Code Geass 24, Moribito 08

Code Geass 24

The Collapsing Stage

Well, Adult Swim doesn't have anything up about this episode, so I guess it's up to me to summarize. Yippie, I love summarizing. Basically,

The war has started between the Black Knights and the Britannian Empire, with all of Ashford Academy stuck in the middle. Zero has decided to use the school as his base of operations, in an attempt to keep his sister safe, while Princess Cornelia and Suzaku look to avenge Euphemia's death. Meanwhile, C.C. seems to know far more than she lets on, and the mysterious V.V. seems to have his own agenda...

So, yeah... On to the review.

Overall, the episode was great. Even Shirley, who has had both high points and low points during this series, did well. She managed to sound reassuring, and also confused. I'm glad she hasn't revealed Zero's identity. The other students sounded great as well, Rivalz sounded as manly as he could, and Milly showed both her concern and determination well.

Suzaku sounded downright furious, in a way we've never heard before. I wouldn't be surprised if he lost his voice after all of that. Lelouch didn't sound angry in the least, ever. What was an emotional battle between Kallen and Suzaku turned into little more than a game to Lelouch. His strategy completely annihilated Suzaku before the battle even began. And after taking care of that, he moved on to more important things while Suzaku continued to scream after him.

Nunally finally did something this episode, but her voice is always so monotone that it's a little hard to pass judgment. She never demonstrates any particularly strong emotions, so it's hard to know anything at all about her. It's as if her emotions have been sucked dry, and--while it is a bit annoying to hear--her character is rarely, if ever, put in situations that would inspire such fiery emotions.

I don't think there was a single thing about this episode that I disapprove of. Each character seemed to play their role well. The newest prince, whose name either wasn't mentioned or that I simply don't remember, sounded a little off but he had a handful of lines and wasn't too terribly important anyway. Next episode will be the end of the first season, and I cannot wait. I will be watching that episode in English first, and then for the sake of comparrison I will watch it in Japanese before posting my opinions. I would like to do something different for the final episode (although R2 begins airing right after the first season ends, so it's not as if the show is going to stop altogether or even take a small break).

Moribito 8

The Swordsmith

Balsa turns to an honorable swordsmith in hopes of repairing her spear, and her tragic past is revealed during the swordsmith's search for the truth.

Another episode lacking in action, but full of character depth. Most of the talking this episode, however, was by the swordsmith himself. Balsa and Chagum did speak on their way to see the man, but after that it was mostly the two of them hiding in silence while the old man spoke. Two of the soldiers from the imperial guard were also present, and spoke several times during the story. The short-haired man seemed to have a couple problems delivering his lines, but his companion spoke well.

The swordsmith himself told a very long story in a very melancholy style, but at times I found myself losing interest. It is hard to carry an episode almost entirely on one man's story, especially so when no images are used to drive home the point. While he was talking we watched him forge weapons, and every now and then we would watch Balsa's reaction. There were no flashbacks or anything to press the story past sheer conversation. But the episode wasn't bad, although it could have used some work. Maybe if the swordsmith seemed to have more emotion when he spoke, but I don't know if that would work well with the feel of the story. Hopefully the story will pick back up soon, because listening to stories is a little tiresome.

Gurren Lagann

Sadly, there was no Gurren Lagann aired last night. I'm unsure as to the reason why, and hope that this doesn't mean they plan to stop airing it completely.