I’m CLAMP~ed

How much do I love CLAMP? Let me count the ways…

Truth is, I never really knew CLAMP until Questor Magazine put the name in one of their issues. There I found out that they have created a number of titles that have become very popular in Japan.

Backtrack to the mid 90’s, a local channel here aired Magic Knight Rayearth. But back then I never really paid any attention to it. I remember saying “di ba parang Sailormoon lang ‘yan?” comparing it to the biggest shoujo anime showing at the time.

Then it was around the year 2000 when Anime-Club released the Magic Knight Rayearth videos that I finally got to see MKR episodes. To say that I enjoyed it is an understatement. I remember watching every episode twice or thrice. I realized the story and the characters were incomparable to Sailormoon. Not at all. Maybe MKR was even better.

Then Questor released more information about CLAMP in their succeeding issues. I was completely overwhelmed after finding out that Card Captor Sakura is also a CLAMP creation! Then I found out CLAMP’s history and was inspired by how great the foursome is.

In 2006, I finally got my chance to read Chobits and I was blown away by the depth of the story betrayed by the cuteness of the art.

But it was Tsubasa Chronicle and xxxHOLIC that really made me shout to the world how much I have become a CLAMP fan! I love how CLAMP intertwines both stories and even incorporates some of their other stories to make one bigger CLAMP universe.

Sine then, I have looked for other CLAMP titles, watching their videos and reading their mangas. This foursome team couldn’t disappoint even if they try. Their storytelling and art perfectly blends to create a story that leaves a mark in the heart.

Yes, I’m CLAMPed, and I love it!

*****JHAJR*****

Duality in Unity: Yin Yang, CLAMP style

While many manga and anime artists inject the concept of two differing and opposing forces in their creations, they are never close to how often (and equally good) CLAMP does it.

Two opposing forces – one light, the other dark – usually make its way thru CLAMP’s creations, making for deeper and more complex characters and situations.

As Yin Yang naturally goes for CLAMP, a character can either be good or evil, darkness or light. A character goes through the struggles to make ends meet with its counterpart. In the end, it becomes clear that one may not completely exist without the other – a rather symbiotic relationship entangled in a web of strife and pain, and/or joy and peace.

This Chinese concept that can be described as governing the workings of the entire universe is what makes CLAMP’s stories and characters intriguing and endearing and is notable in each of the following CLAMP characters:

Hikaru Shidou and Nova (Magic Knight Rayearth)

Duality:
Nova had been waiting for Hikaru and when the Magic Knight did come back to Cephiro, she had been willing to do anything to keep Hikaru to herself. She was violent and selfish enough to pull Hikaru away from those who love her.

Hikaru never knew the existence of Nova until she made it back to Cephiro. Since then, despite Nova’s tormenting, Hikaru did not falter. She never wanted to hurt Nova and she managed to find a way to stop Nova from causing too much harm for her and for everyone.

Unity:
Nova turned out to be a sentient being magically formed from the guilt and pain that Hikaru unknowingly left in Cephiro after destroying its Pillar. When Hikaru learned about this, Nova’s strength started to falter. In the end, Hikaru pulled Nova back into her heart where she originally belonged.

Two Syaorans (Tsubasa Chronicle)

Duality:
When Syaoran was held captive by Fei Wong Reed, he met his clone and gave him a part of his heart. When he finally escaped Fei Wong Reed, he met his clone again and took back the heart that he had lent.

Clone Syaoran lost his mind after Syaoran took his heart during their inevitable meeting. He became obsessed with gathering Sakura’s feathers and would do anything to achieve his end, even if it means killing his original counterpart.

Unity:
In their final battle in Clow Country, Clone Syaoran gave his final blow to Syaoran much to Fei Wong Reed’s amazement. He took Syaoran to Fei Wong Reed but Syaoran managed to stab the powerful magician. Clone Syaoran never intended to kill Syaoran and had stabbed his own foot instead. When Fei Wong Reed used his magic to kill Syaoran, Clone Syaoran took the blow and died. But not before asking for apology from everyone.

Kamui Shirou and Fuma Monou (X1999)

Duality:
Kamui came back to Tokyo to either grant the world’s end or save it from utter destruction. The time that he chooses a side between the Dragons of Earth and the Dragons of Heaven, another star will appear to become his counterpart.

Fuma have always looked after his sickly sister. Living together in a temple, he never had any negative thoughts and have always shown kindness. But when Kamui finally chose a side to fight with, Fuma unwillingly became his counterpart. He lost all his senses and succumbed to violence and hate.

