CLAMP! « Heroine of Shoujo

Gate 7 Volume 1: Japanese History, anyone?

November 6, 2011 at 3:05 pm | Posted in CLAMP!, Gate 7, Reviews | Leave a comment
Tags: Gate 7

Yay! Comic Odyssey never fails me ^_^

Gate 7 Volume 1

I never thought that I would have my own copy of CLAMP’s newest manga this early. Last Thursday (Nov. 3), I visited my favourite comic and manga store Comic Odyssey to pre-order the second Omnibus book of Cardcaptor Sakura. I was also thinking of purchasing a manga, just one, that I really love - yes, even at a full price. I immediately looked at their ‘G’ section, and at once I saw Gakuen Alice mangas, and there’s volume 9. There was also Gentlemen’s Alliance Cross volume 7. I was caught in the middle of confusion as to what I will buy: Gakuen Alice or Gentlemen’s Alliance Cross. But literally, in the middle of those two titles, was Gate 7 volume 1. Gate 7 volume 1. Whaaaat??

Yes, I was very surprised that CLAMP’s newest manga, which was published in English just last month, is in front of me, waiting to be bought. I didn’t hesitate – that one manga I was planning to buy turned out to be Gate 7 volume 1.

(you can click the Gate 7 image above for the full-sized image)

And now I’m left with no choice but to follow Gate 7 ^_^

Synopsis (from the back of volume 1):
An innocent sightseeing trip to Kyoto opens up a magical realm to shy high schooler Chikahito Takamoto. Visiting a legendary shrine, Chikahito stumbles into the mystical world of Hana and her comrades – and his immunity to their powers leads them to believe that he’s no ordinary awkward teenager! Protecting our world from violent supernatural creatures, Hana and her team welcome the confused Chikahito – who isn’t quite sure that he wants to be caught in the middle of their war!

The Art

First, I’ll have my thoughts with the art. But be warned: Gate 7 is CLAMP so as a fangirl, my review is either positive or slightly neutral.

CLAMP’s talent is really something. Gate 7’s drawing is quite different from their recently concluded titles (Kobato, xxxHolic, and Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle) – that’s a proof that the CLAMP team is able to draw something different with different titles. They aren’t limited to just one style of art.

Still, the splash pages of Gate 7 are recognizable as CLAMP-drawn. The style reminds me xxxHolic’s splash pages: elegant yet mysterious.

The different places in Kyoto are also nicely drawn. CLAMP never leaves any details ^_^

The kiss on the prologue

The Hana-Chikahito kiss on the prologue

I’ve read some other Gate 7 volume 1 reviews and the thing that really caught my attention is their reaction with the Hana and Chikahito’s kiss (and it’s on the lips). CLAMP’s stories are usually sided with romance, but a kiss on the lips is rarely seen (there was a kiss in Wish but the panel was too small for a full view. Gate 7′s is in clear full view). Gate 7′s kiss on the prologue is just so… RARE in the CLAMP universe. Though there was something in that kiss, that spell Hana cast and stuff that made Chikahito come back to the caster, or so…

Japanese History

Chikahito is a History freak. He knows a lot. And that’s one of the main points of Gate 7.

For me, CLAMP’s use of Japanese History was a success. Well, though Philippine History is one of my favorite subjects (when I was in high school and as a GE college subject), I actually suck at other countries’ history (especially Asian History – one of my worst subject when I was in high school). Yes I know the names Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Oda Nobunaga, but I don’t know exactly who they are. But with Gate 7, I became slightly knowledgeable of Japanese history. Thanks to Dark Horse’s informative translation notes ^_^ (I bet the translators had a really hard time with Gate 7…)

Speaking of translations, Dark Horse Manga is now well-loved by CLAMP fans because of their publication of a bunch of CLAMP titles. I hope they will realize that Gakuen Alice needs to be English-published too ^_^

Chikahito Takamoto = Watanuki Kimihiro ?

