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Rodyle posted:In older text materials yes, it is the Euro Universe, but Akito retcons this. And it's a good retcon too, since "Euro Universe" sounds kind of dumb and they always just said "EU" in the show anyway. Code Geass R2 was full of chaotic craziness, agreed, but I think it's also surprisingly thematically fitting in several respects and not just due to the ending...at least when you can look back at things without worrying about any frustrating developments. It's still fairly disappointing after S1, sure, but I'd still rather rewatch R2 than Valvrave any day of the year. I think Taniguchi's direction does a lot to make up for some (not all) of the script issues. Mercury Crusader posted:Kallen is great in SRW Z2, since she's essentially a super robot pilot placed in a real robot, and it's reflected in her stats and spell list. In another series, she'd be firing off rocket punches and Getter Beams. True, although it's not too surprising since Kallen shares Domon's hot blood as well as his hothead attitude yet still lacks protagonist privileges. Srice posted:The choreography of the fights in Akito is pretty slick (though I do wish they wouldn't do that thing with the CG where they cut frames out to make it look like it has the same framerate as the handdrawn stuff. That's one of the main reasons to use CG! It just looks clunky when you do that). Shame the cast has been dull as molasses so far. Actually, I've noticed that the 3DCG for the Akito fights (and, by extension, also in Majestic Prince) for the most part doesn't mess around too much with the frame rate. Only in a couple of the slower scenes, but the majority of the action is pretty fast paced. It works quite well in my opinion. That said, one of the things to keep in mind about Akito the Exiled is how Kazuki Akane (director and co-writer) seems to place a lot more importance on establishing the mood and on subtle details that flesh out the setting or provide extra bits of characterization, even at the expense of slowing the pace and limiting character development per se. The rocket launch sequence, which I think was pretty well done just on a purely technical front, seems self-indulgent at first glance but also serves a few of those purposes. Regardless of this...I agree that the cast needs more dynamism. I don't hate them, but they're lacking charisma. I presume upcoming events will force the main group to develop (or at least die trying), based both on what's already been set up after episode two and what's expected to happen next. Episode one might have been a little too much of a prologue, in retrospect, yet episode three seems to be where things finally get real. Overall, I think Akito the Exiled has some oddities derived from the fact it's merely a medium-sized OVA/film series rather than a full length TV show (or even a TV series with 12 to 13 episodes)...but what keeps me watching is how it's reasonably competent and, more importantly in my opinion, trying to do something different in interesting ways. If it's successful enough, then that just confirms there will be more Code Geass animated spin-offs later on. wielder fucked around with this message at 05:30 on Feb 2, 2014 |
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Feb 2, 2014 05:27
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Autonomous Monster posted:My main problem with the ending is that I don't think the Zero Requiem would actually work as described. People do not work that way: hatred is not a finite resource, and historically speaking oppressed groups have had no problem hating on their fellow sufferers. Even if you do get them to band together, they tend to fall back into fighting each other as soon as the common threat disappears. It's a stupid plan, and honestly it smacks of cowardice: Lelouch could have leveraged his imperial power to a program of reconstruction, reconciliation and decolonisation- instead he choose suicide. Disappointing. That would be absolutely correct in any other context, but Lelouch wasn't remotely in the right mindset to stay on as a ruler. He's too much of a Romantic and practically Byronic figure to pick the rational, ordinary choice when his passions dictate otherwise. There's also the fact Code Geass isn't exactly known for attempting to be an ultra-realistic series, as previously stated. That said, it's also pretty much implied the world might end up having trouble later on, beyond the short term calm of the reconstruction phase, which is why there still needs to be an active larger-than-life anti-heroic figure like Zero (with the help of a slave like Schneizel who can do the brain work). wielder fucked around with this message at 17:29 on Feb 2, 2014 |
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Feb 2, 2014 17:25
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Monaghan posted:If anyone ever thought that Geass was in any way realistic, let me remind you that there's a scene in which Suzaku dodges bullets from a computer operated gun turret and then destroys it by kicking it. And what's more, you can even see Suzaku doing his first spinkick in episode one (with sound effect included).
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Feb 2, 2014 17:47
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Rodyle posted:I don't think the show considers this a negative thing, the franchise has a huge hard on for Great Man theory. Those aren't mutually exclusive elements. The series can be said to roughly follow "Great Man" theory in the sense that exceptionally gifted individuals like Lelouch may change the course of world events (almost like, say, what Alexander the Great or Napoleon are popularly perceived to have done, whether that matches the historical record or not), yet this doesn't mean they are necessarily portrayed as being perfect or lacking any negative traits. In other words...Lelouch might be a relatively sympathetic and magnificent/fabulous bastard, but he's still a bastard. Even the staff doesn't shy away from calling him "evil" either. Elite posted:The cat helmet episode is some of the dumbest most pointless filler I have ever seen. Does anything happen in that episode? At all? Well, you do get some of the first normal interactions between Lelouch and Suzaku plus the Emperor's whole speech at the end.
