Claymore 10
June 7th, 2007 by Shirukii
Each passing episode of Claymore makes it so much harder to resist the temptation to read the manga, made even worse by the fact that it’s literally sitting right next to me T_T This episode manages to incorporate coherent plot development in the midst of a shounen style battle which manages not to rely on typical hax, despite seemingly unfavorable odds.
Episode Rating: 9/10
From the very start of the battle, it’s clear that the Claymore are beat in terms of raw power. The awakened being rips through Deneve and dodges Helen’s onslaught with ease. Clare doesn’t do much better, being effortless tossed aside while trying to defend Helen.
Even when Deneve and Helen awaken their yoma powers, high speed regeneration and extendable limbs respectively, the power gap between the claymore and the awakened being is far too great.
With Clare, Deneve and Helen injured beyond the point of fighting, Miria decides to get serious. By compressing yoki into short but powerful bursts she is able to move ridiculously fast, often so fast that it leaves an afterimage (flash step anyone?). This power has earned her the name of ‘Phantom Miria’. She first gathers her team members and puts them aside to rest in hopes they might survive their wounds, then she gets to work on the awakened being.
Despite having the advantage for a while, Miria is eventually pinned down by the awakened being. Clare explains that while Miria’s technique is impressive, the large bursts of yoki are too stressing on her body and mind to use in rapid succession and she used it too much.
With the whole team down for the count, unexpectedly, it’s Clare that stands up for their last stand. She calmly walks towards to awakened being, and surprisingly, despite her seemingly linear movements, the is unable to land a blow on her. Clare has developed the power to sense subtle changes in yoki and dodge attacks before they are even launched, a technique no doubt inspired by Teresa.
But Clare’s sense is not as finely tuned as Teresa’s was, yet. When on the offensive, Clare’s ability to accurately sense the flow of yoki decreases, so this time she needs to rely on the help or Miria to finish off the awakened being.
Meanwhile, a claymore and her handler sit just outside the range of the team’s detection and observe the battle. The claymore is identified as Galatea and has the ability to sense yoki from great distances with frightening precision, enough to detect changes in reaction and mood.
While the battle rages on, the handler explains the reason why male awakened being exist. In the early stages of the claymore society, male warriors were also created. While they were a success in terms of battle capability, they had an inherent flaw that made them useless. When males released their yoma powers they felt a sense of pleasure that was almost sexual in nature, because of this they were unable to control themselves and ended up passing their limits too quickly for them to be any use. Any remaining male claymore were left to themselves and released as awakened beings and the society began to create solely female claymore.
Thoughts
Even though a lot of people told me it would be the case, I’m still relieved to know that Clare’s growth will occur progressively, rather than be triggered by any one event. As Miria noted, she must have been fine tuning her ability to detect yoki for the sole purpose of hunting awakened beings, or perhaps more accurately, Priscilla. And even now, it’s still imperfect, its effectiveness dropping severely when she goes on the offensive.
But it makes me wonder, why didn’t Clare use this ability when fighting that yoma in the church o.O It wasn’t too long ago so her ability to sense yoki must have been close to, if not on par to what she’s able to do now. The opponent was most likely using enough yoki for Clare to effectively use it against him, yet she chose to rely on brute force instead, forcing her to pass her limit, only having been saved thanks to Raki. I guess it just wouldn’t make sense to reveal it at that point in the series, as we had yet to go through the Teresa flashback arc, but it’s an inconsistency nonetheless =\
I wonder how the outcome of this battle affects Clare’s rank. Actually, on that note, how are claymore’s ranks even decided? It seems like they can challenge each other to move up in rank, but seeing as that would require a sort of ranking tournament between all claymore, I think that’s the exception rather than the rule. But in any case, it seems like Clare’s rank is more or less irrelevant, given her unique skill. Depending on the opponent her effectiveness in combat could be either pathetically low or high enough to rival single digit ranks, as we saw in this episode.
Miria noted that Clare needs much more training to further refine her skills and be able to control her sense at will. I just hope that Claymore doesn’t degenerate into a StrikerS-esque training arc, that would suck. But I also don’t want to see a Naruto-esque timeskip where Clare returns from several years of training and is suddenly a hax machine. Yea I’m being greedy, but I hope it can be pulled off! =D
There’s also the matter of male awakened beings I hope they develop some more. When Miria and the awakened being were fighting he mentioned that there was a specific reason why the four were sent after him, Miria seemed to have figured it out, but the audience is never told, and I can’t come up with anything =( So hopefully that’s given some sort of explanation too.
And lastly, I’m glad that the individual claymore are beginning to become more and more unique. At the beginning it looked like they were all based off the same template with different hairstyles, and as much as that’s true, each one is still able to stand out as an individual. From their unique personalities and motivations to their own fighting styles and special skills, it’s becoming increasingly easier to distinguish between them all. Maybe that 20 claymore battle royale won’t be so hard to follow after all XD
~ Shirukii ~
22 Responses to “Claymore 10”
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What I do is read one volume and then watch one episode ^_^
I love the opening and ending music.
