#Britannian Imperial Family | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

cynthiaandsamus · 3 years

Text

Custom Toonami Block Week 79 Rundown

Code Geass: Lelouch is establishing the official United States of Fuck Imperialism which is like the UN but actually does stuff, plus he has to deal with the fact that CC’s lost her memory and is acting like a demure slave girl harem choice from a VN. Charles is still trapped in the Human Instrumentality Shadow Realm so everyone figures this is a great time to unify everyone against Britannia. Kallen beats the shit out of Suzaku for being a dick to her all this time and the Knight of Ten is making his rounds because they realize they forgot to give him any buildup and he’s going to be a miniboss later so they have to cram all his being a dick personality into like five minutes while all the Knights of the Round assemble to prepare for an attack on Japan once the National Federation is formed. Llyod and Cecile for some reason enhanced the Guren for Suzaku even though he’s clearly more used to the Lancelot but apparently they enhanced it too much and made it a death machine like the Talgeese in Gundam Wing so Suzaku has to stick with the Lancelot. Looks like the Guren will have to sit and collect dust unless a certain pilot is rescued and then immediately has a convenient upgrade. Amazingly all the countries go along with everything Zero says and give up their militaries and have the Black Knights be the official military of the Federation. I don’t know how that works given that the Black Knights have been struggling to fight off one nation’s military idk how it’s supposed to substitute for a dozen nations’ military but I guess they conscript support and troops from the other nations or something. Charles comes back on the tv after the Federation is formed and is all “Awww what a cute little UN you have, fuck off bro.” which you’d think this’d be the perfect time for him to just out Lelouch as Zero and wreck the Black Knights’ morale but he doesn’t for some reason and they’re just gonna fight. Lelouch is freaking out and knows that having everyone want to murder the Britannian royal family includes Nunally so he calls Suzaku who just straight up goes “Bro cut the crap are you Zero or not?” and after so much plotting and scheming Lelouch just comes right out with it. Suzaki agrees to protect Nunally as long as Lelouch meets him alone at the Kururugi Shrine where this all began.

Inuyasha: This is another one of those Modern Day filler episodes which are always fun. There’s just something about Inuyasha running around in modern Japan being Spider-Man and saving people and catching bank robbers on the way to deliver Kagome’s lunch that’s so thoroughly entertaining. Basically Inuyasha spends this whole episode jittery that everyone’s so chill and ready to relax after Naraku just got away and is probably an inch from death but after a big adventure in the modern era where Kagome is as usual unprepared for her test, he ends up passing out on the bed after insisting a little battle with Naraku wouldn’t exhaust him. It’s a really cute little episode to let everyone bide some time and reflect on the past arc now that we’re starting a new wave of filler before we get to the Band of Seven and Mt. Hakurei stuff.

Yu Yu Hakusho: The first match of the tournament is about to begin and Botan, Shizuru, and Keiko come in with Koenma who is sick of baby jokes and puts on his bishonen disguise to impress everyone. There’s some neat lore about how they gave Koenma the guest team every year to bribe him into not shutting down the tournament without giving him anything of value and how the bloody show of the Dark Tournament pacifies the demons so they kill fewer humans, so that’s cool. Since Yusuke is still passed out, Kuwabara is de facto Captain and decides on simple one on one matches while the other team Captain just kinda roasts an eight of the crowd to see if it’ll wake Yusuke up. Kuwabara’s in the first match versus Prototype Killua, complete with afterimages and yo-yo tricks. They size each other up for a while and Kuwabara shrugs off getting his fucking neck broken surprisingly well while they go back and forth with “Well I can track YOU better” for a while. Togashi really loves his yo-yos of death so those have Kuwabara on the ropes and turn him into a fucking kite ready to slam back down into the arena, so yeah, Kuwabara’s having a rough time of it.

Fate Zero: Waver’s been having strange dreams about Iskandar, and not the ones people usually have about him. So he goes to get a basic history lesson on the historical figure that’s been chilling on his couch for a few weeks and spending all his money on xbox live arcade. They also go through all the ridiculously obvious historical inaccuracies and Iskandar’s just like “idk bro, I’m here so the book must be wrong” which is hilarious because Fate also does this with more modern historical figures that we have pictures of and shit so they basically sit there saying all historians have no idea what they’re talking about and gaslighting the field of history as a whole. On the way back Waver’s upset that Iskandar’s so awesome that it basically takes any effort on his part to win and it won’t be an actual achievement despite the fact that they’ve taken out like… one servant, MAYBE, and most of the other historical figures are equally over the top. But still Iskandar says that if your aspirations are big enough it doesn’t matter how big or small you are, everyone’s tiny in the grand scheme of things and clawing at greatness you can’t truly perceive is what matters. Also Caster and his boy have found the wreck they made of their workshop of dead bodies and are kinda fucked up about it but also ready to fuck up more people because God sucks or some shit. So Caster summons a Bloodborne monster which you think more people would notice and mention during Shirou’s time, like nobody in UBW ever said “Hey remember like seven years ago when a giant Bloodborne monster appeared in the river?” so I’m guessing there’s some kind of perception blocking going on. But yeah everyone’s gonna jump on the Bloodborne Monster next time for the season premiere.

Konosuba: So we pick up where we left off and Kazuma is working off his debt by… killing more toads. Wow this world really is like a video game, we get the same five enemies over and over again. However they’re fucked without Darkness throwing herself into monster orifices looking for a good time so Yunyun has to save them. We already met Yunyun in the OVA so it’s kinda weird to be re-introduced to her here in basically the same way but their relationship is basically like Gai and Kakashi if they only did the lame dorky challenges Kakashi suggested when he’s too lazy to think of a good one. Also there’s a cat now, I don’t think that really comes to anything, just a scene of Megumin going “we have a cat now” and everyone’s like “kay”. Kazuma and Megumin play Naked Chicken to see who can get more naked before the other backs down and end up taking a bath together because they’re both stubborn assholes. Also we get a quick snippet of Yunyun and Megumin’s backstories which you can basically make Yunyun’s the swing scene from Naruto (idk why Yunyun is bring out the Naruto references in me today) and Megumin is stealing bread like Les Miserables in increasingly bizarre and disgusting ways because she’s ridiculously poor or some shit.

Sailor Moon Crystal: So turns out that Usagi and Mamoru BOTH had their shots with the ‘fucks everything up’ sword with a pocketwatch and… the discarded gems of the four knights? Idk how that works given they were humans and also dead but what baffles me more is that both Usagi and Mamoru very obviously did not get hit by the sword but decided to fall down dead and not move for a couple minutes despite their shots very much being blocked and there being no blood. Anyway Queen Metalia has the crystal, bullshit is happening, 1000 years of darkness, you’ve seen Xiaolin Showdown, you know the drill. The remaining four Guardians get a cute little flashback of Usagi saying what she likes about them and then they give up their lives to revive her inside the dark energy blob of Queen Metalia and crystals and lights and shit happens and swords and wands are pulled out of nowhere and you know how a final boss goes, they beat it with the power of believing in themselves and shit like that. Also apparently the only difference between sealing Metalia away and killing her is hitting the giant bullseye on her forehead so yeah, hopefully she’s down for good this time. I don’t want to complain because this show was genre-defining but it’s hard to find things to say about something so generic and milktoast, it’s the Seinfeld problem where there’s been so many more interesting iterations that it’s just kinda “get on with it already” at this point. The only real markedly noticeable thing about it is how plainly and unashamedly it is about being a power fantasy for teen girls, and there’s something to that, harmless power fantasies can be fun but it just feels like the physical mechanics of this kind of progression being “She feels this shit REALLY HARD” is less exciting than some of the alternatives

Durarara!!: It’s the big Masaomi backstory episode and we get the whole deal of how he formed the Yellow Scarves and got into a relationship with Saki because Izaya wanted to orechestrate a gang war because that’s what Izaya does all day is orchestrate gang wars. It’s kind of amazing how many kids in this show are like “I don’t know how it happened but one thing led to another and suddenly I was at the head of one of the largest gangs in the city” like they kinda really yadda yadda over how that actually happens. But anyway Saki gets hurt in the gang war and Kadota’s gang has to save her because Masaomi’s adrenaline wears off at the last second and he can’t try and rush in and save her. I mean Dota’s van got there first anyway so how much he’d have been able to help would be doubtful but he feels bad about not even being able to try and Izaya says that fear and failure of his past will dominate his future actions which is exactly what he’s doing by letting his paranoia and frustration lead him to a war on the Saika army. Dota-chin tells him to face up to it and stop running or live with the shame of lying to Saki but Masomi can’t do that and his shame and determination to reverse the situation leads everyone into chaos as Anri discovers his secret.

#ooc #Toonami #Custom Toonami Block #Code Geass #Inuyasha #Yu Yu Hakusho #Fate Zero #Konosuba #Sailor Moon Crystal #Durarara!!

1 note · View note

sweet-evie · 3 years

Text

Behold, My Waste of Decent Writing -- Connected to the WIP with Marianne, Charles, & Lelouch

Prologue: An Emperor Ascends

At this very moment, every single instance in Ashley’s life meant nothing to him, save for this grandiose accomplishment of ending a tyrant’s reign. He was going to do it under everyone’s noses, and neither guards nor members of a dastardly Templar Order would be enough to stop him. True, no one knew where the new Emperor’s allegiances laid, but it was clear as day. Britannia’s unprecedented territorial growth and successful conquest couldn’t be owed to intelligence, charisma, and skill in warfare alone.

Charles zi Britannia had the backing of a dangerously omnipotent secret society behind him -- one forged and built millennia ago. An Order whose ideals crushed freedom and liberty. An Order made for control and to serve the strong.

The Assassin Council at Française were doubtful of this, on account of not having enough evidence, but that was bullshit. Only men so steeped in denial would ever disregard the Britannian emperor’s obvious involvement.

He’d show them...

He would drive this hidden blade up the Emperor’s naked throat and take the evidence of allegiance on his person.

Finding a way into this gaudy party was easy (nothing a high-quality counterfeit invitation couldn’t fix). The more challenging part was waiting for the Emperor’s entrance and getting close enough to him to strike the killing blow. It was a given that he’d be well-guarded. Schooling his expression into careful neutrality, Ashley Ashra exhaled through his nose and plastered an easy-going smile onto his face. Strutting into the crowd of courtiers, he flashed each lady a smile and shook gentlemen’s hands, all the while keeping a vigilant eye on who came and in and who had to step out.

He put too much work into violating the Assassin Council’s advice to squander this opportunity for revenge and justice.

Because in spite of how hard he tried to forget, Ashley had never been capable of completely banishing the image of his Mentor bleeding out on the icy ground -- blood streaming from the corner of his lips as he succumbed to his injuries. And he and Prince Mathieu could do nothing but stand idly by and wait for his passing to come. He’d lost his chance at taking Charles & his brother, Victor’s, lives in the frigid landscape of the far North, but he could do it here and now. His mentor gave his life to locating that cache of unbridled power. At the very least, Ashley believed he owed Bradow von Breisgau this.

