Lelouch Lamperouge

Lelouch Lamperouge
Code Geass character
File:CODE GEASS R2 - 01 - Large 36.jpg Lelouch Lamperouge
In-universe information
Alias	Lelouch Vi Britannia (real name) Black Prince Zero King of Elevens (by Gino Weinberg)
Nickname	Lulu
Gender	Male
Occupation	Ashford Academy Student Order of the Black Knights leader Burai Pilot Gawain Pilot Shinkirō Pilot
Relatives	Charles Di Britannia (Father) Marianne Vi Britannia (Mother, deceased) Nunnally Vi Britannia (Sister) Odysseus U Britannia (Half-brother) Schneizel El Britannia (Half-brother) Cornelia Li Britannia (Half-sister) Clovis La Britannia (Half-brother, deceased) Euphemia Li Britannia (Half-sister, deceased) Rolo Lamperouge (False-brother)
Nationality	Britannian

Lelouch Lamperouge (ルルーシュ・ランペルージ, Rurūshu Ranperūji) is the Byronic protagonist and anti-hero of the Sunrise anime series Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion. Lamperouge is his assumed surname, while his real name is Lelouch Vi Britannia (ルルーシュ・ヴィ・ブリタニア, Rurūshu Vi Buritania), son of the Britannian Emperor. His seiyū is Jun Fukuyama, and his child self is voiced by Sayaka Ohara. His English dub voice is provided by Johnny Yong Bosch with Michelle Ruff doing Lelouch's child voice.

He was chosen the most popular male character of 2006 and 2007 at Animage magazine's annual Anime Grand Prix. His seiyū Jun Fukuyama also won the "Best Actor in a Leading Role" award for his portrayal of the character at the first Seiyū Awards in 2007.

Character planning history

While first designing the concept art design for Lelouch, the series's original character designers CLAMP had initially conceived of his hair color as being white. Ageha Ohkawa, head writer at CLAMP, said she had visualized him as being a character to which "everyone" could relate to as being "cool", literally, a "beauty". During the early planning stages for Lelouch's alter ego, Zero, CLAMP had wanted to create a mask never witnessed prior in any Sunrise series. While developing the character during the initial planning stages, the series' core staff at Sunrise, director Gorō Taniguchi, writer Ichirō Ōkouchi, and the production team discussed numerous possible influences for the character with CLAMP, such as Kinki Kids and Tackey and Tsubasa.

Character outline

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Lelouch as a child, when he was a prince of Britannia

Lelouch is the son of the Emperor of Britannia, Charles Di Britannia, and the late Imperial Consort Marianne, making Lelouch a prince and a member of the Britannian Imperial Family. He was the eleventh prince and seventeenth in line for the throne prior to his mother's assassination and his sister's crippling in the same incident. A 10-year-old Lelouch confronted the Emperor afterwards and accused him of leaving his mother defenseless, even going as far as renouncing his entitlement to the throne. In response, his father declared him stripped of his status as prince and banished him to Japan, where he was used as a political hostage over the Sakuradite conflict.

It was during his stay at the Kururugi household that he first met Suzaku Kururugi, with whom the young Lelouch did not interact initially in a friendly manner, before later becoming friends. However, when Britannia finally developed its Knightmare Frames fleet and decided to invade Japan to seize control of the Sakuradite mines, consequently discarding Lelouch's use as a diplomatic tool, Lelouch, fearing for his and his sister's safety, hid their true identities and sought the help of the Ashford family, who were his mother's allies.

His mother's death and his father's apparent lack of concern in regards to it were huge blows to Lelouch. He always felt that it was unfair for both his mother and sister, and therefore made it his goal to pursue a better world for Nunnally. He also seeks to discover the true reason for his mother's death, as she was murdered in the Aries Imperial Palace, a place terrorists would be unlikely to penetrate successfully without being noticed, if at all.

