X/1999, Volume 03: Sonata

X [エックス] #3

by Clamp, Fred Burke

"Originally published in Japan in 1993 by Kodakawa Shoten Publishing, Inc., Ltd., Tokyo"--T.p. recto.

Genres: Manga, Fantasy, Graphic Novels, Comics, Supernatural, Shojo, Fiction

184 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Ōkawa Nanase 大川七瀬
[born: 2 May 1967; Ōsaka, bloodtype: A]

Mokona Apapa もこなあぱぱ
[born: 16 Jun 1968, Kyōto; bloodtype: A]

Nekoi Mick 猫井みっく
[born: 21 Jan 1969, Kyōto; bloodtype: O]

Igarashi Satsuki 五十嵐さつき
[born: 8 Feb 1969, Kyōto; bloodtype: A]


CLAMP originally began in 1989 as a twelve-member dōjinshi circle, but by 1990, the circle had diminished from twelve to seven. Of the remaining seven, Tamayo Akiyama, Sei Nanao, and Leeza Sei left the group during the production of the RG Veda manga. Other former members of CLAMP also included Soushi Hishika, O-Kyon, Kazue Nakamori, Yuzuru Inoue and Shinya Ōmi. Currently, there are four members in the group.

In 2004, CLAMP's 15th anniversary as a mangaka group, the members changed their names from Nanase Ohkawa, Mokona Apapa, Mick Nekoi, and Satsuki Igarashi to Ageha Ohkawa, Mokona, Tsubaki Nekoi and Satsuki Igarashi (her name is pronounced the same, but written with different characters) respectively. The August 2004 issue of Newtype USA, a magazine specializing in events of the anime and manga subcultures, reported that the members of CLAMP simply wanted to try out new names. In a later interview with Ohkawa, it was revealed that initially Mokona wanted to drop her surname because it sounded too immature for her liking, while Nekoi disliked people commenting that her name was the same as Mick Jagger's. Ohkawa and Igarashi, wanting to go with the flow of Nekoi's and Mokona's name changes, changed their names as well.

In 2006, they made their first USA public debut at Anime Expo in Anaheim, California. They were well received at the convention, with 6,000 fans in attendance at their panel.

Reviews

[it's ya boy harv · Rating 5 out of 5]

the art continues to be gorgeous.

[Lemoona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Again, so much going on in this volume as well. Lots of tragic futures are predicted. Apparently there might be two Kamuis, both dark and light alter egos if I’m interpreting this correctly. One of them might kill Kotoko, and I think it’s Kanoe that tells Fuma he must kill Kamui to prevent that tragic future. It feels like so much happened, yet nothing at all. There’s a lot of build up, but I fear there’s so much it’s messy. Kamui has barely interacted with Fuma and Kotoko in these last three volumes. That may be intentional but I’m craving interactions between the trio, and I want to see some vulnerability on Kamui’s end. He’s very stoic and collected on the outside, and I want him to be honest with his feelings for once and admit he wants nothing more than to be with Fuma and Kotoko and protect them. Still, is he really going to kill Kotoko? Will Fuma kill him? Why is everyone predicted to kill each other? As if there isn’t a different way the world could end.

[psyche · Rating 5 out of 5]

Santa cachucha, llamen a Dios 😳

[Daniel Bosé · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5★

Ya hay un poco más de contexto y se han abierto un par de enigmas muy interesantes, pero aún siguen llegando más y más personajes, cuando al menos yo, aún no termino de identificar y conocer bien a los que ya habían mostrado. Del dibujo no hablaré porque claramente es excelente.

[Marie Graßhoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ah, es wird spannend! Das Ganze nimmt immer weiter Form an und ich mag Kamui so gern. Hach <3

[Tia MB · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was my first time reading from CLAMP and it won't be my last. I really enjoyed the illustration.

[Bibliothecat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review for volume 1-18



While arguably less famous than some of CLAMP'S other works such as Card Captor Sakura, Tsubasa and xxxHolic, I personally believe X/1999 to be CLAMP's true masterpiece. It is all the more a shame that this series has been left as incomplete with only little hope of there ever being a conclusion. While on one hand, I would recommend this as a masterful manga, it always comes with the grain of salt that you will be left with more questions than answers.

