{"id":1391,"date":"2008-05-11T20:47:54","date_gmt":"2008-05-12T01:47:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/?p=1391"},"modified":"2008-06-07T13:07:09","modified_gmt":"2008-06-07T18:07:09","slug":"tsubasa-reservoir-chronicle-anime-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/2008\/05\/11\/tsubasa-reservoir-chronicle-anime-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE&#8211;Anime Review"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/image\/stars\/25o5.gif\" alt=\"2.5 Stars\" \/><br \/>\nEven if you didn&#8217;t already know it, the title of this series should tip you off that the team of <a href=\"\/fun\/terms-used-in-anime-reviews#manga\">manga<\/a> artists known as CLAMP has a weird sense of humor. In spite of this, or perhaps because of this, I generally like their stuff. I&#8217;ve spent many enjoyable hours watching <a href=\"\/fun\/terms-used-in-anime-reviews#anime\">anime<\/a> series based on their work. That&#8217;s what makes this particular series such a disappointment.<br \/>\n<!--more--><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ItemList\">\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Title<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\"><em>Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE<\/em> <\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Genres<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Fantasy, Adventure, Romance<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Demographic<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Shounen<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Contents<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">52 Episodes on 12? DVDs<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Languages<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">English, Japanese with subtitles<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Based on<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">a manga by CLAMP<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Director<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Hiroshi Morioka, Koichi Mashimo<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Script<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Hiroyuki Kawasaki<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Character Design<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Minako Shiba<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Art Director<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Shin Watanabe<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Music<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Yuki Kajiura<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Animation Studio<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Bee Train<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Broadcast<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">NHK, 2005-2006<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Region 1 Publisher<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">FUNimation Entertainment<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The central conceit of this series is that there are a large number of universes which include multiple versions of familiar characters from other CLAMP series. <\/p>\n<blockquote><p>The people you know and the people you have met in previous worlds will have sometimes lived completely different lives in other worlds as well. You may meet persons who have the same appearance in many different worlds, many times over.<\/p>\n<p>Those two are the same&#8230;and yet not the same. You might say they have the same essence.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>One reason that the show has been harshly criticized is that Princess Sakura, one of the main characters, is clearly presented as an alternate version of Sakura Kinomoto of <a href=\"\/fun\/2006\/12\/08\/cardcaptor-sakura-anime-review\/\"><em>Cardcaptor Sakura<\/em><\/a>. If you happen to own the rights to one of the most beloved heroines in anime you had better be careful how you treat her or some people will indeed get very annoyed with you. Princess Sakura seems a nice enough girl but she is so completely different from Sakura Kinomoto that it seems ridiculous to suggest that they are essentially the same.<\/p>\n<p>I am not going to downgrade this series for that. I think that a series should be judged on its own terms, not on how much it resembles, or fails to resemble, another series. On the other hand I&#8217;m not going to give this series extra points just because it is full of references to other, superior, series.<\/p>\n<p>But I will criticize this series for its ending, or lack of one. I&#8217;m fairly open-minded about endings, but I do have a pretty inflexible rule that if you start a quest you must show the end of it. Before the final credits role, Jason must find the Golden Fleece, the One Ring must be thrown into the Cracks of Doom, the <a href=\"\/fun\/2006\/12\/20\/inu-yasha-anime-review\/#shikon_no_tama\"><em>shikon no tama<\/em><\/a> must be glued back together, or Sakura must collect all the cards (or in this case feathers.)<\/p>\n<p>This series has a strong dramatic start, but it quickly falls into a repetitious pattern of 2- to 4-episode story arcs, all of them rather similar. The heroes arrive in a new universe, scout out the territory, make some acquaintances, solve a problem or defeat a villain, locate and acquire the McGuffin, then depart for the next universe. New mysteries are added but few are resolved. There is little sense of progress being made toward the goal. Ultimately the series ends <a href=\"\/fun\/2006\/12\/20\/inu-yasha-anime-review\/\">Inuyasha<\/a>-style, with nothing but a promise that the quest will continue.<\/p>\n<p>To a large extent this series is about <a href=\"\/fun\/terms-used-in-anime-reviews#fan_service\">fan service<\/a>. No, no, not sexual fan service&#8211;there&#8217;s nothing like that here. It&#8217;s more a matter of &#8220;spot the cameo,&#8221; the little in-joke thrill of recognizing characters from other CLAMP series. But this tends to wear thin since these aren&#8217;t, after all, the real characters.