Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle is a more well known manga, and it didn’t take me long to hear about it as I began looking into manga and reading it. However (as of writing this review) I have never read any other manga by CLAMP (none other really interested me…) so I skirted away from Tsubasa, not really wanting to read it and thinking that I wouldn’t understand it since it was supposedly an alternate story or a side story for most of CLAMP’s other works. I’m not quite sure why I finally decided to read Tsubasa, but I did decide to and read it all the way through, and I’m very glad I did for I really enjoyed the story!

Plot- Unfortunately I read and saw (not on purpose really) many spoilers for the series (thankfully I understood hardly any of the spoilers and while reading didn’t understand how the spoilers could happen, and while reading the spoilers didn’t really care about the story or its spoilers so I didn’t pay the spoilers to much heed) and while reading/seeing those spoilers lowered my enjoyment of the series a bit I still really enjoyed the story a lot. The beginning was a bit lacking, we are quickly thrown into the story without really knowing the characters, and we jump right into jumping from world to world. We are then presented a formulaic plot, going to a world, finding where the feather is, getting the feather, the only differences in each world is the adversaries keeping them from getting the feather. Some worlds were more enjoyable than others but after a while this plot began to wear thin and I wanted something a bit more exciting. So for me the plot only got really good around chapter 107 and then it got really good, and much more exciting as we left the formula plot line we had been holding to before. Be warned, the plot is very complicated, you will need to think while reading some chapters and you will have to remember things in order to understand some of the events that happen later. Sometimes I did get a bit confused by the plot but I eventually straightened everything out in my mind, all in all I can say I enjoyed the plot of the story (especially chapter 107 to the end).

Characters- Each character was very unique and different, a diverse cast throughout all the worlds. There is quite a large cast of characters, but I didn’t find it to hard to remember who was who. We are thrown into the story straight away and don’t really know the main characters that well but we soon come to know and care about them. Its great to see the main cast change and grow over the course of the series, watching them face up to their fears and realize their wishes. They all grew and changed over the series, and the character growth was done very nicely and realistically.

Art- The art is nice, everything it quite detailed and the characters designs are varied making it pretty easy to differentiate the characters , the clothing, buildings and people were all very nicely detailed and different in each world traveled to and it really helped add to the story. However sometimes during the action sequences (especially when there was a lot of magic being used) the pages could get a bit too full and it was a bit hard to tell what was going on, but it wasn’t too bad.

Other- I can understand why some people won’t like this story, the plot does get complicated and difficult to understand, the beginning of the story is a bit lacking and can be bland and even boring, and the strange twists of the story some people may not like. I can understand why some people don’t like the story, but for me I really enjoyed the story and I do recommend it. Now at the time I read Tsubasa I had never read anything else by CLAMP, but that didn’t detract from me understanding the plot of Tsubasa any less, and not reading anything else by CLAMP didn’t detract from my enjoyment of Tsubasa either. Sure people who have read other things from CLAMP might be able to notice ties and relations to other series (I even noticed some without reading anything else by CLAMP) but you really don’t have to have read any other thing from CLAMP in order to understand and enjoy Tsubasa. To sum it up I do very much recommend Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle, just make sure you hang on through the first half of the story until you get to the really good parts of the second half.

8/10 – Was good

This manga is very special in that it incorporates both "shoujo" and "shounen" qualities. There is the romantic aspect of the manga involving Sakura and Syaoran, but fighting quickly becomes an important aspect of the series. In this manga there is really something for everyone to like. There is an intricate storyline, some romantic aspects, and lots of fighting (and the amazing drawings don't hurt either =D). All in all, it's really a very well made manga. Well done, Clamp!

... Last updated on September 28th, 2006, 2:35pm

My current favorite series!

There's tons of adventure and amazing worlds that the characters venture through (tons of crossovers, too) and it's always exciting and interesting. The only thing is that around volume 15/16? The story becomes extremely dramatic and almost all the comedy disappears. I know that it's coming to a close and that it has to be like that, but I wish they could have kept a little of the light-heartedness in there.

