X (TV)

SPOILER-FREE!
You ever have something in your anime list that seems lacking? For some, that could be a question of genre. We all have particular types of entertainment that we gravitate towards, and our individual anime lists reflect that. As such, there could be a disproportionate amount of one genre represented versus another one. I for one could see more sports anime. But one way to interpret the question is not to think of genre, but of title. I don’t know about you, but there’s something so oddly incomplete about not seeing all letters of the alphabet being represented in my completed list. Is that silly? Yes, but it’s also a little bit of fun.

"X" was a show I watched to try and fill in one of those missing letters. That at least was the initial reason why it got my attention; as it sat on my watchlist, I had learned that the original source material was made by CLAMP, the same group of manga artists and authors who made Cardcaptor Sakura, which I loved (if we’re deliberately ignoring the Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card sequel series). So, I became more compelled to give this series a look.
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A group of mysterious individuals are beckoned to Tokyo by an ominous premonition. One such individual is Shiro Kamui, a high school boy with esper powers. His cold and brusque exterior alienates him from his old friends Kotori and Fuma, who remember Kamui as being far different in the past than he is now. After meeting with others that have their own powers, Kamui learns of a dream prophecy that shows the Seven Dragons of Heaven battling to protect the world against the Seven Dragons of Earth, who seek to destroy it. Included in this prophecy are not one, but two Kamuis, indicating that the future and final battle’s result are uncertain. As each side amasses their forces and prepares for whatever confrontation awaits them, Kamui must decide which group he will align with, thus leaving the world’s fate hanging in the palm of his hand.

Being an apocalyptic story, "X" establishes the grandeur of its tale not only with its beginning images of a desolated landscape future, but also in the beautiful aesthetic in depicting, what was at the time, the present. The entirety of Tokyo is used as a potential place for battles or other significances, with numerous physical settings including shrines or dreamlands. Granted, many of the times we see the larger cityscape is when the characters are posing atop of buildings, but it nevertheless aims to show the wide breadth of how this conflict impacts everyone, even the bystanders. The music was also another strength of the show, always managing to deliver in required moments. One of the show’s tracks quickly etched itself into my memory as being evocative of melancholic fantasy, with lush strings and bombastic brass and woodwinds providing a sweep of emotional excellence.

"X’s" scope is also explored through its large cast – with two groups of Seven Dragons battling against each other, most of the characters come from different backgrounds or have different connections to whatever the battle has in store for them. Many characters get episodes centered around them specifically, either through expository sequences, actions they do within the episodes themselves, or flashbacks. While Kamui may be the protagonist of the story (and the wild card who will help determine which version of the future ultimately plays out), there is effort to make each of the characters fleshed out beyond simple caricature or archetype.

But that many characters being involved in the final conflict leads to two noteworthy issues, the first of which being the fact that not every character is terribly interesting. The first half of the show spends so much energy introducing many of the characters and their backstories, which would be fine under most circumstances. However, because there are just too many characters to keep track of, the series cannot possibly keep all of them in focus. The Dragons of Heaven, being the series protagonists, are given more time and attention than most of the antagonists in terms of personality development, chemistry, and their own preconceptions about destiny. The result is that characters like Yuzuriha, Sorata, and Arashi end up being strong, while others like Kusanagi and Nataku are far shallower. The roster is therefore lopsided, and it is markedly more difficult to care about the escalating tension when some characters feel “less than” others. Given that the series involves destiny as a main theme and many of the characters’ fates are, supposedly, written in stone, it becomes all the more important to make the empathic connections for the audience work.

And the series clearly has the potential to polish its character development, and we see this most-effectively with Kotori and Fuma. Since they are both childhood friends to Kamui, a lot of their interactions, both with each other and with Kamui himself, are centered around trying to reach him or figure out what has caused him to become so distant compared to the past. Since both of these characters developments often act as simultaneous progression for Kamui’s development, it helps expand both Kamui’s emotional background and place greater emphasis later on for why Kamui might do the things that he does or make the decisions he makes. Additionally, this also works to create organic-feeling scenarios in which action involves Kotori and Fuma, or happens around them.

The second problem with the numerous characters is that this results in some rather poor pacing, of which one of the consequences is that "X" leaves certain aspects of the story unexplained. A fantasy series is not required to have an explanation for each element of its universe, but for certain twists or plot threads, I was surprised at how little reason was given for certain things happening, either for the thing itself or what it did. Chosen one narratives don’t necessarily need to make clear why certain things are the way they are. However, on some level, I felt that "X" missed prime opportunities for delving into why some of the people involved were bestowed with their powers, or more particularly, their specific powers.

The pacing also dogs some of the action – the show has all signs point to a final battle, with several smaller skirmishes naturally along the way. The action sequences themselves, however occasionally, do not show the full fight. There is one particular battle that happens in the last quarter of the show which involves several of the main characters, but we do not get to see much of what happens because time was taken to show something involving different characters happening at the same time. Even though what the other characters were doing had plot relevance, when we cut back to the battle, there have already been numerous blows exchanged and injuries inflicted. We see the battle’s bookends rather than the middlegame, so some of the inherent danger is not built up as efficiently as it could be. Whether this was a decision made for time, budget, or direction, it came across as feeling slightly robbed.

Which is unfortunate, because the second half of the series is more action-oriented than the first half. When the character dynamics are sufficiently built and the action is suitably appropriate for its grand, overarching story, the emotional punches "X" can bring about because of what transpires with these characters are fantastic. Especially in regards to the show’s bloodiness and violence, the visceral quality can be palpable. The actual success of these moments however is too inconsistent; the entire roster of characters is not equally-interesting, so the action sequences, despite aspiring to reach the same plateau every time, cannot always do so.

And that’s ultimately what the show is; constantly reaching for heights, sometimes making it, and other times not. I never came away with the impression that this was a bad series, but rather that it was a series constantly swimming upstream due to its own ambitious premise causing it to get pushed back further downstream. Along with its religious and secular inquiring about the end of the world (such as whether destiny can be changed or not), the show’s smaller pieces, while perhaps good in and of themselves, are not quite assembled into a clean, singular experience. It feels too cobbled together in the hope that it will work rather than adhering to a well-detailed schematic.
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"X" is a series that I want to like a lot more than I actually do. The animation, sound, setting, and overall conflict are ambitious and wide-encompassing, and some of the characters and emotional moments are quite fascinating and well-executed. The clunkiness of the first half, along with an ensemble cast simply too large to care enough about all the participants and other rushed or unclear portions, drag down the drama despite its apocalyptic endgame. Throw in some action scenes that lack intensity or are too brief to carry the force needed to push things forward, and you have a show where the myriad parts cannot come together cleanly. Like I said, I want to like this, but I cannot bring myself to take that leap.