Matters of the Heart: Transcending Time with Clamp's "Wish"

Even if I don't consider Cardcaptors, Clamp was one of my first real introductions to the world of manga and anime. I started picking up the Chobits manga when I was a teenager and it was the first longish series that I actually finished -- I can still remember how it felt to finally pick up Volume 8 and see how everything ended! I think that's one of the strengths of manga as a serialized format; even though American releases usually didn't follow the same weekly/bi-monthly/monthly schedule used in Japan, it still forces you to take in a story over a longer period of time. I think that sensation really adds to the heart and emotional weight associated with many manga/anime because, especially now in an age of streaming and bingeing, you have time to reflect on each release before the next one comes out. For example, the first English-translated volume of Chobits came out in April 2002 while the final book was released in October 2003, meaning you'd have to wait a year and half to go from the beginning of the story to the end. That's actually pretty similar to the Japanese release timeline (even though reading through the 8 volumes straight might take only an afternoon or so)! By the time I got to the final chapter, I felt like Hideki and Chii were a part of me. I was so emotionally invested in the series! I mean, how could I not be invested when I had spent a year and a half (and numerous allowances) getting to know everyone in the series while remaining unaware of what would ultimately happen to everyone in Chobits?

I still have my Atashi plush from Chobits, purchased from the former anime mecca known as Suncoast Motion Picture Company.

It's funny I had that whole walk down memory lane about Chobits because I just read Clamp's 1997 series Wish in the completely opposite way, going through it all in a day and a half. We had to do laundry yesterday and one of my favorite things to do at the laundromat is read, so I picked up the somewhat-recently-purchased (for cheap! $3 a pop) 4 volume Tokyopop release and got to work. Even though Chobits was my first real Clamp adventure, I went through Tokyo Babylon, X/1999, and the original Cardcaptor Sakura in 2019 -- meaning I have a deeper sense of Clamp's style and oeuvre now than I did in 2002. Because of that, I think I could better appreciate elements of Wish like the Yue-reminiscent angel designs or the big twist in Volume 4 that reminds me so much of the final volume of Tokyo Babylon, but more subtle and effective when it comes to foreshadowing and execution. That kind of storytelling growth from Clamp makes sense since Tokyo Babylon was released in the early 90s, but that element couldn't be properly appreciated in English since the translated version of Wish came out in 2002 while Tokyo Babylon didn't come out in America until 2004 -- so being able to appreciate the growth of a manga artist (or a collective of them) in the context of their bigger publication timeline is something I really value in 2020 *oops, I almost typed 2019! lol*.

I Googled to see if I could find old LJ posts I had made about Chobits when I came across my manga collection posted on Serebii.net's forums -- literally 14 years ago today. Freaky!

I guess one of the big reasons Chobits immediately came to mind for me while reading Wish was because both series are so concerned with loving someone and trying to understand and articulate one's feelings. Even as a teenager, I could recognize that Clamp valued authenticity and truly understanding (and being honest about) our wants and desires, especially when other people are involved -- so now, as a married 30 year old, I can relate with stories like Chobits and Wish in a fundamentally different and experiential way (my only romantic relationships as a 14 year old were unrequited lol). Considering that the main characters of Wish include angels and demons, I think the series is also really interesting because it paints love as something distinctly human (something also present in Chii's identity as a robot/persocom). In order for these characters to fall in love, they have to sacrifice their divine/demonic powers -- but, as a result, they gain something (I'd argue, both personally and thematically) much more powerful and fulfilling. :)

Lastly, I really enjoyed reading through Wish because the last few chapters bring up some interesting questions about destiny. As I mentioned, angels and demons (and other spiritual beings) interact with humans in Wish and that also implies the presence of God and Satan. Even though neither is specifically seen in the series, they're often mentioned and their actions behind the scenes make up a lot of what happens to the cast. I think the last volume in particular brings up the question of agency: who's really in control of our lives and does God care about our wants as individuals or the bigger picture? I won't spoil the ending (the presence of a twist is hinted at repeatedly, but I honestly couldn't predict the revelation itself) but between the final conflict and an event witnessed through an act of time travel, I'd argue that the series places a huge emphasis on looking forward and maintaining hope. Just because things may look bad in the moment, you never know what's waiting in your future -- just be true to yourself and try to do the right thing.