*runs away from feelings*

So I’m just gonna take a half-second to point out that as much as Eriol is “definitely Clow’s reincarnation” for sharing his tendency to be secretive which causes more trouble for those involved by not communicating to everyone, no one ever talks about the traits of Clow that are almost certainly reflected in Fujitaka, and what that means for the person that Clow was when you try to combine the two.

And I’m sure that’s in no small part the fault of the anime for completely removing that bit from the story, but dang it give me more about the softness and caring and love of Fujitaka in Clow. Give me more about Clow laughing with a smile that crinkles his eyes in a way that Eriol never would. More about the Clow that created tricky cards like Illusion and Maze and Mirror, and powerful cards like Firey and Watery, and useful cards like Sword and Fly and Jump, but also created cards like Glow and Flower that seem to serve no other purpose than to celebrate the beauty of the world around them. Give me more about the Clow who made magical tools with a look that would suit and delight the girl who would use them. The Clow that always doted on and spoiled Yue, to the point that Kero whines about it more than once. 

The Clow who wasn’t so selfish as to try and continue living because he knew how much his very existence distorted reality, and that he couldn’t control every outcome.

The Clow who took great pains to ensure that his cards and Guardians would be taken care of long after his death, and not only taken care of, but tried hard to make sure that they would be happy, even though his plans didn’t turn out the way he expected in the end.

Since today is the first appearance of the new character, Akiho Shinomoto, just a few things for anime-only fans before the episode starts:

No, she’s not in the way of syaosaku.

No, there won’t be any love triangle. Seriously, CLAMP is better than that.

o-oh my goodness I might have made a small screeching noise because I really love telling people about cardcaptor sakura. i’m sorry in advance, and if i get anything wrong please correct me!

I wrote a primer on the differences between Cardcaptors and Cardcaptor Sakura a while back, which I’m relinking here. if all you’ve watched is Cardcaptors but you remember it really well, this will hopefully help you out!

You can find a list of the name changes here.

In addition, the CCS manga and anime are pretty different from another on a number of points, mainly these:

the anime has 52/53 Cards, the manga has 19

Syaoran can ‘earn’ Cards by putting more work into its capture in the anime. in the manga, this condition does not exist.

relatedly, Syaoran also participates in the Final Judgement as a result of having some captured Cards. in the manga, he does not.

Meiling, Syaoran’s cousin, is an anime-only character. her engagement to Syaoran changes some plot points of the SakuSyao romance.

Wei is also an anime-only character. Syaoran lives alone in Japan in the manga.

in the manga, Sakura’s father Fujitaka is half of the reincarnation of Clow Reed and Sakura splits Clow’s magic between Eriol and Fujitaka; in the anime, this does not happen.

in the manga, Sakura confesses that she returns Syaoran’s feelings as Syaoran leaves for Hong Kong.in the anime, Syaoran leaves Japan before Sakura can confess. This leads to the entire plot of Movie 2: The Sealed Card, which is an anime-original in every respect and the best thing ever.

There are other differences, but these are the most plot-crucial ones.

And finally, here’s where the first manga left things so you can easily pick up the new series:

Sakura has caught all of the Clow Cards and transformed them into Sakura Cards so that they can be powered by her magic (star-based) instead of Clow’s magic (sun-based).

Eriol Hiiragizawa is revealed to be half of Clow Reed’s reincarnation and wants his powers split between himself and his fellow half (Sakura’s father) so he can stop seeing the future. Sakura is rendered powerful enough to do this from their final battle so she fulfills his request.

Sakura is now the most powerful magician in the world and possibly of all time, as her power has exceeded that of Clow Reed. She is able to see the future, but has control over that power (unlike Clow Reed).

Eriol moves back to England with his love interest, Mizuki Kaho (Sakura’s short-term elementary school teacher), Ruby Moon, and Spinel Sun.

Fujitaka now has half of Clow Reed’s magic and is able to see ghosts, such as his dead wife Nadeshiko.

Touya and Yukito are an established couple; they are both aware aware of Yukito’s state as a non-human/construct created by Yue.

Yue’s love for Clow Reed is left unresolved.

Kero-chan is still living in Sakura’s room, in a drawer, being adorable and hungry for sweets.

Tomoyo’s love for Sakura is left unresolved/unconfessed. Her last appearance in CCS is holding a phone to her chest, having told Sakura about Syaoran’s departure to Hong Kong.

Syaoran moves back to Hong Kong not long after Eriol moves back to England.

Syaoran and Sakura have mutually confessed their love for one another and participate in a long-distance relationship via phone calls and letters.

The end of the original CCS: Sakura was on her way to middle school early in the school year and finds Syaoran has returned to Japan. The very last panel of the manga is Sakura throwing herself into Syaoran’s arms and crying, ‘Now we’ll be together forever!’

I hope that this helps you catch up with the content of CCS enough to enjoy the Clear Card Arc! I’m happy to clarify anything that seems unclear or to go into more depth on any point.

No feeling will come across to others if you don’t put them into words.

Holy god so I’ve never seen it all in one place before. なんだか恥ずかしい…