Manga Review: “Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle” Volume Eight

Article first published as Manga Review: Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle – Volume Eight by CLAMP on Blogcritics.

Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Eight is a manga by CLAMP, and it was published in North America by Del Rey Manga in 2006. The series is rated “T” for teens 13 and up; from what I’ve read of the series so far, I would agree with this rating.

A young man named Syaoran is in love with Princess Sakura from the country of Clow. After Sakura loses her memories through an unexplained event, Syaoran goes on a journey to different worlds to try to find and regain Sakura’s lost memories. Unfortunately, as part of his journey, he mad to make a deal with the space-time witch Yukito in order to receive her help; Syaoran had to agree that Sakura would never regain her memories of the time she had spent with him. Syaoran is accompanied by Fai, Kurogane, and Mokona on his quest.

Volume Eight begins with Syaoran and the others ending up in a world where large rabbit-like creatures are being terrorized by a monster. The creatures make Fai stay with them as a sacrifice if Syaoran and the others can’t take care of the monster. The others find the “monster” and are quite surprised by what it turns out to be.

Fortunately, this particular story is the short side, which is a welcome change of pace after how long the story took place in the county of Oto. Also, the story that’s being told with the rabbit-like creatures would not have worked very well if it had been any longer than what it was.

Syaoran and the others move on to a new world, and the remainder of Volume Eight is set in this world. The story being told in that world does not finish in Volume Eight, so you have to read Volume Nine in order to find out how it continues.

The world they have come to is the Country of Shara; according to the translation notes, this world is based on the opposition between the pleasure quarters of Edo period Japan and the religious culture of the temples and shrines. Fai and Kurogane are separated from the others when Mokona transports them to Shara; they end up at a jinja, which belongs to the religious faction on the land. The others have ended up Yuka-ku, which provides entertainment. Each side has a statue; the jinja has a statue of Yasha, while Yuka-ku has a statue of Ashura. The jinja blame the Yuka-ku and their Ashura state for misfortunes that have happened, and the two sides don’t like each other.

Having the travelers split between the two factions is an interesting idea, because it allows the reader to get a feel for both sides of the conflict. Also, it should potentially provide for interesting material when the traveling companions find each other with the other faction and needing to get back together. I can’t wait to read Volume Nine to find out where this story ends up going.

For those keeping score, this volume of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle features crossover characters from X and RG Veda.

Overall, I was satisfied by what I read in Volume Eight of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle. If you’ve read the previous seven volumes of the series and enjoyed them, I think you’ll also enjoy Volume Eight.

I wrote this review after reading a copy of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Eight that I checked out through the King County Library System.

Manga Review: “Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle” Volume Seven

Article first published as Manga Review: Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Seven by CLAMP on Blogcritics.

Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Seven is a manga by CLAMP, and it was published in North America by Del Rey Manga in 2005. The series is rated “T” for teens 13 and up; from what I’ve read of the series so far, I would agree with this rating.

A young man named Syaoran is in love with Sakura, the princess of Clow. After Sakura loses her memories through an unexplained event, Syaoran journeys to different worlds to try to find and regain Sakura’s lost memories. Unfortunately, he had to make a deal with the space-time witch Yukito; in order to get her help, Syaoran had to agree that Sakura would never regain her memories of the time she had spent with him. Syaoran is joined on his quest by Fai, Kurogane, and Mokona.

Volume Seven continues in the country of Oto, which is based on the Taisho era of Japan (which lasted from 1912 through 1926). Syaoran and Kurogane try to discover the truth behind the “new type of oni” and who controls them. At the same time, Fai receives an unexpected visitor at the Cat’s Eye Café. Near the end of the volume, the characters and the reader come to learn that there is a secret to the country of Oto, and that things aren’t exactly as they appear.

Once again, CLAMP has found a way to cross over some characters from another one of their manga series. This volume features cameos from Sumomo, Kotoko, and Chitose from Chobits, as well as a character from the Clover manga series.

I’m happy to report that the storyline in the country of Oto wraps up around the end of Volume Seven. While it wasn’t necessarily a bad story arc, it had just gotten to the point where I was ready for Syaoran and the others to move on the next location. This particular storyline began back in Volume Five, so the reader ultimately spent two-and-a-half volumes stuck in one location.

