This experimental sci-fi work from CLAMP reads like a romantic version of Akira
. In the far future, a mysterious government organization monitors and confines psychic children in the “Clover” program. A professional singer and “one-leaf” ranked psychic named Ora has only the ability to predict her own death. The most powerful psychic in the world, a “four-leaf” girl named Sue lives a life of voluntary isolation inside a gilded cage. Sue hears Ora’s singing inside her head, befriends her via telephone and hopes to meet her one day. Events in the book unfold in a reverse chronology, as the first chapter takes place after Ora’s death and proceeds backwards in time. CLAMP manages to present a richly detailed retro-mechanical future using a minimum number of panels per page; reading this book is like looking into a dystopic future through one tiny, perfectly square frame, as the story unfolds across nearly blank pages scattered with repeating love song lyrics. The character designs are magnificent and tiny details on the clockwork birds and imaginative effects are stunning. Though CLAMP’s most experimental work, it’s still accessible to a wide audience. (June)
