“XxxHolic“: Names Can Be Deceiving
Before any judgments can be made about this anime, let us take a closer look at the title. On Wikipedia, before the description of what the anime is about there is a single italicized sentence reading “This article is about the manga. For addiction to “XXX” works, see Pornography addiction.” Already it seems that we are off to a bad start (depending on whether or not you are into that kind of thing.) However, names can be deceiving and after I finished watching the anime, I realized that the anime is anything BUT pornography. It also happens to be one of my favorite anime’s. “XxxHolic” is another anime and manga that is produced by Clamp. The cool thing about Clamp’s anime’s is that they all connect. If you have watched or heard of “Chobits” or “Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle”, then you may be happy to hear that they are very much connected to the storyline of “XxxHolic“. It is classified as a supernatural horror comedy…which is a perfect description as well to be honest. There are 24 episodes in total, and I watched the whole series on Netflix. The original airing date is April 6, 2006 – September 28, 2006, so it is fairly new. They also made a live action movie, which after I finish this review…I will be watching. The live action review came out in 2013.
Kimihiro Watanuki is a high school student who is constantly bothered by spirits, ghosts and demons that only he can see. It begins as any other anime would, when Watanuki stumbles after running away from some pestering spirits, into a shop owned by Yuko Ichihara. However, this shop is no ordinary shop because for a price, any wish you have can be granted. Yuno offers Watanuki a wish and he wishes that he is no longer bothered by these annoying spirits. The price? Watanuki becomes Yuno’s housekeeper and all time slave. His job includes cleaning, cooking and more importantly, going on tasks that deal with the spirits. The episodes can get very intense at times and even scary, depending on the type of spirit he encounters. It is a hysterically funny anime, with many amazing plot turns and twists. There are also many episodes that are very sad. The customers that Yuno deal with come in and tell their story of woe. In one episode, there is a woman who wants a picture that she has to be destroyed. The picture is cursed so when one looks at it they see the woman pushing this beautiful girl off a cliff. Things do not end well. There are also many times the episodes become either very confusing or just too complex. It took me a few times rewatching certain episodes in order to get a plot line down. The anime is not one of those anime’s that you have to watch the episodes in order to keep track of the plot. Each episode is a new adventure and a new day. The manga, however, is very different and requires you to read the manga in order so you can understand the plot. The anime and the manga are very similar, but the manga is a lot darker than the show. I personally like the anime because I loved the English voice actors who voiced the main characters.
The art style of this anime is very interesting. The characters are very disproportionate and at times their bodies seem to do things that normal humans should not be able to do. For example, a person’s neck should not grow to be 6ft tall. But hey, it’s just an anime. The style does not take anything away from the anime. In fact, it actually adds a lot of personality to the characters and the story. The interesting style adds to the comedic relief as well. It is certainly an anime that becomes addicting and the stories are very interesting as well. I highly suggest that you watch the English dub.
I love this anime because of the amazing stories and voice acting. I ask you to please ignore the title and give it a chance! Happy watching minna!
Watch the anime here.
Watch the trailer here.
~Lilatheen~