Millennial, Italian. Fandom blog.
Check my pinned post!
CLAMP (CCS is my main) & 90's shoujo manga.
YunaAki & SyaoSaku. Proud Momoist.
In this house Akiho & Kaito are loved unconditionally so if you have a problem with that, steer clear.
Currently celebrating CCS 25th anniversary!
I post translation differences between the ENG and JP versions of the Clear Card chapters with the tag #translation differences (it seems I have CLAMP's blessing for that), and always love to discuss theories & aspects of the story! When CCS is featured I post reports of CLAMP Spaces/Podcasts too. Check my pinned post for an overview of what I do!
Tag for my art: #my fanarts
Personal: @chocomint-love
YunaAki blog: @crystals-and-cosmos
AO3: ChocomintLove
Hello and welcome to my main blog, my little home where I share my love for Cardcaptor Sakura and CLAMP works to the world! ✨
I'm Cinzia, she/her, Italian. Aged in a barrel of hyperfixations and daydreams.
You might wonder, why this blog url if this is mainly a CCS blog?
Well, when I opened this blog more than 10 years ago I was heavily focused on Kaitou Saint Tail, but when I started posting more and more about CCS, at some point I realized it was too late to change url or all the links to the posts I had shared around would become broken.
Regardless! I have closely followed the serialization of Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card ever since it began and my monthly commentary became something more when I realized the official English translation wasn't doing justice (to use an euphemism) to the original Japanese version. My friends and other fans in general were left confused and misguided by the countless translation mistakes (some to the point of changing the plot), so I started pointing them out in my monthly posts.
I also post other kind of stuff, like reports of CLAMP Spaces when they talk about CCS, or long time ago I posted summaries of interviews with the staff of the Clear Card anime. I plan to eventually translate those fully, considering my skills with Japanese language improved since then. But please remember that "English is not my first language" etc etc., so if some sentences sound weird, you already know why.
Now that the manga is over, I post with irregular schedule some in-depth analysis and trivia about the story, examining one topic at a time.
Despite being a CLAMP fan and loving other stories as well, I chose to focus on and dedicate myself to CCS in particular, due to time and limited mental resources.
Thinking about following me? That's great, thank you! ✨
But if there's an idiom I love, it's "good fences make good neighbours", so please make sure to understand what kind of blog you're about to follow.
I consider this my fandom home so additionally to those posts I mentioned above, I also unapologetically post about the ships I love.
I love to analyze, I like to theorize. I don't disguise, I don't tiptoe.
I am a CCS fan born in SyaoSaku, and reborn with YunaAki, with currently a preference for the latter ones.
If you're curious to know what my POV on this pairing is, you can get a very clear idea looking at my #yunaaki and #cosmos & crystals hashtags .
If for any reason that's not ok with you, you're absolutely free to unfollow or even block me. In fact, I encourage you to do so. I'm here on this site to enjoy what I like, not to make anyone miserable.
Unkind asks will be ignored; attempts to "lecture me" about what is acceptable and what not, what I can like and what not will probably be laughed at (I'm old for this stuff, it doesn't work with me).
On the contrary, if you like YunaAki too, you'll be more than welcome here! Send me a message to share our headcanons! ✨
Now that we've cleared that up, here you can find the real reason why I wanted to make this new introductory pinned post: a convenient list with links to all my relevant posts, organized by category!
I will update this list as I add new posts, so always check the date at the top for new additions! 👍
(started at chapter 41 because that's when I got access to ENG scans)
Collected under the hashtag #translation differences .
The first posts might be a bit overzealous, as I was getting the hang of it.
TBA: I have a bigger project for this in the works, an easier way to browse through all the relevant translation differences, divided by chapters and volumes, starting by chapter 1 (even marked by severity).
All about Clear Card, from the most mundane trivia to the deepest thematics presented in it. Collected under the hashtag #clear card trivia .
Clear Card Trivia 1 ~ Literary and musical references/mentions in Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card
Clear Card Trivia 2 ~ Alice in Clockland and its meaning in Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card
Clear Card Trivia 3 ~ Sakura's journey of growth and self-understanding throughout Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card
Clear Card Trivia 4 ~ The most ancient Magicians of Europe, the Magic Association and their role in Clear Card
Clear Card Trivia 5 ~ Real life models of buildings featured in Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card
Clear Card Trivia 6 ~ Handmade crafts, macarons and chocomint: when love takes shape in Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card 🆕
Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card Timeline
An easy-to-read timeline of the events and facts depicted in Clear Card, placed correctly in chronological order inside the bigger Cardcaptor Sakura story.
Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card Timeline
English translations of short stories and Drama CDs
Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card BD vol. 8 one shot
Card Captor Sakura Clear Card Arc - Drama CD part 1
Card Captor Sakura Clear Card Arc - Drama CD part 2
Clear Card manga volume 10 Special Edition bonus - Mini Book
Sakura & Syaoran parallels in CCS and TRC
Discontinued, even though I know there are more. Who knows, maybe one day I'll continue it! Collected under the hashtag #syaosaku parallels .
Reports and in some cases translation of entire chunks of conversation from CLAMP Spaces on Twitter and from their official podcast ("CLAMP's Board of Directors"). These are all the bits relative to CCS/Clear Card and there's lots of insights/production process tidbits on Clear Card.
July 30th, 2021 || September 5th, 2021 || March 27th, 2022 ||
April 4th, 2022 || August 7th, 2022 || October 24th, 2022 || November 8th, 2022 || December 28th, 2022 || January 4th, 2023 || May 5th, 2023 || January 8th, 2024 || January 30th, 2024 || April 1st, 2024 || December 31st, 2024 🆕||
Interviews with the Clear Card anime staff and cast
Highlights and recaps of the interviews released during the period of broadcasting of the Clear Card anime. If you want to know what kind of feelings and ideas Clear Card was made with, as well as the origin of the 25th anniversary project (which turned into Clear Card), check these out.