As for the church battle, I think she was wounded already, still fighting the yoma/warning the knights and not really concentrating on suppressing her yoki or reading the flow.
The reason why Claire can read Yoki much better now will be revealed in the next episode but it’s related to the fact that she almost awakened after the church battle.
Well, there will eventually be a 20+ Claymore battle royale! And a ‘gap’ for training! But don’t worry, this isn’t Naruto, and won’t be.
If you can stand staying away from the manga, do, since this story only gets much better from here onward.
Depending on how fast things progress next episode, we should get to meet Ophelia. It will be interesting to see how the anime handles her.
Nice to see Galatea, too, a favorite of the manga readers. As for me, I’m looking forward to seeing Riful, though that’s a bit off. (If you are quick, you can spot her at the end of the OP.)
@ Servbot: One volume per ep is actually a pretty good idea, I might start doing that and line up the volume releases with the end of the series, thanks for the idea.
@ Za_Paper: It pains me to have to wait a week after every episode T_T
@ Silvering: Thanks for the reassurance on the time skip.
My will power is still holding for the manga, though I might do what Servbot suggested as we near the end.
The abundance of characters in Claymore is sort of a mixed blessing. On one hand I love huge casts because there’s potential for a lot more interaction and such, but on the other hand the sheer volume of characters means that they each get that much less individual development. The number of characters may be limitless, but the time they have to explain them all is unfortunately finite.
This manga & anime rocks!
every episode is a must watch!
though i’ve read the manga till chapter 72
I still watch the anime eagerly every week
This is the best anime i’ve watched so far
the plot is nice, the graphics and fights are awesome!
MADHouse is the best!
Despite the many characters in Claymore, there does end up being a ‘core cast’ of Claymores.
In fact, we’ve just met them in Miria and her band of very special Claymores. They provide some focus as the story moves on, though there are many other interesting characters who should stand out even though they have limited screentime.
“Neo-Teresa” Galatea, “Honorable” Jean, and “Muscle-Freak” Undine are all memorable, just for starters. And this isn’t even to speak of the character who seems a new incarnation of Griffith from Berserk.
Man, what a great manga. Just don’t read it, Shirukii!
Yeah, true that. I sure don’t wish the anime to descend into Nartuo or DBZ-esque OVER NINE THOUSAND powering up. However, I doubt the anime would pull something as cheap as that.
Anyway, I’m glad that I kept watching this anime. It keeps getting better and better in every new episode.
If you want the start reading the manga but avoid spoiling the anime, here’s a list of how the anime eps correspond to the manga’s volumes and chapters:
-Ep. 01 = Vol. 01 Chapters 01 & 03
-Ep. 02 = Vol. 01 Chapters 02 & 04 (ch02 is mostly skipped over in the anime and only part of it is shown in the first minute of the episode)
-Eps 03-04 = Vol. 02 & Vol. 03 Chapters 10-11
-Eps 05-08 = Vol. 03 Chapters 12-15, Vol. 04, & Vol. 05 Chapters 22-24 (the last part of ch. 24 is shown in the beginning of ep. 09)
-Eps 09-10 = Vol. 05 Chapters 25-27 & Vol. 06 Chapters 28-29 (ep. 10 ends halfway through ch. 29)
-Ep. 11 = Vol. 06 Chapters 29-30
-The Next Story Arc (that will probably start with Ep. 12) = Vol. 06 Chapters 31-33, Vol. 07, & Vol. 08 Chapter 40
So up to this point it’s safe to read up to Vol. 6 Ch. 28, but you probably would only want to read up to the end of Vol. 5 (unless you think you have the willpower to read up to ch 28 and not simply turn the page and read the rest of the volume ;-P).
In the end, it’s a question of knowing yourself and whether or not, once you start reading the manga, you can resist the urge to read ahead of anime and not spoil yourself.
My anime watching was kind of backlogged this week because of grad, so I’m just catching up now :)
I gotta say that Claymore continues to impress and intrigue me…..the monster for this week was just kickass, and Clare’s gradual development is working out nicely!
@ Shirukii:
As far as Claymore rankings go….my guess is that it is determined by two factors:
a) the handlers: Since the handlers are the ones who collect money/see their Claymore’s handiwork when a youma is killed/take care of their needs, the Handler’s would in effect form an Executive Council…
.they would be aware of what all 47 Claymores are capable of at any given time and be able to rank them accordingly
b) Individual battles between Claymores: Out of sheer pride, Claymores battle each other for distinction/whenever their authority is challenged……..
I haven’t read the manga, but that would be my best guess…..
@ b_k: Definitely one of the best anime of the season.
@ Silvering: I’m fighting the temptation! I only need to survive uh…a couple more months T_T
@ Hangmen: Well, judging from the comments of the manga readers we have here, we can lay those worries to rest.
