Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion (コードギアス 反逆のルルーシュ Kodo Giasu: Hangyaku no Rurushu) is an anime television series created by Sunrise. Directed by Gorō Taniguchi and written by Ichirō Ōkouchi, both of whom had earlier worked on the series Planetes, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion features original character designs by Clamp.
The first season of the series premiered across Japan on MBS from October 5, 2006, and concluded its run on July 28, 2007, after running for 25 episodes. A second season and sequel to the series, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R2 (コードギアス 反逆のルルーシュR2 Kodo Giasu Hangyaku no Rurushu Aru Tsu), premiered on MBS and TBS on April 6, 2008 and concluded on September 28, 2008. Both seasons have won several awards at the Tokyo International Anime Fair, Animage Anime Grand Prix, and Animation Kobe event.
Both seasons of Code Geass have been licensed for release in the United States and Canada by Bandai Entertainment, and the first season began airing on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim programming block in the U.S. on April 27, 2008; the second began airing on November 2, immediately following the first season. In Australia and New Zealand, the series is licensed by Madman Entertainment, and began airing on Australian channel ABC2 from January 19, 2009.
On August 10, 2010, a.t.b., the Holy Empire of Britannia overpowered Japanese forces and conquered the country with their new, powerful, robotic weapons, the Knightmare Frames, in less than a month. In the aftermath of Britannia's invasion, Japan lost its freedom, its rights, and even its name, becoming Area 11 of the Britannian Empire. The Japanese people, renamed as "Elevens", are forced to survive in poor neighborhoods, while Britannians live in first-class settlements. Rebel elements persist, however, as pockets of Japanese organizations struggle against the Empire for the independence of Japan.
After his father, the Emperor of Britannia, failed to prevent the assassination of his mother, an attack which also left his sister blind and crippled, the young prince Lelouch vowed to destroy Britannia. Seven years later, he accidentally becomes mixed up with "terrorists" in Area 11 and encounters a mysterious girl named C.C., who gives him the power of Geass. With it, he finally has the power that he needs to defeat Britannia and fulfill his two wishes: to seek revenge for his mother and to construct a world in which his beloved sister Nunnally can live happily.
Code Geass officially premiered on the Mainichi Broadcasting System (MBS) television network at 25:25 JST on October 5, 2006. Its satellite television premiere across Japan on Animax was on November 7, 2006. Upon the airing of the first 23 episodes, the series went on hiatus on March 29, 2007, and completed broadcast of the first series with a contiguous one-hour broadcast of episodes 24 and 25 at 26:25 JST on Saturday, July 28, 2007. In the United States, the dubbed version was first broadcast on Adult Swim on April 27, 2008 at 1:30 AM ET. As of September 13, 2008, Adult Swim has broadcasted the show at 2:00 AM ET. The last episode of the first season was aired on October 26, 2008 at 5:00 AM ET on Adult Swim. In the Philippines, the Filipino dub started airing on November 10 2008 at 7:30pm PST on TV5. In Australia, the English dub started airing on 12 January, 9:30's on Mondays on ABC2, replacing Death Note's previous time slot.
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R2 premiered on MBS and TBS at 17:00 JST on April 6, 2008. Prior to the series' television broadcast, three private preview screenings of episode 1 were held on March 15 and March 16 in Osaka and Tokyo respectively, which was attended by the series' seiyu as well as a pool of 3800 randomly selected applicants. The series has been distributed online via streaming video on the Japanese internet website Biglobe. It is also viewable in English on Adult Swim Video.
On April 15, 2008, at 17:00 JST, the last 6 minutes of the then unaired third episode, Turn 3, was uploaded onto a video sharing website. The Code Geass Production Committee subsequently posted an explanation on the matter the following day on the official Code Geass website on April 16, 2008, clarifying the portion had been accidentally posted onto the Internet due to an error by Bandai Channel, Bandai Namco's online broadcast channel, which is responsible for its online distribution, when, in the midst of testing a system preventing illegal online uploads, Bandai Channel accidentally posted the portion onto the Internet. The Production Committee then confirmed that Turn 3 was scheduled to air, as usual on April 20, 2008 at 17:00 JST.
At the 2007 Otakon anime convention, Bandai Entertainment announced that they had licensed Code Geass for North American distribution, with a television broadcast confirmed. On December 8, 2007, Bandai announced at the 2007 New York Anime Festival that Code Geass would air in the United States on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim network from the spring of 2008. In addition to the scheduled television broadcast, Bandai also announced that each of the three manga adaptations, the light novel, and official Code Geass merchandising such as jackets, bracelets, notebooks, pendants, and other products would be released in the region. The first two volumes were released on DVD on August 5 separately titled as volume 1 and 2, or combined as part 1. The next were released on December 9, 2008 as volumes 3 and 4, or combined as part 2.
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