Chikahito Takamoto and Watanuki Kimihiro

Somehow, I find Chikahito and Watanuki similar. In the beginning of the story, they were just simple high schoolers (though Watanuki already had this strange ‘loved by ghosts’ thing) but both were pushed into a world they never knew. The two were made into house helpers as compensations (but Watanuki’s case was harsher compared to Chikihito who ‘gladly’ accepted the offer). They look quite alike when they are both wearing the ‘helper outfit’. And both wear eyeglasses too ^_^

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Well, what do you expect from CLAMP? All good things of course! Really, CLAMP never fails me ^_^

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That review will do for now ^_^. Let’s hope that CLAMP will finish this story and Dark Horse Manga will continue publishing Gate 7 ^_^

xoxo,
AlyssaMihara

Cardcaptor Sakura Illustrations Collection (1 and 2)

October 25, 2011 at 2:06 pm | Posted in AlyssaMihara's babbles, Card Captor Sakura, CLAMP!, Merchandise | 2 Comments
Tags: Cardcaptor Sakura

Artbook spine

Since I’ve been blabbing about ‘artbooks’ on my previous feature post, I’ve decided to push through with this merchandise post highlighting two of the best items in my entire manganime collection: Cardcaptor Sakura Illustrations Collection 1 and 2 (Japanese).

The Artbooks (I added a volume of Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle on the photo for scale)

I got these artbooks as a birthday gift for myself just last month (September 2, as I am a Virgo, if you read the AlyssaMihara widget on the left ^_^ ). I found these items at an advertisement in Sulitand I didn’t hesitate to buy them even once. It’s a really nice deal I had. The artbooks are pretty cheap for items in very good condition, knowing that they were published years ago. The seller even added ten Cardcaptor Sakura collectible cards (five for each artbook) in the package. Plus, I got a discount because I’m a sulit member ^_^. It was a really good bargain ^_^.

The cover

I really like artbooks in original Japanese because the paper used is better and the colors follow more of the artist’s original color. The only con I can name is that I can’t understand the texts since I can’t read Japanese o_O. But I don’t worry much about that because unlike manga, artbooks are more of the illustrations rather than story.

Artbook1_cover_removed

Anyway, as I always say, these two Cardcaptor Sakura illustrations collection features the splash pages of the manga. One can get to see CLAMP’s original beautiful illustrations in full color (well, Dark Horse’s CCS omnibus features the splash pages in full color too). There are also additional CLAMP CCS drawings that were artbook originals, and each artbook has a bonus Cardcaptor Sakura manga story.

Artbook2_cover_removed

One of the thousand things these artbooks did to me? They made me crave for the third Cardcaptor Sakura illustrations collection! I’m still hunting for that particular artbook online…

Since I have no scanner (and you can’t scan a book without damaging it), I just took photos of some sample pages of the artbooks (not necessarily my favorites):

Artbook 1 scan

Artbook 2 scan

The camera is so crappy… I really need to buy a new one…

xoxo,
AlyssaMihara

Shoujo Fashion: CLAMP Chapter

October 18, 2011 at 5:22 pm | Posted in Anime/Manga Impressions, Card Captor Sakura, Chobits, CLAMP!, Features, Kobato, Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles, xxxHolic | Leave a comment
Tags: Cardcaptor Sakura, Chobits, CLAMP, Kobato, Tsubasa Rservoir Chronicle, xxxHolic

And I’m finally back with my usual blog posting! Yay! It’s already sembreak and I can finally do this blogging thing ^_^

To add more good news, this is a feature post which makes it very special compared with the update posts It’s been a YEAR since my previous feature post….

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There are infinitely many reasons why I love CLAMP — and one of them is because they are all girls. And because they all girls, they have a go with fashion. And their sense of fashion can be reflected in their artworks.

