SAKURA KINIMOTO - TITLE ROLE&MAIN CHARACTER OF CARDCAPTOR SAKURA

Sakura Kinomoto (木之本 桜, Kinomoto Sakura?) is a fictional character, the heroine of Clamp's anime and manga series Cardcaptor Sakura. She is known as Sakura Avalon in the English anime adaptation Cardcaptors. For all Japanese-language productions of the anime (including movies, audio CDs, and video games), Sakura is voiced by Sakura Tange. For English-language productions, she is voiced by Carly McKillip through Cardcaptors and the first movie. She is voiced in the second movie by Kari Wahlgren.
Sakura is also a main character in Clamp's later work, Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle. In its anime adaptation, she is voiced by Yui Makino in Japanese and Monica Rial in English.
She is also mentioned in another Clamp title ×××HOLiC.

Name
Sakura's given name (桜) means cherry blossom. Her surname, Kinomoto (木之本), literally means the origin of wood.
In Cardcaptors, Sakura was originally going to be called "Nikki," but Nelvana kept her given name because of fan demand and the difficulty and expense of editing out numerous appearances of her name in rōmaji in the series. Her family name was changed to "Avalon." The pronunciation of her given name changed, as stress is put on the middle syllable ku, while in Japanese, the accent is on Sa. Nelvana purposefully changed the pronunciation of the name since many English names have stress on the middle syllable.

Character
At the start of the series, Sakura is ten years old and living in a fictional town called Tomoeda in Japan. On the afternoon after her first day of fourth grade at Tomoeda Elementary School (Reedington Elementary School in Cardcaptors), Sakura hears a mysterious sound coming from her father's library in the basement. She, nervously armed with her cheerleading baton, goes downstairs and finds a mysterious book named The Clow. She opens the book to find the Clow Cards, a set of fifty-two cards that contain powerful magic. Picking up the top card, Sakura reads its name aloud, "Windy." This activates the Card, summoning a large wind that blows the remaining Cards out of the house and into the distance. The guardian of the Cards, Keroberos, then emerges from the book and recruits Sakura to become the Cardcaptor to retrieve the Cards. In return, she gains the right to use the Cards' power herself. It is later revealed that Keroberos also refers to Sakura as his appointed Candidate, as he is also searching for a new Master of the Clow Cards.
Sakura is an extremely energetic and cheerful character. She is very athletic, being a member of her school's cheerleading squad and an excellent runner. Her "invincible spell", "Everything will surely be all right." (「ぜったいだいじょうぶだよ。」, "Zettai daijōbu da yo."?), has carried her through innumerable trials and obstacles as she masters her magical skills. She often comes across as naïve, clumsy, and clueless, but she has her perceptive moments on occasion.
Sakura's optimistic and trustworthy character allows her to befriend virtually everybody, and the series focuses on the friendships she creates with people, whether strangers, loose acquaintances, or rivals.
Sakura lives with her older brother, Toya Kinomoto (Tori Avalon), and her father, Fujitaka Kinomoto (Aiden Avalon). The three help manage their home together, often rotating cooking and cleaning chores. Sakura's mother, Nadeshiko Kinomoto (Natasha Avalon), died when Sakura was three years old. Sakura and her family moved to Tomoeda about three years before the start of the series, when Toya was in eighth grade and Sakura was in first grade.
Sakura's character designs for the manga were originally developed by Mokona of Clamp. She was designed to capture the image of Mokona's then two-year-old niece Kawaji. Kawaji wore short hair in pigtails much like Sakura does in the anime and manga.

Magic
Throughout the series, Sakura's magical powers get progressively stronger. This is mostly verified by Cerberus at random points in the series, as Sakura would otherwise appear to have equal expertise in each episode when she summons Clow Cards. Through the first two seasons, Cerberus's comments seem to imply that Sakura's magic grows as she battles and captures more Cards. In the third season, Sakura's inexperience is noted in Yue's criticism and Sakura's weariness after a single Card transformation. However, as she grows progressively proficient in transforming Clow Cards into Sakura Cards, she becomes less tired and more aware of Clow Reed's presence. She also remembers more details about her prophetic dreams. During the last of Eriol's trials, she is able to transform several cards at once.

to be continued...

