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115-489: This article covers the major characters of Clamp 's manga Cardcaptor Sakura and its respective anime and movies. The manga and anime focused on Japanese schoolgirl Sakura Kinomoto who finds the magical Clow Book in her father's basement study, accidentally unleashing the magical Clow Cards loose across her hometown Tomoeda. Dubbed the Cardcaptor by the cards' guardian Cerberus (better known as Kero-chan), Sakura must wield

230-465: A Rolling Stones member . Ohkawa and Igarashi, wanting to go with the flow of Nekoi's and Mokona's name changes, changed their names as well. In 2006, Clamp provided the character designs for Code Geass . This came into fruition after producer Yoshitaka Kawaguchi called them. This also marked Clamp's first time being requested to provide a character design for an anime series not originally created by them. Ohkawa made her first appearance overseas at

345-491: A diverse body of work. Clamp's genres vary widely, from childish and comedic ( Cardcaptor Sakura , Chobits , Clamp School Detectives ) to more dramatic and teen-rated ( xxxHolic , X ) series. Furthermore, drawing from the idea of Osamu Tezuka's Star System as they did in Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle , Clamp often crossover characters from their own series into their other works, which gives rise to

460-436: A fan comic. After seeing the comic digest of the manga series that Clamp had published, an editor for Shinshokan 's Wings manga magazine asked the group to work for them. They submitted an approximately sixty-page story as a sample, but the work was rejected. Ohkawa later lambasted the draft, stating that "everything was bad" and attributing the quality to the group's lack of experience, since they had never before completed

575-550: A female audience, Chobits marked the first time Clamp wrote for an older teen male audience. Clamp began writing the two works that tell separate parts of the same overarching plot, xxxHolic serialized in Young Magazine beginning in 2003 followed by Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle serialized in the Weekly Shōnen Magazine beginning in the same year. Tsubasa marked the first time Clamp had ever tried writing for

690-442: A loosely defined "Clamp Universe". Although most of their manga are female-oriented, Clamp has also attracted male readers in their early works through their handling of fight scenes in X and Tokyo Babylon . Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle is a male-oriented manga but Clamp still added multiple motifs to attracts readers such as Syaoran's romantic journey. xxxHolic is an adult-oriented manga but it uses Kimihiro Watanuki as

805-533: A lot of other people". Perhaps drawing inspiration from Ohkawa's own poor right-eye vision, Clamp frequently features one-eyed characters or characters that lose their sight in one eye as means to express the feeling of loneliness (for example, Subaru and Seishirō in Tokyo Babylon and X and Fay in Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle ). However, there is always something later on that comes to supplement

920-414: A magazine), storyboarding takes twelve hours, the script takes eight hours to write, and the artwork depends on the story. For example, a chapter of xxxHolic takes two days, whereas a chapter of X took four to five days. In general, Ohkawa gets her inspiration for the group from everyday events such as dreams or the news. Unlike most manga artists who specialize in a single genre, Clamp has created

1035-401: A more thick-skinned character than in the original anime, her initial romantic feelings for Yukito and fear of ghosts are removed, and later in the series she and Syaoran never developed their romance as it was heavily edited out. Cerberus ( / ˈ s ɜːr b ər ə s / ) ( ケルベロス , Keruberosu ) ( Ancient Greek : Κέρβερος Kérberos [kerberos] ), nicknamed Kero by Sakura;

1150-505: A new series in the Cardfight!! Vanguard franchise will begin on April 3, 2021, and will feature character designs by Clamp. The new series will be called Vanguard overDress . In June 2021, it was announced that Clamp will collaborate with Netflix to produce an original anime series based on the Grimms' Fairy Tales , with Wit Studio handling the animation. In March 2024, the series' title

1265-403: A perceptively sweet, extremely energetic and cheerful character who is well-loved, pretty, cheerful, cute and at times naïve, clumsy, and clueless. Sakura is athletically gifted and skilled in sports at school, being an excellent runner and called the "best baton twirler in school" by her friends. She hates math and is openly phasmophobic . Sakura maintains a crush on Yukito Tsukishiro for most of

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1380-407: A protagonist that would attract a female demographic. The current members of Clamp took art-focused classes during their high school. However, Tsubaki Nekoi feels that, aside from basic art skills, drawing manga requires a different skill set; however, none of the group members has worked as an assistant for already established manga artists, and most of their ability is self-taught. Clamp's manga

1495-515: A sample story and sketch for their editor and receiving approval, Ohkawa assigns the roles to each group member and then chooses the visual styles depending on factors such as the complexity of the story, the chosen art style, and its relationship to the group's other works. Ohkawa provides a rough draft for each chapter detailing things such as dialogue, panel size, props, movement, and character's emotions. On average for each chapter that they produce (for Clamp, an average of 20 pages of artwork in

1610-432: A small camera-equipped drone so as not to worry Sakura. Tomoyo is notable for her crafty streak and obsession of documenting every single detail of Sakura's personal life on video as much as possible, much to Sakura's discomfort. When she learns of Sakura's new role as a Cardcaptor, she insists that Sakura must wear "special outfits", is responsible for choreographing Sakura's new action poses and begins providing Sakura with

1725-485: A story as a cohesive group. The group was given another chance at publication should they submit a new story that Shinshokan liked; this time, they submitted RG Veda , which was serialized in Wings magazine. During the time before their official debut, the group moved to Tokyo and rented a small, two-bedroom apartment. Ohkawa stated that she thought she was "gonna die there". Nekoi stated that "the only private space [they] had

1840-626: A sword which he can use to cast spells when equipped with incantation papers. He can also use a device (dubbed a " lasenboard " in the Cardcaptors anime dub), which can detect and direct him to magical entities. A running gag is Kero calling him "kid". Syaoran is voiced by Motoko Kumai in the Japanese version. In the Animax English dub, he is voiced by Candice Moore. In the Nelvana English dub, he

