Forum - View topicREVIEW: Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion DVD 1-2
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Mysticmidnightmaiden
Posts: 123 Location: California (Bay Area) |
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... I think the thing that put me off the most about JYB's Lelouch was that I expected a "different" voice for him. Something very meldramatic, like an anime fan with a booming voice whining over their Olympics-preempted weekly taping. (TiVo failed me not just once, but two weekends in a row...
 ) Since I watch Code Geass right after Bleach, it's hard not to make the comparisons with both of JYB's roles. I'm sure it the same for many other fans...
I must say, though, JYB can ACT. He may sound off, but he know what he's doing. FukuJun may have the voice, but he sounds like an overzealous fandubber in some of his scenes. Maybe the director didn't tell him to lay off the cheesiness enough, if at all. Some cheese is good, but too much gives me a stomachache or constipation... |
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babbo
Posts: 274 |
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I agree with quite a bit of the review. But the review on JYB's acting is way off. He totally lost the character. The Japanese VA won multiple awards the role. JYB could have at best, hoped to have emulate his performance. I just didn't really see the villainy. Or any real melodrama. Say what you want, but that is a key aspect of lelouche's character that is plenty evident throughout the first 9 eps. As for suzaku not dying, I'm confused. Did anyone bother to keep watching after that? A pocket watch (in an effort to not spoil I won't mention whose it was since I can't remember if it was mentioned that early on) he had blocked the shot >.>
Ichigo and Lelcouh are incredibly different characters. VA's are supposed to be able to adjust to a role. I don't think he would have accepted the role if he didn't think he could do it (he has said he's quitting voice acting after all; he might not even be doing the second season of CG). The simple fact is that he did not do so, to me that doesn't say much good about his talents as a VA or any kind of actor for that matter. |
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BleuVII
 Posts: 672 Location: Tokorozawa, Japan |
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Babbo, to be fair to Sunrise, in the scene that you posted above, Lelouche purposely made an illegal move just to see how Prince Schneizel would react. Or was it the other way around? I can't remember.
Anyway, I took this show seriously the first season, until I realized what a grand mistake that was to do. When I started the second season, I thought, "Man... why do I keep watching this?" and yet I would tune in every week. When I finally made the connection that the series was supposed to redefine the word "bombastic," I started appreciating it for what it was. I mean [MASSIVE season 2 spoilers] spoiler[Lelouche Vi Britannia, the 99th Emperor of Britannia? And let's not forget that it turns out that Sayoko was actually a ninja in disguise. I love it!] |
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Xanas
Posts: 2058 |
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I think we are using the word in different manners here. I'm not referring to adjustments for acting, but adjustments to vocal quality. Not all VAs have a great deal of range and while that can restrict which characters they can play, it doesn't make them bad actors. Furthermore I'd say the VA should only "emulate" a performance of another VA if they can do so successfully. If this cannot be done due to difference of vocal qualities or other reasons, it is much more advantageous to create a new performance that stands on it's own merit. (It's worth mentioning that the expectations of the dub-listening audience are not always the same as that which watches fansubs). While I did not find JYB's performance to be awe inspiring, I did find it to appropriately convey the feelings of the character he was playing, and I think his base vocal qualities sound right for the character. I do not think JYB did a bad job. I wouldn't say he did nearly as good a job as Brad Swaile did as Light Yagami, or as well as he did in Trigun. But I think both of those were great performances and being less of that is far from bad, which seems to be what people are saying when they are talking about how JYB should quit now/etc. I mean, you go nearly so far as to question JYB's character for this performance? Even if it's not as good as the original it is not anywhere near that bad. |
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Big Hed
 Posts: 1607 Location: Melbourne, Australia |
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Babbo: Lol, nice motivational.
