Legal Drug: Omnibus

Legal Drug, the latest CLAMP manga to get the omnibus re-release treatment from Dark Horse, follows a pair of boys working at a drugstore. Kazahaya Kudo is a naïve young man with a special gift to see memories linked to any item he touches. He’s been working and living at the drugstore ever since one night when he collapsed in the snow on the verge of death, only to be rescued by Rikuo Himura, the other young man also with a special power. The pair don’t get along at all, but are forced to work together in the store and on the various special side assignments that their boss, Kakei, gives them for extra money. Although the drugstore seems like any other of its kind, it’s the extra jobs on the side that delve deep into the supernatural world and only the boys’ special talents can help solve.

One of the less positive things that CLAMP is known for is abruptly ceasing publication of their work. X/1999 is of one their most infamous examples of that, but for a while Legal Drug was another. Originally published in 2000 – 2003 with only 3 volumes released, when Tokyopop first released it in English in late 2004/early 2005 it was only a brief look into Kazahaya and Rikuo’s world, with no closure in sight. It wouldn’t be until 2011 when the characters finally made a comeback, under the new title Drug & Drop. This first omnibus covers all released chapters from the Legal Drug run, with Volume 1 of Drug & Drop to be released (for the first time in English) in January 2015. So this time we get to read the opening chapters of CLAMP’s story, knowing that a continuation is around the corner and loose plot threads will be picked up.

To compare it to CLAMP’s other works, Legal Drug is similar to Tokyo Babylon as both have main characters with unique powers and each chapter or mini arc is centred on a supernatural mystery of sorts, with a bigger, grander story slowly building in the background. However, whereas Tokyo Babylon dove into very sinister places with themes of dark magic, murder and suicide, Legal Drug’s magic missions instead involve a vase that can turn into little girl and invisible fireflies that spawn around a certain pond at a particular time of year, for example. The supernatural world is smaller in scale, and the stakes are not as high, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing worthwhile here. It’s surprising that it’s taken this long for CLAMP to pick up the story again, because the early chapters are an enjoyable read throughout.

The mini missions that the boys take on are often absurd in logic, but big in imagination and the mixture of silliness and magic flows nicely in the forefront whilst the bigger overarching story gently weaves along in the background. Both boys have certain people at the back of their minds and mysterious ties to them; Kazahaya’s twin sister Kei seems the most curious, as they both lived sheltered lives with promises to be together forever, and yet Kazahaya seems content to be in the drug store away from her, so what could have happened to lead him into the snow that night? Rikuo on the other hand is looking for Tsukiko, a woman who seems to be missing, possibly at the hands of someone very powerful. Both boys are relying heavily on their boss Kakei for shelter and/or answers to their problems and he seems to have his own secrets with an unknown scale of magical power and reasons for keeping the boys around. The first book doesn’t reveal much about these ongoing mysteries, but plants enough seeds to keep each page-turn worthwhile, and the upcoming volume will be much appreciated. 

The series isn’t just another supernatural trip for the CLAMP team though, it also has elements of the Boy’s Love genre, something that the team have touched upon before but normally for side characters or, in the case of Tokyo Babylon, a relationship that did not end happily. From the offset the protagonists look like your typical shonen-ai pair with Kazahaya being smaller and more feminine, Rikuo the taller, darker and more masculine one. They also do not get along from the start, another common trope for a romantic pairing in this genre, but for Legal Drug it doesn’t come across as contrived as the pair have genuine chemistry. They have their differences but when they work together they think on a similar wavelength and bounce off each other nicely. They also, like most couples in real life and the best examples in fiction, balance each other out as time passes between them. Kazahaya is very naïve and prone to outbursts but with Rikuo’s influence he learns a little bit more about the outside world and becomes more street wise as a result. Rikuo also has his back when Kazahaya becomes weak from using his abilities. On the other side of the spectrum, Rikuo is an introvert and rather cold towards others but with Kazahaya he slowly begins to open up a bit more, and his constant teasing becomes more out of blossoming friendship later on rather than just to rattle Kazahaya. The first few chapters don’t hint at a potential romantic relationship between them, outside the beautifully drawn images of the pair in seductive poses in the beginning of each chapter, but the latter chapters start to tease the potential, so hopefully this can be continued in a subtle yet well-written manner in Drug & Drop.

Watching them develop from the side lines is Kakei and his companion Saiga, who almost seem like an older version of Rikuo and Kazahaya, not just in looks but personalities too, with one being more psychic and emotionally open, the other being cool and collected but with surprising skills in cooking and sewing. There are not many panels dedicated to them, but when there are, they’re very affectionate with each other; it’s undeniably cute and lovely to see such a couple portrayed as equal, happy and healthy without the need to shove in all the usual tropes. They’re happy to tease the protagonists whilst also helping them out in small ways; what their role will be when the big mysteries start to unravel has yet to be seen but they’re fun to watch as they murmur promises of something bigger to come in the future.

The book itself is light to hold, thankfully similar to the likes of Chobits and Angelic Layer, therefore easier to carry, with lots of colour pages lovingly spread across the book, presumably marking the beginnings of each ‘volume’.

Legal Drug is a pleasant read throughout; it’s not as gripping as CLAMP’s other work but contains many elements that make their manga enjoyable and engaging despite not much being accomplished in this book. Dark Horse’s omnibus is a must-have; if you missed out the first time, grab it before we finally see how the story continues in Drug & Drop.