I also have to say that I liked the twist that was revealed in regards to the country of Oto. I was also happy to see the crossover characters from Chobits, because that was the first CLAMP manga that I had ever been exposed to. These particular characters worked well for the roles that they crossed over for, and it didn’t feel forced at all.

I can’t wait to read Volume Eight to find out where Syaoran and the others travel to next, and to see what adventures they have there.

I wrote this review after reading a copy of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Seven that I checked out through the King County Library System.

Manga Review: “Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle” Volume Six

Article first published as Manga Review: Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Six by CLAMP on Blogcritics.

Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Six is a manga by CLAMP, and it was published in North America by Del Rey Manga in 2005. The series is rated “T” for teens 13 and up; from what I’ve read of the series so far, I would agree with this rating.

Syaoran is a young man who is in love with Sakura, the princess of Clow. After Sakura loses her memories through an unexplained event, Syaoran goes on a journey through different worlds to try to regain Sakura’s lost memories. Unfortunately, he had to make a deal with a space-time witch named Yukito; in order to get her help, Syaoran had to agree that Sakura would never regain her memories of the time she had spent with him. Syaoran is joined in his journey by Fai, Kurogane, and Mokona.

Volume Six continues where Volume Five left off. Syaoran and the others are still in the country of Oto, which is based on the Taisho era of Japan (which lasted from 1912 through 1926). Syaoran and Kurogane have become oni hunters, while Fai and Sakura open up a café that ends up being named Cat’s Eye. The group meets two more oni hunters: Ryuo and Soma. Both of these characters are crossovers from CLAMP’s RG Veda manga series.

Strange happenings are going on in Oto in regards to the oni, and it turns out someone that Syaoran knows from his past is connected to the situation. The reader also learns a little more about the country of Oto and how things operate there.

So far, this is one of the longest storylines I’ve encountered in Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle. It started back in Volume Five, takes up all of Volume Six, and will continue on into Volume Seven. While I do like this storyline, I hope it will be resolved before the end of Volume Seven. At the point where Volume Six ends, I think it could be possible to bring this particular storyline to an end in Volume Seven.

In addition to the two characters who cross over from RG Veda, characters and concepts in this volume also cross over from Clover, Magic Knight Rayearth, and X. For readers who are familiar with these other CLAMP series, these crossovers will probably be rather amusing.

One of the things I really appreciated about this volume was the focus that was being placed on Kurogane. Through what happens in this volume, the reader comes to understand that there’s more to Kurogane than just being anxious to fight and being a foil for the laid-back Fai.

I have to admit that while I did enjoy reading Volume Six of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle, this particular volume just didn’t grab my interest as much as the previous five volumes have. Hopefully, Volume Seven will be able to grab my interest and attention a bit more than Volume Six did. Even though I may not have quite enjoyed Volume Six as much as I had the previous volumes, I still want to read the series to find out what happens to Syaoran and the others next.

I wrote this review after reading a copy of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Six that I checked out through the King County Library System.

Manga Review: “Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle” Volume Five

Article first published as Manga Review: Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Five by CLAMP on Blogcritics.

Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Five is a manga by CLAMP, and it was published in North America by Del Rey Manga in 2005. The series is rated “T” for teens 13 and up; from what I’ve read of the series so far, I would agree with this rating.

The protagonist of the series is Syaoran, a young man who is love with Princess Sakura. After the princess loses her memories through an unexplained event, Syaoran goes on a quest through different worlds in order to regain Sakura’s lost memories. Unfortunately, he had to make a deal with Yukito, the space-time witch; in order to get her help on the quest, Syaoran had to agree that Sakura would never regain her memories of her time with Syaoran. He agrees to this condition, and is joined in his journey by Fai, Kurogane, and Mokona.

Volume Five begins with the resolution of the story arc that appeared at the end of Volume Four. Sakura learns the truth behind the disappearance of the children of the village after she ends up going to the castle, and she also gets a hint that she is being watched by someone. At the same time, Syaoran and the others learn the truth about who is responsible for the children disappearing from the village. At the end of this arc, another one of Sakura’s memories are recovered.

