History Manga / X1999

* AdaptedOut: Keiichi didn't show up in the anime. The three main characters of ''Manga/CLAMPSchoolDetectives'' didn't appear in the anime as well (probably due to copyright reasons since ''CLAMP School Detectives'' is animated by a [[StudioPierrot different studio]]) but the chairman of CLAMP School looked similar to Nokoru Inomoyama except he wears a PornStache.

* WhiteAndGreyMorality: On paper, the Dragons of Heaven are good guys who must protect humanity while the Dragons of Earth are the ''antagonists'' (not bad guys contrary as what most people believe) who must destroy humanity to protect Earth from man's destruction. All of the Seven Seals are portrayed good who are truly motivated with their roles though several members have other motives such as Kamui (at first) and Subaru. Their leader, Hinoto, happened to have [[spoiler:an evil split personality who manipulates the Dragons of Heaven]]. The Seven Angels had several members who are morally ambigious with flaws and FreudianEscuse such as [[TokenGoodTeammate Kusanagi]], Kakyou and [[ExtremeDoormat Nataku]]. Fuuma is the most morally ambigious of them all and even though it's his job as the other Kamui to destroy mankind, he spared several people because it's their true wish to stay alive (in the manga, at least). Yuto is AffablyEvil but he seemed to care other people particularly Satsuki. Satsuki views HumansAreBastards and [[BlueAndOrangeMorality lacks the understanding on why it is wrong to kill people]]. Seishiro may come close to being evil as he is an assassin.
** The manga tends to fall into GreyAndGrayMorality [[spoiler:where after killing Seishiro, Subaru unintentionally inherits his role as the Sakurazukamori and joins the Dragons of Earth to fill his spot. Apparently, like Fuuma, he wants Kamui to realize his "true wish". Arashi had a fallout from the Dragons of Heaven as well but this is due to Hinoto's manipulations. Kanoe's reason of forming the Dragons of Earth is to free Hinoto from the burdens of being a DreamSeer and she's shocked when she found her sister's evil personality]].

* CanonWelding: The series has been tied with ''Manga/CLAMPSchoolDetectives'', ''Manga/TokyoBabylon'' and the {{Alternate Universe}}s of ''Manga/TsubasaReservoirChronicle''/''Manga/XxxHOLiC''.

* BeautyEqualsGoodness: Karen. Sorata [[GenreSavvy aptly points out in the manga]].

* BitterSweetEnding: The ending of the anime series: [[spoiler:Kamui deploys a ThanatosGambit in which his mortally-injured body turns into a barrier that reverses the damage by the Dragons of Earth, saving it from destruction in the process, while Fūma returns to his original self. In the last scene of the series, those characters who survived appear living happily: these include Arashi, Yuzuriha, Kusanagi, Aoki...]].

* DownerEnding: The Movie.

* FemmeFatalons, Kanoe has long, most likely faux nails.

* AdaptedOut: Keiichi didn't show up in the anime. The three main characters of ClampSchoolDetectives didn't appear in the anime as well (probably due to copyright reasons since ClampSchoolDetectives is animated by a [[StudioPierrot different studio]]) but the chairman of Clamp School looked similar to Nokoru Inomoyama except he wears a PornStache.

* YouCantFightFate: Though, there are elements of BecauseDestinySaysSo as well. CLAMP's newer series ''TsubasaReservoirChronicle'' and ''Manga/XxxHOLiC'' suggest that their view of fate is complex but that it can be altered to some extent.

[[quoteright:254:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/main_characters2.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:254:[[MessianicArchetype Kamui]], [[IllGirl Kotori]] and [[DarkMessiah Fuuma]].]]

->-- '''Kotori'''

** Kakyou didn't appear the movie considering he didn't made his appearance yet in the manga when the movie was released. His spot in the Dragons of Earth is filled by CanonImmigrant, Shogo Asagi.

* ScryVsScry

* WillTheyOrWontThey: Though in one case, they actually ''do'' ([[spoiler: Arashi and Sorata]]) and it's a big deal for both plot and characterization.

* Creator/{{CLAMP}}, in the series that earned them the fannish exclamation OH CLAMP.

