Reviews for Cardcaptor Sakura
Back to MangaThere is only one official word that comes to my mind when I think of Cardcaptor Sakura: Beautiful. Everything about it is simply the epitome of beauty. The story, the characters, the art. It's a CLAMP cult classic, and perhaps one of the most famous mangas ever written. You think you know magical girl manga? Well, you haven't seen ANYTHING until you've read Cardcaptor Sakura. As far as your concerned, this is the ultimate magical girl manga. This is what inspired 100's of other artists to rip off the idea. (Oh, and as I usually say, the Cardcaptor Sakura Manga is waaaay better than the anime. Sodon't even think that you shouldn't read the manga series, if you've already seen the show)
Let's get started, shall we then?
Story:
Sakura Kinomoto is a do-good 10 yr old who finds a mysterious book in her father's library entitled " The Clow". Upon opening the book, Sakura discovers that The Clow is in fact not a book, but a container to a host of 19 magical beings who were originally sealed in "Clow Cards". As well as releasing the cards, Sakura also releases the guardian of The Clow, which appears as a plushie like animal with wings, whom Sakura nicknames "Kero". Kero tricks Sakura into becoming the next "Cardcaptor" after sensing that she had magic in her. And so begins the adventure of Cardcaptor Sakura, but collecting the cards is only the beginning.
Art:
CLAMP's art is always breathtakingly beautiful, so it's no exaggeration when I tell you that I have never seen anything more amazing than the art in Cardcaptor Sakura. Some of the designs for the outfits Sakura wheres while "Cardcapting" are so original that it begs the question "where did they come up with this stuff?". CLAMP is truly the best of the best, the creme of the crop.
Characters:
Throughout the manga, one has to just fall in love with Sakura and her optimistic views on life. Her character is developed very well throughout the series, and each volume she starts to look more and more amazing than the last. The Clow Card designs are equally as wonderful to look at, and leaves the reader anticipating what the next one will look like.
Enjoyment&Overall:
If this manga was a person, I would marry it. So yes, to answer the question "If you love it so much, why don't you marry it?", I would. I most definitely and without any hesitance, would.
Cardcaptor Sakura is like a nice batch of fresh-baked cookies, but for your eyes. And what always gets me is that it's not just the art that makes this manga great- it's the fact that it manages to keep a well-thought out plot with plenty of questions and mysteries to keep the reader going.
I truly and from the utmost pit of my heart, suggest that you give this manga a try.
Thanks for reading.
The manga version of the CCS is slightly better than the anime, although I love both versions. CLAMP's artwork for CCS manga is the best in my opinion, the artwork is very fluid and cute looking without feeling saccharine.
One of the best shoujo manga ever! it's got magic, sweet relationships (between kids, still so sweet) and even a little hint to yaoi. but that's fine. it all goes about this young fourth-grade Sakura kinomoto, who finds in her house's basementa abook of cards which she unleashes with her powers and start her journey to gather them, when Kero chan, the guardian, tells her that only she can do so! The type of illustration is so cute, especially Tomoyo's hand-made costumes for Sakura's battles against the card. It's just a warm, sweet manga, that you'd finish before you'd realize!
Cardcaptor Sakura is probably one of my favorite series of all time. The story is about a young girl who awakens a magical book that holds cards created by a magician. With the help of the books guardian, she and her friends collect the cards to save the world from a disaster. Story 9/10: The story is well developed, Sakura evolves as the story progresses. Even though it's centered around an elementary aged protagonist, the flow of the story feels more adult-like. Art 9/10: The characters are expressive, sincere and the scenery is detailed. CLAMP mangakas are very good at expressing the feelings of eachperson and their surroundings.
Character 9/10: The characters are great! Each character is well explained and their feelings are addressed wonderfully. Spoiler*** I really love Sakura & Syaroan as a couple, in fact they are one of my most favorite couples in all the series I've watched or read!
Enjoyment 10/10: I really love this story line. I think it's sweet, exciting and endearing..
Overall 9/10: I'd highly recommend to anyone who likes shoujo man gas...
Sakura Cardcaptor's manga is basically the same anime story told in a somewhat different way. Unlike its animated counterpart, it lacks filler, goes to the point, develops more quickly and explains certain details that the production of the anime decided to discard or modify. Here we have 19 Clow cards as opposed to the 52 of the anime; Meilin does not exist here either. As such, this work have strengths and weaknesses very similar to those found in the anime. Its true strong point are its characters. Sympathetic, adorable, human, through them are explored the different types of affections that can arise in human experience: lovebetween people of different ages, unrequited love, true love, etc. The interactions between the characters and the development of their relationships are one of the most well-worn and fun parts to see in all of history.
