Card Captor Sakura
Cardcaptor Sakura (カードキャプターさくら), also known as Card Captor Sakura (with the space) and often abbreviated to CCS, is a manga series from the well-known all-women artist team CLAMP. It is also an anime show (1998-2000) created from the manga, consisting of 70 half-hour episodes in three series and two theatrical-release movies.
The series begins as a simple girls' anime of the magical girl genre (similar series include Sailor Moon and Pretty Sammy). Ten-year-old Sakura Kinomoto opens a mysterious book in her father's study and accidentally lets loose the magical Clow Cards. As she lost them, it is her job to retrieve them, which involves finding each card and battling its magical personification. She is assisted by Cerberus (a.k.a., Kero-chan), the beast of the seal assigned to protect the cards, but who was asleep when Sakura opened the Clow book. Kero-chan, who appears throughout most of the series rather like an animated plush toy, makes Sakura into the Cardcaptor and gives her the key of the seal which allows her to fight and capture the cards.
As CCS progresses, there is a pattern of foreshadowing and dreams that lead to an unusual conclusion. Like in Magic Knight Rayearth, one of CLAMP's previous works, CCS is a new twist on an old genre.
Due in part to its animation, Cardcaptor Sakura has a wide fanbase on the Internet, particularly in the yaoi, shojo and lolicon fandom.
The Cardcaptor Sakura characters also appear in a manga called Tsubasa.
CCS is published in Japan by Kodansha.
English adaptations
Cardcaptors English anime
Cardcaptor Sakura was dubbed into English by Nelvana and brought to the United States under the name Cardcaptors. The dub came to be highly disliked by many anime fans. Entire episodes of the original series were taken apart and spliced together in an attempt to make Cardcaptors more appealing to American teenage boys, as the conception that, with the exception of Sailor Moon, girl-oriented series would not succeed. This makes the plotline of Cardcaptors seem rather haphazard to someone who has watched the original. The shojo-ai and shonen-ai romantic subtext was also excised. As a result, the series gained a much darker mood and was passed off as a series similar to the Pokémon anime. For a while it was on the WB Television Network, the same network that carried Pokémon in the United States.
In the United States, Cardcaptors ran for 39 episodes (as compared to the original series' 70-episode run) before it was ultimately cancelled. These episodes ran in a different order compared to the original episodes, and thus there is a feeling that the plot was disjointed. The U.S. version of the show continues to be shown in Canada, on the Teletoon network. In other English-speaking countries it ran in a more complete form, with all 70 episodes being shown in its original order (although in edited form), in some cases eschewing the English opening and closing themes in favor of dubbed versions of the original themes. The DVD line was canceled after the ninth volume (the beginning of the second story arc). Because of all of these changes, and the pre-existing fandom of the series, the dub swiftly came to be known in fannish circles as "Cardcraptors."
The two movies have also been dubbed into English, and as both the Cardcaptor Sakura version and the Cardcaptors version can be found on the same DVD, the only major differences between the two are the dialogue. The second movie is more faithful to the original (retaining the original names and much of the original dialogue), and has a different voice cast from Cardcaptors.
In addition to its negative reviews, Cardcaptors merchandise was not widely received as certain parents were concerned that, as the Clow Cards vaguely resembled the (non-satanic) tarot cards, the series promoted some sort of "Satanism".
provides an incomplete list of changes between the two series. The site was last updated in 2001.
English manga
The manga was translated into English by TokyoPop (Formerly Mixx); the characters kept their Japanese names in the translated manga. The manga was mostly unchanged from the original.
The earlier edition of the first six volumes, were flipped to read left to right, while the later six volumes, under the name Cardcaptor Sakura: Master of the Clow, read the original right to left way. The original six volumes are being re-released as the original right-to-left format manga.
Characters
Spoiler warning: Plot or ending details follow.
Names are written using the Western naming order (given names first), with the original name listed first, followed by the name used in the Cardcaptors dubbed anime. Names are romanized according to the TokyoPop manga. If the pronunciation of the name is different than apparent by the spelling of the romanized name, the name romanized according to the BambooWeb:Manual of Style for Japan-related articles is notated in Japanese order. In the case of the Syaoran Li, the TokyoPop name is given first, with the actual pinyin notated. In Meiling Li's case, the pinyin in Western order is given first.
- Sakura Kinomoto (木之本 桜) / Sakura Avalon - The main character of the series. Sakura is a student at Tomoeda Elementary School in Tomoeda (Cardcaptors calls the town Reedington). She is very good at athletics, but hates mathematics. Among her extracurricular activities is cheerleading, but during baton twirling practice she sometimes gets distracted, which results in the baton hitting her in the head (a detail which is omitted in Cardcaptors). She finds herself in love with Yukito, despite the fact that he is her older brother's best friend, but as the series unfolds, she finds out that this is because Yukito reminds her of her father. Her birthday is April 1.
