Review of Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion

Put quite simply, this is the best anime I've ever watched to date. This is one of only two anime I've given a perfect 10/10 score, and there are multiple well-grounded reasons for that. This anime revolves around a very intelligent 17 year old student named Lelouch who decides to rebel against the tyrannical empire of Britannia that is hell-bent on world domination and the subjugation of the people within its boundaries. From episode one you are deposited in a world full of political chaos and intriguing mysteries. This anime is very easy for most people to get into because it is so different from manyanime that exist. In Code Geass, we are presented with a protagonist that primarily uses his intelligence to outwit and win battles against his enemies, while in most anime people have grown used to dim-witted protagonists that win through sheer muscle and strength. Although Lelouch does gain a somewhat overpowered advantage over his opponents, it only works because he is able to use it so creatively and masterfully. Also, the sheer SCOPE of this anime glues the watcher to his/her seat, as this anime involves a GLOBAL struggle. This anime is a very nice mix of a drama, political thriller, school-life, mecha-action, with some romance, philosophy, and psychological elements here and there as well.

This series is so good because it has strengths in a variety of different areas. Often times I will find myself enjoying an anime to a certain degree because I like one or two aspects of it while not enjoying other parts of the series as much. Code Geass is one of the exceptions in the anime I have watched in terms of it excelling in many different categories, thus leading to my enjoyment of the series.

A huge reason why the series blew me away was the characters. As mentioned before, Lelouch is a ridiculously smart young man who pulls crazy stunts off to obtain victory. Lelouch, as well as most of the other characters in the series, is a dynamic character that changes over the series according to the fluctuating circumstances caused by his rebellion. We as watchers get to experience the elation, the sadness, the hatred, and many other emotions that Lelouch experiences on his wild journey in the anime. As the series progresses and we find out more about Lelouch's connections with Britannia and about his connections to other characters, we find that Lelouch is an amazing anime character.

The anime also provided a master stroke in terms of creating a perfect foil character for Lelouch in Suzaku Kururugi. Lelouch can be characterized as the master manipulator who prefers to let his careful plans lead him to victory, and has a very flexible/intellectual view on morality while Suzaku has a much more confrontational personality and has more of a black and white view on morality. The relationship of these two characters is very complicated and changes constantly as the series goes on, and its very fun to watch these dynamic fluctuations. In a sense, their relationship with each-other serves as a microcosm of the entire series in the sense that they represent the two main opposing sides of the series, although their motivations and allegiances change as the series progresses.

As for the other characters, many of them have widely varying personalities along with having believable reasons and back stories that contribute to their actions during the anime. It's very fun to see how Lelouch interacts with various characters in different ways. The depth of many of these characters is absolutely amazing. Allegiances change, friendships are broken, formed, broken again, a good friend can become the most vicious of enemies, your lover can turn his/her back on you at any moment! The anime also does a very good job in showing how these characters react emotionally to traumatic or life-changing events, it makes it very easy for the watcher to care for the characters. The personalities of many of the characters in Code Geass are eventually so fleshed out that you are absolutely devastated if something happens to a character you loved, or you are absolutely elated when some scumbag actually gets what he/she deserves.

This anime does have supernatural and science-fiction oriented elements, but these do not detract from the enjoyment of the story. The most notable element, besides the "advantage" I will not spoil in this review, would be the gigantic mechs called "knightmare frames" that are used in the anime by many characters. Honestly, I just viewed them as what they truly are in the series: tools that are used by groups of people to achieve their goals. In a general sense, you could look at it as people using the currently available technology of their times to achieve their means to an end.. I personally enjoyed the variety in different mechs with their different abilities/functions. If you don't like mecha-focused series like many Gundam series, that's fine, but it shouldn't be a reason for skipping this series. As for the "advantage" that Lelouch has over his opponents, this by no means provides Lelouch an easy and quick path to victory. Lelouch encounters many other characters who's intellects, technology, and powers/abilities rival that of his own, and Lelouch is often times reduced to simply having to think his way out of situations in order to survive them. Despite the elements mentioned above, this series is very realistic in terms of the consequences of Lelouch's and other people's actions. This is not your typical shonen anime where everyone survives in the end except the bad guys: People from various sides and perspectives die in this anime. People are psychologically traumatized in this anime. People's lives are dramatically changed in this anime. No one is invulnerable, no one is safe! Once you learn this early on in the series, you are always on edge when something big happens because you know the consequences could be extraordinarily dire.

Perhaps the element of the series that kept my attention the most was the absolute unpredictability of how events would unfold in the anime, as Code Geass has many twists and turns that always keep you guessing. Lelouch gets put into so many crazy situations, and many of the outcomes may not even be what you expect from an anime these days. Even when I re-watched the show two years later I was STILL surprised at some of the things that happened, that's how crazy some of the turns of events are! And these events will be so significant that you will almost certainly have a strong reaction to them because they are done so well. I usually don't react very much while watching anime besides maybe laughing sometimes, but with Code Geass I clapped and yelled my approval at some events, loudly cursed and denounced other events, and actually cried (not kidding) in two very sad moments in the anime because I had become so attached to the characters that died.

Code Geass is also a great anime because it includes much questioning of philosophy and morality embedded into its story and characters. The actions of the characters make you really question what truly is right and wrong, what is good and evil, where the dividing lines between these categories should actually fall, and makes you question just how much bad should be done to achieve an ultimately good end. The series makes the watcher approach uncomfortable topics like racism and segregation , and forces you to reconcile with the issues as you watch people struggle as a result of these issues. People that have finished the series constantly debate whether or not this or that should have been done, what was so in so's true motivation, were they right? etc.. etc..

Last but not least, animation and visuals. The animation as absolutely gorgeous if you watch this show in 720 or 1080p (recommended in 1080 with a good LED screen to get full enjoyment of the series's visuals). The art style is colorful but tastefully so and not "cartoon-ish." The character designs are from the renown CLAMP studio, so they are absolutely top notch. The only qualm I really had with them is that the body proportions could seem a bit weird at times (some characters seem to have strangely long limbs, but this is not terribly noticeable). Everything from the environments, the mechs, the people, and the action scenes are animated superbly and with a painstaking attention to detail throughout most of the animation. The opening and ending songs are beautiful visually. The CLAMP studio even incorporates original colored drawings of Code Geass characters in the ending songs, which is nice.

The audio of this anime is probably the absolute best I've ever approached in any anime I've watched, no contest. There are so many different songs and themes to go with various scenes/circumstances, and they all fit very well. There is such a wide variety of songs that I never felt like any one got overused or got old. The opening and ending songs are amazing, and they sort of reflect the dynamics of the series itself. Some openings and endings songs are very lighthearted and cheerful, while others are energetic and dramatic, while still others are dark and mysterious sounding. The first opening and ending really capture your attention, among others. I loved the fact that the first ending was dark and mysterious, and the second ending was so lighthearted and fun! I watched the series twice, the first time in the English Dub and the second time in the original Japanese. In my opinion, the English voices are good, especially with the renown and experienced Johnny Young Bosch voicing Lelouch very well. HOWEVER, the Japanese original is better in my opinion. In particular the character of Zero and the Charles Zi Britannia are absolutely phenomenal in Japanese as they have very unique voices, but much of their auditory impact is lost upon the English version.

I could keep ranting about how good Code Geass is, but I will end my review here. Ultimately, this show is an absolute must watch for any anime fan. You should watch it just for the crazy unpredictable ride that you will go on as you progress through the series and for the amazingly awesome story, if for thing else!

*Note: If you watch the series, I'd advise you to not watch it on youtube, as that website is a breeding ground for spoilers!