Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion - Stage 0: Entrance

コードギアス 反逆のルルーシュ (Novel) #1

by Mamoru Iwasa, Goro Taniguchi

少年們的友情，被紅蓮戰火所包圍了…過去曾稱作日本的這個國家，如今是在神聖不列顛帝國的統治之下。而這場悲劇，就從身為皇子卻對帝國發動謀叛的少年魯路修，與他的好友兼對敵樞木朱雀的相遇開始！

Genres: Manga, Light Novel, Science Fiction, Fiction, Anime, Comics, Asian Literature

200 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2007

About the author

岩佐まもる

Reviews

[Hamda · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all I'll have to say that this book was actually one of the first Japanese light novels I read that was this well translated! Another thing I enjoyed reading this even when I haven't yet watched the whole anime. This book put me back on hype to finish this anime as it's a prequel that tells the back story of the main anime characters. I'd recommend reading this even if you never heard of the anime cause it's that good.

[713 Takara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a novel in case you were thinking. also this one had confused me at first but then I understood what it was trying to tell. I was telling the story of there past and how somethings led up to the next. It was a good book and really clears up a few things.

[Khallandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some background to Lelouch and Suzaku and their childhood is explored which is very cute and a welcome addition to the universe.

[Lindsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't care what anybody says about this being more fanfiction than novel; I enjoy the interpretatio of the characters' younger selves and the foreshadowing.

[Eli · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5/5 stars.

I’m emo.

First of all, I’m reading this having finished watching the whole anime a second time. So all the feels and pain are fresh wounds.
Second of all, finding an actual physical copy of the first three books was hard and I couldn’t even find a copy of the last two books that was within my price range so I probably won’t be reading those two any time soon.

But, let’s get into the review.

I loved that we really got to see the birth of the friendship between Suzaku and Lelouch. Many things about this book broke my heart. I’ll make a list of every time my heart broke within my chest in a minute.

We really get to see the depth of the bond and Lelouch and Suzaku make despite the fact that basically everything, tells them they shouldn’t be friends. And at first, they did banter a lot… constantly. Lelouch and Suzaku don’t get along at first for their own reasons, mostly prejudices and flat-out distrust. Not to mention their respective empires were hostile with one another. Lelouch’s own father, Charles didn’t help him when his mother Marianne was murdered. As a result of the traumatic experience, his sister Nunnally, went blind and was no longer able to walk. So, having his own father turn his back on his own kids, when they needed him most, led Lelouch to have trust issues, which is understandable. He also knew that being a prince meant conflict would naturally find him. Suzaku hears people around him talk smack about Britannians and how they’re horrible and how Lelouch and Nunnally are invaders. At first, yeah, he’s hesitant to befriend them especially considering he’s never had a friend.

So, we have these two boys with emotional constipation like you’ve never seen before. And the bridge that helps them be a little friendlier to each other, is the wonderful all superior Nunnally. aka the sweetest girl. They both make it very clear that they want Nunnally to be safe, she is very frail and she needs support, and her older brother and his best friend are the only ones who can ensure her safety.

Suzaku starts to show that he cares in his own way. Is it the fondest? No. Do we care? No. Let Suzaku live.

Lelouch sort of starts to feel comfort when Suzaku interacts with Nunnally. He’s glad that his sister can feel safety and security around someone else beside him. He’s especially grateful that he’s found a solution to an emerging and serious problem. Nunnally tended to become destructive when her brother’s not around due to the dependency she has on him. Not having him around for even a little while, breaks her down. And you know what else that breaks down? My heart. Because I cannot deal.

Suzaku is pretty much out here, protecting Lelouch and Nunnally left and right. Until, one day, after they’re surrounded. Lelouch decides he does not want to leave Suzaku behind with the enemy, so he goes back. And here we sort of see it become clear that Suzaku is the impulsive one with the best physical abilities while Lelouch is level-headed and better at strategies. In other words, they’re an iconic duo. They are able to defeat their enemy by working together. Mind you they’re both like ten years old.

