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skyflyinginaction · 2 years ago

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Clamp Art Style Analysis: Part 2: Series styles and Compare and Contrast

Series Styles

Over the years the Clamp art style changes constantly depending on the series, and the art direction always changes depending on the work and magazine. Clamp’s art style always changes to suit the genre of the magazine the work is running in. When I researched I noticed when I look at their earlier works and recently it's in that their art style changed over the years I saw that the art of these series improved due to different works' sterilization and the hiatus this is seen in a few series that I am going to talk about. I am not going to go over all of their works just choose these series and discuss them in this segment, I am going to be heavily biased and choose this series to talk about the art style, lines, and materials used while drawing the series

X1999

I don’t know the art style with x as I did with the other series since there wasn’t much to talk about in the interviews.

Mostly I think this is the beginning of Clamp’s early years when the art style looked this way. The art style Clamps early years as artists. The one in charge of X's art direction is Nekoi, Nekoi is in charge of the art direction of x with Igarashi assisting, The art in X changed with the art shifted to Nekoi’s delicate style.

The art of X changed expeditiously compared to how the art looked in the first chapter,

The art at the beginning of X had thick ink lines and more dramatic shading in the early volumes and is more or less gone. X is drawn in a more ornate style characteristic of shoujo manga, noting that x is a series intended for a female audience. X takes on a shojo style bolder and more intense art for drawing X there is a heavy use of screen tone. While drawing X, they used straight lines they drew with Thick lines in the beginning, X had a lot of colored backgrounds in the illustrations, and manga X is one of the series in that they had trouble applying screentone.

If you compare x it has changed a lot due to Clamp working on other series though mostly it's because it ran the longest in the magazine. X was sterilized during Wish, Card Captor Sakura, Chobits, Magic Knight Rayearth,Suki, Legal Drug, Legend of Chun Hyang and Angelic Layer.

When it came to creating for x it was the original character profile, Clamp drew all the aspects they wanted to include in the final character in a bulletin-type chart they drew it like a New Year's greeting card.

Unlike with other sterilization, they didn’t decide on the materials they would be using so X doesn’t have any specific material for drawings. Nekoi and Mokona did a lot of experimenting with materials in x. Clamp used many different materials and a variety of techniques when drawing X the colors in x they painted with a lot of new materials and a lot of contrasting colors. There was a lot of experimenting with materials with x. You can see it in the illustrations.

The materials that are used for x are color screentone. Colortone is a type of colored screentone called overlay, their usual color ink, gash, and pastel products X has many different kinds of illustration paper used for coloring from wrapping paper and cardboard to tea wrappers.

I am going to go over the materials they used in their color illustrations from 1992-1996 and 1997-2004

1992-1997

Paper: Kent Block, BB Kent, BB Kent rough surface, Kent paper, sand textured paper, Shinden shi paper, Feather Waltz, Arches, parchment paper, manuscript paper, Watson paper, wood free paper

Lines: Holbein Color Ink (Special black), Photocopied pencil lines, Pigma Graphic pen, Pigma Graphic ink pen, color pencil, pencil, Holbein Color Ink (sepia), poster color, color pencil, Winsor and Newton Drawing Ink (nut brown), Dr. Ph. Martins Sepia Ink

Color: Dr. Ph. Martain’s Color Ink, Acrylic, airbrush, modeling paste, gouache, color tone, poster color, Liquitex, Acrylic gouache, color tone, white out, Copic markers, Lumocolor Ink pen, Lumocolor

1998-2003

Paper: Watson paper, BB Kent, copy paper, Sheet of paper with a light brown color, hotel stationery paper,

Lines: Pigma Graphic ink pen, India ink, Ballpoint pen, Sepia black ink,

Color: Lumocolor ink pen, modeling paste Lumocolor, sepia, copic marker, airbrush, poster, Acrylic gouache, airbrush, color ink, Liquitex, Dr. Ph. Martains Color Ink, Gold brown Ink, Poster color, color ink,

If you looked at the materials and techniques in the comments used for drawing the illustrations of x they

put a lot of work in the color illustrations for x. The materials used in the illustration change the impression.

For the illustrations, There were a few comments about it, A 2002 comment that Fuuma's head looks a little big; this is a drawing habit they had while working on Chobits at the time.

When it came to illustrations sepia ink was used for outlines of characters with pale color profiles since the lines stand out too much in black in illustrations sepia ink was used for characters with pale color profiles. Hinoto, Kakyou, and Kotori have Saphia outlines. Yuto is the only exception. He has a light color profile but looks good with crisp outlines so he is drawn with black ink. When Clamp drew Kotori they always made sure to draw her with a very faint and soft touch when it came to drawing her in illustrations they used Sephia instead of black for her lines.

X is a shoujo manga that ran in Asuka for some time. It has a lot of action scenes that attracted male readers, Asuka gave the team the freedom to create what they saw fit.

There is a difference in colors between the first and subsequent printings as seen in the volumes of X. The volumes up to 4 were a lot tidier but on volume 5. Clamp started to get busier and messier.

Everything in X is written by script, even the details of the collapsing and the destruction of the buildings look like the destruction of the buildings is written from the script from Ohkawa. The backgrounds and destruction of the city were mentioned by Ohkawa. While Clamp is drawing the destruction of the buildings they have reference photos taken beforehand which Igarashi finds tiring and painful.

In Kamui’s character design, Kamui has Tsuri-me-type eyes like Ashura from RG Veda Clamp considered Kamui's hairstyle and uniform average.

The character that Clamp had a hard time drawing appearance-wise is Kotori, Kotori was the character that Clamp found trouble with drawing. When Ohkawa looked at the manuscript copy of chapter one Ohkawa was a little shocked at the drawing of Kotori even considered her like udon. Mokona did her in pencil in the rough draft, Kotori looked soft and sort of limp when she added a pen she looked thicker by thinning down the lines her body became less solid making her float around she became lighter and more impermanent so they used the tip of the pens instead when inking her.

Another one of the difficulties that came with drawing X was drawing all the characters from the dragons of heaven and the dragons of the earth in one picture in the same illustration. They are parts of the character that give you trouble that you confuse with others but individually they are easy.

Clover

Clover has a different sense of atmosphere and techniques. The art in Clover has a feeling of decadence or nostalgia, the wing design looks like older Mecha Ohkawa was influenced by the movie “1984” she made Mokona watch it to recapture its mood. The buildings in Clover reference old movies made to resemble German and European countries. They also used European photographs as references, like photos of German factories.

Ohkawa made modifications to Clovers' art style since it ran in a magazine for young girls the intended audience for Clovers was older so the art style is made to look prettier since it's for girls.

Mokona is in charge of the art in Clover even the story paneling was planned out by her Both Mokona and Ohkawa planned the panels in the manga Clover. The distinctive layouts and layouts of the panels are created with music videos and movies in mind. The panels in Clover look like frames from a movie. Ohkawa had a hand in it with half having to plan the width of each panel. It wasn't easy and took more time. Clamp found the layout the most challenging and most fun they had in the series, for Clover has dialogue or scenes with big spaces between sentences. Clamp used thinner frames to look pretty.

The art material they used is gayoushi paper which is used to emphasize the bounciness of Sue's hair. Gayoushi paper is a type of cartridge paper in Japanese. They used drawing paper for clover the drawing paper here is contrasted with other, more common media. Clamp used different paper for clover which is cartridge paper or gayoshi paper for drawing the manga but the screentone kept slipping off and was annoying to Clamp. They used the copy machine to give Clover a picture book blurred look they had a hard time getting it right and tried many times.

Card Captor Sakura

For the art style of Card Captor Sakura, Clamp wanted to create something really cute.

It focuses on the cute factor so the lines and use of ink are to give it a soft and cute feel Card Captor Sakura uses thin, curved lines the manga Mokona the one who makes the lines thin in Sakura and doesn’t use a lot of ink making the pages light and to make it look soft feel. It is a shoujo manga with a magical girl genre so it would make sense that the series would look soft. Card Captor Sakura uses color ink for the illustrations the color ink is used to create a clear image. For materials Card Captor Sakura and clear card Arc used copic markers and modeling paste in the illustrations.

For designing the Clow cards, the design of borders of the cards was created first. Mokona filled in the illustrations, and the rest determined the card name and functions in the story. Clamp didn’t have problems with designing characters but the expressions changed from the plan.

Chobits

The materials of Chobits are based on Ohkawas decisions for materials. Clamp uses ball pens for drawing. They used ball pens since they wanted something drawn by pencil. The illustrations for Chobits have Clamp use acrylic gouache and more gouache.

In Chobit's art style the character has shorter arms and legs and the shoulders aren't wide. the character designs for chobits for Chi, Chi’s design is the most detailed one.

Legal Drug

Legal Drug came after Suki, Clamp was into underground crime dramas so the manga has serious and dark tones. The series went on a hiatus so the art style changed compared to when it was first run making the art style similar to XXXHolic.

