Comments on: Tokidoki Daylight – Tokyo Babylon (Complete Series)

By: The Favorites Alphabet: spooky supplement

The Favorites Alphabet: spooky supplement — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 14:08:58 +0000

[...] for that quality. Not that I’m complaining. When I look at the images I chose for my review of the series , I can see that I picked out several of those that had creeped me out the most. For genuine [...]

By: Manga Bookshelf | Comics Poll. List. Thing.

Manga Bookshelf | Comics Poll. List. Thing. — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 14:39:16 +0000

[...] Banana Fish, Paradise Kiss, Flower of Life, Ode to Kirihito, Wild Adapter, Fullmetal Alchemist, Tokyo Babylon. It’s interesting to note that the one series on the list I’ve never written anything [...]

By: 3 Things Thursday: Ladies to look up to

3 Things Thursday: Ladies to look up to — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 01:09:04 +0000

[...] strongest influence in shaping my tastes as a beginning reader of manga. Series like xxxHolic and Tokyo Babylon contain imagery so deeply embedded into my emotional core as a reader that I can call them up in my [...]

By: 3 Things Thursday: Ghost Hunters

3 Things Thursday: Ghost Hunters — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 16:10:30 +0000

[...] from perfect, the plight of its gentle protagonist is one that continues to haunt my heart. From my review of the full [...]

By: Why Hope Larson is Cooler Than You

Why Hope Larson is Cooler Than You — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 15:16:24 +0000

[...] and pink are nice too, though best when balanced with a good dose of darkness. And maybe a few [...]

By: Why Hope Larson is Cooler Than You | Manga Bookshelf

Why Hope Larson is Cooler Than You | Manga Bookshelf — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 01:33:45 +0000

[...] sparkles and pink are nice too, but only when balanced with a good dose of darkness. And maybe a few [...]

By: Links: Shojo Manga FTW! | Manga Bookshelf

Links: Shojo Manga FTW! | Manga Bookshelf — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 18:06:55 +0000

[...] Alphabet, now on letter “T“. I went over to express support for CLAMP’s Tokyo Babylon (probably my second-favorite of all their work) and Moto Hagio’s They Were Eleven, both on [...]

By: Tears and Manga | There it is, Plain as Daylight

Tears and Manga | There it is, Plain as Daylight — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 01:43:28 +0000

[...] to whom he’d devoted his entire life. Will I ever fully recover from the final volume of Tokyo Babylon AKA a hundred and forty-something pages of Moments Guaranteed To Crush Your Soul? What about volume [...]

By: The Manga Critic » Blog Archive » Twilight of the Girls

The Manga Critic » Blog Archive » Twilight of the Girls — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 14:39:33 +0000

[...] feel” comment about shoujo manga. Not only is it demonstratively false (see Banana Fish, Tokyo Babylon, They Were Eleven, and Nana*) invoking the idea of a child when discussing entertainment for women [...]

By: Girls, Fandom, Twilight, and Shoujo Manga

Girls, Fandom, Twilight, and Shoujo Manga — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 05:20:56 +0000

[...] feel” comment about shoujo manga. Not only is it demonstratively false (see Bannana Fish, Tokyo Babylon, They Were Eleven, and Nana*) invoking the idea of a child when discussing entertainment for women [...]

By: MangaBlog » Blog Archive » Faeries, Lone Wolf and Cub, and mangaka schedules

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 16:05:21 +0000

[...] Tiamat’s Disciple on vols. 1-3 of To Terra (Tiamat’s Manga Reviews) Melinda Beasi on Tokyo Babylon (Comics Should Be Good) Casey Brienza on vol. 6 of Vampire Knight [...]

By: Melinda Beasi

Melinda Beasi — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 14:34:20 +0000

Jan (hee): I certainly found it compelling. To be perfectly honest, like so many things, this came into my life just when I most needed it. I think that’s a message I needed to be reminded of.