Charles’ allegiance (well, supposed allegiance, if you believed the Assassin Council) was just the perfect justification. Personally, Ashley didn’t see this as revenge for a friend and a respected Mentor. It was doing the world a favor by ridding it of people like Charles. And perhaps, if he was even luckier, maybe he could tease the location of that accursed artifact before the Emperor took his last breath.

“Presenting, his Imperial Majesty and his Royal Highness!”

The smug smirk plastered across his face continued to grow. At the far end of the grandiose room, the double doors swung wide open, welcoming the Emperor of Britannia clothed in royal purple and blue. His brother, Victor zi Britannia, strolled along beside him in similar colors. Surrounded by their entourage of knights, the brothers stopped close to the center of the room where every guest in attendance dropped to their knees in reverence.

Well, that wasn’t so hard now, was it?

Lady Luck was ever at his side; oh so generously presenting him with the sight of his quarry -- all ripe for the taking.

=OoOoO=

[in chapter 1, Mathieu calls out Ashley for irrationally ending Emperor Charles’ life as Ashley disputes Mathieu’s decision to marry his daughter off to the new britannia emperor

“Just because you ended the life of one man, what makes you think you’ve accomplished something? If you are so set on having your revenge, parading it around as justice, you should have wiped out his entire family.”

“Thank me at least.”

“for what?”

“If I didn’t do away with Charles, you wouldn’t have been able to whore your daughter out to the very people we’ve worked so hard to fight and suppress.”]

-------------------------

Some Weird Context:

The 'daughter' referred to in the barely written text is C.C... Duchess C.C. (Ceiana Caersewiella -- her made-up name) of the Principality of Française. Her father, intends to marry her off to the new Emperor of Britannia.

Guess who? This guy XD

This AU was supposed to feature a whole host of Akito characters (as seen here, Ashley Ashura) and the main cast as well. Of course Re;surrection characters are also there xD But look what became of it. TT_TT

#code geass #abandoned wips #lelouch vi britannia #emperor lelouch #ashley ashura #charles vi britannia #fantasy au #fanfiction #wbad blog #wbad fanfiction

2 notes · View notes

atimefordragons · 3 years

Photo

Let me make this easy for you all to understand; Acknowledge me as Emperor!

☾♔; November 16, 2020 ☾♔; 4:36pm ☾♔; sotd: The Master - Kotaro Nakagawa ☾♔; cotd: Cornelia li Britannia ☾♔; Into the Unknown ☾♔; More Conceptualizing I guess

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: Lelouch using his Geass to force Britannian nobility to accept him as the 99th Emperor

The Imperial House of Giesbach

- use "vi" as a nobiliary particle - due to Rhelgrads excessive use of political marriages to expand their power, they have a blood relation to most noble houses throughout Ékaeä, because of this, Giesbach princes, particularly those to rise to Emperor/Empress, self-title as "Grand Prince/Princess of Ékaeä" - it is also because of this blood connection, that it's believed that the vi Giesbach's have purple eyes, despite never having an actual dragonlord amongst their children. They've married a number of dragonlords, but the resulting child has never inherited dragonlord abilities, regardless of whether they carried the Giesbach name, or that of the dragon's house - Karlheinz VII is the first in a long time, certainly within the current and previous age, to make such an excessive use of the allowance for the emperor to have multiple spouses, to make no mention of his official and unofficial mistresses. He a whore. I picked old Jezza there, but probably shoulda gone with mark sloan, lol - while magic is strictly outlawed in Rhelgrad, Karlheinz does have magic and to a degree has found an artificial way to give himself power similar to the Kings' Will, but it is incomplete, and has numerous limitations, unlike the true power of the Kings' Will, which has absolutely no limitations whatsoever. Because of Rhelgrad's anti-magic culture, he hides his magic, with very few having knowledge of it. Also, also, on a personal level, he really does not give a crap about magic or anti-magic, he just wants to rule the world 'cause he's that kind of basic bitch. - Bellara de Reux, Viala de Beauchêne, and Amasyll la Ryence are the first Imperial Consorts since the dissolution of The Empire (the one created by Marena I) to be granted the title of "Empress" - First Consort Her Lady Excellence Ariadne von Karaez was never given the title, which angered the Karaez family following the accouncement, though the young First Prince never made much fuss after speaking to the Emperor only once about it. - while all three first imperial consorts of Karlheinz VII were nobility, the final consort was not, rather a commoner who rose to the position of knight before becoming Karlheinz's last (for now) consort and Empress. It is widely believed she was killed in a plot concocted by nobility, with Empress Viala as the strongest suspect, as she's the last consort still living - Too many assassination plots, tis' a hobby for these freaks.

2 notes · View notes

lelouche · 5 years

Text

Orphans of the Storm: Attachment, Trauma and the Developmental Trajectories of Lelouch and Nunnally in Code Geass

Alternatively titled, Matt Has a Lot of Thoughts About the Lamperouges. 7000+ words of thoughts, to be exact. Some of them might even be semi-intelligent. Admittedly, much of this was written from a hospital office while procrastinating writing patient journals for actual patients who are real humans and not fictional characters. Thank you to my supervisor for not supervising me very much.

I. Introduction

First, let us first briefly set the stage. The story of Code Geass is set in an alternate universe where the social-darwinist, imperialist superpower The Holy Britannian Empire is ruling large parts of the world. Lelouch and Nunnally vi Britannia are born into the royal family as children of 98th Emperor Charles zi Britannia and one of his consorts, Marianne. After their mother is assassinated in a terrorist attack at the Imperial Palace, an incident which leaves Nunnally blind and paralysed from the waist down, the two are sent to Japan as political hostages. The Britannian Empire then invades Japan shortly after they arrive, and they must seek refuge with the Ashfords, a wealthy family with ties to their mother Marianne. Presumed dead by the rest of the royal family, they take on the surname Lamperouge and begin to live in hiding in the now-colonised Japan, renamed Area 11.

These events constitute what is to become Lelouch’s raison d’être through the entire series - finding out who assassinated his mother, and creating a safer, kinder environment for his sister to grow up in. Nunnally is an extremely, and I cannot stress this enough, extremely important figure for Lelouch through the entire series (to the point where it’s kind of a joke in most spin-off material). He’s her main caregiver along with their maid Sayako, and protecting her is his primary goal - often at the expense of his own safety, his friends’ safety, and/or massive collateral damage. In this essay, I will analyse their relationship with their parents and each other through the lens of attachment theory, and discuss how these dynamics shape their developmental trajectories as they grow up. I will focus on two domains of development in particular: (1) emotional regulation and (2) identity. Based on this analysis, I’ll make the argument that Nunnally, despite being the one experiencing the most trauma, ended up more well-adjusted than Lelouch. Furthermore, although the series places much emphasis on how Lelouch is the one protecting Nunnally, he is actually more dependent on his sister than she is on him. I will also discuss how these central themes tie into Lelouch’s goals and political ideology.

II. Ode to My Family: The Fundamentals of Attachment Theory

Attachment theory is a psychological theory originating from the work of John Bowlby, concerning the bond between caregivers and their children. Put simply, Bowlby proposed that children are biologically predisposed to form deep, lasting bonds with their caregivers, and this bond has an important influence on subsequent development. In the attachment relationship, the caregiver functions as both a secure base from which to explore (for example, a child feeling safe when playing knowing a parent is nearby), and safe haven to turn to for emotional support (if they get scared or hurt when playing). Caregivers, on their end, facilitate secure attachment through moderate and appropriate stimulation of the child, warmth, mutually responsive interactions, and other behaviours that promote ‘connectedness’. Especially interesting is a trait called mind-mindedness, which can be described as a caregivers ability to conceptualise their child as an independent person, understand their mental/emotional state and respond appropriately. Important to note about attachment bonds is that they’re not “horizontal” - the caregiver and child aren’t on the same “level” as mutual attachment figures to each other, but the caregiver (as the older, wiser, and more experienced person who is able to provide care) will be a figure that the child can rely on.

A healthy attachment bond has a variety of important functions. It promotes the growth of self-reliance (which promotes independency), increases capacity for emotion regulation, promotes later social competence (such as empathy and mutual relationships), and is important for later identity development. This happens through the acquisition of so-called internal working models, that the child employs through their life. To simplify a bit, think of attachment as the mechanism by which caregivers, through their behaviour, teach children what to expect from the world around them, and what strategies to employ to best cope with it. At its core, it is about seeking security and safety - a form of healthy and adaptive dependence that provides a solid foundation and sense of security from which independence can grow

There are three main classifications of attachment bonds - secure, insecure and disorganised. Securely attached children will develop positive internal working models, where world is a fundamentally safe place, they are loved and worthy of that love. Interactions with the caregivers are frequent, mutual and predictable. For insecure attachment, there are two subcategories: avoidant and ambivalent. Insecure-ambivalent attachment is associated with unpredictable interaction styles, where some interactions between caregiver and child may be warm and mutually responsive, while others are more detached or unpredictable. This leads to frustration and confusion, and an ambivalent relationship. Insecure-avoidant attachment, on the other hand, is typically associated with a non-responsive and uninvolved form of care, or an absent caregiver. In this case, the child may feel rejected and like they cannot rely on anyone. Disorganised attachment simply means there is a lack of any organised form of attachment, but that’s not going to be relevant here so let’s ignore that one.

In summary:

Did you really think you were getting through this one without at least ONE chart? (Note: ambivalent and resistant attachment is the same thing)

Also, important note before moving on from this bit: (1) Attachment is not the be-all end-all for positive/negative developmental outcomes, and (2) I’ll obviously be a bit quicker to assume correlation and draw conclusions than I would in real life, because in my mind applying this stuff to literary analysis vs. applying it to real people are two completely different things. Fiction consists of a series of deliberate choices of storytelling and elements you can easily pick apart and draw lines between (preferably with red string on a corkboard wall, while looking slightly manic), whereas people are, like, more complicated and stuff - nature and nurture and all that.

Now, with attachment theory in mind, let’s have a look at the evil Britannian disaster parents.

III. The Mother We Share: (In)Secure Attachment in the Imperial Palace

Before taking a deep dive into Lelouch and Nunnally’s relationship with one another, it’s essential to discuss their relationships with their parents. Unfortunately for me, there really isn’t much canon material regarding their lives prior to Marianne’s death and the subsequent exile in Japan. However, even with the limited information available, I think it’s fairly safe to say neither Charles nor Marianne deserve a parent-of-the-year award - a point cleverly foreshadowed by me when I referred to them as evil disasters just a few sentences ago.

