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REVIEW: Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion DVD Part 3


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walw6pK4Alo



Joined: 12 Mar 2008
Posts: 9322
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 2:29 am Reply with quote
Quote:
increasingly frequent lapses into total preposterousness


You think season 1 is bad with this? Just wait until R2.
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Charred Knight



Joined: 29 Sep 2008
Posts: 3085
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 2:34 am Reply with quote
I honestly consider Code Geass R2 to be Musashi Gundou with a budget.

The dramatic moments are always unintentionally hilarious because of how god awful the faces are drawn, the plot is ridiculous, and several scenes are so over the top you would think this was a gag anime.
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BleuVII



Joined: 19 Sep 2006
Posts: 672
Location: Tokorozawa, Japan
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 2:34 am Reply with quote
This review encompasses all of my feelings of the show. After each episode, I was always like, "That was so stupid! When does the next one come out?" It's a show where each individual piece seems doomed to fail, but when they all come together, it somehow strangely works.
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Xanas



Joined: 27 Aug 2007
Posts: 2058
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 2:44 am Reply with quote
I thoroughly enjoy this show. When some talk about "ridiculous plots" in anime bringing a show down I kind of wonder. Anime is almost always far from down to earth, with very minimal exceptions. Within the context of the world that they've setup the events and actions of the characters made sense to me honestly.
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Avarice_WP



Joined: 05 Jan 2009
Posts: 44
Location: Northrend
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 2:49 am Reply with quote
Man, I really disliked almost everything about this show. I'm a completionist (a tragic downfall), so I watched the whole damn thing, but I would not recommend it at all. It was all so ridiculous- every episode was just someone one-upping the winner of the last episode. Plus, and I know that I will get flamed for this, but I hate Leluech... I found him to be the most annoying, whiny, immoral, hypocritical and despicable protagonist I have ever seen next to only that girl from Elfen Lied (burn- she sucks for different reasons- waiting for hate mail). spoiler[as the show went on I began hoping he would die horribly every episode, and I was always disappointed.] Not even the art style could make up for it (curse you - I think Clamp- whats with the pencil people? XXXholic anyone?). I could go into detail but I don't want to end up writing an essay on this (it's on the to-do list).
Story: 4/10
Characters:1/10
Style:3/10
Animation:5/10
Sound:7/10
Overall:2/10(I'm being kind! one of the worst I have seen.).

[EDIT: Use spoiler tags instead of just typing "spoiler."~Zalis]
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Charred Knight



Joined: 29 Sep 2008
Posts: 3085
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 3:07 am Reply with quote
Xanas wrote:
I thoroughly enjoy this show. When some talk about "ridiculous plots" in anime bringing a show down I kind of wonder. Anime is almost always far from down to earth, with very minimal exceptions. Within the context of the world that they've setup the events and actions of the characters made sense to me honestly.


Honestly I felt the plot was fine for the first season, its just the second season where we get ridiculous scenes like Lelouch scolding a bunch of armed Britannians before he orders them to kill each other that the series turns into a farce.
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Xanas



Joined: 27 Aug 2007
Posts: 2058
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 3:08 am Reply with quote
Honestly your scoring makes no sense and in some cases is just wrong (things like animation are not a matter of opinion, and Code Geass has higher than average animation so it should definitely be higher than a 5). Also, how can you average that out to a 2 with the scores you have given it. I know that others may believe in systems of scoring which allow someone to do that, but IMO that's ridiculous. If your scoring system is flawed enough to produce a composite score outside the averages you are either A) just being biased, or B) excluding areas of importance that deserve their own points.

I think it's pretty clear you are in the A category since your only spelled out point was the hatred of characters personality. But what I don't get is how this is a reason in and of itself to downgrade a series.

I don't like a lot of people in real life personally, but they still exist. If an anime has someone whose personality I don't like, does that mean that the personality isn't realistic? Sure, Lelouch is a hypocrite and an incredible punk at times. I dislike many of his actions and I also dislike the incredible intolerance of Suzaku. So I'd agree with you in that there are many flaws and reasons to dislike the characters.

Yet I love the show because I can dislike the characters and still see the merits and realism of them. Most people at some point in life don't like themselves, and most people have done some acts that they aren't proud of. Lelouch and Suzaku are both people that I can identify with because of these reasons. Neither of them is a simple, one dimensional character. I may not like what they do but they are well thought out.