Lelouch is pretty severely bullied and attacked for being a Britannian, and he doesn’t like to rely on others so he himself goes out to get fruits and such for Nunnally. Whenever he’s alone, he gets attacked. And the first time we see this happen, he’s crying. Lelouch is not crying because he is physically being attacked, he is crying because the pears he got for Nunnally were crushed. Do y’all-? Hello? That is the softest thing and the most pure thing. I had to stop reading for a split second, but it didn’t surprise me because Lelouch loves Nunnally more than he loves his own life. He’s made it clear that nothing is more important to him than his little sister is.
Anyway, Suzaku comes to the rescue. He’s the son of the Prime Minister, no one, and I mean NO ONE, is going to mess with Lelouch if Suzaku says don’t mess with Lelouch. They sort of reach this quiet agreement to have Suzaku accompany Lelouch whenever he goes out. Suzaku says the only reason he does this is so Nunnally doesn’t worry, but we all know it’s also because Suzaku cares about Lelouch. If only a little bit.

Lelouch and Suzaku banter a lot. But what’s a great friendship without some bantering excellence? *crickets*
That’s what I thought.

Suzaku is literally hesitant to call Lelouch his friend because he’s a) never had one and b) all he hears about Britannians is negative and it’s all political stuff this ten year old doesn’t fully comprehend. To which I say, let these three precious kids live.

One day, Suzaku overhears Todoh and his father discussing the fact that Genbu wants to kill Nunnally as part of a huge political strategy. Suzaku understands the breadth of his father’s greed. And he obviously doesn’t want his first two friends to be killed off. He doesn’t want a war to happen between his country and the country of his only friends.
So, what does Suzaku do? He kills his father.

Now, for the anime watchers, we knew Suzaku killed his father for the sake of trying to prevent war with Britannia. But, we hadn’t really had a whole scope of the situation. This novel really went in depth with just how much of a bastard Genbu Kururugi really is.
Oh wow, look at that, he and Charles both suck. Aha! Welcome to the sucky father’s club, enjoy a glass of expired lemonade, bitch.

Quick thing, and hear me out. ‪
Do y’all ever think about how Lelouch was severely bullied for being Britannian while he was in Japan as a child and Suzaku always defended him. Then when he’s older & sees Britannians attacking anyone who’s Japanese he defends them the same way Suzaku fought to defend him? Just thinking. ‬

So I thought the pain was over, I finished the novel, yay. But then I read the authors note and Jun Fukuyama’s commentary (Lelouch’s VA) and let me tell you I somehow, died inside even more.

Fukuyama discusses that Genbu’s act of trying to kill Nunnally for political strategy, is what essentially confirmed Lelouch going to the dark side, if you will, in the future.

Because of Charles’s greed and lack of empathy toward his own son and daughter, because of Genbu’s greed and lack of compassion to a child, they literally caused the death and pain of so many. They set in stone the future of their children, when they were just kids.
So, Charles and Genbu, I hope you guys are having a great time choking in hell.

Lelouch and Suzaku were able to become friends despite the fact that so many inherent things pulled them apart. They were able to overlook all of that and understand each other. In a sense, they were the last threads of innocence (including Nunnally) that had power in both the Britannian empire and Japan. And because of Charles and Genbu, these kids had to mature and do whatever they had to do to survive. Which of course comes with a price.
Lelouch literally promised to destroy his own father and an entire empire. And he had to be seen as the bad guy and do a lot of things that would stain his conscience forever, to fulfill that promise.
Suzaku had to kill his father and live with that for the rest of his life. And he coped with that by throwing himself into every fight even though he knew he would likely die.
If you think about it, it goes full circle and is extremely symbolic that Suzaku killed his father to not only prevent a war but to protect his friends. And that later on, the only reason why he survives again and again, is because Lelouch commands him to live with his Geass. I mean holy shit. The level of depth that knowing these details adds to the friendship and future rivalry between these two, is insane and honestly, beautiful. Fukuyama phrased it best, their friendship is cause and effect, destiny, fate.

All in all, this book really added to the overall story without straying from the content in the anime, it really enhanced the story we know well. I highly recommend reading this, especially if you’re a huge Code Geass fan, like I myself am. Maybe watch the anime after because knowing these details is extremely important to really grasping the kind of relationship that Suzaku and Lelouch have in the anime. We always knew they were close and trusted each other, even when they were at the peak of their rivalry. Even at the most tense moments of their enemy arc, Lelouch still trusted Suzaku with Nunnally’s life. And knowing the root of their friendship really just adds flavor to it all.

[Leylamaría · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes, Lelouch wondered why Suzaku stayed with him and Nunnally. He could’ve left them alone. He didn’t have to hang out with someone as cynical as Lelouch. Because staying with Lelouch didn’t hold any merit for Suzaku. Suzaku really had no reason to.

