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Eriol Hiiragizawa
柊沢 エリオル
Series Cardcaptor Sakura
Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card
Profile
Also Known As Eriol-kun (by Sakura)
Hiiragizawa-kun
Clow Reed (incarnation)
Birthday March 23 (Aries)
Age Unknown

Physically 11 (Sakura Card Arc)
13+ (Clear Card Arc)

Relatives Clow Reed (incarnation)
Affiliates Ruby Moon, Spinel Sun (creations, assistants)
Kaho Mizuki (associate, lover)
Fujitaka Kinomoto (reincarnation of Clow Reed, manga only)
Residence Tomoeda, Japan (former residence)
England (residence)
Favorite flower Cherry Blossom
Likes Sweets, playing pranks

black color, tricks, tall-tales

Dislikes Being a powerful topmost-level
Powers/Abilities
  • Clow Card-related magics
  • Dark/Shadow magic
  • Energy Projection (via magic staff)
  • Supernatural detection
  • Spiritual Awareness
Characteristics
Gender Male
Hair Black
Eyes Gray (90s Anime & Manga)
Dark Blue (Clear Card Anime)
Blood Type AB
Appearances
First Appearance (Manga)
Volume 7, Chapter 27
Last Appearance (Manga)
First Appearance (Anime)
Sakura and the Mysterious Transfer Student
Last Appearance (Anime)
Voices
Seiyuu
Nozomu Sasaki
English
Bill Switzer (Cardcaptors)
Claudia Thompson (Animax)
Johnny Yong Bosch (2nd movie)
Micah Solusod (Clear Card)

Eriol Hiiragizawa (柊沢 エリオル, Hīragizawa Erioru) is a supporting character in CLAMP's anime and manga series Cardcaptor Sakura. He is one-half reincarnation of Clow Reed and plays a main antagonist in the events of Sakura Cards Arc as the source of all magical events Sakura faces in order to transform the Clow Cards into Sakura Cards.

In the Clear Card Arc, he is a supporting character alongside his lover, Kaho Mizuki.

Appearance[]

Eriol appears as a pale-skinned boy with dark blue hair that has bangs hanging on either side and large gray eyes. He also wears rectangular glasses.

His outfit changes depending on the situation:

  • When he attends school, he wears the school's uniform and a book bag.
  • When using his immensely powerful magical powers, he wears blue robes and a large black hat, both sporting unique yellow decorations.
  • When at his home, he wears casual clothing.

Personality[]

Eriol is usually a serious and determined person who also has a mischievous personality and he has to restrain himself from making wisecracks when Sakura Kinomoto and Syaoran Li are "so slow", as he tells Sakura in Episode 55 (as the Cheshire Cat). This is also the same for Kero and Yue. Eriol enjoys himself when using his magic to put Sakura in various situations. These situations can be anywhere from dangerous to being quite comical, such as when he put her in a pit filled with stuffed sheep.

Eriol's life experience, with his access to Clow Reed's memories, means that he is significantly more knowledgeable and more mature than all his classmates. He is skilled in basketball, cooking, academics, piano, and art. He is more literate in Japanese writing than Syaoran is, despite coming from a country that uses a completely different writing system.

Tomoyo, as well, implies him to be "kind" when watching Sakura and Syaoran pinky-promise.

Plot[]

Sakura Card Arc[]

Eriol transfers to Tomoeda Elementary School from England soon after Sakura Kinomoto convinces Yue in the "Final Judgment" and becomes Master of the Clow Cards. He quickly befriends Sakura, a feat which persuades Syaoran Li, who becomes both jealous and suspicious of Eriol, to postpone his return to Hong Kong. It was quite obvious Eriol had bigger intentions towards Sakura.

When watching Sakura and Syaoran pinky-promise, Eriol tells Tomoyo, "You're always doing that. Watching Sakura- with kind eyes." Tomoyo Daidouji smiles kindly and responds: "The same as you, Hiiragizawa-kun", implying that Tomoyo felt her love for Sakura was similar to Eriol's (even if it is a more platonic "love" for Sakura; and, that she regarded him as "kind".)

Eriol n syaoran

Eriol with Sakura and a jealous Syaoran.

