Japan: Also known as Area Eleven. In 2010, it was captured by Britannia after a gruesome military conflict. This is where most of the plot occurs, and serves as a backdrop with which to examine the Imperialist regime of the Empire. Additionally, governmental changes which occur throughout the series also give us an examination into the nature of sovereignty and revolution in a modernist/futuristic context.
Synopsis: In the series, the conquest of Japan was fueled by demand for an energy resource exclusive to that region. This resource would then be applied to the Military-Industrial Complex, fueling the Imperial war machine through manufacture of the mechanized Knightmare Frame (KMF). One can easily correlate the reconstruction of Japan with investments into KMF technology. However, this resulted in not one, but two effects. While it is true that Britannia profited heavily from the acquisition, reserves held by the Japanese Liberation Front were ceded to the Black Knights, as well as being sold to smaller nations to fund a counteroffensive against Britannia.
Economists would call this example an "Absolute Advantage," while historians would call this a "Cash Crop." In both contexts, the resource of the nation in-question is being exploited for maximum productivity. Real-world Imperialism in the 19th and 20th centuries (Central/South America, Africa) reflects this greatly, as like in Code Geass, exploitation was done at the expensive of the natives of those regions. However, as this context is beginning to age, we need something a bit more modern.
Coincidentally, the subject of 21st century Imperialism in the real world falls upon China, Japan, and more curiously, South Korea. For those not in the know, tensions between China and Japan have escalated to military actions by both nations. The probability of an all-out war between the two nations seems likely in the next six years, provided the Americans do not get involved. If there is one thing China fears, it's the American military.
But take that force out of the picture, and China could easily parry any blow by the Japanese Armed Forces. It would be no contest, and by the end, Japan would be battered and beaten not just militarily, but economically as well, having expended most of its might in a war effort.
So where does that leave South Korea? Thanks to Globalism, the peninsula would be exceptionally well-off in this event. With Japan no longer a technological adversary, market share in everything from electronics to telecommunications to automotive to health to energy would be expanded by several magnitudes, propelling South Korea from the #15 spot in world GDP well into the top ten. That doesn't even begin to approach the other avenue heavily hit by the peninsula in recent years: pop culture. With Japan out of the way, Korea would gain an even larger spotlight.
After that, one of two things would occur. The first option is that China secures Japan in order to fight back economically against South Korea. The second is that South Korea buys out the weakened Japan to take on China. No matter the outcome, Japan would be completely taken over and stripped of its resources by one of these two nations. Imperialism would live on.
The Tokyo Settlement: Serves as the capital of Japan/Area Eleven. The half which falls under the Britannian Concession has been heavily reconstructed. The other half remains a ghetto for the Japanese refugees who opted not to swear loyalty to the Empire.
Synopsis: It deserves mention as the Concession area has been rebuilt using a revolutionary platform architecture, a concept highlighted in the Evangelion series. But instead of a disk-like system with swappable platforms, the Settlement's system relies on smaller, rectangular pieces which snap to vertical beams. This makes the city impervious to any and all earthquakes, but there is a weakness in that if all of the pieces were unhinged simultaneously, the city would be leveled instantly.
Nonetheless, it is something of an engineering marvel which would be interesting to see more in the real world. The Ark Hotel in China definitely comes to mind. For the time being, it remains something of a novelty, at least until the concept is further popularized.
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