Chobits Recommended

Publisher
Tokyopop
Writer
CLAMP
Artist
CLAMP
Country of origin
Japan
Year
2002

Chobits Volume 2

By Joseph (Joe) Wood
4th Oct 04

If you haven't read the first volume of Chobits yet this review will contain major spoilers for it. There are also minor spoilers for the second.

As the first volume of Chobits had to set up Hideki, Chi, the secondary characters and a number of plot points including the "Chobits" legend so the read can understand the story. The second volume seems more relaxed, as it doesn't have to deal with the mass of information the first did. This does not stop it from having plot twists as interesting as the picture of Chi in the first volume. We are introduced to Chi's "other-self" for the first time this character reappears throughout the rest of the series and adds yet more mysteries to the enigma that is Chi's past.

Hideki wakes up with a hangover and slight memory loss of the previous night. Finding two pairs of female feet in his bed (one pair belonging to Chi) he remembers that his teacher Ms. Shimizu spent the night. He still has no idea what made Ms. Shimizu visit him in the first place and it's these little mysteries that make you finish a volume of Chobits between the time you buy it and the time you get off the bus at home leaving you pinning for more.

There's more development of the secondary characters in the second volume and this is true for all of them to some extent. Two of the characters who receive a lot of this are Hideki's younger co-worker Yumi and the young persocom genius Minoru. Humour once again plays an important part in the second volume and once again is amplified by over the top facial expressions, which are kept away from the more serious sections of the story in the same way as volume one. As is the visual style, effectively showing a characters hidden emotions.

One thing that annoys me is a similar section to the "A City With No People" book featured in the first volume; in fact they occur at various points throughout the series. These sections are somewhat boring as although it's trying to be a section of a children's picture book the visual style is very bland and dull. Also the sections shown are sometimes either a repetition of past events or are repeated later in the series. I may as well mention my dislike for these sections now than rant about them later.

The second Chobits volume provides you with another twelve chapters that'll keep you hooked and cry out for more once your finished.

-- Joseph (Joe) Wood 4th Oct 04