Unity:
In a cruel twist of fate, only one must survive between Kamui and Fuma. It was obvious that Kamui would succeed, for Fuma had become very different and did not possess the stronger will. Kamui was able to kill him and quickly after the skirmish, cradled Fuma’s decapitated head in his arms.

Yue and Keroberos (Cardcaptor Sakura)

Duality:
Keroberos is the guardian of the Clow Book and the Clow Cards that reside in it. When a young girl accidentally dispersed the Clow Cards and became the Cardcaptor, he stayed by her side to teach her everything he knew about Clow’s magical cards. His power comes from the Sun.

Yue is the final judge for the Cardcaptor. He possesses the powers of the Moon and of all the Clow Cards under it.

Unity:
Keroberos and Yue have always been on the lookout for the new Cardcaptor. They made sure that the right person was given the tedious task. As the new Cardcaptor’s allies, their mission is to serve and protect the Cardcaptor at all times.

Chii and Freya (Chobits)

Duality:
Freya was a persocom born out of the loneliness of a married couple who never had their own child. But soon, Freya developed emotions close to that of humans. But alas! her love was unrequited and she fell ill.

Chii was created to make Freya feel better. At first it was good. But Freya could not control her emotion and broke down. Chii then took Freya’s heart and decided to find someone who would be able to love her unconditionally.

Unity:
Chii and Freya have since shared the same mechanical body. Freya’s memory looked after her little sister and confronted Hideki about his feelings for Chii. In the end, they both found someone who would love them no matter who or what they were.

Syaoran and Watanuki Kimihiro (Tsubasa Chronicle and xxxHOLIC)

Duality:
Syaoran came to Clow Country for a mission to save a princess. When he failed to do so, he wished for time to flow back and let him do the mission again and successfully. Fei Wong Reed granted his wish but for a hefty price. He was magically imprisoned and was cloned for Fei Wong’s personal gain.

When Syaoran wished for time to flow back, Fei Wong Reed granted it despite being a big taboo. Thus, Watanuki was born. Watanuki was created to fill the void in Syaoran’s relationship with people especially his parents that was created after Syaoran’s final wish. Therefore, he became Syaoran in Japan while the real Syaoran can never go back.

Unity:
Syaoran is Watanuki. Watanuki is Syaoran. The two share a common fate. A strong reason why Syaoran reminds Watanuki to never disappear.

The Dragons of Earth and Dragons of Heaven (X1999)

Duality:
The Dragons of Heaven is a group of people with special abilities that they could use to protect humanity. They believe that humanity is just as precious as the Earth and therefore must be out of harm. Any misunderstanding for the Dragon’s of Heaven can be peacefully resolved.

Bearing no strong ties between humanity, the Dragons of Earth believe that the very planet had been suffering because of man. Therefore, this group would stop at nothing to fulfill their mission of protecting Earth at the cost of human life.

Unity:
On the Promised Day, a great battle between the Dragons of Heaven and the Dragons of Earth would happen, deciding the fate of Man and Earth.

*****JHAJR*****

The Inevitable Crossover: A Cross-Examination of Shunraiki and Shunmuki

Finally, two animes perform something that it should have done since it started airing.

It was quite unfortunate that the anime version of Tsubasa Chronicle and xxxHOLIC had to (in a matter of speaking) “divorce” each other during its air because of anime studio differences. But now, with Production I.G. (xxxHOLIC’s studio) having taken over Tsubasa Chronicle, it can only be expected that the two animes will form a strong, tighter relationship and finally the story that has started to intertwine can be realized for the growing and much-anticipating fans of the two CLAMP hit shows.

And they did.

This year, the beloved characters of Tsubasa Chronicle and xxxHOLIC have made a comeback and stronger than before with their stories coinciding with each other in two-part OAVs (OAD for Tsubasa) – a first for the two series. Crossing over each other, one could only expect a bigger story out of the two – a treat for fans who have long awaited an anime continuation to the two stories. But what is this negative vibe wafting in the air regarding some parts of the released videos?

Tsubasa Chronicle: Shunraiki

Summary:
The story takes place right after the Celes Arc in the manga with Fay finally confronting his past. The team survives King Ashura and the inevitable destruction of Celes and land in the country that is closest to Kurogane’s heart (though of course he won’t admit it).

When they end up in Nihon Country, vampire hunter Seishirou reappears looking for the vampire twins and fights the real Syaoran. Fuuma also reappears to give an artificial arm to Kurogane courtesy of Tomoyo from Piffle Country. Fay, on the other hand, loses his magic to pay back Kurogane for saving him.

