Code Geass: Dakkan no Roze – Episode 05 & 06 Review

「光芒-Damocles-」 (Koubou -Damokuriizu-)
“Damocles”

「薫衣-Lavender-」 (Kaoru -Rabendaa-“)
“Lavender”

THE NEXT HAND

I was having a difficult time coming up with as much to say about Episode 05 since most of what makes it interesting is the aftermath that is played out in Episode 06. With the Anti-FLEIJA warheads taking out Neo Britannia’s missiles and the damage from Damocles’ controlled fall being slightly diminished, both sides are cooking up their next big move.

For Neo Britannia, things are looking a bit scary because they appear to have someone who is able to tell that Geass is a major component of the Black Knights’ many strategic victories. Contending with the knowledge that they have a fighter with Geass abilities is made all the more dangerous now that there’s a creepy guy named Walther who has a hunch of the Empress’ true identity. That one-two punch will likely be their strongest lead as far as coming back from their numerous defeats as of late.

ASH AWAY

I have a greater hunch though that a bulk of the conflict that might prove to be too difficult for Roze to handle tactfully is Ash. Ash is a ticking time bomb waiting to go off considering that he’s Norland’s stepson, has his childhood friend and Neo Britannian official Narah following him around, and has to carry conversations believing his brother is the current Roze. I can only imagine what fallout would come to the Black Knights in general if Ash unlocks enough of his past memories that he knows that he was brainwashed by Sakuya as part of a revenge plot.

And even the revenge plot isn’t certain anymore as Sakuya finds out that Ash is not personally responsible for her father Jugo’s death. This news would mean she’d have to scrap the entire revenge plot against Ash altogether, but also have to make sense of what Ash thinks of her. She’d have to stay as Roze near him because he developed a major crush on Raspberry, who is also Sakuya, so even if he could normally react to Roze being Sakuya, he’d definitely feel conflicted about Roze being Raspberry.

This is also under the assumption that Sakuya would even consider dropping her mask considering that Ash’s feelings for Raspberry are also conflicting for her. She starts seeing Ash in a different light knowing he has a huge crush on a girl he could never learn the truth about.

Add into the pot that Ash isn’t her father’s killer, and it almost seems like she’s trying to give herself permission to see Ash in a kinder light than before. It’ll be extremely dangerous if Sakuya has actually caught feelings for Ash because of his Raspberry affection, especially if she expects to keep her composure during the upcoming missions where she’ll be tussling with some of Ash’s old friends and colleagues.