Beautifully drawn, CCS have a fine and delicate art with thin lines that manage to give a clean and sweet appearance to the drawing. The detailed expressions of the characters are supported by highlights and background drawings (mainly flowers) that highlight their emotional states, very convenient for a story that mainly talks about feelings.
The plot performs like a standard Maho shojo, but adds elements that make the formula feel pretty fresh. For example, Sakura uses a different costume in each chapter and the spells are conjured through a set of cards that must be captured. The design of the cards and the costumes is very good and exhibits talent and imagination on the part of the authors.
However, as in anime, the plot suffers from certain defects. I will always complain about the lazy way in which the outcome occurs during the Judgment of Yue. And how did not deepen properly in the Clow Cards (being the central aspect of the series). The way in which most of them are trapped is very loose too, without any strategy or anything like that.
The abuse of plot conveniences here is even more notorious than in the anime, especially in the arc of the Sakura Charts. Arch that, in my opinion, was quite unnecessary. However, the manga have a quite different ending to the anime and explains more details about the relationships and plot. It's worth reading if you liked the anime.
To conclude, I want to say that CCS is a beautiful story, whose main theme is human relationships and how love can be displayed in different ways in human experience. However, it could have been better executed and has very important defects that do not allow me to consider it more than an average sleeve.
All in all, it is a true coming-to-age story for young girls with valuable lessons and, above all, it does a better job than a lot of many similar works in dealing with feelings and the human heart.
This is an amazing and classic manga that is great for all ages. Story: The story makes sense, but is a little cheesy. (Not too much.) It is usaully pretty interesting and enjoyable. Art: The story has detailed and beautiful art. Every single little detail has so much effort put into it. Some anime from it's time looks slap-dash, almost like a story board. Characters: Each character has so much depth and thought put into them, even the minor characters. This is a great introduction to Shojo (Magical girl) manga. (To be honest, that's how I got into Shojo.) I have enjoyed it and can't wait to startreading Clear Card.
I really liked this manga. The artwork is pretty good, characters are generally well-developed, Sakura is a great main character and the story is good, even though after the 6th volume it kind of plays for time but it's still pretty enjoyable to read. The development of the romantic subplot between Sakura and Syaoran is a bit far-fetched, I don't like them as a couple, but there's something that bothers me much more than their relationship: there are a lot of pedophile relationships, which is really, really disgusting and creepy. I counted 4 established pedo-couples, but I might be forgeting some. All of those relationships are,sadly, romanticized and shown as a "really sweet thing" and all this wrong stuff you would expect of shoujo stories. The worst of them is the relationship between one of Sakura's classmates (they're like 10 years old in the manga) and a teacher! So, if you want to read this, beware. I don't know if this might be triggering - there's no "action" between any couple at all (not even kisses are shown in the story) but you get the idea the relationships are pretty solid. I also don't have any clue of how those relationships are shown in the anime since I didn't watched it.
There are also a lot of pan/bisexual and homosexual characters, they're all pretty good characters, which I find awesome. I guess this is the serie with most LGBTQ characters I've ever read/watched (but there's no T and the no-gender/queer characters are not human).
Anyway, generally speaking, this serie is pretty good, but there's idealized pedophilia as I mentioned earlier.
Unlike most anime fans I know of, I never grew up watching Cardcaptor Sakura. The English dubbed version of the anime, called Cardcaptors, did air when I was younger, but I stayed the hell away from it. Why? Because I saw one of the commercials and dismissed it as some babyish girly show where the characters would talk about nothing but fashion and boys, be petty and nasty to one another over stupid things, and assumed it was something like Bratz. Yeah, I admit, I was a pretty judgmental kid. To seven/eight year old me, nothing could beat Pokemon and Digimon in my eyes. Overthe years, I started to warm up to the series upon learning more about it, even managing to finally watch the whole anime when I was in college, though I saw the movies before that, and even bought Tokyopop's release of the manga at my local bookstore. In fact, I still have those manga volumes on my shelf to this day, even after other companies put out newer, better prints of it with new translations and everything. Cardcaptor Sakura is considered one of the best children's anime of all time, and one of many manga that put CLAMP on the map in the anime fandom. It's easy to see why, and now, as an adult, I appreciate it a lot more than I did when I was younger. That being said, how does it hold up today in my eyes?
Sakura Kinomoto is a normal ten-year-old girl with a pretty easy life. One day, she finds a mysterious book in her basement, and upon opening it, a slew of magical tarot cards fly out, spreading all across the city. She also accidentally awakens one of the guardians of said book, Cerberus, aka Kero-chan. It turns out the cards she released are called Clow Cards, magical cards created by a famous magician, Clow Reed. Kero tells her that since she released the cards, she has to be the one to stop them from wreaking havoc on the world. With this, Sakura is christened as a cardcaptor, and with her loyal friends by her side, she's determined to collect all the Clow Cards.
