X: PRELUDE (VOLUME 1)
September 21st 2008 22:41
Category: Graphic Novels/Comics
Their destiny was foreordained…
Publisher: 1992 Kadowkawa Shoten Publishing Co/2005 Chuang Yi Publishing Pte Ltd.
Story & Art by: CLAMP (Ageha Ohkawa – story/script/graphic novel design, Mokona – cover illustration/manga illustration, Tsubaki Nekoi – art direction & Satsuki Igarashi – graphic assistance).
Layout & Lettering: We Swee Pheng.
Cover Design: We Swee Pheng.
Cost: AU$14.95
The end of the world is something it seems that exists in almost every culture and every society that has graced the surface of the planet. From the Biblical Book of Revelations to the pagan Norse Twilight of the Gods (or Ragnarok as it’s more commonly known) to Aztec and Mayan mythology, no matter the place or the time it seems that everyone believes in an earth shattering calamity. The Mayan culture even went so far as to posit a possible date which has been said to be the year 2014 Anno Domini, if that’s the case I’d get in a few good drinks before the party is about to end. Although according to this particular manga produced by legendary manga artistes Clamp the world is due to end with the turn of the Millennium, 1999…
Of course I’ve no doubt that there are those out there who would argue that 2000 is actually the turn of the millennium and not 1999 but for all intents and purposes as far as this manga is concerned 1999 is the real deal. After all this particular fact is a manifestation of one of the most powerful forces in the known universe, one that even the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is incapable of dealing with and that the mightiest of all supercomputers is unworthy of calculating, it is part of …plot contrivance. In addition to drawing upon the whole end is nigh vibe it seems that CLAMP are also making liberal use of the Western Tarot to enhance their story and give it that extra bit of mystery and occult influence.
Lush is a word that immediately springs to mind when reading this work, even when there is carnage and mayhem being meted out on a landscape changing scale the word is still applicable. There is a certain beauty and grandeur to the whole effect, a sense of unrestrained power as well lightning fast motion, all in all it makes for a realistic effect if somewhat overwhelming in areas. There were moments when I was reading this particular volume where I literally pulled back and went whoa, so impressive is the artwork. There is also a large element of metaphor and symbolism at work in this story, after all this is much about the prophesy of the world ending and associated visions as well as the unfolding story that is taking place.
Naturally with a work produced by a leading team of manga artists in situated firmly in the ‘real’ world the story unfolds in Tokyo, the Japanese capital. The primary protagonist, Kamui Shiro, is finally returning to his former home in Tokyo after six years absence. It is his first day at his new school and we first meet him en route to this establishment of learning. On the inside cover Kamui is depicted as the Tarot card 1-the Magician, a card that is often ascribed to those who have occult learning, mastery and supernatural power as well as being someone who can affect great change within the world at a variety of levels. Unlike traditional depictions of the Magician this particular version shows in the background a city at night slightly shrouded by the clouds that surround the figure of the magus; Kamui.
Still even though Kamui is the focus for the tale we only see him briefly at the start before the focus moves onto the brother and sister duo of Fuma and Kotori. Both of these characters know Kamui, but as far as they are aware he has long since left Tokyo ever since that tragic day when Fuma and Kotori’s mother passed away from a heart attack caused by a hereditary condition. It seems that Kamui’s mother was close friends with Fuma and Kotori’s mother, the two were almost inseparable and from the way things are told it seems as if the death of the other woman was what caused Kamui and his mother to move away from the bustling metropolis that is Tokyo. Tragedy can do that but there is more to this prodigals return than meets the eye.
It seems that Kamui has attracted the attention of a variety of differing individuals all of whom who seem to have their own agendas at the fore. Magic is at work in this story, all of the various key characters seem to have some kind of supernatural ability ranging from the gifts of farsight, to elemental manipulation to the ability to foresee the myriad paths of the future unfolding. In this regards there is a little bit of Tokyo Babylon in this story, Kamui is an onmyoji as are those whom he encounters and those whom he doesn’t yet know of but are lurking in the shadows watching and observing. All of this as the title hints is the prelude, the opening stanzas of an epic saga, after all a story of the end of the world isn’t just going to be just any old two bit story. There are conventions to be obeyed as well as the need to realise that it is a subject matter that must be dealt with in suitably epic scale, yet on the other hand it’s not all landscape altering magic, shape changing zombies and enigmatic prophetesses. The ordinary and mundane has its place within this tale, after all these are the things that in reality give shape and focus to both a story and a life.
