Ladies and gentlemen, Hell has officially frozen over. Starting yesterday, I discovered a fanfic and finished reading what was completed so far not too long ago. It is fantastic. I'll link you there in a moment. But guess what it's a fanfic of.
"I don't know, Fullmetal Alchemist?"
Nope. I have a policy against reading fanfics based off franchises that already have perfect canons, remember?
"Oh. Okay, Bleach. You've been enamored with a Bleach fanfic."
No.
"uh, a Slayers fanfic?"
You're getting warmer.
"A Halo 'fic?"
Warmer.
"Sailor Moon?"
Warmer.
"Code Geass?"
That's right; I've been reading a Code Geass fanfic. Notice I'm not censoring the name, "Code Geass."
" . . . . . Oh, I get it! You're reading a parody of Code Geass! Yeah! One where Lulu is a whore of Japanese culture, who supports them because he thinks Nippon Ichi, and that the island nation is sugoi, and that Japanese girls are kawaii, and Suzaku is little more than a Japanese version of Revolver Ocelot, Nunnally is a blazing Mary Sue of Sue-ness, and Schneizel is too sexy for everyone else, and . . ."
It's not a parody. There's little humor in it. The 'fic I've been reading can be classified as action/drama.
" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . holy shit."
Code Geass: Lelouch of Britannia. By Cal reflector. I saw it recommended by tvtropes. Here's the synopsis: it is an altenate universe fic where Lulu and Nunnally haven't been stripped of their royal status since their mother was assassinated. It starts several years before the timeline of the anime version's timeline. In the last completed chapter, Lulu is just about to travel to Japan.
Praise from a troper, "The author takes a far more in-depth look at Britannia than the one provided by the show, and does an amazing job of fusing together British and American traditions and references. It introduces and makes sympathetic all of my favorite Britannians, and in general is simply a great read, even if you aren't a Code Geass fan." That's what caught my attention, "even if you aren't a Code Geass fan." Well, suffice to say I like this 'fic. More praise includes, "Amazing story. Any story that can believably make Kewell likable and deep is really something" I didn't know who that was supposed to be before I read this 'fic, but Kewell is a much more fleshed out character than Wikipedia would have you believe.
My own praise; this 'fic cuts out most of the bullshit, fanservice, and mindless filler that pervaded the anime, and replaces it with more substantial content and more complex characterizations. Scenes in the 'fic parallel events in the anime series, perhaps foreshadowing Lulu's future in Japan. It is an alternate reality fic, though, so it isn't tied to the anime's canon, but is its own. There's a few new characters in it, but so far, none of the original characters are intrusive of the narrative. The other characters don't feel OOC, even if this is an alternate reality. The author admits to having favoritism for Cornelia, so she seems nicer and more sympathetic here than in the anime (from what I remember of the anime version), but she stills feels like the Cornelia I remember. None of the Japanese characters have surfaced yet, and a few others haven't appeared, although Lloyd may be appearing very soon . . . I'll be keeping my eye on this one.
My only complaint is this 'fic is written like a light novel. No problem in that, except the author usually doesn't identity the speaker in dialog passages. It does get confusing at times, "Wait, who's talking, Lelouch, or Jeremiah? I can't tell!" That's the only flaw I've found. Other than that, try it out.
So, it seems I have become an unorthodox fan of something again. Well, that's what happens when you think outside the box.
P.S. Although the descriptions of the characters are similar to the anime's, (Lulu still has black hair, purple eyes, light skin, and a slight frame) I don't have to visualize them looking like the actual CLAMP art, but more like, I can visualize them looking like better versions of the official art. Huh. No wonder Euphie seems a lot cuter than I remember. No, I was not thinking pervy thoughts! GAWD!
