+2 Aww, Milly, is it because you're in love or because you want to be?
+2 Haha, “whoops”
+3 Cornelia is a coooooold lady
-5 Oh, my goodness, it's like I've walked into some sort of TRAP
-5 B7, you moron
+8 Seriously, Cornelia totally kicked his ass
+2 Wait whaaaaa who could that be
+3 C.C. Totally has a point
+5 Lelouch, you ham, you love ending on one-liners :D
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oh yeah, SPOILERS
(I see the love of capes started at a tender age, heh.)If this had happened to me at that age I'd have a mega chip on my shoulder, too. Really, though, Lulu, you should've attempted to seek a private audience or something. The amount of secondhand embarassment this sort of family argument in public gives me is just ouch.
I wish we saw Lelouch go around in sleeveless shirts more often. It's a really good look for him.
...I forgot Cornelia promoted Suzaku. I wonder what exactly she means by "he should be satisfied with that" -- assuming he's trying to get ahead for merely his personal gain?
I like this dress of Euphie's far more than the one you see her in 90% of the time.
Oh the propaganda in that history text.
...Cecile's talking about Suzaku's reunion with Lelouch being hitsuzen. Are we suddenly in xxxHolic?
"Just tell me. I won't be shocked." Ahahaha, Shirley, you have no idea. Also it's kind of adorable how she always blows everything out of proportion ("Ticket of Dreams" is seriously my favorite of the sound episodes for that very reason, haha).
Poor Milly. :(
Guh, Cornelia. I know she's pretty racist (and that lipstick really doesn't do much for her, tbh), but...
弱肉強食, hmmmm? I wonder where I've heard that before.
...I wonder what Suzaku was humming there.
Lelouch is being dumb about this Saitama thing, but the gun-to-his-head thing was a pretty good bluff. And that C.C. actually understands... These two have a lot in common, really, and I think I've forgotten a lot of that since my first watching of the series.
...On an unrelated note, a lot of the faces are kind of poorly drawn this episode.
The first time I saw C.C. talking with Marianne I was confused as hell. Now it's kind of cute to watch.
Aww Shirley, you're too sweet and cute and undamaged for this series.
Sorry, Lulu, but Cornelia's got a hell of a lot more experience at this sort of thing than you do. I can't really feel too sorry for him getting his ass handed to him here.
"I wouldn't have lost if the conditions were more equal!" Haha, wow. What an arrogant answer. I'll admit this episode didn't do much to endear Lelouch to me initially -- thankfully that changes later.
Re: oh yeah, SPOILERS
Yeah, I got the impression that Cornelia thinks Suzaku is trying to advance himself or get famous or something similar that we all know is ridiculous but kind of makes sense for her to suspect.
Ticket of Dreams was great.
Oh man, the evolution stuff. It completely ignores the fact that species/societies that care for their weak and have social structures tend to do better than simplistic might-makes-right kill-the-weak species/societies. You don't have to enforce evolution artificially. It's a natural force that's working all the time. Very frustrating.
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Um... yeah, that's all I have to say.
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the Zeroany outfit.Fixed. :P
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Lelouch's issues with having a normal life always bothered me a lot. Comparing it to being dead just... ick. There's some really weird subtext to that.
Anyway, I think the fight with Cornelia is pretty central to this episode and what it represent, and that is: Hubris.
Oh Lelouch, you are an intelligent, brilliant, well-read and (somewhat) well educated guy. You of all people should be aware of the perils of hubris and what it leads to, and here you demonstrating it in spades. Overestimating your own skills, underestimating the enemy, taking victory for granted before it's over, not preparing for things going wrong. Seriously, so much hubris.
And a slight digression here: If you go back to Greek mythology, the name of the goddess that meted out justice for those who demonstrated hubris was Nemesis. That's the original source for the word; not another way to say "arch-enemy" but as the agent of divine justice for one's sins.
This old meaning carried over a bit into the grand literary tradition that if a hero (or otherwise protagonist) in a series has a nemesis in the modern sense, it will very often be an enemy that was caused by the hero's own greatest failure, which itself is quite often caused by past hubris. Their nemesis is the one seeking justice for the hero's sins.
Now, plug Lelouch into that summary and see what else comes up.
(Yes, I had Lelouch pegged for a hubris arc from about the second episode. I just kept hoping he'd realise from his failures before they got too big.)
As for the comment about conditions being unfair: No shit, Sherlock. Isn't the entire reason he's trying to bring down Britannia because they are bigoted and unfair? If this was a fair fight, it wouldn't need to be fought at all...
I agree this episode isn't great at showing Lelouch's admirable features.
spoilers at the end
I did not know that about "nemesis." Interesting. I, too, pegged Lelouch for a hubris arc early because I initially thought of him as similar to Light Yagami, who uh...yeah, had a bit of a problem with hubris. (Still, I can't blame him for not being genre aware just because he's well-read. He doesn't know he's in a work of fiction.)
I liked seeing Lelouch when he was beaten. Not in a schadenfreude sort of way (if I haven't made it ridiculously apparent by this point, I have a lot of affection for the boy) but in more of a "hey he's human too" sort of way. It's great to see him be all on top of the world and GAR and everything, but it's far more emotionally moving to see him struggling (although some of the diabolus ex machina stuff takes it way too far, as sometimes I want to see him succeed dammit).
And yeah, Charles really fucked him up with that whole "you are dead" speech. I think Zero Requiem was partially necessary because even after building a peaceful world I don't know that Lelouch could've happily settled into a normal life. It's really sad.
Re: spoilers at the end
And then comes the end of R1. Hubris and nemesis.
But yeah, I find failure humanises Lelouch; not always in a flattering way, as this episode demonstrates, but it makes him real in a way that the Do No Wrong Gary Stu guy doesn't.
I think it's really telling that, despite how Ashford is later on played as his haven, the time he was so happy, right now he talks about how desperately he wants to escape it. All he wants is to be happy with Nunnally, and yet when she's around he spends half his time brushing her off... I don't think Lelouch could be satisfied living with stability.
Re: spoilers at the end
This is an amazingly good point. This sort of thing is the reason why (despite quite liking the pairing) I don't think Lelouch/Shirley would ever work out in the long-term: she's too normal.
There may also be an element of "he who fights monsters" in there somewhere: Lelouch finds it harder to live normally when he spends a lot of his time doing crazy freedom fighter stuff.
Re: spoilers at the end
And it takes him losing them to really realise how important they were.
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The massacre that Clovis orders is shown in great detail; Japanese people are brutally shot on camera, over and over. You hear a baby cry and then be silenced by gunfire. Even the poor treatment of honorary Britannians is shown. The whole thing just leaves a really bad taste in your mouth. With Cornelia, even though at the beginning the massacre is the killing of a group of innocents, the rest of the scene focuses on military battles rather than wanton slaughter of civilians. (I also don't know that she killed as many people as Clovis; it might have been just enough to lure out Lelouch, but I don't know that the exact number of dead really makes it better or worse anyway.)
Now the one possible meaningful difference that I can see is motivation. Cornelia is making a calculated military move to lure out a dangerous terrorist (which works, and most likely would've led to his capture and/or death had C.C. not intervened). Clovis is throwing a tantrum and covering his tracks because he thinks daddy might disown him if he finds out Clovis' secret.
They're still both tragic losses of life, and in both cases the lives of Japanese people are considered simply expendable by the royal siblings in question. I'm not saying it was okay for Cornelia to do what she did. But as I see it considerations of morality in Code Geass tend to include motivation and situational constraints as well as actions.