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Feb 6, 2014 21:56
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TheDemon posted:I think the cat episode was when the show was still feeling out what the hell it wanted to be. That episode was experimenting with focusing an entire episode on high-school hijinks and thankfully they decided nope, this isn't us and left said hijinks in the background of future episodes. Maybe I'm misremembering though. Actually, it appears the cat chase episode worked pretty well among Japanese audiences. I'm not too surprised though. If their crazy variety shows are any indication, slapstick humor seems fairly popular in Japan even outside of anime circles. Kazuya Murata (Gargantia) says he did the storyboards for that episode with an old-fashioned comedy series in mind and was initially afraid it would be too retro, but apparently things worked out in the end. wielder fucked around with this message at 19:26 on Feb 7, 2014 |
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Feb 7, 2014 19:19
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Yeah Man posted:It doesn't even do that, seeing at its all a lie for the masses and Brittanian elite to consume while he goes off doing some ridiculous Evangelion knock-off plan. I'd ague that the Emperor's public persona still reflects a large part of his character, even as limited as it is. Just like how the whole "Zero" act remains part of Lelouch (and of how others perceive him) regardless of his true personal motivations. If anything, knowing that just allows us to draw a few more parallels between them (in addition to their obvious love of bombastic speeches). wielder fucked around with this message at 19:32 on Feb 8, 2014 |
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Feb 8, 2014 19:12
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Considering lies and deception are also a big theme of the show, I think we'll never know for sure. At least until Sunrise actually makes another Code Geass sequel, which is unlikely but not impossible so far, either interpretation of the ending is formally valid. There's been enough circular debates about that all over the Internet to even try to come up with a definitive answer to the question. Both death and survival can be seen as different forms of atonement or of escape. In any event, the fact of the matter is Lelouch's story is over, either way. If you ask me, the best course of action to appease most of the fans would be to leave the post-R2 fictional universe alone and instead make a couple of Macross Frontier-style movies in 2016. Because it's the 10th anniversary of the original series and all that. Elite posted:It popped up to cater for discussion about Akito ep2, though ironically nobody has talked about it so far. I guess relatively few people have seen it and mostly back in late December/early January. I'd say the release format hurts that too, but if the thread survives until ep3 I'm sure we'll have plenty to talk about. Namtab posted:Season 2 had a lot of poo poo that came out of nowhere and/or was fairly poorly explained, including charlie's plot, most things geass related, and characters dying then coming back. It's not really a trainwreck. It's a case of sloppy yet successful multi-track drifting.  Beyond the messiness, there were enough over-the-top sequences that did "up the ante" fairly well IMO. The show was a crazy soap opera that knew how to take advantage of itself, both for better and for worse. wielder fucked around with this message at 04:49 on Feb 9, 2014 |
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Feb 9, 2014 03:22
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ImpAtom posted:Interviews with the direction also pretty say Lelouch is dead, I think it's worth mentioning. Death of the author and all but the dude is supposed to be dead as far as these things are concerned. That's what some have always argued and I used to firmly believe it. (Un-)fortunately there's more than one way to look at that answer in detail. To play the devil's advocate...you've just posted what Okouchi had to say but, strictly speaking, it doesn't tell us anything about the epilogue nor does it explicitly contradict a post-death revival (dying as a requirement to activate the Code). Which is the key to the entire debate. Moreover, there's also what Taniguchi had to say in another one of those last Code Geass R2 interviews, which gives off a different impression: quote:" (laugh) It's up to everyone how they want to interpret the ending, I don't mind, but for me, it was a Happy Ending." wielder fucked around with this message at 04:34 on Feb 9, 2014 |
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Feb 9, 2014 04:29
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ImpAtom posted:That's really stretching. Absolutely, but this is Code Geass after all. Stretching isn't particularly out of the question here. There's been stretching in the other direction too, so anyone can freely pick their favorite flavor. I think the whole argument is a circular one, since neither side is really willing to compromise. Any direct comparison to Valvrave is a bit silly, truth be told, since the context is totally unrelated. Like if I chose to bring up how the epilogue of Taniguchi's GunxSword has a last minute surprise. Perhaps that's also going on here? Maybe. Or maybe not. quote:List of people who died in R2. Check the bottom. Yes, that's another one of the usual things people tend to bring up. But let's put it this way: Even Gundam has contradictory information in officially licensed printed materials, such as guide books, magazines, manuals, etc. about how certain events went down, not just numbers and other data. It's also not hard to assume that's part of the deception, since technically the person known as Lelouch vi Britannia is definitely no more. This is all purely academic though, since nothing's going to change without any additional animated content. wielder fucked around with this message at 05:09 on Feb 9, 2014 |
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Feb 9, 2014 05:06
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ImpAtom posted:Lelouch might be the main character but he isn't a good person. It's easy to forget that he leaves a trail of horror and destruction in his wake and there are countless Oranges and Vilettas and Suzakus among the survivors of his Geass who don't get the benefit of main character screen time. I agree with you about that. Even Jun Fukuyama was surprised by how Lelouch remained popular despite going so far. quote:Yes, but at this point, there's absolutely nothing contradicting it. This isn't like Gundam canonical stuff where two different things are contradiction. It is one flat straightly stated answer and nothing official contradicting it. There's no point anyone, anywhere, at any point has stated Lelouch survives as far as I'm aware, or even given any indication that Lelouch's survival is a matter of debate. If he wasn't a popular main character it wouldn't even be up for debate. It's actually a contradiction (or a conflict of interpretations) between: 1. The death scene, which came across as conclusive, and the epilogue, which came across as teasing. 2. Different audience views on other scenes. Scenes related to the Code, Geass and C.C. among others. 3. Different interviews, such as those with Okouchi and Taniguchi. What each of us posted above. 4. How much weight to put on licensed printed materials (death list, etc.) and the way they should be read. If you want my position, it's that both the director and Sunrise as a company probably think it's fine for people to argue about this. The ending, with the inclusion of the epilogue, allows for it. I don't believe that's accidental. Lelouch is to be reasonably assumed dead until proven otherwise, fair enough, but the current margin for speculation isn't zero. wielder fucked around with this message at 06:42 on Feb 9, 2014 |
