Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion is a 25 episode anime. It takes place in a world where the empire of Britannia had conquered Japan. They completely took over the country, removed all of its identity, including its name, as it is now known as Area 11, and the population as Elevens. The anime follows Lelouch, who is an exiled prince of Britannia, now living in Japan, and has an intense hatred for the empire considering how it had treated his mother and sister.
Lelouch had vouched to take revenge upon Britannia. He aims to take it down but being a high school student, he hasn’t had the means yet. One day, he finds himself accidentally involved with anti-Britannia terrorists and gains the power of Geass. This power allows Lelouch to control people, forcing them to listen to his command. Complementing this is Lelouch’s natural amazing tactical abilities, easily outclassing almost everyone else.
Even though Lelouch has highly superior intellect, charisma and tactical ability, he is only one person and his plans can be unravelled based on other people’s reactions and actions. While he gains a band of supporters, they never really trust each other, and there is always some doubt or suspicion between them. Despite this, Lelouch is still successful more often than not. The power of Geass may seem powerful at first, but it has its limits and restrictions to not cause it to become completely overpowered. Lelouch does use his Geass ability as an easy way out a lot of the times.
This is a serious mecha anime. Mixing with the conventional weapons of guns and tanks are mecha known as Knightmare Frames. They’re basically big robots piloted by a single person and are much more nimble than conventional military vehicles. Plus, they look cool. The plot is a bit slow in the beginning, taking longer to get to where it wants to. Despite that, there is still something happening in every episode, making steady progress. There is some humor, but it’s not the focus of the anime. Episodes in the first half of the season can feel disjointed in its plot, like it had skipped some minor event in between, given that each episode usually jumps straight into a different facet.
There is a lot of drama, but of the good kind. The second half of the season is a lot more consistent and is where the seriousness and gravity of the situation comes to light. Lelouch shoulders an incredible amount of burden as a consequence of his actions, which he cannot take lightly. He thought he was prepared for it but is still shocked when the realisation hits him. In addition to the rebellion against Britannia, the history behind the Geass and its nature is constantly teased, adding another point of interest in the saga.
Lelouch’s actions are usually justified given how the anime shows the Britannian citizens having racist and supremist views on the Japanese / Elevens. Britannian treats everyone else like dirt and society operating under the empire has various problems. Lelouch has his own persistent rival and one that has the opposite views and values as him. This provides a great contrast to Lelouch. They constantly thwart each other and you can feel the frustration that each has for the other.
Lelouch’s double life as a student and the leader of the rebellion is a mess. Given that naturally, whichever role he is neglecting with will struggle and come back to bite him. There are personal dilemmas that he must make decisions on, and they have significant consequences. The anime manages to convey the anguish of making such decisions. There is a good balance between this drama of Lelouch’s personal life and the bigger scaled combat and strategies seen during the battles against Britannia’s forces. Those battles involve some intense combat sequences between the Knightmares as well as tenser moments where the situation does not unfold according to Lelouch’s plans.
There is also a huge focus on relationships. Whether that’s the romantic relationships of Lelouch, or his friendships and rivalries, as well as his familial relationships. The situation is constantly changing. What was status quo in one episode will completely change, with other priorities taking Lelouch’s attention four episodes later. Unfortunately, this also means that with so many minor plot threads going on, what could be a large focus early on is discarded and put on the backburner several episodes later. Lelouch is thrown into the deep end again and again. There are some dramatic moments where he is in a tough spot or pushed into a corner and you wonder how he will be able to get out of it.
There is a huge twist to the events in the final part of the season. It felt like it came out of nowhere and was completely unexpected. While there was some slight foreshadowing on the cause of the event, it still felt abrupt and out of character considering the writing of the rest of the season. This was a pivotal moment, because just when things were about to get a happy-ish ending, it was completely turned over. It was a strong scene in the sense that it causes a lot of emotions for the viewer. You will come to realise that you care about the characters quite a bit. The resulting aftermath tests Lelouch’s resolve and after some struggling, he takes advantage of this.
For most of the season, despite Lelouch’s questionable conduct at times, you can still stand behind him and his vision. However, after that big twist, he crosses the line and the point of no return, making it much harder to justify his actions. Lelouch starts to spiral out of control, straying further and further away from his original visions, as he now uses any means necessary and is willing to sacrifice almost anyone. There is so much bloodon his hands, he ends up being a despicable character. After this, there was no way that the conflict, and the season, could end on a satisfying note and that is the case here. The season ends on a cliffhanger, leading right into the next season.
Overall, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion is an excellent anime. It starts off a bit slow and disjointed, as it mixes Lelouch’s personal school life with his ambitions, and it required the time to build up Lelouch’s organisation into a credible threat that could take on the Britannian empire. The controversial part comes right at the end, with a pivotal development that seems to be too contrived in order to move the plot into a specific direction. It is a shock for sure, but even more so with the events that follow on, where things can never go back to the way it was and it becomes an absolute mess. The stakes and craziness continues to escalate until the very beginning. It’s still interesting but one cannot help but think that the anime cannot possibly have a satisfying ending after all of this.
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