Eriol also befriends Takashi Yamazaki and becomes his partner-in-crime, agreeing with whatever he makes up. He and Takashi respond to each other's cues perfectly together reinforce the supposed validity of their story by both appearing to have detailed knowledge of the subject, thwarting Chiharu Mihara's usual efforts to dispel of the whole lie.

At the same time, a series of magical disasters force Sakura to gradually convert the Clow Cards into "Sakura Cards" or "Star Cards", which draw from her own magical energy rather than the dwindling amount of magic left in them by Clow Reed, although this had the drawback of causing Sakura to faint every time she transformed a Clow Cards into a Sakura Cards.

What Sakura does not know (until the series' end) is that Eriol himself creates these situations. During each situation, he is seen from afar observing the action, often accompanied by his guardians, Spinel Sun and Ruby Moon. All three of them live in a house that was formerly occupied by Clow Reed himself.

Eventually, Eriol confronts Sakura and reveals himself to be the reincarnation of Clow Reed, creator of the Cards which leaves Sakura, Tomoyo, Kero and Syaoran stunned at the revelation. He challenges Sakura to defeat him by converting the final Cards, The Light and The Dark, which would prevent Tomoeda from being permanently plunged into darkness. The sheer force causes Tomoyo to fall asleep while Syaoran barely manages to hold on with Sakura being the only one unaffected by the change.

With his guardians occupying the attention of Sakura's own guardians, Yue and Cerberus, Eriol uses his magic to hinder Sakura. Eventually she manages to convert Light and Dark with the help of Cerberus and Yue, who fused with Sakura's wand to make it more powerful, and Syaoran, who provided moral support and the confidence to endure, even though his attempt to aid her with his magic resulted in him passing out in the manga. In the anime, Syaoran survives long enough to help Sakura change the Light and Dark Cards, breaking Eriol's spell once and for all.

In the manga, after Sakura overcomes this final challenge, Eriol puts Sakura through one more task; he asks her to divide his power in half between himself and her father, Fujitaka Kinomoto, who is the other reincarnation of Clow Reed. This at last gives Eriol the one thing he has wanted his entire life: to no longer be the most powerful sorcerer in the world. This wish was probably due to the consequences of Clow Reed's desire for Yuuko Ichihara to stay alive, which led to the events of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle. No longer able to keep people away from the battle site using magic, Eriol invites everyone to his home where he explains his actions. Stating that the challenges were to give Sakura a reason to have to change the cards into Sakura Cards, which made it easier and safer for her to transform them then it would have been without a good reason.

At Eriol's house, it is revealed that he was working in conjunction with Kaho Mizuki, who he met during her travels in Europe, and when she was in college. When Sakura, Syaoran, Tomoyo, and Cerberus go off to help Ruby Moon and Spinel in the kitchen, Eriol steps outside to join Yue, who was still feeling that Clow abandoned him. He feels hurt that Clow forced him to go through the pain of having to choose another master and believes that Clow has been alive all along. Eriol clarifies that he is not Clow Reed, but just has his memories, and that Clow will never return. Eriol then explains Clow's reasoning and knowing that Yue's heart is broken from the loss of Clow Reed he helps Yue come to terms with Clow's death and his decision to reincarnate himself. With his task complete, Eriol returns to England with his trusted associate/lover Kaho, Spinel and Ruby Moon, having fulfilled his purpose.

Clear Card Arc[]

In the 22 episode of Clear Card anime, Eriol has stayed back to England, as his work is done. There, he perceives the increase of Sakura's magic power and informed Syaoran of her supremely powerful magic, stating, "great power will only bring great unhappiness to its possessor".

With the assistance of Yelan Li, off-screen, Eriol investigates the mysterious "D" level magician, Yuna Kaito and the British magic association from which he was excommunicated. Yelan had tried to use her own brand of powerful magic to discern the true extent of Kaito's powers, but was unable to. Eriol is only able to find out that Yuna had stolen a powerful magic object from the association.[1]

He later communicates with the holograms of Yue and Cerberus, revealing to them the truth about Kaito and that the Clear Cards being a manifestation of Sakura’s powers growing ever stronger. The communication is interrupted by Kaito who after a magical confrontation with Eriol, both end up with their supremely powerful objects, staff and pocketwatch, partially damaged. He stated that Kaito was indeed a formidable enemy.[2]

