In Japan, it’s pretty common for high schools to prohibit students from wearing any sort of makeup. As a result, a lot of girls don’t get to use it on a daily basis until after they graduate, usually at the age of 18.
So perhaps it’s fitting that 18 years after its initial release, manga and anime franchise Cardcaptor Sakura is getting its own cosmetics set, meaning that everyone who came into the world as the same time as the series is now old enough to enjoy it.
In some ways, Cardcaptor Sakura is as plucky as its titular heroine herself. Starting off in 1996 as a manga from collaborative team Clamp, it had had to work extra hard to get out of the shadow cast by fellow magical girl series Sailor Moon, which was then at the height of its popularity. After success in Japan, its anime adaptation finally made its way to North America, only to do so in the form of a severely watered-down edited-for-TV version, angering purists and boring newcomers. Still, Sakura soldiered on, winning hearts and minds throughout the English-speaking world thanks to more faithful English-translated manga and DVD releases.
In the story, 10-year-old Sakura Kinomoto is tasked with tracking down and recovering the 53 magical Clow Cards that have been released into the world. In real life, as part of the 60th anniversary of girls’ comic anthology Nakayoshi (the original home of Cardcaptor Sakura), merchandiser Bandai and makeup producer CreerBeaute are releasing a two-piece Cardcaptor Sakura cosmetics set. The package can be ordered here from the Premium Bandai online store for 3,780 yen (US$33), with delivery scheduled for next March.
Included is Sakura’s Sealing Wand. Ordinarily about one meter (3’3″) long, it’s been shrunk down to a size that can fit in the palm of your hand.
While Sakura uses the wand to bind and manipulate the Clow Cards, the function of Bandai’s version is a bit more practical for non-magical girls. Pop off the top, and inside you’ll find a stick of lip balm with the scent of, what else, cherry blossoms, or “sakura” in Japanese.
The other half of the set is the Clow Book in which Sakura stores the magical cards after she’s captured them.
Instead of containing mysterious mystical power, though, Bandai’s version holds a container of blush in a light pink shade, often called “sakurairo” in Japanese.
The designers aren’t leaving Clow Card-loving fans completely empty-handed, though. Obviously you don’t want all that blush staining the inside cover of your Clow Book, so there’s a protective sheet that slips over the makeup, styled just like the very first Clow Card, The Windy.
You’re on your own finding the other 52, though.
Sources: Kai-You, Livedoor
Top image: Premium Bandai (edited by RocketNews24)
Insert images: Premium Bandai
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