I plan to translate these entirely, so this list is only temporary, waiting for the complete interviews.
Interview with CCS Clear Card producer Chiyo Kawazoe in Animage 12/2017
Morio Asaka x Sakura Tange interview in Newtype 05/2018
Highlights of Morio Asaka’s interview in the Starter Book
Interview with Yukana (Meiling’s VA) in Animage 06/2018
Interview with Sakura Tange and Motoko Kumai in Animage 07/2018
Interview with Sho Saito (Nakayoshi editor) and Nozomi Matsuura (CCS copyrights manager) in Animedia 07/2023 (full interview)
I actually recommend everyone write for a rarepair once because it completely changes your relationship with fandom. Engagement stops being numbers and starts being names. You know who's going to show up. You recognize usernames. Someone disappears for a while and then comes back and you're like “OH MY GOD WELCOME HOME.” It's incredibly wholesome. It is also deeply inconvenient when all six of you simultaneously get writer's block-
It also forever ruins your relationship with people who enjoy popular ships ESPECIALLY if you find yourself suddenly in a massive fandom.
like if you think a ship that I do believe has over 15,000 works is a RAREPAIR I will personally end your bloodline and destroy all you hold dear. My favorite ship has ELEVEN works on ao3.
New Magic Knight Rayearth anime PV, KV and additional cast/staff announced!
Broadcasting on TV Asahi every Wednesday at 11:45 pm from October 7th!
After looking at this beautiful new key visual and new scenes with additional characters from the new PV, let's give a look at the list of additional cast and staff published on the official website/social media after the panel that was held in Anime Expo 2026 yesterday:
Additional Voice Actors
Clef: Yuki Kaji
Presea: Emiri Kato
Ferio: Yoshitsugu Matsuoka
Staff
Director: Yui Miura (also known as Yui Umemoto, worked on Jujutsu Kaisen, Natsume's book of Friends, Durara and Banana Fish)
Assistant Director: Takayuki Sano (Attack on Titan, Jujutsu Kaisen)
Series Composition: Shigeru Murakoshi (Zombie Land Saga, Dororo, The Seven Deadly Sins)
Designer and mechanic director for the mashin: Hiroki Mutaguchi (several tv series of Gundam, Nanoha, Super Robot Wars OG)
Do you prefer your ship name Yuna D. Kaito and Akiho as YunaAki or KaiAki? Because I see Akiho usually call him Yuna by his last name Kaito more than the name Yuna. Just like Kiyokazu Fujimoto and Kobato, Kobato usually call his last name as Fujimoto, so the ship name should be FujiKoba. Sorry if I mistake you’re not into the couple in Kobato.
Hello and thank you for your ask, anon! 😁
You see, this is a really interesting question because it's a matter I have thought more than once about. I might start by saying that "YunaAki" isn't necessarily my preferred ship name per se, but it's actually the ship name the Japanese CCS fans have a consesus on!
Years ago, when the search tool on Twitter still worked decently, I even made a research about the "origin" of the ship name, and turns out that the earliest mention of that name was by one of my japanese mutuals, no less, whom decided on it because "it sounded better". 😁 There's no deep meaning, just that. From that moment on, all japanese fans somehow have "adopted" that ship name. You can find sparingly some fans who use "KaiAki", I've seen it, but it's usually people who don't dabble in the fandom. And I'll tell you more, there are actually fans who use "AkiYuna" too, especially when referring to scenes or discussions where Akiho is clearly the more "proactive" part of the ship.
Then there's also the fact that we don't know what exactly Kaito's first name is: in all merchandise he's called simply as "Kaito", the characters call him Kaito; the only ones who call him otherwise are the members of the Association, who call him "Yuna D.".
You're right in making reference to how Fujimoto is almost always called by his last name (and the ship name is indeed "FujiBato", at least that's what I've seen the most around - and yes I absolutely love them!!), but I think with Kaito it's a bit different.
Because he's a foreigner but he uses a very clearly japanese name with kanji and all, it's a bit difficult to tell what we should consider as the "first name", and if we consider that it isn't even his true name and it's actually an alias, it doesn't seem like there are set rules for it. In fact, Momo only ever calls him with his full name, "Yuna D. Kaito", as if it were a "codename". I'm pretty certain CLAMP absolutely enjoy this kind of ambiguity - after all, they remained mysterious about his age too.
I've seen this peculiar thing where the Latin American fandom tends to call him "Yuna", while more or less the rest of the international fandom calls him "Kaito". Japanese fans have this habit of calling him "Yuna D." when they're either mad at him or referring to the "darker" side of his character (usually in reference to him being a magician).
So it's a really interesting situation because there is a consesus on a specific term, but it's really up to anyone's taste how they wanna call the ship or even Kaito. I think in order to "recognize" ourselves in the bigger scene of the CCS fandom, YunaAki should definitely be prioritized, though. 💖
Hey there Cinzia! How have you been doing? Busy stuff on my side with my doctoral work but my supervisor is great and actually very kind and accomodative. But yeah the workload!!! I understand Fujitaka more and more every day. I am honestly surprised to hear this stuff about Madhouse and its artists. I thought Madhouse was the more successful of the anime studio crop of Japan. It is so strange but it would also explain why CCS clear card production might be suffering.
Hello Aubretia, what a pleasure to hear from you again!! 🥰
I'm glad to know you have found a nice supervisor, I imagine that must be *crucial* to do your work at best!! Keep doing your best but also make sure to always take care of yourself. 🌸 I'm fine, thanks, just trying to withstand the heat wave that's over Europe right now!
Eeehhh yeah, I suppose you're referring to the post of Hamada-san I made the other day (more like, some weeks ago).
