I actually started this write-up back at episode eight and went from there. With eighteen episodes now under our belts, it looks like I can make a fair summary of Clannad’s ladies. Several of the girls present striking similarities to previous Key girls while a few break free from the mold to be different.
Note that this is just a comparison of similarities, because Key really loves to stick to the archetypes that work. If anything changes as the episodes roll on, I will reflect said changes by editing this work in progress. I’m only going to cover the five main girls, so that means the minor girls are excluded for now. I may add them at a later time though. This post contains obvious spoilers for those who haven’t seen Clannad, Air, or Kanon. I should technically include comparisons to the girls from One ~ To the Radiant Season but whatever. You have been warned.
Nagisa Furukawa = Shiori Misaka + Misuzu Kamio
Nagisa really bears a strong resemblance to Shiori. Nagisa is apparently chronically ill much like Shiori. They also share the spot of being the normal girls in their anime/game. Both have little involvement with anything supernatural such as spirits, magical powers, or amazing fighting ability. To a lesser extent, Nagisa and Shiori have similar taste in normal clothing, but Nagisa lacks Shiori’s mesmerizing shawl.
Like Misuzu, Nagisa is a girl with no friends until they meet the main character. I also think that Nagisa has this sense of pure innocence that is very much like Misuzu as well. They’re sort of like the girls that you take for granted until they’re gone. Maybe I’m just crazy, but Nagisa really seems like the heir apparent to Misuzu’s spirit.
Kyou Fujibayashi = Hmmm…
Ah Kyou, everyone’s favorite switch-hitting tsundere. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that Kyou is actually Clannad’s most “original” girl, in the sense that she is totally different from Key’s previous gals; She has this raw sexuality previously unseen in previous Key works. If I had to compare Kyou to someone, then she is Haruhi Suzumiya incarnate in a bishoujo game. From her violent fits of rage, extortion/blackmail of classmates, and rampant Kotomi molesting, this comparison isn’t too far off the mark. Kyou is a little like Kano Kirishima because they both have weird mascot pets that are very attached to their owners.
Kotomi Ichinose = A bustier Minagi Tohno + Mai Kawasumi
This comparison actually isn’t very strong. I only mention it because both girls are quiet, lethargic geniuses. Saying that Minagi is a genius is really a stretch, because she doesn’t really measure up to Kotomi in that regard. Kotomi shares the spot of also being a forgotten childhood friend much like Mai.
Tomoyo Sakagami = A surface similarity to Mai Kawasumi
The similarities I conjured up are stoic juvenile delinquent with supernatural fighting powers. Otherwise, Tomoyo is actually a fairly original character by Key standards. With that said, there really isn’t too much to Tomoyo’s vanilla personality anyway.
Fuko Ibuki = Ayu Tsukimiya + Makoto Sawatari + a dash of Michiru
This is just too easy. Fuko really seems to be a mish-mash of Ayu and the tsundere, moeblobness of Makoto and Michiru. At first glace, one may be tempted to think that Fuko is a carbon copy of Ayu, but you’ll see that she is quite similar to Makoto and Michiru if you dig deeper. Fuko, Makoto, and Michiru gradually warm up to their respective protagonists after a psuedo-rivalry at the beginning of their stories. A small subjective quirk Fuko shares with Makoto is that they both have too many early episodes devoted to them.
