X (TV)

Title:X (TV)
Overall:Buy
Keywords: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Notables: Animation - Madhouse
HISAKAWA Aya
KUWASHIMA Houko
NOTO Mamiko
Original Concept - CLAMP
R1 License - Pioneer (Defunct)
SUZUMURA Kenichi
UEDA Yuuji
YUKINO Satsuki
A dark and gloomy tale that is about two chosen groups of people who have been picked out to decide upon the fate of the Earth. They are the Dragons of Earth and the Dragons of Heaven. There are two possible outcomes between the two conflicting groups, resulting in either the destruction or preservation of man-kind...

[TV series, 2001, 24 episodes, 23 min]

see also:
movie spinoff - X (Movie)
and prequel - Tokyo Babylon

More info at Wikipedia ↗Tokyo_Babylon
OverallArtAnimationCharacter Design MusicSeries StoryEpisode StoryReviewer
Buy 7 8 7 9 9 9 Dreamer [series:346#2279]
I didn't know what to expect when I picked this one up. After watching through the first episode, I was taken back at how amazing the soundtrack was. And the anime itself.....

Art, Animation and Character Design
The art was the type that I don't particularly care for..... where all the face ends in a sharp pointed chin. Once I got over that, it was okay.... slightly below par though. The animation was about the same. Character designs reflected the type of art I don't care for as mentioned above. So some of the characters looked visually the same or at least didn't have enough visual differences to make them unique.

Music
The OP was actually enjoyable. It was a rock-ish style upbeat track. Now the music throughout the rest of the anime was REALLY good! So much so that I was forced to go out and get the OST. Wow! The one that really stood out was "Sademe Orchestra". Amazing piece! And it was at dramatic moments that this piece would play.... which made the scene in question that much more dramatic and epic.

Series and Episode Story
The first episode introduced you to a few things that made your mouth drool. It hinted at what was to come with the powers to be. By the end of the episode, my anticipation of what was to come had me wriggling in my chair waiting for the next episode. This was an epic battle between two forces that brimmed with dramatic confrontations and awesome characters. However, as for characters, a lot of them weren't really developed as much as I had hoped.... not a big issue. The climatic ending was fitting. Some would argue against it but I found it to be good and satisfying. Arashi was kick-ass. I loved her character. What made this one even more interesting was how there was really no "bad guys" per say. There's two opposing forces, each acting out based on what they felt was right and the only way to resolve their conflicts is for each side to play both roles.... as the good and bad guys.

Overall, buy this one for sure. Once you get over the character artwork, it's worth the time.

Last updated Sunday, February 22 2009. Created Sunday, February 22 2009.
Rent 9 9 9 8 8 8 Ggultra2764 [series:346#1552]
After a long enough wait, I finally got the chance to see the TV adaptation of CLAMP's apocalyptic battle manga. It isn't perfect, but this version is a definite improvement from the movie version.

One of the biggest issues I had with the movie was that characters were introduced left and right with barely any depth given to them. Here in the TV version, many of the characters were given a great deal of depth thus allowing me to better understand how they became the people they were today. With this much depth, these characters never truly appear as villians as they strongly believe that whatever actions they commit towards are the right thing to do. And when certain characters finally do die, I did feel for the losses considering what each character was fighting for.

The animation, while not as high quality as the movie version, is still quite fluid in battle scenes and features crisp artwork and scenery.

There were some glaring issues that I had with the TV series. The music, while having solid selections and fitting the mood of the series, lacked variety and can get repetitious as the series continues. A recap episode in the middle of the series felt a bit abrupt considering all the events that took place up to that point. In addition, there were some characters that were not given as much depth as others such as Kakyo and Kamui's aunt. One big issue I had was with Fuma's character as he still seemed like the 'evil' character archetype when he joined the Seven Angels.

Another big issue I had with the series was the choice of ending. In the final episode, it appeared that one ending would take place which fit the events that took place in the series up to that point. But, another ending took place instead which didn't seem to fit the mood of the series and will make many folks angry over the choice.

Despite these flaws, the X TV series makes for a better watch over the movie adaptation. Featuring greater depth on characters and the background of the series, X makes for a solid watch as an action anime.