I've been following him for quite some time and yea, I did see him complaining about work stuff lately, he's always been a pretty blunt person with very little qualms, but I didn't imagine the situation was that bad. Yes, Madhouse's name lately was reinstated thanks to Frieren, but it did undergo some rough times in recent years, particularly a scandal about very poor working conditions for the animators. I'm afraid that problem is far from being solved.
Weeks passed and official accounts for CCS keep pretending nothing happened, not a shred of reassurance after the inflammatory insinuations, but the merchandise keep being released like season 2 was about to be announced tomorrow. I dunno, the whole situation kinda makes me mad but I prefer not thinking about it.
Additional cast announced today for the Magic Knight Rayearth remake anime! ✨🥳
Saori Hayami for Emeraude
Yuki Ono for Zagato
Mika Kikuchi returning for Mokona!!!
I am absolutely DELIGHTED to see Saori Hayami (Yor from Spy Family among others) for Emeraude!!
Not only I think her voice is perfect for her, but she's also my fancast for Lilie (when the eventual S2 of Clear Card will come....) so having her finally voicing a CLAMP anime makes me really happy! ☺️🫶
And then....what a happy return for Mika Kikuchi!!! From the Tsubasa days till now, she is definitely the embodiment of Mokona's voice, that is undeniable. And she's still good friends with CLAMP 😁✌️ Can't wait to hear you again, Mika-san!
The serialization started on June 3rd 2016 and ended with the 16th volume released on April 1st 2024.
Happy 10th anniversary to the series that brought Sakura back after 20 years 🌸💖
(pic: the cover of Nakayoshi 07/2016, where chapter 1 was featured)
another great ship dynamic is "characters who are deeply traumatized and haunted by nightmares are finally able to get a peaceful night of sleep in each other's arms"
Kunihiko Hamada, veteran animator at Madhouse for 35 years, announced that he left the animation company at the end of March.
Hamada is famous for giving life to several successful anime adaptations in combination with director Morio Asaka: among them, Nana, Chihayafuru, My Love Story with Yamada-kun at lv999, Ore Monogatari and yes, our beloved (and unlucky) Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card too.
Specifically, Hamada was the character designer for season 1 of Clear Card Arc, and also the Chief Animation Director (the one who's in charge of supervising the compliance with his settei and the eventual corrections). He worked also on the OG Cardcaptor Sakura anime in 1998-2000 as animation director of some episodes.
The story is sad and concerning for several reasons.
First, going by Hamada-san's words, Madhouse didn't try to convince him to stay, and they didn't give him any severance pay either. After 35 years of (very good) service, it sounds absurd.
Severance/retirement pay is a sum that Japanese companies pay when an employee leaves, whether it is for simple departure from the company or because of retirement. Apparently, as otrageous as it sounds, contracts that do not provide a severance/retirement pay are legit in Japan. Basically, in order to give a bit more money to the employee when they start a contract, they do not offer a severance pay but do pay the equivalent amount in the regular check every month. It's like they get that money "in advance" with their regular pay, and not later when they leave. It kind of makes sense like that, but still, after 35 years and such good results, it's grim to think they couldn't even give him a bonus, especially considering the infamous low pay in the animation industry.
He said "they didn't try to make me stay", and considering the bitter posts he made on Twitter lately about the working environment, I can imagine he went to ask for better conditions or he'd leave. Evidently the company just said "farewell". Thankfully, he said he already started anew in a new company.
And now comes the bitter pill for us CLAMP and Cardcaptor Sakura fans. After 3 years of silence since the first announcement (with sporadic mentions from insiders that stopped in 2024), losing the character designer throws an ever darker shadow on this production.
To a fan who mentioned Clear Card S2 in the quotes, and wondered "will the season 2 of Clear Card be okay if Hamada-san leaves, with the production announced 3 years ago?", Hamada himself replied "probably not 😂".
I understand he's bitter right now, but this answer does not do anything good to sedate the fandom worries.
If they had already started to work on the sequel of the anime (which is meant to portray the story till the end), this will surely mess things up and cause more delays (and judging by his reply, it seems to be the case). Knowing the production of Clear Card S2 was on the way, it seems even more absurd they didn't try to make him stay to keep the animation team intact. Ironically, things might be easier if they never started to work on it till now.
But also, this brings in all kinds of new concerns about the quality of the work from now on. Director Asaka and Hamada were called a "golden duo", they worked really well together and gave life to several successful anime adaptations. Hamada knew Cardcaptor Sakura and its production well ever since the old anime, he understood fully the spirit of the series. He represented stability. With half of that duo gone, the equilibrium and reassurance that we'd get a good work becomes precarious. I don't want to say that whomever will fill his shoes won't do a good job, but it does leave me worried until we find out more reassuring news.
It is a sad story that's making the rounds on twitter. Probably the truth is in the middle. We don't know the other side of the argument and what else happened. All I know is I'm just really sad and *concerned*.
hello 😊 I really love seeing all your posts about ccs they’re always so interesting and fun to read! I was curious to know what you thought of other clamp works and which are your favorite!
Hi anon! 😁
Thank you so much for reading my CCS posts 🥰 it always makes me so happy to know that people actually read and enjoy them!! 🌸
Oooh, let's see...I should probably start by saying I haven't read all of CLAMP's stories, for a variety of reasons, but I promised myself that this year, in a period where my CCS brainrot isn't festering all of my braincells, I will gradually fill my gaps 😉However, I do know more or less what every story talks about.