Kamui returns to Tokyo where, much as he would like to see them again, he avoids meeting his childhood friends Fuma and Kotori. Strange things seem to happen around Kamui - earthquakes one after the other shatter the city. Soon, mysterious people called the Dragons of Heaven and the Dragons of Earth try to recruit Kamui to join their cause: one to save the earth, and one to destroy and reform it.

Although one shouldn't expect any less from CLAMP, X/1999's art is stunning. The characters are beautifully drawn with intricate details and there is no other word than dedication to describing the Tokyo backdrops. The art does change significantly between the first and latest volume, which is quite natural to a longer running series.

Kamui certainly doesn't start off as the most likeable protagonist. But that changes fast enough once we become more familiar with his circumstances and also see his change toward others. Although this story has a lot of action, I believe it is foremost a character-driven plot. In addition to the seven Dragons of Heaven and the seven Dragons of Earth, there is still quite a vast cast of important and also lesser characters. What makes X/1999 so special is that they all have their legitimate intentions and wishes. If you like grey characters, well, this series consists of nothing but. There is really no saying which character is in the right or wrong - as the characters themselves point out - there is no ideal outcome in which everyone can be happy.

Not only are all characters relatable, they all have their own story to tell and are anything but flat characters. There must be at least one character everyone can adore, and - ok - relatable or not, I confess, I don't like Satsuki - at all. But apart from her? I can't say there is a single character who I don't care for. You'd wish each and everyone one of them could have their happy ending - unfortunately, you know it won't happen. And to make matters worse, we likely never will find out. I think, X/1999's status of being incomplete will forever be one of my personal biggest manga tragedies.

On another note, for those who have read Tokyo Babylon and/or CLAMP School Detectives, characters from both make a comeback in this series and the truly open ending of Subaru and Seishirou receives a somewhat decent conclusion. I say somewhat because, although their story continues and comes to a close of sorts, the last volume of X/1999 takes on a new turn which could go anywhere, so it's questionable whether it can really be called a satisfying conclusion.

[~ goldie ☆ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three down, fifteen to go. So, this volume starts exacty when the last one stopped: Fuuma and Kotori's father was murdered by Nataku. People deliver him a funeral and the fact that now both her parents have died is a huge trigger to Kotori's memories regarding her mother's death. Princess Hinoto sees that there are actually two Kamui in her prophecy (one of them good and the other one evil, sort of?). Also sees that within them lies the future of humankind. Kanoe, as usual, is again able to see through her sister's dream and now they both now that the sword was stolen. She then asks Satsuki to look within Beast, the computer Satsuki herself has created to control and communicate with everything within the internet, to see if she's able to find the thief. Kanoe explains how computers have become the most important artifact, specially when it comes to get and also control information. Satsuki was being searched by the Freemasonry/Masonry who wanted to forcedly recruit her, but then she has a chance to join Kanoe. Satsuki then says that the thief who had stolen the sword had flower petals drawned over their forehead. Sorata and Kamui then meet Tokiko Magami, Kamui's auntie, who reveals some things to them, more specifically that Kamui's mom was one of the Magami and that the family is used as a sacrifice to protect rich and important people from dying and getting hurt etcetera (almost like a Dorian Gray-ish thing? anyway). Hinoto asks Arashi to protect Kamui and she has to battle some enemies named "Shikis" alongside Seiichiro Aoki. Tokiko's house gets burned, different from the anime, and Fuuma has this dream of Kamui drinking Kotori's blood and killing her after that. Within the dream, Kanoe asks Fuuma to kill Kamui because that will save the Earth, and not the humankind?

[Victoria · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars. I’m loving the symbolism, though I’m still trying to work out the meaning (what are all the bird feathers for??). It seems like things are finally getting started and there are so many questions being brought to our attention with no answers. Not 5 stars because some parts of this volume are still a little slow.