I like CLAMP because their manga characters have a wide wardrobe. Most of the characters aren’t isolated with just a single outfit (with the exception of Miyuki-chan, of course, since she’s a uniform-based girl ). Even the trio from Magic Knight Rayearth (the first MKR) change outfits everytime their magical powers ‘upgrade’.

In this post, I’m going to enumerate my favorite outfits of my favorite CLAMP girls and ladies: Yuko Ichihara, Sakura Kinomoto, Kobato, Tsubasa, and Chii. (I’m using ‘lady’ for Yuko Ichihara. )

Yuko Ichihara (xxxHolic)

Whenever you’re asked who the most fashionable CLAMP character is, you know the answer. Yuko Ichihara!!

She’s very into high fashion, and for her, wearing the same clothes twice is a mortal sin. Of course, we know how she loves her favorite black dress (in the photo below) which she wore twice, so we can forgive that exception ^_^.

Yuko's favorite dress?

There was even a part in xxxHolic (Volume 15, chapter 173) wherein Watanuki noticed that she’s wearing a dress she has worn before. However, she hasn’t really worn it before, rather, they are still in the same dream. Anyway, this just proves that even Watanuki knows that Yuko never wears the same clothes twice .

Yuko and Watanuki in a dream - xxxHolic volume 15 chapter 173

In the Official xxxHolic Guide, Yuko’s outfits were enumerated, along with the accessories she wore with them. Casual, formal, traditional — name all the outfits you can think of and Yuko has it all. We don’t even know her real eye color because she always changes it to match her outfit. Pretty cool from the Dimensional Witch, don’t you think?

Yuko -

As I’ve said, Yuko styles even if she’s only going for a walk in the park. It’s quite difficult to look for images of such outfits, so I’ll just help this post with Yuko’s photo on the left – taken from one of the manga’s splash pages. Anyways, Animeholicph listed some of Yuko’s many fashions, so you might want to check it out.

And by the way, Yuko Ichihara hosts a series of Anime’s Next Top Model in youtube by deathstares92. She’s the perfect host and model for the tv series

Then again, another of CLAMP’s beautiful artworks! I don’t know if the xxxHolic Artbook was already released, but be sure to check it out and see more of Yuko’s fashion.

We won’t be seeing anymore outfits of the Dimensional Witch Yuko Ichihara since both xxxHolic and Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle have made their final bow, but it’s always nice to see them again through the art book.

Sakura Kinomoto (Cardcaptor Sakura)

The princess of Mahou Shoujo, Sakura Kinomoto! (She’s the princess for ME, anyway)

She’s really cute and adorable! Those are perhaps the very reasons why her friend Tomoyo Daidouji keeps on sewing costumes for her and taking videos of her. Oh! We should thank Tomoyo for that ^_^

Sakura and Tomoyo as angels - I think it's just fair to add a photo of the dress designer

In contrast with Yuko who has her own style, Sakura never really wanted frilly costumes if not because her insisting friend Tomoyo. And so we will agree that Tomoyo is a really good fashion designer

Sakura Kinomoto - taken from the art book

Sakura Kinomoto wearing a cute yellow dress

(Most of the ‘Sakura in cute costume’ images I have are from the Art Book. It’s really worth it to have your own copy of the art book so check it out! (though I don’t have the third Art Book yet ) The book features CLAMP’s beautiful illustrations! And by the way, I think the Japanese published art book is better than the US published, so if you’re going to get a copy, I suggest the Japanese published.)

Sakura Kinomoto wearing a pretty frilly dress

Like Yuko Ichihara, Sakura looks really good on anything she wears. Even a boy’s outfit fits her well! Remember the prince costume she wore during their Sleeping Beauty play?

Sakura is also good in projecting for the camera! Perhaps we can say that “it’s in the genes”? Her mother is a model too, so surely, the daughter will be as good as the mother when it comes to modelling. (I love their smiles ^_^)

So that goes for Sakura Kinomoto, and her fashion designer Tomoyo Daidoiji ^_^

Kobato Hanato (Kobato.)

