Cardcaptor Sakura/Characters

Describe the characters of Cardcaptor Sakura here. Beware of unmarked spoilers!

Sakura Kinomoto


"Voiced by: Sakura Tange (JP), Carly McKillip (EN), Kari Wahlgren (EN - 2nd Movie), Cristina Hernandez (Latin America)"

The heroine of the series, Sakura wanders in her father's basement one day and accidentally sets loose a deck of nineteen/fifty-two tarot-like magical cards, each containing a magical spirit, into the wild. Annoyed, the book's guardian Cerberus (Kero-chan) declares her the new Cardcaptor who has to track them down and recapture them. Tagging along on the chase is her best friend Tomoyo and Rival Syaoran.

"Kero: What the hell was THAT all about!?"
 * Action Girl: Less so than Mei Ling, though.
 * All Girls Want Bad Boys: Subverted with Yukito, played more straight with Syaoran, albeit largely because his gentler side began to show.
 * Anime Hair
 * Badass Adorable
 * Beware the Nice Ones: Rather mild case, but you still don't want her mad at you.
 * Bifauxnen: Plays Prince Charming in a School Play of Sleeping Beauty.
 * Book Dumb: Has incredible wisdom and resourcefulness, but a bit of a ditz in terms of normal intelligence. She HATES math.
 * Break the Cutie: Played hard a couple of times. Both out and in-universe, Sakura in tears is considered an incredibly heartbreaking sight (interestingly the dub downplays a few of these scenes, likely to make her seem like a less vulnerable protagonist, though the remaining examples are still valid).
 * Catgirl: One of Tomoyo's outfits.
 * Cheerful Child: In spades!
 * Cherry Blossom Girl: A poster girl.
 * Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Despite being extremely naive and occasionally outright ditzy at times (believes every last one of Yamazaki's ridiculous stories and is completely oblivious to the fact that her two best friends are infatuated with her) she has moments of remarkable inspiration, particularly when it comes to the use of her magic.
 * Cute Clumsy Girl
 * Cute Witch
 * The Danza: She's voiced by Sakura Tange.
 * The Ditz: Has some shades of this.
 * Dogged Nice Girl: Gender reversal to Yukito. Not nearly as clear cut an example as Syaoran however.
 * Dub Name Change: Averted; she's still called Sakura, but it's now pronounced "Sah-KOO-ruh" instead of "SAH-koo-rah". She does, however, get a Dub Surname Change to Avalon.
 * Even the Girls Want Her
 * Fragile Flower: Rare rendition mixed with Plucky Girl traits. While she rarely gives up, her disposition is very similar to that of a real child under such situations.
 * Genki Girl
 * Girlish Pigtails
 * Gotta Catch Em All: Played straight in the first season, but is increasingly subverted in the third season when.
 * Green Eyes
 * Hair Antennae: Sometimes she has THREE strands of hair.
 * Hair Decorations
 * Heart Is an Awesome Power
 * The Heroine: In the Japanese version at least. Executive Meddling tried desperately to establish her and Syaoran as co-Heroes for the Cardcaptors dub, but for the large part she is still obviously the main heroine.
 * Kindhearted Simpleton: Borderline example. She is more immensely naive and spacey than outright stupid and has incredible showings of resourcefulness and wisdom at times, but it's obvious her heart is much bigger than her brain.
 * Magical Girl Warrior: Though she does have two or three Cute Witch traits.
 * Magic Wand
 * Morality Pet: For numerous characters, but most notably Syaoran.
 * Naive Everygirl: Usually, though Character Exaggeration leans her a bit more as a Moe or Kindhearted Simpleton later on.
 * Oblivious to Love: A rare example both for and towards the character since, on one side, it takes her a while to notice Syaoran's feelings and she never picks up on Tomoyo's. Meanwhile she also has problems expressing her crush towards Yukito and later Syaoran.
 * Ping-Pong Naivete
 * Plucky Girl: To an extent, she is rather determined and has little regard for her own well being when her loved ones are endangered, but also has a rather fragile disposition that can lead her to break down and panic without emotional support.
 * The Pollyanna
 * Power Incontinence: Inverted, after gaining half of Eriol's powers in the manga, she becomes more powerful than him and Clow Reed, unlike both of them however, she is powerful enough to negate such magic. This isn't present in the anime where this event does not occur.
 * Precision F-Strike: In one translation, she abuses the phrase "What the hell?" to hell and back while impersonating a ventriloquist and using Kero-chan as her dummy early on. Kero-chan was not amused.

"Sakura: *giggles* Right, Syaoran-kun?"
 * Puppy Love: Invoked with Syaoran.
 * Say My Name: Lighter variant. Calls Syaoran by his first name later on (though this is a fair step into their bond since she is the only non-related aquaintance allowed to do so).


 * Took a Level in Badass: As pointed out in the second film by both Kero and Tomoyo, she started the series as a very ditzy girl but becomes a very competent Magical Girl Warrior later on.
 * Granted she is still ditzy (if not more so) by the end of the series' run, it is merely juxtoposed by said moments of competance and skill whenever the time is neccessary.
 * Verbal Tic: "Hoe?"
 * Who Wears Short Shorts?: At least one Tomoyo-designed outfit (which happened to emphasize the "stealth" aspect of that particular mission), worn in episode 7. More such outfits (some combined with Zettai Ryouiki) appear in the manga.
 * Women Are Wiser: To an extent, she is Book Dumb and ridiculously naive, but it is hard not to consider her the most normal compared to her teammates. Perhaps best emphasized when she is turned into Alice in one of Eriol's illusions.
 * Zettai Ryouiki: If Tomoyo designs a particular outfit for her to wear for a particular Clow Card hunt, there's a good chance the outfit will either incorporate this or Tights With a Skirt.

Kerberos/Kero
"Voiced by: Aya Hisakawa (JP), Matt Hill (EN), Wendee Lee (EN - 2nd Movie), Yamil Atala (Latin America) True Form: Masaya Onosaka (JP), Richard Newman (EN), Dave Wittenberg (EN - 2nd Movie), Yamil Atala (Latin America, too)"

Wise yet somewhat eccentric guardian of the Clow Cards. Having fallen asleep on duty while Sakura inadvertently sets them loose, Kero drafts her unwillingly as a new Cardcaptor. Secretly resident of her house, the somewhat gluttonous and obnoxious Kero also acts as a bickering close friend and mentor for Sakura.


