Code Geass

Without knowing anything about Code Geass before watching, I did not know what I had gotten myself into. Right from the start it grabbed my attention, evoking questions in a compelling way. I will not outline the plot as I believe other reviews do a very good job of that, but I will describe personal thoughts for someone who wants to know what they are in for if they decide to watch. The series has a way on ending each episode on a "what's going to happen next?" way but making you watch episode after episode, back to back. I have watched the two seasons at least 4 times over (no exaggeration).

It most certainly earns it's place with the "must see" list. The plot development is excellent, carrying forward characters who represent certain ideals within the well thought out story. It is one of the few animes I have seen which really does have you guessing left and right, but more often or not, you turn out to be wrong. With an inclusion of a vast array of characters, it contributes to what seems to be an ever growing story. Even though I have watched it over 4 times, I still have the ability to just sit and watch with full enjoyment. To say that Code Geass has a re-watchable factor is an understatement, but what seems to add to that is the time scale at which it all takes place,it feels like a quite long and progressive trip, making you feel as if you have just been on an epic journey with the protagonist. From start to finish it had my full attention. I really do not have any complaints about Geass, aside from the fact that I was left wanting the third series to be released already.

On a final note, everyone that I know that has seen this anime, being an avid watcher or not, has been converted by the likable plot and character development right from the get go, which can tell you something about the power of Geass. 10/10 (wishing it could be 11/10)

Note- This is a good series, even for people who aren't particularly interested in anime.

*Premise* The show takes place in a futuristic world where the Holy Britannain Empire rules over a third of the globe. Their emperor's conquest has lead them to Japan, which they conquered easily due to their superior military technology (machines called Nightmares). Japan is renamed area 11, and it is here, 8 years after Britannia's invasion that the story begins. The protagonist is Lelouch Lamperouge, a high school student who is given a power called Geass, which he uses to wage war against the Britannian Empire.

*Overall Impression*: This is an incredible undertaking in animated series. The continuous plotting and action provides excitement that will keep you on the edge of your seat, and the writers never fail to deliver the thrilling climaxes that you would expect from the constant cliffhangers. Definitely worth watching.

*The Pros* After finishing "Death Note" and loving it, I started looking for similar series, and this was one that was recommended all over the place. After watching 2 episodes, I became hooked and finished the series (including season 2 or r2) in 3 days. Fans of Death Note will enjoy Code Geass, although I must say it doesn't have the same dark mood as Death Note.

This is an excellent series for anyone looking for suspenseful & exciting action & drama. The protagonist, Lelouch, is an excellent strategist and tactician, and his brilliant tactics as he battles the forces of Britannia, the world's largest empire, will keep you craving more. While the action of the series is largely centered around mecha (transformers style robots), I can assure you it isn't simply a nonstop explosive battle. Much of the focus is on plan & strategy execution, and drama that keeps the story rolling.

The artwork is incredible.

*The Cons* At times, characters & dialogue can become over-dramatic or oversimplified. Lelouch's sister, Nunnally, for example is almost so sweet that it makes you sick, and sometimes characters shout & gesture in excess of dramatic effect.

My overall impression is at the top, and I absolutely recommend this series to anyone looking for an exciting ride.

Code Geass is set in an alternate universe, after Japan's conquest by the Holy Britannian Empire, with their powerful new robot weapons, the Knightmare Frames, stripping Japan and its citizens of all rights and freedoms and renaming the country Area 11. Lelouch is a Britannian prince who gave up his right to the throne after his mother was murdered, and has vowed to destroy his father, the Emperor, and Britannia. He gains the ability through the mysterious power of the Geass, granted by the mysterious girl C.C., becoming the leader of the resistance movement 'The Black Knights' to fulfill his two wishes: to seek revenge for his mother and to construct a world in which his beloved sister Nunnally can live happily.

But beware, this is only a short outline of what the two seasons of Code Geass are about. Is this really one of the best anime series ever made (if not the best)? I certainly do believe so, because it does excel in all areas. It is a character driven series first and foremost, and here it makes no mistakes. There are absolutely NO STEREOTYPES to be found in Code Geass. All characters are as real as it gets. This is were most anime series fail, but character development is this series best feature. Apart from the two protagonists, we basically have more than 15 characters than can be considered main. As I have said before they are all full fledged and round personalities and even the gigantic supporting cast only consists of fully fleshed out characters. But make no mistake; Code Geass is a story of war and therefore great tragedy and drama. As it is in war, there is no real good or evil, and all the characters have their own motivation for what they do. Betrayal and changing sides, lies and deception can be found around every corner, along with incredible plot twists and character development. But how can the viewer keep track of these developments on such an epic scale? Easy. Code Geass is set in a realistic environment and a believable world is created (despite Geass and mecha action). All the characters decisions can be reconstructed and their motivation is understandable. Be it love, betrayal, pure insanity or maybe all of them.