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Feb 9, 2014 06:32
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Yes, that was intended. Ironically enough, despite my defense of allowing other possible interpretations...I'm also on that side of the argument. The character's story already has an ending. You can make a prequel or side story or an alternate universe where he shows up, but don't mess with the conclusion. I don't want to see Lelouch again as the protagonist of a direct sequel. As awesome as Chirico was in Armored Trooper Votoms, they shouldn't have gone back to him after the end of the TV series either. wielder fucked around with this message at 07:14 on Feb 9, 2014 |
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Feb 9, 2014 07:08
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CMD598 posted:I don't know, I thought it was pretty obviously indicated that almost everyone in the setting is some kind of a huge dick, and I think you should know by now that Sunrise doesn't believe in any lasting peace and this thing is more open for future conflict than any Gundam. Moreover, I don't think "because plot" is required to apply after the plot is over especially when the plot was hilariously irrational. But hey you're free to believe what you want. There's a couple of things that are worth mentioning here: a) Code Geass was purposely created to be something far more unrealistic than any Gundam (except G). It's a very over-the-top work with a lot of operatic and Romantic traits on almost every level. In fact, in an early interview the director even compared it to a "romance" in the old literary sense rather than classifying it within a more modern genre. It's rather silly to apply too much pessimistic rationalism to any fictional story built on fantastical exaggeration and theatrics, just as it would be equally ridiculous to apply the opposite kind of over-the-top logic to the more standard military sci-fi Gundam universe(s). If we did that, then the story would have ended with Lelouch being unceremoniously killed right at the beginning. b) The peace does not need to last forever. Curiously enough, even Lelouch implicitly admits this. Why is Suzaku still around? Because the world needs someone to be Zero. Why was Schneizel made a slave to Zero? Because he can be useful. There might be additional troubles, a bit down the road, but addressing that would be part of another story altogether. For the time being, the major powers are exhausted from the fighting and busy trying to rebuild. Everyone seems to be happy at the moment. The end. If you want things to be messed up again, might as well wait for an R3 or at least an Akito-like spin-off set afterwards. And well...how many people actually know the truth of who did what or why during the recent conflicts? I don't think Schneizel's actions were all common knowledge. As an audience, we shouldn't assume that our privilege of omniscience is shared by the nameless masses of a fictional setting. wielder fucked around with this message at 06:22 on Feb 10, 2014 |
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Feb 10, 2014 05:54
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For those few wondering about what's up with Code Geass: Akito the Exiled, a delay for Chapter 3 was announced. Here's a translation of the announcement: quote:Official news: We’re working hard on Chapter 3! I'm not a fan of all these delays myself, but if they do end up premiering the third and final chapters either at the same time or at least in quick succession, that would be a decent enough form of compensation. It's not like anyone outside of Japan ever gets to see any of these things before either the physical or digital releases of each film/OVA though, which aren't simultaneous. Some unrelated trivia that might be a little more interesting for most people, especially those who enjoy behind-the-scenes stuff...the Code Geass R2 BD box set that just came out in Japan includes an unanimated script for what would have been "episode 26" of the first season. In other words, how the creators initially intended to resolve the cliffhanger ending, before they changed plans due to moving to a different timeslot. Lelouch defeats Suzaku due to his last minute hesitation, picks up the Lancelot to infiltrate a Britannian airship and faces the Emperor there, but loses and ends up being crucified or hanged instead. Not a whole lot of details about the specifics have surfaced yet, but I guess it's nice to have a bit of confirmation about what sort of resolution was intended. wielder fucked around with this message at 20:56 on Mar 31, 2014 |
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Mar 31, 2014 07:16
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Rodyle posted:What the gently caress do they do to these OVAs that makes them so wrought with delays? I mean the first episode was put off for like, two years. There was a long pre-production phase right at the start, between the first official announcement of the project's existence (2010) and actually having something to release (2012). Based on something the director said during an event in Spain last year, the main reason for the delays of episode two (and presumably three) was the use of "new animation techniques." In other words, almost certainly studio Orange's 3DCG work for the Knightmare Frames, rather than anything involving the 2D animated characters. I think the results look very nice, but I assume the Sunrise folks must be quietly regretting making the decision to use high quality 3DCG rather than something more bottom-of-the-barrel, or just sticking with the usual 2D mechanical animation, if that was going to become the single biggest contributing factor (that we know of) to the schedule slipping so much. wielder fucked around with this message at 02:37 on Apr 1, 2014 |
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Apr 1, 2014 02:12