 * Big Eater
 * Cat Smile: 90% of the time.
 * Cloudcuckoolander: His little form..
 * Fairy Companion
 * Kansai Regional Accent: The Book was stored in an Osakan library, so Kero picked up the accent.
 * Hot-Blooded
 * Mentor Mascot
 * Non-Human Sidekick: Albeit arguably more mentor than sidekick.
 * Panthera Awesome: In his TRUE form.
 * Really Seven Hundred Years Old
 * Ridiculously Cute Critter
 * Small Annoying Creature: Often acts as this in universe.
 * Small Name, Big Ego: On occasion, especially about his "really cool" real form.
 * Take My Word For It: His "super cool" real form.
 * Trademark Favorite Food: Cake~
 * The Unfavorite: Considers himself this to both Clow Reed and Sakura compared to Yue.
 * The Unfavorite: Considers himself this to both Clow Reed and Sakura compared to Yue.

Syaoran Li
"Voiced by: Motoko Kumai (JP), Rhys Huber (EN - Clow Cards arc and the 1st movie), Jordan Kilik (EN - Sakura Cards arc), Mona Marshall (EN - 2nd Movie), Uraz Huerta (Latin America)"

A distant descendant of Clow Reed that initially views himself as rightful Master Of The Cards, leading him to act as a rival for Sakura in her own attempts to retrieve them. As time passes, Sakura warms herself to Syaoran and treats him as a close friend or consultant, oblivious that by this point he has become disinterested in inheriting the cards and has gained an overwhelming crush on her.

"Sakura: You always act like that, but it's never true. Syaoran: What makes you say that? Sakura: I know you. Syaoran-kun, you're a Nice Guy.
 * Adaptation Expansion: The anime expands more on the character, gaining A Day in the Limelight in frequent episodes and his family is even explored (his cousin Meiling acting as a recurring character, then we meet his mother and sisters). His rivalry in capturing the cards is also upgraded (see Worthy Opponent below).
 * Adorkable
 * All Guys Want Cheerleaders: Averted, the fact that Sakura is a cheerleader has nothing to do with his crush.
 * Arrogant Kung Fu Guy: Pre Character Development
 * BFS: Though that effect may be due to Syaoran's small size (being a prepubescent boy), it's still a fairly large sword. He can wield it easily, though, and it is a magical sword.
 * Big Brother Instinct: To Meiling and Sakura (early on anyway). Possibly inverted since Meiling's ambiguous age and Sakura's birthday placement during school year rotation leaves it ambiguous whether Syaoran is the "big brother".
 * Breakout Character: Arguable Spotlight-Stealing Squad in the final chapters and episodes. Alternate incarnations also take center stage as much as Sakura in other CLAMP works. Ironically Western networks had previously attempted to endorse him as co lead for the Cardcaptors dub so as to appeal to male audiences.
 * Brown Eyes
 * Cannot Spit It Out: He spends an entire season trying to tell Sakura he loves her, but gets interrupted every time.
 * Characterization Marches On: To perhaps emphasize it best, Sakura first envisioned Syaoran in a nightmare. In the latest arcs and episodes his very presence makes her exceptionally cheerful and warm. This was likely very deliberate however.
 * Chinese People: The Li family is a prestigious clan residing in Hong Kong.
 * The Comically Serious: And how. Kero uses him as a straight man.
 * Crazy Jealous Guy: He is not amused when Sakura spends time with Eriol.
 * Curtains Match the Window
 * Cute Bruiser: Long time training in martial arts.
 * Defrosting Ice King: When he first meet Sakura, he was a stoic jerk. Over time he melts into a blushing Nice Guy.
 * Determinator: When Sakura is endangered at least. Yue even notes his surprise at him breaking through the magic of cards such as Maze to protect her.
 * Deuteragonist: While Sakura is still played as The Hero, Syaoran gets a rather large amount of spotlight and development with a lot of scenes played from his viewpoint, especially in later parts of the anime. The Cardcaptors dub attempts to ascend him into a co-Hero but for the large part he is still this trope.
 * Disappeared Dad: Syaoran's father is mentioned as having passed away when Syaoran was very young.
 * Dogged Nice Guy: When in deredere mode.
 * Dork Knight: As his arrogance fades, he becomes a shy and protective friend to Sakura. Extra points for having a sword.
 * Dragged Into Drag: At one point in the manga--and at the hands of a School Play-related lottery, yet! He was NOT amused.
 * Dub Name Change: Reversed around into Li Showron.
 * The Eeyore: In contrast to the optimistic and naive Sakura.
 * Grumpy Bear: Early on as The Rival. Becomes a friendlier Lancer to Sakura later on, but his cynical and humorless tone still seems engraved in his mindset.
 * Inferiority Superiority Complex: Highly arrogant and aloof early on, though it seems to hide his social awkwardness, particularly around girls and romance. Particularly prominent in his treatment of Sakura (see Jerkass Facade below).
 * Innocent Prodigy: Syaoran is rather knowledgeable, deductive and clever. However, he is also extremely naïve in certain areas, which shows in his beliefs and failure to recognize his own faults.
 * Jerk with a Heart of Gold
 * Jerkass Facade: With it becoming increasingly more transparent as time goes by. Sakura even points out later on that she can see right through him.
 * Syaoran turns bright red*"