Clamp used digital computer equipment for Legal Drug, Legal Drug is the first series that Clamp drew colored digital for the first time. Clamp drew all the CG color illustrations for Legal Drug. They wanted to use CG as a tool so they learned how to use CG from Katsuya, Okazaki Takeshi, and Takashi Yamazaki. Clamp struggled using the computer for the first time they ran into problems like the power ran out of the computer before saving.

Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle

The drawing methods changed with Tsubasa and XXXHolic, two series that worked in tandem; this goes with the drawing style of both series since the art style has been changing. Both scripts of XXXHolic and Tsubasa have a lot of difficulty, Tsubasa was supposed to be for a younger audience which caused it to increase complexity but it gave the team complete creative freedom. Clamp didn’t want to make the pacing too complicated due to being about a young man's journey.

Tsubasa had thicker lines and simple page layouts, Clamp used a marker with thick lines that could be drawn while printing on rough paper since the frames did not work well the fine lines looked blurred Clamp had a problem making the lines too thin, and didn’t have the impact they needed to stand out the lines need to be bold and popped out since it's a weekly manga series said readers tend to forget. The thick lines in Tsubasa are to make the art be seen in the magazine printings since thin lines are too delicate and will make scenes hard to see in the printing of the magazine

Since Tsubasa is running a weekly magazine the thickness of the lines affects the visibility of the magazine printing.

Tsubasa started the trend of drawing thin vertical borders and thick horizontal ones, the difference between the panel borders Clamp separating the panel in the layouts to link it to XXXHolic.

The art style of Tsubasa was based on a suggestion from the editor The editor asked the group to make the drawing style attractive to readers of Shonen magazine Tsubasa is a shone manga drawn to fit that genre Clamp already had design decided and materials prepared.

For materials they are seen using when drawing, Tsubasa is a monograph mechanical pencil used for pencil drafting in their manga. The Clamp uses a marker with which thick lines can be drawn to make it pop out on rough paper in printing the ink markers they use to fill in the large spaces. Clamps have Copic markers for colored illustration in Tsubasa.

Ohkawa directs the art style of Tsubasa, she tells the members to draw the male characters with vigor and take more care of the female characters. Mokona is the artist who crafts the characters and storyboards she draws most of the characters in Tsubasa, female characters have soft fluffy hair and look like they are drawn with soft touches, and male characters are drawn with a rougher touch. Ashura wasn’t easy to draw since they have a feminine beauty and it wasn’t easy to draw those with loose eyelashes. They decided not to draw lower lashes which made the faces stiff, evident with Emeraude they changed her hair and put curls in her hair to make her more graceful. They used their normal style to get the readers to pick up the story. When accustomed to the new style they thought of slowly returning to their art style during the country of Oto.

The script of Tsubasa takes 5 hours, the storyboard 10, and the drawing for the manuscript takes two days for 20 pages. If not going well, it could take three days.

XXXHolic

The drawing methods changed with Tsubasa and XXXHolic Two series worked in tandem compared to the two series XXXHolic was the series that Clamp found was easy to draw.

The characters of XXXHolic are drawn to be very tall and have long limbs; they are thinner and longer in the drawing. It makes characters more expressive in the manga. XXXHolic and Tsubasa have similar proportions for characters The reason is that they cross over Tsubasa is linked to XXXHolic the proportions of the characters are similar to be meant to cross over to Tsubasa.

The materials for XXXHolic they use for drawing are felt tip pens since human characters are drawn by 2 people if they used a regular pen the brushstroke strengths would be uneven Clamp members have strong drawing pressure so having the same pen can even it out. Clamp decided not to use screen tones for xxHolic, XXXHolic is drawn without screen tone to give more of an impression of occultism.

They used mechanical pencils for the drafting stage when drawing in xxxHolic and inking markers to fill in large spaces.

There are a lot of Japanese and Chinese in XXXHolic The style Clamp uses for XXXHolic is similar to traditional Japanese Ukiyo-e paintings, a Ukiyo-e art style that dictates longer proportions for the characters. The character looks tall and lean. xxHolic looks more like a wood block painting and has Japanese prints and Alphonse Mucha with an art nouveau in it. The female characters in XXXHolic are drawn by Mokona and the male characters are drawn by Nekoi who are also Yokai and spirits that aren't in human shape and animals.

The covers and color pages are drawn by Nekoi and Mokona together, the base colors of the covers are never white, gold, or silver then color printed over it.

The storyboard for XXXHolic takes 6 to 8 hours done by Saturday.

Kobato

Kobato's art style is similar to Card Captor Sakura’s. The lines used in Kobato are similar to the lines in Card Captor Sakura, and the lines in the manga are thin, like a shoujo manga. The colors of the illustration are pale with a touch of watercolor.

Kobato was made into a brighter series since Tsubasa was heading into a dark development, Kobato's story is loose and not too dark and is meant to be more relaxing.

Comparing and Contrasting the panels of these series

X/1999 & Clover

Clover and X are two old shoujo manga done by Clamp though Clover was drawn during the run of X

making X the longest-running series. Each of the members of Clamp is in charge of the art direction of the manga

with Nekoi in charge of the art direction of x and Mokona in charge of the art direction for Clover.

The lines that are used to ink and the line thickness in the two series are different along with the amount of pen pressure seen in the manga. The members of Clamp have strong drawing pressure. You can see it in the way they drew the lines in the ink and the line weight in the ink in the manga. You can tell the amount of pen pressure used in both the manga series is a testament to how strong the drawing pressure is.

For the line thickness for both series, the lines in X have straight bold thicker lines. The lines in Clover are thin and along with the panels the lines have thin frames.

X uses a heavy amount of screen tone whereas Clover doesn’t use too much screen tone.

They use a different sort of paper for clover that is gayoushi paper which is used to emphasize the bounciness of Sue’s hair.

These are two styles. The art style for Clover is made to look pretty since it's for girls and drawn with an air of decadence to give people old-fashioned feelings when they read it. The style of Clover stands out due to how it's drawn. The frames of Clover are supposed to look more like a movie. The art style of X went through huge changes due to a long year run so its art style changed to be more defined and detailed.

Both manga series have different art styles to suit the atmosphere of the manga X used a heavy atmosphere where Clover has some sort of emptiness that the characters in the manga face to symbolize how bleak their situation is though someone pointed out that a large amount of negative space for clover is drawn to emphasize for the characters loneliness. The atmosphere of X gives a more foreboding sort of feel since it's near the end of the world.

Tsubasa and Card Captor Sakura

These two manga series went through two second series there is major art development compared to how it was first runned here to properly focus on the current art style.

When you put the two together they are radically different.

The art styles for the two series are created to fit the genre with Card Captor Sakura being a shoujo manga and Tsubasa being a shonen manga.

For the lines of the series, Card Captor Sakura is thin curved lines and doesn’t use a lot of ink The lines in Tsubasa are bolder and thicker with simple page line art.

The materials used when drawing Tsubasa for which thick lines can be drawn is a marker with thick lines as stated before the impre.ssion of the series can change depending on the materials used this is true for Tsubasa and Card Captor Sakura

The characters in Tsubasa are drawn differently by different artists the female characters have soft fluffy hair drawn with soft delicate touches and the male characters are drawn with a rougher touch to emphasize masculinity.

The eyes of both series are different. The eyes in both series have different textures in the irises with the upper eyes in Card Captor Sakura being thin and dark. The eyes of Tsubasa are angular and thick there are no lashes in the eyes of Tsubasa

Sakura and Syaoran

If you need to compare the series the styles would be seen best in the designs of the two characters of Sakura and Syaoran. Looking at them together the impressions of these two characters do change depending on the art style of the series they are drawn in. Sakura and Syaoran are drawn differently in Tsubasa than they were in Card Captor Sakura Even though Sakura and Syaoran are drawn the same there are a few differences that set them apart seen in the hair and eyes.

The designs of Sakura and Syaoran are re-used in Tsubasa in designs. I would notice a lot of small details in their designs that make them different and stand out as their hairstyles and eyes differed when you put the two of them together. The new designs of the characters convey the impression of their characters.

There a different impressions of the two characters when you look at the art style how they are drawn with thin lines and how they are drawn with thick lines the impression of the two characters are There different when looking at the different art style and how differences there are in their designs

In the Card Captor Sakura Syaoran looked more like a boy fitting since he is in elementary school so he's drawn to be much younger. The syaoran in Tsubasa gives an image of a young man between boyhood and manhood Tsubasa’s syaoran design highlights maturity in contrast to Card Captor Sakura Syaoran. The height is obvious in the designs drawn with the Tsubasa design.

If I compare the two Syaoran together their expressions are different, Card Captor’s Syaoran looked dour and moody

whereas Tsubasa’s Syaoran spots a determined, serious look. Card Captor’s Syaoran looks like a little kid while Tsubasa’s Syaoran looks like a bright honest, sincere young man. The only difference between the designs of syaorans would be their expressions conveying their overall look and personality in their design. Syaoran is designed based on a shonen protagonist it answered with what would happen if Card Captor Syaoran is the shounen protagonist with Tsubasa Syaoran as the answer.

