Anime Column] Tokimeki☆Time Trip No. 9 "Code Geass Lelouch of the Rebellion" - The Vivid Appeal of the Dark Main Character Lelouch

I still love it when I look at it now!"
Why were they so popular with the ladies?"
There is a reason for everything that is interesting!　Female anime writers take a look back at some nostalgic works that have become hits with female anime fans.

This time, we will focus on "Code Geass Lelouch of the Rebellion" (2006) (including the second part, "Code Geass Lelouch of the Rebellion R2" (2008)).

On Sunday, November 27, 2016, at the "Kiseki's Anniversary" event commemorating the 10th anniversary of the broadcast of this work, the start of planning for a new "Lelouch of the Resurrection" and the production of all three chapters of a 50-episode theatrical compilation of the TV series with new recordings were announced.

Based on the TV series, this popular series has spawned numerous derivative works, including OVAs, games, comics, novels, and an external theater version, and is now about to lead to another new work. The series has gained the support of both men and women, but what attracted female fans the most were the characters, especially the main character, Lelouch Lamperouge. In preparation for the compilation, we look back at the charms that attracted female fans when the series was first broadcast.

An abandoned prince who rebels against his mother country

The story takes place in a world with a history different from our own, where the absolute monarchy, the Holy Britannia Empire, rules one-third of the world. An island nation called Japan in the Far East was invaded by Britannia, which targeted the underground resource sacradite, and was ruled as a dependency, known as "Area 11 (Eleven).

The main character, Lelouch Lamperouge, a high school student living in Area 11, is actually the 11th prince of the Britannian Empire. He and his sister Nannalee, who is blind and crippled, were sent to Japan as hostages after the assassination of their mother, the Queen, and now live in secrecy about their Imperial family status.

They were once abandoned by their father and their homeland. If they were found alive, they would only be used as hostages again. There is no place for them to live peacefully in a world ruled by Britannia. Despite being born a prince, Lelouch has always harbored hatred and vengeance toward the Britannian Empire and his father.

Then Lelouch meets a mysterious girl, C.C. (C.C. Two), and gains the power of absolute compliance, "Geass," which can subdue any human being, and challenges the Britannian Empire to a battle of rebellion.

Lelouch's weapons are his cool-headed, intelligent mind and the power of the Geass. Hiding his true face behind a mask and calling himself "Zero," Lelouch unites the resistance and names them the "Black Knights. With them as his pawns, he challenges the Britannian army to battle and achieves a series of miraculous victories.

However, once the fact that the prince of Britannia is the head of the resistance comes to light, the organization falls apart due to distrust. Lelouch uses masks and lies to conceal his identity as "Lelouch" from his revolutionary comrades and "Zero" from his friends at school and his sister. The only comrade who knows both faces is C.C.

The power of the Geass is powerful, but it is not universal, with restrictions on its use. As the story progresses, we learn that "the power of the Geass gradually becomes stronger and more violent," which also puts Lelouch in a difficult situation.

Can't he play the villain?　Lelouch's sweetness is his charm.

He declares that he uses people for his own purposes and treats them as pawns, making ruthless decisions that result in casualties, but to begin with, there is an underlying emotional fragility in Lelouch that prevents him from being truly cool-headed.

It can be said that Lelouch's charm, especially in making his female fans swoon, lies in his "sweetness.

Perhaps as a reaction to the fact that he is a liar and a schemer, Lelouch trusts and cherishes a partner who is single-minded and has a tender heart. His sister Nanny Lamperouge, half-sister Euphemia Li Britannia, schoolmate Shirley Fenette, revolutionary comrade Karen Kohzuki, and best friend Kururugi Suzaku.

And most of them tease Lelouch's legs and develop painful feelings. He calls himself a "demon king" who puts on the persona of a ruthless villain and does dirty things with impunity, but often his own heart has not caught up with him.

He is proud and confident, but he also has many weaknesses, which is also a kawaii thing. Lelouch lacks endurance, and there are many opponents, from the daily routine of the school to the battlefield, who are no match for him in a battle of brains, but not in a battle of strength.

He is also quick to see an opportunity and is good at turning things around from a pinch by using his three wits and the power of his Geass, but when his younger sister Nanny is in danger, he panics and throws everything out.