 * Jerk Sue: Deconstructed very pleasantly In-Universe. He starts as an Arrogant Kung Fu Guy who constantly blasts his own superiority over Sakura as the Master of the Clow Cards usually in a somewhat spirit breaking tone, yet is treated with a constantly pleasant tone by those around him (par the equally obnoxious Kero). However, it is this very treatment that exasperates Syaoran and lends to him toning his attitude down. Sakura especially is kindly towards Syaoran despite his hostile tone towards her, and we all know how that evolved.
 * Kung Fu Wizard: His Magic Wand is a sword, which he doesn't actually need.
 * Lineage Comes From the Father: Inverted, he's related to Clow through his mother's family.
 * Lonely Rich Kid: Meiling was his only friend growing up, and she's anime only.
 * Luminescent Blush
 * "No Respect" Guy: Sort of, though it's more the plentiful respect he gets from Sakura that comes at the cost of his dignity.
 * Paper Talisman: Seen holding them above; he can summon elemental powers with them using his sword. Mostly to fight the Clow Spirits, but once to set Touya's jacket on fire.
 * Perpetual Frowner
 * Pet the Dog: Even pre-defrosting, Syaoran is extremely protective and gentle to Meiling in the anime.
 * Say My Name: SAKURAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
 * The Snark Knight
 * Spell My Name with an "S": Syaoran or Shaoran?
 * The Rival: In the initial arc. More The Lancer after he is rejected as Master Of The Cards.
 * Took a Level In Kindness: From arrogant Tsundere to resentful Big Brother Mentor type to meek and gentle Dogged Nice Guy. Naturally Sakura is happy.
 * Tsundere: Later.
 * Verbal Tic: KAAAAAA!!!
 * "Well Done, Son" Guy: To his long since dead ancestor Clow Reed. He wants to prove himself worthy of that lineage by collecting the Clow Cards.
 * When He Smiles: Once he starts defrosting toward Sakura. For a long time, though, he only does it when there's nobody around to see.
 * Wise Beyond Their Years: Albeit balanced with occasional Ping-Pong Naivete and Not So Above It All moments.
 * Worthy Opponent: His rivalry with Sakura is expanded in the anime, where he is allowed to actually capture cards via certain stipulations. Since the splitting of Eriol's magic does not occur in the anime, his powers are suggested to still contend hers by the finale as well, where the Nameless Card chooses him as the most powerful of the two (albeit after both are rather beaten down and drained from overuse of magic), of course, by that time however, Syaoran is hardly an "opponent" of Sakura.

Tomoyo Daidouji


"Voiced by: Junko Iwao (JP), Maggie Blue O'Hara (EN), Michelle Ruff (EN - 2nd movie), Monica Villaseñor (Latin America)"

Wealthy, softspoken, and pretty, Tomoyo is Sakura's best friend, Tomoyo is one of the few people who knows Sakura's secret as being Master of the Cards, and can always be counted on to be there when one is being hunted down. She's a talented seamstress and is very fond of making Sakura wear... interesting outfits.


 * Big Fancy House: Seeing it boggles Sakura.
 * Camera Fiend: Almost always seen toting a camera around to film, er, footage of Sakura.
 * Costume Porn: She's the reason for most of it.
 * Dub Name Change: In the English dub, she becomes Madison Taylor.
 * The Face: Tomoyo interacts with everyone and contrasts them with her Muggleness. She's also emotional support for Sakura, and Syaoran too after he calms down.
 * The Fashionista: She has designed Sakura some darn creative outfits.
 * Genre Savvy: Of Magical Girl series. Sakura didn't use Invocation until Tomoyo told her to.
 * Hair Decorations: Such a cute hairband!
 * Hime Cut
 * I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: So long as Sakura is happy, Tomoyo is happy.
 * I Want My Beloved to Be Fashionable: She still has to dress appropriately for missions, however, and Tomoyo is more than happy to make costumes for her.
 * The Load: Usually falls victim to the cards' spells due to her lack of magic (which, unlike Meiling, isn't balanced by normal strengths), so usually acts as little more than a cheerleader. As Eriol points out later however, this is rather important to Sakura.
 * Meta Girl: She offers to make Sakura special clothes for fighting evil when she sees that Sakura doesn't have any.
 * Muggle Best Friend: To Sakura.
 * The Ojou: Type 1, bordering on Yamato Nadeshiko with her classic look.
 * Proper Tights with a Skirt: Features in some of her own outfits.
 * Princess Curls
 * Purple Eyes
 * Romantic Two-Girl Friendship and Schoolgirl Lesbians
 * Secret Keeper: The only muggle who knows.
 * Single-Target Sexuality
 * Spoiled Sweet: Her mom's wealthy enough to hire full time bodyguards and pay for all those outfits and Tomoyo is one of the nicest people you'll ever meet.
 * Wise Beyond Their Years

Touya Kinomoto
"Voiced by: Tomokazu Seki (JP), Tony Sampson (EN), Kirk Thornton (EN - 2nd movie), Luis Daniel Ramirez (Latin America)"

Sakura's big brother. He often teases her, calling her "Monster" ("kaiju" in Japanese) but he has a huge Big Brother Instinct around her. He is best friends with Yukito, and has a tendency to switch jobs a lot. Toya can see ghosts, including his mother's when she visits.


 * Badass Abnormal: Prior to sacrificing his powers
 * Badass Normal: Post sacrifice.
 * Big Brother Bully: Somewhat. It is to an extent part of a Jerkass Facade, but that doesn't mean he doesn't enjoy it.
 * Big Brother Instinct: I dare you to abuse his sister within his hearing/watching range. You heard us, Syaoran?
 * Of course it wasn't just that which fueled his hatred for Syaoran, but that he could see that he would ultimately "steal Sakura away."
 * Bi the Way: His first love was the beautiful Kaho Mizuki. His Second Love was Yukito.
 * Chick Magnet
 * Curtains Match the Window
 * Deadpan Snarker
 * Dub Name Change: In the English dub, he becomes Tori Avalon.
 * : Subverted.
 * I See Dead People
 * Jerkass Facade: Surprisingly successful, being one of very few people Sakura is (somewhat) cynical towards due to his Big Brother Bully complex. When she figures the truth out however, she feels bad to say the least. He does not fool Yukito for a second however.
 * My Sister Is Off-Limits: The real reason he doesn't like Syaoran; he doesn't trust his precious little sister with anyone.
 * Sugar and Ice Personality and Tsundere
 * Lightning Glare: With Syaoran. More than once.
 * Manly Man: To Yukito's Sensitive Guy
 * Tall, Dark, Handsome And Snarky
 * Why Do You Keep Changing Jobs?: Then again, it's never really made clear if he's actually changing jobs or holding them all all at once. He states it's because he wants to pay for college.

Fujitaka Kinomoto
"Voiced by: Hideyuki Tanaka (JP), Brian Drummond (EN), Michael McConnohie (EN - 2nd Movie), Enrique Mederos (Latin America)"

Sakura and Toya's father. A kindhearted middle-class man, Fujitaka married Nadeshiko when she was just sixteen when he worked as a teacher. He later became a university professor in archaeology.