Lelouch hadn’t recognized it before. But actually, that was the exact thing he’d been seeking. When he’d lost his mother, and seen how his father truly was, that was what his hardened heart had wanted.

Lelouch was frustrated.

“I can’t lose him.”

—

THIS WAS. REALLY FUCKING GOOD WHAT THE ABSOLUTE HELL??????????????? THE CHARACTERIZATION WAS AMAZING ALSO THE SHEER LIKE LOVE STORY OF IT ALL. VERY FITTING AND UNSURPRISING BUT STILL JUST BATSHIT CRAZY

The patricide scene was legitimately difficult to read, too. And the scene with Nunna acting out, not even knowing what she’s doing. Suzaku telling Lelouch that when they’re old and wobbly, he wants to catch a red herring with Nunnally and Lelouch saying that that’s a good dream. The impending doom and the tragedy and the fact that it’s CC narrating. It HURTS!!!!! They were fucking KIDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THEY WERE FUCKING KIDS!!!!!!!!!!

The only stuff I don’t fully consider canon is the Genbu characterization bc I think the vagueness w which that’s treated in the show works better for Suzaku’s character. That being said it was. So fucking MUCH to read

[Mícheál · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, especially learning more about Lelouch, Nunally, and Suzaku's childhoods. It was interesting to see the parallels in their very different lives, and the bond Lelouch and Suzaku formed amidst their inability to trust others. It provided good backstory for the TV series. I enjoyed the stories in the flashbacks, and the setup for the events to come. The characterization was well done. The humor between Lelouch and Suzako cracked me up, especially the fishing scene. However, the short length made the book pretty bare -- I felt like it could have used a few more stories within it, rather than just the bare minimum. It felt like a collection of three short stories, and when it was over, I felt a tad jipped. Still worth the read, so I'm rating it four stars, however can't get over my disappointment with the length.

[Jorge Reyes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una obra que tuve mucho tiempo en la estantería y que me negaba a empezar, simplemente porque me sentía atraído a otras novelas ligeras, hasta que por fin tomé el primer libro y comencé.
Que grata sorpresa, de esas novelas que no puedes parar de leer, no pude mas qué acabar todos los tomos en un par de sentadas.
Con un inicio cuando menos curioso y una ilustración, a mi parecer, no tan brillante, algunos argumentos simplistas, la narrativa va cobrando sentido, y generando un gran poder conforme van avanzando las páginas e ideas, los matices y primeras pinceladas de los personas permiten no agotar, pero si interesar.
La entrada a la historia es intrigante, verdaderamente parece una cachetada con la cual terminar: ¿qué acaba de pasar?...

[★ · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I can't lose him. That was the only thought in his mind.”
“Why did Lelouch allow Suzaku into his heart? Why did they become friends?”
OH MY GOD CHILDHOOD SUZALULU
“‘One day, when we're wobbly and old, I want to catch a red
snapper with Nunnally.’”
WHAT YHE HELL IM SOBBING

also the fact kirihara literally told suzaku to kill himself OH MY GOOOOD

and the fact that suzaku was lonely, is lonely, and will always be lonely GAHHHHHH

[Acacia Weber · Rating 5 out of 5]

This hurt my heart. In the best way.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've never see Lulu written more OOC. Worse than some fanfiction

[Brandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've never watched the anime or read the manga, I was just looking for something that looked interesting and picked this off the shelf. In all brutal honesty, I don't think this book really makes it as a stand alone. There was little to no plot, and hardly any character development. The novel was especially short, and sounded more like a script rather than an actual novel. I felt cheated out of descriptions and felt no sympathy for the characters I couldn't relate to and didn't know well enough. It felt like an over extended prologue. Even so, I still gave this book a 3 star rating because over all it did entertain me within the three hours I read it in. I just hope that the other novels in this series will make up for the unsatisfied feeling I had at the end.

[Alexa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this in a pile of old manga, which was pretty awesome.
This is a lot better than the other novelization I read. This one gives more information of the summer they spent together as kids, and between this and the audio dramas, you can get a pretty clear picture of what happened then.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable read.

[Kei Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

I feel like these novels are like deleted scenes and I loved them!!!!

[Neil Profeta]

Okay

[Kaisa Mettille · Rating 2 out of 5]

NEVER READ OR BUY THIS BOOK IT DOSE NOT DO JUSTICE TO THE MANGA OR THE ANIME.