For Syaoran’s hair: Syaoran’s hair is a crew cut with the end shaved. Both Syaorans have the same hairstyle drawn differently from the series. In Card Captor Sakura there are a lot of lines and details in the hair of Syaoran’s with his bangs being thin lines. Tsubasa’s Syaoran hair is simplified and doesn’t have too many lines his hair and bangs are drawn simply and look blocky and rough he is drawn with rough edges as seen with his hair that emphasizes masculinity.

For Sakura's hair, both the Card CAptor and Tsubasa have short hair. She does have the same short hairstyle; there are a few noticeable differences. Card Captor Sakura’s hair looked straighter in the art, Tsubasa’s Sakura hair has soft fluffy hair and looks bouncy and floofy. her hair moves in different directions to emphasize the bounciness aspect and there are a lot of strands in Sakura's hair.

Card Captor’s sakura is designed based on one of Clamps nieces and Despite them being designed as normal girls, they have this cuteness to them that makes them appealing with Tsubasa sakura designs being reused but still have an image of cuteness like with card captor’s sakura still retains her cheerful and lively personality as she had in Card Captor Sakura.

Card Captor Sakura and Kobato

The two of them are both shoujo mangas but have different audiences with Card Captor Sakura created for a younger audience and Kobato for an older audience in mind.

The two series have different tones Kobato is focused on drama and is more serious but light and loose. Card Captor Sakura is a lighter series than Kobato but is drawn with a soft cute-like feel in mind with Kobato being a focus of reality and the supernatrual in the manga.

The amount of lines when inking at Kobato has a similar style to Card Captor Sakura with the series both using thin lines The lines in Kobato are thin and shojo manga like Card Captor Sakura use curved thin lines and don’t have a lot of of of ink. There are different textures in eyes when inked, Kobato has a lot of lashes in her eyes Sakura has a few lashes

Card Captor Sakura and Chobits

Card Captor Sakura is a shojo manga intended for a younger audience in mind, Chobits is an ecchi manga drawn for an older male audience in mind the art style is appealing to a male audience.

Though the genre of the two series has different art styles they are both drawn with the same thin lines the series are drawn with the use of thin lines and both look soft. Card captor Sakura Doesn’t use a lot of ink and has thin curved lines.

The difference is the materials that are used for the series Chobits uses different materials from Card captor Sakura, for materials for Chobits Clamp use ballpoint pens to make it look to be drawn by pencil The thickness in the eyes of Chobits have a thin line drawn, the ballpoint pen has something to do with it changing the thickness in the eyes.

Tsubasa and xxxHolic

Tsubasa and xxxHolic are both manga series that are drawn in tandem so it wouldn’t be a surprise they have a similar art style. Holic and Tsubasa have similar proportions for the characters this is supposed to show they are both linked. The characters in Holic are drawn tall and have long limbs which are thinner and longer in the manga.

Holic is styled as more of a woodblock painting. Holic art style resembles Japanese ukiyo-e paintings with ukiyo-e longer proportions. Holic is drawn without screentone to give more of an occult feeling.

Clamp uses different materials for the two series, Holic has members draw the characters they use felt tip pens to match Clamps' strong drawing style and use an inking marker to fill large spaces. For Tsubasa the materials they use are a marker with thick lines they used a marker with thick lines to make it pop. Since Tsubasa is more action-oriented since it is a shounen the art needs to pop.

Comparing the thickness of the lines in the series, I would say that Holic has thin lines to contrast with Tsubasa's thick bold lines The eyes of Holic look like there drawn using thin lines and the eyes of Tsubasa have heavy lines in them.

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#clamp #card captor sakura #card captor clear #tsubasa reservoir chronicle #x/1999 #clover clamp #kobato #xxxholic #meta #legal drug #drop and drug #chobits #mokona #tsubaki nekoi #nanase ohkawa #Satsuki Igarashi #my meta

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volfoss · 4 years ago

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my big clamp ranking list (part 1)

S- Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle, X/1999, xxxholic, Tokyo babylon, Cardcaptor Sakura clear card, Chobits, xxxholic Rei

A- Tsubasa World Chronicle, Cardcaptor Sakura, Clamp School Defenders, Shirahime-Syo, Magic Knight Rayearth 1 and 2, Drug and Drop, Derayd

B- Legal Drug, Gate 7, Clamp School Detectives, The One I Love

C- RG Veda, Man of Many Faces, Legend of Chun Hyang, Wish, Angelic Layer, Kobato

D- Clover, Miyuki-chan in Wonderland, Suki

As for best in each category:

Art was easily the best in X/1999, it was so visually stunning!

Best and most frustrating sequel definitely goes to xxxholic Rei.

Best plot is a tie between TRC and xxxholic!

Best ending without a doubt goes to Tokyo Babylon!

The one I'd recommend is xxxholic and TRC although all the ones on the S tier are very good!

And now for my extended (so extended that I discovered Tumblr's length of a post limit) thoughts under the cut:

Series this part goes over:

Clover

Legal Drug

Tokyo Babylon

X/1999

Gate 7

xxxholic

xxxholic rei

Cardcaptor Sakura

Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card

Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle

Tsubasa World Chronicle

Man of Many Faces

RG Veda

Clamp School Detectives

Clamp School Defenders

Shirahime-Syo:Snow Goddess Tales:

Legend of Chun Hyang

Magic Knight Rayearth 1 and 2

Wish

Miyuki-chan in Wonderland

Suki

Angelic Layer

Chobits

Kobato

Drug and Drop

I tried to keep this as spoiler free as possible since my main goal is getting new people into these series or finding ones they might not have read before

Clover:

TLDR: There's powerful people known as Clovers, and the government is trying to hunt them down, and the group of protagonists is trying to protect one.

Plot: The plot is somewhat confusing with the time skipping around a lot but it's intriguing at the same time, maybe a 4/10. There just simply wasn't enough time really to flesh things out as well as they probably could have been if it was finished and it's (for me) one of the most underwhelming of their unfinished works.

Characters: The characters are given a bit of development but not a lot with it being only 4 very thin volumes long, but they're entertaining enough to keep my attention 5/10

Art: The art for this is probably my favorite part, there's a lot of the drastic shading that Clamp does a lot in their later works, and the faces and clothing are lovely. The level of detail given to the mechanical bits and things along those lines is immaculate. The formatting is so different than their other mangas that it really stands out visually as well! 8/10

Ending: it was ended early due to the magazine that it ran in being shut down, but with that in mind, the ending is honestly a mild cliffhanger, nowhere near as bad as stuff like Bus Gamer (which is the work with the worst ending that I’ve ever read). 3/10

Other things: I really enjoyed how the song was woven throughout the story but I think overall, I would pretty much only use this to look at the art, the plot isn't anything special with the fact that it was so short and didn't really have time to develop better. I read the tokyopop translation so it might be different in the new omnibus/fan translations.

Overall: Personally would not recommend this to anyone unless you want pretty art and a mildly confusing futuristic story without a lot of the necessary world building that it could have used, probably a 4/10

Legal Drug:

TLDR: Two guys working at a drug store are sent out by their boss and his partner to solve cases in exchange for extra money on the side.

Plot: The plot didn't do anything really new for me, it felt like how xxxholic does the whole 2 dudes forced to go on jobs by the employer but it's a drug store although the drug store element rarely comes in. There's something oddly charming about it, in its own way. The plot is very like early xxxholic with going through cases slowly but there isn’t a lot of the underlying plot threads that make rereading xxxholic so good each time. Probably a 6/10, I'd return back to this to reread sometime and something about the plot captured my interest in a "I want to fix this" way.

Characters: Characters are probably where I have the biggest gripe with this. The main couple is the most stereotypical bottom and top, with one of them being very, “oh I'm helpless and shy and get really flustered easily”, and the other being very teasing and kinda stoic? It feels like a mashup of the other couples CLAMP has made. However, the background couple consisting of the store owner and his partner is a lot less cliched and had a really cute dynamic. With it being so short, (3 volumes and only 16 chapters) there wasn't a lot of room for character development or seeing them change a lot or grow closer/further apart. 5/10

Art: The art for this is really hit or miss, it had Ouran Highschool Host Club art style solely for one character and the rest look completely different. They kept a lot of the drastic shading with backgrounds which I enjoy but it's not as here's all these big panels and pages with just one or two words as Clover was. The clothing and expressions were nice as they always are but overall it was ok? The color insert panels in this between each volume are very pretty though and I do enjoy how the clothes are generally boring but with the Clamp touch, they don’t appear as boring as they would be in real life. 6/10

Ending: The ending didn't feel very conclusive but it wasn't bad. The arc wrapped up and there were a couple of omakes that showed a bit of their backstory, overall the ending wasn't as cohesive as some of their series but it didn't turn out to be as disappointing as I was expecting with how short it was. 6/10

Other things: Before reading I had the feeling it would be typical top/bottom dynamics and it hasn't exactly proven me wrong. I think despite the sheer amount of cliches, it's still a fun read. The character interactions and art style remind me a fair bit of OHSHC, which isn't necessarily a bad thing (slightly in a Haruhi and Tamaki interacting sort of way? I’m not sure how else to compare it but it felt very much like them).

