Claymore (Kureimoa)
Based on the Manga written by Norhiro Yagi and developed for television by Madhouse studios, Claymore is a story, revenge, friendship and sorority.
In a world where the populace are terrorised and hunted by demons called ‘Youma’, a secretive organisation develop powerful weapons against these monsters, half-human and half-‘Youma’ warriors. These vigorous mercenaries are hired out by the organisation to villages and towns that are under attack from these vicious and coldblooded monsters. The people of the world have dubbed these warriors as, Claymores due to the huge and heavy swords that they wield. The Claymores themselves are considered just as dangerous as the demons and are treated with more fear rather than respect. The first Claymores were men but when women were found to be better candidates for the process, the organisation created 47 new powerful Claymores from young women.
Claymore is the story of Clare, a young Claymore and is ranked as the weakest of all her sisters, ranking at 47th. After saving a village from devastation by a clan of Youma, Clare is followed by Raki, a young boy who lost his family to the monsters. Despite her solitary nature and her inability to feel any real emotion, Clare protects and trains Raki in the art of the sword, forced to separate after they are attacked by a monstrous Claymore known as Ophelia , Clare promises to find him if she survives. Clare is no ordinary Claymore, behind her gold eyes lies a story of pain, loneliness and rage, she fights to avenge the death of someone she once held so dear to her but to face the one who took the life of the woman was a mother to her, she has to push herself to the point of breaking, a point that once crossed no Claymore can usually return.
Claymore is one of those Animes that you can’t just watch one episode at a time – superbly written with a moving and engaging storyline. At times it can be a little confusing but any and all story arcs are dealt with before the show ends. Twenty-six episodes based on the first eleven volumes of the Manga series, the final two episodes have an alternate ending to the novels.
The animation is beautifully done, with expert attention to deal. The battles between the Claymores and the demons are superb, the action sequences will have you on the edge of your seat. The pale colours are contrasted to the buckets of blood red splashed with each slice of the steely gold of the Claymore blades. The soundtrack features the opening and closing tracks from the Anime, the opening, Raison d’Etre by Nightmare and the ending theme by Guilty Sky by Riyu Kosaka but the entire 32 track CD’s are incomplete with some of the pieces from the show missing.
With the intricate detail in the story and the animation, you would expect that it there would be an information overload but Claymore does not suffer. This isn’t the kind of Anime where you can skip or miss an episode, each episode interweaves perfectly and missing a single one will cause some confusion. This is a must see piece of work by Madhouse and if you find yourself wanting to learn more about the series then the @rcade recommends you check out the full Manga series.
Bad Points
Intense story and details can be overwhelming
Good Points
Beautiful animation
Superb storyline
Excellent Character development
The Verdict: 9/10