As for Charles, I hardly need to even make a case that he probably wasn’t a great father. It’s never outright stated in the series, but I’m going to assume they had minimal or no contact with Charles. The main reason behind this is: why would they? He had 108 (!) consorts with whom he had many children, and was busy ruling the largest empire in the world. And as if that wasn’t enough, Lelouch and Nunnally weren’t even particularly high up in in the line of succession and would have been unlikely to ever rule in their lifetime (if it hadn’t been for, er, circumstances). Furthermore, because of his grand plan to fuse humanity into one collective unconscious through the Ragnarök Connection, none of this would matter to him anyway. Additionally, I think his lack of contact with his children is very apparent through the way Lelouch interacts with his father when confronting him about Marianne’s death, which I’ll get back to.

So, we can reasonably conclude Charles was an uninvolved/absent caregiver. However, things get a little more interesting with Marianne.

This isn’t relevant to the topic or anything, I just think it’s neat how they made Lelouch so visually similar to his mother. In addition to physical traits, Marianne’s dress here has a really similar structure to what would later become her sons rebellion outfit of choice. She even has a chess-piece-esque hat to go with. Then again, I suppose the alternative was making him visually similar to Charles, and that wouldn’t make for a lot of good fanservice now would it. Anyway, this image description is too long.

As mentioned, avenging his mother’s death is one of the most significant driving forces for Lelouch throughout the series. Her assassination impacted him greatly, both in and of itself and through the harm it caused Nunnally. Whenever she’s brought up, they both seem to get visibly downhearted, and there’s never any indication they remember her anything but fondly. In picture drama 22.25 (from their time as children in the Imperial Palace), the Britannian siblings find a commemorative plate that belongs to her in Euphie’s room. They start to bicker over it, because Nunnally wants to have it herself, while Lelouch thinks Euphie should keep it because it belongs to her. This all indicates that the royal children admired Marianne, and she was obviously an important figure to them both. Through this idolisation, as well as Lelouch’s obsession with what happened at the Imperial Palace, the narrative seems to want us to assume she was a good parent.

However, there are a few things that call into question how reliable of a narrator Lelouch actually is concerning Marianne. Towards the end of the series, it’s revealed that she is actually very much alive, and completely on board with Charles’ Ragnarök plan - making her one of the series’ main antagonists. During Lelouch’s final confrontation with his parents in C’s World in S2 E21, she is unable (or unwilling) to see how faking her death, traumatising her children, shipping them off to a country the Empire promptly invaded without ever making sure they’re still alive, and then trying to convince them to get on board with her human instrumentality plan is wrong. As her wiki bluntly states: “She only superficially loves her children and will not hesitate to kill them if they get in her way.” Taking this information about her character into account, I consider it more likely that the reason Lelouch and Nunnally idolised Marianne was either (1) because they based their impression largely on her reputation, rather than because she genuinely was a loving mother, or (2) she was a very good actor.

At least she provided some strategies to prepare her children for having to cope with the emotional trauma she was about to inflict on them.

How to make sense of their relationship with Marianne from an attachment perspective? I think this is largely up to interpretation due to lack of pre-series material. Lelouch and Nunnally both seem to like and look up to her, but that does not necessarily indicate secure attachment. I would argue they had an insecure relationship with Marianne, and that argument is based on two things. First, her personality traits and actions (rather than Lelouch and Nunnally’s accounts of her): she blatantly uses her children as pawns for her plan, and doesn’t care all that much that they were suffering as a result. Even though she does argue all her planning was well-intentioned, this act quickly fall apart when Lelouch challenges her. As C.C. tells her, “the only people you love are yourselves”. Calling this sort of behaviour “poor mind-mindedness” or “lack of parental warmth” is an understatement - I simply don’t see a scenario where Marianne would genuinely care.

Secondly, I’d argue you can infer it from Lelouch’s patterns of behaviour as he grows older. Many of his actions, and the themes surrounding him as a character, could be seen as a manifestation of insecure attachment - his attitude towards Nunnally, attitude towards his friends in the student council, his emotionality, and the general theme of a fragmented identity, to mention some. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Point is, there is good reason to believe Lelouch or Nunnally had any form of secure attachment bond to either of their parents, and this has some implications for their development as the series goes on.

IV. Abandoned by the Empire: Trauma and Parentification

In addition to not having the best relationships with their parents to begin with, Lelouch and Nunnally were then burdened with more baggage after their mother’s death. In Nunnally’s case, her trauma from the incident was primarily physical (blindness and paralysation of her legs), due to her being literally in Marianne’s arms as she was shot. Lelouch was a witness, and escaped without physical injury. Afterwards, while his sister is still in hospital, he takes it upon himself to confront his father about what happened, and accuses him of having allowed, even facilitated, the assassination through purposefully neglecting security measures that day.

While Nunnally was by all means most harmed by the attack, it is here in the aftermath I’d argue Lelouch takes his “main blow” in the parental trauma department. When confronted, Charles gets angry and tells Lelouch that everything in his life has been handed to him by virtue of being a child of the royal family, and thus he’s never truly accomplished anything - he might as well be dead, and therefore has no right to doubt or disobey him. This is an especially cruel statement in the context of the social-darwinist Britannia, where the strength to survive by your own measures is seen as highly important, maybe even the only thing that truly is important. Lelouch then visibly flinches and falls back when Charles stands up, in a manner that seems outright terrified. Keep in mind, all this is happening in front of the Royal Court.

This scene in particular is the main reason I cannot imagine Lelouch or Nunnally having any kind of relationship with Charles prior to the incident, much less a secure and healthy one. You’d think the threshold for a young child to turn and publicly accuse his father of premeditated murder in front of the Britannian Royal Court would be astronomically high, especially if he actually liked and trusted him. Additionally, as I mentioned earlier, one of the most important functions of the caregiver is being a secure base in difficult and unsafe situations, which means that children typically tend to turn towards their parents during situations where they feel scared. Flinching away (so severely he even falls back, with a horrified expression on his face), rather than seeking closure, is highly indicative of insecure attachment/parental neglect.

As if all this wasn’t enough, Lelouch and Nunnally are then separated from all their siblings to be relocated to Japan as political hostages. Again, the pre-series material is pretty thin, but throughout the series there are indications that they had good relationships with some of their siblings. For example, Lelouch recalls playing chess with Schneizel, and possibly had some kind of relationship with Clovis judging by their conversation before Lelouch kills him. Both Lelouch and Nunnally also seem to have been very close with Euphie - in Stage 22.25, they’re playing in her room and don’t want to go to sleep because they’re having so much fun. Lelouch even refers to Euphie as the first girl he ever loved (let’s just... not unpack this one). Point is, not only do they get traumatised by and separated from their parents (whom they already had an insecure relationship with), but they’re also ripped away from their entire network of social support, except for each other.

This image is so fucking sad. Fuck.

So, when Lelouch and Nunnally arrive in Japan, they’re on their own. And because he is older, and because of Nunnally’s disability, Lelouch ends up taking on most of the responsibility. He carries her up the stairs when they arrive at the shrine, washes their clothing, buys their food, and so on. In addition to these practical tasks, he also tries to comfort his sister emotionally and seems to also feel responsible for her well-being - for example, when discovering their lodgings were small and quite sad-looking, he tries to shield Nunnally from it by lying and telling her it looks like Euphie’s room. When Suzaku first meets Nunnally, Lelouch instantly runs into the room because he heard a noise, and freaks out at Suzaku because he thinks he’s going to harm her. For all intents and purposes, he steps into a caregiver role for his sister - an attachment figure, one might even say. This shift in their dynamic becomes very apparent when comparing their relationship in Japan and onwards, to the aforementioned bickering-over-a-plate incident in Euphie’s room, where they were fighting and playing like siblings.

This phenomenon is sometimes called parentification, in which the absence of adult figures providing sufficient care causes one child to bear more responsibility than is normal for the age, and step into the role of “parent”. Parentification can be adaptive and healthy with concrete/practical tasks, in small periods of time and with plenty support, for example pre-teens babysitting their younger cousins. Suffice to say, Lelouch had none of those things. He is Nunnally’s sole contact, made worse by himself by being stubborn and not wanting to let anyone else in to help. Additionally, plenty of other risk factors for destructive parentification is present - the tasks are diffuse, all-consuming and way above the level appropriate for his age, he gets no sort of recognition, reward, or help, it lasts a long period of time (permanently), generational lines become somewhat blurred, and his own needs end up taking second priority to him. And, as you’ll remember from the attachment theory section, this kind of relationship is not horizontal in nature - Lelouch and Nunnally don’t provide each other mutual support of this nature, but rather Lelouch is the one providing a function for Nunnally.

In the beginning of this section, I mentioned that Nunnally’s trauma as a result of Marianne’s death was primarily physical. However, she evidently went through a great deal of psychological trauma as well. A novel detailing their childhoods in Japan states that Nunnally privately had a terrible time coping with the changes in her life and would throw tantrums when left to her own at Kururugi residence, destroying nearly anything she could get her hands on. However, unless she secretly throws tantrums whenever her brother is off screen, this doesn’t seem to be an issue during the span of the series. I’d argue this could be attributed to Lelouch functioning as a caregiver for her - she had someone there to help her, calm her down and provide external emotional regulation, which in turn helped her learn to better regulate her emotional states on her own. Lelouch provides safety and warmth, and, in doing so, becomes a buffer for his sister.

Lelouch, however, has no such buffers. Because of this, it’s easy to draw a line between his parental problems and trauma, and his subsequent maladjusted pattern behaviour when the siblings arrive in Japan. At the Kururugi residence, both him and Nunnally are offered both food and clothing, but he is insistent on providing everything himself - he washes all their clothes, and buys their food with coupons in town, despite being beat up by the other boys there for being Britannian. He’s distrustful towards everyone there (before later warming up to Suzaku) and hypersensitive for any possible threat to Nunnally’s safety. In my opinion, it’s evident Charles’ words had an impact on him. When Suzaku asks why he is so hellbent on refusing help, he responds with: “I’ll live by my own strength, and I won’t be dead any longer!” Through caregivers, children learn what to expect from the world and their own place in it - in Lelouch’s case, he clearly sees the world as an unsafe place with few people to truly trust, and considers himself only worth something if he is entirely independent. Although independence is often seen as a “mature” trait in children and therefore indicative of “good” development, healthy dependence and attachment in childhood is crucial for the facilitation of later healthy independence. And unlike Nunnally (who has him), he doesn’t have anyone to rely on and turn to for his security.

Diverting slightly from the topic at hand, I think this highlights the interesting narrative role of C.C. as the closest thing Lelouch has to a caregiver proxy. I am in no way trying to imply she is outright maternal towards him, but she’s of help and offers practical and sometimes emotional support - a role no other person in Lelouch’s life really fills. I already explained why Nunnally isn’t a possible candidate, and Suzaku, while an important figure in Lelouch’s life, has his own essay-worthy plate of parental problems to deal with. Additionally, their whole enemy situation doesn’t make him someone Lelouch can reliably turn to for comfort and support. C.C however, is older, wiser, more “stable”, and seems to know how to offer emotional support in a way that somewhat calms Lelouch down. In turn, he occasionally tries to reach out to her in difficult situations (or at least he gives into having breakdowns in front of her), which he doesn’t seem to do with anyone else. If only she’d intervened when he was a child instead of just standing there dramatically in the background. But alas.