1955-542: A teacher is observed saying: "The name 'Clamp' incorporates the words 'hinge,' as well as 'potato mountain,' within its definition." Clamp originally began in the mid-1980s as an eleven-member dōjinshi circle, to fill a booth vacancy at Dream Comic, a doujin event in Osaka. To fill a vacancy next to Yun Kōga 's CLUB/Y booth, they called themselves CLAMP, since club and clamp both started with kura ( クラ ) in Katakana spelling, and

2070-439: A tree to return a baby bird to its nest, but fell out of the tree, landing on Fujitaka. Upon seeing her, he stated that "an angel has fallen from the sky." They fell in love and married when she was sixteen. Though Nadeshiko died seven years before the start of the series, Fujitaka is shown to still be very much in love with her and devoted to her memory. He keeps a picture of her in the dining room, changing it each morning. Little

2185-504: A twelve-part magazine series entitled Clamp no Kiseki that contained a plethora of information for fans. The August 2004 issue of Newtype USA , a magazine specializing in events of the anime and manga subcultures, reported that the members of Clamp simply wanted to try out new names. In a later interview with Ohkawa, it was revealed that initially Mokona wanted to drop her surname because it sounded too immature for her liking, while Nekoi disliked people mistakenly commenting on her as

2300-523: A unifying tone", and creates "absorbing, complex narratives that appeal to both male and female readers". All these factors result in "a cult following devoted to anything and everything the group publishes". The Anime Encyclopedia authors stated that "whatever Clamp are on, we'd like some". Helen McCarthy in 500 Essential Anime Movies stated that Clamp's works "are among the most successful manga and anime with Western fans". Carly McKillip Carly Maria McKillip (born February 13, 1989)

2415-404: A young age. During the marriage, it is implied that Nadeshiko was at least partially cut off from her family. Sonomi maintains a pixie cut , a hairstyle Nadeshiko loved giving her when they were kids; and has Tomoyo keep her hair long because it reminds her of Nadeshiko. After meeting Sakura for the first time, Sonomi realizes that Nadeshiko had lived a happy life and is able to come to terms with

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2530-401: A young girl. He also split his soul into two reincarnations: Eriol Hiiragizawa , who had all of his memories and magic, and Fujitaka Kinomoto , Sakura's father. In the anime adaptation, Clow does not split his soul, instead passing on his memories, soul and powers to Eriol exclusively. Syaoran Li is also an indirect descendant of Clow's Chinese lineage. In the anime adaptation and the film, he

2645-534: A younger male audience, although their first work published in the Shōnen demographic was Angelic Layer . In 2004, Clamp's 15th anniversary as a manga artist group, the members changed their names from Nanase Ohkawa , Mokona Apapa, Mick Nekoi, and Satsuki Igarashi to Ageha Ohkawa, Mokona , Tsubaki Nekoi and Satsuki Igarashi (her name is pronounced the same, but written with different characters) respectively. To celebrate Clamp's 15th anniversary, Tokyopop released

2760-534: Is Syaoran Li 's cousin and fiancée, and only appears in the anime adaptation of Cardcaptor Sakura . Introduced towards the end of episode 19, she is a very impulsive, bratty, straightforward, clingy, and overconfident girl. As children living in Hong Kong, Meiling and Syaoran trained in martial arts under the tutelage of Wang Wei. One night her pet bird escaped from its cage, and the normally quiet and withdrawn Syaoran told her not to cry, then left. After spending hours in

2875-475: Is Kero calling her "brat." Along with her temporary stay in Tomoeda and being supportive of Syaoran, Meiling also plays a limited role in the story because, unlike Syaoran, she has no magical abilities, relying solely on her physical fighting abilities and a healthy dose of pride. Her lack of powers and tendency to leap before thinking, however, results in her hindering more than helping Syaoran in most battles against

2990-400: Is Sakura's older brother. His birthday is February 29. Though he teases her frequently, he cares a great deal for her and works to protect her. He is fully aware of what she is doing as a Cardcaptor, and regularly takes on several part-time jobs that put him in a position to be nearby when she is working on capturing a card. He is also known for being a chick magnet , a status only reinforced by

3105-514: Is a Canadian actress known for her title role in the television series Alice, I Think . She was occasionally miscredited as Carly McKillup . She also provided the voice of Sakura Avalon , the title character of the Nelvana dubbed anime television series Cardcaptors . McKillip was born in Vancouver , British Columbia . Her father, Tom McKillip, is a record producer, and her mother, Lynda McKillip,

3220-447: Is a songwriter. She has a younger sister named Britt McKillip , who is also an actress. She married Darren Savard, lead guitarist for Dallas Smith, on May 9, 2015. They have a son born on June 29, 2019. Their second son was born a few years later. McKillip played the title role in Alice, I Think , a Canadian television series that aired 2006 on The Comedy Network and CTV . She is also

3335-616: Is also the reason the three girls consider each other "sisters"; another idea that elaborates people being tied together (family cannot be chosen). Clamp also explores the idea of chaste or pure love (as in the manga Chobits ). Clamp's disregard for sex or gender (or at times biological age) in these couples has led them to write same-sex couples into many of their manga in contrast to many other manga artists (for example, Tōya and Yukito in Cardcaptor Sakura ). A number of such couples have been shown together across parallel dimensions in

3450-475: Is artistically gifted, having displayed talents as an amateur fashion designer, beautician, cinematographer, seamstress, choreographer, and vocalist. Tomoyo is shown announcing, performing, or costume designing in various school events. In the anime, her musical ability causes her to be targeted by both the Voice and Song cards. When needed, Tomoyo can exhibit considerable perceptiveness, cunning and resourcefulness, which

