CLAMP- perhaps the one of the most recognizeable names in the manga world, both on the Eastern and Western sides of the world, both due to the number of works they have but also due to their stylized and detailed artwork (though the actual style itself differs from series to series, depending on the main artist), which is always distinctive. A group of four manga-writing women, CLAMP is known for their fantastical worlds, complex stories, and the fact that all their stories are linked together in one way or another (also known as the CLAMP-verse, where you’ll often see characters in one series reappear with the same name but different history or background in another).
Throughout their time, they have whittled down their numbers from 11 members, to 7 in the early 90’s, and soon into that decade they became the four that we know today: Igarashi, Nanase Ohkawa (Ageha Ohkawa), Tsubaki Nekoi, and Mokona.
Even though their manga is usually fantasy-themed, they have a wide range within that genre- from family-friendly titles like Cardcaptor Sakura to the dark and violent X, and everything in-between. And they have a ton of titles under their belt, to boot- they started out in the world of Doujinshi (fan-made comics) but have formally published almost 40 works altogether.
Their first title was RG Veda, a series that began as a fan comic but they decided to professionally publish. It was also not originally planned to be a series, but was expanded due to a high level of reader response (meaning they liked it! XD ) An adventure story much like you’ll see in their later works, this has a complex cast of characters that all are very individual, fighting fate and trying to make a better world.
Next up is one of their more controvertial works, X/1999. It isn’t controvertial because of content, but because it’s one of their few works that was cancelled (though the official status is ‘in hiatus’. At 18 volumes, this is quite a manga, with a main character that again is trying to save the earth as the “Seven Seals”, the powers to protect the earth, begin to clash with the “Seven Harbingers” that are there to destroy it. It’s a brilliant work, complex and deep, with characters you can’t help but come to feel for.
Magic Knight Rayearth- one of their most popular and enduring works. Three girls fall into a magical land, are blessed with powers that they never dreamed of, and must save it from a horrible fate. But is there more to it than what they see? Through friendship and love, they manage to endure tests and trails of strength and character!
One of their most popular titles to date, Tsubasa Reservior Chronicle, takes advantage of the CLAMP-verse to send the two popular characters from their manga Cardcaptor Sakura on an adventure across time and space. There’s action, adventure, true love, and sacrifice. But it also shouldn’t be read without the companion manga…..
xxxHolic! Pronounced as just "Holic", the name may provoke xxx-images, but this is not xxx-material. Instead, it’s the “backstory” of Tsubasa Reservior characters that you meet in the first volume and become more and more important as Tsubasa Chronicle goes on. Watanuki, a boy who can see and is chased by spirits, stumbles into the shop of the woman known in Tsubasa Chronicles as the ‘Time Witch’. He unwittingly becomes her servant, and as the story goes on, finds out about his mysterious past and purpose in his world.
CLAMP has an stounding number of works, many of which are excellent. While I can’t say that they’re all family-friendly (there is violence and some are shounen-ai), they are one of the stars of manga.
Virtually all of their manga has had an anime adaptation (though the quality usually varies from series to series), so you've probably heard of a title or two of theirs, such as Cardcaptor Sakura, Angelic Layer, or Chobits, without realizing that it was a CLAMP work. With almost 40 works and most of them having an anime, it's hard not to come across them sometime.