A second story arc begins in Volume Five, when Syaoran and the others arrive at the next world to look for a feather with one of Sakura’s memories; this place is known as the country of Oto. According to the notes at the back of the volume, this country is based on the Taisho era of Japan, which lasted from 1912 through 1926.

Syaoran and the others learn that it’s in their best interest to find work while they’re there, so they can get money to buy the things they need. Syaoran and Kurogane become oni hunters, while Fai and Sakura work at opening up a café. It turns out one of the oni hunters they met is Yuzuhira Nekoi, who is a crossover character from CLAMP’s X manga series. Her dog, Inuki, is also from X.

When it comes to the first storyline in this volume, I had anticipated where the feather with Sakura’s memory was. However, I hadn’t been able to guess beforehand who exactly had been behind the disappearance of the children and how they were accomplishing it. Overall, I found the conclusion of this story to be satisfying.

In the second story arc, the reader learns a fact about Syaoran that hadn’t been obvious when reading through the previous volumes, However, when Kurogane makes the realization of this fact, he points out specific examples that had appeared in earlier volumes of the series. It was nice to see that CLAMP had dropped some subtle hints if you knew what you were looking for; otherwise, this revelation is something that throws the reader for a loop. The end of the volume also gives the reader a glimpse of what happens when Sakura begins to regain any memory of her time with Syaoran on her own.

As I read more volumes of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle, I keep becoming more impressed, more interested, and more invested in the series. If you’ve read the previous four volumes of this series, I suspect you’ll also enjoy reading Volume Five.

I wrote this review after reading a copy of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Five that I checked out through the King County Library System.

Manga Review: “Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle” Volume Four

Article first published as Manga Review: Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Four by CLAMP on Blogcritics.

Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Four is a manga by CLAMP, and it was published in North America by Del Rey Manga in 2005. The series is rated “T” for teens 13 and up; from what I’ve read of the series so far, I would agree with this rating.

Syaoran is a young man who is in love with Princess Sakura, and he is on a quest to journey through different worlds in order to find Sakura’s memories after she loses them through an unexplained event. After meeting with Yukito, the space-time witch, he gains companions to join him on his quest; however, he also had to make a deal with Yukito that involves Sakura never regaining her memories of her time with Syaoran. Syaoran’s traveling companions are Fai, Kurogane, and Mokona.

Volume Four begins the resolution of the story arc that appeared at the end of Volume Three. Sakura regains a memory; however, in a section where Syaoran is supposed to appear, all she can see is an empty chair. When Sakura tells Syaoran what she saw in her memory, it causes him to reminisce about events that were related to what Sakura saw in her memory. After Syaoran and the others arrive in the next world, it turns out to not be beneficial to the group on the journey. It’s in this portion of the story where Syaoran has his flashbacks.

The third world to appear in this volume is the setting for a little over half of the volume; unfortunately, this story arc is not resolved by the end of Volume Four. They arrive in a town where children have been vanishing mysteriously, and the townspeople believe their disappearances are tied in with a local legend. The townspeople have also developed a mistrust of outsiders. Fortunately, the town doctor defends the group and invites them to stay with him.

Syaoran and the others believe that one of the feathers with Sakura’s memories might be in the area, and they think it could be linked to the legend and the disappearance of the children. They try to unravel what’s going on, and end up in the middle of the situation after Sakura sees something and more children disappear while they’re in town.

According to the notes at the end of the volume, it appears there’s another crossover of CLAMP characters in this volume. A group of three people referred to as the Amen’osa are alternate versions of three characters from the CLAMP School Detectives manga series: Nokoru, Suoh, and Akira.

When it comes to this volume, the first storyline basically resolved itself the way I expected it to, although I hadn’t anticipated what kind of memory Sakura would regain after the group got the feather. When it comes to the second storyline, it seems the purpose of visiting the world was for Syaoran to have his flashback sequences in order to provide some more background for himself and Sakura.

