TSUBASA, Volume 4
CLAMP
Del Rey Manga, 2004
ISBN: 034547791X
208 pages

Starting off gently, this volume gives our heroes a bit of a rest as they encounter a world in which they don't have to struggle or search for a feather, just swim. Of course, having free time on their hands is a double-edged sword: while they have the time to get to know each other, Syaoran has time to linger on what he's lost in his bargain, and he begins to see that while Sakura doesn't remember him, she does feel his absence in her memories and cannot help but wonder about the blind spot. As they arrive in their next world, they use Sakura's amazing luck to gamble for enough money for new clothes.

This world is amusingly akin to the fantasy European 19th century kingdoms that dominate costume drama in manga, and everyone is dressed in dashing garments right out of Grimm's fairy tales. Just as in a fairy tale, the town they've arrived in is haunted by a malevolent spirit of the golden-haired princess of ages past infamous for leading away the town's children. After guessing that the next feather will somehow be wrapped up in this town's legends, the group tries to uncover the truth behind the tall tale. But when Sakura disappears, it seems the fairy tale is a lot more substantial than they were led to believe.

   --- Reviewed by Robin Brenner

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