Overall: There's something kinda charming about this, in a way that it doesn't really go anywhere or say too much but it makes me interested to see what they would do with Drug and Drop (which is a prequel series to this). If you want something to fill the void that xxxholic leaves after you finish it and you're ok with some of the very stereotypical things, this could be a good fit. Just like with Clover, I feel there was some potential to it, had it gone on longer than it did. I think this is something I would reread but I think it's solely because I do really enjoy the dynamic between the main characters (as stereotypical as it is, they’re fun to read about) and it's similar enough to xxxholic that it brought nostalgia. However, it's not something I would readily recommend, but the lack of characters being gross (for the most part) brings it a bit higher than Clover was. Also worth noting I read a fan translation for this. I'd say this is a 6/10.

Tokyo Babylon:

TLDR: The protagonist (Subaru) is the head of a clan and he, his twin sister, and the veterinarian all work together to solve supernatural crimes while the tension between Subaru and Seishirou (the vet) builds.

Plot: The plot is fascinating but the main relationship makes it hard to enjoy (see later in the notes for explanation). I really like a lot of the mystery elements and how there's a sneaking suspicion that one of the characters is up to no good for the entire plot. I personally like it a lot more than the aspects of xxxholic, if I'm comparing the beginning customers in xxxholic to the beginning cases in this. Comparing this to Legal Drug, they handle the cases along with that building suspense much better in Tokyo Babylon. I'd say it's a solid 8/10

Characters: There's not a ton of development but I think the characters are a fascinating part of it, even the minor characters have a lot of personality to them. For the most part, the characters are enjoyable to read about. The dynamic between Subaru and his twin is probably my favorite part of it, their interactions feel very natural. And of course, you can’t really discuss Tokyo Babylon without bringing up the relationship between Subaru and Seishirou which starts as fairly naive in general and then slowly descending into suspense until you hit the end. 7/10

Art: The artstyle for this is really nice, you can tell it's one of their older works and the level of detail and character design is up there with some of my favorite manga. There’s a lot of panels in this that are so haunting and stuck with me weeks after reading it, and I can’t gush about the character outfits enough! I really enjoy how Clamp does fashion that’s relatively timeless and I could definitely see people currently dressing similar to how the characters in this dress. The visuals in this in general are so haunting and so memorable. 8/10

Ending: HOLY SHIT the ending for this is wild and really something I didn't see coming too far and it really tied everything that was being subtly dropped throughout the story together. The way things were building up and the hints were being subtly dropped is so well done. 10/10

Other things: The relationship between Subaru and Seishirou is something that makes me incredibly uncomfortable (as Subaru is 15 or 16 and Seishirou is 27) with how it's portrayed as romantic and a good thing although I know that won't be a problem for everyone. I also want to clarify that it's a main point in the story and not something just thrown in every once in a while.

Overall: If you can ignore the very questionable romance aspect, it's a very fascinating read and one that I would read again solely for the ending. I also used a fan translation for this, in case there's a drastically different interpretation of things in the official translation. I'd say it's a probably 8/10

X/1999:

TLDR: High school boy tasked with deciding Earth's fate, which is supposed to end in 1999, but he's being pulled by both an evil and good side as the date draws closer to the world ending.

Plot: The plot was something when I tried to initially read it, I was very bored and confused. But with this time around, it grabbed me right from the beginning, but if it doesn't do that for you, give it until book 2. The plot is very very good, balancing a lot of intrigue and mystery with some comedy in the beginning, and just being really good with world building. All of the flashbacks into characters' pasts really fleshed them out a lot and were such a good touch! I thought that it wouldn't be able to top Tokyo Babylon in terms of plot twists and turns but it far exceeded that, there's so many plot twists that have been so carefully laid out throughout the story leading up to the reveal. 10/10

Characters: There is a TON of characters in this, and just like RG Veda, I'd highly recommend keeping a list of characters for this series. They're all very distinct but just keeping the names on paper or nearby can make the reading experience a lot better. The characters are able to balance the story between comedy and such an intense drama and plot, it's very impressive! They’re all really loveable and the character growth in the story is so fascinating. The returning characters from Tokyo Babylon changing subtly with the passage of time is something I really enjoyed! 10/10 I got way too attached to every single character in this.

Art: I'm gonna be honest and maybe a bit biased but this is some of my favorite art that's come out of Clamp (biased because I adore their 90s style). The backgrounds are visually stunning and there's so many two page spreads, and the characters look gorgeous. Everyone is very visually distinctive and the work put in on this manga really shows. There's not been a single visually boring or ugly panel in this. I'm also gonna add that this is my favorite series visually from Clamp. The fight scenes are also really clear and very obvious on what's going on (for me at least. I normally have problems figuring out what is going on in fight scenes so this being really clear with what's happening in each panel is really nice). 10/10

Ending: This was on hiatus and has been for a while but the ending was a big thing where everything was being built up and then it ended abruptly. If they ever return to it, I'll be thrilled but it's been so long that I'm unsure if they will. The ending and parts leading up to the ending were emotionally devastating but so good. If it was finished (and finished well), this would be the first clamp work on this list with 10s across the board but as is, the ending or lack of is a 3/10.

Other things: This makes 10x more sense if you read Tokyo Babylon beforehand, as when I tried to read this before I was pretty confused, but post reading Tokyo Babylon, I understand it a fair bit more. The story takes place after the events of Tokyo Babylon, and the references to Tokyo Babylon begin around volume 8. I had seen some reviews mentioning it getting confusing so if you have an interest in this, I’d heavily recommend reading Tokyo Babylon beforehand so it doesn’t get confusing with the new characters that are introduced from that. Not super relevant but the series also goes under X, but I personally refer to it as X/1999 because its a bit easier to search for.

Overall: 9/10 I cannot recommend this enough, this is in my top 3 Clamp mangas, but the ending is probably the only thing I'd want to put the overall rating lower than a 10, but everything else made it such an enjoyable experience that it is a 9/10.

Gate 7:

TLDR: A high schooler gets transported to a different world full of mysterious characters and moves in with them.

Plot: The plot makes a lot of references to Japanese historical figures which is really neat! The plot was really interesting but I felt there could have been more done with it, but Gate 7 has been on hiatus for a while. 5/10

Characters: The characters are really charming and fun to read about, there's a lot of intrigue built up about them with just small bits of information we're given. There's a few times where there are many characters introduced at one time which makes it hard to juggle all the names and lore, at least for me. It's very short so there's not a lot of development going on. The main character, Hana, is definitely one of the best things about this story, they’re just fun to read about and try to figure out if anything deeper is going on with them. 6/10

Art: I can tell it's similar to the xxxholic/TRC artstyle but a bit more polished and I really love how it looks! It combined a lot of the art features from xxxholic Rei and CCS Clear Card to make a really pretty artstyle! The characters are all visually distinct and interesting and the backgrounds are really nice! 8/10

Ending: This is on hiatus and has been for a while so rating the last chapter I can find (chapter 22.5). The ending wasn't the worst that I've read ever but it was a bit strange. 4/10

Other things: I think that this could have been a great manga if it was ever continued but as it is, it's just kind of average.

Overall: I think with more time or if it was finished, this could have been so much better. As it is right now, it's a 5/10

Xxxholic:

TLDR: The protagonist is haunted by spirits and due to mysterious circumstances ends up working at a mysterious woman's wish granting shop in order to get them off his back.

Plot: The plot genuinely gets better each time you read it with the foreshadowing and subtle hints but even on a first time through, it's plenty to capture your attention! It starts out on a slightly connected case by case basis until it slowly turns into a plot that makes you question everything and feel despair. The things in the last 4 books make me cry every single time I read it but it's so phenomenal and so well done that I wouldn't trade it for the world. The cases are all so fascinating and fun to read that you don't really notice where it's going until it happens and then you're just wallowing in the despair that is the latter half or so of xxxholic. But the plot outside of that really balances the cheerful and the spooky as well as just people living their lives in such a wonderful way that it's very easy to get through it all in record time! The pacing very much keeps on track with not a lot of filler in the manga much more so than the anime, there’s never really a dull moment. 10/10 probably my favorite plot to come out of Clamp!

