Episode 9: Lelouch doesn’t know how to play Chess
Schneizel putting himself in check is one thing, calling “Checkmate” after doing so is another thing, and then having Lulu continue the match as though that move isn’t flagrantly illegal is something else entirely. I thought chess was some big analogy in this series, so what are they trying to say here?
All that aside, we get a brief look at the new Knightmares for the Black Knights, straight from India. One for Todo, one for Lelouch, and a bunch more for the rest of the crew. Having not seen them in action yet, I don’t care much to talk about them, especially when this was the following scene
We’re getting closer and closer to something on this front. I’d get angry about the teasing but I actually find it rather amusing. Though if there is any ridiculous sexual content in this season to match Nina’s happy fun time, I’m pulling for it to be between these two. Nothing like some good old fashioned canonical sex.
The rest of the episode is a mix of Nina development, where we get to see how much of a little racist bitch she can be (a really cute one though), and the pedo nature of the Brittanians as another one of Lulu’s older brothers prepares to marry Tian Zi. But everybody knows that Lulu gets the lolis, and this time he’s taking her by force.
Son of a bitch. I know he has no intention of harming her, but c’mon. Even I think he’s going too far here. She was so happy to see Xing Ke a moment ago and now you’ve made her cry. Hopefully Forehead-chan will comfort her in the next episode, and then someone will make a doujin out of it.
And Orange-kun is back! It’s about damn time. Not only is he ready to kick some ass, but he’s working with V.V. and he knows Zero’s identity. I think it’s about time I did another stitch :3
SO FACKING GAR
ALL HAIL BRITANIA!
We all love Orange-kun. He is mucho GAR.
Oh, and the point of the chess cheat was to show the difference the emperor and Lulu. The emperor would just accept the enemy’s defeat while Lulu insist on beating his opponent in a more honorable way. In other words, it proved that Lelouch has a strong sense of honor.
If someone admits defeat, how is it dishonorable to accept it? Even if it is, you can’t keep playing after someone makes an illegal move. Even when Lulu retreated with his King, Schneizel’s King was still in check by the pawn. Lulu shouldn’t be making any moves in this case. That’s not how chess works.
Guess the writers (or maybe just the animators) didn’t really look that up first.
Still, I guess you could explain it as “they didn’t care about the game nor its rules, but about their own personal confrontation of pride and ego” or something else along those lines.
“Even I think he’s going too far here. She was so happy to see Xing Ke a moment ago and now you’ve made her cry. ”
I thought he couldnt hit a new low… i was wrong… what a bastard…
Wow. It’s getting better and better.
And I’ve been wondering how long it was gonna take Orange-kun to come back. :D
>>I thought chess was some big analogy in this series, so what are they trying to say here?
they’re saying that code geass is a load of bs
That’s the impression I got
The point is that Schneizel wasn’t actually admitting defeat, he was demonstrating that winning by not winning bit that he talked about with Nina in episode 08. Essentially by offering himself up in surrender and what was an illegal move he was both implying that Lelouch was not a worthy enough opponent to beat him definitively and that he is too weak willed to be underhanded enough to take the King despite the illegality of the move. (Schneizel was willing to forgo the rules of chess to make a point essentially as the game was already a draw)
Lelouch had three choices, ignore the illegality of the move and play by Schneizel’s new rules and take the king, but admit by doing so that he is to weak to beat Schneizel without accepting charity (Schneizel wins), call Schneizel on his illegal move and thus end the game in a draw, wherein Schneizel still wins, or draw the king back from check (also acknowledging the illegal move) in a symbolic gesture that he is not yet ready to accept the responbility of a leader that would step up to challenge Schneizel. Not that Lelouch has always been portrayed as a Black King and Britannia’s crown as a White King. Essentially the two kings represented Lelouch and Schneizel sizing each other up for the real life battle that is about to unfold between them and wasn’t meant to be seen as anything resembling a real chess match so much as a battle of wits between the two.
If they hadn’t bended the rules a little we wouldn’t have gotten this little exchange and I think Taniguchi really wanted to make a symbolic point about the characters more then he really intended to portray a realistic chess match. If he did he probably would have devoted the whole episode to it instead of just a minute and a half.