- Cerberus (ケルベロス) (also known as Keroberos) Cerberus is the Guardian of the Seal, sleeping when Sakura opens The Clow and releases all of the cards. When the family is not at home, Cerberus is often playing one of Sakura's video games. Although Cerberus does not need to eat, it has an affection for snacks and sweets. Due to the fact that The Clow had been in Osaka, Osaka prefecture for a long time, Cerberus speaks in an Osaka accent. Cerberus appears in two different forms, the smaller of which is referred to as simply "Kero-chan". He is based on Cerberus, from Greek mythology.
- Tomoyo Daidouji (大道寺 知世 Daidōji Tomoyo) / Madison Taylor - Sakura's best friend and distant cousin. One of Tomoyo's hobbies is filming Sakura and providing her with the various outfits that Sakura wears. She first finds out of Sakura's magical abilities when she captures Sakura on film and Kero-chan in her backpack. Because she often appears with with a camera while accompanying Sakura with her quest to find the various Clow Cards, Tomoyo is sometimes referred to as the Videocaptor by fans. She is an excellent singer, and a few episodes showcase this talent (the Song and Voice card episodes, and the episode in which Song is transformed). Her birthday is September 3.
- Toya Kinomoto (木之本 桃矢 Kinomoto Tōya) / Tori Avalon - Sakura's older brother. He holds the belief that as Sakura's older brother, he was the only person entitled to make fun of her, a belief that his best friend Yukito refers to as a "sister complex". However, he is also protective and caring of her, which led him to dislike Li when they first meet. He is often working, and a running gag in the series involves Sakura and Yukito running into him while at work. Toya was born with some magical ability, and used to be able to see ghosts (including that of his late mother). He has a vague idea of what Sakura's been up to as the Cardcaptor, despite Sakura's attempts to keep it a secret. His birthday is February 29.
- Fujitaka Kinomoto (木之本 藤隆) / Aiden Avalon - Sakura's father. Fujitaka is a college professor of archaeology at Towa University, who still finds time for both Toya and Sakura. One of the differences between the manga and the anime versions is that in the manga, he is explicitly stated as one of the two reincarnations of Clow Reed, creator of the Clow Cards, but holds no magical abilities himself, while in the anime, this connection is only implied. His birthday is January 3.
- Yukito Tsukishiro (月城 雪兎) / Julian Star - Yukito is Toya's best friend, with similar athletic abilities to that of Toya. He moved to town at the start of his tenth year, where he quickly became Toya's best friend. He also eats a lot to fuel both himself and his true form, Yue. Sakura has an enormous crush on him, but he treats her more like a little sister. His birthday is December 25.
- Yue (ユエ) - Yue is the alter-ego of Yukito. While Cerberus selects the Cardcaptor, it is Yue who tests them. However, with Sakura and Li owning all the cards between them, Yue battles both of them, one at a time, with the condition that should both lose, a great disaster would befall all who were involved (which Sakura believes to be some kind of physical disaster). Yue is more serious and intimidating than Kero, and shared a special bond with Clow that makes it hard for him to accept Sakura as a "replacement" for his creator.
- Syaoran Li (李 小狼 Li3 Xiao3lang2) / Li Showron - Li is a student from Hong Kong who travels to Tomoeda in order to try to capture the Clow Cards. At first he tries to bully Sakura out of the cards in her possession, much to her bother's displeasure, but later goes on to work with Sakura, and eventually begin to show affection for Sakura. He also has feelings for Yukito, but it is generally because of Yue's power of the moon. He has a certain dislike for other characters with magical abilities, most notably Mizuki-sensei and Cerberus, who, in its small form, he calls a "plush toy". In the manga, he lives alone, while in the anime, he lives with Wei, one of the family butlers. One of the major changes made in Cardcaptors was to push Li so that he becomes a male lead character, rather than a supporting character in the original. In Cardcaptors, Li is referred to as a Cardcaptor, while he is not referred to as such in the original (as Cerberus never selected him). His birthday is July 13.
- Meiling Li (李 苺鈴 Li3 Mei3ling2) / Meilin Rae - Meilin is Syoaran's cousin and fiancée, helping Li capture the Clow Cards, much to Li's displeasure. Although she has no magical abilities (a rarity for someone of her lineage), she believes that her physical talents would more than make up for it. Although initially jealous of Sakura, Meilin's feelings for Sakura changed later on, when she tries to help Li express his love for Sakura. Meilin does not appear in the manga version. Her birthday is March 25.
- Chiharu Mihara (三原 千春) / Chelsea - Chiharu is a girl in Sakura's class, and Yamazaki's childhood friend. She is in the cheerleading squad with Sakura. Her birthday is May 28. In Cardcaptors, Zachary is Chelsea's cousin.