* HeyItsThatVoice: More of a HilariousInHindsight if you're a fan of the Digimon Frontier dub, in which the voice actors of [[Creator/SteveStaley Kamui]] and [[Creator/CrispinFreeman Fuuma]] play long lost brothers. However, in this story, Fuuma goes from being neutral to bad to good rather than his path in X. Bonus points for the voice actress of [[Creator/MichelleRuff Kotori]] playing their only female teammate.
** Kamui is also [[Manga/{{Bleach}} Captain Hitsugaya]]
** Arashi is [[Anime/TheBigO R. Dorothy Wayneright]] while Seiichiro Aoki is her [[Anime/TheBigO employer]]. Karen is [[Anime/TheBigO still pining over someone she can't have]].
** Aoki is also [[Anime/CowboyBebop Spike]] and Karen is also [[Anime/CowboyBebop Faye]]. Though as opposed to then ends of those characters in that anime, [[spoiler: Karen is the one who dies]].
** Subaru is a sensei to a [[Manga/{{Naruto}} genin team]].
** Satsuki upgraded Beast into a Knightmare Frame in ''Anime/CodeGeass''.
** Fuuma is [[Manga/{{Hellsing}} Alucard]] and [[Manga/{{Naruto}} Itachi]].
*** Also [[Anime/{{Noein}} Karasu.]] And [[Franchise/GhostInTheShell Togusa]]. Oh, just go to [[Creator/CrispinFreeman his page already]].
** Kanoe is [[Anime/CodeGeass Cornelia Li Britannia]] and [[Franchise/GhostInTheShell Major Motoko Kusanagi]].
** Daisuke Saiki is none other than [[Manga/RurouniKenshin Kenshin]].

* TalkingToHimself: Or, in this case, ''herself''. Wendee Lee, in addition to playing main character Karen, voices ''both'' of Kotori's friends in the English version.

* TooSoon: Cause of several publication hiatuses during the initial run of the manga, and possible cause of the current hiatus as well. Thematic elements like the decapitations and seismic disturbances bore coincidental but unsettling resemblances to real-life events such as the Sakakibara murders and the Great Hanshin Earthquake, leading to the series being pulled from publication repeatedly. CLAMP denies ExecutiveMeddling was responsible for the 2003 hiatus, stating that they themselves made the decision to cease publication as they were convinced the planned ending would not have been socially acceptable ''at that time''. The global climate around urban terrorism and national security may have been a major factor in that decision.

* WordOfGod: [[spoiler:Seishirou and Nataku]] are dead. Deader than disco. They won't be coming back. Also, Kotori's hair reminds the artists of Udon. Really.
** Paraphrasing Ohkawa, '' Kamui and Fuuma are more than friends. They used to be friends, but they are definitely past that point now. [[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment Please, Mr. Interviewer, don't refer to them as friends, that's not correct]].'' Oookay then.

** And this is ''despite'' being a work by YoshiakiKawajiri, who is known for mostly averting this.

* EmotionlessGirl: Arashi is essentially this crossed with a DeadpanSnarker, her usual response to Sorata being "[[VisibleSilence ...]]". She does gain more emotion as the series goes on [[spoiler: and when this happens, it's her downfall, as she either dies (movie) or pulls a FaceHeelTurn (TV series, probably manga)]] Note that [spoiler: her FaceHeelTurn is halfhearted at best, and in the anime it results in the destiny that she was trying to prevent by changing sides. Can't Fight Fate, you know?]]

** Also, [[spoiler:Subaru]] replaces [[spoiler:Seishirou]] as a Dragon of Earth in the manga. OTOH, it's unclear as to whether he really accepts the offer to change sides. [[spoiler: He takes the offer to become the Sakurazukamori, but as to whether that means he's going to act as a Dragon of Earth isn't shown.]]
*** [[spoiler: Though he is shown in the half volume 19 to be with Fuuma during the Final Battle, apparently to help Kamui realize his "true wish".]]

** The manga, not so much, considering several beaten Dragons are still alive and kicking. But yes, in every version there are several casualties. The anime is particularly light on the casualties, so the manga seems to be walking the line between the two.