3565-572: Is completely removed as is his immunity to Eriol's magic and he is never able to see Nadeshiko's spirit. He is voiced by Hideyuki Tanaka . In the Cardcaptors dub, his name is changed to Aiden Avalon and he is voiced by Brian Drummond . In the Animax dub, he is voiced by Scott Evans. In the English dub of the second movie, he is voiced by Michael McConnohie . In the English dub of the Clear Card arc, Fujitaka

List of Cardcaptor Sakura characters - Misplaced Pages Continue

3680-409: Is distinguished by its diverse visual styles. Their work Clover , for example, is remarkable for its heavy use of negative space . Clamp's works span a wide variety of themes. As opposed to keeping consistent themes across their works or having individual themes for each work, Nanase Ohkawa stated "we come up with a new theme for each story. One thing to say each time." Their works often deal with

3795-468: Is hard-working, highly motivated, compassionate, intelligent, meticulous; giving her a unique air of cultured politeness, deportment, refinement, and etiquette amongst the cast. Tomoyo regularly speaks using more formal verb conjugations and expressions than normally seen in elementary students. She uses 'watakushi', a personal pronoun which, when used outside of formal situations, makes a character seem either "prim and proper," "cultured," or "snobby." Tomoyo

3910-424: Is initially said about Fujitaka's family or past. During the second half of the series, it is revealed that when Clow Reed divided his soul (seeking to no longer be the most powerful magician in the world), he split it into two halves. One of these halves became Eriol Hiiragizawa , holding all of Clow's magic and memories, and the other being Fujitaka, who has no magic of his own, but fathered the one who would inherit

4025-462: Is much less of a brat than she used to be. Even Sakura is amazed to see Meiling speak so politely to Fujitaka, to which Meiling responds, “It’s just good manners,” as if that's how she's always been. Meiling's signature hairstyle is the Chinese niújiǎotóu (牛角头). In the Japanese version of the anime adaptation, Meiling is voiced by Yukana . In the Animax English dub, she is voiced by Sarah Hauser. In

4140-415: Is proven to be really strong as he thinks strongly of her well-being and needs before his own as shown when after Yukito rejects Sakura's feelings, Syaoran comforts her even though Sakura is still unaware about his own romantic feelings towards her. Nearing the end of the series, Syaoran finally confesses his feelings to Sakura, but decides to return to Hong Kong , since Sakura has now become the new master of

4255-460: Is renamed Madison Taylor , she is voiced by Maggie Blue O'Hara , and her elegant speech was replaced with valley girl speech, similar to O'Hara's portrayal of Kitty Pryde in X-Men: Evolution . J.D. Considine of The New York Times called Tomoyo "creepy" and said it was "no wonder" that she had been changed so heavily in the adaptation. Touya Kinomoto ( 木之本 桃矢 , Kinomoto Tōya )

4370-457: Is revealed to the other characters after all of the Clow Cards are collected, and Toya states he knew of Yue's existence all along and was just waiting for Yukito to tell him himself. Shaoran Li , sometimes spelled as Shaoran Li or originally as Xiaolang Li (李小狼 Lǐ Xiǎoláng ; リ・シャオラン Ri Shaoran , or Ri Syaoran ( Kunrei ); Cantonese Jyutping: lei5 siu2 long4 ), is the love interest of

4485-440: Is slow to realize it due to her own feelings for Yukito. Originally, Syaoran appeared smitten with Yukito, but later revealed that the attraction was due to high moon power inside of Yukito. Eventually, in the beginning of the third season, Syaoran finally begins to realize he has deeply fallen in love with Sakura, as he constantly blushes whenever he is around her. In the manga, Syaoran begins to develop feelings for Sakura around

4600-413: Is the appointed guardian of the book which holds the Clow Cards, as well as the series' provider of comic relief. He is one of two magical creatures created by Clow Reed along with the Clow Cards. Before his death, Clow appointed Kero as the one to select the potential candidate to be the next master of the cards, Cerberus himself, and his "brother" and fellow guardian, Yue. After Sakura accidentally releases

4715-406: Is the sorcerer who originally created the Clow Cards, and their magical guardians Cerberus and Yue . Along with Kohaku of Wish , and Yuuko of xxxHolic , he is one of the few Clamp-created characters to appear in more than one work. Born of an English father and a Chinese mother, Clow created a new type of magic that blended both Eastern and Western magical elements. His plan was to hand down

List of Cardcaptor Sakura characters - Misplaced Pages Continue

4830-660: Is voiced by Jason Douglas . Sonomi Daidouji ( 大道寺 園美 , Daidōji Sonomi ) is the mother of titular character Sakura's best friend and cousin Tomoyo Daidouji , the first cousin of Sakura's late mother Nadeshiko Kinomoto and Sakura's aunt. She is rarely seen in the series, but is said to be a wealthy woman and the President of a large toy corporation. She greatly loved her cousin Nadeshiko, and disapproved of her marriage to Fujitaka, later blaming Fujitaka for Nadeshiko's death at

4945-453: Is voiced by Kari Wahlgren . In the English dub of the Clear Card arc, she is voiced by Monica Rial , who reprised her role as Sakura from Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle . In the Nelvana English dub Cardcaptors , she is known as Sakura Avalon , though her given name is repronounced as "Sa-KU-ra" instead of "SA-ku-ra". She is voiced by Carly McKillip . In this version, she is portrayed as

5060-403: Is voiced by Kazuo Hayashi . In the Animax English dub, he is voiced by Darren Pleavin. In Nelvana's English adaptation, Cardcaptors , his given name is repronounced as "klau̇" instead of "klō", and is voiced by Dale Wilson . Clow Reed also appears in two additional CLAMP works, Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle and xxxHolic , where he has another descendant named Fei-Wang Reed and worked with