Contrarily to what people might think, my very first CLAMP manga wasn't CCS, but actually Magic Knight Rayearth! I was so little when I first came across the ad on the back on one of the italian Sailor Moon issues, I didn't even know exactly what 'manga' was, it was an era when it all counted as "cartoons" or "comics"...I thought they were more Sailor Scouts, LOL
When I actually got into the manga, I remember I loved it very much. The three girls started appearing among my daily Sailor Moon drawings (drawings that I'm trying to desperately retrieve) and the (heavily censored in Italy) anime consolidated my love for it. But I need to re-read it before the new anime comes out because I remember just the basic things (and that I hated the way things ended for Hikaru, lol, my 12 year old self thought she was being irritatingly indecisive with her love interest hahah).
Shortly after MKR, Cardcaptor Sakura started appearing in the italian manga/anime scene and I remember when I first saw the mention in an article I was a bit unfazed (typical me, I'm always a bit skeptical about new things), but when I started it (I don't remember exactly if I started by the anime that was airing on TV or the manga, they were ongoing at the same time) it was a powerful love that lasts even today, almost 30 years later. 🥰
As for X, I have a conflicting relationship with it, hahah. My best friend at the time was collecting the volumes and lending them to me (we used to do this with lots of manga to save money), but I remember I had to interrupt the reading because the story, the gore just wasn't for me. I was probably too young to read it and understand it properly. The fact is that all these years, for some reason, I never had the "urge" or enough interest to pick it up again. I want to, of course, I have all the volumes in my bookcase (they're my husband's!), I just have to reach out and try to see if I'll reconcile with this story. There are external factors that "ruined" a bit the perception I have of it, but we'll see.
In the last years I picked up and finished Chobits, which I hadn't read at the time of its publication in Italy (right after Cardcaptor Sakura) because I got mad at CLAMP for selling themselves to the ecchi genre, HAHAAHA! 😂 As a matter of fact, along the years I learned from online friends that it was so much more than that, so lately I overcame my reluctance and tried it. I have to admit it was a bit difficult for me to look at some more "risqué" parts (I am an aspec person, after all), and some things in the finale didn't sit right with me, but all in all I can say I enjoyed the ride (and funnily enough, lots of the things that were said in this manga resonated with me as a woman on the asexual spectrum, so it's very dear to me).
As for Tsubasa and Holic, they were the very first manga I could follow the serialization of, in real time! It was revolutionary for me, being so used to read stories volume by volume only after they were published in italian...and back then it wasn't like today at all, the CLAMP community of that era owes it all to the heroes who bought and scanned week after week the big Shonen Magazine/Young Magazine issues, and to the dedicated translators (my level of Japanese wasn't anywhere good to read comfortably, yet).
Long story short, I absolutely loved Tsubasa. I was super happy when I found out that CLAMP was releasing a manga with Sakura and Syaoran again (I realized around chapter 20, I think?), even if it wasn't CCS, and I have to say that I held tight onto the story even after the shocking plot twist halfway through (I didn't expect it to become so...so...grim).
Holic, on the other hand - and I know I'm gonna be an heretic for some - never really got me interested to those levels. I'm not a fan of paranormal, or that kind of vibe, so I mostly held onto it for Watanuki's story and the way it intertwined with Tsubasa, but I'm very "lukewarm" about it. Even now, I'm following Rei every two weeks, but 80% of the reason is because Momo is in it, I'm not ashamed to admit it. If she weren't, I would've probably waited for some volumes to be out before reading them in bulk (as I said, I don't dislike it, I do like it, but that's about it).
Last (but not least), Kobato!! Oh, I absolutely LOVED Kobato, both the anime and the manga. It's the CLAMP manga, aside from CCS and Tsubasa, that I've re-read the most. It made me cry so fucking much towards the end!! Maybe because the protagonists were "older", but I found that CLAMP pushed on the romantic aspect even more than CCS. Also, the characters seem more "raw" and unbridled with their emotions, so maybe that's why it had such an emotional impact on me.
All the other CLAMP manga are part of the "gaps" I need for fill 😂 I have bought Angelic Layer and Clover recently (the latter, in Japanese, to savor the peculiar paneling in the way it was conceived) so I just need to sit down and start them. The rest will come along the way.
If I had to choose a favorite one aside from CCS, well, I'd say it's a tough battle between Tsubasa and Kobato.
Yes, Tsubasa is CLAMP's masterpiece, it's "huge" in its ambitious goal of reuniting most of the characters CLAMP created, giving them a new epic story, but I'd lie to myself if I tried to deny how emotional Kobato made me. And to me, that's very important in a story.
Yes, Tsubasa made me emotional too, and everytime I've re-read it I discovered something new, but Kobato gets very close, and it's an appreciation I built over time - when it was serializing I wasn't so "in love" with it like now, probably because (like with many other CLAMP manga), you need to re-read it from top to bottom when it's over to let the narrative unleash its true emotional power.
And that's pretty much it!
Thank you for your ask, Anon, I don't think I've ever talked about this topic before 😁
Clear Card Trivia 6 ~ Handmade crafts, macarons and chocomint: when love takes shape in Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card
Hello and welcome back to my column dedicated to exploring Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card Arc far and wide!!!
Wow, it's been a long time, isn't it? In the previous "episode", I focused on a research of all the real life buldings featured in this arc (if you haven't read it yet: here), but this time we go back to analyze the story and its precious messages, something that I love to do so much.
And this particular topic that I'm going to unravel today is something that was long, long overdue, in my opinion.
I've been wanting to write this post for years, especially after stumbling on certain criticism of the story, and I waited for it to be over to delve into it: I think many of you might have read around that Clear Card wasted too much time on "food", sometimes being called "a cooking manga", when probably people wanted to see more wands swirling in the air and more lips kissing, I don't know.
Which, of course, everyone is entitled to — what didn't sit right with me was that more often than not this element of the story was dismissed as a waste of time, as an unnecessary dilution of the plot, and generally CLAMP were heavily criticized for it.