Really, what is there to say about CLAMP's art that hasn't been said already? It's luscious and beautiful, and in this case, since CCS is a children's manga, they manage to make the kids look cute without bordering on overly saccharine. The linework is clean and sharp, the backgrounds are packed with detail, the character designs are great, and the fight scenes are all packed with action and effects that really make them pop. I do feel that sometimes the billowy costumes can be a little over the top though, making some panels and frames look busier than they should be. Also, having read Magic Knight Rayearth, which came out before CCS and had thicker lines, sharper eyes for the characters, and the character designs did make the characters have overly long, thin noodle limbs, CCS is noticeably an improvement on that front, with more realistic character designs and nicer looking eyes.
There's also no denying that CLAMP are masters of creating diverse, versatile, and likeable characters that immediately win you over with their charm. Every character, from the main leads to minor characters such as this one group of Sakura's school friends, are all given their time in the limelight, getting equal amounts of development and depth to them, really making the world the series takes place in come alive. One problem I had with Magic Knight Rayearth's manga is that it was moving at such a fast pace that it didn't bother to leave time to show what the characters were like outside of saving the world. CCS remedies that flaw impeccably, as the manga has 12 volumes, giving CLAMP plenty of freedom to balance out the more action packed chapters with ones where the characters just hang out and have fun. My favorite chapters were the ones where Sakura goes to the festival and gets the Glow card and one where she meets a nice old man. That being said, the manga is rather vague in regards to what Kaho Mizuki's deal is, and I wish more had been done with her. Anime fans are probably wondering "Where's Meiling?" Y'know, Syaoran's cousin in the anime. Technically, she doesn't exist in the manga. Meiling is a completely original character made solely for the anime, so she's nowhere to be found in the manga.
Given that this is, indeed, a children's series, CLAMP obviously can't indulge in some of their favorite tropes, like having the series just end with many questions unanswered, or a lot of the things they use in their more teenager-oriented works, such as more detailed violence. Of course, they're self-aware enough that they didn't try to dumb down the story they had for CCS. The premise is still child-friendly, but there's enough intrigue and depth to Sakura's card collecting quest that it never feels like the manga is insulting you for expecting something more from it, offering plenty of worldbuilding and backstory that manages to seamlessly fit into CCS's narrative. That being said, CCS isn't a perfect manga. Like I said earlier, I still think the manga should have done more with the character of Kaho Mizuki. Plus...there is one thing about the manga that might be a potential turn-off for a lot of people. CLAMP has a pretty accepting view of age-gap romances, even ones that would normally be considered creepy and unethical, like Sakura's mother, who married a teacher while she was a 16-year-old high school student (Japan considers 16 the legal age of marriage), with the most egregious one being one of Sakura's friends, a ten year old girl, crushing on a teacher who's in his thirties...and having said teacher actually reciprocate those feelings. Granted, nothing sexual or explicit happens, and the anime changed it to just a one sided crush on the girl's part, but anyone who really doesn't like seeing this stuff at all is going to have a hard time with it, and I honestly have to question why CLAMP put this in at all. Luckily, they seem to have realized how stupid and creepy this was, so when they made the sequel manga Clear Card years later, they cut the teacher character in question out of the story while also having Sakura's friend go to another school, downplaying her role in the story. So for me, while that particular element doesn't exactly sit right with me, I'm glad CLAMP didn't go further with it than they did, and I can at least take comfort in the fact that they addressed the issue later on, so kudos to them.
Overall, this is my more objective analysis of Cardcaptor Sakura as a manga series. But the thing is, one thing that makes me decide whether something will be one of my all-time favorites is whether it really resonates with me, blows me away, and hits me in the feels. So, I pose the question: Did Cardcaptor Sakura resonate with me, to the point that it becomes one of my favorite series? Sadly, the answer is no. This is not me saying CCS is a bad manga. It's very good, and I can absolutely see why it made the impact it did on not only magical girl anime, but anime as a whole. I like it, but I don't necessarily LOVE it, per se. It just didn't really add any extra spices to its storytelling and takes on various magical girl tropes. There are plenty of other anime and manga that I just happen to love a lot more. I guess I would have appreciated it more had I watched it as a kid, or even saw the uncut version earlier, but who can say? That being said, Cardcaptor Sakura is a great manga that I can wholly recommend to anyone looking for something sweet and heartwarming to read without it being too saccharine, and I think it absolutely earned its designation as a beloved classic, as it should.
Overall, a great magical girl series from Clamp. The story is above good, and has a nice balance between action and romance. Outstanding Characters; each of them play a vital role to progress the story and have unique personalities. Clamp has worked real hard to create CCS, as the quality of artwork is outstanding! By general, every readers would praise Sakura's sweet Character/Personality, which simply leaves this series enjoyable to any age group.