V. Some Things Just Stick in Your Mind: Differential Susceptibility

Earlier, I briefly mentioned Nunnally being the one most harmed by Marianne’s death. She was younger when it happened, more directly involved, and experienced a greater loss of function as a result which altered her lifestyle significantly. Based on this, I could easily argue that the incident would have far more damaging implications for her long-term psychological well-being compared to her older brother. I could, but I won’t, because it didn’t. Despite all these risk factors present in Nunnally’s case, their mother’s death seems to have made far more of a long-term impact on Lelouch. We’ve already discussed the most important reason why: Lelouch providing Nunnally with protective care associated with a secure parent, thus functioning as a buffer for her trauma. In this section, I’d like to discuss another important factor, interacting with attachment security: namely, differential susceptibility (also sometimes called responsiveness for care).

When we meet Lelouch in the beginning of Code Geass, he feels stuck and utterly powerless in his situation. He gambles on chess to pass time, but feels otherwise bored, restless and detached from his environment. When he receives the power of Geass from C.C., it gives him what he claims he wanted all along - a tool to take control of his life, get revenge on those who wronged him and actually do something. Thus, a plan to overthrow the Britannian Empire is formed and set into motion. The main targets seem to be the royal family as he struggles to systematically take down the empire and search for information - once he meets his brother Clovis, he shoots him (seemingly) without much hesitation. As time goes on, he sacrifices more and more time and energy to his obsessive goal, while his web of lies and various interpersonal becomes increasingly difficult to manage. There is a reason his character is often compared to the likes of Light Yagami (despite them having completely opposing ideologies, but that’s an essay topic for another day) - his arc follows the same downward spiral pattern, where one thing leads to another and suddenly you’re up to your ears in civilian casualties. It’s obvious Lelouch hasn’t accepted, gotten over, or forgiven his family in the slightest, and takes this anger out on those he perceives wronged him in search of an answer.

Meanwhile, Nunnally doesn’t exhibit anything close to this kind of grudge. She seems upset whenever it is brought up, but otherwise seems to have made peace with what happened and ready to forgive her family. One might argue this comes down to a difference of opportunity - Nunnally doesn’t exactly have the power of Geass, or even functioning eyes of the non-mind control variety, so it might be a bit more difficult to get certain things done. Such as killing off most of the Britannian royal family. However, even before Lelouch got the power of Geass, he expressed a wish to destroy Britannia for what they did to him and his sister. So, unless Nunnally has some secret desire to kill that was just never mentioned (in which case this whole essay is null and void, I suppose), Lelouch seems to be coping with his trauma in a much more maladaptive way than his sister, turning his sadness and feelings of rejection into anger and resentment, which ended up staying with him pretty much until the day he died.

Reach your arm out and grab the stars or whatever that quote from LoGH is.

Based on this, I’d argue Lelouch is what one might call a flexible strategist. This doesn’t refer to his military tactics (although he seems pretty flexible with those as well) but simply means that, for better and for worse, he’s relatively sensitive to factors and people in his external environment. On one hand, he seems to flourish in environments where he gets support. During his childhood in the Imperial Palace, he seemed to mostly get along with and care about his siblings (as mentioned earlier). He was also by all accounts a very bright child - he did say he never managed to beat Schneizel at chess, but to give Lelouch some credit here, Schneizel at the time would have been an adult man in his early 20s, while Lelouch was, like, 7. The fact he even stood a chance is fairly impressive. I do not want to argue chess ability is the ultimate measurement of childhood functioning, but my point here is this: he seemed to be on a decent developmental path, both cognitively and socially, all things considered. On the other hand, he tends to react poorly whenever something goes wrong. I’ll talk about this in more depth in the emotional development section, but tl;dr: Lelouch is a very volatile character, who tends to have very high highs and low lows.

While Lelouch seems to be more “formable” by both positive and negative environmental influences, Nunnally is more of a so-called fixed strategist. She, like Lelouch, seemed to be in a decent place before the incident, had a period of acting out after her trauma (throwing tantrums etc.), but got “back on track” through Lelouch fairly quickly. She seems more forgiving of her family, for example when she is instantly supportive of Euphie’s special administrative zone (which Lelouch has a very ambivalent relationship with). Towards the endgame in S2, she even aligns herself with Schneizel. As her arc goes on, she shows herself more and more capable of functioning without Lelouch’s help, and make decisions of her own, based on her own opinions. Her outlook on the world seems to be much more down-to-earth and less black and white. Even when her own brother (the only person she’s been able to rely on for most of her life) geasses her and literally leaves her lying on the floor, she tries to reason with him. This is obviously just speculation, but I think had something similar happened to Lelouch he would have, psychologically speaking, completely lost it (in fact, he does lose it multiple times, which I’ll also get back to). Additionally, from the glimpse we see of Nunnally with Suzaku after Zero Requiem, it seems like she’s been able to cope relatively well with her brother’s death. In general, she seems to find her feet much easier than Lelouch and is more stable across situations.

To summarise everything so far: I’d argue neither Charles nor Marianne were secure caregivers for Lelouch and Nunnally. This is implied not only by their traits and actions, but can be inferred from Lelouch’s maladaptive developmental path. The reason we see this pattern develop in Lelouch but not Nunnally is that he, through parentification, functioned as a buffer for her. Furthermore, this difference in trajectories is amplified by their different underlying susceptibilities - Lelouch more sensitive/formable by negative events and loss in general, while Nunnally is more resilient. From this point on I’ll focus mainly on Lelouch, and discuss how this magnificent cocktail of risk factors explain his developmental outcomes as an older teenager - in particular, how it shines through when it comes to his emotionality, identity, and goals/motivations.

VI. Thunder in Our Hearts: Emotional Development and Interpersonal Relationships

Lelouch frequently throughout the series, for lack of a better term, loses his absolute shit. For example, in the scene where he plays chess with Mao in S1 E16, he screams and dramatically falls backwards when the last piece is thrown onto the scale. He’s completely devoid of expression, and is well and truly out of it until Suzaku arrives. He ends up in a similar state of mind when he thinks Nunnally is killed in S2, where it seems like he’s completely detached from his surroundings - just repeating that he wants to speak with her. In addition to these dissociative-esque states in response to extreme stress, he has lesser breakdown and outbursts as well, such as: after Shirley’s father dies, after the incident with Euphie, when he’s flipping out at Rolo upon seeing his phone locket, etc. Additionally, he’s been shown to take stress and anger out on other people in the (kinda hilarious) scene where he goes to an abandoned street to use his Geass on random people, making them dance as he stands there being angsty. These bursts of emotion don’t exclusively concern negative situations either, as evidenced by his multiple periods of manic laughter and monologues during battle.

I once read this Geass analysis claiming Lelouch is an unemotional character. As evidenced by these screenshots, that was a correct take and not inaccurate at all. Emotions? Where?

In addition to being fairly emotional, Lelouch’s character is also very centered around the people in his life. His mother and sister are the primary motivation through the series. He uses Nunnally’s well-being to justify his actions. He let’s C.C. comfort him. He cares greatly about Shirley, and is devastated at her father’s death (though one can only assume he feels a bit better after punching a wall in the shower), to the point where he erases her memory to spare her the suffering he’s bringing by getting her involved. He obviously deeply cares about Suzaku (again - essay for another day), and orders him to keep on living no matter what, despite him being the number one obstacle for Zero’s plans. If he expresses this affection in a reasonable way is another question entirely - his main way of expressing his love for Nunnally seems to be killing thousands of people for her sake, Shirley by erasing her memory, and Suzaku by forcing him to live on at any cost, which is the exact opposite of what he wanted.

He also has a recurring pattern of requiring a lot of external emotional regulation through other people. Nunnally is the most obvious example of this (obviously) - whenever something goes slightly wrong, he usually defaults to screaming about her, and becomes absolutely devastated whenever she’s unsafe. If Lelouch functions as her buffer, I’d say she’s her crutch. He heavily leans on her for justification and a purpose in life. But, these maladaptive ways of leaning on people also occurs with other characters, such as in the scene with Kallen in the warehouse where he’s about to inject himself with refrain. Kallen takes the needle from him and throws it on the ground, and he reacts by walking towards her asking her to console him - saying “there are things a woman can do for that, right?”. Kallen promptly (rightfully) slaps him, and he seems to regain his senses.

The most frequently repressed scene by all Lelouch fans.

In summary, I’d argue Lelouch is the complete opposite of an unemotional or uncaring character. He often seems to struggle with controlling his (plethora of) emotions in healthy ways, and copes with them either through completely shutting things out, having frequent breakdowns, lashing out on others, or using people as emotional crutches. He’s also very centered around other people, but tends to express it in less-than-appropriate ways, and goes on about things in an almost childish way, at times. This, I think, is indicative of his insecure attachment and lack of sensitive caregivers. In contrast to Nunnally, who had him, he didn’t have anyone to provide safety and externally regulate his emotions, meaning he was never able to internalise such strategies. Thus, there is a pattern of unhealthy (lack of) regulation of emotional states, leading to these stark contrasts between high and low points, and the quite bad ways he deals with them. Years of stress, repressed restlessness and unhealthy coping mechanisms for trauma certainly didn’t help either. Put simply - he’s a bit emotionally immature, and this is a significant aspect of his character.

VII. Reflektor: Identity and Projection

One of the most prevalent motifs in Lelouch’s arc, save for the chess symbolism, is the theme of masks and a fragmented identity. Throughout the series, he uses different identities to fill different roles in his life: Lelouch vi Britannia the prince, Lelouch Lamperouge the student, Zero the terrorist/freedom fighter and eventually Lelouch vi Britannia again, the tyrannical 99th Emperor of the Holy Britannian Empire. This switch is the most obvious display of the fragmented identity theme, as he is quite literally changing his name and masquerading as different people. With his Zero persona he even puts on a literal mask to conceal his face, but he also uses subtler, figurative masks for his other personas in order to achieve various goals. Additionally, there are also subtler role shifts at play within these identities: Lelouch Lamperouge exists as Nunnally’s caregiver, a student council member, Suzaku’s childhood friend, etc. (as with all people, fictional or not).

It is here his main ideological conflict with his parents arises. Charles and Marianne wants, through their Ragnarök plan, to abolish all “masks” and fuse mankind into one collective unconscious. Their reasoning is that if everyone were honest and there were no separation between people, the world would be a better place. Lelouch, however, finds the concept of identity masks useful and even defines himself by them. This is clearly shaped by his own experience - in order to survive in Area 11 and protect his sister, he had to change his name and lie. In order to gain real power and influence to overthrow Britannia, he had to change his name and lie. This modus operandi goes straight to the heart of his identity, because it is the reason he is able to exert his will over the world in any meaningful way - which, as we discussed earlier, is the reason he is “not dead any longer”. His core idea is that those who are privileged enough to be able to tell the truth about themselves, have no right to deny others the right to lie for their own survival or to achieve their goals.