BleuVII: So, after nearly spoiling myself to hell from reading that first spoiler (I was sure they wouldn't be from an episode that just aired yesterday, but that's what I get for assuming), I went ahead and watched episode 21. Yeah, that one was about as insane as they come. I'm not making any predictions for what happens next. |
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Renaisance Otaku
 Posts: 469 Location: Modesto, CA |
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I really enjoy this show, and just picked up the boxset this weekend (got it signed by Liam O'Brian). Lelouch is actually quite likable, as he does have interesting, noble, if flawed, motivations. He also desperately tries to keep those he loves out of harms ways (unfortunately usually failing). I've listened to some of the dub, and while I greatly prefer the original (Emperor Wakamoto for the win), the dub's growing on me at least. The only things I don't like about it are some of the flat secondary characters (particularly a near bland Cecile), how some of the females sound similar, JYB's lack of theatrics (he makes a fine Lelouch, but a wretched Zero, part of the charm was the theatrics of the entire male royal family so this is a big one for me), and, unlike the reviewer, Kate Higgins as C.C. Maybe I haven't seen enough, but it appears that she goes the near emotionless, apathetic route, and sounds like she's reading the lines off a piece of paper, totally phoning it in. She's terrible in an otherwise decent cast. It just seems to lack the fun sarcasm and deadpan of Yukana. I love CC, but the English one is just blah.
I do like dub Cornelia and Shirley, which I didn't expect to, as I wasn't fond of McGlynn as the Major and didn't like what I was hearing about Shirley (maybe it helped that I first heard her in Stage 12). They're easily my favorites. The cast works a bit better on the Drama CD I've noticed. |
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Top Gun
 Posts: 4593 |
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I have to say, at least in my opinion, if JYB used a tone any more melodramatic than he has been, he'd just sound ****ing awful. He's been using plenty of bombast and over-the-top-ness without taking things to the point of ridiculousness. There's certainly been several times when he's sent chills up my spine with a particularly intense turn of phrase; if an actor's able to do that to me, I'm of the opinion that he's doing a pretty darn good job.
(Then again, I'm the sort of person who feels that a lot of Japanese actors have a penchant for going way too over-the-top with their roles, so take that as you will.) As for sounding too much like Ichigo...shouldn't a person using close to their normal voice playing a character who's the same age as another sound similar by definition? I've never seen anyone complaining that Steve Blum's Spike Spiegel sounded too much like Roger Smith sounded too much like Mugen (and if anyone did, they'd be deserving of nothing but derision anyway). It's the same concept here. Some actors simply have less tonal range than others, and even those that do (like Blum) often use a similar voice for multiple roles. If you can't get used to it, then maybe dubs just aren't for you. |
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Goodpenguin
Posts: 457 Location: Hunt Valley, MD |
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This was a show I was interested in seeing the reviews on, and one of those projects made for patented angry internet responses. I've said before that I often have trouble 'framing' where anime reviews are coming from, but this review was pretty well along with my impressions. On one hand I can understand why it's considered a Cadillac of 'Guilty Pleasure/Pure Entertainment' shows. On the other hand I absolutely loathe it, and only followed it (the first season) to see how far the political/anti-American tones would go (and fairly to note, the expressly anti-American material seemed to fade after the first few episodes).
'Code Geass' is like a bubbling stew pot filled with every 'LCD' anime trope set to maximum (which doesn't preclude a show from being fun). Preening protagonist, angsty melodrama, oddly placed screwball comedy, under-written and over-blown plots/dialogue, bizarre 'Western' names/cultural understanding, etc., all jammed together to make a patchwork Frankenstein's monster of a popular anime hit. The one 'LCD' feature I liked of it was that the fan-service tended towards the old-school busty/curvy variety rather than more modern/'Moe' style, but that also seems to be one of the biggest standard complaints over the show. Verist wrote:
Actually those two shows make a good contrast along those lines. 'Gurren Lagan' takes a rather basic 'narrative', but executes it in a rather endearing, energetic manner that brings out the best elements of the series. 'Code Geass' uses what would be, 'on paper', a much more 'heavy' script, but it employs it to a much more 'OMG!!!' teen appeal effect. I'd argue, in the big-picture, it's 'Code Geass' that's got the more 'juvenile' narrative. |
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nightjuan
 Posts: 1473 |
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Setting loathing aside, watching a series for that reason is a bit outside of my own interests, but I would say that those tones were always more against certain policies than against "America/ns" per se, arguably. Sometimes that distinction isn't clear and maybe that wasn't what you meant, but polices are not countries, countries are not policies.