Kurogane and Fai are the best characters! I think Syaoran and Sakura are the typical hero types, but the supporting cast really makes this series shine. Some of the best scenes are the hilarious interactions between angry Kurogane, flaky Fai, and the ridiculous Mokona.

It feels a bit like XXXHolic, but that series is more supernatural/mystery and this one is more adventure/fantasy. I think it's really cool that they're both going on at the same time, one in our world and one in theirs.

READ THIS!!! No matter your opinion on any previous CLAMP work, check this out!!!

... Last updated on February 14th, 2008, 8:59pm

I love the series but you need to know what exactly you're getting into when you start. There's prequels, side stories, alternate versions of EVERYTHING and I really think any new readers should be given a guide for this web of stories that eventually make sense when you're finished all of them.

New readers: can't help you very much but beware of the time and investment that goes into reading this series and understanding it fully.

This is one of my all time favourite manga. For a CLAMP fan like me, I get not only the high quality art and stunning plot, but the added bonus of all the past characters making appearances. It is the "Where's Waldo" of manga. I enjoy looking for Miyuki-chan the most.

Even if you are new to CLAMP, this series is well worth experiencing. Enjoy!

...provided you read the whole thing in one go. (Ie: all 28 volumes within the course of a week or so, absolutely not more than 10 days between first volume and last...unless you have a good memory for minute details). Reading this the way most people read manga -- in instalments as they come out, sometimes with months in-between releases -- will give you no enjoyment whatsoever, since seemingly insignificant occurrences and random throwaway comments from very early volumes (where everything's cream and roses and there's no indication that you should pay special attention to what's happening) become important plot points towards the latter 1/4th of the series. Since I generally pay careful attention while reading, and because I'm familiar with Clamp's multiverse, I honestly didn't find anything here too hard to grasp, contrary to everyone's enraged claims. But then again, I love this kind of mindf***ery, so if you don't, do yourself and the series' rating a favour and stay away.

Nice art if you like the Clamp style (which, yes, is a different genre of art in and of itself), and the characters are exceedingly likeable -- the kind you really find yourself rooting for, despite the fact that they - the two MC's in particular - are pretty selfish (especially Syaoran, whose actions almost destroyed the space-time continuum itself). I really liked Fai and Kurogane: their motivations, so different from the romantic drive of the main pair, provided a great contrast that prevented the love story from becoming overwhelming. And Mokona's a darling, as always.

Don't let the light-hearted shenanigans of the first half of the journey fool you: Tsubasa - Reservoir Chronicle is a moderately dark manga with plenty of physical and psychological pain, grief, cruelty and sacrifice. (In other words, if you came here expecting Cardcaptor Sakura: The Second Season, you're going to be put off, even though this does retroactively connect to CCS) But keeping true to its demographic, things don't become nearly as twisted as this kind of premise could have.

On another note: It's definitely recommended that xxxHoLic be read immediately before/after or in parallel with TRC; if that notion irritates you, it'd be better to stay away from both series.

... Last updated on July 12th, 2015, 6:31am

After a LOOOONG while, TRC has finally begun to make sense again! And when it did, WOW, I was blown away. I was squealing the whole time I was reading the latest chapters. Damn you CLAMP, you never make me want to give up on you.

This series ties together a whole bunch of CLAMP characters from their other mangas (albeit with different backgrounds, etc.), and you can tell CLAMP is really having fun experimenting new styles as the group travels to various dimensions. The art is fabulous, and the story full of puzzles and surprises.

What makes this unique, I feel, is that it runs parallel to xxxholic, really making you feel emersed in a huge world (or huge worlds...).

Excellent read.

The series is really great
The draws/art are lovely
Even so the plot is obvious its a good manga to read, no matter what you will end up loving it if you love CLAMP mangas

The characters are well made !