Zero

File:Code Geass - Lelouch of the Rebellion R2 - 06 069 0002.jpg

Lelouch as Zero

Shortly after gaining the power of Geass from C.C., Lelouch assumes the secret identity Zero (ゼロ), a mysterious, masked revolutionary dressed in a black helmet and cloak. In this guise, he forms the Order of the Black Knights, initially composed of the members of Kallen Stadtfeld's resistance group. The goal of this vigilante group is a campaign against powerful individuals who oppress the helpless, which he eventually expands into reforming Japan as an independent nation.

Lelouch is willing to do whatever it takes to accomplish his goal, even if it means lying to his followers and using people as bait for the outcome he desires. However, he has trouble putting those he is close to in harms way for the sake of his goal, which is a weakness as a commander but a remnant of his humanity and sanity. His feelings for Nunnally in particular often hinders his plans, particularly at the end of the first season, where he abandons a massive war with Britannian forces to rescue her. Gradually, however, he has come to embrace the fact that he has to destroy before reconstruction can occur, even if it means harming those he cares about.

Originally, the sole purpose of Lelouch's rebellion was to avenge his mother's death and construct an ideal world where his sister Nunnally can live in peace. However, his friends help him to realize that his rebellion is no longer just for Nunnally after she becomes Governor of Area 11.

Character history

First season

Lelouch is introduced in the first episode of the series to be a student of the Ashford Academy high school, where he is a member of its student council. A brilliant thinker who is quite talented at chess, he lives with his younger sister, Nunnally, with their maid, Sayoko Shinozaki, at a house situated within the compounds of Ashford Academy, where they are looked after by the Ashford family.

Lelouch is soon swept into the conflict between the Britannia Empire and the pockets of resistance which oppose it when he accidentally boards a truck being used by Japanese resistance operatives. Within the truck is a capsule holding C.C., who sacrifices herself to save him from the military forces trying to recapture her. When it seems as if her sacrifice was pointless, C.C. suddenly touches his hand and offers him the "Power of the King", the mythical power of Geass. The Geass manifests itself in him as the power of absolute obedience, which allows him to make people obey his orders without question. He uses this power to order the Britannian soldiers to kill themselves in his name.

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Lelouch (Zero) in the middle with the Order of Black Knights

With his new power, Lelouch begins his rebellion against the Empire, starting by killing his half-brother, Clovis, after extracting information about the murder of his mother, Marianne. He later forms the the Order of the Black Knights and takes up the identity of Zero to lead them, becoming a revolutionary and gaining popular support amongst the people.

The turning point in his rebellion comes when Euphemia Li Britannia declares the region under Mount Fuji the Special Administrative Zone of Japan, giving the Japanese people their name and country back, albeit in a much smaller area. This effectively destroys any possibility of the Black Knights' rebellion; acceptance would render them powerless and refusal would make them pariahs. Lelouch confronts her at the opening ceremony and tries to have her shoot him, hoping to make himself a martyr. When she says she plans to give up her title, he surrenders and agrees to work with her. However, at this moment his Geass permanently activates, and an offhand comment about ordering her to kill the Japanese forces her to do just that. Lelouch is forced to kill Euphemia to end the ensuing massacre, but in doing so becomes a hero of the people. Using this newfound support, Lelouch announces the creation of the United State of Japan and is able to lead an attack on the Tokyo Settlement. The attack goes well at first, but when Lelouch learns that Nunnally has been kidnapped, he abandons the battle, leaving his forces helpless against the much better organized Britannian forces.

File:Code Geass Lelouch.jpg

Lelouch Lamperouge points his gun at Suzaku

Lelouch and C.C. make their way to Kaminejima to search for Nunnally, where Lelouch is confronted by Suzaku Kururugi. Lelouch attempts to broker a truce, but Suzaku is distraught over the death of Euphemia and refuses to listen. An angered Lelouch draws his pistol and both Lelouch and Suzaku attempt to shoot one another. A single gunshot is heard as the screen fades to black at the end of the first season.

