X (manga)
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| X (X/1999) | |||
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| エックス (Ekkusu, "X") |
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| Genre | Drama, Action | ||
| Manga | |||
| Authored by | Clamp | ||
| Publisher |  Kadokawa Shoten |
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| Serialized in | Monthly Asuka | ||
| Original run | May 24, 1992 – ON HIATUS | ||
| No. of volumes | 18 (current) | ||
| Movie: X: The Destiny War | |||
| Directed by | Rintarō | ||
| Studio | Madhouse Ltd. | ||
| Released | August 3, 1996 | ||
| Runtime | 1:37:00 | ||
| TV anime | |||
| Directed by | Kawajiri Yoshiaki, Apapa Mokona | ||
| Studio | Madhouse Ltd. | ||
| Network | WOWOW Channel | ||
| Original run | October 3, 2001 – March 27, 2002 | ||
| No. of episodes | 24 | ||
| Related works | |||
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X (エックス Ekkusu?), an early work of the hit all-female mangaka group Clamp, details the apocalypse prophesied to begin in 1999. The first chapter of the manga originally appeared in the May 1992 issue of Monthly Asuka. The manga has yet to be completed, but it has been adapted into a movie (X/1999 or X: The Destiny War) and an anime TV series. It was also adapted into a Playstation versus fighting game ("X: Unmei no Sentaku/X: The Selection of Destiny").[1] Drama CDs were also produced, and their music was composed by Naoki Sato.
The manga is published in Japan by Kadokawa Shoten under the Monthly Asuka line. In North America, VIZ Media publishes it in English under the name X/1999. In Singapore, Australia and New Zealand, it is called X and is published in English by Chuang Yi, with the same translations as Viz. It is published in Italy by Planet Manga. In Indonesia, it's published by Level Comic.
In what was believed to be due to a dispute between Clamp and the editors of Asuka, the manga was put on hiatus in Japan as of March 2003. Supposedly, Asuka felt the series was becoming too violent, however, Clamp were unwilling to change their plans for X 's plotline. As a result, X and Gohō Drug, Clamp's manga being serialised in Asuka at the time, were put on hold indefinitely. In an interview from PUFF magazine which can be viewed here, Clamp claims that while it was true Asuka believed the series was getting too violent, the primary reasons for X's hiatus were the Great Hanshin earthquake and the Sakakibara incident, both of which devastated Japan. As X portrays earthquakes as a sign of the end of days and contains depictions of extreme mutilation and decapitation, Clamp decided it was not the right time to release the ending they had planned.
There are currently 18 volumes in the manga series with a special edition 18.5 published in the special issue 'CLAMP Newtype(PLATINUM)' of the monthly magazine Newtype.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
In 1999, Shirō Kamui returns to Tokyo for the first time in six years to honour his mother's final wishes. It is here he will fulfill his destiny, yet all he wants is for others to leave him alone. According to the yumemi Hinoto, Kamui alone has the power to decide the world's fate, which depends on whether the kekkai which exist in Tōkyō remain standing.
Kamui must decide to either become a Dragon of Heaven (also known as the Seven Seals) and protect humanity from supernatural destruction or join the Dragons of Earth (also known as the Seven Angels) to destroy humanity so the Earth can be reborn. While Kamui couldn't care less about the world, he feels he must protect childhood friends Fūma and Kotori, Fūma's younger sister. However, his choice to become a Dragon of Heaven results in tragedy when Fūma is revealed to be Kamui’s “Twin Star”, destined to be Kamui’s opposite number no matter which side Kamui chooses.
Kamui must reluctantly fulfill his destiny alongside his allies, the Dragons of Heaven, whose destinies are also ostensibly foreordained. They all soon learn the tragedy of loss and the painful price of victory. To save the world, Kamui must become certain of his resolve and of what he truly desires for himself, Fūma, and the world.
[edit] Theatrical film
An X/1999 theatrical film titled X: The Destiny War and directed by Rintarō was released in Japanese theaters in 1996. Because the manga was less than half complete at the time of the film's conception, many elements of the plot and characters were simplified, and the primary focus of the story became the build up toward the Final Battle between Kamui and Fūma. As a result of this simplification, most of the characters receive little to no on-screen development. Overall, the film is regarded more for its highly artistic fight scenes than its representation of the plot.