Characters: THE CHARACTERS!!!! This manga has such entertaining characters who go through so much and grow so much and get along in such a fun way. The characters in this are so human in such a way that I think Clamp excels in and I love that so much! There's just so much to love with every single character and it's so hard to not feel so immersed and attached with them even with Watanuki (the protagonist) acting a bit outlandish at times! The characters in this are probably my favorite that's come out of Clamp (alongside TRC) because they feel so real and so well written. I'd read about the characters' journeys forever as long as Clamp kept writing them! I could gush about these characters for hours but I’m trying to keep it relatively spoiler free and also not as long as I definitely have talked about these characters in the past. 10/10

Art: The art for this is so stark in a way, with the backgrounds more often a plain black or plain white but it really does lend to the mystery and melancholy that is there especially towards the beginning (as towards the end you do find out why the just heavy feeling has been there since the beginning), and the characters suit it perfectly. Despite it being so dark at times, the comedic expressions from the characters (especially Watanuki) are illustrated so perfectly. The characters are easy to distinguish visually (except two relatives that don't come into play until later in the story) and visually, Yuuko's outfits are some of the most beautiful that Clamp has ever drawn. It's the perfect balance for me of detailed panels and less detailed ones in terms of facial expressions. Especially towards the end, the art is so stunning! 10/10

Ending: I have a fair bit of mixed feelings on the ending, as I wish it had a more conclusive ending but I think the ending also emotionally ruined me for a very long time so I'd argue it's an even trade. The way that they structure it to leave it slightly up to interpretation isn't my favorite but the events leading up to the ending are so beautifully woven together and so fantastic! 9/10

Other things: I admit this review is heavily biased more so than the others since xxxholic was the only one I'd read fully before going into this, and it's my favorite manga and anime of all time, so please realize there is bias but there is also a very good reason it's my favorite! I’m also biased because this is the only one I've seen the anime all the way through on, but the anime is a lot different than the manga but not as egregiously adapted as some of their other works! As an important note, this crosses over with Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle, so you’ll see certain characters from that there and reading it does help make more sense of what’s going on towards the end. The anime adaptation completely cuts out the way that xxxholic and TRC are so heavily intertwined, so that might be a surprise when reading the manga if you’ve only seen the manga.

Overall: 10/10 if I can convince anyone to read one Clamp work, it's this.

Xxxholic Rei:

TLDR: Continuation of xxxholic (keeping it vague for spoiler reasons)

Plot: This was quite honestly everything I could have wanted from this and more, although as with any of their unfinished works, I would love to see more of it. This did everything a sequel could, filling out some of the areas in the latter half of xxxholic that were slightly skimmed over and just kept the general feel of the series so well. The beginning was a bit confusing but was cleared up soon after in a very heart wrenching way, and the rest of it was very much leading up to something big and then never really fulfilled that since it’s on hiatus. 9/10

Characters: They very much did what they did with Tsubasa World Chronicle with the passage of time in the real world causing the characters to grow a bit in a natural way, and their interactions are enjoyable as always! The new characters introduced were fun and the old ones returning felt like such a treat to get to see them again. The dynamics between everyone feels just like it did in xxxholic as well! 10/10

Art: The art feels slightly like what they did with TWC, where they took the original art style and made it more polished! They really went above and beyond with the art for Rei and it's so lovely to look at. Clamp kept everything that made xxxholic charming and visually stunning and made it more elegant! 10/10

Ending: This is on hiatus but arguably up there with one of the worst cliffhangers that they've created. Whether you read online or go off of just the physical books, they've set things up so well and then it's been on hiatus for years. It’s very much up there with some of the worst hiatus caused endings (not to constantly reference Bus Gamer but it felt like that a lot with a lot of set up then it went nowhere). With this being the current ending that's there and no proof that it's going to get continued, I'd give it a 2/10

Other things: The last 3 chapters weren't published in the format that the rest are in, so you'll have to find a fan translation for them if you want to read the entire thing. I’m keeping this very incredibly vague because I especially don’t want to spoil sequels for things.

Overall: 9/10, it was amazing but the way it's left off is very frustrating!

Cardcaptor Sakura:

TLDR: A middle school girl is out to collect all of the Clow Cards along with her sidekicks because if she doesn't collect them, the world will be in trouble.

Plot: I started this out very skeptical since I'm not a big magical girl genre fan but the plot for this has the typical Clamp charm with just how they blend together action and character growth as well as comedy. The plot is a pretty simple structure (Sakura having to collect the Clow cards) but they do so much with it that I never felt bored once. The pacing is really good, with it being enough action but also downtime to keep it balanced. 9/10

Characters: I cannot explain enough how much I adore these characters. Clamp really excels in the longer series imo and this one really does these characters justice. I've read a bit of Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle before this (which ties in but it's complicated) so I recognized the characters a bit! The character growth is honestly really good and a lot more than I was expecting! The characters are just very charming and really enjoyable to read about! 8/10

Art: Beautiful, you can tell that it was a slightly older style (CCS was made in the late 90s) but seeing how that style transitioned into the modern Clamp work is really fascinating. The art is gorgeous and the fight scenes are so neat with how they're done! Also the character design is gorgeous, Sakura and Syaoran always have these really intricate outfits and all the characters look really good! 9/10

Ending: The ending oh man. It's something that's really sad but bittersweet, it really got everything wrapped up and just suits the series really well. I'm leaving it vague because I'm full of feelings but not able to put them into words. 10/10

Other things: There are a few (yes you read that right, a few) questionable age gap relationships (that aren't in the anime but the manga doesn't make a super big deal out of them like Tokyo Babylon does), although there are multiple and it's not super subtle about it, one including a teacher proposing to a 10/13 year old, another being the protagonists parents, and the other being *gasp* another teacher student relationship. Also worth noting that there is a fair bit of LGBTQ+ representation in the series and done really well, with it not being very cliched (much better than how Legal Drug does things). I’m keeping this one somewhat vague because I feel this is one of the ones that’s slightly more popular than the rest and because it’s something that you just have to experience for yourself.

Overall: I'm gonna be honest and say the relationships factor is something that makes it a lot less enjoyable than it could be, although that was something I was aware of going in (and a motif Clamp tends to repeat unfortunately). If it wasn't for that, it would be a solid 9/10, but it's not such a big part of the plot as Tokyo Babylon was.

CCS Clear Card:

TLDR: All of the cards that Sakura collected during the initial series have all turned clear and they need to figure out why. (shitty summary but it’s hard to sum up without spoilers)

Plot: When I began this, it really just felt like Cardcaptor Sakura all over again in a way that it was being rehashed needlessly. But around halfway through, it picks up a bit and differentiates itself from CCS a bit, which feels good! The plot is mostly similar until the halfway point but with new characters which feels nice. The plot has been picking up steadily (and adding new things) at the latest chapters which is very good! Waiting monthly truly is nothing but torture because of the plot picking up so quickly. 7/10

Characters: The new characters introduced are good! They have interesting backstories and mesh well with the preexisting characters! I really enjoy them a lot but so far it's not a lot of character growth. We do have a much more present villain with this part, which I enjoy a lot! The original didn’t feel as if it had that, so it’s a welcome change. I feel it's a bit unfair to judge it since it's not finished, but I'd say it's probably a 7/10?

Art: The artstyle feels like they're putting CCS Sakura and TRC Sakura in a blender, it feels slightly newer than how she looked in CCS but it still looks nice! It's not my favorite Clamp style (I personally prefer a lot of their older stuff and the stuff that’s very visually distinct) but the art is really pretty! The full page spreads are also really nice, you can tell they put a lot of effort into the backgrounds and doing detail with them! I’m especially impressed with how they managed to keep the feel of the original style but update it a bit to look more polished. 7/10

Ending: As of writing (September of 2021), this hasn't finished so I can't rate this. For context, it's still ongoing, unlike the works on hiatus. I feel more confident rating those since they've been on hiatus for years instead of new chapters every month or so.

Other things: I may have not enjoyed this as much as I could since I jumped into this the same day I finished CCS, since the beginning felt very similar, so please be aware of that.

Overall: It's good but definitely not up there with my favorite Clamp works, and the gross relationships still prevail a bit in this, which is really unfortunate. 7/10 I do feel like things were a bit better than CCS in terms of plot picking up in the later half, so it's a bit higher on my overall ranking because of thinking back on it.

Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle:

TLDR: Found family traveling universes together to help one of them regain memories

Plot: Okay I physically cannot explain enough how amazing the plot in TRC is. It's paced perfectly, with the right amount of relaxation moments and action, and each of the universes are really unique and fascinating! When it gets past the halfway point though, things start to pick up and get even better. I don't want to get too deep into the plot for spoiler reasons, but it's so good. 10/10

Characters: The characters are all amazing and I think that this is genuinely the Clamp work with the most character development and the best characters. Seeing their backstories added so much to it and them as characters are all phenomenal. Thinking about these characters too hard makes me cry, the authors did such a phenomenal job developing everything about them and making them so enjoyable to read. The villain was a truly big threat and all the side characters that you met along the way were so nice to see again (TRC is basically Clamp’s big crossover work so reading everything before this resulted in me recognizing a lot of the characters from their other works that appeared in this). 10/10

Art: The art for this is stunning, with the characters having such detailed clothing and faces, as well as the backgrounds being so lovely! There's so many memorable moments that are just punctuated by the art. The style is a lot different than their older works, but it suits TRC so well! There are way too many panels in this that have stuck in my head for way longer than I want them to which is a testament to how good this was. 10/10

Ending: Words cannot explain how well the ending was done. It was somewhat open, which I know really could irritate some people, but I didn't mind it because everything that was leading up to the last few pages was so wonderfully crafted and brought everything together. When it was closer to the ending, it was a bit confusing but not too bad, despite the reputation it can get. 9/10

Other things: I wrote thoughts down right after finishing it, so it's not very long because I don't want to give away spoilers one bit. But this was such an amazing series and so so worth it. It's one I'd definitely reread over and over. I’m keeping this so vague because I can and will pressure people into reading it solely because of the characters or the plot but please trust me this deserves all the praise I’m giving it. It crosses over with xxxholic and both works make a lot more sense with the context from the other.

