Cardcaptor Sakura (カードキャプターさくら Kādokyaputā Sakura), abbreviated as CCS and also known as Cardcaptors, is a Japanese Shōjo manga series written and illustrated by Clamp. It was originally serialized in Nakayoshi from May 1996 to June 2000, and later published in twelve tankōbon volumes by Kodansha. The story follows Sakura Kinomoto, an elementary school student who discovers that she possesses magical powers after accidentally freeing a set of magical cards from the book in which they had been sealed for years. She is then tasked with retrieving those cards in order to avoid an unknown catastrophe from befalling the world.The series was adapted into a 70 episode anime television program produced by Madhouse that aired on NHK between April 8, 1998 and March 21, 2000. Two animated films were also produced by Madhouse. The first, set between seasons one and two of the anime series, released on August 21, 1999, while the second, which provided a conclusion to the anime, was released on July 15, 2000. A total of ten video games for a variety of gaming platforms have been created for the Cardcaptor Sakura series.
Tokyopop licensed the manga series for English-language publication in North America and released the complete series as individual volumes, as well as in three-volume box sets. However, its license expired and was not renewed, causing its editions to go out of print. In July 2009, Dark Horse Comics acquired the license for the series with plans to release it in omnibus editions. Nelvana licensed the anime series for North American broadcast and distribution. Heavily edited and dubbed, 39 episodes of the series, renamed Cardcaptors, aired on Kids' WB and Cartoon Network. The episodes were released to DVD, and later all 70 dubbed episodes aired in other English-speaking countries. The series was subsequently re-licensed by Geneon Entertainment, which released the entire series in its unedited form to Region 1 DVD with the original Japanese audio track and English subtitles. Both companies also released their respective English versions of the two films.
The manga series was awarded the Seiun Award for Best Manga in 2001, while the anime adaptation won the Animage Grand Prix award for Best Anime.
Plot
Ten-year-old fourth grader Sakura Kinomoto opens a mysterious book in her father's study and accidentally releases the magical Clow Cards. Created by the half-English half-Chinese sorcerer Clow Reed, the Clow Cards were sealed within the Clow Book upon his death and represent a combination of magic from Clow's mixed heritage. Each card has its own personality and characteristics and can assume alternate forms when activated.Cerberus, the guardian Beast of the Seal, awakens and emerges from the book's cover. Upon learning the cards are gone, he tells Sakura that she must have special powers, and that it is now her responsibility to retrieve the missing cards. As she finds each card, she must battle its magical personification and defeat it in order to seal it away. Cerberus acts as her guide and mentor throughout the quest, while her classmate and best friend Tomoyo Daidouji films her exploits and provides her with costumes, insisting that she must "wear special clothes for special occasions" whilst promising to keep Sakura's abilities a secret. Her older brother Toya Kinomoto watches over his sister while pretending that he is unaware of what is going on.
As the series progresses, a rival in the form of Syaoran Li appears. A descendant of the late Clow Reed, creator of the Clow Cards' and their guardians, Syaoran travels to Japan from Hong Kong to recapture the cards, but finds his goal complicated as he comes to respect Sakura and begins aiding her instead. Once Sakura has captured all of the cards, she must undergo the Final Judgement. Yukito Tsukishiro, Sakura's crush and the best friend of her brother, is revealed to be the false form of the card's second guardian Yue, who tests Sakura to determine if she is worthy of becoming the card's true master. Sakura is aided in the test by Kaho Mizuki, who is later revealed to have been sent by Clow to ensure Sakura is able to pass the test because he chose Sakura to be the cards' new master when he knew he was going to die.
With Sakura as the new master of the Clow Cards, life initially is peaceful until the arrival of a new transfer student from England, Eriol Hiiragizawa, which coincides with new disturbances occurring in Tomoeda. Yue and Cerberus find themselves unable to aid Sakura during a magical attack, and Sakura is unable to use the Clow Cards. Sakura transforms her wand and creates a new activation spell for it, enabling her to then transform one of the Clow Cards into a Sakura Card. As the series progresses, she continues finding herself in situations which cause her to have to transfer the cards, unaware they are being caused by Eriol and two guardian-like creatures, Spinel Sun and Ruby Moon. Yue, who requires the support of another to generate his own energies, begins growing weaker as time passes, though he initially does not tell Sakura that it is because her magic is not yet strong enough. The problem does not affect Cerberus whose power, like the sun, regenerates on its own with no need to draw extra power from other sources.
During these events, Sakura finds herself having to deal with the pain of Yukito's gentle rejection of her feelings, as he instead loves her brother Toya. Toya, in turn, gives all of his magical abilities to Yue in order to ensure Yukito doesn't fade away, making Yue promise to protect Sakura in his place as his loss of powers prevents him from knowing when she may be in trouble. Syaoran helps her recover from the hurt, while finding himself falling in love with Sakura but unsure of how to tell her.
When there are only two cards left to be transformed, the Dark and Light which must be converted together, Eriol reveals himself to Sakura. Once she has successfully transformed the cards, he explains that he is half of the reincarnation of Clow Reed, with her father being the other half. Eriol has all of the memories and magic, enabling him to assist Sakura in converting the cards so that they would not lose their magical powers. With the task done, he asks Sakura to split his magic between himself and her father, so that he will no longer be the most powerful magician in the world. He then returns to England.
In the aftermath, Syaoran confesses his love for her, but Sakura is unsure how to respond. When he tells her that he is returning to Hong Kong, Sakura finds herself hurting and upset. After running into several of her friends, she realizes that it is because she loves Syaoran too. She rushes to the airport to tell him and he promises to return when he has taken care of some things. At the end of the series, he meets Sakura a year later having moved to Tomoeda permanently.
Differences in anime adaptation
In the anime adaptation of the series, the plot is slowed down to fit the longer length and to avoid catching up to the on-going manga series. Some of the manga's most dramatic moments are stretched out and delayed, such as Cerberus true form not being revealed until just before Yue's appearance. The anime also greatly increases the number of cards to be captured, stretching the original 19 from the manga to a full set of 52 in the main television series. In the second anime film, Sakura creates a 53rd card, "The Hope", a talent she is not shown to have in the manga yet. Some of the circumstances around the capturing of the cards seen in both media are changed. Syaoran's role is expanded some, with his capturing several cards and being tested by Yue before Sakura's test. An additional character, Meiling Li is introduced as Syaoran's cousin and fiancee, positioning her as a romantic rival for Sakura later in the series. The ending is modified some, with Sakura's father role as the second half of Clow Reed's reincarnation removed, as well as the splitting of Eriol's magic. The anime television series leaves the relationship between Sakura and Syaoran unresolved, with Sakura having not responded to Syaoran's love confession. Instead, the second anime film has Sakura attempting to confess throughout the film, but being unsuccessful until the last moments of the film, where she confesses to Syaoran.Themes
The central theme of Cardcaptor Sakura is love and human relationships. Throughout the series, many forms of love are showcased, including "sibling love, childhood crushes, unrequited love, and true love." At times, Clamp even ignores the Clow Cards for several chapters to focus more on the relationships of Sakura and those around her. Each of these relationships is presented as is, with Clamp carefully avoiding passing judgment on the correctness of the relationships. In particular, the romantic relationship between elementary student Rika Sasaki and her teacher Yoshiyuki Terada is presented in such a way that it can be seen as a sweet and innocent tale of "wish fulfillment", or if examined more seriously, as a mildly disturbing story of pedophilic love.Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/