 * Dub Name Change: In the English dub, he becomes Aiden Avalon.
 * Good Parents
 * Parents as People: Does what he can, but is almost always consumed by his work and more than once he laments how often he can't be with his children when they need it.
 * Honorifics: Has very formal speech patterns, referring to everyone (including his kids) as "-san." The only exception is Sonomi, whom he calls "Sonomi-kun".
 * Hot Dad
 * Hot for Student and May-December Romance: With Nadeshiko.
 * Hot Teacher
 * Long Lost Sibling:
 * Megane
 * Self-Made Man: Was an orphan and had to build himself a place in the world. Now he's a well-respected uni professor.
 * The Mourning After: He is still loyal to Nadeshiko, and puts up a new picture of her every day.
 * Workaholic
 * Yamato Nadeshiko: Even moreso than his dead wife, whose name was Nadeshiko! He's the one raising their kids after she died.
 * Yamato Nadeshiko: Even moreso than his dead wife, whose name was Nadeshiko! He's the one raising their kids after she died.

Nadeshiko Kinomoto
"Voiced by: Yuko Minaguchi (JP), Janyse Jaud (EN), Monica Villaseñor (Latin America)"

Sakura's deceased mother who was a famous model, Nadeshiko was Sonomi's best friend  whom Sonomi was very protective over.


 * Big Eater: According to Sonomi.
 * Sweet Tooth: This, too. She could eat a cake by herself.
 * Cute Clumsy Girl and Cloudcuckoolander: When she was younger.
 * Death by Origin Story: Died of an unspecified illness when Sakura was three. Her spirit watches over her family, and even saved Sakura's life when she was confronted by the Illusion Card, but only Touya can see her.
 * Deceased Parents Are the Best: If you heard her family talking about her, you'd think she was a saint. (And to be fair, she WAS a genuine Nice Girl.)
 * Dojikko
 * Dub Name Change: In the English dub, she becomes Natasha Avalon.
 * Green Eyes
 * Hot Mom: So hot that she was a famous model.
 * Mama Bear: Her little girl is about to either drown (manga) or fall off a cliff (anime)? Why, not even death will stop Nadeshiko from helping her!
 * Our Angels Are Different: Becomes an angel after death (especially effective since she did look rather angelic in life).
 * The Ojou
 * Oblivious to Love: Most likely had no idea of Sonomi's feelings for her.
 * Parental Marriage Veto: Eventually led to Nadeshiko being disowned.
 * Rapunzel Hair
 * Uptown Girl: Her family was more affluent than her husband's.
 * Yamato Nadeshiko: In an amusing subversion, she only resembled the archetype after she got married to Fujitaka, as she was a major Cute Clumsy Girl and Cloudcuckoolander when young. Heck, Fujitaka was and still is far more of a YN than her!

Yukito Tsukishiro
"Voiced by: Megumi Ogata (JP), Sam Vincent (EN), Steve Staley (EN - 2nd Movie), Enzo Fortuny (Latin America)"

Toya's best friend and Sakura's first love interest. A kind, spectacled Big Eater, Yukito is incredibly friendly with Sakura and her friends.


 * The Archer: An accomplished sportsman, we see him once in an archery competition.
 * Badass in a Nice Suit: As.
 * Big Eater: At first just for the Moe, then we learn that
 * Bishonen
 * Chick Magnet
 * Cross-Dressing Voices: Original Japanese only.
 * Defrosting Ice King:
 * Dub Name Change: In the English dub, he becomes Julian Star.
 * Heavy Sleeper - Sleepyhead: Subverted.
 * Hidden Depths:
 * Meaningful Name:
 * Megane
 * Nice Guy
 * Sensitive Guy: To Touya's Manly Man.
 * Raised by Grandparents:
 * Rapunzel Hair: As.
 * The Stoic:.
 * Well, most of the time.
 * White-Haired Pretty Boy:
 * Yamato Nadeshiko: Toyed with rather interestingly. Yukito only partially looks the part, as he's rather tall and softspoken but lacks the dark hair, yet he is only about equal with Sakura in kindness and politeness.
 * The Stoic:.
 * Well, most of the time.
 * White-Haired Pretty Boy:
 * Yamato Nadeshiko: Toyed with rather interestingly. Yukito only partially looks the part, as he's rather tall and softspoken but lacks the dark hair, yet he is only about equal with Sakura in kindness and politeness.
 * White-Haired Pretty Boy:
 * Yamato Nadeshiko: Toyed with rather interestingly. Yukito only partially looks the part, as he's rather tall and softspoken but lacks the dark hair, yet he is only about equal with Sakura in kindness and politeness.

Meiling Li
"Voiced by: Yukana Nogami (JP), Nicole Oliver (EN), Julie Maddalena (EN - 2nd movie), Gabriella Willert (Latin America)"

An anime exclusive character and Syaoran's cousin and fiancee from Hong Kong. Meiling arrives in Tomoeda to help Syaoran capture the Clow Cards. At first a Clingy Jealous Girl and a Bratty Half-Pint, Meiling eventually warms to Sakura and Tomoyo. She is a Badass Normal, being a pro in martial arts alongside Syaoran.


 * Anime Chinese Girl
 * Badass Adorable
 * Badass Normal: Can't see spirits but tries to help as much as she can.
 * Bratty Half-Pint: At first.
 * Butt Monkey
 * Canon Foreigner: Meiling does not exist in the manga continuity, although there is some official manga-style art floating around.
 * Childhood Marriage Promise: To Syaoran.
 * Chinese Girl
 * Clingy Jealous Girl: At first she would literally cling to Syaoran's arm and throw Death Glares at Sakura. Then she befriends Sakura while still clinging to Syaoran's arm, and ultimately joins the I Want My Beloved to Be Happy club with Tomoyo and Touya.
 * Cry Cute: When she sheds tears, you can't help wanting to hug her.
 * Dub Name Change: In the English dub, she becomes Meilin Rae.
 * Fan of the Underdog: Perhaps the only other member of the team convinced of Syaoran's superiority and worthiness as Master Of The Cards (aside from maybe Sakura herself).
 * Genki Girl: Poor Syaoran has to put up with the lion's share of the consequences of this trope big time. While it's usually Played for Laughs, in the beginning this sometimes made her a more serious issue than some of the cards, as her cheerful side also includes some seriously-played thoughtlessness.
 * I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: When she was younger, she was madly in love with Syoran, and convinced him to enter a Childhood Marriage Promise via a deal - if he ever found the one he truly loved, she would give him up, but until then she would be his fiancee. When she realises that he loves Sakura (and that she can't bring herself to hate Sakura), she follows her end of the deal.
 * Jerkass: Pre-Character Development, similar to Syaoran.
 * Jerkass Woobie: Again, similar to Syaoran.
 * Kissing Cousins: She's also a decendent of Clow Reed, but lacks magic.
 * Know-Nothing Know-It-All: On occasion, such as a track race when she showed off and then collapsed.
 * Large Ham: Her dub voice dials up her brattiness Up to Eleven.
 * The Load: A few times during earlier occasions, and she hates it. Though she gains Badass Normal cred later on.
 * Odango Hair
 * The Ojou: Type 2, though she's more bratty than stuck-up.
 * Plucky Girl: She took on the Fight Card despite repeated pummeling.
 * Red Eyes, Take Warning: Though she's more immature and bad-tempered than outright malicious.
 * The Sixth Ranger: A late addition to the Card Captor team.
 * Took a Level In Kindness: From Clingy Jealous Girl, to Friendly Rival, to Shipper on Deck for Sakura and Syaoran.
 * Tsundere: She's arrogant to everyone except Syaoran; he's the only one that sees any deredere. The change can be instantaneous. And it scares the crap out of Syaoran.
 * Unlucky Childhood Friend