- Takashi Yamazaki (山崎 貴史) / Zachary - Yamazaki is a boy in the same class as Sakura, and often tells stories that are obviously false, but somehow Sakura and Li accept as truth, until another character, usually Chiharu, expose it as a lie. Yamazaki is also very athletic, with abilities near that of Sakura or Li. His birthday is June 1. In Cardcaptors, Chelsea is Zachary's cousin.
- Naoko Yanagisawa (柳沢 奈緒子) / Nikki - Naoko is a classmate of Sakura, and is into reading various types of stories. Among them are fantasy stories, which Sakura quickly gets hooked on, and ghost stories, which scare Sakura. She is into cheerleading with Sakura and Chiharu. Her birthday is October 11.
- Rika Sasaki (佐々木 利佳) / Rita - Rika is another student in Sakura's class. Although she is one of the more mature students, she has a crush on her teacher, and is engaged to him in the manga, Yoshiyuki Terada, as he reminds her of her father, who is often away. Her birthday is July 24.
- Nadeshiko Kinomoto (木之本 撫子) / Natasha Avalon - Nadeshiko Amamiya was a student of Fujitaka Kinomoto in his first year as a teacher, and also worked as a model while in school. She married Fujitaka when she was sixteen, much to the displeasure of her various relatives (especially her cousin Sonomi and grandfather Masaaki). She fell ill and died when Sakura was three, although Fujitaka kept her memory alive by putting a picture of her in the Kinomoto household and changing the picture every day. Her birthday was May 20.
- Sonomi Daidouji (大道寺 園美 Daidōji Sonomi) - Sonomi is the cousin of Nadeshiko and mother of Tomoyo, and was once a student of Fujitaka. Sonomi runs a large toy corporation, and owns a large estate. She treats Sakura as if she was her own daughter despite the fact that she does not hold Fujitaka in the highest regard. Her birthday is October 13.
- Kaho Mizuki (観月 歌帆) / Layla Mackenzie - Kaho is a teacher, having instructed (and having had a relationship with) Toya when the Kinomoto family moved to Tomoeda. She later broke up with him to study abroad. Later in the first season she returns to Tomoeda and becomes Sakura's mathematics teacher. Kaho has strong magical abilities related to the moon's power, and is shrine maiden at the Tsukimine Shrine. She often tells Sakura about events that are about to unfold, and watches over Sakura as she captures Clow Cards. She was entrusted with a relic of Clow's, a mystical bell, which she used to help Sakura both in capturing the Maze card and in the Final Judgement with Yue. Her birthday is February 11.
- Yoshiyuki Terada / Mr. Terata - Mr. Terada is Sakura's homeroom teacher. Rika Sasaki has a crush on him, and they are engaged in the manga.
- Eriol Hiiragizawa (柊沢 エリオル) / Eli Moon - Eriol is a student from England, and is one of the two reincarnations of Clow Reed, with much of his magical powers. Eriol is also the mastermind of various incidents in Tomoeda that forces Sakura to change the Clow Cards she collected into Sakura Cards. In many ways more elegant and refined than others of his age (largely due to possessing some of Clow's memories), he expresses early on a mild romantic affection for Sakura. He also has his silly side, expressed in some of his more bizarre schemes (for example, a pit that fills up with stuffed sheep when Sakura goes into it) and in his unlikely friendship with Yamazaki (the two often build off of each other's lies).
- Spinel Sun (スピネル・サン) - Spinel is one of Eriol's guardians, and is Cerberus' counterpart. Whereas Kero tends to be more mellow, Spinel is more calm and refined, and spends much of his time on-screen reading. Spinel gets "drunk" after eating snacks or sweets, and because of this, it has a certain distaste for it. Like Cerberus, Spinel has a smaller and larger form, and Spinel is often called Supi (Suppi-chan, known in the English cartoon as "Spinner") by Nakuru in its smaller form, a fact which annoys him to no end.
- Ruby Moon (ルビー・ムーン) - Ruby is one of Eriol's guardians, and is Yue's counterpart. Despite the fact that she is technically genderless, she prefers dressing in women's clothes as it looks cuter. She also enjoys antagonizing her counterpart, Yue, in both true and "false" forms.
- Nakuru Akizuki (秋月 奈久留) - Nakuru is Ruby Moon's alternate form, and is a classmate of Toya and Yukito at Seijyu High School. She seems to be attracted to Toya due to his magical power, to the point that he finds her annoying. In Cardcaptors, both forms share the name of Ruby.
- Clow Reed - Clow Reed is the creator of the Clow Cards, a series of cards resembling tarot cards with various magical powers within them. In addition, he is the creator of Yue and Cerberus. In Cardcaptors, he is also a local figure, with the town of Reedington being named after him.