Since I don't think those women do anything "for the hell of it" in their stories, but everything is actually carefully thought and arranged (yes, even the apparently useless comedy moments have a very specific role in the overall story), I feel like we should delve into this matter to "unearth" and grasp the actual depth and importance that's hidden not only in food, but in ALL the handmade things of this story.
✨So buckle up, and follow me under the cut! ✨
A Caleidoscope of Ways to Portray Love
Food and handmade crafts are a huge, overarching theme in a story where the portrayal of love is handled carefully, in order to avoid crossing certain boundaries that CLAMP have posed themselves for this series ever since the OG manga.
When you cannot convey a concept with a more traditional portrayal that's more typical of stories with older characters for older demographics, that's where creativity "enters the chat" and designates other seemigly unrelated elements as "the vessels" of those concepts.
That's why I would like to open a little digression right at the beginning, before delving straight into the core topic of food.
Love in CCS is consistently portrayed through means that defy the most traditional representations of love in shoujo manga.
We don't get kisses, hugs are carefully reserved for impactful scenes (so you can savor them more), hand holding is rare too and sometimes the lack of skinship itself shows strong evidence of the love that the characters feel for one another (I think about Syaoran and Sakura promising to not lose one another just because they can't touch, or Kaito's hand that subconsciously went towards Akiho, which he forced still everytime).
As an adult who's an aspec person too, I have to say that this aspect is probably what draws me to CCS even today: the fact that it is a series that talks so much about love in all of its forms, and yet uses very little physical love to bring its point home.
The peculiar representation of love in CCS is not only relative to visual representation, but also at a lexical and semantic level, so much that we could say CCS got its own language to express love.
I think all of you know by now that "my most important person" in CCS is simply a turn of phrase for "the person I'm in love with".
And this goes for all characters, children and young adults alike.
Including the OG arcs, you almost never hear the characters spell out verbs like aisuru, koisuru — this is because these verbs are loaded with nuances that are more suitable for characters older than the age Sakura & co. are. And since the whole Cardcaptor Sakura story is seen through the lenses of Sakura's point of view, all the characters respect the same "rule".
When Sakura or others need to express their love for someone, they prefer the adjective 大切 taisetsu (precious, important), sometimes in combination with 想う (omou, lit. to think, but this form with this particular kanji is loaded with a connotation of "I think about someone with deep feelings attached").
This expression is used multiple times to indicate love, like when Yelan talks to Syaoran (in the Mini Book that came with volume 10) in relation to Sakura, or when Sakura yells at the dragon that she realized he cherishes Akiho in return during the Clear Card climax, or even when Nadeshiko is talking to Fujitaka in the Short Story n. 5.
From this arc we also have the introduction of another phrase that's been used particularly in the "Clockland arc", which is "special person", used to indicate the love interest when other close and important people are mentioned in the same phrase. It is interchangeable with "most important person".
During Clear Card Arc, the word 好き suki (lit. like, love) seems to be quite restricted. It is sparingly used in the first half of the arc, one notable mention is the interaction between Lilie and little Kaito in their flashbacks of chapter 41 and 60, when Lilie draws the correlation between "liking/loving something" (like a food) and "liking/loving someone", which was admittedly a very clever way due to the ambiguity of the word itself. But then, after that, it basically "disappears" to make room for the other types of expressions mentioned above.
I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that CCS, in a very CLAMP way, brought forward a challenge to portray and talk about love, without actually using any of the quintessential elements. It's like they posed themselves the question "can we sucessfully and satisfactorily convey the depth of the character's love without resorting to the classic, overused tropes of the genre?".
And believe me, they tried to answer to that question in more ways than you can imagine.
Everything, every single detail in CCS speaks of love.
Sometimes the more direct approach isn't the best one.
Sometimes the soft, gentle, subtle way is more effective because it has the potential to pervade every aspect of the story and linger longer, hence having a long-lasting impact.
And maybe that's why some people are left confused, or unsatisfied by the portrayal of romance in this arc. We are called to challenge our traditional understanding of romantic tropes and find love elsewhere. Not in kisses and hugs, but in words and gestures. Like making something with your own hands for your loved one.
The Importance of Something Handmade
After this long premise, I will finally delve into the major topic of this Trivia post, by sharing some pictures taken from my personal copy of the All In One Book from the Cardcaptor Sakura Exhibition, held in 2018 in Roppongi Hills, Tokyo.
I do so because the exhibition had very nice panels shaped like magic books, and each of them focused on a specific topic that characterizes CCS: one of them was about, you guessed it, handmade things.
Just like all the other panels, this one featured a text that delved into the thematic of handmade crafts and food, and said text was duly transcribed on the relative section of the All in One Book.
"Handmade teddy bears, pencases, homemade bento, or beef stew: a multitude of items made by hand appear constantly in the daily life of Sakura and her friends. The world of Cardcaptor Sakura depicts the crafting process, the interactions occurring in the moment of giving those items to an important person, as well as all the emotional nuances of that moment.
Enjoying handmaking things by using your preferred materials and methods, as well as giving little gifts to close people in everyday's life have gained popularity in the last years and became part of the Japanese culture. Sakura gently shows us the charm of living a life where you can enjoy handmade things."
Each area of the exhibition was accompanied by an audio guide that further explored the topic at hand: you could hear the actual voices of Sakura, Kero, Yue and Syaoran talking with eachother and commenting various things. Above you can see a transcription of the audio guides that were active in the Handmade Things area (the relative panel was called "Gifts"). I think this is the part where the true essence of handmade food and crafts really is spelled out for everyone to reflect on. Taking an excerpt of Sakura and Syaoran's conversation, in fact they say:
Sakura: Ehehe, you gave me lots of things too, like the chocolate on Valentine's Day. I feel like handmade things can convey the feelings of the person who made them.