<\/p>\n<p>Still, for dedicated CLAMP fans there are occasional tidbits of information that shed light on other stories. For example, if you have ever wondered who controls Piffle Enterprises, the giant industrial conglomerate that financed the development of the <em>Angelic Layer<\/em> game and the persocoms of <a href=\"\/fun\/2007\/03\/17\/chobits-anime-review\/\"><em>Chobits<\/em><\/a>, this series provides a surprisingly logical answer <a href=\"#piffle_enterprises\">[1]<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3>Parental Advisory<\/h3>\n<p>As far as the TV series is concerned, I don&#8217;t see too much to worry about. There is a fair amount of bloodless cartoon violence, but there&#8217;s nothing likely to upset any but the youngest children.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"\/fun\/terms-used-in-anime-reviews#OVA\">OVA<\/a> is another matter. It is much darker and bloodier. I would only recommend it for teenagers.<\/p>\n<h3>Premise and Characters<\/h3>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/clowcountry.png\" alt=\"Kingdom of Clow\" title=\"Kingdom of Clow\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1393\" \/>The story begins in The Kingdom of Clow, a desert kingdom that was founded by a legendary wizard named <strong>Clow Reed<\/strong>.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/touya.png\" alt=\"King Touya\" title=\"King Touya\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1406\" \/>The land is ruled by <strong>King Touya<\/strong>, a dour young fellow who is worried about his younger sister.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/sakuratouya.png\" alt=\"Sakura and Touya\" title=\"Sakura and Touya\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1403\" \/><strong>Princess Sakura<\/strong> is the nominal heroine of the story. Actually she mostly plays the role of a damsel in distress. A true princess, she never seems to get angry or frightened, always serenely confident that she will be rescued.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/syaoran.png\" alt=\"Syaoran\" title=\"Syaoran\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1405\" \/>Princess Sakura is secretly in love with her childhood friend <strong>Syaoran<\/strong>, a brave young archaeologist.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/sakurasyaoran.png\" alt=\"Sakura and Syaoran\" title=\"Sakura and Syaoran\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1401\" \/>She is trying to get up the courage to confess her feelings to him. Syaoran is currently busy excavating the ruins of a lost civilization that once occupied this land.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/yukito.png\" alt=\"Yukito\" title=\"Yukito\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1410\" \/>A worried King Touya consults the <strong>High Priest Yukito<\/strong>, his best friend and most trusted adviser. Yukito tells him that Syaoran and the princess are fated to be together.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/xinghuofeiwong.png\" alt=\"Xing Huo and Fei Wong\" title=\"Xing Huo and Fei Wong\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1409\" \/>From his secret headquarters in another dimension <strong>Fei Wong Reed<\/strong> (a.k.a. Fang Reed) observes all of this and makes evil plans. His assistant <strong>Xing Huo<\/strong> watches, seemingly unmoved.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/sakuramachine.png\" alt=\"Sakura Activating Machine\" title=\"Sakura Activating Machine\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1400\" \/>Princess Sakura is drawn to the ruins where Syaoran is working late at night. Somehow she activates a mysterious ancient machine. Glowing wings appear on her back, then explode, scattering the feathers across hundreds of universes <a href=\"#wings\">[2]<\/a>. Sakura falls unconscious.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/clawedwarriors.png\" alt=\"Clawed Warriors\" title=\"Clawed Warriors\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1392\" \/>This is what Fei Wong has been waiting for, and now he makes his move. Implacable warriors with clawed gauntlets appear throughout the city. King Touya summons his guards to fight them, but they prove to be difficult opponents.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/touyadefending.png\" alt=\"Touya Defending\" title=\"Touya Defending\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1407\" \/>King Touya and High Priest Yukito fight their way to Syaoran and Princess Sakura. The high priest tells Syaoran that the feathers contain Sakura&#8217;s memories and she will die unless they are recovered.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/yukitospell2.png\" alt=\"Yukito Casts Spell\" title=\"Yukito Casts Spell\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1411\" \/>He casts a spell to send Syaoran and Sakura to another universe and tells Syaoran to seek the help of the Dimensional Witch.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/princesstomoyo.png\" alt=\"Princess Tomoyo\" title=\"Princess Tomoyo\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1399\" \/>Meanwhile, in the magical Kingdom of Nihon, <strong>Princess Tomoyo<\/strong> has a problem. <\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/soumatomoyo.png\" alt=\"Souma and Tomoyo\" title=\"Souma and Tomoyo\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1404\" \/><strong>Kurogane<\/strong>, her strongest warrior, has become uncontrollable.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/kuroganespell.png\" alt=\"Kurogane Enspelled\" title=\"Kurogane Enspelled\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1396\" \/>She casts a spell to exile Kurogane to another universe, sending him to the Dimensional Witch.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/fai.png\" alt=\"Fai\" title=\"Fai\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1395\" \/>Meanwhile, in still another universe, a wizard named <strong> Fai D. Flowright<\/strong> (a.k.a. Fay D. Flourite, and various other spellings) has succeeded in sealing away the evil King Ashura. However he fears that he has doomed himself by doing this. Hoping to escape, he casts a spell that will send him to another universe to consult with the Dimensional Witch.