Clone Syaoran then makes his appearance, looking for Sakura’s feather. The two Syaorans are able to enter the Dream World where Sakura’s soul lay. In a determined fight to the end, the two give their last strike and the middle of the skirmish, Sakura places herself in their midst, taking in the blade of Clone Syaoran’s sword.

As she disappears into Cherry blossoms, Sakura tells the real Syaoran that she is not “his Sakura” and that she is just like Clone Syaoran. As she bids farewell to Clone Syaoran, Sakura finally disappears, cutting off what she was about to say to him for the last time.

Right after the skirmish, Syaoran, Fay, Kurogane and Mokona set out to travel to Clow Country where Fei Wong Reed hides in place where time has stopped moving.

Review:
Did you notice how pink seems to be a theme color in Shunraiki? From Sakura’s clothing to the tree and much of the background images, most have different shades of pink (well, some are light purple, but it is close enough to be pink sometimes). Not only am I not fond of the color, seeing too much shades of pink really disturbs me, not to mention stresses my cornea.

Then there’s the first part of episode one. This is where a distinction between TRC manga readers and non-readers is marked. For those who follow the story in the manga, the sudden and sharp turn from the Infinity and Celes Arc could be accepted. But how about those who never followed the story in the manga? I think it was unfair for Fay to not have his side of the limelight with his back story. Various things that have happened in the Infinity and Celes Arc would have given light to some of the things unexplained in Shunraiki.

Another thing that is making me uncomfortable is the complicating story of Sakura. Again, for those who do not follow the manga, Sakura revealing herself to be a clone is something that could make them go “WTF!?! I’ve been following the story of a clone all this time?” And now, with Sakura gone, how’s the real Sakura going to replace any feeling of endearment granted towards the clone Sakura? Just when the story is starting to make sense, Sakura’s death creates a beginning to a new story with a new (and real) Sakura.

But then again, this is CLAMP we’re having here. They’ve seem to come up with complicated twists and survive them all. Hopefully all loose ends would be tied before the end of the series. And all that would have to wait.

The visuals may not be as striking as Tokyo Revelations, but Shunraiki sure has its own charm to make it worth the watch. The fight scenes are good enough. Sakura’s last scene was dramatic – and you gotta hand it down to them for having the courage to kill a lead character. That alone is enough to make fans and non-fans watch out for the next installment.

And of course, as proven by Tsubasa Chronicle, the music by Yuji Kajiura simply fits the entire feel of the Tsubasa Chronicle world.

Screenshots available here.

xxxHOLIC: Shunmuki

Summary:
Watanuki and Kohane-chan work on preparing a meal for themselves as well as the fortune teller lady and Doumeki. Doumeki has a gift of expensive sake so the lady says she’ll have to drink it with her best cup. Doumeki and Kohane-chan go to retrieve it. While doing this, Kohane-chan inquires into the relationship between Doumeki and Watanuki since Watanuki is always getting upset. Doumeki recounts how their first meeting had Watanuki kick Doumeki but Doumeki saw Watanuki in a different light when he cradled a dead cat and commented on dying alone. Kohane-chan notes that Watanuki is no longer alone.

Doumeki and Watanuki leave that evening for Yuuko-san’s place, bringing the leftovers. Yuuko-san and Doumeki talk briefly of Watanuki’s accident where he fell out of the school window and after Doumeki leaves to help Watanuki, Yuuko-san reflects further on the aftermath of Watanuki’s accident as well as the moment that the 2nd Syaoran-kun arrived at her shop.

Meanwhile, Watanuki meets with Doumeki’s grandfather (Haruka-san) in a dream state. Haruka-san has a quest for Watanuki, so the following day, Doumeki and Watanuki check out the storage room on the temple grounds. Watanuki is looking for five items, the first being a book. Locating a book, Watanuki finds himself suddenly fishing with Doumeki, apparently having gone to sleep. That evening, the two are packing up to leave when a down burst occurs. They find a Japanese inn right nearby and the young lady who answers the door seems surprised to see them. A group of women inside offer hospitality of the inn to Doumeki and Watanuki, who accept to get out of the rain.

In a room, they dry off when the girl comes by to see them. She warns them to leave. The lamp in their room goes out, so Doumeki and Watanuki go to obtain more oil. They see a well-lit room and discover that the women inside are in fact bird-people (a type of youkai). Seeing they are discovered, the women give chase, planning to eat Watanuki and Doumeki. As they flee, Doumeki throws the fish bait at the bird-women, which causes them to stop in order to eat the bait. Doumeki and Watanuki escape, so Watanuki wonders if maybe the young lady has a bird connection with Doumeki. Doumeki remembers raising some chickens in elementary school, but they ate them all. With that, Watanuki and Doumeki find themselves back in the storage shed, having lived out the story of the book they found.