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Rodyle posted:The delays are just so ridiculous that once the show finally arrives you've forgotten half of what happened in the previous episode, and this series is already trying to overcome the hurdles of not having most of the cast the audience cares about and having a plot that's kind of doomed to being inconsequential. It's to the point where most of what I've seen people express is just wanting to see Suzaku and "Julius" murder everyone. I'd say such nihilistic expressions have haunted this project from the very beginning, so I don't think correlation implies causation. Not that I blame anyone for being interested in seeing familiar faces, especially since much of the new cast is rather gloomy, but there are more constructive ways to channel that attitude. Of course it's "inconsequential" in the grand scheme of things, that's why it's a side story. Just like how all the Gundam side stories can't possibly change the narrative outcome of the One Year War. What they can do is give us a different perspective on certain situations and concepts or even show us another side of the existing characters, and I think this project can still offer that much. Nobody is happy about having to wait, agreed, but my opinion is a little more pragmatic. It's not too hard to rewatch one hour -or two hours, this time around- of anime once a year in order to get back up to speed. There are plenty of live action movie series with similar or even longer waiting periods between releases, so my mind tends to file this away in that same space. At least this is coming out on a more regular schedule than, say, the Rebuild of Evangelion movies. Rodyle posted:I myself just want a new Geass TV series, preferably a reboot or something so we can get some proper Lulu poses. I'd like that too. But you know what would also be cool? Sunrise making a Gundam Build Fighters-style series or at least an OVA where they can mix and match all their non-Gundam robots, including gratuitous character cameos and references to keep the fans happy. Oh, you have no idea.  The Shortest Path posted:Re: the ending, isn't it entirely possible that Charles gave Lelouch his code as he was being re-absorbed into C? That's what I always thought happened and was my explanation of the totally-not-Lelouch character driving the wagon in the epilogue. The short answer is that yes, you can freely choose to think so. Look at the previous pages if you want to read the arguments both for and against it. wielder fucked around with this message at 05:20 on Apr 1, 2014 |
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Apr 1, 2014 05:13
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KittyEmpress posted:Have any of the Code Geass spin offs or OVA's been as ridiculous as the Lelouch of the Rebellion/R2? Those were pretty awesome. The Nightmare of Nunnally manga is probably even crazier than the original series, including their version of Zero. Try the Nunally in Wonderland picture drama if you want something full of ridiculous but entertaining in-jokes.
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Apr 1, 2014 05:27
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KittyEmpress posted:Yeah I don't really mean crazy like that so much as ridiculous 'we will win the trust of the japanese resistance by luring britanians to a mountain, then collapsing the mountain on them!' Try stuff like Death Note, Kaiji, Akagi or One Outs if ridiculous yet awesome one-upmanship is your thing. Ask in the recommendations thread if you want more. And you might also enjoy Valvrave (which I don't recommend but it has similar parts) or GunxSword (which is a bit different but more people should see it). wielder fucked around with this message at 05:45 on Apr 1, 2014 |
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Apr 1, 2014 05:41
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Yes, Code Geass R2 is surely the craziest and silliest part of the series, which leads to an array of conflicting emotions and raw entertainment value. There are moments when stuff does click into place though. Just not for everyone and not all the time, since some are mostly or only noticeable in retrospect. Phobophilia posted:It's the fact that they completely upended the status quo and the trajectory of the story in such an absurd manner. Euphy was too nice to be removed that way. The trigger itself is super absurd, of course, but the outcome wasn't some sort of secret trajectory. With an episode title like Bloodstained Euphie and Lelouch immediately raging at her plan as soon as it was announced, because it would screw up his whole gig, I don't know how anyone could expect things were going to work out well for her, other than purely through wishful thinking. On a more meta level, Euphemia being too nice and meeting a tragicomic end is arguably the point. Her fate is thought to be a bit of a hilariously cruel jab at Lacus Clyne from Gundam SEED, who is another pink princess of peace-type that essentially gets everything to go her way, with Suzaku pretty much being a stand-in for her partner and knight in shining armor, Kira Yamato. This is supported by another kind of apparent dig at Gundam SEED being present in the director's previous work, GunxSword. EDIT: VVV Quite true, but then he chose how to end the crisis and still exploited it for his own ends. Hardly innocent work. wielder fucked around with this message at 23:51 on Apr 15, 2014 |
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Apr 15, 2014 20:52
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Gyra_Solune posted:You know, I kinda wished Valvrave had worked so that Code Geass wouldn't be the only not-Gundam thing that's had success for Sunrise. Like, as bad as Valvrave was, I genuinely think things are set up well for a sequel in that. Shoko is at least more interesting than Haruto, and there's still bad guys roaming about, and stuff that was meant to be explained but never was, and also I wanted Ao To be fair, there's also Tiger & Bunny and at least a couple of other things that could be classified as non-Gundam successes from Sunrise. You're still right in that Valvrave has a more sequel-friendly setup though, all things considered, given everything they've left open. It's just highly doubtful we'll ever get to see any more of that show. On the other hand, I'm actually glad Sunrise isn't taking the obvious route you've outlined. Not that I'm incapable of enjoying ridiculous things, far from it, but I'm also a fan of balance. The current ending has the benefit of working both ways, in my opinion. We don't know what the future will bring, but I think there's still other options to keep making Geass money -including using Lelouch- without necessarily making such a direct sequel. There's a lot of weird ideas that would work best in alternate universes, for instance, and you could ostensibly go crazier without any continuity baggage. I'd say Buddy Complex is mostly a case of keeping to a simple formula. Perhaps too simple to be exciting, arguably, yet it's relatively okay so far. wielder fucked around with this message at 03:26 on May 5, 2014 |
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May 5, 2014 03:24
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The thing is, Suzaku and Lelouch have a longer history together, both as enemies and as allies, which is what makes their friendship more complex. They've arguably seen each other at their respective best and worst states. C.C. became his accomplice and confidant, but for a long time her primary role was simply that of a self-interested observer who was just using Lelouch. Milly wasn't in a bad position at the start, knowing Lelouch and Nunnally were political pawns, but was kept in the dark about too much afterwards.