Syaoran: I think so too. I used to cook only for myself, but now I have so much fun cooking something for you, too.
It's all there: the planning, the designing, the process, the trial-and-error, the actual effort put into making something with your own hands shows just how much you value the person you're giving it to. Instead of buying something ready-made, something that's not customized, you can give something unique that shows your feelings (not exclusively of romantic love) for that person.
Yue explains it further in his own guide from the last half of the exhibition period:
"To my master, cooking or handmade accessories are probably like a precious magic spell that can convey her feelings to the person she's giving them to. Although, my master isn't really skilled with handmade things. She's nothing like Clow Reed, who could do anything with ease. And yet...I think there's surely a meaning in pouring your heart into something through repeated trial and error. ...Human beings are such interesting creatures."
The actual value of handmade things is really easy to understand once put in perspective like this: we're still talking about the story of a girl who goes through the last years of elementary school, right into her first year of middle school — she's literally starting to understand and deal with complex feelings and experiences that sometimes can be hard to put into words. Then, what's better than giving shape to those feelings in other ways?
Back in the OG series, we had several handmade elements used in that way: Valentine's Day chocolate, the White Day presents, the yukata Sakura sewed (helped by her father) to thank Syaoran, the scarf in the anime, and last but not least, the ultimate embodiment of Sakura and Syaoran's feelings for one another: the two teddy bears.
And how can we not mention another huge example — all the costumes Tomoyo makes with her own blessed hands, for Sakura and her loved one? I always say that Tomoyo's costumes are her own personal way to be with Sakura. To wrap her, hug her, protect her in her love through something she crafted with her own hands.
Clear Card Arc, on the other hand, continued the tradition of "handmade stuff" and (excluding the matter of the outfits that Akiho and Sakura were supposed to sew for Kaito and Syaoran, which got "lost" along the way) focused on food, to differentiate a bit from the OG arcs. And so, when we see Sakura practicing with tamagoyaki (egg rolls), particularly in the Clear Card anime, or when we see her bringing macarons to school to her friends (at which, admittedly, my eyes got wide like saucers because they're so damn hard to make, are those at a middle schooler's level??😂😂😂), or when we get half a chapter about making a no-bake cheesecake with Tomoyo, or cooking beef stew for Akiho....we shouldn't think "omg this is a cooking show", we should read beyond (ALWAYS go beyond, with CLAMP) what's appearing at a superficial level on the pages: Sakura is simply expressing her love for her friends, and that portrayal is so important that the story wants you to see the process, the "delivery" and all the heartwarming interactions that stem from them.
Food as a Vessel to Convey Multiple Messages
And since Clear Card shines the spotlight on food, it is interesting to point out its versatility, considering that it is used to carry many other aspects of the narrative, in this arc.
It is sometimes used not only as a way to convey feelings, but also as an occasion to bond and create a "bridge" between people. One of the most striking examples is the scene where Sakura invites Akiho home to have dinner together, since she's all alone. She didn't invite Tomoyo or Syaoran, but Akiho. Why?
We really need to push that jealousy aside and start considering that Akiho was the new classmate, away from ""home"" (yeah we later found out that was for the best): she surely must have felt a bit "lost" and Sakura strived hard since day one to make her feel like Tomoeda could be her home, too. And what's better than inviting said new friend over for a dinner? To make her feel a bit of that familiar warmth?
The chance turned into a further moment of bonding when the girls found out that...they both hated konnyaku!!
In this case, even disliking a common food can become a way to create bonds between...birds of a feather! 😂
Sometimes, instead, the dislike of a particular food becomes a precious chance to get some character development and growth.
Having differences with your loved one is only normal, and there's nothing wrong in having each your own preferences. But that, admittedly, creates a point in your relationship where you don't see eye to eye, and you can't enjoy that thing together.
And the couples in CCS aren't exempt from having differences too:
some of the characters decide to overcome their dislike of that particular food that their loved one adores so much, so they can enjoy it together and create many other lovely memories together. This is the moment where food is used as a tool for character growth: "I don't really like this thing, but you love it so much. Seeing you enjoying it makes me want to try to overcome this dislike I have, to see if I can enjoy it and bond even more with you". Beware, it is not used as a "brainwash" type of thing where the person changes completely tastes and personality to fit the ones of their lover: the characters still dislike that thing. They only tolerate it when it comes from their beloved or they eat it together with them (because power of love, you know? 😉).
In chapter 62, Akiho says she wants to try to overcome her dislike of konnyaku because Kaito likes it. ✨ She feels like it is a wonderful thing to have the person you love eating something you made, and on top of that, how you both learn to like the same things.
Lilie's husband hated not only chocomint, but all sweets in general: after falling in love with Lilie and receiving handmade sweets from her, he learned to appreciate them, chocomint included. ❤️
The same happens to Syaoran in chapter 62: he wants to eat anything that Sakura makes so badly, that he's ok with trying even some chocomint macarons she made. Needless to say, it doesn't taste that bad, if it's Sakura the one making it!
And even Kaito, another chocomint hater ever since he was a kid, seems to have overcome his dislike of the divisive flavor, since in the Special Chapter at the end of the story he announces to Akiho they will have chocomint ice cream for dessert later that day (seemingly, to eat it together).
And this leads me to delve into another funny matter: what's with all the chocomint???
The Matter of the Chocomint
Ah, the matter of the chocomint. How many people I've seen along the years wondering in puzzlement about the "big deal" that the characters seemingly were making about this peculiar flavor of food? 😂
I know the matter might seem trivial and "random", but yes, as you might have imagined if you've read this far, there's much more behind chocomint too.
