Return of the Magical Girl-Next-Door

Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card Part One [Funimation: $64.98, two discs, Blu-ray]

A warm-hearted young heroine defends the world against new challenges in Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card.

Unlike many American animated heroines, Sakuras never rude or bratty, nor does she strike heroic poses as a self-conscious Role Model. Shes a likable, believable girl who just happens to have unusual powers.

Sakura Kinomoto, the cheerful heroine of Cardcaptor Sakura and Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card, would be surprised and flustered if she knew she was the subject of so much attention.

The magical girl adventure Cardcaptor Sakura scored a big hit when it debuted, as a manga by the four-woman artists group CLAMP in 1996, and as animated series two years later. Two features and an OVA followed. The Americanized adaptation Cardcaptors, which ran on The Kids WB from 2000 to 2002, drew vocal protests from fans who objected to changes in the storyline and tone. Now, 20 years after the original series began, the sequel Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear

Card which is produced by Madhouse and directed by Morio Asaka has arrived.

Sakura Kinomoto was an appealing fourth grader who lived with her older brother Toya and her widowed father, a professor of archeology. When she inadvertently loosed sorcerer Clow Reeds magical cards into the world, Sakura had to become a Cardcaptor and retrieve them before they caused problems. As she learned how to trap the mischievous cards, she discovered untapped reserves of courage and imagination. Syaoran Li, a descendant of Clow Reed, was initially Sakuras rival for the Cards, but they soon became friends ... and ultimately, sweethearts.

Clear Card begins shortly after the original series ended: Sakura (voiced by Monica Rial) and Syaoran (Jason Liebrecht) are in junior high and remain an affectionate if easily embarrassed couple. Sakura shares secrets with her pretty best friend Tomoyo (Natalie Hoover); Kero (Mikaela Krantz), the leonine little familiar who was linked to the Clow Cards, offers advice and demands snacks. Computers and smartphones play a big part in the characters lives now, enabling Sakura to communicate with her regular and magical chums, including the serious Eriol

(Micah Solusod), whos returned to England, and both the human and magical aspects of Yukito/ Yue (Justin Briner).

Everything in Sakuras world seems to be going well. She shares her school days with her regular chums, and makes a new friend when the globe-trotting Akiho (Amanda Lee) arrives. Around the same time, she discovers the Clow Cards have inexplicably gone blank and strange magical phenomena start occurring. New cards begin causing problems, from putting Akiho to sleep while shes eating dinner with Sakura to turning the playground equipment in a nearby park upside down.

Sakura once again employs her magic to capture the new cards. Shes more assured than she was in the first series and skillfully uses the cards shes already captured against the new rogues. These cards have images printed on what seems to be clear plastic, rather than the traditional pasteboard Clow Cards hence the title. The source of these cards is a mystery: Sakura, Syaoran, Kero, Yue and even Erriol cant identify it. But Akihos servant, the exquisite, mannered Yuna D. Kaito (Brandon McInnis), has an unsettling presence…

Clear Card preserves much of the charm of the original series. Sakura remains a winning heroine: Shes thoughtful, warm and

kind-hearted, even when Toya (Clifford Chapin) teases her. The formidable magical abilities she commands feel like an extension of her personality. She doesnt go looking for adventures or seeking power, but she cant let the Clear Cards harm the people she cares about. Unlike many American animated heroines, shes never rude or bratty, nor does she strike heroic poses as a self-conscious Role Model. Shes a likable, believable girl who just happens to have unusual powers.

The original animated program involved complex romantic relationships that have largely been sorted out. Near the end of the series, Sakura confessed to Yukito that she had a crush on him. He treated her declaration respectfully, but gently explained that he already had a number one person. Sakura guessed correctly that he was in love with her brother

Toya, and welcomed him into her family. Toya and Yukito are still together. They have much smaller roles in Clear Card, although Sakura seeks Yukitos advice from time to time.

As Sakura has grown up a bit, she and Syaoran can be girlfriend/boyfriend. They both blush immoderately when anyone sees them together or either one says something too revealing of their affection. But what junior high school romance doesnt have awkward moments?

Cardcaptor Sakura was only released in Japanese. The English dub of Clear Card is much closer to the tone of the original Japanese than the snide Valley Girl accents of the WB Cardcaptors. But the Japanese cast most of whom reprise their roles from the first series have an innocence their American counterparts cant quite match. Clear Card only ran for 22 episodes. The story unfolds at a very leisurely pace in the first 11 episodes, suggesting the Clamp artists may have additional plans for their most enduring and endearing characters. ◆