I wouldn't say that Gurren Lagann isn't pretty juvenile or full of "OMG!!!" teen appeal of its own though, which isn't always an inherently bad thing...but it does in fact have a better execution, overall, even if I think Code Geass isn't that lacking in energy and actually some genuinely good elements, especially its first season. Not that you need to agree. |
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Goodpenguin
Posts: 457 Location: Hunt Valley, MD |
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nightjuan wrote:
Saying that the show featured commentary on policies is giving it way too much credit in terms of subtlety/scope. Very right-wing Japanese views are no stranger to the mecha genre 'Code Geass' comes from, and anime (or the Japanese culture in general) isn't a form whose past features much in the way (exception with shows like 'Paranoid Agent', etc.) of very nuanced political/social examination. 'Code Geass' had such an over-the-top beginning that it was controversial even in Japan, forcing the creators to come out with sometimes conflicting statements on what the undertones 'really meant'. I'll stress again that in the big picture the whole (hyper overt) 'Nippon Banzai forever' act fades into the background very quickly. It honestly strikes me as just another maximumly cranked fan-pander element that was stuffed in early. In essence that's why I watched the first series, I wasn't angrily scribbling notes to complain about later, I just wanted to see what over-the-top political themes they'd pull out later, and nothing really came close to what was shown early. It's so lamely done, and somewhat forgotten quickly, it's not really worth getting worked up over. It is somewhat odd in a medium in which fans can argue for hours over the 'deeper meaning' of a throw-away split-second frame filler in a show like Eva, that often they'll go to ridiculous contortions of logic to explain away the somewhat blatant sexism, racism, xenophobia, etc. you'll occasionally find in anime (said in general, not aimed at previous poster). |
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nightjuan
Posts: 1473 |
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I've read about that before, and it's entirely possible that some of the staff members might have had certain intentions that others did not share, one way or another, or which they later modified. I'd have to peek into their minds to find out for sure. I didn't actually say that it was intended as a strict "commentary" on policies, much less a nuanced or serious one at that, but the point is that I don't think it's trying to be "Anti-American" for the sake of being against America in general, the country or its population for that matter, when the negative aspects mostly concern said policies (or simplistic perceptions of them and their effects), and even those are not exclusive to America, whether it's in history or just popular fiction. The fact that, like you said, the worst offenders fade relatively quickly into the background (and I'd even say that, many other things aside, the show actually ends up giving precedence to personal rather than nationalistic motivations, for the most part), while it can be considered to be sloppy in its own right, is probably also a sign of the above from my point of view. |
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dtm42
Posts: 14084 Location: currently stalking my waifu |
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If anything, Code Geass is pro-American. Perhaps not "pro-George Walker Bush's America", but the good America that we all miss. The America of Jefferson, Lincoln, FDR and JFK.
I won't spoil anything, but go and watch the end of season one, and episode 16 of season two. Then you'll see just how much Sunrise loves America. |
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 18218 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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One can love and prefer dubs and still be bothered by this. Besides, I've occasionally noticed this in seiyuu performances, too. (And yes, I'm one of those people who have previously commented that too many of Steve Blum's roles sound too much alike, especially earlier in his career. The last 2-3 years he has made a much greater effort to vary his voice and delivery a lot more; Naruto's Orochimaru is an especially good example of this.) |
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prime_pm
 Posts: 2338 Location: Your Mother's Bedroom |
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I'm not certain about the dubbing. JYB is kinda good as Lelouch, I've got little to complain about. Yuri Lowenthal has always delivered a solid performance. And the girl playing Nunnally...well, let's just say spoiler[I'm looking forward to R2's episode 19].
But, the reason I can't listen to the Japanese version anymore is Liam O'Brian as Lloyd. He is comical every time he starts talking. Love it. So, I may be in a different direction everyone else takes. Last edited by prime_pm on Wed Sep 03, 2008 11:14 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Big Hed
Posts: 1607 Location: Melbourne, Australia |
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Not in my corner; I totally agree. I also agree with your comments on the rapidly-fading nature of Code Geass' "anti-American sentiments". Honestly, I didn't even notice it in the first place, and I find it hard to see how anybody could be offended by what little "anti-Americanism" is (maybe) there. Strictly speaking, Britannia does not represent the U.S.A., anyway; it represents England/Great Britain. I mean really, who would've thought? Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar  Although, to be fair, that little fact is never explicity stated in the series -- it's only found in the back story on the internet.
As dtm42 said, Code Geass is actually pro-American, if anything. Again though, to be fair, that hasn't come up yet in [as]'s run.
That's...cold 
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