Prelude

CLAMP has always enchanted me with their gorgeous art and great plot lines and X/1999 is by far their best work. If you're looking for something upbeat and bouncy, turn around and run in the opposite direction as fast as you can. But if you're looking for something dark, twisted, apocolyptic, and beautiful, you've found it. This manga is violent, bloody, and often depressing. It becomes even more so as you move on to volumes 2-18. CLAMP has been known for sometimes known for wimping out on their endings (like in the sequel trilogy to Magic Knights Rayearth and Wish), let's just pray they don't do that here. If they do, I'll have to kill them. *Grabs a katana and combat boots*

First off, this is not a typical CLAMP manga. It's a very dark manga with a dark storyline. The artwork is wonderful though and I have to say that this is by far my favorite manga. The first book is sort of slow plotwise, but if you're dedicated to the series, you don't really seem to notice. It likes to keep you guessing about certain aspects of the storyline (I only have volumes 1-4 at the moment). I wholeheartedly recommend this manga as long as you're no squeamish. There are sections that get sort of gruesome, but they do play a part in the story, they're not just thrown in there for the sake of violence.Bottom line: The storyline is wonderful and the art is beautiful (in typical CLAMP fashion). It's not the happiest manga and can be downright depressing at times, but there is humor (that doesn't take away from the seriousness of the plot). Don't get this manga if you're at all squeamish (there are two scenes that occur that are gruesome-and are scene multiple times in flashbacks). However, like I said, this my favorite manga and is a definite must-have.

The first thing about this series that will grab your attention is the artwork. While CLAMP always does a suberb job when it comes to illustrating their mangas, this actually tops most of their other works, IMO. Every facial expression, gesture and background is rendered with incredible detail and CLAMP's own unique style. It also succeeds in creating the perfect atmophere for a dark series such as this. Backgrounds typically range from grays to black (this is seen more frequently in the later installments though) and more shading than usual was used for the characters and scenery. But you were expecting that, right? This is Mokona Apapa's work we're talking about here, so gorgeous artwork (with equally gorgeous bishounen ^_^) is sort of guaranteed. So, ignoring that for a moment, let's take a look at the actual plot and characters. Now, I personally love the plot. The end of the work is an intriguing storyline to work with and I think CLAMP did a wonderful job of creating an _original_ story based around it while still incorporating loads of mythology and biblical references (just look at Revelations from the Bible if you don't believe me). I'll admit it moves a bit slowly though. Very little actually occurs in volume one. It is primarily an introduction of the characters and story (not that the whole plot is introduced). Each volume also takes place over a short period of time which may not interest all readers. It's hard to be bored by it as the atmosphere is so tense. In addition to this, the plot begins to increase in pace later on. The characters are another high point of this series (not that I've found a "low" point yet...). Kamui is not your standard hero in any way. He is below average height and features a slightly more feminine face for starters. In terms of personality, he again defies the stereotype set for a male protagonist. He is not simple or easy to understand within several pages. He has many facets to his personality, some likable and some not. He is a complex character, almost fully human in a way.I'm not going to put a conclusion in any form here as that would be redundant. I've already said repeatedly that I adore this manga. I would however like to make a warning to parents who are considering buying this. This particular volume does not contain a tremendous amount of objectionable content (there is some blood, but nothing really shocking) but later installments do. Books after this feature decapitation, dismemberment and lots and lots of blood. As I said before, the artwork is exceptional so the gore is very realistic. This was not written for a pre-teen audience and it probably shouldn't be read by one. The rest of you, enjoy ^_^

X/1999 is an awesome story about the end of the world...while it is a bit graphic in some parts, it is strangely beautifully done....the art work is absolutely stunning! It's something you need to just plow through...and while it's hard to understand at first, you really get into it when you see what everything is like...when the plot thickens...

X/1999 is a wonderful, compelling series that almost anyone could enjoy. But its not for children under, say, 10 - 12 because there is language, violence and nudity. For those of you that don't know, X/1999 is about the earth ending, and 7 members of the dragons of earth, who want to destroy the earth and start over, and 7 of the dragons of heaven, who want to keep the earth as it is. They are all chosen, but one, Kamui, was chosen for both, and has the power to decide which will happen, but frankly, he doesn't care about it or anything but himself. If you like sci-fi/fantasy (sorcery ect.) and a touch of romance, you'll love this.