5175-467: Is voiced by Mona Marshall in the second feature film. In Funimation's English dub of Clear Card , he is voiced by Jason Liebrecht , who reprises his role as Syaoran from Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle . In Cardcaptors , Syaoran's name is listed as Li Showron , and he is voiced by Rhys Huber during the Clow Cards arc and the first movie, and Jordan Kilik in the Sakura Cards arc. He is introduced as

5290-450: Is voiced by Darren Pleavin. In the Cardcaptors dub, his name is spelled Keroberos (based on the Japanese pronunciation of his name), and "Kero" was repronounced as "kirō" instead of "kerō". In this dub, his false form is voiced by Matt Hill with a New York accent, and Richard Newman voices his true form, though the accent is not as distinct. In the second film, he is voiced by Wendee Lee and Dave Wittenberg , in his respective forms. In

5405-809: The Blood: The Last Vampire spin off anime, Blood-C , as they are responsible for designing the characters and providing the story. Ohkawa wrote the scripts with series supervisor, Junichi Fujisaku for both anime series and the sequel movie, Blood-C: The Last Dark . Legal Drug restarted serialization in the same year in Kadokawa Shoten's Young Ace under the new title of Drug and Drop . A new xxxHolic manga titled XXXHOLiC Rei also started serialization in Kodansha's Young Magazine in March 2013. Clamp also provided character design for Studio Deen 's

5520-615: The Cardcaptor Sakura Memorial Book , this was an error caused by one of the finishing artists not being aware that CLAMP intended for Tomoyo to have romantic feelings for Sakura. Later scenes show that Tomoyo recognizes that Toya and Sakura, being brother and sister, have the same ears, and that Tomoyo secretly blushed over Toya because his ears reminded her of Sakura. Instead, she encourages Sakura's love of Yukito, and later becomes Syaoran's confidante and wingman when he begins to fall in love with Sakura. CLAMP stated that

5635-531: The Cardcaptors English adaptation, her name is changed to Samantha Taylor and her declaration of love for Nadeshiko is modified to a purely familiar love rather than a romantic love. Clamp (manga artists) Clamp was first formed in the mid-1980s as an eleven-member group creating dōjinshi (self-published fan works ), and began creating original manga in 1987. By the time the group made its mainstream publishing debut with RG Veda in 1989, it

5750-480: The Greek mythological figure, Cerberus , a large three-headed dog who was assigned to guard the gates of the Greek underworld . In the bilingual Kodansha version of the manga, the name for Cerberus' borrowed form is Cero. In the anime adaptation, his false form is voiced by Aya Hisakawa , while his hidden form is voiced by Masaya Onosaka . In the Animax dub, his false form is voiced by Sarah Hauser, whereas his true form

5865-588: The Taipei International Book Exhibition sponsored by Production I.G that same year. During an interview there, she announced that Clamp would be making its first United States public debut at Anime Expo in July in Anaheim, California co-sponsored by Anime Expo, Del Rey Manga , Funimation and Tokyopop. They were well received at the convention as fans completely filled all 6,000 seats present in

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5980-471: The Clamp multiverse . Although Clamp often writes romantic works, Ohkawa has mentioned that she feels that it is more putting one's life on the line than love that causes women to grow or change. Clamp never features love as a central theme; Ohkawa stated in an interview with Takeshi Oshiguchi in 1997 for Animerica that she is not "good at love stories" since her "idea of a relationship is different from that of

6095-616: The Clow Staff to capture the card spirits and turn them back into cards for her use. Sakura is aided by her best friend and cousin Tomoyo Daidouji, who creates battle costumes for her as well as videotaping her ventures as Cardcaptor; and later by Syaoran Li, a Chinese boy who is a direct descendant of the Clow Cards' creator Clow Reed. The anime also introduced a fourth companion, Meiling Li (sometimes spelled as Meilin Li), Syaoran's cousin. The rest of

6210-518: The Dimensional Witch Yūko Ichihara in arranging the series of events in the former series. Fujitaka Kinomoto ( 木之本 藤隆 , Kinomoto Fujitaka ) is the father of titular character Sakura Kinomoto and her brother Touya Kinomoto. A busy professor of archaeology at Towa University, Fujitaka is a kind and caring father. He met his late wife Nadeshiko while doing his first year as a teacher at her high school. Nadeshiko had climbed

6325-550: The English dub of the Clear Card arc, Kero's false form is voiced by Mikaela Krantz and Kero's true form is voiced by Christopher Sabat . Cerberus appears in Episode 44 of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle in his borrowed form, although in the parallel world he dwells in it appears to be his singular body. Cerberus (using "Kero" as a nickname) guards the Country of Kero, and has a prophetic dream of Syaoran, Sakura, Fai, Kurogane and Mokona,

6440-422: The English dub of the Clear Card arc, Touya is voiced by Clifford Chapin . Yue/Yukito are an independent dissociative personality : Yukito is a "false" persona created to mask Yue's "true" identity. For most of the series, Yue remained in a " state of hibernation "; Yukito is unaware of Yue's existence, though he maintains an enormous appetite for food in an unconscious attempt to give Yue power. Yue's existence

6555-584: The English dub of the second movie, she is voiced by Julie Maddalena . In the English dub of the Clear Card arc, she is voiced by Trina Nishimura . In the English adaptation Cardcaptors , she is known as Meilin Rae and is voiced by Nicole Oliver . Her unrequited engagement with Syaoran was omitted along with the fact that she and Syaoran were cousins. Rather she is portrayed as a long time friend of Syaoran and her romantic feelings toward him were watered down but still evident. Clow Reed ( クロウ・リード , Kurō Rīdo )

6670-536: The Japanese manga series Cardcaptor Sakura, created by CLAMP . A member of the Li clan of sorcerers from Hong Kong, whom are distant relatives of Clow Reed, the creator of the Clow Cards, he initially rivals against Sakura because he believes that he should be the one to inherit the Clow Cards and tries to capture the cards for himself. As the series progresses, however, Syaoran comes to respect Sakura and becomes her friend and ally. He eventually falls in love with her, though she