Overall: If I could recommend one Clamp work outside of xxxholic, it would be this. 10/10

Tsubasa World Chronicle:

TLDR: Sequel to TRC, can't really go into further detail without spoilers

Plot: It felt very much like returning home after finishing TRC but I also feel that with the plot being basically one adventure (in comparison to TRCs many adventures), it felt slightly disappointing because I wish that they had done more with it (slightly like how xxxholic Rei had around the same length and fit more plot in). I know that my disappointment is because I care about the characters in TRC so much and always want to see more of them. Outside of that, the plot was really interesting with the world and characters, and how it ties into Rei was a nice touch! 7/10

Characters: With the characters already being established and given so much depth and growth in TRC, I wasn't expecting much going in, but Clamp made the choice to show a bit how they grew between the end of TRC and the beginning of TWC in a subtle and nice way. The other characters that were in this were from Gate 7, so they were somewhat established as well (to me at least), and there were some original characters as well. Since it's so much shorter than TRC, there wasn't as much character development and growth but that's alright with TRC having such good characters. 9/10 solely because I'm very attached to the TRC characters.

Art: The art feels like Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle but a fair bit more polished which makes sense due to the passage of time in the real world between this and the original series! The characters just look a bit better in my opinion and the backgrounds are very lovely! It's very much up there with some of the best that they've put out, although I also admit I do generally prefer their style from the 1990s, I think that this is beautifully illustrated! 10/10

Ending: The ending was similar to TRC, with it being open ended but this was somewhat wrapped up but a bit less so than TRC, in my opinion. It still was good but I really wish they had done more with it being a sequel series (or maybe I just hope for more adventures for the characters). 8/10

Other things: It does give away the ending/after the end of xxxholic (and xxxholic Rei) very early on, so I'd read this at after xxxholic Rei, as Rei spoils a little less about this than this does for Rei. The official translation on this just felt really odd after reading TRC which I believe was translated by a different company, but I think the main thing I have a gripe with was just the font choice and how it kept changing in the Kodansha translation I have.

Overall: I think it was a very good sequel to TRC, but it didn't add a lot to the TRC lore, although it was very very nice to see the characters again. 8/10

Man of Many Faces:

TLDR: The protagonist is the son of a famous thief and has taken over his work, mainly because of his mom's insistence.

Plot: It's similar to Clamp School Detectives with a slightly underlying plot but new cases each chapter. I really enjoy this kind of plot so I'm a bit biased. 6/10

Characters: The moms are really great but seriously, the characters are all pretty good at being distinct and they interact really well! I wasn't expecting that the characters would have growth in a manga that's 11 chapters, but there was actually a bit of growth! 7/10

Art: The art style is really nice! Clamps 90s material has such a nice feel to it, and the backgrounds look really good! The clothes variety for the moms and the costumes in general are gorgeous! 8/10

Ending: The ending wasn't anything special, just wrapping up a few loose ends, but it wasn't bad. 5/10

Other things: The protagonist is dating someone younger than him by 4 years (a 5 year old and a 9 year old just feels a bit off to me) which is a pretty prominent plot point so if that's something that bothers you, that's there. The romance in this felt pretty unnecessary to me personally.

Overall: It was ok? The art was nice and the characters were nice but it didn't do a lot for me in comparison to a lot of the longer series that they have, which I suppose is an unfair comparison as this is only 11 chapters long. 6/10

RG Veda:

TLDR: Father and child go on a journey to stop an evil ruler.

Plot: This length and attention to detail is what I really wish that a lot of their other fantasy series that are shorter had, the plot is really rich and well developed for the most part. 7/10

Characters: A fair bit of the characters irk me, but I admit they're interesting and pretty well fleshed out. My biggest problem with this is how they just constantly are throwing new characters in without much warning and it's a lot to balance and keep track of for me. I think with the amount of characters they put in, it was a bit too ambitious and made it really hard to care about characters who barely showed up when they died. I'd recommend keeping a written list of characters handy to make it a bit easier to keep track of. The villain in this is really compelling and has instilled a lot of dread in the protagonists, which I think is really good since they need motivation to go on their journey. 6/10

Art: The art is really pretty and detailed, and there's a few panels that are up among the best things Clamp has drawn. The clothes look nice but typically aren't super elaborate. 7/10

Ending: Big battle and kind of emotional ending. It didn't do a lot for me because I wasn't really attached to the characters with there being so many. 5/10

Other things: I feel the need to point out that on the wiki, one of the relationships is "Adoptive father, lover" so that's there. After finishing it though, there's not anything really blatant so unless I missed something, there's not anything inherently romantic about this. It seems as if I am disinterested by this, but I think it was truly because of the scan I read being blurry and making it a bit harder to focus. This would be one I’d potentially buy physically to do a reread and see if my opinion changes. It’s very much a good manga but the circumstances I was reading it in made it hard to enjoy, basically.

Overall: This wasn't my favorite but it wasn't the worst, so I'm confident in giving it a solid 6/10, although it's one I'd probably reread sometime to see if I would enjoy it more.

Clamp School Detectives:

TLDR: 3 elementary school age kids going and solving mysteries and helping other people out

Plot: There's a slight recurring theme to each chapter and a slight plot thread connecting them each. 7/10, I really enjoy this kind of content because it's just lighthearted fun but there's an actual plot to it.

Characters: The three main boys are really distinct both visually and personality wise, but there's not a lot of character development which makes sense with it being only 12 chapters long. The characters are all very charming and their interactions are very nice! 8/10

Art: Very similar to Tokyo Babylon, not at all a bad thing! I really like this style and the less detailed faces in the background that keep reappearing! 9/10

Ending: The ending was super abrupt and not what I was expecting, honestly a bit disappointing, with as far as I know, the series officially ending there. 3/10

Other things: I think the best way to explain the feel of the series is if Ouran Highschool Host Club meets the Hardy Boys, which wasn't a crossover I knew I needed but I really did.

Overall: I honestly really enjoyed this despite it being so short and the ending not being great, it was just really charming and it was fun to see the crossovers with the other Clamp School related series! I would definitely read this again, 8/10

Clamp School Defenders:

TLDR: It's a group of people at Clamp School who are saving their school from a villain.

Plot: Similar to Clamp School Detectives, it's cheesy but honestly a ton of fun. Each chapter has them fighting in a different circumstance. I'll be honest and say this was much better than what I was expecting! The plot goes in a direction I wasn't expecting around chapter 10, and it's a lot more than I was expecting from a pretty short manga. 8/10

Characters: The characters are all incredibly charming and I was pleasantly surprised that the female character didn't get the damsel in distress treatment, as she can easily handle her own! All of the characters are very distinct (although I did occasionally mix up the two main short haired boys as their hairstyles are somewhat similar). With it being so short I wasn't expecting a lot of character growth, so I suppose it's again, similar to Clamp School Detectives, not a lot of development but a lot of charm and characters that aren't bland! 7/10

Art: The art for this is very similar to Clamp School Detectives, which I adore! I don't have a ton to say about it but the Mecha designs are really cool and the backgrounds and details are really nice! 9/10

Ending: The ending was kinda mediocre, quite honestly. I wasn't expecting much but it was just pretty bland. 3/10

Other things: This one crosses over a bit with Man of Many Faces, but it works well enough on its own without reading it. It also crosses over a bit with Clamp School Detectives, but you can also read this without the context of reading Clamp School Detectives. There's also quite a bit of meta jokes as it goes on. It is also unfortunately a trademark of a fair bit of Clamp's work to include an age gap relationship and this is no exception. I think it's quite a bit less romanticized than some of their other works (Cardcaptor Sakura for example), as the protagonists are fighting against this relationship to happen, but it is still there. It is an arranged marriage and still gross (referring to the age gap that isn't specified how big other than referring to them as an older woman dating a younger man) but I'm very relieved it's not as romanticized as their other works. I would say I prefer this overall to Clamp School Detectives, because the plot and characters were a bit more fun to read about but I think they’re also pretty similar.

Overall: I really really enjoyed this one, I think Clamp does well with these not super plot detailed shorter mangas as well as their longer ones, but if you're looking for a really plot detailed one, this is not it. It's just cheesy and a bit goofy but imo it's a lot of fun! 7/10

Shirahime-Syo:Snow Goddess Tales:

TLDR: It's an anthology with the plot all being connected in it's own with Shirahime-Syo, the snow goddess.

