It's not a very interesting introduction to the series, but the art is quite good. The characters aren't all that thrilling, and most of the dialogue is just people saying "Kamui" over and over again. So I mean at least the movie was accurate in that respect. ( )

Back in 2001, in the height of my deep, devoted love-affair with this manga, back all those years ago in the prime of my youth when I had self-taught myself enough Japanese to read the raw scans every month, I made a comment on my blog that all I wished for (ha!) was for this series to be finished before I was 30.

Well, in true CLAMP fashion we see how that turned out...

Sometimes I wonder about that love-affair. I'm not actually sure how good this series is from a more objective point of view. It is full of CLAMP-cliches, but the comforting familiarity of that self-referentiality was part of what made it work. You could count on CLAMP for certain kinds of melodramatic tragedy.

*nostalgic sigh*

I have not reread the series since those days. I retain a tender soft spot for it, particularly those middle volumes that were just so bloody PRETTY (pun intended). I feel I have to preserve my memory of it as it is (was?), at least until the end is nigh. The final volumes may never arrive, but... I still can't give up on it, even now.

N.B. This review is of the Japanese editions. I never read the English releases, so I don't know how the quality of the translations and art reproduction compare. ( )

Highly recommended for its huge cast of well-defined, unique characters, epic plot, profound philosophical and emotional topics, its tie-ins with other CLAMP works (Tokyo Babylon and CLAMP School Detectives), and most of all, its breath-takingly gorgeous, detailed, delicate artwork.

X/1999 isn't for everyone. There is a good deal of violence, nudity, homoeroticism, and dark, fatalistic themes. It certainly isn't appropriate for anyone under 13. You should also know that the series runs to at least 18 volumes, and it isn't done yet.