6785-581: The Sakura cards while making parts of Tomoeda disappear. Eventually at the end of the movie, they manage to defeat the Nothing Card, which becomes the Hope Card and Sakura finally confesses her love for Syaoran and jumps into his arms. Two years later, Syaoran returns to Tomoeda and enrolls at the same middle school as Sakura and most of her friends. However, his true objective is to watch over Sakura and help her with

6900-435: The animated version. In the anime adaptation, the character is voiced by Junko Iwao . In the Animax dub, she is voiced by Sarah Hauser for the first season, and later by Claudia Thompson. In the English dub of Cardcaptor Sakura Movie 2: The Sealed Card , her voice is supplied by Michelle Ruff . In the English dub of the Clear Card arc, Tomoyo is voiced by Natalie Hoover . In the English adaptation Cardcaptors , Tomoyo

7015-458: The anime adaptation of Kabukibu! , which aired in April 2017. Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card began serialization in 2016 with an anime that aired from January to June 2018 on NHK . On October 19, 2020, the official Clamp fans website posted a link to a YouTube video due to start on October 25, 2020. These daily links are each accompanied by a graphic displaying the number of days to go until

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7130-467: The announcement, and a single word. Each word relates to a chapter of Tokyo Babylon from the respectively numbered tankobon volume. This has caused speculation among Clamp's fans that a new Tokyo Babylon related work is due to be announced. On October 25, 2020, at 15:00 UTC (October 26, 2020 at midnight Japan Standard Time), a trailer was released for a new anime adaptation of Tokyo Babylon . The new series, Tokyo Babylon 2021 , will be released and set

7245-563: The auditorium of the focus panel in addition to more on the waiting list. By 2006, Clamp had reportedly sold in excess of 90 million copies of their manga internationally. While Tsubasa ended in October 2009, xxxHolic ended in early 2011. The authors were satisfied with the two manga ending commenting it was difficult to serialize the two interconnected manga at the same time due to Tsubasa ' s focus on action which required them to write side stories for xxxHolic . Clamp collaborated in

7360-559: The booths were sorted according to gojūon order. The original circle included O-Kyon ( お·きょん ) , Sei Nanao ( 七穂せい , Nanao Sei ) , Tamayo Akiyama ( 秋山 たまよ , Akiyama Tamayo ) , Leeza Sei ( 聖りいざ , Sei Riiza ) , Sōshi Hishika ( 日鷺総司 , Hishika Sōshi ) , Kazue Nakamori ( 中森かずえ , Nakamori Kazue ) , and Shinya Ōmi ( 大海神哉 , Ōmi Shin'ya ) . Three of Clamp's artists— Mokona , Tsubaki Nekoi , and Satsuki Igarashi —first began drawing manga when they were teenagers, inspired by friends. The three artists were good friends in

7475-462: The cards, Cerberus chooses her to be the candidate and teaches her the basics of capturing the cards. Throughout the series, he displays an extensive knowledge of mysticism. After Sakura passes the Final Judgment to become the Clow Cards master, Cerberus remains with her as a friend, companion, adviser, and protector when new threats appear. Having spent a lengthy amount of time in the book while it

7590-413: The cards. In the series movie, Cardcaptor Sakura Movie 2: The Sealed Card , he and Meiling return from Hong Kong a few months later to visit. Throughout the movie, Syaoran waits for Sakura to reply to his confession, but as Sakura constantly keeps trying to tell him how she feels, they are repeatedly interrupted. Syaoran and Sakura work together to defeat the Nothing Card that has been secretly stealing

7705-477: The cards. It is stated that Fujitaka has no magical powers of his own, but he is also unaffected by other Clow's magic, such as the Eriol's sleep spell. At the end of the series, Eriol gives half of his magic to Fujitaka. This enables Fujitaka to finally see the spirit of Nadeshiko, who has been watching over her family since her death. In the anime adaptation, Fujitaka's role as the other half of Clow Reed's reincarnation

7820-445: The cards. She challenges The Fight card in episode 20, and was nearly badly wounded and had to be rescued by Syaoran. Recognizing that she was being a burden, Meiling grew upset and lashed out at Syaoran. However, she was then able to be an aid to him while fighting The Twin card, as their years of practicing martial arts together enables them to match the card's synchronized fighting style. In Clear Card episode 13, Meiling matured and

7935-440: The characters are mostly oblivious to Sakura's magical life, aside from her brother Toya who has his own magical powers, and later Eriol Hiiragizawa, who is a reincarnated Clow Reed. The anime was dubbed into English by Nelvana under the title of Cardcaptors , with most of the character names changed to English ones with the exception of Sakura, Meilin, Kero, Mr. Terada, Wang Wei, Ruby Moon, Yue, and Clow Reed. A large number of

8050-402: The characters reappear as alternate selves in Clamp's other series, Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle and xxxHolic . Sakura Kinomoto ( 木之本 さくら , Kinomoto Sakura ) is the heroine of Cardcaptor Sakura, named after the Japanese word for " cherry blossom ". Her most defining character traits are her unyielding determination, caring nature and loyalty to her friends. Sakura is portrayed as

8165-427: The end of the episode, Meiling returns home and is not seen again in the main series. She returns in the second movie, with Syaoran, to see her old friends, but actually secretly came back to help Sakura finally confess her love to Syaoran. Meiling also occasionally appears in the anime adaptation of Clear Card , talking to Sakura on the phone and giving her hints at developing her relationship with Syaoran. A running gag

8280-481: The fact that he never dates or actively shows romantic interest in anyone. He disliked Syaoran and often holds a grudge against him, but deep down he thought to himself that if there was someone Sakura should be with it would be Syaoran. Touya possesses several magical powers, including the ability to see ghosts and other non-humans, the ability to sense when Sakura is in danger, and mild precognition . He has an extremely close relationship with his best friend Yukito ; as

