Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R2 - Episode 12

The concept of the 'filler' episode has become a staple part of any anime series of a reasonable length, but when it comes to Code Geass it's always hard to brand anything as filler for the exact reason seen here in episode twelve of R2. Quite simply, no matter how filler-esque an episode of this show may be, there are always just enough reasonably important things happening to make said episode a must watch.

So this theory is proved once again here - On the one hand, we see Lelouch having to deal with the fall-out from letting Sayako act as his double, in the form of a ridiculous number of dates with basically every girl in the school, a situation which only gets far, far worse when Milly announces 'Cupid's Day' to celebrate her last day before graduating. Cue the bulk of this episode involving silly hats and chases around Ashford Academy which may as well be set to Yakety Sax, with Lelouch the guy that every girl wants to grab the hat of so that they officially become a couple. Sadly, Suzaku is unable to attend, as I'm sure a few of us would be curious at the prospect of Lelouch and Suzaku swapping hats. Oh God, that sounds like a filthy euphemism for something.... Anyhow, this rather ridiculous premise did at least involve a couple of moments that made me smile, not least Rolo rather over-exerting himself in Geass'ing the whole school so that he could hide an immobilised Lelouch in a locker.


Aside from all that, we do get some very juicy additions to the main story in this episode - For starters, we finally see just what Cornelia is up to these days, and it's no surprise to see that it broadly involves vengeance for her sister Euphemia's death. Then there's Britannia's plans to invade the Chinese Federation. However, this all pales into comparison with the jaw-dropping "OH MY GOD" ending to the episode. I won't spoil it here for anyone who hasn't watched the episode yet, but we now know what the new-look Jeremiah is going to bring to the fight, and it could well make for all-out chaos. Indeed, it appears to have already had a huge potential effect on Lelouch's plans, but we shall have to see...

The problem with an episode like this is that, for all the brief moments that blow me away, I'm still left feeling like I've barely watched an episode of Code Geass at all. Still, I suppose I should at least be thankful that Milly's graduation should put a stop to stupid events at Ashford Academy, so that we can get on with the real business at hand.