Kobato in her blue dress

And now, Kobato Hanato!

Who doesn’t love this innocent, cute, and adorable girl? She’s as charming as Sakura Kinomoto, don’t you think?

Anyway, Kobato isn’t as good as Sakura in projecting, but hey, she’s actually good when it comes to picture things. She just have to be natural and ta-daaah! A good model for a fashion magazine ^_^ (Sakura is good with both naturals and posings)

(The Kobato official artbook is finally out, and I can’t wait to have a copy! I want to see CLAMP’s features of Kobato in her different outfits ^_^)

The manga features Kobato in a completely different outfit per chapter, and that’s CLAMP for you – they can change the outfit of a character every now and then, and every dress is not just a simple outfit design. Hooray for CLAMP and Kobato’s magic wardrobe!

Oh, is it actually a wardrobe? Rather, a SUITCASE, I mean! ^_^ I wonder how her many dresses fit in THAT suitcase…

Kobato's suitcase - how can her many dresses fit in that?

(photo borrowed from kyameel’s flickr photostream)

Anyway, here goes the anime-manga nutter again. Kobato doesn’t have that much outfit in the anime! They don’t even have a different dress for her for every new episode! Oh well. At least the opening did its best by featuring some of Kobato’s outfit

Kobato's outfits - as seen in the opening of the anime

Among the outfits she wore in the anime, my favorite is her blue dress (in the photo waay above). Her hat and sandals are really cute too! I’d love to have them for a summer day! ^_^

That’s Kobato Hanato for you! ^_^

Sakura/Tsubasa (Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle)

Now it’s Tsubasa’s turn!

It’s not that difficult to feature Tsubasa’s style since she’s quite the same as Sakura Kinomoto (well, they have the same souls, or that’s what I understood in the manga). Basically, you just have to check out Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle Character Guides (1 and 2) and you can see features of the character’s outfits (as seen in the manga).

A different world means a different outfit for them (with just some few exceptions). And you’ll see how creative and imaginative CLAMP is because they know exactly what would fit the four main characters in a certain world/country. And with that, Sakura/Tsubasa’s many styles! ^_^

Sakura's many outfits as featured in the anime

I found this magazine scans somewhere, I hope it’s alright for me to borrow them for this feature. Anyways, just see how cute Sakura is especially in these outfits which were seen in the anime ^_^

Sakura's many fashion 2

But no matter how cute those dresses are, there’s one outfit that’s really my favorite, and it’s actually very simple: Sakura’s outfit in the country of Tokyo:

Sakura's outfit in the country of Tokyo

I like this outfit because it shows the brave Sakura – I really like that side of her. There’s also Sakura’s outfit in the country of Infinity, but I’m opting for the simpler dress.

The Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle art book also features Sakura’s different styles, so check it out ^_^

A princess for a model? That’s Sakura/Tsubasa of the Kingdom of Clow! ^_^

Chii (Chobits)

Chii in her purple Victorian dress

And last but definitely not the least, Chii!

Another of CLAMP’s really cute character, and she’s really cuddly (that’s what Hideki says anyway ), despite being a persecom! ^_^

In the beginning of the story, Chii didn’t actually have any dress and Hideki lent her some of his clothes which were really oversize for the cute Chii. So Hibiya-san gave Chii some pretty clothes – which she said was hers that time.

Talk about receiving cute dresses! And they fit Chii perfectly!

Anyways, Chii is just too cute almost every outfit fits her: her work clothes for the bakery, a casual dress for a trip to the bookstore, and yes, even Hideki’s clothes .

In the manga, almost all of her clothes were from Hibiya-san (they were really Chii’s anyway), but I have no idea what the thing is in the anime since I haven’t finish!ed watching the whole series.

Chii’s photo in waay above is taken from the Chobit’s Artbook Your Eyes Only. I love her Victorian style dress! Somehow, she looks like Victorique from Gosick, but let’s be honest, Chii is cuter

Chii in her white frilly dress with a matching cute white umbrella

I also love Chii’s frilly white dress in the photo above! It looks really cute on her!