8395-454: The group stopped dōjinshi and began creating original work; it was at this time they began working on RG Veda , a loose adaptation of the Rigveda . Their first collaborative work was entitled "Clamp", which they continued to work on until shortly after their debut. The group debuted as professional manga artists when they decided to print the manga RG Veda , which they had first started as

8510-750: The group's artwork and storytelling style as having "struck a strong chord with male and female manga readers". The group was placed third after the winner for the Shogakukan Manga Award in the Children's category in 1999. Their work Cardcaptor Sakura won the Seiun Award for best manga in 2001. Almost 100 million Clamp tankōbon copies have been sold worldwide as of October 2007. Various of their selling series include xxxHolic and Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle that have sold over eleven million and twenty million volumes, respectively. When asked about

8625-570: The group, with Tsubasa , a series set across multiple dimensions, featuring multiple alternative versions of characters from past works. Clamp are noted as among the most critically and commercially acclaimed manga artists in Japan, and as of 2007, have sold nearly 100 million books worldwide. The name "Clamp" refers to a storage clamp , in the sense of "a bunch of potatoes". This is referenced in Duklyon: Clamp School Defenders , where

8740-456: The loss in vision. Mystery has surrounded the members of Clamp as, in order to avoid being harassed by overzealous fans, they avoid making public appearances. In polls conducted by marketing research firm Oricon , Clamp was elected ninth most popular manga artist from Japan in 2007, while they were eighth in 2008, sharing the spot with Fujiko F. Fujio . Gen Fukunaga , the president and CEO of Funimation , has praised Clamp as being "one of

8855-473: The magic to people who would use and protect it while meeting all of the qualifications. However, few people could learn his brand of magic. The character of Clow is only seen in flashbacks , as he has long been dead before the series starts. Few details are revealed about his character, personality, or life, though multiple characters comment on his eccentricity. He displays a gentle and affable personality in his interactions with his creations. When Clow knew he

8970-523: The male lead in the first episode of the dub (episode 8 of the original anime), and is considered a rival Cardcaptor. He is more abrasive and blunt than in the original anime version. Instead of being infatuated with Yukito, he is shy. He also does not develop a romantic interest in Sakura and is not close to telling her his feelings like he does in episode 69, one episode before the finale. Meiling Li (李莓鈴 Lǐ Méilíng , リ・メイリン Ri Meirin , Cantonese Jyutping: lei5 mui4 ling4 ), sometimes spelled as Meilin Li ,

9085-493: The manga and anime adaptations, Tomoyo admits that she loves Sakura, but Sakura replies innocently, "I love you, too," in the platonic sense. This is emphasized using manga conventions: Tomoyo declares her love against a background of flowers, while Sakura replies against a blank white background. In the manga, some scenes give the appearance that Tomoyo has a crush on Sakura's brother Toya; however, according to Volume 1 of Clamp no Kiseki: The Ultimate Collection , and an interview in

9200-480: The manga and anime, but when she finally confesses to Yukito, she is gently rejected by him. Then, when asked by Sakura, he reveals he has feelings for her big brother, Touya. Eventually, Sakura realizes she is actually in love with Syaoran, but doesn't realize her feelings until he first confesses his love for her. Although she fails to admit her feelings in the final episode, Sakura later manages to finally confess her love to Syaoran when he and Meiling return to visit in

9315-428: The marriage. At times, she still treats Fujitaka as a "rival" competing to love Nadeshiko more, but she also helps him pass on gifts from Sakura to her grandfather and to arrange for Sakura to meet her great-grandfather while on a family vacation. Sonomi shows great affection for Sakura–treating her like her own daughter–and often clears her busy work schedule to join her and Tomoyo whenever Sakura comes over to visit. In

9430-472: The most acclaimed groups of artists in Japan". According to Charles Solomon, a journalist for The New York Times , Clamp "ranks among the most successful creators of manga ... in Japan and the United States". Dallas Middaugh, associate publisher of Del Rey Manga , stated that Clamp was an integral part of "manga explosion" that has been occurring in the United States over the past few years. He also praised

9545-457: The mystery surrounding the Clear Cards. He also keeps contact with Eriol, who instructs him to not interfere until the time is right. Later he reveals to Sakura that he was the one who took away the spirits contained within the Sakura Cards in order to protect herself from her own power, which is growing out of control, thus leading to the creation of the Clear Cards. Despite intending to reveal all

9660-448: The person Syaoran loves. Wanting to keep her promise, Syaoran attempts to tell her that he loves Sakura, but Meiling interrupts and tells him that she knows because he is now calling Sakura by her first name, something he only does for his sisters and her. She releases Syaoran from their promise, then quickly leaves. Meiling spends the night at Tomoyo Daidōji 's house and releases all of her frustration by crying without burdening Syaoran. At

9775-423: The president of Daidōji Toy Company, Sonomi Daidoji (Sakura's aunt), Tomoyo is a person of dignified bearing; svelte, sophisticated, ladylike , who lives a life of wealth and is watched over by a team of female maids and bodyguards. She has access to a variety of state of the art prototype technological gadgets from her mother's company, and supplies Sakura and Cerberus with different mobile devices throughout

9890-528: The promise. In coming to Tokyo, Meiling intends to help Syaoran find and gather the Clow Cards, and actively dislikes Sakura. As the series progresses, Meiling develops a grudging respect for Sakura that turns into a good friendship by the time Meiling returns to Hong Kong in episode 43 by her mother due to unknown reasons. During her initial visit, Meiling seemed to recognize that Syaoran was falling in love with Sakura, but it wasn't until she briefly returned in episode 60 that she acknowledges and accepts Sakura as

