I remember reading a single issue of MAGIC KNIGHT RAYEARTH when I was a kid, and I was blown away by the beautiful drawings and artistry of CLAMP. To see that this is being republished in such an awesome way was so, so cool. The characters are beautiful, the story is both timeless and exciting, and the connections between the main characters is so wonderful as they discover their magic abilities and fight for justice. Such a great read!

My affection for this series is composed of 80% nostalgia and 20% actual manga quality. I loved magical girls when I was a child and CLAMP comics where one of my favorites - their style was impeccable, big eyed heroines gorgeous and dark haired bishonens embodied the ideal of mysterious troubled men. This hasn't changed, although I'm more critical of 90s shoujos - I see how naive and vibe driven they were. Plot very often doesn't make sense, but to be honest, I don't care. Reading MKR again was like being transported back to my childhood and for that I'm grateful. I really appreciate translator's notes at the end (I'm not sure if they were there in the previous edition), they provided me with extra cultural context.

CLAMP is one of my childhood favorite manga, i love all manga they make. All character in one manga conected to another manga. I love Magic Knight Rayearth, follow manga and anime. I always want to be Hikaru. Oh to dream live in fantasy world with magic and quest.

Thank you to NetGalley for provide this book, it is pleasure to review this book.

#MagicKnightRayearth #CLAMP #KodanshaComics #Manga #NetGalley #ARC

I love this manga so much! I'm really enjoying that I have been given a chance to read it. The art style is incredible.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ebook in exchange of an honest review.

En el año 2002, se publicó por primera vez en Japón, y a día de hoy sigue siendo importante referente para historias de chicas comunes y corrientes que se transforman en las luchadoras, guerreras o heroínas del mundo.

Una historia muy interesante, llena de magia, donde se seguirá el "viaje del héroe" para este trío de chicas de 14 años: Hikaru, Fuu y Umi (o, para quienes crecimos con el anime doblado al español latino como es mi caso: Lucy, Anais y Marina). Juntas deberán descubrir:
- Primero, porqué han sido transportadas desde su natal Tokio a este nuevo y desconocido mundo llamado Cephiro, donde la magia es real y toda clase de criaturas existen, un mundo en que el orden correcto de las cosas ha sido alterado y se deposita en ellas la confianza para revertirlo.
- Segundo, deben averiguar cómo sobrevivir al día a día en este Cephiro lleno de monstruos y secuaces del villano Zagato, quienes intentarán matarlas a cada momento.
- Tercero, cómo transformarse poco a poco en las "guerreras mágicas", dominando su magia y sus armas, además de aprender a luchar, para estar preparadas para enfrentar al villano.

En este primer volumen, queda cubierto el primer punto, y espero que en los siguientes podamos ver desarrollados los demás.

Pese a que yo ya conocía la historia, por su adaptación al anime, aún así disfruté leer las ilustraciones que dieron vida a esa historia. Lo recomiendo, y me gustaría que llegara a más personas.
Si te gustan las historias con aventuras, magia, héroes aprendiendo cómo serlo, desafíos, crecimiento y desarrollo de personajes, esta es una buena opción para leer.

Classic 90s here. A little bit Sailor Moon, a little bit Tenchi Muyo (Mokona giving me Ryo Okhi vibes) all in an Isekai/portal fantasy package.
I enjoyed this, and the twang of nostalgia it inspired. Will definitely read more.

It all began with a middle school trip to Tokyo Tower. Three strangers from different schools were experiencing this visit in different ways. But in a flash, these three strangers would have their world turned upside down and down side up. A voice calls out to them with a plea: “Help save our world, Legendary Magic Knights!”

Thirty years ago, CLAMP unleashed Magic Knight Rayearth. While it’s not the first isekai manga to be released, it’s certainly one of the earlier series to find a fandom outside of Japan. Although it may contain the tropes of 80s/90s comedies, it didn’t lean on the feel-good aspect for long. Quite the contrary: this series gets heavy, with its themes of grim fates and dark destinies playing heavily into its lore. But in its first volume, it sure feels like a good time is about to be had.

The trio of Fuu, Umi, and Hikaru find themselves in the land of Cefiro. They were called upon by Princess Emeraude, who has been captured by Sol Zagato. Without the princess, the world will be thrown into disarray, as monsters appear and attempt to destroy the harmony of the world. And only these three middle schoolers can accomplish this goal.

Of course, these kids have plenty of questions to direct at Guru Clef, the one filling them in on the situation. From “Why can’t we go home?” to “Why haven’t you tried rescuing the princess yourselves?”, the sharp wit of this trio already shows why Princess Emeraude chose them to rescue her and her world. However, there’s not enough time to explain everything, as Zagato’s minions arrive to raise havoc.

Although Guru Clef tells the trio to get away, they don’t run with their tails between their legs. With the magic that they’ve been given, Hikaru tries her had at the Arrow of Flame. Despite her size, her power winds up packing a punch. The way it’s showcased — both with beauty and ferocity — demonstrates why CLAMP are the queens of the action shojo genre.

These opening chapters also showcase the more humorous side of Magic Knight Rayearth. The characters switch between full-bodied seriousness to chibi-sized silliness at the drop of a hat. They’re also suckers for cute animals, as evident by how they act around the giant flying fish and artisan Presea’s familiar Mokona (who’d practically become the mascot of CLAMP). There’s also a good dose of kookiness on display from the characters, ranging from Presea acting too excited from catching the trio in her trap to Clef bombarding them with staff smacks when they’re out of line.

But it’s via the heart of these characters when the series shines the brightest. Despite having no knowledge of Cefiro, they are still determined to rescue it from total chaos. They may just be middle school kids, but CLAMP shows why that age is when teenagers start to realize the weight of the world and the power of responsibility. It also doesn’t hurt that this trio has some really cool powers to unleash…once they figure out how they properly work, that is.

Magic Knight Rayearth may have been released thirty years ago, but its message is still as strong as it was back then. Although CLAMP would go on to create countless classics after this series (and one or two beforehand), this fantasy is seen by many as the one that really put them on the map. While many isekai series have come and gone, Magic Knight Rayearth still finds ways to stay relevant both in our minds and hearts. If you’re one of the folks who have never experienced the mystique and wonder of this series, perhaps now is the time, especially with it celebrating such an important anniversary.

[Thanks to Kodansha and Netgalley for an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.]

When three separate schools head for Tokyo Tower, it’s a chance meeting between Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu. But they won’t really get to know one another until a wish from the imperilled princess of another world drags them off on an adventure like no other.

Well, it was like no other at the time anyway.

Nostalgia works in funny ways. I have zero experience with <i>Magical Knights Rayearth</I>, but I certainly know all about CLAMP. And I also have great fondness for the era of anime and manga where Tokyo Tower was somehow the place where literally everything happened (shout out to <i>Tenchi Muyo in Love</i>).

Thus, I was predisposed to enjoy this the moment it started and, while it is so very much of its era, the notion of magical girl isekai is one that probably should have been tapped into a few more times by now.

The girls come into this in broad strokes - Hikaru is the feisty one and definitely feels like she’s leading the trio simply by inertia. Meanwhile, Umi is the more aloof and refined one, leaving Fuu as the more pragmatic and smart one. That their uniforms and personalities colour code them to the elements of fire, water, and air is no coincidence, shall we say.

Clearly for a younger audience, I think there’s a lot here that would make this more than suitable. It’s perhaps a little too silly at times - we are definitely in the chibi era, although <I>Sailor Moon</I> was much worse - and it can undercut its gravitas with jokes.

The characters are all pretty one note so far - the bad guy has exactly one motivation, which is ‘do evil’ and the girls really don’t get fleshed out too much. The story wastes precious little time, occasionally to its detriment. When they get their weapons and suddenly reveal they ALL have combat training, it’s a little overboard.

While it mostly gets the job done and sells this new world - I do love the huge mystical beasts that keep showing up - some of the laughs that this generates are entirely at it rather than with it.

Clef kind of gets on the nerves after a while, which is too bad as he’s the one who gives the girls the lowdown once they’ve arrived, so he’s on the page quite a bit. Still, he’s at least counting on the trio to save the day, so he has more faith than, say, Tuxedo Mask.

Still, and this is probably down to me, when he proclaims that their clothes are too flimsy for their survival, but his solution is… their same clothes, just with a couple plates of armour on it? I nearly burst out laughing. Sometimes this is magical girl, but mostly it’s indeed isekai.

They get the genre trappings - cool gear and a mascot - and then are off to the races to try and earn their powers, save the day, and get themselves home. In regard to most current isekai that are boring power fantasies, this one decides to have a quest and that makes it more interesting by default.

I’m not one for CLAMP’s art here. It’s never been my favourite style to begin with, so that doesn’t help, but there are a few great moments. There’s a picture of the girls circled by their individual elements that works a treat and, yeah, the beasts are so fun. That flying fish was stellar.

But, if I ignore the things that wouldn’t bother somebody younger, is this still good? Yeah, I think it holds up. Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu start off way more dependable than most of their contemporaries and that’s pretty cool. I think a younger audience would find the comedy more enjoyable too (I’m just a curmudgeon).

With pretty much no objectionable content - one skirt flip gets stopped very fast - this is one of those rare manga that truly earns the title of ‘all ages’ and that’s a pretty solid recommend on its own.

3.5 stars - not exceptional, but I enjoyed this enough that I would totally read more of it and see where things lead from there. If you don’t mind some aspects that do show the age a little, it’s a great reminder of what good manga of that era could do.

I wasn't expecting this.
The story is fantastic and I loved it..
The illustrations and graphic style are wonderful and fit perfectly into the story and what it encompasses.

Each character has their own personality and style, but they come together and protect each other in the new world they find themselves in.
The secondary characters were also fantastic. I thought they were all super cute.
The book has moments to focus on the story, of comedy and struggle and of character connection.

I think it's an excellent story and I really want to read the sequel.

I loved this. It's another magical girl manga for me to get into and obsess over. I love how different all the girls are from each other, and Mokona is so adorable. I can't wait to continue it.

This is a classic manga, so I'm glad it is being reissued. CLAMP art style is great as always. The story is a bit basic, with three girls transported from Tokyo to a magical world. They are destined to become magic knights and save the world from a bad guy. There is some humour, which is good, but nothing exceptional. So, mostly I enjoyed art.

CLAMP have written some of the most beloved Shojo manga of the 90’s, Magic Knight Rayearth included. This is a re-release of a classic: a genre mash-up of period piece, parallel world/isekai, mech fighting, and magical girl manga. The story follows three girls, strangers until today and from different backgrounds, called by a princess from another world to come save her and be her world’s champions. They are teleported from Tokyo Tower and are thrust immediately into the fantastical - landing on a giant floating sky fish amidst floating islands in the magical world of Cefiro. The first volume follows the trio as they learn how to be heroes and how to use their new magical powers. If you like magical girl Shojo, this is a must read

Regarding the rerelease itself: The cover maintains the look of the older English releases, keeping that ‘vintage’ feel and nostalgia for my childhood when I first read the series. The artwork is beautifully scanned, with crisp lines and depth in the blacks and grays on the page. This is a more accessible option for the average reader as opposed to the hefty (and gorgeous) collector’s hardcover of the entire series in two giant books.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

A magical girl isekai classic! I've read several other CLAMP works, so I've always been vaguely aware of the existence of Magic Knight Rayearth. I had never read it before, so when I saw it here, I had to jump and get it. The art style, of course, is gorgeous. But it is very obvious this is one of CLAMP's very early works, the style is not quite as polished as it is in their series from the early 2000's. The overall plot is fairly simple, a typical magical girl story blended with typical isekai elements. A group of three middle school girls gets teleported to another world, and are told they are magical knights that are destined to save the princess and must journey across this new land to find the tools they need to save her. This volume does a lot of explaining, how the world works, who prominent people are, how the magic system works, and so on. This volume is largely an exposition dump, trying to quickly introduce you to the world and the important characters. I'm not faulting it for that, that's generally how first volumes are in most series like this. The story does move at a breakneck pace, never stopping long enough for you to get settled in the story. The overall story tone is very telling of its time, and so is the style of humor. It just screams 90's. Again, not saying that's a negative, it's literally a manga that was created in the 90s, it makes total sense that's how it would be. I'm going to try to seek out the rest of the volumes, seeing as this is one of the few series that CLAMP actually finished.

A classic magical girl story! I remember reading this when I was young, and rereading it is the sweetest nostalgia. This story will appeal to any fans of the magical girl genre like Sailor Moon, Madoka, etc. I'm so excited that this is being reprinted!!!

thank you netgalley for sending me the arc of this manga.

It seems like a long time ago since I watched the animated adaptation on television as a child.
I loved the three warriors, and seeing it published again is a strong emotion.

Hikaru, Umi and Fuu are Tokyo schoolgirls with nothing else in common, until one fateful day changes everything: the three are summoned to the magical realm of Cephiro and find that their lives are inexorably intertwined

Really well done, can't wait for more volumes.

This reminds me of the 2007 Sailor Moon type remake books. Although this had a twist I absolutely still adored the storyline and I also loved that the females were nights instead of princesses which is beautiful and I do absolutely adore this manga and I will be reading more in the future, I would 100% recommend and I will carry on the series going forward as I think it is fun. It’s easy to read and generally I actually really like the characters. The art style was unique and the text wasn’t too heavy, which is what I found in some of these books.

A classic by Clamp - and takes me back to my childhood - I recall watching the anime version and borrowing I think it might have been vol 2 from my local library back in the day. Amusingly I had never read the first instalment of the manga so this was a lovely treat, to 1) enjoy the classic clamp illustrations that I so adore and 2)finally start at the beginning of this series, and enjoy the nostalgia of millennial childhood, traditional shoujo magical school girls genre.

Magic Knight Rayearth vol. One is the story of three young women swept up in your iconic magical girl world.

This story is definitely Clamp, and definitely magical girl tropes from peers and predecessor in this genre. Featuring three main girls and another world asking for their help you get to see how they come together and quickly come to grips with their new reality and what I suspect is their first villain and battle of many. I had a good chuckle at their armor and got to see a familiar face from a different series and that was delightful to find their origin here. Definitely for the sailor moon/card captor fans.

This is genuinely one of the most feminine, vintage and beautiful manga I've read in a while and I am so glad I got to pick it up and read it.

one fateful day, three different schools are on a field trip in tokyo tower, and one fateful day, when a princess from another world summons her legendary champions, three very different girls get swept into her orbit. hikaru, fuu, and umi did not wake up this morning and intend to save some magical world, but with no way back and no other choice, this is their life now. and judging from how the one guy who was explaining stuff to them just got attacked, someone really doesn't want them to succeed...

i grew up on clamp's stuff so it was really a no brainer for me to pick this up as soon as it was available. clamp had/has a very distinctive style to the stuff they make and...let's just say that if you know, you know. volume 1 sets up a few things: how these kids got here, why they got called here, and what they're supposed to do, as well as their first quest along the way to their bigger quest. knowing what i know about the story right now (ooh, spoilers), it seems kind of difficult for me to reconcile this seemingly one-track hero's journey with what it becomes, but...yeah as far as volume 1s go, pretty standard stuff. just expect the unexpected as you go 🙏