Summary courtesy of Astronerdboy

Review:
I love xxxHOLIC, but I don’t know why I don’t feel as much connection to this. Is it perhaps because the story is not very strong and put together? Or perhaps it’s one those independent stories again (meaning not in the manga and sort of like fillers). Well, the first parts were pulled out from the manga but I guess that’s only where I feel excited upon seeing the episode.

I thought the scene with the bird women is a reminder of how slowly the story has moved even in the manga as compared to Tsubasa Chronicle. So in this video, it seems there was no focal point to the entire story or a strong attachment to the cross over that is supposed to happen.

But this is only the first half with the next installment coming out in June so who knows how the entire story is going to fair.

One very noticeable good thing is the visuals – it’s a lot better than in the TV show. And alas! They finally made it cross over to Tsubasa, even for just a couple of seconds. It’s like a prelude of what’s to come in the next episode.

Screenshots available here.

*****JHAJR*****

Questor Creates Controversy!?!

Questor Magazine had been making waves since it started a few months back (this is talking 9 years ago), but no one was ready when it created a tsunami-like force on its Volume 02, Number 02 issue!

Coming out in a striking-red-color-dominated image of Miaka and Tamahome, Questor’s February issue was more than what was in the cover. Far more!

The issue started out with an eye-opening and thought-provoking article by Francis Ibanez on the topic of piracy. At the time, almost every aspect of the anime industry is being targeted by pirates. Even Questor Magazine itself was bootlegged, with their pages turned into four-paneled posters!

Noticeable throughout the issue were information and images from a then new series by Gainax – Kareshi Kanojo No Jijyo. Igor Cabbab gave readers a preview of the series, with reviews from him and EIC Bambi. The lead characters were also made Anime Couple for the issue.

Johann Louie Ong introduced readers to the Ah My Goddess anime and a Valentine’s Special page listed down the best in every “lovely” category for anime’s lovey-dovey couples.

Right in the middle of the magazine, Questor put up an episode guide like no other. With the quick rise of Fushigi Yuugi on local TV and the endearment felt among local otakus, the magazine presented a complete episode guide to the beloved series. But not without a hefty price (think ala Yuuko Ichihara here).

Y’see, somewhere along the pages of the rather innocent episode guide was a snippet of an article entitled “Daikirai Fushigi Yuugi” (I Hate Fushigi Yuugi) written by Questor EIC Bambi. Later on, this small voicing out of opinion would create a big fuss and one that would create a division between fans and non-fans of FY. Better watch out for the next issues!

Otaku In Focus introduced an anime lover by the name of John Paras. His excessive love for Voltes V was obvious through his intricate creations of carton and clay Voltes V ships that can transform into the popular robot. Thought Balloons featured anime-ish American comics while Backbyte took on the topic of online meeting for mutual understanding.

Anime 101 talked about the differences in anime eyes and how they help create character. Watashi-tachi put the spotlight on Creative Dept. Supervisor Jess Matro.

Lastly, Doujin Drawing Board had too many beautiful artworks that they decided to hand out three Picks: Cool, Color, and Cutie won by Jose Carlo Mendoza, Meloy Lazaro and Mariel Rhai Siscar respectively.

Questor had so much love in this issue, and it’s only been six months total since they started. But watch out, the “Daikirai FY” article receives its payback by the coming issues.

____________________

My Take on the Issue

The “Daikirai FY” article may have been almost a decade old now, but I still remember the shock that it left me feeling. I’m not a Fushigi Yuugi fan (really!) but I wasn’t sure I would’ve liked dissing it just to make a point.

I think Questor EIC Bambi Eloriaga made a big mistake by putting out her opinion – and on the FY article page nonetheless, which only makes the impact stronger (it was a black smudge on that clean white FY article).

With all due respect, she should have kept her opinions to herself. She should have given FY fans a chance to love both the series and the magazine more with that simple episode guide. The disclaimer was not helpful at all. It only made people want to read the snippet for whatever its worth.

I remember reading an email sent by a fan to Anime Insider asking if the staff puts out articles from anime that they don’t like. If I remember correctly, Rob Bricken explained that there are different fans out there and they all have different taste in anime.