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KEROBEROS OF CARDCAPTOR SAKURA

Cerberus (ケルベロス, Keruberosu?) is a fictional character in Clamp's manga and anime series Cardcaptor Sakura. His name is more commonly known in its romanized version, Kerberos, which is also often shortened to Kero-chan. He is voiced in his more common "hidden" form by Aya Hisakawa and Masaya Onosaka in his "true" form.
In the English adaptation Cardcaptors, he is known as Keroberos or Kero. He is voiced in the series by Matt Hill (borrowed form) and Richard Newman (true form), and in the second movie by Wendee Lee (borrowed form) and Dave Wittenberg (true form).
Kero also appears in the anime adaptation of Clamp's latest manga Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle. In Tsubasa Chronicle, Hisakawa Aya reprises her role (the one and only character from Cardcaptor Sakura to do so).


Name
Cerberus's name and form are based on Cerberus from Greek mythology, though the Greek monster has three heads.
Kero's name in Japanese is pronounced as "keh-ro". In Cardcaptors, his name is pronounced as "kee-ro" (such that it rhymes with zero).
The older TOKYOPOP releases of the manga render his name as "Keroberos," but this was changed in later printings to "Cerberus" at Clamp's request[citation needed].


Character and role
Cerberus is the Guardian of the Seal of the Clow who was napping at the time Sakura Kinomoto breaks the Seal and unleashes the Clow Cards. Cerberus is one of two guardians of the Clow (created by Clow Reed), and one of his missions is to select the candidate to become the new master of the Cards. The other guardian, Yue, is the Judge, who tests the chosen candidate on their ability to accept the role of master.
In his miniature, borrowed form he resembles an orange plush toy with white wings. Because Sakura feels that he does not resemble a "Kerberos," she calls him "Kero-chan." He initially rejects the name (Kero is also the Japanese onomatopoeia for the sound a frog makes, a comparison he resents), but soon comes to embrace it once he gets to know Sakura. Kero-chan is bossy, demanding, and gluttonous, but he also genuinely cares about Sakura and believes that she will become the next Master of the Clow, acting as her guide to gather the Cards. His hobbies include playing video games (which he takes up when he finds the console in Sakura's room and develops great skill at) and eating snacks and sweets, even though he receives his energy from the sun and does not need to eat to survive.
He has a particular fondness for cake, cookies, and chocolates. Even though he does not metabolize food, he is affected by alcohol (at one point becoming completely intoxicated after eating an entire box of chocolate liqueurs with no previous knowledge of their properties).
He also enjoys being filmed by Sakura's best friend, Tomoyo Daidouji and, unlike his Mistress, relishes the costume accessories he is asked to wear for these recordings. Even though he has been a willing servant all his life, Kero can be somewhat of an egomaniac, obsessing over his "coolness".

Cerberus's true form
Despite his behavior, Kero is remarkably intelligent. He is knowledgeable not only on the Clow Cards but also on all forms of mysticism, with a knack for reading magical auras. At one point this leads him astray when he mistook Kaho Mizuki for the false form of Yue because of her strong moon-aspected aura.
Cerberus often argues with Syaoran Li, who calls him "plush toy" or "stuffed animal" and whom he calls "kid" (小僧, kozō?) in the original Japanese) in return. This likely stems from Syaoran's initial arrogance and confidence that he will take over the Clow Cards, despite Cerberus's claims that Sakura is the actual Cardcaptor. Additionally, Meiling Li also takes a similar dislike for him, calling him a "bath sponge". While Syaoran is "kid," Cerberus calls Meiling "brat" (小娘, komusume?).
Cerberus's true form resembles a winged lion, but in order for him to achieve this original form, Sakura must capture The Firey and The Earthy cards. In his true form he has jurisdiction over all things fire and earth, the elements from which he draws his power. The known Clow Cards under his jurisdiction are Light, Firey and Earthy, but also quite probably the Glow, the Flower, the Little, the Shot, the Power, the Sweet, the Shield and the Sand. He can also raise powerful magical barriers, use his wings as a shield, and breathe fire.
Because The Clow had been in Osaka for a long time, Cerberus speaks in the Osaka dialect