Eriol Hiiragizawa
"Voiced by: Nozomu Sasaki (JP), Bill Switzer (EN), Johnny Yong Bosch (EN - 2nd movie), Alfredo Leal (Latin America)"

The antagonist of sorts in the series, Eriol arrives as a New Transfer Student who quickly befriends Sakura and Tomoyo. He is really the reincarnation of Clow Reed, hoping for Sakura to transform the Clow Cards in Sakura Cards so his legacy is continued.


 * Badass Bookworm: He looks the quiet studious type when he's actually the most skilled mage alive.
 * Curtains Match the Window: Has blue hair and blue eyes
 * Dub Name Change: In the English dub, he becomes Eli Moon.
 * Evil Plan: Invoked. He pretends to be a shadowy villain with a devious agenda to give Sakura opportunities to transform the Clow Cards.
 * Guile Hero: Pulls his heir and his descendent's strings to fulfill his goal.
 * Hey, It's That Voice!: In the English dub, he has the same voice actor as the animated version of Harvey Kinkle.
 * Megane
 * New Transfer Student
 * The Chessmaster: Once an Episode he would move the others around for some plan to transform another Clow Card.
 * Manipulative Bastard: But a good intentioned one.
 * Really Seven Hundred Years Old: As well as remembering all of Clow's lifespan, he also stopped his aging for an unspecified amount of time.
 * Reincarnation: Of Clow Reed.
 * Wise Beyond Their Years: Subverted; his classmates think that he is, but his maturity is actually due to being Really Seven Hundred Years Old.
 * Not So Above It All: He actually joins Yamazaki in his lies. Gleefuly and with great enjoyment, even.
 * You Gotta Have Blue Hair
 * You Gotta Have Blue Hair

Naoko Yanagisawa
"Voiced by: Emi Motoi (JP), Kelly Sheridan (EN), Sherry Lynn (EN - 2nd movie), Martha Ceceña (Latin America)"

A Cute Bookworm who loves ghosts stories and is a Nightmare Fetishist.


 * All There in the Manual: Her Long-Distance Relationship is only stated in an interview by the creators - apparently, it didn't make the final cut of the manga.
 * Bob Haircut
 * Brown Eyes
 * The Cheerleader: Interestingly, she doesn't meet any of the negative trifecta of cheerleader stereotypes, being a clumsy Meganekko instead.
 * Curtains Match the Window
 * Cute Bookworm
 * Dojikko
 * Dub Name Change: In the English dub, she becomes Nikki.
 * Hair Decorations
 * Meganekko
 * Nightmare Fetishist: She adores supernatural stories.
 * Plucky Girl: She never ever gives up on anything.
 * Reality Warper: For a short while when the Create card falls into her hands.
 * Rewriting Reality

Chiharu Mihara
"Voiced by: Miwa Matsumoto (JP), Jocelyne Loewen (EN), Dorothy Elias-Fahn (EN - 2nd movie), Isabel Martiñon (Latin America)"

One of Sakura's close friends. She often exposes Yamazaki's lies to the bewildered Sakura and Syaoran.


 * Amusing Injuries: Inflicted on Yamazaki.
 * Beta Couple: With Yamazaki.
 * Brown Eyes
 * Curtains Match the Window
 * Dub Name Change: In the English dub, she becomes Chelsea.
 * Hime Cut
 * Mega Twintails: Braided pigtails.
 * Plucky Girl
 * Tsundere: Most straight-up example in the series. She's a type B: cute, Moe, outspoken, until set off by Yamazaki either missing the point of her advances or telling his outrageous lies.

Rika Sasaki
"Voiced by: Tomoko Kawakami (JP), Stevie Bloch (EN - 2nd movie), Circe Luna (Latin America)"

A shy, nervous but well-educated girl who has a Precocious Crush on Mr. Terada.


 * Brainwashed and Crazy: Briefly, when she puts on a sword-shaped pin that actually is the dormant form of The Sword card. Sakura debrainwashes her using The Illusion to confuse her, and then disarming her.
 * Brown Eyes
 * Curtains Match the Window
 * Demonic Possession: The Sword is not demonic per se, but it still counts.
 * Dub Name Change: In the English dub, she becomes Rita.
 * Hair Antennae: In the Anime.
 * Hot for Teacher:.
 * May-December Romance:
 * Nice Girl
 * Precocious Crush: On Terada-sensei.
 * Supreme Chef: A preteen version. She is shown to be able to cook extremely well.
 * Wise Beyond Their Years
 * Yamato Nadeshiko: At some point Sakura comments on how classy and gentle she is.

Takashi Yamazaki
"Voiced by: Issei Miyazaki (JP), Phillip Pacaud (EN), Joshua Seth (EN - 2nd movie), Gerry Meza (Latin America)"

Syaoran's friend in school. His eyes are always closed and he has a humourous habit of making up exaggerated stories about the origins of various subjects, which Sakura and Syaoran always fall for.