* LateArrivalSpoiler: Though it's treated as a major surprise when it happens, the fact that [[spoiler: Fuuma]] pulls a FaceHeelTurn and becomes the main antagonist is pretty evident after one look at the official art of the opening of the TV series. It's also foreshadowed pretty heavily in the manga, but the twist is in ''how'' it happens: [[spoiler:Kamui is forced to pick which side he wants to fight on, without knowing that his decision will compel Fuuma to fight for the opposite side, ''no matter what''. And his decision is based on ''his desire to protect Fuuma and Kotori'']]. OW. It's little wonder it puts him in a HeroicBSOD that requires a JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind to snap him out of it.

* NoEndorHolocaust: Averted.
** In a series where the destruction done by the battles can be retconned out of existence by way of barrier fields, no less. Lets you know how rough the fights usually are on the heroes.

** Friendship. Riiiight. Yuzuriha definitely has a crush on him. For the most part he acts like a responsible adult though.

** And this is ''despite'' being a work by Creator/YoshiakiKawajiri, who is known for mostly averting this.
* OlderThanTheyLook: [[spoiler: Seishirou]]'s mother looked barely the same age as him when he was a teenager. Also, Hinoto (she definitely doesn't look older than Kanoe).

* WhamEpisode: [[spoiler:Kamui chooses to be a Dragon of Heaven, Fuuma in turn fills the role of Kamui in the Dragons of Earth and kills Kotori by [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic crucifying, stabbing and then dismembering her]] and [[ShipTease licking Kamui's neck while pinning him to a wall with shards of glass]], leaving Kamui in an absolutely ''epic'' HeroicBSOD, which in the manga has him ''cradling Kotori's severed head'' a la Devilman.]] All this is ''less than 23 minutes'' in the anime.
** And the first 10-15 minutes of that episode is mostly exposition.

* WillTheyOrWontThey: Though in one case, they actually ''do'' and it's a big deal for both plot and characterization.

* EmotionlessGirl: Arashi is essentially this crossed with a DeadpanSnarker, her usual response to Sorata being "[[VisibleSilence ...]]". She does gain more emotion as the series goes on [[spoiler: and when this happens, it's her downfall, as she either dies (movie) or pulls a FaceHeelTurn (TV series, probably manga)]] Note that her FaceHeelTurn is halfhearted at best, and in the anime it results in the destiny that she was trying to prevent by changing sides. Can't Fight Fate, you know?]]

* AppendageAssimilation
** Anime Asspull. [[spoiler: Nataku's death is a Tearjerker in the manga.]]

* BitterSweetEnding: The ending of the anime series: [[spoiler:Kamui dies, but his body turns into a barrier that reverses the damage by the Dragons of Earth, saving it from destruction in the process, while Fūma returns to his original self. In the last scene of the series, those characters who survived appear living happily.]].

* CrucifiedHeroShot: Several times and several characters, perhaps most [[{{Anvilicious}} Anviliciously]] [[http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kotori_crucified.png this one]] (spoiler warning).
** Kamui even retains [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic scars on both hands]].
* DateCrepe: Seishirou invites Fuuma to go get crepes with him (having just finished blowing up a major train line and a large skyscraper). His reasoning is that if they are going to destroy all of Tokyo, then they might as well get to sample delicious foods first. It's very romantic, in a creepy way.
* DeathBySex: Subverted (in the anime, no resolution to this plot thread in the manga), in that she didn't die... ''he'' did.

* DiedInYourArmsTonight: [[spoiler: Seishirou's death while Subaru holds him.]]

* DroppedABridgeOnHim: [[spoiler: Seishirou; quite literally. Not only was the means of his death [[RetCon retconned in by way of Hokuto]], but he was, in effect, [[RedemptionEqualsDeath committing suicide for having fallen in love with Subaru, something he had said he was incapable of]] and [[BreakTheCutie further mentally-deranging said love interest by making him the unwilling means of his suicide]]. Oh, CLAMP.]]

* EmotionlessGirl: Arashi is essentially this crossed with a DeadpanSnarker, her usual response to Sorata being "[[VisibleSilence ...]]". She does gain more emotion as the series goes on [[spoiler: and when this happens, it's her downfall, as she either dies (movie) or pulls a FaceHeelTurn (TV series, probably manga)]].
** [[spoiler: Note that her FaceHeelTurn is halfhearted at best, and results in the destiny that she was trying to prevent by changing sides. Can't Fight Fate, you know?]]