The third story arc in this volume was probably the most interesting of the three. By the time I finished reading this volume, I wanted to know what happens next and to hopefully get an explanation as to what’s really going on with the disappearance of the children. Of the two new story arcs introduced in this volume, I thought this one was very compelling and well done.

If you’ve read the previous three volumes of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle and enjoyed what you read, then I believe you’ll also like Volume Four.

I wrote this review after reading a copy of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Four that I checked out through the King County Library System.

Manga Review: “Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle” Volume Three

Article first published as Manga Review: Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Three by CLAMP on Blogcritics.

Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Three is a manga by CLAMP, and it was published in North America by Del Rey Manga in 2004. The series is rated “T” for teens 13 and up; from what I’ve read of this series so far, I would agree with this rating.

The story of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle follows Syaoran, a young man who is in love with Princess Sakura, and his quest to help Sakura regain her memories after she loses them through an unexplained event that takes place at an archaeological site that Syaoran was working at. Syaoran is joined in his quest by Fai and Kurogane; the three of them and Sakura and transported to different worlds as they search for the feathers that have Sakura’s memories. Unfortunately, as part of a deal that Syaoran made with Yukito, the space-time witch, Sakura will never regain her memories of her time with Syaoran.

Volume Three sees Syaoran, Fai, Kurogane, and Sakura being sent to the next world in search of another of Sakura’s feathers, so they can help her regain her memory. When the group arrives at their next destination, they find themselves in the middle of a battle. When someone tries to take Sakura, Syaoran attacks the kidnapper and saves her.

A girl named Chu’nyan suddenly appears and mocks the kidnapper. Syaoran and the others learn from Chu’nyan that the kidnapper is the son of the leader of the land. Unfortunately, the leader took his power by force and is a ruthless and unjust. Chu’nyan’s mother was killed by him while trying to keep him from taking over. Chu’nyan is trying to do what she can in order to remove the leader from power and bring peace back to her land. Syaoran and the others find themselves in the middle of this situation, while at the same time, trying to complete their mission of locating Sakura’s missing feather.

Compared to the first two volumes of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle, I really wasn’t seeing any obvious crossover characters from CLAMP’s other manga series. I know that there are still some of their series that I have not read, so characters in this new world could be crossover characters from one of those series. In this volume, it was nice to see what effect finding the first feather had on Sakura, since the reader only saw a glimpse of this near the end of Volume Two.

I appreciated the fact that CLAMP gave the new character Chu’nyan a compelling story. While I was reading this volume, I found myself being riveted by her story as well as wanting to see the main storyline progress. Even though the focus of this volume is more of Chu’nyan and her story than on Syaoran, Sakura, and the others, I still found Volume Three to be a good read. I can’t wait to be able to read Volume Four in order to see what happens to Chu’nyan and the others.

I wrote this review after reading a copy of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Three that I checked out through the King County Library System.

Manga Review: “Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle” Volume Two

Article first published as Manga Review: Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Two by CLAMP on Blogcritics.

Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Two is a manga by CLAMP, and it was published in North America by Del Rey Manga in 2004. The series is rated “T” for teens 13 and up; from what I’ve read of this series so far, I would agree with this rating.

Volume Two of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle ends exactly where Volume One ended. During this volume, Syaoran discovers that he has a “Kudan”; it’s a wolf spirit with fiery power. Over the course of the story of Volume Two, there’s a lot of emphasis put on the “Kudan” concept, and this is explored not only through Syaoran, Fai, and Kurogane, but three additional characters who each have a “Kudan” are also introduced.

Volume Two also has a focus on trying to find the feather with Sakura’s memory. Mokona senses one is in the Hahnshin Republic, but can’t quite figure out where it is. The feather search and the “Kudan” end up coming together by the end of this volume.

At the risk of providing a spoiler, Syaoran is able to find the feather. When he brings it to Sakura, she awakens; unfortunately, she has no memory of Syaoran. Syaoran’s reaction to this was portrayed very effectively by CLAMP, and it helps that they were able to build up his character before hitting this point in the story. With this depiction, I could feel the emotions that Syaoran was feeling at that moment, and it really made me to identify with him. I hope to have more of these moments as I read more of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle.