Let's start by what CLAMP themselves said during the CLAMP Space of April 1st, 2024 -- this is an excerpt taken from my own report :
As you can see, chocomint is described by Ohkawa as a divisive food: you either love it or hate it. But the people who love it really do consume it with a passion, in this series (Lilie is quite obsessed with it, Akiho is second only to her and Sakura herself is quite fond of it too), so much that I can imagine their loved ones looking at them and be...completely bewitched by the expression of happiness on their faces! 😆 That's something that makes you want to try to overcome your distaste, to enjoy something together, as we said before.
Chocomint itself is a very popular kind of flavor in Japan, so much that there's this term, チョコミン党 (a pun on the combination of the words "chocomint" and "faction") that indicates the fans of its taste, again reflecting the fact that it's a divisive flavor (hence the word "faction").
The characters themselves are self-reporting as being part of the "chocomint faction" in the series.
And...if the fact that it's "divisive" is so relevant, judging by Ohkawa's words...couldn't we just draw a parallel between how this flavor creates factions, "walls", and the walls that prevented many characters from communicating, understanding one another, and caused a variable range of concern (if not straight up worry) in their loved ones? Basically, one of the major issues that gave them an opportunity for more character growth?
I'm thinking about how Syaoran couldn't tell Sakura he was the one taking the Sakura Cards away in the beginning, and refused to explain to his girlfriend the situation with her powers, afraid of what that could trigger. Or the way Kaito kept hiding from Akiho his deteriorating health condition to avoid worrying her, only to end up stressing Akiho even further because the girl could clearly see everything behind his smiles.
Or how Sakura herself kept bottling up her feelings for half the series.
Or how several other characters acted in their own way, keeping others in the dark.
All this miscommunication, all these misbehaviors created division, created a wall between loved ones. And the idea of turning chocomint into an embodiment of that division works really well, because all the characters, in the end (at various degrees and each with their different process) learn how to overcome that "wall" and achieve a better understanding and deepen their bonds with their loved ones — just like trying chocomint for the sake of their loved one did. It carries this general idea of "what was divided before is now reunited".
Hell, even the way Kaito kept himself always quite alienated from Sakura's group and acted sometimes as an opponent could be seen as that. And now, all matters cleared up, he's thankfully part of the big CCS family too.
And while we're talking about Kaito and chocomint, this gives me the perfect opportunity to switch to the last consideration over this topic, another deeper use that CLAMP made of food to convey something that sometimes is hardly visible to the eye: someone's mental wellbeing.
Kaito's Complex Relationship With Food and the Signs of His Trauma
Food is such a favorite narrative tool in this story, that CLAMP also employed it to convey a much more serious matter.
Throughout the story and the small flashbacks of Kaito's childhood, we are told multiple times of his peculiar relationship with food.
We are told by Momo that "everything used to taste the same, to you" (chapter 39), or that he never once cooked in his life till he was tasked to accompany Akiho in her travels (Drama CD n. 2), to which he replied "there wasn't any need for it". Not "I was too young", or "no one taught me", especially because for a child with his magical powers that couldn't have been an impediment. "There wasn't any need for it".
During their first meeting, we're shown how Lilie is suprised to find him eating a Calorie Mate bar for lunch, instead of having a proper meal. Now, a Calorie Mate is surely designed as a substitute of a complete meal, supplying vitamins and minerals, but its use is more intended like an "emergency food", for when you're in a hurry. And it isn't exactly popular for being particularly delectable, so to speak.
Although surprised, it is important to point out that Lilie doesn't shame him for the choice of food, but actually poses the only question that matters: "does it taste good (to you)?". Even if it's a questionable choice for lunch, if the person likes it, there's nothing wrong with it.
But little Kaito's answer is something that always chilled me to the bone: "Not particularly. But as long as it keeps the pangs of hunger at bay..."
Now, all these behavior might seem like "funny quirks", when you read the story at a superficial level. But upon a more careful reading, when you take into consideration Kaito's whole background, and the situation he grew up in, they suddenly become an alarming symptom of the poor condition he's living in, affecting his psychological development as well.
Food, in this story, is very clearly portrayed as a vessel for joy and happiness. It is, after all, an effect that's rooted in neuroscience: good tasting food triggers the brain's reward system, releasing dopamine and serotonin, giving a sense of pleasure and satisfaction. It is how our nervous system normally responds to these kind of stimuli.
But there are circumstances where this response is lacking: among the most common causes, there are mental health conditions and trauma.
Kaito's childhood has been nothing short of bleak: separated from his parents before even having a conscience of his own, all he could ever remember was being alone. Living in a circle of strangers who looked at his magic with fear, he's literally recruited like a child soldier by a congregation of criminals, with the only goal of exploiting his astounding magical powers. Lacking love, nurture and warmth in those crucial and delicate years of his upbringing, little Kaito's response to the offer is dull and half-hearted like everything he will do from there on, until Akiho enters his life: "I don't feel like going, but I don't even feel like opposing it". He doesn't wish for anything neither in positive (wanting) nor in negative (refusing), so he just literally lets things happen to him. Even when they order him to use time magic at expense of his lifespan, he doesn't refuse. He already shows a frightening apathy at such young age.
Momo is very clear about this aspect, in chapter 39, while talking to herself: "For a boy like you, who never wished for anything at all, something must have changed in you, that day when you made your decision".
Before we see him with Akiho, his expression is always rather blank. In the story, CLAMP really try to tell us with all the elements they can use that this child is not okay, that something had destroyed, or rather, didn't allow for a healthy mental state to take root in him. His emotional development is completely stunted.
And along with the disinterest for pretty much everything (human connections included), he also shows clearly a significant disinterest in food. There's this line he says in the flashback of chapter 31, while the Association is having a boring meeting, that always left me feeling rather perplexed: "I'm getting a feeling like....I'm hungry right now".