Carl Jung arguably had a much more significant impact on anime than he did psychology. Actually, this isn’t even arguable.

Another, subtler way the series conveys the theme of fractured identity is Lelouch’s projection of desires and wishes onto others. This is shown quite literally through how the Geass gives him the power to command anyone to do anything. But not only does he impose his will onto others through verbal command, he also projects his more abstract goals and desires into the people in his life. Again, Nunnally is the most obvious example of this: Everything he does, he claims is for the sake of Nunnally. It’s interesting he never outright says that he wanted to do any of this for any personal reason - it’s all about a kinder world for Nunnally, Nunnally’s smile, and how their parents abandoned them. In the final confrontation with Charles and Marianne, Suzaku asks him if he used Nunnally as an excuse to justify his actions. Lelouch confirms this, and then says he fought to protect everything he wanted to protect. Still, he never mentions he feels rejected, or that he would want to grow older in a kinder world, even though it’s obviously more his own wish than hers (as Nunnally mentions during Zero Requiem, she would have been happy just being with her brother). In a way, he considers himself two steps removed from his desires - only working against Britannia on the basis of what he imagines the people in his life would want him to do.

Lelouch also has a tendency to view his own identity(-ies) through abstract symbols, rather than as a concrete human being with a backstory, grudges and motivations. In exile he expresses frustration at being a pawn of Britannia, as Zero he functions as a faceless symbol of Japanese liberation and a rebellion against the establishment, and as Emperor he aims to become a symbol of people’s hatred towards their oppressors. Even the orchestration of his life’s ending is primarily a symbolic act to him; with the world’s hatred focused on a tyrannical Emperor, the world can be peaceful when that symbol disappears. Lelouch seems very aware of this himself: that he is past the point of no return, and destined to become someone who will bear the burden of sacrificing his own identity, morals and character to play a part. He, in a way, seems more comfortable in this realm of abstraction - in being more of a symbol. However, if we try to strip away his rather grand narrative for a second, we’re left with a person committing suicide at 19 because he thinks the world will be a better place for it.

Black king captures e1, checkmate.

VIII. Pity the Child: Politics and Spite

Lastly, I want to make the argument that the parental abandonment Lelouch and Nunnally experienced, and the subsequent cascade of issues is the most important aspect of the series. Even more so than the central ideological conflict of working against versus within systems of oppression. As I’ve already touched on a fair bit, I think Lelouch’s circumstances growing up and the experiences arising from that was the very foundation for his later ideology and hatred for Britannia, rather than his ideology in and of itself being the reason he hates his parents and the system they represent. This is best represented by the climax of the scene with Charles and Marianne in C’s world, where Lelouch speaks not of systems of power, racism, oppression, politics, etc. - he speaks of abandonment and hurt.

In my opinion, there’s reason to question whether he would have gone to the same lengths to destroy Britannia if he’d not been exiled from the system himself. In one of the picture dramas from his summer in Japan as a child, he lectures Suzaku on Britannian and Japanese foreign trade policy, making the argument they’re both unethical. This indicates he already knew of and disagreed with the actions of Britannia, but it’s only after he’s exiled and war is declared on Japan he begins talking about enacting revenge. Additionally, he has some truly magnificent displays of hypocrisy throughout the series that (in my unpopular (?) opinion) puts Suzaku to shame. Even the very act of him using Geass is contradictory to his fundamental belief: that opposing a well-intentioned act upon others is no different from an evil act. During their confrontation, he is very concerned with expressing this ideology to his parents, before promptly turning around and making his brother a geassed slave forever, two episodes later.

Not to completely undermine his ideological streak; I do genuinely believe he is anti-Britannia, and I do genuinely believe he values personal freedom highly. However, based on everything discussed so far, I’d argue he would perhaps not have cared as much, or at least been more open to a more Suzaku-esque approach, had he not had deep personal trauma connected to the whole situation as well. So, his main motivation isn’t to “bash the fash”, as it were, but rather bash these few specific fash who traumatised him and his sister before shipping them off to a foreign country they then immediately declared war on. Revenge, spite, and pure, childish anger towards a family that wronged him is a much more useful lens through which to view the series, rather than an ideological conflict per se.

IX. The Conclusion Bit, Finally

To summarise this entirely too long essay, Lelouch and Nunnally both suffered from insecure attachment and later trauma and parental abandonment. Nunnally’s main protective factor/buffer for this trauma was Lelouch, which gets her “back on track” towards becoming an emotionally stable and independent girl. Her brother, however, doesn’t have anyone to fill this role, and this cascades into dysfunctional behaviour and strategies across different domains: his trust issues as a child, obsession with revenge, immature emotionality, poor handling of stress, projecting onto others, and a fragmented concept of his own identity. Lastly, I think these personal issues constitute the crux of his motivation throughout the series - Lelouch’s arc is about trauma, parental neglect and spite more than it ever was about politics.

#code geass #lelouch vi britannia #lelouch lamperouge #nunnally vi britannia #@ everyone who's ever wanted to read a Long essay on code geass and developmental psychology: you're welcome #I hope some of it is understandable or even interesting #my essays #.........that's a VERY optimistic tag but I feel like I have to tag it with Something #analysis

219 notes · View notes

iasfuturekings · 4 years

Note

Hey could compare The Britannia Imperial Siblings with all the royals? Meaning like who is like this person and rivals.

It’s been years since I watched Code Geass in its entirety, which is weird bc I’ve been meaning to watch the recent movie, so I’m probably not all that accurate and I don’t remember a whole lot of the family aside from the main ones.

Diantha was directly inspired by Euphie from looks to personality. What probably makes her different is that she is the eldest sister of the family. I don’t know who in the family Xander and Marius would be like, although you can draw direct comparisons from Mars to Gino Weinberg if you’re really desperate. Xander is difficult to pin down because he isn’t complacent about his position like Odysseus was and he isn’t as cold and calculating as Schneizel is.

Jeremiah has most similarities to Lelouch because he lost his mother to political infighting and is the byronic hero of his own story, willing to do cruel things for survival but constantly grappling with the weight of his actions, ends up dying to achieve his final act of compassion/cruelty. Roswitha is more or less just Cornelia with a different coat of paint, a very strong minded patriot with military ambitions who struggles with empathy for the common person.

Damian is an odd one, because he has surface level similarities to Lelouch (commoner mother who died bc deadly politics and is the rebel of the family), but he isn’t as willing to be cruel to get what he wants. Comparing Camilla to Cornelia would be too easy, but all of them do like to dote on their younger siblings and are capable of being ruthless. In the end, they’d lean more into Lelouch’s camp simply because they didn’t have as easy upbringings as Cornelia did.

Liselotte is most similar to Carine, a young brat with an inclination for violence and bullying the weaker siblings. Thomas would be similar to Nunnally if only Liselotte actually had any sisterly love for him in the first place. Although Mila never grew up, I’d speculate they’d be like Clovis because they’d be a big, extravagant fashion icon.

I think many before have compared Leo to Lelouch, although I think he’s most like Schneizel because he has pragmatic literally in his official description and he would never stand up to Garon on behalf of his mother, who is hilariously named Marianne. Elise is most like Euphemia within the story because she has a hard time finding her place in the family beyond being the baby.

Anri’s dilemma is essentially Suzaku’s dilemma. The changes to Chapter 5 so that Anri would kill his mother instead of simply bringing a cursed sword that kills her probably were inspired by Suzaku’s arc of dealing with the guilt of killing his father while slowly doubling down on his “ends justify the means” mindset when his kindness starts getting tested. Before the events of the story, Anri is the Nunnally of the family. He’s kept in the castle on the pretense of health issues and is essentially the morality pet for his siblings. Also like Nunnally, he’s most determined to take advantage of whatever little political capital he has to end the war with minimal bloodshed but is easily swayed by his older siblings’ advice and motivations.

This AU’s Azura is a mix of C.C. and Lelouch, has mythological powers, is involved in a plot for revenge against the big evil king/dragon, makes calculating decisions to get what she wants at the expense of her family. Her conflict with Anri mirrors the conflict of ideals between Lelouch and Suzaku and she starts redeveloping her appreciation for normal man because of Anri and whichever family she follows Anri to.

As for the Hoshidan family, I’d say they’re more easy to find comparisons for. Hinoka and Ryoma’s characters are direct parallels to Cornelia, very patriotic, loses a beloved, maybe possessed sibling in a military conflict, and initially doesn’t have empathy for foreign nations. They branch off from there as Ryoma starts having reservations about the notion that Hoshido was in the right early on, and Hinoka gets nearly manipulated into going off the deep end before she starts questioning herself.

Takumi would not get along with Clovis at all, but they have similarities as they lean on the younger side of the royal family, start off as snobs with a disdain for anyone who isn’t Britannian/Hoshidan. What makes Takumi different is that he possess some self awareness to what he could be doing wrong and has room for change. Sakura is most similar to Euphemia mostly because like Elise, she struggles with getting taken seriously by her older siblings.

#long post #ask #dead royals #world #author #3dsfuriousgame

5 notes · View notes

codetrainwreck · 6 years

Text

Britannian History Lessons

I have no idea who translated these. They were extras with the season one DVDs.

The Origin of Britannia Part 1

Lelouch: So here's the first session. Suzaku: You haven't changed, Lelouch. I don't think people will understand what this session is for. Lelouch: I don't need those who don't understand. You can only learn if you're prepared to learn! Suzaku: I'm not sure about those Zero-influenced lines... Oh, but you were always easily influenced as a child. You used to imitate superheroes. Lelouch: Stop talking about something so long ago! Suzaku: But aren't we talking about history today? We have to talk about long ago. Lelouch: Urgh... being a smart aleck? I'm leaving. Suzaku: Sorry, so sorry. I'm ready to learn, Professor Lelouch. Lelouch: Good. Then tell me. Do you know when Britannia was formed? Suzaku: Of course. This year is 2017 of the Imperial Calendar, so it was 2017 years ago. Lelouch: Wrong. Suzaku: What? But the Imperial Calendar — "a.t.b." means "Ascension Throne Britannia," meaning "the year Britannia assumed the throne," right? Lelouch: It seems you did your homework. I'm impressed. Suzaku: It's common knowledge. Besides, I was tested during the Honorary Britannian appointment. Lelouch: Then, the grounds of the ascension? Suzaku: Um... I think it was triggered when Julius Caesar tried to invade... Lelouch: That's right. And one of the Celtic tribal kings who resisted is said to be the ancestor of the Britannian Royal Family. He gained freedom from Rome and was coronated — although it was more like becoming a chieftan — that year is the first year of the Imperial Calendar. Now, what's the name of this king? Suzaku: Um......... I give up. Lelouch: Hey, Suzaku! You don't have this simple information!? It's on the next test! Suzaku: Well, I was busy, so... Lelouch: Then look it up by the next time we meet. Got it?

