Let's get back to XXXHolic. Manga-to-anime conversions are like many novel-to-movie transitions; something gets lost along the way. With the exceptions of Trigun, Naruto, Cardcaptor Sakura, and Death Note, I have yet to find an anime based off a manga series that was as good, or even better, than the manga it was based off of. This is not surprising. Manga are basically books, and tv series are a sort of film. XXXHolic the anime is actually pretty good, but it doesn't stack up to CLAMP's original manga.
For one thing, the dialogue. The dialogue is more clear and concise in the manga. Also, unlike the English dub I watched, Japanese titles of honor are retained. This is important; it's set in Japan, and the characters make good use of them. Or not. Notice how Watanuki-kun nevers refers to Domeki-kun by any title. That's an important detail.
Another thing; the crossovers with other CLAMP series. XXXHolic is part of Tsubasa, and Tsubasa is part of XXXHolic. You don't see that synergy in their anime counterparts. This is important, too. Some things happen in Tsubasa that you won't get if you haven't read Holic, and vice versa. And let's not forget the references to other CLAMP works. (Watanuki-kun wearing Persocom ears; need I say more?)
And just to reinterate, the artwork. CLAMP's character desgins, well, their good ones anyways, are apparently hard to render properly in animation. Madhouse Studios should be grateful that the anime versions of Cardcaptor Sakura and Chobits turned out as well as they did; not all franchises are so lucky. The Holic anime suffers from this; the characters look too much like . . . like . . .
*deep breath*
Too much like the character designs from Code Geass. *shudder* But not so in the original manga. In the manga, everything is rendered to near-perfection. I mean after all, there's a scene in volume 2 where Himawari-chan is wearing a yukata. There is only one word to describe Himawari-chan in a yukata:
KAWAIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!
Oh gosh, she's so cute, I could just hug her forever! *goes to edit my list cute anime girls yet again* Maru and Moro are pretty cute, too.
Another thing; the Holic manga is darker than the Holic anime. No censorship here, baby!
So as you can see, I enjoy manga more than anime. Surprised? Don't be. Many other people are, too.