Plot: The plot in each chapter is something I really enjoy, and Clamp excels at. It's a short manga but it's really well paced and kept my interest the entire time. 8/10

Characters: With it being so short, there's not a lot of room for character development and growth, but the small bit that it has is really good. The characters were all distinct in their own way and that I think is impressive for a 5 chapter manga. 7/10

Art: The art is like nothing I've seen from Clamp before, it's absolutely lovely, I really like the thick lines and semi realistic faces! The backgrounds are beautiful and the overall format reminds me a lot of Clover's set up (not a traditional manga panel setup) especially in the first chapter. The two page spreads are so stunning and I love the kind of harsh lines used throughout. This is probably one of my favorite things artistically that Clamp has released. The art in this is so so pretty, it really stands out! 9/10

Ending: The ending was simple yet tied it all together, it was really good! 7/10

Other things: This appears to be an anthology with a small thread of plot connecting them all, which isn't something I hate! It feels melancholy but in a haunting and beautiful way.

Overall: I think this might be one of Clamp's hidden gems, it's extremely quick to read but such an impactful story! 8/10

Legend of Chun Hyang:

TLDR: A child prodigy at martial arts goes on a journey with a traveler

Plot: The plot for this slightly reminds me of Slayers, with a strong girl and a kinda dumb dude following her around (I haven't gotten super far into Slayers so I'm aware the dynamic might be different). But despite it being really long chapters, the plot grabbed me in right away and it was entertaining. 7/10

Characters: There was not enough time for a lot of character development but the characters were fun to read about and were ones I'd love to see further content with. 6/10

Art: The art is very 90s Clamp, which is something I don't mind at all! The backgrounds are pretty detailed and the action scenes are very clear on what's going on, the character outfits are really nice too! 8/10

Ending: It's very clear that this was dropped after the 3 chapters that were released since it ended so abruptly and had a lot of plot that was set up and never really followed through with. It wasn't the worst ending I've read but it was frustrating. 2/10

Other things: I believe that this is based on a legend but I'm unsure. Review is so short because of how short this was, and just not having a ton of thoughts on it.

Overall: I enjoyed it and just wish there was a bit more to it in general. 5/10 solely because of how bad the ending was.

Magic Knight Rayearth:

TLDR: Three girls get sucked into a magical world with the goal of having to save it from a villain, as prophecy foretold.

Plot: The plot moves along really quickly but manages to make it not feel like it is, with a lot of character interactions and a little bit of downtime between each battle. The plot kept me interested the entire time throughout and the twist by around the middle of book 3 was unexpected. With it being so short, I really wish it had been stretched out over more books, but for a quick fantasy story, it's pretty impressive. Things moved so fast that I really wish that Clamp had been able to slow down a bit and show a lot more of the world or add more plot details other than it just being a pretty straightforward adventure. 7/10

Characters: The characters are all really likeable and easy to visually distinguish, which I feel is on purpose. The side characters you meet are also really charming and make sense with the narrative of the story. As for character development, they have visual reminders of the girls getting stronger with their armor and weapons upgrading as they do. I feel like as with all categories in this, I wish they had done more with it, adding more details and letting the story be paced a bit slower to give the characters more growth and bonding time. 6/10

Art: Early Clamp art style is so stylized in such a nice way, and this is no exception at all! The backgrounds are stunning and the character design is really distinct and easy to tell apart with who is who, I really like how it's done! It's not too overcrowded (like how Miyuki-chan in Wonderland is) so it's really easy to read and easy on the eyes! 8/10

Ending: The ending for this was really good and not what I was expecting, and it really fed into the beginning of Magic Knight Rayearth 2 in a cohesive manner. 8/10

Other things: The world in this is honestly something I would love to see more of (which is great that there's a sequel) and I really wish it had been longer. The world building was just kind of giving out little crumbs of information sprinkled through and I wish we had learned more about it. My main gripe is that I would have loved to see more from this, not necessarily to the length of TRC but I do wish it was longer than it was.

Overall: For what it was (a 3 book adventure story), it's really pretty impressive how much they fit in. The characters were much better than I expected and it's definitely one that I wasn't expecting to enjoy as much as I did. I would definitely reread this in the future. 7/10

Magic Knight Rayearth 2:

TLDR: After the adventure of Magic Knight Rayearth, the girls realize that they miss the world and their adventures and go back, continuing their adventures.

Plot: The plot is honestly just as strong as in the original and there's yet another massive plot twist that was the opposite of what I was expecting! The plot was really nice and it felt as though the story just flew by with the pacing being really nice although perhaps a bit rushed. 7/10

Characters: I feel just even at the very beginning, the main three girls have a lot more complexity (which does make sense after what they went through), which is definitely a good thing! The new characters introduced are all really fun to read and the old ones returning was a pleasant surprise! 6/10

Art: The art is just as nice as the first, with a lot more of the 2 page spreads which was a really nice touch! 8/10

Ending: The ending, just like the original, was pretty unexpected, but also somewhat not? I'm not too sure how to explain it other than it feels like it falls into some cliches but also puts a fresh spin on them. 7/10

Other things: Not a very long review because this was also a short one and I said most of what I wanted to say about this in the first series.

Overall: I really enjoyed it and the world was something I really wanted to get back to, it was fascinating! 7/10

Wish:

TLDR: A man finds an angel and she tries to grant his wish despite his insisting he has no wishes to grant.

Plot: It was really oddly paced and not super memorable (I read this in a day or two and by the time I finished, I remembered barely anything from the beginning). It's a little similar to Suki where romance is a big focal point but has a slightly bigger cast of characters. The pacing went from fast to dragging its feet at times, which made it a bit frustrating to read. 4/10

Characters: The characters are slightly walking stereotypes, especially the angels and demons with their appearance and personality and there wasn't much character development to speak of (which was what I was expecting from such a short manga). Some of the characters were entertaining but overall I didn't really get attached or invested in anyone. The side characters were pretty much the only redeeming things in Wish, and I really wish more of the story was focused on them instead of the main couple. 5/10

Art: The art is middle of the road but the constant chibis have made the art really grate on me (the protagonist turns into a chibi version of herself at night, so it's a pretty frequent occurrence). It could just be that the art isn't my cup of tea but the way people are drawn just makes me miss the ones I've read in the past that look a bit more polished. 5/10 (although I also admit it's a bit biased and the art is nice but I just don't enjoy it a lot). The main artist for this one has illustrated ones that I really enjoy but also some I didn't so I think it's just slightly a hit or miss for me personally.

Ending: The ending was something I wasn't expecting and the way things were concluded wasn't necessarily bad but I think just my disinterest in the plot and most of the characters made it hard to enjoy. The ending felt as if it was supposed to be emotional but how things were executed didn't really fulfill that for me. 5/10

Other things: I fully acknowledge that this could be a good manga but it's just not one I really enjoyed. If I were to change it to make it better, I’d focus more on the world and the side characters more than the main characters and the romance aspect, because I think there was a lot of potential there.

Overall: 5/10 it was average but not anything I'd ever bother rereading.

Miyuki-chan in Wonderland:

TLDR: Protagonist gets sucked into a wacky world with a lot of women and things return to normal by the end of the chapter, and then things start over the same each chapter but in a different setting.

Plot: I cannot physically explain the sheer lack of plot this has, with things resetting each chapter, there's not really any underlying plot, nor pretty much any plot in each individual chapter. If you want something that’s very little plot and easy to digest, this definitely might be the work for you, it’s kind of like junk food with it being really simple? 0/10

Characters: The only thing we know about our protagonist is she works at a restaurant and that's pretty much it. There's not any interesting characters but I sure wish there were. 0/10

Art: The art is fairly busy compared to the other Clamp works I've read, which isn't something I particularly like. The style is somewhat similar to Tokyo Babylon but the skill is just going to drawing a ton of women barely wearing clothes instead of the pretty backgrounds that their other series had. 5/10

Ending: It was kinda like an anthology of stories so the ending didn't really pack any punches or do anything interesting, just wrapped up the last chapter. 1/10

Other things: The very definition of porn without plot except there's not any porn just suggestive content all over the place. Probably the most frustrating one that I’ve read in terms of plot because I went in with some semi low expectations and they somehow didn’t meet any of those.

Overall: This was something I'm glad to be done with, it was really boring and didn't do much interesting with the concepts that were presented other than just here's women. 1/10 the art was ok? The point is just for the artwork not looking too bad.

Suki:

TLDR: A naive high school age girl falling in love with her 32 year old teacher but all is not what it seems for them both.

Plot: By this point, I'm a bit exhausted of this kind of relationship in Clamp works and just am not really captured by the plot fully surrounding this. I'm not the biggest fan of romance only plots and that's pretty much all that this was. It was really predictable and didn't really do anything new. Even when the plot twist was introduced, things didn’t really get much more interesting because of the main character.1/10

Characters: Honestly (and not trying to be negative about this), a lot of the characters are pretty insufferable, especially the protagonist, it makes it slightly hard to read. No matter what the circumstance is, the main character just ignores any and all danger and proceeds to act naive to the point of exhaustion (for me). A couple of the side characters weren’t insufferable but a lot of them also were at the same time. It really seems like Touko (one of the side characters) is the only one remotely with common sense and no one listens to her. The love interest is so boring and also lacks some common sense. 2/10

Art: The art is completely different than anything I've seen from Clamp before, and while it's well done, it's just not my cup of tea personally. I fully acknowledge it's biased and some people may enjoy the artstyle but 4/10.

