Code Geass R2 — Episode 4
Looks like this will be the last high tension episode before we return to a more peaceful interlude. As expected, Lelouch manages to turn the entire situation around to his advantage without breaking too many drops of sweat. I mean, you didn’t really think he was going to die, right?
That is not to say that episode 4 is boring or anything. Zero’s tactics are getting a little overused, but the episode itself is quite engaging. Hopefully, with some proper planning and the Black Knights having gained the initiative, we’ll see some more creative twists during the next confrontation.
Lelouch has apparently figured out Rolo’s Geass and confirms his suspicions using recordings from the security camera.
“Smile! You’re on Candid Camera!”
Rolo’s Geass, like the other Geass, is just really powerful hypnosis. He can’t actually stop time to move around instantaneously, and thus a blasphemous violation of General Relativity has been averted and Einstein can now rest peacefully in his grave. Phew.
With his usual sweet-talking, Lelouch manages to convince Rolo to spare his life in exchange for handing over C.C. (who is the real target of the special task force). The plot logic here is a bit iffy, but I guess it’s plausible, considering Rolo appears confused about his erotic feelings for Lelouch and his obsession over his given objective.
Gunslinger Boy
Little does Rolo know that Lelouch has studied all his classified files and is plotting to turn him into a loyal pawn even without the use of Geass.
In the mean time, Li Xingke (the long-hair guy), who apparently is a faithful loyalist to the imperial crown, overrules the eunuch Gaohai and turns on the Black Knights. Fortunately, he is not an unreasonable person and he permits the Black Knights to proceed with their plans on the condition that he has plausible deniability later by making it seem like the Black Knights took over the consulate by force. He kills the eunuch for good measure.
Where the heck are the petals flying from?
Thankfully, Zero does not disappoint. Just as the countdown for the execution of the Black Knights commerces, he makes his usual melodramatic appearance, standing alone on a Knightmare Frame. Jeez Britiannia soldiers, that’s your cue to open fire! It bluffers me as to how he manages to get away with it every single time.
After some customary exchange of greetings, Zero pulls off his usual trick and the ground plate which everyone happens to be standing on breaks off. Jeez Britiannia engineers, stop putting readily-accessible self-destruction functions in your cities!
Thanks to the ensuing chaos, Kallen and the rest manage to free the prisoners. She also has time to finish off an annoying and useless bishounen character as an afterthought. Jeez, it looks like most of the new unimportant side characters are there to be slaughtered over the course of the series.
What’s going on? I don’t know
The real caveat of the episode takes place in the final part. After pulling his old hat trick, Zero breaks for the Chinese consulate only to be chased down by Rolo in Vincent. Rolo is pissed off that he actually falls for Lelouch’s obviously-fake promise and looks ready to finish Lelouch off. Just then a sniper fires in their direction.
The cloak gives it +5 Sniping
The sniper (one of the other annoying bishounen characters) is actually under the influence of Lelouch’s Geass and his shot is heading straight for Rolo! And of course, since Rolo’s Geass can’t actually stop time, he’s pretty much done for. The bullet sails towards him in slow motion and…
…Lelouch blocks it (*gasp*) with his Knightmare Frame, thus “saving” Rolo’s life. The deed is done: Rolo’s fate (and his pure innocent boyish heart) has been sealed by Lelouch’s diabolical contract.
Rolo tries to deal with his new found feelings
“Oh my god Lelouch why did you do that? I was going to kill you.”
“Because even though all my memories were false and I secretly want to stick a knife up your nether region, you are still my precious brother.”
“OMG WTF I’ve never had a family before!”
“You can join me by my side and together we shall take over the world! (And get back Nunnally. After which I will backstab you and feed your warm corpse to the rats.)”
“Oh noooooo! I don’t know what to do!”
“Join me! It is your destiny!”
“Can’t…resist…heart-shaped locket…”
Come to think of it, Lelouch is the most evil and manipulative character in the entire show. He’s totally awesome. Now he has Rolo working on his side, allowing him to fool Viletta and the rest into thinking that he still hasn’t regained his memories.
This means that we should be expecting some school yard romance hijinks and light humour until Zero makes his next move, right? Maybe… But:
DUN DUN DUN
Personally, I would rather see Kallen back in school uniform. *wubs*
Screencaps
Demented expression
No more bunny suit… :(
She wraps her petite hands gently round the cold hard barrel and…
It says something for a country to have standard equipment for mass executions
Two of them die in this episode. Yay
“I won’t be home for dinner. Remember to feed the goldfish.”
“Zero is here! *fap fap fap fap*”
It’s amazing how side characters always happen to be in the same room
Tweedledum and Tweedledee (I give them six episodes to live)
You’d think that someone would notice if you had red glowing demon eyes
She’s secretly relieved that Ougi didn’t die. Awww… Sho shweet
“Oh great… You guys are back. Yay. (Where’s Zero?)”
Dramatic poses may result in neck sprains
I happened to notice that someone on a school mailing list I belong to left a comment on my last entry. Interesting.
April 29th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
““Why didn’t rolo get geassed when lelouch was talking with him face on?”
Two fold answer:
1.Because Lelouch knew that his Geass takes more time to act than Rolo’s.