The Origin of Britannia Part 2

Lelouch: So Suzaku, I'm assuming you did your homework. Suzaku: Of course, Lelouch. Here. Lelouch: Alwin I, eh? Yes, you're correct. You pass! Suzaku: But people won't understand what we're talking about just from this! Lelouch: I, Lelouch, order you. If you want to know, buy the first volume of the DVD! Suzaku: You're so easily influenced. Anyway... Alwin I is known to be the ancestor of the Britannian Royal Family. He gained freedom from Rome and became the first chieftan, and that year is the year Britannia was formed. I'm right, aren't I? Lelouch: For now, yes. Then can you tell me who was the Emperor of Rome at the time? Suzaku: ... I give up. Lelouch: It was Augustus. Remember that. Now, this Alwin I is only a figure from a legend and there is no proof that he existed. The history of the Empire, the "Britannia Chronology," indicates that he really existed, but this chronology was created when the Holy Empire of Britannia was founded. So when they founded the empire is when they stuck on the legacy of the Royal Family's blood as an afterthought to assure their ascension. It's common in kingship and imperialism. Suzaku: So when am I supposed to recognize when Britannia was founded? Lelouch: I guess you can regard Britannia's beginnings to be when the descendents of the Tudor family line who went to the New World ended and the Duke of Britannia started the imperial regime. The Imperial Calendar was established then too. It extended back in history and set the first year as a thousand and a couple hundred years ago. Suzaku: I see. Lelouch: Now, do you know when that year was? And who was the emperor who was coronated? Suzaku: Imperial Calendar 1813. The Emperor was Ricardo van Britannia I. Lelouch: Correct. It looks like you studied hard. Suzaku: Yeah. Cecile helped me too. Lelouch: Cecile? Who's that? Suzaku: My superior of the department I'm in. Lelouch: A woman, eh? You're good at debauching as always. Suzaku: Debauch... that's not true! Lelouch: You were always good at getting older women to like you. Suzaku: I'm not doing it on purpose! Besides, why are you bringing up the past like that? Lelouch: Huh? You said it first. That we're discussing "history." Suzaku: Urgh...

The Virgin Queen Elizabeth

Milly: What are you two doing? Suzaku: Oh, hello. I'm learing Britannian history from Lelouch. Milly: I see. But if it's history, you should ask me. You know that my character's description is "has a great knowledge in history and will cooly observe the changing world with Zero's presence." Lelouch: That description is way old. There's no hint of it anywhere. Milly: Oh, Lelouch. You are so cheeky. Don't you agree? Suzaku: Uh, um... I can't say much there (sweat). Milly: Oh well. Even without that in my description, I'm good at history. The Ashford family has nobility in its line, after all. Lelouch: Formerly, you mean. Milly: Oh, shush. Whose fault do you think that is? Lelouch: Urgh... (sweating heavily). Well, anyway. It's a good opportunity to ask the president if you have any questions, Suzaku. Suzaku: Let's see... then can you tell me about the era of absolute monarchism — about the Elizabeth I from the Tudor dynasty? She's called the Virgin Queen, but isn't it weird that she has a chld? Milly: That names comes from the fact that she was single for her whole life. There's her famous line, "I have already joined myself in marriage to a husband — my country." Suzaku: But she has a kid. Was it Henry IX? Milly: Yes. Bluntly speaking, it was an illegitimate child. Elizabeth I didn't marry, but she had many lovers. The Earl of Leicester, Earl of Essex and the Duke of Britannia are among the possible fathers. She switched between lovers all of her life. I'm a little jealous. Lelouch: So she was an Amazon. Like someone we know. Milly: What was that, Lelouch? What are you trying to say? Suzaku: I think he meant that you are similar to Elizabeth I. Lelouch: Hey, Suzaku, shut up! You idiot! Milly: I see. By the way, Vice President, did you finish the documents I asked for? Lelouch: No, I've been busy lately... I'll have it done by tomorrow's deadline. Milly: I changed my mind. I want it now. Lelouch: That's high-handed, President! Milly: Call me Queen!

Sakuradite and the Age of Exploration

Suzaku: Unh... Shirley: What's wrong, Suzaku? Are you constipated? Suzaku: Yeah, I feel so bloated... Hey, what are you making me say, Shirley? Shirley: Hee hee. I've been hanging around the President too long. But I'm surprised that you could kid around like that. Suzaku: Lelouch trains me well, doesn't he? Shirley: You guys are really close... I'm so jealous. So, why were you groaning? Suzaku: This. "In (a)'s 'Description of the World,' he describes a country known as Jipang, meaning Japan, and that it is a golden island. But it is foolish to think that this country was rich in gold; rather, it was rich in (b). At the time in Europe, research that was inspired by (c) led to the discovery of an energy source but there was not enough of it, and this hindered the progress. (a)'s 'Discovery of the World' moved the people to explore the world and eventually led to the discovery of the former United States, currently the conquered territory of Britannia." Shirley: Let's see... "Fill in the blanks. If you can." What is this? Why does this worksheet sound so condescending? Suzaku: Lelouch made it. All of his worksheets are like this. Shirley: Oh, Lulu... (laugh) So the answer to "a" is "Marco Polo," b is "Sakuradite," and c is "alchemy." Suzaku: Wow, you're good in history! Shirley: No, I'm ot. But I'm good with minerals and geosciences. My father is a geologist. He works in the bureau and he goes around investigating geological conditions. Suzaku: I see... Shirley: But this worksheet really shows Lulu's personality. Suzaku: Yeah, but I wish... it would show a little more love. Shirley: What are you talking about? It shows a ton of love! Lulu would never do this for anyone he didn't care for. I'm really jealous now. Suzaku: Why don't you tell him that you like him? Shirley: Well... huh!? How do you know that I... Suzaku: It's actually quite obvious. I think the only one who doesn't know is Lelouch. Shirley: I'll tell him myself eventually! So please don't tell him. Promise? Suzaku: Of course. Shirley: Thanks!

The Rebellion of Washington

Lelouch: ~~ ♪ C.C.: You're in an awfully good mood. Humming, eh? Lelouch: !! Oh, I didn't know you were there, C.C. C.C.: Why are you so flustered? ... Huh? What's that? Lelouch: It's none of your buisness. C.C.: Let's see... "Write the reason why the Rebellion of Washington in the Colonies ended in failure in 1770 a.t.b. in 1,200 words." Is this homework? But it's odd that you're making the worksheet... Lelouch: It's for Suzaku. Just go away! C.C.: The Rebellion of Washington... that was a long time ago. It's easy. It's because Ben betrayed the Continental Congress. Lelouch: Ben? C.C.: Oh, sorry, I mean Benjamin Franklin. Lelouch: Why can't you just call him the Earl of Franklin? Yes, it's true that Franklin went to France to ask Louis XVI to support their independence and failed. But that's not the main reason they lost, is it? C.C.: Well, Louis was willing to help. But when Ben went to France, he met the Duke of Britannia. And he was offered a title and some land in the Colonies, and fell for it. Ben is the type who prefers research to war... he was a kind man. No, too kind. If Ben had asked Louis for support, Louis would've given them an army and the Continental Army wouldn't have lost in Yorktown. And George — I mean, Washington — wouldn't have died and America wouldn't have become territorialized. Lelouch: The Duke of Britannia was involved!? That's not in any of the history materials! C.C.: But it's the truth. Lelouch: ... You talk as if you saw it happen. Could you have possibly...!? C.C.: I'm C.C. I know everything. For example, I can name the song you were just humming. Lelouch: !!!!! C.C.: Was it from 8 years ago? The special effects fighting show that aired on Sunday mornings in Japan. Lelouch: Okay! I got it! Shut up! Sheesh, you're such a... C.C.: You're still naive, Lelouch. You can't beat me in a thousand years. Lelouch: Do you mean figuratively? C.C.: Hee hee. Who knows?

The Humiliation at Edinburgh Lelouch: Good. Good. Damn. Good. Suzaku: Lelouch, can you stop correcting my worksheet out loud? Lelouch: No. Suzaku: Why not!? Lelouch: It's fun watching your reaction when you get something wrong. Suzaku: Lelouch, you're a sadist. Lelouch: Okay, 85%. You did pretty good. Suzaku: Because I have a good teacher. Lelouch: Hmph. Flattery won't get you anything! Suzaku: I'm not flattering you. I really think so. Thanks, Lelouch. Lelouch: ... Anyway, today's session... Suzaku: Um, we're at the end of the 1700s, when the citizens were starting a revolution. Lelouch: That's right. Ahem. At the end of the 1700s, all of Europe was facing rebellions that were triggered by the French Revolution. That was when Napoleon started gaining power, was crowned, and had a hold on almost all of Europe. He looked to expand to the British Isles, won the Battle of Trafalgar and held naval supremacy. He then took his 120,000 men and landed on British soil and thereafter advanced to London. The queen at that time, Elizabeth III, was chased to Edinburgh where she was captured by the citizens who supported Napoleon. She was forced to abolish the monarchy in a.t.b. 1807, which is known as the... Suzaku: "Humiliation at Edinburgh." Lelouch: Right. And the one who saved the queen is Ricardo van Britannia, the man who eventually founded the Britannia Empire. Suzaku: So his existence was important to history. Lelouch: Not so fast. That's why you're so naive. You forgot an important person. He will later be featured in many novels, plays and movies: Ricardo's right-hand man and best friend, and the strongest knight. He was the head of the Knights of the Round, the "Knight of One" — Sir Richart Hector. Suzaku: Oh! I think I've heard of him! I think I saw the movie, too. Lelouch: Then there's no problem. Without Richart, the escape from Edinburgh to the New World wouldn't have happened. Suzaku: I see... Lelouch: Then next we'll talk about the founding of the Britannia Empire. Make sure to study! Suzaku: Yes, Professor Lelouch.

The Formation of Britannia Nunnally: Oh, I didn't know you were here. Suzaku: Yeah. Lelouch was teaching me. Nunnally: When you're done, would you like to have dinner with us? They're preparing it now. Suzaku: Thanks, I'd love to. Lelouch: Then Suzaku, we'll move on to the formation of Britannia. Did you study for this? Suzaku: Leave it to me. So Elizabeth III and the aristocrats who followed her went to the New World and set up a capital on the East Coast. They started conquering America, but Elizabeth III died without leaving an heir. Lelouch: Yeah. And normally they would choose one from among the relatives, but Elizabeth appointed her lover, Ricardo van Britannia I, as the heir on her deathbed. And that is how the Holy Empire of Britannia came to be. Suzaku: It's an unbelievable story. She's known as the "Queen who lived an eventful life for love," right? She might've been nice as a lady, but I'm doubtful about her as a ruler. Lelouch: Woah! Stop, Suzaku! Suzaku: Huh? Nunnally: I see... you don't like Elizabeth III? You don't think she had what it took to be a ruler? Suzaku: Huh? What's going on? Why do I feel so cornered? Nunnally: I see... Excuse me, I must go. Suzaku: What happened? Did I say something? Lelouch: Nunnally is a fan of Elizabeth III. When she was younger, she read a highly innacurate story that depicted her as a tragic queen. Suzaku: Oh, I see. I'm sorry. I didn't know. Lelouch: Well, it's not anything new that you can't read the atmosphere. I'm glad you didn't bring up the theory that she assassinated Napoleon, because the damage would've been even more severe. Suzaku: You mean, the theory that Napoleon died on his way back to France after the loss at Waterloo because of poison in his food put in by Elizabeth's men? Lelouch: Yeah. "I will never forget this humiliation." It's a famous quote from her last testament. Nunnally: Lelouch! Suzaku! Dinner is ready. Lelouch: !! Oh, thanks, Nunnally. That was quick. Nunnally: I helped a little, that's why. Suzaku: Thanks. I thought you'd be mad. Nunnally: Of course not. It was I who invited you. "I will never forget." Suzaku:/Lelouch: ...!!! Nunnally: Please, eat up!

