Code Geass: Lelouch of the
Rebellion R2 continues the story
of Lelouch vs Britannia, effectively serving as a second season for
Code Geass. For those
who have not finished the first season, be wary of minor spoilers of
its ending. Unfortunately it can not be helped.
R2 takes
place one year after the ending of the first season with an unusual
return to normalcy for Lelouch. There are a few unusual changes in
his life such as a replacement of his sister Nunnally with a brother.
Along with this, Lelouch has lost his Geass power and seems to have
no recollection of ever having it or his alternate identity of Zero.
But don't worry, this does not last long.
A dangerous encounter between
Lelouch and his “brother” soon after his memories return.
The remaining
Black Knights, defeated by the army of Britannia after Zero abandoned
them during their last battle, have lost their way without his
guidance. C.C., along with a select group of survivors, abduct
Lelouch as he is gambling with his brother and restore his memories
of the nearly successful rebellion from one year ago. The plot
quickly picks up as Lelouch learns of the group tasked with spying on
him in case he regains his memories.
Along with his
memories return Lelouch's desire to rebel against his father and
nation. Zero comes back to unite the surviving Black Knights along
with a few new allies that he quickly acquires. By episode three, a
new rebellion is in the works with Zero as the mastermind and
figurehead.
Many of the characters from Code
Geass, some new and some old.
All of the old
characters return from the previous season with a few new important
characters. One major addition is Lelouch's “brother” Rolo.
Rolo is obviously not his brother, but is part of a special group
tasked with monitoring the former prince's movements. As Lelouch
regains his emotions, things dramatically change between them as he
is furious about the disappearance of Nunnally. Eventually, Rolo
becomes one of the rebellion's most important allies as his Geass
power, the ability to create a bubble where time “stops”, makes
him an incredible assassin and eventually a great Knightmare pilot.
He has a really cool power, but personally I thought he had a pretty
bland personality compared to many of the other characters.
One character from
the first season also plays a very important role in the second
season. Kallen Stadtfield, a half-Britannian, half-Japanese student
at Ashford Academy and an important member of the Black Knights since
the beginning, quickly develops into one of the best Knightmare
pilots in the world. While she was an important member of the Black
Knights in the first season, she soon becomes the most important
member in combat and decimates quite a few enemy suits. I enjoyed
her role in the show mainly because she became the “anti-Suzaku”
in the sense that they both have similar ideals and conflicts about
Lelouch/Zero and the rebellion.
Kallen and Zero.
The second season
does a solid job of retaining the feel of the first despite the major
changes after the first failed rebellion. One complaint that I do
have is that the Geass power becomes more common, making it less
special. Others likely will disagree with this, but a great part of
the first season was that the Geass was an incredibly mysterious
gift. Now that more characters have it, some of that mystery
disappears.
Another thing that
disappointed me about the second season was the plot. While decent,
I found it lacking the suspense and edge of the first season. At
first it felt like the writers were trying too hard to imitate the
first season, but as time went on, the story seemed to speed up
towards the end of the rebellion. The final six episodes felt fairly
rushed to me especially in comparison to the first season. On top of
this, I disliked the ending to a degree. Without spoiling it, all I
can say is that it was far too optimistic especially considering the
path that leads to the final showing of Zero. I think the show
suffered for these reasons, but not enough to significantly detract
from the quality of the show.
One of the new and improved soldiers
of the rebellion.
One positive
change is the combat sequences. While good in the first season, the
fights in the second are way better. From the start there are great
combat scenes and I would argue that they are among the best battles
ever seen in anime. Unfortunately, the fights cannot make up for the
disappointing plot.
R2
is a solid continuation of the story in Code Geass,
but does not live up to the first season in my eyes. If you enjoyed
the first season, I would still recommend it simply if you are
curious as to how Lelouch's story concludes. Overall, Code
Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R1
and R2 make a really
interesting and unique story that many would enjoy. I would
definitely recommend it.
-ABC
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