Reviews Anime / Code Geass

*raises hand* I agree with you.

I can partially sympathize with a few of your points, at least as far as my own review indicates, but still...it's probably a big stretch to talk about any sort of "masterpiece" here, to be honest, although I will agree that the show was entertaining overall.

Well said. Code Geass has set the standard in this generation as far as story creation goes. What first seems like a niche tale of excitement and overblown bravado turns out to be one of deep compassion, where everything ties together to make a profound statement on the nature of humanity itself.

I also think the key to this anime's appeal is that the story itself is relevant to our day and age, and that lelouch's struggles and his quest are part of our own hearts, and gives our hearts a voice.

Code Geass has captured my imagination, and by its end, won my heart. Truly a classic, and an anime for the ages.

Same hereÇ: you gave words to my thoughts.

I completely agree. The only flaws I see in this series are the lower focus on mecha fights in R2 and possibly how the pacing doesn't match the seriousness of several scenes, notably, the part where Lelouch stops Instrumentality from occurring (I don't think an emotional scene like this should have been so short). The pace is quick enough that if you don't pay attention, you may be deluded into thinking that Code Geass is merely an attempted Cash Cow franchise with few good points.

I am 100% with you there on that one. I can't honestly find something I have against this anime. The character development is well thought out, the designs are CLAMP, can't go wrong there. It's a mecha that focuses on a decent plot rather than giant robot fights, and of course, in my opinion, the coolest anime soundtrack in existnace.

Agreed, although I wouldn't say it's an absolute masterpiece. It's a story that gets ones mind active, and has one of the most fascinating and controversial protagonists ever seen in the medium of anime, one who you can legitimately root for or deplore. If only Sunrise hadn't rushed R2, then I could call it a masterpiece.

Well, if you had watched Legend of the Galactic Heroes, you wouldn't think Geass original at all, considering LOTGH is the better strategy-sci fi-dramatic epic and it came before.

And I can disagree with about 90% of what you've said without bringing LOTGH into the mix.

I liked Season 1, didn't like Season 2 so much except for a few crowning moments.

I don't know, but I'm certainly not stupid, but I can't see how this is supposed to be so wrong. Is it being judged by other anime plots or as a masterpiece in its own right? True, some of r2 felt switched, but it still was /excellent./ I was very satisfied with this, and Lelouch is one of the- no, /the/ best character I have ever seen and is written magnificently. It's a rare anime, you must admit.

Code Geass's plot fell apart at the beginning of R2, picked up the pace again and then fell apart again near the end. Mostly because of bad pacing and nonsensical plot twists (And Gino. Why the hell are you saying stuff about being loyal to Britannia while fighting for the guy who just nuked its capital?). I think just about every single character in the show changed sides at least once by the end of the series.

I bet that a large percentage of viewers watch the show just for Lelouch. He is probably one of the best protagonists ever created in fiction.

Code Geass is like a giant love triangle, only without the love. I hate love triangles.

@150: Totally agreed. There's just something fascinating about Lelouch that made me fall in love with the first season, despite its many flaws.

R2, though, makes me cry whenever its mentioned.

@24: Though I love Lo GH, is it really fair to compare them? Lo GH is absolutely serious in its message and tone, CG is pretty much the most anime-anime ever: pretty much every trope and cliche present in anime stuffed into one show as possible. Including the awesome beginning and trainwreck ending.

Code Geass is basically: Awesome beginning, trainwreck during the second half (With a few awesome moments once in a while), an over-the-top but decent ending. Sounds a lot like Death Note, and I know this show gets compared with that a lot.

There's like some kind of law that prevents an anime from being too long before it starts to suck. Lots of animes (Mostly the long runners) tend to start out good and end up sucking the longer they go.

While some of that is true, I've come to think the term "trainwreck" obscures a lot more than what it clarifies.

The term doesn't tell you the show actually does have some interesting ideas and themes in season two, even if they weren't always displayed or presented correctly. They were usually rushed. That's disappointing but not quite "nonsensical" or impossible to understand in any non-ironic way.

Yes, it's a mess, but there is a method to the madness that can be explained and discussed by looking at the larger picture instead of focusing on just the superficially ridiculous aspects of its presentation.

As such, variouos parts of Code Geass do "suck" and particularly R2 has more of those, but there is a lot more than just the so-called "trainwreck" appeal behind it. In that sense, this review does have at least some merit in my opinion.

LOGH: A show that is 90% strategy, written by a guy who has no understanding of strategy. Made shit by focusing on something the writers clearly couldn't comprehend, and praising characters as "geniuses" for beating opponents who made the inspiring journey from the short bus to fleet commanders of a 50+ billion nation. There's a reason Hollywood Tactics is one of the few exceptions to Show, Don't Tell.

I'm sorry, I have to disagree about R2. They didn't even try to plot the series half the time, they just decided what came next based on whims. Then, they introduced some half-baked Ass Pull (if that) and went along their merry way. R1 had some plotholes, in R2 the metaphorical plot-fabric was ripped into shreds. How did Ohgi and Villetta survive that fall, and why is Sayoko no longer trying to kill them? How did Charles make it out of C's World? Why did the Black Knights betray Lelouch based on incredibly flimsy evidence coming straight from his greatest enemy? Was Gino a deliberate attempt at creating a mind-numbingly boring character, and why didn't you at least give him a pathetic death scene to make up for that?

R2 was only enjoyable to me because R1 made me care about the characters and the writers cashed in the emotional chips, especially during the death scenes. They relied on their previous great effort to carry the second season, while failing to add almost anything near that caliber of quality. Glad it ended in 50 episodes.

@charvibritannia:

Hyperbole should be your middle name, especially since with one exception the questions you're asking are either inherently silly, relatively easy to explain or don't actually matter too much. And even concerning that one exception, while the evidence Schneizel presented was flimsy, you have to take Lelouch's past and present behavior into account as well as the deteriorating situation. It astounds me how some people forget all the other factors that played a role in that turn of events.

I do think the first season did more for the show than the second, but you almost need to be blind to ignore how a lot of the stuff that happened in the second season was set up, whether directly or indirectly, thematically or otherwise, by the first.