Clow Reed
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Clow Reed (クロウ・リード Kurō Rīdo?) is a fictional character in Clamp's anime and manga series Cardcaptor Sakura. He is voiced by Dale Wilson in Cardcaptors, the English adaptation of Cardcaptor Sakura.
He also exists in the storyline of another Clamp series, xxxHolic. This is the same Clow Reed as Cardcaptor Sakura and xxxHolic happen in the same world.
Clow is also a fictional character in Clamp's Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle with a separate characterization.
[edit] Character and Role
Clow Reed is the creator of the Clow Cards (also referred to as "The Clow"), a series of cards resembling tarot cards with various magical powers within them. Additionally, he is the creator of Yue and Cerberus, assigned to protect The Clow and ensure that it gets passed on properly to new masters.
When Clow was nearing death, he chose Sakura Kinomoto (Sakura Avalon in Cardcaptors) to be the new mistress of The Clow. Sakura was not yet born at the time, but Clow's magical ability allowed him to foresee most of the future and plan many of the situations that would enable Sakura to succeed in taking full possession of the Clow Cards. This is the reason why Sakura's sealing wand is pink and cute; he wanted to make a suitable wand for the young girl who would be mistress.
In the first Cardcaptor Sakura movie, it is revealed that though he was an extremely powerful magician, he had many enemies, including the sorceress and fortune-teller Madoushi, who held a bitter grudge against Clow, even after her death. Her English dubbed version counterpart, Su Yung, was a fortune teller as well, but the reason for her grudge had nothing to do with that. Clow was also a fortune-teller and told fortunes that came true every time, which resulted in Madoushi going out of business and developing a hatred so deep for him that she challenged him to fights all of the time and cast a spell on a book so her spirit would reside in it after she had died. The spell would also draw Clow to her and once she was released by Clow (or anyone possessing the Clow Cards), that person would become sealed within the book instead of her. Madoushi was unintentionally released by Sakura during her trip to Hong Kong and she, demanding to know where Clow is, attacks Sakura and her friends, succeeding in capturing them all except Sakura, Tomoyo and Kero. However, it is revealed at the end of the movie that Clow had given her a beautiful hair ornament for her birthday and Madoushi truly loved Clow. After finally accepting that Clow is dead, she weeps and vanishes. As Sakura watches her disappear, she cries too.
The way it went in the English dubbed version was slightly different. In the dubbed version, the sorceress was named Su Yung, which is makes the dubbed version slightly more realistic than the Japanese version, because she was supposed to have lived in Hong Kong. She was a fortune-teller in the dubbed version as well, but it wasn't as essential to the storyline. When Clow Reed came, the two just met each other unexpectedly and fell in love. Clow Reed was becoming much stronger by the minute, and decided to teach Su Yung to use magic. But Su Yung wanted to become powerful, so she used her magic to spread destruction instead of being responsible with it. Clow Reed was the only one who could put an end to it. At first we believe that Su Yung plotted to kill Clow Reed, and he somehow discovered that, but later we realized that she actually tried to sway him to side with her and rule the world along with her. But he told her that magic should be used to help people rather than to terrorize them. Their love was shattered. They had one very intense fight. She lost, died, and was sealed into an alternate dimension created by Clow. Then she yearned to be set free and pass to the next world, and wanted to take revenge on Clow Reed for betraying and imprisoning her. Everything else went the way it went in the original version.
Clow makes an appearance in episode 46 just after Sakura has completed the Final Judgment, thus becoming the new mistress of The Clow. Here Clow explains the coincidences he had planned for Sakura--situations that would allow her to recapture all the Cards. He also advises Sakura to take care of her new power, the power that changed the original sealing wand into one that is completely Sakura's.
In episode 68, Sakura uses The Return to visit Clow prior to his death. Clow recognizes Sakura but does not concisely answer all of her questions. Sakura is mainly concerned that she would never be as great or as powerful as Clow, but Clow reminds her that she cannot keep comparing herself to him. Sakura is her own self, and she has already been fulfilling Clow's final wish, which is to allow his creations (the Cards, Cerberus, and Yue) to live in happiness under a new master. During this visit, Clow gives little to no insight about the recent mysterious happenings, though Sakura finds that out from Eriol when she returns to the present.
Syaoran Li (Li Showron) is a distant relative of Clow, as Clow's mother's family is the Li Clan.
Clow Reed's name resembles that of Thoth Tarot creator Aleister Crowley (クロウリー Kurourī in Japanese).
In Cardcaptors, Clow is also a local figure, with the town of Reedington being named after him.
[edit] Reincarnation
Clow Reed's present-day reincarnation is Eriol Hiiragizawa (Eli Moon), appearing in season three of the anime. In the manga, Sakura's father, Fujitaka Kinomoto (Aiden Avalon) is also a reincarnation (but just one-half, while Eriol is the other). Eriol retains all of Clow's past memories and all of his magic. Clow was not able to split his magic apart into the two new bodies and Eriol's final wish is for her to take half of his magic and give it to her father. Eriol's purpose is to create situations, much like Clow did in season one, that would allow Sakura to convert the Clow Cards into Sakura Cards, putting them wholly under her magical influence and completely finishing the transition of The Clow from Clow Reed to Sakura.
Because Eriol is Clow's reincarnation, Sakura and company continuously detect Clow's presence during Eriol's trials. This leads to suspicion in Sakura when she visits Eriol's manor in episode 65 and feels Clow's presence all over, especially in Eriol's armchair. The manor was indeed inhabited by Clow when he was alive, but Sakura does not fully realize this until the end of the series.
After learning that Clow was reincarnated, Yue protests the entire situation involving Sakura having to become the new master of The Clow. Eriol, holding Clow's memories, explains that he is not the actual Clow Reed, who would never return to this world. This is why Clow entrusted everything to Sakura. However Eriol offers to talk about his memories whenever Yue wishes.
[edit] xxxHolic and Tsubasa
Yuuko Ichihara, a main character in xxxHolic, repeatedly talks about Clow. While the exact nature of their relationship is uncertain, they are known to have worked together to create the two Mokonas who appear in xxxHolic and Tsubasa. Yuuko tends to refer to Clow as "that creep with glasses".
Clow Reed is mentioned in Tsubasa: RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE, apparently as the same person as the Clow Reed of Cardcaptor Sakura and was personally acquainted to Yūko Ichihara. The two together created the Mokonas that would help Syaoran. Fei Wong Reed, the mastermind who initially guides the journey of Sakura and Syaoran across the dimensions, is an ancestor of Clow Reed's. Though Fei Wong refers to Clow as an interloper in his affairs.
The Clow Kingdom's own variation of Clow Reed was the father of Sakura and Touya, and the former king of the Kingdom of Clow. Little is known about this Clow Reed as he passed away before the story began. He was known to have allowed the excavation of the ruins in the country under the direction of the archaeologist, Fujitaka, and also allowed Fujitaka's adopted son, Syaoran, to become a close friend of his daughter Sakura. It is implied that he had powerful magic of his own and was able to discern the fates of Sakura and Syaoran before his death; he would later teach Yukito, the current High Priest of Clow, his knowledge of magic.
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Clow Cards
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| Episode Guide: Clow Card Arc: 1-18, 19-35, 36-46 | Sakura Card Arc: 47-59, 60-70 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
