Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, Vol. 1

by Goro Taniguichi and Goro Taniguchi

Book Overview

In the year 2010, the Holy Empire of Brittania conquered Japan. High-school student Lelouch is a Brittanian, but he has vowed to crush his own government. When he acquires the power to control... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1594099731
• Release Date: July 2008
• Publisher: Bandai Entertainment
• Length: 180 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.5" x 0.5" x 5.0"

Customer Reviews

A worthy reboot of a captivating series.

Lelouch of the Rebellion is a fantasy/sci-fi manga based on an anime of the same name, featuring political strife, character drama, and clashing philosophies and ideals. It follows the trials of Lelouch Lamperouge, an exiled prince of Britannia. Britannia controls the most powerful nation on Earth, encompassing both North and South America and is ruled by a monarchy. Lelouch's relatively stable life with his crippled sister Nunnally is shattered when Lelouch discovers a woman imprisoned in a capsule who offers to make a nebulous pact with Lelouch. The woman grants Lelouch the power to command people to do anything he wants as long as Lelouch makes eye contact. Lelouch sees the power as an opportunity to exact revenge on the nation that exiled him and his sister in addition to allowing his mother to be assassinated. Those who have already watched the anime will immediately notice several differences in the story. Most notable is the omission of the mech armors known as Knightmares, which are a plot device that sees heavy use even at the beginning of the anime. This, surprisingly, takes very little if anything from the story, allowing a greater emphasis on character and less on the escalation of arms. This decision makes the story seem more down-to-earth and more relatable to the world we live in. While I am not a very regular manga reader, I was impressed with the art that transitions rapidly from the light-hearted chibi art during benign segments, to the serious expressions that effectively capture the emotion of what's being said. The dialogue is smooth and never hits the reader over the head with information, letting one easily slide into the story. The transition has lost none of the action from the anime, with Lelouch's bold proclamations and rebellious actions, tempered with the precarious peace Ashford Academy offers its students Lelouch, Nunnally, Kallen, Suzaku, Rivalz, and Milly. What has changed is the frankly annoying pandering to anime audiences, instead focusing on attracting fans of the series. No longer are female characters burdened by the weight of massive mammaries, and thus far poor Kallen has not been forced to expose herself to attract teenage viewers (although if that turns you on, I encourage you to watch the anime). Again, this serves to create a greater emphasis on the things that are the core of the story: political drama and the clash of philosophies. Fans of the anime will not be disappointed by the changes to the plot, which keep the content fresh while retaining that strong sense of righteous anger and dramatic posturing. New readers will be drawn to the story of Lelouch's dirty battle against the injustices his friends and family experience every day as a result of imperial Britannia. A definite thumbs up for manga fans.

A Great Start

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion 1 is definitely one of the fastest page turners that I have read. The book immediately launches the reader into the story and reveals essential details as they come along. It is fast paced storytelling at its best. The story basically follows the two intertwined stories of Lelouch (royal blood) and Suzaku (honorary Britannia) as they live in this Area 11 (Japan that was taken over by Britannia). Lelouch is imbued with a power from an unknown woman and he makes a promise to destroy Britannia to make the world a better place. Suzaku is on a different storyline and seems to be on a path to be in leagues with a scientist who works with the empire. There is also one more character, Kallen who is half Japanese and half britannian, who is in leagues with a resistance force. Her and Lelouch have multiple run ins. With this setup of positions and characters, it will be interesting to see where they end up in the next volume The art design is quite appropriate however in the afterword, it could be done better in the next volume as the author seems to imply (ie inconsistencies with the character details and designs). Ultimately this one ends in a sort of psuedo cliffhanger which leaves us dying to know what happens in the next book. Pros -Read in the traditional manga format -Few characters make it easy to see their motives and follow them -Fast pacing never bores the reader -Borders on the line of science fiction and military/rebellion relations -Nice artwork Cons -Really fast paced, most people will read it through in less than 2 hours -A few murky parts make for rereading of several previous panels a few times -Ending leaves you dying for the next novel! Ultimately a great first entry in the series and one that wont be soon forgotten. The most of the Code Geass anime that I have seen was part of the first episode and this one helped explain many of the details that were confusing to me in that episode. This is an awesome book series and I cant wait for more books to come out. A must have for anyone 13 and up.

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I did watch the anime first. The book follows it well enough. The art is just wonderful! This one didn't take me very long to read, read it a few more times (as I have watched the anime at least three times over) I really can't wait to get my hand on the next.

Faboulos

One of the main reasons I hate ordering books online is that you can't see the physical condition that they are in before you buy them. This book was pristine! I will definately order from here again! Thanks!

Review for both.

This is the manga adaption for the anime, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion. For the people who watched the anime, you'll be able to follow along well because you already know beforehand the events. But unfortunately, for those who haven't seen the anime and heard of this title in some other way, this is fast pace and confusing at times. Regardless of that, this is a pretty good read. There's some funny jokes...sort of. Its a good try. The art isn't Clamp, but another just as equally appealing style that gives the characters more of a cuteness in a way. Yes, Lelouch is cute. Actually, the art is probably the best thing about this adaption in my opinion. BUT! Regardless of that, for those who want to take the awesomeness that is Code Geass along with them or want to get into the series, buy this. Its still pretty good.