Arrival of the Black Ships Lelouch: So the democratic revolutions continued and the aristocrats from all over Europe, especially France, advocated the release of slaves and the war that started in the southern states became the Civil War. Any questions? Suzaku: None, I get it. Oh? I hear a knock. Come in! Kallen: Oh, Suzaku, Lelouch. What are you two doing? Suzaku: I'm having Lelouch teach me history. Lelouch: That's right. So if you don't need anything, you're in the way. Get out. Suzaku: You don't have to kick her out. I don't mind. Come on, let's continue. Lelouch: Sheesh, you're too nice. Fine, let's continue. Britannia worked on stabilizing the country while also looking at foreign opportunities, especially in the Pacific. And finally in 1853 they crossed the Pacific and arrived in Japan. Japan had an isolationist policy and realized that they'd fallen behind the rest of the world. "The denkisen awakens the Pacific slumber; just four cups and we cannot fall asleep." Are you familiar with this? Suzaku: Of course. I'm Japanese. Lelouch: Oh yeah. Well, it's obvious but this is a haiku describing the black ships of Britannia arriving at Japan. Suzaku:/Kallen: ...! Lelouch: What's wrong? Suzaku: Oh... just continue, Lelouch. Lelouch: ...? Fine. So the denkisen refers to the Britannian ships with outer rings that were operated with electric motors. It must be a phonetic equivalent. They should've written it with the kanji for "electric boats," but since Japan didn't have the technology for electricity, they used different kanji... Suzaku:/Kallen: ... Lelouch: Okay, if you gusy have something you want to say, just say it! Kallen: You're wrong, Lelouch. That's not a haiku but a parodied tanka. Lelouch: ...!! It's something similar! Kallen: No, it's not. And the denkisen actually refers to the expensive tea that was loaded on the boat. Green tea has a lot of caffeine, so the four cups making people not fall asleep is referring to the fact that a commotion was made with just four ships. Lelouch: What!? Is that true, Suzaku!? Suzaku: Umm. Sorry, Lelouch. Kallen is right. Lelouch: Urgh! Kallen: I'm sorry, Lelouch. You were enjoying your rolse as a professor, but I guess I ruined your day. Lelouch: Shut up, you. Perry ship!!

Occupation of Japan

Lelouch: So this is the last session. Suzaku: You're as abrupt as usual. But isn't this a bad place to end this? Lelouch: What are you talking about? This is just as I planned. I can't talk about the a.t.b. 1900s because it's related to the main plot. I've been told not to say anything. Suzaku: Really? But this is the last DVD volume, isn't it? Lelouch: Urgh! It's the end but not the end! Anyway, here's the last session! We're going to skip to a.t.b. 2010!! Suzaku: You don't have to yell. Oh, 2010 is the year we first met. Lelouch: Yeah. At that time Japan took advantage of how the Chinese Federation and Britannia were on hostile terms and stayed neutral. They used the sakuradite card, manipulated the distribution, and created a three-way standoff between the Chinese Federation, the EU, and Britannia to enjoy economic prosperity. Suzaku: And no one thought that Britannia would break the balance using military force. Lelouch: That's right. The common assumption in international relations at the time was that it was taboo to attack Japan. Because once a fire started, all the other factions would follow suit and a full-scale war would break out. But the one who broke the rule... Suzaku: ... Was Charles zi Britannia. The 98th emperor of the Holy Empire of Britannia. And your father. Lelouch: That man's preparations were complete. As a blindside he sent all of the Knights of the Round to Africa and Inda, and the flagship ship, the Great Britannia, to the Indian Ocean; and while others were looking away from the Pacific he seized Japan quickly. The situation was practically decided in the first 24 hours, and by the time the Chinese Federation and EU tried to act, it was too late. And what happened after that... is not necessary to say, I guess. Suzaku: Yeah, you're right. Lelouch: Now starting tomorrow, I'll talk about the history of other countries. Don't forget to study. Suzaku: Huh!? But you said this is the last session. Lelouch: It's over as in what's going to be in the DVD booklets. Your class will continue. We're starting with the Chinese Federation. Suzaku: Why the Chinese Federation? Lelouch: "It's not the end of the story" is a hint. Suzaku: Sigh... I guess there's much more... Lelouch: Are you unhappy with that!? After all that I went through to teach you!? Suzaku: No, I'm very grateful, Professor. Lelouch: Very well. Then that's the end of today's session!

#code geass #translation #britannia

128 notes · View notes

mononoke-no-ko · 5 years

Text

[Trans] Code Geass Gaiden: Lancelot & Guren -Suzaku arc- Ep04 (part1)

Source

Schnee: My apologies for not being able to participate in France battle the other day! Suzaku: There’s no need for you to worry about it, it was my decision to not bring you along. Schnee: Even so, I apologize! Also... umm... Does Lord Kururugi already have plans for this vacation? Suzaku: ? Schnee: This may be strange as an apology but... I want to invite you to my parents house in Idaho... Suzaku: Say again?

Schnee: Though it’s from the countryside, the chef’s dish which used the vegetables from our territory has a good reputation. I’d like you enjoy them, Lord Kururugi!

Schnee: Because I’ve caused great inconvenience to Lord Kururugi in Belarus-Poland, so...! Suzaku: Fu fu. Schnee: ? Lord Kururugi? Suzaku: Okay, Schnee. I’ll accept your invitation. Schnee: Thank you very much! Suzaku: I’m the one who should be grateful. The last time I spend my holidays with someone... I can’t even remember when.

Schnee: I’ll introduce them to you, Lord Kururugi. Himmel: Welcome! I’m Himmel Hecksen. This is my wife Egla (TN: sorry, I can’t with deciphering foreign name form katakana) Egla: Thank you for having taken care of our son. Suzaku: Nice to meet you. I’m Kururugi Suzaku. Thank you for inviting me today. Himmel: Come here, Snow. Go greet Lord Kururugi.

Himmel: I’m sorry, she’s usually a cheerful one. Schnee: ...What’s wrong, Snow? Lord Kururugi won’t bite, you know? Snow: Why are the three of you speaking politely to an Eleven?

Himmel: Snow! What are you saying in front of Lord Kururugi!? Snow: But Father and Mother always say that “There’s no way an eleven can be a Knight of Round, he must have used some kind of shameful method”! Himmel: That’s...!

Himmel: Please allow me to be honest. We’re not welcoming you here. You are certainly someone of high position as a Knight of Round, but when it comes down to it, you’re an Eleven. We cannot from the bottom of our hearts pay our respect to a Numbers. I’m fully aware that we can be punished for this act of disrespect.

Suzaku: ...I understand. After all, this is the natural discriminatory mentality that has taken its root in this country. It is to change this mentality, that I aim to be a Knight of One. Schnee: Stop saying whatever you please!

Schnee: You can’t pay respect to Lord Kururugi because he’s not a Britannian, you say? That has nothing to do with anything! Lord Kururugi saved me even though he had to sacrifice himself to do it! Such insults to the one who saved your son’s life...!! Himmel: It’s a given for Numbers to protect a noble’s life. Schnee: Easy for you to say. But in reality, how many people are there who can protect others life! Himmel: There’s one in front of you. Your father here is the lord of Hecksen territory, do you realize how many people’s lives I’m protecting?

Schnee: Father... are you seriously saying that? To claim that you’ve been protecting the lives of people in an area that has never been exposed to war even once... Himmel: What did you say? Suzaku: Schnee... Schnee: My sincere apology, Lord Kururugi. I never know that my family are such embarrassment of human being. Himmel: Wha-! Snow: Big brother... Schnee: Let’s go, Lord Kururugi, I’ve prepared the room for you. It doesn’t matter that Father and the others aren’t welcoming you or whatever. I’m the one who invited you. Himmel: Wait, Schnee! Our talk isn’t over yet!

Schnee: No. It’s over, Father. No matter what anyone says, I respect and feel grateful toward Lord Kururugi for having saved my life. - *knock sfx* Suzaku: Come in.

Schnee & Suzaku: ... Schnee: That... err... Suzaku: ...It’s as you said, Schnee... Schnee: Eh? Suzaku: It was a delicious dinner that utilized the ingredients’ flavors. Schnee: Th-thank you very much! I’m glad that it suits your taste! Suzaku: You finally smiled. You’ve been apologizing all the way here. Also... you invited me here because there’s something you want to tell me, right? Schnee: Sigh... I'm really no match you, Lord Kururugi.

Schnee: Lord Kururugi, you told me that you fought because you had an ideal you wanted to fulfill. Is it also because of that ideal, that you’re standing on the battlefield now? Suzaku: ...it’s probably a bit different. Certainly I used to have an ideal. But that ideal had fallen from my hands and scattered on the ground. Now in order to collect even the tiny bit of that scattered ideal, it’s like I’m struggling in the mud....

Schnee: Was that ideal something that’s so precious to you? Suzaku: Yes. It was something irreplaceable to me. Schnee: Then, please order me to help you in “that”! I’ve been thinking, since Lord Kururugi has an ideal, then for me, what kind of ideal I want to fulfill, and so...

Schnee: I have decided that I will follow you, no matter who the enemy is. Even if they’re fellow Britannian, or an old friend, I will fight them without hesitation. Would you let me assist you in gathering that “scattered ideal”?

Suzaku: Schnee... Schnee: It’s true that I invited you to come here as an apology, but I also wanted to tell you about my determination in a place that can give me a peace of mind. If I said this in the workplace, how should I put it... that Ledo will definitely make fun of me... Suzaku: Fu fu, so that’s the reason. Thank you. Once again, I’ll ask for your cooperation. Schnee: Yes, my lo---

Himmel: Terrorist, you said!? Where’s the police?!! The enemy use Sutherland...!? What do you mean!? Report Guy: ...it seems a Britannian terrorist group that’s inspired by Zero’s revival has occupied Boise’s parliament hall! The Knightmares... there are more than 10 Sutherlands...!!

