(L) xXxHolic

[ahelo]

Originally Posted by cleo1

If I understand ANN correctly, xxxHolic itself won't end, just the Rou arc.

How I wish that was true. Based on the how they developed the maturity of Watanuki though it'd be hard to include Yuuko again in the series. Plus CLAMP's about to start GATE 7 so they probably think its the perfect time to end xxxHolic.

[Von Himmel]

Even if it's end, there's a possibility that Watanuki and the other will make a cameo based on their ability to travels between worlds

[Renegade334]

Uuuuuuuuuuuuggghh...

Spoiler for 213 (END):

More.

I need more, dam***.


CLAMP seems to have been in a hurry to promote Gate 7 because I can't help but feel xxxHolic withdrawal effects, especially with how it ended. No t/l out yet, so I'm still in the darkness as to what verbally transpired in this chapter - however, here is a quick rundown:

- Watanuki didn't make contact with the figure seen in 212. He talks about it to Doumeki and decided to attempt the same thing the next day, once again by trying to trap the elusive butterfly, which, once again, breaks Watanuki's magical cage open...
- ...and alights on Yuuko's finger. Yup, it is her indeed. I mean, it couldn't have been Borat in disguise, right?
- Watanuki tries to run to her but finds himself unable to. Seems like that in the end they cannot be reunited. That certainly doesn't prevent Yuuko from talking to him.
- She conjures a birdcage out of thin air and therein stands a strange bird with a long tail (the head is kind of hawkish but the tail is bird-of-paradise-ish...perhaps is it a symbolic reference to Watanuki himself? Or something else?). She opens the cage and the butterfly coaxes the bird out, compelling it to take flight and follow.
- After a few more words, the black background dissolves and Yuuko disappears...perhaps for the last time. Perhaps. Who knows.
- The customary Watanuki-Doumeki debriefing-on-the-porch-between-tobacco-and-alcohol session. Watanuki is slightly more upbeat, no sign of melancholy, bitterness or sorrow to espy there.
- After a certain discussion (contents unknown), Doumeki stands and leaves but looks back at the reclining Watanuki and clutches at the "spare" egg Yuuko entrusted to him. Even until the very end it has remained unused.
- Chapter ends with Watanuki smoking into the night.

A bit disappointed, but I guess I'll have to read future t/l's to know what exactly was going on.

Spoiler:

The butterfly and bird scene is probably an allegory referring to Yuuko mentoring Watanuki and enabling him to "take flight". Watanuki's wish to be once again reunited with her was fulfilled despite the fact that they couldn't physically reach each other, so I wonder whether he is personally satisfied or craves for a better sense of closure. The final scene seems to suggest he is, so I guess it again shoots down the Watanuki-is-FWR theory (cf. previous pages for further arguments).

As for the egg, dammit...what the heck was it for, anyway?

[Shiroth]

Sure it felt rushed, though it could have ended at any point since the series went monthly. It's a fitting ending though, so i'm pretty pleased. Feelings will probably change though after i read the translation.

[lann]

Ok, so now that its all over, what are most significant questions that still need answering? I'm not just talking about xxxHolic, but Tsubasa as well.

Spoiler for Tsubasa ending:

Im still confused how the Tsubasa storyline will conclude, as last we heard they went on an adventure so as to save their clones?

[Xellos-_^]

just finish last chapter.

Clamp is trolling us

[Nemuru]

Spoiler for ....:

so in the ending shipping doesn't matter since he ended up with no one, sad panda There goes time skip......... making it sader.

[Nochgo]

Wait, so the person that's with Watanuki in this chapter is Doumeki's great grand son? Jeez, talk about a huge time skip. I really hope this isn't the end of holic

[Kenn]

Originally Posted by Nochgo

Wait, so the person that's with Watanuki in this chapter is Doumeki's great grand son? Jeez, talk about a huge time skip. I really hope this isn't the end of holic

If I'm correct, when Watanuki tells that to Doumeki, isn't he referring to the great grandfather that visits Watanuki in the dreams?

That's pretty confusing considering they were talking about waiting 100 years or something along that line... I'm confusing myself now.

[Renegade334]

Originally Posted by Kenn

If I'm correct, when Watanuki tells that to Doumeki, isn't he referring to the great grandfather that visits Watanuki in the dreams?

That's pretty confusing considering they were talking about waiting 100 years or something along that line... I'm confusing myself now.

Uhm, no.