In my review of Volume One, I mentioned the crossovers from Cardcaptor Sakura and how I had a hard time reconciling the fact that while these characters may have the same names and look similar, that they’re still different. Now that the concept of dimension hopping has been introduced, and it was hinted that they would see people they know from their worlds, but they would be in different circumstances and may not act the same way. In this volume, Syaoran runs into two waiters in a restaurant who look like Toya and Yukito. Running into these two characters yet again in a different place was kind of mind bending.

Even with the mind bending, I still enjoyed reading the second volume of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle. I’m looking forward to reading the third volume of the series to find out where the story will go next.

I wrote this review after reading a copy of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume Two that I checked out through the King County Library System.

Manga Review: “Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle” Volume One

Article first published as Manga Review: Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume One by CLAMP on Blogcritics.

Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume One is a manga by CLAMP, and it was published in North America by Del Rey Manga in 2004. The series is rated “T” for teens 13 and up; after reading this manga volume, I would agree with this rating.

The main characters are Sakura and Syaoran, but they’re not the characters that are known from the Cardcaptor Sakura series. Instead, Sakura is the princess of the kingdom of Clow, and Syaoran is the son of an archeaologist. Syaoran and Sakura have grown up together; they have feelings for each other, but neither one has confessed their feelings to the other. It doesn’t help that Sakura’s older brother, King Toya, doesn’t like Syoaran.

One day, Sakura visits Syaoran at an archaeological site that he’s working at, and she touches a relief on the floor. She suddenly rises into the air and sprouts wings. The feathers from the wings suddenly spread, and Sakura falls to the ground; she is in a catatonic state. Yukito, the high priest, says that Sakura’s memories have all vanished, and that Syaoran will need the help from the space-time witch. Yukito uses his power to send Syaoran and Sakura to the witch, who turns out to be Yuko Ichihara from xxxHoLic.

They are joined by two others who are transported to see Yuko: Kurogane and Fai D. Flowright. She sends the three of them out a mission to explore various dimensions to look for the feathers that contain Sakura’s memories; she sends a creature named Mokona to assist them on their quest. But there is a price: Syaoran must give up what he values most. Since that is his relationship with Sakura, Yuko tells him that when Sakura’s memories are restored, her memories of him will never be found and restored. Syaoran makes this sacrifice in order to save Sakura’s life.

Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle contains several character crossovers from other CLAMP series; however, in most cases, they may have the same name and look like a character from another series, but their personality or circumstances may be very different. In this volume, there are crossovers from six different CLAMP series. Sakura, Syaoran, Toya, Yukito, and Tomoyo are from Cardcaptor Sakura. Fai D. Florite is from RG Veda, while Chi is from Chobits. Yuko and Watanuki come from xxxHoLic, Sorata and Arashi are from X, and Mokona is from Magic Knight Rayearth.

Since I’ve read at least one volume of several of the manga series represented in the crossovers, I had a hard time reconciling the fact that they were all appearing in this manga at first; the easiest to accept were Yuko and Watanuki, since part of this volume also appears in the first volume of xxxHoLic. Until I became more familiar with this story, I had a hard time accepting that the characters from Cardcaptor Sakura were not the characters that I was already familiar with from the story. Thankfully, the story in Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle is so compelling that I was able to get past the issue I was having with the Cardcaptor Sakura characters.

The art style in Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle is similar to the art style in xxxHoLic; from what I’ve read, this was very intentional, since the two series were intended to be intertwined. This was definitely a good artistic decision on CLAMP’s part, because the characters from xxxHoLic don’t look out of place when they interact from the characters from Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle.

By the time I finished this volume, I was interested enough in the story that I want to read future volumes to see where the story will go to next. This story definitely shows a lot of potential, and I hope that it will live up to that potential.

If you’re a fan of CLAMP’s work and haven’t given Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle a try, I would recommend checking it out for yourself.

I wrote this review after reading a copy of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle Volume One that I checked out through the King County Library System.

Manga Review: “Cardcaptor Sakura” Omnibus Volume Four

Article first published as Manga Review: Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus Volume Four by CLAMP on Blogcritics.

Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus Volume Four collects the 10th, 11th, and 12th volumes of CLAMP’s manga series into one volume. Dark Horse Manga has the North American distribution rights for the series, and they released this omnibus version in September 2012. There isn’t a rating published anywhere on this volume; however, I would recommend Cardcaptor Sakura to manga readers who are 13 years of age and older.

The fourth omnibus of Cardcaptor Sakura brings the whole story to an end. One thing that really fascinated me when I read this was the fact that the main conflict of this story arc was basically resolved at the end of the 11th volume. The 12th volume focuses very heavily on the relationships that appear in the series, and Sakura’s struggle to figure out what her own feelings are.

While the overall resolution of the story was rather predictable, it was still a very sweet ending for the series. Readers who found themselves emotionally invested in the story and the characters will not be disappointed at how CLAMP brought the series to an end.

For me, the one thing that still bugs me about this story is the idea that Sakura’s teacher is in a relationship with one of his 10-year-old students. Not only that, but from something said in another volume, it appears that the teacher has given an engagement ring to this 10-year-old student. In some respects, it kind of feels like CLAMP was “sugarcoating” this particular relationship. While Sakura and her friends don’t realize that their classmate’s older boyfriend is their teacher, and the classmate does kind of address the issues surrounding the age difference, the overall portrayal of this relationship just feels wrong.

Before reading this series, I’d heard a lot about Cardcaptor Sakura and its importance to the “magical girl” genre; while it may not be as big as say, Sailor Moon, it still holds an important place among “magical girl” stories. Now that I’ve read Cardcaptor Sakura in its entirety, I think I’ve come to understand why it has received so much favor from readers who enjoy “magical girl” manga. While Sakura may be young, she possesses a lot of inner strength, determination, and a belief in herself; she serves as a good role model for the audience that Cardcaptor Sakura is trying to reach.

If you are a fan of Cardcaptor Sakura and haven’t already added the series to your manga library, these four omnibus editions released by Dark Horse Manga would be a great way to acquire this classic “magical girl” series.

I wrote this review after reading a copy of Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus Volume Four that I checked out through the King County Library System.

Manga Review: “Angelic Layer” Volume Five

Article first published as Manga Review: Angelic Layer Volume Five by CLAMP on Blogcritics.

Angelic Layer Volume Five is a manga by CLAMP, and it was published in North America by Tokyopop in 2003. The rating for Angelic Layer is “A,” which means the series is suitable for all ages. After reading the whole series, I can say that I agree with this rating.

Volume Five continues exactly where Volume Four ended, and it follows Misaki through the remainder of the national tournament. During the tournament, she must battle against two unexpected opponents. I’m sorry for the lack of detail here, but saying too much more will give away spoilers.

However, I can now say with certainty I was correct about the identity of the mysterious dark-haired woman who kept appearing throughout the series. I have to say that since I was able to tell early on who she was supposed to be, it made the revelation of her identity in this volume feel anti-climactic. I also thought her motivations for trying to stay out of sight and not interact with Misaki didn’t entirely work for me.

In my review of Volume Four, I also mentioned that I was starting to suspect what Icchan’s motives were in regard to Misaki; this volume also proved to me that my suspicions were correct. At least it took me a bit longer in the series to figure out his secret in comparison to the secret of the dark-haired woman.

Volume Five was another quick read, due to the amount of action panels that appear in this volume for the national tournament. The only time the volume truly slows down is right at the end of the main story, when the dark-haired woman’s identity is revealed. There are also a couple of chapters that take place after the main story, and they don’t rely on the action panels.

Angelic Layer is a decent manga series for the audience it’s being aimed at and for its short length. However, I wish there had been a way for CLAMP to make the story last a little longer. Even in this final volume, the overall story felt rather rushed.

Readers who have read and enjoyed the previous four volumes of Angelic Layer should be satisfied with how the series concludes. While the series did get a little better for me as it progressed, I still have to say that Angelic Layer isn’t quite as strong of a manga series as some of the other CLAMP titles that I have read.

I wrote this review after reading a copy of Angelic Layer Volume Five that I checked out through the King County Library System.