I hope that sort of helps a little in trying to understand what they are trying to represtent with the chess match and that you give it some consideration. Chess is still a big analogy in the series, but this time it might be a little bit harder to make sense of given all the other goings on this episode.
Oh by the way, I think Schneizel was inviting checkmate on himself in that situation. If you pay attention to the other characters reactions, they seem to know that Schneizel has put himself in a losing position and that it’s an illegal move.
>If they hadn’t bended the rules a little we wouldn’t have gotten this little exchange and I think Taniguchi really wanted to make a symbolic point about the characters more then he really intended to portray a realistic chess match.
Which is what ticked me off, really. I’m a stickler for details to a fault, and I can’t get over the fact that in a real chess match, Lelouch wouldn’t have a choice of taking the King or not. Schneizel would have to retract the move or admit defeat himself.
But even if this all was about making a point, and the rules could be ignored to do so effectively, Lulu taking the king wouldn’t have demonstrated that “he is to weak to beat Schneizel without accepting charity.” If Schneizel had been obviously winning, then I could see that, but to the eyes of everyone in the room, it was an even match, and Schneizel gave it up. He had his own reasons, but I doubt anyone other than Lelouch could see through them. In this case, since Lelouch wanted to win against this brother who he had never before defeated, I see no reason why he wouldn’t bring up the illegality of the move in order to continue the game as it ought to be played. Instead he folds like a pansy and keeps it going as though there’s nothing wrong with the way Schneizel is playing. It irks me.
If he had brought up the illegality of the move though the game would have ended in a draw because they were in situation where the game could continue in an indefinite series of repeating maneuvers. Either way the game got cut short for Nina’s antics, which is something that now that I think of it kind of annoys me, because it was arguably more interesting overall, but what can you do….
Oh yeah, the threefold repetition. I really don’t like the way they set this up. Lelouch should have gone for the draw, but that would’ve been boring to watch, so instead we get this. It feels too forced.
I think it was the 2nd prince’s way to show Zero the gap between the two. Also, Schnizel treats his subordinates as expendable, including Suzaku so if he lost him, he doesn’t care.
Also, he could be possibly testing “Zero’s” personality for the future. As we all know, Schnizel is the only one who has beaten lelouch at chess, proving his strategic & analysis abilities to be far superior then Lelouch’s. Also, Lelouch hasn’t been in real life combat strategies as long as Schnizel has.
By testing Lelouch’s personality, he’ll use that information against him in a future battle, i’m sure of it, that’s how Schnizel works.
Also, by determining that Lelouch doesn’t go for the draw, means he is not willing to comprimise or have anyone look down on him, which might prove to be his weakness. This also shows Schnizel that Lelouch’s emotions DO get in the way of his victories.
Lelouch also folded because he can’t stand being looked down on. Usually, if you rewatch the episodes, whenever he’s looked down on or underestimated, he automatically gains the upper hand (like in his chess match in ep.1, against Clovis, the Mountain earthquake incident, Mao already setting up everything in a way he thinks Lelouch can’t counter, etc.) If he accepted the piece, then it’s symbolic in the sense that it shows that Lelouch needs help in his victories, and it’s not just him alone with pure skill, and that’s something little Lulu just can’t stand.
Also, there’s something to note here that Lelouch should’ve picked up on. Schnizel said that Charles (king) wouldn’t have hesitated in taking the piece. That means that Charles will do anything for victory, even if it’s a dirty victory with someone else helping in the sidelines. Lelouch can use this info, and with proper planning bring down the emp. once and for all.
If Lelouch went for the draw, he would have admited to Schnizel that he was “equal” to him. That wouldn’t be acceptable to him because he plans on defeating the whole Empire. If he ends in a stalemate like he did in his chess game, the whole thing would be a huge waste of time, (unless he just wanted to get out of the house XD) and alot of lives would have just been wasted for nothing. He NEEDs to win, for the sake of the whole thing, cuz he can’t just back out suddenly because he’d be hunted by Kallen & C.C. XD.