@ Za_Paper: Thanks for the episode guide! I don’t trust myself to not read the whole manga once I start, so I’m going to resist the urge for now =D
@ Kanon_fan82: Argh, don’t mention backlogs haha, I have a huge one. It puts me in a tough position too, as sometimes I have to decide whether to watch more anime or whether to blog an episode or two. It often leads me to leave holes in series (ie. I’ll be skipping sola 09), but that’s how it goes =(
I guess that ranking system would be the most logical, handlers report their relative skill and now and then there are claymore vs claymore challenges for rank.
But as we see in Clare’s case, strength is so relative, based on opponent and circumstance.
i commend your ability to stay off the manga shirukii…
i started reading the manga yesterday to just know the ending of the slashers arc but before i knew it, it was morning and i have read up to chapter 73… orz
one thing i can comment about the anime vs manga is that the anime is darker, there are scenes i can’t see clearly in te anime while perfectly clear in the manga… but still i’m enjoying both the anime and manga…
*puts hands together*
forgive me father for i have sinned T_____________T;;;;;
after last weeks claymore-episode the pain was too much, i couldn’t resist the urge to d/l the claymore vol’s anymore :’((( it was like my brains stopped functioning like they were in a _state of trance_ or something. my body moved on his own! it truly did father T_____T;;;;
and now, one day later, i’ve read all the volumes and the awareness of what i just have done slowly appears T___T;;; i feel weak dirty and abused for giving into the claytard voices in my head T___T;;; and now i feel like all the mystery is gone. the mystery of how one can have such a hax regenerationlevel and still have such a lame number.. the mystery of the mysterious claymorewoman who is observing them all T____T;;; all the mystery is gone now!! and i have myself to blame for that T___T
don’t make the same mistake i did T____T;;; for i still hate myself T___T;;;
did you know your “who subs what”-link in the links-section is dead? i think i broke it T_______T;;;
@ kaz3phyrous & twsl: Weaaaak! XD
Okay I probably shouldn’t say that because the probability that I’m going to give in is pretty high. I really don’t know if I have the will power to resist reading for another few months. But on the up side, at least everyone who reads it thinks it’s awesome, which will make the wait all the more sweet.
And the ‘Who Subs What’ link works fine for me o.o
orz orz orz
give in to the dark side… we know you can’t resist it… awaken and be reborn with the knowledge of what happens in the manga and suffer the wait of the monthly chapter release…
on another note… i don’t think my enjoyment in watching the anime version will suffer much… maybe it will just be the occasional “this is scene is so dark i can hardly see anything” complaint, but overall there are scenes in the manga that i can’t wait to be animated…
on yet another note… a week hasn’t even past and i already reread the manga… orz… why can’t the release be weekly…
If you ask me, I think that Clare’s abblity to read Yoki depends on how much yoki she is releasing. I mean, even the finest radiation detector is useless if it releases radiation itself. That would explain why her abblity to sense yoki decreases when she goes on the offensive, since she can’t really fight without releasing her Yoki powers. And that would explain why Teresa almost never releases her powers. Of course, this is just theory.
Aa a side note, how many people here think it’s going to turn into a hentai scene Miria got caught.
lol kaz3phyrous, that’s so not nice ^_____^;;; but you’re right, i’m also looking forward to see some stuff animated. omg if i only think about how some of the future awakened beings are going to look like i already go like ~KKYYYAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH~~ some of the designs of the awakened beings are so unbelievable well made that i can only pray and hope that the animated part will be as badass as the manga ^_________^;;;
ohhhh by the wayyy, i read somewhere that if the claymore anime would become really popular, the publisher of the claymore manga could push the mangaka to change it from a monthly to a weekly release o______O can anybody verify this? O_O has this happened before.. or would it be the first time? x_x;;;
@twsl where did you here that from?? i hope it would be true… the claymore anime version i think has begun to become popular… omni even put on his polls if he should blog claymore… i just hope the change of pace wont also change the quality of the manga… my favorite awakened has got to be that loli she’s such a tsundere… i wonder who’s gonna voice her… i think kanede tomoko would be nice as her seiyuu… i’m not saying anymore to avoid spoilers… hmmm… i feel like rereading the manga again… orz
heh i just read it at a belgian forum or smth ^__^ but i don’t know if it is that trustworthy so i was just hoping someone could verify T____T;;;
man, i love Claymore for it’s graphic fighting scenes and well plotted storylines. What more can one asks for in an anime. I am waiting eagerly for eps..13-26..that fight between clare and ophelia will be one kick ass fight.. Doesanyone know when the other episodes will be released?
Episode 13 is out already, subbed by Eclipse, you can find it on Tokyo Toshokan. Claymore is released weekly and it takes a day or so for fansubs to come out.
damn d more i c it…d more i wanna c it more..i just started watchin it..i’m on episode 8 now…its really kool watchin em fight lik tat…