Eriol. (柊沢 エリオル) So, you've made your way here, and damn. This boy is mysterious. And yes, if you had to pick one word to describe him, mysterious would definitely be in the final cut. The boy is an enigma, a genius, a sage; and he's only eleven. Eriol is a character of the CLAMP series, Card Captor Sakura. If you are already an avid CLAMP fan, this can speak volumes about his character. He is a mystical boy. He is good looking, witty, and has more charm than he knows what to do with. He knows this and he flaunts it in a manner so subtle that it captures you from the start and never lets go.

If you've ever noticed your change, you'd see that all coins (at least the everyday normal ones) have two sides. There is the one side with the beautiful motif which represents the country it belongs to, while the other side is a colder, more blunt and numeric. Eriol, for all metaphorical purposes, is a coin. To the world, Hiiragizawa Eriol is a sweet natured boy, the model student, the boy next door who everyone praises. He is brilliant, athletic, social and adorable. He enters class with a flower for Sakura; he is courteous, generous and helping. He is multitalented—with the arts, the sciences, the theology, the theatrics...

The magic; this is the other side of Eriol—the numeric side. Eriol is a reincarnation of Clow Reed. Whenever he isn't being the pleasant eternal sunshine of Tomoeda, he is peering through the portal he uses to spy on Sakura and her misfortunes. Did I mention that he usually triggers these misfortunes? Did I mention that he brings Sakura flowers just to piss Syaoran off?

Omg, teh evil! Yeah, you're right. He does emanate this aura of sheer evil when he is being a sadist and enjoying Sakura's plights. You want to wring his neck for being that two faced coin; you want to reach into the screen and take tiny him in your hand and squeeze until all the jelly is gone. You want to, but you can't because he's just that adorable and you keep wishing against odds that it'll all turn out to be fine.

The contrast between the two sides of Eriol is startling. It is truly like comparing sunshine to eternal darkness. In one moment, he has the power to fill you with warmth, like the sun on a spring day. In the same moment, he can make you feel as cold as ice along your spine. This contrast between what Eriol is and what he appears to be is what makes him a memorable character. As the series draws to a close, you find that Eriol in being cruel is kind. He is merely a catalyst in Sakura's adventures to transform her cards. We learn that he is neither heads not tails, but a healthy mix of both. He is refined, polite and courteous. He is also a very powerful magician, loves to exercise trickery and still enjoys infuriating Syaoran. He is still mysterious, enigmatic, charming and too mature for his age.

And Eriol is one of the few eleven-year-olds who starts as a mystery, tells you all about himself throughout the series and still manages to stay a mystery at the end of it. I've tried to put him into words, but the best way to acquaint yourself with a little boy named Hiiragizawa Eriol is to pick up Card Captors: Masters of the Clow and let him tell you his story.

Following thoughts. It isn't the whole truth to say that Eriol is a reincarnation of Clow Reed. Yes, it is partially true. This is how I justify my favoritism, so to speak. Clow Reed has two reincarnations, the first being Hiiragizawa Eriol and the second Kinomoto Fujitaka, Sakura's father. Eriol is one half of Clow Reed, while Fujitaka-san is the other. However, since Eriol inherited the magic, which skipped Fujitaka and went straight to Sakura, and partially Touya, we will round up and regard Eriol as a reincarnation of Clow Reed.

This section was written by Aku, who was kind enough to give her personal flourish in tackling Eriol's character, definitely a feat I could never achieve with such flair. As of April 15, 2008, this page has been changed due to technical wording and how one piece of information was misconstrued due to an error.

Chijin is © Sasa and Aku and is a memory of The Remembrance Network. Eriol and Tomoyo are © CLAMP. Sasa and Aku are in no way affiliated with CLAMP, nor do they profit in any way by the creation of this site. However, graphics and content within should not be reproduced or copied in any way without prior consent.