He says to the person in the last scene "you really do look, just like him (...) Your great-grandfather."
And on the next page he adds, "Well, he looked just like his grandfather himself."

Obviously, the "he" in question refers to Doumeki. Watanuki even stated that he inherited the store more than a hundred years ago, which means that the original cast has already passed away and in the meantime, he had gained enough power to break the rule of confinement.

[Eleutheria]

You're right - very big time skip, and a very unsatisfying ending.

[ahelo]

Is this like a hiatus or they got bored explaining anything. Seems both to me. I'm very dissapointed CLAMP. Working for this for 8 years then just "hiatus" it again like all the others. You could've given it an epic not making any sense ending like Tsubasa but nooooo... stick to hiatus. I hope the Rou OVA will have a more conclusive ending.

[Cosmic Eagle]

It's strange this ending to such a long stoy....Am feeling they might resume it under another title.


It doesn't feel finished at first glance....then again, I might need to look deeper again.

[omimon]

Originally Posted by ahelo

Is this like a hiatus or they got bored explaining anything. Seems both to me. I'm very dissapointed CLAMP. Working for this for 8 years then just "hiatus" it again like all the others. You could've given it an epic not making any sense ending like Tsubasa but nooooo... stick to hiatus. I hope the Rou OVA will have a more conclusive ending.

I don't think it's a hiatus...I think this is it.

[Freeter]

The hell did I just read? Not a single word from Yuuko, no Kohane or Himawari, and now random timeskip out of nowhere? Not only was this unsatisfying, it's downright infuriating. It's almost enough to make me shun any future CLAMP works entirely (yeah, I'm looking at you, Gate 7).

Kobato better not suffer the same fate as this mess.

[Anh_Minh]

Originally Posted by Xellos-_^

just finish last chapter.

Clamp is trolling us

Agreed. How very unsatisfying.

[Narzia]

Why is it that Clamp mangas always have such interesting premises, only to inevitably go downhill. Holic became much less interesting once Yuuko was gone.
Their endings are the worst I know, no matter whether they're good or bad. All of them are just so.. unsatisfying. Like they simply stopped caring.

I don't think I'll ever read another Clamp manga again.

Sigh.. the OVAs are still going on right? I wonder when the next one is coming and if they'll fix this mess.

[Field of Lilies]

So... let's see if I understand this correctly. Watanuki finally meets Yuuko in a dream, but not really. It's not that she came to his dream, but rather that she had a dream which he is now seeing. A premonition(?) of Yuuko's where she signals him he can now freely leave the store (the caged bird following the butterfly). The rest of the supporting cast are all dead, and Doumeki's offspring has inherited his task, including guardianship of the egg. Aaaaand that's it.

I suppose that ever since Rou started the series' overarching plot has been about Watanuki growing in his role as the shopkeeper and meeting Yuuko again. I guess we got some resolution on the shopkeeper part (he's free to leave the store but will still have to run it), but the Yuuko part? Even when going for the 'just in a dream' approach, no dialogue? No sage advice? Really? And that's just when talking about the main plot, let's not get into Himwari not even being shown for the entire duration of Rou.

I want to be angry, but I'm just disappointed

[Haesslich]

I think that this was meant to provoke rage. Or at least leave the door open for the future, the way Tsubasa's ending did...

The way the switch was done was rather interesting in retrospect - given the lack of name usage in the past few chapters... either we're forced to conclude that the Doumeki at the start of Chapter 213 is Shizuka, and this one at the end is his descendant (which means Watanuki's been sleeping a VERY long time), or else that anything from after 210 or so has been with Doumeki's great-grand. And that everyone's been dead for quite a while... but Watanuki's learned to cope with the death of others.

One other thing to note is something from Chapter 201...

Spoiler:

Remember when the Jorogumo stated that his power would grow, and because he would live so long - beyond that of normal humans - that he himself might eventually no longer need his glasses due to his level of power increasing, and that he might be more akin to something like her than a human being. And now, Watanuki's developed his power to the point where even the price he paid (the time in himself) can be 'paid' out by the power he possesses, allowing him to escape the shop should he choose to.

And, like a spirit bound to a place, he chooses not to leave. Not to visit those who he could, in the spirit world, but to wait in the store and serve customers while waiting for Yuuko to return. Even if she might never do so.

[Sprite_Coke]

Rage, lots of it.
Though I want more, I suppose it is what makes a great series unique.