Anime Info

Creator: CLAMP
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 24 Episodes
Purchase: Here

Summary

+ Storyline and fight scenes excel
+ Handful of great characters
+/– A bit confusing at times, warrants a second watch
+/– Some almost-yaoi moments (male affection towards another male)

Overview

X, simply put, is a great series. Skip the first "OVA" episode and you'll be on your way to a very interesting story and some of the most entertaining moments in all of anime. There are a handful of wonderful characters that are given equal screen time to shine and that they do! Each episode is entertaining and it builds up for a colossal battle that won't dissapoint!

Public Rating

Our Rating

Score of 4.5 out of 5
4.5 out of 5 · Highly Recommended

X Anime Review

Written by: James Lin on 5/25/2003

Introduction

X, the anime series, was created by CLAMP in 1999. Don't be fooled by the X Movie which has been in the US for a while now and is nothing compared to the series. You don't really get an idea of what the story is with a simple title like "X". Even after watching it, the only explanation I can come up with is a relatively simple one. There are two sides, "good" and "evil", also known as the "Seven Seals" and the "Seven Angels". Both sides are fighting to determine the fate of the Earth. The two sides clash, which is where the title "X" comes from. The Seven Seals destiny is to save mankind, therefore protect the Earth, while the Seven Angel's purpose is to save the Earth, therefore destroy mankind. The deciding factor in all of this is the main character, Kamui. His destiny has not yet been determined and it is up to him to decide what path to take. Although this sounds like your basic good versus evil story, it really isn't. There are so many conflicts that take place, and twists and turns in the storyline that you'll be in for one hell of a ride!

Review

X has a very good animation. The characters are all drawn very good and the settings have lots of details. There is some usage of computer graphics but there isn't a big emphasis on it. The animation is something you'd expect from a great company like CLAMP. You will pretty much see the same consistency of high quality animation throughout the series. The artwork found in X illustration books, is excellent as well.

As for the music in X, don't expect great vocal soundtracks found in anime series like Escaflowne but do expect great beats. They were so good that everytime one would play, I would have to turn the volume way up. I listened to this series with the original Japanese dialogue, and I suggest you doing the same. The voices are very good and have great emotion to it. The English dubbed voices, on the other hand, are too bland and dull. Like most English dubbed voices, I just can't sit through them, and this is no exception. I'm not saying that it is unwatchable (or in this case unlistenable), it's just if the Japanese voices are so much superior, watching it in English doesn't make sense.

I'm not sure if there is a series as short as X that has more character development. This series is filled with some great characters that you won't forget. Nearly each main character, both good and bad sides, have a great story behind them. The main character, Kamui, starts off always silent and pissed off, which is great. Characters like this are always interesting to me. I can honestly say I hate the happy-go-lucky cheerful type (most of the times, always exceptions). X also produced one of my favorite characters in all of anime, and that is character is Sorata. His personality and development throughout the story is far and beyond anything I expected to see in a anime series.

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I can go on and on about these characters but that would lead to possible spoilers. I will say, though, some of the main things I look for in anime series are a good story and great characters. These two combinations create the best anime and manga (along with everything else, movies, TV, etc). Most series will have a few outstanding characters, but X excels by having a dozen or so. To build character development, the series does have many flashbacks but they aren't the type of flashbacks that occur during a suspensful fight which I hate in other series out there. They are somewhat forced into the series (ie: a character is introduced, his past is presented, then goes back to present day) but they are by no means boring.

One of the flaws I found in the series is the first episode, the "OVA" which is listed as episode 0. I suggest skipping this because it's so dull and boring. Not only is it bad, but it's not really a great way to introduce a series. It basically is a "Dream Gazer" (someone who can see the future through dreams) that sees the entire series and shows you it! There are so many spoilers in the OVA that I suggest skipping it and watching it at the end of the series. You don't have to but the second time I watched the series, I skipped the OVA, and found it so much better. Episode 0 is basically just a preview of the series, but when it gives some major spoilers to a series that you are about to watch, I have to say "skip it!" You won't be missing anything and you can always watch it after the last episode.

This series is really deep and it can't just be watched once. I've never watched a series where I enjoyed it the second time more then the first, but X is an exception. I'll probably end up watching this series even more to find stuff that I still don't quite understand. You'll know what I'm talking about once you see it. I haven't watched the "X Movie" but I heard it does everything the series did but in an hour and a half. This can't be a good thing so I suggest not watching the X Movie until you've seen the series.

Just as a side note, I love Pioneer's releases. They put a lot of effort into their DVDs and I'm glad that they got the rights to X. I am dissapointed that they released the series in 8 freaking DVDs because that is just ludicrous. This basically means that the DVDs will contain a dissapointing 3 episodes per disc (with an exception to disc one, 4 episodes). Talk about rip-off? Pretty much. X does come in a great package: very nice slip-covers which is pointless but adds a nice touch to the overall production, clear DVD cases (which is growing in popularity I have noticed), double sided DVD covers with outstanding animation, and also a X box DVD container which isn't too amazing but gets the job done.

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Conclusion

This series is outstanding and ranks up there with all of my favorite series. It's a powerful anime with so much character development that I can't compare it to other series. The story line, fight scenes, and great characters are some of the strong points that make X a must-see anime series. I watched the series twice, with mere weeks in between viewings, and both times the series kept me enthralled. I have read online that the X manga is different from the anime series, so I can't wait to check that out as well. If you are looking for a very good series with memorable characters and a very interesting story then be sure to pick up X.