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/dimensionalwitch.png\" alt=\"Dimensional Witch\" title=\"Dimensional Witch\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1394\" \/><a href=\"\/fun\/2008\/04\/06\/xxxholic-season-1-anime-review\/#yuuko\"><strong>Yuuko Ichihara<\/strong><\/a> (known in other universes as &#8220;The Dimensional Witch&#8221;) runs a mysterious little shop nestled among the skyscrapers of present-day Tokyo. She is prepared to grant any wish as long as the wisher is prepared to pay a commensurate price. She is waiting for the travellers, dressed formally and flanked by her servants.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/yuukoservants.png\" alt=\"Yuuko Meets Travellers\" title=\"Yuuko Meets Travellers\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1413\" \/>Yuuko declares that all of them want basically the same thing. Syaoran needs the ability to travel to other universes in order to retrieve Sakura&#8217;s feathers. Kurogane needs the ability to travel to other universes in order to return to the Kingdom of Nihon. Fai needs the ability to travel to other universes in order to escape the vengeance of King Ashura.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/yuukofaikurogane.png\" alt=\"Yuuko Fai Kurogane\" title=\"Yuuko Fai Kurogane\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1412\" \/>She promises to grant their wish if each of them will give up the thing he values most. Kurogane must give up his sword. Fai must give up the tattoo that he uses to perform magic.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<a href='https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/mokonayuuko.png'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/mokonayuuko.png\" alt=\"Yuuko with Mokona\" title=\"Yuuko with Mokona\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1398\" \/><\/a>Syaoran must give up his relationship with Sakura: even if all of her feathers are recovered she will never regain her memories of him. In desperation they all agree.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/mokonamodoki.png\" alt=\"Mokona Modoki\" title=\"Mokona Modoki\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1397\" \/>Yuuko then gives them <strong>Mokona Modoki<\/strong>, a fat white rabbity thing that has the power to transport them to other universes, though with no control over where they will end up. Mokona can also serve as a portable storage locker, a video projector, a communications device and a feather detector.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<\/div>\n<h3>The Movie<\/h3>\n<p>A short 40-minute movie called <em>Tsubasa Chronicle the Movie: The Princess of the Country of Birdcages<\/em> was released in 2005 and shown as a double feature with a similar episode of the related series <a href=\"\/fun\/2008\/04\/06\/xxxholic-season-1-anime-review\/\">xxxHolic<\/a>. Both are available on a combined DVD from FUNimation.<\/p>\n<p>This adventure can be inserted anywhere in the story-line without making any difference to the overall story. <\/p>\n<h3>The OVA<\/h3>\n<p>According to rumor the abrupt end of the TV series was related to a falling-out between CLAMP and the animation studio. Whether or not this is true, a different studio recently released a 3-episode OVA called <em>Tsubasa Tokyo Revelations<\/em> which continues the story.<\/p>\n<p>This adventure is set in a variation of the world of <a href=\"\/fun\/2007\/01\/26\/x-tv-anime-review\/\"><em>X\/1999<\/em><\/a>, and not surprisingly is much darker than the TV series. It answers some of the questions raised in the TV series, but also raises new ones.<\/p>\n<p>In the end the story seems no closer to a conclusion. However what originally seemed to be a mostly upbeat story, somewhat reminiscent of <em>Cardcaptor Sakura<\/em>, has now become grimmer and more tragic, more reminiscent of <em>X\/1999<\/em>.<\/p>\n<h3>Links<\/h3>\n<p>Anime News Network Encyclopedia <a href=\"http:\/\/www.animenewsnetwork.com\/encyclopedia\/anime.php?id=4591\">entry<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Wikipedia <a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tsubasa:_Reservoir_Chronicle\">entry<\/a> (major spoilers, including storylines from the manga that have not appeared in any version of the anime.)<\/p>\n<h3>Notes<\/h3>\n<p><a name=\"piffle_enterprises\">[1] <\/a> No, I&#8217;m not going to make you watch the show to find out. Piffle Enterprises is controlled by <a href='javascript:void(null);' onclick=\"s_toggleDisplay(document.getElementById('SID282908038'), this, 'Show &#9660;', 'Hide &#9650;');\">Show &#9660;<\/a><\/p>\n<div id='SID282908038' style='display:none;'>\n<a href=\"\/fun\/2006\/12\/08\/cardcaptor-sakura-anime-review\/#tomoyo\">Tomoyo Daidouji<\/a>, who apparently grew up to be a teenage financial wizard.\n<\/div>\n<p><a name=\"wings\">[2]<\/a> <em>Tsubasa<\/em> means &#8220;wings&#8221;, which explains that part of the title. &#8220;RESERVoir&#8221; may refer to the reservoir that is featured in the OVA.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Even if you didn&#8217;t already know it, the title of this series should tip you off that the team of <a href=\"\/fun\/terms-used-in-anime-reviews#manga\">manga<\/a> artists known as CLAMP has a weird sense of&#8230; <a href=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/2008\/05\/11\/tsubasa-reservoir-chronicle-anime-review\/\">Read more &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[68,67],"class_list":["post-1391","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-anime","tag-tsubasa-chronicle","tag-tsubasa-reservoir-chronicle"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1391","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1391"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1391\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1391"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1391"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1391"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}