I haven't seen it so I can't really say much. But as for your review, solid as always.
xxxHOLiC tv Review
Kimihiro Watanuki sees youkai and ayakashi spirits. Seeking to get away from the spirits who literally haunt him, he finds himself one day pulled by a force into a shop; there, he meets Yuuko Ichihara, also known as the Dimension Witch, who tells him that this meeting was Inevitable (Hitsuzen).
Yuuko grants wishes for the appropriate price. Sensing that Watanuki's dearest wish is to stop seeing spirits, she promises to take the spirits away in exchange for Watanuki working in her home as a cook and cleaner. Bound perhaps by the inevitable, Watanuki agrees.
However, this is only the beginning. Watanuki beings to participate in 'jobs' with Yuuko, and his unique powers are often the reason for the job itself. In order to complete these jobs, Watanuki must work with his hated rival, Shizuka Doumeki, who possesses exorcist powers. But under these jobs hides a plot, and unbeknownst to Watanuki, Yuuko is using his help in order to stop it...
Description: twinklebyte
Story & Characters
When I first got into anime all those years ago, there was always one way you could guarantee I would love a show; CLAMP. I fell in love with Cardcaptor Sakura. Became completely addicted to Magic Knight Rayearth. I sought out every single CLAMP DVD I could. I was hooked. Seemingly though, CLAMP slowly died out and I waited with bated breath for the next piece of CLAMP pie that I could get. That day is finally here with XXXholic. Turns out, I might not like the taste of this pie anymore.
The plot of XXXholic is simple enough. A boy by the name of Kimihiro Watanuki is haunted and chased by evil spirits all the time. He can see them but no one else can. One day while returning home from school, he gets chased by one of these spirits and finds himself inside of a mysterious shop. Inside he meets a dark haired mystic by the name of Yuuko. She tells him that he has arrived per his destiny and that she can fulfill the wish he has in his heart; for a price of course. She will keep the spirits at bay if he will work in her shop.
From this point forward it becomes so redundant that it's almost kind of sickening. You'll occasionally have a new client come to Yuuko with a problem, which she will of course know all about but make Watanuki figure it out for himself. Then when the problem is fixed Yuuko will go on some kind of diatribe explaining how it relates to human beings. Mostly though it is redundant attempts at humor and lines used over and over again. Watanuki will be talking to Himawari and then Doumeki will pop in out of nowhere. Watanuki will yell at him and Himawari will say "You and Doumeki are the best of friends aren't you"? That in itself is the show in a nutshell.
Rating:
Art
This animation is going to probably be the majority of complaints with this review. Some will think that a 5 is far too generous, whilst others will say that the animation is different and charming in its own way. That's kind of where I see the need to take the middle ground. From just a normal animation perspective, the animation is just short of terrible. Characters are as cliched as one can get, even if they do have that CLAMP touch. But every single character lacks any kind out detail outside of Yuuko's constantly changing wardrobe. The most notable thing about the animation is the character proportions themselves. Every character is thin as a pole and tall as a tree. Yuuko's legs are probably taller than your whole body.
But I won't just destroy the animation and leave it at that. As I said it does have that distinctive CLAMP feel, namely the overdrawn eyes. The animation does, at times, have a certain charm to it and probably gives the show a much more creepy and sinister ambiance. It does also appear that the animation does get better as the show progresses. Either that or my eyes just got used to it.
Some will love it; some will hate it. Nothing more to say.
Rating:
Sound
Mediocrity is par for the XXXholic course. The music for the show are fitting but not particularly engaging or for that matter, enjoyable. Ok, I'm going to be a bit partisan on this one as I just don't like Japanese male singers all that much. Since the opening song is just that, I'm kinda turned off by it from the get go. The actual BGM of the show is done well although a bit on a sparse side in terms of variety. Besides, the music doesn't play nearly as big a part in this score as...
WATANUKI'S DAMN MOUTH! Yup, the voice acting took a big hit mostly because of our main character. Watanuki is one of those whiny teenage fruitbars who never knows when to shut up and stop yelling. After hearing "What are you doing here!" or "Who invited you!" for the thousandth time, you'll agree, I'm sure of it. Add in the atypical monotone male counterpart and innocent little schoolgirl love obsession, and you have what we call a 'been there, done that' sandwich. All is not lost thankfully in that Yuuko's seiyuu Sayaka Ohara did a fantastic job. She truly showed the most versatility in her acting. She was very subdued and downright creepy at times, most notably during their 100 Tales of Horror episode. She was a crazy drunk and a flirt. She actually showed a wealth of personality and the voice acting exemplified that.
Rating:
Presentation
Oh how I wanted to love this show. Once my friends hear me badmouth a CLAMP show, their jaws are going to drop. It had a nice premise overall but did not execute. The fact that it took many Japanese myths, popular culture and superstitions and created odd little stories surrounding them was a nice touch. And admittedly there were some very enjoyable moments; particularly the snowball fight episode. But when the show came to a close, I found myself not disappointed that there was no more to be seen, but more relieved that I could finally move on. It never had a climax. Never did it have a contiguous story. It reused its jokes entirely too much. Most of the characters were unoriginal and the ones that were, didn't play a large part in the end.
I honestly can't recommend this show to anyone outside of the CLAMP diehard. There are much better things out there that need to be watched as opposed to this romp down Mediocre Lane. Give it a pass and thank me for saving you 10 precious hours of your life. And for those of you reading this review in outrage at my scores, flame on. It's all in good fun.
Rating:
Final Verdict
4.6667 (moderate)
Reviewed by shoujoboy, Jan 31, 2007
Comments
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BossMac Feb 01, 2007
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GloriaChan Feb 03, 2007
I don't agree with u, I really love this story...
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MapleRose Retired Moderator Feb 03, 2007
I've never seen the anime, but I have read the manga up to volume 4 or 5 (can't remember, it's been a while). Have you noticed how CLAMP has changed their style? esp in the way they draw eyes, unlike the elaborate, huge, shoujo eyes of CCS and Rayearth, the eyes are slightly more simplified actually. In terms of character design, I have to say that Yuuko's design is rather unique, and very identifiable in the anime world, and Watanuki differs slightly from other typical CLAMP males. As for the proportions, yes CLAMP seems to have gotten worse at exagerrating the length of the limbs. At least they seem to have trimmed the shoulders down a little XD
The story, you're kind of right, that it does get a bit repetitive from what I've read so far, and how Yuuko likes to go on about destiny and fate and all that.
I wonder, have you see Tsubasa?
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Iare Feb 26, 2007
I think this is one of the best histories from clamp. The style of the drawings are really good, and got an extraordinary history.
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flyindreams Mar 16, 2007
I read some of the manga + watched a bit of the anime... I actually stopped watching the anime because it started to freak me out, being dead serious here, my tolerance for that sort of stuff being super low; but I think the manga is better than the anime, as is my usual opinion. I just love Clamp's artwork too much and xxxHolic is just so fabulously stylized.
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Lulubelle17 May 01, 2008
I can't really comment on the anime here, for I haven't watched it yet; however, I have to admit, I did like the manga. I wouldn't say I loved it, but it was all right. I absolutely love Yuuko-san and her elaborate wardrobe + her crazy personality, but other than that, there wasn't much in the manga that appealed to me.
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SchRita Jan 15, 2010
Thanks for the review!
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