Since the confrontation leaved him very exhausted, Eriol remains in bed under Kaho‘s care. The two argue about the sorcerer's intentions and how he uses top-level time magic. Eriol later sends Spinel and Ruby Moon to Tomoeda to help Cerberus and Yue with their lack of magic power. [3]

Momo reveals that Eriol cast a spell of discord on Sakura in order to prevent others from detecting the growth of her magic, thus hoping to protect her from those with evil intentions.[4]

During a talk with Eriol, Yelan reveals that she was the one who placed a spell on Sakura and Syaoran so that they couldn't touch each other, because she had foreseen in a prediction that her son would need a way to recognize the real Sakura from The Mirror that imitated her. The two also argue about what goal Yuna D. Kaito could have to go so far as to shorten his lifespan in order to use time magic.[5]

At the end of Clear Card arc, Eriol decide to bought back the house Yuna and Akiho stayed and keep their house as it is. So all the books Akiho collected will be safe.[6]

Mystical Powers and Skills[]

CCS EP69 - Eriol's staff

Eriol in his battle costume, with the mystical staff that his past self had once wielded.

Magical Power-Level: As his reincarnation, Eriol retains most of the memories, personality traits, and supremely powerful magical abilities of Clow Reed himself. As such he is a remarkably formidable sorcerer, able to effortlessly defeat high-ranking magic users even without the aid of the cards. Yuna D. Kaito states that "...he is one the greatest magicians alive."

He also displays the ability to animate various objects through the use of magic, as shown when he is testing whether Sakura is worthy to be the next master of the cards. Specific examples of this are when he brings a teddy bear to life, causing it to grow and gain immense strength in the process; and when he used his power to animate some children's rides in a play area.

In his duel with Sakura, he demonstrated the power to unleash multiple bursts of scarlet energy from his staff at great speed, and to greatly amplify the powers of others so they could overpower their opponents with ease. Eriol also has the ability to levitate, though rarely uses this ability. He was able to cast a darkness over the entire Tomoeda area, rendering any non-magical being unconscious forever. The spell was later dispelled.

As reincarnation of Clow, he is the only one besides Sakura that is able to restrain the powers of Cerberus and Yue, as well as the Clow Cards, being able to cancel the magic of The Windy when Sakura tries to use it against him.

In Episode 4 of the Clear Card arc anime, Eriol is seen using his own special cards to perform a form of fortune-telling, similar to how Sakura performed predictive fortune-telling using the Clow Cards.

CCSCC EP4 - Eriol's Cards

Clear Card Anime - Eriol Cards

Magic Circle: Eriol inherited Clow's magic circle who combines the supremely powerful cosmic magics of the sun and the moon. Eriol shows to be able to see through great distances using his magic circle. He can also converse with Yue and Keroberos via holograms.

Spiritual Awareness & Affinity: Eriol also demonstrates an ability to see spirits, in a similar manner to Touya Kinomoto, as he was able to see the spirit of Nadeshiko Kinomoto at Tomoeda Elementary.

Mystical Weaponry[]

Eriol wields the exact magical staff created and wielded by the mighty Clow Reed himself. Like Sakura's Wand, the staff is able to remains in a dormant key form while not in use, being released while Eriol uses an special chant:

I call upon the power of the day and the night

Sun and darkness unleash your might

Release!

Key that hides the powers of darkness

Reveal your true nature to me I command you by my power

Release!

Cardcaptors[]

Eriol's name is changed to Eli Moon and the scene where he kisses Sakura's hand is removed.

Etymology[]

  • His given name Eriol could be a reference to the spirit Ariel from William Shakespeare's quarterly The Genesis of Ariel.
  • His surname Hiiragizawa means "holly osmanthus" (柊) (hiiragi) and "marsh" (沢) (sawa/zawa).

Quotes[]

Season Three[]

  • "Clow Reed could have done it."
  • "If you want to know the answer, you'll have to break my spell."
  • "Using magic in a situation like that. That's overkill."
  • "It's so nice to see you again."
  • "I couldn't risk you finding out who I was, could I, Yue?"
  • "It's all over."
  • "I finished being a nusience to you, that's that I meant."
  • "I'm the reincarnation of Clow Reed, and all I'm doing is following his wishes."
  • "Thanks for watching it."
  • "Even though I may some some memories of that past life, I am not the Clow Reed that you used to know. Clow Reed is never going to appear on this Earth again."
  • "Meaning you are very fond of her."
  • "Clow Reed is dead now. But I can talk about your memories of him."
  • "I predicated what would happen to those two, but I was wrong."