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CARDCAPTOR SAKURA PLOT

The show begins as a simple girls' anime of the magical girl genre. Ten-year-old Sakura Kinomoto opens a mysterious book in her father's study and accidentally lets loose the magical Clow Cards. By her ability to open the seal, Sakura is revealed to have special powers, and it becomes her responsibility to retrieve the missing cards. The task involves finding each card, battling its magical personification, and sealing it away. She is assisted by Cerberus (Kerberos, also known as Kero-chan), the Beast of the Seal assigned to protect the cards, who was asleep when Sakura opened the Clow Book (He was on a "nap" at the time, which lasted 30 years). Kero-chan, who looks like an animated plush toy throughout most of the series (his "borrowed" form), guides Sakura as she develops her Cardcaptor powers. In the first episode, he presents her with the Key of the Seal, which allows her to fight and capture the Clow Cards.
Clow Card Arc (クロウカード編 , Kurou Kādo-hen?)The first and second seasons of the anime and first six volumes of the manga focus on Sakura's attempts to capture the released Clow Cards. Cerberus acts as her guide and mentor throughout the quest, while classmate and best friend Tomoyo Daidouji (who is also her second cousin) assists in designing Sakura's battle costumes and filming her adventures. Sakura also competes with Syaoran Li, the descendant of the Clow Cards' creator, Clow Reed, in capturing the Cards. The first half of the series ends after the Final Judgment, in which those who have attempted to capture the Clow Cards are tested by the mysterious Yue for the right to become Master of the Clow.

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SYAORAN OF CARDCAPTOR SAKURA

Syaoran Li (李 小狼, Japanese: Ri Shaoran?, Chinese pinyin Lǐ Xiǎoláng or Li Xiaolang), is a fictional character in Clamp's manga and anime series Cardcaptor Sakura. He is known as Li Showron in the English adaptation, Cardcaptors.
Syaoran is also the protagonist in Clamp's crossover manga series Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle and its subsequent anime, Tsubasa Chronicle. His characterization here is mostly independent of his characterization in Cardcaptor Sakura and is discussed further below.
Syaoran has also appeared in Clamp's ×××HOLiC.


Name

Syaoran's name is Chinese in origin, commonly romanized from Chinese as Xiaolang. His given name, Syaoran (小狼, Syaoran?), in both Chinese and Japanese, means "little wolf" and probably derived from Xiaolong or Syaoran (小龍, Syaoran?), meaning "little dragon" which was Bruce Lee's screen name (coincidently, they both are good at Chinese martial arts). His last name, Li (李, Li?), is a common Chinese surname that may also be spelled Lee.
In Cardcaptors his name is changed to "Li Showron." Li becomes his given name and Showron his family name.

In the early printing of the English manga, his name was presented in the Chinese naming order (family name then given name), Li Syaoran. Later printings switch the name to the Western order (given name then family name), Syaoran Li.
In the uncut English anime his name is romanized as Shaoran Li.


Character

Voiced by Motoko Kumai in the anime, Syaoran is a distant relative of Clow Reed, the creator of the Clow Cards. As a member of the Li clan of sorcerers from Hong Kong, of which Clow's mother was a member, Syaoran believes that he should be the one to inherit the Clow Cards, not Sakura Kinomoto. He first appears as an antagonist in the story, capturing a few cards for himself in the anime (though none in the manga). As the series progresses, and especially after Sakura is officially deemed the new master of the Cards, Syaoran drops his rivalistic attitude towards her and becomes her ally and friend, eventually falling in love with her and blushing at practically every sight of her.

Syaoran is shown, or at least implied, to be an excellent martial artist, swordsman (using a Chinese jian), and sorcerer. His magical abilities are centered around elemental spells using his sword or a collection of ofuda.

Although he claims certain Clow Cards for himself in the anime Syaoran does not actually capture any Cards, as the act of capturing can only be performed using Sakura's sealing wand. However, if Syaoran has played a major role in weakening or cornering the Card entity prior to its capture, credit for the capture is awarded to him (as the materialized Card floats autonomously to its owner after capture). While Sakura writes her name in rōmaji on the Clow Cards, Syaoran writes his name in kanji.

Before his relationship with Sakura, Syaoran seemed to appear to have an attraction to Yukito Tsukishiro, often blushing madly and abruptly running away at the sight of him. While Sakura also harboured a crush on Yukito, Syaoran would compete with her for his affections, usually by getting him a better present, making him better food, or giving the better compliment. It is discovered later that Syaoran and Sakura were just magically attracted to the magical energies of the moon which were residing within Yukito as Syaoran drew his magical power from the moon. Sakura, however, was simply drawn to a person that housed 'power.'

Syaoran and Cerberus often fight in the series, where Syaoran often calls him a "stuffed animal" while Cerberus retorts with patronizing terms like "kid" (小僧, kozō?).

A major change to Syaoran's character in Cardcaptors involves elevating Li Shaoran to become the male lead character, rather than a supporting character for Sakura in Cardcaptor Sakura. Here, Li is also referred to as a Cardcaptor, while he has no such title in the original series (as Cerberus never selected him).