Second season

One year later, Lelouch is living a peaceful life with his younger brother, Rolo Lamperouge, and no memory of his revolutionary activities, his Geass, Nunnally, his mother or his royal lineage. Flashbacks reveal that neither Suzaku or Lelouch managed to kill one another. Instead, Lelouch was apprehended and brought before the Emperor, who used his own Geass to wipe Lelouch's memories and suppress his power.

After being caught in an attack on Babel Tower by the Black Knights, Lelouch is reunited with C.C., who restores his memories. Lelouch resumes his role as the Black Knight leader, and once again announces the formation of the United State of Japan, this time basing his operations in the Chinese Federation's consulate to prevent any attacks by Britannian soldiers, since attacking the consulate would incite all out war with the Chinese Federation.

After learning that the new Viceroy of Area 11 is Nunnally, and that she plans to reestablish the Special Administrative Zone of Japan, Lelouch falls into depression since his Black Knights would be impeding her wishes. He nearly begins taking Refrain before Kallen stops him. With the help of Kallen and his friends at the Ashford Academy, Lelouch realizes that his mission no longer revolves solely around Nunnally, but concerns the rest of the Japanese people as well. Lelouch declares that the Black Knights will support the Special Administrative Region of Japan and manages to negotiate a deal with the Britannians: if Zero can provide one million Japanese people willing to participate in the Special Administrative region, they will exile him from Japan. The Britannians, thinking that Zero is attempting to save himself by sacrificing his men, agree to the deal. However, during the opening ceremony, Lelouch tricks the Britannians and takes advantage of a loophole in the deal. Because nobody knows Zero's true identity, Lelouch has all one million Japanese participants dress up as Zero. Suzaku, unwilling to go back on his word and start another massacre, allows all one million Japanese, including Lelouch, to escape to the Chinese Federation. Suzaku promises Zero that he will take care of the Japanese who wish to stay in Area 11. In order to prevent his idenity being discovered, someone is currently impersonating Lelouch in Ashford Academy.

In china, Lelouch planned to somehow capture Luoyang in order to gain the power needed to defeat Britannia, but a political marriage between Tian Zi and first prince of Britannia forced him to hasten his plan, beginning with the kidnapping of Tianzi. He had proposed his United States alliance to Tianzi, telling her that is the only way to protect against Britannia. When Tian-zi pointed out that China is currently is a Federation, Lelouch reminded her that system can changed, and she herself was sold out by the enunches.

Abilities

Geass

File:CodegeassR20134LG-1-.jpg

Lelouch Lamperouge with Geass permanently active.

Lelouch's Geass, bestowed upon him by C.C., gives him "the power of absolute obedience," allowing him to plant commands within a person's mind upon eye contact in a manner comparable to hypnosis. Activation of his Geass is visually represented by the manifestation of a Geass sigil in his left eye. Commands dictated in this state are written into the minds of the designated targets once the sigil projects from his eye to theirs. Lelouch could initially toggle Geass activation at will, but subsequently loses this control to an affliction known as Geass runaway (ギアス暴走, giasu bouzou). In the second season, C.C. gives Lelouch a contact lens that blocks his Geass. She indicates that his Geass will continue to grow in strength, and that the lens will eventually be rendered ineffective.

Of all the Geass abilities in the series, Lelouch's has been explored the most, and also seems to have the most restrictions of any Geass introduced. The following parameters for its use have been established:

• Commands must be issued verbally.
• The victim must make direct eye contact for commands to be issued. The maximum effective distance is 270 meters. Line of sight via a reflective surface is sufficient for the effect to occur.
• Commands may be issued only once to any given individual, but any number of commands may be issued at initial application so long as eye contact is unbroken. Multiple conditional commands may be issued to create a command chain that branches into different patterns of behavior based on circumstances encountered by the subject.
• The victim will not perform any action disallowed by their physical or mental capabilities, though they will try to carry out the command to the best of their ability. For example, a victim will not be able to correctly answer a question they don't know the answer to, but will direct the user to someone who can if they are able. However, commands that affect the mind or consciousness, such as telling the victim to forget something, will take effect despite the fact that the victim could not normally force themselves to do so.
• An action will be carried out for as long as dictated in its command, or upon the indicated conditional circumstance. Eye contact does not need to be maintained for command execution to occur. No upper limit has been established, but the conditional command Lelouch gives Suzaku is still in effect more than a year later.
• The victim will retain no memories from the duration of command issue and execution.
• As demonstrated in Princess Euphemia's response to the command that she kill the Japanese, a victim may resist a commanded action to some degree if it is utterly repugnant to them.
• So long as the above conditions are met, commands may be issued to anybody besides C.C. and to any number of individuals at once. The user himself may also be commanded.

Intellect

Even without his Geass, Lelouch is a formidable opponent. He is highly intelligent, possessing a genius-level intellect, and is capable of devising and executing strategies with incredible speed and precision. The series repeatedly demonstrates Lelouch's mental acuity; in episode 14, when Mao says C.C.'s name, Lelouch instantly comes up with fourteen different possibilities for Mao's identity, including the correct one. In the audio dramas, Suzaku says that, when they were children, Lelouch devised a secret sign language containing over 500 words. In episode 17, Lelouch proves his tactical ability by predicting the Lancelot's actions exactly through his study of their past battles, allowing Kallen and the Four Holy Swords to almost defeat the Lancelot (only Suzaku's reflexes saved his life).

Lelouch is also charismatic and persuasive, even without his Geass. As Zero he is able to win the support of much of Japan's population through well-delivered speeches combined with his ability to make "miracles" in almost any situation through his superior tactical planning. Mao also repeatedly praises Lelouch's persuasive talent.

Physical

Physically, Lelouch is underwhelming. He possesses the physical prowess of a teenager who engages in little to no strenuous physical activity. Thus, one of Lelouch's traits is the inability to run very fast or for any substantial period of time. Within the series, this is usually played for comedic effect, as Lelouch is constantly outpaced by his classmates in every situation, and even the most simple tasks requiring manual labor exhaust him before he manages to accomplish anything significant. The manga adaptation of the series similarly features Lelouch attempting an acrobatic feat in an attempt to show up Suzaku, only to cause both of them to land face-first in the dirt. In the second season, the series takes this character trait to its logical conclusion by revealing that Lelouch typically avoids attending gym class.

Lelouch has shown prowess in cooking and probably housework (since it was revealed that he possessed a manual for housekeeping). He is usually the one cooking the food for parties held by the Student Council, if only because the others are inept. In a picture drama, he is shown describing the food he cooked for Nunnally.

File:Codegeass2239LG-1-.jpg

The Gawain.

Lelouch also has some skill with firearms, usually brandishing a Britannian pistol when threatening someone. His Knightmare piloting skill has been shown to be proficient but not exceptional; he is a capable pilot by himself, though he tends to be overwhelmed by Suzaku and other pilots with more advanced Knightmares at their disposal. When co-piloting the Gawain with C.C., with Lelouch controlling the weapons and command functions while C.C. handles navigation and flight, the two display overwhelming offensive power, primarily due to the huge advantage the twin Hadron Cannons give them. When Lelouch pilots a standard Knightmare on the battlefield, he is typically accompanied by Kallen, who is an elite Knightmare pilot and the leader of his personal squad, Squad Zero.

Appearances in other media

In Code Geass: Lost Colors, the video game for the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable, there are a few endings and clips of Lelouch that involves the main character, Rai. If the player decides to use Rai's Geass on Suzaku to make him join the Order of the Black Knights, Lelouch becomes angry, having wanted Suzaku to join him of his own accord, and uses his Geass to put Rai into an eternal sleep, resulting in a game over.

See also

• List of Code Geass characters