However, the anime does not offer any sense of right and wrong, good or evil and the characters even deceive themselves at times. There is no ultimate hero to be loved and no real villain to be hated. Everyone is right and wrong, good and bad at the same time when it comes to revolution and warfare; and everyone who is not shamelessly used by others, follows his/her own egoistical agenda. Sides change often so quickly, especially in season two, that you never can decide who to root for. This may seem like a negative point of the series, but that is actually why the story and therefore the entire anime succeeds. Because it never strays and cops out, uses the deus ex machina device or lets characters decide things they wouldn't, just to make them likable. They have to make decisions and accept the result and keep on living. As they say, ''sometimes you have to choose the lesser of two evils'', but since you know all characters so well and what drives them, you still feel with them, but hate and curse them at the same time for their foolishness and weakness. The animation is excellent and the mecha action top notch. It is the first time they actually bothered to make the machines as realistic as possible. Sometimes the animation seems very clean and cold, suitable for the world it creates though.

Everyone seeking an emotional roller-coaster ride get on, you won't regret it. Code Geass is as epic as it gets.

Plenty of people have already written what this anime is about, and many have sung it's praises, but I didn't feel like any of them were able to truly convey what this anime series really is. I have personally watched over 200 different anime titles, of all of those I have watched Code Geass from beginning to end 9 times now. I will watch it again when I find someone else who hasn't seen it.

This anime is extremely character- centric, and all of them, are well thought out and given their own sense of worth in this series. As the story progresses you begin to empathize with them and are drawn into the story to an amazing degree.

I watched this anime while it was being released in Japan, and was both frustrated and glad at the same time when the writers took an extra week or two to write or animate the show. The characters that are supposed to be "genius" level aren't just spewing overly complicated words and having others around them go "oh wow that guys is just so smart" that most movies and series' do to let you know a character is substantially more intelligent than everyone else. This series has more than just one genius level character, and all of them can and do make mistakes.

I feel like I could go on forever with all of the good things to say about this series, but I guess it really comes down to two things.

If you can empathize with a cartoon character and you are smart enough to follow the story line, which at times can be arduous, than you will absolutely love this series. I guarantee it.

Code Geass is brilliant. Period. It is one of the best animes ever made to date and stands with the best shows/movies of all time as well. You might very well have heard similar praises for this show before and I'm here to say that it deserves every single one of them. I don't give out 10 stars often, but I would gladly give the double of that for Code Geass. It has every single element required to be amazing. First off, it has and interesting and fairly unique setting. It is in an alternate future where the Holy Britannian Empire has taken over a third of the world, including Japan, which is the stage for this epic. On top of this interesting setting is an even more interesting premise. It may feel reminiscent to Death Note since it also features a High Schooler who receives a manipulative super power from an otherworldly being. Still, it does not feel similar to Death Note in its plot development and keeps complicating things every time the story feels like it's slowing down. Gladly, the story very rarely, if ever, do slow down due to the raw amount of events that happen in Code Geass. While some shows try to stretch out scenes as long as they can in order to make them fill up a 20-minute time span, Code Geass feels as though every episode is packed to the brim with events, character introductions, character deaths, and other amazing sights. Helping this along is a mind-boggling cast of at least 50 named characters who have lines. When I re-watched the series one time, I counted up only the names of characters with personalities, lines, and a life that you felt involved with that died. There were over 30. This will led to some truly spectacular scenes when huge mecha battles will break out with many protagonists on both sides. Speaking of mecha battles, the mechas in Code Geass, or "Knightmares" as they are called, are spectacular in action and feel very action-packed and full of energy. But as good as the action in Code Geass is, the part that you will really grab your interest and keep you fascinated until the end is the way that the characters and their personalities ties into this grand story. You will soon find that every single conflict or battle will have protagonists of both sides clashing with each other. I many cases, characters like the main characters Lelouche appear as both a protagonist and an antagonist which leads to you truly thinking about what is actually good or evil. These conflict, both internal and external will lead to some of the more intense scenes that have ever graced the silver screen. All this is helped along by solid animation and what might be that best soundtrack for any piece of cinema ever made. There is a truly gargantuan amount of musical content here that will any fan of soundtracks truly satisfied.

Never has there been an anime that blended, brilliant character development, amazing music, intriguing moral dilemmas, immersive story, and exciting mecha battles as well as Code Geass has. The number one biggest must-watch anime series of all time.