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May 13, 2014 01:50
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In random Code Geass spin-off news, the Oz manga (Aldrin side) is ending next month. The Oz photo story (Orpheus side) from a different magazine seems to still be continuing, at least for the time being. It's hard to talk about these projects without a proper translation, but it's interesting that they seem to have given some of the less important characters from the anime more attention. For instance, Monica, the blond Knight of the Round from R2 who talks with Charles for a little while and eventually gets shot down ridiculously quickly, is using an actual custom KMF created as a result of the events of Akito 2. We never actually saw what she was piloting when Suzaku did what Suzaku often does, but I guess this might be a retroactive answer to that question. Hunt11 posted:It is a real shame that Lelouch is dead. For if he had lived long enough to have a son then, going by both himself and his father, his son would be the most hilariously over the top character in anime. On a more practical note at the end of season 1 when Charles vi Birannia starts laughing after the tragedy starts, the one he is so proud about is Lelouch right. Yes, I would think so. On a semi-related note, the Japanese cast used to joke a lot about Fukuyama sounding more and more like Wakamoto as the show went on, which is also pretty appropriate. Like father, like son. wielder fucked around with this message at 17:08 on May 24, 2014 |
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May 24, 2014 17:01
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KoB is right about that. They focused on her and one or two of the girls, but other Black Knight pilots had those cockpits as well. It's also curious to note how Sunrise actually had some degree of restraint back then, compared to what they're showing off in a couple of recent unrelated projects. I don't hate all fanservice with a passion, but they've gone too far lately. Concerning the trust issues, Lelouch is the type of person who usually doesn't want to rely others and prefers to deal with burdens by himself, even if that comes back to bite him later on. He's quite used to thinking about most problems in a self-centered manner. Arguably, neither he nor Suzaku were really true friends at the beginning of the story, but just guys who were being cordial based on childhood nostalgia. Having said this, it is implied that they did sort everything out in the end, even if part of that was done off-screen for a couple of reasons. ------ Since the thread is up, here are some news updates. -Akito Parts 3 and 4 have been scheduled for May and July 2015. Link There are also some images from a new PV they haven't released publicly yet. Link -The Code Geass: Oz the Reflection manga and photo story are continuing with a sequel. Link They're starting to cover some early season two material. Vincent Gram is one of the new robots. Link -Bizarrely, a random manga about Lelouch playing guitar is coming out. Amusing description. Link wielder fucked around with this message at 00:32 on Oct 10, 2014 |
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Oct 10, 2014 00:26
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I guess that after Godannar, which had some decent female characters too despite also having probably three times more unnecessary fanservice than Code Geass in half as many episodes, that doesn't bother me unless it gets really terrible and creepy (to spell it out, see Cross Ange...or rather, don't).
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Oct 10, 2014 01:02
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Nunnally in Wonderland has some amusing in-jokes with the characters and staff poking fun at themselves. I liked that well enough. I get why some people tend to hate Suzaku, the narrative makes it all too easy, but he is necessary for the story to work. His presence and interference is one of the things that prevents Lelouch from becoming as boring and overpowered as someone like Tatsuya from Mahouka who always gets his way without significant trouble. Is there some hypocrisy to him? There is, but I think that makes him interesting when you can look at the big picture. His whole "white knight" role is a figurative mask, in contrast with Lelouch's literal one as Zero. I don't remember most of Nightmare of Nunnally at this point, to be honest, but the increased craziness was fun at times, even though I will agree that it's less interesting as a whole. Probably better than Tales of the Alternate Shogunate or whatever that was called.
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Oct 10, 2014 03:05
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Irisize posted:What the hell? Where are they going with this? To a cruel destiny, of course. Where else? Aces High posted:Lelouch temporarily freaks out at Rolo because he knows that's who shot her but other than that and when he's at her side he shows no emotion whatsoever. Was the whole point to show that he was so far gone that human lives and suffering had no effect on him anymore? It doesn't help her as a character, I will agree. They could have handled that sequence of events better, since those middle episodes seem to be in quite a rush, but I would say it had a cumulative effect on Lelouch. When it happens, he makes some bad decisions by acting out of rage and, for that matter, can't pretend to just go back to school to live a normal life anymore. To be honest, the girl had tragedy written all over her face since the first season. Even if the staff hadn't changed plans, I doubt she would suffer a kínder fate. On the other hand, there's also the forgiveness angle. After getting over her initial confusión and paranoia, Shirley realized she didn't hate Lelouch in spite of what he had done. This fueled her misguided attempt to help him. That brief talk she had with Suzaku is actually referenced later on, perhaps a little too quickly to notice the first time around, and is also part of the reason why his mindset eventually changes.