Last updated Tuesday, May 20 2008. Created Tuesday, May 20 2008.
Buy 9 7 6 5 8 adiree [series:346#1804]
for the most part, a fantastic series that i will definitely watch again, however i have two complaints... and no, it's not about the ending... actually, i thought that the ending was quite fitting - very fitting actually, and the only way that i think the story should have ended... without giving too much away, if it had ended the way the story was leading up to, then certain 'wishes' from the beginning of the story would have been denied, and well, that would not have been too fitting... i loved the ending, and i'll stick too it...
my complaints were this: number one, character design... with such amazing art involved (and i mean truly amazing painted scenes), i wish the same amount of detail would have been put into designing the characters... maybe it's just me, but it was sometimes very hard to really, truly tell the characters apart in places (especially subaru and kamui; and yes, i understand that they are sort of supposed to be alike, but still... it was just a little too much, you know?)... and in other places, the characters were distorted as if the artists were paying more attention to the beautiful feathers and cherry blossoms and basic scenery rather than on drawing the characters themselves... but, that was a minor problem... drawing's hard - i can't do it for the life of me, so i guess i shouldn't be picking on artists now, should i? :)
but, my biggest problem was that i truly, truly wish the series was longer - and i mean way longer... like another dozen episodes longer... and the reason i say this is because the story is begging to concentrate on all of these subplots that are happening - and there are many of them - and all of these subplots are terribly beautiful, and they're very easy to get sucked into - but by doing this and keeping the series down to 24 episodes, two things happen - one, these beautiful subplots get 'skipped' over to a point - with essentially one or two episodes being dedicated to each, and two, the main plot (which is also just extraordinarily wonderful) gets dealt a rather harsh blow, and disappears for quite some time.... i really, really, really wanted to see more of the main plotline, really wanted to see more - it was such an entwining story, an aching story, and, like the subplots before it, really only gets one or two episodes to shine... had the series been longer, then i think that all of these plots - especially the main one - could have had time to truly progress... but as it is, it's short, sweet, still excellent, but simply makes you wish that it had been longer....
i really liked the characters themselves, and think each one was very well developed - even if their subplots weren't.... the story itself was very, very well written for the time that it had, very well written - extraordinarily well written for the few episodes that it had... dialogue was definitely not wasted, and there really wasn't any single filler episode at all... it's a series that you have to watch the whole thing or you miss something and then sit there wondering what in the world did i miss?
i also liked that none of the characters were truly villains - not a one of them - they were all so well written that you understood each of their purposes, could feel for each of their purposes, and didn't hold any thing against them - you couldn't point to any of the characters and go - well, that's the bad guy, now it's time for the hero to kill 'im - well, at least i didn't think that, and more than once i was surprised by the way a character reacted to a certain situation....
i didn't really care for all the violins that played throughout the series, and the opening theme reminded me of an eighties band i think i remember :)... but, i wasn't exactly annoyed by the music, just sort ignored it and went about watching the story...
i must get hold of tokyo babylon after watching this series, if only to unravel at least one of the subplots to fullfillment...
but, i do definitely think that x is buy... it is a very, very good series, one that will definitely hold your interest, even if it is a little on the short side :)

Last updated Saturday, March 05 2005. Created Saturday, March 05 2005.
Buy 7 7 8 6 10 5 Anonymous #1142 [series:346#1142]
Dunno, but I was a little dissapointed in X series. Would be a lot better if they focused on the main story and cut all the BS mourning, which btw made me sick at times.
I like how everyone got their wishes, and if they didn't, they didn't find the strength to live on anymore, but it was too obvious all the time. Everytime a character died they had to explain why they died (what their wish were), as if people wouldn't understand it otherwise.
How about leaving some space for peoples own imagination?
Anyway, the best part was the ending. Thanks to these anticlimate endings, one never take an ending for granted.

Last updated Saturday, January 10 2004. Created Saturday, January 10 2004.
Buy 10 10 9 10 10 10 lost emotions [series:346#1092]
To begin, i really loved the animation and music. The music was all sad and depressing, which i love, and goes along with the anime.
I loved the plot. It has no good guy or bad guy. There's the dragon of heaven(kamui), which believes humans will realise what they have done to this earth in time and fix everything, while the dragon of earth(Fuuma) believes that humans will never change, they'll go on destroying the earth. The dragon of eart and the seven of angels say they can hear the earth screaming for help, and when they destroy the humans, the world will be grow back to how it used to be with pure nature and the beginning of man. This is a really bloody anime and all of them seem to have really demented phycological problems -o-.I cried so much through the last couple of episodes i didn't have enough for hte ending!
People looking for somehting light and happy shouldn't watch this.It's a relaly dark dark story with twisted phycology and alot of blood.This was a really really good anime series to me and i think u should all watch it.

