Code Geass ep.02

October 13, 2006 | 18 Comments

Just like Kanon, the second episode of this series makes me want to see the series a bit more. It's probably because in comparison to the first episode, this one is very action-packed and filled with surprising revelations. There is one particular scene in this episode which reminds me a lot of Light and L's confrontation in Death Note. And although I am not interested in other Knightmare Frames, I think 'Lancelot' is quite a sexy piece of work. I like the fact that its movement is a lot more fluid and less robot-like in comparison to the other Knightmare Frames. This episode also give Suzaku a good character development, which I think will explain a lot of his action in the future. Overall, this is a good follow-up to the first episode and if the third episode is as good, I think I'll follow this regularly.

Continuing from the previous episode, Lelouch asks C.C's dead body what she wants from him by giving him this strange power. His thought, however, got interrupted when a Knightmare Frame suddenly blasted its way into the warehouse. The pilot is shocked upon seeing piles of dead bodies surrounding Lelouch and demands an explanation for it. In addition to this, she wants to know why a Britannia student like Lelouch is in this area. Lelouch is not happy being ordered around and tries to order the female pilot to get off her Knigtmare Frame using his power. However, he soon finds out that the power only works whilst in immediate contact and currently the pilot is inside a Frame. Because of this Lelouch pretends that his name is Allen and his father is a Duke. He also tells the pilot that in he has an ID in his pocket so the pilot turns off the Frame and gets out of the vehicle. Lelouch then uses his Geass power to obtain the Frame that she currently uses.

At the same time, Suzaku regains his consciousness inside Britannia medical vehicle. Although according to a researcher, they are the vehicle is still parked within the Shinjuku ghetto. A female officer tells Suzaku that the thing that saved him was a pocket watch that he kept with him. Suzaku wants to ask the officer and the medic about Lelouch but in the end, he decides to just ask them about the situation around them. The only explanations that the researcher gave him is that poisonous gas spread through area 11. In addition to this, the perpetrator has not been found. Suzaku is surprised when the researcher gives him the key to a Knightmare Frame, which he claims has been waiting for Suzaku. Meanwhile, the Britannia empire continues to lay waste Eleven citizens who live in Shinjuku ghetto. Karen then appears and tries to stop the tank from shooting at the civilians. However, it is clear that even she is outnumbered by the Britannia forces.

Meanwhile, Lelouch is now seen inside the Knightmare Frame he stole from its pilot. He then makes a phone call to his friend, Shirley, asking her if there is a TV around there. Lelouch basically wants her to find out about news related to the Shinjuku area. However, the only news that she can find is about regulated traffic into the area. Shirley doesn't know the reason either since she has no interest in it. Lelouch realises that this cover up will allow the army to make up story in whichever way they like. As Lelouch sees a piece of chessboard located on the ground, he tells Shirley to inform his sister that he'll be returning home late. Lelouch then turns out the navigation on his Frame, allowing him to get an military information about the other Knightmare Frames in the area. When Karen is being chased by the Britannia Frames, Lelouch contacts her through radio, advising her to jump onto a train track on an elevated platform.

At first Karen is reluctant to trust Lelouch but she turns around when he tells her to trust him if she wants to win this fight. All of a sudden, a train appears heading towards Karen and her pursuers so Lelouch tells her to jump on top of the train and eludes her pursuers. When the other Knightmare Frame tries to follow her lead, they are being attacked from inside the building. Jeremiah, the pilot of one of the Frames is shocked to see that the attacker is using a Knightmare Frame that was once controlled by his comrade. He tries to shoot at Lelouch but Karen returns and tries to destroy him. Because of this, Jeremiah has no choice but to eject his cockpit. Karen wants to thank Lelouch and asks how he did it but by the time she looks at the building, he already disappears. When Karen's group arrives at the place, however, Lelouch contacts them again using walkie-talkie. He tells them that there is a present inside the train in front of them: Knightmare Frames.

Lelouch asks Karen how much longer does her energy pack last and when he finds out that there are only 25 minutes left, he tells her to get a new pack. He also tells her that he'll contact them again in 10 minutes. A few minutes later, by using hide and seek tactics, the rebel manages to defeat Clovis' forces one by one. Frustrated by the tactics of the rebel, Clovis decides to send all of his forces to corner the area where the rebel is hiding. Unknown to Clovis, Lelouch has ordered Karen and her group to hide underground and to use their weapon to destroy the weak structure of the street. Through this tactic, Lelouch manages to wipe out all of Britannia's Knightmare Frames. In his anger, Clovis orders the researcher, whose name turns out to be Lloyd, to send his 'toy' to the battleground. Lloyd protests, asking Clovis to call the Frame "Lancelot" instead. Because of this, Lloyd sends Suzaku to activate and pilot the special Knightmare Frame.