I kid you not, in Japanese it is phrased in this way, and it always struck me with how weird it was. I remember discussing it with Japanese fans, as they found it peculiar too, because it's phrased as if he's not even sure of how his body is behaving in that moment. It's like he's saying "I recognize the grumbling, so it must mean my stomach is empty and therefore I have to fill it if I want it to stop doing so". It is a very, very detached way to express the simple feeling of hunger. And what he says after is even more detached: "I wonder if I have some solid food left".
"Solid food". He isn't thinking of a particular food, or doesn't crave anything in particular: anything, as long as it's solid and fills his stomach (remember his reply to Lilie with the Calorie Mate?) is fine to him. Even if it's barely edible. Food is only seen as a means to survival.
The disinterest, the complete inability to perceive food as something that can give him satisfaction is just one symptom of his general state.
Lack of pleasure from eating food, lack of motivation, lack of interest in any activity as well as lack of interest in human connections are all expressions of what's clinically called anhedonia.
Now, to avoid any misunderstanding because of previous experiences, particularly on this website: I'm not saying that CLAMP tried to depict consciously or in detail what a person suffering from anhedonia looks like, nor I'm claiming they ever said it was their intention. I'm only saying that all the behaviors Kaito is showing in this story overlap for a good 80% to those who experience anhedonia, and if you look at his background, it's heartbreaking to realize how the cause is easy to see.
If PTSD or depression are listed among the major underlying causes for anhedonia, it's easy to recognize how Kaito might have been suffering from those because of the environment he grew up and lived in.
Lilie knew all of this. She didn't pose the question about the Calorie Mate aimlessly or randomly. She knew what Kaito was going through, she knew his nature, she knew what he would represent in her daughter's life, what an irreplaceable existence he would become in the future. And if she could help even a little for both of their happiness, she had to try.
And that's why you see her strenously trying, through relentless and stubborn attempts, to get Kaito to taste her favorite food.
To cause a change in him. To shake him, to spark a reaction. Even a negative one (like he had with chocomint), it didn't matter, as long as she could cause in him a reaction that would help him realize that food wasn't just "a solid thing he put in his stomach to sedate the hunger", but it could also make him feel something at an emotional level.
If she could help him finally recognize a food as "disgusting" (as opposed to "everything tastes the same"), her biggest hope was that she could also help him find a food he loved. And from there, with the flashback we see in chapter 41, she hoped to bring him to the next step: learning how a delicious food makes you feel inside would hopefully serve him as a guide to recognize how he would feel once he'd found the person he loved the most.
Her words, in the last flashback we see of Lilie with little Kaito, are very clear once you have the whole picture: "I might not be able to search for the thing you love along with you. But surely there is, out there, something you will love that will be only yours. And it will be waiting for you to realize it." She knew her time on this Earth was about to end, and she was probably aware she wouldn't be able to see her attempts come to fruition.
Her entire goal, with the whole "I hope to make you find a food you love", was to teach him to recognize how he would feel once he had established a bond with Akiho. The same warmth, the same tingling, the same feeling of contentment. And hopefully, from there, saving his life and her daughter's true happiness. Because it's only when Kaito finally realizes that he also cherishes Akiho, after her tearful love declaration, that he gets outside of the fake moon, and then agrees to let Sakura bring his true appearance back with the Rewind Card.
CLAMP used food, in this particular sub-storyline, both as a symptom of one's condition and as a lifeline, since Lilie's attempts weren't useless at all: they were like little seeds that she planted into him, and they bloomed fully only when Kaito met Akiho and experienced life (fully, for the first time) with her. Not only his relationship with food is completely revolutionized, as it's one of the main tasks he takes on as her butler, but he also enjoys eating with her and reacts not once, but twice with "it's delicious!" to the food Akiho makes for him. The one reaction that Lilie hoped to pull out of him back then.
Such a trivial reaction that anyone thought was normal and probably coming out of politeness, actually concealed a big, big step further in his character development. In episode 17 of the anime, the thing is even more endearing, because Akiho gives him her cake roll right before dinner, and he's so eager to eat it that he ignores completely all manners and tells her to eat it together right away — to hell with dinner! 😅
I really wanted to talk about this last aspect because I believe it’s where the role of food in Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card reached its peak, fulfilling its most pivotal function. I never imagined CLAMP would touch on a topic like that in this manga, even in their typical subtle way, and I really appreciated it.
But it's something that you can only notice once you read this story not at a quick, superficial level, but actually putting effort and dedicating the right attention to it. It's like things that seemed so mundane before, suddenly are connected together to lead into a new perspective that you might not have considered till that moment.
If my (admittedly long — but hey, it's CLAMP Day!) post helped you see that perspective too, then I achieved my goal! 😁 See you for the next Trivia!
New Goodsmile figure based on new Cardcaptor Sakura illustration!
Today May 1st 2026, day of the 30th anniversary of the Cardcaptor Sakura manga (and the whole franchise basically), we didn't get the announcement we were all waiting for ( 😆 ) but we got this other very welcome one: a figure will be released by Goodsmile Company, based on this new, GORGEOUS illustration of Sakura and Cerberus by CLAMP!
The figure will be a celebration of 35 years of CLAMP, 30 years of CCS and 25 years of Goodsmile Company! The unpainted prototype will be unveiled at the Tokyo leg of the Goodsmile Fest on June 6th and 7th 2026, while the painted and final figure will be shown at the Osaka leg of the festival, on August 22nd and 23rd!
Details on the release date, size and price will be likely announced on the same occasions.
It's already May 1st in Japan, and finally the day is here: it's time to wish happy 30th anniversary to our beloved Cardcaptor Sakura!!! 🥹🥹🥹
30 years later, Sakura continues to charm people with her sweetness, courage and empathy, and the story still captures people's hearts for the message of hope and acceptance, which was further explored in its most recent arc and direct sequel, Clear Card Arc.