** Emphasis on the "As We Know It" part. Basically, the Dragons of Heaven are fighting to protect mankind, and the Dragons of Earth want to wipe out mankind to save the Earth from the evils of man. The great thing about this story is that no one is in it ForTheEvulz.
*** Objection. Yuuto.

* FaceHeelTurn: [[spoiler: Arashi becomes a Dragon of earth, though it is subverted in that she did it to protect Sorata from his pre-ordained death, and eventually rejoins the Dragons of Heaven.]]

* {{Gorn}}: [[CruelAndUnusualDeath Most deaths]] in the Manga are extremely gory, often with the intestines coming out.

** In the manga, [[spoiler:Nataku also makes a HeroicSacrifice to protect Karin. For mostly unexplained reasons.]]
* HeroicAlbino: Princess Hinoto. [[spoiler: Subverted, as she's more or less planning to allow mankind to be wiped out so that she can continue to be the Dreamseer.]]
** [[spoiler: That's more Hinoto's SuperpoweredEvilSide, than Hinoto herself.]]

** [[spoiler: Subaru's goal for most of the series is to commit suicide by assassin, too. So the fight between Seishirou and Subaru is really two people trying to get killed by each other.]]

* ModestyBedsheet Modesty Bedsheet

* MoralDissonance: Kamui promises to save [[spoiler: Fuuma]], even if it means doing him physical harm, to which [[spoiler: Fuuma]] implies in response that Kamui will have to be willing [[ShootYourMate to do much more than harm him]].

* NoEnding: The last manga chapter was released in 2003. CLAMP last seriously talked about the series in 2005, saying they were still looking for a publisher to handle the series. The increasingly violent content in the series created problems as some of the events ended up very reminiscent of real-world disasters at the time. Now that we're a ''decade'' in, it's seeming increasingly likely that CLAMP has simply moved on and will leave the series unresolved.

* Theatre/OedipusRex: Seishirou, who had an... interesting relationship with his mother, Setsuka [[spoiler: before he killed her and took over her position]].

* SlapYourselfAwake: Karen drugs Aoki in order to take his place in an upcoming duel she believes he won't survive. Aoki stabs himself in the leg with a kitchen knife to keep himself awake long enough to stop her.

* SpontaneousHumanCombustion: Kamui's mom spontaneously combusted in the BackStory. The reason for this, however, was made pretty clear: She made herself a shadow sacrifice of the entire planet Earth and, by burning to death, delayed its destruction by GlobalWarming. ItMakesSenseInContext.

* TakingYouWithMe: [[spoiler: Karen to Yuuto]] in the TV series. In the movie, [[spoiler: Subaru to Seishirou, Karen to Shougo and Aoki to Nataku]]. Not yet invoked in the manga. Notice the ''yet''

* NoEnding: The last manga chapter was released in 2003. CLAMP last talked about the series in 2005, saying they were still looking for a publisher to handle the series. The increasingly violent content in the series created problems as some of the events ended up very reminiscent of real-world disasters at the time.

* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic: This is essentially the Gospel According to Ageha. The major alteration from Judeo-Christian eschatology is the dualism, with the two sides evenly matched and only a slim moral advantage on the part of the Dragons of Heaven.

* Theatre/OedipusRex: Seishirou, who had an... interesting relationship with his HotShounenMom, Setsuka [[spoiler: before he killed her and took over her position]].

* BitterSweetEnding: The ending of the anime series: [[spoiler:Kamui's body turns into a barrier that reverses the damage by the Dragons of Earth, saving it from destruction in the process, while Fūma returns to his original self. In the last scene of the series, those characters who suurvived appear living happily.]].

* HeyItsThatVoice: More of a HilariousInHindsight if you're a fan of the Digimon Frontier dub, in which the voice actors of Kamui and Fuuma play long lost brothers. However, in this story, Fuuma goes from being neutral to bad to good rather than his path in X. Bonus points for the voice actress of Kotori playing their only female teammate.