10005-486: The protagonists of Tsubasa , arriving in his world and recruits Mokona to climb up a mountain to retrieve one of Sakura's memory feathers which shrinks down the protagonists in size. Aya Hisakawa reprised her role as Cerberus for this character appearance, while Chris Cason provided his English voice. Tomoyo Daidouji ( 大道寺 知世 , Daidōji Tomoyo ) is the best friend and primary assistant of Sakura Kinomoto , and her second cousin on their mother's sides. The daughter of

10120-413: The rain, he returned with the bird and Meiling was both grateful and touched. From that day, she devoted herself to him, eventually declaring that she liked Syaoran above all others and, reasoning that he liked her as well, she declared them to be engaged, much to Syaoran's chagrin. At the same time, she promised that if he found someone he liked more than her, he would tell her and she would release him from

10235-531: The reason that Sakura does not return her friend Tomoyo's feelings is not because Tomoyo is another girl, as Sakura does not consider sex or gender a barrier for her romantic attraction. She simply does not have romantic feelings for Tomoyo in particular. Demonstrating this, Sakura confesses that she has a crush on a female teacher in the series. Although not the actual character, two of Tomoyo's alternate forms make an appearance in Cardcaptor Sakura ' s spiritual successor Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle , three in

10350-481: The same school. They met and befriended Nanase Ohkawa through one of her friends who had bought comics from Mokona. The original group of twelve members began to meet at every event held in Osaka and Kobe, which usually occurred once a month. Before they began creating original work, the group produced dōjinshi of Captain Tsubasa , and yaoi dōjinshi of Saint Seiya and JoJo's Bizarre Adventure . However, in 1987,

10465-411: The schedules for time allotted to each individual work. They do not have any assistants, stating that assistants would slow them down because they would not understand the "years worth of jargon" they created among themselves. Once Ohkawa has conceived a story, the four members of the group gather "to discuss the purpose of the story and its main characters". After the group members become familiar with

10580-437: The second half of the manga and anime, Sakura must use the power of her own star to transform the Clow Cards into Sakura Cards, or else the cards would lose their powers. In the beginning of the Clear Card arc, all the Sakura cards suddenly turn blank, losing their powers and while looking for a way to restore them, Sakura must capture new cards of an unknown origin that started appearing around town. She later learns that Syaoran

10695-476: The series movie, Cardcaptor Sakura Movie 2: The Sealed Card . She becomes the titular Cardcaptor by guardian beast Cerberus after accidentally opening and releasing the Clow Cards from the Clow Book. Aided by Cerberus, her best friend and cousin Tomoyo Daidouji, and later Syaoran, Sakura successfully captures all the cards and is named the new Clow Mistress by the cards' second guardian Yue (Yukito's true form). In

10810-502: The series progresses, it becomes increasingly clear that he is aware that Yukito is Yue's alter ego. To save both Yukito and Yue, Touya becomes a normal human being after he gives all of his magical powers to Yue, making him promise to protect Sakura in his stead as well as himself (and, by extension, Yukito). However, it has been revealed in the last chapter of Clear Card arc that he is gradually regaining his magic and seems to be developing new and greater abilities that he shall reveal when

10925-416: The series. Her most defining character traits is her attentiveness, integrity and selflessness towards Sakura's welfare, and her love of spoiling her friend. Tomoyo is initially comes off as stereotypical "Ojou-san"; a demure, wealthy, upwardly-mobile high-class female stock character , especially one of nobility or gentry ancestry. However, she is depicted as having exceptional emotional maturity. Tomoyo

11040-417: The story in the year 2021. It was to be made by the studio GoHands . The series was to debut in April 2021, but was postponed due to the production team's plagiarism incident. On March 28, 2021, the production committee announced that the series's production was discontinued, and Clamp and the production committee will restart the anime series with a different studio. In January 2021, it was announced that

11155-482: The story, Ohkawa drafts an outline for the story and determines the story's setting. The ending for each story is predetermined. Ohkawa designs many of the characters early in the story's development; frequently appearing guest characters are designed from the beginning whereas minor characters are designed early on. As Ohkawa drafts the outline, the other three members formulate character designs by creating character profile sheets so as to avoid confusion. After drawing

11270-552: The sun, and thus largely self-sustaining, and he is subsequently not as dependent on his master's power to support his life as is Yue. However, his master must have control of the Firey and Earthy cards in order to power his true form, a large- winged mountain lion . In the anime adaptation, the Light card is changed to the Earthy card to delay his obtaining his true form. Cerberus' name is taken from

11385-647: The theme of human fate that relates to Ohkawa's view on life; Ohkawa believes that "fate is something you choose", not a "mystical force manipulating your destiny", and that with determination and resolve, "you can change your fate". Also common is the idea of soulmates , or couples tied together by fate . Syaoran and Sakura (featured in both Cardcaptor Sakura and Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle ) are among Clamp's signature couples that best fits this representation. As also seen in Magic Knight Rayearth , three girls are bound together by fate to save Cephiro. Fate

11500-414: The time is right. In the Japanese anime adaptation, Touya is voiced by Seki Tomokazu . In the English manga his name is spelled "Toya". In the Animax dub, he is voiced by Darren Pleavin for the first season. In the English adaptation Cardcaptors , his name is changed to Tori Avalon and he is voiced by Tony Sampson . In the English dub of the second film, Kirk Thornton takes over the voicing role. In

11615-461: The time of the Erase Card's capture. Once Syaoran realizes his feelings, he tries to admit his love for Sakura several times, but is both too nervous to confess his feelings while also being constantly interrupted. Syaoran also becomes extremely jealous whenever he sees Sakura spending time with Eriol, believing he harbours romantic feelings for Sakura and considers him a rival. Syaoran's love for Sakura

11730-421: The truth to Sakura, Syaoran becomes unable to tell her anything about Akiho or Kaito's involvement due to a spell Kaito placed on him. Syaoran manages to catch several cards by playing a major role in helping Sakura seal them. He is allowed to attempt the final judgment but fails. Syaoran is shown to have similar powers to Sakura, such as sensing Clow Cards and magical auras, is a skilled martial artist, and wields