Charred Knight wrote:

Honestly I felt the plot was fine for the first season, its just the second season where we get ridiculous scenes like Lelouch scolding a bunch of armed Britannians before he orders them to kill each other that the series turns into a farce.


Ehh, I haven't seen it yet so I don't want to get into that too much, I'll just have to wait to respond seriously on it, but it sounds kind of like this is more a Lelouch character point than a plot point. spoiler[ I'd say by the end of Volume 3 there is plenty of hypocrisy committed by Lelouch to allow for him to be like that. He's pretty much following his delusions at the latter points and it has been frustrating for me watching him become so revolting.]

But as I said, I don't hate the show for this, I just am starting to like Lelouch as a person much less.


Last edited by Xanas on Fri Mar 20, 2009 3:13 am; edited 1 time in total
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Big Hed



Joined: 04 May 2006
Posts: 1607
Location: Melbourne, Australia
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 3:11 am Reply with quote
Overall, an accurate summary of the series' last third, I'd say. Rowdy sex indeed Laughing Although I disagree about the ending: I loved it (maybe I'm masochistic) Very Happy

As for CC, I think part of the reason -- for me, at least -- that her character became appealing is because of Yukana's performance on the Japanese track. The perfect balance for Jun Fukuyama's theatrically excessive performance as Lelouch. I've only seen the first third of the series dubbed, though, so I can't comment on any improvement there.
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Avarice_WP



Joined: 05 Jan 2009
Posts: 44
Location: Northrend
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 3:14 am Reply with quote
Wait, someone said realism? What? Nah, must be a joke.
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Xanas



Joined: 27 Aug 2007
Posts: 2058
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 3:17 am Reply with quote
Avarice_WP wrote:
Wait, someone said realism? What? Nah, must be a joke.


One liners aren't constructive. I suggest spelling out your reasons for believing something is grossly inconsistent. Recognition that first and foremost you have to accept the essential principles that A) it's not real and B) the world has different rules and things like "magic" is of the utmost importance.

To speak of "realism" in this context is only to speak of "consistent within it's own rules" and not to say that such a show is "realistic" in terms of being something that could actually happen in the real world.
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Charred Knight



Joined: 29 Sep 2008
Posts: 3085
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 3:24 am Reply with quote
Xanas wrote:



Ehh, I haven't seen it yet so I don't want to get into that too much, I'll just have to wait to respond seriously on it, but it sounds kind of like this is more a Lelouch character point than a plot point. spoiler[ I'd say by the end of Volume 3 there is plenty of hypocrisy committed by Lelouch to allow for him to be like that. He's pretty much following his delusions at the latter points and it has been frustrating for me watching him become so revolting.]

But as I said, I don't hate the show for this, I just am starting to like Lelouch as a person much less.


Its more that the guys are armed, and for no apparent reason they allow this guy to just stand their and scold them for like 2 minutes, before Lelouch finally geasses them to kill themselves.

or another scene has Lelouch moving the King in a chess game while everyone is shocked that he would move his king when the Chess game is almost over, which was an homage to a scene in the first episode of the series where Lelouch moves the King AS HIS FIRST MOVE. The first time it happens its a dramatic showing of Lelouch's belief, the second time it happens its hilariously stupid that people would react in that manner.

I remember at least three times the second season basically repeats a scene from the first season, but each time they do it its significantly worse, with the third time being so absurd that the only way it makes sense is if Lelouch is omniscient.

Also the less said about the outfits that lelouch and Suzaku wear towards the end of the series the better. They are easily the most hilariously awful clothes I have ever seen in my life.
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Avarice_WP