[Dama Viveros Garcia · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.7/ 5
But WHAT HAS JUST HAD HAPPENED? I mean, I was not expecting so many revelations and shocking moments as it were in the last pages of this tome. Moreover, the appearance of the protagonist's aunt?!?! Pufff, I undoubtedly need the next volume to clarify my hypothesis.
( ˶°ㅁ°) !!

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's not much real character development, but that's okay.

[Kadella · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am in love with this manga series!

[Cis]

👍

[néïs (0_0)3 · Rating 4 out of 5]

les dessins sont trop beaux j'adore la mise en page notamment

[Clau MZ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sorata Arisugawa, bi king

[Harumichi Mizuki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Penasaran sama Tokiko Magami. Siapa sih yang nyulik dia? Terus pengirim para shiki men in black itu siapa? Hinoto kah?

[Nea Poulain · Rating 5 out of 5]

relectura de la edicion premium collection

[Mar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Va agarrando forma, va agarrando ganas

[Corinne Fowler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad. A little disturbing but not bad.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

il grossissimo GASP alla fine

[Ryofire · Rating 2 out of 5]

The art's honestly probably the most detailed it's been in this series. If you love CLAMP, this volume is a treat. The story is just so incredibly dull. Every panel, some character learns something incredibly ordinary that they treat as the most revelatory piece of information they've ever heard, even if it's just a character saying a new sentence in a paragraph. Very little actually happens at all in the narrative, and before you can learn more, stuff gets literally set on fire. It's incredibly silly.

[K.S. Trenten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kamui meets the aunt he never knew he had, only to lose her the moment he’s distracted by a potential crisis and potential allies/enemies? Sorata is trying hard to convince Kamui he’s one of the allies, flirting with both Kamui and one of those allies, the lovely yet dangerous Arashi. Kanoe is gathering information via her own allies; the enigmatic Satsuki and her computer, Beast. They’re quite interested in who took the sword from the shrine among other things. The death of her father stirs up bloody visions in Kotori or are they memories? Kotori is the only one tormented by visions. Fuma is starting to have disturbing dreams of his own which parallel Kamui’s about the end of the world, Kamui, and himself.

Every time I read this, I fall in love with the exquisite use of doubles and mirror images against a mythical, surreal backdrop. The way Kamui and Fuma, Hinoto and Kanoe, Tohru and Tokiko are depicted against the clouds, rings, sun, moon, wings, feathers, and other symbols bewitch me whenever I look at them. I feel like I’m getting a visual feast of art on every page. The plot takes its time, giving the reader a chance to get to know everyone but the slowness is deceptive. Kamui only just meets Tokiko, whom begins to reveal her secrets, only to disappear, leaving a burning building behind and a mysterious woman watching Kamui and his potential allies. Sorata and Arashi meet for the first time, feeling like they’re allies, yet tensions are high with Kamui on the verge of lashing out at everyone. Arashi is attacked by the same beings whom went out after Kamui, only to meet and fight alongside Seiichiro, windmaster, an intriguing combination of the mysterious and the mundane. The pace feels slow, yet this is deceptive, for the plot is starting to pick up speed. I feel like the pieces are falling into place in this volume and I’m beginning to get a glimpse of the whole work of art.

[duniamimpigie Anggi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Di jilid ini si Anggi: "PAK AOKIIIIIIIII!!! KYAAAAAA KYAAAAAAA!!! Jadikan daku anakmu, Paaaak~~~ Bapak moe banget sih, Paaaaak~~~"

Begitulah.
Review selesai.
*plak*

Ehem. Oke, jadi... di jilid ini bapaknya Fuuma dan Kotori udah dibunuh Nataku. Lalu, sekonyong-konyong muncul Ibu Tokiko entah dari mana. Belum sempet ngejelasin apa-apa, rumahnya udah dibakar lagi.
Saya suka banget adegan Pak Aoki muncul pertama kalinya pas si Nona Arashi ke Kuil Togakushi. Kangen banget saya sama bapak yang sederhana itu <3 *fangirlingan mulu*
Dan di jilid ini Kamui udah mulai moeeeee~~~ Dia blushing gitu pas digodain Sorata soal dia mendadak teriak kenceng banget manggil nama Kotori waktu panik
Sorata emang paling ahli ngebuka hati Kamui ehehehe~ Saya selalu suka persahabatan Sorata dan Kamui, bikin iri! (/>///w///<)/