Schnee: Father! Have you sent request for aids to Britannian army? Himmel: We can’t so easily depend on the army like that, this is my territory. Schnee: Bu--! Himmel: If we can’t manage this with our own power, we won’t be able to showcase our strength to the people! This is a matter of our dignity as a lord! Schnee: For such shallow pride, do you intend to expand the damage on the city!? Suzaku: Let’s stop at that, Schnee. Sir Hecksen, we’re heading to the parliament hall. Depending on the circumstances, at our own discretion, we will suppress the terrorists. Himmel: You have no right to...!! I’m the lord!

Suzaku: ...is this Ledo? Right now I’m in Idaho... Ledo: I know. At Schnee’s parents’ house, right. Set that aside, could you look up above? Suzaku: Above...?

Schnee: A-Avalon...!!?

Lloyd: We’ve arrived~! Schnee/Suzaku: Lloyd-san! Lloyd: The army was immediately informed of the terror outbreak, so we prepared in a hurry~ Suzaku: No way, the Conquista is already...? Lloyd: Correct! The improved, freshly new Lancelot, Lancelot Counquista! Try it at once!

Idaho’s police: The enemy is using military used Sutherlands! The police force Knightpolice won’t be a match for them!! Why the army aren't here yet!?

Suzaku: Fight without expanding the damage on the city! Can you do that!? Schnee and Ledo: Yes, My lord!

Ledo: Schnee!

Schnee: Fuuh..! - Schnee: Father?

Himmel: Ehm.... I have checked the location of last night incident with my own eyes. Witnessing our city that miraculously received no damage, it’s hard to imagine that there was a Knightmares battle there. It seems I have to thank and apologize to Lord Kururugi. Schnee: Lord Kururugi..., no, Suzaku-san protects other people’s lives even at the expense of his own. He’s not just “trying to protect”, but he really protects them. Snow: E-excuse me... I want to... apologize for the other day... Suzaku: It’s fine. Rather than that, make sure to get along with your brother.

Suzaku: He may act like he’s still in a bad mood, but your brother also has an honest and child-like side to him. Snow: Oh my...! You’ve been looking closely at big brother!

Schnee: Lord Kururugi, what were you talking with Snow? Suzaku: Nothing. Suzaku: ....Family...huh. Schnee: ...?

Bismarck: This is an imperial command from Emperor Charles. Go to Area 11. Suzaku: !! Bismarck: We’ll have you confirm the condition of the “bait”.

Suzaku: I’m going to Area 11... Suzaku: Yes, My lord. Suzaku: To meet... with Lelouch.

tbc.

Previous chapter. List of chapter. Next chapter.

#code geass #suzaku kururugi #schnee hexen #code geass gaiden #translation #code geass manga

50 notes · View notes

zephyrthejester · 6 years

Text

Code Geass Deadblog: Episodes 45-46

Holy shit! ANSWERS! ACTUAL FREAKING ANSWERS, AT LONG FREAKING LAST. IT'S TIME, IT HAPPENED, ACTUAL AAAANSSWEEEERSSS

Starting off, I kicked myself for not seeing the possibility that Marianne would come back into play. She's been talking to C.C. all this time, and even accounting for that C.C.'s current amnesia, there'd be no reason to think she still couldn't. In a stunning twist, it was revealed that Marianne and C.C. had forged a contract once; Marianne's Geass must have been extraordinarily powerful, because she puppeteered Anya's body from beyond the grave and got close to C.C. Close enough to enter her mindspace and have a hearty conversation with her, which restored her memories.

Even more shocking, we next had a stunning turn of events with Suzaku and Schneizel. In full view of Gino, Lloyd, Cecile, Kanon, and Cornelia... Suzaku resolved that his ideals up until now were naive. The ends do, in fact, justify the means. And to that cause, he and Schneizel conspired to assassinate the Emperor! How in the everloving fuck does Suzaku manage to walk around with those massive balls of his? I guess this is what happens when the fallen paladin squashes out every last spark of Lawful Good in his heart. Schneizel's point of view was that the Emperor has completely failed to uphold his duty as an Emperor, placed himself before others. Man. I feel really bad for thinking Schneizel was a snake! I didn't dare trust him, but at this point I'm really sure he's genuinely a good dude who wants good things.

Suzaku intercepted the Emperor at the mouth of the cave on Kamine Island, but Bismarck intercepted his blow upon the Emperor... Not that he could have killed him, anyway. So, turns out the Knight of One had a Geass of his own, kept hidden under that sewn-shut left eye of his. You'd think I'd have seen that coming...

Lelouch arrived on the Island then. He had gone wild with his Geass, sending a huge swathe of the Britannian forces into chaos, fighting each other indiscriminately. Marianne (as Anya) and C.C. used it as the perfect cover to infiltrate the scene. And Lelouch... well, he confronted his father in the Sword of Akasha just as he was beginning Ragnarok. There was a creepy intertwining pillar of human bodies writhing around there, which was super creepy, and I still have no freaking idea what that was supposed to be. But anyhoo, Lelouch claimed a victory by rigging the exit to explode behind him, sealing both himself and his father in the alternate realm!

From there, Lelouch and Charles began to speak about the nature of lying, which tied into a conversation held between Marianne, Suzaku, and C.C. At long last, we learned what "C's World" is: A collective consciousness of humanity's memories. It was at this point where I realized that, yeah, Mao is probably dead. Whoops. I was convinced that was a dart gun C.C. fired into his neck...Oh well. C's World sounds like a place that's a one way trip, if you catch my meaning.

Evidently, Charles wants to get all of humanity into C's World so that there could be no barriers, no masks, between people, and therefore conflict would end. So in other words, it's literally Human Instrumentality, but with a lot less sexual metaphors. Anyhoo, Marianne's ghost thingy slipped out of Anya's body and went into the Sword of Akasha to meet with Charles and her son, and things got really spicy from there.

Marianne was able to personally explain the mystery of her death: It was at the hands of V.V., who killed her because Charles' love for her was threatening to lead him astray from completing the Contract between them. In Marianne's dying moments on those stairs, her Geass activated for the first time, and she just so happened to be looking one Anya Alstreim in the eyes. Anya, then a child, was cowering behind a pillar and just so happened to be there at the wrong time. Marianne's power turned out to be the power to transfer her consciousness into another person, and from that day on Marianne lived in poor Anya's body, and eventually worked out that she can telepathically communicate with C.C.

C.C. learning the truth of what happened is what caused her to give up her leadership of the Geass society to V.V. and disappear. Charles, meanwhile, swiftly learned of V.V.'s murderous deception and that planted the seed of a future betrayal right then and there... Dear lord, man. V.V. was truly an absolute scumbag. Forged an identity and relationship out of ridding the world of lies and breaking down barriers, then murdered his brother's dearly beloved and tried to cover it up. How disgusting.

Then, in a shocking twist, it was revealed that the Emperor kinda sorta had good intentions for Lelouch and Nunnaly all along??? Sent them to Japan to not make them potential targets for V.V. Oh, and he used his Geass to make Nunnaly convinced she was blind, just to ensure she couldn't have been a witness. Yeah, no, sorry, I'm 100% sure this was the show pulling this out of its ass. I guarantee you the Emperor wasn't meant to be sympathetic early on, and I personally do NOT want to feel any sympathy for this monster. He's done plenty of stuff that's inexcusable, among them his big goals. Like... Why couldn't Charles have let Nunnaly be "blind" at first, then once the heat died down a few weeks later, reversed it and also meddled with her memories to leave no evidence? Everyone thought it was psychosomatic, anyway! Her recovering her sight would have been believable!!

With that reveal neatly wrapped up, Suzaku and C.C. entered the Sword of Akasha thanks to Code powers, and stuff. Don't ask me how... With all the pieces in place, with Marianne fully supporting Charles' plans and Suzaku having his one question answered... Charles raised his hand, channeled C.C.'s Code, and began Ragnarok.

Then Lelouch did the most Lelouch thing he's ever done and used his Geass on God. To not stop the march of time. To not let the world grow stagnant, and ungrowing. To let the world remain in chaos! Because that's the world Nunnaly wanted. And it wasn’t a command... It was a request.

With that, the swirling towers of human bodies that was rising to God fell to pieces, and those who attempted to kill God similarly disappeared... Charles and Marianne vanished into dust, while C.C. looked on and realized that all along, they only loved themselves. Well, damn. Turns out Code Geass' story was a metaphor for toxic familial relationships all along. Sometimes, yes, father and mother do NOT know best. Also, humanity’s consciousness uniting to wipe someone out of existence gave me huge Elder Scrolls vibes, which was nice. There’s a “Brass Tower” joke with the Thought Elevator somewhere...

One month later, and Tokyo had been mostly rebuilt. The world's eyes turned upon the imperial palace over in Britannia, where the Emperor was due to make a speech. YOU KNOW WHO WALKED OUT? YOU KNOW WHO WALKED OUT AND SAT ON THE FREAKING THRONE? Lelouch vi Britannia... 99th Emperor of the Britannian Empire. And at his side, standing proud, was Suzaku Kururugi... The newly dubbed Knight of Zero.

I've never facepalmed so hard. The Knight of Zero. The Knight... of Zero. The Knight of Zero. Jesus christ I am convinced this entire show was conceived just so they could do this one thing. Jesus. The Knight of Zero, you guys. He's the Knight of Zero now. Literally, and metaphorically.

And that's where the episode ended... With the world watching in stunned shock (notably, the Black Knights and poor, poor, poor Rivalz, whose mind exploded), and Lelouch using his Geass upon Odysseus and dozens and dozens of important nobles in the hall to make them view him as their Emperor.

Good lord. There are four episodes left!? If I didn't know any better, I would think this was the finale! The big bad thwarted and killed, the "hero" sitting on the throne, ability to achieve his goal at his fingertips... But no, there's a lot left unresolved. What's next for C.C.? What will the Black Knights do? What is Schneizel scheming!? And why is Suzaku loyally serving Lelouch? These are questions I can't wait to see answers to.

Boy. When Code Geass goes in, it goes in hard.

Other Thoughts:

Um. One of Odysseus’ lines HEAVILY implied that Nunnaly was alive. So holy shit, that’s a thing. What. I am not sure how to feel about that.

Marianne was caught in the act of trying to doodle on Suzaku's face with a permanent marker while he was unconscious, which secured her spot as the best character in the show. Shame she turned out to be a massive asshole, dethroning her and returning the title to Cheese-kun.

I encountered the famous "Notto diso shitto agen" frame of the Emperor, and it was glorious. I now completely understand the context, and that pleases me greatly.

So what's up with Anya? Does she have any memories at all? Was Marianne more of a passive host or was she in full control the entire time? Gods, imagine how fucked up it would be to one day witness a murder while you're a kid, then suddenly wake up on some random island while the world is nearly ending and you're a teen suddenly.

C.C. was wearing her old straightjacket at the very end. Which is super weird. Who finds those comfortable?

Beyond "What's next?" the only question I still really have is "What's C.C.'s name?" Though, truth be told, I'm not expecting an answer to that at this point.

#Code Geass #Code Geass Liveblog #Code Geass episode 42 #Liveblogging #Liveblog

25 notes · View notes