In the movie, Kamui kills Fūma, and all the Dragons of Heaven and Earth die before the final fight. The bedridden dreamseer Kuzuki Kakyō is removed, because his character's abilities were too static for the duration of the action-packed film. He is replaced by Asagi Shōgo, a water master (Kigai Yūto's ability to control water had not been revealed in the manga yet, so there is no conflict of abilities in the movie between the characters). At the climax, Kamui kills Fūma by breaking Fūma's blade in a swordlock and cutting through Fūma's neck in the process. This leaves Kamui heartbroken as he has lost all whom he's ever cared for, with the symbolic sakura petals flowing in the background.
The soundtrack for the 1996 movie was composed by Shimizu Yasuaki. The ending theme for the movie, Forever Love, was written and performed by X Japan. The X/1999 film received a U.S. theatrical and DVD release in 2001, distributed by Manga Entertainment.
[edit] Trivia
In the movie, the inscription on Kamui's sword is written in Hebrew using the Hebrew alphabet and the design on the hilt of the sword is a Star of David. It reads: "ברוך אתה יי אלוהינו מלך השלם שהכל נהיה בדברו", which translates to "Blessed be you, lord our God, King of peace, that by your word everything comes to be," which also happen to be one of the prayers said before eating certain foods in Judaism, although the Hebrew words are slightly different.
Also, just before the scene in which Kamui sees his mother disembowel herself to give him his sword, a copy of Spirggan is seen on his desk.
[edit] TV anime series
| X | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Anime |
| Creator(s) | CLAMP |
| Opening theme | "ex-Dream" |
| Ending theme | "Secret Sorrow" |
| Country of origin |  Japan |
| No. of episodes | 24 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 24 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | WOWOW |
| Original run | October 3, 2001 – March 27, 2002 |
| Links | |
| IMDb profile | |
[edit] Synopsis
X: The Series is an adaptation directed by Yoshiaki Kawajiri with character designs and chief animation direction by Yoshinori Kanemori. The show was produced by Madhouse, D-Rights, Character and Anime dot com, Kadokawa Shoten and WOWOW and is distributed in North America by Geneon Entertainment. It broadly follows the plot of the original manga, and due to its length (24 episodes) is able to focus on characters more than the movie version. However, the story was still somewhat condensed from the manga, with the order of events and character meetings (and in some cases, locations of events) altered. Other changes included:
- The level of gore is largely reduced compared to the manga: in particular, the death of Monō Saya (her relationship with Magami Tohru was also belittled), and the dream-sequence demise of Monō Kotori seen in volume 2 of the manga. The show does contain a significant amount of bloodletting, though this is generally not lingered upon.
- Although it is stated that damage done to buildings inside a kekkai will be reflected in the real world, this is never seen (even when a Dragon of Heaven is defeated, such as episode 16), and no innocent people die. This is not entirely at odds with the manga, however, as it is stated that the damage could occur at any time after the Dragon of Heaven's defeat, possibly years later.
- Fūma as the Dark Kamui is much more sadistic than his manga counterpart, and exchanges only a few sentences with Sakurazuka Seishirō; in the manga, the two shared a mutual love of decadence, deciding to eat out in any part of Tōkyō they planned to destroy prior to obliterating it.
- There are some minor differences in character design. Yūto was notorious for looking extremely malevolent at instances in the manga. Satsuki's hair is dyed in the manga and movie, but not the anime series. Kanoe's cleavage is less exposed in the anime.
- Whereas in the manga character backstories were given in mini-stories at the back of each volume, in the TV series several episodes were given over almost entirely to flashbacks, usually at the expense of plot development.
- For the DVD release, an OVA was produced (Episode 00 below), using footage from the series interwoven with a narration by Kuzuki Kakyō, apparently seeing the future events in his dreams. However, in addition to unseen footage (in which Kakyō attempts to prevent Sumeragi Hokuto's death, but is shot with a sniper rifle and thus sinks into the coma in which he spends the series), the episode also contains alternate versions of other sequences from the final version of the show. Most notably, in a scene from episode 12 in which Kamui is pinned to a rock by Fuuma, he is held in place with shards of glass rather than cables.
