Aha, everything makes total sense now! The city filled with demons is actually a world of virutal reality! I'm not a huge fan of their apparent foe, since he's totally getting in the ay of their goal of getting back Sakura's memory feathers. But I'm sure they'll run into him again by the end of their quest. ( )

Full review will be up on Bureau42 on the 18th. Suffice it to say that this is my favorite volume of the series thus far. ( )

I started getting bored and nothing really stuck out. Which is how I seem to remember the series going. Hopefully I have mis-remembered. ( )

Volume 7 of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle by CLAMP ends the Oto story arc, introduces more of Syaoran's past, and throws in new enemies.

The ending of the Oto arc pivots on the same dream-state / reality conundrum that leads up to the Rô piece of the companion series, xxxHolic. Oto isn't what Syaoran et al believe and as they've entered under magical means they haven't been privy to the truth.

The big show down though brings these false pretenses shattering down. The man behind much of Oto's strangeness is tied to Syaoran. And that connection between mentor and student reveals further layers of subterfuge between reality and the current state of things.

Behind all of this though, are a man and a woman, shown watching the events from some undisclosed location. They are set up as being in opposition to Yuko. While I realize they are probably the "big bad" for both series they come off as clichéd.

My biggest problem though with volume 7 is the vast amount of pages wasted on the "woosh bang" swirling fights between Syaoran, his ex-mentor and the others on the team. Lots and lots of sword swipes, swirling dust and other pointless theatrics. ( )

The mysterious happenings on Oto intensify and build to a climax in this volume of the manga. Syaoran and Kurogane head to an extremely dangerous location in Oto, the Tower of the Little People, to find exclusive informants who can give them information no one else has. After fighting their way past unusually deadly oni, the duo meet the informants (the cute chibi dolls from Angelic Layer!) and learn that the highest level of oni can take a human form. Meanwhile, Seishiro visits the cafe looking for Syaoran. When he finds that his pupil is missing, and that Fai possesses enormous magical power, he attacks and kills Fai!

Syaoran and Kurogane learn from the informants that a fatality has occurred at the Cafe Cat's Eye and rush back, only to learn about Fai's demise. Syaoran is grieved and incensed, and obtains Kurogane's promise to allow him to face Seishiro alone. He does, and Seishiro kills him, as well. Thankfully, he awakens in an egg-shaped chamber in a futuristic looking room, and finds Fai waiting for him. They learn that they are at an amusement park, and Oto is actually a virtual reality game; their "deaths" removed them from the game. They didn't know they were in a game because first-time users start with their memories of it being a game erased. So many mysteries about Oto are explained with this plot twist. Meanwhile, those left behind in Oto don't realize it's a game and their comrades are still alive. They will soon learn, though, as the game begins to dissipate, and the players and oni are transported into the real world, still in their virtual personas.

In an awesome fight sequence, Kurogane faces off with Seishiro, but their fight is interrupted by a message from the time witch. The break in fighting allows Kurogane to notice Fai and Syaoran alive, and also gives Mokona the chance to point out to everyone that Seishiro has another feather. His power, enhanced by the feather, is what is drawing the video game into the real world. It also summons the highest level oni, the only one with the power to take human form, as Seishiro wanted. Turns out, Seishiro is searching for two people, and he thinks the oni might be one of them. He killed Syaoran and Fai because he didn't want any other strong oni hunters getting in his way of being the most powerful. The ultimate oni is revealed: the singer Oruha from the bar. She disappoints Seishiro when she informs him that she is not the one he is seeking, and the eternal life she bestows is only eternal life in the context of the game. Seishiro then travels to another world, taking the feather with him and eluding Syaoran who tries to fight him for it. With his departure, the game reverts back to its virtual dimension. Also, Syaoran and friends have no more reason to stay, so Mokona opens a portal. They take hurried farewells of the friends they made in Oto, and then disappear in their swirly world-crossing way.

The Oto adventure is the longest one to date in this series, and really fun. The twist towards the end, where we discover everyone was actually in a virtual reality, was clever and unexpected. It also allowed the writers an emotional punch by making us think both Fai and Syaoran died, before the relief of discovering it was all a game. They better not kill any of these main characters, I like them too much! I was bothered by the fact that Kurogane, Sakura, and Mokona never awaken their bodies which were presumable trapped in an egg just like those of Syaoran and Fai. However, it is a small plot hole I can easily overlook. As in earlier volumes, the story combines plenty of action and amazing fight scenes with soft moments of relationship and intense conversation. A healthy vein of humor lightens the serious undertones. Oh yeah, and the enigmatic bad guy seems to have another Syaoran locked away in a capsule. What?! Mysteries still abound. I continue in my captivation with this high quality manga series. ( )