"Anime!Touya: "... T-that Queen, she's played by a boy!?""
 * Beta Couple: With Chiharu.
 * Butt Monkey: Always in the receiving end of Chiharu's tantrums. These almost always come after he starts telling his lies.
 * Consummate Liar: As far as Sakura and Syaoran are concerned.
 * Bad Liar: In the eyes of everyone else. Specially Chiharu, who knows him as the palm of her hand and immediately stops him when he goes overboard. Very violently
 * Dub Name Change: In the English dub, he becomes Zachary Marker.
 * Eyes Always Shut: Chiharu calls him "lines-for-eyes" due to this. They actually open on a few occasions. Meiling believes that they open every time he tells the truth.
 * Oblivious to Love: Poor Chiharu.
 * Shout-Out: Named for producer Takashi Yamazaki, who is a good friend of CLAMP
 * The Storyteller
 * Wholesome Crossdresser: In the school play. His role changes depending on the media: in the manga he's the evil fairy, whereas in the anime Meiling becomes the evil fairy and he plays the Queen Mother instead.


 * Will Not Tell a Lie: Inverted, as he's a HUGE liar and pretty much addicted to telling bizarre stories.

The Clow Cards / Sakura Cards
A deck of magical cards created by Clow Reed. Each card is actually a spirit with its own power as described by its name. They grew so strong that Clow Reed created the Clow Book to keep the cards in. Sakura accidentally lets the cards loose leading to the series Gotta Catch Em All story. She later has to transform them into Sakura Cards so they can be kept alive via her magical energy.

In the manga, there were a mere nineteen cards - there are fifty-two cards in the anime, plus three more by the end of the second movie

"The Nothing: Don't get in my way..."
 * Action Girl: Fight.
 * Affably Evil: Most of the cards when they are released have mischeivous and destructive tendencies, but all turn good by the end of the series.
 * The Nothing, due to being sealed away alone from her friends, emerges as a Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds but turns good by the end of the second film.
 * An Ice Person: Freeze and Snow.
 * The Archer: Arrow.
 * Badass: Most of the cards.
 * Belly Dancer: The Sand
 * Blow You Away: Windy and Storm.
 * Canon Foreigner: Most of the cards in the anime.
 * Casting a Shadow, Shadow Pin: Shadow.
 * Character Development: Mirror, Dash and Nothing.
 * Cool Sword: The Sword Card.
 * Creepy Twins: The Twin Card, obviously.
 * Cry for the Devil: Mirror and Nothing.
 * Cute Bruiser: Fight and Power.
 * Dark Is Not Evil: Literally with Dark but other cards as well notably Shadow and Nothing.
 * Light Is Good: Guess who.
 * Dark Magical Girl: Nothing has shades of this.
 * Deflector Shields: Shield has a version of these. Mirror as well.
 * Dishing Out Dirt: Earthy and Sand.
 * Four-Element Ensemble: Windy, Watery, Firey and Earthy.
 * Flat Character: Many of the cards lack real personalities, but some cards like Through, Wave, Libra and Bubbles do not even get focus episodes.
 * Freaky Friday Flip: Change can make two people swap bodies, as it does to Syaoran and Kero. Hilarity Ensues.
 * Freeze Ray: The Freeze Card pulls this off.
 * Frickin' Laser Beams: Shot.
 * Genki Girl: Flower. Her episode has her unsealing her powers and bathing Sakura's school in blossoms because she wanted to join the School Festival. When Sakura faces her, Flower even takes her hands and happily tries to dance with her!
 * Gentle Giant: Big.
 * Statuesque Stunner: Her unsealed form is that of a beautiful, tall and quiet woman in a fairy outfit.
 * Green Thumb: Flower and Wood.
 * Half-Identical Twins: Rain and Cloud.
 * Innocent Flower Girl: Flower.
 * Interspecies Romance: Sorta, since Mirror seems to have developed a onesided crush on Touya since he treated her very kindly  and kept being nice to her afterwards.
 * Jump Physics: Jump.
 * Killer Rabbit: The Jump when it fuses with tons of toys to become a giant. However this leads to a Hoist by His Own Petard.
 * Kung Fu Wizard: Fight and Power.
 * Light'Em Up: Light.
 * Little Miss Badass: Power.
 * Living MacGuffin: Fifty-three (or fifty-five) to pick from.
 * Living Shadow: Shadow.
 * Lonely at the Top: The Nothing.
 * Magical Girl Warrior: Many of the cards take on the form of cute warrior girls.
 * Making a Splash: Watery, Wave, Bubbles and Rain.
 * Master of Disguise: Mirror.
 * Master of Illusion: Illusion. Works wonders when fused with the Maze Card's powers.
 * The Maze: Exactly What It Says on the Tin.
 * Mirror Match: The Mirror is used repeatedly by Sakura to take her place when she has conflicting things to do.
 * Mundane Utility: According to Kero, Clow often created cards either for his amusement or to make his chores easier. Bubbles was made to make laundry and give Big Kero his baths!
 * The Napoleon: Little.
 * Nature Spirit: Pretty much all the cards, but Wood seems to fit the trope mostly.
 * No Name Given: The Nameless
 * Our Werebeasts Are Different: The Snow card is a Yuki-Onna
 * Pint-Sized Powerhouse: The Power Card. Never underestimate this cutesy-looking, pink-clad little girl!
 * Playing with Fire: Firey.
 * Power Glows: Glow, which does nothing else.
 * Power of the Void: Nothing.
 * Reality Warper: Create. On a lesser scale, Maze.
 * Rewriting Reality: Create.
 * Rebellious Spirit: More literal versions.
 * Ret-Gone: Erase.
 * The Sacred Darkness: Dark.
 * Sealed Good in a Can / Sealed Evil in a Can: The Clow Cards were sealed due to their destructive powers, but their release allowed them to be tamed by Sakura. The Nothing suffers the latter for then the former.
 * Selective Gravity: Float and Windy.
 * Shock and Awe: Thunder.
 * Sizeshifter: Big and Small.
 * Spell My Name with an "S": "Firey," not "Fiery."
 * Super Speed: Dash, and to an extent Fly and Windy.
 * Super Strength: Power.
 * Stripperific: Some of the cards, though they tend to be milder examples.
 * Sweet Tooth: Sweet.
 * Tall, Dark and Bishoujo: The Dark.
 * Time Travel / Time Stands Still: Time and Return share these powers.
 * The Unfettered: The Nothing is out and out vehement on rejoining with all it's fellow "friends", the other Clow Cards, and doesn't so much as flinch to erasing an entire town's populace in her frenzied search. It is only when she realises such actions mean the cards won't accept her that she begins to doubt her methods.
 * The Unfettered: The Nothing is out and out vehement on rejoining with all it's fellow "friends", the other Clow Cards, and doesn't so much as flinch to erasing an entire town's populace in her frenzied search. It is only when she realises such actions mean the cards won't accept her that she begins to doubt her methods.