2. Because Lelouch didn’t want to waste his one time opportunity to control Rolo through Geass, when he can still control him logically - emotionally”
Please clarify at what point during the series Lelouch gained control of his geass after it got out of control. The emperor mindwiped him, and he somehow lost it. When he remebers, he gets glowing eye, and is sudenly afraid of ordering C.C., but she reminds him that geass won’t work on her. She gave him the contact lense to block the geass and make him look normal.
In the scene where he talks about backstabbing C.C. in exchange for his life, he is looking directly at Rolo, Geass in full blare. His geass always works instantly on everyone else.
April 29th, 2008 at 4:49 pm
Yeah, well no-one is perfect, let alone sunrise :p
I think the most unrealistic thing in this episode is how the long-haired guy (from china) says something along the lines of ^i dont mind you staying here as long as i dont know about it^ like, wtf
How did sunrise manage to come up with such a dodgey end to something that could become so cool (him killing all the black knights :p)
But all in all, a bit of a pussy episode with too much of the same things over and over again :(
April 29th, 2008 at 4:54 pm
“Lelouch’s geass always works instantly on everyone else.”
No. For Lelouch’s Geass to work, he has to speak the order. Obviously, during the time period it takes for him to express his will, the opponent has a small time window to act. Most people, being Geass naive, are “stunned” in this period, but this isn’t the case for Rolo, who can freeze people’s consciousness just by thinking it (and obviously the time it takes for Rolo to think is less than the time it takes Lelouch to speak). Lelouch was able to deduce this advantage for Rolo from the timed video footage he saw.
Lelouch doesn’t control when his Geass is active (as in when his commands to other people are Geass driven), but he still has to issue the order. In his confrontation with Rolo, he refrains from issuing orders for the reasons I listed.
April 29th, 2008 at 4:59 pm
Well mr bigbosssnk, well deduced. Not quite sure how I missed that, must be more attentive in future. Fail.
Thanks for clarifiying :D
April 29th, 2008 at 5:10 pm
Lelouch doesn’t control when his Geass is active (as in when his commands to other people are Geass driven), but he still has to issue the order. In his confrontation with Rolo, he refrains from issuing orders for the reasons I listed.
Not necessarily. Let us assume i say, i want to go to the park, would the order in that sentence be go to the park. That can be taken as an order, and Lelouch doesnt need to consciously think that it is an order, this is apparent with his conversation with euphemia.
Honestly, i dont know what technically constitutes an order, but if they are like the go to the park example, then rollo would have been under the geass multile times in the episode
Tell me if i am incorrect
April 29th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
He couldn’t use his Geass because he can’t control it anymore and therefore has to take out the contact lense before he can use it. Rolo could’ve killed him a thousand times during that.
April 29th, 2008 at 5:29 pm
Lelouch’s eye was bright red with the geass. He didn’t have the contact lens in at the time, he took it out to use the geass on Rolo, before rolo stopped him with his own geass and took the gun.
April 29th, 2008 at 5:48 pm
“I don’t know what technically constitutes an order”
Geass requires the element of volition to initiate. So long as Lelouch wills it (consciously or subconsciously), it’s an order. In his confrontation with Rolo, (a wiser) Lelouch used his conscious mind to reign in his subconscious.
April 29th, 2008 at 6:57 pm
Lelouch used his conscious mind to reign in his subconscious.
Your conscious can never manipulate your subconcious sadly, so this couldnt be the case
April 29th, 2008 at 7:10 pm
Reigning in your subconscious and manipulating your subconscious are distinct notions. Don’t mistake one for the other.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080123125608.htm
April 29th, 2008 at 7:57 pm
During the begining of the episode lulu could just use his geass on rolo when they were talking face to face. That be much easier.
April 29th, 2008 at 8:21 pm
Keep noticing.
Now that Rolo is totally in love, it’s kind of like part yaoi-incest fanbait.
*shudders*
April 29th, 2008 at 8:53 pm
Speaking of Suzaku: I found him quite an interesting character but now R2 has left him emo. Actually he has been emoing since Euphemia died. Sunrise is dragging his depression way too long. He is like just bent on revenge, no longer the kind-hearted guy from season 1.
April 29th, 2008 at 8:54 pm
I notice how you didn’t screencap the bishounen guy getting rolled over by the bloody large command vehicle, or Lelouch’s cool skateboarding action….on a machine five stories tall….
April 29th, 2008 at 11:25 pm
“Geass requires the element of volition to initiate. So long as Lelouch wills it (consciously or subconsciously), it’s an order. In his confrontation with Rolo, (a wiser) Lelouch used his conscious mind to reign in his subconscious.”
I don’t think this is the case. If it was, Euphie wouldn’t have gone on that killing spree because Lelouch was kidding when he made this suggestion. It wasn’t even an order, he just happened to meet eye contact during the wrong portion of his sentence (the “kill all elevens” portion).
I think Rollo may have been specifically avoiding looking in Lelouch’s Demon Eye. The first half of their conversation could be explained with “Rollo couldn’t see the entire eye”, and this prevented it from taking hold. The second half…weeeeeeell, I dunno about that…