[edit] Story conclusion
The manga being incomplete at the time of production, it was necessary to continue events beyond the given story (as was the case with the movie version); this is reflected in the fates of many characters. Some (such as Kasumi Karen and Yatōji Satsuki) are killed despite remaining alive in the manga, while others (such as Kishū Arashi and Sumeragi Subaru) experience fates at odds with the story developed thus far in the manga. In one case, a character who has died in the manga (Nataku) survives almost to the end of the series, while another (Shiyū Kusanagi) makes a choice which had only been hinted at thus far in the manga.
There is also a definitive ending to the story. The Dragons of Heaven have been reduced to Kamui alone (the others being either dead or otherwise incapacitated), and similarly all the Dragons of Earth are dead apart from Fūma, Kusanagi (who has defected), and Kakyō (who is in a coma). Fūma and Kamui engage in pitched battle on Tōkyō Tower, but the fight goes against Kamui, and he is badly injured. It emerges that the Kamui of the Dragons of Heaven must never point his Shinken at the one he seeks to protect, or he is bound to fail.
Before Fūma can deliver the killing strike, however, Kamui is rescued by Sumeragi Subaru, who was roused from his catatonia thanks to Kakyō's interference. Subaru, mortally wounded, convinces Kamui to realise his true wish: to restore Fūma to his old self. Thus, even as Tōkyō Tower is destroyed and humanity's fate appears to be sealed, Kamui allows Fūma to run him through, knowing that the older boy must grant his wish. Although Kamui dies, his wishes live on in Fūma's heart, and his kekkai engulfs the entire Earth, thus ensuring its protection (and apparently restoring Subaru to life).
The surviving characters are all given epilogues, indicating that the wishes of their loved ones—those who died during the course of the series—live on in them.
[edit] Music
The music for both the TV series and OVA (a.k.a. Episode 00), including the song "Sadame" (Destiny), was composed by Naoki Sato. The show's title theme "eX-Dream" is performed by the group Myuji and the ending theme "Secret Sorrow" is performed by Kohei Koizumi.
In Germany, the title theme and the ending to the TV series are "Mother Earth" by band Within Temptation.
[edit] Episodes
| Episode | Title | Original Airdate | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English (Official) | Kanji | Romaji | ||
| 00 | An Omen | 前兆 | Zenchō | OVA, Unaired |
| 01 | A Reunion | 再会 | Saikai | 2001-10-03 |
| 02 | A Nightmare | 夢見 | Yumemi | 2001-10-10 |
| 03 | A Pledge | 約束 | Yakusoku | 2001-10-17 |
| 04 | A Sacrifice | 影贄 | Kagenie | 2001-10-24 |
| 05 | A Destiny | 宿命 | Shukunē | 2001-10-31 |
| 06 | Kouya | 高野 | Kōya | 2001-11-07 |
| 07 | Cyber (Civer) | 電脳 | Denno | 2001-11-14 |
| 08 | Gemini | 添星 | Tensē | 2001-11-21 |
| 09 | Onmyou | 陰陽 | Onmyō | 2001-11-28 |
| 10 | Inuki | 犬鬼 | Inuki | 2001-12-05 |
| 11 | Border | 境界 | Kyokai | 2001-12-12 |
| 12 | Alternative | 選択 | Sentaku | 2001-12-19 |
| 13 | Return | 覚醒 | Kakusē | 2002-01-09 |
| 14 | Gathering | 集結 | Shuketsu | 2002-01-16 |
| 15 | Guardian | 守護 | Shugo | 2002-01-23 |
| 16 | Slaughter | 虚無 | Kyomu | 2002-01-30 |
| 17 | Wish | 苦悶 | Kumon | 2002-02-06 |
| 18 | Newborn | 新生 | Shinsē | 2002-02-13 |
| 19 | Inferno | 煉獄 | Rengoku | 2002-02-20 |
| 20 | Ripple | 恋歌 | Koiuta | 2002-02-27 |
| 21 | Current | 流浪 | Ruro | 2002-03-06 |
| 22 | Betrayal | 背信 | Hēshin | 2002-03-13 |
| 23 | Earth | 天地 | Tenchi | 2002-03-20 |
| 24 | Legend | 伝説 | Densetsu | 2002-03-27 |
[edit] Voice Acting
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- X: The Selection of Destiny
- X (manga) (manga) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia
- X: The Movie at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia
- X: The Series at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia
