Evaluation
Claymore wastes little time in defining itself as
a dark, serious, and bloody fantasy story heavy on action but not enslaved to
it. The early episodes of the story establish setting, mood, many basic
Claymore circumstances, and main character development, followed by a seminal
four-episode backstory arc. Nearly everything that happens in the series either
directly or indirectly results from the events of episodes 5-8 (with the climax
of episode 8 being the series’ most pivotal moment), so rewatching
these episodes to get solid on their details is highly recommended. Those
episodes also show that the relationship Clare gradually forms with Raki as an adult closely parallels the relationship Clare
formed with Teresa as a child, albeit in reverse; in the past story arc, she is
the one who unwittingly helped rehumanize a detached
and businesslike Claymore, while in the present story arc Raki
is serving the same function for her. Given the characteristic that makes Clare
different from other Claymores, this is especially ironic. These episodes also,
arguably, form the best story arc in the entire series, with some truly
heartfelt moments.
Episodes 9-11 Involve Clare’s first
team mission hunting an Awakened Being, which is significant for four reasons:
it introduces the recurring characters Miria, Helen, Deneve, and Galatea; it fully
explains how Awakened Beings come about; it shows where Clare stands within the
power ranks of the organization; and it suggests at deeper and slightly more
sinister motivations within the hierarchy of the Claymore organization,
although the anime series devotes little later effort to exploring them further.
(This series is all about the ground-pounders, not
the leaders.) Episodes 12-14 bring about a major plot development, bring back a
character thought dead, and put Clare up against a fellow Claymore for the
first time as they introduce Ophelia, unquestionably the most twisted and menacing
of all the Claymores. Episodes 15-17 introduce recurring character Jeanne and
the Dwellers of the Deep/Abyssal Ones, which sets up the Northern Campaign
story arc which finishes out the series and introduces both Easley/Isley and numerous additional Claymores. Notably, the
series includes no unnecessary stand-alone tales, side stories, or filler;
every episode is, in some way or another, either directly a part of the bigger
picture or in some way establishing details directly relevant to the bigger
picture, although it may not seem that way at first with the past story arc.
Once the series gets past the
backstory arc it increasingly takes on the feel of a typical shonen action
series, albeit one with a decidedly more severe and mature tone than normal.
The staging of the action scenes, power build-ups, increasing power levels/skill
sets, and friends and foes constantly prematurely declaring battles over or
settled all smack of standard shonen action practices, and many of the
animation shortcuts used in fights also will remind any experienced viewer of
any number of other action series. The biggest detracting factor to the series
is, in fact, its inability to achieve much beyond its shonen origins. The
content does get far more graphic and brutal than the norm for shonen content,
with graphic depictions of mangled bodies, decapitations, severed limbs, spurting
blood, characters impaled or ripped in half, and unsettling displays of torture
being regular elements. Add in a bit of nudity here and there and one attempted
rape scene you have a series that would be well into the R-rated range by MPAA
standards; a 16+ age rating is expected for the upcoming American DVD releases.
The striking character designs for
the Claymores and inventive Awakened Being designs serve as the artistic
highlights in a series which has one of the darkest and most drab overall color
schemes you’ll ever see in an anime title, although occasionally this does
create some dramatic visual contrasts. (Especially in
episodes 25 and 26.) Animated fight scenes tend to take a lot of
shortcuts, especially in the early going, but become more involved and fluid as
the series progresses and the animation otherwise is good.
The anime version does generally
follow the original manga, although it diverges quite a bit towards the end of
the series as it reinterprets some of the key events that happen during the
Northern campaign. With the exception of Raki’s
disposition, the end of the last episode does at least generally bring the
series back in line with the manga, which leaves the opportunity open for a
follow-up series at some point when more manga content is available to be
adapted. Some points not elaborated upon in the anime, such as Rafaela’s
situation, what the deal is with the present-timelines Number 1 and Number 2
(who are mentioned but don’t appear in the anime), and the Numbers of certain
Claymores, are better-explained in the manga.
The Japanese cast is notable for being
practically a “Who’s Who” of well-known seiyuu,
although it is hurt a bit by them having to generally speak in a lower pitch
than normal and the difficulty some of them have in correctly pronouncing the English
names prevalent in the series. English cast members have not yet been announced
as of this writing.
If you’ve ever wanted to explore the
dark and graphic side of fantasy anime, or can appreciate the appeal of lithe,
sexy blond chicks wielding big swords, then this is a series certainly worth
checking out. Arguments over whether the anime’s end is exactly right or total
crap get rather vehement, although I feel the end of the series perfectly
rounds out the actual central theme of the series: to save Clare from herself.
Looked at one way, most of the series ultimately comes down to that.
Overall: B+
Japanese Voice Acting: B+
Story: B+
Artistry: A-
Animation: B+
Music: B+
Episode Count: 26
Graphic Content: Very High
Fan Service: Some nudity and near-nudity, but not a
regular feature.
U.S. Licensing Prospects: License recently announced by FUNimation. Exact
release dates have not been announced yet.