It's only natural for an epic anime to have epic character designs. Cue Clamp, famous mangaka for their works in Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles, XXXholic, Chobits and many more. Clamp's work usually migrate from manga to anime, making Code Geass the first time that they have been commissioned to design for anime. Therefore, you'll see a few distinct trademarks of Clamp within Code Geass-see if you can spot them all!

Zero was one of the first characters to emerge-his mask is dubbed "tulip" by Clamp for its unique shape. In the preliminary planning, Clamp conceived Lelouch's hair to be white! The talented ladies wanted to mold Lelouch as a "beauty," aka a cool bishounen reminiscient of their other works. Since it's all part of the package, Clamp provided many ideas for the development of the Code Geass characters as well as the settings. Chalk another one up for the Clamp ladies!

Divider design by Leslie

**The following profiles are informative but spoiler-free! Supporting character profiles are in order of appearance.**


Lelouch

Lelouch Lamperouge (age 17)

First appearance: Ep.1
He gambles, falls asleep in class (on the occasion that he attends class) and has less brawns than brains. No wonder only one girl is vying for his attention. To speak the contrary, Lelouch is a genius in his own right and harbours a hidden hatred for his father-the Emperor of Britannia. Unbeknownst to his schoolyard chums, Lelouch is an exiled Britannian prince, whose princess mother was brutally murdered, leaving Lelouch and his sister to hide out and live their lives under the protection of Lelouch's maternal relatives and at the Ashford Academy as students. To hide his identity, Lelouch adopts his mother's maiden name, Lamperouge.
Calm and collected, Lelouch plots the fall of the Britannian Empire after receiving the power of Geass, for revenge and for making the world a peaceful place for his beloved sister.

c.c.

C.C.(age=??)

First appearance: Ep.1
C.C. is a name...how? The mysterious girl who bestows the power of Geass on Lelouch under the terms of a contract, there's not much we know about C.C. Her past is hidden, her age is hidden and she doesn't even appear to be human (she doesn't age). Perhaps the bigger question is: Are there more of her kind? The next big question being: How did her captors know about her? Secrets, secrets...


suzakusuzaku

Kururugi Suzaku (age 17)

First appearance: Ep.1
Lelouch's people network sure runs far. Suzaku, his and Nunnally's childhood friend, is the son of Japan's deceased last prime minister. They met when Lelouch and Nannally were abandoned in Area 11 as political prisoners at Kururugi residence. Suzaku is ranked Private when he meets Lelouche for the first time since he entered the military. He joined Britannian ranks in hopes of achieving peace amongst Britannians and the Elevens without resorting to violence-by changing Britannian ruling on the inside. Thus, his ideals largely conflict with Lelouch's, particularly in the sense that Suzaku believes that peace can be achieved without sacrifice. Suzaku soon becomes promoted as Knight-in fact, he's the only Eleven at this moderate military rank-and operates the latest Britannian Knightmare frame-the Lancelot, a machine dispatched only under specific conditions.

Character ressemblance: Li Syaoran (Tsubasa Chronicles). If nothing else, Suzaku is a testimony to Clamp's prescence in Code Geass. Asides from outer appearance, Suzaku and Syaoran both have resolves of steel and hearts of gold, complete with superior athletism lending to their fighting capabilities. Uncanny.

Kallen

Karen Stadfeld (age 17)

First appearance: Ep.1
Karen is a sickly, polite, pretty classmate of Lelouch...or so she would make it seem. She is actually one of the rebels resisting the Britannian Empire's hold on Japan and seldom goes to school in order to carry out resistance operations. It is unclear for how long she has been with the Japanese resistance, but her strong feelings against Britannian principles are comparable to Lelouch's hatred. Even at her young age, Karen is almost trained like a soldier; she is one of the more level-headed teammates and has strong talent in piloting Knightmare frames. She is intelligent and aggressive if need be and won't hesitate to kill, but holds strong loyalty to her comrades. Karen is half-Britannian and half-Japanese-maybe that is a clue to her motives.

shirley fenette

Shirley Fenette (age 17)

First appearance: Ep.1
Secretary of the student council and Lelouche's classmate, Shirley has a huge crush on Lulu (Lelouch's nickname at school). Shirley is engaged in an active lifestyle at sports through club and sports activities and is typically a cheerful, upbeat, straight-up girl. It's just too bad we're not privy to a deeper side of her since her screen time is taken up by her Lulu obsession.

nanally

Nannally Lamperouge (age 14)

First appearance: Ep.2
A fragile girl, Nannally is perpetually handicapped as a result of her mother's assassination. She suffered injuries to her legs and is bound to the wheelchair. Being the only witness to her mother's death, Nannally is blind from the resulting psychological damage. She lives at the Ashford Academy under special permission with Lelouch, her brother whom she cherishes most. Extraordinarily trusting and kind-hearted, Nannally forgives Lelouch's frequent absence from home and tries to lead a normal life as an Ashford student. Though sometimes she senses something amiss about Lelouch, Nannally knows nothing about Lelouch's double identity.

Character ressemblance: Monou Kotori. They both have caring, talented older brothers, wavy long hair and strong sentimentality.

milly

Milly Ashford (age 18)

First appearance: Ep.1
The perky and slightly perverted president of student council, Milly is a pro at throwing wild events in the name of the council. She's a terrible tease-often remarking on Shirley's bustiness. Milly is the granddaughter of the superintendent of the private Ashford Academy, so she is one of the few who is aware of Lelouche's former identity. Her lineage, the Ashfords, have been knocked down several notches for their relationship with the late Empress Lamperouge, but they're looking to rebuild their social status through marriage-you'll never guess who the arranged interest for Milly is!

rivalz

Rivalz Cardemonde (age 17)

First appearance: Ep.1
Part of Lelouch's circle of student council friends at Ashford Academy, Rivalz is a fun-loving guy with a crush on Milly. He often indulges in Lulu's chess games-turned-gambling and drives Lulu around on his motorbike. Rivalz plays a minor role as Lulu's friend, showcasing how maybe Lulu would've led his kind of lifestyle if Lulu was never a Britannian prince. Then again, there'd be no story!

nina einstein

Nina Einstein (age 17)

First appearance: Ep.2
With a last name like that, need I say more about her talents? Nina is a shy, initially weak-willed member of student council and is seen reading if she's not on the computer. Nina develops a crush on Euphemia after Euphemia's admirable attempt to protect the Britannian citizens in a hostile incident. I say, "crush," because Nina blushes at the mention of Euphemia-it's the only same-sex connotation that you'll seee in Code Geass. All jokes aside, Nina's grandfather had once built Knightmares for the Ashford family.

Clovis La Britannia

First appearance: Ep.2
The first royalty Lelouch encountered since he abandoned his royal title, Clovis is a vain, conceited royal pain in the butt. Whoever thought he'd be suited to the position of governor of Area 11 is stupidly shortsighted. Clovis' arbitrary rule began with cruel consequence, and communities of Elevens died at his order- an ill-conceived attempt to quell a ghetto rebellion.