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Oct 10, 2014 17:52
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Aces High posted:whoever's code it was I refuse to believe that Lelouch would be that much of an rear end in a top hat that he would continue living after witnessing the shock and trauma his "death" had caused Nunally. Even if he died, she still has to deal with the trauma and pain, one way or another, but that's also a part of growing up. Depending on her brother so much is just as immature as Lelouch's own previous obsession with her. Neither of them could go back to that stage. Talvos posted:If any of that were to be true, then it must have been left over from an older storyboard that kept the series going for another season. Heck, maybe that was the plan, but then they realized the plot relating to that part was a bunch of nonsensical bullshit. I've always thought they should have split that into two episodes. I wouldn't say it's truly nonsensical, you can reconstruct the main points in retrospect (Charles denies reality and prefers escapism while Lelouch accepts the world and finds value in it, etc), but it does have plenty of mumbo-jumbo with all the magical terminology and rushed partial explanations they were trying to fit into the available time. All the sequences involving the Code are rather ambiguous. But based on everything I've read about the subject and a few staff interviews...I really doubt anyone was planning the series to continue for another season, so I think there's not much of a possibility for that. Regardless of how you choose to interpret any particular scene or Lelouch's status at the end of the show, the fact is his personal tale has ended. I'm glad that they haven't fallen to the temptation of re-opening that issue. wielder fucked around with this message at 21:16 on Oct 11, 2014 |
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Oct 11, 2014 21:06
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Mordaedil posted:I kinda wish they did, just because it'd mean more Lelouch, more grandstanding and more Code Geass. I get what you mean. I just think it's possible to do that without a third season. Right now...Akito might not exactly be that, strictly speaking, but I think it's alright. It's confirmed there will be some of that grandstanding in the last two OVAs though. If they were going to make a sequel, chances are that would have already happened by now. Something has stopped them from doing that. I assume they are preparing something else for the 2016 anniversary, hopefully a movie retelling or another kind of project once Akito is done, but who knows. Talvos posted:What you want more Geass? No, you get Guilty Crown. mwahaha That sure was disappointing. Not a Sunrise show, curiously enough. wielder fucked around with this message at 22:45 on Oct 11, 2014 |
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Oct 11, 2014 22:41
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Raxivace posted:Wasn't there supposed to be a Geass movie at some point? I seem to recall hearing something about that. Yes, they announced that in early 2012 without giving any extra details. Link I guess it's either going to happen come 2016 or not at all.
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Oct 11, 2014 22:50
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Aces High posted:are 10 year anniversaries a big deal in Japan? Most shows I know that have any kind of staying power really only do stuff through the fandom and never anything official from studios and creators. Outside of milestone episodes for long running shows I am wholly unfamiliar with "anniversary" shows in North American programming. Although I will assume that, much like in England, when shows are ordered in Japan they will be aired to completion despite low ratings or viewer turnout but again, I don't know. However if they were to do a movie or something do you think they would be able to find a way to make everything Charles and Marianne talk about NOT come off as a huge Not for every property, but shows that are considered big hits are far more likely to get new projects during their anniversaries. Gundam would be one of the most high profile examples, but even other Sunrise robot shows like Armored Trooper Votoms have, for better or for worse, received new material within the context of their anniversary. As for what a new movie would cover...you can certainly hope so, but that's hard to tell at this point. KonvexKonkav posted:I don't see the appeal of Code Geass, honestly. It's basically a dumb nonsense show like Valvrave (which I liked the first season of!) but it takes itself way more seriously which has the unfortunate effect of activating my brain and me trying to find a rational explanation for the things that happen onscreen. If I could just turn off my brain and not think about all the plot holes this would probably be something I enjoyed but sadly it hasn't been working so far. Maybe I need to drink more while watching this but this is probably only going to make it more confusing. I doubt we will ever completely agree about this, but let me explain where my perspective comes from. First of all, I wouldn't describe Code Geass as taking itself much more seriously than Valvrave to begin with. The series has enough silly comedy, in-jokes and even tongue-in-cheek parts during certain dramatic moments to reduce that impression, plus there are various quotes from the staff that can be used to counter this argument even more directly if it becomes necessary. One way or another, these folks were quite self-aware and I think it shows upon closer inspection. There's nothing wrong with laughing at certain parts, even the creators themselves did that. If we must compare the series to Valvrave, then I'd say it simply has more direction and balance. I would argue that the appeal of the series can be summed up like this: there's an interesting core surrounded by over-the-top entertainment. When you get down to it, Code Geass is the story of Lelouch as well as his external and internal conflicts. There's a lot of genuinely interesting stuff to talk about on that level, especially if you're into themes over narrative, character over plot, or if you're an idealistic romantic at heart rather than a pragmatic realist. If you really don't find him to be an interesting character, or even an entertaining one, then that will clearly be a serious obstacle to your enjoyment. What Code Geass does is play up the theatricality and operatic nature of everything, both for the purposes of drama and comedy, but I think that makes the series easier to approach if you can go along with it. A lot of elements, from the design work to the