“If it’s not good, it won’t reach print,” talking about how an article that is not good for any anime will never be put out in the magazine. Why? Because fans look forward to seeing their favorites and the magazine is responsible for delivering the goods to them. Also, DVD companies are on the look out for good reviews about the anime they sell. Therefore, the magazine can choose to either write something about an anime they don’t like and be rewarded for it or not write anything at all to keep themselves safe from anguished fans. If it’s not good, it won’t reach print…

Which is something that I think Questor should have done. But hey, it’s all history now and I guess, so far, what they did turned out to be one heck of an experience – one that would never be forgotten both among FY fans and non-FY-fans.

*****JHAJR*****

Of CLAMP and Copycats

Whoever said “imitation is the best form of flattery” should be thrown into jail if he were alive to this day. Just imagine the completely wrong inspiration people have derived from that adage.

The world today deals with the worst case of piracy since such a problem came to be. From digital media to print, the problem born out of simple imitation has transpired and affected our lives like one potent and stubborn virus.

A giant target of piracy for years had been the anime industry. Piracy clung to it and sucked the life out of it. Unfortunately, the industry was never able to fight back. From audio CDs to full-length movies and posters to manga, no area of the industry was left unharmed.

China – a country with laid back copyright law – for instance, continuously provide leeches (those without a sense of copyright respect and gets their service penniless) with an increasing – and equally disturbing as well as financially debilitating – amount of access to piracy.

Around two years ago, the country had given another blow to the anime industry but specifically targeted a group of creative women mangakas popular throughout the world. This is where the name CLAMP comes into the spotlight – but one where they don’t get any credit at all.

China’s most popular publisher Joustar came to bring much excitement to teens with their line up of teen-oriented manga, this despite being relatively new to the industry.

But it wasn’t long until people recognized that Joustar had been making some unlawful actions – which were right in front of their products.

It would be foolish not to notice the sharp similarity between Joustar’s manga covers and those of one of the most popular mangakas of today’s generation. The poses, the situation, even the background are obviously screaming plagiarism.

What’s more surprising is that it seems Chinese publishers love to copy CLAMP artwork. From old titles like Tokyo Babylon to new and currently running mangas such as Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle and Kobato, they have been stealing CLAMP ideas right in front of CLAMP fans in their country.

This thus begs the question: Was it lack of talent that drove these artists to copy other people’s hard work? Were they unknowing of any damage that their action would cause?

It was never publicly known whether any legal action from CLAMP was done against the Chinese publishers. It wasn’t even known whether CLAMP ever knew of the existence of the plagiarism.

Having been in the manga industry for more than two decades, CLAMP has made a significant contribution and has gained world renown. Thus, an equal amount of respect is one thing they deserve. This form of imitation over CLAMP’s original and hard-worked art is not only un-flattering, it’s insulting.

Reference:

A Tradition in Plagiarism

Lost Magician Image Gallery

*****JHAJR*****

Miyuki-chan in CrazyLand

What is her name?

She answers Miyuki. Then she is stripped off to her bunny panties by some scantily-clad buxom.

Miyuki runs, escaping the nightmare she had been in, wondering how she even got into the strange place with the strangest people. She mutters “I’m not even married yet!” disturbed from the thought of anyone other than a husband-to-be seeing her naked body.

Then she awakens from her dream and sigh a breath of relief.

But the very same thing that pulled her into the dream shows itself again. The dream never ends…

This is how the world flows for Miyuki-chan, one of CLAMP’s most used character. She has appeared in numerous CLAMP creations, the most recent being Tsubasa Chronicle where she had been seen with a slice of toast in her mouth. In CLAMP School Detectives, she was part of one episode where she needed the help of the campus trio.

CLAMP’s rendition of Alice in Wonderland, Miyuki is thrown into different worlds much to her disdain. 7 different worlds to be exact.

In Wonderland, she met the Queen of Hearts and the Cheshire cat, among others; In MirrorLand, she was forced to play chess with Humpty Dumpty; When she missed watching a movie on TV, she was sucked into TV Land and met a S&M Empress; Then she played strip Mahjong with 3 women from Mahjong Land; In Video Game Land, she had to dress up and defeat the End Lord; And in X Land, she played the role of Kamui and felt the confusion of choosing “Dragon” sides.

All of these happening and then disappearing like nothing else happened but only to end up in the beginning, creating a dizzying cycle for poor Miyuki.

There’s no deep story, just semi-erotic fun with an innocent girl as the lead.

Who is Miyuki, you ask?

Well, much like the worlds she had gone to, her identity is also something undisclosed. She just passes by like all of the characters. But one thing known about Miyuki is that she was voiced by Mariko Koda.

*****JHAJR*****