By: Jan

Jan — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 14:30:48 +0000

“The primary message CLAMP drives home in Tokyo Babylon is that no person can ever truly understand another person’s pain, and that the kindest thing people can do for themselves and each other is to recognize and embrace that fact.”

Perhaps that is the most significant reason for the series? Compelling.

By: Melinda Beasi

Melinda Beasi — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 12:31:20 +0000

Ed: Thank you! I think what made it easier for me to swallow the designs was knowing that in the story, Subaru’s ridiculous outfits are all put together by his sister, and she’s so proud of them it’s hard not to find it charming. I was actually quite surprised by how much I liked this series. I’d read the first couple of volumes and was a bit so-so on it, then finished all the rest last week. It really carved a place in my heart for itself, and I can’t stress enough how much the final volume is worth getting to. If you ever do finally give in and decide to give this a go, I’ll be very anxious to hear what you think.

By: Ed Sizemore

Ed Sizemore — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 12:25:36 +0000

Great review. I like how you put the work in perspective with CLAMP’s current series. Have to be honest, still not sold on reading it yet. I think it’s the 80′s Prince-like character designs. Your review did move me one step closer to giving it a try.

By: Melinda Beasi

Melinda Beasi — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 03:46:49 +0000

Ysabet: I have to say that I’m *extremely* glad that I read Tokyo Babylon completely unspoiled, particularly for the sake of Subaru. After all, he’s the who truly transforms over the course of the series (for better or worse) and I definitely would have had a different perspective on him if I’d read X first (or listened to fandom).

That said, I’m excited to get deeper into X.

By: Ysabet

Ysabet — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 03:39:39 +0000

Hokuto is by far my favorite part of Tokyo Babylon. ^_^

A lot of my impression of the series was colored by having been familiar with X first (oops?), to the point that I really have no idea what I would have made of TB if I’d read it and judged it entirely on its own merits. (I don’t feel too bad about that, I guess, but I do feel bad that my feelings about Subaru are so strongly affected by years of low-level fandom influence–and that’s without seeking it out!)

By: Melinda Beasi

Melinda Beasi — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 00:36:42 +0000

Ellie: Your comment gave me the biggest smile EVER. You know it’s funny, for me, the whole Seishiro/Subaru dynamic was so kind of out of left field (mostly because of Subaru’s initial reaction to it), it never even felt much like BL to me. But I might have felt much differently as a melodramatic teenager (and lord knows I *was* one).

Hokuto is so kick-ass, I just loved her!

By: Ellie

Ellie — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 00:21:32 +0000

Oh my god, TOKYO BABYLON. There’s nothing in my history with manga to compare to the pure, devoted (slightly obsessive) love I had for that series when I was a melodramatic teenager. Oh, the angst! Oh, the tragedy! I think I was actually trembling a little when I picked up the last volume from the shop. I’ve often wondered what I’d think of TB if I came across it for the first time nowadays, but this review has set my mind at ease about that. Wonderful art selections as well to show that there’s more to TB than just BL hints and pretty CLAMP males.

Thanks for bringing up Hokuto in such a positive light – you often come across people who only see her as an impediment to an unadulterated Seishiro/Subaru dynamic, but the character ended up giving TB a step-up to wonderful, in my opinion. It was really interesting seeing where they went with her: from her shallow, krazy kostume beginnings to later volumes and her appearances in X that revealed much more going on underneath.

By: Melinda Beasi

Melinda Beasi — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 23:30:08 +0000

Michelle & Danielle: Thank you! You know, I ended up admiring Hokuto so much, she really did act as the heart of this series in most ways. And Danielle, thank you too for the compliment on my use of images! I really think CLAMP sells best with pictures, so I thought I should use some here.

Geoff: Yes, I do too! I think there was a problem with the general level of violence in the series besides just the issue with earthquakes, though I’m sure there are people who know much more about it than I do. I keep hearing rumors that they want to continue Legal Drug, but I don’t know what will ever happen with X! It’s so sad!