This new Knightmare Frame turns out to have unbelievable speed and capable of disarming the rebel forces quickly. They tell Lelouch that their new enemy is a Newtype which they've never seen before. It appears that Lancelot is also armed with its own laser shield and as far as a Frame goes, it's comparatively smoother than the other models. Eventually, Suzaku manages to locate the location of Lelouch's Knightmare Frame and proceeds to corner him. The two falls into the basement of the building and before Lelouch can make an escape, Lancelot already punches his Knightmare Frame, sending it falling over backwards. Thankfully for Lelouch, Karen then appears with her Knightmare Frame and tries to stop Lancelot. However, it becomes apparent quickly that she is no match for the Newtype Frame. Because of this, she ejects her cockpit out of the Frame. Lelouch also tries to make his escape but hot on his trail is Suzaku with Lancelot.

In order to stop Lancelot, Lelouch fires shots into the nearby building but unfortunately, Lancelot is equipped with an ability that makes it seem as if the Frame can smoothly dance around to avoid the rubbles. However, in the middle of pursuing Lelouch, Suzaku notices that a woman and her child have now fallen out of one of the destroyed buildings. Suzaku chooses to save their life over chasing after Lelouch. This gives Lelouch the chance that he needs to eject his cockpit away from the Frame. Meanwhile, Lloyd is surprised when he finds out that Suzaku went out of his way to save someone's life. He muses to himself that it seems Suzaku has not changed. LLoyd and the female officer the recall Suzaku since he needs to rest from his wound. Meanwhile, Lelouch manages to penetrate Clovis' command centre using his Geass power. At the same time, Karen manages to rejoin her group and hides together with other Eleven survivors inside a bunker.

Karen asks her comrades if they've seen Lelouch but none of them has any idea of his whereabouts. All of a sudden, however, the door to the bunker is blown open by a tank and the group are cornered by Britannia forces. When the army is about to execute the rebel and the rest of Eleven survivors, however, Clovis' voice can be heard through a speaker ordering a cease-fire. After the announcement is over, however, it is apparent that Clovis has been hold under gun point by someone. Clovis sarcastically asks the person if they will sing a song and play chess after this? The person tells Clovis that sure brings back memories and asks Clovis if he still remembers how the two of them used to play chess together and yet he always gets to be the winner. Lelouch then reveals himself and greets Clovis using "Nii-san" honorifics. He tells Clovis that he's the 17th successor to the throne, Lelouch V. Britannia. He should have been dead but he's returned to reclaim everything.

Impression:

Lelouch proves himself to be an excellent tactician, which is a nice expansion of his ability in playing Chess. His plan to ambush the entire Britannia Frames from underground was perfection. If it wasn't for the fact that they have "Lancelot", Britannia would have suffer a massive loss at this point in time. Having said that, I am surprised at how easy it is for Lelouch to penetrate Clovis' command centre. I also want to know what the writers will do to Clovis now that Lelouch has declared his intention to reclaim everything. Will they kill his character right away or will they spare him for now? The thing is, if Lelouch doesn't kill Clovis now, Clovis would surely make an attempt on his life later on in the story. Especially now that Clovis is aware of Lelouch's existence. If Clovis is not killed right away, there is a likelihood that he will mobilised his soldiers to capture Lelouch. And he's got a good reason for it: Lelouch did come and point a gun at him in this episode.

After seeing this episode, I finally understand why Lelouch wears a helmet in the opening. I assume the helmet serves as a way to make him unknown to the rebels while he leads them against the Britannia empire. I find this amusing since he probably won't be taken seriously by the rebels if they ever find out that he's just a high school boy. It doesn't help that he also happens to be the successor to Britannia as well. Moving on to another character, I really like the character development that Suzaku receives. When he made that decision to save someone's life, I think he realised that he can use 'power' to help instead of to destroy. Although judging from this episode, it seems Suzaku has always been good person through and through. It is interesting to note that neither Lelouch or Suzaku realised that they were fighting against each other. I wonder if they would do it if they know each other's identity.

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