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YUE OF CARDCAPTOR SAKURA

Name

Yue (月, Yue?) means moon in Mandarin Chinese. (The Japanese word for moon is tsuki (つき, tsuki?) but uses the same kanji.) Because his name is not of Japanese origin, Yue's name is spelled in katakana, not hiragana.In the English anime and the later printings of the English manga, his name is romanized as "Yue" (after the Hanyu Pinyin romanization of his name). In the early English manga, his name is romanized as "Yueh" after the Wade-Giles romanization "Yüeh".

Character

Yue is the one of two Guardians of the Clow Cards, along with Cerberus. While Cerberus acts as the elector, choosing a candidate to become the next Master of the Clow, Yue is the judge who will test the candidate. He is cold and aloof and much more serious and intimidating than his counterpart, Cerberus. He shares a special bond with Clow that makes it hard for him to accept Sakura Kinomoto (Sakura Avalon in Cardcaptors) as a "replacement" for his creator although he later comes to accept her as a friend. Yue has jurisdiction over all things wind and water, the elements from which he draws his power. The known Clow Cards under his jurisdiction are Dark, Windy, Watery, Wood and Time, but also probably Wave, Rain, Storm, Cloud, Bubbles, Freeze, Mist and Snow, as they are related to the two elements Yue has under his control, wind and water.Yue makes his first appearance when Sakura, the Cardcaptor, captures the final Clow Card, The Earthy. He then announces that he must judge Sakura's worthiness: if she can defeat him in combat, she can be the Mistress of the Cards. However, since he is another form of Yukito

Tsukishiro, a young man for whom Sakura cares deeply, she is reluctant to harm him. In addition, Yue was determined that nobody succeed Clow Reed. Eventually, Sakura manages to overcome both her own fear and Yue's arrogance and wins him over.Afterwards, Yue becomes a more active protector of Sakura. The presence of his true form becomes too great for Sakura's magic to support him, and the strain soon threatens his own existence and that of Yukito. Eriol Hiiragizawa's (Eli Moon) guardian Ruby Moon realizes that the magical powers of Toya Kinomoto (Tori Avalon), Sakura's brother, could save him, but Yukito does not (it also does not help that Yukito does not realize that he is Yue). However Toya realizes what was going on and finally offers Yue his power, securing his and Yukito's survival.Yue finally aids Sakura in her final confrontation with Eriol, and then confronts Eriol to ask why he was made to find a new Master while Clow Reed (albeit a reincarnation) still existed. Eriol responds that, though he has retained all of Clow's memories and most of his magic, he himself is not Clow Reed, and it was Clow's wish that Sakura be the new Master.In the second movie, Yue aids Sakura in defeating a monster that was attacking her at the beginning of the movie.

Towards the middle of the film, Yue also comforts Sakura when she despairs and weeps after a conversation with Syaoran, saying Clow Reed wouldn't have created a card that would just cause pain, sorrow and destruction, displaying his sense of compassion and sympathy. At the performance of Sakura and her class, he is one of the few people who escapes the Nothing (The Sealed Card)'s assault. At the final confrontation with the Nothing(The Sealed Card), he saves Sakura by destroying the horses of the carousel ride that the Nothing (The Sealed Card) sends at her. He also battles the Nothing (The Sealed Card), but is unable to defeat her and is soon captured. He plays no further role in the rest of the movie.

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CARDCAPTOR SAKURA

Cardcaptor Sakura often abbreviated as CCS, is a magical girl manga series from the well-known all-female artist team CLAMP. Cardcaptor Sakura is published in Japan by Kodansha and was previously serialized in Nakayoshi. The series consists of twelve volumes.
The anime television series (1998-2000) based on the manga consists of 70 half-hour episodes (spread over three seasons), two theatrically released movies, and several specials. Nelvana produced an English dub of the anime series, titled Cardcaptors, which aired in English-speaking countries.[1] An unedited English translation, entitled Cardcaptor Sakura, was broadcast in its English-language networks by the anime television network Animax. Cardcaptor Sakura has also been released in English-speaking countries in an unedited and subtitled DVD under its original title.
As the series progresses, there is a pattern of foreshadowing and dreams that lead to an unusual conclusion. Like Magic Knight Rayearth, one of CLAMP's previous works, Cardcaptor Sakura is a new twist on an old genre.
Due in part to its animation and characterization, Cardcaptor Sakura has a wide fanbase on the Internet, particularly in the categories of yaoi, shōjo, yuri, and moé.
Most of the characters in Cardcaptor Sakura also appear in one of CLAMP's later manga series, Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle.

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