There is the hint that this story is going to carry an element of tragedy, purely in the fact that before he went into his ‘exile’ with his mother Kamui had a thing for Kotori and the feeling was mutual, even approved of by her brother Fuma who also felt highly of the then young Kamui. It is unknown whether this mutual bond between the three will be able to survive what is to come, Kamui knows who they both are when he makes his return and he tries to ward both brother and sister away, trying to keep them from harm, from becoming involved in his world. But as the opening line proclaims…Their fate was foreordained…
An interesting factor within this story is that unlike say in a traditional comic book when say Dr Strange gets involved in a stoush with Dread Dormmamu in downtown Manhattan no ever seems to comment on the fact that the landscape has been altered to some considerable extent by means unheard of. In this manga after Kamui clashes with a mysterious assailant the first thing that happens is that people are going “What the…” as they notice the huge rent in the road, the fact that the neighbour’s house has spontaneously combusted (and no really likes Mr Misaki anyway, miserable old so and so that he was). An incident like this is rather refreshing and it’s just another reason why the CLAMP team is no doubt such the major legend in the manga industry that they are. X: Prelude is definitely well worth taking the time out to read and enjoy, even if the world is ending… (Time please gents!)
Publisher: 1992 Kadowkawa Shoten Publishing Co/2005 Chuang Yi Publishing Pte Ltd.
Story & Art by: CLAMP (Ageha Ohkawa – story/script/graphic novel design, Mokona – cover illustration/manga illustration, Tsubaki Nekoi – art direction & Satsuki Igarashi – graphic assistance).
Layout & Lettering: We Swee Pheng.
Cover Design: We Swee Pheng.
Cost: AU$14.95
The end of the world is something it seems that exists in almost every culture and every society that has graced the surface of the planet. From the Biblical Book of Revelations to the pagan Norse Twilight of the Gods (or Ragnarok as it’s more commonly known) to Aztec and Mayan mythology, no matter the place or the time it seems that everyone believes in an earth shattering calamity. The Mayan culture even went so far as to posit a possible date which has been said to be the year 2014 Anno Domini, if that’s the case I’d get in a few good drinks before the party is about to end. Although according to this particular manga produced by legendary manga artistes Clamp the world is due to end with the turn of the Millennium, 1999…
Naturally with a work produced by a leading team of manga artists in situated firmly in the ‘real’ world the story unfolds in Tokyo, the Japanese capital. The primary protagonist, Kamui Shiro, is finally returning to his former home in Tokyo after six years absence. It is his first day at his new school and we first meet him en route to this establishment of learning. On the inside cover Kamui is depicted as the Tarot card 1-the Magician, a card that is often ascribed to those who have occult learning, mastery and supernatural power as well as being someone who can affect great change within the world at a variety of levels. Unlike traditional depictions of the Magician this particular version shows in the background a city at night slightly shrouded by the clouds that surround the figure of the magus; Kamui.
Still even though Kamui is the focus for the tale we only see him briefly at the start before the focus moves onto the brother and sister duo of Fuma and Kotori. Both of these characters know Kamui, but as far as they are aware he has long since left Tokyo ever since that tragic day when Fuma and Kotori’s mother passed away from a heart attack caused by a hereditary condition. It seems that Kamui’s mother was close friends with Fuma and Kotori’s mother, the two were almost inseparable and from the way things are told it seems as if the death of the other woman was what caused Kamui and his mother to move away from the bustling metropolis that is Tokyo. Tragedy can do that but there is more to this prodigals return than meets the eye.
It seems that Kamui has attracted the attention of a variety of differing individuals all of whom who seem to have their own agendas at the fore. Magic is at work in this story, all of the various key characters seem to have some kind of supernatural ability ranging from the gifts of farsight, to elemental manipulation to the ability to foresee the myriad paths of the future unfolding. In this regards there is a little bit of Tokyo Babylon in this story, Kamui is an onmyoji as are those whom he encounters and those whom he doesn’t yet know of but are lurking in the shadows watching and observing. All of this as the title hints is the prelude, the opening stanzas of an epic saga, after all a story of the end of the world isn’t just going to be just any old two bit story. There are conventions to be obeyed as well as the need to realise that it is a subject matter that must be dealt with in suitably epic scale, yet on the other hand it’s not all landscape altering magic, shape changing zombies and enigmatic prophetesses. The ordinary and mundane has its place within this tale, after all these are the things that in reality give shape and focus to both a story and a life.
There is the hint that this story is going to carry an element of tragedy, purely in the fact that before he went into his ‘exile’ with his mother Kamui had a thing for Kotori and the feeling was mutual, even approved of by her brother Fuma who also felt highly of the then young Kamui. It is unknown whether this mutual bond between the three will be able to survive what is to come, Kamui knows who they both are when he makes his return and he tries to ward both brother and sister away, trying to keep them from harm, from becoming involved in his world. But as the opening line proclaims…Their fate was foreordained…
An interesting factor within this story is that unlike say in a traditional comic book when say Dr Strange gets involved in a stoush with Dread Dormmamu in downtown Manhattan no ever seems to comment on the fact that the landscape has been altered to some considerable extent by means unheard of. In this manga after Kamui clashes with a mysterious assailant the first thing that happens is that people are going “What the…” as they notice the huge rent in the road, the fact that the neighbour’s house has spontaneously combusted (and no really likes Mr Misaki anyway, miserable old so and so that he was). An incident like this is rather refreshing and it’s just another reason why the CLAMP team is no doubt such the major legend in the manga industry that they are. X: Prelude is definitely well worth taking the time out to read and enjoy, even if the world is ending… (Time please gents!)
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