 * Vision Quest: Dream creates these.
 * Weather Control Machine: Windy, Snow, Storm, Rain and Cloud can all do this.
 * Winged Humanoid: After becoming a Sakura card, Fly gives Sakura this ability.
 * White-Haired Pretty Girl: Several cards, but specially Mirror, Fight, Snow, Light and Dream.
 * Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds: The Nothing.
 * Woman in Black: Dark.
 * Woman in White: Snow, Mirror and Light
 * Yin-Yang Bomb: Light and Dark.
 * The Nothing, which was made to counter the magic of the other cards.

Clow Reed
"Voiced by: Kazuo Hayashi (JP), Dale Wilson (EN), Rafael Rivera (Latin America)"

Creator of the Clow Cards, Kero and Yue, Clow Reed died before the manga and anime. A powerful sorcerer in his own right, he reincarnates as Eriol and.


 * Back from the Dead:
 * But Not Too Foreign: Half-British and half-Chinese. This influenced the way he developer his magic, since he combined elements of Eastern and Western magic to create the Cards.
 * Eccentric Mentor: Sakura thinks of him this way when learning of his plan.
 * Trickster Mentor
 * Eyes Always Shut: Most of the time, anyway
 * Hot for Student: Had a relationship with one of his students, until she crossed the Moral Event Horizon
 * Omniscient Morality License
 * Merlin and Nimue: Wizards? Check. Opposite genders? Check? Teacher-Student Romance? Check. A falling out? Check.
 * My Death Is Just the Beginning: A completely heroic version; his death was the beginning of a plan.
 * Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Creating well-intentioned spirits that are so difficult to control that they need to be sealed away lest they cause trouble for everyone, and
 * Posthumous Character: Inevitable, as he's long dead when the series starts.
 * Power Incontinence: The reasone he wanted to split his powers between two people.
 * Really Seven Hundred Years Old: Or several centuries old, at least, yet he still looks barely middle-aged.
 * Reincarnation: Into Eriol.
 * Tall, Dark and Handsome
 * The Chessmaster: See Eriol.

Nakuru Akizuki, aka Ruby Moon
"Voiced by: Ryoka Yuzuki (JP), Willow Johnson (EN), Monica Manjarrez (Latin America)"

One of Eriol's two minions, if you want to call them that. A hyperactive but manipulative Genki Girl, as Nakuru she has apparent affections for Toya. In her true form Ruby Moon she can fly and has similar powers to Yue.


 * Adaptation Dye Job: Nakuru's hair goes from light auburn in the manga to brown in the anime. Likewise, Ruby Moon's color scheme changes from red and black to pink and indigo.
 * Badass
 * Clingy Jealous Girl: She appears to be this towards Touya
 * Cloudcuckoolander: The stuff she says doesn't make much sense.
 * Dub Name Change: Averted. In the English adaptation both her true form and false form is called Ruby Moon.
 * Genki Girl: Very energetic, and to Touya's dismay, its all directed at him.
 * Manipulative Bitch: She has everyone fooled into thinking she's a ditzy Muggle. Then there's her sabotage of Touya's relationship with Yukito...
 * Moment Killer: Repeatedly and deliberately, to the point where Touya has to physically lock her out of the room in order to finally get some alone time with Yukito.
 * New Transfer Student
 * No Biological Sex/Purely Aesthetic Gender: Nakuru chooses to present "herself" as female simply because girls have cuter school uniforms. As "she" puts it, "I look good in a skirt!", and she then adds "Well, it's not like gender really matters... I'm not a human being anyway..."
 * No Sense of Personal Space: Constantly Glomping Touya.
 * Secret Public Identity: In the Nelvana dub only, where she goes by "Ruby Moon" in both forms.
 * Token Evil Teammate: Sorta.
 * Winged Humanoid: Large butterfly wings in her true form.

Spinel Sun
"Voiced by: Yumi Touma (JP), Colin Murdock (EN), Philece Sampler (EN - 2nd Movie), Ernesto Lezama (Latin America)"

The second of Eriol's minions, and a counterpart to Kero. Essentially The Eeyore, Spinel is quiet and calm but can go hyperactive when he eats sweets. His true form is a butterfly-winged panther who has powers similar to Keroberos.


 * Bookworm
 * Badass Bookworm
 * Cute Kitten: His temporary form.
 * Deadpan Snarker
 * Dub Name Change: To "Spinner Sun". It could count as a case of Spell My Name with an "S", if it wasn't for the Rock Theme Naming with "Spinel" and "Ruby."
 * The Eeyore: Stoic and humorless in personality, in contrast to hyperactive and cheerful Nakuru. Of course when he tastes sugar...
 * Intoxication Ensues: Give Suppi even a taste of sugar, and he instantly transforms into a hyperactive, sugar-seeking fiend who gleefully shoots laser beams from his mouth at the drop of a hat.
 * My Name Is Not Durwood: Nakuru repeatedly calls him "Suppi," much to his annoyance.
 * Panthera Awesome: His true form.

Kaho Mizuki
"Voiced by: Emi Shinohara (JP), Linda Rae Jurgens (EN), Dulce Guerrero (Latin America)"

A mysterious but Cool Teacher who starts teaching at Sakura's school, but is actually a powerful magician of some kind.


 * Cool Big Sis: Manga personality, where she's more cheerful and spacy than in the anime. She's even this to her old flame Touya, especially when it comes to his relationship with Yukito.
 * Cool Teacher
 * Dub Name Change: In the English dub, she becomes Layla McKenzie.
 * Hot for Student: Averted: though she was Touya's student teacher and had a relationship with him, the love confession only came after she stopped being his teacher.
 * Hot Teacher: Even the 4th graders think so!
 * Miko
 * Put on a Bus: Twice; once in Touya's backstory, and again after the first arc. Both times she goes to England to study.
 * Shipper on Deck: The original Touya/Yukito fangirl.
 * Yaoi Fangirl
 * Tall, Dark and Bishoujo - Yamato Nadeshiko: Anime personality, where she's very sweet and gentle but more aloof and shady.
 * Tall, Dark and Bishoujo - Yamato Nadeshiko: Anime personality, where she's very sweet and gentle but more aloof and shady.

