Just watching the opening theme of Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card refreshed me. Sakura is a magical girl who isn’t super edgy, a murderer, or about to be horribly betrayed. Her friends are really her friends, mascot pal Kero-chan is on her side, she’s a great girl who happens to be magical and that is that. Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card hearkens back to an innocent pre-Puella Magi Madoka Magica age when magical girls were still made for little girls to enjoy instead of for adults to deconstruct. I appreciate that very much.
It’s sad this has to be said, but I’m also relieved to see that Sakura, who has just entered middle school, isn’t sexualized. Her skirts don’t flare up to show her panties, there are no horrible comments about her underpants and she looks and talks like the little girl she is. I should have known Cardcaptor Sakura wouldn’t go down that route, but there is so much repulsive eroticization of girlhood in anime that its very absence was notable.
Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card lovingly preserves the older style of the first series, from the wide, shining eyes to the adorably dated male hairstyles. There’s not too much of a effort made to catch you up to date if you didn’t see the original series, though, which I didn’t. But it all seems pretty straightforward: there’s a girl and some cards, right? And magic? And a boy in Hong Kong named Syaoran?
There is so much dewy innocence in this sakura-strewn, flower-bordered first episode that it might be overwhelming for those who never watched the first series, but for those who did, I’m sure it’s a welcome return to form. It’s sweet to see Sakura’s reaction to Syaoran’s return, and the nostalgic parade of familiar faces must certainly be a pleasure to fans of the earlier show.
Kero-chan, the famous mascot, is in fine form. I especially enjoyed him banging away at a fighting game using a controller practically his size in the background of Sakura’s sedate phone call with Eriol, but every little bit involving him is cute and entertaining.
After 15 minutes of reacquainting ourselves with our cast, we finally get to the meat of the plot as Sakura meets a strange hooded figure in a beautifully-animated dream sequence. After her dream, she realizes all her Clow Cards have turned clear. She runs over to Yukito’s house, who stuns me by transforming from mild-mannered nerdy gardener into bomb-ass angel with platinum hair. What the hell did I miss in the ‘90s? After a transformation worthy of Kurama, they chat about her dream. Conclusion: they don’t know.
Sakura winds up having another dream featuring the hooded figure atop a mighty dragon’s head, after which she wakes up with a key in her hands. She winds up using this key after being attacked by a mysteriously powerful wind and creates a whole new summoning phrase to unlock its power. At the end of the fight, she ends up holding a clear card in her hand called Gale. End of episode.
Coupled with an absolutely adorable ending theme brimming with spirit and life, Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card is a remarkably appealing achievement that’s sure to please fans of the old series and easily draw in new ones. It airs on Crunchyroll every Saturday at 8:00 p.m. EST here. Will you be watching? Let us know in the comments section below.