Ending: The ending was gross but what I predicted, it's very frustrating how often they really romanticize these kinds of relationships. 0/10

Other things: There was literally nothing that made me enjoy this one bit. I hated it here so much when reading it, and the 2 bearable characters did not make it worth it.

Overall: 1/10 I would never reread this or recommend it to anyone, it was just very frustrating to read and the plot didn't really do anything that was exciting or new.

Angelic Layer:

TLDR: A girl gets involved in the world of robotic doll fighting and she fights through a tournament.

Plot: At around the halfway point, the plot has been just fight after fight, which is fine but there's not a lot of time for plot outside of the fighting. The plot slightly picks up from just repetitive fighting around chapter 19/26 which is really late for there to feel like there's something actually going on plot wise. If you enjoy just fight after fight without a lot of other stuff, this is the plot for you, but that's not something I really enjoy. For me, this kind of plot just drones on and on and it could not keep my interest that well. 3/10

Characters: The main characters identifying trait is she's short and doesn't think she can fight properly because of that but that changes throughout the story. There's not a lot of character motivation for the protagonist with her just continuing to fight without much of an end goal. I don’t think that explained a lot, but simply, the protagonist just wants to fight in the tournaments and doesn’t necessarily seem to have an end goal in sight. 3/10

Art: Very much similar to Chobits with the style but everyone looks like how Chi looks, which isn't really cute to me. I think that Chobits had it more balanced with not everyone in that artstyle that Chi was drawn in, but this isn't too bad. I don't really enjoy it a lot and a lot of the fight scenes are a bit hard to understand what's going on for me. As well, one character doesn't have his nose in a lot of panels or just a bit of it isn't drawn, which is pretty distracting. The backgrounds aren't that interesting either, no one really did much that made them stick out in my memory. 4/10

Ending: The ending was just things wrapped up with a minor plot twist, it didn't do much for me. It just didn't really seem well earned or something that the protagonist was really striving for, since she was mainly just continuing to play and wasn't specifically stating that this was what she wanted. 3/10

Other things: The plot was very much not something I enjoyed but I can also see where it could be good for someone that was interested in this. I have some hope that the anime might make it something I enjoy a bit more.

Overall: I'm sure this could be something someone would like but it lost my attention super early on and didn't ever really regain it. 3/10

Chobits:

TLDR: An average guy finds a Persocom in the trash and the Persocom is not all that she seems to be at a glance.

Plot: The plot starts out as a slightly slice of life, but progresses around halfway through into a really fascinating plot with exploring the universe and the effects of Persocoms (basically robots, without going too much into detail with how they work). Honestly, it's way more than what I expected with how the first 20ish chapters are just kind of fitting into the genre that I was expecting from it, but it really does grow a lot deeper than that. I know I already emphasized that it's very different than what I initially expected, but it's a lot deeper than I was expecting, there's a lot of stuff that really resonates with me outside of the typical genre stuff that's early on. As the story progresses, it blossoms into a narrative about grief and how humans cope as well as humans heal from it, blended with action scenes in between. 8/10

Characters: I'm gonna be honest and say some of the characters (excluding Chi) are probably the weak part of this. A fair bit of them are stagnant throughout the story which doesn't do a lot for me. The rest of the characters just don't really endear me to them as much as Chi does. However, Chi genuinely does a very good job at embodying the kind of character development I'd love to see in more of this genre as truly, she grows and changes so much through such a short time. She really does make the story for me, as there's just something about her that intrigues me. Hideki's (protagonist) character development isn't horrible but it's just slow, and is a very gradual thing, which isn't necessarily bad, but it feels like the only thing he's doing to change is caring more for Chi. For Chi only, I'm adding a few points to the total score of 6/10.

Art: This art style looks similar to how I think Angelic Layer looks (based off the cover, I'm reading this before Angelic Layer) but it's a really nice artstyle! I fully admit I have a lot of nostalgia for this art style but I really enjoy it! Post reading Angelic Layer, I really appreciate how this balanced how Chi and everyone else looked and just some of the visual details in it. It had enough visual variance that it kept my attention really well. 7/10

Ending: I didn't think I would get emotionally invested in this story, but the ending was beautiful and I don't wanna admit to crying over this at 2:30 am, but it was so so good. I don't want to go into more details to not spoil things, but it ties things up perfectly. 9/10

Other things: I'm not sure what it is about this series but it's very easy to get sucked into and read a lot of (probably since the 88 chapters are only around 15 pages long). I'm a bit ashamed that I got so sucked into it that I proceeded to read all of it in one sitting instead of going to bed. Also be aware there's a lot of dirty jokes in this and occasional nudity if that bothers you (it's very much the worst in the beginning and gradually gets less intense). I would also like to add that Chi gets sexualized rather often (which is what a lot of the jokes are from) and especially in the chapter covers. The way that the (in universe) books are tied into the plot is something I also really enjoy and is something that's such a neat touch with tying the story together overall. Also very much worth noting I have nostalgia for the anime so it definitely might be a bit of rose tinted glasses for this one specifically. Unfortunately, it's not a Clamp work (for the most part, not all of them are like this but I'm noticing a pattern) without an age gap relationship (or two, I can't find information on some characters' ages). I know the first part of the story can be a bit off-putting to me, but if you can give it a bit of time, the story does really grow away from a lot of the funky stuff if that bothers you (the first chapter is pretty much the worst with that, although the questionable relationships are more in the middle to last half of the story). There’s something about this story that just really spoke to me, in finding a person that accepts you for you and is your person. Overall: I'm gonna be honest and say (in case it wasn't clear by the above category) that the dirty jokes do slightly sour this for me, but genuinely even despite that, it's something I would reread again. 8/10

Kobato:

TLDR: A girl and her dog try to fill up a jar by resolving people's problems (it's better than what I'm explaining it as I promise).

Plot: The plot really doesn't start to pick up until around halfway through if not a bit before but the early plot is just really calm and relaxing! When it picks up, it doesn't let back down and holds your attention the rest of the time. 8/10

Characters: The characters are all a lot of fun to read and they really are part of an interesting plot between the characters! I really enjoy them a lot and seeing the protagonist grow and learn is so nice! 7/10

Art: The art style is pretty similar to CCS Clear Card, which is definitely not a bad thing but I really enjoy the dramatic expressions and backgrounds! The character design is really nice and elaborate in terms of clothes and all the characters are visually distinct! 8/10

Ending: I'll be honest and say around 3 chapters before the ending, I enjoyed it but by the time I reached the ending, I was pretty frustrated with the direction it was going. I think the ending had potential but the last few chapters felt off to me. 3/10

Other things: Starting this, from things I heard from my mutuals, I was anticipating something really deep and emotional and instead it's this story about a girl and her supernatural dog, although it's a lot of fun before it gets deeper. I really like the cameos (Chobits, xxxholic, Suki, etc), it's a neat touch to include especially with me reading a lot of clamp lately! Also the ending includes a 16 year old getting with a 36 to 40 year old, so they're really trying to push their previous age gaps.

Overall: 6/10, I enjoyed parts of it but the tone just changed a lot throughout and there were a few things I felt mixed feelings on.

Drug and Drop:

TLDR: See Legal Drug, it's a continuation of that.

Plot: The plot really picks up in this, going from regular cases each chapter to a larger overall plot and it's really intriguing.

Characters: I'm not sure how to explain this other than they take a lot of stereotypes and find a way to make them charming and interesting. The main couple is a lot more interesting than in the original, and there's a lot that was revealed. 7/10

Art: The art is the same as the original and xxxholic towards the end of its run, I think it's a tiny bit more polished than the original for the most part and I enjoy it quite a bit! They have a lot more two page spreads that are so beautiful and the backgrounds are really nice! 7/10

Ending: Need to emphasize this was put on hiatus years ago and doesn't show much sign of finishing, but I'll still rank the ending where they left off (chapter 19 in case they do end up finishing it in the future). The ending left quite a bit to be desired as the entire last chapter was spent dropping information that could have really played into an interesting plot if it was ever continued. It wasn't the worst ending I've read but it was a bit lackluster. 3/10

Other things: This was the continuation to Legal Drug, which I really enjoyed (I am pretending I do not see the sheer amount of stereotypes), so before starting it, I have hopes that the characters will get fleshed out and that it explores their relationship more! After finishing it, they definitely did get fleshed out and the relationship was deepened in a very nice way! I really like how it's crossed over with xxxholic, although if you do read this, wait to do so after you finish xxxholic otherwise things won't make sense. Also clarifying that just like Legal Drug, this isn't everyone's cup of tea because of how a lot of the characters are walking stereotypes but in spite of that I very much enjoy it. I think the main take away from this is they did improve a bit on the stereotypes but also took some steps back, but I enjoyed it in spite of that.

Overall: This is a massive improvement on the original and I really enjoyed it! There were a lot of twists and turns that felt semi built up to. 7/10

cont in part 2

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