The Enchantress (Mahoudoushi / Su Yung)
"Voiced by: Megumi Hayashibara (JP), Nicole Oliver (EN)"

The Big Bad of the first movie. She uses dreams and forces events so Sakura can win a trip to Hong Kong and attacks her because she carries the Clow Cards,.


 * Big Bad: In the first movie.
 * Dark Magical Girl: The contrast with Sakura, the Magical Girl, is revealed over the course of the movie. She's lonely, she's turned sour after.
 * Hot for Teacher: Was in love with.
 * I Will Wait for You:
 * Madness Mantra: "Where is ?"
 * Merlin and Nimue
 * No Name Given: Mahoudoushi only means "Enchantress"
 * Psycho Ex-Girlfriend: Being Sealed Evil in a Can for centuries would do that to anyone really, but she didn't have to attack people unrelated.
 * Sealed Evil in a Can
 * Tsundere: Can't decide whether to hate or hold onto her love for him. Its a complicated relationship.
 * Sealed Evil in a Can
 * Tsundere: Can't decide whether to hate or hold onto her love for him. Its a complicated relationship.

Sonomi Daidouji
"Voiced by: Miki Itou (JP), Venus Terzo (EN), Wendee Lee (EN - 2nd Movie), Monica Manjarrez (Latin America)"

Tomoyo's mother and Nadeshiko's best friend plus. She resents Fujitaka from marrying Nadeshiko at such a young age but is thrilled to be in Sakura's company.


 * Big Fancy House: So much that the Daidouji mansion is featured on the anime subpage's picture!
 * Bob Haircut
 * Dub Name Change: In the English dub, she becomes Samantha Taylor.
 * Hot Mom
 * The Ojou
 * Parents as People: Even busier than Fujitaka, always feels bad since she's unable to be with Tomoyo as much as she wants.
 * Single-Target Sexuality: Nadeshiko-sexual, oh so much. Tomoyo even comments once that Sonomi chose her hairstyle to look like Nadeshiko's.
 * Tsundere: Non-romantic - or so it seems - to Fujitaka.

Yoshiyuki Terada
"Voiced by: Tohru Furusawa (JP - first season and first movie), Katsuyuki Konishi (JP - third season and second movie), Steve Blum (EN - 2nd movie), Ricardo Tejedo (Latin America)"

The on-and-off teacher of Sakura's class. Rika has a crush on him which he seems to acknowledge.


 * Dub Name Change: Played with. In the English dub, he is simply called Mr. Terada.
 * Cool Teacher and Hot Teacher
 * Hot for Student and May-December Romance:
 * Lolicon: Played with in the manga, as  In the anime, he's just oblivious to her feelings.
 * Sharp-Dressed Man: Never seen without a suit.
 * Tall, Dark and Handsome

Maki Matsumoto
"Voiced by: Kotono Mitsuishi (JP), Nicole Oliver (EN), Alejandra de la Rosa (Latin America)"

The owner of the Twin Bells shop in Tomoeda, Maki has trouble due to the troublesome Jump Card, but is helped out by Sakura and her friends.


 * Alliterative Name
 * Canon Foreigner: She's an anime-only character.
 * Cool Big Sis
 * Determined Widow: Without marrying, as she was engaged and then her fiancé died. Otherwise, she fits in to a T.
 * Dub Name Change: In the English dub, she becomes Maggie.
 * Hime Cut
 * Yamato Nadeshiko

Li Yelan
"Voiced by: Kikuko Inoue (JP), Stevie Vallance (EN)"

Syaoran's strict, stern mother and head of the Li family. She is an incredibly powerful sorceress.


 * Badass: Has very powerful magic
 * Defrosting Ice Queen: Around Sakura
 * Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette
 * Education Mama: Why Syaoran is nervous about showing her his grades, even though they are very good grades.
 * Hair Decorations
 * Hot Mom: And how. She's had five kids and she still looks almost as young as her daughters!
 * Hot Witch
 * The Mourning After: She never got involved with any other guys after the death of her husband. Possibly justified since she is a powerful psychic; she can probably see his ghost.
 * Mukokuseki: Averted here. Her kids clearly take after their father and play this trope straight, while Yelan is more obviously Asian in appearance.
 * Older Than They Look: Is most likely in her mid to late 30's or even early 40's, but looks like she's in her mid to late 20's.
 * The Ojou
 * Parents as People: She loves Syaoran, but puts a lot of pressure on him (and in the manga lets him live alone, though at least it's in a safe town like Tomoeda)
 * Rapunzel Hair
 * Rich Bitch: She isn't overtly mean, but is rather cold.
 * The Stoic
 * Sugar and Ice Personality
 * Tall, Dark and Bishoujo
 * Widow Witch
 * Woman in White

Li Xiehua, Li Huenli, Li Fuurie and Li Feimei
Syaoran's eccentric four sisters. They are easily attracted to cute people.


 * Anime Chinese Girls
 * Canon Immigrant: Created specially for the movie, like their mother. Syaoran also mentions them once or twice in the TV series.
 * Chinese Dress: This is apparently how to tell them apart, aside of their hairstyles. (In case you were wondering, Feimei has shoulder-lenght hair and wears blue, Fuurie (or sometimes Fuutie) wears yellow and her hair reaches her hips, Xiehua (Siefa) wears red and has shortish hair, and Huenli (Fanren) wears green while having a Bob Haircut.)
 * Cool Big Sis: The four of them.
 * Creepy Quadruplets Played For Laughs. See "Cuteness Proximity"
 * Cuteness Proximity: They go crazy when in the presence of anything Moe
 * Estrogen Brigade: An In-Universe example, towards Touya and Yuki
 * Everything's Sparkly with Jewelry: Each girl wears very pretty earrings and lockets.
 * Hair Decorations: Feimei adds a hairpin
 * Fiery Redhead: Though not so much in a "raging" fiery sort of way as an "energetic" fiery sort of way
 * Kawaiiko: The four of them!
 * Spoiled Sweet

Wei Wang
Syaoran and Meiling's Parental Substitute whilst they live in Tomoeda. He seems to have a degree of magical powers, and as The Jeeves for Syaoran.


 * Canon Immigrant: Only appears in the anime.
 * Cool Old Guy
 * The Jeeves
 * Parental Substitute: For Syaoran and Meiling