music to the storyboarding, are precisely highlighting the larger-than-life scale and inherently artificially staged flow of events. In more than one sense, the experience is closer to watching a musical or a stage play than, say, the average Mobile Suit Gundam television series. It's focusing on providing spectacle. Rather than saying that rational explanations aren't possible, even though there is more of an emotional than rational appeal at work, I would ask: do you think the show wants to be seen as realistic or plausible? My answer would be that it does not. If you're the sort of person who automatically screams "plot hole" when Zero does something impossible or which wouldn't work in real life, then I'm afraid your brain will not be too happy. Lots of details will fall under that categorization and some might in fact technically be plot holes. But I wouldn't say the series lacks a method to its madness, even if the quality of its execution does have highs and lows. tl,dr: Code Geass is certainly crazy and messy, but its craziness is entertaining and not the only worthwhile thing it is offering. wielder fucked around with this message at 17:59 on Oct 12, 2014 |
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Oct 12, 2014 17:29
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Gino was just so useless and boring. Definitely the worst character introduced in R2 with a regular speaking part. I didn't hate his VA as Kazuma back in s-CRY-ed, but then again that character was meant to be angry most of the time and half of his lines were screaming and punching things. In contrast, Xingke suffered from JRPG character recruitment syndrome, in that his usefulness and visibility exponentially drops once he joins the party, but before that point even he had more interesting stuff going on than Gino ever did.
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Oct 12, 2014 19:35
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Rodyle posted:I'll never get the hate for China as an arc, unless you just hate Kallen losing to Xingke (Which did suck, especially since the Shen Hu is so boring). It's filled with amazing bits and centers are the weird theatrics/politics blend that makes Geass fun. The worst arc is everything from the Black Knight mutiny onward, which is good exactly as long as Lelouch is making some triumphant speech and then lapses back into poo poo again. I understand feeling frustration at the betrayal, because the ones who spearheaded it were being too dumb and self-interested, but in retrospect that outcome was always coming. I'd script it differently, but keep the result. Too many trust issues were accumulating and they hadn't been properly cleared up, only waved away by Lelouch. The moment he gave up and didn't try to make a case in his defense, he became vulnerable and the game was over. I've grown to like the final arc more in time though. Both in a meta and an in-universe sense, it is Lelouch deciding to play the role he had been struggling with for a long time, taking his slightly twisted way of thinking to one of its possible extremes, as part of a self-destructive but appropriate conclusion. This is a man who had always been lying and manipulating his way to victory and speaking of "destruction" coming before "creation" from way back. As for Viletta, I never cared about her. At least they poke fun at her marriage in Nunnally in Wonderland though. Aces High posted:I think the only thing I never really understood during that arc was the chess game against Schneizel, did him moving into check really intimidate Lelouch that much? Lelouch is too prideful and tends to flip out when people troll him. Like Mao and Suzaku. The guy was messing around by randomly making an illegal move just to see how he'd react.
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Oct 12, 2014 20:54
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PiedPiper posted:At least he's got a character arc, unlike three fourths of Code Geass cast. I'd say more like two thirds, counting both seasons. About a third of them do have an arc, albeit often rather simple and/or hurried ones in the non-essential cases. chumbler posted:The China arc is kind of emblematic of the whole second season for me. It's not terribly coherent and feels really tacked on while adding nothing new. There's nothing really new that we get about Lelouch or the black knights, so I wish that the second season had focused more on Suzaku's side instead, giving more of a view into his thoughts and motivations and more characterization of the other knights. Were they all true believers in Britannia (obviously not) or did others have motivations similar to Suzaku's?. That's a fair criticism. I'd say Suzaku himself does get plenty of focus, all things considered, but the people around him needed more. The first season was more balanced in that respect. I think one of the areas where the lesser known spin-offs help, such as the untranslated Oz manga and photo story, is showing there are more Britannians serving in the military who aren't necessarily terrible people (even if there are always a bunch of those too).
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Oct 12, 2014 21:24
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Rodyle posted:Akito's pretty great when they remember they're supposed to be making it! It's not a show, which is what I want, but it's something. I'd put it this way: Akito is different from the original Code Geass but what they share is that both directors have a strong creative vision. Although Code Geass is all about pop entertainment, what makes things work when they do is the presence of that core. When it comes to unrelated projects like Valvrave and others, such a factor is either lacking or just less appealing. wielder fucked around with this message at 15:42 on Nov 6, 2014 |
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Nov 6, 2014 15:31
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New trailer for Akito OVA 3, with more of everyone's favorite magnificent bastard being fabulous and other things. http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-12-19/code-geass-akito-the-exiled-3rd-episode-previewed-in-video/.82369 Also confirmation that OVA 3 will be screened on May 2nd and OVA 4 on July 4th next year.
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Dec 19, 2014 15:53
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True, Renya was weird and kind of boring in the end. I didn't get much out of it either. ---- It's less than a month before Japan gets to watch Akito OVA 3 and Bandai Visual is streaming ten random minutes of it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4tYbIXbdFU Spoilers, obviously.
