Card Captor Sakura
[Episodes 1-46 of 70 Reviewed]
[Reviewed by Bethany]

For something aimed at a younger audience, CLAMP really didn't bother to tune down the tweakiness — in fact, I tend to think they were trying to see just how much they could get away with. Not that I don't enjoy tweakiness (heh) — I really, really do. As well as cuteness and great animation — two things Card Captor Sakura has in abundance.

Story
Card Captor Sakura is very, very much a magical girl anime: young girl finds strange object, unleashes great power, collects plush-like animal sidekick. In Sakura Kinomoto's case, she finds a strange book in her basement/study — the Clow, which contains strange Tarot-esque cards ... cards she unknowingly sends out into the world by using the magic of one to scatter the others about. In doing so, she also wakens Keroberos (said plushy sidekick) — the guardian of the Clow Cards, who tells her she must become the Cardcaptor and retrieve all the cards — or a great horror will befall the world. With the help of Kero and her best friend Tomoyo, Sakura begins to do just that — in secret, while attending fourth grade and trying to win the affections of her older brother's... boyfriend.

Catch You Catch Me?
I try to pinpoint exactly what makes Card Captor Sakura such a good show, and it eludes me. Which means it must be a combination — the outstanding animation, the interaction and development of the characters... the cuteness. Whatever the formula is, it works. Sakura is more than just a solid show — it may not always be heart-rending and drowningdeep, but it's genuinely fun to watch. (And addictive, oy.) Not that it's all light-hearted: quite the contrary. It has some scarily dark moments, and even when it's being all-out cutesy, it still has those undercurrents of sadness that at times reach cutting poignancy. (Sakura's mother, Tomoyo's unrequited affections...) Still, it's not going to have you spasming with sobs like some series which will remain nameless — which is actually quite the good thing.

This Show is Tweaky
...Yes, but not quite as tweaky as it could be. (I direct you to look at the manga, kiddies. Rika just has a crush on Terada-sensei in the anime. Not so there...) But tweakiness is a good thing, when done CLAMP-wise, and CCS has to be given props for doing it with so damn much style. It also handles emotion surprisingly well — something that always gets my thumbs-up. The characters are all very well-drawn, even Yukito, and not just in the animated sense. They may be a bit one-sided, but they all have great heaps of personality. They ooze charm — really.

The animation really is spectacular. It rivals — if not slaughters — the animation of Cowboy Bebop (which I hold as pretty much the standard). Its music is cute, and they're absolute loves for having Iwao Junko lend her voice to Tomoyo: the songs she sings are beyond beautiful.

The Bottom Line
If you're a fan of shoujo or spectacular animation (and who isn't??), you should definitely give Card Captor Sakura a whirl. Just be sure to get the un-Americanized version. Unless you fancy seeing the the cast eat "hamburgers" with chopsticks.