CLAMPcast in Wonderland

recently independently decided to read through CLAMP's works in publication order and this podcast is the BEST book club (short of forcing my irl friends into reading a billion pages of manga on a whim.) I'm only halfway through their X episodes but I LOVE this.

I first discovered this podcast via the Clamp/JJBA connection episode, and I am so glad I did because it has brought me so much joy! I was already doing a Clamp reread of my own, but having Lucy & Robin’s knowledge provided additional context that truly enriched my reading experience. Their research is thorough and engaging, especially for series like Tokyo Babylon and X/1999, which are intrinsically linked with the history of 1990’s Japan. The CLAMPcast pod has helped me find even more to love about my favorite Clamp works! 10/10 highly recommend.

I love Clamp! After all, Cardcaptor Sakura, Magic Knight Rayearth, xxxHolic and Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle practically dominated my teenage years. Since discovering this podcast early last year, I’ve gotten into other series by Clamp that I didn’t get a chance to read or watch when I was a kid and it’s been fun! Thank you Lucy and Robin for being awesome guides through Clamp’s wonderland.

This show is the deep-dive literary analysis for CLAMP’s various series that I have always wanted. I love how Robin and Lucy give each and every series a dedicated space in the limelight—going step-by-step through CLAMP’s ouvre, giving the background and cultural context for every series as it was released, looking at visual storytelling, analyzing themes and character development, discussing representation, and more. I also love how they do their best to not “stargaze” too much (i.e. no spoilers for series they haven’t gotten to yet), yet they do look backwards to see how overarching themes, character archetypes, and art styles have developed and shifted over the course of CLAMP’s 30-year career. 14/10 would recommend for any CLAMP fan.