This review was made after watching the entire show of 26 episodes. I have never been interested in anime, to be honest, until about a year ago (I'm 32 years old), when I decided to give a chance to one of the most famous ones (in the form of Attack on Titan). Suffice to say, i realized what I had been missing over the last couple of decades so I treated myself with Berserk, Vinland Saga and Tokyo Ghoul so far. But this review isn't really about any of those. It's about another anime that seems a bit like an underdog when compared to those heavy hitters. And this anime is none other than Claymore, which by far impressed and touched me the most out of everything I've seen so far.

In a nutshell, Claymore is about a a group of superhuman female warriors which fight monsters known in-universe as Yoma. These young women bear the same name as the show itself...Claymores, mostly because of the gigantic swords they use to do their fighting with. In a way, you can think about Claymore as a mix of Berserk and The Witcher. At first glance, the premise of the show sounds very simple and straightforward, right? In a way, it is and in other ways it isn't. Without spoiling anything, this is a tale of revenge, betrayal, friendship, comradeship, despair and hope. And not necessarilly in that order.

In any one aspect taken individually, I'd say Claymore is inferior to the anime I mentioned earlier. Attack on Titan has a more epic story with many characters that get enough screen time. Vinland Saga is more cohesive and has tighter storytelling, while Berserk has more in-depth character reflection and a dichotomy between the leads which is legendary among anime fans at this point. So why did I love Claymore more than anything else?

Short answer, the characters. The main character, Clare, is one of the best protagonists in a series I've ever seen. She doesn't even have a huge amount of dialogue, but what is there is usually well written. As you learn more about her and her story, you can't help but empathize and connect. I gotta say the show has some moments where it pulls on your heart-strings like nothing else. The supporting cast is is also full of interesting characters, both on the good and bad side. Some of them have very short presences in the show, but they are very memorable nevertheless.

The world of Claymore is quite a bleak one but at the same time beautiful. Despair and fear is as pervasive as it was in Berserk, for example. But, even so, one of the things that impresse me most in this world and story is the were the pervasive themes of hope and perseverance. Now matter how dark things got, and they do get really dark, you still feel the character's holding a bit of hope that they will prevail. And that bit of hope passes onto you, the viewer, as some scenes keep you on the edge of your seat and you tell yourself that there's no way to win but still hope that they will. And while these warrior women have superhuman abilities that wouldn't be out of place in a Marvel or DC comic, they never feel overpowered, as the horrors they have to face are an order of magnitude higher even than that.

Animation-wise, the show might feel a bit dated, but it is in no way bad. Combat is extremely fast and stylish. It is very violent but I never found it gory or disgusting. Despite having a lot of it, I never really thought the show offered its violence in a gratuitous manner. The Claymores, at least the more important characters among them, all have unique features that set them apart from one another. Even in a setting where all Claymores are blonde, athletic women with silver eyes. I read in another review that the Claymores looked all the same and that is simply not true. Clare, Teresa, Irene, Galateea, etc all look unique. Here I would also like to give praise to the creators/animators for not spamming you with fan service or the over-sexualization of the female characters. They treat the female body with more respect than other series I've watched.

Another great asset of the series is its soundtrack. In the first few episodes I actually found the music bizzare, but as I got sucked more into the story and setting, I realized most songs fit perfectly. Also, one of the best intro and outro songs I've ever heard in a series. The voice acting is also top notch.

While i've been thinking of Claymore ever since I finished watching it a few days ago, and as I'm rating it a 9 here, it still has some flaws, which I'll mention next. The most glaring that fans were upset about was the ending. A lot of reviews might tell you the ending is horrible and you should just read the manga and avoid the anime entirely. For what its worth, I'd advise you to do the opposite. As a non-manga reader myself, I found the ending to be decent, if not great. That's mostly because it left a lot of unanswered questions and was not entirely definitive. But to me, it just felt like an ending to a chapter, if not the whole story. Ironically, it was this ending that got me to read the actual Claymore manga. Some of the dialogue can also feel a bit basic, with characters stating the obvious when its not required.

It can be over dramatic at times and too sentimental for its own good, but that particular aspect is very subjective.

I might have rambled a bit here, but all in all, I highly recommend Claymore if you want to see a touching, if quite violent story, featuring some badass but still vulnerable ladies.