Saya juga suka "pengakuan" Sorata sewaktu bilang, "Aku memilihmu" ke Arashi! Arashi cuma bisa bengong, gak ngerti maksud Sorata apa. Ya iyalah xD
Btw, btw, meski saya suka banget pengabdian dan loyalitas mutlak Sorata ke Kamui sepanjang cerita, saya gak memungkiri bahwa saya juga suka banget kesetiaan Sorata kepada Arashi.
Sorata bener-bener cowok baik.

Dan... Ibu Kareeeeeen!!! Diem-diem saya nge-ship beliau dengan Pak Aoki. Tapi, berhubung Pak Aoki udah berkeluarga (dan saya bener-bener benci cerita perselingkuhan), saya terpaksa membuang ship itu meski mereka berdua pasangan yang manis dan mature.

Kanoe juga udah mulai beraksi. Kalau saya gak salah inget, rasa-rasanya emang justru Kanoe yang lebih dulu menyadari makna dari mimpi "Kamui kembar". Bahwa Kamui itu gak cuma seorang dan bahwa ada kembarannya, yaitu Fuuma.

Dan saya kangen Subaru :'( Di jilid berapa sih dia muncul? Om Sakurazuka juga, bikin kangen deh couple(???) ini :'(

[Kati · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's very difficult for a manga to keep your interest when you don't like the main character. I mean, I understand where Kamui's hatred is coming from, don't get me wrong, but it's hard for me to identify with him when I don't agree with most things he does. If he just curbed his reactions and thought things through first, so many tragedies that happened and will happen could have been avoided. Three books in and I like Sorata and Fuma much better than Kamui.

Also, it's unfortunate that in this manga, the form takes precedence over content. The art is beautiful, that's true, but the manga's mostly all dramatic poses and dramatic visions and the story suffers for that. The plot moves along very slowly, nothing really happens - oh, don't get me wrong, there heaps and heaps of dead bodies already, that's true, but it's all about the impact, not about the plot. Three books in and all we know is that the end of the world is near and there are two groups of people that will/should fight against each other. And that's it. I'm not sure it's enough...

[Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

X Clamp #3.

Semenjak pedang yg ditakdirkan untuk Kamui hilang, putri Hinoto mengalami penglihatan yg mengejutkan. Ternyata dalam penglihatannya ada 2 pedang dan 2 Kamui.
Disisi lain, ternyata Kamui memiliki kerabat, saudara kandung ibunya. Dari cerita singkat sang bibi, Kamui ditakdirkan mengemban tugas yg berat seperti ibunya. Keberadaan dunia ada ditangan Kamui.
Dan disisi lainnya, Fuma mengalami mimpi dan bertemu seorang perempuan yg menunjukkan masa lalu dan masa depan orang orang yg dicintainya. Bagaimana ibunya kehilangan nyawanya dengan tragis dan bagaimana adik kesayangannya mati ditangan Kamui.
Tragedi apa yg sebenarnya menanti Kamui, Fuma, dan Kotori???

[Annabelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Actually, this whole X/1999 series is a total derivation from the more recent works of CLAMP that I've discovered first... It's kind of eerie actually. It is such a dark prediction of what the turn of the new millenium was going to be like- desolate; without hope. But, it's enjoyable, because no matter how dire the situation, you still find life lessons and light shines through the cracks.

[Amina D'Anima · Rating 4 out of 5]

toujours aussi sombre et apocalyptique! les planches sont superbes malgré le côté hardcore ^^ Sorata, Kusanagi et Yuzuriha font leur entrée. pour l'instant toujours pas de réelle différences avec l'animé (à part une scène avec le sauvetage de Kotori). j'attends de lire la suite pour voir surtout le passif des persos.

[Vivian · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's very cool

[Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story!

[Scott Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book cover has an angelic look to it.