Last updated Saturday, December 06 2003. Created Saturday, December 06 2003.
Buy 10 10 9 7 8 Chris Janus [series:346#913]
X the TV series is sort of like a drawn out version of the movie but in a really good way. The thing that makes the series great is the story. The show expands on the film to show you every characters background, to see where he/she came from. It also gives you more insight into the plot and whats really happening behind the scenes. The art and animation a top quality as always, just what you'd expect from CLAMP. Its the art, animation, and character designs that set X apart from the rest. the music is decent, not too great but not really lacking anything. The movie X is amazing and the series is just as good, with a little more story. The movie is a classic now the show is as well. I suggest any fans of X or anyone who likes amazing art and animation, good fights, or amzing story to check this out. It's great and really worth your time.

Last updated Thursday, September 18 2003. Created Thursday, September 18 2003.
Rent 10 10 7 9 8 8 DisFunctional [series:346#863]
You can relate to me if you think
Rurouni Kenshin OVA (excellent in every way. The best you've seen)
Cowboy Bebop (excellent. The story line was really well done)
Inuyasha (good, but got repetitive and at the same time you were entertained)
Ranma 1/2 (good, but got repetitive and at the same time you were entertained)
.hack//SIGN (a waste of time)
------
overall this series was very interesting. the animation was gr8. the story line was interesting but i had to agree with many of you that the ending sucked.
ah well, you cant expect too much.

Last updated Saturday, August 02 2003. Created Saturday, August 02 2003.
Buy 9 10 8 9 9 8 Lonesome Summoner [series:346#860]
I have watched all of the series and I must say, the overall series was excellent. The animation and art was spectactualar. Considering the plot, the story is quite simple(a good V.S. evil kinda thing) at first glance. But as the series progresses, the characters become more defined, and each one develops, leaving memorable characters in my mind after the end of the series. The great character developement in this series captivated me and overall, this series proved to be a great series. For any experienced anime fan or a fan of clamp, I would highly recommend this series.

Last updated Sunday, July 27 2003. Created Monday, July 21 2003.
Buy 10 10 10 9 10 8 Anshii [series:346#810]
Having seen the entire series, I have to say that this version of X lives up to the fantastic manga by CLAMP. I was really impressed by X TV series. And it would be a classic ... were it not for the ENDING!!! Argh! But, first, the good:
The animation is slick, clean, and definitely takes full advantage of the technological leaps that have taken place since the manga started. The music is appropriate for the rather dark mood of the series. The pacing of the story was brisk.
It is a miracle that the series managed rich character development with the large cast that it had, and did it in only 24 episodes. We are made to care not only for the Dragons of Heaven (who are defending mankind), but the Dragons of Earth (who are answering what they interpret as "the Earth's cry for change"). What also struck me is that the series takes great pains to show many characters going about their everyday business -- going to jobs, hanging out at the park, etc. -- and contrasts that with the constant battles over the fate of the world. This was a very interesting juxtaposition.
Now, for the bad:
THE ENDING ... without going into too much detail, I will say that the series sets the viewer up for one kind of an ending. Then, in the last 10 minutes of the show, it completely reverses itself and takes a "way out" that I felt completely went against the grain of the story. Several other reviewers have noted the ending, and I must add to their chorus. The last 10 minutes of the 24th episode really prevented this series from being more of a classic. It's a shame!
A note: though Episode Zero is packaged in the first volume of X TV, I would recommend seeing that after the rest of the series. I think that episode gives too much away and takes away from some of the fun of the discovery.
X TV (up until the last 10 minutes): A
the last 10 minutes: C-

Last updated Friday, June 27 2003. Created Friday, June 27 2003.
Buy 10 10 10 10 10 10 Anonymous #493 [series:346#493]
X tv series is one of my favorite animes!! (next to Weiss Kreuz and Vampire Princess Miyu)However, I think that the tv series is MUCh better than the movie. The movie was VERY dark and twisted, plus the ending was soo... very, very sad. (Plus the movie didn't have kakyou ^-^)
I also like the story of nataku, I always wondered about him...
X tv series AND the movie 9which is also just called X), are both 'Must Buys'
But also, those who could not get enough of Subaru or Seishirou might wanna check out Tokyo babylon, which involves those characters in a Prelude to the series and movie.