11845-445: The universal popularity of Clamp's works, John Oppliger of AnimeNation stated that although it is "not based on originality [or] their artistic skill", they possess a distinct style that "perfectly mesh[es] the conventional attributes of shōnen and shōjo manga ". He also pointed out that Clamp often "recycles" characters from their own earlier works, which gave rise to "a loosely defined 'Clamp Universe' that gives much of their work

11960-542: The various "magical girl" protective-costumes she wears during her captures, as well as accompanying her on magical (and non-magical) endeavors to record the events with her video camera. This "art project" seems to serve Tomoyo's personal benefit and enjoyment rather than improving Sakura's performance. But she doesn't let her own desires supersede Sakura's needs and wants; she just wants to help and see Sakura be happy. Tomoyo faithfully assists, keeps Sakura's new identity secret and often covers for her in times of need. In both

12075-407: The work of the characters and backgrounds or have one person draw all the art depending on the story. The three artists try to stay as "close as possible" to Ohkawa's original designs. Ohkawa advises the artists on what colors to use. Although Ohkawa chooses which projects they decide to decline or accept, Satsuki Igarashi decides on the actual time and order the group works on each project, creating

12190-783: The work that the three artists Mokona, Nekoi, and Igarashi enjoyed working on most. In March 1990, Wings began serializing Tokyo Babylon . In December 1990, Monthly Asuka ran Clamp School Detectives , and in May 1992, it began serializing X . Clamp was serialized by many other magazines and publishers including Kobunsha publishing Shirahime-Syo: Snow Goddess Tales on June 10, 1992. In 1993, Clamp released two different manga: in March, Miyuki-chan in Wonderland , which began serializing in Newtype , and in November, Magic Knight Rayearth which

12305-424: Was about to die, he chose his then-unborn descendant Sakura Kinomoto to become the new guardian of the cards and the new master of Yue and Cerberus. Clow's magical ability allowed him to foresee most of the future and plan many of the situations that would enable Sakura to succeed in taking full possession of the Clow Cards. Likewise, he deliberately made the sealing wand pink, reflecting that its future user would be

12420-498: Was in Osaka , Cerberus speaks with a pointed Osakan-accent . He tends to be bossy, demanding, egotistical and gluttonous, but clearly displays his affection for Sakura, especially if she is hurt or in danger. He becomes very fond of video games, and is addicted to sweets. Cerberus spends most of his time in a "temporary" or "false form": a small figure resembling an orange stuffed animal with wings. Unlike Yue, Cerberus' magical powers are like

12535-812: Was most prominently displayed in The Sealed Card film. Because Tomoyo lacks magical powers and athletic abilities, Sakura takes on an active protective responsibility most times when capturing or transforming cards. If Tomoyo is ever in danger (or missing), Sakura will be the one concerned for her most, and her focus changes from that of the Card at hand to prioritize Tomoyo's safety. Fortunately, Sakura has always succeeded and hugs Tomoyo warmly whenever she reunites with her. Starting in Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card , to remove herself from unnecessary danger while documenting Sakura's exploits, Tomoyo has begun using

12650-594: Was originally planned to be a single story rather than a series, although because of good reader response and higher-than-expected sales for its first volume Shinshokan permitted the group to create more volumes, however after each chapter of the manga was released, Shinshokan threatened that it would cease serialization should its popularity fall. In July 1989, Genki Comics began serializing Clamp's second work, Man of Many Faces . Genki Comics began serializing Duklyon: Clamp School Defenders in August 1991, which became

12765-464: Was reduced to seven members; three more members left in 1993, leaving the four current members of the group. Notable works by Clamp include X (1992), Magic Knight Rayearth (1993), Cardcaptor Sakura (1996) and its sequel Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card (2016), Chobits (2000), and xxxHolic and Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle (both 2003). Various series by the group cross-reference each other, and characters reappear in multiple works by

12880-467: Was responsible for the Sakura cards' disappearance in a move to protect her, as her own power had grown too strong for her to control, leading to the creation of the Clear cards. For all Japanese-language productions of the anime (including movies, audio CDs, and video games), Sakura is voiced by Sakura Tange . In the Animax English dub, she is voiced by Andrea Kwan. In the English dub of the second movie , she

12995-459: Was revealed as The Grimm Variations , which was released as a Netflix exclusive in April 2024. The members of Clamp all share a single workplace and as such do not need to arrange specific meetings. Nanase Ohkawa acts as the group's spokesperson, producer-director, and storyboarder. Mokona is the chief character designer, while Igarashi and Nekoi work for the background; however, the three often shuffle their roles. Sometimes, they may split

13110-991: Was serialized in Nakayoshi . Nakayoshi also began to serialize Cardcaptor Sakura in May 1996; Ohkawa, Clamp's leader and storyboarder, particularly enjoyed working on Cardcaptor Sakura because unlike many of her previous works, it wasn't tragic. Kadokawa Shoten published The One I Love on July 17, 1995. Wish first began serializing in Asuka Comics DX in October 1996. In December 1998, Suki: A Like Story began first serializing in Asuka Comics DX, and in January 1999, Angelic Layer first began serializing in Monthly Shōnen Ace . In 2001, Young Magazine began serializing Clamp's Chobits which completed its run in 2002. Although their previous works are targeted at

13225-507: Was under [their] desk." By the time RG Veda debuted, its members had gone down to seven. During the production of the manga RG Veda , O-Kyon had left the group. In June 1990, Nanao officially left the group (last mentioned in Shōten 6 ). Hishika, Nakamori and Ōmi officially left in March 1993 (as mentioned in the Shōten 3). In October 1992, Akiyama and Sei officially left the group. RG Veda

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