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Code Geass...honestly one of the most engaging, entertaining anime I've ever watched. However, similar to one of my other favourite animes which also suffers from massive popularity (The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya), I really can't help disparaging the populist elements of the show which seem to possess so much of the fanbase.
Lelouch is Code Geass's populist element. Many of Lelouch's greatest fans don't seem to realize that they are his fans only because Lelouch is portrayed by design as an extremely sympathetic character--indeed the most empathetic character. Lelouch comes across as 'realistic' (in the moral sense) and 'internally conflicted' not because he actually possesses those traits by any objective measure, but because his sense of morality and level of confliction is more or less in line with that of the general audience, and the general audience likes to think of itself as 'realistic' and 'internally conflicted'. Lelouch is empathetic because he appeals to the audience's ideal of themselves, and as such becomes an avatar for wish-fulfilment and escapism within the anime. The result is an overzealous willingness to label the oppressive Britannian Empire an absolute 'evil'; Suzaku who is a major obstacle a hated, 'worthless' existance'; the people whom Lelouch discards without remorse for his own ends mere 'pawns'; and the very actions which cause Lelouch to react in a manner that could be called 'conflicted' 'necessary'. Because Lelouch refuses to justify his actions and motivations to himself, the audience feels it is necessary for them to justify them for him.
Lelouch is a flawed though charismatic character who is loved for his flaws over his charisma. Because his only strengths are a super natural ability whom no one can blame him for and a developed, evidently superior intellect (hey, don't you know? Most people think they're smarter than average, too), Lelouch is called a 'realistic', 'balanced' protagonist (as opposed to a 'stereotypical' ideal), whose abilities and persona do not seem to be out of the reach of the average man. Because Lelouch has been beaten down by the world, his liberation from and subsequent condemnation of a 'cursed, powerless existance' gives voice to the niggling little thoughts in the backs of the viewers' heads, allowing them to imagine that it's the world's fault too, that they seem destined to live a small, meaningless existance. Lelouch, who has the power to change his reality handed to him on a silver platter, tells the viewers that it's okay to just wait, to remain as they are, that improving one's lot in life is not a matter of improving oneself as a person but rather waiting for the world to just hand over what one naturally deserved all along. This is why he is loved! "Lelouch is me! Flaws and all! And not only does it seem like he will win, he deserves to win! So to do I deserve to win, over all the evil that has oppressed me, and over all those moral hypocrites of the world."
Lelouch is the manifestation of an invested interest on the part of the audience for him to succeed as a flawed being. This investment narrows their view. This investment limits them to watching the show entirely from his perspective, with the mantra "Lelouch must be right, because he is flawed!". This investment makes it a pain in the ass to enter any discussion of the show attempting to find and share a simple appreciation for a damned good story.
As for what Lulu means to me, I'd agree with Voduar. Lelouch is the quintessential tragic hero, and I derive carthasis from his realization of catastrophes borne of good intentions.
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