Last updated Tuesday, January 14 2003. Created Tuesday, January 14 2003.
Buy 10 10 10 10 9 9 Rachel [series:346#481]
This series is really an aquired taste. I absolutely love the series, but it is very dark and is not a happy ending. The animation was beautiful. Although it is made by Clamp though, it is the total opposite of Card Captors.I love the consept of the story, but just remember this isn't for everyone.

Last updated Wednesday, January 08 2003. Created Wednesday, January 08 2003.
Watch 9 9 7 8 6 6 Anonymous #414 [series:346#414]
I watch the series and I really liked it but as with any good movie or story on of the main factors in allowing it to be overall good, is the ENDING. Again x-clamp had severly dissapointed me. Instead of going out with a bang, it went out with a poof. The series and the movie both had great potential, but why do they keep screwing up the ending. Sorry, I know this is just my opinion so don't take anything personal but when you have a great storyline why screw it up with a bad ending.

Last updated Monday, December 23 2002. Created Monday, December 23 2002.
Buy 10 9 10 10 7 7 Inu-Yasha [series:346#430]
Ok, this is a great series. However, it's a bit cheesy and can easily be made fun of.. but that's besides the point.
Let me start out by saying, I loved the music, and being a musician myself, that's one of the first things I look for in an anime. The music is great. A mix between pop and classical is what makes the style unique.
The character's unique personalities are also great, but some of them... worry me.
Unlike the manga, these people tried a bit harder to make the story a bit more sensible by cutting a bunch of un-neede scenes out (yes you know what I mean). The only reason I didn't give it perfect is because it's X. No matter how much you chop it up or switch it around, it still just doesn't do it quite right.
I really love the art, of course CLAMP has always been a star at that. For taht reason it doesn't stop you from buying the whole series. Don't take this as a spoiler, but the ending was a bit dissapointing.
Overall it measures to be an 8 or a 9. Have fun watching it, most enjoy...

Last updated Wednesday, November 27 2002. Created Wednesday, November 27 2002.
Buy 10 10 10 10 10 10 Rei Za [series:346#368]
I've finished the whole series a few days ago, and I have to say that this series has made itself one of my favorites. The classic prophecy oriented storyline given right from the beginning, combined with a lot of "dark" and "cool" elements and the mysterious nature of all the main characters will keep you ensnared from the start. To keep you continuously hooked is the unique way the story develops, from touching the surface of the story, to diving into the hearts and souls of each character. An almost unpredictable anime (you'd think it was predictable, but it ain't), it'll pretty much keep you guessing. I also like how the lines between being a good guy and a bad guy are significantly blurred, making it an anime that isnt just black and white, good or bad. The soundtrack was beautifully done, effectively creating the right mood for every scene. A fantastic anime.

Last updated Saturday, August 17 2002. Created Saturday, August 17 2002.
Buy 10 10 10 10 10 10 Kaneda [series:346#87]
Well, I've watched this series from 1-19 now and I have to say, though I was not thrilled anout the movie this series is really good. The characters are interesting and portrayed well, the overall plot is excellent, the music fits the settings and the animation is flawless.. It pretty much deserrves Perfect marks.

Last updated Thursday, March 07 2002. Created Thursday, March 07 2002.
Buy 10 10 10 9 9 boo [series:346#262]
I've seen the first four episodes of this anime. This is the material that all you people who hated the movie have been looking for. The series so far is VERY similar to the manga.
The animation is slick. The voices are different from the voices in the movie. This takes a little time to get used to, but you will adjust. Just the prospects of getting further into the characters visually is enough to say that this title is going to be a definate buy. I need to transfer to Toyko or something to get my anime fix.

Last updated Wednesday, March 06 2002. Created Wednesday, March 06 2002.

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