I loved this manga, even though I only read 3 volumes. (Well, one. It was the first 3 in one book. I picked it up in the library and I'm glad for it.) It's about a cute little girl, her friend, (I don't want to give away much of the story) her brother, his friend, and another boy. (Oh my god my brain is packed I can't remember their names.) BUTTT Here is a warning for some people. This is not for homophobes. I don't really mind it at all, but if you are STRAIGHT AND ALL MUST BE STRAIGHT Go away. (Okay that was mean.)But there are LOTS of homosexual elements. The main character's friend, I'm pretty sure even her brother and his friend are, too. And of course the other boy. (I PRAY THAT ONE DAYYY I WILLLLL REMEMBER THEIR NAMESSSSS!!!) I was a bit surprised, because in the US we aren't exposed to homosexuality that young. I am guessing that is why it is considered a bit of a joke with 5-9th graders. But I still loved every part of Cardcaptor Sakura.
I loved the art, the story, and the characters in this manga. Because I consider myself a fairly mature person, I was a bit embarrassed to have enjoyed this manga. But it's a-freaking-dorable. If you are tired of your dark and scary mangas (I wasn't. But if you are.) this is perfect.
Story: 9
Art: 10
Character: 9
Enjoyment: 10
Overall: 9
Like putting your heart in the microwave for three minutes and it coming out all fuzzy. A work without cynicism that is so refreshing and joyful to undertake. The manga explores same sex relationships in a profound way that I was not expecting. It’s not blunt but all develops naturally. The romance is balanced with some of the most beautiful art in manga history, very busy but flows with elegance. And Sakura’s outfits ... dat girls got style. Fantastic cast of characters. Short and sweet (60 chapters total I think). Treat yo self. Skip the anime and read the manga - get the author's intent.Theme song is a banger but.
Well, finally I finished another CLAMP manga. This time I will make a review of Card captor Sakura, my first CLAMP series. The story is about Sakura. She has to sealed all Clow Cards. The story is better than anime: there is only a few cards and not a lot than in the anime. Meilin doesnt exist in the manga and is more exciting. The art is impresive. I like it very much. Sakura CC has the best art of all CLAMP series, but not better than magic knight Rayearth. For me thise mangas have the best art, but The review is about Sakura not Magic Knight. Ilike all characters: some of them like Yamazaki made funny moments and i like that. I like how all characters envolve. In the end various charactes change: In mature, feelings etc. Sakura and Shaoran are still my fav CLAMP couples.
I really enjoy the manga. In the future I will read again, but first I want to buy all 12 volumes. You will enjoy this manga: if you like magic girl and CLAMP mangas you will enjoy this.
In overall I put a 9. Why? I really dont like happy endings, Card captor has a happy ending. But do you imagine this manga with a diferent ending?
A classic, a perfect classic which is still deservedfully remembered today! One of the most iconic shoujo manga ever. Absolutely reccomended! Warm and cute but with a lot of emotional moments which will make you teary and smile. Literally adorable, it may seem like a simple mahou shoujo manga - and yet has deep themes of love! Unrequited love, love of different ages*, love of the same gender, etc. Even minor characters like Sakura's classmates have time in the spotlight and get somewhat developed. The art is perfect. Like CLAMP's may actually be my favourite artstyle. They're very very good at expressing emotions and scenery, like youcan feel and experience the characters' emotions. Even if you don't like the shoujo style, you should definitely read it anyway. Because that's subjective, but CLAMP's drawings are objectively perfect.
*that is the only problem of the series, showing teachers in love with students. It's so easily ignorable though that it still deserves a 10 in my opinion, even if it would be better without such moments.
Cardcaptor Sakura feels like opening an enchanted book where every page glows with tenderness, fantasy, and soft emotions. It's a story that gently wraps around your heart, reminding us how beautiful it is to grow up surrounded by magic and love. The relationship between Sakura and Syaoran blooms in the sweetest way: it begins with awkwardness, nerves, and jealousy... and slowly transforms into something pure, warm, and true. You can't help but smile as they blush, support each other, and let their feelings grow page by page. The ending, with their reunion years later, feels like a warm hug after a long wait. A quiet promisethat true love always finds its way.
Of course, not everything is perfect: there are romances that, through a modern lens, can feel uncomfortable —like the affection between a child and her teacher, or the love between cousins. These elements, while portrayed gently in the story, do stand out today. But even with that, Cardcaptor Sakura continues to shine in its own special light.
With its charming magical battles, beautifully designed cards, and a protagonist who is pure kindness in motion, this story is a celebration of first love, friendship, and the magic of being yourself without fear.