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Why I love Cardcaptor Sakura so much, and why I continue to go back to it months after I finished.
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Cardcaptor Sakura covers a wide variety of topics but the one I found to be the most prominent was understanding the different kids of love one can feel, and the variety of relationships people have with one another.
Of course, this isn’t a new theme by any means, but Sakura explores this in a way almost unmatched to others of its kind. Each character is handled with such delicacy and every dynamic holds something different.
Let’s look at Tomoyo. It’s heavily implied that she is in love with Sakura. But rather than making this something sad or dwelling on it, the series displays it so naturally and shows us the deeper side of that kind of love.
Tomoyo loves Sakura and understands that she doesn’t love her in the same way. Instead, Tomoyo supports Sakura in a genuine kind and caring way, even pushing Syaoran and Sakura together later on in the series.
Her character is then also able to support Meiling, when Syaoran tells her that he’s in love with Sakura. Tomoyo serves as a support to Meiling because she understands the pain she’s going through. And despite Meiling’s frustration she is still incredibly understanding of Sakura.
As you can already see, the show creates such delicate and special relationships between each character. Another example is one of the most interesting characters in the series, Yukito/Yue.
Sakura from the beginning said she was in love with Yukito. Now I’m sure many of us felt this was a simple childhood crush, and it was to an extent. But despite that Yukito handles Sakura with such care, because at the end of the day he still loves her.
But it’s that of a familial love, not romantic. And he suspects that Sakura’s love for him is one of similar origins and that she hasn’t found *true* love yet. This leading to another beautiful dynamic in the series as
Yukito then admits to being in love with Sakura’s brother. It’s done so casually and Sakura accepts it without question. It was at this moment I really began to grasp just how beautiful of a series Cardcaptor is.
Sakura, as our protagonist is so genuinely loving and accepting of all people. Through her eyes, things like Yukito being in love with a boy, and that boy being her brother doesn’t phase her. Tomoyo’s love doesn’t phase her and she loves Tomoyo no matter what.
Meiling being previously in love Syaoran doesn’t affect their relationship. Sakura is incredibly accepting. Which is certainly what made Syaoran fall in with her. A shy boy who has never considered his own feelings falls for Sakura after also thinking he was in love with Yukito.
And that’s what made me fall deep in love with this series. It’s something that at my age doesn’t change my worldview. But if I watched this as a kid, it would have helped me understand so much. Everyone handles conflict and tension with delicacy and maturity.
The series presents uncommon relationships and family situations showing them in a “normal” way. Add in the clow cards, whose magic every episode help propel our characters to understanding themselves more, and you get an almost perfect series.
There wasn’t a single episode where I felt “that was alright”. Every episode left an impact on me. Just seeing how beautifully all these characters interact with and show their love for each other made me realize Cardcaptor Sakura exemplifies innocent love, and acceptance 