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Apr 18, 2015 02:40
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TheKingofSprings posted:This and also not cgi all the time It is perfectly fine when a good 3DCG studio is involved. That is, one using current technology and with an actual budget. Orange does great work in Akito and Majestic Prince. Fafner Exodus too. ImpAtom posted:To be honest there are very few robots this doesn't apply to. Flight is super-often an excuse for lazy robot fights. I think the exceptions are shows where the robots could always fly around. Otherwise...yes, it ends up being a way to introduce cost-cutting measures.
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Apr 18, 2015 07:28
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Pimpmust posted:Dunno, the CGI in that fight looked pretty standard "low FPS mode" compared to the normal animation, do they animate at like 12 FPS or is there some trick of the eye when they do it for TV? I remember Macross Frontier having a similar issue. I'd tend to disagree. Based on watching the other two OVA chapters in proper non-Youtube format, which can make a difference in practice due to encoding compromises for streaming, they absolutely know when to dynamically increase or lower the FPS on demand. Furthermore, I do not think it is a mistake to do a couple of slower motion shots for emphasis purposes during a fight sequence (or even when robots are powering up and preparing their weapons). Both previous chapters have sequences that move noticeably faster than your typical 3DCG anime action scene, especially when the mecha are fighting outdoors and can move all over the place. Judging from the latest video clip and nothing else, I guess the fact this battle starts out in a cramped in-door location might have somewhat restricted their choices, but that is just speculation. wielder fucked around with this message at 15:39 on Apr 18, 2015 |
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Apr 18, 2015 15:14
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They certainly know that folks want to see Lelouch just being a fabulous magnificent bastard, but I kind of dig the darker atmosphere and picking up on the various nuances so far, plus it seems they will also give some development to the cast of characters. That would be nice. Add a few ground combat scenes with acrobatic robots to the mix and I will be happy.
wielder fucked around with this message at 15:57 on Apr 18, 2015 |
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Apr 18, 2015 15:51
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Rodyle posted:LELOUCH FALLS OFF A COUCH Well, it wouldn't be proper if you didn't have Lelouch looking simultaneously cool, threatening, ridiculous and amusing. To elaborate: I liked how they were able to portray a couple of the different shades of the character even as a glorified guest star. As expected, Julius is basically what Lelouch would be if he was totally loyal to Britannia and didn't care about anyone else in the world. That fulfills the required fabulous magnificent bastard quota, which is great and all, but I was glad that by having him break down after the chess game while spouting that he didn't have any personal weakness they also implied that the real character, at his core, is not limited to that aspect of his personality. Raxivace posted:Well I liked that scene with the Lancelot and Julius freaking the gently caress out, but I don't even know what's happening in the main plot of this show anymore. Why were there gypsies? Why not? Better than going back to a high school again, in my opinion. I felt they were amusing enough and fitting for the European setting. I liked the Geass/C.C. connection too. That battle sequence was short but sweet, as expected of studio Orange. I'm liking how things are generally coming together even with the new cast (nice to see them chill out for a while), but then again I've accepted you need to look at them with regular mecha show eyes and accounting for the limited time available. That said, I rewatched the other two parts of this story not too long ago to refresh my memory, so that helps. By the way, the fourth chapter will come out in Japan this weekend. Not that we could possibly see it yet. wielder fucked around with this message at 00:50 on Jul 1, 2015 |
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Jul 1, 2015 00:46
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Rodyle posted:Okay so I just watched the second half and I don't even know where to start with some of that poo poo Hah, I thought most of that wasn't too weird by the standards of craziness in this property (or in anime that mix sci-fi/fantasy). But I think it's interesting. That isn't a "thought elevator" as those were random ruins and crap seen during the TV show. We don't know if this new person is an "alien" or not, but I wouldn't be surprised if they are some kind of special being connected to the origins of this power. Remember we don't know poo poo about where Geass came from. Literally almost any explanation is possible and it wouldn't directly contradict anything the TV series didn't say. Both TV seasons did establish multiple planes of existence though, so any dimensional or spacetime shenanigans would fit in there. But is it really all that super crazy yet? I mean, the guy who directed this also made Escaflowne, Noein and Birdy the Mighty Decode. Those had no shortage of mindscrewing with metaphysics and high concepts either. The director digs that sort of elaborate nonsense, so to speak, thus I am willing to go along with it. I'm not going to worry about what Shin really wants because that's not clear yet, but the man must have done something very messed up to make those kinds of acquaintances and enemies...beyond just grabbing worldly power (which apparently doesn't matter all that much, going by that late scene with the General). Shin knowing a couple of facts didn't make me raise an eyebrow. Prince Lelouch made a big childish stink in court after the death of his mother, which led to his being shipped over to Japan and (not) dying. They also brought his sister back to Britannia at the end of the first season, so it's not a big leap to assume that was all in the news again. Nah, they didn't change the name of the EU again.And Lelouch didn't "destroy" Europe. So far. Just threw a wrench as a catalyst for riots and paranoia in an already decaying democracy. The media/video stunt is all business as usual, so there you go. wielder fucked around with this message at 04:14 on Jul 1, 2015 |
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Jul 1, 2015 04:01
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