Joined: 05 Jan 2009
Posts: 44
Location: Northrend
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 3:46 am Reply with quote
I thought a catchy one-liner would get my exasperation with this topic across, even if it didn't explain in detail my opinion of Geass. I stated before that I didn't want to write an essay on this, so this is my last post on this subject. Grats you get the last word.
Obviously to watch any cartoon and enjoy it there is a suspension of disbelief involved. But there is only so much a person can forgive before the show goes from "it's supposed to be that way" to it finally just plain bad. To answer your remark directly- I completely disagree that Geass has any realism by any definition of the word. Even within the realm of the show, all of the characters are stupid as hell, despite the fact that we are supposed to be watching geniuses battle it out. Then there is the fact that no matter how absurd and rediculous and impossible the situation, Lelouch gets out of it NO MATTER WHAT. James Bond, McGyver, and Chuck Norris don't have shit on Lelouch. Additionally, almost all of the characters in the show are endowed with an impossible level of forgiveness not even Mother Theresa can muster. No matter the crime, it seems all is forgiven by the loving friends of Lelouch (till the end, but it sucks too). It's tiring after a while. I understand the show needs hooks at the end of every episode, but I got tired of sacrifising actual probability for deus ex machina saving Lelouchs ass EVERY EPISODE.
Finally, no my scores are not cumulative. They aren't meant to be. Yes the show is just so bad that it overwhelms any positives that it has. R2 gets a 1/10 BTW.
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posterior_praiser



Joined: 21 Oct 2007
Posts: 296
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 8:12 am Reply with quote
I enjoyed this series. I thought it was crazy shit, and loved every minute of it. I was expecting over the top, and I got it in spades. I knew that people hated R2, but I liked it overall, except for some of the random school based shit that made no sense. But I never took this series seriously. I just jumped on for the ride and had some fun. I wasn't expecting much more than to be entertained, and Lelouch entertained me Anime hyper!

People also seem to love to shit on the character designs for the series too. I actually really liked the character designs, but I love CLAMPs noodle people Anime hyper! The art CLAMP did for the series is actually really nice, but the anime suffered chara design wise, because it’s so hard to translate CLAMP's style into aniem without it looking a little off. I still thought the chara designs were good though Anime hyper!
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Polly E.



Joined: 26 Sep 2007
Posts: 140
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 9:33 am Reply with quote
I guess I never really could decide whether Code Geass wanted me to take it seriously or not. I think the first season was fairly consistent, and though a bit ridiculous at times, still fairly enjoyable. I'm all about being entertained after all.

R2 got to the point where I was simply watching to see just how stupid things could possibly get. It felt to me like they literally threw everything out the window with battles that turned into Shounen power-level fests (rather than strategic) and had characters doing things completely out of character simply because it was convenient for the scene and direction of the story. The ending was great and there's not much I'd change about that.

I'd enjoy an abridged version of the series with the first 25 episodes of the first season, a few episodes of spoiler[Emperor Lelouch] and the final arc of episodes. I'm sure something more comprehensible could be made out of a setup such as that.
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EdoRocksMySocks



Joined: 08 Mar 2008
Posts: 56
Location: Kentucky, USA
PostPosted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 9:41 am Reply with quote
Ah, Code Geass. I remember first watching it on [adult swim] seeing what anime was going to fill the void of Death Note no longer being on the air. I watched the first episode and I remember clearly thinking, "What...was that? It seriously ended that way?!" But alas, I was hooked. I'm a fan of soap opera like plots. Anything with drama, romance, suspense...no matter how it's done, I'm all for it. I know that's kind of shallow, but CG really pulled me in. The character design first grabbed my attention and I didn't even have to guess twice who designed it. Very Happy

The characters are all ones that I can like on some level. I always try to see the conditions of an anime series through all their eyes to maybe see what they do and in this series, it's pretty easily done. I hardly ever come to like a main character in a series. Well, I'll like them but they're not my favorite. From about the third episode on, Lelouch was my favorite. It was so weird to like a character who didn't disappear for a couple of episodes. Anime hyper The plot keeps me hooked, I think, because they always end the episodes in a really crappy place. Every week (well, used to) when the episodes would end on [adult swim], I'd be, "...seriously? That's how they're going to end it and make me wait a week?" CG has one of the worst (yet, necessary) cliffhanging jobs.

Something else I love about CG is the music. I love all the theme and ending songs. My favorite opening (from the first season) is probably Hitomi no Tsubasa (by Access). I love the beat of the music. ;D My favorite ending from the first season is easily Mosaic Kakera (by Sunset Swish). The second season's theme songs are really catchy too, but I blame that on my love for Orange Range and FLOW. Anime hyper

Code Geass is definitely a series that will forever stay in my top ten series of all time. I'm not exactly sure what keeps it looking awesome in my eyes, but whatever it is, I hope it doesn't disappear. I'm still waiting to finish the series! (Yes, I only watch the English dub, though I know the overall ending thanks to unspoilered AMVs on Youtube.)
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