The Sealed Card[]

  • "It's been a long time, Sakura."
  • "My mansion, or rather Clow Reed's mansion, has been demolished, right?"
  • "The Card that has been sealed underneath has been activated."
  • "The existence of the sealed Card was known only to Clow Reed. And that card has never been in its existence."
  • "Are parts of the city gone?"
  • "Like buildings?"
  • "Yes."
  • "If my memories from Clow Reed had been complete, I could have told you much sooner."
  • "The Card will decide who has the strongest magic at that time."
  • "It knew what was doing and erased the phone-line. It has more power than I thought."
  • "I do not."

Clear Card Arc[]

  • "At Tokyo Tower, I knew what would happen, that Keroberos and Yue would attack me in order to protect Sakura. I needed them to counter that attack."
  • "In a way, Spinel and Ruby complete me. Cerberus and Yue would continue searching for Clow Reed inside of me. Especially Yue."
  • "Good morning, although I suppose it's evening where you are."
  • "Another magic user is near Sakura?"
  • "His name?"
  • "Here in England, there's a magic association that grants its highest ranked magic users the title of D."
  • "That's alright. Your mother probably hadn't told you about them yet. Some rumors concerning them aren't good."
  • "I'll look into it on my end. I'll tell you what I find."
  • "There's a pattern. Those with great magical power tend to converge about her."
  • "They're drawn to her because she possesses immense power herself."
  • "Sakura is very strong. No one knows that better than I."
  • "I know. Yue's face is a dead giveaway."
  • "The one thing I have most feared is becoming reality."
  • "If you're asking whether it is more powerful than I am, yes, it is. The Li family attempted to find out the exact power it holds but failed."
  • "You needn't do anything. The assailant is targeting me."
  • "I will do everything I can from here. Watch over Sakura and Syaoran Li. Please help them."
  • "This is indeed a powerful enemy, Sakura."

Trivia[]

  • In the manga, Eriol referred to Syaoran Li as his "darling relative" or "my cute little descendant"; this is absent from the anime.
  • In the manga, Eriol's powers are ineffective against Fujitaka Kinomoto, Sakura's father. This is because Clow Reed's soul split into two spirits; one half being Eriol, who held the memories of his past life as Clow, while the second was Fujitaka who possessed none of the memories. In the anime, this revelation is scrapped, and no reference is made to there being another reincarnation other than Eriol.
  • Eriol has made statements multiple times of "I’m not Clow anymore.", showing a preference for being seen as a separate being from Clow Reed.
  • In the manga, when Eriol is asked why he created Spinel Sun and Ruby Moon, Eriol replies that he "...knew that Yue and Cerberus would attack him at Tokyo Tower, simply to protect Sakura from harm." He also states that if he hadn't created Spinel or Ruby, his two former creations would have been searching for the Clow within him.
  • In CLAMP's Angelic Layer, there is a school called "Eriol Academy". However, CLAMP is known to make inter-textual references within their series. There is no evidence to suggest any link between the character and the school.
  • In spite of appearing to have all of Clow's memories, Eriol makes no indication that he knows of Yuuko Ichihara or that Clow went to Clow Country.
  • In another anime and manga series by CLAMP, Chobits, there is a character who resembles Eriol, Minoru Kokubunji.
  • Eriol's seiyuu, Nozomu Sasaki, also voiced Clef from Magic Knight Rayearth, another CLAMP franchise.
  • Since Eriol is from England, his Japanese surname may indicate that one or both of his parents were Japanese or of Japanese descent.
  • Yuna D. Kaito is impressed at how strong of a magician Eriol is, being a reincarnation of Clow Reed himself. He was amused at how he was able to crack his pocketwatch.

References[]

  1. Cardcaptor Sakura Chapter 22 (Clear Card)
  2. Cardcaptor Sakura manga Chapter 23 (Clear Card)
  3. Cardcaptor Sakura manga Chapter 32 (Clear Card)
  4. Cardcaptor Sakura manga Chapter 50 (Clear Card)
  5. Cardcaptor Sakura Chapter 66 (Clear Card)
  6. Cardcaptor Sakura Chapter 80 (Clear Card)

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