By: Clamp Publisher: Del Rey Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Label: Del Rey Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 192 Publication Date: July 22, 2008 Reading Level: Young Adult Release Date: July 22, 2008
In the world of Infinity, Princess Sakura has become a Chess Master and the other travelers are her pieces. But the Mafia is running the game, and they don’t care if Sakura’s opponents break the rules or murder Sakura’s companions! Why is Sakura so determined to risk everything?
A broken family In this volume of Tsubasa, the gang gratefully say goodbye to their AU Tokyo allies as Yuko finally explains to them that Fei Wang Reed is behind all of their problems. They have little time to deal with that, however, as they face the fallout of the Syaoran clone's rampaging and enter a vicious living chess game run by an AU version of Rayearth's Eagle Vision to earn money to help the clone's victims, with Sakura as Queen and the guys as her "pieces".
That is not to say, however, that everything is honkey dorey. Sakura and Fai increasingly cling to eachother and shut the others out to some extent, as Sakura tries to redefine her relationship with the real Syaoran and Fai tries to start coming to grips with his new biology and his guilt over what Kurogane is doing for him while becoming fiercely protective of the Princess in the wake of how the last volume ended - something that doesn't exactly have Kurogane jumping for joy as he's fully aware that Fai has to take care of himself first before he's in any condition to help him coparent the kids (and to their credit, both men understand that the real Syaoran has as much a connection with them as if he had been with them physically and is not responsible for the clone's actions) again. With Syaoran in a heap of misery over both the status of his relationship with Sakura and the damage his doppleganger has caused, Sakura deeply scarred by the recent events surrounding Syaoran and Fai, and Fai simply going through the motions purely out of love for the others rather than his own will, Kurogane is starting to learn that the meaning of true strength his AU Tomoyo spoke to him of might have nothing to do with a sword, but everything to do with keeping his unstable adoptive family together and emotionally whole - and starts mulling over the possible dilemma he might face himself if his promise to return home doesn't gell with his new commitment to Fai. And just when the gang needs every break they can get, a terrified Fai gets the long distance alarm call from his AU Chii that he's been dreading ever since volume 1...
A volume that partially returns the series to it's tournament-style roots without throwing any of the character development of the recent volumes out the window.
Excellent This issue is amazing- after the intense shocks of the previous issue, it provides a nice way for the readers to come down from that high without it being boring or dull. A must-have in the series- the themes expressed in this series are deeper than I've yet encountered in a manga, and the five stars I've given here can be applied to the entire series, not just this issue.
Intense Vol. 18 of "Tsubasa" begins with the gang learning more about their enemy and his plans from Yuuko. They have to make a big decision, but is it really their decision at all? Next, they enter the land of Infinity, where battles are fought for money on a giant chessboard. But how well Syaoran, Kurogane, and Fai fight depends upon the will of their chessmaster, Sakura.
This is one of the most emotionally intense volumes yet. There are no shocks like in vol. 17, but the mood is heavy. I enjoyed the metaphysical themes presented in the first part of the volume. I really wanted the group to move onto Celes, Fai's home, next, and I was disappointed that they went to Infinity instead. However, I quickly forgot about that once I started reading. The relationships between the characters got very intense here, especially with the real Syaoran trying to find his place within the group. I especially enjoyed the interactions between him and Kurogane. The facial expressions were very well drawn and reached me in a way they hadn't before. All of the characters are showing good development.
So, while vol. 18 doesn't have the shock value that vol. 17 had, it has more emotional depth. It's one of the best volumes yet.
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