He is also very naive when it comes to color. He is insensitive to the psychology of the girls he is attracted to and cannot be ruthless with the women who like him. When he was about to break down, C.C. said to him, "No matter how much you talk big, you're still just a big-mouthed virgin boy, aren't you?

He plays the villain all the way through, but the more you look at him, the more you can't hate him. I even feel sorry for him. He is a man of passion, and as such, he is often angry, despairing, and shedding tears.

Lelouch, though caught up in his emotions, does not stop moving forward. Separated from Nanny, learning the truth about his mother's death, and betrayed by his fellow Black Knights, Lelouch continues to move on.

The power of Geass, his greatest weapon, makes Lelouch increasingly lonely. The power of Geass, which makes a person even do things he would never do against his will, is indeed cruel, and from the middle of the story, I had a feeling that Lelouch would never have a happy ending if he went this far.

The more victories he racks up and the more he takes the world in his hands, the more Lelouch loses what is important to him. But no matter how much he cries, he cannot bring back the past. What has happened cannot be changed. Even though the grounds for fighting have collapsed and he himself has become a wreck, he chooses to move forward because he has lost so many people.

His resolve and way of life was so appealing, so bashful that it transcended right and wrong.

Kururugi Suzaku, the best friend of trust and betrayal

In this story, Lelouch's opposite and counterpart is his best friend, Kururugi Suzaku. The son of the last prime minister of Japan, he is an "honorary Britannian" from Eleven who has become a soldier of the Britannian Empire and is trying to change the Empire from within, despite discrimination.

Lelouch and Suzaku formed a friendship eight years ago after spending their childhood together. That bond will help each other throughout, and at the same time cause each other pain.

Lelouch tries to embrace Suzaku as an ally as "Zero," but is rejected by Suzaku, who has his own way. Even so, Lelouch does not think of applying a geass to Suzaku, but when Suzaku is faced with death under unreasonable orders, he decides to apply a geass that tells him to live. The result torments Suzaku like a curse.

The rift between the two is decisive when "Zero" kills Princess Euphemia, who had appointed Suzaku as a knight. Suzaku's hatred is intense when he learns that Zero's true identity is Lelouch.

Lelouch, for his part, thought he had long since abandoned friendship. But when the situation changed and he hit rock bottom, it was Suzaku, his enemy, who came to mind as "a truly trustworthy person whom I can ask for help.

The story of their friendship and hatred is very dramatic. After rejecting each other's way of doing things, getting their hands dirty to pursue what they were aiming for, and suffering and changing, they finally decide to do one thing. The climax of the story is what sets the tone for the appreciation of the work.

The variety of charms is unique to the anime original.

The story is a "picaresque romance" in which the protagonist rises from the bottom by any means necessary and changes the world.

At the same time, it is also a "battle story" that depicts a battle using a different ability called "Geass," and has a "mystery" aspect that focuses on the mystery of Lelouch's mother's death. It is also a "virtual war story" depicting a war in virtual history, and a "science fiction mecha action story" using the "Nightmare Frame" mobile weapon. There are also episodes of cheerful and comical "school comedy," and it can also be viewed as a "coming-of-age and love story.

Above all, it is an "ensemble drama" with more than 30 main characters, including the royal family and aristocrats of the "Holy Britannia Empire," the resistance fighters of the "Black Knights," and students attending the "Ashford Academy," a private boarding school. Each and every one of them has a background, a way of life, and a drama.

From the very beginning of the first episode, these elements run together like a roller coaster without wasting a single second. As the story unfolds, unexpected characters come face to face and connect with each other, and as circumstances dictate, allies turn into enemies and enemies turn into allies.

The dialogue is witty and memorable, and the eye contact and posing are similar to that of a kabuki actor. The tone of the story is serious, and although it depicts a war in which many people die, the depiction is somewhat dry, and there are no gruesome atrocities depicted in the pictures.

The characters, designed by CLAMP's original designer Takahiro Kimura, are beautiful, cute, luminous, and truly gorgeous, making it clear that the most interesting anime to watch is the original work made for anime.

As a fan from back then, I am happy that the compilation trilogy will bring new fans to the series. And what is the new "Lelouch of Resurrection"?　First of all, let's look forward to the compilation trilogy.

(Text by YAMAYU)
(C) SUNRISE / PROJECT GEASS Character Design (C) 2006 CLAMP/ST