Now I can’t resist to buy a copy of the Chobits artbook. CLAMP’s artwork once again! And more of Chii in her cute outfits ^_^

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PS. I noticed that my previous feature post was also about anime fashion! I wonder what about I will write next?

Calling the attention of CLAMP fans! Let’s cross our fingers for another CLAMP series!

Till the next post ^_^

xoxo,
AlyssaMihara

My Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus, Volume 1

May 12, 2011 at 11:54 am | Posted in AlyssaMihara's babbles, Card Captor Sakura, CLAMP!, Merchandise | 6 Comments
Tags: Card Captor Sakura, Cardcaptor Sakura, xxxHolic

Who’d have thought that I’ll have my own copy of Dark Horse Manga’s version of Cardcaptor Sakura manga Omnibus? If before, I was only looking at it in Amazon.com, now I have my own to put in my Manga Drawer! ^_^

Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus, Vol. 1 - with other CLAMP manga

For the reviews, Clamp News have their own review on this Omnibus… but I guess I’ll have my own:

Wow! It’s my first time to have a shoujo manga! (what is RG Veda’s genre?) And I’m loving the pink cover of this Cardcaptor Sakura Omnibus! Dark Horse did great using a Sakura flower for the volume number… I really like their idea ^_^. Even the ‘Cardcaptor Sakura’ lettering is really cute ^_^.

The cover is very smooth — I think there’s no need to cover the book in plastic, yet I think I’ll still do because the corners of the book keep on folding while I’m reading it.

Now, compared with the DelRey’s Omnibuses (which I don’t have ), this omnibus has a good book-binding. You’ll never be anxious that you might crease the spine of the book while reading.

The Omnibus contains lots of colored pages too, which I definitely like ^_^.

The only thing I don’t like about it is that it’s very heavy… I actually had a hard time carrying it while strolling around the mall (since I bought it early). I also get tired of holding the book while reading — very heavy.

To be honest, this is my first time to read the Cardcaptor Sakura manga. It was only in reading it that I realized that the anime is REALLY different from the manga. Nevertheless, I like both versions. Nothing to say like, “I like this better.” The story was kept intact in the anime… I can’t really say what the differences are… but you’ll know what I mean once you read the manga.

Enough of the reviews and babbles… All I can say is that… I’M LOVING THIS! Can’t wait to have the Omnibus Vol. 2! ^_^

April 1, 2011

April 1, 2011 at 12:40 pm | Posted in Card Captor Sakura, CLAMP!, Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles, xxxHolic | Leave a comment

Sakura Kinomoto, Princess Sakura, and Watanuki Kimihiro… Happy Birthday!

the celebrants!

Looking forward: April 1, 2011

March 29, 2011 at 5:39 pm | Posted in AlyssaMihara's babbles, Card Captor Sakura, CLAMP!, Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles, xxxHolic | Leave a comment
Tags: Card Captor Sakura, Cardcaptor Sakura, Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle, Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles, xxxHolic

Things have been quite busy recently. School works! Other blog. <3. And in a week, GRADUATION. I’ll say goodbye to highschool, and say hello to college.

Things about my otaku life is getting a bit complicated. For some reasons, I stopped watching anime. But as April 1 approaches, I started to get giddy about CLAMP, yet again. Sakura Kinomoto’s birthday! Watanuki Kimihiro’s birthday!! Oh my, who wouldn’t get giddy about that?? (LoL ^_^)

So yeah, I’m thinking… maybe I should rewatch Card Captor Sakura or Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle. Or perhaps continue watching xxxHolic: Kei. And I should hunt for the other volumes of Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle manga!!

best of CLAMP's works

The best of CLAMP’s works…when it comes to manga, at least. In anime, the best would be Card Captor Sakura, next is Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle, third is xxxHolic.